Scavenger Hunt 2012 Reading Challenge - Finished

It has been a fun challenge to do but unfortunately it never started! This challenge was set on Goodreads but the person who set the challenge never returned to it.

I decided to do it anyway so I have completed this challenge.

January – Book must have a character's name in title : Sabriel by Garth Nix 

February – Book must have a type of flower in the title: Rose by Martin Cruz Smith

March – Book must have be published in 2000 or later: Witchblood by Emma Mills (published 2012)

April -  Book must be a biography, or auto-biography: That's Another Story: The Autobiography by Julie Walters

May - Book must have been written by an author from a different country than your own: Graceling by Kristin Cashore (this was easy as most books I read is from a different country)

June - Book must include some type of love story: Wedding Tiers by Trisha Ashley.

July -  Book must have been made into a TV show or movie: The Road by Cormac McCarthy

August -  Book must have a one word title: Quietus by Susan Leigh Noble

September - Book must be part of a series: Blood Rites by Jim Butcher 

October – Book must have a paranormal aspect to it: Forgiven by Jana Oliver

November – Book must be non-fiction: No Hand to Hold & No Legs to Dance on: A Thalidomide      Survivor's Story by Louise Medus, Gill Swain

December – Bookworm's Choice! Read and rate/review any 5 books you like*!:
Old Man's War by John Scalzi
One Imperfect Christmas by Myra Johnson
Destiny by Susan Leigh Noble
Cold Days by Jim Butcher
Side Jobs: Stories From the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher

Side Jobs: Stories From the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher

As Chicago's only professional wizard, Harry Dresden has had cases that have pitted him against insane necromancers, power-hungry faerie queens, enigmatic dark wizards, fallen angels—pretty much a "who's who" of hell and beyond—with the stakes in each case ranging from a lone human soul to the entire human race.
But not every adventure Harry Dresden undertakes is an epic tale of life and death in a world on the edge of annihilation.
Here, together for the first time, are the shorter works of #1 New York Times bestselling author Jim Butcher—a compendium of cases that Harry and his cadre of allies managed to close in record time. With tales ranging from the deadly serious to the absurdly hilarious—including an all-new never-before-published story—this is a must-have collection for every devoted Harry Dresden fan. From Goodreads
Contains:
"Restoration of Faith", "Vignette", "Something Borrowed" , "It's My Birthday Too", "Heorot", "Day Off", "Backup", "The Warrior", "Last Call", "Love Hurts", "Aftermath"

I had read three or four of these short stories before but I still enjoyed them all. I think my favourite is Backup that is told from Thomas' side. About how he has to save Harry from something Harry doesn't even know is a danger to him. In the books it is clear that Harry could not manage without his friends and though Harry is the main guy in these books I quite enjoy all the other characters so it is nice to read some short stories where they are the main characters.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
2012 Witches & Witchcraft Reading Challenge,
Scavenger Hunt 2012 Reading Challenge,

Cold Days by Jim Butcher

You can't keep a good wizard down - even when he wants to stay that way.
For years, Harry Dresden has been Chicago's only professional wizard, but a bargain made in desperation with the Queen of Air and Darkness has forced him into a new job: professional killer.
Mab, the mother of wicked faeries, has restored the mostly-dead wizard to health, and dispatches him upon his first mission - to bring death to an immortal. Even as he grapples with the impossible task, Dresden learns of a looming danger to Demonreach, the living island hidden upon Lake Michigan, a place whose true purpose and dark potential have the potential to destroy billions and to land Dresden in the deepest trouble he has ever known - even deeper than being dead. How messed up is that?
Beset by his new enemies and hounded by the old, Dresden has only twenty four hours to reconnect with his old allies, prevent a cataclysm and do the impossible - all while the power he bargained to get - but never meant to keep - lays siege to his very soul.
Magic. It can get a guy killed. From Goodreads

