Good Reads Summer Reading Challenge 2018

June is half over but it isn't too late to dip into fun summer reads, you know, those books that you enjoy the most at the beach, by the pool or from a chair on the deck with a glass of iced tea.   Go here Summer Reading Challenge Blog Post to download a free pdf copy of the complete challenge guide.

My Challenges

INTO THE GREAT WIDE OPEN:  Read a book that takes place in the great wide open.  (Loose interpretation, outdoors is close enough for me.)

TIME OF OUR LIVES:  Read a book in which the characters go on an adventure.

IT'S THE END OF THE WORLD:  Read a book about the end of the world as we know it.

DEAR PEN PAL:  Read a book that features letter or journal entries.

CAMPFIRE STORY:  Read a scary or creepy book * description has been amended slightly by me because I know I won't read any book that is too scary.  However this book is highly recommended for horror beginners by Adam Cesare, a horror author and You Tuber Recommended video

OCEAN BLUE:  Read a story that takes place on the water.  (Another loose interpretation, beside water is close enough.)

GET YOUR GRILL ON:  A book that features summer recipes or outdoor summer activities.  (This is a real stretch but the synopsis mentioned baking.)

THE COLORS OF SUMMER:  Read a book that features a yellow, green or sandy cover.

SAND BETWEEN MY TOES:  Read a book that takes place in or around a beach/ocean.

FUNNY BONE: Read a humorous book.

SUN, MOON AND STARS:  Read a book that takes place in outer space.

LIFE IS A HIGHWAY:  Read a book that features a road trip.  (A loose interpretation of 'road'.)

ONE AND DONE:  Read a book that you can finish in one day.  (Graphic novel for the win!)

READ THE WORLD:  Read a book that takes place in a country or focuses on a culture other than your own.  (Morocco)

HOOK'EM:  Read a book that features fishing or fishermen.  (Not even close but about marine life is close enough for me!)

POET AT HEART:  Read a book of poetry.

BEACH BUM:  Read a book that could be considered a beach read.  (Chic Lit for the win!)

ALL of the chosen books come from my GoodReads TBR list and/or are books I already own in physical or kindle format.  They may also fit into a few other side challenges but I will figure that out after I read them.  My main focus is on the SEASON so bring on the heat!  With a good book, sunglasses and a cold drink, it will be just like vacation.

Page Habit - Book Box Subscription

Welcome to my first book box subscription unboxing.
Given how much I love the Home Chef cooking box and I have been getting Kitnip boxes for 3 years, why has it taken so long for me to sign up for a bookish book?  Probably because I tend to only buy books from authors that I already know and always love.  I tend to try new authors via the library or lucky cheap finds at book sales and used book stores.

Why I chose Page Habit Quarterly:  The monthly book selection is annotated by the author to provide a unique and deeper reading experience.  Exclusive to the quarterly box, the author also selects two of his/her favorite or inspiration books.  Several bookish goodies complete the package and Page Habit makes a donation to support world literacy.

Quarterly boxes are available for the following genres:  Literary Fiction, Young Adult and Cookbook.    The monthly boxes also offer Mystery, Historical Fiction,  Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror, and Romance.  I chose Young Adult for my first quarterly box because I figured the odds were higher that I would get something I liked.  Literary Fiction is just too wide open and it is the genre I read least.

 I had lots of help from the kitties.  They are purrfessional unboxers having so much experience with Kitnip boxes.  They were a bit disappointed with the lack of catnip but still had a good time.

 This donation this quarter will go to Kenya and the card provides literacy statistics about the country.

 Book mark with a bookish quotation.  The print echoes the print on the Kenya card which is just as like to be used as a bookmark by me too.

 Faux wood stacking tin.  Not sure yet what I will use it for - tea bags, office supplies, earrings?

 SKY IN THE DEEP by Adrienne Young is YA Fantasy and the Page Habit synopsis describes it as "part Wonder Woman, part Viking".  Good Reads shows a solid 4 star rating and Amazon 4 1/2.  

