SOS: Serious Overload of Series discussion

I drew a 3 so our color is green this week.
Good luck!

I think I'm going to go with:

I'll read .

What happened to blue? *sad*

Sorry! :-(

No prob. :-)

I'm trying to decide between two green books. I'll let you know what I choose.

Ohh! No green books come to my mind. I'm off to search!

Green is hard! I'm shortlisting a few but would you classify as green?

I also have which would classify as green but I can only get to it around Thursday/Friday which is cutting it fine I suppose.

Yes to both Vi.

Yay! Thanks, Sandra!

I'm home! Aaahhhh... always nice to be home after being out of town :) Thanks for subbing for me Sandy!

For green I'm going to read

Breann wrote: "I'm home! Aaahhhh... always nice to be home after being out of town :) Thanks for subbing for me Sandy!

For green I'm going to read "

You're very welcome. Happy to help!

I'm going to read .

Green enough?

Hmmm... I'm not sure, Alyssa. You might want to wait & see what the bosses say about it. :)

I better start working on those cupcakes I was planning on making while I wait for approval..... ;-)

Bribery...works like a charm.

Hmm... The green actually looks a little brighter in person... I've got back-ups if it doesn't work.

I've got Hexbound and you can use it for green or blue (in this case green) :)

Week 5: Green
Book:
Date Finished: 2/27/13
Rating: ★★★

Diana Gabaldon likes to frustrate her Outlander fans by spending precious writing time (that should be devoted to Jamie and Claire) penning adventures for Lord John Grey. (If Written in My Own Heart's Blood is actually published this year I will be SHOCKED!). At any rate, this book consists of 3 novellas starring Lord John, who is also a major in the military. Each novella has a murder mystery at its core and paranormal elements seem to be at play. Ms. Gabaldon is one of my favorite writers, but I think I really just wasn't in the mood for military fiction. The most interesting bits involved a search for a missing woman and discovering "will he or won't he" find someone to love. As he is gay, and being gay can lead to execution in the 1800s, he must be very careful not to misread any signs of attraction from other men. I think the author does a very good job conveying Lord John's frustration at not being able to be himself 98% of the time. The loneliness of the character is evident, although he's surrounded by family, friends, and comrades in arms. I look forward to seeing more of Mr. Grey (along with Jamie and Claire) in the next Outlander book if it's published while I'm still able to read!

Doing it from my mobile device (sleepy & tired)



Finished: 1 March
Rating: 3.5 stars
Review: I've read this book a long long time ago - I just spotted it at the second-hand store and I wanted to see how it fared. I remember loving it when I read it (I just got introduced to Romance Genre). While I didn't love it as much as I did it earlier, it was a good book. It just reflected how my tastes have changed over years :)

Week 5 - Green

I finished on 3/2/13.

Rating: ★★★★½

Review: Really good. Loving the characters except those darn bratty girls. They drive me nuts!

I just love Chloe Neill's books. Will continue on to the next book soonish.

Blue! Pretty please, Mr. Randomizer! I'll give you cupcakes! :-)

Week 5: Green
Book: Sourcery
Date Finished: 3/2/13
Rating 4 Stars

I tried to read The Color of Magic a couple of times and couldn't get into it. Discworld really seemed like something I should like so I finally started with Equal Rites (which I loved) and went from there. So while this is my 3rd Discworld read, it's actually my first featuring Rincewind.

In the reviews much is made of Rincewind's cowardice. But I think he's only cowardly by fantasy fiction standards, where people tend to jump into danger to save the day without a thought, confident in their abilities to work it out. But in the end Rincewind is the one to act to set things right, to confront the issue and to act in defense of others. And in the end isn't that what bravery and heroism are? Acting upon what you know to be right, even when you don't want to do it and it makes you afraid?

Anyhoo, deep thoughts on the nature of bravery aside, there are as always too many quotable quotes to list. The humor and satire are there in full force. The only reason this gets 4 stars instead of 5 is that I did find some parts to be a little draggy and I had issues telling some of the other wizards apart. In the book's defense it was an awful week at work and I was tired most of the time I was reading it so that may have been a factor. Now that I've had a proper introduction to Rincewind I'm going to try The Color of Magic again.

I'm finishing my book this morning. I'll post my review & update everything in a couple hours. Then hopefully we'll draw a blue card :)

Whew! Just in time!



The Darkest Pleasure
3/2/13
★★★✩✩

I liked this book well enough. It had all the makings of a good pnr, alpha hero, great cast of warriors, interesting world-building, strong heroine... It just seems once you've read one pnr series you've read 'em all. I guess I just need something a little more in this genre. I did enjoy the scenes with Anya, she's one of my fave characters. Such a riot!

I'm not sure if I'll continue with the rest of this series. I'll have to be in the mood for it.

Our reviews are updated & I'll draw a new card in about an hour or so.


Week 5 ~ Green
KarenF: Sourcery by Terry Pratchett March 2nd ★★★★✩ Review
Breann: The Darkest Pleasure by Gena Showalter March 3rd ★★★✩✩ Review
Alyssa: Hexbound by Chloe Neill March 2nd ★★★★½ Review
Vi: In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez March 1st ★★★½✩ Review
Sandy: Lord John And The Hand Of Devils by Diana Gabaldon February 27th ★★★✩✩ Review

Drew another 3 which is green again. Hope you find something good this week! We're on space 116.

