Wrapups for Spring Challenges

Well this is how I did on my two spring challenges:


This is hosted by Gina at Book Dragon's Lair. Goal: 10 books by June 20.
1. Snow by Tracy Lynn-finished and reviewed
2. Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge-finished and reviewed
3. Perfect Lies by Kiersten White- finished and reviewed
4. The Calling by Kelley Armstrong-finished and reviewed
5. Flora and Ulysses by Kate Dicamillo-finished and reviewed
These were my original five.
6. Crimson Frost by Jennifer Estep- finished and reviewed
7. Cinder by Marissa Meyer-currently reading
8. Opposite of Fate by Amy Tan-currently reading
9. Goose Girl by Shannon Hale-currently reading
10. If I Should Die by Amy Plum-currently reading

Well I did finish my original 5 and a 6th book and reviewed them, but I did not finish 10 books. I am so close on two of these to being done, but I am happy that I finished 6. Thanks to Gina for hosting!




The Once Upon A Time Reading Challenge is hosted by Carl at Stainless Steel Droppings.
I signed up for Quest the First with a 5 book goal
1. Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge finished and reviewed
2. Cinder by Marissa Meyer currently reading
3. Crimson Frost by Jennifer Estep  finished and reviewed
4. The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale currently reading
5. The Calling by Kelley Armstrong finished and reviewed
I did finish 3 of the 5, but just couldn't finish the last two yet.

I also signed up for Quest on Screen.
I was hoping to watch all of season one of Once Upon a Time, Frozen, and Brave and I have only watched Frozen.  I loved Frozen and Elsa and the beautiful music! I did buy the first season of OUoT and hopefully I can watch it and Brave before the year is up. Thanks to Carl for hosting!

Library Books Read-a-thon Wrap-up

I managed to finish the three library book reviews I needed to write, so that was a major achievement for me! I only finished one audiobook and I read/listened to 441 pages, so I was only about 59 pages shy of my 500 pages goal. I will take that though, since I am reading/listening slowly now. Thanks to Rachael for hosting!

The Calling by Kelley Armstrong

The Calling is the second book in the Darkness Rising trilogy and this review will have spoilers for the first book.

Harper

As they are escaping the forest fire, Maya, Daniel, and Rafe realize the pilot has drugged the mayor, the only other adult on the helicopter. As they fight for control of the helicopter, Rafe is thrown from it and the helicopter crashes, killing both the pilot and the mayor. The rest of the passengers escape with minor injuries and Maya has to decide the story to tell them when all she wants to do is mourn Rafe. They let the survivors know that there are people out to get them, but even Maya and Daniel do not realize completely the group's intentions. As they flee and some are captured, Maya and Daniel, by spying, learn that there is more than one group of people out to capture them and that all of the teens are supernaturals in someway, whether shapeshifter, demon hunter, or as yet discovered by the group. As they learn more about their own Project Phoenix, they learn about another project, Project Genesis, that had failed results. When betrayals abound, it may be up to Maya and Daniel to find out the truth behind the two projects in a way that unites with Armstrong's other series.

This one is hard to review without giving too much away. Most of the book takes place in the woods as the children are fleeing and the last 60 pages have most of the action and reveals. I can't wait to see how the third book deals with both the Darkest Powers and the Darkness Rising characters! I thought this one had more action and information than the first book in the series and I liked it better. Armstrong always manages to make her books a quick read with the perfect amount of pacing and suspense.

Favorite Character: Maya. Maya is stong, maybe a bit naive at times, but she holds true to what she thinks and acknowledges her own faults.

Favorite Quote: "Strong emotion is better than indifference."

Nice bridge book and she did a great job filling in all the necessary details. The third book should be pretty exciting! 4 cups of cocoa!

Perfect Lies by Kiersten White

Perfect Lies is the sequel to Mind Games, so this review will have spoilers for Mind Games. I received this as an eARC from the publisher, HarperTeen,  in exchange for an honest review.

HarperTeen

Fia believes she did the right thing by pretending to kill her sister Annie. Fia completely trusts James and his plan to destroy the Keane Foundation and free all the special girls from the program. Annie feels betrayed by her sister, who left her with Adam, one of the guys with a crush on Fia, and the Lerner Group. Annie keeps trying to have visions about Fia, since she is the only one who can and what she sees is devastating. Fia does not seem to be destroying Keane, but actually finding special girls with the abilities to see the future and read minds and with her perfect instincts, Fia knows how to safely bring them into the Foundation. Annie decides to work with Lerner to stop Fia, but when she sees a vision of Fia's death, can she save her sister and herself from a horrible fate.

