To Read, Perchance to Dream

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

March 2014 Wrap-Up Reading Challenges A-Q

I hope everyone had a wonderful March! Here are my reading challenge wrap-ups. Now, I just started back with this blog and joined all the challenges in mid-March. As I was allowed to include what I had read in January and February, I've worked hard getting reviews done and links entered on the correct Reading Challenge pages. Here's all the books I've read and reviewed through March 31, 2014.

A Fistful of Charms (The Hollows #4) by Kim Harrison

A Perfect Blood (The Hollows #10) by Kim Harrison

Ashling (The Obernewtyn Chronicles #3) by Isobelle Carmody

At Grave's End (Night Huntress #3) by Jeaniene Frost

Bite Me (London Undead #1) by PJ Schnyder

Black Magic Sanction (The Hollows #8) by Kim Harrison

Book of Riley Part 4 by Mark Tufo

Child of the Mountains by Marilyn Sue Shank

Clan of the Cave Bear (Earth's Children #1) by Jean M. Auel

Dead and Kicking (A Ghost Dusters Mystery #3) by Wendy Roberts

Dead The Ugly Beginning by T.W. Brown

Deadlocked 4 by A.R. Wise

Destined for an Early Grave (Night Huntress #4) by Jeaniene Frost

Elizabeth is Missing by Emma Healey

Every Which Way But Dead (The Hollows #3) by Kim Harrison

Fire & Flood (Fire & Flood #1) by Victoria Scott

Fool Moon (The Dresden Files #2) by Jim Butcher

For a Few Demons More (The Hollows #5) by Kim Harrison

Halfway to the Grave (Night Huntress #1) by Jeaniene Frost

Love Letters from Ladybug Farm (Ladybug Farm #3) by Donna Ball

Made in the U.S.A. by Billie Letts

Night Broken (Mercy Thompson #8) by Patricia Briggs

Nobody's Fool by Richard Russo

Obernewtyn (The Obernewtyn Chronicles #1) by Isobelle Carmody

One Foot in the Grave (Night Huntress #2) by Jeaniene Frost

Pale Demon (The Hollows #9) by Kim Harrison

Storm Front (The Dresden Files #1) by Jim Butcher

Sunrise (Ashfall #3) by Mike Mullin

The Chase (Fox and O'Hare #2) by Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg

The Cuckoo's Calling (Cormoran Strike #1) by Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling)

The Farseekers (The Obernewtyn Chronicles #2) by Isobelle Carmody

The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers

The Honk and Holler Opening Soon by Billie Letts

The Keeping Place (The Obernewtyn Chronicles #4) by Isobelle Carmody

The Light in the Ruins by Chris Bohjalian

The Patron Saint of Lost Dogs (Cyrus Mills #1) by Nick Trout

The Royal Treatment (Alaskan Royal Family #1) by MaryJanice Davidson

Through the Ever Night (Under the Never Sky #2) by Veronica Rossi

Under the Never Sky (Under the Never Sky #1) by Veronica Rossi

What a Mother Knows by Leslie Lehr

What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty

Where the Heart Is by Billie Letts

Zombie, Indiana (Zombie #3) by Scott Kenemore

Zombie, Ohio (Zombie #1) by Scott Kenemore

Now here's the challenges and what books go with what challenge.

Here's the challenges A-Q.

I signed up to read 20 Dystopian books in 2014, I'm well on my way with 8 books!

I signed up to read 75 Ebooks in 2014, I'm over halfway there!

To complete this challenge, you need to read 25 books that fit the criteria on the "Bingo" card. I'm getting there!

I signed up to read 20 books about vampires and/or werewolves in 2014. Over halfway there already!

I signed up to read 10 ARCs from Netgalley. Exactly halfway there!

I signed up to read 10 ARCs from Netgalley and/or Edelweiss. I'm halfway.

March 2014 Wrap-up Reading Challenges R-Z

Here are the Reading Challenges I'm working on - R-Z

I signed up to read 30 ARCs in 2014.

I signed up to read 30 books from my TBR pile.

I signed up to finish 12 series in 2014.

2014 Witches & Witchcraft Reading Challenge

I signed up to read 20 books about witches and/or witchcraft in 2014.

I signed up to read 15 books about zombies in 2014.

March 2014 Wrap-up TBR Pile Challenge

I signed up to read 30 books from my TBR pile. May have to up my goal! I decided not to put the book covers on here because there are so many books. Each is a link to my review with the book cover.

March 2014 Wrap-up "Real" Book Challenge

Real Book Challenge on Swoony Boys Podcast and Fiction Fare

I signed up to read 20 "Real" books in 2014. I'm kind of behind, but I do have some books I've read and haven't gotten the reviews done yet, so they'll go for April! Here's what is complete:

Monday, March 31, 2014

Book Review: Survive to Dawn (London Undead #3) by PJ Schnyder

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The zombie epidemic in London has been contained, but that's all the werewolf pack that protects the city has been able to manage. Danny, as pack medic, is concerned the epidemic isn't showing any signs of slowing down. And that the pack's Alpha is too focused on eliminating the deadly threat to consider working toward a cure. When a team of American scientists arrive, talking of a vaccine, Danny is quietly hopeful.

Deanna thought she was prepared for anything. But an argument with the London pack leaves her research team exposed and alone, on their own against countless hordes of the walking dead. Within hours, her colleagues are slaughtered…and it's only because of Danny that she manages to get out alive.

