SOS: Serious Overload of Series discussion
Archive: Past Team Challenges
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R12: Team #14 ~ 1-4 The Win ~
Congrats on the stamp 1 4 the Win!
Shelf #9: Meow!
by Faith HunterFinished: 9/25/15
Rating: ★★★
Jane Yellowrock is a skinwalker who makes a living hunting Vampires, who are out in the public eye. She takes a job in New Orleans hunting a rogue who turns out to be more than a just vampire. I like Jane and Beast's interplay, how, after all this time, there is still a little discontent between them. I didn't have an instant connection with Jane. Nor did she really have a connection with any other character. Even with those that could almost be considered a "friend" it seemed forced. I'm assuming it gets better as the series goes on, but this will be set on the back burner for now.
I'm going to read
for cover love shelf.
for cover love shelf.
Shelf #10: Paranormal Romance
Book: Naked Dragon by Annette Blair
Date Finished: Sep 26
Rating: 1 star
REVIEW:
I hated this book! There were so many things wrong with this book....
1. The Writing:If you know me even a little bit, you'd have realized by now that I'm a huge fan of good writing. Witty prose, humorous prose, lyrical prose... you name it, I love them all. I guess this book was trying to go for lyrical and magical writing... Only, it went too far with it, and ended up being pretentious writing than the lyrical prose it was supposed to be.
2. "Man-Lance:"Almost every other page, there mention of the hero's man lance". As if this word was not annoying enough, it is there way too much times to be acceptable. Why do authors think that men parts that seem to think and have a mind of their own are a turn on? It did nothing but annoy the heck out of me. (Christian Grey, anyone?)
3. Stupid MCs: Let me give you three examples to prove why both the MCs are totally idiotic here....
-> You've hired a handyman from a company for helping you with building your business. Said handyman, instead of entering through the door like a normal person, breaks open the basement door and part of the basement wall too for a good measure (with nothing but his powerful arms and body, mind you), what do you do? Do alarm bells go off in your head with a 'crazy person' alert? Or do you admire the hero's man lance? This book's heroine does the later, of course.
-> Since the basement wall is broken, there are loose electrical wires dangling haphazardly. The heroine asks the hero not to touch the loose end. Being the intelligent person that he is, he of course does exactly that. Catches the electrical wire's end firmly. Well, what happens then? Of course, he get an electrical shock. The building's power is out because of it. Oh, but the hero looks hardly harmed. He feels the pain, of course... But he brushes it off, pretty quickly. Why should such a huge electric current passing through the body affect the hero in any way, huh? Dumb. The heroine doesn't find anything suspicious with this at all. Dumber.
-> There is a freak storm surrounding the heroine's house. Just outside the fence of the heroine's land, everything looks peaceful and sunny. Within the fence, there is severe rain with thunderstorm. Does the heroine wonder what the heck is happening? No she doesn't. She wants to protect her apple tree and its apples. Which might be okay, since she is a farmer after all. She complains to the hero that the apples were getting frozen, and would soon become waste. As soon as she complains to the hero, there is a freak thunder that COOK THE APPLES IN THE TREE. SHE SMELLS THE APPLES BAKING!!! All of us sane people would think, 'WHAT THE F**K?'. But the heroine is oblivious to the fact that something abnormal is happening and that NO THUNDERSTORMS WILL COOK ALL THE APPLES IN THE TREES ALL ON THEIR OWN!
These are just some of the reasons and incidents which prove that this heroine is totally dumb.
I picked up this book for two reasons. 1.Dragons (and magic) 2. The name of the series. (Works like Magick) The series name felt like some sort of a pun to me. I LOVE intelligent, witty, or weird title/series names. As it happens, there is nothing earth shattering or wowing here. Works Like Magic is the name of a company owned by a witch.
Those are the only two reasons I picked up this book. What an utter disappointment this book was!
Book: Naked Dragon by Annette Blair
Date Finished: Sep 26
Rating: 1 star
REVIEW:
I hated this book! There were so many things wrong with this book....
1. The Writing:If you know me even a little bit, you'd have realized by now that I'm a huge fan of good writing. Witty prose, humorous prose, lyrical prose... you name it, I love them all. I guess this book was trying to go for lyrical and magical writing... Only, it went too far with it, and ended up being pretentious writing than the lyrical prose it was supposed to be.
2. "Man-Lance:"Almost every other page, there mention of the hero's man lance". As if this word was not annoying enough, it is there way too much times to be acceptable. Why do authors think that men parts that seem to think and have a mind of their own are a turn on? It did nothing but annoy the heck out of me. (Christian Grey, anyone?)
