Book Review: Ill Wind

Title: Ill Wind
Series:The Weather Warden Book 1
Author: Rachel Caine
Publisher: Roc
Publication Date: December 2003

Joanne Baldwin is a Weather Warden. A member of an elite group of magic users who can influence the elements, Joanne's talents allow her to manipulate air and water. Joanne is a strong magic user who can  manipulate the fiercest of storms with little more than a thought and the wave of her hand. But it's her strength that has led her to her current problems. She had been employed by "Bad" Bob Biringanine one of the the most powerful Weather Wardens on the world council. A warden who unknown to everyone had made a pact with a demon for more power. When Bob tries to forcefully take Joanne's power from her he ends up dead. Now, Joanne is on the run fleeing a murder charge, In order to clear her name she needs to find her friend Lewis who is the most powerful warden in the world. Her cross country trip is hindered by powerful storms that are hunting her, traps laid by members of the ruling world council and is helped by a free Djinn named David - a being of incredible power, Will Joanne be able to find Lewis before her pursuers catch up with her? Can she get the help needed to clear her name and reputation, or will she face the  council to have her powers stripped from her and her memories scrubbed.

This is an older series that I have had a few friends recommend to me over the years but haven't had the urge to read. in 2015 I had three of the books sent to me and last fall I found  most of the missing books between books 2 and 6 at the resale shop. This was chosen for me to read in June by my pick it for me partner on the bookobsessed forums. I finally picked it up in July during one of the read a thons hosted over there. I had mixed feelings about this book. I spent the first 3/4 of the book feeling like it was dragging as the plot jumped back and forth between Joanne's past and present. I know this was needed to set up the character history, but it slowed down the story in my opinion. However, the last 1/4 of the book I couldn't put down. I really liked the magic system (elemental magic) and the fact that Djinn are used by the wardens to enhance their powers.  I have the next 5 books waiting to be read so will be jumping ahead into this series.

Book Review: Because of Miss Bridgerton

Title: Because of Miss Bridgerton
Author: Julia Quinn
Publisher: Avon Romance
Date Published: March 2016

Billie Bridgerton is no ordinary lady of the manor. The eldest child, she has been raised like a son, and age 23 has taken over the running of her family's estate while her younger brother is away at Eton for schooling. Billie is plainly a tom,  more comfortable on her home estate and that of the neighboring Rokesby family. She is more comfortable running around in breeches, riding, and reading about agricultural improvements than planning house parties and embroidery, and the husband market. Everyone in her family and the Rokesby family expect her to marry either Edward and Andrew the Rokesby  boys she ran wild with as a child. 

However, while rescuing a detested cat from a tree, Billie becomes stranded and injured and is rescued from her plight by the eldest Rokesby son George. The wild Billie and the reserved George have never gotten on and Billie is not very happy to see him at the foot of the ladder. When Billie's mother the Lady Bridgerton  plans a house party Billie is unable to get around due to her sprained ankle. George makes it his job to help Billie out until she can get around on her own. With the two spending so much time together, an attraction forms and the tumultuous relationship starts to change as sparks begin to fly between the two in a different sort of way. When George kisses Billie, they both are shocked by each other's response.

I picked this up on a whim when at Walgreen's waiting on a prescription a few weeks back. I had a wait while my order was finished up and I didn't have a book with me to read while waiting. I picked this one up because I have read other books by Julia Quinn before and was in the mood for a historical romance. I enjoyed this book quite a bit. It is the first book in the Rokesby series which is a prequel series to Julia Quinn's Bridgerton Series. I enjoyed the two main characters and their elevation of tentative friendship into romance. Billie is headstrong and beautiful and stubborn. George is reserved as is expected of the Rokesby  heir. However for years he has envies the freedom and fun his siblings and the Bridgeton children have. this was a ligthearted tale of  finding friendship and love where once there was a back and forth feeling of detest between the two.  This was a very light and quick read perfect for the summer.