Deanna unhinges Danny in every way, tempting him beyond reason. She also pushes him to face the one thing he'd been avoiding: his Alpha is wrong. Simply surviving isn't the answer…it can't be.

I received this ARC for free in exchange for an honest review. Survive to Dawn is the third book in the London Undead series by PJ Schnyder. The first thing I did was buy the first book in the series, Bite Me. I like to read series books in order, and I thought it would help give me background on what had happened so far. Actually, it wasn't necessary to do that with this series. Survive to Dawn can be read as a stand-alone book.

The premise for this series is a good one, werewolves fighting zombies. Unfortunately, in my opinion, the writing didn't stand up to the idea. There was next to no world building, the explanation for how the zombies were created and what that did to London was glossed over quickly.

There was very little character development. We find out that Danny is very old. Deanna's background is revealed a little more thoroughly as it relates to the storyline. Their relationship is meant to be something like love at first site, but there's absolutely no heat, no chemistry between them.

Unfortunately, I found myself just wanting to hurry the story along and be done with it. Even the zombies weren't very scary, although the scene where they found her scientist friend in the park was good. This zombie series just wasn't for me.

I give this book 2 Bookworms.

Book Review: Bite Me (London Undead #1) by PJ Schnyder

Few people walk the streets of London since the zombie outbreak, but that's not an issue for Seth. As a werewolf, he can handle himself and save humans reckless enough to take a nighttime stroll. While on patrol he comes across a group of people under attack. The one woman brave enough to take a stand against the zombies catches his eye—and not just because of her way with a gun. Learning the beautiful woman is homeless and fends for herself only intensifies his urge to protect and care for her.

Maisie can't help but admit that she's attracted to her werewolf rescuer. She's drawn to Seth's strength and ferocity, and finds herself opening up to him in ways she never imagined, even though she's determined to not rely on Seth or anyone else. She doesn't want another person to get hurt—or die—for her sake. She has enough scars, physical and emotional, from the last time…

But when Seth realizes something is drawing the zombies to Maisie, there may be nothing he can do to save her…

The premise of this book, werewolves fighting zombies, caught my interest, so I grabbed it. I was definitely disappointed. It's not a long story, so little time was allowed for character or world development. Bite Me is the first book in the London Undead series by PJ Schnyder, so I expected some detailed background about how the zombies came about and more information about the werewolves coming out to fight them. Very little detail was given.

The only character with much background shown was Maisie, so she seems more of a real person. She has a great spitfire spirit. However, the relationship between her and Seth feels non-existent. There's no real chemistry shown between them. There are some explicit sex scenes.

The action moves along quickly, but there's not much of it. When the zombies attacked, I didn't feel any emotion from anyone. It's just not a book I'd recommend.

I give this book 2 Bookworms.

Book Review: What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty

Alice Love is twenty-nine, crazy about her husband, and pregnant with her first child.
So imagine Alice’s surprise when she comes to on the floor of a gym (a gym! She HATES the gym) and is whisked off to the hospital where she discovers the honeymoon is truly over — she’s getting divorced, , she has three kids, and she’s actually 39 years old. Alice must reconstruct the events of a lost decade, and find out whether it’s possible to reconstruct her life at the same time. She has to figure out why her sister hardly talks to her, and how is it that she’s become one of those super skinny moms with really expensive clothes. Ultimately, Alice must discover whether forgetting is a blessing or a curse, and whether it’s possible to start over.

I'm not sure what to say about this book. I've had it on my reading list for ages and finally got to it, just to find it wasn't as spectacular as I'd hoped or imagined. Alice, after she lost her memory and thought she was twenty-nine and pregnant for the first time, was a sweet character. Her story was written in third person, but the author didn't take advantage of that "all knowing" style of writing, everything was shown as Alice perceived it. Interspersed in Alice's story, there were diary entries from Elisabeth, Alice's sister made to a psychiatrist, Dr. Hodges; as well as letters to an old beau written by Frannie, their adopted grandmother. These didn't add to the narrative at all, and would have made Alice's story flow better if just left out.

For me, What Alice Forgot was just an ok book. There are some really good moments with the children as she tires to learn to relate to these little people she doesn't remember. There are good lessons to be learned about moderation, in life, in family, in friendship.

I give this book 3 Bookworms.

Pages

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

Now here's the challenges and what books go with what challenge.

Here's the challenges A-Q.

I signed up to read 20 Dystopian books in 2014, I'm well on my way with 8 books!

I signed up to read 75 Ebooks in 2014, I'm over halfway there!

To complete this challenge, you need to read 25 books that fit the criteria on the "Bingo" card. I'm getting there!

I signed up to read 20 books about vampires and/or werewolves in 2014. Over halfway there already!

I signed up to read 10 ARCs from Netgalley. Exactly halfway there!

I signed up to read 10 ARCs from Netgalley and/or Edelweiss. I'm halfway.

Here are the Reading Challenges I'm working on - R-Z

I signed up to read 30 ARCs in 2014.

I signed up to read 30 books from my TBR pile.

I signed up to finish 12 series in 2014.

I signed up to read 20 books about witches and/or witchcraft in 2014.

I signed up to read 15 books about zombies in 2014.

I signed up to read 30 books from my TBR pile. May have to up my goal! I decided not to put the book covers on here because there are so many books. Each is a link to my review with the book cover.

I signed up to read 20 "Real" books in 2014. I'm kind of behind, but I do have some books I've read and haven't gotten the reviews done yet, so they'll go for April! Here's what is complete:

Monday, March 31, 2014