Bunch of Mini Reviews!! 3 star Book

Hello there!

I am WOEFULLY behind on my NetGalley reviews, so I thought I'd do a bunch together in some mini reviews so I can get them out there. I've read a bunch of books from NetGalley, I just haven't actually posted about them yet, so here I am to do that. Some of these books I read QUITE a while ago so I hope that I remember enough to write about. We shall see!

So far, I have just one book that I read that was 3 stars.



BOOK ~ Spiraled (Callahan & McLane 03) by Kendra Elliot
Completed ~ August 31
STARS ~ 3 ~ 3.5 of 5
PAGES ~ 304

FBI Special Agent Ava McLane solves crimes; she doesn’t witness them. When she’s trapped in a mall without her weapon as a shooter picks off victims, she hides with a wounded teen and prays for her survival.

But that’s only the beginning…

An epidemic of mass shootings has swept across Oregon. The young shooters terrify the public, committing random murders before taking their own lives. The task force assembled to solve the case—which includes Ava’s boyfriend, detective Mason Callahan—remains stumped. And on top of this chaos, Ava’s troubled twin sister reappears, throwing Ava’s already-tumultuous life into a tailspin.

An old-fashioned cop with a strong sense of duty, Mason struggles to find the cause of the shootings as workaholic Ava spins ever closer to breaking down. But can one detective save the lives of countless innocents—and prevent the woman he loves from going over the edge?

I have read everything Kendra Elliot has written so far, and I have enjoyed or loved most of it. She's a good romantic suspense writer with interesting stories and mostly good characters. I WANTED to give Spiraled a 4 star, but I ended up going with 3 for a few different things.

This could be a stand alone book, though it's best in the series so you can known the characters and how they got to where they are. I like Mason a bunch and I like Ava. They are good characters. This story was interesting. A rash of shootings were happening with each shooter committing suicide after each spree. Ava, Mason and a bunch of different agencies are on a race to figure out what is going on, before more people die. Ava experiences one of the shootings up close and personal.

Now, the main thing I don't like about this series is one thing ~ Ava's sister. I despise the character! It's just a personal thing, I think, so don't think down on the series because of it. The sister is just a complete bitch to Ava, but Ava does let her to a point and I hate that. If it weren't for the sister, these books would probably be rated 5 stars every time, she ruins every story she's in for me.

There was one more thing that bothered me about this book, but it's a major spoiler, so I won't share it here. If you read the book, I hope you'll see the moment that I did. I don't think Ava would be quite that blind to that, but who knows. No one is perfect. :)

Overall, this series is enjoyable and I will continue to read Elliot's books.

Setting = A
Plot = A
Conflict = B+
Characters = A+ (for Ava & Mason) F- (for Ava's twin Jane)
Theme = A

Bunch of Mini Reviews!! 4 & 5 star Books

Hello there!

I am WOEFULLY behind on my NetGalley reviews, so I thought I'd do a bunch together in some mini reviews so I can get them out there. I've read a bunch of books from NetGalley, I just haven't actually posted about them yet, so here I am to do that. Some of these books I read QUITE a while ago so I hope that I remember enough to write about. We shall see! Let's start with some 5 and 4 star books!



BOOK ~ Qualify by Vera Nazarian
Completed ~ March 21
STARS ~ 5 of 5
PAGES ~ 600

You have two options. You die, or you Qualify.

The year is 2047. An extinction-level asteroid is hurtling toward Earth, and the descendants of ancient Atlantis have returned from the stars in their silver ships to offer humanity help.

But there's a catch.

They can only take a tiny percent of the Earth's population back to the colony planet Atlantis. And in order to be chosen, you must be a teen, you must be bright, talented, and athletic, and you must Qualify.

Sixteen-year-old Gwenevere Lark is determined not only to Qualify but to rescue her entire family.

There's actually more to the blurb than what I've listed, but like the book, the blurb is rather long, so I thought I'd just leave you with the basics. I adored this book. There were definite flaws and there were a few things I wish had been differently, but overall this book was sooooo fun and quite enjoyable.

It's the type of book I typically like ~ some kind of competition going to to achieve something. Here's where many readers will chime in and complain it's just another Hunger Games, but it's not and I hate that all competition books just get crammed together like that. This one was quite different from Hunger Games, though yes it was a competition, and it was even dangerous, but it was quite unique and stands apart from other books like this I have read.

Gwen is a real character. She has flaws, and a lot of them. Sometimes, you don't like her very much, but in the end you can't help but root for her because she just tries so damn hard at everything she does. Even though people keep telling her she has no chance, she keeps pushing on through as long and as far as she can and she does everything to prove the doubters wrong.

The bulk of this book is spent on the training for the qualification, where they must learn about Atlantis and their technology. They will be using Atlantean tech in the games and they spend a lot of time on them training and training in general. It's a very interesting race that the author has come up with. It felt like I was really learning about this space race along with Gwen and the others, and I definitely wanted some of the gadgets that they have.

As for the things that I didn't like, I thought that the book would end with, or after, the qualification, but it went beyond that into the start of the other games. It was the only thing that I didn't like because not as much time was spent on that. Only 20% was spent on each of the two parts of the competition with the other 60% focused on the learning. I didn't mind the learning part, but I definitely wanted more of the competition. I would have liked that to be split into another book, rather than doing a bulk of it in this book, missing out on much more that could be done with it. But, it's a small thing and didn't take away from my overall enjoyment of the book.

I actually had forgotten to check lately on the 2nd book and JUST saw that it came out last month. I definitely can't wait to get started on it and hopefully it'll be just as enjoyable as the first!

Setting = A
Plot = A+
Conflict = A
Characters = A
Theme = A+




BOOK ~ The Tournament by Matthew Reilly
Completed ~ April 25
STARS ~ 4 of 5
PAGES ~ 320

The year is 1546, and Suleiman the Magnificent, the powerful and feared Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, issues an invitation to every king in Europe: You are invited to send your finest player to compete in a chess tournament to determine the champion of the known world.

Thousands converge on Constantinople, including the English court’s champion and his guide, the esteemed scholar Roger Ascham. Seeing a chance to enlighten the mind of a student, Ascham brings along Elizabeth Tudor, a brilliant young woman not yet thrust into royal duties.

Yet on the opening night of the tournament a powerful guest of the Sultan is murdered. Soon, barbaric deaths, diplomatic treachery, and unimaginable depravity—sexual and otherwise—unfold before Elizabeth and Ascham’s eyes. The pair soon realizes that the real chess game is being played within the court itself…and its most treacherous element is that a stranger in a strange land is only as safe as her host is gracious.

If you didn't know, I LOVE Matthew Reilly as an author! I have now read everything that he has ever written, this being the next to last book of his that I had finally read. I wasn't sure about this one (or the last one I read ~ Troll Mountain) because it didn't sound like ANYTHING I would like. I'm not really a chess person, I'm not into a lot of historical fiction but I ended up liking this book a lot more than I expected.

