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I'm sorry to hear about your dad! I hope he'll be okay. I'm glad you're able to go and help them though. Go, take care of what you need to. I'm sure we'll be seeing you around GR again in the future :)
I'm sorry to hear about your father, family illnesses are so hard. We found out that my grandmother has stage 2 colon cancer, it's been a roller coaster this last month. Good luck and I'm so glad you are able to spend time with your parents.
Hi Amy, so sorry to hear that. Take care of your dad and yourself.
Okay, we're all ready for tomorrow!Week 9: Spot 71
✔Nichole-Absolution (#1)/ Review
✔Tara- Breaking Creed (#1)/ Review
✔Lauren- Vacation Pass
✔Claire- The Bat (#1)/ Review
✔Sandy - The Underground Railroad (SA)/ Review
Amy, best wishes for your dad. Hope to see you later in other games. :-)
Week 10Roll: 6+4=10!!
New Spot: 81
Stand Alone, 1st, 8th, 81st
Alternate: Cover- Yellow
Week 10 - Spot 81
Men In Blue by W.E.B. Griffin
Pages: 352
How it Fits: #1 in the Badge of Honor series
Mod
Amy, I hope your dad gets better. I am glad he has you and your mom in his corner!
Mod
No replacement player so late in the game. I don't want too many changes for your team. So keep going guys :D
This week, you have a withdrawal and a pending vacation, right?
Mod
Spot: 71
Book:
Pages: 356
Date Read: 7/29/17
How it fits: #1 in The Protectors series
Rating: 4.5 Stars
I really liked this one a lot! Mace is sent to take ..."
I loved this book. Book 2 was just okay, I liked book 3 better than 2. I am waiting for audiobook 4
Mod
Standalone
Read: 7/30/17
Rating: ★★★★★
A powerful story of a slave girl who runs away from her Georgia plantation with help from thos..."
I am on hold for this audiobook
Ezinwanyi wrote: "As I told Captain Nichole,No replacement player so late in the game. I don't want too many changes for your team. So keep going guys :D
This week, you have a withdrawal and a pending vacation, ri..."
Yep, we're good to go for the coming week now though :)
Ezinwanyi wrote: "Nichole wrote: "Week: 9Spot: 71
Book:
Pages: 356
Date Read: 7/29/17
How it fits: #1 in The Protectors series
Rating: 4.5 Stars
I really liked this one a lot! Mace ..."
Good to know!
Week 10 - Spot 81
Read: 8/7/17
How it fits: #1 in series
Rating: 3 - 4 stars, depending if later books make this one make more sense...
This was a strange book. It's set in a world that seems to very closely mirror ours, but there are things that clearly aren't the same. A lot of it was really confusing. And the language seemed to go back and forth between regular English and that world's dialect. It wasn't very consistent, which bothered me. I did like the last chapter - it mirrored some of my own thoughts/questions as far as where we truly sit in the grand scheme of things. I've heard this series is considered by many to be Stephen Kings' best, and I'm not convinced yet.
Week 10 spot 81Standalone book
Author: Sylvia Plath
Pages: 244
Date read: 9/8/2017
Rating: 5 stars
Review:
I had read quite a bit of Sylvia Plath's poetry, but this book had been on my reading list for a long time. It is a very sad book, but very good. The way Sylvia Plath writes about the feelings of depression, the ongoing fighting to remain sane, is frightening and depressive at the same time. The book made me remember bad days and weeks and is thus not so easy to talk about, but it is a book that anyone who had ever struggled with depressive feelings, will recognize.
Week: 10Spot: 81
Book:
by Mariana ZapataPages: 497
Date Read: 8/7/17
How it fits: Stand Alone
Rating: 4 stars
Another hit by Mariana Zapata! In this one, Iris has moved back to Austin to stay with her half brother after losing her job. He's part of an MC and helps her get a job at the tattoo shop owned by one of the MC members. Unfortunately for Iris, the owner is smoking hot and a total jerk and she can't wait to get out of there. But Dex has other plans for her.
MZ is the master of slow burn Romance with an enemies to lovers flair. The H/h always hate each other at first and it makes for some pretty hilarious interactions. The sexual tension between them just keeps building until it finally snaps, towards the end of the book usually. I laugh, I cry and I love every minute of it!
