Bout of Books 7.0

I'm joining in on the fun that is bout of books 7.0!

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, May 13th and runs through Sunday, May 19th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 7.0 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

I'm working on finishing my last two semesters of my undergrad (215 days to go!) and sometimes get wrapped up in the stress of school and don't read as much as I should so I decided to do bout of books to get myself into gear.

Goals:

-Read at least two of the books below
-Discover new blogs

Books:

I've given myself a few to choose from. I've been book ADD lately, so I'm giving myself some freedom.

Updates:

Monday
Number of books I’ve read today: 1/2
Total number of books I’ve read: 1/2
Book(s): Throne of Glass
(I was out flat with a migraine most of the day. I think reading roughly half a book is pretty good, right?)

Tuesday:
Number of books I've read today: 2/3
Total number of books I've read: 2/3
Book(s): Throne of Glass

Wednesday:
Number of books I've read today: 1
Total number books I've read: 1
Book(s): Throne of Glass

Thursday:
Number of books I've read today: 1/5
Total number of books I've read: 1 and 1/5
Book(s): Throne of Glass, Shadow and Bone 

Friday:
Number of books I've read today: 1/2
Total number of books I've read: 1 and 1/2
Book(s):Throne of Glass, Shadow and Bone

Top Ten Books When You Need Something Light & Fun

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created over at my other blog, The Broke and the Bookish.

As I was putting this list together I realized something. I read a lot of serious and intense books. 

Inside little blue envelope 1 are $1,000 and instructions to buy a plane ticket.
In envelope 2 are directions to a specific London flat.
The note in envelope 3 tells Ginny: Find a starving artist.
Because of envelope 4, Ginny and a playwright/thief/ bloke-about-town called Keith go to Scotland together, with somewhat disastrous-though utterly romantic-results. But will she ever see him again?
Everything about Ginny will change this summer, and it's all because of the 13 little blue envelopes.

Fun story, lots of humor and beautiful countries as a backdrop. What's not to like?

 When Desi Bascomb gets discovered by the elite Facade Agency–royalty surrogates extraordinaire–her life goes from glamour-starved to spectacular in a blink. As her new agent, Meredith, explains, Desi has a rare magical ability: when she applies the ancient Egyptian formula “Royal Rouge,” she can transform temporarily into the exact lookalike of any princess who needs her subbing services. Dream come true, right?
Well, Desi soon discovers that subbing involves a lot more than wearing a tiara and waving at cameras....

 Desi is adorable, and awkward and endlessly hilarious. The situations she finds herself in!

 
 Miri lives on a mountain where, for generations, her ancestors have quarried stone and lived a simple life. Then word comes that the king's priests have divined her small village the home of the future princess. In a year's time, the prince himself will come and choose his bride from among the girls of the village. The king's ministers set up an academy on the mountain, and every teenage girl must attend and learn how to become a princess.

This is just a fun, cute story with loveable characters and a heartwarming story.

  
“I’ve left some clues for you. If you want them, turn the page. If you don’t, put the book back on the shelf, please.” So begins the latest whirlwind romance from the New York Times bestselling authors of Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist. Lily has left a red notebook full of challenges on a favorite bookstore shelf, waiting for just the right guy to come along and accept its dares. But is Dash that right guy? Or are Dash and Lily only destined to trade dares, dreams, and desires in the notebook they pass back and forth at locations across New York?

 Humor, New York, Bookishness. Basically all you need for a great read!

 Jane Hayes is a seemingly normal young New Yorker, but she has a secret. Her obsession with Mr. Darcy, as played by Colin Firth in the BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, is ruining her love life: no real man can compare. But when a wealthy relative bequeaths her a trip to an English resort catering to Austen-crazed women, Jane's fantasies of meeting the perfect Regency-era gentleman suddenly become realer than she ever could have imagined. 

For the Austen obsessed, or even just someone who enjoys a hilarious romantic comedy with an imperfect MC.  

 Meet Emma Corrigan, a young woman with a huge heart, an irrepressible spirit, and a few little secrets: 
Secrets from her mother: I lost my virginity in the spare bedroom with Danny Nussbaum while Mum and Dad were downstairs watching Ben-Hur. 
Secrets she wouldn’t share with anyone in the world: I have no idea what NATO stands for. Or even what it is.
Until she spills them all to a handsome stranger on a plane. At least, she thought he was a stranger... Until Emma comes face-to-face with Jack Harper, the company’s elusive CEO, a man who knows every single humiliating detail about her.  

Oh Emma... Never fails to make me laugh. The things that come out of her mouth... 

 Flavia de Luce, 11, is an aspiring chemist with a passion for poison. In the summer of 1950, a series of inexplicable events strikes her home, Buckshaw, a decaying English mansion. A dead bird is found on the doorstep, a postage stamp bizarrely pinned to its beak. Hours later, Flavia finds a man lying in the cucumber patch and watches him as he takes his dying breath.
For Flavia, both appalled and delighted, life begins in earnest when murder comes to Buckshaw.

Flavia is delightful. Absolutely hilarious. I'd really like to see her meet Sherlock Holmes. That conversation would be priceless. 

 

  

"Demons, or no Demons, I will get Tanner and Baker together.”
Jimmy is a brand-new agent assigned to the most difficult case the Lovers Angels Corporation, a supernatural matchmaking service, has seen in centuries: the Tanner-Baker case. Jesse Tanner and Danni Baker have been neighbors for years. Getting them together should be a walk in the park, and every tactic Jimmy employs should work—in theory. However assaults of suspected Demonic mischief ultimately tangle the situation so badly it will take a small miracle to organize a happy ending for Tanner and Baker.

An adorable Romantic Comedy written by a friend of mine from high school. Light fluff, humor. It's all there. 

