Lesley’s Comments (group member since Dec 27, 2013)

Lesley’s comments from the WACKY READING CHALLENGES group.

jingles, you better get busy!! LOL Yikes on that many true crimes but the biographies would have me seeing stars. I've only read a couple of those ever but they always seem to put me asleep!!! I must not be reading the right ones!

I have a few historical fiction books to get through in the semi near future and not looking forward to those... I know some of you all read those, maybe there's a few suggestions on authors that you'll think I would like.

We have about 8 inches on our back deck here too. I'm just glad that it's a light snow and not wet and slushy. It made the snowblowing process much easier on me. Andy left for work at 4am this morning so the cleanup falls to me and the boys. We're about 3/4 done but had to take a break. The temperature is harder to deal with than the snow. It's only about 8 degrees F outside. BRRRR Which reminds me, we'll need to bring more wood in too! It's days like today that I don't know why we live in New England and not somewhere warmer with no snow!! lol

ETO, hope your daughter is feeling better.

We're still good here in the southwestern most corner of NH. At least I think we are at home.
We left the house at 5:15 to go to hockey practice 1/2 an hour from home. Andy got out of work early enough so he could drive us but the roads weren't bad considering it'd been snowing all day. They've already called school off for tomorrow. Woohoo! More reading time for me !!!

jingles, that's awesome that one book filled 37 holes!!! I don't think I have quite that many active challenges going on.....or maybe I'm just in denial. not sure which it really is!!!

It's been snowing all morning, but it's really not accumulating all that much considering. Maybe 3 or 4 inches so far, but it's nice and light and fluffy. First round on the driveway with the snow blower only took about 20 minutes. Maybe I was moving in high gear though because it's really cold out. My last look at the thermometer said it was only 9 degrees!!! It could be spring now and I'd be happy! lol

How everyone is getting everything done today that needs to be done!

New England is in the midst of a Nor'Easter so we've got an extra day to our Christmas vacation. The latest forecast has us down for between 10 - 14 inches of snow. Good times... NOT! At least the kids can help me shovel the stairs and a path to the basement door while I'm snowblowing the driveway.

I finished my first book of 2014 last night... not happy with the way the author played out the whole plotline throughout the 3 books in the series. I still have some unanswered/unexplainable questions about what all went in the first book, although other pieces of it wrapped up nicely. Seriously, who writes a whole book and makes you love the characters only to throw a huge plot twist into the last chapter that makes you question everything you've just read and leaves you hanging for part 2. lol I know it happens all the time, but usually I can handle small plot twists, this one was just crazy big!

Trying to decide which book to read next. I do know it'll fill a space for my CCC January spell it (PROMISED) so I've got at least that much narrowed down!!

I can't even imagine how long it took you to get this one all set up!!

But I did notice something. The description says "using the numbers 1-13, as well as the Jack, Queen, King and Ace" But there is no 1 card, the ace counts either as 1 or the card above a king.

I'm going with for first finish of 2014. Love that I'll be finsihing a trilogy, and love that it's an I title!!! If this one ends on a crazy twist like the first book in the series does though, I can't promise I'll ever read anything by this author ever again!! :)

I found a new Kindle Fire for me under the tree this year (that I put it there for myself!) But with all the game apps that my boys have been adding to it, they keep trying to sneak it away from me and I haven't spent much time with it yet.

Comparing it to my keyboard Kindle that I've had for about 2 1/2 years, it's like comparing apples to oranges. Feature wise, I really only ever used the keyboard for reading. The few word games that I had on it were for those deperate moments when any game would do to occupy the kiddos if we were sitting waiting, like at the garage waiting for new tires to be put on the minivan, or at the ER waiting for the doctors to come check out the other brother when he had a scary asthma attack, etc.

Weight wise, the Fire is a lot heavier so the keyboard is easier to read while laying down in bed or on the couch. I have a cover with a light for the keyboard kindle so it's not an issue to read in the dark so I don't keep the hubby awake.

I have not tried reading with it outside yet, so I can't say how bad the glare will be. I am concerned about that though only because in the summer, we spend a lot of time at the pool and it's some kind of bright there!!!

As far as being able to use it as a tablet and be able to check in on the latest happenings on Facebook or on Goodreads, love that I can do that without having to walk across the living room and get to the computer.

