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Archive: Past Team Challenges
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R9: Team #7 ~ Ice Squirrels
Hooray for the Ice Squirrels! Ha...I was on The Nameless Ones last round...was toying around with ideas related to that for a few seconds last night!Finished Oracle's Moon, so now have two reviews to write. Soon, I promise! Finished the book while at the vet's...darling dog has a stinky version of the 24-hour flu...the horror! Meds are helping and he's in a diaper but it has made it just a fun day, not.
As it's already been one of those weeks, I'm thanking all the powers that be for BINGO...yep, guilt free reading amidst all the other daily chaos! Off to tackle the dish-mountain (like Mt. TBR sooooooooo much more!) and prep the a.m. coffee & rice. If my eyelids are still higher than 50%, I'll be back with a couple of reviews!
(and maybe even sneak a peek at what the other teams are doing!)
Sorry to hear the dog is crook Judithe, and sorry to hear that the plate Mt TBR is teetering :)Nearly finished my free space, but my demon book is lagging. Just like the 1st book in the series did for me as well. Oh well, I need to read it for other challenges also, so I'll just have to pull up the big girl panties.
A Hunger Like No Other by Kresley Cole
Shelf 1: Demons
Date finished: 5/19/14
Rating: ★★★★☆
Thoughts:
Doing the "two birds with one stone" thing, and finally getting my IAD re-read started. I also need to get stocked up with more books for BINGO! Amazingly, I have a dangerously low level of TBR-on-hand books (looking forward to your reviews to get me shopping again!!)
Anyway, way back when, I first read Emmaline's story, and loved Kresley Cole's fresh new take on supes, or the Lore.
Emmaline is off to Paris to find the scoop on her parents, and crosses path with a Lykae, Lachlain, who is quite certain she is his mate. He's right, but timid Emmaline is so not ready for the full story. They have a witty, steamy courtship, filled with mayhem from all sides, and many funny moments. It IS a romance, so all ends quite happily, but it's quite the fun trip to get there.
IAD is one of my favorite series, and this has a very sentimental place in my life. I love that Emmaline shakes off her phobias and hang-ups and finds her HEA. Lachlain is a lovely alpha male and showers her with devotion (hey, we'd all like some of that!)...so all in all, it equals a very fun romantic ride.
I've started the second of the series even as I'm writing this, and looking forward to visiting with all these characters again! Especially Nix....
Oracle's Moon by Thea Harrison
Free Space
Date finished: 5/21/14
Rating: ★★★★☆
Thoughts:
I'd stepped away from the Elder Races for a bit...had the one after this, but no time to pick up this one to keep reading the series. Well, BINGO time! Grabbed this one, and trying to be patient to see if Lord's Fall will fit the next shelf!
The initial draw to this series for me was the dragons. While I was a bit disappointed to see they weren't the main character for ALL the books, I found myself falling in love with each new couple, regardless of species.
This was no exception. Grace is the current day Oracle of Delphi, and, unbeknownst to her, she has some deadly enemies. The djinn who's attraction/interest she has sparked is NOT one of them. Though she's not always sure of that! That djinn is also quite surprised to find there is a lot more to this mortal Grace, and the niece and nephew in her care, than he ever expected.
The attraction mounts, as does the danger...to Grace's life and their new relationship. So many paths are revealed, but can Grace find the one that leads to her HEA???
Well, wouldn't want to spill the beans, but it is a fun, action-filled trip to the unveiling (particularly loved their first date, and her first trip to the moon).
I will definitely be reading more of this series (Is it time? shelf, shelf, shelf, shelf, shelf, shelf....)
Sandra wrote: "Sorry to hear the dog is crook Judithe, and sorry to hear that the plate Mt TBR is teetering :)Nearly finished my free space, but my demon book is lagging. Just like the 1st book in the series di..."
CRACK! Get those panties hitched up, girl!
Actually, sad to hear it isn't a fun, frolicking ride for you..Good luck, and hope the pace picks up! I found a few of those slow to start, but once they did, couldn't put them down.
