The Lost Challenges discussion

Hunk for the Holidays by Katie Lane

Review - Oh Wow I have never read anything by Katie Lane before and didn't really have high hopes for this one but gosh it was really funny and I flew right thru it! Both of the main characters (Cassie and James) were just a complete comedy of errors and I loved their story.

At first I really didn't like Cassie very much because she came off as a rich spoiled controlling person and made assumptions that ended up causing quite a few hurt feelings but tis the season for mending fences and broken hearts and in the end Cassie finally finds something she never knew she was missing!

Tie Week - (Completed 12/2/2012 - 5/5 stars)

his bow tie was undone and lay flat against the front pleats of the crisp white shirt...(page 17)

Also Claiming...(curly hair, snow, and emergency vehicle)

..framed his smooth, strong jaw and brushed the curls of brown hair at the nape of his neck. (page 98)

Snow gathered on his head and the shoulders of his sweater as he walked to his SUV. (page 227)

At the arrival of three fire trucks and an ambulance, Cassie fled the scene of the crime. (page 258)

Week 1: Tie

Book: 2 Bodies For The Price Of 1 - Stephanie Bond
Completed: Dec 3
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Review: Second book in the Body Movers series. Picks up right where the first ended. Poor Carlotta and her complicated life. Her parents are fugitives, her brother is a 19 y/o gambler who owes bad people a lot of money, she has no less than three possible suitors sniffing around, and someone stole her identity. I really do like this series. Going to bump the next one up on my list!

Items:
Wind: pg. 66: A whipping wind had descended with the promise of rain before she could walk the few blocks home.
Tie: pg. 18: Jack Terry was easier to dislike when he was rumpled and wearing one of his infamous ugly ties .
Elbow: pg. 260: Carlotta elbowed her as she climbed in.
Bike: pg. 72: "I sold my motorcycle and bought a bike ."

I read that one a while back and enjoyed it to Alley.

So far we are looking like this ladies.



JenniferJ: Hunk for the Holidays finished 12/3 (msg 51)
Items Claimed: Tie; Snow; Curly Hair; Emergency Vehicle
Alley: 2 Bodies For The Price Of 1 finished 12/3 (msg 52)
Items Claimed: Tie; Wind; Elbow; Bike
Pat: No Werewolves Allowed finished 12/2 (msg 48)
Items Claimed:Tie; Mist; Tail; Musical Instrument
★Meghan★:
Suzanne:

Wow you guys read crazy fast. Yesterday was my only day off for this week and I had to go to the store and do some Christmas photos and whatnot and today I worked a 12 hour shift. So I have only gotten about maybe 50 pages into my book. I should hopefully have it completed at the latest Thursday afternoon this week.

don't let us intimidate you (or Suzanne)

how is it goin' ladies?

Has anybody heard from Suzanne? I hope she was able to find another book. :(

Three teams have already claimed their points so far.

Can't wait to see what the new word is for tomorrow! :)

Sorry, I've had the week from hell.

1) Friday my work had layoffs.
2) Monday they obliterated my departmetn and they're moving me to marketing.
3) Tuesday I get picked for Jury Duty and had to be juror on the most boring trial EVER + My daughter got pink eye
4) Wednesday, my dog died before I had to go back to the court house for jury duty and I was a wreck the whol day.

Today has been the most normal day I've had in awhile and I'm just waiting for something horrible to happen. My life is turning into a bad country western song. So hopefully the sh*t storm has blown over. I'll look and see if I can find another book, bear with me!

OMG Suzanne! I thought I was having a rough week! I hope your daughter is okay and I am very sorry about your dog. I have two and they are my babies so my heart goes out to you hon.

How horrible Suzanne, I am hoping it's all blown over and gets better from here.

Suzanne I'm so sorry. my week has been bad, but not that bad. my furnace has been repaired (it went out thanksgiving weekend) and my eye is healing, but i still can't read a lot yet (i hit myself in the eye with the corner of the car door and burst blood vessels).

Ouch Pat! Hope it's doing better! Think we all had a bummer of a week! Hope this upcoming week is better!

OMG guys! I have had a peaceful week for the most part just busy as usual. It comes with being production supervisor at a food manufacturing plant and training to for another position so she can have a vacation. Therefore working 50+ hours every week and living 40 minute drive from work.

I am so sorry about your dog Suzanne, my dog is like a child to me. It is also horrible about your job, I hope it goes smoother soon.

