2013 Library Reading Challenge

Hosted by Gina at Book Dragon's Lair

Our love of reading can be expensive! Not only are we purchasing books but we also need space to keep them. I've started using the library (again) but couldn't find a challenge to help me. Here it is. There are a number of levels, for those who don't have a library card yet to those that live there. Enjoy! Requirements:

• choose a level - you may move up as needed, just not down.
• check books out of the library
• books may overlap with other challenges
• any format allowed (print, ebook, audio)
• reviews are not necessary but a list of books read is.
• a blog is not necessary, just comment that you want to join in

Levels:

• board book - 3
• picture book - 6
• early reader - 9
• chapter book - 12
• middle grades - 18
• Young adult - 24
• adult - 36
• just insert IV - 50

I'm going to go for the Young Adult level of 24 books as I really want to read from my personal hoarde.  But I'm sure that I will be patronizing the library at some point in the year.

Heat Stroke by Rachel Caine

Title: Heat Stroke (Weather Wardens #2)

Author: Rachel Caine

Publisher: Roc 2004

Genre: Paranormal Action Adeventure

Pages: 352

Rating:  4 / 5 stars

Reading Challenges: Sub-Genre -- Thriller, Action; Mount TBR; Seriously Series; Dusty Bookshelf; Book Bingo -- 4 from series

How I Got It: I own it

Mistaken for a murderer, Weather Warden Joanne Baldwin is hunted down and killed by her colleagues. Reborn as a Djinn, she senses something sinister entering earth's atmosphere-something that makes tomorrow's forecast look deadly.

Second volume of Joanne Baldwin's journey and I'm still hooked.  Making Joanne a Djinn was a gamble and a hell of an entertaining one.  I loved seeing her attempt to master the Djinn powers, and yet retain her human fierceness.  It was also a treat to see how she would deal without David to lead her along.  I love her independent spirit.  And the introduction of a few new characters (Yvette, Kevin, Jonathon) was a nice touch.  They kept the series from falling into predictable.  On to the next one...

Weather Warden:

1. Ill Wind
2. Heat Stroke
3. Chill Factor
4. Windfall
5. Fire Storm
6. Thin Air
7. Gale Force
8. Cape Storm
9. Total Eclipse

2013 TBR Pile Reading Challenge

From Fikshun:

Welcome to 2013 TBR PILE Reading Challenge!!!

6 BLOGGERS, 12 MINI-CHALLENGES, 24 BOOKS TO WIN!!!

We all have those books. We buy them, win them, they’re gifted to us. Then we put them up on a bookshelf and there they stay, collecting dust, waiting for the time when we’ll finally decide to pick them up.

Join us on a quest to dust off your TBR Pile and read all the books you’ve been telling yourself you’ll read next time you’ll get a chance. This is your chance! And we’ve got PRIZES!!!

Challenge Guidelines…

•  This challenge will run from Jan 1, 2013 – Dec 31, 2013***
• Anyone can enter! You don’t have to be a blogger, as long as you review the book you’ve read! (On your blog, Amazon, Goodreads or Shelfari!)
• Any genre, length or format of book counts, as long as it is a book that’s been sitting on your shelf for some time now. Only books released in 2012 or earlier! NO  2013 ARCs or 2013 fresh-off-the-press releases allowed!
• You can list your books in advance or just put them in a wrap-up post. If you list them, feel free to change them as the mood suits you.
• When you sign up in the linky, put the direct link to your post about joining the 2013 TBR PILE Reading Challenge.
• You can move up levels, but no moving down.
• Sign-ups will be open until Dec 15, 2013, so feel free to join at any time throughout the year.
• On the 20th of each month one of the hosts will post a wrap-up. Every wrap-up will be a unique theme, and include a mini-challenge, a giveaway and place for you to link up your reviews from that month. For each review you link up, you will get one entry in a drawing of one book of your choice from The Book Depository. It’s open to INTERNATIONALS. The giveaway will be open until the next wrap up post goes up! (i.e., the entire year).
• If you miss a wrap-up post + giveaway, you can link up your reviews next month. Do not, however, try to link up one review twice - we will be checking.
• December is a wrap-up for the whole year. All the book reviews you linked up January-November + the ones you’ll link up in December will be entered into a HUGE giveaway for a box of books.

