2011 in numbers...

So initially, I was planning to have this post written after I was done wrapping up the year 2011, i.e. writing my Monthly Reads posts for 2011. I know, I know, I sound like a broken record, always bringing up those two posts... but they've really been on my mind ^_^; The problem at this point though is... Who knows when I'll get to them?!? ^_^;

Then, another fact that prompted me to write this "2011 in numbers" post now is that this post is my 1000th!!! Wow, I can't believe it LOL. I never really thought about the future of this blog when I started. All I wanted was to share my thoughts about the books I've read to help other readers who were looking for recommendations. I'm glad that I've achieved that and I'm even more happy that after more than 5 years, I'm still blogging :) Anyway, I  think it's only fitting that for such a milestone post, I talk about numbers and books :)

And without further ado, I offer you:

Number of books read

200

In the past couple of years, my goal had always been the same: read 200 books. 2011 was no different, except that I finally made it LOL. This is the most that I've read in a year, so I'm pretty happy :) Although, I have to admit to a little bit of cheating ^_^; I've read a lot of novellas in December to boost up the numbers :P In addition, I've counted some of my re-reads - the books that I haven't read in years and therefore, the stories were a bit murky in my memory. Technically though, if I count the re-reads and the manga I've read, I'm well over 200 books... But that's a debate I have every year. So for 2012, my goal is to read 201 books and will not count re-reads at all :) Hopefully, I can make it!

Speaking of books read count, I have to say I'm really glad I signed up to Goodreads!! It really made keeping track of the books easier :)


Number of books bought

157

All right, that's a number that I'll take :) Considering it'd give me -47 books in the TBR pile! Plus, it's quite an improvement from last year's number, 193. Of course, this number is a bit misleading as it doesn't include the books I've gotten at RWA ^_^; and books I've received from my blogger friends and oh, you've been generous with me my friends! LOL. Still, you have to take into consideration that in 2010, I went to the RT convention and came home with books and still bought 193. So it's still an improvement!!

And this leads me to one of my favorite number each year, the amount of $$ I saved :) This year, it is a grand total of  468.97$!! Awesome no? I think I definitively made some good deals LOL. Obviously, the bookstores were helpful to my cause as there were a lot of promotions and discounts. Hopefully, 2012 will be as good.

This is one of the reasons I have so much difficulty changing my buying habits. The fact that by buying ebooks, I don't really save over buying print books. So many of the discounts are not applicable on all publishers and seriously, it's really frustrating. If you look at the break down of my purchases, it's quite telling: 139 print books bought (88.5%) - 116 in bookstores and 23 online - and 18 ebooks (11.5%). However, whether I want it or not, the gap between these numbers will probably decrease this year... simply because I'm really running out of space ^_^; I need to be more selective about which books and authors I buy, especially in print. We'll see how I'll manage LOL.

Oh, another number that's interesting is out of the 157 books I've bought, I read 101!! That's 64.3%!! So I'm really good at reading what I've just bought... So I'm really not adding that much to the TBR pile, right?


What did I read?

For comparison, I've put last year's number in parenthesis. So the winner genre is...

Historical romance = 58 (45 | +7) --> Regency = 51, Western = 6, Highlander = 1
Contemporary = 41 (42 | -1)
YA, all genre = 29 (22 | +7)
Urban Fantasy = 20 (17 | +3)
Cosy Mystery/Thriller = 16 (2 | +14)
Romantic Suspense = 12 (13 | -1)
Category romance = 8 (9 | -1)
Paranormal = 7 (17 | -10)
M/M = 4 (5 | -1)
Fantasy = 2 (14 | -12)
Fiction = 2 (1 | +1)
Erotica = 1 (0 | +1)
Sci-Fi = 0 (3 | -3)
Steampunk = 0 (1 | -1)

... once again historical romance :) I have to say, I'm glad that historical romance and contemporary romance came on top of the list. I guess it really shows that I'm a romance reader at heart LOL. I'm surprised that I could read even more historical romance than last year and I think it supports my claim that a lot of historical romances are being published over the other genres.

The genres that I have taken the biggest hits are paranormal and fantasy. I'm not surprised about paranormal, the market definitively has been saturated in the past couple of years and I felt it coming, my overdose. I really cut down on a lot of series and only continued on with the Psy-Changelings series by Nalini Singh, The Guardians by Meljean Brook, Patti O'Shea and Molly Harper. I did pick up new authors - Thea Harrison, that was really due to the blogland buzz, and Jessica Sims because I was looking for comedy. However, I doubt I'll continue on with them ^_^; I predict that 2012, it'll be pretty  much the same story for paranormal... I'll just be keeping up with my favorite authors.

As for biggest increase, Cosy mystery/Thrillers wins it and it really stems from the fact that I've been looking for something different to read... although I'm not sure this genre really is for me ^_^;


Who published them?

