READING CHALLENGES 2014

Signing up for 2014 Challenges!

Tara

This year I’m only joining 3 challenges. I had browsed through the Novel Challenges blog many times and found quite a few that really intrigued me. However, I’m wanting to really focus on reading this year rather than trying to find books that fit categories. So I only decided on three; two of which I have participated in before and one new-to-me one.

So I’m officially signing up for:

eclecticchallenge2014_300

This one is one of my favorites but I have yet to complete it. Maybe this year will be the year?! One can hope. Although I know that romantic comedy, alternate history, graphic novel and anthology are all going to give me problems… Here’s the categories:

    1. Award Winning
    2. True Crime (Non Fiction)
    3. Romantic Comedy
    4. Alternate History Fiction
    5. Graphic Novel
    6. Cosy Mystery Fiction
    7. Gothic Fiction
    8. War/Military Fiction
    9. Anthology
    10. Medical Thriller Fiction
    11. Travel (Non Fiction)
    12. Published in 2014

2014tbrbutton

This one is new-to-me, even though it’s been around for a few years. I’ve always been a little intimidated because you have to make a list and stick to it. Those types of challenges always make me nervous, but I wanted to try that this year because there are a few books that I need to get off my shelves, it’s getting kind of ridiculous how many books have been there for years. The rules are simple, you pick 12 books (and 2 alternates) that have been on your shelves or your TBR “list” for at least 1 full year. That means no books published before 1/1/13. Easy enough for me, lol. I went through and picked out a few books that have been on my shelves for the longest as well as some new series books that I want to try out. Here’s my list (in no particular order):

  1. The Dante Club by Matthew Pearl (which has been on my shelf since 2007, no joke)
  2. A Time to Kill by John Grisham
  3. The Hostage by W.E.B. Griffin
  4. The Hunt for Atlantis by Andy McDermott
  5. New York Dead by Stuart Woods
  6. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
  7. Relic by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child
  8. Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult
  9. Trunk Music by Michael Connelly
  10. Killing Floor by Lee Child
  11. The Paris Vendetta by Steve Berry
  12. Bye Bye, Baby by Max Allan Collins

Alternates:

  1. Mallory’s Oracle by Carol O’Connell
  2. McNally’s Secret by Lawrence Sanders

challenge_2014whatsinaname2

I was excited to see that someone took this one over after Beth Fish Reads announced she wanted to pass it along to someone else. I’ve participated in this one about 4 times since its inception with Annie and thoroughly enjoy it, even though I didn’t finish it in 2013, I have high hopes that I can finish it in 2014! Here’s the categories:

  • A reference to time (Eleven Minutes, Before Ever After)
  • A position of royalty (The People’s Queen, The Last Empress, The Curse Of The Pharaoh)
  • A number written in letters (The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, A Tale Of Two Cities)
  • A forename or names (Rebecca, Eleanor & Park, The Unfinished Work Of Elizabeth D.)
  • A type or element of weather (Gone With The Wind, Red Earth Pouring Rain)
End of Year Wrap-Up, Favorite Books

2013 Wrap Up: My top reads of the year

Tara

I find this list getting harder and harder to put together each and every year. Why? Because I read so much awesome stuff that I never know where to start. Ha, not really. It’s more because I just plain can’t decide, lol.

In the order that I read them this year (clicking on the cover will take you to my review):

The One I Left Behind This was my first read of 2013 and I knew the moment I finished it that it would undoubtedly make my top reads at the end of the year. It’s actually a book that I remember quite vividly – and that is saying a lot for me. I still highly recommend this book and I am giddy with excitement that I have an e-galley of Ms. McMahon’s 2014 release, The Winter People!

 

 

The Aviator's Wife I so fell in love with this book. It was just amazing. I can’t even begin to explain my feelings on this one. It’s another one that I knew once I finished it that it would be making this list (and I read it in January!). It’s just a beautifully written book and I loved it. Loved, loved, loved it.