Levels…

• 1-10 – A Firm Handshake
• 11-20 – A Friendly Hug
• 21-30 – A Sweet Kiss
• 31-40 – Love At First Sight
• 41-50 – Married With Children

Wrap-up Post Schedule…

Jan. 20th: Evie @Bookish (www.evie-bookish.blogspot.com) Feb. 20th: Rachel @Fiktshun (www.fiktshun.com) Mar. 20th: Justin @Justin’s Book Blog (www.justinsbookblog.com) Apr. 20th: Tiffany @Escaping…One Book At A Time (escapingonebookatatime.blogspot.com) May 20th: Bonnie @Words At Home (www.wordsathome.ca) Jun. 20th: Justin @Justin’s Book Blog (www.justinsbookblog.com) Jul. 20th: Emily @Doodle’s Book Blog (doodlesbookblog.blogspot.com) Aug. 20th: Tiffany @Escaping…One Book At A Time (escapingonebookatatime.blogspot.com) Sept. 20th: Rachel @Fiktshun (www.fiktshun.com) Oct. 20th: Emily @Doodle’s Book Blog (doodlesbookblog.blogspot.com) Nov. 20th: Bonnie @Words At Home (www.wordsathome.ca) Dec. 20th: This one will be posted on all the blogs. There will also be a huge BOX OF BOOKS giveaway and this time you can link up ALL YOUR TBR Pile REVIEWS you wrote for the entire month!

I'm going with the A sweet kiss level of 30 books.

My TBR List:

1. Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen
2. Child of Darkness by Jennifer Armintrout
3. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
4. Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
5. Emma by Jane Austen
6. Matched by Ally Condie
7. Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen
8. The Passage by Justin Cronin
9. The Kingdom of Ohio by Matthew Flaming
10. Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond
11. Veil of Shadows by Jennifer Armintrout
12. Queene of Light by Jennifer Armintrout
13. Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
14. Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett
15. Crossed by Ally Condie
16. Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
17. The Angel's Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
18. The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry
19. Whisper Cape by Regan Walsh 
20. Foreign Affair by Caro Peacock
21. Rococo by Adriana Trigiani
22. Switched by Amanda Hocking
23. Sundial in a Grave by Mary Gentle
24. Innocent Traitor by Alison Weir
25. Thomas Paine by Craig Nelson
26. Terror by Night by Ambrose Bierce
27. The Private World of Georgette Heyer by Jane Aiken Hodge
28. The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa
29. Lady Elizabeth by Alison Weir
30. The Host by Stephenie Meyer

Ill Wind by Rachel Caine

Title: Ill Wind (Weather Wardens #1)

Author: Rachel Caine

Publisher: Roc 2003

Genre: Paranormal action adventure

Pages: 352

Rating:  4 / 5 stars

Reading Challenges: T4MC -- First in series; Paranormal -- Other; Women Authors; Mount TBR; Seriously Series

How I Got It: I own it

Joanne Baldwin is a Weather Warden. Usually, all it takes is a wave of her hand to tame the most violent weather. But now, she's trying to outrun another kind of storm: accusations of corruption and murder. So, she's resorting to the very human tactic of running for her life...

Her only hope is Lewis, the most powerful warden known. Unfortunately, he's stolen not one but three bottles of Djinn-making him the most wanted man on earth. Still, she's racing hard to find him-before the bad weather closes in fast...

This series has been sitting on my shelf for at least two years.  I'm glad I finally got around to reading it.  Ill Wind was a great introduction to Joanne and the world of the Weather Wardens.  Right away, I knew I would like Joanne's no nonsense outlook and fierce determination.  It was refreshing from the damsels in distress women I have read in the past few months.  I needed a fierce warrior.  Sure she has her vulnerable side, but that's only shown to people she thinks she can trust.  (Of course, that doesn't always work out so well).  And the world of the Djinns and Weather Warden is just too fun.  I love the idea of people helping to control Mother Nature from wiping out us humans.  It's a great idea.  The side characters are all great, but I especially loved David.  I thought something was odd the minute he popped into her life.  I didn't realize how odd until much later.  I can't wait to read more in the next volume.

