R3 TEAM THREAD: Team #5 ~ Gypsies, Vamps and Thieves

[Mary X]

I'm going to try and finish my free space book tonight.

[Carlyn]

Doesn't that stamp look pretty!

[Laura Lulu]

In case you guys are interested, here's a spreadsheet I made to keep track of everyone's bingo cards. Then you don't have to go to every team thread to see how the other teams are doing in regards to chip placement. :)

All Bingo Cards

[Mary X]

Finished my Free Space book on 7/29/11.

4 Stars

I'm a Jory Strong fan and I really liked this book. What's not to like? 2 hot faeries devoted to their woman's pleasure and a murder mystery.

[A book away from an episode of hoarders]

Free Space:



Hounded by Kevin Hearne
Book Completed: July 29, 2011
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★

Hounded (Iron Druid Chronicles, #1) by Kevin Hearne

I really enjoyed this book immensely. Atticus may be ancient but he's definitely not old. Both him and Oberon were fun and I loved being in this world, albeit too briefly. I will definitely continue with this series.

[Sandra, Kindle Operator Licence Required]

Mary, what rating did you give Storm's Faeries?

[Carlyn]

I'm all hyped up and waiting for the next shelf! (checks watch again)

[Sherri]

Me to Carlyn. I feel I can't pick a book since I don't want to get tied up with something when the shelf gets announced.

[Carlyn]

Sherri wrote: "Me to Carlyn. I feel I can't pick a book since I don't want to get tied up with something when the shelf gets announced."

I know exactly what you mean! I'm now flitting about like a headless chicken because I don't have a book! LOL
Luckily enough I finished Sherrilyn Kenyon's Retribution today so I don't need to worry about finishing that on time :)

[A book away from an episode of hoarders]

I couldn't not have something to read so I grabbed an anthology of scifi stories at the library yesterday to tide me over.

[Carlyn]

I only finished Sherrilyn's about an hour ago but I'm going to look in my kindle to see if I have any shorts to read :)

[Steph, Serious series addict]

Our Next Shelf is: 'favorite series'
DIRECT LINK: 'favorite series'

Happy Reading!

[Mary X]

Yay new shelf! Off to check it out. I read a stand a lone historical romance (non paranormal) today that I knew wouldn't work for any shelves.

[A book away from an episode of hoarders]

I'm going to read

[Carlyn]

Woo hoo! Shelf time :) Okay I'm going to read
I have actually had this for a while but haven't got around to it before!

[Mary X]

I'm going to read:

[Cindy (eclecticfirefly)]

I almost chose that one too, Mary. I read it several years ago, but never read the rest of the series. I have most of them now, so will probably reread it before I continue.

[Sherri]

I know I am going to regret this, but I am going to read .

None of the books I actually need to read are on this shelf and I need to return this one to a friend. I've been putting it off, so no time like the present.

[Amanda]

Favorite series shelf: Blood Bound by Patricia Briggs

[KarenF]

Yay our first stamp!

I finished my Free Space read on 7/30/11: Guilty Pleasures by Laurell K. Hamilton ****

Somehow I missed their series back in the day. Most of the more recent books garner some harsh reviews but I saw enough people saying that early ones are worth reading so I gave it a shot. I'm glad I did because I really liked this one. The vampires are seductive and scary, which I like. I can see Anita getting to be a bit hard to take eventually so I think this is a series where I'll take a bit of a break between books. But I'll continue reading at least until they start to fall apart.

[KarenF]

Oh, and for the "Favorite Series" shelf I'll read:

[A book away from an episode of hoarders]

Shelf: Favorite Series 6/6 read

1. Mary - Slave to Sensation 08/06/11
2. Sherri - Smokin' Seventeen 08/02/11
3. Cristina - Grave Peril 08/02/11
4. Amanda - Blood Bound 08/03/11
5. Carlyn - Bad Blood 08/01/11
6. KarenF - First Drop of Crimson 08/01/11

[Amanda]

Apparently the Kate Daniels series is an insanely popular series, so I'm still waiting to get it from the library in either paperback or ebook format. : (

[Carlyn]

Amanda wrote: "Apparently the Kate Daniels series is an insanely popular series, so I'm still waiting to get it from the library in either paperback or ebook format. : ("

It is fantastic and each book is better than the last. For me there is a guy in it called Curran who is the sexiest alpha I have read about so far :)

[Steph, Serious series addict]

{Team Stats Updated}

[Carlyn]

Okay I finished my favorite series read on 01/08/11


Bad Blood by L.A. Banks

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I quite enjoyed this although it seemed a bit rough at times and it seems the story could have been pieced together a bit better. The story was good and I really liked the characters. I'm looking forward to reading the next book in the series to see if some of the more mysterious characters have a bigger role to play.