(0)   Penguin Group (Berkley, Putnam, Daw, NAL) = 54
(0)   Harlequin (Harlequin, Mira, HQN, Carina Press) = 33
(0)   Harpercollins Publishers (Avon) = 29
(+3) Random House (Bantam Books) = 25
(-1)  Simon & Schuster (Pocket) = 15
(0)   Macmillian (St. Martin's Press, Tor) = 9
(+1) Kensington (Zebra) = 8
(-)   Hyperion/Scholastic/Bloomsbury = 7
(-4) Grand Central Publishing = 5
(0)  Sourcebook = 5
(-)  Samhain Publishing/LooseID/Aspen Mountain Press/Dreamspinner Press = 5
(-)  Self-published/Kindle = 5

Top 3 publishers have not changed, it's still Penguin, Harlequin and Harpercollins Publishers and I can't say I'm surprised. What surprises me is Grand Central Publishing's drop. I love that publisher because they have great romantic suspense and they're quite cheap... however, aside from RS, the other genres don't do it for me, especially their contemporary. As for Random House's surprising jump, well that's because I binged on some of their authors such as Mary Balogh and Tess Gerritsen. As for the self-published books, I haven't read that many... 3 out of the 5 books were from the Ilona Andrews duo :)


When were they published?

2012 = 1
2011 = 127 (63.5%)
2010 = 31  (15.5%)
2009 = 19  (9.5%)
2008 = 4
2007 = 2
2006 = 2
2000 to 2005 = 11
Before 2000 = 3

See, my hunting for new releases actually is worth, considering I don't just buy them for their shiny newness, but actually read them! LOL. Yup, majority of the books I read in 2011 were published the same year. It makes up for 63.5% which is very similar to 2010 where I read 63.2% of books released that year. The most staggering I guess is that 88.5% of my reads were published between 2009 and 2011. I knew that of myself, I knew I tend to stick to recent books... but I didn't realize it was that much LOL. I guess I'm really a contemporary reader and I don't mean the genre. I have to admit, a lot of authors that I read are fairly new authors. My favorite authors who have back-list, I've been through most already. Also, I don't really like to read older authors who don't write anymore... because you end up wanting more and there's just no more :(

This year, I've signed up to the TBR Challenge hosted by Wendy. We'll see if I'll pick up more books from the TBR pile with older publishing date...

How did I enjoy the books I read?

A = 8   (15)
B = 94 (115)
C = 81 (43)
D = 15 (8)

Okay, so I have this reputation to be a fairly tough grader... well it seems I've become even tougher LOL. In a way, I'm happy with the grade distribution. In 2011, I modified my grading system and as a result, I was more objective and that was the whole purpose. It works well and so I'll be continuing on with this grading system :) At the same time, I don't think it's just me... I also think it's the books that were published. Ames and I were discussing our Best of 2011 post for Breezing Through and it seems 2011 was a so-so year. There were some good books, but they were rare... Hopefully, 2012 will be better!!


Did I share my thoughts with you?

Number of reviews = 68
Mini-reviews (from monthly reads posts) = 68
Books I still want to review = ?!?

Okay, so this year was pretty up and down when it came to reviewing. 68 full review means that I've reviewed 34% of the books I've read, 1/3. It's really not bad at all and actually, much better than what I was expecting. However, it also means that I have 62 books waiting for a full or mini-review... Yeah, I'll definitively try to do better in 2012 LOL.


Random numbers

New Authors = 53 (40)

I'm always astonished at this number, because it always seems so high to me. 53 new authors, that means about 1 out 4 books I read was from an author I did not know! I think YA contributed to this number a lot considering I've only started reading this genre one or two years ago. Still, it's good because I'm trying to discover new authors and that will work to my advantage in the long run right? :)


Books read part of a series = 143 (139)

Not surprising at all since there are very few stand-alone books published out there nowadays. Although I didn't think it'd be as consistent as I've given up some series... but I guess that I've picked up some new ones along the way as well :) And I'm really good at staying up-to-date in series. Usually, if I fall behind, then it means something about my love of a series.

***

And voila, those were my numbers in 2011. Quite consistent with the numbers in 2010. I think the biggest surprise came from the shift in genres and that really speaks of over-dose LOL.

Overall I'm really happy with the numbers. How could I not when it's my highest in year? LOL. Let's hope I'll best these in 2012!!

Hope you enjoyed the post! As usual, there were no titles as Ames, Monroe and I are preparing a series of Best of 2011 posts over at Breezing Through for next week :) Stay tuned!

Review: Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally

LOL, I'm really trying to delay the inevitable ^_^; I need to write my Monthly Reads posts for November and December and realized that I've barely reviewed any books I've read in those two months. I've read 19 books in November and 23 in December... Can you imagine writing mini-reviews for that many books? So here I am, writing full reviews instead! The lesser of two evils right? LOL.

Catching Jordan is another book I intended to review back in December, but never got to it. Glad I finally did :) Enjoy!


Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally

published by Sourcebooks Fire in December 2011

She can do a mean end-zone celebration boogie, but slow-dance at prom?

What girl doesn't want to be surrounded by gorgeous jocks day in and day out? Jordan Woods isn't just surrounded by hot guys, though - she leads them as the captain and quarterback on her high school football team. They all see her as one of the guys, and that's just fine. As long as she gets her athletic scholarship to a powerhouse university. But now there's a new guy in town who threatens her starring position on the team... and has her suddenly wishing to be seen as more than just a teammate.

Genre: YA, contemporary, sports
Series: N/A

The Story: Jordan Woods comes from a family which lives and breathes american football: her father, Donovan Woods, is a star quarterback in the NFL, her brother is starting to make himself a name in college football and Jordan is the quarterback of her high school team and also captain. Jordan's dream is to play football at the collegiate level and not just for any team - for the best of the best, University of Alabama. And despite her father's lack of support, Jordan is determined to make her dream comes true.

However, things get complicated when Tyler Green shows up. Due to familial reasons, he's had to move from Texas to Tennessee and hopes to become part of the team. He isn't asking to start, simply to be allowed to play... but the new guy has serious skills and might even be better than Jordan. Of course, Jordan is feeling slightly threatened... but the real problem is her attraction to Tyler. For the first time in her life, Jordan has a crush on a guy and doesn't really know what to do. She's always been one of the guys and not on the other side. But once Jordan's relationship with Tyler takes off, it opens another can of worms and Jordan is faced with the realization that her best friend and wide receiver has had feelings for her for a long time.

My Opinion: I have to thank Rowena for bringing Catching Jordan to my attention over on The Book Scoop :) As soon as I read the blurb, I was intrigued by this book. I really liked the idea of a girl playing quarterback for her high school team in a sport that is so predominantly male... and in that respect, Ms Kenneally definitively pulled it off :)

I really enjoyed Catching Jordan because it really was about Jordan being a girl and playing football. It wasn't just a background idea for the book and then, the story focused on high school drama and love relationships. Instead, Ms Kenneally really made football part of the story and used it almost as a character. Not only was it a good decision, but she did a great job at it and it definitively set the tone and created a refreshing atmosphere for Catching Jordan.

Aside from the football aspect, the strength of this book in my opinion was the characters and their interactions. I have to say, Jordan and her teammates JJ, Carter and Henry remind me of the 3 musketeers. I loved the friendship and camaraderie,  the loyalty between them. That was definitively my favorite part of the book. I liked that the guys considered Jordan as one of them and they hung out playing videogames and eating. It was great to see that she could trust them on the field and outside of it, confiding and asking advice even though they were guys and she was a girl. You could see that for JJ, Carter and Henry, Jordan was their captain and their friend and more importantly, they believed in her and her dreams. Sure, they're not the most sensitive people and at time, they were gross LOL. Still, they were great friends and Jordan was really lucky to have them :)

I also really liked the Woods family dynamics. I thought it was really interesting and refreshing. I loved that Jordan and her brother had a close relationship and that he also supported her dreams, believed in her. I thought it was really sweet. I loved that the mother tried to make Jordan more girly, but at the same time, she respected who Jordan was. She didn't try to change Jordan and even encourage her in her dreams and played buffer between father and daughter. As for Jordan's father, it sucked that he didn't show more support for Jordan playing football, but at the same time, it didn't mean he didn't love his daughter or want to spend time with her. I thought his feelings about Jordan playing football made sense. He's a professional NFL player, he understands the world better... and while Jordan is very talented and dedicated... how far can she really go? How far will they let her go? As a father, Donovan Woods wanted the best for her and he just didn't think that collegiate football was what was best for her... and in a way, he wasn't totally wrong. I did like that at the end, their relationship was mended once he finally realized how important football was for Jordan and helped her out.

If Catching Jordan was such a good book, I think it was in great part due to the heroine, Jordan Woods. Not only Ms Kenneally did a great job with Jordan's characterization, but she also kept it real. Her anger against her father not supporting her in football, but always there for her brother. The confusion that her attraction to Tyler brought up. For example the desire to dress more nicely, more femininely... but at the same time, feeling uncomfortable. The fear what a relationship with someone on the team could do, the changes it would bring, etc. Ms Kenneally created a well-developed and layered heroine, one that was interesting and refreshing in my opinion.