 The annotations are on sticky notes so they can easily be moved/removed.  I am excited to read this with the author's insights.

 This is the first extra book selected by the author and it definitely grabs my attention.  I love the cover and it sounds like a great adventure in a fantasy world where reading is unheard of.  A young girl sets out on a fantastic adventure to rescue her kidnapped aunt with only this strange rectangular relic to guide her. Oh yeah, and there are pirates!

 This is the second author selected book and how I know I chose the right genre for me and I am going to love the other books.  I already know and love  I Capture The Castle and the copy I own is the movie version paper back cover.  Guess what?  That one is going to a book sale because I much prefer hardback and I love this cover!

 Cute bookish pin

 Sword Pen - LOVE it

 Always handy bookish tote bag

 Naked SKY IN THE DEEP (no dust jacket)

Last but not least, the letter from the author.

Blind Date with a Book February 2018

Happy Valentine's Day.  Its so nice to meet you.  Do you come here often?  I confess I was attracted to your pretty red paper right from the start but I had a hard time choosing between you and another.  

But it was what you said that made up my mind in the end.  I couldn't walk away from the promise in your lines.

Oh my! I know you.  We have met before

Once Upon A Time

Why yes, I would love to go out with you again.  It was so wonderful the first time and I am sure it will be again.

Check your local library to see if they participate in the February Valentine's Blind Date with a Book.

2018 Reading Goals

I used to just read.  I never thought about how many books I was going to read or what kind of books I would read.   I never made goals.  I simply read.  So why make goals now?  A couple of reasons - when you have a lot of demands on your time, reading can easily fall by the wayside so planning for it says 'this is important and therefore I must make time for it,'   Also if you have a book journal, a blog, a book tube channel or bookstagram, you need content and making goals helps ensure you will have something to talk about.

I saw a book tube video recently where the person said they set their GoodReads Reading Challenge Goal to 1 book so they wouldn't feel pressured if they weren't making their goal.  I get it, especially since I did not meet my original 50 book goal for 2017 and had to lower it.  Still I want my challenge to reflect a reasonable number of books that I expect to read this year.  I know I will at least read 2 books per month which would be 24 but more likely I will read 3 books per month (2 book club and one for me) so that would be 36.  To stretch myself a just a little more I have set the goal at 40 and that feels comfortable.  If it starts to look like I will not make that target, I hereby give myself permission to change the goal.  Problem solved.

I do have a few specific reading goals I would really like to accomplish this year.  If I write them down one of two things will happen.  Either I will try harder to achieve them or I will ignore them completely.  Let's see what happens

1.  Finish the Series

The 4th and Final book in the Wicked series

The 3rd Book in the Shades of Magic Series

The 3rd Book in the ACOTAR series

2.  Read books that are waiting on my Kindle:

Finish in progress:  Elantris, Strangeville, The Sister,  A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

Try a Chapter:  The Bedlam Detectie, Bridget Jone's Diary, The Wolf in the Attic,The Glass Books of the Dream Eaters, The Paper Magician, The Search for Anne Perry, The Butterfly Sister

Decide if I am going to DNF:  Out of the Shoebox, Gifts of the Blood, Anna Karenina, Bellefleur

Other goals - 

DNF more books if I don't like them, there are too many wonderful books waiting to waste time.

Be more honest with my Star ratings on Goodreads and not feel guilty about saying I didn't like a book.

Happy Reading!

My 2017 Reading Year

If you are wondering why you should join Good Reads, the Reading Challenge and Reading Year wrap up is a really good reason.  They provide some interesting statistics about the books you have read and seeing all the covers together is really beautiful.  

I set my 2017 goal at 50 (same as 2016 which I exceeded by 7) but ended up lowering to 45.  Instagram is entirely to blame for the reduction in reading time.  

