Saturday, October 31, 2009

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

STAY SCARED!







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All Hallow's Eve: Giveaway BONANZA & Extra Secret Prize at Book Chick City


Happy Halloween!!

Halloween has finally arrived and so has my Giveaway BONANZA!!! There are three bundles of books to choose from, so there will be three lucky winners. This is what you could win...

Head on over to Book Chick City for details and entry!

Good luck!


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Win a $20 B & N or Amazon gift card!

Peace Love & Pat book reviews is having a refer a friend contest going on now through November 20, 2009.  If you head over and follow her blog AND mention I sent you (Michelle @ The True Book Addict) we both will be in the running for a $20 gift card to Barnes & Noble or Amazon! So head on over and follow the entry instructions and be sure to tell her I sent you!

Good luck!

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Friday, October 30, 2009

It's National Cat Day!!!


I just found out from Melissa at Scuffed slippers and wormy books.... that today is National Cat Day! I had no idea! If I did, I would have been lavishing even more attention on Alis than I normally do!

So in honor of my dear Alis...a haiku written by me especially for her. 

Your black majesty
as you frolic through the house
a sight to behold.



And here are some more pictures of the gorgeous girl!










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Thursday, October 29, 2009

New Challenge Announcement


The True Book Addict is proud to announce The Michener Challenge.  I have created a new blog especially for the challenge.  Click here to go to the new blog to learn the details and for sign up.  I hope you will join me in reading the works of this great American author!




Happy Reading!

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Giveaway Reminder: A Wizard of Earthsea


You still have four more days to enter my giveaway of Ursula K. Le Guin's A Wizard of Earthsea.  Contest runs through Sunday at midnight, (November 1st).  Here's the link for details and entry:

http://thetruebookaddict.blogspot.com/2009/10/happy-birthday-to-me-my-first-giveaway.html


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Announcing...The True Book Addict's Sister!

Just wanted to get the word out...Tracy, my sister, has a blog now!!! She may not post much unless she gets the bug like us book bloggers and can't control herself...LOL! The most important thing is that she loves books and has interesting things to say about them.  She titled her blog, The True Book Addict's Sister, which I consider a high honor.  It is truly an honor to be her sister.  I hope you'll stop by and say hello!

http://truebookaddictsister.blogspot.com/


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Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Book review--206 Bones by Kathy Reichs



This is the first Kathy Reichs Temperance Brennan (12th in the series) book I have read. I found myself comparing it to the television show Bones (which is based on the Brennan series). This being the 12th book, Tempe is older, divorced and has a teenage daughter. In the show, Tempe is young, single and hasn't any current prospects of having a child. So a little difficult wrapping my head around the differences. However, I really liked this book. In the book, Tempe is less socially challenged and not as obsessively literal. And the science is very interesting. It's like watching CSI, or Bones (I love both) as Tempe examines the bones and makes her determinations.
In this installment, someone is trying to sabotage Dr. Brennan's credibiltiy. At first, Tempe and her colleague Ryan don't think much of it. But things keep happening to further question her expert anthropological opinion and eventually the light bulb clicks on and Tempe is on the trail to find out who is behind it all. As you can imagine, things go from bad to worse. I won't say anymore for fear of giving away the whole story.
If you like books or television shows that combine science and smarts in solving crimes and mysteries, then you will like this book.

About the book:
There are 206 bones in the human body. Forensic anthropologists know them intimately, can read in them stories of brief or long lives, and use them to reconstruct every kind of violent end.

