Showing posts with label 2011 Spooktacular October Paranormal Reading Challenge. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2011 Spooktacular October Paranormal Reading Challenge. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Wrap-up for the 2011 Spooktacular October Paranormal Reading Challenge

Where did October go?! I cannot believe how fast it went. I also can't believe how well the reading challenge went! I'm so thrilled with the amount of people who participated, and the amount of books that were reviewed! I've been keeping track of the reviews, and I thought to highlight the lovely participants of this challenge, I would post each person's reviews, and hopefully drive a bit of extra traffic to your blogs as a thank you for participating.

I reached my goal of 8 paranormal books in October, which is pretty amazing since I'm a super slow reader. I had so much fun - it was nice to get caught up on some paranormal books I'd been wanting to read. 

Links:

Stats for the challenge:
#of people who signed up: 67
#of people who actually participated: 47 (kinda wondering what happened to the other 20 people who signed up lol)
#of people who completed the challenge: 42
Total # of reviews: 270
Top 3 reviewers: Blackwolf from Eternal Soul (16 books), Amy from Amy's Book Den (15 books), and Michelle from Much Loved Books (14 books). 

WINNER:
 (Randomly drawn. Each review equaled an entry into the giveaway.)
Michelle from Much Loved Books
Congrats, Michelle! 14 books this month - well done!!

*************

Participants and reviews:
(in order of sign-ups - this list only shows the people who completed the challenge, as in a minimum of 3 reviews)

SweetMarie83 from Ramblings of a Daydreamer (that's me!) - 8 books

Patricia at My Journey Through the Pages - 3 books

Georgina from Diary of a Writer in Progress - 3 books

Amy from Amy's Book Den - 15 books

Darcus from Starcrossed Reviews - 11 books

Niina at For the Love of Reading! - 11 books

Michelle at Much Loved Books - 14 books

Cathy at Abnormally Paranormal Reviews - 5 books

Tee at Dreaming Dream No Moral Ever Dares - 4 books

Melissa at Melissa's Eclectic Bookshelf - 3 books

Katie at Novel Society - 4 books

Lori at Romancing the Dark Side - 3 books

Paige at Comfort Books - 4 books
Mist at Bookaholics Book Club - 4 books
Christy at Love of Books - 5 books

Rebecca at Lost in a Bookstore - 3 books

Kathy at I Write, I Read, I Review - 6 books

Tara at Hey Tara! - 3 books

Marla at Starting the Next Chapter - 9 books

Jasmyn at Jasmyn's Reviews - 6 books

Sarita at The Fabulous Gift of Life - 9 books

Blackwolf at Eternal Soul - 16 books

Mandy at Reality Bites - 3 books

Jennifer at The Book Nympho - 4 books

DaVinciKitty at Grave Tells - 9 books

Aleksandra at Aleksandra's Corner - 6 books
 Raelena at Throuthehaze Reads - 3 books

April at Books4Juliet - 5 books

Emily at Books and Threads - 5  books

Colleen at Les Livres - 4 books

Benji at The Non Reluctant Reader - 5 books
Jess at Books and Sensibility - 3 books

Jess at Starcrossed Reviews - 6 books

Kristin at Better Read Than Dead - 12 books

Miki at Lecture toute une Aventure - 12 books

Whit at Whitticisms - 3 books

Kell at Diary of a Domestic Goddess - 6 books
Posted by SweetMarie83 at 12:29 AM 16 comments
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Sunday, October 30, 2011

Book Review: Claire de Lune by Christine Johnson

Claire de Lune by Christine Johnson
Series: Claire de Lune #1
Published: May 18th, 2010
Publisher: Simon Pulse
336 pages (hardcover)
Genre: YA paranormal romance
Acquired this book: From the library
Challenge: 2011 Spooktacular Paranormal Reading Challenge
Warning: may include spoilers
{GoodReads || Amazon}

Synopsis: Torn between two destinies?
Claire is having the perfect sixteenth birthday. Her pool party is a big success, and gorgeous Matthew keeps chatting and flirting with her as if she's the only girl there. But that night, she discovers something that takes away all sense of normalcy: she's a werewolf.
As Claire is initiated into the pack of female werewolves, she must deal not only with her changing identity, but also with a rogue werewolf who is putting everyone she knows in danger. Claire's new life threatens her blossoming romance with Matthew, whose father is leading the werewolf hunt. Now burdened with a dark secret and pushing the boundaries of forbidden love, Claire is struggling to feel comfortable in either skin. With her lupine loyalty at odds with her human heart, she will make a choice that will change her forever?


