Tag Archives: Readathon

ARC August 2020 – WRAP UP

Posted in 2020, ARC August 2020, For the love of books, Reading Challenges by

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And so wraps up another ARC August! This wasn’t my most successful ARC August, I have been stressed about work and haven’t had as much time for reading lately. I still tried my best but I only got through a handful of books that I wanted to. Here’s how I ended up on the ARC Reading challenge for 2020:

MY PROGRESS

August 2020 ARC’s 

-The Love Scam by MaryJanice Davidson – Read and reviewed
-Kiss My Cupcake by Helena Hunting – Read and reviewed
-Here To Stay by Adriana Herrera – Read and reviewed
-Wednesdays, Walks and Wags by Melissa Storm – Read and reviewed

Backlog ARC’s

-Meet Me at Beachcomber Bay by Jill Mansell
-Nothing Like a Duke by Jane Ashford
-One Night at the Lake by Bethany Chase
-A Season of You by Emma Douglas
-A Better Trust by Valerie Joan Connors
-Lies by T.M. Logan
-29 Seconds by T.M. Logan

I didn’t get to any of my backlog ones. And I even ended up adding a 2020 August one that I got last minute and didn’t get to that one either. But that is a wrap for this year’s ARC August! I had a great time reading and I am already looking forward to next year’s challenge!

Bout of Books 28 Update – Day 7 & Wrap Up

Posted in 2020, Bout of Books 28, For the love of books, Reading Challenges by

N36BVUw

I’ve participated in the Bout of Books reading challenges in the past few years and I’m usually able to get a good amount of reading done – I’ve found it’s a great way to help me focus on reading and have concentrated reading time. I was especially excited for this month’s Bout of Books since 1) I have a lot of time to relax at home right now (welcome to the pandemic) 2) I had a pretty bad reading slump this year and didn’t read for almost two months so I’m looking forward to diving into some great reads and 3) work this year has been intense so I was more eager than ever for some relaxation time!! I got a good amount of reading done this week and it was great to spend some time focused on the blog and participating in the challenges.

First let’s do my Day 7 (Sunday) update on reading.

Update

Sunday

Time spent reading: (Approximately) 2.5 hours
Number of pages I’ve read today: 146 pages
Total number of pages I’ve read: 1,412 pages
Books read: Started Salvation Station by Kathryn Schleich
Challenges: I did tweet about Sunday’s challenge which was just a stretch goal challenge!

And now let’s look at how I fared for my overall Bout of Books 28 wrap up:

Time Devoted to Reading

I plan to read at least an hour Monday and Tuesday and then from there I’m hoping to read at least 3 hours a day, hopefully more.
I met the daily reading goal all of the days! Overall the pandemic really helped me since I can’t exactly go anywhere. I honestly probably would’ve gotten more reading done but I started playing a game in an app on my phone and it quickly got me addicted so I was distracted for some of the days. Overall I read over 23 hours for the challenge so I’d call that a success!

My Goals

My goals for this read-a-thon are that I’d like to participate in as much as I can: the daily posts plus reading every day. I’d really like to just focus on getting back into reading and devouring my books. My traditional busy season at work goes from January to April and it was a killer this year, especially with all the additional issues presented with the pandemic. I gave up on reading for pretty much February through the beginning of April since all I was doing was making myself more tired staying up too late reading. I’ve just recently picked up reading again and it’s been going well but I need to get back on board with my reading schedule and catch up on books I missed over the last couple months!

I was able to read every day, which was probably easier than normal since I took the second half of the week off of work.  I also participated in 5 out of the 7 daily challenges, the two that I missed were logistical issues.

Books to Read

  • Finish Outfox by Sandra Brown – Done! Review will be posted later this week
  • Read Close Up by Amanda Quick – Read and reviewed
  • Read BuzzBooks Romance sampler – Read and reviewed
  • Read Strike Me Down by Mindy Mejia – Read and reviewed
  • Read Accidental Beauty Queen by Teri Wilson – Read and reviewed
  • Read a book I own (TBD) – Skipped
  • Read Salvation Station by Kathryn Schleich – Started on last day of challenge but haven’t finished yet

Overall I thought I did super well with this challenge and made a lot of time for reading! I’m hoping to also participate in the August Bout of Books this year but that will be dependent on a few scheduling items. Either way, I had a great time this past week! Happy reading everyone!

