Stacking the Shelves and Showcase Sunday #4

 

Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews and Showcase Sunday is hosted by Vicky at Books, Biscuits, and Tea and they are memes for sharing books you've purchased, borrowed, or been sent for review. The books can be physical or e-format.

Library:

Balzer + Bray

Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge (I am a sucker for fairytale retellings and twists and I love the story of Beauty and the Beast in particular. I had to check this one out!)

Bought:

The Parasol Protectorate series by Gail Carriger ( I started Soulless and had to return it to the library before I finished it, so I thought why not just buy the whole series! I am really enjoying Soulless, it reminds me of the Amelia Peabody series by Elizabeth Peters mixed with the paranormal.)

The rest were bargain books.
Geektastic is an interesting story collection based on Comicons.
13 to Life by Shannon Delaney is werewolves and comes highly recommend by the library patrons.
The Espressologist by Kristina Springer will work as my Emma twist for the Classic Double Challenge.
Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon has Irish mythology, which I love in Michael Scott's series, so I am looking forward to this one.
Hole in My Life by Jack Gantos is his autobiography of when he piloted a drug ship and went to prison. He came to the McConnell Youth Literature Conference last year and was hilarious, so I had to purchase this!

That is all for this week! I hope you all found some great books this week!

2014 Wicked Valentine's Read-a-thon Updates

I am just now getting this post up! I have a cold, which is helping my reading and resting, but I have neglected the computer. Hopefully I can get around to commenting and looking at the mini challenges soon.

Day 1 Update:
Currently reading: The Sorceress, Kiss of Frost
Progress: The Sorceress- 14 pages, Kiss of Frost- 34 pages

Day 2 Update:
Currently reading: The Sorceress, Animal Farm, Kiss of Frost, A Story Lately Told
Progress: Animal Farm- 127 pages and finished!, The Sorceress- 52 pages and finished!, Kiss of Frost- 197 pages and finished!, A Story Lately Told- 8 pages
Books finished: 3!

Day 3 Update: 
Currently reading: Jinx's Magic, The Bad Beginning
Progress: The Bad Beginning- 28 pages, Jinx's Magic- 82 pages

Day 4 Update:
Currently reading: Jinx's Magic, The Fault in Our Stars, The Necromancer (finally went off list, I knew I would!)
Progress: Jinx's Magic- 19 pages , The Fault in Our Stars- 64 pages, The Necromancer- 10 pages
Mini-challenge: Jigsaw Puzzle Cover Challenge

Day 5 Update:
Currently reading: First Frost(novella), The Necromancer
Progress: First Frost- finished (it was really short), The Necromancer- 13 pages

Day 6 Update:
Currently reading: The Necromancer
Progress: The Necromancer- 29 pages
Twitter Party

Day 7 Update:
Currently reading: The Necromancer
Progress: The Necromancer- 59 pages

Day 8 Update:
Currently reading:The Necromancer
Progress: The Necromancer- 36 pages

Day 9 Update:
Currently reading: The Fault in Our Stars, Jinx's Magic, The Necromancer
Progress: The Fault in Our Stars- 248 pages and finished!, Jinx's Magic- 7 pages, The Necromancer- 21 pages

Day 10 Update:
Currently reading: Jinx's Magic, The Necromancer
Progress: Jinx's Magic- 14 pages, The Necromancer- 4 pages

Day 11 Update:
Currently reading: Jinx's Magic, The Necromancer
Progress: Jinx's Magic- 28 pages, The Necromancer- 60 pages

2014 Wicked Valentine's Read-a-thon

Wicked Valentine's Read-a-thon is hosted by April and Pabkins at My Shelf Confessions and you can sign up and find out more info at this link. It is a fun read-a-thon with mini challenges and Twitter parties! My goal is to hopefully finish at least three books. I would also like to do a mini challenge and make time to comment on other bloggers' posts. I am so behind on my reading and have several books started.

My reading list:
   


Jinx's Magic by Sage Blackwood (Katherine Tegen Books)
No One Else Can Have You by Kathleen Hale (Harper Teen)
The Sorceress by Michael Scott (Delacorte) reread
Kiss of Frost by Jennifer Estep (K-Teen)
A Story Lately Told by Anjelica Huston (Scribner)
Perfect Lies by Kiersten White (HarperTeen)
The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snickett (Scholastic) reread
Animal Farm by George Orwell (Plume)
Fault in Our Stars by John Green (Dutton)

A Winter's Respite Read-a-Thon Wrapup

I only finished one book this time, but was really close to finishing two. It was a busy week and a sad one. My husband's grandfather passed away and we are dealing with that. I ended up reading 432 pages and made a few comments on pages. Thanks to Michelle for hosting and I can't wait until the next one!