I have really enjoyed this series with Harry Dresden so it is a bit sad to reach the point where I now have to wait for the next book.
In this book Harry Dresden again has to save the world, he just has to tell his friends that he is alive first so they can help him as usual. This book had an unexpected twist in the end and let's just say it is not great to be a friend of Harry as the outcome of that could be either death or worse! Looking forward to the next book and I might have to check out his other series in the mean time.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
2012 Witches & Witchcraft Reading Challenge,
Scavenger Hunt 2012 Reading Challenge,
Finishing the Series Reading Challenge

Destiny by Susan Leigh Noble

Destroying Quietus should have stopped the destruction to the Land. But it hadn’t. Slowly, the barren areas continue to grow destroying everything in their path. None of Lina’s Elemental powers can repair the damage while the Land remains contaminated by magic.
But there is an ancient scepter created by a Learner that may lift this magical barrier. Before Lina can claim it, the scepter is stolen. Now Lina and Val must race to find the scepter and end the destruction to the Land once and for all. From Goodreads

This is the last book of the Elemental trilogy and it is as good as the 2 previous books. It was good to see how everybody turned out, it was also sad because quite a few of the Elementals died. I have enjoyed this trilogy and will keep an eye out for more books from this author.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge, 
2012 Witches & Witchcraft Reading Challenge,
Scavenger Hunt 2012 Reading Challenge,
Finishing the Series Reading Challenge

One Imperfect Christmas by Myra Johnson

Graphic designer Natalie Pearce faces the most difficult Christmas of her life. For almost a year, her mother has lain in a nursing home, the victim of a massive stroke, and Natalie blames herself for not being there when it happened. Worse, she’s allowed the monstrous load of guilt to drive a wedge between her and everyone she loves—most of all her husband, Daniel. Her marriage is on the verge of dissolving, her prayer life is suffering, and she’s one Christmas away from hitting rock bottom.
Junior-high basketball coach Daniel Pearce is at his wit’s end. Nothing he’s done has been able to break through the wall Natalie has erected between them. And their daughter Lissa’s adolescent rebellion isn’t helping matters. As Daniel’s hope reaches its lowest ebb, he wonders if this Christmas will spell the end of his marriage and the loss of everything he holds dear. From Goodreads.




An okay book but no more than that. It did make me cry in parts but that is not actually difficult! A family falls apart because the wife feels guilty of her mother's stroke. It all ends happily, actually the mother dies on Christmas Day but as everybody has forgiven each other it is a happy ending. Not an author I will look for again.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2012, 
Scavenger Hunt 2012 Reading Challenge,
Why Buy the Cow? Reading challenge 2012 ( this book was free on Amazon.co.uk the 15th of October 2012) 

Old Man's War by John Scalzi

John Perry did two things on his 75th birthday. First he visited his wife's grave. Then he joined the army.
The good news is that humanity finally made it into interstellar space. The bad news is that planets fit to live on are scarce--and alien races willing to fight us for them are common. So: we fight. To defend Earth, and to stake our own claim to planetary real estate. Far from Earth, the war has been going on for decades: brutal, bloody, unyielding.
Earth itself is a backwater. The bulk of humanity's resources are in the hands of the Colonial Defense Force. Everybody knows that when you reach retirement age, you can join the CDF. They don't want young people; they want people who carry the knowledge and skills of decades of living. You'll be taken off Earth and never allowed to return. You'll serve two years at the front. And if you survive, you'll be given a generous homestead stake of your own, on one of our hard-won colony planets.
John Perry is taking that deal. He has only the vaguest idea what to expect. Because the actual fight, light-years from home, is far, far harder than he can imagine--and what he will become is far stranger.  From Goodreads.

This book was nothing like I expected. I expected a book about a war and it is about war on lots of fronts with blood and gore but it is also about human nature and friendship. Old people joining up for something they know nothing about, they just think someone knows how to make them younger.
I didn't actually know this was the first book of a series when I read this but it is and I am definitely looking to read more of John Scalzi's books.