Bout of Books 17

It's time for the Bout of Books week long read a thon. This will be my seventh time participating since 2013. I plan on doing as much reading as I can during the read a thon, but don't have a set reading list yet.Depending on my work situation,  I may be starting the first week of classes so reading time may be limited but I will try and get some reading done during commutes and such. 

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, August 22nd and runs through Sunday, August 28th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 17 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

Happy National Book Lovers Day!

Here in the USA August 9 is National Book Lovers Day. Celebrate by diving into a good book or sharing a book with someone you know!

I have run across a few new little free libraries over the summer while riding around for errands and exercise. I haven't done any little free library spotlights in a while so I thought for National Book Lover's Day I could showcase a few of them.  If you are in the Evanston  or the Chicago area feel free to check it out and add some books :)

This Little Free Library is charter 40602. It is located in the Roger's Park neighborhood of Chicago. It has three shelves, one over sized that is perfect for children's picture books. It has a nice mix of children's and adults books inside.

 This little free library is charter number 29496. It is located in the Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago. It is at 7043 N. Glennwood which is also a play lot. The library is an old bookshelf that has been converted with a door and a roof and has four or five shelves of books that are a mix of books any family member would enjoy reading from kids to adults.

This Little Free Library is Charter number 39889. It is located at 1431 W. Fargo ave. In the Roger's Park neighborhood of Chicago. The stewards want their little free library to encourage children of all ages to enjoy reading and encourage people to drop off their favorite children's books. When I stopped by last it had a mix of children's and adult books. 

This Little Free Library is located on the Evanston/Skokie border. It is charter number 26956. It is located at 27 Williamsburg Terrace in Evanston, IL. When I stopped by it had a very healthy mix of fiction and non fiction for adults and children.

 This Little Free Library is charter number 36441 It is located in the middle of the toddler park located at 1125 Dewey in Evanston, IL. The story behind this Little Free Library is inspiring. The money for the library was raised over five years by a group of grandmother's in the neighborhood. It has two shelves inside that are filled with children's and young adult books.

This Little Free Library is charter number 32361. It is located at 813 Crain st. The two little cabinets that make up this little free library each hold two rows of books in them. Additionally, there is a nice stone bench next to the little free library perfect for sitting and browsing. I saw a good selection of books good for all age ranges in there, from child to adult.

I saw this little free library on my bike ride home from a job interview yesterday. It does not have an official little free library  charter plaque or charter number and does not show up on their map. However I thought that this stained glass fronted cabinet  with it's Book proclamation on the top  was super cute. The books inside of it when I stopped were mostly children's books with a bunch of classic Nancy Drew titles that made me smile as I devoured those as a kid.  This little free library sits at the base of the porch stairs at 1204 Noyes street in Evanston, IL. 


I will be spending national book lover's day listening to my audiobook copy of The luncheon of the Boating Party by Susan Vreeland.

Book Review: Little Beach Street Bakery

Title: Little Beach Street Bakery
Author: Jenny Colgan
Publisher: William Morrow
Publication Date: March 31, 2015Polly Waterford has found herself in dire straits. She thought she had the perfect life. A long term relationship with her boyfriend Chris, part owner of a small graphic design company housed in a small two room office in a converted railway station, and a flat purchased together with Chris in Plymouth, Devon in the UK. However she suddenly is faced with the reality that her life has turned less than perfect -her long term relationship has crumbled. She and  Chris have been slowly drifting apart for months. She discovers Chris has been hiding financial problems stemming from their jointly owned graphic design business from her. This results in them having to declare bankruptcy. The business and their assets are seized by the bank. Chris moves to live with his mother while Polly is forced to find habitation that she can afford on the small amount given to her by the bank while the the couple's home is sold to pay off the outstanding debts.