3. Stupid MCs: Let me give you three examples to prove why both the MCs are totally idiotic here....
-> You've hired a handyman from a company for helping you with building your business. Said handyman, instead of entering through the door like a normal person, breaks open the basement door and part of the basement wall too for a good measure (with nothing but his powerful arms and body, mind you), what do you do? Do alarm bells go off in your head with a 'crazy person' alert? Or do you admire the hero's man lance? This book's heroine does the later, of course.
-> Since the basement wall is broken, there are loose electrical wires dangling haphazardly. The heroine asks the hero not to touch the loose end. Being the intelligent person that he is, he of course does exactly that. Catches the electrical wire's end firmly. Well, what happens then? Of course, he get an electrical shock. The building's power is out because of it. Oh, but the hero looks hardly harmed. He feels the pain, of course... But he brushes it off, pretty quickly. Why should such a huge electric current passing through the body affect the hero in any way, huh? Dumb. The heroine doesn't find anything suspicious with this at all. Dumber.
-> There is a freak storm surrounding the heroine's house. Just outside the fence of the heroine's land, everything looks peaceful and sunny. Within the fence, there is severe rain with thunderstorm. Does the heroine wonder what the heck is happening? No she doesn't. She wants to protect her apple tree and its apples. Which might be okay, since she is a farmer after all. She complains to the hero that the apples were getting frozen, and would soon become waste. As soon as she complains to the hero, there is a freak thunder that COOK THE APPLES IN THE TREE. SHE SMELLS THE APPLES BAKING!!! All of us sane people would think, 'WHAT THE F**K?'. But the heroine is oblivious to the fact that something abnormal is happening and that NO THUNDERSTORMS WILL COOK ALL THE APPLES IN THE TREES ALL ON THEIR OWN!
These are just some of the reasons and incidents which prove that this heroine is totally dumb.
I picked up this book for two reasons. 1.Dragons (and magic) 2. The name of the series. (Works like Magick) The series name felt like some sort of a pun to me. I LOVE intelligent, witty, or weird title/series names. As it happens, there is nothing earth shattering or wowing here. Works Like Magic is the name of a company owned by a witch.
Those are the only two reasons I picked up this book. What an utter disappointment this book was!
Sorry for the ranting and huge review, ladies. Can you guess that I am very disappointed with this book? :D
I wasn't impressed with it either Preethi, though I did give it 3 stars. I basically stopped reading Annette Blair after this one.
Shelf #12 ~ 30 Sept: Itchy WitchRead a book: featuring a witch/warlock or any form of magic
We're so close!!! I don't know how other teams are doing but if we finish PNR, Dark & Stormy and now Itchy Witch we are only 2 stamps from a BINGO!!
Just need Dragons & Alpha Male
GO 1-4 THE WINs!
Ok, I looked through everyone's cards. Assuming they finish what has already been called, These teams are also 2 away:Team #2 ~ Read or PAIRish (Dragons, New2You Series)
Team #5 ~ Ravishing Tarts (Dragons, Series to Start)
Team #9 ~ Donkey Punchin (BINGO, Alpha Male)
Team #12 ~ Double Dozen (BINGO, New2You Author)
I started reading my dark and stormy book and hope to finish soon. I'm liking it so far
Shelf #10: Paranormal Romance
by J.R. WardFinished: 10/2/15
Rating: ★★★★
In this fourth book, we are all about Butch and Marissa. While I still loved this book and super love this series, I'm torn on how I feel about it. Marissa is as aristocrat as aristocrat can get but it has left her ostracized and with no one to really talk to. Butch is basically a kept man. He lives with the Brotherhood with all the benefits but he can't really be part of the Brotherhood because he's human...or is he?
Grrrr Butch and Marissa. Both love each other and even though they have finally admitted it, they keep pushing each other away. So when one pushes away to protect, the other thinks they are not wanted and vice versa. Stop being so whiny. Neither of you are fragile.
John is still brought up in this book but it seems unnecessary and out of place. Transition him already! I want to know more about him. He deserves happiness!
As always though, it's a happy ending (Go Butch!) and I can't wait to read the next one.
Sandra wrote: "I wasn't impressed with it either Preethi, though I did give it 3 stars. I basically stopped reading Annette Blair after this one."
I'm glad I wasn't the only one, Sandra. I'm sure I won't be reading any other books by this author in the future.