Unfortunately, there was a fumble for me in Catching Jordan and that was the romance. First, I'm not a fan of love triangle, but aside from that fact, I think the romance was simply not well executed. Jordan's crush on Tyler was okay... but once they became a couple, it seemed a lot of the relationship was off-pages and therefore it seemed rushed and not well-developed. For example, their first time seemed to come out of no where ^_^; Also, my impressions of him are really contradictory and I don't know what to think of him. However, what bothered me most was the romance between Jordan and her best friend, Sam Henry. I liked Henry better so I was rooting for them to be together... But there were a few things that I didn't get. For example, once Henry declares himself, Jordan realizes she has feelings for him as well. In that case, why did she stay with Tyler? Even if Henry had back-pedaled, I thought that once she realized she wasn't in love with Tyler, she should have broken things off. It wasn't fair for Tyler. Also, given Jordan's personality, I really thought she should have gone after Henry. When it came to love, Jordan was too wishy-washy and passive. Also, Henry was stupid to back-pedal and I disliked his disappearing act and how it affected Jordan and the story overall :( I understand that he was afraid things would change, but as soon as he declared himself, it was too late, things had already changed. Luckily, everything worked out at the end ^_^;

My Grade: B. Ms Kenneally delivered a very solid debut novel. I truly enjoyed Catching Jordan and found it quite refreshing :) I'm looking forward to her next releases!

Hauling Sunday LXVII

Hello everyone!!

So how was your first week of 2012? I hope it went well for everyone :) Mine was uneventful at work. We're designing another experiment, so for now, it's mostly computer work. Yay for me, because it means I have more time to blog-hop :)

This year, I told myself I would not run after new releases. I'd take it easy... Yeah, famous last words, because running after new releases is all I did LOL. I think the worst time to get new books is the weeks after Christmas and New Year. The bookstores get their shipment late and they have absolutely no time to shelve, because their bookstores are overtaken by customers that they must help...

And there's me who absolutely want to get my hands on my new releases because that's what I want to read ^_^; I knew one of the bookstore had received their stock between Christmas and New Year... But it's one of the bigger bookstore downtown and that means they are more busy... So I told myself that I'd wait till release date to look for the books. Come January 3rd, I called the bookstore - and at that time, it was still the only bookstore in my vicinity that had received the books - and asked for Bride by Mistake. After looking on the computer and shelves, I'm told: "Yes, we've received it, but unfortunately, it's still in the backroom unpacked. Might take a few days." I wasn't really surprised, so I started stalking the online indicator and wishing really, really hard that the other bookstores would receive it.

Next day in the morning, I see that another bookstore - one that is better at unpacking - had received Twice Fallen. I jumped on the phone and called them. I thought I could gave them the list of the books I wanted and they could look for it throughout the day in the backroom and I'd just pick it up in the evening. However, when I called, the clerk checked their online system and told me they still hadn't received them!! Which meant I called too early and their system was still not updated. Oups LOL. My plan was still to go there after work because as I said, they're good at unpacking :)

However, as I kept stalking the online indicator in the afternoon (because bookstore #2 had showed the New American Library releases, but not the Berkley releases yet), I realized that the online indicator number for Bride by Mistake at the first bookstore had changed! LOL, I seemed to remember that they had 5 copies and now, they were down to 4! Yay! So once again, I jumped on the phone and the clerk was able to find Bride by Mistake! So they put a copy aside for me and later that night, I went to pick it up. I was hoping to get the NAL releases as well, given they were received at the same time... However, they weren't on the shelves :( It took me a while to find a clerk (guess that it's no longer the holidays and they cut-back on the staff), but she was helpful-ish. She told me it was probably in the backroom. So she went in... and immediately came back out and told me it was such a mess... That my best chance was to wait a day or two and call before coming. Fine. I had another option, I had bookstore #2!! LOL.

Went to bookstore #2. Once again, not many people working... but the girl was really nice. They had only received the bookstore on that day (oups), but she went to the backroom and was able to find the books :) and so, I got them all.

I know, I know, I could have waited. I mean, there was no chance I could have read Bride by Mistake, Twice Fallen and It Takes a Witch in one night... but once you're on a hunt, you just want to get it over with LOL. So here are my new precious :)

Bride by Mistake by Anne Gracie - Have been really looking forward to it :) Am reading it right now and really enjoyed it :)

It Takes a Witch by Heather Blake - New cosy mystery series featuring witches written by Ms Blake aka Heather Webber! Reviews have been good so far. Yay!

Twice Fallen by Emma Wildes - Love Ms Wildes' historical :) Also was looking to see Lady Lillian and Damien Northfield fall in love :)


And yesterday, I bought this at Kobo:

Darkest Powers Bonus Pack by Kelley Armstrong - Ms Armstrong is known to write a lot of novella for her series. Sometimes online for the fans, something part of anthology and this Bonus Pack is a collection of the online ones she's written for her popular YA series, The Darkest Powers. It includes Dangerous, Divided and Disenchanted. I do admit it's instance like this that makes me really like ebooks :)

And there you go, my  haul for this week :) I hope the whole hunt is not a preview of what I'll be doing this year ^_^;

Review: The Comforts of Home by Jodi Thomas

I've been meaning to write this review for a while :) I actually believe that I started putting it together back in November, not long after I finished reading it... but the words weren't coming together. Well today, they flowed and I hope it made justice to the book :)

Enjoy!