Weather Warden:

1. Ill Wind
2. Heat Stroke
3. Chill Factor
4. Windfall
5. Fire Storm
6. Thin Air
7. Gale Force
8. Cape Storm
9. Total Eclipse

Bout of Books Readathon 6.0 -- Day #5

Pages read today: 243 (Ill Wind) + 59 (Persuasion)

Pages read total: 1858

Time read today: 4 hours 5 minutes

Time read total: 14 hour 55 minutes

Today in 6 words: Great start to a new series...

2013 Mount TBR Reading Challenge

From My Reader's Block:

Challenge Levels (I've adjusted the levels just slightly this year):

Pike's Peak: Read 12 books from your TBR pile/s Mount Blanc: Read 24 books from your TBR pile/s Mt. Vancouver: Read 36 books from your TBR pile/s Mt. Ararat: Read 48 books from your TBR piles/s Mt. Kilimanjaro: Read 60 books from your TBR pile/s El Toro: Read 75 books from your TBR pile/s Mt. Everest: Read 100 books from your TBR pile/s Mount Olympus (Mars): Read 150+ books from your TBR pile/s

And the rules: *Once you choose your challenge level, you are locked in for at least that many books. If you find that you're on a mountain-climbing roll and want to tackle a taller mountain, then you are certainly welcome to upgrade.

*Challenge runs from January 1 to December 31, 2013.

*You may sign up anytime from now until November 30th, 2013.

*Books must be owned by you prior to January 1, 2013. No ARCs (none), no library books. No rereads. [To clarify--based on a question raised last year--the intention is to reduce the stack of books that you have bought for yourself or received as presents {birthday, Christmas, "just because," etc.}. Audiobooks and E-books may count if they are yours and they are one of your primary sources of backlogged books.]

*You may count any "currently reading" book that you begin prior to January 1--provided that you had 50% or more of the book left to finish in 2013.  I will trust you all on that.

*Books may be used to count for other challenges as well.

*Feel free to submit your list in advance (as incentive to really get those books taken care of) or to tally them as you climb.

*A blog and reviews are not necessary to participate. If you have a blog, then please post a challenge sign up and link THAT post (not your home page) into the linky below. Non-bloggers, please leave a comment declaring your challenge level--OR, if you are a member of Goodreads, I will once again put together a group for the challenge there. Feel free to sign up HERE.  And, finally, I am contemplating a review tracker for this year.  I will post a link if that works out.

Last year, I signed up for the Mount Everest level, but I failed miserably.  I spent a ton of time reading library books instead of my own.  This year I am determined to decrease my TBR boxes (yes boxes).  I am signing up for the Mt. Kilimanjaro level of 60 books.

My Tentative TBR (so far):