This book qualifies for:
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge,
2012 Sci-Fi Challenge,
2012 Ebook Challenge,
Scavenger Hunt 2012 Reading Challeng

No Hand to Hold & No Legs to Dance on: A Thalidomide Survivor's Story by Louise Medus

While the battle for the compensation of Thalidomide victims was raging in the 1970s, former Labour MP Jack Ashley asked in a parliamentary debate how Louise, then 11 years old, could look forward to 'laughing and loving with no hand to hold and no legs to dance on'.Louise was born Louise Mason, a victim of the devastating drug Thalidomide. Born without arms and legs, she is the daughter of David Mason, who single-handedly held out against the drug company, the legal establishment and all the other parents of Thalidomide victims in the high-profile fight for proper compensation for the victims. As she was photographed with her family and appeared on television meeting celebrities during the battle, few people realised that she did not live with her wealthy parents and three siblings at their spacious North London home but was being brought up in an institution, Chailey Heritage in Sussex. In fact, Louise had never gone home from hospital and, for the first five weeks of her life, her mother didn't even see her. This is a survivor's story, a triumph of the human spirit over adversity. Louise married John, a partially sighted man, and had two beautiful children. She was devastated when she discovered that he was having an affair with their carer. She also had to undergo a kidney transplant, the first Thalidomide victim to do so. She has worked, been an active disability rights campaigner and has now found new love, with Darren, a fellow Thalidomide victim who was born without arms. From Goodreads.

This book is the life story of Louise, a Thalidomide victim/survivor. This is a gripping book about growing up in an institution and learning to do things despite having a disability. I am actually surprised how much I liked this book, I didn't expect to but Louise Medus and her co-writer Gill Swain have written a very good book. It took a lot of strength and determination to  fight for her own independence and it makes me think of the ones that might not have had the strength to go against the authorities and parents and ended up living most of their life in an institution. This book is of course written from her point of view and not everybody would agree with her but that is always the case with a life story and I think she has done it well. I would like to read her father's book, to read about his fight for a proper compensation when not many others would or could fight.
Definitely a book worth reading.

This book qualifies for:
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
A-Z  Book Challenge 2012,
Scavenger Hunt 2012 Reading Challenge,  
Why Buy the Cow? Reading challenge 2012 ( this book was free on Amazon.co.uk the 26th of October 2012) 

Forgiven by Jana Oliver

The days are growing darker for 17-year-old demon trapper Riley Blackthorne. With her father’s reanimated body back safely, Beck barely speaking to her because of her tryst with a hunky fallen angel and a deal freshly made with Lucifer, she has enough on her hands to last a normal teenage lifetime. Though she bargained with Heaven to save his life, her ex-boyfriend Simon has told the Vatican’s elite team of demon hunters that she’s working with Hell. So now she’s on the run, at the top of everyone’s most-wanted list.
But it’s becoming clear that this is bigger than either Riley or Beck, and rapidly getting out of control. Someone's tampering with Atlanta's Holy Water, and it’s on Riley to figure out who. On top of that, there’s something wrong with the demons; they’re working together—and refusing to die. The trappers and hunters are doing their best, but civilians are falling in harm’s way.
Caught between her bargain with Heaven and her promise to Lucifer, Riley fears the final war is coming—and it may be closer than anyone thinks.. From Goodreads

I read the first 2 books in this series in Dewey's Read-a-Thon October 2011 and I thought it fitting to continue this year. I was afraid it wasn't easy to get back to the story as it was a year ago I read the last but no problem, I got sucked into the book right away. This is a brilliant continuation of the series and I am interested in seeing where the author is going with this. I will read the the next book within the next few months.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
A-Z  Book Challenge 2012,
Season of the Witch October 2012,
2012 Witches & Witchcraft Reading Challenge,
Finishing the Series Reading Challeng,
Scavenger Hunt 2012 Reading Challenge,
Dewey's Read-a-Thon October 2012  