***Warning: This review contains spoilers. Read at your own risk***

The Comforts of Home by Jodi Thomas
published by Berkley in November 2011

In Harmony, Texas, twenty-year-old Reagan Truman has found her place, and found her family. But with her uncle taken ill and her friend Noah lost and disheartened with his life, Reagan is afraid of ending up alone again, and she's not the only one. When a terrible storms threatens the town, the residents of Harmony are forced to think about what they really want. Because making the connections they so desperately desire means putting their hearts at risk...

Genre: Contemporary romance
Series: Harmony series, Book #3

The Story: The Comforts of Home takes place 2 years after Somewhere Along the Way. Reagan is now 20 years old and in charge of the orchard, building up her pie business and taking care of her great-uncle. Life is busy, but she wouldn't have it any other way. Yet, she can't help but worry about her best friend/ex-boyfriend, Noah. It feels like the distance between them is growing and the joy of rodeo is gone from his voice... and when she gets the phone call that he's been injured...

Tyler is the director of the funeral home in Harmony. He's been in a long-distance/e-mail relationship with Kate for quite a number of years and is trying to figure out how to take the relationship to the next level. Or whether or not there is a next level... Meanwhile, there's been a strange car parked at the cemetery for days and Tyler considers it part of his duties to check it out. To his surprise, he finds a young woman asleep... One thing leads to another and somehow, Ty finds himself saddled with Autumn, who's obviously had a difficult past and is pregnant, as his new housekeeper.

Finally, there's Ronelle Logan. She works at the post office and is known to read your postcards and complete the crossword puzzles in the magazines she sorts through. She's very shy and has been isolated from the community her very opinionated mother. However, after she is asked to make a special delivery to Marty Winslow, Ronny's life starts to change. She strikes an unexpected friendship with this bad-tempered man who is now stuck in a wheelchair after a ski accident... and finally starts to spread her wings.

My Opinion: I loved this book!! Just loved it :) I really enjoyed Somewhere Along the Way and was a bit anxious to read The Comforts of Home... but once I finished this book and re-read it immediately LOL. Yep, that's how much I enjoyed The Comforts of Home :)

So far, I've loved following Reagan's journey, seeing her grow and dealing with life. It's really been heart-warming to see the relationship between Reagan and her great-uncle, Jeremiah. They are not blood-related, but blood doesn't matter. It's the heart that does. I've also been very anxious to see what would happen to her relationship with Noah. It was sad to see that Noah has lost his joy and love of the rodeo world. That the injuries and the reality of the rodeo world have toughened him up, but also eroded his spirit. At the same time, it makes Noah's promises to Reagan at the end even stronger, meaningful. I think that Noah will turn into a really fine man and as such, I'm glad that the fractures in their relationship were mended.

Another relationship that I'm happy with the outcome is Ty and Kate. I think Ty is an awesome man. Definitively not your typical hero in romance - a chubby 40-ish y.o. funeral director - and yet there is something about him. His gentleness, the way he cares for people and his job, his sincerity. Tyler is really a genuine person... While I think he deserves much better than Kate, in the end, it is the woman he wants to spend the rest of his life with and I'm happy that he finally gets what he wants :)

I have to say though, my favorite storyline in The Comforts of Home was Ronny's story. She's been mentioned in Welcome to Harmony if I'm not wrong and she seems such a strange woman... but Ms Thomas was able to turn her into an interesting character, one that you came to love and couldn't help but root for :) It was just amazing to see her bloom and spread her wings, to come out from under her mother's thumb, starts making friends and affirming herself.

Ronelle knew Dallas would not stay to eat. She often reminded Ronelle never to eat anything at potluck dinners or bake sales. One person hating the town could wipe out the entire population with poison.
Looking around, she saw everyone eating and had a horrible thought. If they all died, that would leave only her mother and her in town. While her mother stopped to talk to Willie Davis, Ronelle slipped a piece of corn bread into her pocket. It would be all in crumbs by the time she got home, but she planned to eat it. Just in case.

When I first read this passage, it made me chuckled LOL. At the same time, can you imagine the situation Ronelle finds herself in? Also the stunt that her mother pulled at the end of the book. Really, I don't know how Ronelle did which shows that deep down, Ronelle is really a strong woman.

Anyway, I really enjoyed Ronny's relationship with Marty, because it was so strange. However, I think that both of them really connected and really understood each other. I thought that the romance developed a little bit too fast, so it's a good thing that Marty leaves to get better at the end... But I have to say, I cannot wait for the next book!!! I want to see what happens to this relationship and how things turn out!!!