 

 

The Boleyn King This was one of those impulse requests on Edelweiss. I don’t know why it initially interested me, but I know that I was intrigued throughout the entire book. And two words: That. Cliffhanger! AAH! I’m bummed because I managed to score an e-galley of the second book in the trilogy on NetGalley, but I let it expire before I could get to it … oh well, guess I’ll have to buy that one in the future so I can find out what happens next! Definitely a great historical fiction that I highly recommend!

If You Were Here This was my first time reading an Alafair Burke book (don’t ask me why) so I was uber-excited when I was approached by TLC Book Tours to be a part of the blog tour for this book. And what a fun roller coaster ride of a book it is! The characters are so well-developed you would have thought they were part of a long-running series. It has definitely made me excited to read more from Ms. Burke in my future!

Reconstructing Amelia The only thing I can say about this book … READ IT! It is so powerful and engaging. It’s just amazing. It was so real and thought-provoking. Every parent should read this book. Every teenager and pre-teen should read this book. And then discuss, discuss, discuss. There is so much to this book that needs to be talked about. Highly recommended.

 

The Widows of Braxton County When I was originally pitched this book I immediately jumped on it. I liked the idea of the family secrets theme that it promised. And what family secrets they were! Wow! The book switched back and forth between Kate in the present day and Hannah some 100 years before. On the same farm. Dealing with some very similar situations. If you like deep family secrets you will probably like this book. I know I enjoyed it a lot.

 

The Never List I saw this book somewhere online and knew I had to read it. I was just thrilled that my library had a copy with only 1 person ahead of me on the wait list. And let me tell you, it’s a story that will suck you in and spit you back out when you finish it. It would probably be a tough read for some people, but I never felt as if the author took any over-the-top gratuitous descriptions about what the characters went through. And the way that it was so similar to what happened in Cleveland this year … just creepy!

 

Dead Until Dark Why did I not start this series ages ago? What is wrong with me? Well at least I’ve started it and am looking forward to seeing what happens with Sookie. My review of this one was short and sweet because I assume everyone and their brother has already read this book. If not, I definitely recommend you giving it a shot. It’s a fun read that I really enjoyed.

 

The Edge of Normal I was sent an invitation to download this one on NetGalley. Boy was that the best random, unsolicited e-galley I’ve been sent in a long time! (Maybe ever?!) It’s such a dark book. And the characters, you will be so intrigued by them. I think that Ms. Norton can definitely carve a nice spot in the crime genre for herself if she so chooses. Highly recommended.

 

 

Living Dead in Dallas Surprised to see this one here? I was a little bit, too. But honestly, I think I enjoyed the second installment of the Sookie series even more than I did the first. It was a little darker and grittier than the first book. But oh so very intriguing. And it makes me kick myself for not having the 3rd book already on my shelf! Either way, as I stated in the blurb for the first Sookie book, I’m sure everyone has already read these books, but I’m new to the party and thoroughly enjoying them! Once again, give it a shot if you haven’t already!

End of Year Wrap-Up

2013 Wrap Up: The Series’

Tara

Book series. If you are a faithful follower you know I am obsessed. It’s like being with friends over and over again. I love it. I live for it.

And I am painfully behind in 98% of the series that I enjoy.

I’m just going to do a quick run-down of the series that I worked on this year. (No reviews are linked, just the cover images.)

Bloody Mary Iceberg The Black Ice Transfer of Power So Close the Hand of Death Untold Damage The Boleyn King Motion to Suppress Deadly Harvest The Third Option The Concrete Blonde Stranded Blindsighted Where All The Dead Lie Hour Game Dead Until Dark Last to Die Shadow Prey 11th Hour Hawke The Scarpetta Factor Living Dead in Dallas The Last Coyote

Just so you know … thats 23 books.

Oh, you know … there’s only 18 different series in that collage.

So, yeah…. I started 8 new series.

Just. What. I. Needed.

