SPRING'S SERENITY READ-A-THON PRIZE WINNERS

I have winners for the read-a-thon prizes!

First up is the winner of the participant giveaway, which was a copy of the book, The Gold Rush by Frank W. Lewis, from Stephanie Barko, publicist.  There were 20 read-a-thon participants and I used random.org to draw the winner.  And the winner is:

#17 Carol @ Carol's Notebook


I hosted a fun mini-challenge and the prizes are copies of Charlie Courtland's three novels.  I'm seriously thinking of using this mini-challenge for all of my read-a-thons.  I think everyone really enjoyed it.  And you never know what you'll come up with so it's a surprise every time.  But I digress...  We had 9 participants do the mini-challenge and I used random.org to pick the winners.  The first place winner of a print copy of each of Charlie's novels is:

#6 Kai @ Fiction State of Mind


The second and third place winners of an ebook copy of each of Charlie's novels are:

#9 Tracy @ Just Another Bookworm's blog


and


#2 Yvonne @ Socrates Book Reviews


Please email me at truebookaddictATgmailDOTcom with your mailing addresses, Carol and Kai.  Tracy and Yvonne, I think I will just need your email addresses.  If I don't hear from you in the next couple of days, I will search out your emails and send you a message.

Congratulations and thanks again for joining me for the read-a-thon.  I look forward to the next one in July!

SPRING'S SERENITY READ-A-THON WRAP UP

I failed at my own read-a-thon! Take a look at the picture below.  Those are boxes of books.  They are stacked in the dining area of our two bedroom apartment so what you're seeing is the tip of the iceberg of boxes stacked 5 to 6 high and 4 to 5 wide...this is what about 1800+ (fiction) books look like...boxed! Those boxes are just part of what we moved last week and over this weekend.  We had until this weekend to get everything out of our old house.  That is the reason why my read-a-thon performance was sub-par, which I knew going in.  When I scheduled the event back in March, I did not know that we would be doing the moving during this week.  However, I did not (hopefully, in your minds) shirk on my hostess duties.  I visited blogs and cheered them on and I hosted a mini-challenge and a participant giveaway.  So for me, the read-a-thon was a success because you all enjoyed it (I hope) and that, in a nutshell, is success enough for me!

Here's what I did read:

Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin...about 100 pages
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen...about 100 pages
The King's Daughter by Christie Dickason...about 100 pages
And I read a little bit of John Adams by David McCullough for the read-a-long

If your would like to link up your wrap up post, please use the Mr. Linky below.  I will be announcing winners of the participant giveaway and the mini-challenge by tomorrow, at the latest.  I would also like to thank Stephanie Barko and Charlie Courtland for their generous prize donations and the two Julies for hosting their own mini-challenges and giveaways.  My next seasonal read-a-thon will be in late July so stay tuned for more information on that in the near future.

Thank you to all who participated! I sincerely hope that you enjoyed it. =O)

SPRING'S SERENITY READ-A-THON MINI-CHALLENGE AND MY READING PLANS

UPDATED

Hello there, read-a-thon-ers! I am ready with your mini-challenge and the prizes!

I decided to do something a little fun and whimsical (I think)! I want you to take at least three (or more) of your planned read-a-thon books and write a short paragraph using the first line of each book.  It does not have to make sense.  I think it will be fun to see what everyone comes up with...how funny they all will sound. You can do a post on your blog and leave the link in the comments or you can just leave your answer in the comments.  Here's an example from four of my read-a-thon books:

*Decided to edit my paragraph to make it sound more cohesive.  You do not have to do this, but you can if you would like*

In the cold, nearly colorless light of a New England winter, two men on horseback traveled the coast road below Boston, heading north.  "We should start back," Gared urged as the woods began to grow dark around them.  It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.  Today, I learned what I am for.


Sentence 1:  John Adams by David McCullough
Sentence 2:  A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin
Sentence 3:  Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Sentence 4:  The King's Daughter by Christie Dickason


Now...the prizes! There will be three winners.

First place will win a print copy of each of Charlie Courtland's books (open to anywhere Amazon ships).
Second and Third place will win ebook copies of each book.  Thank you to Charlie who was so generous with this contribution!