1. Ill Wind by Rachel Caine
2. Heat Stroke by Rachel Caine
3. Valley of Silence by Nora Roberts
4. Morrigan's Cross by Nora Roberts
5. Dance of the Gods by Nora Roberts
6. Chill Factor by Rachel Caine
7. Firestorm by Rachel Caine
8. Stranger Than Fiction by Chuck Palahniuk
9. The Devlin Diary by Christie Philips
10. The Rossetti Letter by Christie Philips
11. Baby Proof by Emily Giffin
12. Love the One You're With by Emily Giffin
13. Next by Michael Crichton
14. Velveteen by Daniel Marks
15. Silent in the Grave by Deanna Raybourn
16. Silent in the Sanctuary by Deanna Raybourn
17. Wedding of the Century
18. Unknown by Rachel Caine
19. Undone by Rachel Caine
20. Cotillion by Georgette Heyer
21. The Firebrand by Susan Wiggs
22. The Hostage by Susan Wiggs
23. The Mistress by Susan Wiggs
24. Lessons in French by Lauren Kinsale
25. The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
26. Total Eclipse by Rachel Caine
27. Cape Storm by Rachel Caine
28. Gale Force by Rachel Caine
29. Thin Air by Rachel Caine
30. Windfall by Rachel Caine
31. As Shadows Fade by Colleen Gleason
32. When Twilight Burns by Colleen Gleason
33. Bleeding Dusk by Colleen Gleason
34. Rises the Night by Colleen Gleason
35. The Rest Falls Away by Colleen Gleason
36. Year Zero by Jeff Long
37. Change of Fortune by Jen Turano
38. The Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly
39. Barefoot by Elin Hilderbrand
40. Storm Glass by Maria Snyder
41. One Day by David Nicholls
42. A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin
43. Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning
44. P.S. I Love You by Cecelia Ahern
45. The Reader by Bernhard Schlink
46. Collapse by Jared Diamond
47. The World is Flat by Thomas Friedman
48. Almost America by Steve Tally
49. A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain
50. The Selected Stories of O. Henry
51. Vanity Fiar by William Makepeace Thackeray
52. Boneshaker by Cherie Priest
53. Ganymede by Cherie Priest
54. Dreadnought by Cherie Priest
55. TBD
56. TBD
57. TBD
58. TBD
59. TBD
60. TBD

2013 Ebook Reading Challenge

The 2013 Ebook Challenge. Encouraging readers to expand past just physical books to embrace ebooks in all forms, whether on Kindle, Kobo, computer, or any other reader.

Challenge Guidelines:

1. This challenge will run from Jan 1, 2013 – Dec 31, 2013.
2. Anyone can join, you don’t need to be a blogger. If you don’t have a blog, feel free to sign-up in the comments. You can post reviews to any book site (i.e. Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, Goodreads, etc).
3. Any genre or length of book counts, as long as it is in ebook format.
4. You can plan your books in advance or as you read them.
5. When you sign up in the linky, put the direct link to your post about joining the E-Book Reading Challenge.
6. You can move up levels, but no moving down.
7. Sign-ups will be open until Dec 15, 2013, so feel free to join at any time throughout the year.

Levels:

Floppy disk – 5 ebooks CD – 10 ebooks DVD – 25 ebooks Memory stick – 50 ebooks Hard drive – 75 ebooks Server – 100 ebooks Human brain – 150 ebooks

I'm going for the DVD level of 25 books.  I really want to read more on my iPad.

My TBR List:

1. Lost by Gregory Maguire
2. The Wedding Gift by Lucy Kevin
3. Witches 101 by Melissa de la Cruz
4. Billionaire Wins the Game by Melody Anne
5. The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins
6. The Fairy Tales of Hans Christian Anderson
7. Mirror Mirror by Gregory Maguire

Bout of Books Readathon 6.0 -- Day #4

Pages read today: 192 (Good Omens)

Pages read total: 1056

Time read today: 2 hours 47 minutes

Time read total: 10 hour 50 minutes

Today in 6 words: Hilarious read from two fantasy masters!

Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett

Title: Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Anges Nutter, Witch

Author: Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett

Publisher: HarperTouch 1990

Genre: Fantasy

Pages: 413

Rating:  5 / 5 stars

Reading Challenges: T4MC -- Name in Title; Neil Gaiman; Ebook; Eclectic -- Humor; 52 Books -- Week 2

The world will end on Saturday. Next Saturday. Just before dinner, according to The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch, the world's only completely accurate book of prophecies written in 1655. The armies of Good and Evil are amassing and everything appears to be going according to Divine Plan. Except that a somewhat fussy angel and a fast-living demon are not actually looking forward to the coming Rapture. And someone seems to have misplaced the Antichrist.

Put New York Times bestselling authors Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett together . . . and all Hell breaks loose.

