ARC August Check in #3 – 8/13-8/20

What a productive week. I’m so glad that I got to spend the week in Maine relaxing with my family and having a great time. And luckily while relaxing there was a lot of available time for catching up on my reading! I read about a book a day, though not all counted for this challenge. Since I didn’t have any wi-fi or electricity in Maine, I spent all of today catching up on blog posts.

My Progress:

I didn’t really have an exact plan for what I would read but I will go off the original list posted and just disclose any variations from said original list:

-The Secret Ingredient of Wishes by Susan Elizabeth Crispell – Read and reviewed – Week 2
-Results May Vary by Bethany Chase – Read and reviewed – Week 2
-Sting by Sandra Brown – Read and reviewed
-The Form of Things Unknown by Robin Bridges – Read and reviewed
-Quarter Life Poetry by Samantha Jayne – Read and reviewed
-Behave by Andromeda Romano-Lax
-Thirty Days to Thirty by Courtney Psak
-All the Missing Girls by Megan Miranda – Read and reviewed
-Dear Amy by Helen Callaghan
-The Killing Game by Nancy Bush
-Luck, Love, and Lemon Pie by Amy E. Reichert
-The Singles Game by Lauren Weisberger
-If You Left by Ashley Prentice Norton
-All Is Not Forgotten by Wendy Walker
-To Have and To Hold by Laura McHugh
-The Book That Matters Most by Ann Hood
-My Husband’s Son by Deborah O’Connor
-First Comes Love by Emily Giffin
-Stormswept by Sabrina Jeffries
-Once a Soldier by Mary Jo Putney
Additions to original list:
-I’ve Got Sand In All the Wrong Places by Lisa Scottline and Francesca Serritella – Read and reviewed
-The 24-Hour Wine Expert by Jancis Robinson
-Butter and Scotch by Allison Kave and Keavy Landreth
-I Take You by Eliza Kennedy

Books Read August 13th-20th

I’ve Got Sand in ALl the Wrong Places by Lisa Scottoline and Francesca Serritella – 2.5 stars
Sting by Sandra Brown – 4.25 stars
The Form of Things Unknown by Robin Bridges – 3.75 stars
Quarter Life Poetry by Samantha Jayne – 3.25 stars
All The Missing Girls by Megan Miranda – 4.75 stars

Plan for Upcoming Week

My plan for next week is to try and get a couple more books read off the list. This is the last full week of the challenge but its also the week of the Fair and I will have a lot of catching up to do at work since I was off this past week. So not sure exactly how much reading I’ll get done. I’m already thrilled with the progress I’ve made though, 5 books off the list over the past week is such a relief! Happy reading to everyone!

13Aug2016

ARC August 2016 – Check in #2 – 8/7-8/12

Posted in 2016, ARC August 2016, Reading Challenges by rebeccabook17

Woot! 2 weeks in and… not enough books read! Fortunately for me I am spending the next week UNPLUGGED from life where I will hopefully get some reading done. I am heading up to Maine with my Dad, Uncle and Cousin for some R&R with no electricity, internet, or cell service. Which is why I’m technically writing this post a little early. Since I’m posting a day or so early, I’m only covering the books that I read through this Friday, and then I’ll get caught up next weekend when I return from the island wilderness. So anyways, I was able to actually get some reading done during week two, here we go!

My Progress:

I didn’t really have an exact plan for what I would read but I will go off the original list posted and just disclose any variations from said original list:

-The Secret Ingredient of Wishes by Susan Elizabeth Crispell – Read and reviewed
-Results May Vary by Bethany Chase – Read and reviewed
-Sting by Sandra Brown
-The Form of Things Unknown by Robin Bridges
-Quarter Life Poetry by Samantha Jayne
-Behave by Andromeda Romano-Lax
-Thirty Days to Thirty by Courtney Psak
-All the Missing Girls by Megan Miranda
-Dear Amy by Helen Callaghan
-The Killing Game by Nancy Bush
-Luck, Love, and Lemon Pie by Amy E. Reichert
-The Singles Game by Lauren Weisberger
-If You Left by Ashley Prentice Norton
-All Is Not Forgotten by Wendy Walker
-To Have and To Hold by Laura McHugh
-The Book That Matters Most by Ann Hood
-My Husband’s Son by Deborah O’Connor
-First Comes Love by Emily Giffin
-Stormswept by Sabrina Jeffries
-Once a Soldier by Mary Jo Putney
Additions to original list:
-I’ve Got Sand In All the Wrong Places by Lisa Scottline and Francesca Serritella
-The 24-Hour Wine Expert by Jancis Robinson
-Butter and Scotch by Allison Kave and Keavy Landreth

Books Read August 7th-12th

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The Secret Ingredient of Wishes by Susan Bishop Crispell – 4.25 stars

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Results May Vary by Bethany Chase – 4.75 stars

Plan for Upcoming Week

My plan is to read a TON! I’m currently reading The Rosie Project for my book club book (at about page 50 as of 8pm Friday), which won’t count for this challenge, and then I need to finish up I’ve Got Sand In All The Wrong Places, which I started last month. Then it will be a free for all, whatever I want to read I will!! PS Most definitely starting with Sting by Sandra Brown, I CAN NOT wait to read her new release!

19Jan2016

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books I’ve Recently Added to My TBR

Posted in Book memes, For the love of books, Top Ten Tuesday by rebeccabook17

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Top Ten Tuesday is a book meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Every Tuesday there is a different bookish topic and bloggers are asked to post their own top ten list based on the topic. This week is a listing of the Top Ten Books I’ve Recently Added to My TBR. I have a lot of different places that I get my book ideas from, including Amazon recommendations, other blogs, and a variety of emails (BookPage mostly). I’ve found some great picks lately and I’m excited to share them with everyone!

