One more reading challenge - Book Bingo

Ok, so I was really going to limit myself on my reading challenges this year, but then I decided I had to add one more. Partly because I've met Kristilyn is real life and she is awesome!

Of course, a challenge isn’t really a challenge unless there are some rules and guidelines:

1. Be awesome. If you’re not, this isn’t going to work.
2. The challenge runs from January 1 to December 31, 2014.
3. If you want to participate, you can join in any time of the year! Feel free to write up a blog post with the rules linking back to my and Anne’s blog in your sign-up post. You can add your post to the Linky at the end of this post!
4. If you read one book for the “1 book” in any category, you can’t change it later on when you read another book to “2 books.” Once a square is crossed off, it’s crossed off for good! (Feel free to print off the scoreboard to keep track!)
5. Books read for one square are for that square ONLY and cannot be counted towards another category. This is all about reading ALL THE BOOKS.
6. The FREE SQUARES are a little different this year — now you can use those squares to read ANY book you like of any genre! Woo!
7. You can start your board over again, but ONLY if you receive the stamp of awesome by completing a blackout. The “winners” of the challenge will be the ones who achieve the most winning combinations by the end of 2014.
8. You can feel free to post your reading list for each category, though it’s not a requirement.
9. Having a blog or writing reviews for books read is not required. So long as you want to have fun, you can participate!
10. Every 3 months I will post an update here and all participants can link to their own updates. An update post will go up April 1st, July 1st, October 1st, and December 31st.
11. This isn’t a race, but don’t be afraid to rub your reads in the other player’s face. This will be seen as encouragement. Feel free to use the hashtag #BookBingo2014on Twitter!

While you can definitely “win” by the boring ol’ vertical or horizontal (or diagonal!) lines, the best ways to win are as follows:

Like it says in the guidelines, the ONLY way to start a new board is to become the SUPER READER! The goal is to read ALL THE BOOKS! To be a winner (thus, to become the awesomest reader around), you’ll want to accomplish as many wins as possible!

I'm not going to get too worried about this one and basically not set a goal and see how far I get. Maybe once I finish my other reading challenges, I can focus on this one.

Review: Cinder

Info:
Title: Cinder
Author: Marissa Meyer
Series: The Lunar Chronicles #1
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Publication Date: January 3, 2012
Source: Purchased


Synopsis: 
Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl.

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

Review:
I am in love with this book. Seriously! Best book I've read in months.

Sometimes it's hard to write reviews of book you love that make sense and aren't completely filled with fangirl flailing. But here it goes:

Characters: Awesome!
Plot: Awesome!
World-building: Extra Awesome!

There were so many little details and excellent minor characters. Like Iko, who is probably my very favourite character. The world-building, as I said, was a highlight for me. It was so good. There were no noticeable info dumps, but I felt like I really knew the world.

The only possibly negative thing I have to say is that it was a touch predictable. Retelling often are, by their nature, but the big twist near the end I predicted on page 116. This didn't matter to me though, I still loved the book and having guessed the ending didn't diminish my enjoyment at all. In fact, it probably increased it because I got to shout "I KNEW IT!" at the top of my lungs. So satisfying.

Basically, I loved Cinder and wish I hadn't waited so long to start it. But on the bright side, now I can dive straight into Scarlet.

 Find the Book:
 Goodreads | Amazon | The Book Depostiory

Find the Author: 
 Goodreads | Web | Facebook | Twitter

Don't Just Take My Word For It:

Xpresso Reads

Cover Compare: The Fault in Our Stars

Oh, The Fault in Our Stars. I'll read you one day, I promise. Until then, here's a cover compare.

Wow, this one has been translated a boat-load of times. Some are lovely (Hebrew anyone?), some are ugly (sorry Dutch) some look like every other YA book ever (Lithuanian and Spanish) and some are just bizarre (the strangle childlike Indonesian cover). Overall, I think my favourite is the Hebrew. I do like the US cover, not neccessarily for the cover, but for the way it looks on my shelf. I can pick it out immediately when I glance over due to it's beautiful bright blue spine. Which is your favourite?

US

German

Portuguese

Italian

Dutch

Indonesian

Spanish

Finnish

Danish

Polish

Norwegian

Lithuanian

Hebrew

Chinese

DNF Files (2)

4 to 16 Characters - Kelly Hourihan

This one was a case of not being able to stand the main character for one more page. She was so annoying and bitchy and arrogant. I liked the idea the author was going for, but the format didn't quite work either. But mostly I just wanted to punch Jane in the face.