Pat please be careful for the cars. I swear they don't like humans and try to do us in. My boyfriend's car has zapped me when pulling out a a car charger and his trunk has whacked me in the head pretty good. Other than that nothing too major (knock on wood).

Meghan's Tie Review
Alphas by Lisi Harrison
Book Completed: 12/6/2012
Rating: ★★★★

Review:
I wasn't sure about reading this book. I have had it on my shelf forever and have just now gotten around to reading this book. I think I just needed to be in the mood for some childish high school behavior and that made me enjoy and read more rapidly through this book once I found the time.

There are a hundred girls in the world that have been exclusively selected to attend Alpha Academy (a boarding school designed for extremely high-achieving young women). There are 3 girls that this book mostly follow that all room together while at the academy and one has broken up with one of the headmaster's boys as a provision to attend the school, one is considered the best dancer out of nearly every girl in New York, and another is escaping her past love life by impersonating a singing/environmentalist celebrity to attend the school.

There are lots of twist and turns as the book progresses especially after the first half of the book. I am looking forward to seeing how the ending turns out for the year at the Alpha Academy.

Items Claiming:
Tie: "Charlie Deery loosened her metallic tie and began fanning her flushing cheeks."
Rainbow:"'Ohmuhgod,' she gasped, noticing the high-def rainbow ahead."
Tail: "Her lips tingled and her heart swayed like a puppy wagging its tail."
Musical Instrument: "'No, this is my clarinet.'"

My week has been the same as always. I'm a housewife with no kids and a dog. I don't leave the house unless I have to, so most of my day is spent knitting or reading. Or playing computer games. Worst thing that happened to me this week was I stubbed the same toe 3 times in one day.

So sorry about your dog, Suzanne. I'm going to be a wreck when my Max dies. That better not happen for at least 10 more years - he turns 3 tomorrow. We had to put down our other dog last year - she was 15 and had calcium deposits on her spine preventing her from walking around and causing her constant pain. I'm just now able to talk about her without tearing up.

If you are still having trouble finding a book, let us know. We can help look.

I also had my first dog (yes, I am young only 25) pass away last year. I still get tears in my eyes whenever I talk or think about him. He was 19 when we finally had to put him down and we just felt awful and couldn't put him through the winter when his arthritis was so bad in his back hip. It was already causing him constant pain and it was the summer.

Suzanne if there is a type of book that you like I wouldn't mind helping look for a book for you either.

OKay ladies it's BONE Week

Hope you all have an awesome weekend and Happy Reading!

I will let you know my pick for this later tonight. I am at work and currently don't have access to all of my books

I will be reading Bitten & Smitten by Michelle Rowen for bone

it is so hard to lose a pet. i am sorry for your loss and the upheaval you are going thru

Good lord, how hard is it to find a Tie?!?! I'm going to go with The Substitute Millionaire by Susan Mallery.


Items:
Tie: On the cover
Snow: "Snow was for ski vacations, not everyday life." Loc 1385
Eyes: "She looked into his eyes." Loc 195
Paper: "She jerked the phone from his hand and hung up, then tossed the papers in his face." Loc 2091

For Bone I'm going to read Nerd in Shining Armor by Vicki Lewis Thompson.


Items:
Sunshine: "He certainly didn't look like a nerd today, with his beard glossy black in the sunshine and his hair ruffled by the sea breeze." Page 213
Belt: "When he was a teenager, instead of a notch in his belt, which his mama would have noticed, he'd cut a little notch out of his underwear label each time he got lucky." Page 22
Bone: "Beneath his hands her shoulder bones seemed small and delicate." Page 166
Fruit: "Fruits and veggies were okay once in a while, but this guava tree that Gen seemed so excited about didn't do much for him." Page 86

Suzanne, please include a brief review so that I can post for our points. Thanks,

ok, ladies for week one, this is what i am submitting for us. please make sure I've noted your information correctly,

JenniferJ: Hunk for the Holidays finished 12/3 http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1...
Items Claimed: Tie; Snow; Curly Hair; Emergency Vehicle
Alley: 2 Bodies For The Price Of 1 finished 12/3 http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1...
Items Claimed: Tie; Wind; Elbow; Bike
Pat: No Werewolves Allowed finished 12/2 http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1...
Items Claimed:Tie; Mist; Tail; Musical Instrument
★Meghan★:Alphas finished 12/6 http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1...
Items Claimed: Tie; Rainbow, Tail; Musical Instrument
Suzanne:

"BONE" week I will read (Rock Chick Reckoning by Kristen Ashley)

Pat I don't think Suzanne finished her book I think she just picked her new book.

