Shadowlands (Shadowlands #1) by Kate Brian

About This Book:
Goodreads Summary
✥Trilogy: # 1
✥Release Date: January 8, 2013
✥Format:  Hardcover
✥Setting: Juniper Landing
✥Page Count: 328
✥Genre(s): YA, Mystery, Fantasy/Paranormal, Fiction, thriller, contemporary
✥Date(s) Read: 3/11-3/18/19
✥Rating: 4.5/5  🌟

My Thoughts:
I still really loved this book. I think the only reason I took it down a 1/2 a star was because I knew the ending although I didn't remember every detail and although I still loved it, it has lost that surprise factor for me of course. That's not a bad thing at all, just reality. The book still had me anxious for every part and trying to remember what happened. I plan on rereading the 2nd book to remember a few other things that I forgot. Not sure yet if I'll be going on to the 3rd or not. I guess I'll figure it out once I decide to read the 2nd again. I liked majority of the characters. There were some I wasn't wild about but by the end, some got themselves together. 

This book I started during the #rereadathon2019 but didn't finish it in time because I had gotten so busy and/or sick towards the end and didn't take time to sit and read because I was tired once I was able to sit without having something else to do. This book would count towards the #marchmysterymadness though. 

📓📓📓📓📓📓📓📓📓📓📓📓📓📓📓📓📓📓

My original thoughts:

W.O.W....

When I first heard about this book, I still had no clue what it was about...And when I started reading it...I had some idea what it was about...but by the end of the book...I just don't know what to think....

It's one of those endings that makes you think WTH?!? & HUH?!?...Is this how it really ends?...This is it? Really? ...ugh!!...

Well, it really does have me looking forward to the next one in the series...I hope it doesn't disappoint...And that it keeps my interest....

This is the first book I have read by this author...and as soon as I get over the shock of this one, I may try her other books....

Thank you Book-Tubers for talking about this one! This is definitely a book that is outside the box for me....I really enjoyed it....I've read many who didn't but I guess we all like different things and the fact I went into this book with no clue about what it was about and with no expectations of liking it...Which made me love it even more I think! :-)

Snow White by Jacob Grimm, Wilhelm Grimm, Camille Rose Garcia (Illustrator)

About This Book:
Goodreads Summary
✥Stand-Alone
✥Release Date: February 28, 2012 (This Edition)
✥Format: Hardcover
✥Setting: N/A
✥Page Count: 80
✥Genre(s): Classics, Fantasy, Fairy Tales, Children's Picture Books, Fantasy, Children Fiction 
✥Date(s) Read: 3/11/19
✥Rating:  5/5

My Thoughts:

I enjoyed this book as much as I did the first time. The story, the pictures & the fact it wasn't quite the Disney story. There were a few new things there that weren't in the animation. Well, at least not that I remember. Maybe I need to take the time to rewatch that too. I always loved the Seven Dwarfs even if I wasn't always a fan of "Prince saves the day/I am in love at first sight" type of thing. I like the Princess that "fight back", knows what she wants and even if she doesn't/still figuring it out, she is fine just being her and if the right one for her comes along, great! Nope, not the overly feminist trope. Just the fact that she can be who she is and if she finds that one, she can be secure in who they both are together! 

Okay, ahem...sorry about going on a tangent again (not so sorry for my thoughts). 😳🤪

Yes, I loved the story! It's a favorite again this year! 😁

This is not really a story or pictures for younger children. I would say maybe 4th or 5th grade and higher depending on your unique child. You know what them better than most. Look through it and read it first and make a decision from there. 😊

Fox In Socks by Dr. Seuss

About This Book:
Goodreads Summary
✥Stand-Alone: 
✥Release Date: January 12, 1965
✥Format: Video (Shared Below)
✥Setting: N/A
✥Page Count: N/A
✥Genre(s): Children's fiction, Classics, Poetry, Humor, Animals
✥Date(s) Read: 3/15/19
✥Rating:   Book: 5/5       Audio:  5/5        Narrator(s): Not Sure

My Thoughts:

Audio:
I don't know who it was that read this book but I loved him! The book and the way he read it had me chuckling and laughing. 

Book:
I remember my mother reading these Dr. Seuss books to me when I was a child. That's what made me look them up for the #rereadathon. And I am so glad I chose this one. The book + the narrator = a lot of laughs, chuckles and smiles. The ending had me almost cheering! I even found myself trying to say some of them just to see if I could. Um, yeah, it was a struggle! lol

Here is the video for all to enjoy and hopefully give you a chuckle as well. We need more smiles & laughs in this world today..Even in the simplest of forms. Usually the best forms if you ask me. Just keep it simple! 

Twilight (Twilight #1) by Stephenie Meyer

About This Book:

Goodreads Summary
✥Series: #1
✥Release Date: 10/5/05 (Original Hardcover)
✥Format: Paperback
✥Setting: Forks, Washington
✥Page Count: 498
✥Genre(s): Fantasy, YA, Supernatural (Vampires), Romance
✥Date(s) Read: 3/11/19-3/14/19
✥Rating:   Book: 4.5/5     Audio:  4/5   Narrator(s): Iliyana Kadushin

My Thoughts:

Audio:
I liked her, she managed to make Bella sound a bit less whiny and annoying. 

