My 2014 Challenges!

For the year 2014, I want to set some reading challenges for myself. I didn't do any for the year 2013, but I did complete my reading goal.

For 2014, I want to read 115 books, so I'm really hoping to complete that challenge.
(You can check my goodreads to see how I'll do on that!)
I'm going to make my challenges small, but I want to complete them all.

TBR Challenge

-Read 10 books that were released before 2014 that have been on my shelf as of 12/29/13

4/10 books completed

1. Mist by Susan Krinard
2. Targeted by Katie Reus
3. Allegiant by Veronica Roth

4. Champion by Marie Lu
5. The Eye of Minds by James Dashner

Audio Book Challenge

-Listen to 10 audio books
1/10 audio books completed

1. Virals by Kathy Reichs

Complete a Series or Trilogy

-Complete 5 series or trilogies that I've already started

5/5 series completed

1. Under the Never Sky Trilogy by Veronica Rossi
2. The Mythos Academy Series by Jennifer Estep
3. Divergent Trilogy by Veronica Roth
4. Blood of Eden Trilogy by Julie Kagawa
5. Legend Trilogy by Marie Lu

Outside of the Usual

-I never really read outside my usual genres that I read, but I want to give more a try.

1. Historical fiction - 0/1

2. Time Travel - 1/1 - The Here and Now by Ann Brashares

3. New Adult - 1/1 - Addicted To You by Krista and Becca Ritchie

4. Comtemporary - 1/1 - Heartbeat by Elizabeth Scott

5. Adult Romance - 1/1 - Targeted by Katie Reus

(If you have any recommendations for any of these genres, please feel free to leave them in a comment!)

I Hunt Killers by Barry Lyga

I Hunt Killers
(Jasper Dent, #1)
by Barry Lyga
Released |April 3rd 2012 by Little, Brown and Company|
Edition |Audio|
Add to goodreads

What if the world's worst serial killer...was your dad?
Jasper "Jazz" Dent is a likable teenager. A charmer, one might say.
But he's also the son of the world's most infamous serial killer, and for Dear Old Dad, Take Your Son to Work Day was year-round. Jazz has witnessed crime scenes the way cops wish they could—from the criminal's point of view.
And now bodies are piling up in Lobo's Nod.
In an effort to clear his name, Jazz joins the police in a hunt for a new serial killer. But Jazz has a secret—could he be more like his father than anyone knows?

Listening to audio books really help me in trying to get out of a reading slump. That's why I decided to pick up I Hunt Killers on audio from my library. I felt it was a good book, but I feel like I missed out on a lot of the story because I just wasn't in a reading mood and I was losing focus and not paying attention to the narrator a lot of the times in the beginning. It took me about 3/9 parts to finally start getting into the story, understanding the characters, and liking the story as a whole. When I finally started listening to the story fully, I started to really enjoy it. I found Jasper Dent to be an interesting character. His way of thinking was unusual and might be considered weird by many people. I didn't know if I wanted to sympathize with Jasper in the beginning because I didn't know if he would become the bad person that every thought he would be. Being the son of a serial killer was hard on Jasper and it messed with his mind. His father was freaking psychotic, a serial killer! He murdered, raped and just violated over a hundred women and liked to tell Jasper about what he did. What? So you can just imagine how that started to affect Jasper.

Book Hauling It Up (79)

Hey Everyone,

I hope everyone had a happy Christmas if you celebrated it :) Mine was pretty good and I had fun with my family. I bought a few books with one of the gift cards I got, but I'm trying to wait to use the gift cards for upcoming releases that I really want to get.

Don't forget to leave your links! Is anyone excited for the new year? lol

Audio Book

I've started it and it's pretty interesting so far. 

Print/Ebooks

Team Human by Justine Larbalestier, Sarah Rees Brennan

Team Human
by Justine Larbalestier, Sarah Rees Brennan 
Released |July 3rd 2012 by HarperTeen|
Edition |Audio|
Add to Goodreads

Readers who love vampire romances will be thrilled to devour Team Human by Justine Larbalestier and Sarah Rees Brennan. Team Human celebrates and parodies the Twilight books, as well as other classics in the paranormal romance genre.