But that’s okay … maybe next year I will make even more progress 🙂

End of Year Wrap-Up

2013 Wrap Up: The Challenges

Tara

Reading challenges. I love them yet I hate them. I find it extremely difficult to resist signing up for challenges even though I know I will never complete them.

So for 2013 I tried to keep the number of challenges I joined down. (Easier said than done) I only signed up for 5 challenges.

2013eclecticreader I always like the sound of this challenge. I participated in 2012 as well. And I still have yet to complete the darned thing! Oh well I still enjoy it!

I completed 5 out of 12 books for 42% done.

GENRES:
Translated Fiction
Historical Mystery –  A Murder at Rosamund’s Gate by Susanna Calkins 
Romantic Suspense – The Seventh Victim by Mary Burton
Made Into a Movie
New Adult
Urban Fantasy
Dystopian
Memoir – We Were There by Allen Childs, MD 
LGBT
Action Adventure – Iceberg by Clive Cussler
Humor
Published in 2013 – The One I Left Behind by Jennifer McMahon

Off the Shelf This one is the bane of my existence. I always have such good intentions when I join any type of TBR challenge. I mean, seriously … have you seen my shelves? Anyways, I didn’t do as well as I wanted, but I didn’t do too shabby either.

I completed 17 out of 30 books for 56% done.

  1. Bloody Mary by J.A. Konrath
  2. Iceberg by Clive Cussler
  3. The Black Ice by Michael Connelly
  4. Transfer of Power by Vince Flynn
  5. So Close the Hand of Death by J.T. Ellison
  6. Motion to Suppress by Perri O’Shaughnessy
  7. The Third Option by Vince Flynn
  8. The Concrete Blonde by Michael Connelly 
  9. Blindsighted by Karin Slaughter
  10. Hour Game by David Baldacci
  11. Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris 
  12. Shadow Prey by John Sandford
  13. 11th Hour by James Patterson & Maxine Paetro
  14. Hawke by Ted Bell
  15. The Scarpetta Factor by Patricia Cornwell
  16. Living Dead in Dallas by Charlaine Harris
  17. The Last Coyote by Michael Connelly

RIP8main200 Okay so I’ve always seen this challenge every fall and for whatever reason I had never joined it. Stupid me. I had a lot of fun with this one and I look forward to it next year!!

I read 6 books, but was only required to finish 4 so I completed this challenge!

  1. Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris
  2. Last to Die by Tess Gerritsen
  3. Darkness First by James Hayman
  4. The Edge of Normal by Carla Norton
  5. Shadow Prey by John Sandford
  6. 11th Hour by James Patterson & Maxine Paetro

Sequel Challenge What a fun challenge. The idea is to read any book after the first book in a series. I used it mainly to read the second book (darn you “First in a Series” challenge that I did two years in a row!) but also read a couple of books that were later in the individual series.

I read 7 out of 7 books, thus completing this challenge.

  1. Bloody Mary by J.A. Konrath
  2. The Black Ice by Michael Connelly
  3. The Third Option by Vince Flynn
  4. Hour Game by David Baldacci
  5. Last To Die by Tess Gerritsen
  6. Shadow Prey by John Sandford
  7. 11th Hour by James Patterson & Maxine Paetro

What's in a Name6 Why, why, why can I never seem to finish this challenge? I almost always have books that will fit the categories, but for whatever reason I never seem to complete it. *Sigh*

I read 3 of the required 6 books for 50% done.

  1. Up or Down (Or equivalent)
  2. Something found in a kitchen – Bloody Mary by J.A. Konrath
  3. Party or celebration
  4. Fire (or equivalent) – Arctic Fire by Paul Byers
  5. An emotion
  6. Lost or Found (or equivalent) – Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberly McCreight
End of Year Wrap-Up

2013 Wrap Up: By the Numbers

Tara

Well here it is another year gone by! Where are they going anyway? It’s like I blink and New Year’s is upon me again. And it’s gotten a million times worse ever since having Garrett. Very sad indeed.