The Mayfair Moon by J. A. Redmerski

This one was more boring than bad. There was nothing particularly terrible about it, I just felt like I'd read it before. It has a serious Twilight feel, so if that's your thing you might love this one. But Adria was boring and seemed a bit dumb and I just felt like my life wasn't going to be any better for having read this book. Also, look at how creepy that dude's hand is! Eww!!!!










These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner

I feel so bad for DNFing this one! I love YA sci-fi and honestly wish there was more of it. However, These Broken Stars didn't do it for me. I had two main gripes with this one and I know 100% that one of them in totally personal preference. That's the romance. It felt like the ENTIRE story, which is crazy considering there's a space ship crash. But I felt like everything was thrust into the background to make room for Lilac and Tarver trying to deny their feelings. I definitely prefer romance to be secondary in books, so this one wasn't for me for this reason. Secondly, Lilac drove me insane. She's really whiny and useless and annoying for me. I mean, I understand that it has to do with her class, but I found her really annoying and unlikeable. Considering at one point she says "the ultimate humiliation" is for Tarver to see her smiling because he gave her a compliment. Really? THAT'S the ultimate humilitaion? Seriously. I'm definitely the black sheep on this one, as most other bloggers seemed to have loved this one!

Source

Stacking the Shelves (2)

Stacking the Shelves is a meme by Tynga's Reviews to share the books you've recently acquired. I haven't done one in a couple months, but I've really tried to cut down on the number of review books I request and books I buy.

For review:
Poor Little Dead Girls by Lizzie Friend - Thanks to Merit Press!
Camelot Burning by Kathryn Rose - Thanks to Flux and Netgalley

Bought:
World After by Susan Ee
The Gathering Storm By Robin Bridges
Star Wars: Scoundrels by Timothy Zahn
A Dance with Dragons by George R. R. Martin -  This one was acutally a Christmas gift for the bf

Review: The Rule of Three

Info:
Title: The Rule of Three
Author: Eric Walters
Publisher: Farrar, Straus & Giroux
Publication Date: January 21, 2014
Source: ARC received in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis: 
One shocking afternoon, computers around the globe shut down in a viral catastrophe. At sixteen-year-old Adam Daley’s high school, the problem first seems to be a typical electrical outage, until students discover that cell phones are down, municipal utilities are failing, and a few computer-free cars like Adam’s are the only vehicles that function. Driving home, Adam encounters a storm tide of anger and fear as the region becomes paralyzed. Soon—as resources dwindle, crises mount, and chaos descends—he will see his suburban neighborhood band together for protection. And Adam will understand that having a police captain for a mother and a retired government spy living next door are not just the facts of his life but the keys to his survival, in The Rule of Three by Eric Walters.

Review:
I'm a big fan of post-apocalyptic and survival stories. I think morbidly enjoy imagining what I would do in the characters' situation. So when I got the chance to review The Rule of Three, I had high hopes.

As far as survival stories go, this one was not bad, but it didn't quite have enough going for it to propel it to a higher rating. Our hero, Adam, is a pretty average guy, nervous around his crush and fond of his best friend Todd. The major difference is that Adam knows how to fly a plane, which turns out to be pretty darn important.

My biggest turn-off with this book was the lack of answers. The true nature of the problems plaguing the world is never actually explained. Since I wasn't completely sold on the plausibility of the disaster, this lack of answers ended up being really frustrating for a science person like me. If someone else who has read this can explain things to me, I would be really grateful. There's also one major loose end that never gets tied up. Which is probably more realistic, but I want my ending tied up neatly please and thank you. Actually, I found the ending a bit sudden for me. Literally there is an explosion and then the next page is the last one.

I really think this book is aimed towards YA boys. The romance is pretty limited and straight forward. There's lots of explosions and excitement of that type. Not to say girls won't enjoy this one! But there is substantial violence, so if that's not your thing, I would steer clear of this one.

Overall, The Rule of Three is a decent survival-in-the-face-of-disaster story, but I don't think it will stick with me and I doubt I'll be able to recall many details a year from now. If you enjoy survival tactics and explosions, this one will be an enjoyable ride.