The Witch’s Daughter by Paula Brackston – I recently read Return of the Witch and I really enjoyed it so I definitely want to read the prequel to that (The Witch’s Daughter). I even purchased it on Amazon this past weekend so I could read it as soon as I had time.

The Martian by Andy Weir – I saw this movie this past weekend and Oh My Gosh it was SO good! I honestly didn’t even expect it to be that good, I thought I would get bored but I was riveted to the screen. I also purchased this one on Amazon so I can read it soon.

A Taste For Nightshade by Martine Bailey, The Evening Spider by Emily Arsenault, and The Core of the Sun by Johanna Sinisalo – I read about these books in the BookPage January newsletter and they all sounded really interesting!

We Are Water by Wally Lamb, To the End of June by Cris Beam, The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd, and The Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline – I recently got a Book Lover’s Page a Day Calendar as a Christmas present from my friend Adria, and it is such a great source of book ideas! These books were each featured on one of the recent days on my calendar.

And lastly, The Children’s Home by Charles Lambert – I get the BookPage Book of the Day emails and this book was featured on Monday’s (yesterday’s) email. This book sounds dark and mysterious and fantastical and just awesome, I can’t wait to read it!

So what about all of you? What books have you added to your TBR list lately?

15Dec2015

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Best Books I Read in 2015

Posted in Book memes, For the love of books, Top Ten Tuesday by rebeccabook17

toptentuesday2

Top Ten Tuesday is a book meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Every Tuesday there is a different bookish topic and bloggers are asked to post their own top ten list based on the topic. This week is a listing of the Top Ten Best Books I Read in 2015. This one was definitely a hard one for me to narrow down since I read so many good books in 2015 (so far!).

10. The Light of Hidden Flowers by Jennifer Handford

9. Sisters of Versailles by Sally Christie

8. The Wonder of All Things by Jason Mott

7. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

6. The Light Between Oceans by M. L. Stedman

5. When The Moon Is Low by Nadia Hashimi

4. The Bookseller by Cynthia Swanson

3. I’ll Meet You There by Heather Demetrios

2. The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh

1. The Vintner’s Daughter by Kristen Harnisch

Since it really was just so tough for me to decide, I wanted to add in just a few honroable mention / runner ups. These books didn’t make it into my top ten but they were so close that I really think they deserve a shout out. And to be fair I’ve already read 120 books this year so these books still (pretty much) made it into my top 10%!

3. Imaginary Things by Andrea Lochen

2. Where’d You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple

1. Something Borrowed / Something Blue by Emily Giffin

So those were my favorite books that I’ve read in 2015 (so far). What about all of you? What good books have you read this past year?

27Nov2015

Friday Finds (Nov 27)

Posted in Book memes, For the love of books, Friday Finds by rebeccabook17

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FRIDAY FINDS is hosted by A Daily Rhythm and showcases the books you ‘found’ and added to your To Be Read (TBR) list. Whether you found them online, or in a bookstore, or in the library — wherever! (they aren’t necessarily books you purchased).

My finds this week include a fantasy/fiction, a young adult thriller, a thriller, and a mystery:

A Criminal Magic by Lee Kelly

This book tells the story of what would have happened if sorcery/magic had been illegal in the 1920’s. I thought the premise behind the book sounded really interesting and I love the cover.
We’ll Never Be Apart by Emiko Jean

I’ve seen this book around a lot the past couple weeks and I think not only does it sound like a great book but same as with #1 just awesome cover. This book is about a girl who is in a mental ward after her boyfriend died in a fire that her twin sister set, its all very whacked and sounds just awesome.
Not on Fire But Burning by Greg Hrbek

This book sounds extremely good to me, it is almost at the top of my to read list even though I just heard about it. It is about a woman who is living in San Francisco when an atomic bomb is dropped there and also about her little brother who lives on the east coast but who’s parents are now claiming he never had a sister. Sounds weird and intriguing and just crazy cool
In Bitter Chill by Sarah Ward

Two girls disappear and only one comes back home, and no one can ever figure out what happened to the other girl. This mystery sounded gripping to me and I want to find out what happened!

So what about all of you? What are your recent finds?

9Jan2015

Friday Finds (Jan. 9)

Posted in Book memes, For the love of books, Friday Finds by rebeccabook17

FRIDAY FINDS is hosted by shouldbereading and showcases the books you ‘found’ and added to your To Be Read (TBR) list. Whether you found them online, or in a bookstore, or in the library — wherever! (they aren’t necessarily books you purchased).

My finds this week include an upcoming YA release, a thriller, a memoir and of course a romance:

1. The Conspiracy of Us by Maggie Hall

First off I just love this cover. Second, I love the book description. It sounds awesome. Rich girl is the key to an ancient prophecy and people are trying to kill her so she can’t fulfill her destiny? Sounds great to me!

2. The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

I saw this book in the January edition of the BookPage newsletter and it was described as being “the next Gone Girl.” And I loved the Gone Girl novel so I read further into the article about “The Girl on the Train” and it sounds fascinating to me. A drunk jobless woman rides a train everyday and makes up stories about the people she sees as the train zips by. It even mentioned in the interview with Hawkins that there has been a discussion with DreamWorks but no definite plans have been made yet.

3. It Was Me All Along: A Memoir by Andie Mitchell

This is another book that I saw in this month’s BookPage newsletter. This book about a woman’s lifelong struggle with weight and food. While I try not to consider myself fat, I can relate to seeking comfort in food. I have struggled a lot with my weight the past few years and I am really excited to read about this woman’s journey to being more healthy and learning to love every part of herself.

4. The Loving Daylights by Lynsay Sands