Anyways, this year I’m going to break things down in regards to my yearly statistics into multiple posts to keep things easier.

In this first installment I’m going to be breaking down some of the statistics. (I’m a geek and love stats!)

So … in total I read 51 books this year. Of those books 48 were fiction and 2 were non-fiction. Every year I’m so disappointed in myself for not reading more non-fiction. But then I never seem to make more of an effort to read more non-fiction either.

Those books were:

From my shelves: 19
From the Library: 2
Review Copies: 30

E-Book: 12
Print: 39

I read a total of 18,442 pages.

Ratings ratings ratings. I was quite stingy with 5 star ratings this year. Not entirely surprising, but I was a little pickier this year.

  • DNF: 5
  • 1: 0
  • 2: 0
  • 3: 4
  • 3.5: 16
  • 4: 22
  • 4.5: 6
  • 5: 3

Page breakdowns. I always enjoy seeing the breakdown of the pages. Not surprising, I only read very few books that were over 500 pages (I don’t have time for that anymore … short and sweet is what I need! Ha!)

  • 0-200: 1
  • 201-300: 11
  • 301-400: 25
  • 401-500: 10
  • 500+: 4

So the longest book I read this year was: Hawke by Ted Bell (596p)
And the shortest book I read this year was: We Were There by Allen Childs, MD (192p)

Publication years. I am amazed at just how many books I read that were published in 2013! Usually the number of new releases I read is relatively low for me. I didn’t realize just how many new releases I did read. This excites me in one way and yet it also saddens me. I will never get through all the backlists I want to at this rate!

  • 2013: 26
  • 2000-2012: 17
  • 1990s: 7
  • 1970s: 1

Authors are important too! I always like to see how the author breakdown shakes out. And you know what surprised me this year? The amount of new-to-me authors I read this year. It wasn’t something I was necessarily aiming for, but I am quite pleased because I found a few new favorites!

  • Male Authors: 23
  • Female Authors: 23
  • New to Me Authors: 33 <– I’m still in shock by that number!
  • Authors Read Multiple Times:
    • Michael Connelly
    • J.T. Ellison
    • Vince Flynn
    • Charlaine Harris
4/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, C, Fiction, Harry Bosch, RATING, Read in 2013, READING CHALLENGES 2013, SERIES

2013.51 REVIEW – The Last Coyote by Michael Connelly

Tara

The Last Coyote
by Michael Connelly

Copyright: 1995
Pages: 408
Rating: 4/5
Read: Dec 15 – Dec. 29, 2013
Challenge: Off the Shelf 2013
Yearly count: 51
Format: Print
Source: Personal Copy

The Last CoyoteBlurb: Harry Bosch’s life is on the edge. His earthquake-damaged home has been condemned. His girlfriend has left him. He’s drinking too much. And after attacking his commanding officer, he’s even had to turn in his LAPD detective’s badge.

Now, suspended indefinitely pending a psychiatric evaluation, he’s spending his time investigating an unsolved crime from 1961: the brutal slaying of a prostitute who happened to be his own mother.

Even after three decades, Harry’s questions generate heat among LA’s top politicos. And as the truth begins to emerge, it becomes more and more apparent that someone wants to keep it buried. Someone very powerful … very cunning … and very deadly.

Review: This is the third in the Harry Bosch series. And another really good installment in my opinion. I only wish I had started this series before I did, they’re such good books!

This particular installment started out a little bit slow to me, but once it picked up it was a really exciting read. I think in this book the reader really gets to see just who Harry Bosch is. He’s not perfect by any means, but I think that’s what really adds to the intrigue of Harry. It really makes for an interesting protagonist. Personally I like Harry. He’s tough and not afraid to get his hands dirty. But at the same time he’s got a soft side, even if he does everything in his power to hide it. I just like him, that’s all I can say about it really.

This particular storyline was interesting. Harry taking on the unsolved murder of his mother. He knows going into it that he might not like what he uncovers. And when the end is revealed, it’s not at all like I was anticipating. But I think it will be good in the end for Harry to have the closure that he seemed to need so badly.

