Nov 30, 2020

Challenges Monthly Wrap-up: November

CHALLENGE 1: 2020 New Release Challenge

Crush by Tracy Wolff (9/29/20)


36/25 this challenge is in bonus rounds!



CHALLENGE 2: Print ONLY 2020 Reading Challenge

The Devil You Know by Trish Doller
Crush by Tracy Wolff


Finally completed this one! 45 real books read! Even though the blog host has disappeared from the blogosphere I still wanted to meet my goal!



CHALLENGE 3: 2020 Discussion Challenge

Series Spotlight: The Weather Wardens
Pancakes or Waffles?
Supernatural Finale


So since New Blogger has basically made a sucky platform to write blog posts I've found it difficult to do a lot of blogging like I used to. So my discussion ideas have been few and far between this year. Past years I made it past the top tier...there's still potential for that if I push myself, I've 11 posts to go for that! So we'll see. It'll be a happy accident if that happens!



CHALLENGE 4: Beat the Back List 2020 Reading Challenge


The Devil You Know by Trish Doller (6/2/15)


32/20 not bad, not bad at all! I had hoped to read more TBR books this year, but that didn't go over as well as hoped. But in the long run my TBR and New Release books are fairly close in numbers!




CHALLENGE 5: 2020 Series Enders Reading Challenge


Defending the Galaxy by Maria V. Snyder (Sentinels of the Galaxy)


I'm super proud of this challenge! I initially aimed low at the beginning of the year, but then I ended up kicking butt and raised my challenge number throughout the year! I've now surpassed the top tier! 22/15+










It's Monday! What are You Reading?


It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date. It's a fun meme where we gather to share what we've read last week and our reading plans for this week.

 

Last Week I Read:

Crush by Tracy Wolff (5 stars)


 

Currently Reading:

Down Comes the Night by Allison Saft (ARC)

 

 

What I Plan to Read Next (Hopefully):

Watcher in the Woods by Kelley Armstrong



Other Posts of Interest:

Let's Discuss: Pancakes or Waffles?
Teaser & Top Ten Tuesdays
Waiting on Wednesday
Random Thursday
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!
Book Blogger Hop
Let's Discuss: Supernatural Finale
Stacking the Shelves

 

 

 

 

 


 

Nov 29, 2020

Stacking the Shelves

Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks! The meme is now hosted by Tynga's Reviews and Reading Reality.

 

I hope everyone in the US had a nice Thanksgiving despite our circumstances. Mine was a nice quiet affair. It was weird not to head out to the stores right after dinner. Very nice, but still weird. I pretty much did things out of order this year. I did Black Friday shopping early at all the various early sales. Then I did my Small Business Saturday shopping on Friday. I'll probably do some Cyber Monday shopping on Monday too! Mostly just at one site that I want to take a look at. How was your holiday and/or week? Have you started your holiday shopping yet? I am happy to say that I am nearly done! I might buy one more thing for my parents, which might be tricky since restaurants are closed in my county and I want to get a gift card for their favorite restaurant. I know I can probably order it curbside, I just feel like it might be a bit trickier since it's a Mexican restaurant and not everyone has the best English there and trying to do that kind of order on the phone might be tough. But if things open up again before Xmas I might be able to get more easily then. Here's hoping that things open up around the 14th!

 

This wasn't a bad week for books either! Check out what I got this week:

 

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo--Collector's Edition Fairy Loot-UK edition!
Hold Back the Tide by Melinda Salisbury--UK edition! I saw this on Goodreads in the contests a week or two ago and saw it was out in the UK already, so I had a well-timed TBD coupon, so I got it with that!
Kingdom of Flesh and Fire by Jennifer L. Armentrout--SIGNED! I plan to start this series once I get caught up on my review books!


November Fairy Loot Box!!


Then I also ordered a few other goodies that came in this week:


I also ordered the cute letter opener from the JLA shop and I got this Book Beau pouch as a surprise gift!


Then I ordered this cutie from Elissa J Designs on Etsy! It was a Friday deal which I only just realized she was having these special items on Fridays!



And then there was swag!!!



And then I won the October 2020 Series Enders Reading Challenge Wrap-up and got another Amazon gift card!


THANK YOU Sandy @ Somewhere Only We Know!


And then all my early Christmas shopping just earned me another B&N gift card! Just in time too! LOL!



And that was it for me! A pretty good week overall! What did you get this week?