Well…I have mixed feelings about this book. I liked the concept and thought it was original – people know about werewolves, although their identities aren’t known except inside the packs. Only women are werewolves, and it’s passed down through the generations. Nice change from the whole 'Alpha male' thing. It was an interesting mix of paranormal, suspense, and romance.

That being said, Claire wasn’t my favorite character ever. Actually, to be honest, I didn’t really love any of the characters. I didn’t hate Claire by any means, but she spends a lot of time going over the same things – she’s not human anymore, she’s a werewolf, it’s so hard to keep it from people, she pushes away her best friend (who really annoyed me by the way – she was a stereotypical boy-crazy, self-absorbed teenager) because her friend's problems are insignificant in comparison and because Claire can’t talk to her about her own problems. I also found it a bit odd that Claire accepted things so easily – it was like 'happy birthday Claire, and hey, guess what, you’re a werewolf, surprise!' I would have freaked the hell out personally, even after seeing proof with my own eyes. But that’s just me. It also kind of bothered me that when Claire says ‘oh my god’ her mother corrects her and says ‘goddess’, and even though that happens several times, she never explains why, but Claire just accepts it without question. Sorry, but if I'd been taught to believe something my entire life, and then was told 'no, believe this' I'd question it. Plus, I think it could have added more to the story.

Claire’s mother was an extremely unlikable character. She definitely gets the worst mother of the year award. She’s so self-absorbed that she barely seems to care about Claire at all, and Claire basically can’t do anything right. But, I kind of enjoy characters who are genuinely unlikable because it’s a sign that the author did something right – when a character evokes genuine emotion from a reader, whether it’s love or hate, it shows a well-written and well-formed character. Does that make sense?

Anyway, all that being said, the romance junkie in me enjoyed the budding relationship between Claire and Matthew. It was all very innocent and sweet. To me, that’s how first love feels – you’re awkward and unsure, but have these sweet little moments. And Matthew was a great guy, just what Claire needs. It always felt like there was a little something missing between them, and Matthew was kind of freakishly perfect, but it worked.

Overall, I think that if this book had been about 100 pages shorter and had cut out a lot of the filler, it would have been more enjoyable. I didn’t love it, but I didn’t hate it either. I’m sure there are many, many people who will enjoy it though, so it’s worth a read, especially if you enjoy books about werewolves and teenage angst. I’m not 100% if I’ll read the next book, Nocturne, but I’ll admit to being just curious enough that I might eventually read it.



Posted by SweetMarie83 at 2:26 PM 3 comments
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Friday, October 28, 2011

Book Review: Some Girls Bite by Chloe Neill

Some Girls Bite by Chloe Neill
Series: Chicagoland Vampires #1
Published: April 7th, 2009
Publisher: NAL Trade
341 pages (paperback)
Genre: Paranormal romance/urban fantasy
Acquired this book: From the library
Challenge: 2011 Spooktacular Paranormal Reading Challenge
Warning: may include spoilers
{GoodReads || Amazon}

Synopsis: Sure, the life of a graduate student wasn't exactly glamorous, but it was Merit's. She was doing fine until a rogue vampire attacked her. But he only got a sip before he was scared away by another bloodsucker-and this one decided the best way to save her life was to make her the walking undead.

Turns out her savior was the master vampire of Cadogan House. Now she's traded sweating over her thesis for learning to fit in at a Hyde Park mansion full of vamps loyal to Ethan "Lord o' the Manor" Sullivan. Of course, as a tall, green-eyed, four-hundred- year-old vampire, he has centuries' worth of charm, but unfortunately he expects her gratitude- and servitude. But an inconvenient sunlight allergy and Ethan's attitude are the least of her concerns. Someone's still out to get her. Her initiation into Chicago's nightlife may be the first skirmish in a war-and there will be blood.

My thoughts on Some Girls Bite:

After reading mostly YA books for the last several months, this book was a nice change. As much as I love YA (and I really do, it’s an addiction), sometimes it’s nice to read about people my own age (literally – Merit was 27, about to turn 28, and so am I).

I’m always happy to find a book where there’s a twist on vampires. The vampire House concept was really neat, and I liked how there was a bit of traditional vampire lore (like aversion to sunlight) mixed in with some new ideas.

The characters in this book are fantastic. I love Merit, Mallory, Catcher, Jeff, Ethan, Morgan, Merit's grandfather - all of them. Merit is full of strength and sass, fearless but with a vulnerable side, and she’s just an overall terrific character. I liked her from the beginning, and just continued to like her more and more as the story went on. We get to watch her grow, change, struggle, and discover her abilities, and because of those things, despite the fact that she's a vampire, she's very relatable.