I listened to both the shortest and the longest books on audio CD

I enjoyed Winter which was the conclusion to the Lunar Chronicles Series.

I did not enjoy Let It Snow which was too similar to Dashing Through the Snow by the same author which I had listened to earlier in the month. 

Most and least popular refers to how many people have read those books not necessarily how well they enjoyed them.  Trampling in the Land of Woe has an average 4.5 Star rating.

My average rating should actually be lower.  The Good Reads rating system defines 1 Star as "I did not like it", 2 Star as "It was ok", 3 Star as "I liked it", 4 Star as "I really really liked it" and 5 star as "It was amazing".  I tend to overrate books because at my work 1 Star and 2 Stars are considered negative on reviews.  A lot of books I rated 3 should really have been 2.  In the later half of the year, I made an effort to think of it in terms of how much I enjoyed the book regardless of how well it is written (or not).

Happy to say both of these are accurate ratings!

Highlights:  

Finished 3 series (Lunar Chronicles, Raven Cycle, Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children, Six of Crows duology)

Read 3 Graphic Novels (Wires and Nerve, Through the Woods, Anya's Ghost)

Favorite books of the year:  All 3 graphic novels,  The Girl Who Played With Fire, Crooked Kingdom, The Coldest Girl in Coldtown, Ender's Game

Least favorite books of the year:  The Perfect Poison, A Natural History of Dragons, Let it Snow, The Longest Ride

Update - I just realized I did't add The Martian to my Read shelf on GoodReads.  I listened to the audio CD in the summer.  The narrator was superb; he had just the right tone and inflection.  I almost quit listening 3/4 of the way through because there were so many heart stopping events that I couldn't take any more!   Adding this book did not change any major stats other than page count.

Christmas Song Book Tag

Original Tag by HailsHeartsNYC: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2CXZz...

Questions: 

1. "You're a Mean One Mr. Grinch"

Name a villainous character you couldn't help but love.    

Gavriel from The Coldest Girl in Coldtown

A morally grey character with a sense of honor and humor

2. "All I Want for Christmas is You"

Which book to you most hope to see under your Christmas tree?

The new illustrated Harry Potter books

The illustrations are exquisite.

3. "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer"

Name a character that overcomes major obstacles and learns to believe in themselves.

Odilia from Summer of the Mariposas

I literally just finished reading this one.  The main character is a good female role model for teen girls, not because she is perfect, but because she grows.

4. "Santa Claus is Coming to Town"

a) Which character do you think would be on the top of the naughty list?  

Rhys from A Court of Mist and Fury

Even though this second book tries to turn him into a saint, in my mind he is still a bit wicked.

b) Which character do you think would be at the top of the nice list?  

Gansey from The Raven Cycle series

Gansey is the definition of a nice guy.

5. "Frosty the Snowman"

Which book just melts your heart.  

Every Heart A Doorway 

I am not entirely sure this is my best answer but it definitely has a special place in my heart.  As soon as I read it I knew I had to own it.

6. "Feliz Navidad"

Choose a book that takes place in a country other than your own.  

The Girl Who Played with Fire

This is one of my favorite reads of 2017.

7. "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year"

Which holiday themed book do you use to spread the Christmas joy?   

A Christmas Carol

This is my all time forever favorite holiday tale.  I read, watch, listen in one form or another every year.  A ghost story for Christmas!

8. "Sleigh Ride"

Which fictional character would you choose to spend the holidays with (doesn't have to be a love interest!)  

The March Family from Little Women

I am dating myself with this one but it doesn't matter.   Before the Weasley's, the Beasleys, The Wards and The Bradys,  The March Family was my ideal.

9. "Baby it's Cold Outside"

Which book that you didn't like would you sacrifice to a fire to warm yourself up in the cold?  

Wolf Gift by Anne Rice 

Disclaimer:  I never finished this book.

It was so awful I just couldn't.

This is a Booktube tag but I thought it would be fun to try on the blog.  I intend to do more but this one fits the season at the moment.