White has created another fast-paced suspenseful masterpiece. It felt like I held my breath for the last 40 pages until the surprise ending. Her writing just keeps getting better and her characters are perfectly flawed. You want to hate Fia at times and at other times you just want to protect her. I loved seeing more of Annie in this one and I felt like she was fleshed out better in the second book. The love interests are intriguing although I still can't stand James.

Favorite Character: I love Annie and Fia! They will do anything to save each other and even when they are past the point of saving, they still try to salvage what is left. Annie, in particular, grew on me with this book. She showed she is just as strong and fierce as her sister.

Favorite Quote: "We all want things we shouldn't have. Even you. Just because you love him doesn't mean you should. Love is a choice, like anything else."

Perfect ending to a great ride and one of my favorite reads this year! Can't wait until she releases a new one! 5 cups of cocoa!

Library Books Read-a-thon Day 5, 6, and 7 Update

Day 5: Finished the last CD of The Enchantress. The end was just as bittersweet as I remembered it! I did manage to read 15 pages in If I Should Die.

Day 6: No reading. :( It was a busy day with family and friends, which was nice. :) Tomorrow will be busy too, but maybe I can get a little reading in.

Day 7:Opposite of Fate- 40 pages, If I Should Die- 37 pages, so not bad. It was Father's Day, so I spent part of the day with family, but managed to squeeze in about an hour and a half of reading.

Library Books Read-a-thon Day 4 update

Rachael talked about ILL or interlibrary loan today and how that has enabled her to read books that her small branch does not directly own. ILL got me through my first two degrees and made it possible for me to write about topics that were not just local history. I was able through my college libraries to get manuscripts and dissertations that were only available from one library or university and for very low cost! With the library in the town I live in Indiana, they have Evergreen and I can easily request a book online from most libraries in the state. Like Rachael's library, the books have to be at least 6 months old, but most of what I want are older books. At my work library, it only cost $1 to get an ILL loan and this helps to pay courier and mailing costs. There are very few books we cannot get, most of the ones we can't are books that are unique and only one copy exists. It is a great service!

Day 4 update: I almost finished another CD in The Enchantress, I think I have like a track left. After that I only have 1 CD and I will have finished it! I have been reading in If I Should Die, so I hope to make a little more progress there. I read 30 pages, so not bad for me!

Once Upon A Midnight Eerie by Gordon McAlpine

I received this as an e-ARC from the publisher Viking Juvenile in exchange for an honest review. This review will have spoilers for the first book in the series. I loved the first book in this series and often booktalk it for upper elementary and lower middle school students, so I was excited to read the second one.

Edgar and Allan Poe survived the attempt on one of their lives by the nefarious Professor Perry, who wanted to use the twins to learn about the afterlife. The two are ready to settle back into a normal routine, but are asked to be in a movie about their famous ancestor Edgar Allan Poe. They will play young Poe in the movie alongside the Dickinson twins, relatives of the famous Emily Dickinson, who will play Annabel Lee. What should be a fun time filming turns into a danger for the twins, since Professor Perry's relatives want to hurt the Professor's research by killing both twins. Meanwhile Edgar Allan Poe continues to try to send warnings from beyond the grave to his great-great-great, etc. grandnephews and meets the Dickinson's great-great-great, etc. Aunt Emily. Despite a possible demotion, Edgar Allan Poe sends warnings and is helped a little by Emily. The twins also make friends with a pair of ghosts and vow to help them move on by identifying the murder of the ghosts, a famous pirate. Can the twins with the help of their new friends survive Perry's relatives and bring the murder to justice? Perhaps with the help of their cat Roderick Usher!

I love the mix of history, literature, and humor that McAlpine uses to bring the twins to life. Edgar and Allan are precocious and meet their match in the Dickinson twins. The intelligence and clever wordplay of the plot make this perfect for 5th grade readers looking for a little more. From the end of the story it appears there will be more books, which is exciting, since this one was even better than the first.

5 cups of cocoa for this one and this is definitely a series I will continue to booktalk!