I'm glad I wasn't the only one, Sandra. I'm sure I won't be reading any other books by this author in the future.
Thank you for the stats, Sunshine:) So we are in a race with 4 other teams for a potential BINGO just 2 shelves away! Hmmm, I guess we should finish all our back logs before the next shelf call so that we can be all ready in case Mr.R favours us next shelf call.
On that note, I'm in a bit of a reading slump. I've started 4 books, read some pages, and lost interest.... Books that I've really really wanted to read for quite some time too. Sigh!
So, I'm a bit scared to mention what book I'm going to read for this week's shelf in case I jinx it :) I'll let you know once I successfully cross the book's half way mark :D
Does that make sense?
So, I'm a bit scared to mention what book I'm going to read for this week's shelf in case I jinx it :) I'll let you know once I successfully cross the book's half way mark :D
Does that make sense?
I get it! The other book I'm reading has witches in it but of course I started it a couple days before the shelf call. So now I have to find another.
My pick for the Itchy Witch Shelf is
Shelf 6: Dark and Stormy
Dark Protector by Alexis Morgan
Date read: 10/3
Rating: 4 Stars
Review
I enjoyed this book and loved Dr. Laurel Young. Dr. Young was very dedicated to her job of taking care of the Paladins. I liked seeing the developing relationship between Lauren and Devlin. A good start to a series I'm interested in finding out what happens next.
I will read
for Itchy Witch
Shelf #10 ~ 16 Sept: Paranormal Romance
Oct 3/15
Rating 4 stars
Review
I really enjoyed this start to a new series. Writing was great. There are all kinds of shifters, bears, panthers, chimeras, birds. Ever is looking for her sister who disappeared in Arcadia, a shifter town. Ever doesn't know about shifters and the Sheriff is a grizzly shifter and has determined that Ever is his mate. Together they solve the mystery of the disappearance of her sister. Good side characters. Will definitely continue with this series.
I am reading
for the Itchy Witch shelf.(Whew! Successfully crossed the half-way mark!)
for the Itchy Witch shelf.(Whew! Successfully crossed the half-way mark!)
LOL
CONGRATULATIONS, 1-4 the Win!You now have an updated BINGO card with a stamp on 'dark & stormy'.
[Your updated BINGO card can be viewed on page 1]
Good Job!! :D
Congrats on the stamp 1 4 the Win!
Reading my meow now and enjoying it so far
Sorry sunshine changed my mind again. Yeesh having a slump like Preethi had..Shelf #11 ~ 23 Sept: Cover Love
Oct 6/15
RAting 4 stars
Review: I really enjoyed this YA start to a series. Emily is a medium and can communicate and see spirits. Coming home from a séance one night a ghost is waiting for her at her front door. A young man Jacob was murdered. He came to her to see if she could help him determine where, why, how & who caused his murder. She and Jacob fall in love and she wants to help him solve the mystery. As the story progresses an mystery needs to be solved that involves a demonologist and a curse. Story is set in Victorian London. Atmosphere was good. Characters well done. Definitely will continue with the trilogy.
off to find a witch book. Just a heads up I will be travelling for the next two weeks starting Oct 10. Hope to get the witch book and Wednesday's shelf call done before I leave Saturday morning.
Shelf 9- meow
Title:Dirty Sexy Furry by Eliza Gayle
Date Read: October 6
Rating: 4 stars
Review
I enjoyed this book. It was a fun sexy quick read. I really liked the idea of all the different clans and having different abilities. I liked Kira and hope to see more of her and Lucas later in the series.
CONGRATULATIONS,1-4 the Win!You now have an updated BINGO card with a stamp on 'meow'.
[Your updated BINGO card can be viewed on page 1]
Good Job!! :D
Shelf #12: Itchy Witch
Book: Trancehack by Sonya Clark
Date Finished: Oct 04
Rating: 3.5 stars
REVIEW:
The YES factor:
=>The setting:
In this Magic Born series, the world is divided into two kinds of people: Normals and Magic Born. Magic Borns are identified at birth itself and are segregated into separate places in each city called The Zones. Magic Borns are people who can do some form of magic. These people are both feared and looked down upon by Normals. Magic Born, depending upon their skill level, can absorb electricity from nearby sources and use the electricity as a source to fuel their magic. Cool right? I loved this setting for the story!
=>Trancehacking: Apart from the other abilities, the heroine Calla Vesper has a unique ability called... you guessed it, Trancehacking. She can use her magic to hack into any kind of system - cell phones, computers, databases, top secret police records, and so on. This was also well done.