Now, my whip hand is getting twitchy...how's everyone else doing? Not gonna visit other threads at the moment, ha, saving any "encouragement" for here. Go Icy Ss!
Daughter of Smoke & Bone by Laini Taylor
Shelf: Demons
Date Read: 4/19/14
Rating: ★★★★
I really loved the first half of this book. I was completely intrigued by the Prague setting, by Karou, her friendship with Zuzanna and (most especially) by the strange creatures who shared her life. I wanted to know more and was completely wrapped up in this world. What are all the different wishes? Why does Brimstone need Karou to run these mysterious errands? And, what's up with the teeth?
After that awesome beginning, the second half lost a little luster for me. Once Akiva shows up it goes down a lot of typical YA romance paths. To Karou's credit she didn't fall for it immediately and Akiva was also a path for her to learn more about herself. But still, I'm tired of the much older, anger issues, stalkerish guy and the teenage girl. To be honest, I was tired of if 15 years ago on Buffy so by now I'm really done. I do like the way Karou handled it, she called him out on following and watching her. And I realize this is a strange statement, but other than their first meeting when Akiva tried to kill her he always treats her well and tells her things when he knows them. There's no "I'm not telling you things for your own good." So, in that respect it was a nice relationship but I just can't ever get past how young a teenager seems to me and I'm nowhere near as old as these guys.
So, that aside, whenever the focus was on the world and learning more about how Karou came to be raised by the odd group in the shop I really loved this story. When it got more focused on the romance, it was OK, fine really, but I didn't love it. So 5*s for the beginning and the world, 3*s for the second half and the romance comes to 4* rating.
Shelf: Free Space
Found on Group Bookshelf
Date: 22/5/14
Rating: ★★★★
October "Toby" Daye, is half human/half Daoine Fae, mother of Gillian, P.I.
Unfortunately, her better half and daughter don't know about the Fae and when she goes missing for 14 yrs and is presumed dead, then suddenly reappears without a believable story, her private life goes to hell. (This isn't a spoiler as it all happens in the first couple of pages).
This is a great adventure tale about the Fae living uneasily beside us humans and the changelings that try to straddle both sides of the fence. There is no pretty, pretty fairy stuff happening here, it is basically all hard core magic, violence, a bit of politics and murder, with the odd sprinkling of nuances and friends that Toby didn't realize she had.
So, this 1st book is about the murder of Evening Winterose, an old friend of Tobys' and the Death Binding she placed on Toby to find the killers.
Looking forward to the next book.
Shelf: Free Space - On Group Bookshelf
Date: 23 May
Rating: 2.5 Stars
I've lost touch with the characters in this series. The story was cute, but I didn't feel like I really got into it as I should. Definitely not one of my favorites in this series.
Marielle hanging out with the other ladies was fun to watch. It was also cute watching her acclimate to being human. Who knew zippers were so fascinating? Her overall connection to the vampires was interesting. Did the Angels know from the beginning she would play such a part in their story or did they just let it all play out. I think they knew, but my head hurts when I think about it.
What really bothered me about this specific story was Connor. He took his personal berating too far. But see, this is the problem I have with series favorites getting their own book. Once they get a books, I tend to find that I don't like them anymore. I almost wish they kept their secrets, their pain and anguish and any other personal demons they are harboring to themselves.
The ending left me shaking my head a bit. Again, it's been a while since I've read Sparks, so I'm tying to remember her style and why I ate up the first 9 books. But anyway, back to the ending. It just ended with a pretty bow. What?
The Angels saved the day. The Demon looked like he was in on the plan in the first place which made no sense to me. What? Again, my head hurts.
Casmir? Corky? What now?
Okay, I really need to get back on track.
It's a 3 day weekend!I can get caught up on the Demon shelf and whatever is called next!
How's everyone else doing?
Kimberly wrote: "Shelf: Free Space - On Group Bookshelf
Date: 23 May
Rating: 2.5 Stars
I've lost touch with the characters in this series. The story was cute, but I didn't feel lik..."