Quarterly Reading Wrap Up

Dear Readers,
It has been several months since my last wrap up and since I have only been averaging two to three books per month, I have decided to go to a quarterly wrap up.  This post will cover the books I have read June through September.

Two graphic novels which were reviewed on the prior post so I won't rehash them here except to say I  did rate them 4 and 5 on GoodReads.

One contemporary Romance and one Historical Fiction/Fantasy Mash-up

I would have dnf'd Natural History of Dragons if I hadn't been listening on audio book and it was marginally better than sitting in traffic listening to commercials on the radio.  For me, the title should have been "How to make dragons the most boring subject ever studied".  The positives were the chapter titles; they were the most entertaining part of the story.  The negatives - there was a plot, even a mystery but a complete lack of action to reach the conclusion.  This book is the start of a series I will not be continuing with.
The Edge of Winter by Luanne Rice was ok.  I was reading it for over a year because it was just a book I picked up during lunch on my work from home days and it never got compelling enough to make me pick it up any other time.  The positives were the setting (Rhode Island) , a WWII subplot (German U-boat that sank off the coast), and interesting facts about the regional coastal birds.  The negatives were the completely predictable romantic story arc and the lack of depth to the characters.  I didn't care about the outcome because I never really got invested in the characters.  It improved toward the end but Luanne Rice has definitely written better books.
I rated both of these a 2 but that seems unfair comparing them side by side; the first should be a 1.

7 YA Fantasy

Buddy reading through The Inheritance Cycle series and I have rated the first two books 3 but really it should be closer to 2.  It is about a boy who discovers a dragon egg that hatches for him and he becomes a Dragon Rider whose destiny is to fight the evil king with the help of humans, dwarves and elves. The first book was written when the author was 16 and borrows heavily from existing genre classics but it does a fairly good job of world building and setting up the larger story arc.  The second book develops the world further and creates story arcs for different characters.  My impressions of the first two books are that the world is interesting but not entirely original and the plot is fairly well thought out but there isn't a whole lot of action from chapter to chapter.  Eragon is quite possibly the stupidest main character and hero that I have ever read.  I don't dislike him but  all of the other characters are smarter than him.  However, we just started the 3rd book Brisingr and the first ten chapters are fantastic.  The author has definitely matured as a writer.

I have never read the complete Chronicles of Narnia, only The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe.  I enjoyed The Magicians Nephew but it is not a very sophisticated story and I would recommend it for younger children.  The 'Genisis' re-imagining is lovely.
Caraval is a game and the winner gets one wish.  I love the magic of Caraval but the plot a very simplistic, predictable, and the conclusion is over explained.  I would recommend for the tween side of YA.
The Raven King is the 4th and final book in The Raven Cycle series.  I love the characters, the magical realism,  and the writing style in the series and I love the back stories that are filled in the final book.  However, the conclusion was kind of disappointing in multiple ways; one huge let down, one very predictable element, and the events at the conclusion were too rushed.  This is the weakest book in the series and it should have been the strongest.
Crooked Kingdom was a worthy follow up to Six of Crows.  More back story of the characters and the extreme twists and turns of the plot.  My only complaint is the last couple of chapters shouldn't exist. I would rather imagine what happens to everyone after the grand finale over being told in minute detail.
Finally I read 3 thrillers this quarter.

All three are worth a read.  Before the Fall is about plane crash with only 2 survivors and man who shouldn't have been on the flight and a little boy.  The plot is the investigation of why the plane crashed   This is very character driven and the ending was a little disappointing but overall I enjoyed it.
Station Eleven is science fiction / dystopian fiction (imagine everyone gets the flu and all the smart humans die) but there is definitely some thriller element to the plot and that was actually my favorite part of the story.
The Girl Who Played with Fire is hands down best book I have read all year.  I think it is even better than The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.  I was on the edge of my seat almost the entire time.