January 2017 Wrap Up

Jen

I read so much more than I thought I would be able to this month so it was a great way to start the year off! Looking through my list, I read from a wide variety of genres so that makes me happy. I also discovered some seriously amazing books which quickly ended up on my favourites list!

Bakuman Volume 1 by Tsugumi Ohba & Takeshi Obata → 4/5

Bakuman Volume 2 by Tsugumi Ohba & Takeshi Obata → 4/5

Where Am I Now? By Mara Wilson → 4.5/5

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett → 4/5

Bad Girls Throughout History: 100 Remarkable Women Who Changed the World by Ann Shen → 4.5/5

The Darkest Minds (#1) by Alexandra Bracken → 4/5

Talking as Fast as I Can: From Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls, and Everything in Between by Lauren Graham → 5/5

The Fly-Away Cottage: The Magical Collection by Enid Blyton → 5/5

Half-Blood (Covenant series #1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout → 4.5/5

Daemon (#0.5) by Jennifer L. Armentrout → 4/5

Pure (#2) by Jennifer L. Armentrout → 1/5

Deltora Quest by Emily Rodda → 5/5

Deltora Quest 2: Shadowlands by Emily Rodda → 5/5

Girl Online: Going Solo (#3) by Zoe Sugg → 3.75/5

Shift by Em Bailey → 3.5/5

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (#6) by J.K. Rowling → 5/5

Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn → 4/5

Burying Water (#1) by K.A. Tucker → 4.75/5

Becoming Rain (#2) by K.A. Tucker → 5/5

Chasing River (#3) by K.A. Tucker → 4.75/5 

Mel
I quite enjoyed my sci-fi month! It took me longer than I care to admit to get through The Martian, but I enjoyed every bit of it!

The Martian by Andy Weir - 5/5
Gravity by Melissa West - 4/5
The Loneliness of Distant Beings by Kate Ling - 4/5
Sword Art Online Progressive Volume 1 by Reki Kawahara - 4/5

I actually meant to fit in one more book for the month, but I went to sleep a lot earlier than I meant to!

 

January 2017 TBR

Jen

I’m always so excited when a new year of reading begins! As usual I have way too many books I want to read and I just can’t get to them all. There are also multiple series that I want to start but I don’t want to be reading too many at once! I’m such a mood reader that I often deviate from my TBR so for that reason I’m not going to set strict TBR lists in 2017. Instead I’ll just list the books that I most feel like reading at the time so that it can be more of a guide that I can refer back to if I can’t decide which book to read next.

The entire month of January is the tennis season here in Australia, so quite a lot of my time will be taken up by that, leaving little time for reading. I know that I more than likely won’t be getting to all the books that I’m putting on my list, and I'll probably change my mind about them, but that doesn’t matter. I’m going to take a much more relaxed approach to reading this year and just read what I can, when I can.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (#6) by J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (#7) by J.K. Rowling

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: The Original Screenplay by J.K. Rowling

Anne of Ingleside (#6) by L.M. Montgomery

Girl Online: Going Solo (#3) by Zoe Sugg

Code Name Verity (#1) by Elizabeth Wein

Rose Under Fire (#2) by Elizabeth Wein

Deltora Quest series by Emily Rodda

Half-Blood (Covenant series #1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Cinder (Lunar Chronicles #1) by Marissa Meyer 
The Darkest Minds (#1) by Alexandra Bracken 
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett 

Bakuman manga series by Tsugumi Ohba & Takeshi Obata  

Mel 
I'm in much the same mindset as Jen. I just want to read what I happen to be in the mood for, since set TBR's really don't work for me much. That being said, I do want to complete a few series that I've left unfinished for years (that's not an exaggeration!). I have some books that I've only kept to see how the series finished, but are not part of a series that I particularly enjoyed anyway, so I want to unhaul them and free up some space on my shelves.

I also decided that I want to restrict rereads. The only exceptions to this will be Harry Potter (since I already started a reread last year), manga and graphic novels (because it takes no time at all to read them), The Kiss of Deception by Mary E Pearson (because it's been almost two years since I read it and I want to refresh my memory before I continue the series) and maybe Trick by Natalia Jaster (because I've been wanting to reread it, even though I only read it in January 2016!). So the reread of Throne of Glass that I was going to do this year isn't going to happen (I'm crying on the inside), but I really need to focus on reading books that I've been buying. The amount of unread books on my shelves is really getting out of hand!

Anyway, here's a few books that I have an interest in reading this month. Very sci fi driven - probably because I've been watching a lot of Star Trek Voyager lately!

The Loneliness of Distant Beings by Kate Ling
The Martian by Andy Weir
These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner
Gravity by Melissa West
Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
Something Doctor Who related. Either 12 Doctors of Christmas, 12 Doctors or Timelord Fairy Tales.