There was actually little focus on the chess game itself. While we did read about parts of it, it was mainly about the murders that were happening and the investigation going on surrounding those. The mystery was definitely crazy with a lot going on and I didn't know where it was going with all of it, which is pretty rare for me.

I definitely liked Elizabeth. She was quite young but eager to learn about the world around her, even when that meant learning the truths about some very sexual stuff that wasn't all that good. She was unflappable around it all though, with people being killed around her, a sexual frenzy going on plus all the normal stuff with the tournament itself.

The main thing I didn't like about this book were long passages focusing on religion. When they strayed off into those topics, I definitely lost concentration and was bored out of my mind. But that's just me, and it didn't ruin my overall enjoyment of it. Reilly just writes fantastic books and I'm glad that I gave this one a try! Now I'm only sad that for right now, I'm all outta Reilly books to read. Hopefully he's working on one!

Setting = A
Plot = B+
Conflict = A
Characters = B+
Theme = B+




BOOK ~ I am Traitor (Unknown Assassin 03) by Allen Zadoff
Completed ~ April 1
STARS ~ 4 of 5
PAGES ~ 371

In the third and final installment in the Unknown Assassin trilogy, Boy Nobody is on the run from The Program and uncovers a secret about his past that forces him to decide where his loyalties lie.

The Program has sent Boy Nobody on countless missions, instructed to kill whichever target he was given. But now, after going rogue, he is on his own mission to rescue his friend Howard who was captured by The Program. Boy Nobody manages to free Howard as well as Tanya, a mysterious girl who was being held with him. Howard and Tanya help Boy Nobody collect information about his father, eventually revealing a dangerous secret that teaches Boy Nobody a valuable lesson -- he can't trust anyone.

If you haven't read the first 2 books of the Unknown Assassin series, I definitely recommend reading them first. This could be read on it's own, I suppose, but it'd be pretty confusing for the overall story.

Boy Nobody is a teen assassin. He's been raised by a man and woman he calls "mother" & "father" and they send him out on his missions. The Program uses teens like him to go in and get close to the son or daughter of the mark. Once he's friendly with the family, then he'll strike, walking away afterwards, usually without anyone knowing what happened as some times, the murders are made to look natural.

In the first book, he gets a mission that makes him start questioning who he is and why he's living this life. He makes some decisions on his own, against what the Program wants, some that help and some that hinder, what he's supposed to do. In this final book, he's decided to make a complete stand against The Program and they have sent others after him, to try to stop him from leaving.

I definitely enjoyed this conclusion to the trilogy. It was fast paced and kept my attention through out the book. I definitely enjoyed the ending as well, it wrapped it up all nice, though I would have enjoyed a bit of an epilogue with a few months/years down the road, showing us what happened after. But overall, it was a good enjoyable series.

Setting = A
Plot = A
Conflict = A+
Characters = A+
Theme = A




BOOK ~ Hexad: The Factory by A.K. Line
Completed ~ July 23
STARS ~ 4 of 5
PAGES ~ 261

IT WASN'T GOING TO BE A NORMAL SATURDAY...

Dale dug furtively, feeling like a muppet but unable to get the previous evening's conversation with Amanda out of his mind. A stupid, drunken conversation, full of conjecture about the possibility of time travel. Then one of them, he couldn't remember which, had come up with the idea that if it really was possible at some point in their future then they'd go back in time and bury proof under the apple tree in the garden.

Dale knew he was acting foolish, and prayed Amanda didn't wake up to find him digging in the dirt. He couldn't help it though, however ridiculous it seemed. There was that nagging at the back of his mind: what if?

Word of Warning ~ if you can not wrap your mind around the concept of time travel ~ then you may not want to attempt reading this book. I don't claim to understand time travel, I mean who could, since it's not something that has (yet, I hope) been achieved. But I do comprehend fictional portrayals of it. I understand the concept of the different paradoxes that could arise from time travel, and I typically follow time travel books quite easily.

This book though, had even ME confused, and that's saying something. But man was it engaging! I didn't know what the hell was happening some of the time. It was a bit of a slow start, but once it got going, I was just trying to keep up. One way I described it was that it seemed almost like the author took all these words and all this stuff about time travel, then he put all the words he wanted to use into a blender, shook them all up and what poured out was how the book was written. It was CRAZY.

Dale and Amanda have a crazy drunken conversation about the possibility of time travel, and when he goes out to look where they said they would leave something, he does find something, and they are sent on a while ride from there.

The only part I really didn't like was the source behind the devices. It was a little disturbing, and I had a little issue with that, but it was quite brief at the end, so it didn't dwell on it much. The ending was definitely something that was pretty unexpected and if there's another book, I'll definitely be reading it. It was one crazy mind blowing read!

Setting = B
Plot = A
Conflict = B
Characters = A
Theme = A+

55 Book Related Questions

55 Book Related Questions

55 Book Related Questions is a swap that was started a few years ago at Swap-Bot (she may have originally gotten the questions elsewhere, I don't know) and I took it over. I thought I would put my answers on my blog, instead of sending via message or email.
I hope you'll enjoy my swap!
From ~ ImzadiRose



01 Favorite childhood book? Why is that one your favorite?
My favorite childhood series is the Trixie Belden series by Julie Campbell and under the pseudonym Katheryn Kenny. It was a set of 39 books that was first started out in 1948. If you haven't heard of them, think of them as a younger, and more "real" Nancy Drew. Trixie and her friends would solve mysteries around their area and had a wonderful little club. I adored Trixie and wanted to be like her and have that kind of adventures and friends! I still collect the books to this day. I had them all, until I lost them all after a move, I have about 1/3 of them again.


02 What are you reading right now? What are your thoughts on it?
As of writing this (9/2) I am currently listening to Blood Moon by Alexandra Sokoloff on audio. It's the 2nd book in the Huntress / FBI series about a FBI agent who is hunting a female killer. The first book was really good and this one is pretty good as well, though the agents obvious infatuation with the killer is kind of off putting. The killer is killing scum though, so you can't help but root for her. Finished 9/2, 4/5 stars.

As of getting reading to post this (9/3) I am listening to Timecaster Supersymmetry on audio and I am reading James Potter and the Hall of Elders Crossing (in honor of James arriving at Hogwarts) on my Kindle.


03 Do you go to a library? If so, what do you currently have checked out there? If not, is there a reason?
I don't go to the library any more. I'll pop my head in, occasionally, to see if they are selling anything but I've only ever checked out one book there (in 3.5 years we've been living here) and that was just because the book wasn't in ebook format. I don't go because this library is TEENY TINY. There's just not much there, at all, and I get anything I wanna read on my Kindle.


