Booklikes/Goodreads Tag

I have just discovered Booklikes, and I am currently trying to figure it out (we'll see) but I found this fun tag from Bookwormblurbs so I thought I'd give it a go.

1. What was the last book you marked as 'Read'?

 The Tenth City by Patrick Carman

2. What are you 'Currently Reading'?

 I am reading both Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman as well as Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah

3. What was the last book you marked as 'To-Read'?

 Into the Mist by Patrick Carman, it's a sort of prequel to the Land of Elyon series (of which is The Tenth City)

4. What book do you plan to read next?

 Uff. Good question. I've sort of started 1Q48 by Haruki Murakami, but it may be the Book Your Brains Out book of the month to read, so I'm holding off to see what we pick (and if it is indeed that book, it'll be that I read next)

5. Do you use the star rating system?

 I try to, as well as actually writing out a review (although sometimes it's a rather short review that I write)

6. Are you doing a 2014 reading challenge?

 I am! I picked a modest number of 20, which isn't really a challenge at all, but mostly because as of this spring I graduated with my BA and so I was quite busy and did not have time for pleasure reading. At one point I read about 100 books a year, and I'd like to get back to that again.

7. Do you have a wishlist?

I have some books on my amazon wishlist, but I would like to get all the books on my "to read" list (which is already quite long but is also ever-growing)

8. What book do you want to buy next?

Good question. Probably the last book in the Across the Universe trilogy, which is Shades of Earth. I somehow ended up with one pretty cover for Across the Universe and an ugly one for A Million Suns, so I'd also like to get a copy with a nice cover (and then I'd bookcross the one that I currently have)

9. Do you have any favorite quotes? Would you like to share a few?

 “I remember wishing the moment would hold forever; that we could be fixed there, laughing and iridescent... Then I got panicky because I knew it would pass; that it was passing already.” Tina Howe, Painting Churches

10. Who are your favorite authors?

 J. K. Rowling, J. R. R. Tolkien, Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett, to name a few

11. Have you joined any groups?

Not on goodreads/booklikes, but on leafnotes, yes. 

12. Are there any questions you'd like to add to this tag?

No (: 

I tag:

Anyone and everyone!

Summer Steam Sale

Well, the summer steam sale got me. Literally EVERY SINGLE GAME on my wishlist was on sale. And since I have a new cord for my desktop computer's monitor, it's time to play some games, I think. I picked three to get right now since I'm a little low on funds, but they've all gotten great reviews (and I've wanted to play Fable since I saw my friend playing it on the xbox when we were kids) so there ya go. I'll (maybe?) do reviews after some playtime. 

A Million Suns by Beth Revis

A Million Suns by Beth Revis
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

There are a lot of twists and turns in this book, and it's a good followup to the first book in the trilogy. It's not a particularly hard book to read, so I sped right through it, but the story is captivating and it left me excited to read the next book.

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A Storm of Swords by George R. R. Martin

A Storm of Swords by George R.R. Martin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

There is a lot going on in this book.

From court intrigue to murder to torture to love, this book has a lot of everything and then even more after that.

I would say the biggest downfall of this book, and the series, is how emotionally draining they are. You learn to either not invest in any of the characters, or to brace yourself for a world of sadness and grief. I find that even being numb to the characters can be draining, however.

Then there's also the length of the book - my copy was 1128 pages long (not including the appendix). That makes for some dedicated reading, and it's because of that that I always need to take a break between books.

While it is initially hard to keep track of all the characters in the series, by this point it's fairly easy A) because about 1/3 of the characters are dead and B) the same names keep popping up over and over (the only people this does not apply to are the Freys. Fuck the Freys, there are far too many of them and they're basically all awful).

I think this book has a good mix of POV characters, so there's sure to be a favorite or two in there for everyone. I do wish we could branch out and see some different POV characters, as we basically have the usual her save for Jaime and Sam (was Sam a POV character in the second book? It's been so long I can't remember now). Especially people not from/on Westeros, but maybe that's just me who would like that.

The plot has both simmered down and started to stir up again with this book, as some kings die, new kings are made, and we finally being to approach "the Others" in this book (although not as much as I would have liked).

It's a good book part of a good series, but you really need to dedicate yourself to the task. You cannot half-ass this series. If you can't give it your all... Well, there's the TV show and easily a million other books to read. But if you have the time, it's well worth it.

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