The twelfth Temperance Brennan novel from Kathy Reichs, 206 Bones opens with Tempe regaining consciousness and discovering that she is in some kind of very small, very dark, very cold enclosed space. She is bound, hands to feet. Is she buried alive? In some kind of cell? Who wants Tempe dead, or at least out of the way, and why? Tempe begins slowly to reconstruct...
Tempe and Lieutenant Ryan had accompanied the recently discovered remains of a missing heiress from Montreal to the Chicago morgue. Suddenly, Tempe was accused of mishandling the autopsy -- and the case. Someone made an incriminating phone call. Within hours, the one man with information about the call was dead. Back in Montreal, the corpse of a second elderly woman was found in the woods, and then a third.
Seamlessly weaving between Tempe's present-tense terror and her memory of the cases of these murdered women, Reichs conveys the incredible devastation that would occur if a forensic colleague sabotaged work in the lab. The chemistry between Tempe and Ryan intensifies as this complex, riveting tale unfolds.



(FTC disclaimer:  I received this book (an ARC) from Library Thing in their Early Reviewers giveaway)


Happy Reading!

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Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Whimsy and Girl in the Arena


So I was going through my Google Reader and I came across a post by Fantastic Book Review.  She had this book trailer for Girl in the Arena by Lisa Haines in her post.  Hold on to your hats because this trailer is HILARIOUS! (and the little guy has some pretty good pipes...LOL!) I've been hearing a lot about this book and now that I've seen this, I definitely want to read it!

Enjoy!






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Mailbox Monday


Mailbox Monday is a meme from Marcia at The Printed Page.

I took time out from the Read-a-Thon on Saturday to go to a Friends of the Library used book sale...and glad I did! I arrived just in time for the bag sale and I got all the books listed in the bought section below for $3.00!!! WOW!

Won:


Rebecca's Tale by Sally Beauman from A Reader's Respite. (Thanks again Michele!)

On the 20th anniversary of the death of Rebecca, the first wife of Maxim de Winter, family friend Colonel Julyan receives an anonymous parcel containing a notebook - marked "Rebecca's Tale" - and two pictures. Has she kept her word to haunt him for ending up in the de Winter crypt?


Pendragon's Banner by Helen Hollick from Enchanted by Josephine  (Thanks again Lucy!)

Arthur, now king of england with a young family, has two enemies who threaten him: Winifred, his vindictive first wife, who is determined to use the fledgling Christian church to ensure succession for her own son; and Morgause, priestess of the Mother and malevolent Queen of the North. To complicate matters, tragedy strikes just when Arthur needs Gwenhwyfar most, putting their passionate relationship on precarious ground. It promises to take all of Arthur's strength, courage, and cunning to secure his birthright and the confidence of his queen.




In the Mail:


The Heretic Queen by Michelle Moran (signed copy!) which I won from The Burton Review.

In ancient Egypt, a forgotten princess must overcome her family's past and remake history.



The winds of change are blowing through Thebes. A devastating palace fire has killed the Eighteenth Dynasty's royal family - all with the exception of Nefertari, the niece of the reviled former queen, Nefertiti. The girl's deceased family has been branded as heretical, and no one in Egypt will speak their names. A relic of a previous reign, Nefertari is pushed aside, an unimportant princess left to run wild in the palace. But this changes when she is taken under the wing of the Pharaoh's aunt, then brought to the Temple of Hathor, where she is educated in a manner befitting a future queen.
Soon Nefertari catches the eye of the Crown Prince, and despite her family's history, they fall in love and wish to marry. Yet all of Egypt opposes this union between the rising star of a new dynasty and the fading star of an old, heretical one. While political adversity sets the country on edge, Nefertari becomes the wife of Ramesses the Great. Destined to be the most powerful Pharaoh in Egypt, he is also the man who must confront the most famous exodus in history.
Sweeping in scope and meticulous in detail, The Heretic Queen is a novel of passion and power, heartbreak and redemption.

Bought:


Notes on a Scandal by Zoe Heller (hardcover)

When the new teacher first arrives, Barbara immediately senses that this woman will be different from the rest of her staff-room colleagues. But Barbara is not the only one to feel that Sheba is special, and before too long Sheba is involved in an illicit affair with a pupil. Barbara finds the relationship abhorrent, of course, but she is the only adult in whom Sheba can properly confide. So when the liaison is found out and Sheba's life falls apart, Barbara is there...