Polly quickly finds that without a job, she can't afford to live in the city she has called home for her entire life. She does not want to be a bother to her mother who has moved into a small retirement flat, she is embarrassed to admit what is happening to her friends and ask to couch surf on friends couches while she gets her feet beneath her, and does not want to get into a flat share situation with younger twenty somethings and multiple roommates. On a whim, Polly looks for listings in nearby Cornwall and finds one she can afford on the isle of Mount  Polbearne. This is a little village on an island formed by a sea mount that is connected to the mainland by a medieval causeway that is above water level when the tides are right.

Upon visiting, the flat is awful, dirty, with a hole in the roof above and located above a disused bakery. It is owned by an awful rude woman who owns the only open bakery in the village. A bakery which sells sub standard bread baked on the mainland. But there is something about the quietness of the village and the view of the sea from the window of the living room of the flat that pulls Polly to live on the island. Life on the island is not easy, her heart is slowly mending and she makes friends with a local fisherman Tarnie, and a good looking American Huckle who keeps bees locally, and a rescued injured baby puffin named Neil. However, she still can't find work, and she will not buy the bread sold by her landlady - preferring to instead bake her own. When her landlady injures herself in a fall, and Polly comes to the rescue by becoming the baker for the bakery life starts to look a little less negative to her. 

But when a brutal storm hits and the tragedy hits the small village can Polly and her new friends help keep moral up even as they are hit by the despair of the events around them?

This is the first book by Jenny Colgan that I have read although I have had her books recomended in the past. I have to say that I absolutely loved it. I am a sucker for stories with life changing events and the heroines whose life ends up in upheaval. I am also fond of books with stories revolving around food - especially bakeries. There is a wonderful  statement made by the author about Polly's character that in these days of low card diet crazes I found refreshing:

"Polly was very specific about bread. She loved it. She had loved it in fashion and out of fashion; as a child, as an adult. It was the favorite part of going to a restaurant. She loved it toasted or as it was; she loved bagels, and cheese on toast and pain d'epices and twisted Italian plaits. She loved artisan sourdough that cost six pounds for a tiny loaf, and she loved sliced white that molded and soaked up the juices of a bacon sandwich."

-Little Beach Street Bakery, Jenny Colgan 

I zoomed through this book as it was just the right amount of light story, life upheaval events, and finding unknown strength in oneself  for a hot summer reading during the heatwave that hit the Chicago land are recently. I was intrigued by the setting as the author is from Scotland, which is nowhere near Cornwall,  and looked up Cornwall to see what I could find out about it and it Mount Polbearne was a real place. I found that the author had fashioned her village from a real location St. Michael's Mount which is a tidal island that has a castle a church and a small village that can only be reached by a causeway that is acessable between mid tide and low water and the oldest bui;dings on it date from the 12th century. Cool huh? While looking this up I found a wonderful interview with the author about her memories of going on summer holiday to Cornwall from Scotland as a child. You can read it here Author Jenny Colgan reveals how Cornwall kick starts her creativity

I loved this book and have the second book in the series Summer at Little Beach Street Bakery sitting here to be read soon. So look fo an upcoming review :)

Book Review: The Memory of Lemon by Judith Fertig

Title: The Memory of Lemon

Author: Jedith Fertig

Publisher: Berkley Books

Publish Date: 12 July 2016

The Memory of Lemon picks up where The Cake Therapist leaves off. Claire "Neely" Davis is still living in her hometown of Millcreek Valley and running a bakery that specializes in custom wedding cakes.  Claire has a gift. She is able to "taste" people's emotions and use them to create custom flavor combinations that resonate with her clients.  The success of her bakery is due to her talent, and it hasn't failed her yet. That is until she meets a mother of the bride who disagrees with everything her daughter wants in a wedding. 

Neely needs the successful cake that her intuition should be helping to create. However she is facing her own struggles. A divorce from a well known football star, the threat of a prenuptial contract clause signed when she was young and naive, and the need to explore a new romantic relationship topped with reconnecting with a long absent father leave her in her own inner turmoil which may be why her flavor intuition is not working correctly. 