I loved the friendship between Merit and Mallory. They’re loyal to each other and their personalities compliment each other nicely. They’re definitely two girls I’d like to have as friends! I also loved watching Mallory and Catcher develop a relationship – it was almost instant, despite the fact that Mallory went into it kind of begrudgingly, especially when she learns of her powers.

Ethan and Morgan are both sexy, smooth vampires. Because they’re from rival houses, and Merit is clearly attracted to both of them, I think they’re going to present an interesting (and tense) love triangle as the series continues. I know that just from this first book, I couldn't pick between them!

Overall, Some Girls Bite is a fantastic book. It jumps right in, and has something for everyone – action, romance, suspense, sexual tension, humour, friendship. I can’t wait to read the next book, Friday Night Bites!



Posted by SweetMarie83 at 2:29 PM 5 comments
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Monday, October 24, 2011

Book Review: Farsighted by Emlyn Chand - Farsighted Blog Tour

Farsighted by Emlyn Chand
Series: Farsighted #1
Published: October 24, 2011
Publisher: Blue Crown Press
217 pages (ebook)
Genre: YA paranormal romance
Acquired this book: From the author, as part of the Farsighted Blog Tour
Challenge: 2011 Spooktacular Paranormal Reading Challenge
Warning: may include spoilers
{GoodReads || Amazon}

Find Emlyn online: Official website || Twitter || Novel Publicity || Facebook || GoodReads
 
Synopsis: Alex Kosmitoras’s life has never been easy. The only other student who will talk to him is the school bully, his parents are dead-broke and insanely overprotective, and to complicate matters even more, he's blind. Just when he thinks he'll never have a shot at a normal life, a new girl from India moves into town. Simmi is smart, nice, and actually wants to be friends with Alex. Plus she smells like an Almond Joy bar. Yes, sophomore year might not be so bad after all.

Unfortunately, Alex is in store for another new arrival—an unexpected and often embarrassing ability to “see” the future. Try as he may, Alex is unable to ignore his visions, especially when they begin to suggest that Simmi is in danger. With the help of the mysterious psychic next door and new friends who come bearing gifts of their own, Alex must embark on a journey to change his future.

My thoughts about Farsighted:
Farsighted is a refreshingly unique story. It’s not often that we see YA tales told from the perspective of a male. Nor do we frequently see stories representing people with disabilities, or people of varied ethnic backgrounds. Farsighted had all those things, and more.

It was interesting to read a book from a teenage boy’s perspective, and to have that teenage boy not be the stereotypical combination of popular, horndog, and/or jock. Alex is blind, and is fairly well-adjusted; he’s always been blind, so he doesn’t know anything different. One of the nice things about a YA book from the male perspective is that it was a pleasant break from the catty mean girl drama you get in a lot of books with a high school setting. Alex is bullied by one boy in particular, but it’s realistic - not over the top like some novels - and it doesn’t consume the entire story.



Simmi was my favorite character. She was patient, kind, and understanding, even when Alex didn’t necessarily deserve it. She was completely her own person, and didn’t need anyone else to tell her who she should be. She was exactly what Alex needed, when he needed it, and I enjoyed watching their friendship blossom...and wondering if something more was going to happen between them. I also loved learning more about Indian culture through Simmi’s character.

As for the actual storytelling, I felt like I could see everything Alex is ‘seeing’ as he describes things with all his senses. We get to see Alex and his friends growing as people, learning sometimes-frightening things about themselves and the people around them, and learning to deal with those things. There’s a fantastic blending of real-life problems with paranormal problems, woven together to make a story that's both believable and relatable. This book has a bit of everything – paranormal, romance, mystery, some action, and suspense. I can’t wait to read the next one!




Emlyn Chand has always loved to hear and tell stories, having emerged from the womb with a fountain pen grasped firmly in her left hand (true story). When she’s not writing, she runs a large book club in Ann Arbor and is the president of author PR firm, Novel Publicity. Emlyn loves to connect with readers and is available throughout the social media interweb. Visit www.emlynchand.com for more info. Don’t forget to say “hi” to her sun conure Ducky!

*****
 Extras:

I’ve mentioned Emlyn Chand quite a bit over the last few weeks on the blog. If you’d like to see other posts where she’s mentioned, check the tags at the bottom of this post and click on her name.

