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R9: Team Fast and Furious Page Turners (2) **Winning Team**
message 251:
by
Mandy
(new)
Aug 11, 2017 04:49AM
I agree we are playing for fun =D Real life this round seems to be more in the way I've noticed at least in mine. This summer has been crazy busy.
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Oh thank goodness. I changed the book as I realized later that I had started a stand alone . . .
Week 10Spot: 80
Book: We Are the Ants
Qualification: Standalone
Date Finished: 8/7/17
Pages: 455
Rating: 4.5
Review:
I kept hearing amazing things about this book and so I finally decided to give it a go. It wasn't at all what I was expecting, but that's okay because if it had been, I don't think I would have liked it as much as I did.
Henry's life is . . . Difficult to say the least. He's still reeling from his boyfriend's suicide (not a spoiler), he's being abducted by aliens, and his family life sort of, kind of, definitely sucks. And, oh, yeah, this world is coming to an end and he's the only one that can stop it, but he doesn't really want to and nor does he believe that he has any reason to do so.
Until, maybe, things start to change, he meets a guy, he and his family go through some things that for better or worse brings them closer together, and now maybe he does have all the reasons to prevent the world from ending, but is it too late?
It's different, but one that I recommend checking out. It's definitely one that I'd like to put on my own shelves in the near future.
Review is now up and I changed books.
Mod
Selection PostSpot - 90
Book -
Qualification - Standalone
Pages - 208
Completion PostWeek 11 - Spot 90
Book -
Qualification - Standalone
Date Finished - 8/13/17
Rating - 3 stars
Review - This was a fluffy, cutesy YA book. Definitely NOT my favorite Dessen novel, but, as I believe it was her first one, it was interesting to see how far she's come in her writing. I found that the book didn't have much of a distinct plot. There wasn't a real climax to it. But, I enjoyed Haven's story, loved loathing her sister Ashley, and felt crushed about the true story regarding Sumner.
Completion PostBook:
Qualification: Stand Alone
Date Finished: 8/12/17
Rating: ★★★★
Review: This book centers around Joel who is a young college student who has never moved past the loss of his high school boyfriend who was killed while reading a sext from him. He wallows in his guilt and has built an emotional wall to keep everyone out. When he meets Paulie who is a funny and sweet guy who is very open with his affection and his sexuality. I loved that two started off as friends and it took awhile before they jumped into bed. It made the first sex scene between them extremely hot and emotional and the payoff was wonderful. Joel takes a long time to start to open up to Paulie and unfortunately makes some big mistakes along the way during a time when Paulie is already in a bad state with family issues. There was a lot of angst towards the end of this book but I also thought it had one of the best groveling scenes/speeches EVER! I also absolutely adored Joel's roommate Travis. He is such an amazing friend and I really want him to get his own book! Joel and Paulie have a HFN ending so hopefully we will see more of them in a book about Travis. I really liked this book. It had an emotional impact, really hot sex with lots of dirty talk and two boys who grew into men. I believe we will see a lot of really great books from this new author!
Week 10 ~ Roll~ 10 Spot ~90 Alternate ~ Author Non Fiction Runell - We Are the Ants - Review
Denise - Refugee - Review
Kim - Two-Way Street - Review
Danielle Gypsy Soul - Suicide Watch Review
Mandy - Dirty Royal Review
5/5 complete
Mandy Week Ten should be Spot 80. We are on spot 90 this week :)
I'm going to give
A Try Qualification - Standalone
Mod
Spot: 90
Book: I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson
Qualification: Standalone
Finished: 15 Aug 2017
Rating: ★★★★★
Review:
Twins Noah and Jude used to be inseparable, two halves of a whole, functioning in perfect symmetry - until tragedy came calling and drove them apart. Now, they're barely speaking to each other, each lost in a way, attempting to put their broken lives back together on their own. Neither of them can quite explain how they lost each other, but that's because they each only know half of the story. If they could only find a way to put the halves together into a coherent whole, the same could happen to their relationship, allowing them to forge a new path from the broken past.
This book wasn't even on my radar (shocking, I know) until I happened to spot it in a Kindle sale and took a chance on it - and I'm very glad I did. Beautiful, heartbreaking and uplifting all at once, this novel is a scintillating rollercoaster of emotion, expertly crafted and so strikingly wonderfully written that each single sentence is an amazing work of art.