Holy crap on a stick!  This was an awesome book.  I don't mean a "that was a great read" kind of book.  I mean the "I laughed out loud on airplanes" kind of book.  The story is awesome, but it's the characters and style that really get me.  The characters are all just so lovable, even the demons, even the Four Horseman (I mean Riders) of the Apocalypse.  Crowley and Aziraphale are my absolute favorites.  Their on-again off-again friendship of enemies is just amazing.  I love how each one gets the other to slide just a bit to the other side. Hee hee.  And Adam Young is the perfect little Antichrist without even knowing it.  He commands attention and devotion and yet has quite a good head on his shoulders.  Such fun!  And let's talk about the style for just a second.  I feel like Pratchett and Gaiman are telling me a story.  They are sitting in my living room, drinking (wine probably) and taking turns telling me parts of this ridiculous story they heard.  Even the descriptions are a conversation.  I love this style.  And all the little author's notes are just icing on the cake.  (Yum cake!). I wholeheartedly encourage everyone to read this book.

2013 Women Reading Challenge

From Peek a Book:

Checking the books I have read in the last year I noticed that I have read a lot of authors who are men and far fewer women writers.There is no real reason because, of course, I don’t choose books based on the author’s sex, but this intrigued me and I decided to create a challenge called the "Women Challenge".This challenge will make us want to read more books of any kind written by women, so choose whatever you like and get involved!Set your level and, if you like, leave me a comment on this post listing your three favourite women writers, in order to suggest new names to other participants as well.Here are mine (they are just the first ones coming to my mind):* Isabel Allende* Marcela Serrano* Kathy Reichs

Rules:

* anyone can join;

* you don't need a blog to partecipate: if you are a non-blogger please leave a comment with a link (if you review elsewhere) to your review or with the list of the books you read and the level you choose;

* audio, e-books, bound books and re-reads are ok;

* create a sign up post on your blog and post the link in the linky below (scroll down please, it's at the end of the italian translation);

* challenge goes from January 1, 2013 to December 31, 2013

Levels:

Level 1: BABY GIRL - read 1 to 5 books written by a woman author

Level 2: GIRLS POWER - read 6 to 10 books written by a woman author

Level 3: SUPER GIRL - read 11 to 15 books written by a woman author

Level 4: WONDER WOMAN - read 16+ books written by a woman author

I am wanting to do a women authors challenge, but failed to find one out there.  And this popped up on A Novel Challenge and I got super excited.  This is just what I wanted.  I am going for Level 4: Wonder Woman.  I actually am setting a goal of 25 women authors for myself.  Here's my tentative list:

1. Rachel Caine
2. Jane Austen (my beloved author!)
3. Ally Condie
4. Jennifer Armintrout
5. Deanna Raybourn
6. Stephenie Meyer
7. Emily Giffin
8. Jane Aiken Hidge
9. Nora Roberts
10. Allison Weir
11. Susan Wiggs
12. Christie Philips
13. Lauren Kinsale
14. Julie Kagawa
15. Cherie Priest
16. Georgette Heyer
17. Colleen Gleason
18. Sarah Addison Allen
19. Melissa de la Cruz
20. Melody Anne
21. TBD
22. TBD
23. TBD
24. TBD
25. TBD

2013 Monthly Key Word Reading Challenge

From Bookmark to Blog:

For this challenge I have chosen ten key words associated with each month in 2013. Your task is to read one book each month whose title includes one or more of the key words for that month. For instance, in January I might read Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah. The key words are listed below.

GUIDELINES

* The title you choose can be a variation on one of the key words. For example- your title could include the word 'snowing' or 'snowflake'even though the key word is 'snow.'

*Key words can be tweaked. For example- You could read "Cinder" or "Ashes" for the key word 'Fire' and that would be just fine. If the key word is 'family' then your title could include the word 'sister' or 'mother.'If the key word is 'food' then your title could include the word 'cake.'

* Link up below to participate and add additional links any time you post about the challenge or post about a book you read for the challenge.