I like that series but hated that particular book. I think it's really an outlier so don't second guess yourself about liking the other ones! :)
Sandra wrote: "
Shelf: Free Space
Found on Group Bookshelf
Date: 22/5/14
Rating: ★★★★
October "Toby" Daye, is half human/half Daoine Fae, mother of Gillian, P.I.
Unfortunate..."
I love Toby Daye. It's another series that just gets better as it goes.
I remember putting off
for quite some time, then I enjoyed it but still noticed the holes in the plot. This big buildup over several books and then splat .... all resolved over a couple of pages, but I must of been in a good mood cause I just checked and I gave it 4 stars.Glad to hear you love Toby Karen, cause I've just bought them all :)
Shelf: Free Space
Found on Group Bookshelf
Date: 23/5/14
Rating: ★★★
Thoughts: In this installment, Kitty and her fiance Ben travel to Las Vegas to tape a live episode of Kitty’s Midnight Hour show; as well as get married. In true Kitty fashion, she decides to try and do something low key and of course things never go quite the way she envisions them.
I felt that things were kind of stagnant in this book. Yeah, we get to meet some new characters, bounty hunters, magicians and new shapeshifters but most didn't draw my attention. Of the new characters, Dom was the most intriguing and had the most character depth. Dom left me with tons of questions as to his role in the Vampire world and what exactly his motivation is.
Overall, Kitty and the Dead Man's Hand was OK but not up to par with the previous novels for me. Although, I will be continuing with the series because I love Kitty's voice and can't wait to see what she does next.
Hey ho! Long, long week...and off to a class in the a.m. so I probably won't be checking in early (supposed to do neighborhood weeding BEFORE class, but it's looking highly unlikely, unless the exhaustion that is sending me to bed also makes me wake at an ungodly hour!) Looking forward to sneaking around the game tomorrow, and catching up on reviews...and hoping we have a "stamp me" post very, very soon!! *grin*
I'm reading my free space book now. I should finish today or tomorrow. That will give us our first stamp. It's a pretty busy long weekend for me but Monday is shaping up to be a lazy day so I'll catch up then if I need to.
Its been crazy here too, I'm determined to finish my demons book by Monday my time, which is Sunday for most of you :)Off to speak to Mr R.
Ahh...nice chat with Mr. R!And...the book I want to read is there! Hooray! Sending lots of choco your way!!
Reading
...fingers crossed I can enjoy catching up on the whole series this round!
Hm, I've got a few choices
or
I'll let you know when I decide.
A friend of mine has been eager for me to read the New Species series, so I'm reading
for Shifters.
Enjoy Kimberly!
Sandra wrote: "Enjoy Kimberly!"Thanks! I've never heard of the series. I strayed from PNR & UF for a little while, so in that time I've missed out on a few series.
Kimberly wrote: "Sandra wrote: "Enjoy Kimberly!"Thanks! I've never heard of the series. I strayed from PNR & UF for a little while, so in that time I've missed out on a few series."
Hi Kimberly! Just stopped by to say hello and see how you are doing. So happy to see you enjoying UF again. Happy Reading!
~~cheryl
Haven't heard of that one, Kimberly! Looking forward to your review!
It's Laurann Dohner's New Species series, I'm up to #10 Moon. It's very similar to Lora Leigh's Breeds :)
Windfall by Rachel Caine
Shelf: Free Space
Date Finished: 5/24/14
Rating: ★★★1/2
3.5*s. Living in New England where the weather is always changeable and sometimes quite severe the weather details in this series are right up my alley. This installment started a bit slowly, as Joanne is out of the Warden's and working as a cheesy weather girl on local news. She and David are still not recovered from the events of the last book. I read that one a while ago but Caine does a good job of refreshing the memory without dumping all the details on the reader. However, this is a true series so I wouldn't start here. Events from previous books have a great bearing on events in this one.