So yes, I really enjoyed The Comforts of Home, but there were two flaws to it. First, there is another couple - Denver and Claire. I really didn't care about them... I just don't like Claire and can't warm up to her. However, I can say she's lucky to have Denver. The other issue I had with this book was the big storm. I just wished Ms Thomas would not use the disaster plot device in all the books ^_^; It's just becoming a pattern and I think patterns when they are too obvious are not good. Good thing these were small issues and did not affect my enjoyment of the book too much :)

Finally, but not least... I've said it often, but it's worth to mention it again: there is something special about Ms Thomas' writing :) The best way I can describe it is gentle, delicate and it really suits this series. The Harmony series is not your typical small-town contemporary romance series... instead, it's about characters in a community growing and falling in love, but not in a straightforward way :) I liked that life for these characters is not all pink, because it makes it more believable, more realistic... but at the same time, it's not always tragic. It's just life. And the way Ms Thomas writes it... it's not heart-breaking because that would imply it's sad, but it definitively tugs hard at your heart :)

My Grade: A-. The Comforts of Home made me smiled, made me chuckled, made me laughed and definitively warmed my heart :) I can't wait for the next book!

Monthly Reads: October 2011

Finally, I'm done with this post!! Woohoo!! Only two more to go to wrap up 2011 ^_^; The worst is that October was a short month - both because of the number of books read and books reviewed. Sigh, I have a feeling November and December will take forever... But I'll do my best!

I've tried to keep the reviews short, but I was not always successful. Also, I feel like I'm repeating myself a lot... and I'm not sure if what I mean is coming across well. Guess it'll have to do though! Hope you all enjoy the mini-reviews!


1) Touch of Frost by Jennifer Estep: B


2) Slow Ride by Erin McCarthy: C-


3) The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan: B++

4) Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins: B

Last year, Ms Perkins' debut novel Anna and the French Kiss got quite a buzz which got me to pick up the book. While I liked the book, I didn't seem to enjoy it as much as everyone. So I was a bit hesitant to pick up Lola and the Boy Next Door, but in the end, the blurb convinced me and I got curious about the heroine who liked to dress so outrageously. It somehow reminded me of all the trends in Japan. I'm glad to say I enjoyed Lola and the Boy Next Door more than Anna and the French Kiss :)

I thought Lola was a very interesting heroine - her personality, the way she dressed, but also her family situation. It was fun to see her interactions with her two over-protective fathers LOL. I also liked her friendship with her best friend and the connection she had with Cricket, the love interest. I also really enjoyed Cricket and I thought that their romance was sweet. To my surprise, I also found myself really liking Anna and Etienne who have cameo appearances a lot more than I did in their own book. Go figure :P Another thing that worked for me was there was less high school drama and the focus was really on Lola and her relationships/interactions with everyone.

While I thought Lola was an interesting character, she wasn't very likable ^_^; Some of her actions were very immature and at times, you really wanted to yell at her to make a choice, be decisive. Another thing that really bothered me was how Ms Perkins turned Max into a shitty boyfriend at the end of the book, to justify Lola choosing Cricket over him. I thought it was unfortunate, why not let him be the good boyfriend? He wasn't the perfect boyfriend, but he was a nice guy, accepting to have brunch with Lola's two over-protective fathers every week-end, and so on. I thought the change in his character was too sudden and unnecessary.

Still, I enjoyed this book and it kept me engaged :) I'll definitively read Ms Perkins again!

5) Angels of Darkness: C

Angel's Wolf by Nalini Singh:  B
This was my favorite entry in the anthology. I really liked the H/H and how the romance progressed. The story was also quite interesting and I liked that Nimra was different from the other angels we've met so far in the series. The biggest issue that I had with this book is the once again forced darkness atmosphere that the author tried to create. Noel is recovering from a very traumatic incident and yet, I didn't feel it in his characterization. It was mentioned many times and Ms Singh tried, but it just didn't take for me.


Alphas: Origins by Ilona Andrews: D
Ugh. I love, love, love Ms Andrews' writing and her Kate Daniels series? I can't get enough, seriously. However, I always have the same problem with her: the world building. I found the world building confusing in Alphas: Origins, hard to visualize. The characters are also supposed to be real bad-asses and I supposed they are... but at the same time, I didn't connect with them, didn't find them likable. Perhaps if the story had been longer, more development... but as it is, I have difficulty buying the H/H budding feelings for each other ^_^; All in all,  the whole novella just felt flat for me


Ascension by Meljean Brook: B-
Nice short story. I thought the case the Guardians were working was way more interesting than the H/H. They have been introduced in previous books, but not much was known about them and their development in this novella was obviously limited. Added in a prior relationship that didn't work out and everyone ends up with lots of baggage. But as I say, the story was very interesting and it makes you realize how fine the line is between Guardians and demons and the fact that they cannot hurt humans? Well that just makes things a lot more complicated and dangerous for them :)


6) Bring Me Home for Christmas by Robyn Carr: C+

7) Heartstrings and Diamond Rings by Jane Graves: B-

Heartstrings and Diamond Rings was a pretty good book, solid... better than Ms Graves' previous release, Black Ties and Lullabies in my opinion. I could actually understand Alison's urge to get married, her worries not finding Mr. Right and not being able to start her family soon. I do think she was a bit too obsessed about it and worried too much, but still, it made sense. It'd really hard to meet people - trust me. As expected in this kind of books, Alison's dates are quite funny LOL.