Kiss by Ted Dekker & Erin Healy (hardcover)

After a car accident puts Shauna McAllister in a coma and wipes out six months of her memory, she returns to her childhood home to recover, but her arrival is fraught with confusion. Her estranged father, a senator bidding on the White House, and her abusive stepmother blame Shauna for the tragedy, which has left her beloved brother severely brain damaged. Leaning on Wayne Spade, a forgotten but hopeful lover who stays by her side, Shauna tries to sort out what happened that night by jarring her memory to life. Instead, she acquires a mysterious mental ability that will either lead her to truth or get her killed by the people trying to hide it. In this blind game of cat and mouse that stares even the darkest memories in the face, Shauna is sure of only one thing: if she remembers, she dies.


Kira-Kira by Cynthia Kadohata (hardcover)

kira-kira (kee' ra kee' ra): glittering; shining

Glittering. That's how Katie Takeshima's sister, Lynn, makes everything seem. The sky is kira-kira because its color is deep but see-through at the same time. The sea is kira-kira for the same reason. And so are people's eyes. When Katie and her family move from a Japanese community in Iowa to the Deep South of Georgia, it's Lynn who explains to her why people stop them on the street to stare. And it's Lynn who, with her special way of viewing the world, teaches Katie to look beyond tomorrow. But when Lynn becomes desperately ill, and the whole family begins to fall apart, it is up to Katie to find a way to remind them all that there is always something glittering -- kira-kira -- in the future.
Luminous in its persistence of love and hope, Kira-Kira is Cynthia Kadohata's stunning debut in middle-grade fiction.



Shadow of Colossus (A Seven Wonders Novel-Book 1) by T.L. Higley (hardcover)

In a world enslaved by money and power, one woman dares to be free. Will an explosive secret enslave her again?

The place is the island of Rhodes; the time, 227 BC. In the ten years that Tessa of Delos has been in bondage as a hetaeira, a high-priced Greek courtesan to a wealthy politician, she has learned to abandon all desire for freedom and love. But when her owner meets a violent death, Tessa is given the chance to be free—if she can hide the truth of his death and maintain a masquerade until escape is possible. Now Tessa must battle for her own freedom and for those she is beginning to love, as forces collide that will shatter the island’s peace and bring even its mighty Colossus to its knees.
Here is a powerful story showing how the love of God can transform even the most hardened person and bring back to life a soul jaded by sin and grief. (from Amazon)


Wind Dancer by Jamie Carie (hardcover)

Raised in a British-held frontier town during the American Revolution, Isabelle Renoir is not like other women around her. A free spirit, she dances in the moonlight as a praise offering to God and is more at home fearlessly taking her long rifle and knife into the woods for adventure and inspiration.

But Isabelle's latest journey may be more than even her strength can handle when a huge storm throws the raven-haired beauty off course and into the path of rugged American spy Samuel Holt. After matching wits and denying their passion for each other, they are attacked by Indians, held prisoner, and forced to watch the horrific killing of Isabelle's brother. Now together but in captivity, they must fight spiritual forces that no knife or rifle could ever conquer in order to be free.


The Spice Box by Lou Jane Temple (hardcover)

A delicious new mystery series that takes readers on a cook's tour of kitchens through history.

A fresh new series begins-- one which will follow a spice box--and the cooks who use it--through different historical periods, each with a mystery to solve and a handful of precious recipes.
Bridget Heaney escaped from Ireland's Great Famine to New York City, where she spent her childhood as a pickpocket, supporting herself and her younger sister. But ever since she made her first pot of soup at the orphanage, she knew she wanted to be a cook. Now, in the home of wealthy and powerful department store owner Isaac Gold, her dream is about to come true.
But on Bridget's first day of work, amidst gleaming copper pots and mighty woodstoves, she finds a body hidden inside the dough box. It is Gold's youngest son, whose whereabouts have been a mystery for several days. Bridget's courage and street sense take her from cook to crime-solver as she helps the heartbroken Gold family unravel the story of their son's fate. Justice will be served-along with a home-cooked meal.