All right I will be reading for my 'bone' book.

Bone: But there’s a tight pressing feeling behind my cheekbones, and my bottom lip would be trembling if I allowed it.
Sunshine: In her other hand I can just see Sadie’s necklace, wrapped around her fingers, glinting in the sunshine.
Hood: Two huge guys in hoodies are having a loud argument while a policeman is trying to calm them down, and I back away to what looks like a safe corner.
Bike: Dad arrived at Mum’s house, all sweaty because he’d been riding on his bike, and she’d been crying but she pretended she had a cold, and they made up their fight and Granny gave them tea and shortbread.

Please have patience with me this week. My sister is graduating from college and we are throwing her a huge party for it. So I will be extremely busy cleaning and preparing for that. If I don't have my book finished by Thursday I should have it done sometime on Saturday as I told them that was when the party was going to be when we actually planned it on Thursday.

★Meghan★ wrote: "Pat I don't think Suzanne finished her book I think she just picked her new book."

you may be right Meghan I forgot she lists the things first.

Pat wrote: ""BONE" week I will read (Rock Chick Reckoning by Kristen Ashley)"

I've been thinking of reading the Rock Chick books. I keep seeing mentions of it everywhere on GR. Are they worth the 4$ each?

I have also been wanting to read those but just haven't gotten to them yet. I am seeing them everywhere now a days though and most everybody seems to enjoy them from what I am reading.....so many books and so little time! :(

@ Alley & @ JenniferJ

Yes! They are so worth it (IMHO). They have suspense, romance, and adventure with some humor. The guys are uber-alpha's but the ladies are not wilting damsels in distress. if either of you are epub I'll lend you one, send me a pm. You don't have to read them in order you would be fine, they also have re-readability. also the sex scenes can be pretty hot

Sent you pm Pat. :)

Week 2: Bone

Book: Bitten & Smitten - Michelle Rowen
Completed: 12/9
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Review: This was a super fun read. Sarah went out on a blind date and ended up becoming a vampire. She's pursued by vampire hunters right from the start and is somewhat saved by a handsome master vampire. Needless to say, romance blooms between the two. It's a cute fluffy read - good for reading between denser novels.

Items:
Moonlight: pg. 10: Something glinted in the hands of my so-called rescuers, catching the moonlight .
Bone: pg. 194: What I was still doing there was beyond me, although I was sure that the bone-jarring shock had something to do with it.
Glasses: pg. 77: I found the skylights in the mall to be painfully bright, so I left my sunglasses on the whole time.
Emergency Vehicle: pg. 90: “You need ambulance ?” she asked in broken English.

Ok my doesn't count because it's only 184 pages and they have to be at least 200....gah.....

Is it against the rules to read the same book as someone else in my group? I think I'd like to try reading Megan's Alphas by Lisi Harrison. I can borrow it as an ebook from my library and read it tonight.

Week 2: Bone

Nerd in Shining Armor by Vicki Lewis Thompson.
Completed: 12/11/2012
Rating: *****
Review: I had a long night last night speed reading and I loved this book! It was really cute and funny! It was absurd and goofy but at 2 in the morning I thought it was enjoyable! You can't get too serious about anything at 2am anyway. :)

Items:
Sunshine: "He certainly didn't look like a nerd today, with his beard glossy black in the sunshine and his hair ruffled by the sea breeze." Page 213
Belt: "When he was a teenager, instead of a notch in his belt, which his mama would have noticed, he'd cut a little notch out of his underwear label each time he got lucky." Page 22
Bone: "Beneath his hands her shoulder bones seemed small and delicate." Page 166
Fruit: "Fruits and veggies were okay once in a while, but this guava tree that Gen seemed so excited about didn't do much for him." Page 86

I don't think it's against the rules at all Suzanne. :)

I am glad you liked Nerd in Shining Armor. I have had it peeking at me from my bookshelf for sooooo long..maybe I will try to bump it up a bit.

Suzanne wrote: "Is it against the rules to read the same book as someone else in my group? I think I'd like to try reading Megan's Alphas by Lisi Harrison. I can borrow it as an ebook from my library and read it..."

no Suzanne you can read the same book as someone else in the group.

