The Secret Life of a Bookworm

20 August 2013

Hallowed by Cynthia Hand

Hallowed by Cynthia Hand
Series: Unearthly #2
Publisher: Egmont
Publication Date: January 2nd 2012
Source: Bought

For months Clara Gardner trained to face the fire from her visions, but she wasn't prepared for the choice she had to make that day. And in the aftermath, she discovered that nothing about being part angel is as straightforward as she thought.

Now, torn between her love for Tucker and her complicated feelings about the roles she and Christian seem destined to play in a world that is both dangerous and beautiful, Clara struggles with a shocking revelation: Someone she loves will die in a matter of months. With her future uncertain, the only thing Clara knows for sure is that the fire was just the beginning.

In this compelling sequel to "Unearthly," Cynthia Hand captures the joy of first love, the anguish of loss, and the confusion of becoming who you are.

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
Series: The Grisha #1
Publisher: Indigo
Publication Date: June 6th 2013
Source: Bought

The Shadow Fold, a swathe of impenetrable darkness, crawling with monsters that feast on human flesh, is slowly destroying the once-great nation of Ravka.

Alina, a pale, lonely orphan, discovers a unique power that thrusts her into the lavish world of the kingdom’s magical elite—the Grisha. Could she be the key to unravelling the dark fabric of the Shadow Fold and setting Ravka free?

The Darkling, a creature of seductive charm and terrifying power, leader of the Grisha. If Alina is to fulfill her destiny, she must discover how to unlock her gift and face up to her dangerous attraction to him.

But what of Mal, Alina’s childhood best friend? As Alina contemplates her dazzling new future, why can’t she ever quite forget him?

Glorious. Epic. Irresistible. Romance.

The Bout of Books read-a-thon starts today, and I've finally got all of my goals sorted! I was having a hard time deciding what books I was going to read and how many I was going to challenge myself to finish.
So, without further ado, here are the books that I'm hoping I'll be able to get through:

Books

~~1. The Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick~~

~~2. Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo~~

~~3. Hallowed by Cynthia Hand~~

~~4. Cinder by Marissa Meyer~~

~~5. My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick~~

~~6. Reached by Ally Condie~~

I'm hopefully going to be able to get through 5 of these books. I'll be going out on Wednesday to see City of Bones & Percy Jackson, and I'll be busy at the weekend so I'll probably only get to 5 but I'm hoping I'll be able to read all 6! :)

Updates

Monday
Number of books read today: 2
Number of pages read today: 642 pages
Books: Shadow and Bone [finished] & Hallowed

Tuesday

Number of books read today: 4
Number of pages read today: 1001 pages
Books: Hallowed [finished], My Life Next Door [finished], Cinder [finished] & Pivot Point

Wednesday

Number of books read today: 1
Number of pages read today: 195 pages
Books: Pivot Point [finished]

Thursday

Number of books read today: 2
Number of pages read today: 521 pages
Books: Reached & My Soul to Steal

Friday

Number of books read today: 3 (2 books, 1 novella)
Number of pages read today: 279 pages
Books: My Soul to Steal [finished], The Assassin and the Pirate Lord [finished] & Reached

Saturday

Number of books read today: 3
Number of pages read today: 393 pages
Books: Reached [finished], The Silver Linings Playbook & The Awakening

Sunday

Number of books read today: 2

Number of pages read today: 410 pages

Books: The Silver Linings Playbook [finished] & The Awakening [finished]

Overall

Total number of books read: 10 (9 books, 1 novella)

Total number of pages read: 3441 pages
Books: Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardgo; Hallowed by Cynthia Hand; My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick, Cinder by Marissa Meyer; Pivot Point by Kasie West; My Soul to Steal by Rachel Vincent; The Assassin and the Pirate Lord by Sarah J Maas; Reached by Ally Condie; The Awakening by Kelley Armstrong & The Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick.

Well, somehow I managed to read 10 books this week (which I actually can't believe!). I've managed to beat my own record of number of books read in a week and I had a lot of fun doing it! I participated in my first twitter chat for Bout of Books, and I had so much fun! I met some new people and found some new blogs to follow. I only managed to take part in one challenge, mostly because I kept forgetting about them, but next time I'll be making sure that I check out the challenges every day. I've really enjoyed taking part in this read-a-thon and I'm really looking forward to the next one now!

