Apoorv ’s Comments (group member since Mar 26, 2014)

Apoorv ’s comments from the Nothing But Reading Challenges group.

Started 1st to Die and this book has already started to breed on me. As the story is progressing, the characters are seeming more real and they are sucking me in with the happenings of the tale.

Chapters 1 - 40

(view spoiler)[The small chapter structure seems so accurate for this kinda story, as it keeps the proceedings taut and fast-paced. This is my second James Patterson book (first being 7th Heaven from the same series, and going back and actually reading how it all started is an wonderful refresher) and his ability to write picturesquely is commendable.

Two murders in, the killings get grim and cringeworthy. The Women's Murder Club is formed and thus begins Lindsay Boxer and team's amazing (or so I expect) fight against the evil Phillip Campbell. (hide spoiler)]

Chapters 41 - 85

(view spoiler)[OMG ! OMG ! They are there. They have nearly hit the nail on its head. Jill joins the gang and with Cindy, Claire and Lindsay make, as they called themselves, some really cool Bad-ass Bitches ! 3 double murders and how stoically these ladies are fighting hard to find the culprit. I also love the urge Lindsay has to win this case over Cleveland. Its healthy competition making you work at your best.

.. and now as they narrow down to the name, it getting heart-thumping ! BTW, how creepy can Nicholas Jenks be ?

Oh, my ! I have to reiterate, had these short chapters not been there, this book would have been really long and maybe not as appealing. So much happening around, its just James Patterson's amazing writing style that keeps it fresh even after some 300+ pages (and going on to hit 462). (hide spoiler)]

Freak ! I am ecstatic that I read this book.
Absolute thrill.. loved it till the last page.

I normally am very frugal in giving away 5 stars to a book.. this one steals those from me.

James Patterson ! You beauty ! :)

Finished : 30Nov2014
Rating : ★★★★.5 (and I will give the last 1/2★ for making me want to read the next one in series)

Finally ! Oh dear ! I feel like a slacker !
Finally I got some time to complete something !

Finished

One Bad Apple | Sheila Connolly | 11/26/2014 | 262 Pages

BTW, I would be jumping onto the Buddy Read for 1st to Die as well, sometime this or next week !

Also, I am lined up for I've Got Your Number on the 6th !

Phew ! I am so sorry I have been MIA for nearly the whole week now.. work took its toll, as I was fearing, and after 80 hours of work (again!) this week, I have got hardly anything read and that sucks !

So, apologize for not being of much help.. but I hope to be around more often, work permitting !

Its amazing to see the progress though.. each of you indeed are lighting fast when it comes to reading ! Thanks ! :)

Personal Update # 2 (13Nov2014)

Finished !
Stars & Stripes | Abigail Roux | 13Nov2014 | 292 pages | 20 Points

I am going to do a buddy read for the first time as well in December. Hopefully I dont let my buddies down !

Catherine, if we are tagging ourselves with a superhero status, I am sure, I will be the 'slow snail' of the group ! :P

.. and the SS Super Series Challenge is indeed heating up.. I am sure Team 10 will out-rank Team 11 :P :P *kidding*

Ladies, can I barge in the party as well ?
I am currently reading Sophie Kinsella's Can You Keep a Secret? and loving it.

So, I would definitely like to jump onto this one. I havent really done a group / buddy read before, so lets hope I can be of some contribution here.

Dec. 6th it is, if you guys permit me to join the bandwagon ! :)

Jane, you are a book-eater ! :)

The Spreadsheet is duly updated till here.
We are already at 350 Points in 2 days.. pat your backs for an awesome start ! :)

Personal Update # 1 (09Nov2014)

Finished !
Sharp Objects | Gillian Flynn | 09Nov2014 | 272 pages | 20 Points

Thanks for pointing the discrepancy out, Jane.
Everything is set up correctly now. :)

Just as a reminder to everyone, please drop by Lightning Hounds - BOOKS READ to reserve a spot for yourself to notify your progress.

Also, it would be very helpful, if all of us keep updating our respective read-list atleast once a day or as frequently as possible, so that all the read books are accounted for.

Juliana has done a cool job with the Spreadsheet, but visiting each of ours shelves might just be cumbersome when updating the Spreadsheet.. so when we all finish a book, lets drop by the aforementioned link to keep the team adept with progress.

LOL, Juliana ! I can so understand the restlessness to do that Spreadsheet and keep a track of the progress.

I had, as a matter of fact, just started to put something together. Now that you have it under control.. I will stop the double work.

I really like the way you have set the layout of the Spreadsheet.. especially the small crosses (sorry, but I am kinda persnickety so these thing attract me more ! :P)

I will probably try and keep a backup sheet or a list ready, incase something gets missed. But, awesome work ! :)

Let me know if I can do anything to help, regarding this. Will be superglad to do so.

The words found for the awesome Scavenger Hunt that is set up, which mind you, is not very straightforward, will be posted here !