Week 2: Bone


bookcover:Rock Chick Reckoning|13065142]

Review: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13...
Rating:★★★★
Completed: 12/9/12

Items:
Bra: I yanked off my nightgown and tugged on a pair of old Levi’s and my bra.(pg 4)
Moonlight: I loved looking at Vance any time but the best time was in the moonlight, when the planes and angles of his face were shadowed, both hard and soft but all beautiful, like he was to me. (pg 296)
BONE: I tilted my chin down and pressed my forehead against Eddie’s collarbone, unable to process the idea of a sixteen year old girl enduring that before her life was cut short. (pg 114)
emergency vehicle: The place was crawling with cops, squad cars, forensic personnel, paramedics, ambulances, big lights had been set up and trained around the space so they could see what they were doing and, lastly, there were Nightingale men. (pg 336)

Ladies --

how is it going with your "bone"/week 2 books
Meghan & Jennifer (hope the graduation goes/went well)

also Suzanne your "tie"/week 1 book? Do you have a plan?

I am almost done with my Bone Book. If all goes well I will post tonite. :)

graduation?

JenniferJ wrote: "I am almost done with my Bone Book. If all goes well I will post tonite. :)

graduation?"

sorry the graduatin inquiry was for Meghan, her sister was graduating this week

I got lucky. I wasn't sure if I would have a day off until Thursday but my boss took pity on me and gave me off Sunday and Monday. So in between cleaning and doing laundry (might have someone stay at my place after the party) I finished the book. I have to get ready for work though so I will post my review tomorrow. Her graduation is this Friday but we have a lot of cleaning and cooking to do. I am thinking that this week we will at least be done with all the holiday cleaning. So the next thing is wrapping gifts

ok I'm going to read for week 1.

Nevermind, I found a different book: !

Items:
Snow: "Rhade groaned as he shivered in the snow." Page 22
Tie: "His jaunty red bow tie was cocked at a bad angle." Page 53
Eyes: "The Reverend was poised in the shadows, amethyst eyes glowing, mohawk trimmed tight to his skull." Page 2
Paper: "Chances were good the lessers had read about her passing in the paper and had copped her identity." Pages 144

Suzanne wrote: "Nevermind, I found a different book: !

"His jaunty red bow tie was cocked at a bad angle." Loc 1000"

so many challenges, dont' forget with this one you are selecting one from each grouping.

Speed Dating with the Dead by Scott Nicholson

Review - I wish I could tell you that I LOVED this book because I wanted to so much as the storyline made for an exciting read but alas I can only give it a mild "like". I picked it up full of expectations but even after the first 100 pages I was not feeling it at all and had I not been depending on it to fulfill several reading challenges I may have marked it DNF and I almost never do that. I trudged on and eventually about middleways it did begin to get interesting with ghosties popping out left and right and folks started disappearing but still although it redeemed itself in the end I felt it was just too little to late plus I never became involved or even really cared about any of the characters, not even the main ones being Digger and his daughter. I will say I did take great pleasure in a few of them getting exactly what they deserved especially Janey Mays!

On the upside though I do believe this would have been a far better movie than book. I would love to kick back and watch this on the screen!

Bone Week - (Completed 12/11/2012 - 2/5 stars)

A bone appeared to bulge beneath the pale skin and flaccid muscle.(page 306)

Also Claiming...(moonlight, glasses, and musical instrument)

..the grounds were still and empty under the moonlight. (page 309)

...said a woman who looked over the top of her glasses like a librarian. (page 134)

Above them came the muted thunder of footsteps and the throbbing of bass and drums. (page 227)

When I got ready to post my review I tried to match up with some of the items already used and thought it may be helpful to make a list of what all each of us had left we needed to complete for the team to earn a point. I'll try to keep the list updated as we go. :)

To earn our point for the following we need:

Weather:
Snow--COMPLETE
Sunshine--COMPLETE
Wind--COMPLETE
Rain--Pat, Meghan
Mist/Fog--COMPLETE
Moonlight--Meghan
Rainbow--Jennifer
Lightning-- Suzanne

Clothing:
Belt--COMPLETE
Bra--COMPLETE
Boots--COMPLETE
Tie--COMPLETE
Hood--COMPLETE
Sock--Meghan
Glasses--COMPLETE
Necklace--Jennifer

Body Parts:
Tail--COMPLETE
Eyes--COMPLETE
Shoulder--COMPLETE
Nose--Jennifer, Meghan
Curly Hair--Suzanne
Toe--Suzanne
Bone--COMPLETE
Elbow--COMPLETE

Misc:
Paper--Jennifer, Pat, Meghan
Fruit--COMPLETE
Musical Instrument--COMPLETE
Bike--COMPLETE
Shelf--Meghan, Suzanne
Emergency Vehicle--COMPLETE
Cake--Jennifer, Alley
Sky--COMPLETE