Bout of Books 28 Update – Day 4

Posted in 2020, Bout of Books 28, Reading Challenges by

N36BVUw

This week is going well so far! I was able to read for a good amount of time yesterday. With my time off this week I’m trying to do other things that are good for my mental health, like chores around the house and some tv time and I found a fun new game to play where I get to interior design different rooms. I’ve been really enjoying the balance this week of getting things that I urgently need to get done with work but also making space with time for just me! So anyways my Thursday’s progress is below:

Update

Thursday

Time spent reading: (Approximately) 3.5 hour
Number of pages I’ve read today: 230 pages
Total number of pages I’ve read: 726 pages
Books read: Started Strike Me Down by Mindy Mejia
Challenges: I wanted to participate in today’s challenge but I couldn’t figure out functionally how to get in there and find other people’s posts to respond to with recommendations. Granted I am not a whiz with Twitter so that may have been part of the issue but I thought it was a great idea!

Stay tuned for continued progress made in tomorrow’s post on my Friday update!!

Bout of Books 28 Update – Day 3

Posted in 2020, Bout of Books 28, Reading Challenges by

N36BVUw

Yesterday was a good reading day, but I wouldn’t say great. I had taken some vacation days this week with the thought that I could just read all the time, but between a basement issue we’re dealing with and a lot of house cleaning I’ve been putting off because I’ve been working so much, there’s a lot to distract me from reading during the day. Plus as much as I’d love to 100% put work down for a couple days, there are things that still need to get done! So anyways my Wednesday’s progress is below:

Update

Wednesday

Time spent reading: 4 hours
Number of pages I’ve read today: 234 pages
Total number of pages I’ve read: 496 pages
Books read: Finished the Buzz Books Romance sampler
Challenges: I did participate in the challenge for yesterday!

Stay tuned for continued progress made in tomorrow’s post on my Thursday update!!

Bout of Books 28 Update – Day 2

Posted in 2020, Bout of Books 28, For the love of books, Reading Challenges by

N36BVUw

I am loving Bout of Books this week! Tuesday went well, I was able to carve out some reading (and some blogging) time after work. So my Tuesday’s progress is below:

Update

Tuesday

Time spent reading: (Approximately) 2 hours
Number of pages I’ve read today: 117 pages
Total number of pages I’ve read: 262 pages
Books read: Finished Close Up by Amanda Quick and started Buzz Books Romance
Challenges: I participated in Tuesday’s challenge! It was great fun – the prompt for yesterday was “If You Like This, Try That” – you can see my post on it here.

Stay tuned for continued progress made in tomorrow’s post on my Wednesday update!!

Bout of Books 28 Update – Day 1

Posted in 2020, Bout of Books 28, For the love of books, Reading Challenges by

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I’m so happy to be reading again! This challenge is really just such a good way to make sure I have some dedicated reading time during the week. I’m looking forward to reading all day tomorrow too. So anyways my Monday’s progress is below:

Update

Monday

Time spent reading: (Approximately) 2.5 hours
Number of pages I’ve read today: 145 pages
Total number of pages I’ve read: 145 pages (Day one! Ha)
Books read: Continued reading Close Up by Amanda Quick
Challenges: I participated in the challenge for yesterday!

 

Stay tuned for continued progress (hopefully!) made in tomorrow’s post on my Tuesday update!!

Bout of Books 28 – Sign Up Post!!

Posted in 2020, Bout of Books 28, For the love of books, Reading Challenges by

N36BVUw

WOO HOO It’s time for BOUT OF BOOKS! I’ve participated in the Bout of Books reading challenges in the past few years and I’m usually able to get a good amount of reading done – I’ve found it’s a great way to help me focus on reading and have concentrated reading time. I’m especially excited for this year’s Bout of Books since 1) I have a lot of time to relax at home right now (welcome to the pandemic) 2) I had a pretty bad reading slump this year and didn’t read for almost two months so I’m looking forward to diving into some great reads and 3) work this year has been intense so I am more eager than ever for some relaxation time!

Even though things continue to be busy at work (as always), they’re encouraging us to take some vacation time so I’ll be taking at least a couple days off next week to devote my time to reading!

For those of you who don’t really know much about Bout of Books, it is basically a week-long, no pressure read-a-thon that has been going strong since 2011! Here is a description directly from the Bout of Books blog:

The Bout of Books readathon is organized by Amanda Shofner and Kelly Rubidoux Apple. It’s a weeklong readathon that begins 12:01am Monday, May 11th and runs through Sunday, May 17th in YOUR time zone. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are daily challenges, Twitter chats, and exclusive Instagram challenges, but they’re all completely optional. For Bout of Books 28 information and updates, visit the Bout of Books blog. – From the Bout of Books team

The Bout of Books Read-a-Thon was created by Amanda @ On a Book Bender on a complete whim in August 2011. It took on a life of its own and was such a hit that Amanda decided to do it again and turn it into a somewhat regular occurrence.