Find the Book:
Goodreads | Amazon | The Book Depository

Find the Author:
Goodreads | Twitter | Web

Series Breakdown

You guys, I think I have a problem. I love to start a new series. Unfortunately, I'm less skilled at seeing it through to the end. As a result, I am very behind on many series. I know it. But then I saw this post by Jessi from Novel Heartbeat, where she bravely quantified just how behind she was (please give her credit for inventing this post, not me). Now I'm being brave too.


Completed - Not Caught Up
Anna by Kendare Blake - 1 book to go
The Witch Avenue by Karice Bolton - 3 books to go
Canterwood Crest by Jessica Burkhart - 19 books to go (including super specials)
Florence Waverly by Ciye Cho - 1 book to go **
The Frost Chronicles by Kate Avery Ellison - 3 books to go
Jessica by Beth Fantaskey - 1 book to go
As the World Dies by Rhiannon Frater - 2 books to go
Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier - 1 book to go
Elemental by Shauna Granger - 4 books to go
Unearthly by Cynthia Hand - 2 books to go
Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins - 1 book to go
Riders of the Apocalypse by Jackie Morse Kessler - 3 books to go
Kandrith by Nicole Luiken - 1 book to go
The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare - 2 books to go
Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr - 4 books to go
The Protector by M. R. Merrick - 1 book to go
Across the Universe by Beth Revis - 2 books to go
Solus by Devri Walls - 3 books to go

Total books to read: 54

Incomplete - Not Caught Up
The Oxford Trilogy by Marion Croslydon - 1 book to go
Bridger by Megan Curd - 1 book to go, book 3 releases 2013(?)
Penryn and the End of Days by Susan Ee - 1 book to go
Living Dead Love Story by Rusty  Fischer - 1 book to go, book 3 releases April 15, 2014
Gone With the Respiration by Lia Habel - 1 book to go
Vampire Born by Angeline Kace - 1 book to go
Monument 14 by Emmy Laybourne - 1 book to go, book 3 releases May 6, 2014
Fractured Light by Rachel McClellan - 1 book to go, book 3 releases April 8, 2014
Lily Drake by T. Michelle Nelson - 1 book to go
White Trash Zombie by Diana Rowland - 2 books to go, book 4 releases July 2014
The Legend of Drizzt by R. A. Salvatore - 18 books to go, book 25 releases March 4, 2014
Lillith Straight by Michelle Scott - 1 book to go
The Cahill Witch Chronicles by Jessica Spotswood - 1 book to go, book 3 releases August 14, 2014
Annie Loves Cham by Sheryl Steines - 1 book to go
The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer - 1 book to go, book 3 releases February 4, 2014

Total books to read: 33

Incomplete - Caught Up
Twisted Lit by Kim Askew and Amy Helmes - book 3 releases January 18, 2014
Memoir by Lady Trent by Marie Brennan - book 2 releases March 4, 2014
Finishing School by Gail Carriger - book 3 releases 2014
Truth or Dare by Jacqueline Green - book 2 releases May 6, 2014
Socialpunk by Monica Leonelle
Acrania: Trial by Fire by Liz Maverick
The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater
Icons by Margaret Stohl - book 2 releases July 8, 2014
Emilie by Martha Wells - book 2 releases March 4, 2013

Completed!
Isis by Monica Hughes
Divergent by Veronica Roth

Not Continuing:
Unremembered by Jessica Brodie
Vampire Agape by Georgia Cates
Ava Delaney by Claire Farrell
Hush Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
Amerias Adventures by Amy Green
Angel Eyes by Shannon Dittemore
Pretty in Black by Rae Hachton
Madison Avery Trilogy by Kim Harrison
Counterattack by M. G. Higgins
Shadowfell by Juliet Marillier
Yesterday by C. K. Kelly Martin
Broken by A. E. Rought
Returner's Wealth by Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell
The Destiny Saga by Heather M. White
Imperfect Darkness by Kim White

Completely finished series: 3
Series I need to finish (all books published): 18
Series I need to catch up on (unread published books, unfinished series): 15
Series I’m caught up on (have books unpublished yet): 9
Series I don’t plan to finish: 15

So what have we learned? I don't finish series nearly as quickly as I start them. I've completed 2 series since starting this blog. Two! I also have a couple of huge series on the go. The Legend of Drizzt is up to book 25! Also, there's a surprisingly high number of series that I don't plan to continue. And I have 87 books to go before I'm caught up, not including the 14 books with releases dates announced in the new year (2 of which I have ARCs for already).

I'm planning to post an update in 6 months to see if I've made any progress. Wish me luck.