Could I have done fine with the keyboard kindle for another couple of years? yes, but it's nice to have a new toy to play with!

Happy New Year!

Hope everyone had a fun and safe night!!

We dropped the 9 year old off at his friend's house for a sleepover. There were going to be 1) 9 year old, 2) 10 year olds, 3) 8 year olds and 1) 3 year old there spending the night plus some of the other kids from the neighborhood hanging out for part of the night. She's a stronger mom than I am!! LOL

The 11 year old stayed home with us for some mom and dad and Steven time. Lots of appetizers, a couple of hockey games on tv, a game of Scrabble with me, a game of Battleship with his dad and then we watched the ball fall before all of his hit the pillows. Oh, and a nap on the couch for me!!

Looking forward to the New Year. I've decided to start a book blog. I had a blog a couple of years ago but my main issue was I never knew what to yap about. I figure with the amount of books that I read, even if I only do book reviews, I'll never run out of things to post about. If you want to see what I have so far the link is he (shameless plug I know) I had a lot of fun picking out my top ten New Adult reads of 2013 - it felt like revisiting a bunch of old friends!

Today's adventures - taking down the Christmas tree, getting ready for back to work and school tomorrow and of course some reading time.

What are your plans for the day?

you're welcome! :0)

Finished another 5-star hockey romance today!!!

by Mary Smith and *sigh* it's gives me another new series to add to my list!

The cover colors get me too Connie. I'm hung up on the color task for several of those blasted NFL teams!!

I enjoy both the spell-outs and the task oriented ones too. Sometimes though the task oriented ones though send me into a panic because they are so specific. I tend to plan my next books on what will fit into the shorter deadline challenges and just smile when they fit in nicely for the longer term challenges. And then if I'm close to finishing up a piece of a longer challenge, then I try to focus myself to finish those.
Which of course means, I'm really close to finishing up a about 6 challenges but am going to have to come up with a definite plan to finish filling them in!

I finished 2 books last night!

Lilliana Anderson 12/28/13 - it was a good book but hard to read at times as the man that 18 year old Etta meets (after moving out of her parent's house and gets out from under her strict father's thumb) is a very controlling man to the point that he shuts her off from everyone in her life and she allows it to happen, up to her breaking point. ****

and then a lighter book, and took me back to a hockey mindset was by Catherine Gayle 12/28/13 Loved Dana and her strength to get over a horrific event and loved her brother's best friend Eric (the NHL player) who helped her to do so. *****

Both were read for reviews and next up on the queue is a book I need to review for BookRooster - which features a USMC/ballroom dancer. (Quite a combination for one man, I know) Only about 3 chapters into this one so far so not sure how good it'll be.

I agree, don't even start Candy Crush. I just started around Thanksgiving and some of the levels just absolutely suck because they're so hard to get through and I refuse to pay money for any boosters or extra life or anything.

I yap all the time about hockey and how much time it takes up of our life, but truth be told, I love watching the boys play as much as they love playing. It's their favorite sport - my husband is originally from Canada so hockey flows through his blood and he's definitely passed it along to the boys.

My plan is to spend the rest of December working on the reviews that I need to get done. Right now I'm working on and it's going fast, except that my kids keep getting ahold of my brand new Kindle Fire and playing games on it which drains the battery quickly!! I'll have to resort back to my keyboard kindle if the battery dies again on me since my reading chair is nowhere near a power outlet!!!

Other than reading, my life revolves around youth hockey, as our 2 guys play on the travel teams for our local hockey association. Of course, they're on 2 different teams due to their age difference, so most weekend days, it's me taking the 9 year old goalie to his game and my husband taking the 11 year old (he coaches that team). There's no games scheduled for this weekend because of the holiday so we're having a lazy afternoon. Instead of being at a cold rink watching hockey, we're watching the IIHF hockey games on the NHL channel from the warmth of our living room.

Now if I could just walk away from this computer and checking out all of the new reading challenges that are popping up all over the place and actually get to reading, I might actually make some progress here!!! Oh, and walking away from the computer would also get me away from that annoying Candy Crush Saga game that I swore I'd never get addicted to!!! (yeah right!)

