Dewey's Read-a-Thon hour 3

Dwey's Read-a-Thon hour 3

I decided to start with The Tar-Aiym Krang by Alan Dean Foster as it is only 166 pages. I have at this point read 42%. As just about all my books are read on Kindle my progress is always in %. I love my Kindle as it has given me access to so many books and at a much cheaper rate and instant delivery than if I had to buy them in paperback and shipped here. There are no book-store in my village and the nearest town is quite a flight away.

Dewey'a Read-a-Thon Introductory Questionnaire

Dewey'a Read-a-Thon Introductory Questionnaire

1) What fine part of the world are you reading from today?
     I will be reading from the town of Qaanaaq in Greenland, nearly as close to the North Pole as you can get

2) Which book in your stack are you most looking forward to?
     I think that must be Supernaturally by Kiersten White and Summer Knight by Jim Butcher

3) Which snack are you most looking forward to?
     The ice cream I bought

4) Tell us a little something about yourself!
     I am a stay at home wife who loves to read, play and host boardgames on the net and just enjoy life
 
 5) If you participated in the last read-a-thon, what’s one thing you’ll do different today? If this is your first read-a-thon, what are you most looking forward to?
     I don't think I will do anything different this time. The big difference is the time of year though, as I think I have 24 hours light now which I didn't in October

Dewey's Read-a-Thon Start

It is 10am - my local time. It is time to start Dewey's Read-a-Thon for April 2012. When I took part in October 2011, I only found out a couple of days before so while I really wanted to read all the time I did have some prearranged appointments.
This time I have made sure to keep the entire 24 hours free for reading.

I have made a list of books for reading in the 24 hours. My goal of this Read-a-Thon is to last the whole 24 hours and hopefully read 3 or 4 books depending on the page numbers.

The Tar-Aiym Krang by Alan Dean Foster. 166 pages
I read the first book in the Pip and Flinx adventure in February, this could be a good time to continue this series.

Summer Knight by Jim Butcher. 388 pages.
This is the fourth book in The Dresden Files and I enjoy reading about Harry Dresden Private detective/wizard-for-hire who gets into all kinds of trouble.

Supernaturally by Kiersten White. 357 pages
Yes I just finished the first book of the Paranormalcy Trilogy yesterday and I am looking forward to the second book.

Chocolate Wishes by Trisha Ashley. 390 pages.
Trisha Ashley is an easy comfortably read and I know I need something like that as well and I will most likely also need a break from the paranormal.

The Wonderkind by Fun London. 25 pages

I won this book in November 2011 in a author interview and book giveaway from I am A Reader, Not A Write. I guess it is about time I read it.

The God King by James A. West. 347 pages.

This is in my TBR pile. I might have a look at it.

The Wandering Valkyr by Dan Wright. ? pages. 290kb.

Another book I have won. This one I won in A winter's Respite Read-a-Thon hosted by Michelle over at thetruebookaddict.

Chicken Soup for the Soul: Love Stories. 305 pages

This one because I miss my husband who can't take part in this Read-a-Thon with me as he is not home at the moment. I look forward to him coming back next week.

Yes, I know I have put 8 books on my list again and I will never get through them all in 24 hours. It is mostly because I like to have a lot to chose from depending on my mood through the 24 hours. And then again, last time I ended up reading something completely different of the list of somebody else so I just see how it goes.

Paranormalcy by Kiersten White

Weird as it is working for the International Paranormal Containment Agency, Evie’s always thought of herself as normal. Sure, her best friend is a mermaid, her ex-boyfriend is a faerie, she’s falling for a shape-shifter, and she’s the only person who can see through paranormals’ glamours, but still. Normal.
Only now paranormals are dying, and Evie’s dreams are filled with haunting voices and mysterious prophecies. She soon realizes that there may be a link between her abilities and the sudden rash of deaths. Not only that, but she may very well be at the center of a dark faerie prophecy promising destruction to all paranormal creatures. 
So Much for normal. From Goodreads.