Here are the books (click the title to read description on Goodreads):

Dandelions in the Garden: The Rise of the Blood Countess (Countess Elizabeth Bathory #1)

The Hidden Will of the Dragon (Countess Elizabeth Bathory #2)

The Secret of a Spicy Jalapeno (her new book!)

Winners will be selected randomly (random.org) from all mini-challenge participants.  This mini-challenge contest is open until Sunday, May 1st at 11:59pm CT.  Good luck! I can't wait to read your entries. =O)

My Read-A-Thon plans:

1. Read the section for TuesBookTalk of Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
2. Catch up on my reading of John Adams by David McCullough for the John Adams Read-a-long
3. Finish A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin (one of my new favorites!)
4. Read The King's Daughter by Christie Dickason
5. Finish Dante's Journey by JC Marino
6. Locate my copy of Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen and hopefully, at least get started on it.  I want to read it before I see the movie!

Since I'm only reading sections of a couple of books, I'm hoping I might be able to add a couple more to at least get started on, but we shall see how the week progresses!

SPRING'S SERENITY READ-A-THON STARTING LINE

Please excuse the formatting on this post.  I have tried to fix it several times, to no avail! I give up. =O(

A little late with this...sorry! We were moving stuff from our old house ALL weekend and we're still not done.  But I digress...It's time to start the read-a-thon! This is the starting line.  Sign up in the linky with your starting post and/or reading plans on your blog.  If you do not have a blog, you can link to your Twitter, Facebook, or Goodreads (and also post your updates from there as well).  Everyone who signs in here and participates in the read-a-thon will be entered in a book giveaway donated by publicist, Stephanie Barko.  Here are the details:

The Gold Rush:  1847-1849

(Western Tales Publishing, 4/19/10)

Western Historical Fiction, paperback, 494 pages, $23.95

by Frank W. Lewis

Synopsis:

In 1849, the greatest gold rush in history began as thousands of
would-be miners, gamblers, murderers and prostitutes made their way to California to seek their fortunes. In less than two years, more than 100,000 people arrived from all over the world to get in on the action. When the first gold nugget was found in the "Mother Lode," no one understood the importance of the discovery. Soon however, hundreds of ships littered San Francisco's harbor, abandoned by crew members rushing to the goldfields.

The first gold was actually discovered in 1847 when California

was still part of Mexico. The United States had declared war against Mexico in 1846. In 1848, Mexico ceded California and other western lands to the United States before news of the gold strike was known. The land belonged to the U.S. Government, but was not free for the taking, so all

the mining done was extralegal. Once word got out that there was gold for the taking, short

of sending the Army in to kill them, there was no way to stop the miners.

Miners seized land and set about governing themselves in mining districts that 

weren't authorized by federal law. San Francisco and Sacramento became lawless, criminal-

dominated cities where no man was safe. In The Gold Rush, 1847-1849, the seventh book 

in the series, Caleb Landers and his ladies fight to protect their property from a ruthless 

New York syndicate that will stop at nothing, even murder, to take over their operations.

Check out this recent review:

http://texas-history-page.blogspot.com/2011/04/gold-rush-1847-1849-by-frank-w-lewis.html

Author Bio:

Frank W. Lewis single handedly built an empire out of little more than hard work, good timing, 

and a few neglected mining deeds. His company, F. W. Lewis Inc was perhaps the largest patented 

and deeded mine holding company in Nevada. Today on the grounds of the state capitol in Carson 

City, you will find Lewis’ name engraved as one of the state’s most prominent prospectors. Visit the author at www.rumpah.com and join his fans on Facebook.


I will also be hosting a mini-challenge which I will post for you later today.  Charlie Courtland is donating book prizes for it.  I will let you know for sure what the prizes are when I post the mini-challenge.  Both the mini-challenge and the Stephanie Barko giveaway will be open until Sunday, May 1st at 11:59pm CT. 

Julie at Knitting and Sundries is hosting her own mini-challenge and giving away book prizes.  Go HERE for details! She's giving away some great book prizes or a Book Depository for International participants (if shipping is over $10).