04 Do you collect any authors/series or certain types of books? What are they?
I do collect 3 series. I collect Harry Potter ~ I had all the books years ago and lost everything during moves. Actual physical copies now I have only 1, 3, 4 & 5 and multiple copies of some of them. I am able to get them for 25 cents at the thrift store, so I pick one up whenever they have them. I also collect Trixie Belden. I have most of the books 1-13 and a few copies. The books were printed in multiple types of formats, and I have a mix of "oval", "square" and hard covers. I also do collect Nancy Drew. I'm not into them as much but will grab them when I see them. I have about 20.


05 Do you have a yearly goal on amount of books you want to finish? What is it? Are you ahead of, or behind in your progress?
I do have a yearly goal and this year I made my goal 300 for the year. I had it at 200 but when I got pretty close to that, before half of the year was up, I raised it to 300. I have completed 228 books on the year (76% of my goal) and am 28 books ahead of schedule.


06 Do you have an e-reader? What kind? Do you read both "real" and ebooks, or just one or the other?
I have a 2nd Gen (so quite older) Kindle Fire. I had a Kindle Keyboard for years, but they kept breaking on me. Finally the last time they were no longer selling/replacing that type. I could have got a Paperwhite but the Amazon person gave me a deal on the Fire. It's a 7 inch and was $72 for me at the time. Though it doesn't do some of the things the newer ones do, it is wonderful and I love it so much. It's so sturdy and endures my rather rough handling of it. :) I only read ebooks, even though I collect "real" books. My Fire is never out of arms reach.


07 Do you prefer to read one book at a time, or several at once? Why?
I used to be a one at a time person, until I discovered audiobooks about 3 years ago. Now, I always have 2 going ~ one on the Kindle and one as an audiobook. I'll typically only listen to my audiobook at night, before I go to sleep, though I'll listen in the day if I'm enjoying it or want to finish it that day. My Kindle books are read pretty much any time. If I only have one going (such as now) it's because I'm waiting on something with a challenge, in this case, I'm waiting to get our info for the Amazing Race game. Now (9/2) I have two going. I had finished Huntress Moon and I am listening to an audiobook for my "Camp Massacre" challenge and the Kindle book I started is for my Amazing Race Game.


08 Do you have a blog or GoodReads where you post reviews? 
I post both on this blog, obviously, and at GoodReads. Though I don't update my blog as much as I used to, I definitely need to get back to it more as I have a BUNCH of reviews to write. However, I'm ALWAYS on GoodReads. It's my homepage and I update my books almost daily, and post in my groups pretty much daily. You can keep up with me here at KaKiJoKoJa or on my GoodReads


09 What sites, if any, do you go to for getting recommendations of books? If you don't use any sites, how do you get recommendations for new books?
Typically only GoodReads! I do follow some blogs but I don't tend to pay attention to what others think of books as I usually don't read what everyone else is reading and I usually don't have the same opinions on books. I use the "Recommendations" page of GoodReads all the time. I am very much about "judging a book by it's cover" to pick out what I wanna read next. I'll go through my recommendations and just read the blurbs about books that look neat, otherwise I'd be doing nothing else other than reading recommendations.


10 Favorite book you’ve read this year (so far in 2015)? Why?
My favorite book of the year is definitely The Martian by Andy Weir. I read this back in March and though I have loved a lot of books since, this one still takes top spot. If you haven't read it yet, I highly recommend it and if you are a fan of audiobooks, I recommend it that way, the narrator, R.C. Bray is really good. He really brought the characters to life and there were several laugh out loud moments for me. I ended up staying up all night listening to this one, it was fantastic!


11 Least favorite book you read this year (so far in 2015)? Why?
Hard choice, there's been a few, but top (or bottom) definitely goes to The Giver by Lois Lowry, which I read all the way back in January. Books that piss me off most are the books that were good or at least not bad, until that ONE moment that ruins everything. That happened for me with this book. I thought it was OK, until I certain point, then I was just pissed. I still hate this book, will never touch more, and am still mad that it even put me off reading for over a week!


12 Book due to be released this year (2015) that you are most looking forward to and why?
The book that I know about that I'm most interested in coming out is the 3rd book in the Chronos series by Rysa Walker ~ Time's Divide. It's a time traveling series and I have enjoyed all the books so far. I definitely can't wait for more! There's also a book I don't know anything about ~ Pull by Anne Riley which I'm VERY intrigued about. It's also a time traveling type book, hopefully it'll be as good as it sounds!


13 What is your reading comfort zone and How often do you read out it?
I'm proud to say I don't really have a comfort zone anymore. If I DID say I still had one, I'd still say mine is mystery/thriller, but I will now read almost anything, as long as it sounds good to me. I still read a bunch of mystery/thriller, but I also read all kinds of other stuff. Lately, I've been really into the Virtual Reality type books, but I have read everything from middle grade to adult, non fic (though not much) to fantasy. I'll read anything that sounds like something I would enjoy, no matter what the genre.


14 Favorite place to read? Why do you like that place best?
I only have two places I can read ~ my recliner and my bed. I prefer my recliner, because it's WAY more comfortable than my bed. I typically only read at night, before I go to sleep, in bed, though sometimes when it's waaaaay too hot in here (no central air in this place, only a window unit in the bedroom), I'll go in there to read. I definitely prefer it out here. We hope to get a reclining couch, at some point, so we aren't in separate mix matched chairs! But hey, the price (free) was right!


15 What are your thoughts on book lending?
Meh, depends on the person. I'd be fine with lending books to my friend Kim, but she's probably it. I had loaned my Harry Potter set to a former "friend" and never saw them again. ARGH!! Other than that, if I had any friends to lend to here, I'd probably be fine with it, and just not lend out my HPs or Trixie's, unless they were ones I had double copies of.


16 What are your thoughts on pirated books?
Minority here ~ in that I see nothing wrong with it. It's no different than going to a library, or lending books to someone. I have a ton of thoughts on it, but since the majority of people are against it, or at lease act against it, I won't share them.


17 What are your thoughts on "Banned" books?
Stupidity! People should read what they wanna read and nothing should be censored. I just don't get it at all and though I'm not into the whole making sure I read banned books, I think it's pretty stupid that it's a thing. People are WAY too uptight! With books, and with all things, I wish people would worry about themselves and not care what someone else ~ who has no impact on their lives whatsoever ~ wants to read, think or do!


18 What are barriers you have to reading more? (work, family, ect)
Thankfully, not much, and self inflicted, for lack of a better term? :) My Hubby distracts me most, but I think that's on me because He'll be here doing His own thing (playing Hearthstone right now) but I'm still not reading. It's partially on Him though, as He'll typically start talking to me when I'm reading so I have to keep starting and stopping. He especially likes to do that when I'm listening to an audiobook. Other barriers are me wanting to play games and my new online course that I'm taking. I'm trying to create more of a balance of reading at least part of the day (to finish up a book, usually), playing a game part of the day and doing my class, when it's going on.