THE CASH PRIZES:  Guess what? You could win a $100 Amazon gift card as part of this special blog tour! All you have to do is leave a comment below regarding this post, and you’ll be entered into the raffle. I could win $100 too if you'd be kind enough to vote for Ramblings of a Daydreamer in the traffic-breaker poll. To cast your vote, visit the official Farsighted blog tour page and scroll all the way to the bottom. Thank you for your help!

THE GIVEAWAYS: Win 1 of 10 autographed copies of Farsighted before its paperback release on November 24th by entering the giveaway on GoodReads. Perhaps you’d like an autographed postcard from the author; you can request one on her site.

*About the random elephant picture - when I read that Simmi had an elephant collection, it made me smile. My Grama died in August, and I got most of her elephant collection - dozens and dozens of them! It just felt like a sign - a book about psychics, the elephants - it was like my Grama communicating with me in a way. :-)

Posted by SweetMarie83 at 10:00 AM 5 comments
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Friday, October 21, 2011

Wonderfully Wicked Read-a-Thon!


My very first read-a-thon!! I'm really excited. I've been busting my butt to get all my work done this week so that I can read all weekend, participate in the challenges, and visit other participants.

The technical stuff: Wonderfully Wicked Read-a-Thon is being hosted by My Shelf Confessions and Kindle Fever from today (October 21st) to the the 23rd. You can make blog posts with your updates, join the Twitter fun with the hashtag #WWReadathon, enter the daily challenges (more info on the hosts' blogs), and just have a lot of fun reading and hanging out with fellow book lovers! Also, if anyone who's participating in my Spooktacular October Paranormal Reading Challenge sees this, and you haven't signed up, this would be a great way to read more paranormal books, because don't forgot, the more you read and the more reviews you post, the more entries you have in the giveaway!

The books I'm hoping to read this weekend:
*Some Girls Bite by Chloe Neill - right now, I'm on page 100, so I want to finish it this weekend
*Farsighted by Emlyn Chand - right now, I'm on page 68, and I want to finish it, too
*I'm the slowest reader in the world, but if by some miracle, I manage to finish those 2 books, I think I'll read Claire de Lune by Christine Johnson

Let me know if you're participating so I can visit you and follow your progress! :-) If you want to find me on Twitter, where I'll try to post regular updates, I'm @SweetMarie83 ;-)

UPDATES
1pm-ish Friday: I sat on the floor with my laptop reading Farsighted, while my mum used my computer to do some proofreading of my novel (yes, she's one of my proofreaders, and an amazing one at that). Got 21 pages read, now breaking for lunch! My bum is kinda numb, but doing good other than that! lol
11pm-ish Friday: Got 83 pages of Farsighted read, and 36 pages of Some Girls Bite read. Had a ton of fun on Twitter - extra special thanks to one of the hosts of the read-a-thon, April (@shelfconfession), and Vicky from Books, Biscuits and Tea (@alouetteuette) for the laughs and fun today! Tomorrow, I plan to finish Farsighted, and hope to finish Some Girls Bite. I'm heading to the library in the morning and to run a couple of errands, but the rest of the day will be dedicated to reading! Good night!

Saturday wrap-up: 
*Finished Farsighted by Emlyn Chand - review will be up Monday as part of her blog tour. 
*Read 85 pages of Some Girls Bite by Chloe Neill
*Participated in A Book and a Latte's 'Let's Talk Horror' challenge
*Had tons of fun on Twitter again! :-D

5:30 pm Sunday: I've read 152 pages of Some Girls Bite by Chloe Neill. Just 48 pages left to go! I've done some rearranging of furniture and brought the rocking chair from the living into my bedroom (which I've been meaning to do for months), so I now have a comfy spot to read in my room, rather than killing my back sitting on the floor or my bed. Yay!
*Participated in My Shelf Confession's Zombie Apocalypse Challenge

The challenge is to post pictures that describe what the book you're reading is about. 


Some Girls Bite by Chloe Neill:

This book is about vampires (and other supernatural creatures)

It's set in Chicago

Vampires are divided into Houses, and can choose to live in the house of their House (great explanation, I know lol)

WRAP-UP
I had so much fun!! I can't wait until the next read-a-thon. I ended up finishing Some Girls Bite by Chloe Neill - squeaked it in just before midnight last night lol. I would have had time to finish it and start another one if it hadn't been for my Sunday night TV shows. 
I wasn't able to participate in all the challenges, but I had fun with the ones I did. It was also a blast meeting new people on Twitter, and getting to talk books - my favorite subject! :-D Thanks again to April and Bex for hosting this - you girls rock! <3


Posted by SweetMarie83 at 11:32 AM 8 comments
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