Julie at My Book Retreat is hosting a mini-challenge as well.  Go HERE for details! She is giving away a copy of Last Snow by Eric Van Lustbader. 


Remember, if you can't sign in today, no problem.  I made this read-a-thon a week long so that people could participate when they can.


If you're on Twitter, be sure to come on over and chat with other read-a-thoners.  The hashtag is #readathon.


I hope I haven't forgotten anything! Let me know if I have or if you have any questions, leave me a comment or email me at truebookaddictATgmailDOTcom.


Frankly, I'm too tired tonight to start reading so I will post my reading plans also later today.  I have to work on moving again tomorrow until my husband goes to work at 2:30 and this will go on for at least three days so my read-a-thon days most likely will not start until around 3:00pm...at least for the first few days.  I had no idea this moving would be going on when I planned the read-a-thon back in March.  Oh well...ces't la vie!


Here's the linky (I'm going to use the button linky this time...the other one has been acting wonky lately)!

SPRING'S SERENITY READ-A-THON SIGN-UP

I apologize for the delay in posting this.  I know I promised it two days ago, but I've been a little under the weather and my life is in perfect turmoil lately, as usual!

Spring's Serenity Read-A-Thon, Monday, April 25th through Sunday, May 1st.  The read-a-thon will run from 12:00am Monday through 11:59pm Sunday (adjust your time zones accordingly).  Remember, you can join in any time through the week and read as little or as much as you want.  It's all about personally challenging ourselves and also having fun as a community of readers.  I hope you will join us!

I have author Charlie Courtland who is donating prizes (her novels....yay!) for a mini-challenge and Julie at Knitting and Sundries will also be donating a few books for a mini-challenge.  Not sure yet if she will host that or not, but I will have more details closer to the read-a-thon date.

Any other authors/bloggers who would like to donate a prize for read-a-thon participants and/or host a mini-challenge, please email me at truebookaddictATgmailDOTcom

Sign up in the linky below.  Also, I will have a starting line linky and I may even have a short "start of read-a-thon" meme.  You do not have to sign in at the starting line until you are ready to start the read-a-thon.  Remember, you can join this read-a-thon at any point during the week.  All mini-challenges and/or giveaways will also be open for the entire week.

24 HOUR READ-A-THON--END OF EVENT SURVEY

It's over. *combination sigh of relief/sob of despair*  Now I must complete this end of event survey before I collapse from exhaustion.

1. Which hour was most daunting for you? hour 23...I actually fell asleep for 20 minutes and woke with a start...and went back to reading.

2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year?  I haven't found one yet.  Whoever does know...let me know.

3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?  no improvements needed, IMO.

4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon?  I think the Twitter chatting is wonderful!

5. How many books did you read?  I didn't start reading until 5/6pm CT.  I read 104 pages of Dante's Journey by JC Marino and 100 pages of A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin.  I'm enjoying Dante's Journey, but I have to say that A Game of Thrones is absolutely excellent!

6. What were the names of the books you read?  see above

7. Which book did you enjoy most?  see #5
 
8. Which did you enjoy least? not applicable

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?  Oh, yes...I will definitely participate again! I love it, even if I do not get much reading done.  As I said above, the chatting on Twitter is great fun.  I will most likely be a reader again.  Once I get my time management skills in order, I might take on cheerleading in the future. =O)


Just a reminder...my week long Spring read-a-thon, Spring's Serenity Read-A-Thon, is coming up at the end of this month.  I will have the sign up post up tomorrow.  I hope you will join me for a laid back week of read-a-thon reading.

SAVE THE DATE...

...for the Spring's Serenity Read-A-Thon, coming the week of Monday, April 25th through Sunday, May 1st.  The read-a-thon will run from 12:00am Monday through 11:59pm Sunday (adjust your time zones accordingly).  Watch for sign-up in late March, early April.  Remember, you can join in any time through the week and read as little or as much as you want.  It's all about personally challenging ourselves and also having fun as a community of readers.  I hope you will join us!

Authors/bloggers...if you would like to donate a prize for read-a-thon participants and/or host a mini-challenge, please email me at truebookaddictATgmailDOTcom