Stacking the Shelves and Showcase Sunday #3

 

Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews and Showcase Sunday is hosted by Vicky at Books, Biscuits, and Tea and they are memes for sharing books you've purchased, borrowed, or been sent for review. The books can be physical or e-format. No new library books this week, but I should have a few for next week. I should also have a few physical books that I got on sale!

Bought: Kindle Books
 

Between the Sea and Sky by Jaclyn Dolamore, Bloomsbury (This sounded interesting. A story about a mermaid and a winged man for middle grade readers.)

The Monuments Men by Robert Edsel, Center Street (I needed a history fix and WWII is about the only part of Modern History that fascinates me. The Nazis wanted to wipe out virtually all civilization that did not fit their mold including art. The movie looks really good too!)

Geekomancy by Michael Underwood Pocket Star (This is sounded cute. Where heroes get their power from comics with a mystery thrown in.)

Whisper Falls by Elizabeth Langston Spencer Hill Press (Colonial History is my area and I love that this story is about an indentured servant, an often overlooked part of our history.)

The Line by JD Horn, 47North (This was apart of the KindleFirst program. Witches in Savannah, I do like the Southern Gothic setting.)

Received for Review on Netgalley: Thanks Bloomsbury!

Dangerous by Shannon Hale (I love her writing! This is a dystopia, which is different than her usual novels, but it sounds great. Maisie must save the world but at a high cost.)

Received for Review on Edelweiss: Thanks Hachette!

Salt and Storm by Kendall Kulper (This is about whaling, a witch who can see the future including her possible death, and the boy who can save her. Sounds good to me!)

Queste by Angie Sage

Queste is the fourth book in the Septimus Heap series and this review will have spoilers for the first three books. This was another book I started in 2013 and just finished.

Katherine Tegen Books

Septimus, Jenna, and their mom and dad want desperately to find Nicko and bring him home. Jenna takes care of Ulr, who misses Snorri, who is also trapped in time with Nicko. Silas Heap believes his son is somehow lost in the forest and embarks to the Wendron Witches to seek help. Jenna and Septimus know that it is a matter of finding a way back to Nicko and Snorri. When they learn about the mysterious House of Foryx, Septimus, Jenna, and their friend Beetle plan to set out to find this magical place where time stands still and where Nicko and Snorri have left clues that they will be waiting. Meanwhile the fake Septimus Heap, Merrin has decided he cannot stand living with Simon and Lucy any longer and seeks his revenge on Septimus. He achieves this when he joins forces with a Darke ghost who saddles Septimus with the Queste, a task no apprentice has survived. Can Septimus help his brother or will he fall the same way as 20 other apprentices?

I enjoy this series and the characters are very amusing at times. There is always an element of humor even during the dark moments. This one focused more on Septimus and Jenna, so many of the other characters only had cameo moments. This one shows how even having magical power like Septimus or being a powerful ruler like Jenna has its limitations and is not always as grand as it seems. I like how Sage has created this world and how she shows the complex side of each of the characters.

Favorite Character: Beetle, he is loyal to Septimus and Jenna, even losing his job, because he wants to help them. He is a bit spontaneous, but also very diligent. Hopefully he will find his place in the next book.

Favorite Quote: "It's horrible to feel you have to be something."

Overall, I think this is a good middle grades read and can't wait to start the next one. 4 cups of cocoa!

February Random Read- The Fault in Our Stars

This is a meme hosted by Sarah at imlovingbooks.com. You can choose to use Goodreads or create your own list or use your bookshelves.  The idea is to use random.org and type in the number of books on your list. Whatever number you receive is your random read for the month. I have decided  to use the books on my Kindle as my list. I buy or get free far too many books on my Kindle and then never read them. My current number stands at 430. I managed to read last month's book, so hopefully I can keep this up! My number this month is...155, which is The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. I am really excited about this book, but also apprehensive, because I know it will be really heart-breaking.

Dutton Books

I really enjoy John Green's writing and his books always make me think. The review for this one is here.