As Neely works with the young bride, she starts to uncover links between the bride's family history and her own. The events of these family stories both pleasant and unpleasant combine together to create delicious memories. Aided but hear memories Neely and her friends in the wedding planning industry of Millcreek Valley are able to create a classy wedding that meets both the needs of the bride and her mother. The process also helps Neely to overcome the turmoil in her life one hurdle at a time. 

I have been waiting for this book to come out since last summer. I made the mistake of reading the excerpt of The Memory of Lemon that the publisher included at the end of The Cake Therapist and was very sad when I found out that it had not been  published yet.  I loved that this book picked up immediately after the events of The Cake Therapist and expands on the story started in the first book.  The book resonated with me strongly in the part of the story that focused on the budding relationship between Neely and the father who abandoned her as a child. The investigation of why her father left and how it felt for both of them was poignant and left me feeling "all the feels" as it resonated with my own relationship with my father. 

I also really enjoyed that this book kept the back and forth storytelling between the present and the past. I had a little bit of trouble at first keeping the connections between the two families history apart. But they came together in a satisfying manner.  The Memory of Lemon is a heartwarming, and entertaining read for the summer. 

Book review: Bufo byTerra Ciel

Title: Bufo

Author: Terra Ciel

Illustrator: L' Etoile

Publisher: nature's dance publishing and photographic LLC

Bufo is the story of Bufo the frog. He looks very different from the other frogs who make fun of him and won't play with him. He makes a wish on a falling star for a friend. This wish leaves him open to friendship from two butterflies. Their daily play takes him far from his home where he gets lost. Bufo is helped by a white rabbit named Bonzy who invites him to live in the Lotus pond by his burrow. Bufo makes friends of the pond dwellers who see Bufo for who he is not what he looks like.  But when Bonzy is captured by a human and taken into the "big house" can Bufo muster the strength and courage to rescue his friend?

Bufo is a children's book. The story it tells takes on the topic of differences in people (or in this case animals), how we shouldn't judge by what a person looks like, and friendship.  The story itself is engaging if a little long. It works quite well as a moral story. 

However, this is not a good picture book.  It has an extremely interesting mix of real photographs and illustrated elements to the pages. This is not always engaging as the illustrations can seem like they are poping off of the photographs at times. Unlike Mo Willem's Knuffle Bunny which also uses this illustration style because the pictures as well as the illustrations are in color they sometimes just seem to float on the background without being as eye drawing as Willem's color illustrations on black and white or sepia toned photographs. Also the length of the text on the pages and how it is laid out makes it hard to read at times. I feel that this story would be better read as a read a loud because of this.

This is a good attempt at producing children's literature. I was left wondering if this was originally written and illustrated for a children's literature course, as it has the feel of some of the attempts by my classmates for a similar project.  I would recommend it for stronger young readers, and not early readers.  I believe the publisher is local to me as I took this copy from an area little free library that had multiple copies in it and have seen other little free libraries in the area with copies of this book in it. 

Book Review: The Kraken Sea by E. Catherine Tobler

Jackson is a boy who has grown up feeling adrift and unloved. Found as an infant in a wooden daffodil crate and brought up in an orphanage run by nuns, Jackson is the oldest and strangest of the wards at the orphanage. A boy who sometimes has scaly skin and whose limbs want to change into snakelike coils. This changes when he is put on an orphan train headed to San Francisco, CA. He is to be adopted by someone who sister Jerome Grace has told him has asked for a boy who is just like him 

However something happens during a brief stopover in Chicago when the nuns take the children to visit the World's fair.  Jackson witnesses the mistreatment of a girl with snake limbs like himself and meets a mysterious black eyed girl. Shaken by the events Jackson is calmed by Sister Jerome Grace who shows him he is not alone and tells him he needs to continue to San Francisco so he can learn to become all that he is. 

