Weekend Reads

I know this is a really bad picture, but Caty is in it, therefore it's an awesome picture. :)



What are you reading this Easter weekend?

Weekend Readings

I took trips to the library and a terrific (and enormous) used bookstore this weekend.

What are you reading?

A List

Once I wrote about random attacks of OCD and my need to make long lists.  Today is very clearly one of those days.  So instead of writing multiple blog post on different things, I thought I would make you a nice list to let you know all the things that are going on in my life.

1.      I got a Nook for Christmas.  I love it (except for the part where the servers crashed on Christmas day and stayed down on the 26^th).  Currently on my Nook are The Lost Hero, Stranger, and The Lady Most Likely.  What else should I add?

2.      I’m still working on my reading list.  I’m currently focusing on reading all the Judith McNaught and Susan Elizabeth Phillips books on the list.  I’m not a huge fan of McNaught (so far), but I really like SEP so that’s helping to balance it out.

3.      I’m also reading this book.  It’s changing my life so I highly recommend it.

4.      I’m thinking of joining Wendy the Super Librarian’s TBR challenge for 2011 so that I can make some progress on my TBR pile.  It’s starting to overwhelm me so I should probably do something about it.

5.      My best friend is engaged!  She’s getting married in December 2011. 

6.      As I type this, I just got a shipment of books for the library.  I’m so excited about cataloging them that I’m a little concerned.  Medical attention may be needed…I’ll keep you posted.

7.      I’m trying to learn how to budget.  Anyone have any good recommendations on books/websites with good budgeting worksheets or advice on how to set up a good one on Excel?

8.      I’m thinking of moving to a self-hosted WordPress blog in January and start advertising.  I clearly need all the advice/thoughts/opinions you can muster.  And I need a web designer (a cheap one) who can make it cute and navigable.  Any suggestions?

9.      I bought a couch yesterday.  Why did I buy a couch when I still live at home, you may ask???

10.  Oh, that’s right, I haven’t told you yet.  I BOUGHT A HOUSE!

Finding Middle Ground

In any good argument, there exist two sides both vehemently sure that the other is absolutely, 100% wrong.  Classic examples include Britain versus France, Mac versus PC, and marshmallow versus pecan toppings.  In the past two years or so, a new argument has emerged and both sides are waging a fierce war.  I’m talking about ereaders. 

The two camps, the ereader-lovers and the ereader-haters, both make excellent points.  Ereaders provide portability (who wouldn’t want to download a new book minutes before a long flight?), flexibility (the idea of bringing along a whole bookshelf of books in one small, lightweight device is thrilling to an avid reader), and a whole new set of books designed only for an ereader. 

The haters are screaming about losing the physical book and its history, losing the smell and feel of a book in your hands, and losing the physical library or the physical bookshelf which gives so many people (myself included) happy, tingly feelings.

Clearly, the battle lines have been drawn.

Where am I amidst this passionate book lovers’ war?  I’m searching for middle ground.

I love books.  For my upcoming birthday (yikes…), my best friend made me a beautiful bookmark that proclaims me to be a bibliophile.  I accept that title proudly.  Not only am I a lover of books, I am a collector of books.  My favorite quote by Erasmus sums up my devotion: “When I have a little money I buy books…if any left over, I buy food and clothes”.  I fit this description perfectly; I bet if I added up the amount of money I’ve spent this year at Barnes and Noble and Amazon, on shipping for PaperBackSwap (got to ship books to get credits!), and at the used bookstore, it would be quite a bit more than what I spent on clothes.  I have three bookcases full of books; romances, general fiction, cookbooks, childhood books, I make no distinction in  the type of book I choose to save and what I sell or trade.  The only requirement to land it on my keeper shelf (er...shelves) is that I have or will read it at least twice. 