As always with Mr. Connelly’s works, the writing was good, the character development was good and the storyline was fresh and interesting. Definitely a series that is quickly becoming one of my favorites. And I’m really looking forward to getting to the next installment in the very near future.

Highly recommended, though I do strongly suggest you read this series in order so that you can fully appreciate Harry’s character.

Book Blitz, Buy the Book Tours

Book Blitz: Tomorrow’s Anecdote by Pamela Kelt

Tara

Tour Banner - Tomorrow's Anecdote

About Tomorrow’s Anecdote :

Tomorrow's AnecdoteJust another day in the the newsroom? Hardly.

October 1987. Clare Forester is an overworked and under-appreciated features subeditor on a provincial paper in Somerset. She spends her time cheerfully ranting about her teenage daughter, the reclusive lodger, her spiteful mother, the Thatcher government, new technology, grubby journalists, petty union officials, her charming ex – and just about anything else that crosses her path.

If things aren’t turbulent enough, on the night of Thursday, October 15th, the Great Storm sweeps across Britain, cutting a swathe of destruction across the country.

Things turn chaotic. Pushed to breaking point, Clare finally snaps and loses her temper with gale-force fury – with disastrous results.

As she contemplates the chaos that her life has become, Clare soon comes to a bitter conclusion.

Never trust the past. It lies.

Excerpt:

No-one could have seen the line of trees falling like dominoes as they toppled towards the A36 under cover of darkness that Thursday evening. One minute, I was driving back in a rental car from Brighton to the West Country, my shoulders aching with keeping it on the road as a crosswind buffeted. The next, I was slowing down to tackle a tricky bend when a giant tree trunk landed on the bonnet with an almighty thump.
As the car juddered to a standstill, I rammed on the brakes out of instinct. The seatbelt cut into my neck as I lurched forwards, then back, just like a test mannequin. For a moment, I sat there, pulse palpitating, still gripping the wheel. Then I counted to ten, opened my eyes and found myself staring out at a confused mass of branches and yellowing leaves. They glowed oddly in the light of my remaining headlamp. It was like being upside-down in a tree house, but much less fun.
If I’d arrived at that spot a split second later, the tree would have landed plum on the roof. And me. My chest hurt. I realised the steering wheel was crushing my sternum.
The crash had shunted my seat forward. Hands shaking, I fumbled for the belt release, and pinged it loose. Wincing, I bent down and yanked at the floor-level bar, shoving backwards with the balls of my feet.
Nothing. Grunting with the effort, I tried again to no avail. The sliding mechanism must have jammed in the crash.
At that point, the electrics gave up and everything went pitch black. My forehead ached. I must have hit my head against the steering wheel. Darkness seeped into my mind and I slumped in my seat, semi-conscious.
My brain seemed to float away from my body and I began to relive the past three days I had spent in a ghastly Portakabin where I had endured the vilest form of professional torture … that most feared phenomenon of all, The Management Course.

About Pamela Kelt

Author Picture - Pamela KeltPamela Kelt first managed to avoid any semblance of a day job by taking Spanish at the University of Manchester. On completion of the degree and after a subsequent six brain-fogging months on a local paper, she fled to Oxford and completed her M. Litt. thesis on ‘Comic aspects of satirical 17th-century comic interludes’, which was not only much more fun, but strangely relevant to coping with the vagaries of the 21st century. After becoming a technical translator, she discovered that English was easier, and did copywriting for anyone who would pay.

On a stint in Australia, she landed a job as a subeditor and returned to journalism, relishing the chance to come up with funny headlines in a variety of provincial papers. Ah. Once a pun a time.

As her academic husband became a chemistry professor in something even she can’t spell, Pam moved into the more sensible world of educational magazines and online publishing – for a while, at least. A daughter arrived and reintroduced her to the delights of fiction, which she’d sort of forgotten about. So, one fine day, while walking the dogs at a local beauty spot, thinking ‘to hell with a career’, Pam took the plunge into writing for herself, and is now the author of six books to date (including one co-written with aforementioned prof) ranging from historical drama by way of teen fantasy to retro mystery.