A taste of The Spice Box's recipes:

Mustard Fruit Compote

1 tablespoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon dried powdered mustard
1/2-cup brown sugar
1/4 cup honey mustard
2 cups apple juice
15-20 pitted prunes, chopped
15-20 dried apricots, chopped
1-cup raisins
1-cup dried cranberries or cherries
6-8 dried figs, chopped
3 fresh pears, chopped

In a small sauté pan over medium heat, heat the mustard seed and turmeric until the seeds begin to pop, about two minutes.
Be careful not to inhale directly over the pan, as the mustard gas is strong. Remove from heat. Combine all ingredients in a large, heavy saucepan. Bring to a simmer and cook until the pears are soft, about 25 minutes. Serve with ham, turkey, or a prime rib of beef or pork.


Sticks & Scones by Diane Mott Davidson (hardcover)

When the sound of broken glass shatters her sleep, Colorado caterer and meddling sleuth Goldy Schulz doesn't know what to think. Is it a gunshot? A bomb? An earthquake? And where the heck is her husband, Tom, when she needs him most?

But Tom is away for the night, working a case for the Colorado police department. So Goldy's on her own and the timing couldn't be worse, with her first big gig in five weeks only a few hours away.
The job is a huge Elizabethan banquet, a luncheon at a Gothic chapel on a grand old English estate owned by nouveau millionaires Eliot and Sukie Hyde. And in spite of the late-night scare at Goldy's home, it looks like she just might pull the lavish event off without a hitch-until she discovers a disfigured body floating face down in the creek that winds past the chapel. To make matters worse, the body belongs to Andy Balachek, an on-the-lam suspect who Tom's been looking for in connection to a stolen stamp ring. When Tom arrives on the scene and gets shot by a sniper, Goldy can't help but wonder: What else could possibly go wrong?
She shouldn't have asked. Because with an angry ex-husband out of jail and out for revenge...a ghost haunting Hyde Castle and stirring up one disaster after another at the worst possible moments...two dissatisfied former clients determined to ruin her career...and Tom keeping secrets about a beautiful mystery woman from his past, Goldy's got more on her plate than any caterer can handle-even an invincible caterer like Goldy!
Bestselling author Diane Mott Davidson's got all the ingredients for a five-star mystery-including mouthwatering recipes for Castle Scones, Queen of Scots Shortbread, Damson-in-Distress Plum Tart, Shuttlecock Shrimp Curry and Shakespeare's Steak Pie-in this culinary whodunit, sure to satisfy her most discriminating fans.


Holly by Jude Deveraux (hardcover)

The plot of this Yuletide confection revolves around a passionate fling that erupts by chance between wealthy young Hollander "Holly" Latham and mysterious Nick Taggert when they meet at the site of an old plantation. Holly, who inherited a passion for restoring old homes as a teenager -- the same year she fell in love with Lorrie Beaumont -- has persuaded her parents to buy the Spring Hill Plantation, a property that has seen better days. But Holly's interest in restoring the plantation is surpassed by her desire to rekindle a relationship with her new neighbor, Lorrie. Nick Taggert, a handsome doctor masquerading as a trucker, is hiding out from the aftermath of a bad breakup by riding a motorcycle and staying in a friend's garage in the area. The two first meet when Holly falls into an old cistern, and Nick comes to her rescue. But nothing is what it seems to be in this romance with a dash of mystery and threat. Are the money and status that Lorrie offers enough to make Holly turn her back on the powerful attraction she feels to Nick? The love triangle comes to a peak on a tumultuous Christmas Eve.