My book hoarding tendencies make ebooks very appealing.  One, ebooks tend to be cheaper (on some things, not everything) so I wouldn’t be spending as much as I do know.  Two, I love the idea of being able to download a book right then, right when I find it.  I hate reading a review at work, then either having to check to see if the library has it and put it on reserve, order it from PaperBackSwap, or try to find it at a real bookstore (I use online book shopping as a last resort).  It takes some work and if it’s something new, I’m pretty much guaranteed to only be able to buy it so why not by it ebook form?  And three, there are some really good books (especially romances) out there only being published as ebooks.  I would very much like to read them on something other than my computer or my phone. 

So, overall, ebooks seem like a great option for someone like me.  I should very firmly be on ebook-loving side of the war, right.  WRONG!

I’m still somewhere in the middle, probably screaming for someone to come rescue me at this point.

Why am I still in the middle?  Because some books are not meant to be read as an ebook.  Sometimes it is necessary (at least for this book hoarder) to have a copy (preferably a hardback copy, complete with dust jacket, if it comes that way) on the bookshelf.  Many books have sensory memories for me, and I wouldn’t trade the smell and feel of Deathly Hallows in my hands for anything.  I have certain books that I will never buy for my ereader.  Nora Roberts, certain Loretta Chase books, any YA fantasy series that requires me to read every book, in order, at least once a year (Harry Potter, Twilight, Narnia, The Hunger Games, you get the picture), and anything that continues or completes a series that I already have in print. 

Just because I'll soon be joining those with ereaders doesn’t mean I’ll be giving up the library.  I still plan to check out physical books, especially those that I want to read but have no intentions of ever reading again, and with the right ereader, I can also check out ebooks, which I find incredibly appealing. 

So here I am, firmly in the middle.  With the ereader Santa is bringing me for Christmas, I will be happily buying new books, but I will never forgo my lovely library and my much loved print books.  Sometimes a girl just needs a book to hold to make it all better.  :)

What camp are you in?  Or are you in the middle like me?

Summer Reading Books: Likes and Dislikes

Warning: If you don't like romance novels and/or aren't interested in what I have to say about them, I suggest coming back tomorrow.   

Yesterday, I updated you on my summer reading progress.  To date, I've read 39 books and am in the process of reading Dream Man by Linda Howard and listening to It Had to Be You by Susan Elizabeth Phillips in the car.  As I mentioned yesterday, the books are beginning to run together, so I thought, in a very (very) brief way, I would list which ones I liked, didn't like, and which ones I'm neutral on. 

Liked (the ones I loved are in bold): 

Dreaming of You

Pride and Prejudice 

Outlander

Devil in Winter

Welcome to Temptation

The Viscount Who Loved Me

Lover Awakened

Mr. Impossible

The Duke and I

Romancing Mr. Bridgerton 

Naked in Death

Dark Lover

The Secret

Lover Eternal

Devil's Bride

Sea Swept

When He Was Wicked

It Happened One Autumn

Born in Fire

Lady Sophia's Lover

Worth Any Price

Rising Tides

Born in Ice

Ransom

Slave to Sensation

Didn't Like (Didn't finish are in bold):

Lord of Scoundrels (It's been over a year since I read this and my feelings may have changed so I'm going to reread it)

Flowers From the Storm

The Serpent Prince

Morning Glory 

Something Borrowed

Neutral:

Bet Me

Slightly Dangerous

Lord Perfect

The Bride

Mr. Perfect

Then Came You 

Saving Grace

Dragon Fly in Amber

Voyager

I'm not going to go through each and every book because that would take forever.  I will however, tell you why I didn't like the ones I didn't.  

Lord of Scoundrels:  Someone told me I should turn in my romance reader card for not liking this book.  Admittedly, I didn't finish it.  In fact, I didn't make it very far in.  I couldn't even skip through to find a better scene.  This book is on everyone's top ten list of favorite romances of all time, and frankly I don't see why.  However, I may have been in bad mood when I started this book or I may have been looking for something different, so I'm willing to give it another chance. 