As I mentioned it was a slow start to this book and there were interludes between each chapter that didn't really make sense as to where they were going until the end. But the ending of the book comes in a rush, with so many events without taking a breath that I read it all in one giant gulp. Once the action got going my biggest issue was with some of Joanne's behavior. I know that she was cut off from most of her power but I still thought she called on David to save her too much, knowing what it was doing to him. It didn't bother me much while reading it but more when I thought about it afterwards. I just wish she could have found another way out of some of these situations.
Although it doesn't end on a cliffhanger there are several dangling plot threads and there are big events that will change the direction of the series. I'm looking forward to the next one to see what happens next.
Requested our Free Space stamp - Yay!How's everyone doing with the "Demons" book? I just noticed it's in the same column as "Shifter" so that's working out for us.
I'll be reading
for the Shifter shelf.
Shelf #2 - ShifterSandra: The Accidental Werewolf Date Finished: 5/26/14 ★★★ Sandra's Review
Sherri: Magic Rises Date Finished: 6/6/14 ★★★★★ Sherri's Review
Kimberly: Fury Date Finished: 5/30/14 ★ Kimberly's Review
Judithe: Lord's Fall Date Finished: 5/25/14 ★★★★ Judithe's Review
KarenF: Drink Deep Date Finished: 5/29/14 ★★★★ Karen's Review
CONGRATULATIONS, Ice Squirrels!You now have an updated BINGO card with a stamp on 'free space'.
[Your updated BINGO card can be viewed on page 1]
Good Job!! :D
Steph wrote: "CONGRATULATIONS, Ice Squirrels!You now have an updated BINGO card with a stamp on 'demons'.
[Your updated BINGO card can be viewed on page 1]
Good Job!! :D"
Hi Steph - I think something got goofed up. We finished our Free Space, not Demons yet. And it looks like it's now Team 8's card on our first page. No worries, I just happened to check while waiting for the potato salad potatoes to cool so I wanted to give you a heads up. Thanks!
LOL! >.< I'm all screwed up. Sorry 'bout that, I'll fix it now. Thanks, Karen!ETA: Corrected card and info above.
Thanks Steph! And Go Icys!!!
Definitely decided on
I'm already a third of the way into it.
Good choice Sandra! I remember liking that book.
Well one person managed to shelf this book on the "demons" list so I will count it for that one.Listening to
by Jenna Black.
Shelf: Shifter
Week: 2
Date: 26/5/14
Rating: ★★★
At first this had the feel of the Queen Betsy series, but luckily it eventually got over that hurdle. It was a light fluffy read, just what I was in the mood for, and it delivered. Still I couldn't give it more than 3 stars cause I have read better, funnier books.
Marty Andrews is accidentally bitten by a werewolf when he is distracted and her dog Muffin attacks him, mistakenly trying to protect her. Of course, the reason he is distracted is "she smells gooooood". Enough said to shifter readers.
Marty is a cold-call cosmetics salesperson and is the annoying gung-ho type. So we hear a lot about color wheels, and people's seasons colors, perhaps a little too much.
I quite enjoyed the mystery about who kept trying to kidnap Marty and her failure to shift fully.
I'll be reading the rest of the series, just as soon as I need something light.
Shelf: Demons
Date: 26 May
Rating: 2.5 stars
Well this was a surprise. I didn't expect to like the book based on the my reaction to the last two books. But then again, I don't remember the specifics of the last two books.
I never gave Kane much thought because he was always being left behind. I guess that was a good thing for me because he had more of a backbone than I was expecting. I found myself saying "You go Kane!" quite a few times. And just as many times did I say that, I was also saying "Oh come on!" I will say that I got a good chuckle out of his butterfly placement. "And his... his... his tattoo was getting larger, because one of the butterfly's wings rode the length of his..."
In the last episode of "What's Kimberly going to bitch about now?", I mentioned that any books about favorite characters are a big fat turn off because the character sometimes is a big let down. This is how I feel about the build up to Torin's book. I really hope that book isn't messed up. I hope Torin gets some and gets it good! Hand holding is sweet but go for the goods! In the same breath, I hope Cameo and William don't get dragged down the same way this series is going.