Mod
God. I didn't even know there WERE bonus points. I feel like a donkey! I wouldn't have picked from the alt list! Gah! Sorry guys! That's what I get for not reading rules. I just figured that I'd played so many times and I knew what was up.... So, I don't think I contributed to that at all. Sorry again...
Mod
I got one bonus point earlier for reading a book with more than 500 pages.
Mod
The most I read was 2 books from a series so I didn't get that one - not sure if anyone else did.
Mod
Yeah - we only need to roll a 7 or higher :) I can roll since that's pretty early my time.
Mod
You are correct - I looked at the Q&A and you have to roll past 100 to win. So we'll see how we roll.
Mod
Just to make sure I understand:So once Runnell and Mandy have their completion posts in we can roll tonight at midnight. If we roll an 8 or higher than we will be eligible to win (I'm pretty sure we aren't the only group that will be). Then it's a matter of what team finishes this weeks book first so the faster we can all get this week's book read the better correct?
Mod
Mod
I read a book over 500 pages as well.
Week 11Spot: 90
Bedroom Paparazzi
Qualification: Standalone
Finished: 15 Aug 2017
Rating: ★★★★
I picked this one up based on the cover so I wasn't sure what to expect. Katie has been trying to make it big modeling, and all her work has finally paid off as she lands a cover. Everyone is talking about her but it's not all about her cover but her recent breakup. After a stressful interview, she rushes into the men's bathroom to get away from the cameras. What she finds is a basketball player who's had a tough career recently with his ex and career in the media. They decide to change their story in the eye of the media getting the heat off their past. What started out as a lie turns into more.
I liked Katie a lot she's a sweet girl next door type who just happens to be a gorgeous model. She's not like your typical model which I found refreshing as she's very down to earth. I admit I wasn't so sure about Jason her love interest but as the book progressed he won a spot in my heart.
I truly enjoyed Bedroom Paparazzi it's starts out as an escape from their lives but turns into a steam sweet romance. I like when my main characters have a not so pretty past it makes them a little more interesting. Ironically both of their past relationships seem to want to come back and bite them in the butt. They have this sweet chemistry which just works so well that you can't help cheering them on. I enjoyed the authors writing style it just flows from start to finish and the story was hard to put down. I even finished it in one afternoon because I had to know how it would play out. It's a really steamy book but not lacking in story. Highly recommend.
Week 11Spot: 90
Book: A Man Called Ove
Qualification: Standalone
Date Finished: 8/18/17
Pages: 337
Rating: 4/5
Review:
So I wasn't expecting this one to hit me in the feels. Two separate books in the span of about two days have both hit me in the feels and I don't think I have too many more feels to give. I need something light and fluffy and HAPPY damn it.
But in a way, this book was very happy. Ove lives a life that you can't help but to laugh at, with him and (sometimes) at him; not to be cruel, just because he's a grumpy little old man who's set in his ways and even though we know that there are ways that would be a lot easier to go about something easier, he insists on doing it his way, period (in so many way he reminded me of my dad which was a riot within itself).
This is my first novel by Fredrik Backman AND my first translated book (at least I'm pretty sure). I'm glad that I finally gave it a go. I've been wanting to, but translated works make me nervous as I'm afraid I won't get them and that something will go over my head because of it. I'm pleased to say that this was not the case with A Man Called Ove.
The only other thing that I can say about this book without giving anything away is that if you live a life like Ove's, you really can't go too wrong.
Mod
Rolled 8, plus 3 bonus points that puts us on spot 101 - winning spot, ladies, woohoo!! (We're not the only ones, so fastest team to have all their reviews in wins.)
Selection PostSpot - 101
Book -
Qualification - 1st in series
Pages - 391
ARGH - Internet went down last night and just came back up. Thanks for rolling :)
Selection PostBook:
Qualification - 1st in series
Pages: 392
Mod
Spot: 101
Book: Orion by Ruby Lionsdrake
Qualification: Star Guardians #1
Finished: 18 Aug 2017
Rating: ★★★★★
Review:
As a lifelong sci-fi geek and aspiring author, Juanita has spent a lot of time imagining adventures in space - but she never expected to actually end up in one, especially not by means of being captured by a bunch of slavers wanting to sell her and a number of other kidnapped women to aliens who'd like to turn them into dinner. Luckily, at least one of the kidnappers doesn't seem all that interested in molesting or murdering her, so perhaps he might be persuaded to help them escape? The man in question, a bounty hunter by the name of Orion, turns out to be engaged on an undercover mission infiltrating the slaver ship on behalf of the Star Guardians, an outfit of elite agents charged with protecting humanity. The last thing he needs is a distraction, but he finds Juanita entirely too appealing to ignore.