Mel is horrified when Francis Duvarney, arrogant, gorgeous, and undead, starts at her high school. Mel’s best friend, Cathy, immediately falls for the vampire. Cathy is determined to be with him forever, even if having him turn her could inadvertently make her a zombie.

And Mel is equally determined to prove to her BFF that Francis is no good, braving the city’s vampire district and kissing a cute boy raised by vampires as she searches evidence in this touching and comic novel

This is a hard review to write because it has been awhile since I've finished the book. Usually I write my reviews right after I finish reading them, so please, bare with me. I have mixed feelings about Team Human. I liked it, but I didn't. It wasn't mind blowing. I've not read a book by either of the authors so I had no idea what to expect. When it says this would be a parody of the twilight books in the synopsis, it wasn't lying. They nailed it! But considering how much I hated the romance in Twilight, I hated it in this pertaining to Cathy and Francis lol It annoyed me and I felt like I was in Twilight all over again with Edward and Bella.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Hey everyone,

I hope everyone has a fantastic Christmas if it is a holiday that you celebrate! I hope you get things from your wishlist and enjoy time with family and friends if you are with them :) Stay safe and enjoy your holiday!

Janina

Wrap Up: 2013

Hey everyone,

I hope everyone had a great year in books! I finished my goodreads goal of reading 110 books and I'm really excited about that. So I say, it was a successful year! I can't wait to get on the ball for 2014. This year I read quite a few interesting books, some outside of my usually genre, some good reads, and some bad reads.

If you want to see the list of books I read in 2013, you can check them out here. Want to see the reviews on the books I reads, check them out here. See my author interviews and guest posts here.

For the year 2013, I also participated in my first readathons and they were so fun :) I also participated in my first live book talk/chat. I'm glad I got to enjoy those this year! I want to thank all my new followers of the year and also my old followers. And also those who visit my blog and leave comments, whether its for one day out the week, month, or even the year! Seeing the comments makes me happy because I love seeing what you guys think :)

I'm still trying to figure out if I'm going to change my blog design for 2014. Should I? I would love your feed back on that!

Top 10 books of 2013

I just realized that every book on my list is a part of a series lol

I'm thinking these are my top books of 2013, but I don't know for sure. 

These books stood out to me and are ones that I enjoyed a lot!

Books That Surprised Me

All four of these books surprised me because I didn't really know what to expect of them and ended up enjoying them. 

Book Hauling It Up (78)

Hey everyone,

Hope that you all have a great week and happy holidays! I hope everyone has a great Christmas if you celebrate it :) I still have not read any books, but I have been listening to I Hunt Killers on audio.And I got my Mom to read Hush, Hush :) And she's liking it so far even though and I quote "Nora is a ditsy" lol

Bought

I've been curious about both these books for awhile and I couldn't resist getting Ruby Red since it was so cheap!

Where the Moon Isn't by Nathan Filer

Where the Moon Isn't
by Nathan Filer
Released |November 5th 2013 by St. Martin's Press|
Edition |Hardback, 320 pages|
Source |Publisher|
Add to Goodreads

A stunning novel. Ambitious and exquisitely realized . . . clearly the work of a major new talent." —S. J. Watson, New York Times bestselling author of Before I Go to Sleep
While on vacation with their parents, Matthew Homes and his older brother snuck out in the middle of the night. Only Matthew came home safely. Ten years later, Matthew tells us, he has found a way to bring his brother back...
What begins as the story of a lost boy turns into a story of a brave man yearning to understand what happened that night, in the years since, and to his very person. Unafraid to look at the shadows of our hearts, Nathan Filer's rare and brilliant debut Where the Moon Isn't shows us the strength that is rooted in resilience and love.

Where the Moon Isn't was a story I didn't really know what to expect going into reading it. I hadn't seen any reviews for it, but the synopsis had me very curious and intrigued. Even though I had no I idea what to expect when I started this book, it was still so unexpected. This was is a mystery that you yearned to know what happened on that night and how things would end. You know something bad happens, but you just don't know what. You want to know why Matthew is the way he is. What had me so intrigued with the story was the writing style of the author and how he went about creating this story. I've not read a book quite like this before. Being in the mind of Matthew was hard at times. We get to know him through his past memories when he was child and also in the present. But Matthew isn't an average person, so reading from his POV could be a pain at times. He flips through memories so quickly, but the memories were very important in getting to know him and the pain that he has been going through all these years. Matthew has a mental illness and we learn about it in pieces. The death of his older brother Simon when they were kids started to mess with his mind. Simon had special needs. This story was painful to read. I wouldn't say it was emotional for me to read about, the pain of the situations and having to painful unravel all the painful memories that Matt was reliving was just really hard to read about.