Challenges

Challenge - Bookish Mad Libs @ The Space Between
A - City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
B - Avari (hellion) - Soul Screamers series by Rachel Vincent
C - Texas Gothic by Rosemary Clement Moore
D - Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler
E - The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
F - Chaol Westfall - Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas
G - The Ice Cream Girls by Dorothy Koomson

Help! I'm being held captive in the City of Bones by Avari!
It is very Gothic here!
He is demanding Twenty Ravens to set me free!
I have just discovered that Chaol Westfall was captured too!
On second thought, please send Ice Cream, and don't worry if you don't hear from us for awhile!

Much Love,
Samantha [@SamanthasBooks]

17 August 2013

My Soul to Keep by Rachel Vincent

My Soul to Keep by Rachel Vincent
Series: Soul Screamers #3
Publisher: Mira Ink
Publication Date: June 1st 2010
Source: Library

Kaylee has one addiction: her very hot, very popular boyfriend, Nash. A banshee like Kaylee, Nash understands her like no one else. Nothing can come between them. Until something does.

"Demon breath." No, not the toothpaste-challenged kind. The Netherworld kind. The kind that really "can" kill you. Somehow the super-addictive substance has made its way to the human world. But how? Kaylee and Nash have to cut off the source and protect their friends--one of whom is already hooked.

And so is someone else...

My Soul to Save by Rachel Vincent

My Soul to Save by Rachel Vincent
Series: Soul Screamers #2
Publisher: Mira Ink
Publication Date: December 29th 2009
Source: Bought

When Kaylee Cavanaugh screams, someone dies. So when teen pop star Eden croaks onstage and Kaylee doesn't wail, she knows something is dead wrong. She can't cry for someone who has no soul.

The last thing Kaylee needs right now is to be skipping school, breaking her dad's ironclad curfew and putting her too-hot-to-be-real boyfriend's loyalty to the test. But starry-eyed teens are trading their souls: a flickering lifetime of fame and fortune in exchange for eternity in the Netherworld - a consequence they can't possibly understand.

Kaylee can't let that happen, even if trying to save their souls means putting her own at risk...

Angelfall by Susan Ee

Angelfall by Susan Ee
Series: Penryn & the End of Days #1
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
Publication Date: April 11th 2013
Source: Bought

It's been six weeks since angels of the apocalypse descended to demolish the modern world. Street gangs rule the day while fear and superstition rule the night. When warrior angels fly away with a helpless little girl, her seventeen-year-old sister Penryn will do anything to get her back.

Anything, including making a deal with an enemy angel.

Raffe is a warrior who lies broken and wingless on the street. After eons of fighting his own battles, he finds himself being rescued from a desperate situation by a half-starved teenage girl.

Traveling through a dark and twisted Northern California, they have only each other to rely on for survival. Together, they journey toward the angels' stronghold in San Francisco where she'll risk everything to rescue her sister and he'll put himself at the mercy of his greatest enemies for the chance to be made whole again.

A-Z Bookish Survey!

I've seen a lot of bloggers over the past couple of days doing the A-Z Reading Challenge that was created by Jamie @ The Perpetual Page Turner, and I thought that it looked like a lot of fun to do!

According to Goodreads, my most read author is Rachel Caine! That I can believe, since there are 14 books in the Morganville series that have been released just now and I've read 13.

I think I'm going to have to go with Crown of Midnight for this one. I only read it recently, but it blew me away because I never expected it to be that good!

Percy Jackson & the Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

I'm re-reading the first two books before I go to see the Sea of Monsters movie!

Whatever is in the fridge really, so: coke, irn-bru, lemonade, water, etc.

I love my Kindle, but I much prefer having a physical book. Nothing beats the physical book.

Although, kindle books are a lot cheaper...

Hmm, who to choose. I think I'm going to go with St.Clair from Anna and the French Kiss. I just love him so much!

The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald. I'm not a massive Classics reader, so I wasn't sure whether I was going to like this or not. I ended up really enjoying it!