You know what's really sad that I just realized? I'm more concerned about the next book than I am talking about Kane and Josephina. I liked them. Their story was nice. I just wasn't into their HEA. They had some fun times getting there with the help of William and the other Lords. Meh.
To be polite, I'm just reading the series at this point just to keep up with the story line. Which has introduced us to a new enemy? What?
Hooray on our stamp! Finished my shifters book in the wee hours last night...loved it. Not loving the coffee need today, though! LOL! Gotta keep the day job to keep me in books, etc. though...
...tiptoes in the room...peeps about & tiptoes back out...everyone must still be sleeping...
*grin* I'll keep quiet then! (which reminds me, need to get my b*tt in gear and write the review! Weekend has snuck up on me....
I hear you, Judithe. This week has gone by faster than I would like. Typical of a holiday on Monday week.I'm almost finished with Fury, but I'll be honest that I'm not feeling the book or the main characters.
I'm ready for a new shelf!
LOL!! Just teasing.It seems that kind of week where life is swamping me and I'm barely keeping up with everything. I think it doesn't help that goo weather is so late in coming here to Michigan. I also have family flying in on Sunday the 1st from overseas and they will be here a whole month. We'll see how much reading I get done. ;-)
Shelf: Demons
Book: Rogue Descendant by Jenna Black
Date Read: 5/30/14
Rating: 4 Stars
Review:
Third book in the series and Nikki is being to accept and use her mythological powers. Loved the mystery of Rogue Descendant which had been building over the last couple of books but I hate the cliffhangers it left me with. I'm not going to spill the beans but the major cliffhanger has me wondering what the direction the next in the series will be.
Also, can Jamaal and Nikki's relationship EVER move forward. Nikki has to be one of the most sexually frustrated women in America. For shame Jamaal, leaving a woman hanging!! Overall, a good book and a series I am totally invested in.
Shelf: Shifters
Date: 30 May
Rating: 1 star
This was clearly not the book for me. I wasn't thrilled with what happened early on with Fury and Ellie after he was released from the lab. From there it just went down hill for me. I couldn't connect to either character to the point where I couldn't wait for scenes that included both characters. I liked the way Ellie was with the women and with her conversations with the other males. But put Fury and Ellie together and I squirmed. I wanted to know who ratted them out to the media and I had my suspicions about who it could have been, but that was never answered. Ir maybe it was and I didn't catch that part.
I really tried to find something in this I liked and I couldn't do it.
Sorry it wasn't for you Kimberly. Don't bother with the rest of the series if you hated this one so much. Whilst it does improve, it won't do so enough to impress you.
Drink Deep by Chloe Neill
Shelf: Shifter
Date Finished: 5/29/14
Rating: ★★★★
I'm behind in this series and not opposed to spoilers so I'll just say that I wasn't in the same boat as the people who were waiting on pins and needles for it to be published after the events of the previous book. It's difficult to review this one without series spoilers. So I'll just say that I continue to enjoy Merit and her adventures in the Chicago supernatural world. I have to admit that I kind of guessed who was behind the big events in this one, but I was wrong about the reasons. Well, at least I think I'm wrong. The plot line is continuing in the next book so we'll see if I'm right after all when everything is out.
One thing I really like about this series is that Merit isn't the antisocial loner that we see so often in UF. I like that she's got friends, family and colleagues that she trusts, confides in and works with. It makes her position as Sentinel more meaningful to me, she doesn't protect people because it's some destiny she can't get out of, she actually likes people. One thing I missed in this book was more of a presence by the shifters. Jeff was around as usual but the past couple of books were shifter heavy and that wasn't the case here. But we finally got to know some of the fae, which revealed some information that could lead in interesting directions. I'm looking forward to the next one because there's plenty of fallout from this one to sort out.
I think I'm caught up on updating everything but I seem to be fighting off a cold that's messing with my brain. Please double-check and let me know if I've missed you:Demons
Shifter
I'm really hoping Mr. R can come up with something where I can fit
C'mon Headless!
SOS: Serious Overload of Series
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Authors mentioned in this topic
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