Flowers From the Storm: This book was just too much for me.  Too long, too much emotion, too many plot lines, just too much.  I can't handle a Quaker herione, a hero whose had a stoke and now in a mental institution, and the angst (oh the angst) associated with the herione trying to heal him and keep him from being declared legally insane.  Oh, and did I mention the math?  Too too much.  I got about a quarter of the way through this, then started skimming.  I got the gist, but I just wasn't caught up in the emotion as AAR's reviewer obviously was. 

The Serpent Prince: Honestly I don't remember what I didn't like about this book.  But I didn't because I only read about half of it before I started skimming.  I think I was bored.  There really isn't anything special about this book that sets it apart from other regencies.  I like the hero, but if I want to read about a lavishly dressed nobleman, I think I'll stick with the Duke of Villiers and Eloisa James. 

Morning Glory: I read this book years ago, but it's stuck in my head of one of the few romances I truly didn't like.  LaVyrle Spencer is incredible popular, especially among women who started reading romance in the late 80s, but this is the only book I've ever read by her.  I didn't like it, therefore, I didn't read her anymore.  I can't remember many of the details, but I remember being frustrated by the characters and found the story boring.  I like some action in my plots, and I think that this one is more character-based.  Unlike Nora Roberts, who can excel at this type of book, I found this one to be a disappointment. 

Something Borrowed: This was recommended to me by several people and I was really looking forward to it.  I'm not sure if a lot of my dislike came from listening to this book rather than reading it, but I thought that Rachel was one the wimpiest, wishy-washy, spineless characters to ever enter fiction.  (I know that's a little harsh).  Towards the end of the book, I was mentally screaming from Rachel to put on her big girl panties and deal with it.  I think at some point I may have actually yelled out loud at her while driving (it had been a long week).  All that said, I didn't turn the book off; I needed to know what happened.  It's why I'll still read Something Blue because I really need to know if Darcy gets what's coming (I doubt it).  But overall, I didn't like this one.

I'm afraid to ask if people agree with me or not.  I'm sure I stepped a few toes with Lord of Scoundrels and Flowers from the Storm.  But, I'm going to grin and bear it.  Do you agree with my lists?  What are your thoughts?

Summer Reading Stall Out

Do you have a drop-everything-to read author?  I have several.  Julia Quinn, Lisa Kleypas, J.K. Rowling (back with Harry Potter was being published), and Nora Roberts are my drop-everything-stop-reading-everything-else authors.  This week this concept became abundantly clear.  I usually don't pay any attention to the idea of stopping a book in the middle to read something else, but this week I did.  This summer has been big as far as new releases by my favorite authors and I've spent a considerable amount of money on new books (new releases and books for my Summer Reading Project).  Julia Quinn released Ten Things I Love About You in May, and Lisa Kleypas released Married by Morning in May and Love in the Afternoon came out last week.  Nora Roberts published the 3rd book in her Vows Quartet, Savor the Moment, in May and her latest single title The Search was released on Tuesday.  With the exception of Love in the Afternoon, all of these were purchased and read on their release date.  I'm holding on to Love in the Afternoon as a treat to myself when I'm having a bad day.  I didn't want to rush through The Search because I love love love Nora and I like to savor her books since she only releases one single title a year.  It took me three wonderful nights of reading and the book was amazing.  Unfortunately, I'm way behind on my summer reading.

All these new releases, along with SB Sarah's Sizzling Summer Book Club, has made it a little harder to read all the books on my reading list.  I've already read 39 of them which is huge progress of course, but I'm accepting the fact that I won't be able to finish the list before Labor Day.  It's an impossible goal to read 8 books a week.  That's more than a book a day, and something I just can't accomplish while working full time.  Now if this was my full time job (how awesome would that be?), it would be no problem.  But it's not and I can only hope to read 2-4 books a week and hopefully will accomplish my goal before Christmas.

I'm not complaining.  This is an awesome project and I look forward to reading all these books.  It's been a little exhausting though.  I usually read a lot of romance, but I've never pushed myself through so many.  I'm a little burned out on alpha males and HEAs.  I'm also forming some very strong judgments about what does and what does not make a good romance.  I haven't liked all the books on the list, and some of those didn't get finished or I skimmed through because there was something about it I didn't like.  I'm thinking I should make a list of those I liked and those I didn't, because I'm starting to get them mixed up. 