My tentative TBR List:

• January -- Chill Factor by Rachel Caine
• February -- Child of Darkness by Jennifer Armintrout
• March -- Valley of Silence by Nora Roberts
• April -- The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
• May -- Emma by Jane Austen
• June -- Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
• July  -- Rises the Night by Colleen Gleason
• August  -- The Sugar Queen by Rachel Caine
• September -- As Shadows Fade by Colleen Gleason
• October -- Witches 101 by Melissa de la Cruz
• November  -- Billionaire Wins the Game
• December -- TBD

Vacation Highlights

I came back to California a few days ago, but I thought I would share some of my vacation highlights.  I"ve spent almost three weeks in my hometown hanging out with the boys, family, and friends. Komets hockey game from the nose bleed section!  We had free tickets because the stepfather's chorus group was singing the National Anthem.  The boys' friend Tommy also came.  They seemed to have a ton of fun.

Seeing the Cougar Hunter boys play at the bar.  My my Beth, did you drink all those!  Nope, but the pic was too good to pass up.  Plus, 80s hair band music and crazy hairsprayed hair.  Who could turn that down?

Christmas extravaganza!  Based off of the looks on the boys' faces, I think they got some good presents.  Hanging out with the family for presents time and then seeing Santa Claus!  Finally stockings and Santa gifts on Christmas morning.

When I arrived in Indiana the ground was cold but bare.  A few days later, it looked like this.  Well, I definitely don't love the cold, I do love the snow.  It looks so pretty.

The pretty Christmas tree in the outdoor mall.  I couldn't get a pic of it, but at night it has changing color lights that flash and spiral up the tree.  Very cool effect!

The kids ringing in the New Year with their sparkling juice and Pepsi.

My favorite Christmas presents.  An awesome bag from my mom.  My laptop fits in it perfectly.

Tie-dying party with our friends.  They were being washed when I left, so I'll have to wait to see what they really look like.

Bout of Books Readathon 6.0 -- Day #3

Pages read today: 252 (A Game of Thrones)

Pages read total: 864

Time read today: 3 hours 50 minutes

Time read total: 8 hour 3 minutes

Today in 6 words: What an epic fantasy adventure read!

A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin

Title: A Game of Thrones (Song of Fire and Ice #1)

Author: George R.R. Martin

Publisher: Bantam 1996

Genre: Epic Fantasy

Pages: 835

Rating:  5 / 5 stars

Reading Challenges: T4MC -- Fantasy/Scifi/Steampunk; Genre -- Epic Fantasy; Mount TBR; New Authors; Page to Screen

How I Got It: I own it

Long ago, in a time forgotten, a preternatural event threw the seasons out of balance. In a land where summers can last decades and winters a lifetime, trouble is brewing. The cold is returning, and in the frozen wastes to the north of Winterfell, sinister and supernatural forces are massing beyond the kingdom’s protective Wall. At the center of the conflict lie the Starks of Winterfell, a family as harsh and unyielding as the land they were born to. Sweeping from a land of brutal cold to a distant summertime kingdom of epicurean plenty, here is a tale of lords and ladies, soldiers and sorcerers, assassins and bastards, who come together in a time of grim omens.

Here an enigmatic band of warriors bear swords of no human metal; a tribe of fierce wildlings carry men off into madness; a cruel young dragon prince barters his sister to win back his throne; and a determined woman undertakes the most treacherous of journeys. Amid plots and counterplots, tragedy and betrayal, victory and terror, the fate of the Starks, their allies, and their enemies hangs perilously in the balance, as each endeavors to win that deadliest of conflicts: the game of thrones.

I've been meaning to get around to reading this for awhile, but somehow I kept putting it off.  Well, I finally starting reading while traveling home to California.  And I'm so glad I did.  It was unbelievably amazing.  Martin has created such an intricate world with a variety of peoples and histories.  I wept with Daenerys and raged against the Lannisters (except for Tyrion).  I feared with Jon Snow and the Night's Watch and delighted in Arya's swordplay.  I speed through all 835 pages in a few days.  I couldn't wait to see what happened next.  Even the changing points of view didn't bother me like they usually do.  I have no idea how Martin will wrap any of this up, but I'm definitely reading them all.

