Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon | My "Draft" Stack

It's almost time for my VERY FIRST Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon!  I've been in somewhat of a reading slump, as I have mentioned, so I'm hoping to make some progress this weekend. I wanted to take a picture of my real life stack, but frankly, I'm writing this at work - oops!  Here are the books I'm choosing from.

 I'm gonna try to finish Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs
Finish (or just read some more of) How to Discipline Your Vampire by Mina Vaughn

The Elite by Kiera Cass (Extended note about this: I don't have this yet but will find a way to obtain for free because I am NOT paying, let me tell you. I think the $6.99 price tag on Kindle is too much. I have a LOT of feelings about the first book that stem mostly from frustration with America in relation to Aspen (fucking Aspen). So I was annoyed when I finished the first book and continue to be annoyed as I consider reading the second book.  I know I have to read it because I need to find out about Maxon and America.  Obviously.)

Dead Beat by Jim Butcher (I read Butcher during my last readathon and it went well)
Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell - v. excited for this!

(VERY SHORT) Summer Unplugged by Amy Sparling

The Unidentified Redhead by Alice Clayton 

So that's my tentative plan - who knows what will really happen.  What's your stack look like?  Link to your #readathon stack in the comments!

Stacking the Shelves #3 | Library Sale Edition!

I know it's Wednesday already - but I started this on Saturday.  That counts, right? Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews.

Well, guess who went to a Library Sale this weekend.  Yeah, it was me.  Grabbed 11 books including The Word Exchange and Room which I am so pumped about. Missing from the list below is The Bradbury Report by Steven Polansky because it's the odd book out.  Oh well.

Strange Bedpersons by Jennifer Crusie - Had to buy due to Jennifer Crusie.
Simply Irresistible by Rachel Gibson -  First in a series for which I accidentally purchased the third book.
Smart Mouth by Erin McCarthy -  It was 50 cents!  I couldn't resist.
It all Began in Monte Carlo by Elizabeth Adler -  I LOVE "on a vacation" romances.
One Hit Wonder by Charlie Carillo - Music-ish - automatic buy!
Room by Emma Donoghue -  Critically acclaimed and all that - two bucks!
Contents May Have Shifted by Pam Houston - Love books re: flight attendants
Beach House No. 9 by Christie Ridgway - Again, on a vacation!
Be Mine by Jennifer Crusie, Victoria Dahl, & Shannon Stacey - Again, Jennifer Cruise
The Word Exchange by Alena Graedon - Reviews for this seem to be popping up everywhere! Super cool story concept for ONE DOLLAR

And of course, this is all well and good, but I haven't read anything in 11 days (which is actually a lot less than I thought because I was thinking it had been a full month).  Gearing up (hopefully) for Dewey's Readathon this Saturday, working on my (virtual) stack and trying to decide if I want to do a theme or something.  Look for that post soon!

Did you stak your shelves with anything good this (last) week?

Bout of Books 10!

This is my very first Bout of Books and I'm SUPER excited.  I've been in a reading slump since the

#24in48 (which is super annoying, since I read so much then).

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 12th and runs through Sunday, May 18th 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 10 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

I've grown my OWNED TBR stack by at least 30 in the past month, and I haven't read anything in the past 2 weeks - yikes! Soooo, that means I gotta kick ass in the next few weeks.  Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon is on Saturday 4/26, so ideally I should be able to make some progress. 

And then Bout of Books 10 begins on 5/12.  Hopefully I'll be able to wade through some of my unread collection...

Waiting on Wednesday | Rusty Nailed

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme that spotlights our most anticipated upcoming release.  It is hosted by Breaking the Spine.

I know I usually do Wishlist Wednesday, but honestly I've purchased so many books in the past few weeks that I can't even imagine wishing for anymore right now.  I AM, however, waiting for the release of a few books.  This week's feature:

Rusty Nailed
By Alice Clayton
Publication Date: June 24, 2014

In this sequel to Wallbanger, the second book in the Cocktail series, fan favorites Caroline and Simon negotiate the rollercoaster of their new relationship while house-sitting in San Francisco.

Playing house was never so much fun—or so confusing. With her boss on her honeymoon, Caroline’s working crazy long hours to keep the interior design company running—especially since she’s also the lead designer for the renovation of a gorgeous old hotel on Sausalito. So with her hotshot photographer boyfriend gallivanting all over the world for his job, she and Simon are heavy-duty into “absence makes the heart grow fonder” mode. Neither has any complaints about the great reunion sex, though! Then Simon decides he’s tired of so much travelling, and he’s suddenly home more. A lot more. And wanting Caroline home more, too. Though their friends’ romantic lives provide plenty of welcome distraction, eventually Caroline and Simon have to sort their relationship out. Neither wants “out of sight, out of mind,” but can they create their own happy mid-ground cliché?

I LOVEDDDDD Wallbanger.  I'm trying to write a review of it that contains more than that sentence.  I'm also really into this cover, tbh.  I only wish I had purchased Wallbanger in paperback because then I would buy this in paperback and I'd have a nice little collection.  I have the first book on Kindle and there's no point in buying this one IRL because then it will be so lonely on my shelf! 

Also, I'm very interested in seeing Simon and Caroline play house... ;)  What does your WoW look like this week?

Stacking the Shelves #2

Oh, so soon, you say?  Yeah. I went to the bookstore. TWICE. It was an accident. Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews.  Here's what I stacked my shelves with this week.

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

American Gods by Neil Gaiman

Too Good to Be True by Kristina Higgins

Sorority Sisters by Claudia Welch

Dead Beat (Dresden Files #7) by Jim Butcher
Of Poseidon (The Syrena Legacy #1) by Anna Banks
Finding It (Losing It #3) by Cora Carmack

Did you buy more books than you could read this week?

The Amityville Horror | An ECD Review

Heather @ Stacks & Shelves and I have a book club, and our March/April book was The Amityville Horror by Jay Anson.  We're super smart, and we used random.org to pick a book using our compared to-read shelves on Goodreads.  I have a lifelong goal of finding a book that really and truly scares me.  I thought this was going to be it.  It wasn't - and I am sure it is due to the writing style. Since this book is marketed as a true story, the author is basically just writing short sentences with the "facts" of what took place.  Very matter of fact.  It's basically a journal article without sources. 

The shocking true story of an American dream that turned into a nightmare beyond imagining...

In December 1975, the Lutz family moved into their new home on suburban Long Island. George and Kathleen Lutz knew that one year earlier, Ronald DeFeo had murdered his parents, brothers, and sisters in the house, but the property - complete with boathouse and swimming pool - and the price had been too good to pass up. Twenty-eight days later, the entire Lutz family fled in terror...

This is the spellbinding, bestselling true story that gripped the nation - the story of a house possessed by spirits, haunted by psychic phenomena too terrible to describe.

Upon moving in, the family notices strange temperature changes (George can't get warm despite the oil burner working and thermostat reading 80) and weird happenstances of windows and doors banging open and not being able to be closed right away. Also flies swarming a window of the mother's sewing room.  All very biblical. The front door actually comes off its hinges. One mildly scary aspect was the youngest daughter, Missy, having an "imaginary friend" named Jodie - who is a pig.  Children saying creepy things always scares the bejeebus out of me.

Alongside the story of the Lutzes, Anson describes the troubles of Father Mancuso, the Lutzes' priest from their hometown.  Mancuso blessed the house on the day the Lutzes moved in, and has been shaken up ever since.  He gets blisters on his hands (which are never addressed as stigmata, but...I thought it was pretty clear), gets the "flu" for several days (three times), the smell of human excrement permeates his apartment at the rectory (which he helpfully points out is the "sign of the devil!"), and each of these instances happens after he speaks with, offers advice to, or visits the Lutzes.  Mancuso's observation is that whatever is in the Lutzes' house, it's punishing him for helping the Lutzes drive "it" away.

I actually thought the brief look into the priest's reactions (and physical manifestations of his reactions - or of the spirit, if you feel that's what it is) and dealings with the diocese in terms of how to proceed (professionally) was way more interesting that the goings on inside the house with the Lutzes.  Nothing that went on in the house was super scary.  Sure it was weird as hell, but certainly not "too terrible to describe" as the description suggests.  Besides - it was barely described at all.

I gave this book 2/5 stars on Goodreads because, while I was not scared and did not like the writing style, it was still fairly interesting to read the alleged recount of the goings on in the home.  Though, I wouldn't actually recommend this book to anyone. I'm going to watch the movie to see how that adapts the story. 

Top Ten Tuesday #3 | Most Unique Books

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted byThe Broke and the Bookish. This week: Top Ten Most Unique Books I've Read (maybe the MC was really different, maybe it was the way it was written, a very unique spin on a genre or topic, etc.)  Yes, I know, there's only 8.  One day I'll get to 10 again.  Just you wait!

1. Night Film by Marisha Pessl - I really like books with images and stuff that aren't just pictures of characters, you know?  This has case files and journalist notes and stuff pertaining to an investigative journalist's journey to the truth behind the death of the daughter on an infamous horror film writer/director. Super cool, and I felt cool when I read it.

2. Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews - I include this because SPOILER: the brother and sister do it.  However, this is not the first story I've read with incest, and tbh, it probably will not be the last.  Familial relationships are interesting developments (under different circumstances than being locked in a closet and poisoned by your grand/mother) all around, and it's a good detour to take once in a while from the usual fiction I read.  In case you're not familiar and you're fooled by the gross misrepresentation of the new cover, this is not a love story.  It's actually pretty fucking disturbing, the least of which is because of the incest.

3. God Save the Queen by Kate Locke (Immortal Empire Series) - So basically, a steampunk series wherein there are races of vampires, goblins, etc.  And it's pretty awesome.  I wish I had more to say about this but it's just so different (to me). While there is a pretty common trope involved (rich guy - well, vampire - falls in love with a regular girl - well, goblin queen), I felt like the rest was so unlike any book (supernatural or not) I'd read.

4. The Lunar Chronicles by Marisa Meyer - Ugh, I have so many feelings about why I love this series.  Maybe it's not unique, but I just feel like it has so many great aspects and ties to multiple genres that it just...makes me want to hug the books so tight and roll around on the floor.  Was that TMI?  I don't care I love it so!  It's not the most gripping set of books (so far), but the potential for greatness keeps me reading.  I am actually a little worried about the final book next year.  What if it doesn't blow my mind?!

5.The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins - Pretty sure this is the first dystopian novel I read (except pretending to read The Handmaid's Tale in high school).



6. The Fearless series by Francine Pascal - YA about a girl born without the fear gene. That's pretty cool, come on. I'm sure there was more involved but tbh I read this more than 10 years ago.  I LOVED it, though.

7. The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly - Sort of a fairy tale but like, super creepy.  Reminded me of Pan's Labyrinth in that way. Another dimension, scary creatures, an axe man, a revolution in kingdom that may or may not even exist.  Good stuff.

8. The Long Hard Road Out of Hell by Marilyn Manson - As you can imagine, this is not your average autobiography.  I don't even know what made me pick it up, because I have never even had the desire at all to listen to Manson's music. I think I read this the same time I watched Bowling for Columbine where he speaks to accusations that his music is the reason these kids made their decisions and how the town cancelled his concert there but still allowed the NRA to have their convention/gun show the same week. I'm sure I thought "Hmm, how fascinating, better read up on him."  It's an insightful read.

Leave your TTT in the comments - I'd love to check it out!