75 Books...More or Less! discussion
Archive (2012 Challenge)
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Stacie H's proof of reading addiction, 2012 ed
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Stacie, sounds like a very good plan. Like you, I need to focus in on some books I already own in 2012!
Reading over everybody's folders all I can say is:ACK! I feel so far behind!! (breathe, breathe... it's only January 7th... and it's not a race... breathe... breathe... lol. Sorta ;p)
1.
The Book of Deacon This book starts out strong with a sympathetic, if somewhat gullible, protagonist and a quick pace. Unfortunately, the pace quickens to the point where everything seems forced and all of the characters introduced are high-octane stereotypes (or genre archetypes, if you are feeling generous). The book's biggest failing is that it tries to do too much, to move the characters too quickly and to make them too powerful... too epic. There are a few minor editing errors but they aren't too glaring (and honestly, the quality is much better than what I've come to expect out of Smashwords publishing). Overall, despite it's flaws it was entertaining enough- and the author showed enough promise- that I purchased the second book (wow... the 'slow down on buying books' resolution certainly didn't last very long, LOL! It was a stupid resolution, anyway. At least I've kept up with my 'get more exercise' one... so far).
Mod
Sounds like many of us really want to tackle reading the books we own!
2.
The Great Convergence This book was... how do I put this nicely? All of the good/promising aspects from the first book were missing, and all of the flaws were multiplied (at least as far as plot and style are concerned... the grammar did improve slightly). I highly doubt I'll be reading the third book of the trilogy. It annoys me that I paid for this and can't even say I cleared something off of my TBR list since it was a new purchase this year. Sigh.
Stacie wrote: "3. 
Paranormalcy Cute and fluffy :) It reminds me a lot of Buffy (which, for me, is a good thing!)"Oooh, I like the sound of things that remind people of Buffy! I'll have to check that one out. :)
Most of the challenges I'm in this year are for reading books off my TBR pile, including the goal to read 40 books I owned before Jan. 1, 2012. I haven't bought a single book so far this year! It's so hard!
Lianne wrote: "Oooh, I like the sound of things that remind people of Buffy!..."
It was a lot of fun. I will clarify, though, that it reminded me of Buffy the character more than the show as a whole. The main character is very Buffyesque but without her Scoobies ;) I'm definitely looking forward to getting my hands on the next two books in the series.
So far this year I've read three books off of Mt. TBR. Yay, right? Now, anyone want to take a guess at how many new books I've purchased? ::Facepalm:: I'm never gonna get through the pile...
5.
Spectrum 11: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic Art Not from Mt. TBR, but at least it's not a new purchase! I really like the Spectrum art books, so it's a good thing I know someone who collects them and lets me raid his library :)
6.
The Devouring I really enjoyed this one, and I'm glad I finally got around to reading it! There's a high gore factor (even within the context of the story it's imaginary, but still... waaaay icky ;p) and the characters and plot twists are predictable... but in a satisfying way instead of a lazy way, if that makes sense. This reminded me of a lot of the horror movies I watched when I was a teen... not the 'splatterpunk' genre where the point was to kill off as many people in as disgusting a way as possible, but the ones where the point of the horror was to show the strength of the characters and give them something fantastically terrible that they had to struggle with and overcome. And I liked that this story was not another YA romance :) Don't get me wrong, I have no objections to romance, lol... but it's nice to have stories that have other types of plots too.
7.
Supernaturally Does it count as 'not adding to my TBR pile' if I bought and finished the book on the same day?This was cute, but really more of a set up for future books. Not much going on beyond Evie growing up a little bit... still, the character voice is fun and the world being set up is interesting. I am looking forward to the third book in the series... but I'm going to read something from my TBR list before I go out and buy it! (maybe, lol)
I consider myself to be not adding to my pile as long as I read everything I buy within a month, and also chip away at the older books. Goodness knows, if I could just stop buying books altogether I could get through my pile in a few years no problem.
8.
Inside Out I enjoyed it, but it wasn't anything overwhelming. The writing was solid but the story was... average.
9.
The Waste Land and Other Poems I'm not sure 'like' is the right word for this. It was powerful with striking, unforgettable imagery... but it's like quicksand; seems harmless until it wraps around you and pulls you down into dark places you might never get out of.
10.
Retribution When am I going to learn not to do this? I love the games (and am beyond eagerly awaiting the next installment in March) but the books... they're just... pointless.
Stacie wrote: "4. 
Hush Money Predictable, but entertaining none the less. I'm a sucker for superhero stories ;)"I agree...short and predictable, but I really enjoyed it. That kind of thing is right up my alley.
11.
The Modern Scholar: Eternal Chalice- the Grail in Literature and Legend This was okay... There were some minor annoyances in the production (I found Professor Potkay's diction mildly irritating and she kept using the name of one character when referring to a different one... you always knew who she meant, but still, irritating), and she does the exact same thing she mocks one of her sources for, but I think my biggest problem getting through this, though, is that I just don't care about 'Holy Grail' stories. Not an engrossing listen, but not a waste of time either.
12.
Star Trek and Philosophy: The Wrath of Kant This was actually finished back in January but I forgot to post it. It was fun, humorous, and I actually learned a lot about philosophy :)
Stacie wrote: "12. Star Trek and Philosophy: The Wrath of Kant This was actually finished back in January but I forgot to post it. I..."I read this one last year. It took me forever! I really thought I'd like it more than I did, since I'm a very enthusiastic trekkie, and I also like philosophy, but I actually enjoyed very few of the essays. I find most of them were either way too first-year-philosophy, or they went over my head! Not many were just right for me.
Lianne wrote: "Stacie wrote: "12. Star Trek and Philosophy: The Wrath of Kant This was actually finished back in January but I forgot..."Since I'm in the 'first-year-philosophy' camp, it was just right for me ;D
Stacie wrote: "Since I'm in the 'first-year-philosophy' camp, it was just right for me ;D"Haha, fair enough. I took a minor in philosophy in university, so I guess I'd learned just enough to make a lot of the essays boring.
13.
Modern Scholar: Citadels of Power The Castle in History and Archeology These types of things are usually right up my alley: a subject I'm interested in, by a lecturer who is very knowledgeable and who enjoys his subject... so it came as an unpleasant surprise how boring it was :/
75 Books...More or Less!
Books mentioned in this topic
Different Seasons (other topics)Citadels of Power: The Castle in History and Archeology (other topics)
Star Trek and Philosophy: The Wrath of Kant (other topics)
Star Trek and Philosophy: The Wrath of Kant (other topics)
Star Trek and Philosophy: The Wrath of Kant (other topics)
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This year I'm going to try to make sure that half of what I read this year comes from the piles of books I already own! 38 books off of Mt.TBR is reasonable, right? ;) (BTW, I'm totally counting the books I got for Christmas since I received them prior to this resolution! lol)
I'll probably be reading YA books again this year but I won't be doing a specific YA challenge. I much prefer reading books that sound interesting, and that happen to be YA, than looking for YA books that happen to sound interesting.