It’s Monday! What Are You Reading This Week?

Posted on October 26, 2009 by Jenn

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading This Week? This is a weekly event to list the books completed last week, the books currently being reading, and the books to be finish this week. It was created by J.Kaye’s Book Blog, so stop by and join in!

Books Completed Last Week

Thanks to the readathon, I got a ton of reading done this past week!

Burning for Revenge (The Tomorrow Series #5) by John Marsden (audio)
The Rapture by Liz Jensen
The Widow’s Season by Laura Brodie
City of Bones (Mortal Instruments) by Cassandra Clare
Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer
Dead Until Dark (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 1) by Charlaine Harris
Ruined by Paula Morris
The Price by Alexandra Sokoloff

Currently Reading

Dracula The Un-Dead by Dacre Stoker and Ian Holt
Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger
Thunder and Blood by Stacey Voss
The Night is for Hunting (The Tomorrow Series #6) by John Marsden (audio)

Books to Complete This Week

Damnable by Hank Schwaeble
The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton
The Cutting by James Hayman
His Father’s Son by Bentley Little

What are you reading this week?

Posted in It's Monday What Are you Reading This Week | 16 Comments

Winners of Spoon by Robert Greer

Posted on October 25, 2009 by Jenn

Sorry for the delay! With all the prep for the readathon, I completely forgot to announce the winners of this contest!  Without any further delay….

Winners

The winners have been contacted via email and have 48 hrs to respond.  The books will be sent directly from the publisher. Thanks to all who entered!

Posted in Blog Post | 3 Comments

Readathon: Update & Wrap-Up Meme

Posted on October 25, 2009 by Jenn

Progress Report:

  • Title of book(s) read since last update: Currently reading Ruined by Paula Morris
  • Thoughts on current read: Love the New Orleans setting!
  • Number of books read since you started: 4.5
  • Pages read since last update: 79 (four year old woke up at 6 AM!)
  • Running total of pages read since you started: 1627 pages
  • Amount of time spent reading since last update: 46 minutes (see note above about son’s wake-up time!)
  • Running total of time spent reading since you started: 18 hrs.
  • Location: Husband’s recliner

Snack Intake: none

1. Which hour was most daunting for you?

It was definitely around 2 AM. I had already taken one nap yet I was still so tired my eyes couldn’t focus.  So, I went to sleep until 6 am!

2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year?

I definitely enjoyed reading Life As We Knew It.  It was a pretty dark read, but still kept my interest.  I also enjoyed reading the Sookie books.  They were pretty easy reads that didn’t require too much concentration.

3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?

I guess this year cheerleaders were assigned blogs to cheer for? I understand the point, but it just seemed a little odd for people who have never visited my blog to cheer for me.  Granted, I do know some of my cheerleaders, and they were all amazing.  Just saying….

4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon?

Twitter! I think it was even more effective this time around!  I liked being able to log on and see a bunch of cheerleaders and other readers offering their support!

5. How many books did you read?

Four and a half.

6. What were the names of the books you read?

Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer
City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
The Price by Alexandra Sokoloff
Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris
Ruined by Paula Morris

7. Which book did you enjoy most?

I actually enjoyed all of these. I probably enjoyed Ruined the most because it’s set in New Orleans (a city I’ve always been drawn to).

8. Which did you enjoy least?

There were a few books I tried to read during the readathon that didn’t grab my attention. I don’t think this was a fault of the book, just not the right book at the time.

9. If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders?

Not a cheerleader.

10. How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time?

I’ll definitely participate again! And I’d like to continue to be a reader

Posted in Dewey's 24 Hour Read-a-thon | 18 Comments

Readathon: Update 5, Hour 18

Posted on October 25, 2009 by Jenn

It’s 2:33 AM.  I’m hitting the sack until about 6.  Can’t get eyes to focus on reading anymore.

Progress Report:

  • Title of book(s) read since last update: Dead Until Dark, Charlaine Harris
  • Thoughts on current read: Noticed a distinct difference between the book and the HBO series.
  • Number of books read since you started: 4
  • Pages read since last update: 118
  • Running total of pages read since you started: 1548 pages
  • Amount of time spent reading since last update: 60 minutes
  • Running total of time spent reading since you started: 14 hrs
  • Location: Reading Chair

Snack Intake: none

Posted in Uncategorized | 9 Comments

Readathon: Update #4, End of Hour 15

Posted on October 25, 2009 by Jenn

*Note: I’m prescheduling this post at 10:31 PM EST.  I’m headed to bed to read, which may lead to a short nap.  If you still see this note, I am sleeping and these totals reflect my progress up until this point.

Progress Report:

  • Title of book(s) read since last update: Currently reading Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris
  • Thoughts on current read: This is a quick reread since it’s been some time since I started the series.  I find I truly enjoy the books more than the series.
  • Number of books read since you started: 3.5
  • Pages read since last update: 156
  • Running total of pages read since you started: 1412 pages
  • Amount of time spent reading since last update: 180 minutes
  • Running total of time spent reading since you started: 13.5 hours
  • Location: Bed

Snack Intake: A few more cookies (cinnamon sugar and chocolate chip)

Posted in Uncategorized | 4 Comments

Readathon: Update #3, End of Hour 11

Posted on October 24, 2009 by Jenn

Progress Report:

  • Title of book(s) read since last update: The Price by Alexandra Sokoloff
  • Thoughts on current read: Haven’t started 4th Book, but The Price really made me think!
  • Number of books read since you started: 3
  • Pages read since last update: 335
  • Running total of pages read since you started: 1256pages
  • Amount of time spent reading since last update: 230 minutes
  • Running total of time spent reading since you started: 10 hours
  • Location: Reading Chair