Thinking back, Brandon's behavior and actions might not have been really ethically acceptable at first... but kudos to him because he really tried his best to matchmake Alison with suitable men. I also liked that he came to care about the business and his clients and I do think he'd be really good at the job because he's quite a good judge of character. Anyway, I liked the characters and the story, but I think it lost a bit of its momentum once Alison started showing interest in Brandon and as a result, I started losing interest. I think the book needed a bit more punch at the end than the usual  "You deceived me" conflict. Still, I enjoyed it :)

8) Snapped by Laura Griffin: C+

I was really looking forward to Snapped after reading Leslie's review, but I wonder now if perhaps I had too much expectations coming into the book. The suspense was definitively the strongest element of this book and was very well done. What didn't work for me were the characters and as a result, the romance. I didn't think Sophie and Jonah had much chemistry together. It felt to me for a long time, Jonah's feelings for Sophie was one-sided. True, Sophie had a lot on her mind, but it didn't look to me like she really reciprocated Jonah's feelings. Sure, she noticed that he was handsome, but nothing more. Also, what annoyed me so much was some of Sophie's actions. Granted, she tried to do what was right and that's a good thing, but she didn't seem to think before acting. And that's what was so frustrating!! When even your friends and colleagues who work in law-enforcing don't believe your words... going to the public might not be a good idea. Especially if you're right because in that case, you just painted a huge target on your back!

If I had liked the characters better, the grade would definitively have been higher.

9) In Total Surrender by Anne Mallory: B

Oh, here is a historical book that I really enjoyed!! I was intrigued by the blurb and picked it up at the bookstore on impulse. Well this impulse paid off! :) I really liked both the H/H. Andreas is the king of the underworld and he has one purpose in life: revenge. The only person he cares about is his brother... but suddenly, this woman is intruding in his life and in his thoughts. Personally, I thought Phoebe was an awesome heroine!! She was oh-so clever and knew how to plan. Loved the way she started wiggling her way into Andreas' household LOL. I also really enjoyed the romance, the way Andreas couldn't get Phoebe out of his mind, no matter how hard her tried :) The storyline was also well thought-out and executed. Andreas' revenge and how Phoebe tried to save her father's company and how these two elements were linked together. I really liked that Phoebe believed in her childhood friends.

The only reason why this book isn't getting a higher grade is because this is the third book in a series and I haven't read the other books and therefore, there were times where I really felt lost, like I was really missing some information. I know it is unfair for the book and the author, because technically, it's the reader's responsibility to read the books in order... but I've read books out of order and you don't always feel this way... and in the end, it really affected how much I enjoyed this book ^_^;

10) Glazed Murder by Jessica Beck: D

I've been burning-out on a lot of genres lately - paranormals, urban fantasy, small-town romances... and so I thought I should start varying my reading a bit more. As a result, I decided to go with mystery, because there are so many series out there! If I like this genre, well seriously, jackpot! LOL.

So I decided to go with Glazed Murder in which the heroine owns a doughnut cafe. Overall, the story was okay.  One of the problems is I never really connected with Suzanne ^_^; I didn't care about her or her situation... and the fact that she's another divorcee... Ugh. Also thought this series was a bit formulaic and the fact it's a first book in a series didn't help. I mean, you have this heroine who has this job and for some reasons, she finds dead bodies and investigate. I haven't read many cozy mysteries, but I've read something similar to this before... and so it's hard to get engaged. Another problem is that I realized I'm not a big fan of amateur sleuth ^_^; Yeah, that's a big problem given that most cozy mysteries have amateur sleuth as protagonist. It can work if the author is talented and clever... but unfortunately, I just think Ms Beck didn't have the elements to pull this one off. There was a definite lack of originality in the setting-up of the book and the execution... Plus, it's hard to believe that people will babbled just because a woman came in with a box of doughnuts ^_^;  So yeah, didn't really cared about this one.

11) A Hoe Lot of Trouble by Heather Webber: C

So instead of continuing Ms Beck's series, I decided to try another cozy mystery... This time though, I went with an author that I knew, Ms Webber who wrote the Lucy Valentine series which I've enjoyed. I have to say this one worked better for me.

What I liked the most about this book is I could feel that Nina, the heroine, had a life :) She's in the midst of a separation because she founds lipstick on her husband's boxer, still living with her teenage stepson who never seems to have accepted her. Her family drives her crazy half the time and she really could do without the noisy neighbors. Okay, so you have another heroine who is a divorcee (soon-to-be-divorcee), but in this case, it works because her circumstances are much more interesting, her background more rich. I thought Nina's relationship with Riley was one of the most interesting element in the book, perhaps because it felt so real. I also thought the mystery was more interesting because there was a lot more to it than a dead body (and at least, it isn't one that Nina stumbled across)... and wow, I sure was surprised at the end by the big twist. Also, I feel like Ms Webber handled the sleuthing better :)

Still the book wasn't perfect. I guess perhaps it's just the genre that doesn't do it for me, but I found myself skimming at times. This book just didn't completely hold my attention.