Wishlist Wednesday (63): Wings

Wishlist Wednesday is a book blog hop where we will post about one book per week that has been on our wishlist for some time, or just added (it's entirely up to you), that we can't wait to get off the wishlist and onto our wonderful shelves.
Hosted by: Pen to Paper

Wings
(Black City, #3)
by Elizabeth Richards
Releases |June 12th 2014 by G.P. Putnam's Sons BYR|
Add to Goodreads

Following the cliffhanger ending of Phoenix, Natalie finds herself separated from Ash and unexpectedly reunited with her parents, including the father she thought was dead. But she can only think of Ash. She hasn't heard a word of him since she and Elijah were brought to the underground headquarters of the Sentry Rebellion. But she vows to find him.
Ash, meanwhile is back in Black City; it's the perfect place to hide from the Sentry government. But not for long. He won't give up on Natalie or bringing an end to the terrible reign of Purian Rose.
A pulse-racing end to an exciting series.

Why I'm Wishing...
I've been really enjoying this series and can't wait to see how everything ends. It's fun and fast paced and the romance is pretty good as well :) And the covers are just amazing!

Other Books in the Series

Movie Reviews (short): Catching Fire, Ender's Games, and City of Bones

Hey Everyone,
I'm here with a couple of movie reviews of movies released in the past few months based off books :) Have anyone read any of the books or seen any of the movies?What did you think of the movies if you saw them?

Okay, so I was really excited for Catching Fire because I just loved the trilogy and I enjoyed the first movie. I was really curious to see how the second one would turn out and it did not disappoint. I seriously enjoy this movie so much! I felt all the characters played their role extremely well and the excitement and anticipating of the scenes were all there for me. And omg, so of the scenes were straight out of the book and were played awesome! I have to agree with some people on that :) I always feel like these movies have some slow parts though. It wasn't slow as in boring, but slow and building up to the next scene. Overall, I loved the movie and can't wait to see how they play out Mockingjay. Speaking of Mockingjay, the Mockingjay dress? Oh say I heard they were splitting Mockingjay into a two part movie. Is that true?

When I saw this movie, I knew there was a book based on it, but I didn't not read the book. So I have no idea how this movie compares to the book. I did enjoy the movie though. It wasn't the best, in my opinion, but I found it very interesting and I'm now curious enough to check out the book at some point. I loved the whole space theme and how the kids played a major role. Ender's way of thinking was interesting and it made him smart and great at surviving. If I were to give a rating, I would probably rate the movie around 3.5 stars which isn't to bad :)

I love this book series, but was pretty skeptical about seeing the movie for some reason. I wasn't to thrill about the character who was playing Jace because it just wasn't how I pictured him in my head lol Is that bad? But by the end of the movie, I actually liked the guy. I enjoyed the movie as well, but there were parts that I didn't like. Valentine wasn't one of my favorites. I didn't like his character all that much. He was sort of weird and not at all how I imagined him in my head. And yes, the movie had its cheesy moments that made me just all out crack up and LOL because of the cheesiness. But it was still enjoyable. Alec's character surprised me. I mean, he was sort of bad ass and his snarky attitude towards Clary was dead on. I'm excited to check out more of the movies now. 

Cover Reveal: Stakeout by Nikki Jefford

Stakeout 

(Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter, #2.5)

by Nikki Jefford

Releases |January 14th 2014|

Genres |New Adult, Paranormal, Urban Fantasy|

Add to Goodreads

Noel Harper got a second chance at life when the government recruited her as an undercover vampire informant. Since the day they brought her back from the good-as-dead, she has wanted to prove herself worthy.