I really enjoyed this book. I like books with lots of different kinds of paranormals and the ones where the "good" might not be as good as you think they are. This has got both. It is also fun. The heroine has to figure out who or what she herself is when she suddenly finds out she is not actually human as she thought she was. I enjoyed this so much that I have actually just bought the sequel to read for Dewey's Read-a-Thon tomorrow.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge, 
2012 Book Blogger Recommendation Challenge (number 83)

Neuromancer by William Gibson

The Matrix is a world within the world, a global consensus- hallucination, the representation of every byte of data in cyberspace . . . Case had been the sharpest data-thief in the business, until vengeful former employees crippled his nervous system. But now a new and very mysterious employer recruits him for a last-chance run. The target: an unthinkably powerful artificial intelligence orbiting Earth in service of the sinister Tessier-Ashpool business clan. With a dead man riding shotgun and Molly, mirror-eyed street-samurai, to watch his back, Case embarks on an adventure that ups the ante on an entire genre of fiction. Hotwired to the leading edges of art and technology, Neuromancer ranks with 1984 and Brave New World as one of the century's most potent visions of the future. From Goodreads





I liked this book but I won't say I enjoyed it that much. It was hard going in places with the language it was written in. Sometimes very difficult to understand and I had to reread some paragraphs in order for them to make sense. But I found it a very interesting story, artificial intelligence (AI) and man against another AI and I might at some point read the rest of this Sprawl Trilogy.

100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge, 
2012 Sci-Fi Challenge

Google Friend Connect (GFC)

This it what should be on my blog. But when Google discontinued it or retired it on March 1, 2012 for all non-blogger users it also disappeared from my blog even though it should not have done. I can on my dashboard see how many followers I have but I can't see who they are and I am wondering if others can see this widget on my blogpage even though I can't as I have gotten 1 new follower this last week. Yes I know, I only have a few followers but I am happy to have them and sad that I no longer can see who they are.

Well I don't feel there is any help to find from Google with this problem as I have searched the net and all I have found is a lot of other people with the same problem but no answers to the problem.

To replace the faulty GFC follower thing I have chosen to join a lot of other people with the Linky Followers  gadget. I hope that will be easier than GFC and not give me as many problems as GFC did.

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

2 short stories

Restoration of Faith by Jim Butcher:

This is a short story of approximately 24 pages that takes place before the first book Storm Front while he is still working for another PI. I read it after Storm Front. It is about finding a runaway girl, being accused of kidnapping instead and Harry meets the police officer Karrin Murphy for the first time.
It is a nice short story to introduce Harry Dresden and Karrin Murphy and it was not a problem to read it after Storm Front. This short story is free to read on Jim Butcher's webpage. But it is also part of the book Side Jobs.

The New World by Patrick Ness:
In this dramatic prequel to the award-winning Chaos Walking Trilogy, author Patrick Ness gives us a short story of Viola's journey to the New World. From Goodreads. Again only 24 pages.
Again, even though this is a prequel to The Knife of never Letting Go, I read it after and that was fine. I liked that I got to know Viola in the book of Knife of Never Letting Go and then found out the story about how she got there.

Both short stories were very good but as they were only 24 pages each I of course don't count them as books. But they are good for learning more about the characters in the two series.

The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness

We were in the square, in the square where I'd run, holding her, carrying her, telling her to stay alive, stay alive till we got safe, till we got to Haven so I could save her - But there weren't no safety, no safety at all, there was just him and his men...
Fleeing before a relentless army, Todd has carried a desperately wounded Viola right into the hands of their worst enemy, Mayor Prentiss. Immediately separated from Viola and imprisoned, Todd is forced to learn the ways of the Mayor's new order. But what secrets are hiding just outside of town? And where is Viola? Is she even still alive? And who are the mysterious Answer? And then, one day, the bombs begin to explode...
"The Ask and the Answer" is a tense, shocking and deeply moving novel of resistance under the most extreme pressure. This is the second title in the "Chaos Walking" trilogy. From Goodreads





This is the second book in the "Chaos Walking" trilogy. It starts exactly where book one finishes. I wasn't quite caught up in this book as much as the first one but it is still very good and has surprises all through the book. Who to trust and can you really trust the ones you trust? All the time questions. This is one of those series I am happy I haven't found until the trilogy is finished so I don't have to wait a year or more for the continuation. I am taking a short break before getting hold of the last book but as this second book also ended on quite a cliffhanger it probably won't be long before I am back.