All in the Cards Challenge
1/1/14 - NO DEADLINE


Card #3 Task #2: Read 11 books by Favorite Author #1 - BELLA ANDRE
1. From This Moment On Bella Andre 8/5/14
2. . Can't Help Falling In Love Bella Andre 8/9/14
3. I Only Have Eyes for You Bella Andre 8/12/14
4. If You Were Mine Bella Andre(The Sullivans #5) 8/13/14
5. Come A Little Bit Closer Bella Andre 9/1/14
6. Always On My Mind Bella Andre 9/19/14
7. It Must Be Your Love Bella Andre 9/20/14
8. Just To Be With You Bella Andre 9/26/14
9. I Love How You Love Me Bella Andre 10/21/14
10. Red Hot Reunion Bella Andre 4/12/15
11. Wild Heat Bella Andre 2/16/16


Card #5 Task #2: Read 9 books that are from another Goodreads Group Bookshelf
1. Come to Me Quietly A.L. Jackson 7/30/14 from New Adult Corner's bookshelf
2. Ugly Love Colleen Hoover 10/25/14 from New Adult Corner's bookshelf
3. That Boy Jillian Dodd 11/14/14 from New Adult Corner's bookshelf
4.Four Seconds to Lose K.A. Tucker 12/1/14 from New Adult Corner's bookshelf
5.Caught Up in Us Lauren Blakely 12/7/14 from New Adult Corner's bookshelf
6. Caught Up In You Colee Firman 2/3/15 from Making Connections bookshelf
7. Love Letters to the Dead Ava Dellaira 2/16/2015 NBRC's bookshelf
8. Tall, Tatted and Tempting Tammy Falkner 3/13/2015 from New Adult Corner's bookshelf
9 Three Broken Promises Monica Murphy 8/24/15 on New Adult Corner bookshelf



Card 6 Task #4: Read 8 books from Favorite Author #2 - Susan Mallery
1 Finding Perfect Susan Mallery 9/12/15
2 Only Mine Susan Mallery 9/14/15
3 Only Yours Susan Mallery 9/23/15
4 Only His Susan Mallery 10/1/15
5 Straight from the Hip Susan Mallery 11/17/15
6 Quinn's Woman Susan Mallery 11/28/15
7 Summer Days Susan Mallery 12/7/15
8 Expecting ! Susan Mallery 6/17/16

Card 7 Task #7: Read 7 books with the #7 in the publication year
1 In Between Jenny B. Jones 7/21/14 PUB 4/15/2007
2 Nauti Nights Lora Leigh 10/26/14 PUB 2007
3 Home for Christmas Patricia Kay 11/2/14 PUB: 12/29/1997
4 Chased Lauren Dane 7/6/15 PUB: 3/6/07
5 You Had Me At Halo Amanda Ashby 7/26/15 PUB: 8/7/07
6 Making Chase Lauren Dane 10/23/15 PUB: 6/6/07
7 Dirty Martini J.A. Konrath 2/13/16 Pub: 6/27/2007

Card #8 Task #1: Read 6 books that are Book #8 of a series
1 Taken with You Shannon Stacey 6/28/14 Kowalski Family #8
2 Icebreaker Deirdre Martin 8/23/14
3 Always On My Mind Jill Shalvis 2/12/2015 (Lucky Harbor #8)
4 Straddling the Line Jaci Burton 9/26/15 (Play By Play #8)
5 Hold on Tight Abbi Glines 1/22/16 (Sea Breeze #8)
6 Homicide in High Heels Gemma Halliday 2/8/16 (High Heels #8)


Card 8 Task #6: Read 6 books from the Bottom 50 on your TBR
1 Heartfire Karen Rose Smith 1/24/2015 (my #1 on my GR TBR list)
2 Drew in Blue J.M. Kelley 6/26/15
3 Zack Sawyer Bennett 5/17/16
4 The Librarian Principle Helena Hunting 5/19/16
5 Until November Aurora Rose Reynolds 5/20/16
6 Making Faces Amy Harmon 5/21/16

Card 8 Task #8: Read 6 books with the #6 in the publication year
1 Ever Since Eve Pamela Browning 8/5/14 PUB: 1/1/1986
2 Two-Minute Mysteries Donald J. Sobol 6/3/15 PUB: 1969
3 The One Left Behind Willo Davis Roberts 9/26/15 PUB: 3/21/06
4 Trick or Treat Murder Leslie Meier 1/29/16 PUB: 10/1/1996
5 Never Tear Us Apart Monica Murphy 2/20/16 PUB: 1/5/2016
6 Calamity Jayne Kathleen Bacus 4/10/16 PUB: 1/1/2006


