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R3: SS Stuck to Books (11)
Date Read: 4th Sept
Rating: 5 stars
Review:
Awesome book! Great Love story. I started it yesterday morning and couldn't stop reading the whole day until I finished it. This book has been on my TBR shelf for too long. Thanks to this tattoo cover requirement I finally came around to read it. :D
Is that review okay or do need to add something else?
Among the Mad by Jacqueline Winspear
#6 in the Maisie Dobbs series
Finished: 9/4/14
Rating: Five Stars
This series never gets boring or repetitive. In this installment, private detective Maisie Dobbs is trying to solve two harrowing mysteries - both caused by mental scars. One the one hand, she's working with the British secret service to ward off what is beginning to look like a potential chemical terrorist attack by a mentally deranged ex-veteran. On the other hand, her assistant Billy Beale's wife, Doreen, has gone off the deep end over the death of the couple's little girl. Doreen attempts to harm herself and is hustled away to a mental institution that is too old fashioned in it's approach to its patients. Maisie must work to get her transferred to an institution that can truly help Doreen heal.
Maisie was a nurse in WWI, so she has special insight into the mental and physical scars its veterans carry. Times are also economically hard - its 1931 and, to add to their troubles, many veterans are out of work. Many feel abandoned by their government and society at large. It's this volatile mixture that spawns the twisted killer who is experimenting with noxious gases as a means to garner attention to his misery.
Maisie a skilled sleuth, with a very calm, almost zen-like approach to solving crimes. This type of character could easily turn kooky or saintly, therefore unbelievable. The author manages to make her human and credible.
Good job team! Looks like we are ready to roll. :D
I rolled a 7 (5+2) and we are now on spot 13Read: Series #1 or #3 or #13 OR a stand alone can count as #1
OR
13. Cover Item Smoke
Rose wrote: "
Jocelynn Drake
Finished 9/4/14
Rating: ★
Review
Honestly, if it hadn’t been for the challenge I would have DNFed this book within two chapters. I ..."
I'm starting Storm Front towards the end of the month, unless it falls into another one of our rolls. I've heard great things about the series!
Sha-Totally worth it. It's a really well thought out series, and the characters are awesome. The only downside is the wait after every book. It's going to be something like 20 books in the end.
I have storm front on my TBR too. How many books are out till now?
Technically, you could both read Storm Front this turn and make a buddy read out of it :) The series is at 15 books right now. They have been coming out once a year for the last few. The first three aren't as good as the later books, but I still liked them a lot (and way the heck more than last weeks book).
I really love long series. But the book I'm reading right now can be used for my SSS book task as well. So storm front for later ;)
The book I'm reading now is also for a local Bookclub so Storm Front will have to wait a bit. Everyone has said that the first 2-3 are not the best but that it gets really good afterwards. So good to know!
The audio versions of Harry are the way to go. James Marsters is the best narrator! He totally brings Harry to life and I can't imagine "reading" a Harry book now.
Ugh, my choice is very slow going. Small Island won several awards, so I had high hopes for it. The main characters aren't very attractive right now. I'll keep at it and hope things improve.
Book Read:
by Douglas AdamsDate Completed: 7th Sept
Rating: ★★★
Review: Short, funny and entertaining - it's the second Science fiction novel I've ever read. I loved the way it was written. The experts for the "book" - The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy were hugely entertaining. I liked Zaphod the most-don't ask why, I just did :P
Also Marvin the Depressed robot! :D
Week 2Spot 13
by Vanessa Diffenbaugh Finished 9/9/14
Rating: ★★★★★
Review:
I had to read this book for my local bookclub so I figured I'd kill two birds with one stone since I had no desire to read this book. I must say that it was NOTHING like I expected. This is a story about Victoria who has gone through life as an orphan trying to find out who she is and what life has in store for her. She goes through some difficult life events but her sanity and will come from her natural ability to connect to and communicate through flowers. The book sounded so strange and boring to me but from the very beginning, I simply couldn't put it down. What a wonderful surprise this book was!
Week 2Spot 13
Finished 9/9/14
Rating: ★★★★★
Review:
I got wrapped up in this story right away, and it was a quick read for me. I wouldn't call it an "easy" read necessarily, because I did feel a little stressed out while I was reading this due to the subject matter. I couldn't imagine living with the guilt and worry and lies for so many years! Around the second half of the story I felt a little disengaged in comparison to the first half, but I still enjoyed it. I found a majority of the characters annoying and/or unlikable in the second half of the story, and I found myself getting really frustrated with them. The reason I gave 5 stars is because I really enjoyed reading this book, and felt a lot of emotion while reading.
I'll fill this in as we go, so it's easier to keep track.Team 11:
Spot:13
Reviews:
Rose -Review
Sha -Review
Hilary - Review
Marty - Review
Arshiya - Review
Spot 13Small Island by Andrea Levy
Finished: 9/10/14
Rating: Three stars
Review:
This book was a chore to read for the first half of it. The second half was better but really didn't interest me much until the end. True, the author wanted to give us ample time to get to know Hortense, Gilbert, Queenie and Bernard in their own words. However, I think that the entire thing could have been done in about half the page count.
None of the characters is particularly attractive at the beginning. Hortense is well-educated and refined, but also unbearably stuck-up. Gilbert, a former RAF soldier, is a good man, but has little understanding of his wife, and he tends to build castles in the air that he can't possibly deliver. Queenie, his landlord, is good to those in need, despite their economic or racial backgrounds. Unfortunately, she can be overbearing and sometimes thoughtlessly puts herself and others at risk of disaster. Her husband, Bernard, is the least sympathetic - a largely ineffectual husband with very racist views.
