The Challenge Factory discussion
♦SS Archives♦
>
R11: Team Serious Series Lovers (11)
Mod
Dice Roll (2 dice on Fridays, US Central Time)
R11 SS Post Your Spot
R11 SS Discussion Thread
Time Zone Converter
Mod
*Titles exclude leading articles like A, An, The)
❀Each number corresponds with the spot on the board.
❀ Colors: The cover has to be at least 50% Guidelines
❀ Locations: As long as the book takes part at all in the given location.
❀ Publication Years: Any edition so long as it is published in the given year according to GR.
❀ Authors' Names: The first, middle, or last name of the author is ok.
❀ Cover Items: Must have the given item on the cover
❀ Titles: Only the first word of the title. A, An, and The do not count.
LIST:
2. Title N
3. Cover Item: Furniture
4. Author L
5. South America
6. Cover: Black
7. Published 2016
8. Character has a pet
9. Cover Item: Lamp/Candle
10. Character has at least one child
11. Romance
12. Set in a place you've visited
13. GR average rating <3.6
14. Cover Item: Jewellery
15. Book that one of your teammates read shelf rated a 5-star
16. Cover: Pink
17. Four or more Words Title excluding articles like A, An, The (i.e. The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet or Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone)
18. Multi-Colored (3 or More Colors)
19. North America
20. Title G
21. Cover Item: Animal
22. Historical
23. Female Author
24. Cover: Green
25. Published 2015
26. Non-Fiction
27. Cover Item: Two or more people
28. Author uses their middle name/initial (e.g. Robert J. Sawyer, Rita Mae Brown)
29. Cover: Red
30. Cover Item: Water
31. Young Adult/New Adult
32. Set in a Fictional Location/Universe
33. Africa
34. Seasonal Theme (i.e Christmas, Halloween etc)
35. Author I
36. GR average rating >4.0
37. Number in the Title (i.e. Third Grave Dead Ahead or Every Fifteen Minutes)
38. Originally published in a language other than English
39. School/College/University
40. Cover Item: Food/Drink
41.Title B
42. Cover Item: Weapon
43. LGBTQ+
44. Author W
45. Published 2011-2012
46. Cover: White
47. Published 2019
48. Australia
49. Author D
50. Cover: Blue
51. Published 2017
52. Cover Item: One person
53. Author R
54. Published before 1950
55. Favorite Author
56. One Word Title excluding articles like A, An, The (i.e. The Witness or Divergent)
57. Cover: Yellow/Gold
58. Mystery/Thriller
59. Author H
60. Asia
61. Several authors
62. Author A
63. Award winner (must state which/when)
64. New to you author
65. Published 2013
66. Title V
67. Cover Item: Book
68. Published the year you were born
69. Title C
70. Cover Item: Mode of Transportation
71. Title F
72. Published between 2001 and 2010
73. Cover Item: Hands/Arms/Feet/Legs (no other body parts visible)
74. Book to Movie/TV (must state how book qualifies i.e. listopia or precis)
75. Male Author
76. Two Word Title excluding articles like A, An, The (i.e. Deadly Silence or The Hunger Games)
77. Title J
78. Cover: Purple
79. Debut Novel or Debut Author
80. Cover Item: Instrument
81. Title K
82. Cover Item: Building
83. Published between 1950 and 2000
84. Author O
85. Cover: Grey/Silver
86. Title T
87. Cover Item: Sun/Moon
88. Sci-Fi
89. Title E
90. Cover: Orange
91. Published 2014
92. Three Word Title excluding articles like A, An, The (i.e. Behind Closed Doors or Etched in Bone)
93. Europe
94. Author P
95. Cover Item: Dress
96. Fantasy
97. Cover Item: Hat/Helmet/Other Headwear
98. Author M
99. Cover Item: Plant
100. Author S
101. Four or more Words Title excluding articles like A, An, The (i.e. The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet or Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone)
102. Cover: Brown
103. Published 2014
104. Author B
105. Title L
106. Romance
107. Award Winner (must state which/when)
108. Cover: Green
109. Title A
110. Favorite Author
111. Author Y
Mod
✸ Communication is key. Please make sure to check in regularly with your team.
✸ Let your team know if it looks like you won't get your review posted by Thursday, 11:59pm. You do have all of Friday to submit your review, but it can be intensely frustrating for your captain if they don't know when or if they can expect your review before the deadline.
✸ If you know beforehand that you won't be able to read and review a book during a certain week, you can request a pre-arranged absence from me, either by posting the request in the discussion thread or by sending me a pm. The request has to be submitted before the team rolls for the week in question, can only be approved by me as the mod in charge of running the game, and has to state a reason for the absence. (Reasons for pre-arranged absences can include e.g. going on vacation or work trips, planned hospital stays, exam period, etc.)