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

The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness

Prentisstown isn't like other towns. Everyone can hear everyone else's thoughts in an overwhelming, never-ending stream of Noise. Just a month away from the birthday that will make him a man, Todd and his dog, Manchee - whose thoughts Todd can hear, too, whether he wants to or not - stumble upon an area of complete silence. They find that in a town where privacy is impossible, something terrible has been hidden - a secret so awful that Todd and Manchee must run for their lives.

But how do you escape when your pursuers can hear your every thought? From Goodreads.

My husband recommended this book to me but it took me a while to get to it. I just couldn't get past the "poo Todd, poo" that my husband found very funny in the beginning of the book. It sounded very silly to me. My husband did try to tell me that it is a very serious book but then to hear him say that sentence again just didn't fit.
I have now read the book and yes, the first part with the dog Manchee and Todd seems quite funny but the rest of the book isn't.
It is a very fast-paced scary book with twists and turns that keep surprising you. I never expected much of what actually happened. I don't quite know how this can be a YA book as it is full of violence, brutal deaths and men being evil to each other.
I was gripped from around the second chapter and I will start the next book in the Chaos Walking series right away.

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge, 
2012 Book Blogger Recommendation Challenge 

Magical March Challenge. Wrap Up Post

Purpose: 
To read and review works of Fantasy, Science-Fiction, or Magical Realism (for my literary folks).
Details:
From now until March 4^th, the Mister Linky widget below will be available so people can sign-up to participate in the Magical March Reading Challenge.
Throughout the month of March, a Mister Linky will be available for pre-registered challengers to link-up their qualifying reviews.  There are different “classes” of magician, outlined below, and completion of the various levels could earn you a prize!

The Levels:
Magician’s Class:              1-2 Books Read & Reviewed       1 Book $10 or Less
Sorcerer’s Class:               3-5 Books Read & Reviewed       1 Book $12 or Less
Wizard’s Class:                 6-7 Books Read & Reviewed       1 Book $15 or Less
Grand Merlin Class:         8+ Books Read & Reviewed         1+  Book(s) $20 or Less


My goal was Wizard's Class: 6-7 books read.

I ended up reading 12 books for this challenge and passed my goal, so I went up a level to Grand Merlin Class: 8+ books read.

This is the books read:

1. A Fisherman of the Inland Sea by Ursula Le Guin
2. Glass Houses by Rachel Caine
3. Daughter of the Flames by Zoë Marriott
4. Witchblood by Emma Mills 
5. Convergence 2012 by Robert R. Ricks 
6. Fire by Kristin Cashore
7. Texas Gothic by Rosemary Clement-Moore
8. Fair Game by Patricia Briggs
9. Storm Front by Jim Butcher
10. Fool Moon by Jim Butcher
11. Grave Peril by Jim Butcher 
12. Summoned by Susan Leigh Noble

I enjoyed this challenge but then a lot of my books are paranormal at the moment so it wasn't a difficult challenge at this time.

Spring Into Horror Read-a-Thon

Michelle at The True Book Addict is hosting another week-long Read-a-Thon. Thank you Michelle.

It's coming...to shake up your peaceful spring. ;O)  Yup, it's the Spring into Horror Read-a-Thon, April 23 at 12:00am CST to April 29 at 11:59pm CST (adjust times according to your time zone). Now don't let the word 'horror' scare you away from this read-a-thon.  You do have to read at least one scary book during the duration of the read-a-thon.  That book can be horror, paranormal, thriller, mystery, etc. The rest of the read-a-thon, you can read whatever you want.  More horror/scary stuff or just your regular reading repertoire.  As always, this is a week long read-a-thon, but you can join in and read whenever it's convenient for you.  It's all about being laid back and getting some reading done...with a little bit of scary thrown in.

