Favorite Books Read in 2014

     I've read 112 books this year ! I'm so proud ! Its the first year I've actually kept track of  what all I've read through Goodreads. Its my most favorite website :) I'm just going to list the books I read that I gave at least 4 stars to. I'm pretty stingy with my stars, so you know they're good when they get that many from me. Those are the books I would gladly reread, they're special to me, and sometimes they change me. I love books. They're my most prized collection and favorite hobby. So, here are my favorites from this year.

• Gone Girl ~ Wow. I've never been more surprised by a book. After reading so much for so long, I don't really get surprised when it comes to mystery books, but this one. WOW. Also, its one of the best book to movie adaptations I've ever seen !

• The Fault in our Stars ~ This books absolutely broke my heart. Beautifully written, beautiful story. John Green inspired me to just be more eloquent in my day to day. I don't know if I'll ever get over this book.

• The Selection ~ I'll just highlight the first book of this series. I was pleasantly surprised after reading this. I picked it up to be just some light summer reading on vacation and found myself clicking purchase next book in the series on my kindle. Loved the premise, loved the royalty, such a fun read.

• Ready Player One ~ I couldn't be farther from being a gamer, but this book was awesome ! It appealed to my nerdy side and my 80's loving side. My husband never reads, but he adamantly suggested I read it; I finished in a couple hours.

• If I Stay ~ This was apparently the year of heart breaking young adult novels. I think people either love or hate it,  I was a definite love ! I first found out about this book from the movie trailer. So glad I read it !

• Fallen ~ Another YA that surprised me. The battle between Angels and Demons is oddly interesting to me, and this series had a lovely little twist I didn't see coming. Awesome ! Side rant: I've had a lot of problems with how some authors have been finishing their series. This one ended exactly how it should have ! Thanks, Lauren Kate !

• Attachments ~ This was my first Rainbow Rowell book, and good lord what have I been missing !? It was just quirky enough to keep me smiling, the ending was wonderfully sweet. Sigh. I'd read it again tomorrow :)

• Deeply Odd ~ Its the second to last Odd Thomas book, and we're finally going back home. The weirdness was just right, and Odd's senses were right on point. I was so happy Dean Koontz got his Odd groove back, however sad that Odd is almost done :(

• Neil Patrick Harris: Choose your own autobiography ~ I don't know what else to say about this book except that it was just lovely. Neil is such a cool person and hearing about his upbringing, and then his little family. I actually learned a lot about him ! I teared up and I laughed out loud. What more could a gal ask for ? 

• Cinder ~ I've never really read anything Cinderella-esque and I was totally hooked. I read this so quickly and I was really sad I have to wait to find out what happens. I'm also mad I waited so long to read it ! Its been on my kindle since April !

2015 Alphabet Soup Challenge

     I know, I know. So many challenges !!! Never fear though ! This one should be pretty simple :) Rules are as follows:

 

It’s an alphabet challenge!!! The challenge is to read one book that has a title starting with every letter of the alphabet.

You can drop the A’s and The’s from the book titles as shown below.
For those pesky Q, X AND Z titles the word with the challenge letter can be anywhere in the title.
 Make a list on your blog from A-Z. Throughout the year, as you go along, add the books you are reading to the list. Towards the end of the year, you can check and see which letters you are missing and find books to fit.
Books can be read in any order and all formats – print – e-book – audio – are acceptable for this challenge!

     I'll be updating this page as I go, so stay tuned !
 
A~                 
B~                                                            
C~                                                        
D~
E~
F~
G~
H~
 I~
J~
K~
L~
M~
O~
P~
Q~
R~
S~
T~
U~
V~
W~
X~
Y~
Z~

Wicked

     First, a synopsis from Goodreads: When Dorothy triumphed over the Wicked Witch of the West in L. Frank Baum's classic tale, we heard only her side of the story. But what about her arch-nemesis, the mysterious Witch? Where did she come from? How did she become so wicked? And what is the true nature of evil?