✸ If you do not have a pre-arranged absence and won't be able to finish your book in time for an unforeseen reason, please let your team know as soon as possible. If the team has earned the free pass, it can be used to cover the missing review. Without a free pass, the team has to sit out the next roll.
✸ We all know that real life gets in the way sometimes, be it through family emergencies, work emergencies, natural disasters, technical problems making it impossible to get online, or in other ways. That being said, please do keep in mind that this is a team challenge and your team relies on you to do your part unless an emergency occurs.
✸ If you find that the pressure of keeping up with the pace of the game gets too much for you or you wish to stop playing for any other reason, you can drop out of the challenge at any time. In that case, please let your team captain and/or me know that you wish to drop out rather than just disappearing without a word so your team won't be penalized when you fail to turn in your review. Thank you!
Captain's Handbook
✸ The team's captain is its chief organizer. This includes rolling the dice, posting the team's new spot to the team thread and the Post Your Spot thread, collecting links to team members' review posts in a single post to be linked in the Post Your Spot thread, doublechecking that books and review posts comply with requirements, reminding team members to post their reviews in time if necessary, etc.
✸ The captain may delegate some tasks, such as rolling and posting the new spot to the team thread, to another team member if they so choose. (Either a designated roller who fulfills this role every week, or whichever team member is online first once rolling is possible.) Collecting reviews into a single post and posting to the Post Your Spot thread should always be handled by the captain.
✸ Instead of having everything handled by a single team captain, teams can also choose two co-captains to handle the workload.
✸ Selection posts are not strictly required by the game's rules and I won't be checking for them. It's up to the team captain to decide whether they want them.
✸ If the team captain requests a pre-arranged absence, it's their responsibility to arrange for another team member to step in as temporary captain.
✸ The team captain is my primary point of contact for the team and should allow receiving private messages.
Hi all, This has been fun in the past. Looking forward to starting.
I have another team challenge going that is pretty busy, so I would prefer not to be captain.
Team name suggestions:
Serious Series Lovers
Series Readers, Seriously
It's All in the Series
1,2,3... etc, etc, etc
Hi team. Looking forward to playing with you. I am new to this, so it is probably best if I am not team captain. I will need some time to get the hang of this.
Hi everyone, I'm Rosaline! I got added to the group last minute, hence I am invisibale at the moment! XDThis is my first time doing this challenge so I also prefer not to be team captain.
I like the names "Serious Series Lovers" and "Series Readers, Seriously"!
Very excited to play with y'all! :)
Mod
Sorry about that, fixed now! XD
Denise wrote: "Rosaline wrote: "Hi everyone, I'm Rosaline! I got added to the group last minute, hence I am invisibale at the moment! XD"Sorry about that, fixed now! XD"
Hehe, thank you! :D
BONUS POINTS:✸ One point can be earned for reading three or more books in a series.
✸ One point can be earned for reading a book with >500 pages.
✸ One point can be earned for starting and finishing a series. There must be at least 4 books in that series. Series + spin-off totalling ≥4 books also counts. For series with >9 books, point will be awarded for reading books 1-9. For still ongoing series, all books published to date (OR up to #9 in longer series) must be read.~ No re-reads on this one.
✸ 2 in 1: One point can be earned for reading a book that fits both the series number and the alternate for the spot you are on.
✸ One point can be earned for never picking a book from the alternate lists. This point is awarded when your team rolls past 90.
✸ Halloween Bonus: One point can be earned for reading a Horror/Paranormal/Urban Fantasy book for the roll on 10/25.
NOTE:
✸ Each point can only be earned once per team.
✸ The series-specific bonus points (3 or more books/ starting and finishing a series) must be two different series.
✸ Single book bonuses (>500 pages/ Halloween/ 2 in 1) may overlap with a series bonus.
Hi everyone, waving from tropical northern Australia where it is a glorious winter's day. I also am unable to captain as for the next month I am travelling. I will be able to check in the required times but not much more than that.
Hi team, looking forward to playing this round with everyone.
has it been decided who is gonna be captain
Sure
Two people liked Serious Series Lovers. I'm ok with that. Anyone else want to voice a choice?
Linda C wrote: "Two people liked Serious Series Lovers. I'm ok with that. Anyone else want to voice a choice?"Sounds good!
Serious Series Lovers sounds good to me too.
