February 2017 Wrap Up

Jen

I started off the month so well and was cruising through books. Unfortunately that didn’t last too long, life got in the way and I didn’t end up reading as much as I wanted to. Having said that though, I am very happy with what I did manage to read. I finished up quite a few series (yay!) and read quite a bit of manga!

Surviving Ice (Burying Water #4) by K.A. Tucker → 3.5/5

Seriously...I’m Kidding by Ellen DeGeneres → 5/5

Deltora Quest 3: Dragons of Deltora by Emily Rodda → 5/5

How To Give Up Shopping (Or At Least Cut Down): The Journey Back To Conscious Spending

by Neradine Tisaj → 3/5

Deity (Covenant #3) by Jennifer L. Armentrout → 3/5

Elixir  (Covenant #3.5) by Jennifer L. Armentrout → 5/5

Apollyon (Covenant #4) by Jennifer L. Armentrout → 4/5

Sentinel (Covenant #5) by Jennifer L. Armentrout → 3/5

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (#7) by J.K. Rowling → 5/5

Fullmetal Alchemist (3-in-1 Edition), Vol. 1 by Hiromu Arakawa & Akira Watanabe → 4/5

Fullmetal Alchemist (3-in-1 Edition), Vol. 2 by Hiromu Arakawa & Akira Watanabe → 4.5/5

Fullmetal Alchemist (3-in-1 Edition), Vol. 3 by Hiromu Arakawa & Akira Watanabe → 4/5 

Mel
I think I did pretty well in Feb! I was definitely on a roll for a while there. I still didn't read as much as I wanted to, which I chalk up to not getting into a book as much as I wanted to, but I'm not too worried about that, since I have a lot of other books  that I'm excited to read in March.

Cradle and All by James Patterson  5/5
Queen of Hearts by Colleen Oakes  3/5
The Last Beginning by Lauren James  3.75/5
Valentine by Jodi McAlister  4.75/5
Bleach Omnibus Volume 6 by Tite Kubo  4.5/5
Bleach Omnibus Volume 7 by Tite Kubo  5/5 

 

Mel's Updated February 2017 TBR

In the last week or so, I have actually developed a decent TBR for February, so I'm taking the opportunity to update it now, before it's too late in the month. I am actually on a reading binge, and have planned a book a day for the coming week. Here's what I intend on reading:

Cradle and All by James Patterson
Queen of Hearts by Colleen Oakes
The Last Beginning and Another Together by Lauren James
The Iron Trial, The Copper Gauntlet and The Bronze Key by Cassandra Clare and Holly Black
The Jewel, The White Rose and The Black Key by Amy Ewing
Traitor to the Throne by Alwyn Hamilton
Valentine by Jodi McAlister
Zoo and Zoo 2 by James Patterson
Frost Blood by Elly Blake
Caraval by Stephanie Garber

I am in such a mood for reading that this list may grow, but for now, these are the books I want to read right this moment.

August 2016 Wrap Up

Jen

August turned out to be a pretty good reading month for me. I was definitely a bit too ambitious and hopeful when I made my TBR and I didn’t read as many novels as I wanted to. However I did get to a lot of the books that I really wanted to read, which I think is an accomplishment in itself! I’m also pretty proud of the fact that I managed to read the entire Death Note manga series and watch almost the entire anime series all within one month.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by Jack Thorne, John Tiffany & J.K. Rowling → 4/5

Fruits Basket Volume 1 by Natsuki Takaya → 4/5

Tik-Tok of Oz (Oz, #8) by L. Frank Baum → 4/5

The Scarecrow of Oz (Oz, #9) by L. Frank Baum → 3/5

Matilda by Roald Dahl (Audiobook narrated by Kate Winslet) → 5/5

Ignite Me by Tahereh Mafi → 1/5

Library Wars: Love & War, Volumes 14 & 15 by Kiiro Yumi, Hiro Arikawa & Kinami Watabe → both 5/5

It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover → 4/5

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl (Audiobook narrated by Douglas Hodge) → 5/5

The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan → 4.5/5

The Cabin by Natasha Preston → 3/5

Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas → 5/5

Death Note: Black Edition, Volumes 1 - 6 by Tsugumi Ohba & Takeshi Obata → all 5/5 except volume 6 which I gave 4/5

Challenges completed:

Finish a series - Ignite Me: I ended up hating this book (and the series overall) but I am super happy that I finally got it read and can just unhaul these books and move on to better books.

Read a standalone - The Cabin: this book didn’t quite meet my expectations but it was still a good read and one that I’m glad I finally got to since I needed to review it!  

Read a favourite children's book - Matilda & Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: I had originally only planned on reading Matilda for this challenge but after finishing that book, I was just in the mood for another childhood favourite of mine.  

Challenges not completed: 

Read a middle grade book - The Son of Neptune: while I did read and ended up loving this book, it was kind of a fail on my part since I subsequently found out that Goodreads lists this as a young adult book and not middle grade like I originally thought it was. Oops. 

Read a book by an author who writes under more than one name - The Problem with Forever: this one didn’t happen since I failed to even pick up this book once. I ended up prioritising other books and this one just kept getting pushed back. But I am determined to read it, and soon, since I’ve been wanting to read it since it was released!

Mel
I'm a bit annoyed that I only completed two of the challenges set for the month, but I did read a few other books in the month, so I'm not too disappointed.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by JK Rowling, John Tiffany and Jack Thorne  4/5
Black and Blue by James Patterson and Candice Fox  3/5
Cross Kill by James Patterson  5/5
Mind = Blown by Matthew Santoro  5/5
Nerve by Jeanne Ryan  3.75/5
Fruits Basket Collector's Edition Vol 1 by Natsuki Takaya  5/5
Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare  5/5

Challenges completed:
Finish a series - Clockwork Princess
A Stand Alone - Nerve: This was actually a substitute for The Messenger by Markus Zusak, because I just didn't feel like reading that genre.