19 How many books did you read during Jan - Jun (1st 6 months of year)? How many more books have you read in Jul and Aug?
For the first 6 months of the year, I completed 163 books. Oddly enough, in Jul and Aug, I completed 63 books. This actually has my count off by one, I gotta figured out what doubled up, since it's not showing any duplicates. I think it was something with a book I read partial of. I guess I did technically read it twice, but I wish I could get it to list as just once since the first time was just a sample, but I did leave a review for that part.


20 What makes you love a book?
A subject matter that is interesting to me. Likable characters, a lot of action and quick moving plot. I would rather have action than people talking about their feelings any day, YUK! I prefer action over romance, though there are some romance authors I do read and I will read it if it has to do with a story I really like, but I definitely don't need it. I love books that grab me from the start and especially books with unexpected twists, which for as much as I read, is very hard to do for me. I typically see things coming, so I'm always glad when something surprises me!


21 What will inspire you to recommend a book?
My excitement and enjoyment of it. If I stay up all night to finish something, I typically love it and want to tell everyone about it. I at least tell my friend Kim and my Hubby, so they can read it as well. There are some books (The Martian) where I'm all about telling my Hubby to drop everything and read it now!! Luckily I know Him well enough to know what He will and won't like of what I read, so when I really recommend something, I know He will love it too.


22 5 of your top read genres and one Recommended book for each genre
I'll narrow this one down by choosing only books I read this year (no re-reads), and trying to do different books/authors than the ones I have listed below. Won't list books (Martian) I already have either.

Mystery / Thriller ~ The Naked Eye by Iris Johansen
Gaming / Video Games ~ Solarversia by Toby Downton
Science Fiction ~ Insignia Series by S.J. Kincaid
Action / Adventure ~ Chess Team Series by Jeremy Robinson
Young Adult / Middle Grade ~ Cragbridge Hall Series by Chad Morris


23 5 authors you read a lot and one book you recommend for each

Nora Roberts / J.D. Robb ~ Blue Smoke or In Death Series
Chris Carter ~ Robert Hunter Series
Matthew Reilly ~ Scarecrow Series or everything!
Robyn Carr ~ Virgin River Series
Cherise Sinclair ~ Shadowlands Series (erotica)
I can make recommendations all day! If you want a ton, just ask! :)


24 Do you read non-fiction? Biographies? What is one of your favorites? If you don't read them, what keeps you from them?
I read very few non-fic / Bios. I have to REALLY like the subject or person and that doesn't happen very often. I did just read the 2nd biography by Dick Van Dyke. I really like him, as a person, I think he's fantastic. The few non-fiction books I have read have been Disney or roller coaster related. That's pretty much the extent of my interests, though I may read some sea related stuff soon. :)


25 How many times do you read a week?
Daily, at least a few hours at night before I go to sleep. I listen to audiobooks to help me fall asleep since I have a hard time falling asleep. Since I'm tossing and turning anyways, it's a great time to listen to audio and I typically take around 2 hours (sometimes more/less) to fall asleep. I'll also read during the day whenever I feel like it, or all day everyday, if I'm in a bookish mood. :)


26 Do you feel you read better with or without noise? What kind of noise can't you read through?
I prefer quiet or instrumental music. When my Hubby is at work, it's usually quiet in here when I want to read, but there are things that I do have to drown out sometimes. We, sadly, live in a duplex, and instead of the neighbors kids playing out back in a HUGE open area, they play in the little tiny strip in front of the house between the house and the road. That means they are inches to about 5 feet outside our open window. UGH! Hate it so much. So, at that point (because the kid is 3 or 4ish and screams at the top of his lungs) I'll put my earbuds in. I will turn on Spotify and listen to a Disney Instrumental playlist I have.


27 What influences your book choices?
The blurb about the book, it has to grab my attention right away and not be TOOOOOOO long. If it's a huge amount of reading for the blurb, I'm likely not going to read it. The author, if it's an author I like, I'll tend to try their books out, even if it's something new. If it's an author I don't like and it's a new book, I'd be more hesitant to try it. Tons of hype usually keep me AWAY from books, which isn't always a good thing. It kept me away from The Martian for too long, and that was great, same with Harry Potter, way back. I didn't start reading those until right before the 5th book was out because I was tired of hearing about it, and that was a HUGE mistake.


28 Favorite reading snack? Favorite reading drink? Do you eat/drink while reading, or do you put the book down for snacks?
Yup, I'll eat and drink while I read. I'm a junk food junkie, so cookies, ice cream, candy is all good for me. I mainly drink Mt Dew, though I'll drink Sweet Tea as well and an occasional Coke or Pepsi. My favorite snack would be cookies. I love sweets while I'm reading. Lately I've been on a Snickerdoodle kick. My favorite drink ~ Mt Dew or a Fruit Punch Kickstart Dew.


29 Do you literally judge a book by its cover, title, or author?
Yup, I sure do. I get 50+ recommendations on my GoodReads recommendations page, more since it's often 50 for each "favorite" genre when I haven't checked in. I don't want to be sitting here all day reading blurbs to see what I wanna read. So, I'll go through all 50 and click not interested on covers that don't grab my attention right away. Then I'll read the blurbs of the rest. Titles don't really affect me in anyway, unless it's unique. Then I definitely look out for my certain authors, and stay away from a few others!


30 What is the longest book you have ever read? The shortest?
Longest book I've ever read was Odyssey by William Shatner at 1,072 pages. The longest book I've read in 2015 is Sandstorm by James Rollins at 608 pages. The shortest books I've read are various eroticas around 30-40 pages, and a bunch of graphic novels, like the Arkham series.


31 How do you feel about giving bad/negative reviews?
I've found that I don't like it, IF I've gotten the books from NetGalley, then I always feel bad because they are wanting good reviews. They say honest, but you know they, and the authors, don't really want bad reviews out there. So, I feel bad about it in that way, but if its not from them, than I don't have a problem with it. If I read it and hated it, I have absolutely no problem in saying so! My hang ups are different than others, so I dislike strange things sometimes, but that's just me. I don't have a problem saying anything bad about it!


32 Do you make up stories, or ever think about an alternate ending for a book because you want to?
Not REALLY. Not to the extent of a full story or anything like that, but there are definitely things I think of about how some book could have gone on in some way or how some book could have been changed (In my HP world, Fred is still alive!). But that's pretty much the extent of it. Never been much into the fan fic or anything like that, though I have read some good ones years ago.


33 Most intimidating book you’ve ever read? Why?
This is the same answer as last time ~ definitely The God Delusion by Dawkins. It was very wordy for me and it made my head hurt. I tried to read it but I don't think I got very far into it, it's been a while now. I preferred the much lighter God, No! by Penn Jillette! Thank you, Penn, for making me realize that I've been an Atheist all these years since I turned away from religion, not Agnostic! :)


34 Most intimidating book you’re too nervous to begin? How come?
None? Most books don't typically (see exception above) intimidate me, for books I want to read. That book was one that my Hubby wanted me to try and it was just toooooo much for me. I prefer lighter, fun stuff. I read for entertainment, NOT for learning, that's just how I am. I'd say Books of Skyrim but I already started it. I'm not intimidated by it, it's just super LONG! I guess I'll say one of my new Oceanography books, since I am taking a class on it, want to learn more, but don't know if I can just sit here and read a text type book anymore.