I think this will be the third of Michelle's Read-a-Thons that I will take part in and I have enjoyed them so far so I will keep coming back for more.

I read a lot of paranormal so I think I will try to find at least one or two regular horror books to read that week.

The last weekend of the Read-a-Thon I have got some commitments so I have to cram my reading in to the first 5 days and hope for a bit of time to finish off at the weekend.

I think my goal will be a book a day and 1 over the weekend so 6 books in total. I will start to compile my book list.

HERE is all the posts for this challenge.

Dewey's Read-a-Thon April 2012

This button was provided by Michelle from A True Book Addict

I will take part in Dewey's 24hr Read-a-Thon on the 21st of April. This will be my second time taking part. In October 2011 I only discovered this event a few days beforehand so even though I took part the whole 24 hours, I had a few prearranged commitments that I had to do in between. This time I have been keeping an eye on the date and as soon as it came up I marked it. This time I have the entire 24 hours free for reading.

I am looking forward to having the light all 24 hours this time - 24 hour sun will not be until the 25th of April so there will be a couple of hours where I can't see it, but it will still be light.

Over the next couple of weeks I will try and decide what to read. I have found out that maybe I can't read as much in 24 hours as I thought but I will still put a few extra books on my reading list so I have a choice or maybe when I see what other people read I might change my mind and go for something entirely different. Most likely, my list will contain both new books and rereads as I have learned that I need something very interesting for the last few hours where I will be struggling to keep awake.

THIS is where all my posts from Dewey's  Read-a-Thon April 2012 will be.

Sowing Secrets by Trisha Ashley

Watch out for temptation in the Garden of Eden! Fran March's life in the idyllic village of St Ceridwen's Well is coming up roses. Almost. If only daughter Rosie - the result of an uncharacteristic one-night stand 18 years ago - wasn't so curious about her real father, and if only husband Mal spent less time on his hobbies, everything would be bliss. But then a face from the past turns Fran's world upside down. The handsome face of TV gardener Gabriel Weston, currently restoring the village's decrepit stately home. And when Fran's ex-boyfriend Tom appears on her doorstep, it seems that all the ghosts of Fran's romantic past are back to haunt her. Can Fran keep Rosie's paternity under wraps? Why is Mal acting so oddly? And will Fran ever learn that every rose has its thorns!? From Amazon.com

Trisha Ashley's books are cosy, predictable, and enjoyable. I have, in a review, seen her books described as chick-lit for the middle-aged. Well, I am middle-aged and yes I enjoyed it. Two things that made it even more cosy for me were 1. most of the book takes place in North Wales and I might just go for a day trip to Wales this summer. 2. Scotland and haggis is mentioned and I have lived a few years in Scotland and actually also like haggis (the one from a supermarket, I am not sure I have ever had the real haggis).

This book qualifies for: 
100 books in a year Reading Challenge 2012, 
Goodreads 2012 Reading Challenge, 
2012 Ebook Challenge, 
Where are you Reading Challenge 2012

March 2012 Update

I have read 13 books in the month of March. Thanks to Magical March Reading Challenge hosted by Roof Beam Reader.
12 of my 13 books read this month fit this challenge, the last would have if it had not been a re-read.

1. A Fisherman of the Inland Sea by Ursula Le Guin
2. Glass Houses by Rachel Caine
3. Daughter of the Flames by Zoë Marriott
4. Witchblood by Emma Mills 
5. Convergence 2012 by Robert R. Ricks 
6. Fire by Kristin Cashore
7. Texas Gothic by Rosemary Clement-Moore
8. Fair Game by Patricia Briggs
9. Storm Front by Jim Butcher
10. Fool Moon by Jim Butcher 
11. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
12. Grave Peril by Jim Butcher 
13. Summoned by Susan Leigh Noble

 THIS is the link to all the books I read in March.