Week 10 - Spot 81
Men In Blue by W.E.B. Griffin
Pages: 352
Read: Aug. 4-9
Rating: 2 stars
How it Fits: #1 in the Badge of Honor series
Review: This one has languished on my shelves for quite some time. I have read and enjoyed a couple other books in a different series by Mr. Griffin. So I was looking forward to this one - mainly because it was a shorter book (the other series I've been reading - the books are like 800 pages long) But it didn't work quite as well as I had hoped for. This is not a detective novel. It started out with a murder, one that I thought we would see solved.... but then it just turned into all these descriptions - from some dude's great-grandpa's immigration story to the hierarchy of the police department. It just wasn't what I was expecting and I won't be recommending this one, or continuing on with the series.
Week 10 - spot 81
How it fits: Standalone
Read: 8/10/17
Rating: ★★★★★
Review: Jende and Neni are immigrants from Cameroon trying to make a good life for themselves and their young son in New York. Jende feels extremely lucky when he gets a job as chauffeur to a wealthy man, Mr. Edwards, who works for Lehman Brothers. Neni works as a home health aide and goes to college with a dream of becoming a pharmacist. Jende discovers that he may be deported because he allows his Visa to expire, just as Neni has another baby and Jende's employer becomes involved in terrible financial crisis that leads to the Great Recession. I was fascinated with this story and seeing the world through an immigrant's eyes -- someone who believes America is the greatest country in the world and that his life will be forever changed for the better with a green card. It's interesting how the lives of Jende and Neni are compared and contrasted with Mr. and Mrs. Edwards. We see that money doesn't necessarily buy happiness and that family is the most important thing in life. The novel is extremely well-written (the author is an immigrant from Cameroon herself) and I highly recommend it.
Week 10: Spot 81✔Nichole- Under Locke (SA)/ Review
✔Tara- Men In Blue (#1)/ Review
✔Lauren- The Gunslinger (#1)/ Review
✔Claire- The Bell Jar (SA)/ Review
✔Sandy- Behold the Dreamers (SA)/ Review
Week 11Roll: 1+2= 3 :(
New Spot: 84 (8th, 4th, 84th...)
Alternate- Seasonal Theme (i.e Christmas, Halloween etc)
Why does it seem like we can never have 3s, 5s, or 9s! UGH! I'll be back later.... I'm going to wait to see what my call out for another challenge is tomorrow morning before I can pick - hoping to find something to combine, rather than scrambling to finish 2 books like I was this week.....
We have a free point that we can use at any time, just say the word. I don't care when we use it and as long as everyone else is okay with it... Just let me know. I haven't posted our spot in the check in thread yet.
I don't think that's necessary at this point. Unless someone else wants to use it.
Week 11 - Spot 84I'm going to do the alternate this week - seasonal theme - and read a Christmas themed book (in August...... ::eyeroll::)
Mistletoe Murder by Leslie Meier
Pages: 240
How it fits: Christmas themed
Completion postCompletion post
# 4 in the Fjalbacka series
AuthorCamilla Läckberg
Pages: 645 p.
Date read: 14 august 2017
Rating 3 stars
Review: Another good book of Camilla lackberg. As I have read quite a few other books of the series, I allready know the characters. Sometimes I think I would have better read the series in order, so the evolution of the chracters would be more enjoyable, but too late for that:-)
What disturbed me a bit in this book ( contrary to other books of the series ) is the far-fetched story. At some times it does not feel like this could actually take place, but that could be due to the writing style. She often changes narrators, but until now it never disturbed me. Another thing I noticed is that the culprits are way too early detectable for someone who reads more often thrillers. Not a lot of surprises at the end. I enjoyed this book less than the others, so I'm curious to see if this feeling will disappear with other books of this series
Week: 11Spot: 84
Book:
by Tessa DarePages: 375
Date Read: 8/15/17
How it fits: #4 in Spindle Cove series
Rating: 4 stars
I'm really loving this series. Of course, I'm a Tessa Dare fan so I enjoy most of her books. The thing I love about Spindle Cove, a.k.a Spinster Cove, is the fact that the women there are usually strong-willed, intelligent and extremely independent. The men know, going in, that they are a handful! It makes for some very humorous moments and THAT is why I love Tessa Dare. I love humor in my romances.