Upon reaching California, he meets the woman who has requested him from the orphanage and is thrust into a world unlike that of his previous life. This world is full of magical people, a city divided into territories, and the black eyed girl glimpsed in Chicago reappears and is a key player in the events which unfurl in the months after Jackson arrives in the city. Not everything is as it seems, and Jackson seems to be the catalyst to a climactic battle between two enemies. 

I was drawn into this novella. It was written with a fantastic mix of realism, fantasy and blending in mythology. This author is new to me and I really enjoyed her writing quite a bit. I ended the story wanting to know more and wishing it had been a full length novel. There were so many fantastic supporting characters and surroundings that I would have loved to explore more of. However as this was Jackson's story I understand why less focus was made on them.  I also loved the mythology aspects to the story it really made this alternate nineteenth century United States an intriguing world where magic still exists alongside new technology and nothing is quite what it seems. Jackson's struggle to learn who he is and what he believes in as he is thrown into events which challenge his beliefs. 

I received this as part of librarything's June early reviewer program for my honest opinion about the book. 

Book Review: Luck, Love, and Lemon Pie by Amy E. Reichert

Title: Luck, Love, and Lemon Pie
Author: Amy E. Reichert
Publish Date: 12 July 2016

M.J. Boudreaux is in a marriage that has become stale. After her husband misses their twenty year anniversary lunch because of a poker tournament, she decides that something needed to be done. She asks Chris, her husband, to help her brush up on her poker skills so that she can accompany him to the casino to play with him. Her reasoning is that it is a common interest that they can turn into date nights to help reconnect their marriage.

However, she and Chris play at different level tables. When she runs into her nemesis from college, Tammy Shezwyski at the poker table and Chris's name is mentioned, M.J. Darts to suspect something besides poker is the reason she and her husband are drifting apart. However, rather than confront Chris she starts to escape into her poker playing.  M.J.  enters a competition with a grand prize of a trip to Vegas to play in a high risk poker tournament and a poker lesson from Doyle Kane.  M.J. wins and excitedly starts planning for the trip in April as one for her and Chris to go on together. 

However by the time the trip rolls around their relationship has become more strained. M.J.  goes to Vegas with her best friend. She  manages some fantastic wins and attracts the attention of the handsome poker champion Doyle. M.J. Is flattered by the attention. The phrase "what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas" ends up not being true and when a photo makes its way to Chris of her and Doyle, she is forced to confront her feelings, her failing marriage, and what she really wants in her life. 

I fell in love with  Amy Reichert's writing last summer with her first book The Coincidence of Coconut Cake. I pre-ordered this book last spring when I saw it had been announced. This book was very different from the first book. Where that book focused on friendship and finding love unexpectedly. This book  looks at what happens when a loving relationship becomes stale and love becomes strained between a couple.  This storyline takes readers through a strained year in M.J and Chris's marriage and how they start to drift  apart and eventually repair their marriage. 

It was very different from the author's first book. While I am not necessarily the target audience for this book I did enjoy it quite a bit.  I really enjoyed how the book delved into high stakes poker playing and the tournament environment.

Like the previous book there is a scrumptious looking recipe at the end for the anniversary lemon pie. I'm looking forwards to trying it out as lemon pie is a household favorite here.

Book Squee! Collectors edition of Terry Pratchet';s Mort

Yesterday I was surprised by a gift of a book. This was a collectors edition copy of Mort by Terry Pratchet. 

I have to say it is absolutely stunning and wanted to share it with those of you reading. 

It came in a black cardboard slipcover with an image of Mort printed in silver on it. 

When you turn the slipcover up to stand the way it would on the shelf you see the black and silver spine of the book. 

The book itself is covered in a black velvet. There is a black and white illustration of Mort on Death's horse Binky. 

The book also includes seven color illustrations inside by artist Omar Rayyan. I want to share one of my favorites

Death goes fishing. 