35 What book do you try to steer people away from?
50 Shades of Crap! Yup, my answer hasn't changed from that either. Still awful, still out there getting people's attention. I don't understand it. Read a REAL BDSM book instead, please, not that horrible stuff. Start with the above mentioned series by Cherise Sinclair. She won't steer you wrong, like 50 did! I hate that she tried to make it BDSM-ish and gave BDSM even more of a bad name. Ugh. And don't get me started on the awful writing. I could complain about that series all day!


36 What book do you recommend most to others?
The Night Circus by Erin Morganstern!! 4 years as my most FAVORITE book ever! It's so magical and beautifully written. Thankfully, most who have read it on my recommendation have loved it, though there are a few who haven't and that makes me soooooooo sad. I love everything about it, it's just a special kind of book and yes, if you didn't know, my blog IS in the black & white with red theme based off of The Night Circus!


37 Do you ever re-read books? How many times have you re-read a favorite? If you don't re-read books, why not?
I HAVE re-read books, but it's rare, and usually pretty specific. I think the only books I've actually read more than 2 or 3 times are the Harry Potter books and my favorites from Trixie Belden (3, 9, 7, 1). Beyond that, it's been just a few. I've re-read the Harry Potter books via both audiobooks, first all of Jim Dale's and now all of Stephen Fry's, of which I have the last one (maybe last 2?) left to do. I've re-read The Night Circus twice now. Other things I've re-read have been because I read them so long ago, or for things like I'll re-read The Martian before I see the movie, stuff like that. My re-reads for the year I'd say are less than 10 books (total), as I'd prefer to read something new!


38 Favorite fictional character and why?
Still Bailey from The Night Circus. I think he's absolutely fantastic! He knows what he wants at an early age and he does what he needs to, including turning away from his family, to get what he wants. I love it, and I wish I had done that ages ago. Of course I wish I had ever had that much passion for something. He's a fantastic character and I absolutely adored him! Widget and Poppet from the same book are also favorites.


39 Favorite fictional villain and why?
Typically I'd say Voldemort, but I'm liking this killer from the Huntress / FBI series ~ Cara. She only kills evil people ~ rapists, dealers, abusers.... basically anyone who has harmed a child or spoken of harming many people. It's a killer I can get behind and understand why she is doing it and root for her to continue and not be caught. At least someone is bring justice to those who need it!


40 Books I’m most likely to bring on vacation?
I had to look up vacation in the dictionary. It's one of those things where you leave where you live and go have fun somewhere else, right? LOL! I really wouldn't know what that was like, our last one was our honeymoon in 2007, and none will be in sight for many many years. But, if I could go on vacation, I'd just bring my Kindle, which in addition to the hundreds of books I have on it, I can access my cloud for any other book I want. If I HAD to chose a "real" book or two to take, I'd take Prisoner of Azkaban, Blue Smoke by Nora Roberts and The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon.


41 The longest I’ve gone without reading?
The first 5 or so years of my life? Early in my life I didn't read a lot. I was the outdoors type and I wasn't allowed to read much. I lived a sheltered life, and my Trixie's are the only books I remember at all from my childhood, though I'm sure I had some Nancy's too. Most recently, I only read 10 books in Jun after being burnt out during Apr and May when I read 84 books in 8 weeks. 10 is really nothing to me and were almost all audiobooks I just listened to at night before sleep.


42 Name a book that you could/would not finish and why you couldn't?
There's been a few, most recently was this week. I wanted to read The Deadly Web by Kay Hooper, and I just could NOT get into it. The story bored me, the characters bored me. I was starting to skim it before I was even 20% through the book. I skimmed most of it through about 45% and then I just had to make myself stop. I hate not finishing books when it's for a challenge (otherwise I wouldn't have given it past 2 or 3%), but I gave it a chance for the challenge but had to eventually say enough was enough and give up on it.


43 What distracts you easily when you’re reading?
My Hubby! I love the Man. If you ask His co-workers, they would tell you He's the most quiet guy, but He's so not, with me. We're always talking to each other, even after knowing each other over 22 years, and being together going on 11 years! He's worse when I'm trying to listen to an audiobook, because I have to stop it so I can pay attention to Him and not lose anything on the book. If I'm REALLY into a book, I gotta just tell Him to leave me alone. It rarely works. :)


44 Favorite film adaptation of a novel?
Deathly Hallows. I think the movie(s) is even stronger than the book. It leaves out a lot of the stuff that drags out and just sticks with all the action. I wish they had gone with the 3 movies, then it would have been really fantastic!


45 Most disappointing film adaptation?
Prisoner of Azkaban. It's my FAVORITE book and movie, but it left so much out and there's so much more I wanted out of it. But still, awesome both ways. I don't really watch a lot of movies and haven't seen a LOT of stuff that's both. The Harry Potters, Hunger Games are the main ones I can think of.


46 The most money I’ve ever spent in the bookstore at one time?
Dunno, but the best amount of money I spent in a bookstore was $12 for 116 books! It was a "friends of the library" type store doing a big sale where you spent something like $2 a bag and filled the bag. We got "only" 116 because we had no car (hey, still don't) and had to take all the books on the bus down to where we were living at the time. Made 2 trips, if I remember correctly. :)


47 How often do you skim a book before reading it?
Never, even before my Kindle's. I don't want to see something and be pissed that I saw it. What if I saw a major spoiler? Nope, never have done it and never would. Not one of those people who read the last page either, I can't believe people actually do that. I may be a quick reader and read a lot, but I actually like the time it takes to get through the book and learn how it gets to the end, not know it already!


48 What would cause you to stop reading a book half-way through?
Dull story, boring characters, one of my triggers. TYPICALLY, I know within the first two or three pages if I will like a book or not, so I rarely get half-way through a book before giving it up. If it was for a challenge I would try, but typically when I look through and see how much else I have that I have to endure, I'm ready to give it up. It's almost always just something from the start, like the story is slow and never gets going. But I would stop, and have stopped, for a trigger of mine.


49 Do you like to keep your books organized?
I suppose, to a degree. They aren't organized on my Kindle, but on OneDrive they are organized by author's first name. It works, for me. There's no kind of order on my "real" bookshelf except to have my series together in order that I like them (HP, Trixie, Nancy). The last shelf is just a mashed up pile however I can fit them in there.


50 Do you prefer to keep books or give them away once you’ve read them?
Back before my Kindle, it would depend on the book. YEARS and years ago, there was this fantastic used book store near me, so I would keep the few books that I liked and wanted to keep but the rest would go to the bookstore. I'd get credit for the books and get more books. There were only a few people who I could give my books to that would appreciate them. Now, I'm just about my Kindle books and the books I collect.