This book wasn't my favorite of the series but it was still a fun read. It was pretty ridiculous with the barmaid becoming a Duchess and the whole Cinderella feel but I didn't take it too serious and was able to see beyond all that. Pauline was crass, ballsy and not the innocent flower that most heroines are in Historical romance. It was refreshing. She knew she was being used and why and she embraced it and played her part just right. Through her, Griffin was able to heal and find a new purpose. Good stuff!
Week 11 - Spot 84
Mistletoe Murder by Leslie Meier
Pages: 240
Read: Aug 13-17
Rating: 4 stars
How it fits: Christmas themed
Review: I had intended on keeping this one for closer to Christmas time to start, but I'm actually glad I didn't wait. I found this one to be a fun and cute read. I'm not sure I would classify it as a traditional cozy mystery, because it wasn't as "clean" as most cozies are... maybe that's why it appealed to me a bit more than cozies usually do. A cute read that I enjoyed and I'm looking forward to reading more from this series in the future!
Week 11, spot 844th in series
419 pages
Read 8/17/17
Rating: ★★★
Review: Time travel romance in Scotland involving a young virginal woman who accidentally awakens a Scottish laird who is under a spell and has been sleeping 500 years. Of course they fall instantly in love and travel back to his time to save him and his family. There is a lot of witty dialogue but I get annoyed by stories of falling in love in a matter of hours, as well as a virgin becoming a sex goddess in a matter of minutes.
Week 11 - Spot 84
Read: 8/17/17
Rating: 5 Stars
How it fits: #4 in series
I need to reread these more often! I love all of the in depth info / foreshadowing / everything that's not in the movies. At the same time, forgetting all the little details then getting to remember them again kind of makes it more fun. :) Also, I love that Fleur isn't such a weak character in the book (all she does in the movie is fail and cry).
Week 11: Spot 84Nichole- Any Duchess Will Do (#4)/ Review
Tara- Mistletoe Murder (Alt.-Holiday)/ Review
Lauren- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (#4)/ Review
Claire- Zusje (#4)/ Review
Sandy- Kiss of the Highlander (#4)/ Review
Week 12 Roll: 5+5=10
Using the Bonus Point
New Spot:
Alternate:
Marked as DNF at least once
Okay ladies, there is at least 1 Team that has rolled over 100 so far, so it looks like this is the end of the road. They do have to finish their reviews and all that jazz but I'm thinking they will, lol.
Actually it looks like we earned 2 more Bonus Points.✸ One point can be earned for reading three or more books in a series
Claire read 3 books from the Patrick Hedstrom series-
✸ One point can be earned for never picking a book from the alternate lists
Sandy, Nichole, Lauren
Do we have to read this week or not? Not very sure now:-)
Claire wrote: "Do we have to read this week or not? Not very sure now:-)"In past games, the teams I've been on have always read the last week... there's that slight chance that the team past 100 might not get all their reviews in and another roll would happen. I've never seen that happen, but you never know.
Claire wrote: "Do we have to read this week or not? Not very sure now:-)"Honestly, I would say that's up to you. There are 2 teams now that have rolled past 100 and are racing to win. The chances of neither team completing their books/reviews before next Friday are extremely slim. But like Tara said, it could happen. I've been on teams where we all finish our reviews anyways and I've been on teams where we just call it.
Week 12 - Spot 97
Dirty Work by Stuart Woods
Pages: 336
How it fits: #9 in the Stone Barrington series
Team 2 has won! I enjoyed playing with you all. Thank you for an easy game. Until next time!
Mod
Great playing everyone!! I really enjoyed it :) And we were so close! This is the closest I've ever gotten ... usually my team is still stuck in the 70s or 80s...we had a lot of good high number rolls!
Hopefully I'll see you all around other challenges!
The Challenge Factory
Books mentioned in this topic
Dirty Work (other topics)9th Judgement (other topics)
Zusje (other topics)
Zeemeermin (other topics)
Buried Angels (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Stuart Woods (other topics)Leslie Meier (other topics)
Tessa Dare (other topics)
Camilla Läckberg (other topics)
Leslie Meier (other topics)
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Good luck and have lots of fun!!!