Blood Rites by Jim Butcher

HARRY DRESDEN — WIZARD
Lost Items Found. Paranormal Investigations. Consulting. Advice. Reasonable Rates. No Love Potions, Endless Purses, or Other Entertainment.
For Harry Dresden, Chicago's only professional wizard, there have been worse assignments than going undercover on the set of an adult film. Dodging flaming monkey-poo for instance. Or going toe-to-leaf with a walking plant monster. Still, there's something more troubling than usual about his newest case. The film's producer believes he's the target of a sinister entropy curse-but it's the women around him who are dying, in increasingly spectacular ways.
Harry's even more frustrated because he only got involved with this bizarre mystery as a favor to Thomas, his flirtatious, self-absorbed vampire acquaintance of dubious integrity. Thomas has a personal stake in the case Harry can't quite figure out, until his investigation leads him straight to Thomas's oversexed vampire family. Harry is about to discover that Thomas's family tree has been hiding a shocking secret: a revelation that will change Harry's life forever. From Goodreads

Yes I know, they are all the same. Harry gets a job, is nearly killed but manages to survive and save a lot of people. But it is an enjoyable read none the less and this one has a family twist at the end which was great. 

This book qualifies for:
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012,
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge,
2012 Ebook Challenge,  
2012 Where are you reading Challenge,
2012 Witches & Witchcraft Reading Challenge,
A-Z  Book Challenge 2012,
Finishing the Series Reading Challeng,
Scavenger Hunt 2012 Reading Challenge 

Quietus by Susan Leigh Noble

The Learner Ben Dar had been destroyed by the reluctant use of her powers. In the shadow of his fallen fortress, she had learned the truth – that she was the center of a thousand-year-old prophecy claiming the rebirth of the Elementals – an ancient race dedicated to caring for the Land.
Now Lina and those with traces of Elemental power train in the mountains of South Point in the hopes that they can defeat this unknown danger to the Land. Will her powers be enough to stop the destruction of her homeland?
Quietus is the second book in The Elemental Series. From Goodreads.

I read the first book in this series in March and was looking forward to read this one. It did not disappoint and I read it in one sitting. It was interesting to see things develop for these people with their elemental powers. Most of them had never used their powers and now they had to learn to use them at the same time as they have to use the powers to fight evil. It is a very good book full of love, friendship and, of course, betrayal. Now I am waiting for the next book.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge, 
A-Z  Book Challenge 2012,
2012 Witches & Witchcraft Reading Challenge,
Scavenger Hunt 2012 Reading Challenge,
Finishing the Series Reading Challeng

The Road by Cormac McCarthy

A father and his young son walk alone through burned America, heading slowly for the coast. Nothing moves in the ravaged landscape save the ash on the wind. They have nothing but a pistol to defend themselves against the men who stalk the road, the clothes they are wearing, a cart of scavenged food--and each other. From Goodreads

I knew the story as I saw the film earlier in the year. I have to say the film was very true to the book. This book is happening in a post-apocalyptic USA. Don't read this book if you need a happy book! I liked that the father keeps wanting his son to know how to be a "good" person but he himself couldn't always live up to it. Even though this is a very depressing book there is a bit of hope at the end.

This book qualifies for:
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012,
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge,
2012 Ebook Challenge,  
A-Z  Book Challenge 2012,
Scavenger Hunt 2012 Reading Challenge

Wedding Tiers by Trisha Ashley

The path of true love never runs smooth. But for some, it's one seriously bumpy ride! A heartwarming new romantic comedy from the bestselling author of A WINTER'S TALE. Growing up in the beautiful Lancashire village of Neatslake, Josie Gray and her childhood sweetheart, Ben Richards, always dreamt of living a life of rural bliss. And when Josie inherits her beloved Grandmother's cottage, it seems they might just have got what they wished for. Josie throws herself into her wedding cake business, whilst Ben gains increasing acclaim as an artist. But the tranquil village turns into a hive of activity when Josie's childhood friend, Libby Martin - now a wealthy widow - returns to the village, planning a lavish wedding to rival any celeb bash.
The day goes with a bang, and soon Libby and Josie are hard at work at their fledgling wedding business, hiring out Libby's beautiful Elizabethan home for ceremonies, with Josie creating all manner of wonderful cakes. But amidst all this romance, Josie's fairytale relationship with Ben turns into a nightmare, and she quickly becomes Love's number one cynic - until charming wedding photographer Noah Sephton arrives in Neatslake with a very different outlook on love! Can this hopeless romantic persuade pessimistic Josie to give romance another try? Or will it be a case of always the cake maker, never the bride!? From Goodreads