So that's what new with me on my summer reading project.  Are you reading anything special this summer?  How's it going?

Update on Summer Reading

Have you noticed my new tabs? I put them in a few weeks ago, but haven't said anything about them. I don't really like the look of them, but I know next to nothing about web design so I don't know how to fix them. Anyway, one is a "Summer Reading" tab where you can keep track of my progress as I move through my list. I'm doing well, not moving quite as quickly as I had anticipated, but moving along nonetheless. Total I've read 31 books. I'm close to being finished with Dark Lover by J.R. Ward and have Mr. Perfect, Slightly Dangerous, and The Serpent Prince ready to go.

I'm really enjoying this project; I'm reading things I never thought I would. For example, I hadn't really ventured into paranormal romance any (other than what Nora Roberts has written) but J.R. Ward has taken me (and the rest of the romance world) by storm and I really enjoyed Nalini Singh's Slave to Sensation a lot. I'm looking forward to reading more of her when this challenge is over. J.R. Ward shows up multiple times on this list, which is why I started with the first Black Dagger Brotherhood book instead of following the list.

Obviously I'm not going according to the list. At first, I wasn't going off the list because I didn't want to, but now I'm realizing it's necessary. I'm having a very hard time finding these books at the library and on PaperBackSwap without waiting around. When I remember, I request books via my county's excellent interlibrary loan system, but for very popular books, that hasn't been the most convenient. I'm ordering them when I can as well, but, again, the popular ones are hard to find. I've had to go to the bookstore some, which I like and dislike at the same time. On one hand, I love bookstores so much and can spend hours in them; on the other hand, it's becoming very expensive to buy these books outright. I've thought about ordering them on half.com or Amazon, but I don't want to pay for shipping. My local used paperback store is decent, but you can't predict what they are going to have in stock. I like having a non-library edition, because some of these have become keepers; books I know I'm going to read again at some point. I love a stocked bookshelf, and at some point, I'll thank myself for keeping so many books around.

I'm also thinking of listening to some of these books in the car. I do that on and off and this might be a good way to cross a few off my list. My library provides some in an MP3 format, so I can put it on my ipod and listen to it driving to and from work. I have about at 20-30 minute commute each way with traffic, so that might turn out to be helpful.

As far as summer reading projects go, this has been the most fun. I'm enjoying reading new authors and discovering new keepers. I'm looking forward to crossing one off the list and picking up a new book! 

My fairly impressive stack of books that I've read and that are in currently in my TBR pile.  Clearly, I love the library!

Book Review: One Dance with a Duke by Tessa Dare

This is my first time reviewing a book, so forgive me for any faux pas! One Dance with a Duke by Tessa Dare is the first selection in Smart Bitch Sarah's Sizzling Summer Bookclub.  Tessa Dare is a relatively new historical romance author and one I haven't read before.  I was excited to read this book because the reviews were really good and it's a series.  I love series; especially concerning heroes involved in mysterious clubs, as Spencer, our hero from One Dance with a Duke is.  I was also very excited to read this because Tessa Dare is a librarian! How exciting! Anyway...

I'm not going to do the usual review and start with a synopsis; if you want a synopsis and summary of what other reviewers have said, check out Tessa's site.  For a more comprehensive review, check out All About Romance's review. 

The highest compliment I can give a book is to say that I finished this in one night.  That almost never happens.  I started it yesterday afternoon when I got home from work and didn't turn out the light until I was done.  Yes, I read fast, but honestly, I couldn't put it down.  It takes a whole lot to keep me entertained for that long and I would like commend Ms. Dare for doing so.  I found the characters to be compelling and real and I was into the book enough by the end of the first chapter to know that I wanted to get to know Amelia (our heroine) and Spencer more and find out what happens.  I enjoyed the secondary characters too and look forward to reading their stories in the future.   