A Magical Christmas by Heather Graham (hardcover)

Jon and Julie Radcliff, whose marriage is in trouble, face their last Christmas together, until they take an extraordinary trip. Their family's desperate search for meaning in their lives, the discovery of the healing power o... (show all)f love, and the true spirit of the holiday season! (from Library Thing)



   (all synopses obtained from Fantastic Fiction unless otherwise noted)

So, what was in your mailbox?


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Monday, October 26, 2009

Countdown Challenge 2010


UPDATE POST

Okay, I'm officially crazy....another challenge! I just couldn't resist.  I've been seeing this one around the book blogosphere and it's just so listy! It speaks to my inner organizational self (way inner...I'm talking buried deep inside the outer layers of procrastinator self!).

1.The goal of this challenge is to read the number of books first published in a given year that corresponds to the last digit of each year in the 2000s — 10 books from 2010, 9 books from 2009, 8 books from 2008, etc. The total number of books required, therefore, is 55.

2.This challenge lasts from 9/9/09 through 10/10/10.

3.Crossovers with other challenges are allowed and your lists may change at any time.

Click here to go to the site and sign up/link with Mr. Linky.


I'm not going to completely fill in the list now.  I'll have to come back to it.  And the 2010 books I know will be filled in mostly by ARCs!

MY LIST OF BOOKS--EITHER TO READ OR COMPLETED AFTER 9/9/09

2010
  1. ???
  2. ???
  3. ???
  4. ???
  5. ???
  6. ???
  7. ???
  8. ???
  9. ???
  10. ???
2009
  1. 206 Bones by Kathy Reichs--completed
  2. Arch Enemy by Frank Beddor--completed
  3. ???
  4. ???
  5. ???
  6. ???
  7. ???
  8. ???
  9. ???
2008
  1. ???
  2. ???
  3. ???
  4. ???
  5. ???
  6. ???
  7. ???
  8. ???
2007
  1. Seeing Redd by Frank Beddor--completed
  2. ???
  3. ???
  4. ???
  5. ???
  6. ???
  7. ???
2006
  1. New Moon by Stephenie Meyer-to be read
  2. The Road by Cormac McCarthy-currently reading
  3. ???
  4. ???
  5. ???
  6. ???
2005
  1. ???
  2. ???
  3. ???
  4. ???
  5. ???
2004
  1. ???
  2. ???
  3. ???
  4. ???
2003
  1. ???
  2. ???
  3. ???
2002
  1. ???
  2. ???
2001
  1. ???

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Sunday, October 25, 2009

Dewey's 24 Hour Read-A-Thon

So, my Read-a-Thon ended...with a fizzle.  I learned a lot from this new experience.  #1--next year I will be getting a hotel room with wifi (my family will not cooperate with anything) #2--I will not take a break and go to a book sale...don't I have enough books?! (not)

I only read a total of a little over 10 hours and only finished the end of one book (a third of it) and one other whole book.  I must be a excruciatingly slow reader.  I really had no idea!

Oh well...it was a fun experience! I will definitely be doing it next year!


Hour Twenty-One through Twenty-Four

Well, I managed to get to page 31 (of 241) of The Road...and promptly fell asleep in hour twenty-one! Didn't wake up until 12:15 pm! UGH!

Title of book(s) read since last update: 206 Bones, Arch Enemy
Number of books read since you started: 2

Pages read since last update: 15
Running total of pages read since you started: 433
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 40 minutes
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 10 hours, 10 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: 0
Other participants you’ve visited: 0
Prize you’ve won: 0

Hour Twenty

Although it's not the end of the event for me (I have four more hours), I'm going to do the end of event meme now so I can enter the contest!

*Read-a-Thon updates appear below the meme

1. Which hour was most daunting for you? This last hour--hour twenty--kept dozing off!


2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year? 206 Bones by Kathy Reichs kept my interest.