As usual, a nice cosy romance with a predictable outcome. But I enjoyed it and I like the way she creates interesting sub-characters. In this book my favourites are the Grace sisters.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
A-Z  Book Challenge 2012,
Scavenger Hunt 2012 Reading Challenge 

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Katsa has been able to kill a man with her bare hands since she was eight—she’s a Graceling, one of the rare people in her land born with an extreme skill. As niece of the king, she should be able to live a life of privilege, but Graced as she is with killing, she is forced to work as the king’s thug.
When she first meets Prince Po, Graced with combat skills, Katsa has no hint of how her life is about to change. She never expects to become Po’s friend. She never expects to learn a new truth about her own Grace—or about a terrible secret that lies hidden far away... a secret that could destroy all seven kingdoms with words alone. From Goodreads

This is a re-read, I think I must have read it shortly after it was released in 2009 so there was I lot I didn't remember. The reason I decided to read this again is that Bitterblue the third book in the series is now available and I just couldn't remember enough from this book. I enjoyed it and I like the opposites in Katsa's  world. As a graced killer she works for her uncle the king and does horrible things but on the other hand she has set up a council and through this she helps people. Prince Po convinces her that she does not have to do the king's work so she goes on a mission with him instead. I am looking forward to Bitterblue that I will read at some point this summer.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
A-Z  Book Challenge 2012,
Scavenger Hunt 2012 Reading Challenge

That's Another Story: The Autobiography by Julie Walters

Julie Walters has been delighting audiences on screen and on stage for more than 25 years, and has been described as Britain's most popular actress and comedienne. Now she tells us her own story, in her own words. She was born in 1950s Birmingham, daughter of an austere Irish Catholic mother, and was sent to school in a convent. She wanted to be an actress from a young age, but to appease her mother she first went into nursing—that didn't last for long, and she soon joined Liverpool's Everyman Theatre. West End success followed, and she quickly replicated her success on film, earning an Academy Award nomination for her role in Educating Rita. Julie's collaborations with her close friend Victoria Wood have given audiences many unforgettable characters,
and she's recently charmed a new generation of fans playing Mrs. Weasley in the Harry Potter films, alongside Meryl Streep in Mamma Mia!, co-starring with Helen Mirren in Calendar Girls, and co-starring in Billy Elliot. A natural writer with an instinctive sense of timing, Julie's memoirs are warm, moving, painfully felt, fiercely intelligent—and totally entertaining. From Goodreads
 
This is an okay book and I did chuckle a few times and enjoyed some of it. But it was not for me. Let me be sure to point out that it is probably me that is the problem here and not the book, I am sure it is an excellent autobiography but it is not a genre I am interested in. It just made me realise that I really don't care what celebrities, actors and other known people have done / are doing with their lives.

I read this book as part of the Scavenger Hunt 2012 Challenge and it is the only reason I chose an autobiography. That is another problem as the person who put up this challenge actually hasn't opened it up or posted in any way since December 2011. Apart from this I still find it a interesting challenge so whether it is a active challenge or not I am going to keep reading the books for the challenge.