Jen's July Book Haul

Most of the books in this haul are pretty much impulse buys from Big W.  Some of them I've heard great things about, while others I have heard nothing about but sounded very intriguing so I bought them anyway.

The Crown's Game by Evelyn Skye
This is the first book in a YA magical fantasy series that I've heard a lot about recently so I grabbed it up when I saw this on the shelves. 

Queen of Hearts by Colleen Oakes
I absolutely love fairy tale retellings so I decided to pick this one up even though I hadn't heard anything about it.

The Isle of the Lost by Melissa de la Cruz
I originally wasn't going to pick this one up but after hearing a few of my favourite booktubers talk about this book I changed my mind. 

A Whole New World by Liz Braswell
I was interested in this book before it was released, and despite the mostly negative reviews and poor rating on Goodreads, I still really want to read it and decide for myself. I had no idea that there was going to be a different cover for the paperback edition and while I do really like this cover, I still love the hardcover edition as well.

Convergence by Stan Lee
This was a random find at Big W one day. I'd never heard of it before, but if it's going to feature the Chinese Zodiac, then I want to read it!

Escape From Mr. Lemoncello's Library & Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics by Chris Grabenstein
I also stumbled across these two books but I was sold on the synopsis. Fun adventures and problem solving taking place in a library? Definitely intrigued by that. 

The Witch's Kiss by Katharine & Elizabeth Corr
A YA fantasy that I've heard nothing about, but it's about witches so that's pretty much all I needed to know. 

Empire of Dust by Eleanor Herman
This is the sequel to Legacy of Kings which I bought when it first came out. When I saw the sequel in the matching size and edition I knew I had to grab it right away. And I have to say, I love this cover more than the first book!

The King's Curse by Philippa Gregory
This book is part of The Cousin's War series. I have been slowly collecting these in hardcover whenever I spot them in the bargain section of my local QBD store. Now I only need the fourth book and then I'll have the entire series!

Everything Everything by Nicola Yoon
I read this last year and absolutely loved it. I saw it for a cheap price one day and decided just to get it. I am extremely annoyed with that huge round blob (that isn't even a removable sticker) advertising her next book though. So unnecessary and it messes up an otherwise beautiful cover.

The Sky is Everywhere & I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson
I have wanted to read these two books since I first heard about them a couple of years ago. But I could never find them in the hardcover edition that I wanted for a decent price. These paperback editions aren't as pretty as the hardcovers, but I do like the simplicity of the covers and the fact that they match! When I saw them cheap in Big W I just went ahead and bought them. 

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
I recently read A Little Princess and absolutely loved it. I have wanted to read The Secret Garden as well so when I came across this beautiful illustrated edition I knew that I had to own it.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory & Matilda by Roald Dahl
These two are my absolute favourite Roald Dahl books. I never actually owned a copy of Matilda before so when I saw it on the shelf I picked it up right away. My copy of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is all old and beat up because I owned it since my childhood so I went ahead and bought a brand new copy in the edition that matches Matilda.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling, John Tiffany & Jack Thorne
It's Harry Potter. Enough said. I have already read this one, and while it did have it's problems, I was still super happy to finally get something new from the Wizarding World. 

July 2016 Wrap Up

Jen

I am very happy with what I managed to accomplish with my reading this month. I was successful in completing all the reading challenges that Mel and I set for the month, discovered a new obsession of mine, and actually read some of the books that I had been wanting to for a while. However, there were quite a few disappointing reads this month. I have linked my Goodreads page if you want to see more of my thoughts for any of the books.

The Patchwork Girl of Oz (Oz #7) by L. Frank Baum → 4/5

The Leaving by Tara Altebrando → 4/5

The Infinite Sea (The 5th Wave #2) by Rick Yancey → 3/5

The Last Star (The 5th Wave #3) by Rick Yancey → 1/5

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien → 3/5

Black by Fleur Ferris → 4.5/5

The Worst Witch by Jill Murphy (Audiobook narrated by Miriam Margoyles) → 5/5

The World of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin → 2/5

Unravel Me (Shatter Me #2) by Tahereh Mafi → 2/5

Unite Me (Shatter Me #1.5 & #2.5 novellas) by Tahereh Mafi → 3/5

Saga, Volume 6 by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples → 5/5

A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett → 5/5

Library Wars: Love & War, Volumes 1 - 13 by Kiiro Yumi, Hiro Arikawa & Kinami Watabe → all 5/5 with the occasional 4/5

One Was Lost by Natalie D. Richards → 4/5

The Assassin’s Blade (Throne of Glass #0.1 - #0.5 novellas) by Sarah J. Maas → 5/5

And here’s my wrap up for our reading challenge:

Challenge #1: The Hobbit - I did manage to complete this as our buddy read book.