     Gregory Maguire creates a fantasy world so rich and vivid that we will never look at Oz the same way again. Wicked is about a land where animals talk and strive to be treated like first-class citizens, Munchkinlanders seek the comfort of middle-class stability, and the Tin Man becomes a victim of domestic violence. And then there is the little green-skinned girl named Elphaba, who will grow up to become the infamous Wicked Witch of the West, a smart, prickly, and misunderstood creature who challenges all our preconceived notions about the nature of good and evil.

     I really, really disliked this book. I'm talking 1 out of 5 stars. It felt to me that every minute detail had to be included for no reason, so many questions were left unanswered, and Elphaba still wasn't likable. The one character I ended up liking was killed off without any sort of pomp and circumstance. I kept reading because I honestly thought it would get better, more interesting, everything would all make sense. Spoiler alert, it doesn't. Another major problem I had with the book was the writing. I know Gregory Maguire has made a fortune off these books of his, but honestly it felt like he was trying way too hard. He was loquacious with irrelevant details, but left me with so many unanswered questions.

     Over all, an incredibly frustrating book. It took me almost 2 weeks to read, which is way long for me. I hope there are others out there that enjoyed this book, but I don't know if I'll even try another one of these for a long time.

  

More Reading Challenges

     Instead of listing the 13 (THIRTEEN !!! Yikes !) challenges one by one, I'm gonna try to list a few in one post. I definitely don't want to become redundant. The First challenge is the Let me count the ways challenge. Pretty simple, really, just counting the pages that I read this year. There are different levels you can sign up for.

 

Bronze: 0 - 2000 pages
Silver: 2,001 – 4,000 pages
Gold: 4,001 – 6,000 pages
Platinum: 6,001 – 8,000 pages
Diamond: 8,001 – 10,000 pages
Multi-Diamond: 10,001 + pages

 

 

I'm definitely going for the Multi-Diamond. This year alone I read over 34,000 pages, so this one is pretty simple.

 

 

     The next challenge I'm doing is the What an Animal challenge. Pretty basic as well, I'll have to read at least 6 books with an animal as the main role, an animal that plays a big part, an animal on the cover, or a lead that can turn into an animal. There's 3 levels: 1-6 books is level 1, 7-12 books is level 2, and 13+ is level 3. I think I'm going to go with level 2, just because I have no idea how many books I currently own that fit into that category.

 

     Another challenge I'm going to participate in is the Book Blogger Recommendation. This one sounds super cool, just because there isn't a category that I have to hunt down books for. A lot of these I'm expecting to already be on my TBR list. The rules are pretty easy

 

The challenge runs from January 1st 2014 to December 31st 2015

There are five levels to choose from. You can increase your goal as many times as you want, or (because we all know real life happens!) you can decrease your goal once at any point throughout the year.

The full list of books to choose from will go up on New Year’s Eve

You don’t have to commit in advance to your choices, though of course you can plan them if you want to.

The Levels

Bronze – 3 books
Silver – 5 books
Gold – 10 books
Platinum – 25 books
Diamond – 50 books +



I'm super excited to see what books I can choose from !

    

      Another easy one will be 52 books in 52 weeks. Rules are easy, the week starts on Sunday, challenge runs January 1, 2015- Dec 31, 2015, and you can join at any time. I read over 100 books this year, so it shouldn't be a problem.

 

     Last challenge listed in this post will be the 2015 Monthly Motif challenge. This one sounds fun too (of course, they all sound fun to me. Nerd, who me ?). Each month will have a different theme or motif as follows:

JAN- Book to Movie or Audio
Read a book that has a movie based off of it. For an extra challenge, see the movie or listen to the audio book as well.

FEB- Award Winner
Read a book that has won recognition or a literary award. Here's a list of literary awards to help you get started on your search: Literary Awards.

MAR- Genre Jumble Read a book in a genre that you've never tried or that you're least familiar with. For example, if you typically reach for romance novels, try a mystery this time. Ask your local librarian for great suggestions on the genre your least familiar with.