Nov 27, 2020

Let's Discuss: Supernatural Finale

 

Well...it's been a week since the series finale of Supernatural aired and I cannot keep silent any longer! I have thoughts and feels over how this last episode went and I've been dying to vent! I mean I vented with my mom about it because we were both of the same mind! I spent 15 years watching, loving, and adoring this show so here we go! If you haven't watched it yet and don't want to be spoiled, please stop here!


Supernatural Finale


Okay, somewhere down the line of the show, like maybe halfway through I always wondered, how would Supernatural end? Like really end? The boys have died and come back sooo many times that it felt like death was just a minor setback for them.

So when we got to the episode before the finale, the one where Jack becomes the new God I thought, that wasn't too bad of an ending. I mean, I guessed I hoped for a little more. Like what will Sam and Dean do now? But that wasn't the end. And as it turns out, the hunting monster business was pretty slow. And then it happened...Dean dies! For real this time! Aaaagh!!

Then the rest of the episode was just a montage of Sam living out his life with a faceless wife. I mean was it Eileen? Did she get to come back? Was it someone else entirely? I hate when shows make the spouse faceless, True Blood did that and it ticked me off then too.

I mean...in the long run, I always suspected that the show would have to end with the brothers' deaths. Like their final death and no coming back. I guess I was thinking it would be more on the "saving-the-world" basis though and not hunting mishaps.

The ending wasn't terrible, but I guess I just had hopes for something more and not 1/4 of the show driving me to tears with Carry on My Wayward Son playing in the background. I will admit I was taken aback when that didn't play in the series wrap-up and it was also a tiny bit of a letdown too.

Did I hate the ending? Not so much. Did I wish for something just a tad different? Yes. Most definitely. I don't think having Sam and Dean living HEA lives next door to each other would've been their "thing" and I would've been bothered by the ending had it gone that route, but maybe not as much. Although part of me expected Sam to just get into the Impala with Dean and Dean still says "driver picks the music, shotgun shuts his cakehole!" LOL!

Still, it was a wild ride for the last 15 years (minus COVID f-ing things up) and I was happy to be apart of it since DAY ONE! :D

So if you read this and watched the show, what were your thoughts on the finale?






Book Blogger Hop

 

 This meme is hosted by Billy at Ramblings of a Coffee Addict!

 

This week's question is: Do you own an e-reader? If so, what is your favorite thing about it? (submitted by Elizabeth @ Silver's Reviews

 

MY ANSWER: Yes, I've own a Kindle for several years now. I admit, I don't use it a whole lot, but what I love about it is how I can get more approvals for ARCs by agreeing to read an e-version of it! So yay!







Nov 26, 2020

Review--Crush by Tracy Wolff

Everything feels off—especially me. I’ve returned to Katmere Academy, but I’m haunted by fragments of days I have no recollection of living and struggling to understand who, or what, I really am.

Just when I start to feel safe again, Hudson is back with a vengeance. He insists there are secrets I don’t know about, threatening to drive a wedge between Jaxon and me forever. But far worse enemies are at our doorstep.

The Circle is caught in a power play and the Vampire Court is trying to drag me out of my world and into theirs. The only thing Hudson and Jaxon agree on is that leaving Katmere would mean my certain death.

And not only am I fighting for my life, but now everyone else’s is at stake—unless we can defeat an unspeakable evil. All I know is that saving the people I love is going to require sacrifice.

Maybe more than I’m able to give.

 

Tracy Wolff really packs a punch with her followup to the smash hit Crave, with Crush! Vampires are truly back baby! And now we've got GARGOYLES! Crush is the all mighty sequel that does not fall into any middle book category, especially since this is a quartet series (like a few other vampire series, ahemVampireDiaries!)! This book is definitely a game-changer for Grace and her friends and holy wow I NEED TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT!

When we last left Grace and Jaxon, Hudson's spirit was going to attack Jaxon and Grace unleashes a power she didn't know she had to rescue him. She transformed into a gargoyle and trapped Hudson inside her stone body. Then three months later, she awakens and has no idea that time has passed her by or that she was stone for those three months. But something is definitely not right with Grace and everyone seems to know it. Honestly, I pretty much guessed it right off when Grace started waking up feeling exhausted and noticing strange evidence that suggested Grace was off doing "other"things. And it's not long at all before it's revealed that Hudson's spirit is still trapped within Grace.

Now Grace and Jaxon are trying to figure out a way to remove Hudson's spirit from her body. But Hudson is a force to be reckoned with. He's inconveniently popping up at the wrong moments when Grace wants her alone time with Jaxon or just have a peaceful moment to herself. He's constantly there, constantly chattering in her ear...he almost seems normal an not like the power hungry monster that she was led to believe. Honestly, his first reaction to Grace "hearing" him had me questioning everything! And everything continues to be questioned throughout the book!

Wow. Just WOW! This book is massively huge, deliciously huge and yet it only encompasses a week or two at Katmere and soooo much happens in this one! So much! This book totally blew my mind and just ahh! You know that feeling you get when you just finish an amazing book and you realize you have months to go until the next book? And then you learn that the series is actually a QUARTET and not a trilogy? That's where I'm at now! Lol. 

Honestly this book was just amazing, but I started to get a little fearful when Hudson started popping up in Grace's mind. She "sees" him sometimes too, it's like he's a ghost, except not one. His essence/spirit or what-have-you is trapped inside her and she somehow sees what he looks like and has a conversation with him. They banter quite a bit too and it started getting me worried. Were we entering a bizarre and twisted love triangle here? And it's honestly a tough call.

There are still many things we don't know about when Grace was frozen as a statue. I won't get into details and the truth is there's very little we know. What we do know is that there is something to know and it's driving me crazy not knowing! Time will only tell I suppose.

The action in this one was a sort of crazy nonstop kind and I loved it! Grace is struggling to adjust to coming back and missing three months and when she tries to get back to some sense of normalcy, Hudson is usually there to ruin it. She very rarely gets romantic time with Jaxon and that had me near tears.

We also start to see a greater conspiracy at work here. It was perhaps hinted at in the first one, but I felt like the first book was more about Grace learning about the supernatural world and then you know, trying to figure out why students are trying to kill her. In this one we start seeing more sinister plans in the work from an unseen enemy...who we do eventually see in this one, but was unseen in the first book! As previously mentioned, Crush is a game changer! All bets are off in this one!

Crush was an absolute delight to read and omg my brain is still whirling through all the twists and turns. The emotions this book put me through, it really did a number on me because seriously! There were laughs, tears, heartbreak, heart-racing moments, shocks and surprises...murderous desire to rein unholy terror on a few characters who I just do not like! There was a wide variety of emotions to be had in this book and I enjoyed every minute up until the last page because, you know, it was the last page. Crush was a book that gripped you tight on the best reading adventure you could take and being let go with an ending like that was, dare I say, crushing? The word crush can mean at least two things here! Lol.

If you're like me and are a fan of the vampire world, this is a series you will definitely want to get into for not only are there vampires but other supernatural creatures. Did I mention GARGOYLES?! This series has it all and I cannot wait to read the next book!


Overall Rating 5/5 stars






HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

 

I know this year has not been what anyone was expecting for a new decade, but I'm hoping today that everyone can be with a little bit of their family and/or friends for this time of year. Whatever you choose to do today, I hope you are well, safe, and happy! 


HAPPY THANKSGIVING!







Random Thursday

 

Time for another rousing round of facts about animals and nature that I bet you never heard of before! I know I haven't! Lol! Let's get back to True Facts That Sound Like Bull$#*t by Shane Carley!

 

(image borrowed from Daily Mail)

The lesser water boatman insect has the loudest penis in the animal kingdom. Yes, you read that right! The sound is so loud that it measures at 99.2 decibels and scientists thought their equipment was malfunctioning. The lesser water boatman is the loudest animal on earth relative to its body size.


I mean...really?

 

 

(image borrowed from Cow and Chicken Wiki Fandom)

There once was a chicken who survive two years after having its head cut off. Mike the Headless Chicken survived the ax when it missed his jugular vein and most of his brain stem.


Whoa. Did not know that was even possible!

 

 

(image borrowed by Science Mag)

Did you know butterflies taste with their feet? Their taste sensors are in their feet!


How bizarre!

 

 

(image borrowed from Wikipedia)

Did you know goats have accents? Goats in different parts of the world have different bleats and are recognizably distinctive to their region.


Whoa! That is so weird and cool! 

 

(image borrowed from Wikipedia)

Reindeer don't actually have red eyes. Their color changes through the year, in the wintertime, they're blue. This helps them see in lower light.


I did not know their eye color changes seasonally! Or at all really!






Nov 25, 2020

Waiting on Wednesday

 

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings, to spotlight and discuss the books we're excited about that we have yet to read. It's based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted by the fabulous Jill at Breaking the Spine

 

In this suspenseful and twisted thriller, an ex-con uses her unique skill set to fight for the justice of those who can't defend themselves. Kate Kessler's novels are "impossible to put down" (Hollie Overton).

Killian Delaney has a skewed moral compass, a high threshold for pain, an unstoppable will, and she's just joined the Network: a group of well-funded individuals who help the weakest among us.

Two sisters have gone missing, and Killian has been hired to track them down.

The plan is straightforward: follow the trail, find the girls, and kill whoever stands in her way.

They're living in a commune in upstate New York, one that looks a lot like a cult. And while one sister wants out, the other adamantly refuses.

Breaking them free will push every skill in Killian's arsenal to its limit. But she's determined to get them home.

 

I am so behind on my Kate books! I need to read an entire series and still start this one!

 

TITLE: Call of Vultures
AUTHOR: Kate Kessler

PUBLISHER: Redhook
GENRE: Thriller
RELEASE DATE: December 1, 2020 

 

 

New York Times bestselling author Christie Craig's thrilling romantic suspense about a by-the-book FBI agent who must trust a risk-taking detective for help tracking down her sister's killers -- perfect for fans of Kat Martin, Sharon Sala, and Brenda Novak!

FBI agent Bree Ryan's latest mission is personal. She's posing as a waitress at the Black Diamond strip club, the same club where her estranged half sister worked until she turned up dead. When Bree's undercover assignment is compromised, she turns to the only man she knows who can help her: Connor Pierce, a too-sexy-for-his-own-good, rule-breaking cop with a knack for solving cold cases.

When someone breaks into Bree's apartment, Connor's detective skills aren't the only things that kick into overdrive. Although his job demands he remain detached, now he finds himself tempted not only by Bree's beauty but also her intelligence and bravery. As the investigation-and their attraction-grows more intense, lives are in jeopardy, and Connor finds the most important rule he must break is his own. But can he put his heart on the line?
 

 

Yet again, still behind in this series but I enjoyed the first book! Can't wait to see where else it will go!

 

TITLE: Don't Look Back
AUTHOR: Christie Craig

PUBLISHER: Forever
GENRE: Romantic Suspense
RELEASE DATE: December 15, 2020

 

 

 

 

 


 

Nov 24, 2020

Teaser & Top Ten Tuesdays

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by Purple Princess of The Purple Booker


Here are the rules:

1. Grab your current read
2. Open to a page
3. Pick out 2 lines that are SPOILER FREE
4. Name the title, author, etc.

 

Yup, I'm slowly reading this one! It's deliciously huge, yet sadly work has been keeping me busy this week.

 

"Except for the books. They're every color under the sun, and they are still everywhere--on the bookcases, stacked on the floor in the corners, stacked on the coffee table and underneath the big table, piled up in random places throughout the room--and I love it.

I love even more that there are books I've never heard of mixed with books that are old favorites of mine mixed with classics I always wanted to read." p 252



 

 

 

 

TITLE: Crush
AUTHOR: Tracy Wolff

PUBLISHER: Entangled Teen
GENRE: YA Paranormal
RELEASE DATE: September 29, 2020


Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

 

This week's topic is: Top Ten Books I'm Thankful (or Still Thankful) For

 

*in no particular order
**I say still because it's likely a few of these are repeats from years past! Lol.

 

10. ECHOES by Alice Reeds--a book that was totally twisted and kept me on my toes! It was just freaking awesome!
9. HALFWAY TO THE GRAVE by Jeaniene Frost--a book of vampires that made me oh so happy!
8. SHADES OF WICKED by Jeaniene Frost--oh how long I waited for Ian's book! I am so happy that this one came into my life!


7. WICKED: RESURRECTION by Nancy Holder & Debbie Viguie--why I always hold out hope that a series can be revived! This one came 6 years after its predecessor, though I think most of my canceled series might have passed that mark by now.
6. POISON STUDY by Maria V. Snyder--I fell in love with this series and the author's books and it gave me a great friendship with Maria too!
5. 13 TO LIFE by Shannon Delany--longtime followers had to know this one was coming, am I right?!



4. OLD MAGIC by Marianne Curley--the book that gave me hope that the weird girl could get the guy! lol. Loved this one to pieces!
3. DEMON IN MY VIEW by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes--as I like to say, it's the one that started it all! So grateful for this book!
2. CRAVE by Tracy Wolff--the vamps are back again and I am so thankful for that!



1. CARAVAL by Stephanie Garber--yup the whole series!! And whatever the mysterious 4th book will be too! You can bet that will be on my list next year cover and all! Lol!