No book is without it's faults, however.  This book, and I'm assuming the series, has a murder-mystery plot line, which I always find fascinating.  We are introduced to this plot almost right away and for a good portion of the book we are kept apprised of the situation.  However, as soon as Amelia and the duke quit London, we stop hearing about the murder investigation.  Then it comes bounding back in a hurry near the end.  During this middle part, I kept going "but what about the murder?".  I also didn't really understand Amelia's constant faith in and overwhelming urge to help her brother, who obviously has a gambling problem.  I don't have any siblings, so maybe this is just me personally, but I didn't sympathize with Amelia's plight to rescue her brother.  That said, I looked past it and chalked it up to her nurturing personality.  The last bit I didn't care for was the ending concerning Spencer's ward.  I'm not going to share it since it's a spoiler, but it came out of left field (for me) and left me reeling.  I was not thrilled with that.

Despite this, I loved this book.  It's a keeper for me.  I'm looking forward to the next books in the series and more work by Tessa Dare.  I strongly recommend this book!  

Grade: A-

Have you read this book?  What did you think?

Summer Reading Update and Finalized Book List

Back in early May I started thinking about what I was going to read this summer.  I had intended to make it like my list from last year, which covered a variety of genres from romance to biography.  I created last year's list based on book recommendations and books I had always wanted to read, but never did.  I've been keeping a running list of books I want to read over the past year, but being unemployed for four months helped me read through my list pretty quickly, and now I'm facing the summer without a set list.  

A few weeks ago, I came across Smart Bitches, Trashy Books's Sizzling Summer Book Club and I decided to join the fun.  The first book, One Dance with a Duke by Tessa Dare, is going to be talked about in a few weeks.  I'm reading it now, and hopefully I'll share my thoughts here.  

The book club gave me an idea of trying to branch out a little in romance reading as I've always stuck to historicals, mostly of the regency variety, and Nora Roberts.  I rarely read much beyond that.  In looking for more books to read, I came across All About Romance.  They have a great blog, but what I got most excited about was their poll, done in 2007 of the Top 100 Romances.  I started looking over the list and realized I've read 24 of them already.  I think that almost a quarter isn't too bad, and that I could easily read (or at least make a huge dent) in reading the rest.  So that became the focus of my summer reading list.  Since finding the list early last week, I've read 3 and ordered a bunch from PaperBackSwap and the library.  I read pretty quickly, so I have no worries about plowing through a good bit of the list.  I have very strong opinions on what makes a good romance novel, but I'm interested to see what other people think are the best.  As the summer progresses, I'll share my thoughts and my progress. 

Other than tackling 75 romances plus the book club selections I'm also hoping to read the following books:

The Lives of the Kings and Queens of England

Something Borrowed

Something Blue

Eleanor of Aquitaine: A Life (which I started last summer and never finished)

I think that's plenty! It's a good thing I love to read! Check out my new Summer Reading page to keep track of what I've read!

Sizzling Summer Book Club

A few weeks ago I asked for book recommendations for my summer reading list.  I'm still poking around and looking for books to add to my official summer reading list and I will be posting my list as soon as I make my decisions.  However, I have also decided to join a summer book club!  I will be participating in Smart Bitch Sarah's Sizzling Summer Book Club on Smart Bitches, Trash Books, one of my favorite websites.  If you are not familiar with SBTB, it's a website run by two brilliant women who just happen to love reading romance novels.  They review books, conduct interviews with authors, have contests and giveaways, and basically share their love of all things romance.  They are also the authors of Beyond Heaving Bosoms: The Smart Bitches' Guide to Romance Novels, which is a hilarious look at the romance genre as a whole.  

One book will be selected every two weeks and there will be a live chat discussion on each book.  The club is being sponsored by AllRomanceEbooks and they are offering a 50% discount if you purchase the ebook through them.  I've never read a book on my computer, and since I don't have an ereader that's the way it's going to have to work for me.  I'm willing to try it though to take advantage of the great price.  Unfortunately, I won't be able to get the book from paperbackswap.com or the library in time to read it and participate.  So I will be looking for the best price and it looks like the ebook version is my best bet.  