3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?
maybe more time to enter challenges.  Oh, I don't know...I'm tired...don't listen to me!
4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon?
It all seemed to work great!

5. How many books did you read?
so far just 2 *hangs head in shame*
6. What were the names of the books you read? so far, 206 Bones and Arch Enemy

7. Which book did you enjoy most? both

8. Which did you enjoy least? N/A

9. If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders? N/A

10. How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time?  I will definitely participate as a reader again.  I would be a cheerleader too, but I had a hard enough time keeping up as a reader.  As this takes place close to my birthday, next year I will treat myself to a birthday present and get myself a hotel room with wifi! That's the only way I am left alone...LOL! Next year I will also plan ahead and read for my chosen charity, St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital.


Update
Finished (finally) Arch Enemy!!!
Started The Road by Cormac McCarthy--on page 16 of 241 pages

Title of book(s) read since last update: 206 Bones, Arch Enemy

Number of books read since you started: 2
Pages read since last update: 47
Running total of pages read since you started: 418
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 50 minutes
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 9 hours, 30 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: 0
Other participants you’ve visited: 0
Prize you’ve won: 0

Hour Nineteen

On page 339 of 370 of Arch Enemy

Title of book(s) read since last update: 206 Bones

Number of books read since you started: 1
Pages read since last update: 51
Running total of pages read since you started: 371
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 45 minutes
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 8 hours, 40 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: 0
Other participants you’ve visited: 0
Prize you’ve won: 0

Hour Eighteen

On page 288 of 370 of Arch Enemy

Title of book(s) read since last update: 206 Bones

Number of books read since you started: 1
Pages read since last update: 40
Running total of pages read since you started: 320
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 30 minutes
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 7 hours, 55 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: 0
Other participants you’ve visited: 0
Prize you’ve won: 0

Hour Seventeen

Late update...darn mini-challenge...LOL!
On page 248 of 370 of Arch Enemy

Title of book(s) read since last update: 206 Bones

Number of books read since you started: 1
Pages read since last update: 44
Running total of pages read since you started: 280
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 45 minutes
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 7 hours, 25 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: 1
Other participants you’ve visited: 5
Prize you’ve won: 0

Hour Sixteen

On page 204 of 370 of Arch Enemy

Title of book(s) read since last update: 206 Bones

Number of books read since you started: 1
Pages read since last update: 23
Running total of pages read since you started: 236
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 35 minutes
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 6 hours, 40 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: 0
Other participants you’ve visited: 3
Prize you’ve won: 0

Hour Fifteen

On page 171 of 370 of Arch Enemy

Title of book(s) read since last update: 206 Bones

Number of books read since you started: 1
Pages read since last update: 51
Running total of pages read since you started: 213
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 45 minutes
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 6 hours, 5 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: 1
Other participants you’ve visited: 0
Prize you’ve won: 0

Hour Fourteen

On page 120 of 370 of Arch Enemy

Title of book(s) read since last update: 206 Bones

Number of books read since you started: 1
Pages read since last update: 39

Running total of pages read since you started: 162
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 45 minutes

Running total of time spent reading since you started: 5 hours, 20 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: 0

Other participants you’ve visited: 0
Prize you’ve won: 0

Hour Thirteen

STILL on page 81 of 370 of Arch Enemy

Kids are up later because it's the weekend and, of course, I'm getting zero cooperation from the
husband =o(

Title of book(s) read since last update: 206 Bones
Number of books read since you started: 1

Pages read since last update: 24
Running total of pages read since you started: 123

Amount of time spent reading since last update: 40 minutes
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 4 hours, 35 minutes

Mini-challenges completed: 1
Other participants you’ve visited: 0

Prize you’ve won: 0

Hour Twelve

On page 81 of 370 of Arch Enemy

Title of book(s) read since last update: 206 Bones

Number of books read since you started: 1
Pages read since last update: 24
Running total of pages read since you started: 123
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 40 minutes
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 4 hours, 35 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: 1
Other participants you’ve visited: 0
Prize you’ve won: 0

Hour Eleven

On page 57 of 370 of Arch Enemy

started to get really sleepy! Time for some trail mix...yum!