Television Series:

I watched the series before reading the book, but no matter.  The creators changed little things here and there, but mostly kept right to the storyline.  I love the actors, but Peter Dinklage is my absolutely favorite.  He is amazing as Tyrion Lannister.  And Kit Harrington has an amazing strength as Jon Snow.  And Emilia Clarke as Daenerys is just gorgeous.  I can't wait to see what happens in season 2.

A Song of Fire and Ice:

1. A Game of Thrones
2. A Clash of Kings
3. A Storm of Swords
4. A Feast for Crows
5. A Dance with Dragons
6. The Winds of Winter

Beauty and the Bitch by Jasmine Haynes

Title: Beauty and the Bitch

Author: Jasmine Haynes

Publisher: 2012

Genre: Erotic fairy tales

Pages: 114

Rating:  4 / 5 stars

Reading Challenges: T4MC -- Man and Woman on Cover (5 points); Genre -- Erotica; Women Authors; Ebook; Book Bingo -- 3 from TBR

How I Got It: I own it; Ebook form

Reporter Dexter King is about to get the story of a lifetime. Shelby Stewart was the hottest rising star in Hollywood until suddenly, she was cursed. Retreating to her mountain hideaway, far from that fairy tale life, she hasn’t been seen in ten years. Now Dex will ferret out the truth behind her fall from Hollywood grace. But will he find a beauty? Or a bitch?

In truth, I read this because it was free in iBooks and I needed something short to read in between colossal books.  I didn't have very high hopes, but I was pleasantly surprised after reading.  This is an interesting erotic retelling of Beauty and the Beast.  Except in this one the roles are reversed.  Dex is a great knight in shining armor and Shelby has a wonderful back and forth nature.  I really liked the storyline.  It was a nice short read while traveling back home.

2013 What's in a Name 6 Reading Challenge

From Beth Fish Reads:

Welcome to the sixth What's in a Name challenge This challenge was originated by a young blogger named Annie, who hosted it for two years. When she decided to give up on being the host, I took over the challenge.

I credit this challenge with being one of the prime reasons for my becoming a blogger, so I am thrilled to be its new host.

Here's How It Works

Between January 1 and December 31, 2013, read one book in each of the following categories:

1. A book with up or down (or equivalent) in the title: Deep down True, The Girl Below, The Diva Digs up the Dirt
2. A book with something you'd find in your kitchen in the title: Loose Lips Sink Ships, The Knife of Never Letting Go, Breadcrumbs
3. A book with a party or celebration in the title: A Feast for Crows, A Wedding in Haiti, Cocktail Hour under the Tree of Forgetfulness
4. A book with fire (or equivalent) in the title: Burning for Revenge, Fireworks over Toccoa, Catching Fire
5. A book with an emotion in the title: Baltimore Blues, Say You're Sorry, Dreams of Joy
6. A book with lost or found (or equivalent) in the title: The Book of Lost Fragrances, The World We Found, A Discovery of Witches

Other Things to Know

• Books may be any form (audio, print, e-book).
• Books may overlap other challenges.
• Books may not overlap categories; you need a different book for each category.
• Creativity for matching the categories is not only allowed but encouraged.
• You do not have to make a list of books before hand.
• You do not have to read through the categories in any particular order.

My TBR List:

1. Up or Down: Windfall by Rachel Caine
2. Kitchen Find: The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen
3. Party or Celebration: The Wedding Gift by Lucy Kevin
4. Fire: Firestorm by Rachel Caine
5. Emotion: Terror by Night by Ambrose Bierce
6. Lost or Found: Lost by Gregory Maguire

2013 New Authors Reading Challenge

From Literary Escapism:

Here are the guidelines:

• The challenge will run from January 1, 2013 through December 31, 2013.
• Since this is an author challenge, there is no restriction on choosing your novels. They can definitely be from other challenges. However, the authors must be new to you and, preferably from novels. Anthologies are a great way to try someone new, but only a third of your new authors can be from anthologies.
• I want this to be an easy challenge, so you can pick to do either 15, 25 or 50 new authors. It all depends on how fast you read and how adventurous you want to be.  If you reach your goal halfway through the year, don’t stop. Any new author you try can be added to Mr. Linky. We all want to know about your new experience.
• After reading your new author, write your review and then come back here and add your link to Mr. Linky. Make sure you include your name and the author, but adding the title is completely up to you.
• Bloggers or Non-Bloggers alike are welcome. You don’t have to have a site to participate. You can link up via Facebook, GoodReads or even Amazon if you’d like.