The Death story arc of the Diskworld books are among my favorites from the massive Diskworld series.  I got hooked into Diskworld well into its conception when a good friend loaned me her Legends short story collection which included a Granny Weatherwax short story. I have since read almost every book released via library copies and have been working on collecting hardcovers of the older books for the last few years. 

This is an amazing edition. I look forwards to reading it and revisiting a well loved character. 

This collectors edition can be purchased from  The Folio Society. This is the standard edition of the book. 

There was also a limited edition leather bound edition printed which sold out in 13 hours when it was announced for sale on the website. I was drooling when I saw that in the announcement email the folio society sent out, I wasn't the only one either :)

Book Review: Quantum Moon by Denise Vitola

Title: Quantum Moon

Author: Denise Vitola
Series: Ty Merrick #1
Date published: 1996

I have had the second and third books in this series for awhile now and finally picked up a used copy of book 1.
n the mid 21st century, the world as we know it no longer exists. The United World Government--with its endless rules and regulations--holds an iron fist over the planet's diminished natural resources. But some things never change--like greed, corruption and murder.

When the wife of a district councilman is murdered, Detective Ty Merrick and her partner LaRue are placed in the position of finding the killer. As their investigation into the murder progresses though they start to find clues that the murder might be linked to a past experiment done by members of the Public Health Organization (PHO), and the production of the street drug quantum. Detectives Merrick and LaRue need to find answers to the questions that arise and catch the killer before he or she kills again.

Detective Merrick on the other hand is infected with a disease. She believes that she has a lycanthropic condition. This is not considered an official disease however as each month progresses to a full moon Merrick suffers from seizures, and changes to her sight,hearing, and sense of smell as well as slight physical changes. Her problem is that her district health office doesn't take her seriously. Her previous Dr had prescribed light therapy which she doesn't have the energy credits to use long term. In the process of trying to get more from her taxman Merrick is placed under the supervision of Dr. Lane Gibson a neurologist. Who turns out to be an ally. Merrick is not the first werewolf that the good Dr. has encountered and wants to use his research and findings on Detective Merrick to get off of rotation duty and into a research facility with a grant. Her condition is unknown, is it a disease, a curse, a psychosis, or something else? Will they be able to figure out a way to he;p Merrick  with her changes in order to keep her working on the case before the moon turns full?

One thing that I liked about the world that this story is placed in is the almost post apocalyptic setting it has. The world has been united under a world government with a tyrant ruler. The world has been divided into districts rather than countries. There is a unifying barrier language spoken by everyone. There is a system to keep resource consumption in check by the masses. Also the general populace believes in magic and curses as well as science.

Tell you the truth I picked up Majjin Moon and Opalite moon based on the covers. This book's cover also has that same element that first drew me to the books. We see what looks like Van Gogh's Starry Night painting with a cityscape behind the bush and under the star filled sky. At one point in the book Merrick mentions that after one of the events she starts seeing like how Van Gogh painted and that she suspected he may have been a lycanthrope as well.I felt like the main characters were a little flat at first, but we got hints of past history and they started to come more alive as the story progressed.  This is mostly because you are thrown in this world with very little initial explanation of why the world is the way it is, and it starts off a pretty standard feeling police murder mystery. The book grabbed my interest because it reminds me at times of the Shadowrun games I have played in the past. I have enough interest in the story to continue into the series, and to pick up the remaining two books that I don't currently have in order to read the whole series together.

