A to Z Survey

So by now you all have seen this little survey going around. It was created by Jamie over at The Perpetual Page Turner as a way to stave off blogger/blogging bordem. I think it's a brilliant idea and so today, may I present to you my A to Z survey.

Author you’ve read the most books from:

Nora Roberts- This is a little embarrassing- I haven't read a novel by Nora Roberts in a few years and still according to Goodreads she's who've I've a lot by. Megan Hart comes in second though and I'm okay with that.

Best Sequel Ever:

Scarlet by Marissa Meyer- I liked Cinder (a lot), but I really liked Scarlet. I think it took the story to a whole new level. 

Currently Reading:

Arranged by Catherine McKenzie

Drink of Choice While Reading:

Tea! I am a BIG tea drinker! It makes me happy. My favourites are Red Rose (Orange Pekoe) and Celestial Seasons Madagascar Vanilla (Rooibos). 

E-reader or Physical Book?

I absolutely prefer physical books. But since I got my new Kobo Aura I have found that I have been using it more often. But I like the way books look on my shelf.  

Fictional Character You Probably Would Have Actually Dated In High School:

Hmm- Probably Conrad from The Summer I Turned Pretty. I had the biggest crush on all the older boys when I was in HS. They all seemed so mature and mysterious to me. 

Glad You Gave This Book A Chance:

Witchlanders by Lena Coakley 

Hidden Gem Book:

45 Pounds (More of Less) by KA Barson

Important Moment in your Reading Life:

The moment my grandmother went through her book boxes with me and showed me how to read the genre tags on the spines of books. It was than that I could finally tell the difference between her "fiction" "suspense" and "romance novels. 

Just Finished:

The Boy Who Sneaks In My Bedroom Window by Kirsty Moseley

Kinds of Books You Won’t Read:

I don't know that there are any books that I won't try. I am not a huge fan of non-fiction. I generally only read them for school. 

Longest Book You’ve Read:

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by JK Rowling (870 pages). 

Whoop whoop! I knew Harry Potter would find itself onto my list. 

Major book hangover because of:

Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling. 

I devoured this book. I read it the first week it came out and it took me two days. While working eight hours a day on both days. This may be why I have only read it once. 

Number of Bookcases You Own:

Two- But it certainly isn't enough. I also have a dresser in which I use the drawers to house my books. 

One Book You Have Read Multiple Times:

The Hunter's Moon by OR Melling- I read this for the first time when I was in the fourth grade and have reread it a number of times since then. It's one of my favourites. 

Preferred Place To Read:

My chair in my room. It's big and cozy. I can easily snuggle up into it and read for hours. 

Quote that inspires you/gives you all the feels from a book you’ve read:

"I'm in love with you, and I'm not in the business of denying myself the simple pleasure of saying true things. I'm in love with you, and I know that love is just a shout into the void, and that oblivion is inevitable, and that we're all doomed and that there will come a day when all our labour has been returned to dust, and I know the sun will swallow the only earth we'll ever have, and I am in love with you.”

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

This book did something to me when I read it. I can't pinpoint what it is. But it was something. I actually have this passage as the screen saver for me phone. 

Reading Regret:

I think my biggest reading regret is getting caught up in the hype of a novel. And feeling like I ABSOLUTELY need to read it right away because it seems like EVERYONE is reading it and loving it. In my experience when a book is overly talked about I kind of don't like it. This is not the rule, but it happens to me more often than not. Make sense? 

Series You Started And Need To Finish (all books are out in series):

1) Across the Universe (I've only read the first one)

2) The Inheritance Cycle by Christopher Paolini (I've read the first two)

Three of your All-Time Favorite Books:

1) Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta 

2) The Fault in Our Stars by John Green 

3) Change of Heart by Jodi Picoult 

Unapologetic Fangirl For:

Megan Hart- The first book I ever read by her- Dirty- was amazing. It is absolutely up there in my top five favourite books. I think she's a brilliant writer and if you want to try something that is out of your comfort zone, check her out. 

Very Excited For This Release More Than All The Others:

I get a little over excited at the prospect of a new Black Dagger Brotherhood novel. But coming in March of 2014 is The King which is a different spin on the series. I am very excited about it. 

Worst Bookish Habit:

I don't think that I have bad bookish habits. But you know. While I do make it a habit of using a bookmark if I can't find one I just break the spine of my book and lay it flat. Doesn't matter if it's a paperback or hard cover. This is usually why I break the spines of my books (oh yeah, I do that too).

X Marks The Spot: Start at the top left of your shelf and pick the 27th book:

Paper Valentine by Brenna Yovanoff

Your latest book purchase:

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

ZZZ-snatcher book (last book that kept you up WAY late):

Boundless by Cynthia Hand- I absolutely needed to know what was going to happen and I lost HOURS of sleep.

Thanks so much to Jamie for coming up with this fun survey. You can find the original post here. 

~Happy Reading Everyone! 