APR- Mystery, Murder, and Mayhem

Read a murder/mystery book, a book in which someone dies of mysterious causes, or a book in which the truth must come out.

MAY- Library Love

Show your library some love and visit your local branch. Choose a book to read that they have on display.

JUN- Take A Trip

Choose a book to read that takes place in a country different than the one you live in or choose a book written by an author that is from a country different than your own.

JUL- Standing Up

Read a book in which the main character stands up for themselves, stands against an enemy, or stands up for something they believe in.

AUG- Alternate Reality

Read a book that's set in the future, on another planet, in another dimension, or in an unknown world. A Dystopian book will count this month as well.

SEP- Furry Friends

Read a book that includes an animal either as a main character or supporting character. Horses, cats, dogs, insects, bird, etc. The book doesn't have to be about the animal but the animal needs to play some sort of role in the story or be mentioned several times throughout the book.

OCT- Goblins, and Ghost, and Ghouls, Oh My!

Cozy mystery ghost stories, paranormal creeptastic, funky fantasy creatures- it's up to you!

NOV- An Oldie but a Goodie

Pick a book published before 2000 that you've always wanted to read, but just never got to. Or pick a book set in the past (before 2000).

DEC- That's a Wrap

Finish a series you've been meaning to finish or read the next book in a series you started but never finished.

Phew ! If you made it this far, thanks ! I'm setting my Goodreads challenge at 120 books for 2015. Lets see how I do :)

 

 



Merry Christmas, Friends !!!!

     I hope everyone has such an awesome Christmas and gets everything you want :) I sent the hubby a link to several books I want, so lets see what I get :)

Cinder

     I have no idea why I waited so long to read this !!! This spin on Cinderella trumps them all ! The story follows Cinder, a gifted mechanic, who is also a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, hated by her stepmother. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

     I told myself I wouldn't get stuck in a series when I have so many other books to read right now, but it happened. I'm not even sorry. I started reading this while at work and absolutely couldn't stop. I ignored emails and coworkers just to find out what would happen next. Although, lets be honest, coworkers know that when I'm reading I can't even hear them. I liked how there would be little snippets of Cinderella mixed into the story, but I still didn't know what happened next. Awesome writing, the idea behind it is so interesting. I tend to hate cliffhangers, just because I desperately need to know what happens right NOW but its OK. I don't even mind it, just because it keeps the story on my mind. I'm dying to find out what happens ! I asked for the next 2 books for Christmas, so we'll see if I get them.

P.S. I only have 2 books left in the Winter Reading Challenge !!! Yay ! Such fun, but man I'm ready to read what I want to read, whenever I want.

Eclectic Reader Challenge

     I like to think of myself as eclectic or quirky, so a reading list with that title is intriguing. This is just over the course of 2015, so there really isn't a time crunch on it (which I'm glad for). I'm going to go ahead and try to make a tentative list, but some of these I have no idea yet. This is just going back to me trying to read new things and getting out of my comfort zone :)

1. Retellings (of fairytale, legends or myth) ~ I'm thinking one of the Lunar Chronicles. I've only read the first !
2. A book set in a country starting with the letter S (eg. Sweden, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Slovakia) ~ Girl with the dragon tattoo 
3. PI Crime (fiction featuring a private investigator) ~The Silkworm by Robert Galbraith
4. A novel published before you were born ~ Little Women by Louisa May Alcott 
5. Contemporary romance ~ Captivated by you by Silvia Day
6. Fiction for foodies (fiction featuring food/food related business) ~ oh man, I have several of these on my to-read list. One is Delicious by Ruth Reichl
7. Microhistory (Non Fiction) ~
8. Science Fiction set in space ~ Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
9. Sports (Fiction or Non fiction) ~ Michael Jordan: The Life 
10. Featuring diversity ~
11. Epistolary Fiction (fiction written in the format of letters/emails/diary entries) ~ I've still never read the Diary of Anne Frank, so thats what I'll do
12. Middle Grade/YA Adventure ~ The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan