25 Hour Books

Dead Until Dark {catch-up} – SPOILERS!

Tara SG — Tue, 15 May 2012 16:24:23 +0000

I am currently in the process of re-reading the Sookie Stackhouse (SVM) series. While I don’t want to “review” each book as I reread them, I do want to make notes about what I had forgotten and how I felt the third time through. These will contain spoilers!

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Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris

Book Order (Sookie Stackhouse – SVM)

Dead Until Dark – Charlaine Harris 09.01.09 ****
Living Dead in Dallas – Charlaine Harris 09.04.09 **** 04.25.10
Club Dead – Charlaine Harris 09.04.09 ****1/2 04.25.10
Dead to the World – Charlaine Harris 09.06.09 ****1/2 04.25.10
Dead as a Doornail – Charlaine Harris 09.07.09 ****1/2 04.25.10
Definitely Dead – Charlaine Harris 09.07.09 **** 04.25.10
All Together Dead – Charlaine Harris 09.08.09 **** 04.25.10
From Dead to Worse – Charlaine Harris 09.08.09 **** 04.25.10
Dead and Gone – Charlaine Harris 09.09.09 ****1/2 04.25.10
Dead in the Family – Charlaine Harris05.04.10 * * * 3/4
Dead Reckoning – Charlaine Harris (I can’t find a review or rating for this, but I knowI read it.)
Deadlocked – Charlaine Harris
Dead Ever After (?) – Charlaine Harris (May 2013)

Links

Amazon : paperback / eBook (900 reviews : 4.0 avg)

Add To Your GoodReads TBR List (147,160 ratings : 3.94 avg)

In Six Words

difficult to separate book and TV

Notes

I had a really hard time letting go of the characters from the TV series and getting back into the book. I still really enjoyed it and think that it will get easier as I move further in the series when there are more differences between the two.

So what had I forgotten that had surprised me?

How stupid Jason is. Not that he is the brightest in the TV show, but he didn’t hand over the sex tapes in the show.
How attractive Bill is. I’ve never been a big fan of the actor chosen to play Bill, but it didn’t bother me because by the time the series came on I was far enough into the books that I didn’t like him anyway. I did not fall for Bill this time around.
That Sookie could get flashes from Eric’s mind before ever having his blood. I knew that this came up later in the books, but did not realize it started so early in the series before they really bonded.
How mean Andy is. Andy is very different in the books compared to the TV series. He knows about Sookie’s gift and is very mean trying to get her to admit to having it.
I was surprised at how much I laughed and how interested I was to see everything fall together (since I already knew how it ended).
As much as I like Tara in the TV show, I didn’t miss her in the books. I really miss Lafayette though.

On to book 2!!

Bout of Books 4.0

Tara SG — Sat, 12 May 2012 14:00:06 +0000

You were going to read that week anyway, right? Read with us.

The Bout of Books Read-a-Thon was created by Amanda @ On a Book Bender on a complete whim in August 2011. It took on a life of its own and was such a hit that Amanda decided to do it again and turn it into a somewhat regular occurrence. There are no set dates for Bout of Books; rather, Amanda tries to work with Bout of Books participants to determine the best dates for them.

However, there are a few things about Bout of Books that will always stay the same.

It is a week long read-a-thon, usually from 12:01am on a Monday through 11:59pm on a Sunday in whatever time zone you are in.
Bout of Books is low pressure, meaning participants are only asked to push themselves to read more than they normally would during any given week. There is no competition between readers.
How much time a reader wants, and can commit, to read, tweet, or network with fellow bloggers is left to individual preference. All challenges and giveaways are optional.
Networking with fellow bloggers is actively encouraged, though never required. Co-hosts are there to facilitate blog hopping and interaction between participants.
Use Twitter to post updates throughout the read-a-thon. Everyone will be tweeting with the #boutofbooks hashtag.

My Goals

Read every single day (even if it is only one chapter).
Finish the first three SVM books.
Start Tattoo Tuesdays again.

Books To Read

Updates

5/14
Number of books I’ve read today: 1
Total number of books I’ve read: 1
Books:

Dead Until Dark – Charlaine Harris

5/15
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5/16
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5/17
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5/18
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5/19
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5/20
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Ava of the Gaia {mini review} * * 1/2

Tara SG — Fri, 11 May 2012 14:23:38 +0000

Ava of the Gaia by G.E. Nosek

- YA, fantasy -

Links

Author’s Website : www.genosek.com

Amazon : eBook (12 reviews : 5.0 avg)

Add To Your GoodReads TBR List (1 ratings : 5.0 avg) – the author

In Six Words

too many pet peeves to enjoy

Why did I read this? And am I glad I did?

My sister sent me a link to a book written by someone in her year at Harvard Law. She knew that I read YA and had heard her classmates raving about this book. I wonder if the people loving this book read much YA. I’m guessing not.

Don’t get me wrong, the book has good bones. The plot was interesting and the mythology was well-thought out. The characters themselves weren’t too bad.

So what didn’t I like? The book is borderline novella, which I think is most of the problem. We meet the instant love interest within a few pages. There is a weird love triangle half-added and uber-rushed. And there is the classic, beautiful, smart girl that just happens to be home alone all the time so that there is no parental interference with the plot. There were other small things that I’m not going to nitpick.

Overall, I finished the book, but I wouldn’t recommend it. But I seem in the minority.

Brief Summary

Ava Fae saves the life and steals the affection of the beautiful new boy at her high school, knowing full well that saving his life may mean losing her own.

When Ava dances in the rain, nature dances with her—fallen leaves and shimmering petals swirl around her in a tornado of color, as if the Earth is lending out its crown jewels to adorn a favorite princess. Ava belongs to the ancient Order of Gaia—a secret group created by those with superhuman abilities to safeguard the vitality of the natural world. Now, another secret group, the Order of Ares, is methodically hunting down and killing the Gaia.

Isolated from the conflict and lulled by the halcyon setting of her rural Massachusetts town, Ava is content to use her powers to frolic with the local fauna and compel her teachers to recycle, until a new boy wearing the tattoo of the Ares arrives at her high school. With a pair of wickedly slanting cheekbones, a silent hurt in his blue eyes, and the Ares’ ability to control his own and others’ pheromones, Lucas is a one man siren song, pulling Ava inexorably towards him. No hapless schoolgirl to be so easily ensnared, Ava responds to the beautiful boy’s attention with un-tempered ferocity, especially after he appears to casually crush a spider in front of her. But Ava catches Lucas carefully releasing the spider outdoors. Then, after rescuing Lucas from a late night bar fight, she glances up from tending to his wounds to find a look of such trust in his eyes that it leaves her struggling to breathe. Ava must decide: are these moments of intimacy artfully contrived steps in a plan to lure her into betraying her people or can she actually work with Lucas to bring about a rapprochement between the warring orders?

- via GoodReads

Other Reviews

The author is the only who has rating this book on GoodReads…

Clock Rewinders on a Book Binge {05 07 12}

Tara SG — Mon, 07 May 2012 20:40:08 +0000

Clock Rewinders on a Book Binge is where Amanda @ On a Book Bender and I shamelessly plug each other, share the fantastic posts, giveaways, or whatever else we’ve found and loved by other awesome bloggers (or authors!) during the week, and talk about the books we plan on reading in the coming week.

Announcement

Clock Rewinders is open to anyone. Please join us. We do, however, want to stress that Clock Rewinders was started to promote and share/link content from other bloggers; in short, it is about creating community. Please do not lose sight of this goal in your own posts. For more information about CR, please visit Amanda’s Features page, where she has added additional information about participating.

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25 Hour Books Recap

Meanwhile, in Tara’s World

I know I already mentioned that I was going in my last CR post, but Florence + the Machine was AMAZING!!
Girls on the Run will be finishing up after this week (the 5K is next weekend). This means a few more hours open for reading each week!
I’m almost finished decorating my office. I have no doubt that if you have seen my house, you would know instantly that this is my office.

On a Book Bender Recap

blogoversary: felicia on reading and blogging
top off tuesday [47] – uh… *stares*
blogoversary: ruby’s predictions for the future
blogoversary: amy thinks good book bloggers are awesome
an open love letter to the book blogging community
DISCUSSION POST – joint reviews: yea or nay?

personally, I don’t usually like to read joint reviews

Around the Book Blogging Community

Support Romance Books on Television! @FreshFiction @ReelVixon @wfaagmt via The Geeky Blogger’s Book Blog
Blogger Confession: Sticking to my book buying guns is not easy (and sometimes I fail)! via The Geeky Blogger’s Book Blog
Spring Blog Carnival: Matchmaker Booth – Challenge and Giveaway! via The Unread Reader (LOVE this idea!!)
Romance Readers I Know You’re Out There via Fiction Vixen

YES!! I definitley have been in this situation

Smex Scene Sunday : Succubi are Fovever – via Smexy Books

thank you!

Stacking The Shelves –The Official Launch - via Tynga’s Reviews

This looks like a promising IMM replacement!

Let’s Talk: Underrated Books - via i swim for oceans
How much is too much when it comes to posts? - via Reading the Paranormal
Your Attention Please! A Discussion Post on Discussion Posts - via Ruby’s Reads

Search Terms

Nothing that doesn’t end with “tattoo”…

GoodReads Stats

Currently Reading : 4

A Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice and Fire, #1) - 10%
Ava of the Gaia - 100% – needs review
The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games, #1) - 70%ish? (Listening to this when I run)
A Year of Living Your Yoga: Daily Practices to Shape Your Life - daily read

To Read : 607

On Kindle : 547

added since last post :

I updated a lot of missing books while switching from Tara’s 2nd Kindle to Tara’s 3rd Kindle.

Wish List : 95

added since last post:

The Week Ahead

I’ll be rereading the Sookie Stackhouse books… probably for a few weeks…

Link Up!

A Deed Without a Name {1}

Tara SG — Mon, 07 May 2012 17:03:48 +0000

*Insert awesome graphic here at a later date. *

“A Deed Without a Name”? Those of you who are complete nerds (aka Literature students/teachers), will know that the line comes from Macbeth and refers to evil doings of the witches that are so horrendous that there are no words (or at least that’s what I think it means. Correct me if I’m wrong!).

So what am I doing that is so horrible? I’m rereading a series when I have literally hundreds of unread books on my Kindle. I’m hoping that I’m not the only one who deals with this crazy feeling of guilt. And so a new “meme” is born.

This won’t just be for rereads. I also feel guilty when I skip books up in my TBR. Or when I thrown in a “guilty pleasure” book when I have review books on the shelf.

—

Sookie Stackhouse Reread

Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris

(old review – at 101 in 1001)

Book Order (Sookie Stackhouse)

Dead Until Dark – Charlaine Harris 09.01.09 ****
Living Dead in Dallas – Charlaine Harris 09.04.09 **** 04.25.10
Club Dead – Charlaine Harris 09.04.09 ****1/2 04.25.10
Dead to the World – Charlaine Harris 09.06.09 ****1/2 04.25.10
Dead as a Doornail – Charlaine Harris 09.07.09 ****1/2 04.25.10
Definitely Dead – Charlaine Harris 09.07.09 **** 04.25.10
All Together Dead – Charlaine Harris 09.08.09 **** 04.25.10
From Dead to Worse – Charlaine Harris 09.08.09 **** 04.25.10
Dead and Gone – Charlaine Harris 09.09.09 ****1/2 04.25.10
Dead in the Family – Charlaine Harris 05.04.10 * * * 3/4
Dead Reckoning – Charlaine Harris (I can’t find a review or rating for this, but I know I read it.)
Deadlocked – Charlaine Harris
Dead Ever After (?) – Charlaine Harris (May 2013)

Brief Summary (Dead Until Dark)

Sookie Stackhouse is just a small-time cocktail waitress in small-town Louisiana. Until the vampire of her dreams walks into her life-and one of her coworkers checks out…. Maybe having a vampire for a boyfriend isn’t such a bright idea.

- via GoodReads.com

Why am I reading this?

It has been two years since I’ve read these books. It is no wonder why I can barely remember what happened! I tried jumping straight into Deadlocked, but it wasn’t clicking well enough for my OCD.

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Do you feel guilty for any of the books you have read recently?

Tara’s 3rd Kindle

Tara SG — Sat, 05 May 2012 22:22:02 +0000

I’d like to take a second to introduce you to my new precious, Tara’s 3rd Kindle.

Yes, I know how clever my kindle names are. I’ve never changed them from the default. Why a new Kindle? I love reading on an e-reader. To the point that reading a hardcopy annoys me. Over the last two years my Kindle got a lot of use. A LOT. It was a no-brainer that I would get a Kindle when the time came to upgrade. Lately Tara’s 2nd Kindle was slowing down and the battery just didn’t seem to hold a charge as well.

Wait, but yourthird one? Well a few months after I got my original Kindle (2nd generation), the battery decided it did NOT like the latest update. Amazon customer service was amazing and my precious was replaced.

This time I went with the Kindle Touch with Special Features. I was worried about it being heavier than the regular Kindle… then I realized that it still weighs considerably less than my current version. I was also worried about how using the touch screen to turn pages would be… while I haven’t finished a whole book, so far I love it. I’ll update after I finish a few books

Clock Rewinders on a Book Binge {04 29 12}

Tara SG — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 17:06:53 +0000

—

25 Hour Books Recap

Have to Start Somewhere…

In which I lay out my plans for getting back into book blogging.

Mini Review : The Darkest Pleasure * * *

In Six Words : who knew pain was so sexy?

Meanwhile, in Tara’s World

Work. Work. Work. Gym. Sleep. Work.

I’m not sure that I’ve mentioned on here or not, but I received a promotion at work. And while I’m very excited for this opportunity, it means more work and more stress. C’est la vie.

My evil trainer was worse than usual this week and three days later my arms still hurt.
My husband is amazing and got us tickets to see Florence and the Machine tonight in STL.

On a Book Bender Recap

*** Happy Blogoversary Amanda!!! ***

04.23 Audio Review : Hexed by Kevin Hearne

Rating : 8
In Six Words : Kevin Hearne simply writes enjoyable stories.

04.24 Top Off Tuesday [46] – a little off the bottom
04.25 Audio Review : Hammered by Kevin Hearne

Rating : 8
In Six Words : Fabulous continuation of Iron Druid series!

04.26 blogoversary: beginning fun with alexa
04.27 blogoversary: hannah’s blogging tips
04.27 blogoversary: smash on the awesomeness of book blogging
04.28 blogoversary: jenny on what she learned her 1st year of blogging

Around the Book Blogging Community

Parajunkee’s Book Blogging 101: The Drama Machine & How to Boycott.
The Geeky Blogger’s Book Blog - Blogger Confession: Why I Take Weekends Off!
Mindfull Musings – Movie Monday: Lost Girl Season 1 (also I LOVE that this is blocked at work, but Wicked Lil Pixie’s BDSM post was not lol)
the unread reader – Supernatural (Just Fiction?): Guest Post & Giveaway with author KL Glanville

Search Terms

“live life” – I’m guessing this links back to my posts filled with excuses as to why I’m not on here more often :/

“girl from evermore cover” – Do bloggers talk about the actual models from book covers? Other than Top Off Tuesdays

GoodReads Stats

*I’m only going to highlight a few… this would be insane considering how long it’s been since I’ve done one of these :/

Currently Reading : 3

A Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice and Fire, #1) - 10%
Ava of the Gaia - 25% (the author goes to school with my sister so I moved it up the TBR)
The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games, #1) - 70%ish? (Listening to this when I run)

To Read : 591

Wish List : 92

added since last post : *most recently added only*

The Week Ahead

I’m not sure yet. I have a list, however, I want to start encouraging myself to read whatever sounds good and not what I *should* read next.

Link Up!

The Darkest Pleasure {mini review} * * *

Tara SG — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 22:17:04 +0000

The Darkest Kiss by Gena Showlater

- paranormal romance -

Book Order (Lords of the Underworld)

The Darkest Fire (prequel)
The Darkest Night * * * 1/2
The Darkest Kiss * * * 1/2
The Darkest Pleasure * * *
The Darkest Prison (bonus novella)
The Darkest Whisper
The Darkest Angel (bonus novella)
The Darkest Passion
The Darkest Lie
The Darkest Secret
The Darkest Surrender
The Darkest Seduction

Links

Author’s Website : www.genashowalter.com

Author’s Twitter : @genashowalter

Amazon : hardcover / paperback / eBook (95 reviews : 4.0 avg)

Add To Your GoodReads TBR List (10,959 ratings : 4.26 avg)

In Six Words

who knew pain was so sexy?

Why did I read this? And am I glad I did?

I started this in November. Yes, November. I was attempting to knock off more of my “series” shelf. I was “really into this one” on December 03… then tried to start it again on January 08… and then picked it up again a few days ago. Now I don’t want you thinking that this was so boring that I threw it aside and forgot about it. I really did enjoy the story and holy hell was Reyes fun (well as fun as truly tortured heroes get). I was just in a reading funk and literary did not ~~have~~ make time to read.

I also feel like because I haven’t been reading as much, I was more critical of this one. The ending fell together just as easily as the others in the series (or any other series similar to this one), however, it bothered me a little. Would I have been pissed if things didn’t work out? Of course! That didn’t stop me from thinking “Well didn’t that come together conveniently!”.

Reyes, as the container of the demon Pain, could not feel pleasure and needed to hurt himself in order to calm the beast. For those who read a lot of paranormal romance, the idea of shoving a knife in your leg to get off may not seem crazy. I’m not going to pretend that I wasn’t fanning myself off during that particular scene. But imagine telling a co-worker about it… yeah, not gonna happen, right? Again, I think this is something that is only crossing my mind because I’ve been out of this “world” for some time.

I liked the characters. Liked the romance. I’m not sure how I feel about this series pulling away from the main characters so often to build the character for the other lords (for future books). I love this to a point, but it seems to happen a lot more than say the Dark Hunter or BDB books. All in all, I’m still looking forward to the next in the series.

Brief Summary

Reyes is a man possessed. Bound by the demon of pain, he is forbidden to know pleasure. Yet he craves a mortal woman, Danika Ford, more than breath and will do anything to claim her–even defy the gods.

Danika is on the run. For months she’s eluded the Lords of the Underworld, immortal warriors who won’t rest until she and her family have been destroyed. But her dreams are haunted by Reyes, the warrior whose searing touch she can’t forget. Yet a future together could mean death to all they both hold dear….

-via GoodReads.com

Other Reviews

Jennifer Sicurella rated it

Smash Attack! rated it

Monica rated it - see review

Larissa Benoliel rated it - see review

Have to Start Somewhere…

Tara SG — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 21:32:56 +0000

I’m not sure what it was about this morning, but the sorrow of not book blogging hit me full force. This happens from time to time. My latest plan to get back to it involves:

Clearing out my GoogleReader. I’m not talking about just posts, but blogs too. I love you guys. I really, really do. But a lot of what got overwhelming was keeping up with comments and whatnot for blogs that may not even review books that I read. I’m going to keep my all-time favorites and then add more back as I ease in to the community again. Please no hard feelings!
Now that I have an office, I can take lunch at my desk. This means I can get some blogging done while at work. Not every day, but being able to write a post or two a week will be perfect for getting started. And since I’m not even reading two books a week at this point, I really won’t have as much to write about yet.
And that brings me to what will probably be the biggest challenge…. I need to read more! I have mixed emotions about this. On one hand I deeply miss reading and my favorite characters. On the other, I love that my life is busy and positive enough that I don’t have the desire to escape into a book as often. My goal for this aspect? To read one book a week. To stop watching pointless TV shows and teach myself to be able to read for an hour before bed (and not feel like I need to stay up all night to finish the book).

Wish me luck!

First Grave on the Right {audio book review} * * * *

Tara SG — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 17:44:44 +0000

First Grave on the Right by Darynda Jones

- audio, paranormal, UF, romance, mystery -

Book Order (Charley Davidson)

First Grave on the Right * * * *
Second Grave on the Left
Third Grave Dead Ahead
Fourth Grave Beneath My Feet (2012?)

Links

Author’s Website : www.darynda.com

Amazon : (162 reviews : 4.5 avg)

Add To Your GoodReads TBR List (4,889 ratings : 4.08 avg)

In Six Words

perfect for breaking my reading slump

Why did I read this? And am I glad I did?

This book has been sitting on my TBR shelf for a little while and I could not tell you who first introduced me to this gem. However, I can tell you that I owe Felicia (The Geeky Blogger’s Book Blog) BIG time!

You may or may not have noticed my complete lack of blogging… well it went deeper than that. I have not even been reading. One book in December. None in January. While I won’t bore you with why I probably wasn’t reading, I will tell you that I missed it. So I thought I’d try something new… audio books. But where to start? That’s where Felicia comes in. She recommended First Grave on the Right.

The audio was very well-done. The voices were distinct. The words held emotion. All without being over-the-top. Not to mention that the story itself was brilliant. Funny, mysterious, and just enough heat.

Charley Davidson is not your stereotypical grim reaper. She was hilarious, smart, and just enough crazy mixed with brave. There was enough back-story for you to start to understand Charley without it taking us out of the present mystery. Side characters were also fanstastic. Her uncle is a hoot. Her best friend cracked me up. Garrett was both annoying and charming. And don’t even get me started on the dead people

I highly recommend this series whether you want to try the audio or paper copy! I’ve already started the second audio book in the series.

Brief Summary

A smashing, award-winning debut novel that introduces Charley Davidson: part-time private investigator and full-time Grim Reaper

Charley sees dead people. That’s right, she sees dead people. And it’s her job to convince them to “go into the light.” But when these very dead people have died under less than ideal circumstances (i.e. murder), sometimes they want Charley to bring the bad guys to justice. Complicating matters are the intensely hot dreams she’s been having about an Entity who has been following her all her life…and it turns out he might not be dead after all. In fact, he might be something else entirely.

This is a thrilling debut novel from an exciting newcomer to the world of paranormal romantic suspense.

- via GoodReads

Favorite Quotes

“That took balls.”

“Please,” I said with a snort, “that took ovaries. Of which I have two.”

“If I couldn’t be a good example, I’d just have to be a horrible warning.”

Other Reviews

Felicia rated it

Tiger Holland (All-Consuming Books) rated it

Pamela {Spaz} rated it

Christi Bryant-Snow rated it

Wicked Lil Pixie (Natasha) rated it