12) Trouble in Spades by Heather Webber: C+

So after reading A Hoe Lot of Trouble, I picked up Trouble in Spades right away. My thoughts of Trouble in Spades are pretty much the same. I still like Nina, still think her relationship with Riley is the most interesting element of the series. Case is interesting and there's a lot of twists. I think I liked this one better because it was funnier due to Nina's sister. Also, there's a romance looming ahead :)


13) Until There Was You by Kristan Higgins: B

14) A Match Made in High School by Kristin Walker: C+

I usually don't read contemporary YA books because I'm not a fan of high school drama... but for some reasons, I found myself picking up A Match Made in High School... Most probably because of the Marriage Education program. LOL, when watching TV programs for kids and teenagers, you often see them being paired and taking care of her fake baby or an egg... well this sounded similar to it :)

Overall, I thought A Match Made in High School was a cute and quick read. I thought the Marriage Education program was well thought out LOL and it was fun to see the students being forced into it. The heroine, Fiona, was a normal teenage girl. She has a crush, is none too happy with her partner and she doesn't let people walk over her. I thought the first half of the book was pretty good, was building up to something... And then everything fell flat when Fiona's crush got a girlfriend. I don't want to spoil the book too much, but at one point, Fiona is accused by her best friend of being selfish and well, isn't that a part of being a teenager? I thought the best friend had as much blame as Fiona... It's just too bad that Fiona started moping around and as a result, not much happened in the storyline. Also, I wished we've seen more interaction between Fiona and her love interest.

15) The Famous Heroine by Mary Balogh: C+

I've been enjoying Ms Balogh's books quite a lot in the past year and decided to pick up this book as it was re-printed. The heroine Cora Downes is a daughter of a rich merchant... after rescuing a duke's nephew, Cora is introduced into Society so she can make an advantageous match. I really liked Cora's personality. I thought she was really fun LOL. I loved Francis as well, the way he dressed up so colorful and the fact that Cora thought he was gay LOL. That was pretty fun. I also liked their interactions together, they had great chemistry. As such, you'd think the grade would be higher... but I'd say the story didn't live up to its potential. With such great characters and all, I thought the story would be a bit more interesting... but instead, it's pretty typical historical where the heroine finds herself in a compromising situation and thus, the H/H have no choice to marry. Plus, the fact that Francis thought himself in love with another woman for so long...

This was in no way a bad book or anything. It was fun to read, especially the situation Cora finds herself in... but I guess I just had really high expectations ^_^;


Books bought: + 21
Books read: -15
TBR pile: +6

Writing these 2 months later is not the best thing to do ^_^; If I remember correctly, October felt like a really meh month to me as shown by the grades. There were some great books such as The Son of Neptune but mostly, the books were in the C-range. I had difficulty picking up books and as a result, I did quite a few re-reads (not listed). I also ended up buying lots of books, but those weren't really the books I wanted to read ^_^; So I ended up increasing my TBR pile.

Okay, I think I've fried my brain, because it's just gone blank LOL. Guess I'm going to sleep now :) Then tomorrow, I'm going to start tackling November...

Tada!!

I'm finally done!!! Took some time, but now, I have not only a spacious desk... but a spacious room as well! LOL.

So what do you think? I didn't get to sort out all the books, but I did weed out some :) I'll also be slowly weeding out my old clothes and cleaning out drawers to make more space :) But I'll be doing it really slowly LOL, one thing at a time :)

In any case, it's one thing out of the way as the new year starts and I go back to work tomorrow :)

Hauling Sunday LXVI

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

May 2012 be filled health, love and happiness!
and great books!

I hope everyone had fun during New Year's Eve and didn't party too crazily! :) I can't believe we're already January 1st of 2012. How did that happen?!?

No plans for me today :) Just taking it easy. I definitively need to continue cleaning my room. However, it is going well. Look, look!!

Yep, that's my shiny new computer!! Along with my extra spacious desk!! :) But I'm not showing pictures of the rest of the room LOL. Hopefully, in 2012, I will be spared from the computer troubles! :)

I really like that this year, New Year is on Sunday. It feels like you're really starting the year afresh. Obviously, it'd have been better if I had managed to finish my Monthly Reads posts ^_^; I will definitively try to tie that loose end. In the meantime, here are the last book I've bought in 2011 :)

The Sweetheart of Prosper County by Jill S. Alexander - I've been wanting to read Ms Alexander for a while. Ames read and really enjoyed Paradise by this author. Then, not long ago, Alex reviewed The Sweetheart of Prosper County and I decided to give this one a try as it sounded a little bit more light-hearted than Paradise :)

And there it is. I've kept track of all the books I've bought in 2011!! I'll be making a tally in the new couple of days :)