Card 9 Task #4: Read 5 books a color in the title
1 Blackhill Ranch Katherine May 1/2/15
2 Blue Roses Mimi Strong 3/7/2015
3 Thin White Line J.A. Templeton 3/30/2015
4 Those Red High Heels Katherine May 4/5/15
5 Under the Orange Moon Adrienne Frances 12/28/15


Card 9 Task 6: Read 5 books from Favorite Author #3 - Nora Roberts
1 Savor the Moment Nora Roberts 1/10/15
2 Happy Ever After Nora Roberts 2/2/2015
3 One Summer Nora Roberts 12/10/15
4 Unfinished Business Nora Roberts 3/6/15
5 The Next Always Nora Roberts 6/19/16

Card #10 Task #4: Read 4 Books from Favorite Listopia List #3
Bad Boy Bikers, Rockers or Tattoo Artists
1 Bad for You Abbi Glines 12/14/15
2 Clipped Wings Helena Hunting 12/26/15
3 Inked Armour Helena Hunting 12/26/15
4 Incandescent River Savage 2/21/16

Card #10 Task #9: Read 4 hard cover books
1 Time Flies Claire Cook 6/27/14
2 I've Got Your Number Sophie Kinsella 12/7/14
3 My Life Next Door Huntley Fitzpatrick 4/21/16
4 I Funny: A Middle School Story James Patterson 4/30/16

I'm going to jump in with the Pop Level, just to ensure that I'll be sticking around here for awhile... or maybe forever!

Song: No Surprise
Artist: Daughtry

Line 1
41/41

A Blue Lines Toni Aleo 3/16/14
A Finding Home Aine Kelley 1/26/14
C Significance by Shelley Crane - 02/03/14
C Connected by the Sea E.L. Todd 2/1/14
D Matchplay Dakota Madison 1/16/14
D Dying for Dinner Rolls Lois Lavrisa 2/17/14
DHe Belongs With Me Sarah Darlington 2/24/14
D Final Play Dakota Madison 3/5/14
E Emerge S.E. Hall 2/9/14
E Embrace S.E. Hall 2/15/14
E Entice S.E. Hall 3/6/14
F Love Is Absolute Haven Francis 3/1/14
G Give Me Something Elizabeth Lee 3/9/14
H Anonymous Holly Hood 1/25/14
H Love Is Relative Haven Francis 2/19/14
I I Am Yours Heartbeat #3 by Faith Sullivan 1/1/14
I I Choose You Bethany Lopez 1/4/13
I Impossible Love, The Complete Before You Go Series Clare James 3/3/14
N Kissing In Cars Sara H. Ney 3/10/14
N Chasing Wishes Nadia Simonenko 1/31/14
N Blackness Takes Over Norma Jeanne Karlson 1/19/14
N No Shoes, No Shirt, No Spells Rose Pressey 4/28/14
O One More Day M. Malone 2/13/14
O Off the Record Sawyer Bennett 3/2/14
O Only For You L.A Shorter 4/5/14
O On the Floor Jennifer LaCross 4/11/14
O On A Night Like This Barbara Freethy 4/27/14
P Tamed By You Kate Perry 3/18/14
R The Reluctant Bachelorette Rachael Renee Anderson 1/18/14
R Ransom Denise Mathew 3/1/14
R Forgotten Yesterday Renee Ericson 1/18/14
R Heartbreak, Tennessee Ruby Laska 2/18/14
R Fall into my Heart Rebecca Elise 1/15/14
S Spiral Mila Ferrera 3/17/14
S Something Good Darlene Deluca 3/15/14
T Trust in Me Bethany Lopez 1/4/14
T Pregame Taylor Wade 3/12/14
U Understudy Denise Kim Wy 4/7/14
U Unfinished Shae Scott 5/3/14
U The Unknown Lara Henley 5/9/14
V Vengeful in Love Nadia Lee 3/20/14