The first book of the summer is Tessa Dare's new release One Dance with a Duke.  I've never read anything by her, but I'm excited and I love historical romance! 

So if you love romance or even if you would just like to try out the genre while taking advantage of a cheap book, stop AllRomaceEbooks bookclub page for more information.  If you are thinking of participating, let me know!

Summer Reading

Summer is rapidly approaching. Well, it is here in Alabama (otherwise known as the most humid place on earth). For most of you, there's still another month left of school and the weather really won't be getting hot for another few weeks. But around here, school is wrapping up and it's expected to hit 90° this week.

Since it feels so summery outside, it makes me think of summer reading. Last summer I set out to make myself more well-rounded as far as reading goes, and I think I did a pretty good job. This summer, I'm looking to do the same as well as read some really good books. Unfortunately, I don't know what I want to read this summer! Therefore, I'm asking you, dear readers, for book suggestions. Please email me or leave a book suggestion (and author if you can remember) in the comments. I am looking forward to seeing your suggestions!

To give you a better idea of what I like to read, here are some of the books I've read most recently:

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

The Percy Jackson and the Olympians Series by Rick Riordan

The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown

Savor the Moment by Nora Roberts

It Sucked and Then I Cried: How I Had a Baby, a Breakdown, and a Much Needed Margarita by Heather Armstrong

The first 4 Wheel of Time books by Robert Jordan (I'm planning on reading more this summer)

Captain Jack's Woman by Stephanie Laurens

The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Cheever by Julia Quinn

The Pioneer Woman Cooks by Ree Drummond

Why Evolution is True by Jerry A. Coyne

These are the books that I read last summer. As you can tell, I have fairly eclectic taste in books. I adore romance, like reading fantasy and some young adult, I will read the occasional non-fiction title if I find it interesting.

Please share your favorite books! I'll be posting a list of the books I decide to read this summer soon! Thanks in advance!


 

Being Well Read on a Budget

Being a librarian, it's no secret that I love to read. I adore books, of all kinds, but especially romance and historical fiction. Alas, these are not always the most popular in the eyes of the general public. I'm usually at a loss when people ask, as they often do of librarians, for book recommendations. I can go on and on about my love of Nora Roberts or Diana Gabaldon, but these aren't books that are going to appeal to everyone. This summer I set out to remedy that. I created a nice long list of books, mostly of the general fiction persuasion, that were designed to improve my ability to give good book recommendations. I read a good number of the books on my list over the summer, but once school picked back up again, I reverted back to my easy reading schedule of romance novels mixed in with the occasional fantasy.

It's not always easy to read so many books on a budget. Books can be very expensive, and sometimes the wait list at the library is months long. I've learned, however, that in order to finish my list, I've got to learn patience. That and find other things to read in the meantime. I started using paperbackswap.com a few years ago when I was frustrated at finding the same books at my local used bookstore. If you are unfamiliar with the website, it operates like a book-trading system. Membership is free; once you sign up you can begin posting books you wish to trade. Every time someone requests a book from you and you mail it to them, you earn a "credit". Credits are then used to order books for yourself. All you pay for is the shipping costs of sending your books to people who request them from you. Through this website, I've able to clean out a good number of books that I had lying around my house and have been able to get lots of books I've wanted to read.

Using PaperBackSwap and the library have been my two ways of working towards my goal of being more well-rounded in my reading choices. The library is an obvious choice since it's free, but PaperBackSwap is also a good choice because it gives me an opportunity to declutter my numerous bookshelves. I occasionally visit used bookstores and trade in some of books for credit there, but to date, I have more credit that I'll ever use, so, for now, I'm sticking to these two sources.

Do you like to read? How do you read on a budget?

A selection of recently acquired books from the library and paperbackswap.com.

*I have not been paid or compensated by PaperBackSwap to endorse them. I am doing so because I truly love their website.