Monthly Round Up: December 2011

Head rush, Carolyn Crane

Kiss of Frost, Jennifer Estep

Wow what a lame month. I’ve kinda lost my reading mojo haven’t I :/

I’ve had a lot on to be fair but hey, it is what it is.

Head Rush was Decembers fave read. I’d been waited for what felt like forever for that sucka to hit my kindle. I’m sad that it’s the last book in the series. I know Jennifer Estep has other books out but the style of the books puts me off; form what I’ve read they’re on the silly/over the top side of things.

So now I now to wrap up 2011 and post my various blog reading challenge stats. February isn’t too late for that is it? ;)

Review: Ashes, Ashes by Jo Treggiari

A thrilling tale of adventure, romance, and one girl's unyielding courage through the darkest of nightmares.

Epidemics, floods, droughts--for sixteen-year-old Lucy, the end of the world came and went, taking 99% of the population with it. As the weather continues to rage out of control, and Sweepers clean the streets of plague victims, Lucy survives alone in the wilds of Central Park. But when she's rescued from a pack of hunting dogs by a mysterious boy named Aidan, she reluctantly realizes she can't continue on her own. She joins his band of survivors, yet, a new danger awaits her: the Sweepers are looking for her. There's something special about Lucy, and they will stop at nothing to have her.

As with a few of the books I've read recently, I was really looking forward to this book. I wasn't very happy about the price of the kindle version though. £9.36 +_+ almost double the usual price, and a few pounds more than the physical copy. (Edit: the average price of ebooks has now gone up since I wrote this review, a lot of them are now £7+)

Although the price seemed extreme most of the reviews on Goodreads were really good, and even though I was still on my zombiefest I was looking forward to reading it. It was slow to get going, with lots of exposition and I found myself skim reading. Once it hit the halfway mark the info dumps petered out, and the story got going. Alice is surviving on her own as the story opens. I liked Alice's independence, the fact that at 16 years old and she survived on her own for over a year, this is thanks mainly to a survival book she had the savvy to pick up along the way. I liked Aiden but I felt that, as with Del and Sammy, he could have had a little more depth. All the face and hair touching was sweet but there needed to be more to him than the fact he liked Alice.

 The book felt like a start of a series, and it would be a good book to start one, and although it does stand up on its own as well it definitely felt like it could have been the beginning of something. I really hope there is a second book because I wasn't satisfied with the epilogue of Ashes, Ashes. Over all not a bed read at all

Rating: 4/6 - I Liked It

Monthly Round Up: November 2011

I was hoping to amaze myself this month and read a heap of books and magically get myself up to date with my reading challenge. I'd also planned for either November or December to be the month I'd finish all the books I abandoned. Sadly I was way too far behind for either :( I'd had hoped to sample some Steampunk this year but that hasn't happened. Maybe I'll get to it during 2012. Last years failed challenge will at least keep me from making the same mistake with 2012's reading challenge (I'll keep my fingers crossed but I'm a glutton).

So, November's books. I managed 6 :/ but I'm sure it's not been my worst month. My favourite has to be The Scoripo Races. I adored it. Close second came Drink Deep. I'm loving the Chicagoland Vampire series. I was disappointed with the emotional connection, or the lack of one, I felt with Voyage of the Snake Lady as I loved and have very fond memories of the first adventure, Moon Riders. I was also disappointed with Crossed mainly because nothing much happened at all. I think that Ally Condie has kept all the action for the trilogy's 3rd instalment. Well, I certainly hope so!

Magic on the Line, Devon Monk
The Scorpio Races, Maggie Stiefvater
Crossed, Ally Condie
Drink Deep, Chloe Neill
Voyage of the Snake Lady Theresa Thomlinson
Carrier of the Mark, Leigh Fallon

Goodbye Hello

I would have liked to include my 2011reading challenge stats but I can't seem to find them on Goodreads. Maybe its they think its best to look forward not back, or something.

Ok so I failed my 150 book reading challenge of 2011! I only read 102 books but that's no reason not to set another goal. I'll just aim a little lower this time :)

I've been in a bit of a reading slump for the last few months so now is the perfect time to consider how to go about this. I still have a TBR pile that if the books where lined up, could wrap around the world at least once :/

So maybe I need to get these books read.

My goal this year is to read 75 books. That is half of last years challenge I know, and I know that I'm able to read more than that, but I'm setting myself up to win :)

Plus I want to take it slower this year because I only end up neglecting everything else and I have a ton, a TON of reviews and various blog posts to finish and get posted, that they really need to be my first priority.