Stacking the Shelves (11)

So it has been MONTHS since I last posted a book haul! Like SO long. I don't know why it's taken so long. I guess I didn't realize that I was getting so many books. So here I am with a collective book haul for you all. I hope you enjoy. 

Stacking the Shelves is hosted over at Tynga's Reviews. 

Books Mentioned: 

Cinder by Marissa Meyer 

My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpartick

Fire with Fire by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivan 

Ten Tiny Breaths by KA Tucker

To Be Perfectly Honest by Sonya Sones 

Darkbeast Rebellion by Morgan Keyes 

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer

How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff

Birthmarked by Caragh O'Brien

Perfect Ruin By Laura DeStefano 

Wedding Night by Sophie Kinsella 

Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo 

Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor 

Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan 

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes 

I know that's a lot but that's what I got. 

Happy Reading Everyone! 

Bout of Books 8.0- Sign Up & Goals

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, August 19th and runs through Sunday, August 25th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 8.0 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team.

Hello there,

I hummed and hawed about whether I was going to participate in the Bout of Books read-a-thon that begins on Monday. I take part in May and had a blast and read SO much but I wasn't working then and could spend all day reading. I am not working full time and can sometimes feel pretty exhausted when I get home. But alas, here I am signing up- Because I want to. 

Goals: 

Because I am working and have would like to enjoy the rest of my summer outside I am going to set realistic goals for myself.  

• I would like to read at least seventy-five (75) pages per weekday & one hundred (100) on the weekends
• I would like to start and finish two (2) books during the read-a-thon 

Really those are the only goals that I have. I do have a couple of books that I could like to read during the week though: 

1) How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff

2) Fire With Fire by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian 

3) Arranged by Catherine McKenzie 

Not a a lot but I am keeping these goals simple to so that my chances of success remain high. I will be keeping track of my progress on this post. So stay tuned. I'm excited for this to get started now.

Updates 

Monday
Currently reading: The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks

What I've read: The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks

Pages read: 92 (which is more than I planned).

Tuesday
Currently reading: How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff

What I've read: How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff

Pages read: 43 (fail)

Wednesday
Currently reading: How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff/ Rainshadow Road by Lisa Kleypas

What I've read: Rainshadow Road by Lisa Kleypas

Pages read: 95 (much better) 

Thursday
Currently reading: Rainshadow Road by Lisa Kleypas

What I've read: 

Pages read: 169 (Boo Ya!!)

Friday
Currently reading: Rainshadow Road by Lisa Kleypas (I'm almost done).

What I've read: 

Pages read: 

Saturday
Currently reading:

What I've read:  

Pages read: 

Sunday
Currently reading:

What I've read: 

Pages read:

~Happy Reading Everyone!  

My Thoughts: Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea by April Genevieve Tucholke

You stop fearing the devil when you’re holding his hand…

Nothing much exciting rolls through Violet White’s sleepy, seaside town…until River West comes along. River rents the guest house behind Violet’s crumbling estate, and as eerie, grim things start to happen, Violet begins to wonder about the boy living in her backyard. Is River just a crooked-smiling liar with pretty eyes and a mysterious past? Or could he be something more? Violet’s grandmother always warned her about the Devil, but she never said he could be a dark-haired boy who takes naps in the sun, who likes coffee, who kisses you in a cemetery...who makes you want to kiss back. Violet’s already so knee-deep in love, she can’t see straight. And that’s just how River likes it.

**Review copy received from publisher**

There have been loads of people talking about the cover of this novel. And why shouldn’t they, it has an absolutely stunning cover. It has an air of mystery and really it’s a little frightening. I have been wanting to read Between the Devil and The Deep Blue Sea by April Genevieve Tucholke just from the cover alone and all the initial buzz that it has been getting. It felt like my kind of book. The synopsis makes the story sound so thrilling and a little bit scary. That and the cover…. Hello.

The fist thing I have to say about Tucholke's debut novel is that it was weird. Like really strange. There were times where I had definite WTF moments. This doesn't mean that I didn't enjoy the story, because I did. A lot. There were so many good things about Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea. The writing was beautiful and I was absolutely mesmerized by all that was taking place. I could never pin point exactly what was happening and sometimes that bothered me, but for the most part I just went with it. 

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea begins with Violet our protagonist and her brother having been abandoned by their parents to look after and maintain their crumbling estate- Citizen Kane. The pair are left totally broke and are forced to rent out their guest house in order to sustain themselves. This brings them River. What a mysterious boy this River turns out to be. Upon his arrival a number of EXTREMELY strange things begin to happen.

This book is difficult to review because I am still unsure if I thought it was brilliant or not. In some sense the book was all over the place and with all the strange things occurring the individuals involved were very well adjusted. They seemed to take it all in stride. In saying that, I loved the characters in this story. Every single one of them. Violet was wonderful in that she was a pretty simple character except that she never fell flat. She had her complexities and her ways about her. She was SO interesting to read about. Some of her reactions to things would have me baffled, and other times she was be so calm about something and I would think it was out of character for her- but in actuality it was just the way she was.