Ruby Lionsdrake/Lindsay Buroker is one of my go-to authors whenever I'm in need of a fast-paced, funny and immensely entertaining quick read, and the opening volume of her latest sci-fi romance series certainly fits that description. I very much adore Juanita and her geeky ways, and having her and Orion bond over their love for comics in the middle of all the chaos going on around them was delightfully cute. Looking forward to spending more time with these characters and seeing what further adventures and romances the author has in store for them.
Mod
One down, four to go. So far, two other teams have rolled past 100 this week, so the race is definitely on. I'll just be sitting here and cheering you on now! ;)
I'll have mine done this afternoon as well.
Completion PostWeek 12 - Spot 101
Book -
Qualification - First in series
Date Finished - 8/18/17
Rating - 3 stars
Review - I don't know what happened with this book. This seemed like a book that I should have loved. I've been wanting to read it for some time because the cover is so beautiful. But something about it just didn't captivate me. I can't put my finger on it. I mean, it was good. I liked Patch. And Nora didn't annoy the crap out of me like many of the girls in these types of books. But I'm not scrambling to read the next book. I will probably continue the series, but it's been added to the pile of "I'll get to it when I get to it."
Completion PostBook
Qualification: 1st in Series
Date Finished: 8/18
Rating: 3.5 Stars (Rounded up to 4)
Review: I really enjoyed this book and I'm looking forward to the next in the series since the plot/romance is definitely left unfinished. The serial killer is still on the loose and the two MCs have decided to "not limit" their interactions to friends with benefits and see where they are going to go. I really loved both Sam and Mac and they were both Alpha males so that made their interactions really interesting and seriously hot! There were also a lot of secondary characters that I really enjoyed and want to know more about. Of course I need to see how they catch the serial killer who is killing gay men as well. It won't be long before I jump into book 2 but unfortunately book 3 still hasn't been published and keeps getting pushed. Last I read it's now Jan 2018 so I hope book 2 doesn't have a massive cliff hanger.
Mod
I'm currently reading a "short" story (200 paves) so I should have it finished in a couple of hours (I'm at work)
That's great Runnell - hopefully Mandy's got a book picked out as well.
Week 12Spot: 101
Book: The Sugar Queen
Qualification: Standalone (0 counted as standalone)
Date Finished: 8/18/17
Pages: 278
Rating: 4/5
Review:
I originally read this book years ago and loved it. Reading it now, I still loved it.
I'm not the biggest on magical realism (as in I haven't read that many books in that genre), but this better be considered one of the good ones and if it's not, show me the best.
I love the small-town setting; it's genuine southern to me (and that's rarely done right in my opinion), the characters are crazy but sweet, and of course, I have to thank this book for introducing me to grilled cheese with tomatoes on it because that's my favorite way to eat a grilled cheese now.
If you want something light and fluffy, which is exactly what I needed, read this. It won't disappoint.
I should be done in the next few hours. It's been a busy day
Mod
P.S. you haven't posted your reviews and new spot in the Post Your Spot thread
Week 11 ~ Old Spot 90Roll~ 8 + using our 3 bonus points Spot ~101 Alternate ~ Non Listed
Runell - A Man Called Ove Review
Denise - Jandy Nelson Slipcase Review
Kim - That Summer Review
Danielle Gypsy Soul - Controlled Burn Review
Mandy - Bedroom Paparazzi Review
5/5 complete
The Challenge Factory
Books mentioned in this topic
The Sugar Queen (other topics)Werewolf Dreams (other topics)
Orion (other topics)
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Hush, Hush (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Ruby Lionsdrake (other topics)Ruby Lionsdrake (other topics)
Jandy Nelson (other topics)
Jandy Nelson (other topics)
Alan Gratz (other topics)
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