Again, I know I've failed the 3 reading challenges I took part in from the blog sphere but I've seen a few I want to participate in. Like I said though; I'm going to keep them manageable.

So, a goal of 75 it is. I'll think of the particulars later.

Up next will be November and December's Monthly Round Up, then a 2011 Round Up. After that it'll be back to the reviews. I have so many to finish. Last year I tried (and did manage to keep up for a while) to post three a week but this year I'm going to stick to one, remember I'm setting myself up to win!

Happy reading :)

quick update

I have quite a few reviews to tidy up then post so there should be an update soon. Blooger should come up with a better phone app, just saying...

A Little Gushing

Itried to read Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater a few months back and I ended up abandoning it. I really did try to like it but... well heres the review I have yet to post;

I've decided I don't really like dual pov's, especially if they are quite samey. I wasn't sure how I felt about this book when I started it. I'm not sure whether or not the negative reviews I'd read influenced me. It was a bit blah. The beginning was a little slow but I eventually settled into it, or rather, I got used to it being slow. I took a break a 3rd of the way in to finish another book I had going, and then another. I actually read 5 books in the time it'd taken me to finish this one. I had to force myself to keep going back to it. I hate not finishing a book. It was okay, kinda. I didn't love it but I didn't hate it either. It just didn't float my boat. Okay, okay it was as boring as hell and a little simple and innocent for my tastes. Maybe I would have enjoyed it if I was younger, way younger. Say 13 years old. I just didn't connect with Grace or Sam at all. I didn't feel the romance either. It felt more of an obsession with wolves (well one wolf in particular) than a romance and even that was lukewarm. After saying all this I may read the next book but only for the fact it's part of a trilogy. Rating: 2 stars.

So when I saw she had written another book I was a little ugh. Until I saw the cover


























Omg just look at it. I ADORE it. It kinda reminded me of The Moon Riders by Theresa Tomlinson which I also loved (must have been the horses). I was still a little sceptical though so I read the blurb on Goodreads

It happens at the start of every November: the Scorpio Races. Riders attempt to keep hold of their water horses long enough to make it to the finish line. Some riders live. Others die. At age nineteen, Sean Kendrick is the returning champion. He is a young man of few words, and if he has any fears, he keeps them buried deep, where no one else can see them. Puck Connolly is different. She never meant to ride in the Scorpio Races. But fate hasn’t given her much of a chance. So she enters the competition — the first girl ever to do so. She is in no way prepared for what is going to happen.

It was then that I knew I HAD to read it. I haven't got a thing for horses or anything so I don't know why it appealed to me so much. I just knew I needed to read it. I'd just downloaded this



Florence and the Machine's new album, Ceremonials, so I was listening to that the whole way through.

I love, love, loved it. Loved them both. The two will forever be one to me from now on. I now wonder if I should give Shiver another go. I just can't get The Scorpio Races outta my head

Monthly Round Up: October 2011

89. Spider's Revenge, Jennifer Estep
90. Nightfall, Ellen Connor
91. The Diviner's Tale, Bradford Morrow
92. Silence, Becca Fitzpatrick
93. A Touch of Crimson, Sylvia Day
94. Fallen, kristina Douglas
95. Demon, kristina Douglas

So it seems October has been a better month for reading than September was but let's face it, that wouldn't take much. I'm still on my TV buzz but not as much as last month. I'm feel quite stressed with a situation I've got going on but I really need to focus on reading if I have any chance of successfully completing my 150 book goal this year. I've kinda done better than I thought I would if I'm honest. I knew when I set my goal that around half way through I'd begin to flag, and I wasn't wrong. What surprised me though was that I still kept going. My posting of my review took a hit, and I've still have loads I need to write up and get posted but I've done okay. I was hoping to use December to finish all the books I abandoned throughout the year but I'm thinking that may not be the best idea at the moment as it might stop me reading altogether.

Anyway...

Best read of October? Well Silence really surprised me. I thought I'd hate it, but even though I really struggled with Crescendo, I actually reallly liked Silence. It was a really enjoyable read, but it wasn't my fave. Biggest disappointment was Nightfall. I can't tell you how bad that let me down. I just expected so much more than it turned out to be. Maybe it was I expected more from Ann Aguirre as I really enjoyed her Corrine Soloman series.

My favourite has to be good ole faithful Spider's Revenge by Jennifer Estep, followed by either Fallen or Demon but I think Demon has the edge on Fallen.

So on to November. I'm hoping my Situation evens out to enable me to get back into the swing of things ready for the last push. The way it is I doubt it. I'm fighting an ox.