I'm going to shoot for 25 new authors.  I think that's a nice attainable number.  My tentative author list:

1. Ally Condie
2. Matthew Flaming
3. Justin Cronin
4. Sarah Addison Allen
5. Jared Diamond
6. Craig Nelson
7. Mary Gentle
8. Alison Weir
9. Amanda Hocking
10. Adriana Trigiani
11. Caro Peacock
12. Regan Walsh
13. Brunonia Barry
14. Colleen Gleason
15. Jeff Long
16. David Nicholls
17. Maria Snyder
18. Cecelia Ahern
19. Karen Marie Moning
20. Deanna Raybourn
21. George R.R. Martin
22. Bernhard Schlink
23. Jen Turano
24. Elin Hilderbrand
25. Jennifer Donnelly

Quote Wednesday - Addison

Our real blessings often appear to us in the shapes of pains, losses, and disappointments, but let us have patience, and we soon shall see them in their proper figures. -- Joseph Addison

2012 was a bit of a tough year.  I felt some losses that I had a very hard time dealing with.  Now that the year has changed over, I feel like I can move past those and start fresh.  I will look back, but I need to reevaluate how they make me feel and their future impact on me.  I want to be more positive in my general outlook and try to beat these obstacles.

Bout of Books Readathon 6.0 -- Day #2

I'll be posting winners of my Cover Challenge tomorrow morning...

Pages read today: 114 (Beauty and the Bitch) + 187 (A Game of Thrones) + 221 (Good Omens)

Pages read total: 612

Time read today: Estimated 3 hours (I was off and on planes all day, didn't get a great time count)

Time read total: 4 hour 13 minutes

Today in 6 words: Plane travel leaves time to read...

2013 Graphic Novel Reading Challenge

From Graphic Novels Challenge:

It's almost time for the 2013 challenge to start and so we'll start taking names of participants now.  There will be two ways to play and two levels this year!  Please write a sign-up post on your blog and then sign-up below with a link to your specific sign-up post.  Here is how the Challenge will play this year:runs from Jan.1 - Dec. 31, 2013

Levels

Level 1: read and review 12 books during the year (you could spread them out and read one a month or have a blast and read all 12 in a row!)

Level 2: read and review 24 books during the year (same as above only you would read two a month for the slow rate)

Game Play

Basic: no change from last year. just read any book generally considered a graphic novel, manga, or collection of comics, write a review and link to your post.

Advanced:  For advanced play we are going to play categories.  Players will pick 1 book from each of the 12 categories below.  If you are playing at Level 2 you could double up, choosing two from each category, or use the remainder as free picks.  You only have to read one book from each of the 12 categories.

1. manga
2. superhero
3. classic adaptation (a classic work adapted into the graphic format)
4. memoir
5. fantasy
6. translated from a foreign language
7. a single-issue comic book
8. science-fiction
9. crime or mystery
10. fairytale or mythology (true to the original or fractured, such as Fables series)
11. children's book (specifically written for children)
12. anthology (a collection of short stories by different authors/artists)

I've definitely fallen in love with graphic novels and comics.  And yet again I am joining this challenge.  Because of my intent to diversify my reading, I am only going to commit to 12 this year and I'm only going for the Basic level, so no categories.  TBR List:

1. 300
2. Cowboys and Aliens
3. Fables:
4. Fables:
5. TBD
6. TBD
7. TBD
8. TBD
9. TBD
10. TBD
11. TBD
12. TBD