Bout of books 16 wrap up post

Finished:

Finding my Prince Charming by J.S. Cooper

The Wildflowers of Montana volume 1 Rose by Vannesa Vale

Deadpool Volume 1: Dead Presidents 

A Feral Darkness  by Doranna Durgin

The Wildflowersof Montana Hyacinth by Vanessa Vale

The Wildflowers of Montana Dahlia by Vanessa Vale
 The Wildflowers of Montana Daisy by Vanessa Vale
 The Wildflowers of Montana Lily by Vanessa Vale

Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett Illustrated by Jon Klassen
I Ain't Gonna Paint No More! by Karen Beaumont
Llama Llama Mad at Mama by Ann Dewneg
Wild About Books by Judy Sterra Illustrated by Marc Brown

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Founding Mothers: Remembering the Ladies by Cokie Roberts illustrated by Diane Goode

Shades of Simon Grey by Joyce McDonald

The Honeybee Man by Lela Nargi and Kyrsten Brooker

Books in progress:

Night Lost by Lynn Viehl   60 pages out of 287

Bout of Books Day 7

Books Finished:

Shades of Simon Grey by Joyce McDonald

The Honeybee Man by Lela Nargi and Kyrsten Brooker

Night Lost by Lynn Viehl   pages of 287

Bout of Books Day 6

Not much reading done today. I went and saw the new Marvel movie and spent the day with friends. However, Elengil and I listened to a bit of our audiobook while driving around.

Books in Progresss:

Trigger Warning by Neil Gaiman

Bout of Books Day 5

Books Finished:

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Founding Mothers: Remembering the Ladies by Cokie Roberts illustrated by Diane Goode

Books in Progress:

Bout of Books Day 4

Books Finished Today:

Read in the morning:

 The Wildflowers of Montana Dahlia by Vanessa Vale
 The Wildflowers of Montana Daisy by Vanessa Vale
 The Wildflowers of Montana Lily by Vanessa Vale

My chapter of Kappa Delta Pi met at the childcare center on campus to read to the kids there this afternoon. Here are the books that I read in two different classes:

 Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett Illustrated by Jon Klassen
I Ain't Gonna Paint No More! by Karen Beaumont
Llama Llama Mad at Mama by Ann Dewneg
Wild About Books by Judy Sterra Illustrated by Marc Brown




Books in Progress:

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller 200 pages read

Bout of Books Day 3

Books Finished:

Deadpool Volume 1: Dead Presidents 

A Feral Darkness  by Doranna Durgin

The Wildflowersof Montana Hyacinth by Vanessa Vale

Books in Progress:

In the reading Que:

The Song of Achillies by Madaline Miller

Bout of Books Day 2

Today I read a few ebooks.

Finished Today:

The Wildflowers of Montana volume 1 Rose by Vannesa Vale

In Progress:

 The Wildflowers of Montana Hyacinth by Vanessa Vale - The first 10 pages and I have to re download the book. 

A Feral Darkness by Diranna Durgin - 72 pages of 245. 

Deadpool Vol. 1 Dead Presidents - 75 pages of 155. 

Bout of Books day 1

I didn't think I would get much reading done today as most of the day was taken up with graduation. Traveling to pick up the relatives we were driving down. Travel time down to the UIC Pavilion where my  University was holding the ceremony. A 2 hour wait time that would have been perfect for reading except my nook was too big to have with me as we couldn't have any purses or bags with us on the floor of the pavilion for safety sake. 

However, when I got home, I was able to read a bit. I finished up the last 40 pages of Finding my Prince Charming by J. S. Cooper. I think that I got this as a freebie on the Barnes &  Noble site.  I didn't care for it that much. I liked the idea of the story being told from both the main character Lola's viewpoint and the love interest Xavier's viewpoint. However the back and forth between her point of view and his view was a bit jarring to me as a reader.

Finished:

Finding my Prince Charming by J.S. Cooper

Bout of Books 16

I plan on  taking part in the 16th round of the Bout of Books read a thon. I'm not sure how much I will get to read on Monday the 9th as I will be taking part in the graduation ceremony for Northeastern Illinois University and finally earning my bachelor's degree in early childhood education almost twenty years after graduating high school!

However I do plan on reading as much as I can the rest of the week between polishing my resume and submitting job applications to nearby school districts :)

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 9th and runs through Sunday, May 15th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 16 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team