Take Control of Your TBR Pile Challenge

I don't know how I managed to let this one slip by me, but I had totally forgot I signed up for the Take Control of Your TBR Pile, hosted by Caffeinated Book Reviewer.  Suddenly it's March 1st and the challenge has started! 

I have been horrible about keeping up with series. I get so many review books that many of them fall to the wayside.  I have every intention of reading them, but just don't get to it.

This is bad timing really, my review pile is literally topping over. That's just for review books I need to read asap.  But, I need to take time to read some of the books I have been wanting to read for ages.  So here's a picture of the books I'd like to squeeze in. It won't be all of them. But hopefully I'll get to as many as possible.  I didn't really know where to start.  I have so many books that I want to read that I can't even go around gathering them. So I'll start with these two piles. Vitro came for review and I just never got to it. All Our Yesterdays is one I've heard great things about and a friend gave me the ARC. These Broken Stars was the same. Insignia, Starters and The Night Circus was loaned to me over a year ago so I NEED to read them.

 Taste of Darkness, Cress, Curtsies & Conspiracies, Allegiant and Beautiful Chaos are all series I need to keep up with. Well, I'm already behind in one of them. Divided we Fall was sent for review in January and Meant to Be and Witchstruck I've wanted to read for ages. Haunting a Witch is one I won but thought it sounded great so I would like to read it as well.  So wish me luck people!

Here's the rules:

• Link-up! This is open to everyone. If you do not have a blog then link your Facebook or Goodreads account.
• Make a Goals/updates/Results post (can be combined)
• Beginning March 1st, 2014 and ending March 31, 2014 at midnight read books from your TBR pile ALL books must have been published before March 2014.
• Post a review to Goodreads, your blog or Facebook then link it to the Rafflecopter for an entry. (review only needs to be a short one)
• You can combine events, challenges etc.
• No novellas for this one peeps
• The rafflecopter will allow you to enter up to two books daily, so update as soon as you finish a book.
• Earn an extra entry for adding Take Control Button to your blog, or facebook (with link-back)
• Use hashtag #TakeControlTBR
• Rafflecopter will close on April 2, 2014 at midnight and a winner will be chosen. Open internationally as long as Book Depository or Barnes and Noble ship to you. Prize: New 2013 release. I will do pre-orders as well. (may request eBook copy)

Sign up for this challenge HERE.

Clean Sweep ARC Challenge May 2013

This is my Clean Sweep ARC Challenge post, which started yesterday, May 1st.

The goal: to read and review as many ARC's as we can. We will have fun challenges each Saturday hosted by some wonderful bloggers and a prize for two luck participants at the end of the challenge. So gather your ARCs and your brooms and lets have some fun! 

You can find out more at Caffeinated Book Reviewer on the post HERE.



My goal:
Do I really need to type it all out? My pile is so huge that this is only a little more than half of what I have that releases in May (or already released). I still have lots more from this year that already released that I haven't read yet. So I just grabbed the ones that I had separated because I *really* want to read them. But I will need to squeeze in more June releases through the month as well, I'm just not yet sure what. I also have some on kindle. It's scary guys, really scary. And stressful. So yeah... I'm going to go read now!

Review: My Soul to Take by Rachel Vincent

My Soul to Take (Soul Screamers #1) by Rachel Vincent
Young Adult
Paperback, 279 pgs.
Published: August 1st, 2009 by Harlequin
Source: Purchased

She doesn't see dead people. She senses when someone near her is about to die. And when that happens, a force beyond her control compels her to scream bloody murder. Literally.

Kaylee just wants to enjoy having caught the attention of the hottest guy in school. But a normal date is hard to come by when Nash seems to know more about her need to scream than she does. And when classmates start dropping dead for no apparent reason, only Kaylee knows who'll be next.

I've had the first two books in this series ever since the second one came out.  When Rachel from Fiktshun decided to do a Soul Screamers Challenge with one book a month through June I decided this was the perfect chance for me.  And one a month works great cause I don't really have to feel any pressure.  Want to sign up?  Click the button!


So I'm a little torn with YA paranormal these days.  Even though I'm often okay with the story and enjoy it I don't feel real moved or blown away very often.  And I can't say this one really blew me away but I did enjoy it and there were many aspects I enjoyed quite a lot.  


I really liked the concept of the soul screamers.  My immediate reaction was that I felt a little like it was just ridiculous but as I read on I realized that it worked, I did like it and I really wanted to learn more about it and how it works, why it's like that, etc.  We haven't got a lot of history on it yet, but it was probably the perfect amount for the first book.  It got us interested and relayed info as we needed it instead of an info dump.  