River, oh River. Jenny at Supernatural Snark says it beautifully in her review, that as readers try and fit River into this little box of perfect love interest when in reality he doesn't belong there. There is a darkness to him and as much as we try to find some good in him there might not be any. But because of how he presents himself we can't help but be drawn to him. He's a provocative character and we can't help but be addicted to his charm.

Overall, Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea is a whirlwind of a story, with a lot going on. And I think it's worth a try. April Genevieve Tucholke's writing is beautiful and her story telling breath taking. I am SO curious about how the rest of the story is going to play out and I am looking forward to it.

Happy Reading Everyone!

Top Ten Tuesday- Books I Want Sequels For

It's been a couple months since I have participated in Top Ten Tuesday. But this week's topic had me pretty excited as I have read a good number of books I wish would have kept going.

Top Ten Tuesday are hosted over at The Broke and Bookish

Top Ten Books I Wish Could Have Had Sequels (they were complete stories but you just could have read more and more about these characters or set in that world).

1) Dreamland by Sarah Dessen- This was one of the most powerful novels I have read. It takes on the issues of teen dating abuse and how traumatic and devastating it is. This was the second book by Dessen that I had ever read and I would have loved to have seen a follow up novel. Just to see how the characters were adjusting. I know perfectly well that this sort of story doesn't warrant sequels. But I was very invested in this book and didn't want to let it go. 

2) Stolen: A Letter to My Captor by Lucy Christopher- This book was CRAZY. A girl gets kidnapped from an airport in Asia and is taken to Australia. This wasn't a very long book and as you can imagine it ends. Without giving away to much (or anything really). But it would have been interesting to see a response letter. Maybe. 

3) Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma- I once asked Tabitha if we would be getting a book from the perspective of one of the brothers in the story. She said she couldn't possibly imagine writing his story. This character of whom I speak made a rather grave decision that had dire consequences I was very curious to see how he coped. This book made me ugly cry though. So it would have been pretty painful. 

4) After by Amy Efaw- This again is an issues novel about a girl who gets pregnant as a teenager and throws her baby in the garbage. She was in a lot of denial and could not remember if she had ever been pregnant. Once she realizes what she has done and surrenders. I would like to have seen what happens after she remembers and what happens to her baby. It just sort of ends. 

5) What Happens Next- I've been finding that a lot of contemporary novels kind of just end. With this one I would like to have seen what happened to the villain. We don't get to see much healing in this novel and I would like to see that process. Especially in this situation. 

6) The Reece Malcolm List by Amy Spalding- This book was just hysterical. I loved it. I could have gone on and on reading this book. I loved the characters and the banter was witty and clever and the relationships were genuine and authentic. I just really enjoyed reading this book. 

7) My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick- I don't think that I wish to see a sequel specifically but a companion. I loved the Garrett family and I want to see more of them. There is also the friend (Tim?), I would love to see his story. 

8) Pieces of Us by Margie Gelbwasser- Again this book sort of just ends and I wanted more. Don't get me

wrong had there been more it would have been a totally different book and probably not as good. But I wanted more of the story.

9) The Summer of Skinning Dipping by Amanda Howells- I am not sure why I feel like I need a sequel to this book. I guess I feel like whenever a book breaks my heart it needs to redeem itself somehow. This was a great story but it definitely hurt my heart.  

10) Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta- Need I say more? I could never get enough of Taylor and Jonah. 

  

July Wrap Up

Well, hello August. Where did you come from? I feel like this summer has just FLOWN by. I'm sure I'll say that every summer when August comes around. Anywho... I had a pretty fantastic reading month in July I read seven books but this resulted in a really crappy blogging month. But I think that's ok. Let's just jump right into it.

Books Read:

The Reese Malcolm List by Amy Spalding
Hopeless by Colleen Hoover
To Be Perfectly Honest by Sonya Sones
Sloppy First by Megan McCafferty
Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
Boundless by Cynthia Hand (Finally)
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer (for book club)

Books Reviewed:

Brooklyn Girls by Gemma Burgess (My Thoughts)
Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell (My Thoughts)
My Life After Now by Jessica Verdi (My Thoughts)

Random:

I am currently participating in the Summer Giveaway Hop that ends on August 7th. Be sure to head over and enter to win some of my favourite Summer Reads.

I'm still keeping track of my Summer TBR and have made a pretty hefty dent in it this past month.

Challenges:

Debut Author Challenge: 9/20 - I was hoping to read two last month but I didn't. Hoping to read at least two for August).

YA Audio Book Challenge: 4/12 - this has been a total fail. I have plans on posting a couple more audio reviews in the next couple months. But in all honesty I haven't been listening to anything lately. But I'm listening to something now that I am hoping to review next month.

2013 Reading Challenge: 49/75 Books- Still five books ahead. Love that I have almost read fifty books this year. Still waiting for that really amazing- still talking/thinking about it. I'm essentially waiting for the 2013 version of The Fault in Our Stars.

Haven't filmed my TBR yet- but I'll add it later when I do.

~Happy Reading Everyone!