Line 2: 31/31
Aaaddeghhiiiikllnnnnoootttttvww

A Along Came Trouble Erin Kern 5/18/14
A Running Back Allison Parr 5/29/14
A Kissing Under The Mistletoe Bella Andre 6/3/14
D Dearest Clementine Lex Martin 5/14/14
D Danger in High Heels Gemma Halliday 5/31/14
E The Edge of Always J.A. Redmerski 5/24/14
G Gorgeous Chaos T.K. Leigh 5/16/14
H The Sudoku Puzzle Murders Parnell Hall 6/4/14
H Hold Me Tight Talia Quinn 6/8/14
I It Had to Be You Susan May Warren 5/12/14
I Imagine Me Charles Alverson 6/3/14
I In the Stillness Andrea Randall 6/15/14
I In Between Jenny B. Jones 7/21/14
K Because of Winn-Dixie Kate DiCamillo 5/30/14
L Concealed Selena Laurence 5/16/14
L Spin Bella Love 5/18/14
N Drag Strip Nancy Bartholomew 6/13/14
N Film Strip Nancy Bartholomew 6/22/14
N Carnival K.B. Nelson 6/25/14
N Not Alone Amber Nation 7/6/14
O On the Way to a Wedding Suzanne Stengl 5/13/14
O Once A Cowboy Linda Warren 5/25/14
O Picture Me Naked Lisa A. Olech 5/28/14
T Take Care, Sara Lindy Zart 5/11/14
T 21 Days Bethany Lopez 5/23/14
T He's Come Undone Theresa Weir 6/25/14
T 2B or Not 2B? Stephanie Witter 6/26/14
T Time Flies Claire Cook 6/27/14
V The Vincent BoysAbbi Glines 7/23/14
W Born Wild Julie Ann Walker 5/24/14
W Scoop to Kill Wendy Lyn Watson 6/24/14

Line 3
And as I say it louder, I love how it sounds
AAADDDEEHIIIILLOOOONNRSSSSTTUUVWY
A Someone for Me Addison Moore 7/28/14
A Come to Me Quietly A.L. Jackson 7/30/14
A Alex Irish Winters 7/31/14
D Cruiser Dee J Stone 8/7/14
D Second Chance Dee J Stone 8/8/14
D Power Play Deirdre Martin 8/9/14
E My Own Worst Enemy Emma L. Smith 8/4/14
E Ever Since Eve Pamela Browning 8/5/14
H Here Comes the Bride Theresa Ragan 7/31/14
I I'm with You Glenna Maynard 7/25/14
I The Guys Are Props Club Ingrid Seymour 7/28/14
I Girls Are Players Ingrid Seymour 7/28/14
I I Only Have Eyes for You Bella Andre 8/12/14
L Leather, Lace and Rock-n-Roll Mia Dyamond 7/29/14
L An Impossible Secret J.B. Leigh 8/1/14
N Strip Poker Nancy Bartholomew 8/3/14
N Mint Juleps and Justice Nancy Naigle 8/11/14
O Out of Play Nyrae Dawn 8/6/14
O Love of Truth C.T. Oliver 8/10/14
O Opposing Sides C.M Doporto 8/14/14
O Almost Perfect Julie Ortolon 8/15/14
R Rhett J.S. Cooper 7/25/14
S The Perfect Game J. Sterling 7/24/14
S The Game Changer J. Sterling 7/24/14
S The Summer I Found You Jolene Perry 7/26/14
S Sandcastle Kisses Krista Lakes 7/29/14
T Blame it on Texas Tori Scott 7/30/14
T Temporary Bliss B.J. Harvey 8/1/14
U Unsettled Alisa Mullen 7/24/14
U Unchosen Alisa Mullen 7/24/14
V The Vincent Brothers Abbi Glines 7/31/14
W Up Close and Personal Janet Wellington 8/20/14
Y You Make Me Erin McCarthy 8/2/14