The characters were good.  I liked Kaylee and I liked Nash.  I don't think they really blew me away, but they were both interesting and likable and they were sweet together as a couple.  And they didn't really annoy me.  I did feel the insta-love that was in play in this one but I was okay with it.  I think maybe they took things a little fast, like they should have been 'in like' more then instantly 'in love', but it wasn't a huge negative for me.  They are teenagers and sometimes I just have to remind myself that that is how it is.  And I actually liked that their relationship was pretty drama free.  That was a big bonus.  It drives me crazy to see the characters overreacting about everything and they weren't like that at all.  It took a little bit, like Kaylee just didn't understand why Nash liked her just out of the blue but I think the mystery and discovery of everything made her distracted enough and she just needed him since no one else knew what was going on.  That helped move her past any drama she may have felt. 

I felt like the story had lots of good twists and turns.  It wasn't really possible to predict what was going on, what was going to happen and why these girls were dying all over town for no reason.  So as things were revealed it was surprise after surprise and then there was a major surprise and I loved that I didn't see it coming at all!  


Overall this was a good start to a series that has potential to great.  I definitely recommend you pick it up!


3.5/5 stars

Harry Potter and the Order of The Phoenix- Yes, I finally read it!

So for those of you who don't know- Lori from Pure Imagination challenged me to read the HP books last January {yes, January almost a year ago} and I agreed to the first three in January and the rest through the rest of the year.  I read the first three in January and then the fourth in April and then apparently I just couldn't seem to find time for this one!  But recently Lori kind of reminded me that I really should keep reading them so I pretty much started it right away.  And I really think it's the size that kept me from picking it up.  Seriously, almost 900 pages is a bit intimidating.  And I knew it would take me like four days {yes, that's a long time for me!} to read it. 

{This is my first time reading the series and I haven't even watched the movies!  It's all brand new to me!}

Once I started reading it all hesitation went away.  I was completely sucked into the story and felt like I was traveling home to visit old friends.  I'm kind of getting why people love these books so much. 

This one definitely kept me riveted even though it was darker since Harry was experiencing lots of doubts and was pretty depressed through most of the book.  It was all those horrible things happening that made me so so angry and I just wanted to see all those horrible stupid people go down!  I wanted to see them all realize they were wrong, Harry was right- SO THERE YOU STUPID KNOW-IT-ALLS!!!!!

I didn't cry.  I don't know how I managed but even though something horrible happens I did not cry.  And seriously, it's a miracle.  I'm pretty sure it's because I was reading in a room full of people and there were lots of distractions and I wasn't quite fully immersed in the book when the super sad thing happened.  I'm not sure if it's good or bad but I think maybe it's good.  I just hate that feeling and having it a bit numbed by distractions kept me from bawling my eyeballs out.

Once I started reading this book I realized {again} how amazing J.K. Rowlings ability is to create such amazing characters that most certainly POP but also a world and a story line that are totally mind blowing.  I know you all know that already... but just wanted you to know- I agree!

I'm tempted to pick the next one up right now, but I have a couple review books I really must read first... but I'm thinking it might be really soon!  Which means I ought to be working on getting my hands on the seventh book...

I want to give a big hug to Lori and to Angela {and loads of random people everywhere} who convinced I MUST read these books.  I'm so glad I didn't miss out! 

Reading Challenge and Book Buying Ban Update.

Mel and Mel's Books and Info is doing a challenge to read books you already own in August.  So you can't buy any more books, you can't get them from the library, you can't borrow them from your friends.  You read books already on your shelf.  Since I'm overwhelmed with books, and I'm on a book buying ban so this works for me. 

I also want to update you on my book buying ban.  I did great for July and I did my preorder's for August so I'm going to go for this.  No buying books unless I get a 40% off coupon or I find them for $3 or less.  I can buy for my contests also.  ALSO I have a book signing on the 9th and since I don't actually own any of Richelle Meads books then I'll have to buy some.  I'm not going to set my terms for that day because I don't know what my money situation will be.  I don't think I'll have much, so besides my book for giveaway I'll probably only buy one or two.  It'll depend on if there are any used copies as well.  These terms are for August only.  I'll reevaluate and set new terms in September.
The Book Buyer's Anonymous is a challenge hosted by 25 hour books.  Go check it out!  Both of these challenges have bribes  prizes, as well.