  
After one break-up too many, Samantha wants to find Mr. Right. But she is completely inexperienced in the game of love…until she meets up with Harrison, a condescending student from Britain who puts Samantha and her roommates under his wing. By the end of the semester, he vows to find a boyfriend for all of them.
Now, the only snag to snagging Mr. Right is that Mr. Wrong keeps getting in the way. 

Another cute romantic comedy. The characters are hilarious, and you'll be left smiling as you turn the last page. 

For centuries, mystical creatures of all description were gathered to a hidden refuge called Fablehaven to prevent their extinction. The sanctuary survives today as one of the last strongholds of true magic in a cynical world. Enchanting? Absolutely. Exciting? You bet. Safe? Well, actually, quite the opposite ... Kendra and her brother Seth have no idea their grandfather is the current caretaker of Fablehaven. Inside the gated woods, ancient laws give relative order among greedy trolls, mischievous satyrs, plotting witches, spiteful imps, and jealous fairies...

A cute MG series. Wonderfully creative and positively delightful to read.

Well? What do you think of my list? Have you read any? Here is the real question though: I need more light reads! What books do you suggest??? Leave a comment and let me know!

Top Ten Tuesday -- Top Ten Words/Topics That Will Make Me Pick Up or Buy A Book!

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created over at my other blog, The Broke and the Bookish.

Snarky

Love a character that can doll out a lot of snark.

Inquisitive

You know that a character is going to be interesting if they're curious.

Quirky

I'm quirky, I like my books being quirky. A fun, quirky character is irresistible. Luna Lovegood anyone? 

Theatre/ Music

Anytime a book mentions theatre, or Broadway or performing, I pick it up immediately! My love for music and theatre attracts me to any book that talks about it.

Travel

I suffer delight in a serious case of wanderlust.  I love to travel, and traveling through books is almost as good.

Britian

I'm a hopeless Anglophile. A book immediately becomes 10x more interesting if it takes place anywhere in Europe.

New York

I love New York. Spent a week there last summer. I was running a show on 42nd street, seeing shows, eating all the best food... I loved every minute of it. NYC compltely stole my heart. I want to go back! But it's expensive, so I visit it through books instead.

Magic

I LOVE fantasy novels. Harry Potter is, and will always be, my favorite series. Anything with a touch of magic will draw me in.

Time Travel

Doctor Who is among my favorite TV shows, and I am constantly on the lookout for more books involving time travel. 

Beloved

If I see a book described as being 'beloved' I have to find out for myself why it is so loved and how it has affected so many people.

Okay! Your turn! What is on your list? Do we have any in common??

FREEDOM

Essays submitted- check

Finals completed- check

In other words? I'm FREE! 

 

At least for a week. Then my summer classes start, but those are all online and easy.

I have a stack of books ready and 5 seasons of Gilmore Girls on DVD to watch. I am SO ready for this summer to start.

So this will be me for the next several weeks.

It also means that my poor blog is actually going to get some attention. I've read some amazing books lately that I'm dying to review and I'm seeing The Secret Garden this Saturday which I'll probably do a review for.

Anyone else finished with finals and ready to relax and read for fun?

Top Ten Book (Series) I Read Before I Was A Blogger

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created over at my other blog, The Broke and the Bookish.

Fablehaven by Brandon Mull

 


Harry Potter by J K Rowling

   

 

The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien

Anne of Green Gables by L M Montgomery

 

The Study Trilogy by Maria V. Snyder




                                        

                                                      Peter and the Starcatchers

 

 

Robert Langdon Series 



Gemma Doyle Series

Crown and Court

 




The Giver

Robin LaFevers Author Signing

On April 4th I get to meet Robin LaFevers author of Grave Mercy and Dark Triumph!

The Kings English is hosting, and there is a bloggers conference before the signing... And I get to go!

I love her books, can't wait to meet her! If you haven't read any of her books yet, check them out!
 

Seventeen-year-old Ismae escapes from the brutality of an arranged marriage into the sanctuary of the convent of St. Mortain, where the sisters still serve the gods of old. Here she learns that the god of Death Himself has blessed her with dangerous gifts—and a violent destiny. If she chooses to stay at the convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as a handmaiden to Death. To claim her new life, she must destroy the lives of others.

Ismae’s most important assignment takes her straight into the high court of Brittany—where she finds herself woefully under prepared—not only for the deadly games of intrigue and treason, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death’s vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart?
Add it


 



 Sybella arrives at the convent’s doorstep half mad with grief and despair. Those that serve Death are only too happy to offer her refuge—but at a price. Naturally skilled in both the arts of death and seduction, the convent views Sybella as one of their most dangerous weapons....
(The rest is a bit of a spoiler for Grave Mercy)

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Any other fans of her books out there? Have you met her? 

A Bookworm's Worst Fear

"Abibliophobia" (noun) 
     - The fear of running out things to read

A scary thought, right? Tell me I'm not alone in being terrified of the idea of not having something to read. I brought this up tonight when I was talking to my parents, five minutes later my dad had found this video on YouTube. It's absolutely terrifiying.

 

Heartbreaking and terrifying isn't it? 

As a kid I was always worried about having enough books. I was always dragging books out, because I hated the idea of finishing a book and not having another one to read. We had quite a few books in the house, but I'd read most of them and the rest were all romance novels that were my mother's that I had absolutely no interest in. I'm sure my parents could tell you about how often I begged to go to the bookstore. 

Recently Jamie at The Perpetual Page-Turner talked about "Time Between Books". It reminded me of that dilemma I always faced as a kid. Do I keep reading? Or make myself put it down because I don't know when I'll be able to get another book?

What about you? Can you relate? Is the video the stuffs of nightmares like it is for me? Leave a comment!