Now for the NO factor:
=> There were some mentions of Darknet which reminded me a lot of Nalini Singh's Psy-Changeling series.
=> It would have been helpful to have some sort of a prologue, which mention the year(this book is futuristic), the magic system, and how the society is divided. This would have made us enjoy the story better. As it was, we had to learn of some things as the story progressed, which impeded the enjoyment of the story.
=> Some along the half-way point, the story started to feel unnecessarily long. Some tightening of the narrative could have reduced 20-30 pages of this book and would have been much more enjoyable. As it was, the story felt dragged out in the middle. Also, the story was predictable. I could guess the ending, the 'who-done-it', the why part and so on, and almost the exact thing happened.
=> Both enough communication between the hero and heroine: Both the hero and the heroine had their heads deep in the ground like an ostrich. Both refused to consider what was in front of them, until circumstances forced them to do so. this lead to unnecessary drama between them. If only both had been sensible enough to work together rather than trying busily to act like an ostrich, things would have been resolved much sooner!
Does all this mean I didn't enjoy the story. Oh no. I enjoyed it a lot, despite its many flaws. I just have no idea why I did enjoy it though!
Also, the cover of this book is gorgeous. (I don't judge books based on covers, but I have to admit this- this cover is awesome!)
Book: Trancehack by Sonya Clark
Date Finished: Oct 04
Rating: 3.5 stars
REVIEW:
The YES factor:
=>The setting:
In this Magic Born series, the world is divided into two kinds of people: Normals and Magic Born. Magic Borns are identified at birth itself and are segregated into separate places in each city called The Zones. Magic Borns are people who can do some form of magic. These people are both feared and looked down upon by Normals. Magic Born, depending upon their skill level, can absorb electricity from nearby sources and use the electricity as a source to fuel their magic. Cool right? I loved this setting for the story!
=>Trancehacking: Apart from the other abilities, the heroine Calla Vesper has a unique ability called... you guessed it, Trancehacking. She can use her magic to hack into any kind of system - cell phones, computers, databases, top secret police records, and so on. This was also well done.
Now for the NO factor:
=> There were some mentions of Darknet which reminded me a lot of Nalini Singh's Psy-Changeling series.
=> It would have been helpful to have some sort of a prologue, which mention the year(this book is futuristic), the magic system, and how the society is divided. This would have made us enjoy the story better. As it was, we had to learn of some things as the story progressed, which impeded the enjoyment of the story.
=> Some along the half-way point, the story started to feel unnecessarily long. Some tightening of the narrative could have reduced 20-30 pages of this book and would have been much more enjoyable. As it was, the story felt dragged out in the middle. Also, the story was predictable. I could guess the ending, the 'who-done-it', the why part and so on, and almost the exact thing happened.
=> Both enough communication between the hero and heroine: Both the hero and the heroine had their heads deep in the ground like an ostrich. Both refused to consider what was in front of them, until circumstances forced them to do so. this lead to unnecessary drama between them. If only both had been sensible enough to work together rather than trying busily to act like an ostrich, things would have been resolved much sooner!
Does all this mean I didn't enjoy the story. Oh no. I enjoyed it a lot, despite its many flaws. I just have no idea why I did enjoy it though!
Also, the cover of this book is gorgeous. (I don't judge books based on covers, but I have to admit this- this cover is awesome!)
Rosina wrote: Yeesh having a slump like Preethi had.."
Oh no. Hope you get over it soon! Reading slumps are highly annoying!
Rosina wrote:"Just a heads up I will be travelling for the next two weeks starting Oct 10. Hope to get the witch book and Wednesday's shelf call done before I leave Saturday morning."
Two weeks? Well, have fun Rosina. Is this business trip, a pleasure trip or a family trip? (if you don't mind my asking)
Oh no. Hope you get over it soon! Reading slumps are highly annoying!
Rosina wrote:"Just a heads up I will be travelling for the next two weeks starting Oct 10. Hope to get the witch book and Wednesday's shelf call done before I leave Saturday morning."
Two weeks? Well, have fun Rosina. Is this business trip, a pleasure trip or a family trip? (if you don't mind my asking)
Preethi it our two week vacation. this year we decided to do roadtrip to Vegas. its an 18 hour drive from where we live. My hubby and I love road trips, we always have a wonderful time. going to go to Salt Lake City. looking forward to time away from my work. its been hectic and i need some down time. when we get to vegas we have friends flying in to join us for a few days. should be a fun time.