Title of book(s) read since last update: 206 Bones

Number of books read since you started: 1
Pages read since last update: 22
Running total of pages read since you started: 99
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 30 minutes
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 3 hours, 55 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: 0
Other participants you’ve visited: 1
Prize you’ve won: 0

Hour Ten

On page 35 of 370 of Arch Enemy

Title of book(s) read since last update: 206 Bones

Number of books read since you started: 1
Pages read since last update: 23
Running total of pages read since you started: 87
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 40 minutes
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 3 hours, 25 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: 1
Other participants you’ve visited: 5
Prize you’ve won: 0

Hour Nine

I'm not quite to the Mid-Event as I started a few hours late, but in order to participate before time's up, I'm doing it now.  My updates are below the survey!

Mid-Event Survey:



1. What are you reading right now?  Arch Enemy by Frank Beddor


2. How many books have you read so far? one (really 1/3 since I had already started it)


3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon? The Road by Cormac McCarthy


4. Did you have to make any special arrangements to free up your whole day? yeah, right =o)


5. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those? my sons...and my sons...and a used book sale--hee hee!


6. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far?  all the challenges and giveaways...wow!


7. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?  I think it's just fine!


8. What would you do differently, as a Reader or a Cheerleader, if you were to do this again next year?  Go to a hotel with wifi!


9. Are you getting tired yet?  nope...but just wait!


10. Do you have any tips for other Readers or Cheerleaders, something you think is working well for you that others may not have discovered?  I wouldn't want anyone to take my advice at this point...LOL!



On page 13 of 370 of Arch Enemy.

Title of book(s) read since last update: still finishing 206 Bones

Number of books read since you started: 1
Pages read since last update: 12
Running total of pages read since you started: 64
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 35 minutes
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 2 hours, 45 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: 2.5
Other participants you’ve visited: 7
Prize you’ve won: 0

Hour Eight

I made it back for hour eight.  I took longer than I thought I would, but the book sale turned out to be worth it.  I have some great finds (and deals) for my Mailbox Monday Post and mom and I ate at Red Lobster...yum!

So, finished 206 Bones and will start Arch Enemy by Frank Beddor this hour.

Title of book(s) read since last update: 206 Bones

Number of books read since you started: 1
Pages read since last update: 24
Running total of pages read since you started: 76
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 30 minutes
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 2 hours, 40 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: 2.5
Other participants you’ve visited: 6
Prize you’ve won: 0

Hour Five, Six, Seven

mini break with mom to used book sale and late lunch

Hour Four

A little late on the update! I had to get ready to take my break to go to the used book sale & late lunch with mom! I'll be back in 2-3 hours!

on page 283 of 307 Bones (Hopefully, my momentum will kick in when I get back!)

Title of book(s) read since last update: still finishing 206 Bones
Number of books read since you started: 0
Pages read since last update: 9 =o(
Running total of pages read since you started: 52
Amount of time spent reading since last update: 30 minutes
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 2 hours, 10 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: 2.5 (couldn't guess one answer!)
Other participants you’ve visited: 3
Prize you’ve won: 0

Hour Three

on page 274 of 206 Bones

Title of book(s) read since last update: still finishing 206 Bones

Number of books read since you started: 0
Pages read since last update:  20
Running total of pages read since you started:  43
Amount of time spent reading since last update:  40 minutes
Running total of time spent reading since you started: 1 hour, 40 minutes
Mini-challenges completed: 2
Other participants you’ve visited: 3
Prize you’ve won: 0

Hour Two

on page 254 of 206 Bones

Title of book(s) read since last update: working on finishing 206 Bones by Kathy Reichs

Number of books read since you started: 0
Pages read since last update:  23
Running total of pages read since you started:  23
Amount of time spent reading since last update:  one hour...give or take...was eating breakfast too!
Running total of time spent reading since you started: (keep track of this one to be eligible for a prize!)
one hour
Mini-challenges completed:  1
Other participants you’ve visited:  1
Prize you’ve won:  0

Hour one:
Okay so it starts and I'm already one hour past the time I said I would start so...