Line 4 'Cause I'm not taking the easy way out
aaaaceeeghiikmnnoossttttuuwyy

A Absolutely Unforgivable Tracy Tegan 8/22/14
A Come A Little Bit Closer Bella Andre 9/1/14
A Five Minute Man Abbie Zanders 9/1/14
A Always On My Mind Bella Andre 9/19/14
C Changing the Game Jaci Burton 8/29/14
E Everything Bared Kristine Cayne 8/25/14
E Betting on You Jessie Evans 8/28/14
E Rules of Attraction Simone Elkeles 8/30/14
G Collide Gail McHugh 9/13/14
H Secret Bond Gemma Halliday 9/7/14
I Icebreaker Deirdre Martin 8/23/14
I It Must Be Your Love Bella Andre 9/20/14
K Loved by You Kate Perry 8/20/14
M Melting the Ice Jaci Burton 8/24/14
N Now and Forever Brenda Rothert 9/25/14
N Nauti Nights Lora Leigh 10/26/14
O Obsessive Isobel Irons 8/26/14
O On the Fly Katie Kenyherecz 9/9/14
S So Much It Hurts Melanie Dawn 8/26/14
S Free to Love Sydell Voeller 8/31/14
T Tied with Me Kristen Proby 8/21/14
T This Beautiful Thing Amanda Heath 8/23/14
T Dangerous Kisses Trish Milburn 8/30/14
T Then Came You Jill Shalvis 9/3/14
U Until I Met You Jaimie Roberts 8/21/14
U Unbreakable Bond Gemma Halliday 9/4/14
W While He Was Away Karen Schreck 8/31/14
Y Young Lies W.R. Kimble 11/7/14
Y Betrayed Rebecca York 1/14/15

Line 5:
Not wrappin' this in ribbons

A Destination Unknown Amy Clipston 1/15/15
B Sleeping with the Enemy Laurie Breton 1/19/15
B Bad Girlfriend Kristen DeMuzio 2/18/2015
H Crashing Prom Milda Harris 1/27/2015
I It Had to Be You Jill Shalvis 1/25/2015
I In My Bed Jennifer LaCross 2/13/2015
I If the Shoe Fits Sandra D. Bricker 3/22/2015
I I Was Here Gayle Forman 4/12/15
N Happy Ever After Nora Roberts 2/2/2015
N Nauti Deceptions Lora Leigh 2/23/2015
N Stella, Get Your Man Nancy Bartholomew 3/15/2015
N Love In The Air Nan Ryan 4/16/15
O Choosing Charleston T. Lynn Ocean 2/22/2015
O On the Fence Kasie West 2/26/15
P Almost Matched A.O. Peart 1/25/2015
P Pure Temptation Eve Carter 2/16/2015
R Run Away Charlotte H.M. Shander 2/17/2015
R Runaway Groom Sally Clements 3/7/2015
S Step Brother Jayna King 1/18/15
S Forever Kinda Love Clara Stone 1/26/2015
T A Date with Fate Tracy Ellen 1/24/2015
T Young Annabelle Sarah Tork 2/8/2015
W Wrecking Ball B.N. Toler 1/15/15

line #6 Shouldn't have to give a reason why

A The Antelope in the Living Room: The Real Story of Two People Sharing One Life Melanie Shankle 4/19/15
A Affairs of State Jennifer Lewis 5/3/15
A Scared of Forever Jacqueline Abrahams 5/5/15
D The Dangers of Renting a Fiancée Patricia Mason Boufford 4/27/15
E Speed Of My Heart Erika Trevathan 5/3/15
E The Engagement Game A. Gardner 6/17/15
E Escorted Claire Kent 6/18/15
G Meant for Her Amy Gamet 4/26/15
H Safe in His Arms Rita Herron 4/20/15
H The Strong One Stella Hunter 4/21/15
H Holiday Games Jaci Burton 5/14/15
I It's in His Kiss Jill Shalvis 6/22/15
L Pretending He's Mine Lauren Blakely 4/20/15
N The Navy SEAL's E-Mail Order Bride Cora Seton 6/3/15
N New England Rocks Christina Courtenay 6/5/2015
O Our Totally, Ridiculous, Made-up Christmas Relationship Brittainy C. Cherry 6/1/15
O The Other Brooks Boy Diane Roth 6/1/15
O The Opposite of Wild Kylie Gilmore 7/30/15
R Run Holly Hood 5/30/15
S The Christmas Wedding Ring Susan Mallory 4/19/15
S The Stronger, Safer Kind London Casey 4/20/15
T That Dating Thing Mackenie Crowe 4/30/15
T Ta Ta for Now! Bethany Lopez 5/5/15
U An Unlikely Match Barbara Dunlop 5/14/15
V Vision of Love S. Moose 7/31/15
V Vision of Destiny S. Moose 8/1/15
W Three of Hearts W. Ferraro 4/28/15
Y Going Home Jamie Yeager 5/2/15