51 Do you read for enjoyment or to gain knowledge?
ENJOYMENT! I always read for the fun of it. I am, for the first time, taking a class, and that has me interested in some stuff, but I don't think I'd actually sit for a whole book just to read to learn. Ugh. Sounds too much like school, which I HATED. I don't mind the class though because it's just articles and videos and it's been fun, so far at least. I did get a few Oceanography books, but if I did read them, they would be in chunks, never a sit down and read for hours, just not my thing, unless it's for FUN!


52 Name a book that made you angry. Why did it?
Ah crap, we're back to The Giver. I didn't like it when the Giver showed him the video. It pissed me off and I was really upset for quite a while, I'm talking days. I still don't like to think about it and don't like to think about the book. It just wasn't for me at that point. I DID end up finishing it, though mostly skimming it after that.


53 A book you didn’t expect to like but did (from 2015)?
I'd have to go with Troll Mountain by Matthew Reilly. It was the last book of his I needed to read to read everything he's written and I kept putting it off because I didn't think I'd like it, it's not really my kind of thing. I ended up really liking it. The story was quick and the characters were likable. It was just pure Reilly and I'm glad I finally read it. I love his books!


54 A book that you expected to like but didn’t (from 2015)?
Definitely Endgame: The Calling by James Frey. I was looking forward to this book for a REALLY long time. It sounded right up my alley ~ a deadly race, a game type thing and I HATED it. Mainly I hated the characters, they were flat and annoying. There was a lot of repetitiveness which I couldn't stand and choppy sentences. I just didn't like it at all and I skimmed most of it.


55 Favorite guilt-free, pleasure reading?
I really need to change this question because I don't like this term. I am not guilty about anything I wanna read. I wanna read it and I read it. I don't care who thinks about it, or what they think about it. I read everything from action to mysteries to erotica, to sci-fi, to YA and even middle grade. I suppose if I had to answer, I'd have to say the Middle Grade stuff. I really love the clue / scavenger hunt type middle grade books, if they are written well, even at my age. It's just fun easy reading!


Thanks, if you read this far!

August Reading Log & Wrap-Up Post

This is my monthly reading log for Swap-Bot. Back to a more "me" type month. I was involved in 4 different challenges / games at GoodReads, plus there was Bout of Books. I didn't do as much as I had planned for BoB, as my interest went elsewhere, but I still had a good time and ended up reading 8 books on the week. Sorry for the numbers listed below, with the books, I didn't feel like changing them from my 2nd Quarter Log. If you don't want to do the math, it's 39 books I completed in August. :)

August Reading Log 2015

From ~ ImzadiRose

1 ★  1.5 ★  2 ★  2.5 ★ <---Bad  3 ★ Great---> 3.5 ★ 4 ★ 4.5 ★ 5 ★

Good

25 ~ Mackenzie’s Mountain (Mackenzie’s 01) by Linda Howard

Completed 8/1

3 of 5 stars

          I needed a book set in Wyoming for a challenge.  Since I read the 4^th book in this series years ago, I decided to start the first one.  It was a quick read though VERY dated.  The running theme seems to be an older (20’s) virgin falling in love with a sexy experienced male.  It was OK.  In the first one, a school teacher ~ Mary, is concerned about Joe, a 16 year old dropout.  She seeks to help him and becomes involved with his father, Wolf.

26 ~ Mackenzie’s Mission (Mackenzie’s 02) by Linda Howard

Completed 8/1

3 of 5 stars

          I needed a certain book for a challenge that the NEXT book happens to cover, so I decided to go ahead and read this one.  This is Joe’s story.  He flies for the Air Force and is testing new planes.  Caroline works on the laser aspects of the plane and of course was a sheltered so is, yet again, a virgin, falling for the hot dude.

27 ~ Mackenzie’s Pleasure (Mackenzie’s 03) by Linda Howard

Completed 8/2

2.5 of 5 stars

          Needed this book for a challenge and didn’t like it as much.  It was the story of Zane, one of Wolf and Mary’s children.  This one was even more instalove than the others, and wasn’t as good as the first two.  Still an ok quick read.

28 ~ Stormbreaker (Alex Rider 01) by Anthony Horowitz

Completed 8/2

4 of 5 stars

          Found a new series I love!!  J  Alex Rider is a 14 year old boy living with his uncle in London.  His uncle is killed and Alex finds out he wasn’t a banker, but a spy.  The MI6 recruit Alex for the mission his uncle was on.  Completely unbelievable and so much fun.  I definitely really liked Alex and the story and I can’t wait to get to more of these books!  I’ll be continuing the series, so I’ll probably just do a re-cap each time, rather than my opinion, unless it’s vastly different.

29 ~ Point Blank (Alex Rider 02) by Anthony Horowitz

Completed 8/3

4 of 5 stars

          Alex is recruited again, this time to enter a private school where they think something bad might be going on.  Another really good story with crazy things happening.  The good characters are good, the bad characters are so evil.  It’s a really fun and enjoyable series, everything I had hoped 39 Clues would be.  This is much better, and can’t wait to read more.... too bad I have to read some other books for challenges first.  L

30 ~ Trophy by Steffen Jacobsen

Completed 8/4

3 of 5 stars

          An investagator is sent to investigate a video tape that was found in which a man was hunted and killed seemingly for sport.  The book was ok, typical of this kind of genre.  There were some twists in it, but nothing major.  It was enjoyable.

31 ~ The Fire Chronicle (Books of Beginning 02) by John Stephens

Completed 8/4

3 of 5 stars

          The 2^nd book in this series, not nearly as enjoyable as the first one.  This one focused on Michael who can be really annoying at times, though he means well.  Going to take a break from reading these before I get back to Emma’s story.  There were some good parts, it was ok.

32 ~ Timecaster (Timecaster 01) by Joe Kimball (J.A. Konrath)

Completed 8/5

4 of 5 stars

          I’ve read a handful of books by J.A. Konrath.  They are definitely crazy and over the top.  I’ve loved a few, enjoyed some, and hated some.  This one was definitely enjoyable.  I starts really nuts and stays nuts.  It’s about a future where there is almost no crime because the Timecasters have a device where they can go back and view anything in a 2 week window.  Talon is the MC and he arrives at a scene of a missing woman to find that the crime was commited by himself.  Weird and enjoyable!

33 ~ Skeleton Key (Alex Rider 03) by Anthony Horowitz

Completed 8/6

3 of 5 stars

          Not nearly as good as the first one.  This started out with a weird/boring tennis scene that didn’t fit into the story (for me) at all.  Once it got past that part, it was a little better, but still not my favorite one.  In this one, Alex is teamed up with the CIA and sent to an island to stop a mad man from a castrophic plan.