Challenge #2: A Little Princess - since I managed to squeeze this book in, I counted this as the classic instead of The Hobbit. I am so glad I read this as it turned out to be my favourite book of the month!

Challenge #3: The Worst Witch - I loved listening to this audiobook and I wish I could find all the other books in this series.

Challenge #4: Black - this was my book under 300 pages.

Challenge #5: Not only did I make progress in the Oz series, the Shatter Me series and the Throne of Glass series, I actually managed to FINISH The 5th Wave trilogy!

Challenge #6: This challenge to read a graphic novel or manga was what started me off on my new manga craze. I picked up the first volume of quite a few different series intending to try them all out, but it was the one series I found while randomly browsing through my library shelves that ended up being my surprise find of the month. I read Volume 1 of Library Wars, liked it enough to continue and somewhere along the way I was completely hooked and neglected everything else to binge read the series. I’m still annoyed that I couldn’t finish the last two volumes because someone checked those out of the library right before I wanted them. 

Mel
I managed to finish 5 books in July, which I'm really happy about. I'm still behind on my Goodreads challenge, but I should be able to catch up between now and the end of the year.

Bleach #3 Volumes 7, 8 & 9 by Tite Kubo  5/5
Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare  5/5
Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare  5/5
The Lord of the Rings Book 2 - The Ring Goes South by JRR Tolkien  5/5
Snow White with the Red Hair Volume 1 by Sorata Akizuki  5/5

Reading Challenge
Challenge #1: Incomplete. Buddy Read: The Hobbit - I didn't quite get around to finishing this, but I did make a start and will be finishing it in August.
Challenge #2: Complete. A classic - Whilst I did choose The Hobbit for this challenge, I can equally count The Ring Goes South by JRR Tolkien, which I originally intended to finish in June, but didn't manage.
Challenge #3: Complete. Audiobook: Clockwork Angel - I have read this book as a physical copy, but I recently purchased the audiobooks and had not listened to them yet, so I chose this and loved it! I thoroughly enjoyed the commentary, and it's probably one of the more enjoyable commentaries that I've come across.
Challenge #4: Complete. A book under 300 pages - I originally chose a Tolkien novel to fill this challenge too, but instead, I'll go with Snow White with the Red Hair Volume 1. This manga series is quickly becoming a favourite, after watching the first two seasons of the anime and I can't wait to continue the series!
Challenge #5: Complete. A sequel - Clockwork Prince - Again, not the book I originally set for the challenge, but I was on a roll and wanted to continue with the audiobooks!
Challenge #6: Complete. Manga/graphic novel - Bleach Volumes 7, 8 & 9 omnibus - I think i originally set the edition after this for the challenge, but I didn't get around to starting that one, so since I did finish this in July, it counts.

So, despite not finishing one of the challenges, this went a whole lot better than June's challenge, so I'm really happy with how this turned out!

July 2016 TBR

Jen

Mel and I had so much fun with our buddy read last month that we decided we wanted to do it again in July! This time we decided to come up with our own challenges and we are giving ourselves the entire month to complete them. We can also double up on as many challenges as we want, or none at all.

The Challenges

1. Buddy read a book

2. Read a classic

3. Listen to an audiobook

4. Read a book under 300 pages

5. Read a sequel
6. Read a graphic novel/manga  

Jen’s TBR

Challenge #1 - The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien - I have never read anything by Tolkien but I have wanted to for such a long time so I’m glad that Mel suggested this one for the buddy read. 

Challenge #2 - It’s so difficult to choose just one book because there are so many classics that I want to read. Anne of Windy Poplars by L.M. Montgomery would be a great choice because I need to continue on with that series. A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett is one that I’ve been really wanting to read lately. However, depending on if I’m running short on time or not, I could also just end up going with The Hobbit for this challenge as well.

Challenge #3 - The Worst Witch by Jill Murphy - I had such a hard time deciding on an audiobook for this challenge so I couldn’t believe it when I stumbled across this one! I LOVED the TV series so much as a kid and even now as an adult, I still go back and rewatch it periodically. I don’t even care that the books are for young readers, I still want to read them. And then probably watch the TV show again.

Challenge #4 - Black by Fleur Ferris - I don’t have many books that are under 300 pages to begin with, so I’m happy that Black meets this challenge. I read the debut novel Risk by this author in 2015 and absolutely loved it, so this is one of my most anticipated 2016 releases!  

Challenge #5 - If you’ve seen my mid year reading progress post, you’ll know that I am in the middle of far too many series. I’ve decided to list the book that I am currently up to in each of the series that I’m reading even though there’s no way that I’ll be able to get to them all. But this will give me some choice and also serve as a reminder of the series that I need to complete!