When a member of her investigative unit is murdered, Noel is paired up with a vampire hunter named Dante to spy on a suspect in Fairbanks. The problem? They’re not the only ones on stakeout. Taking down murderous vampires is one thing. Dealing with the past is another. But this time, Noel isn’t letting fear win. She’s calling in help from the other side and learns a shocking secret along the way.

(STAKEOUT is an Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter novella told from Noel Harper’s POV. Approximately 40,000 words)

Purchase Book 1

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Aurora-Sky-Vampire-Nikki-Jefford-ebook/dp/B00AEGD5XY/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=&qid=

Barnes & Noble:  http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/aurora-sky-nikki-jefford/1113946626?ean=2940044354777

Purchase Book 2

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Northern-Bites-Aurora-Sky-Vampire-ebook/dp/B00E7G0210/ref=la_B00792AE5I_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1385958949&sr=1-6

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/northern-bites-nikki-jefford/1116282396?ean=2940148694861

Author Bio

Nikki Jefford is a third generation Alaskan who found paradise in the not-so-tropical San Juan Islands (Wash.) where she is once more neighbors with Canada in a town without a single traffic light. She loves fictional bad boys and heroines who kick butt.

When she's not reading, writing, working, or out on a nature walk, she's out riding her Suzuki DRZ400SM.

Author links

http://www.nikkijefford.com/

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5424286.Nikki_Jefford

https://www.facebook.com/authornikkijefford?ref=ts&fref=ts

https://twitter.com/NikkiJefford

Book Hauling It Up (77)

Hey Everyone :)

This week I only got one book, which I received from the library.
This is my final week of classes for the semester! YAY, so now I can finally sit down and get some reading done. I think I've only read like one book this month so far. SUCKS!

Library (Audio)

I've been curious about this one. Anyone read it?

Blood Bound by Keshia Swaim

Blood Bound
by Keshia Swaim
Released |October 8th 2013 by Spencer Hill Press|
Edition |Physical ARC|
Source |Publisher|
Add to Goodreads

Starting college a year early is hard. Starting fae college and learning to protect the world from the Unseelie is harder.
Brielle Reed has always been an over-achiever, but this time she may have bitten off more than she can chew. Between her crash course in fae politics, struggles to control her new mind-reading ability, training sessions with the demanding Dr. Schwartz, and discoveries about the father who is still a mystery to her, Brielle finds herself longing for a chance at a normal life.
But she may not get that chance. Or chance at a life at all, for that matter.

So I have absolutely no idea what to rate this book. My thoughts are so jumbled together as well as my feelings for the book. When I first started Blood Bound, I was really close to DNF'ing it. After about a month or so (I really don't know), I came back to it and finished it in a day because it's a really short read. I had a lot of problems with this book, but by the time I got to the end of the story, I was actually pretty intrigued. I wouldn't say that I liked it, but I also wouldn't say that didn't like if that makes any sense.

I felt this book was all over the place in scene switching. One minute we're here and then the next were there. I also had no connection to any of the characters, but I must say that I did like Brielle's roommate Pamie. She made the story fun. The romance was big part of the story as well as the Unseelie trying to take over. I couldn't get with the romance either. But that's the thing, I didn't like many things, but somehow by the end of the story I was just...okay with the book. I guess what I'm trying to say is that everything was just okay, if that makes since. It was an okay book. I didn't hate any of the character and I didn't hate the romance or the story. I just wish there was some sort of wow factor that would have gotten me excited.

Wishlist Wednesday (62): Lies My Girlfriend Told Me

Wishlist Wednesday is a book blog hop where we will post about one book per week that has been on our wishlist for some time, or just added (it's entirely up to you), that we can't wait to get off the wishlist and onto our wonderful shelves.
Hosted by: Pen to Paper

Lies My Girlfriend Told Me
by Julie Anne Peters
Releases |June 10th 2014 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers|
Add to Goodreads

When Alix's charismatic girlfriend, Swanee, dies from sudden cardiac arrest, Alix is overcome with despair. As she searches Swanee's room for mementos of their relationship, she finds Swanee's cell phone, pinging with dozens of texts sent from a mysterious contact, L.T. The most recent text reads: "Please tell me what I did. Please, Swan. Te amo. I love you."
Shocked and betrayed, Alix learns that Swanee has been leading a double life--secretly dating a girl named Liana the entire time she's been with Alix. Alix texts Liana from Swanee's phone, pretending to be Swanee in order to gather information before finally meeting face-to-face to break the news.
Brought together by Swanee's lies, Alix and Liana become closer than they'd thought possible. But Alix is still hiding the truth from Liana. Alix knows what it feels like to be lied to--but will coming clean to Liana mean losing her, too?