34 ~ Eagle Strike  (Alex Rider 04) by Anthony Horowitz

Completed 8/7

4 of 5 stars

          Better than the 3^rd and it started off not as good as the first 2 but it ended up being really good.  In this one, Alex goes to France with a friend to escape the spy lifestyle but it seems to follow him when where he’s staying is blown up.  There was some video game aspects in this one, so I really enjoyed those parts.  This book also was my 100^th audiobook of the year!  J

35 ~ I am Death (Robert Hunter 07) by Chris Carter

Completed 8/8

4.5 of 5 stars

          Another great Robert Hunter book.  This series is great and I love them.  This one was great with all it’s twists and turns and usual craziness.  I didn’t rate it a 5 star because I did have a few issues with it that were major plot points, so I won’t share here, but overall it was still really enjoyable. 

                                              

36 ~ Scorpia  (Alex Rider 05) by Anthony Horowitz

Completed 8/9

4 of 5 stars

          In this one, Alex starts to get some answers about his father and what happened there, though he’s told many things so he isn’t sure who/what to believe in.  All he knows is he isn’t who the bad guys want him to be, but he’s tired of MI6 taking advantage of him as well.  It was enjoyable. 

37 ~ Ark Angel  (Alex Rider 06) by Anthony Horowitz

Completed 8/10

3.5 of 5 stars

          Another enjoyable Rider.  Some was a little slow, but most was still enjoyable with the typical craziness.  I definitely didn’t like the “bad” but of this one, which is typical, but this one was more so.  While I was watching this one, I ended up watching the movie for the first book and it was quite a bit different than I was excpecting.  Some was good, but additions to it that were cheesy made no sense. 

38 ~ Fugitives (Escape from Furnace 04) by Alexander Gordon Smith

Completed 8/10

3 of 5 stars

          I started reading this series a while ago, it was about a prison that is sent near the core of the earth.  I really enjoyed the first 3 books.  In this one, they are finally out of furnace and it definitely wasn’t as enjoyable.  I think they should have ended with 3 when they escaped.  This one started out really dull and slow.  It got better but just ended ok.

39 ~ Alert (Michael Bennett 08) by James Patterson

Completed 8/11

3 of 5 stars

          I think I’m winding down on Patterson, even this series which is basically the only series of his left that I’ve still been reading.  His stuff is just so predictable and it’s all the same now.  It’s starting to bore me.  It’s good for a quick read though.  In this one, people are doing all kinds of stuff to NY such as blowing up subway stations and having part of the city in a black out.  It was ok.

40 ~ The Girl in the Woods by Gregg Olsen

Completed 8/12

3 of 5 stars

          A foot is found and the pathologists and the detective must find the killer.  It was ok, mainly dull and slow moving.  Characters weren’t people you could get behind, I didn’t really like either of them so I really didn’t care about a lot of stuff happening.  There were some twists and I didn’t see one of them coming, so that’s always good.  It was ok but forgettable.

41 ~ Veiled (Alex Verus 06) by Benedict Jacka

Completed 8/12

4 of 5 stars

          I tried, but couldn’t get into, the Dresden series.  I tried this series, which is similar, because I love the narrator.  I have enjoyed the series and stuck with it.  It’s about a mage in London, good for fans of Dresden I think.  In this one, he’s aligned with the Keepers to get some allies on his side.

42 ~ Hush (Lodestone 01 / Stark Bros 01) by Cherry Adair

Completed 8/13

4.5 of 5 stars

          Zak & Gideon are brothers on a trip who get kidnapped along with a woman they don’t know.  Zak and Acadia are seperated from Gideon and have to find a way to get help.  There was a lot of craziness going on, including a paranormal ability that Zak ends up with that is different from any other type of ability (that I’ve ever read about).  Lots of twists and turns and tons of action.  Though Acadia got on my nerves at times, overall I really enjoyed the book!         

43 ~ Gideon (Stark Bros 02) by Cherry Adair

Completed 8/14

3 of 5 stars

          Didn’t like this one NEARLY as much as the first one.  In this one Gideon has lived the past few years as Sin, a cartel leader, and he has no memories of his previous life, though he starts to get flashbacks that make no sense.  Riva is T-Flac (authors other series) operative who is sent in undercover to eliminate Sin’s rival.  She ends up with Sin instead and together they find out a lot of stuff.  It was really crazy but not nearly as enjoyable as the first one and the reunion with Zak and Gideon was WAY WAY WAY too short!!

44 ~ Snakehead  (Alex Rider 07) by Anthony Horowitz

Completed 8/14

2 of 5 stars

          Least favorite, so far.  Getting tired of Alex complaining he doesn’t want to do spy work, whe he clearly does.  He just needs to get over  it and accept it as his life.  He wouldn’t be able to go back to school and just pretend he was normal.  But I really didn’t like that he has no one on his side and he was turned on yet again, that’s getting old too!  Disappointing!

45 ~ The Leveller by Julia Durango

Completed 8/15

5 of 5 stars

          I LOVED this book!  Nixy is a Leveller.  She goes into virtual reality to retrieve kids who refuse to leave.  She’s contacted by the designer of of the game whose son has seemingly gone into VR and refuses to come out.  The story was soooooooo cute and so much fun.  This was had everything I love about VR in it and it was very comical with a ton of tongue in cheek humor.  Nixy was kickass, she was such a great character and so much fun.  I can’t wait for more of the series!

46 ~ The Perilous Journey (Mysterious Benedict Society 02) by Trenton Lee Stewart

Completed 8/16

2.5 of 5 stars

          I read the first one of this series a while ago and it was cute, I didn’t like this one nearly as much.  Something that annoys me in books like these is the back and forth inconsistency of the adults.  These kinds of books feature very very young kids doing brace and heroic things, and get into trouble that normal people wouldn’t get out of.  They aren’t meant to be “real” books, just to be fun.  So the adults let them go off into danger in the first book but they want to shelter them in this book.  Too inconsistant.  It just wasn’t good.     

47 ~ Time’s Mirror (Chronos 02.5) by Rysa Walker

Completed 8/17

3.5 of 5 stars

          I LOVE this time travelling series.  This one was about one of the “bad” people of the series and it was very interesting to get her story, it was quite different than I imagined it would be.  Definitely interesting and I can’t wait for more books in the series!

48 ~ Crimson Bound by Rosamund Hodge

Completed 8/17

2 of 5 stars

          We VERY disappointed in this one, since I enjoyed Cruel Beauty so much.  This one wasn’t part of that world and was a red riding hood retelling, but it wasn’t good for me at all.  I couldn’t get behind the story or characters which both bored me.  I liked Armand some but I hate lies or half baked truths so all the main characters annoyed me at some point or another.  Just wasn’t good for me. 

49 ~ I am Cowboy (SecondWorld 01.5) by Jeremy Robinson

Completed 8/18

3.5 of 5 stars

          I typically always rate novellas 3 stars just cuz I want more, but I liked this book, it was really cute, I just wish it had been a full story.  The first book in the series almost saw the destruction of most of the world by depleting the oxygen.  This book is about one of the characters, Cowboy, who I really liked.  He’s a great character and I just wish it had been a full novel.