10:00 am CST start time.

Hour one meme:

Where are you reading from today?  at home...I'll be in my living room or my library alternately.


3 facts about me … 1.  Books are my life second only to my kids@
2.  I'm a singer  3.  I'm in college (yes, at age 41) majoring in history and English

How many books do you have in your TBR pile for the next 24 hours?  1 book to finish + 7 more

Do you have any goals for the read-a-thon (i.e. number of books, number of pages, number of hours, or number of comments on blogs)?  Finish 206 bones and read at least 3-4 books. plan to do about 22 hours.

If you’re a veteran read-a-thoner, Any advice for people doing this for the first timers?  First timer here!





This will be my first time participating in this seemingly sacred event and I'm ultra excited about it! I've never read books for 24 hours.  I did participate in Rock-A-Thons (rocking in a rocking chair for 24 hours as a fundraiser) when I was a cheerleader in high school so I do have a history of stamina for a 24 hour haul.  However, that was over 20 years ago!

I'm thrilled that I'm able to include books that I need to complete for the RIP Challenge.  I'm so behind on my reading! I'm not sure how many books I can read in 24 hours, but here is my list so far:

Addendum:  Finish reading 206 Bones by Kathy Reichs (I only lack about 100 pages, for pete's sake!

  • Arch Enemy--Frank Beddor
  • The Road--Cormac McCarthy
  • The Prophecy of the Sisters--Michelle Zink
  • Elsewhere--William Peter Blatty
  • Winter's End--Jean-Claude Mourlevat
  • Creeping Shadows: Three Dark Tales--Alan Draven, Brandon Ford, Jessica Lynne Gardner
  • Family Business--Brett Williams
I may add a couple more as I will be receiving some books from giveaways I have won, but the top 5 on the list will be priority! I'm really looking forward to this exciting event =o)

Are you joining in?

Happy (24 Hour) Reading!

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Picturrific Mini-Challenge

Pictures that invoke characters and landscapes of Arch Enemy (Book 3, The Looking Glass Wars) by Frank Beddor












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Saturday, October 24, 2009

Musical Mini-Challenge...Music to Read by

Loreena McKennitt--The Mystic's Dream






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11.5 hours and counting...any pointers?


So, a little less that 12 hours until I PLAN to start the Read-A-Thon.  I want to start at around 9 am (7 am just does not speak to my non-morning mind!) because I'm planning on stepping out for a couple of hours around 1:30 to go to a used book sale and a late lunch with my mom.  Saturday is me and mom's day, but she's being gracious enough to only keep me for a couple of hours =o)

Anyway, what I was wondering was if anyone has any pointers on how they update their reading on their blog.  Like...how often, format, etc.?  I looked at a spreadsheet that another blogger uses, but my non-mathematic, non-analytical mind cannot wrap itself around it! Please leave me a link in the comments if you have examples from past Read-a-thons or just leave me a comment with some pointers.  I would greatly appreciate it!

You can read about my Read-a-thon book pile here.

Happy (Read-a-Thon) Reading!


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Win 4 ARC Bundle!



Go over to Cindy's blog Princess Bookie and see how you can win these four great ARCs in honor of Dewey's 24 hour Read-a-Thon!

The Unwritten Rule by Elizabeth Scott
Bleeding Violet by Dia Reeves
Dark Divine by Bree Despain
Voices Of Dragons by Carrie Vaughn

I have been wanting to read Dark Divine! Bree is wonderful...I recently won a great prize pack from her.  She is really sweet!



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