Why I'm Wishing...
I ran across this book on Pinterest and the title immediately made me want to check it out :) So, of course, I had to look it up on Goodreads. I don't typically go for books like this, but I'm now curious.

November Wrap Up and December TBR!

Hey Everyone,

I know my wrap up post is kind of late, but I'm going to do it anyway :)
For November I read 10 books, which was exciting. I haven't read that many books in awhile since I've been really busy with school! I also finished my goodreads goal of finishing 110 books in 2013 after finishing Where the Moon Isn't, which is the last book I read in November!

November Wrap Up

The Dollhouse Asylum by Mary Gray - Physical ARC - 3 stars review

The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes - eARC - 4 stars review

Sentinel by Jennifer L. Armentrout - 3.5 stars review

Pawn by Aimee Carter - eARC - 2 stars review

Darkness Awakened by Katie Reus - eARC - 4 stars review

Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi - 4 stars review

These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman - eARC - 4 stars review 

Fake ID by Lamar Giles - eARC - 4 stars review

Blood Bound by Keshia Swaim - Physical ARC - review to come

Where the Moon Isn't by Nathan Filer - review copy - review to come

December TBR

I already finished Team Human and I'm almost a quarter of the way through Mist. 

Somewhat 2 year Blogiversary/Christmas giveaway (US/CA)!

Hey Everyone,

I've been meaning to give these two books away back in October. I call it a somewhat 2 year blogiversary/Christmas giveaway because I want to do another giveaway. So this is kind of sorta like a part one. My blogiverary was October 18th and I can't believe I've been blogging for 2 years now :)

I'll be giving away a hardback of Poison Princess by Kresley Cole and Rebel Heart by Moira Young

There will be two winners (One winner for each book!)

This is open to the US and Canada.

Synopsis for Poison Princess

She could save the world—or destroy it.

Sixteen-year-old Evangeline "Evie" Greene leads a charmed life, until she begins experiencing horrifying hallucinations. When an apocalyptic event decimates her Louisiana hometown, Evie realizes her hallucinations were actually visions of the future—and they're still happening. Fighting for her life and desperate for answers, she must turn to her wrong-side-of-the-bayou classmate: Jack Deveaux.

But she can't do either alone.

With his mile-long rap sheet, wicked grin, and bad attitude, Jack is like no boy Evie has ever known. Even though he once scorned her and everything she represented, he agrees to protect Evie on her quest. She knows she can't totally depend on Jack. If he ever cast that wicked grin her way, could she possibly resist him?

Who can Evie trust?

As Jack and Evie race to find the source of her visions, they meet others who have gotten the same call. An ancient prophesy is being played out, and Evie is not the only one with special powers. A group of twenty-two teens has been chosen to reenact the ultimate battle between good and evil. But it's not always clear who is on which side.

Synopsis for Rebel Heart (book 2 in the Dustlands Trilogy)

Saba thought her world would return to normal after they defeated the Tonton and rescued her kidnapped brother Lugh. The family head west for a better life and a longed-for reunion with Jack. But a formidable enemy is on the rise. What is the truth about Jack? And how far will Saba go to get what she wants?

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Hauling It Up (76)

Hey Everyone,

I hope everyone has had a great week! I've been trying not to but so many books which is why I haven't been having as many book haul. And I just found out I only have 3 more classes left to take before I get my bachelor's! YAY, I'm super excited!

Don't forget to leave the links to your haul :) I'd love to check them out.