The Patchwork Girl of Oz (Oz #7) by L. Frank Baum

Anne of Windy Poplars (Anne of Green Gables #4) by L.M. Montgomery

Prince Caspian (Chronicles of Narnia #4) by C.S. Lewis  

The Infinite Sea (The 5th Wave #2) by Rick Yancey

The Assassin’s Blade (Throne of Glass #0.1 - #0.5 novellas) by Sarah J. Maas

The Son of Neptune (Heroes of Olympus #2) by Rick Riordan

Unravel Me (Shatter Me #2) by Tahereh Mafi

Cresendo (Hush, Hush #2) by Becca Fitzpatrick

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Harry Potter #5) by J.K. Rowling

Challenge #6 - Another long list. I have not read many graphic novels or manga before so (with the exception of one) I decided that this was a good opportunity to try out the first volume of a few different ones. All the graphic novels I had heard about on booktube and really liked the sound of them. Some of the manga came highly recommended to me by Mel, and some I discovered while perusing the shelves of my library and I just liked the sound of the title.

Saga, Volume 6 by Brian K Vaughan and Fiona Staples - I read the first 5 volumes last year and was super excited when I found out that volume 6 had only very recently been released.

Fables: Legends in Exile by Bill Willingham,  James Jean and Alex Maleev

Morning Glories, Vol. 1: For a Better Future by Nick Spencer and Joe Eisma

Rat Queens, Vol. 1: Sass & Sorcery by Kurtis J. Wiebe and Roc Upchurch

Ms. Marvel, Vol. 1: No Normal by G. Willow Wilson and Adrian Alphona

Sex Criminals, Vol.1: One Weird Trick by Matt Fraction and Chip Zdarsky

Death Note: Black Edition, Vol 1 by Tsugumi Ohba, Yuki Kowalsky and Takeshi Obata

Fruits Basket, Vol. 1 by Natsuki Takaya, Alethea Nibley and Athena Nibley

Fairy Tail,  Vol. 01 by Hiro Mashima and William Flanagan

Library Wars: Love & War, Vol. 1 by Kiiro Yumi, Hiro Arikawa and Kinami Watabe

Kitchen Princess, Vol. 01 by Natsumi Ando and Miyuki Kobayashi

As if that list wasn’t ambitious enough, I still have a few other books that I really want to read this month that don’t really fit in with any of those challenges.

One Was Lost by Natalie D. Richards

This is a review book from Netgalley. I have been loving the YA mystery thrillers that I’ve been reading lately and this one sounded really intriguing to me.

The Leaving by Tara Altebrando

This is one that Mel read in June and introduced me to. It is another YA mystery with a fantastic sounding synopsis and I have just really been in the mood for this genre lately.

The Problem With Forever by Jennifer L. Armentrout

This one was a contemporary that I really wanted to read last month but I didn’t get to it so I’m going to try again this month.

The World of Ice and Fire: The Untold History of Westeros and the Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin

I’ve been reading this since April and big surprise, I still haven’t finished it. I did actually make some progress with it in June though and I would absolutely love to just finish it in July, particularly as season 6 of the TV show has just finished. 

Mel 
Since last month's buddy read was such a fail for me, I'm really hoping that I do much better with this one! I made a suggestion based on what I'm into right now, and that's Tolkien! Luckily Jen agreed, so this challenge looks promising!

Challenge #1 - The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien - It's been a long time since I read this (2002!) so I'm looking forward to reading this again! I've been watching the movies recently and they've really messed up what I remember of the book, so I'm going to rectify that this month so my brain can finally take a break from trying to sort it out!
Challenge #2 - The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien - Yep, I'm doubling up! I just want to make sure I've not been too ambitious because I need to read other books outside the buddy read too.
Challenge #3 - Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare - I have read the book, but I've only recently purchased the audiobook and have yet to give it a listen.
Challenge #4 - The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien - Yep! My edition is the 1991 Grafton edition and has a total of 285 pages, making it perfect for this challenge!
Challenge #5 - The Treason of Isengard (The Two Towers Book #3) by J.R.R. Tolkien - I have been slowly making my way through The Lord of the Rings, and since my edition of the series is a 7 book boxed set, each individual part counts as a book. This makes the challenge a bit shorter, since I don't have to read the whole of The Two Towers all in one go.
Challenge #6 - Bleach 3 in 1 Volume 4 by Tite Kubo - I've been loving this manga so much lately that I hauled 3 omnibuses in one transaction! So it makes sense to read one of them for this challenge.

Since that's quite a small TBR (and one of them requires barely any effort, let's be honest!), I feel like adding a few more books isn't going to hold me back too much.

The Doon Series by Carey Corp and Lorie Langdon - I've been looking forward to reading this series for a while now, and since I have the opportunity to read and review Forever Doon before the publication date, I need to get a move on!