  • Bout of Books is a week long read-a-thon, usually from 12:01am on a Monday through 11:59pm on a Sunday in whatever time zone you are in.
  • It is low pressure, meaning participants are only asked to push themselves to read more than they normally would during any given week. There is no competition between readers.
  • How much time a reader wants, and can commit, to read, tweet, or network with fellow bloggers is left to individual preference. All challenges and giveaways are optional.
  • Networking with fellow bloggers is actively encouraged, though never required.
  • Use Twitter to post updates throughout the read-a-thon. Everyone will be tweeting with the #boutofbooks hashtag.

I’ve been reading pretty close to on schedule lately and I’m hoping to continue that trend over the next week!

Time Devoted to Reading

I plan to read at least an hour Monday and Tuesday and then from there I’m hoping to read at least 3 hours a day, hopefully more! .

My Goals

My goals for this read-a-thon are that I’d like to participate in as much as I can: the daily posts plus reading every day. I’d really like to just focus on getting back into reading and devouring my books. My traditional busy season at work goes from January to April and it was a killer this year, especially with all the additional issues presented with the pandemic. I gave up on reading for pretty much February through the beginning of April since all I was doing was making myself more tired staying up too late reading. I’ve just recently picked up reading again and it’s been going well but I need to get back on board with my reading schedule and catch up on books I missed over the last couple months!

Books to Read

  • Finish Outfox by Sandra Brown
  • Read Close Up by Amanda Quick
  • Read BuzzBooks Romance sampler
  • Read Strike Me Down by Mindy Mejia
  • Read Accidental Beauty Queen by Teri Wilson
  • Read a book I own (TBD)
  • Read Salvation Station by Kathryn Schleich

It’s a good sized list but I’m really looking forward to this week-long reading challenge devoted to reading! If you do want to join make sure to add yourself to the page’s Sign Up Post by Tuesday, May 12th at 11:59pm CST! Happy reading!

Bout of Books 22 Wrap Up Post

Posted in 2018, Bout of Books 22, For the love of books, Reading Challenges by

LLnmmXw

So for one of my goals this year to help me focus more on reading and having concentrated time for reading, I decided to participate in all 3 Bout of Books reading challenges / read-a-thons this year! This was the second one and I didn’t exactly get a lot done but it was still ok amounts of successful.

Below were the goals that I had set for the week and my assessment with how I did on them.

Time Devoted to Reading

I plan to read at least 2 hours each day during the week, with hopefully additional hours on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Saturday I’m working and I have a bridal shower but then Sunday is pretty open so hopefully I can make up for any lost time on Saturday. I usually like to take a day or two off during the May reading challenge but this year I’m not able to because I’m too busy.
Things didn’t go quite according to plan – There was a lot of things that came up this week and also between work and social events and trying to get some down time in between there wasn’t a lot of time left for reading. 

My Goals

My goals for this read-a-thon are that I’d like to participate in as much as I can: the daily posts plus reading every day.

I did not participate in any of the daily challenges but I did read every day (except Sunday which I took off). 

Books to Read

Overall this was not the greatest week of reading for me but I was able to get a little reading done at least. Looking forward to the next one in August!

Bout of Books Update – Day 5 & 6

Posted in 2018, Bout of Books 22, For the love of books, Reading Challenges by

LLnmmXw

Friday and Saturday were busy days! Friday after a busy work day I got together with a few girlfriends and our friend Adria asked us all to be bridesmaids in her wedding next year!! We (of course) said yes!

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Then Saturday I worked in the morning and then celebrated my friend Cori’s upcoming wedding! Her bridal shower was very fun and we had cake and played games and had a great time!

However, suffice it to say I didn’t get much reading done, being as busy with fun as I was!

Update

Friday and Saturday

Time spent reading: (Approximately) 1 hours (maybe)
Number of pages I’ve read today: 56 pages
Total number of pages I’ve read: 405 pages
Books read: Finished reading The Favorite Sister by Jessica Knoll, started The Summer Wives by Beatriz Williams
Challenges: I did not participate in the daily post challenge for Friday or Saturday

Today is my day at home and I have a lot of chores and other things to take care of but I’m hoping to find some time to read today too! Its a beautiful day and I’m looking forward to some relaxation and re-centering after a busy week and weekend!

Bout of Books Update – Day 4

Posted in 2018, Bout of Books 22, For the love of books, Reading Challenges by

LLnmmXw

Thursday went ok for reading. I had a productive but stressful workday, grabbed some food and drink with a friend and had some relax time, and then got to read once I got home.

Update

Thursday

Time spent reading: (Approximately) 1.5 hours
Number of pages I’ve read today: 115 pages
Total number of pages I’ve read: 349 pages
Books read: Continued reading The Favorite Sister by Jessica Knoll
Challenges: I did not participate in the daily post challenge for Thursday

Almost done with this book! And then I can start the next one, which I’m not super excited about the next one either but its gotta get read! Happy reading everyone!