I'll read since it's been sitting on my bookshelf for about 2 years now.

That was good! One of my favorites in the series.

Breann wrote: "I did enjoy the scenes with Anya, she's one of my fave characters. Such a riot! "

If you like Anya, give the next one a shot. It introduces the harpies, who are a hoot, and kind of similar in an outrageous sort of way. Gwen & Sabin (Book 4) are probably my favorite couple from that series.

I'm going to read if that cover isn't green enough I'll use the large print cover:

Gruesome cover Karen, either is good.

KarenF wrote: "If you like Anya, give the next one a shot. It introduces the harpies, who are a hoot, and kind of similar in an outrageous sort of way. Gwen & Sabin (Book 4) are probably my favorite couple from that series. "

Good to know, thanks Karen. I'll put it on my next-in-series shelf :)

I'm going to read

Week 6: Green
Book: Top O' the Mournin' by Maddy Hunter
Date Finished: 3/3/13
Rating: 3 Stars

Emily and her group of senior Iowan tourists discover murder in an Irish caste this time around. I like cozy mysteries in between angstier/darker reads. This series is fun because due to the same basic core group of travelers you get a small town cozy feel but since they are on tour you also get to hear about other places. I ended up looking up some of the sights in Ireland that they visited and certainly hope to be able to get there one day. Etienne, the hunky Swiss detective from book one, is back pursuing a relationship with Emily (or trying to in between murders and travel emergencies). The only thing I don't like about this series is that it tends to indulge a little too much in stereotyping. Nothing actually offensive, Iowans are punctual, New Yorkers are pushy, that sort of thing. Individual characters don't fall prey to this, it just gets repeated a lot in Emily's internal observations. While it's enough to take me out of the book at times, it's not enough to get me to stop reading the series. I'll pick up the next one when I'm in the mood for a cozy mystery and to do a little armchair traveling.

Argh! Green again! Off to hunt through my shelves.

I'm going international again!

Will cut it? I also have but I see this as a primarily blue cover even though it has some green in it.

First one is fine Vi, 2nd would be no - too blue.

That was super fast, Sandra! Thanks! (I know I do this every week - you guys are really patient)

It was fast cause I happened to be updating myself so I had a look around. LOL.

Does this work for green?

If not, I have another book that works.

Yes, Alyssa ;)

Whoohoo! Thanks, Sandra. I'll bring you some cupcakes soon.

Week 6 ~ Green A Private Gentleman
3/6/13
★★★★✩

Much darker themes and emotions than I had anticipated. Wes and Michael are very broken men, both are haunted by their pasts and the abuses of the same man. I loved their relationship and support of each other. Both have huge insecurities, but were able to help the other move past them. I love couples who are just kind and loving towards each other, no need for snark or snappy comebacks (not that I don't love that too) but these men were very thoughtful in their actions, it was sweet.

The only thing that irked me was I kept forgetting that this is set in Regency England. They seemed very open in their relationship, sneaking a kiss on the ear, holding hands under a blanket on the train. They were discreet, but it still felt a little modern to me. Of course, I'm no historian, unless you count all the historical romance I read.

Not Heidi's usual kinkiness she can deliver (oh boy, that woman can write some kink). But we have some deliciously damaged characters and rent boys, so it's a definite keeper.

Breann, I noticed that book when I was picking recs for the PIFM challenge. It looked interesting. I've not read much M/M. What would you recommend to start with? (I am eagerly awaiting BTW!)

M/M is basically all I read now, so I love the genre! I would recommend or to start. They're both gay for you, so you can get into the "gayness" right along with the characters ;) They're not too explicit, and are just sweet romances. Both comfort rereads for me!

Week 6: Green:
Book:
Date Finished: 3/8/13
Rating: ★★★1/2

I hadn't had good luck with this author so I was a little hesitant about this one. Thankfully, it was much better than expected. Poor Zarek! The guy suffered so much abuse...just when I thought it couldn't get worse... it did! I liked the Alaska setting, I needed warm blankets when reading this! I also liked the demon Siri. She was funny and provided a way to humanize Acheron. The romance...well, let's just say sometimes the romance part can mess up a good PNR book. Him:"I am a tough guy. I don't like women. They're good for only one thing. I can't love. Hey, look at her! Wow, I want to put a baby inside her...wait..what? Why did I think that?" Her:"Look at the big strong muscular man! He's so hurt inside! I can love him enough to cure him of his loneliness! I'm a virgin but I must have him!" At any rate, I liked this enough to read the next in the series.

Ahahahaa!! That about summed up every H/h in any pnr ever.

Lol, Sandy!

Week 6 - Green

I finished on 3/9/13.

Rating: ★★★★½

Review: I bought this like right when it came out, but for some reason I didn't pick it up until now. It was really good. Some of these dystopians are just crazy to think about for me, because they seem like they could really be possible in the future. Plan to pick up the next book and read it some time soon.