This is a book blitz tour with Buy the Book Tours. This tour is also making other stops today, I hope you’ll stop by the other blogs and visit the other participants!

Authors’ Cafe
Christine’s Words
Tales of a Book Addict
3 Partners in Shopping Nana, Mommy, & Sissy, Too!
Nancy Jardine features
Night Owl Reviews
 For Whom the Books Toll
Cindy’s Love of Books
Loralee Lillibridge – Blogging Across the Back Fence
Margo Hoornstra – Writing Inside & Out
What Readers Want
Romance Me
Finding Fantastical Books

 

Meme, Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday – December 17, 2013

Tara

This meme is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

This week’s question asks:

Top Ten New-To-Me Authors I Read In 2013

So in looking over my list of books I’ve read in 2013, I was amazed at the number of new-to-me authors I had! 34 of my 50 books read (so far) were by new-to-me authors, so this list was not the easiest to put together. But these are definitely the ones that stuck out the most.

In alphabetical order:

  1. The Aviator's Wife What an awesome read this was! It will definitely make my Top 10 list for this year too!
  2. If You Were Here I don’t know why I’ve never read anything by Ms. Burke before, but this one was really good!! Definitely recommend this one!
  3. Darkness First E-books are not my favorite in general, but this book was so awesome I could barely tell that I had an e-copy of it. Definitely a great read!
  4. Untold Damage What an amazing protagonist! I’m definitely looking forward to reading Mr. Lewis’ future works!
  5. The Widows of Braxton County What a creepy book. Apparently this author has written a lot of other books under a different name, but I really liked this book. Recommended!
  6. Reconstructing Amelia Everyone should read this book. Everyone. That’s all I have to say about it.
  7. The One I Left Behind What a crazy thrill ride of a book! How on earth have I never read a book my Jennifer McMahon before? Well I’m for sure not missing out anymore, I already have an e-copy of her next book due out in January!! Woo!
  8. A Case of Redemption Oh my goodness. This book was so much fun to read! I’m a big fan of legal thrillers and this one fit the bill perfectly.
  9. The Edge of Normal What a crazy psychological thriller. Definitely a great and exciting read. It wasn’t perfect, but it sure had my attention from the first page.
  10. 20130331-102247.jpg I remember getting a little more than irritated at the protagonist in this book, but I still highly enjoyed reading it. It was definitely an interesting storyline and a great read. Definitely a highly recommended book in my opinion.
Mailbox Monday, Meme

Mailbox Monday, December 16, 2013

Tara

This month Mailbox Monday is being hosted at Rose City Reader

Only one book this week. From LibraryThing’s Early Reviewer program:

The Innocent Sleep Tangier. Harry is preparing his wife’s birthday dinner while she is still at work and their son, Dillon, is upstairs asleep in bed. Harry suddenly remembers that he’s left Robin’s gift at the cafe in town. It’s only a five-minute walk away, and Dillon is hard to put down for the night, so Harry decides to run out and fetch the present.

Disaster strikes. An earthquake hits, buildings crumble, people scream and run. Harry fights his way through the crowds to his house, only to find it a crumbled wreck. Dillon is presumed dead, though his body is never found.

Five years later, Harry and Robin have settled into a new life after relocating to their native Dublin. Their grief will always be with them, but lately it feels as if they’re ready for a new beginning, Harry’s career as an artist is taking off and Robin has just realized that she’s pregnant.

But when Harry gets a glimpse of Dillon on the crowded streets of Dublin, the past comes rushing back at them both. Has Dillon been alive all these years? Or was what Harry saw just a figment of his guilt-ridden imagination? With razor-sharp writing, Karen Perry’s The Innocent Sleep delivers a fast-paced, ingeniously plotted thriller brimming with deception, doubt, and betrayal.