View all my reviews

[A book away from an episode of hoarders]

Carlyn wrote: "Okay I finished my favorite series read on 01/08/11


a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53..." style="float: left; padding-right: 20px">Bad Blood by L.A. Banks
My rating: 4 of 5..."

Oh honey, *hushed whisper* your html is showing

[Carlyn]

Cristina wrote: "Carlyn wrote: "Okay I finished my favorite series read on 01/08/11


a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53..." style="float: left; padding-right: 20px">Bad Blood by L.A. Banks
My..."

Oh my! My mother warned me about doing that! *blushes*

[Carlyn]

Fixed now! :)

[KarenF]

I finished my "favorite series" shelf book today 8/1/11: First Drop of Crimson ****

I really wish Goodreads did 1/2 stars. I liked this better than a 3 but not as much as other 4s. It's a B- for me. I liked Spade and Denise. I know other reviewers had an issue with Denise but to me she is just a much different heroine than Cat. She's been through a lot and is grieving. She gets hit with a lot and kind of freaks out, in a way while it's a little annoying it's probably a more realistic reaction to her circumstances than in a lot of other books. I loved a lot about Spade too, and he's sexy as hell, but he did my least favorite romance hero thing when he just decided Denise would become a vampire and never talked to her about it, then got mad when she reacted badly. But those are minor annoyances and overall I liked them together. Their story was well paced and whipped right along, especially when a lot of the Night Huntress gang showed up. From the TMI files, I did fall in love a little bit with Ian in this book. I love an unconventional hero and now I can't wait for his story.

[A book away from an episode of hoarders]

Shelf: Favorite Series



Grave Peril
Rating: ***

Review: (spoiler-free)
So, its been a little while since I read the first couple of Dresden Files books I didn't recognize right away that there seemed to be a little back story missing from this book. On the positive side, it throws you right into the action. Also, it didn't take long for the humor that I love in this series to pop up. "We've both got into the blue beetle. He got into the red door, I got into the white one." made me chuckle out loud.

I thought Thomas was a pretty interesting character. I hated his fairy godmother, although we're supposed to. I missed Murphy. I still love Bob. I even liked Michael, but this story didn't really draw me in. I started reading Saturday and I put the book down during Bianca's party. Sunday, still reading Bianca's party. Monday... yep... still at the party. Considering I read a lot of 500+ page books in one sitting, I think it says something.

I had to force myself to finish this one, its not my favorite. Even so, I might read the next in the series. I really enjoyed the first two and tbh, I'm kinda curious about what's going to happen next.

[KarenF]

Cristina wrote: "Even so, I might read the next in the series. I really enjoyed the first two and tbh, I'm kinda curious about what's going to happen next."

Oooh, oooh, read book 4. For me this is where the series really turned a corner and became a series as opposed to some interconnected books with the same lead character. I had the same continuity problem with book 3 (I went back to check if I missed a short story somewhere) but I'm really glad I kept going.

[Sherri]

Shelf: Favorite Series

Smokin' Seventeen
Book Completed: August 1, 2011
Rating: ★ ★

My favorite part of this book is on page 111, when Stephanie says “I feel like my life isn’t going anywhere.” Yep Steph, you are absolutely correct! Your life and this series are going nowhere. The antics were delightful (initially), but after 17+ books (I’m also counting the “in-between” books), I am just weary of them. All the usual gang is still there, and we do get some more Morelli and Ranger time, but nothing meaningful takes place or is said in this book. The book ends in a cliffhanger and I am reminded of a previous book (was that book 8??), where we were left thinking Stephanie may actually make a decision about her main squeeze, but didn’t.

Now, for those of you thinking that I am just hating on Steph too much, I need to point out that I initially LOVED this series. The first couple of books was cleverly written and had tons of smart humor in them. I applauded Ms. Evanovich’s writing and the uniqueness of the series. The last ten books have been formulistic and just uninspiring to me; its just the same old, same old. I am tired of Lula’s incessant “ho” routine, gluttony and people shooting. I tire of waiting for Steph to actually make a decision about her life, her job, her main man, and her apartment. Frankly, I think my main issue is with Lula, I really dislike her as a character. Since her addition to the books, it just feels that she brings Stephanie down to her level. Stephanie is not at her best with Lula, and their antics just strike me as childish and stupid.

Comedy books fall into two categories for me; the first are smartly-written, thought provoking, sarcastic and intelligent ones, while the second type are what I will loosely call stupid humor and relies on gags, common humor, physical comedy. Equating that with comedy movies; the first would be like watching the elegant comedy of Monty Python and Airplane, while the second falls in the realm of Dumb and Dumber, Jack*** and Superbad. One works for me, the other doesn’t. Even stupid movies work for me, but not 10 of them in a row.