Snack Intake: Dinner: smoked chicken, macaroni and cheese.  Dessert: a few cookies 🙂

Posted in Uncategorized | 14 Comments

Readathon: Update #2, End of Hour 7

Posted on October 24, 2009 by Jenn

Progress Report:

  • Title of book(s) read since last update: Currently reading City of Bones by Cassandra Clare.
  • Thoughts on current read: Fabulous!  Just what I needed for my second read!
  • Number of books read since you started: 1.5
  • Pages read since last update: 320
  • Running total of pages read since you started: 657 pages
  • Amount of time spent reading since last update: 200 minutes
  • Running total of time spent reading since you started: 6 hours
  • Location: Reading Chair
  • Snack Intake: Salami & cheese, one chocolate chip cookie
Posted in Uncategorized | 8 Comments

Readathon: Update #1: Hour 4

Posted on October 24, 2009 by Jenn

I’m “borrowing” the format of Readathon veteran, “Irish” from Ticket to Anywhere.  I’m altering it a bit to keep things short.

Progress Report:

  • Title of book(s) read since last update: Life as We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer
    • Thoughts on current read: Just finished Life as We Knew it.  Very heartbreaking and haunting tale.  I feel guilty snacking on cookies and pizza rolls after reading the struggle this family endured.
      • Number of books read since you started: 1 books
      • Pages read since last update: 337

      • Running total of pages read since you started: 337 pages
      • Amount of time spent reading since last update: 200 minutes
        • Running total of time spent reading since you started: 200 minutes
        • Location: Reading Chair
        • Snack Intake:
        • Breakfast: blueberry cake donut
        • Snack: cinnamon roll
        • Lunch: Pizza rolls

        I’ll be back in four hours!  You may have noticed I installed a twitter widget off to the left.  I am updating every hour on twitter and you can now see my updates without leaving my blog!

        Thanks to all the cheerleaders for your outstanding support!

        Posted in Dewey's 24 Hour Read-a-thon | 11 Comments

        It’s Time for the 24 Hour Readathon!!

        Posted on October 24, 2009 by Jenn

        deweys-readathonbutton

        I’m so excited!  It’s finally here!  The activity I’ve look forward to the most!

        I’ve been busy preparing!  I have my initial stack of books:

        102_1486

        And I was busy baking last night:

        102_1488

        Cinnamon rolls are in the oven and should be ready right at start time.

        So I don’t inundate my readers with posts, I will only be doing blog posts every three to four hours.  I will update hourly on twitter, so feel free to follow me (@jennsbookshelf).

        Just as a reminder, I will be reading for two charities, so please wish me luck!  Ok, I’ll be back in a few hours!!

        Posted in Dewey's 24 Hour Read-a-thon | 16 Comments

        Review: The Rapture by Liz Jensen

        Posted on October 21, 2009 by Jenn

        35070348

      • Hardcover: 304 pages
      • Publisher: Doubleday (August 11, 2009)
      • ISBN-10: 0385528213
      • Source: Publisher

        •  

        Sixteen-year-old Bethany Krall is a patient at Oxsmith Adolescent Secure Psychiatric Hospital.  She was committed two years ago after brutally murdering her mother.  Bethany’s last psychologist was forced to take a mysterious health-related leave of absence.  She has been reassigned to Gabrielle Fox, a wheelchair-bound art therapist.

        Bethany claims to have the ability to predict natural disasters.  These visions occur immediately following electo-convulsive therapy.  Bethany’s claims have been ignored up until now.  Gabrielle begins to make note of some of the predictions and when a few come true, she feels the need to report it to someone.  When Bethany begins seeing visions of “the end”, Gabrielle knows she has little time to act.

        Gabrielle meets Frazer Melville, renowned physicist, and mentions Bethany’s “gift” to him.  She is desperate to understand the likelihood of such natural disasters occuring.  At first, like the others, Frazer is skeptical.  But a devastating disaster occurs and he can’t help but be convinced.   In a strange turn of events, Gabrielle and Frazer start a romantic relationship. 

        Gabrielle and Frazer are eventually able to convince experts of Bethany’s ability.  They form a team and quickly determine the impending cause of the end, a natural disaster so catastrophic it will have world-wide repercussions.  But will they be able to stop it? And if they can’t,  how can they save themselves?

        Jensen does an outstanding job with this apocalyptic thriller. Bethany’s character is so brute and abusive,  yet I felt sympathy for her.  She is obviously unable to control her “power” and is forced to be a victim to her “disease.”  Gabrielle certainly has her own demons to contend with.  She’s still healing, physically and mentally, from the car-accident that took away her mobility.  As the first person narrator, Gabrielle’s character is the one with the most depth.

        My only complaint would be the tempo of the book.  There was a bit of a lull in the middle of the book and I’m afraid this may dissuade some readers from completing it.  The middle segment of the book isn’t fluff, though.  It provides the reader with information that adds definition to each of the characters and delves a bit more into Bethany’s history. The ending does not dissappoint and definitely suggests a sequel.

        I should also note that while the title refers to a Christian/Biblical theme, I would not label this as Christian fiction.  Religion is definitely an underlying theme but is not at all pervasive.

        Also be warned that this book will haunt you for some time. It is a cautionary tale about what could happen to civilization if we are not careful about how we treat our planet. I literally could not get this book out of my mind after completing it.  I dreamed about it, I think of it several times throughout the day.  So, I do suggest that you pick up and read it, but be prepared for a lasting relationship!

        Posted in Doubleday, Literary Fiction, Review, Thriller | 17 Comments