Week 1Roll: 5+4= 9
Previous Spot: n/a
Current Spot: 9
Bonus Points Earned: 1
Bonus Points Used: 0
#9 in series
Alt: 9. Cover Item: Lamp/Candle
6/6
Delitealex The Night Is Watching by Heather Graham 9/3/19 4 stars Review
Loriidae Twilight's Dawn by Anne Bishop 9/3/19 4 stars Review
Linda C Once in a Lifetime by Jill Shalvis 9/5/19 Review
Amanda A Southern Potions by Amy Boyles 9/1/19 3 1/2 stars Review
Ira Phantom by Jo Nesbo 9/5/19 Review
Rosaline The Sign of the Twisted Candles by Carolyn Keene 8/31/19 2 1/2 stars Review
Bonus
Rosaline
✸ 2 in 1: One point can be earned for reading a book that fits both the series number and the alternate for the spot you are on.
Week 1Spot #9
Book: The Sign of the Twisted Candles by Carolyn Keene
Qualification: Nancy Drew Mystery Stories #9 and candle on the cover
Pages: 190
Finished: 31 Aug 2019
Rating: ★★ and a half
Review:
I just popped my Nancy Drew cherry and it went basically how I expected it to go. Only more boring!
Nancy's great mystery was about an old man with a lot of money and his family fighting with each other and waiting for him to die so they could have a share of his fortune. Meanwhile a young girl named Carol is the only one who actually cares about the old man.
Please tell me you already can't tell what's going to happen?
Maybe this book was exciting back when it was written, but I find it to be boring now.
I did not like the writing style. Nancy thought too much to herself "dialogue style" and kept deciding to investigate. That's it! That's the depth of her character. The other characters were all one dimensional and way too flat. Carol was just a tree truck! She had only one purpose, and that's just lazy writing!
Honestly, I appreciate the legendariness of the series, but it wasn't that good of a mystery. Perhaps my kid self would've enjoyed this more. Or not! I've always been very critical of books.
I still don't think this is a bad book. It is enjoyable in its own right and can be consumed quite fast. Maybe the other books in the series could be better even. So yay for my first Nancy Drew book! I may come back to this series for something fast and mindless in the future.
(https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...)
______
So I guess this qualifies for 2 in 1 bonus?
Mod
Denise wrote: "It does indeed! :)"Awesome! XD
Still need selection posts fromTwinkle (no longer playing)
Sorry, I didn't forget. Just had to wait until September to read it for other challenges.Spot 9
Southern Potions by Amy Boyles (Sweet Tea Witch Mysteries #9)
208 pages
Spot 9Southern Potions by Amy Boyles (Sweet Tea Witch Mysteries #9)
Date Read: 9/1
Rating: ★★★½
This installment was my favorite of the series so far. Pepper has been working on her potion for the annual Potion-Making Contest and hopes it will help her communicate with Axel while he is in wolf form. After a sorceress is murdered at the contest, Pepper investigates with Axel's help and also tries to find out how she can turn her grandmother back into her human form. The wacky antics of the characters are entertaining. The mystery was intriguing even though the reveal was a little predictable.
Sorry for being late. I had visitors in the weekend, so it got a little busy.Spot 9
Phantom by Jo Nesbø
How it qulifies: It is book nr 9. in the Harry Hole Series
Pages: 378
Spot: 9 Completion Post
Twilight's Dawn by Anne Bishop
Qualification: #9 The Black Jewels series
Pages: 435
Review: Sometimes at the end of a trilogy I wonder, well yes I've got a happy ending but I would love to know more about what happens to these characters and what happens next in their lives. That's what this anthology began as, stories set in a favourite world, after the happy ending.
The first story welcomed all the characters from the first six books for a festive celebration story. In the next story I liked seeing how the secondary characters dealt with the PTSD and other injuries that had occurred, but weren't dealt with as I, the reader was more interested in the HEA of the main couple. It served to round out the trilogy and gave it depth. Unfortunately, the third and final stories became more about tying up loose ends and moving full circle and finished a bit cutesy and did not have the punch of the initial books.
Read: Sep 3
Rating: ★★★★✰
The Night Is Watching by Heather GrahamQualification: #9 in the Krewe of hunters series
Read: 9/3/19
Rating: 4 stars
Review
Sloan is the Sheriff of a small historic town in Arizona. Strange things start to happen which brings in Jane a forensic artist from the FBI. I really liked trying to figure out what was happening. I'm liking this series and am looking forward to continuing.
Twinkle is no longer playing. We will get a replacement week 2.
Week 1 is almost done don't forget to get your reviews in so we can roll on time
Hello all!Sounds like I will be joining you starting for week 2.
Spot 9 Completion post Book: Phantom
Author: Jo Nesbø
Qualification: #9 in the Harry Hole Series
Pages: 378
Finished: 5/9/19
Review: Harry Hole has moved to Hong Kong to avoid his past, but when the son of the love of his life is accused of murder he returns to Oslo to solve the case. Those scandinavian crime novels are very addictive and this was not an exception. I was very interested throughout the novel and wanted to know who the killer.