Will I continue with this series? Probably, for one more book. However, if the insanity continues, it will probably be my last one. I debated on what to actually rank this book and I finally settled on a two star rating mainly because it was OK. The mystery was woven well into the book but was pretty elementary. I figured out who the murderer was fairly early in this book. There really was no depth added to the characters and the dialog was fairly straightforward and basic. I knew going into this book what the humor would be like, I hoped for the best, but was just delivered something mediocre. Here’s hoping that Explosive Eighteen will be better.

[A book away from an episode of hoarders]

I just revised the Master List (message 13)

[Mary X]

I like the Master List with the covers.

[A book away from an episode of hoarders]

Mary wrote: "I like the Master List with the covers."

Thanks :D

[Mary X]

I should have my Fave-series book read by the time the next shelf is called. The Australian cousins leave Thursday.

[Sandra, Kindle Operator Licence Required]

I like your cover master list too Cristina. Very nice :D

[Sandra, Kindle Operator Licence Required]

Mary wrote: "I should have my Fave-series book read by the time the next shelf is called. The Australian cousins leave Thursday."

OOOhhhh, Aussie cousins. Where from Mary? Are they in the US for a holiday? Tell us all the goss :)

[Mary X]

They're actually step-cousins. It's my step-father's nephew and his wife. My has been with him for 20+yrs now and raised his kids. So I consider his family, mine. I'm actually closer to his family than my birth fathers. (I'm close my bio father just not his family). Anyway-my stepfather is from the Seychelles Islands. He's one of 14 kids. 11 boys 3 girls. 2 of his brothers ended up in Australia. The nephew visiting is from Perth. He's in finance. They're shopping like crazy because they say everything is so much cheaper here. Tomorrow they fly to Texas to visit one of the brohers. Then next week they fly to California to visit the 3rd sister. (2 of the girls live here along with their mother). After that they fly home.

[Sandra, Kindle Operator Licence Required]

Yep, everything is cheaper in the US and with the exchange rate in our favour for a change at AUD$1 vs US$1.10, its even better.

It's really nice you get to see them, and from Perth that's a long trip. It's on the other side of the country from me. Just like NY to LA would be.

Hope you had a great visit :)

[Amanda]

Book:Blood Bound by Patricia Briggs
Completed: 8/3
Rating: ★★★★☆
Review: I know I'm only on the second book, but so far, everything just keeps getting better and better. Patricia Briggs' pacing is amazing, in my opinion, and I'm rarely left feeling that things are progressing too slowly or too quickly. That being said, this woman is killing me with the romance. I'm like an addict. She only puts in enough to drive me crazy & honestly, I have no idea how Mercy has stayed relatively chaste with two sexy weres and a vampire at her disposal. The scenes in the book with Sam were so fraught with emotion and I'm glad we get to see a glimpse of the bond Sam & Mercy used to have. Anyway, I'm probably rambling. Long story short: Awesome book but would like to see some more relationship building.

[Sandra, Kindle Operator Licence Required]

Amanda, glad you loved it, one of my fav series. The relationship building seems to take forever in this series but it does get there eventually :)

[Amanda]

Perhaps I'm just greedy, but I honestly can't pick a favorite so Mercy has my permission to just snag Adam, Sam, and Stefan for whatever she needs.

[Sherri]

No..........! Sam is all mine!

[Amanda]

I actually think I like Sam more than Adam so far, but I wouldn't say I'm "rooting" for anyone in particular.

And I'm sorry to read that the Stephanie Plum series is losing its momentum, Sherri. I'm really surprised when series that keep the same main characters wind up being over ten books long. Certainly seems like it's dragging along.

[Sandra, Kindle Operator Licence Required]

Well, Roarke & Eve never seem to have a problem and they are in the 30+ book range now. But they do have important things like murder to make it interesting.

Love the In Deaths.

[Carlyn]

Sandra wrote: "Well, Roarke & Eve never seem to have a problem and they are in the 30+ book range now. But they do have important things like murder to make it interesting.

Love the In Deaths."

I love the in death books I can't wait for the next one the title alone has me so excited :)

[Mary X]

To me while they're entertaining-they're kind of hte same book over and over again. Someone dies in a highly unprobably but entertaining way, Eve takes the case personally and it triggers bad childhood memories, Peabody annoys her, Roarke interferes after Eve tells him not to, they have sex.

Even still, I'll get the audio versions from the library.

[Carlyn]

New shelf ... new shelf ... new shelf! chant it with me people :)