Tower Teams Australia Day Scavenger Hunt
Duration : 23Jan2015 - 30Jan2015
------------------------

Words Found

Cricket | "Roque was played by innings, not like baseball but like cricket." | Page 186
The Shining | Stephen King | 23Jan2015

Wi-Fi | "First I connect to the unprotected WiFi network next door called bootynet." | Page 23
Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore | Robin Sloan | 23Jan2015

Keeping a track of my progress as we try scaling this amazing tower !
Shelf : Challenge - TT3 - NBRC

------------------------------------------------
Duration : 08Nov2014 - TBD

Books Read

Week # 1
1. Sharp Objects | Gillian Flynn | 09Nov2014 | 272 pages | 20 Points
2. Stars & Stripes | Abigail Roux | 13Nov2014 | 292 pages | 20 Points

Week # 2
:(

Week # 3
3. One Bad Apple | Sheila Connolly | 26Nov2014 | 262 pages | 20 Points

Week # 4
4. 1st to Die | James Patterson | 30Nov2014 | 462 pages | 50 Points
5. By Blood | Ellen Ullman | 30Nov2014 | 378 pages | 20 Points
6. Can You Keep a Secret? | Sophie Kinsella | 30Nov2014 | 416 pages | 20 Points

Week # 5
7. Island of the Blue Dolphins | Scott O'Dell | 07Dec2014 | 208 pages | 20 Points
8. Fangirl | Rainbow Rowell | 09Dec2014 | 461 pages | 50 Points

Week # 6
:(

Week # 7
9. I've Got Your Number | Sophie Kinsella | 20Dec2014 | 464 pages | 50 Points
10. The Final Diagnosis | Arthur Hailey | 20Dec2014 | 310 pages | 20 Points
11. The Realm of Possibility | David Levithan | 25Dec2014 | 224 pages | 20 Points

Week # 8
:(

Week # 9
12. Sky Burial: An Epic Love Story of Tibet | Xinran | 07Jan2015 | 210 pages | 20 Points
13. The First Phone Call from Heaven | Mitch Albom | 08Jan2015 | 323 pages | 20 Points
14. The Lightning Thief | Rick Riordan | 09Jan2015 | 377 pages | 20 Points
15. The Road | Cormac McCarthy | 09Jan2015 | 287 pages | 20 Points

Week # 10
16. The Kite Runner | Khaled Hosseini | 15Jan2015 | 371 pages | 20 Points

Week # 11
17. The Shining | Stephen King | 23Jan2015 | 659 pages | 70 Points
18. Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore | Robin Sloan | 23Jan2015 | 288 pages | 20 Points

Week # 12
19. Looking for Alaska | John Green | 25Jan2015 | 256 pages | 20 Points
20. Perfume: The Story of a Murderer | Patrick Süskind | 29Jan2015 | 263 pages | 20 Points

Week # 13
21. Puddle Jumping | Amber L. Johnson | 31Jan2015 | 126 pages | 10 Points
22. Garden Spells | Sarah Addison Allen | 03Feb2015 | 304 pages | 20 Points
23. Naked in Death | J.D. Robb | 07Feb2015 | 320 pages | 20 Points
__________________

Book of the Month (BOM)

Participation

1. [Book] | [Author] | [Date] | [Participant] | [Page #] | [20 points]

Discussion Questions (DQs)

1. [Book] | [Author] | [Date] | [Participant] | [Page #] | [40 points]

_________________

Buddy Reads (BRs)

1. 1st to Die | James Patterson | 30Nov2014 | 462 Pages | 30 points
2. I've Got Your Number | Sophie Kinsella | 20Dec2014 | 464 Pages | 30 points
3. Garden Spells | Sarah Addison Allen | 03Feb2015 | 304 pages | 30 Points

---------------------------------------------------

Summary

Points : Individual Books Read = 40 + 0 + 20 + 90 + 70 + 0 + 90 + 0 + 80 + 20 + 90 + 40 + 50
Points : BOM = 0
Points : DQs = 0
Points : BRs = 0 + 0 + 0 + 30 + 0 + 0 + 30 + 0 + 0 + 0 + 0 + 0 + 30

TOTAL POINTS = 680

Sounds cool, Juliana !
I will try setting ours up and share it here, and then based on all your suggestions I can better it as we go ahead, if thats okay ! :)

Juliana, do we all have access to the Master Spreadsheet or is it shared with just the Captains ?

Just wondering, if I can see how that is laid out, if easily accessible !

Unless Juliana (or anyone else for that matter) has set up a Spreadsheet, I will work on getting one up probably this evening or early tomorrow.

But meanwhile, this is a log to the books we will read.
(This is a rough draft, I will probably work on getting a better looking draft when I work on the Spreadsheet)

------------------------------------------------
Duration : 08Nov2014 - 14Nov2014

Books Read - Week # 1

1. The House at Riverton | Kate Morton | 08Nov2014 | Jane | 593 pages | 50 Points
2. Call for the Dead | John le Carré | 08Nov2014 | Rose | 160 pages | 10 Points
3. Lolita | Vladimir Nabokov | 08Nov2014 | Liliac | 309 pages | 20 Points
__________________

Book of the Month (BOM)

Participation

1. [Book] | [Author] | [Date] | [Participant] | [Page #] | [20 points]

Discussion Questions (DQs)

1. [Book] | [Author] | [Date] | [Participant] | [Page #] | [40 points]

_________________

Buddy Reads (BRs)

1. [Book] | [Author] | [Date] | [Page #] | [30 points]
[Participant] | [Buddy] | [Team]

---------------------------------------------------

Summary - Week # 1

Points : Individual Books Read =
Points : BOM =
Points : DQs =
Points : BRs =

TOTAL POINTS (Week # 1) =

Goodness ! This is an amazing list !
I have saved each of books that you guys have mentioned, in my spreadsheet. I will be heading to my Library this weekend and I hope to find atleast one of these to satiate my Fantasy-ical hunger !

Thank you so so much for all the suggestions, please keep them coming.. I am just so glad to be in this group. I am already learning loads ! :)