The book has different perspectives and in the beggining I must admit I was a bit confused, but it did make sense in the end. I really enjoyed the story and the characters. It had everything I like in a crime novel, but it didn't stand out in any particular way. It met my expectations and I realy enjoyed the experience of reading this book.
We're just waiting for one more review.
Spot 9 Completion PostBook: Once in a Lifetime
Author: Jill Shalvis
Qualification: #9 in the Lucky Harbor series
Pages: 352
Finished: 9/5/19
Review: Aubrey Wellington has decided to reopen her aunt's bookstore but making it a more social hangout for clubs and groups. Her uncle hires Ben McDaniel to help renovate it. Ben has spent the last 5 years since his wife died building water systems around the world and has decided it's time to resettle at home in Lucky Harbor. Aubrey had a troubling reputation in high school and has decided to own up to her mistakes and try to make up to the people she wronged. Her history is not as bad as she feels it was as she discovers as she approaches the people on her list. Ben, however, is on the list and he is someone she has the hardest time coming to terms with. Very emotional story. Loved the drama and side characters.
Good job team. All reviews are in completion post is updated. I will be rolling at midnight.
Mod
Week 2Roll: 5+5= 10
Previous Spot: 9
Current Spot: 19
Bonus Points Earned: 2
Bonus Points Used: 0
#1 or #9 in series or a standalone
Alt: 19. North America
7/7
Delitealex Gnarled Hollow by Charlotte Greene 9/8/19 4 stars Review
Loriidae A Fashionable Affair by Caroline Linden 9/7/19 3 stars Review
Linda C Tennessee Takedown by Lena Diaz 9/9/19 4 stars Review
Amanda A The 9th Judgement by james Patterson 9/7/19 3 stars Review
Ira The Red Knight by Miles Cameron 9/12/19 4 stars Review
Rosaline Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins 9/7/19 3 stars Review
Alison (Lady Coffin) The Silver Stag by Yasmine Galenorn 9/9/19 4 stars Review
Bonus
Ira
The Red Knight 650 pages
One point can be earned for reading a book with >500 pages
Week 2Spot #19
Book: Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins
Qualification: #1 in Underland Chronicles series
Pages: 326
Finished: 7 Sep 2019
Rating: ★★★
Review:
Well, what do you know? This was one interesting read!
Gregor the Overlander is about a boy who falls down a
The Underland sounds very interesting, and I was naturally excited to learn more about this cool land of filth. As a kid I've wondered a lot about "what lives beyond the sewers"? But as an adult Gregor the Overlander lacked a certain magic for me. Or as my dear Caitlyn would say, it didn't have the "oomph" required for a book to truly wow me. Or at the very least satisfy me.
What I liked about the book:
● The idea of Underland and how it was written in a way that made me actually believe such a thing could happen and such a place could exist. (I kid you not, as I was reading it, I was really feeling like I did as a kid when I truly believed I could travel to Alice's Wonderland if I could just jump down a rabbit hole! )
● The book was entertaining and I finished it in one sitting.
What I didn't like about the book:
● The trope of young boy ending up in a magical place and somehow being the chosen one who will bring salvation to an entire population of capable adults.
● The trope of the Chosen One never accepting his fate.
● The fact that the book was extremely predictable to a point where I felt like I was reading it for the second time. Or the thousands time!
● Mr. Chosen One the hero annoyed me to no end with his dumb righteousness and boring inner dialogue.
● MC Chosen Pants thoughts in "quotation marks" annoyed me to no end and distracted me from my enjoyment of the book! Can y'all MCs stop thinking like you're talking? You're not having a conversation, you are thinking! This is the one thing I can't stand when reading. Complete laziness and lack of consideration for my sanity.
Anyways, overall the book was good enough! It was just not that great. Maybe if I'd read it when I was a child I would've liked it better, but as it was Gregor the Overlander was an entertaining read and I do recommend it to people exploding with underworked imagination in need of something new to devour who also don't mind the points I mentioned.
Week 2 - Spot #19
Book: Tennessee Takedown
Author: Lena Diaz
Qualification: #1 in Tennessee SWAT series
Pages: 224
The Challenge Factory
Books mentioned in this topic
Scourged (other topics)Shadow's End (other topics)
Lord Edgware Dies (other topics)
It Had to Be You (other topics)
Window to Danger (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Agatha Christie (other topics)Agatha Christie (other topics)
Kevin Hearne (other topics)
Jill Shalvis (other topics)
Kevin Hearne (other topics)
More...
Captain: Delitealex
Loriidae
Linda C
Amanda A
Ira
RosalineAlison (Lady Coffin)
Twinkle(view spoiler)[
Used 10/18 (hide spoiler)]
Bonus Points:
Earned: 4
Used: 0