For Review - Edelweiss and Netgalley

I'm so excited for all of these :)

Me and Mom Bought

Will be starting this really soon! (we split the price)

So I got my mom to read this series about a year ago and she finished the VA series in like a week! WOW...and the Bloodlines right after that. We were arguing over who was going to read this one first. I won, of course lol

Ebooks

Fake ID by Lamar Giles

Fake ID
by Lamar Giles
Released |January 21st 2014 by HarperCollins|
Edition |eARC|
Source |Edelweiss|
Add to Goodreads

Nick Pearson is hiding in plain sight…
My name isn’t really Nick Pearson.
I shouldn’t tell you where I’m from or why my family moved to Stepton, Virginia.
I shouldn’t tell you who I really am, or my hair, eye, and skin color.
And I definitely shouldn’t tell you about my friend Eli Cruz and the major conspiracy he was about to uncover when he died—right after I moved to town. About how I had to choose between solving his murder with his hot sister, Reya, and “staying low-key” like the Program has taught me. About how moving to Stepon changed my life forever.
But I’m going to.

I've been reading a lot of fast paced reads lately and Fake ID was no exception. Mystery with some mob-ish/criminal elements going on within the book equals awesome for me! I didn't really no what to expect when I started reading this book. All I knew was that the synopsis had me intrigued and the more I continued to read, the more I became glued to the story. There were a lot of twists to keep you guessing at was to come next.  I would recommend this to those who enjoys mystery books :)

Wishlist Wednesday (61): The Winter People

Wishlist Wednesday is a book blog hop where we will post about one book per week that has been on our wishlist for some time, or just added (it's entirely up to you), that we can't wait to get off the wishlist and onto our wonderful shelves.
Hosted by: Pen to Paper

The Winter People
by Rebekah L. Purdy
Releases |July 1st 2014|
Add to Goodreads

An engrossing, complex, romantic fantasy perfect for fans of Kristin Cashore or Maggie Stiefvater, set in a wholly unique world.
Salome Montgomery fears winter—the cold, the snow, the ice, but most of all, the frozen pond she fell through as a child. Haunted by the voices and images of the strange beings that pulled her to safety, she hasn't forgotten their warning to "stay away." For eleven years, she has avoided the winter woods, the pond, and the darkness that lurks nearby. But when failing health takes her grandparents to Arizona, she is left in charge of maintaining their estate. This includes the "special gifts" that must be left at the back of the property.
 

Salome discovers she’s a key player in a world she’s tried for years to avoid. At the center of this world is the strange and beautiful Nevin, who she finds trespassing on her family’s property. Cursed with dark secrets and knowledge of the creatures in the woods, his interactions with Salome take her life in a new direction. A direction where she'll have to decide between her longtime crush Colton, who could cure her fear of winter. Or Nevin who, along with an appointed bodyguard, Gareth, protects her from the darkness that swirls in the snowy backdrop. An evil that, given the chance, will kill her.

Why I'm Wishing...
I just think this story sounds really interesting :) And I really want to give it a try.

These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman

These Broken Stars
(Starbound, #1)
by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner
Released |December 10th 2013 by Disney Hyperion|
Edition |eARC|
Source |Netgalley|
Add to Goodreads

It's a night like any other on board the Icarus. Then, catastrophe strikes: the massive luxury spaceliner is yanked out of hyperspace and plummets into the nearest planet. Lilac LaRoux and Tarver Merendsen survive. And they seem to be alone.
Lilac is the daughter of the richest man in the universe. Tarver comes from nothing, a young war hero who learned long ago that girls like Lilac are more trouble than they’re worth. But with only each other to rely on, Lilac and Tarver must work together, making a tortuous journey across the eerie, deserted terrain to seek help.
Then, against all odds, Lilac and Tarver find a strange blessing in the tragedy that has thrown them into each other’s arms. Without the hope of a future together in their own world, they begin to wonder—would they be better off staying here forever?
Everything changes when they uncover the truth behind the chilling whispers that haunt their every step. Lilac and Tarver may find a way off this planet. But they won’t be the same people who landed on it.

Every thing I got from These Broken Stars was just so unexpected. I ended up really enjoying this book and flew through the story. I found the world that was created to be really interesting because I don't read many sci-fi/outer space type of stories. This book was all about survival, with a little bit of romance thrown into the mix. I was intrigued throughout the entire book and had a really hard time putting it down. And also liked how we got both the perspectives of Lilac and Tarver. I would definitely recommend giving this book a try :)