This book qualifies for: 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge,
Scavenger Hunt 2012,
2012 Where are you reading Challenge

Witchblood by Emma Mills

When Jess steals a glance at a gorgeous guy in a Manchester nightclub, little does she realise how he is going to change her life…or should that be death? Yet, the vampire clan could never have predicted what they were taking on.
With Luke pronounced ‘off-limits’ and the blood of a vampire simmering in Jess’s body, can she forget the love of her life and move on? If not, she will risk exposing the entire Northern vampire clan to untold dangers, in order to live her life the way she wants.
Can Jess be sure that Luke is all he appears to be? Will she succumb to the attraction she desperately tries not to feel for Daniel? And why does she still crave a packet of crisps more than a tasty teenage boy’s blood? From Goodreads






I really enjoyed this book A teenage witch who doesn't know she is a witch becomes a vampire and then her powers starts to show themselves. I also like that in this book there are a lot of people who are not what they seem to be but they play their parts well. Jess is a strong main character and I like the other vampires as well. I am looking forward to the sequel coming out in June and will definitely try and get hold of it for my summer holiday.

Rose by Martin Cruz Smith

 The year is 1872. The place is Wigan, England, a coal town where rich mine owners live lavishly alongside miners no better than slaves. Into this dark, complicated world comes Jonathan Blair, who has accepted a commission to find a missing man.
When he begins his search every road leads back to one woman, a haughty, vixenish pit girl named Rose. With her fiery hair and skirts pinned up over trousers, she cares nothing for a society that calls her unnatural, scandalous, erotic.
As Rose and Blair circle one another, first warily, then with the heat of mutual desire, Blair loses his balance. And the lull induced by Rose's sensual touch leaves  him unprepared for the bizarre, soul-scorching truth. From Goodreads

I really liked this book and that it has taken me from the 10th of February to the 23rd of February to read is quite misleading. I actually finished the book in just 4 sittings but they were rather far apart but it was not because of the book.
I like his description of Wigan and the whole miners setting. The mystery was intriguing and there was a few things and explanations I had not seen coming.  I will read books written by Martin Cruz Smith again.

Sabriel by Garth Nix

 After receiving a cryptic message from her father, Abhorsen, a necromancer trapped in Death, 18-year-old Sabriel sets off into the Old Kingdom. Fraught with peril and deadly trickery, her journey takes her to a world filled with parasitical spirits, Mordicants, and Shadow Hands. Unlike other necromancers, who raise the dead, Abhorsen lays the disturbed dead back to rest. This obliges him--and now Sabriel, who has taken on her father's title and duties--to slip over the border into the icy river of Death, sometimes battling the evil forces that lurk there, waiting for an opportunity to escape into the realm of the living. Desperate to find her father, and grimly determined to help save the Old Kingdom from destruction by the horrible forces of the evil undead, Sabriel endures almost impossible exhaustion, violent confrontations, and
terrifying challenges to her supernatural abilities--and her destiny. From Goodreads
 




I was looking for a book for the Scavenger Hunt 2012 Reading Challenge. January – Book must have a character's name in title.

So I went searching and found this. I really enjoyed this book and the world. There are two parts to this world. Ancelstierre that is without or at least not wanting much to do with magic and then the Old Kingdom that is full of magic. Sabriel is a Necromancer's daughter but has been sent to Ancelstierre to go to school. As she is finishing school her father is trapped in Death and she has to save him.
Usually the Necromancers one reads about are about raising the dead but the duty of the line of Abhorsen is to release the dead to death so they stay dead! And that is not always easy.

Sabriel travels some of the time with 2 companions, Mogget a cat that really is an extremely old spirit and Touchstone a young man, that turns out to be quite important, who 200 years ago was turned into a wooden galleon-figure that she has brought back to life. 

I found the book fast paced and it did not take me long to finish it as I got sucked into it.
I was actually quite pleased that even though it is part one of a trilogy it finishes and does not have a cliffhanger that forces you to read the next book right away. Don't misunderstand me, I will definitely come back but I like that I don't have to do it right away to get answers.

This book qualifies for:  
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge
Scavenger Hunt 2012 Reading Challenge 

Scavenger Hunt 2012 Reading Challenge

picture from Angels are Kids and Furkids

Scavenger Hunt 2012 Reading Challenge

Yes, yet another challenge. This sounds like fun so I will take part in this too. In January I have to read a book that has a character's name in the title  and in February it is a flower name in the title.

Here is the page of this challenge where you can follow my progress.
This is where all the posts for this challenge can be found.