50 ~ Lois Lane: Fallout (Lois Lane 01) by Gwenda Bond

Completed 8/20

3 of 5 stars

          So this is a different take on the Superhero genre since it focuses on Lois as a teen in Metropolis.  I jsut wasn’t impressed.  The only thing that had me keeping with Lois is that I kept imagining Lois from Smallville as the MC, otherwise it really could have been any girl in any school in any town.  It didn’t wow me, even though it was about a video game, which was the only good aspect of it.  It was lame too because she’s never met Clark, but knows him only as “SmallvilleGuy” so it’s lame to not even have her know him but for him to keep popping in and out.  I dunno, it was just weird.  Will try the next one to see what happens.

51 ~ The Blast by Sarah Perlmutter

Completed 8/20

1 of 5 stars

          I hated this book, and it’s rated VERY well for some unknown reason.  I explained it as the book read like this ~ a 15 year old girl likes a boy and her parents won’t let her go out with him.  So, she gets angry and writes out a badly written story in which everyone ~ except herself, her best friend and the 2 boys they like ~ die horrible deaths.  That’s what it read like to me, instead of being written by an adult.  It was just bad, but I guess those angry teens out there will like it.  I didn’t!

52 ~ The Darkest Minds (Darkest Minds 01) by Alexandra Bracken

Completed 8/21

3.5 of 5 stars

          I seem to be in the minority of not really liking this book.  It was good, but not great.  There were parts I really liked and parts I didn’t like at all, especailly the end.  This book is about kids with abilities who get set off to detention centers.  It just didn’t have a lot of depth to it, I couldn’t get behind the characters and when I did get behind one, then the MC was stupid.  It ws ok, and I might try more, see what happens. 

53 ~ The Rise of Renegade X (Renegade X 01) by Chelsea Campbell

Completed 8/22

1.5 of 5 stars

          This book about a boy who is trying to decide if he wants to be a villian or a super hero had sooooo much potential and some parts of it was good, but overall the other crap was really bad.  It if were just between his choices, it would have been pretty good, but there was this stupid romance crap.  He went back and forth between 2 girls, one good and one bad.  It just didn’t fit, like the author wanted to try to appeal to female readers.  It’s not for kids either, if you are strict on what they read, there was tons of sex talk in it.  The narrator was really really awful!

54 ~ Pwned (Lexy Cooper 02) by Christa Charter

Completed 8/23

4 of 5 stars

          Lexy works for a video game company and always finds herself finding a dead body.  Her “uncle” Malick is a detective and he’s investigating who would have killed another co-worker of Lexy’s.  I like Lexy, for the most part.  She’s smart, funny, sexy, sassy and doesn’t care what most people think of her.  She has one HUGE fault of being in love with a married man and I hate that aspect of the book.  But these are shorter fun books and I’m looking forward to reading more. 

55 ~ Keep Moving by Dick Van Dyke

Completed 8/24

5 of 5 stars

          I became a fan of Dick Van Dyke in his Diagnosis Murder days, so later in his career but I think he’s fantasic.  I loved this 2^nd book of his and was so glad to get it as an ARC as it’s not out yet.  I think he’s great, and I wish I had half of his energy!  He’ll be 90 in Dec and he’s still going!  Amazing person!

56 ~ Black (Black 01) by Russell Blake

Completed 8/25

2.5 of 5 stars

          The good ~ I mostly liked the MC.  He’s a PI who is suck in the past.  He’s got issues and he’s real.  The plot was typical for these kinds of books but kept my attention.  Did see who was behind the killings, in one way, not in another.  The bad ~ I HATED his mother, with a passion.  She was a bitch.  His assistant was a little too over the top.  I may try the next book just because they are short and I like the narrator.  Not sure. 

57 ~ Roped In (Bondage Rance 01) by Sindra van Yssel

Completed 8/25

3 of 5 stars

          No info because it’s an erotica, but I liked that it was BDSM done the right way, except 2 jerks who got put in their place quickly.  I didn’t feel any connection to the characters, but that happens for me with novellas.  It was good, not great.

58 ~ Ink & Bone (Great Library 01) by Rachel Caine

Completed 8/26

4 of 5 stars

          In this world, the Great Library of Alexandria is in power and it has banned actual books taking all the books to keep within it, though you can get all books on tablet like devices.  It’s actually a really difficult book to describe but it was REALLY enjoyable.  One of the better books about books out there.  I definitely look forward to more. 

59 ~ The Lost (Lost 01) by Sarah Beth Durst

Completed 8/27

1^st half of book – 2 stars / 2^nd half of book 4.5 stars  ~ 3.5 overall

          The only reason this isn’t a 4 star book was because it took me a REALLY REALLY long time to get into it.  It was slow and dull for the first 40% of the book, then it finally started picking up some.  Around 60% I really did start liking it and I liked the last part a ton.  I just wish it hadn’t been so slow to start out.  Lauren finds herself in Lost, a town from which she can’t escape.  It was a neat concept and the last half really enjoyable.  Looking forward to more.

60 ~ One Night of Sin (After Hours 01) by Elle Kennedy

Completed 8/27

2.5 of 5 stars

          Erotica so no details.  It was typical with no imagination at all.  I read this quickly for a GoodReads game I was doing and won the game for my team with this book, so YAY for that.  The book was typical and cookie cutter, same as some of the other boring erotica out there.  Already forgettable.

61 ~ Afterglow (Lodestone 02) by Cherry Adair

Completed 8/28

2.5 of 5 stars

          Almosted rated a 2.  I didn’t like either of the MC.  They were both liars who wouldn’t communicate with each other when they were together so now they hate each other, but are still attracted to each other.  It was ok, I just really didn’t like the MCs but I liked the story of a crazy drug being out there that they had to stop before it killed more.

62 ~ Huntress Moon (Huntress/FBI 01) by Alexandra Sokoloff

Completed 8/29

4 of 5 stars

          Not a lot of female serial killer stories out there, so this one was different.  I definitely liked the main characters, they were both engaging and I was definitely into the story.  Roarke is smart though a little infatuated by the end with the killer.  Definitely looking forward to more of the series.  Reminded me of the Chelsea Cain series, which ended up boring the crap out of me by book 4.  Hopefully this one can stay interesting.

63 ~ Spiraled (Mason Callahan 03) by Kendra Elliot

Completed 8/31

3 of 5 stars

          This series is OK.  I did like the story for this one though I thought they were stupid at parts, very unlike them.  I saw the “twist” of the story the moment it happened and it took them half the book.  UGH!  I hate one of the MC’s sister, she really ruins the stories for me, if it weren’t for her in the books these would probably all be 4 & 5 star, instead of 3 & 4 star.

Bout of Books Updates

• Day 1
• Day 2
• Day 3
• Day 4
• Day 5
• Day 6
• Day 7 & Challenge
• Wrap Up Post