The book alternates from the 'present day' of 1948 and flashbacks to the lives of all four characters, which explain who they are and why they came to be in the same house in Great Britain after World War II. The climax of the story centers on Bernard's belated return from the war. Outraged that his wife has rented rooms in their house to the Jamaican couple, Bernard wants Hortense and Gilbert out immediately. Queenie desperately wants them to stay. Eventually, a stunning event forces them all to reevaluate their future plans as well as their relationships to one another.
The ending was no surprise - I saw it coming about halfway through the book. I did enjoy the glimpse into the lives of Jamaican immigrants just after the war, something that I knew very little about. The historical details were interesting as well. I gave it three stars rather than two on the strength of those two elements, plus the engaging last quarter of the book.
DustBy Hugh Howey
Finished 9.11.14
Review- 3 stars
I really have been looking foreword to this book. This is the third and last book in the Silo series (which started with Wool). Wool was an awesome book, one of the best I read last year. It is a distopian where humanity lives in huge underground silos, and have forgotten what the world was like before. In Shift, the second book, you learn how the silos came to be made and what happened to the world. This book ties it all together, and reveals the last secrets of the silos. As much as I liked finally finishing this series, I didn't find this book as enjoyable as the first ones. Something was off about the passing. I think it was because booth story lines came crashing into each other, and I felt way more curious about one over the other. This might be a case where the reread is actually more enjoyable than the "I HAVE TO KNOW" first read.
All in :)I really need to stop making this challenge's books the second book of the week. Bad Rose
Sorry guys I kinda forgot that we had to roll today. Crazy date yesterday. I'm rolling right now :P
Rolled a 4 (1+3).Now on spot 17
->Read a series #1 or #7 or #17.
->Read a stand alone.
->Read a book published in 2001
Rose can you link the reviews post and post our spot in the Post your Spot thread? I'm on my phone right now :)
I'm going to read stand alone
I am going to read a stand alone too
.
I'm going to read a stand alone too :)
Well, I thought I had my selection on the shelf but looks like I don't. LOL- so I'm continuing with #7 in the Stephanie Plum series...
Sha wrote: "Well, I thought I had my selection on the shelf but looks like I don't. LOL- so I'm continuing with #7 in the Stephanie Plum series..."That's okay Sha. It happens to me too! I pick a pick and then I can't find it's pdf or epub anywhere! :)
Date Completed: 14th Sept
Rating: ★★★
Review: Frankly speaking I picked this book first because of it's cover. I mean come on! Look at that cover! How can you resist that? (Yeah I'm a pretty conceited person when it comes to books :P) When I read the synopsis I was more eager to read it. So when I got a chance, I grabbed it. And I was not disappointed....Atleast not that much.
I liked Grace and Julian(her best friend). Also liked Callahan but for some reason not that much. Grace's family though...hilarious and deeply embarrassing :P
Loved how Grace seemed to accidentally (the first time was intentional though :P) injure Callahan every time they meet in the beginning. Also Angus-you spoiled yet adorable dog :loved you! What I loved most was the moment Callahan & Grace FINALLY get together. Sooo romantic. *sigh*
It would have been a 4 starer atleast - if I had seen Callahan some more. Also though this book was really good it just didn't seem like a 4 starer. :)
How are everyone's books coming along? :-)
So far so good with mine! I will probably be done by tomorrow.
That's a very interesting title Hilary. :D
I am still waiting to find out what the 'lies' part is. I have read about the love and the lemon cake... so we'll see where the lies fit in!
Roll is tomorrow guys. I'll be in college at that time so will roll after coming home. Can everyone get their reviews in by then?
I'm done with mine. I just need to write the review.
Week 3Spot 17
Finished 9/18/14
Rating: ★★
Review:
This story was just ok. There were several "laugh out loud" moments, but only in the first half or so. The story almost seemed to change tones as it progressed, going from funny chick lit to more a more serious romance type. The ending of the story was fabulous, though. Throughout the story there are yummy descriptions of foods that were fun to read about. The characters in the story were pretty funny and full of life (Mandy & Sue). I do have a few things that bothered me during the story... First, the title... the Love and Lemon cake was obvious... but I am just not sure where the lies fit in. Near the end, the main character, Faye, even uses that phrase, and I wanted to ask her "what lies??". Also, the story seemed really repetitive. Faye really fixated on her starting over, becoming a new person, etc. It was basically like an obsession to her and it got a little tiring rereading the same thoughts over and over again. I was also getting really annoyed reading about her advanced age of 42. She really went on and on about this too. Her romantic interest, Dan, was 33 years old. Yes, he is younger... but a 33 year old man is not a child or barely legal or anything like that. At one point she even referred to him as a kid. To hear Faye and her friends talk, you would think she was 65 or something. So overall, I think this story missed the mark for me.
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The Challenge Factory
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Jocelynn Drake
Finished 9/4/14
Rating: ★
Review
Honestly, if it hadn’t been for the challenge I would have DNFed this book within two chapters. I just have a pile of much better things to read. The premise of the book is actually pretty cool. A warlock has decided to give up training and opens up his own (magically laced) tattoo shop. There he tries to avoid violating his deal with the snobby, sociopathic warlocks/witches and pines over his elf employee. However, where this book goes wrong is in the execution. The scenes between the warlock and elf are really, really awkward (yes, even the sex), and the magical element just isn't very well explained. Basically, what could be a really cool magical atmosphere (with things like Minatar bartenders dealing pixie derived drugs) gets a back seat to the main character’s random emoting. The writing isn’t horrible, but I have never seen so many “I”s in one book (it is written from his point of view) which doesn’t help you get into the story. Okay, that was more ranty than I meant it to be. Basically, go read the Dresden Files instead.