Rosina wrote: "Preethi it our two week vacation. this year we decided to do roadtrip to Vegas. its an 18 hour drive from where we live. My hubby and I love road trips, we always have a wonderful time. going t..."
Oh! Sounds great. Have fun and enjoy your vacation!
Oh! Sounds great. Have fun and enjoy your vacation!
Shelf #13 ~ 7 Oct: New2You SeriesRead: the first book in a new2you series
This shelf is not a top priory for us.
Sunshine wrote: "Shelf #13 ~ 7 Oct: New2You SeriesRead: the first book in a new2you series
This shelf is not a top priory for us."
Is it possible that there is a win this week?
I checked it out and only team 2 has this shelf and dragons for a win...so not a priority Sunshine....
side note enjoying my itchy witch book....
Nope, this shelf gives Team #2, 8 of 9, once they've read the outstanding shelves. Everyone else is 7 or less.
With this call, the top teams need:Team #2 ~ Read or PAIRish (Dragons)
Team #5 ~ Ravishing Tarts (Dragons, Series to Start)
Team #9 ~ Donkey Punchin (BINGO, Alpha Male)
Team #12 ~ Double Dozen (BINGO, New2You Author)
US ~ Need to finish Itchy Witch & PR - (Dragons, Alpha Male)
So hopefully Alpha Male will be called next, then it will be a race with Team 2 for the win!
Shelf #11 ~ 23 Sept: Cover Love
by Carrie VaughnFinished: 10/8/15
Rating: ★★★
I needed to read a pirate story and this was a good one to read. Jill is on vacation with her family in the Bahamas and is spending all her time moping over her loss in the fencing tournament. While taking a stroll on the beach she finds an old, rusted tip of a rapier and keeps it in her pocket. After falling overboard a tour boat, Jill is rescued by strange men and taken to a real live sailing ship. It slowly dawns on her that she's not in Kansas anymore. :)
This was a quick read and I enjoyed it. The pirates weren't nasty and we learn a lot of daily ship life. There was definitely the message of Don't take what you have for granted and enjoy your life. I wouldn't have minded a little rougher tale, but it is a YA book.
Reading my paranormal romance book now and enjoying it will probably finish tomorrow
I'm switchng my Cover Love book to
Not sure what I'm going to read for the New2You series yet.
Not sure what I'm going to read for the New2You series yet.
Shelf #10 Paranormal Romance
Title:Crux by Moira Rogers
Date Read: 10/11
Rating: 4 stars
Review
I loved Mackenzie. She was so strong even when she was terrified. She cared so much for the people around her and didn't want bad things to happen to anyone just for being close to her. I enjoyed the chemistry between Kenzie and Jackson. I plan on continuing the series to see what happens with the rest of the characters especially Nichole and Kat.
I'm going to read
for the New2You series shelf.
for the New2You series shelf.
Delitealex wrote: "Shelf #10 Paranormal Romance
Title:Crux by Moira Rogers
Date Read: 10/11
Rating: 4 stars
Review
I loved Mackenzie. She was so strong even when she was terri..."
I'm glad you liked Crux, Delitealex. I liked it too when I read it some months ago, but I didn't feel as connected to the characters.
Title:Crux by Moira Rogers
Date Read: 10/11
Rating: 4 stars
Review
I loved Mackenzie. She was so strong even when she was terri..."
I'm glad you liked Crux, Delitealex. I liked it too when I read it some months ago, but I didn't feel as connected to the characters.
I'm almost finished with my Itchy Witch Book. I started reading
for the New2You Series.
Shelf #12 ~ 30 Sept: Itchy Witch by Jim ButcherFinished: 10/13/15
Rating: ★★★
This time Harry is dealing with werewolves. But not just regular werewolves but also Lycanthropes and a Loup-Garou. There's a difference. I like Harry and Murphy's a little spitfire, but I'm not quite sucked into this series yet. I want more of Bob. He's funny. :)
CONGRATULATIONS, 1-4 the Win!You now have an updated BINGO card with a stamp on 'PNR'.
[Your updated BINGO card can be viewed on page 1]
Good Job!! :D
SOS: Serious Overload of Series
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Authors mentioned in this topic
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Zoe Winters (other topics)
Simon R. Green (other topics)
Belinda Boring (other topics)
More...
You now have an updated BINGO card with a stamp on 'favorite'.
[Your updated BINGO card can be viewed on page 1]
Good Job!! :D