Book:
I think I first read this book during the summer of 2009, when all of the hype of the movie was going on. I had never heard of these books before then and didn't know much, if anything, about Young Adult (YA). So, I went to the library and picked up the first book I believe & I was addicted! I found the second book and zipped through that one as well. The fourth and fifth books were harder for me to come by because my older son had surgery during that time and was home by this point so I couldn't get out much. Thankfully, my sister had the other two books and brought them to me. It seemed to have taken forever to get to me! But I think I read all four books within a few months (waiting lists & waiting for my sister to get them to me, which she had them to me fairly quickly, within a couple weeks I think. Hey, it's been almost 10 years! I won't remember every detail! lol)

As I stated, I began reading this book because of the hype of the movie (I didn't think I'd like them mind you, but I thought I'd at least make an attempt to see what it was about. I mean, vampires? Really? Eye Rollage @ that time). I had only read a couple YA books by this point but I didn't know YA was a thing when I read them. I just knew that they were about teenagers. I picked them up because they caught my attention (as I do with all books). 

Well, after picking up Twilight, this was a game changer for me (#rereadathon2019 prompt!) for me. I was stuck on YA from that point to now (although I find myself going back to adult books slowly but surely but I still read a lot of YA because they are such quick reads & I love YA Contemporary Romance). 

I keep getting off point don't I? Sorry.   

I really loved the characters back then and I was so #TeamEdward while reading the books! 

Well, wait, at this point, Jacob had only made a few appearances so I am getting too far ahead of myself. 

I loved all of the characters of this book (in the Cullen family that is). The "friends" of Bella, were annoying to me then I think but they annoyed me even more now, almost 10 years later! The jealousy, pushiness & the asking too many personal questions were a bit much. Reading the book now, I can see why so many thought Meyer's writing were amateurish but if I am not mistaken, this is her first book (I could be wrong but this is the only one I see as her first & I haven't looked any further back). I have to give her credit though, this series got a lot of younger people into reading, those like me that never dealt with or heard of YA, it got us into YA. Made Vampires extra popular again. Although the sparkling thing....?!?! 🤦 Nothing else needs to be said I guess. 

I have not been into many vampire and werewolf books since then but I was able to watch The Vampire Diaries & The Originals and loved them both even though I didn't binge and finish them until after the series ended or was in their last season. I started watching V.D. early on but because I think I kept forgetting about the show every week, I got too far behind and lost interest. This was the time before Hulu & Netflix when they first started I think. I had never heard of Hulu I dont think until 2012/early 2013 and didn't get a streaming device until sometime in 2013 so I wouldn't have been able to watch it anyway...

I  got off point again didn't I? Sigh..Sorry...Again.

So, in a nutshell? I did really enjoy the book again, found myself addicted to the book but not as strong as I was the first time. I didn't love it as much as the first time but I still loved it. I don't see it being a favorite this year but by the end of the year, my mind may change and it ends up on the list. So, only time will tell that! There were some things I had forgotten about in the book so I am glad I reread it.

Now, on to my next [Reading] adventure!

Reread-a-thon

This read-a-thon starts @ midnight March 10 and ends @ 11:59 PM March 16. The start and stop times are in your specific time zone where ever you are in the world.

The name of the read-a-thon says it all! We will be rereading some of our books or giving some people second chances. Whether those second chances be people you have read a book by them before, liked/loved them and want to try others or you tried an author, wasn't fond of them and want to give them one more try (1st prompt)!

There are some prompts for this that I probably won't do. There's a couple that may fit a few prompts and that's great but I am choosing books that I have been wanting to reread for a while. I am not big on rereading books but when this read-a-thon came around last year, I took the opportunity to reread a book (even though I wanted to read more but I just wasn't in much of a reading mood last year when this came around).

Some of the books I have audio books for some where. A few, I don't. This TBR is tentative. I can switch at any moment if I feel like I am not in the mood for some books. I may start in the middle of a series or even read the last book in a series. I may even attempt to listen to books I no longer own but wanted to give another try. That is a big maybe though because for whatever reason, it's hard for me to listen to books that I don't physically own or have borrowed. We will see how that works out.

I have some books that I didn't pick up that would also fit some of these prompts but because it has been so recent since I have read them, I am not ready for the reread of those (i.e. Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson would go well with "Recent Favorite").

Here are the prompts for the read-a-thon:
1. Give a book a 2nd chance
2. Recent Favorite
3. Old Favorite
4. Game Changer (book that changed what you read/genre changer)
5. Underrated/Unpopular book
6. Childhood Favorites
7. Popular book

Here is a video with the best description that I have found so far of this Reread-A-Thon:
(Of course, this is not me but one of the hosts of the read-a-thon this year)

My tentative TBR:

Twilight Saga could fit the "Game Changer" for me because that is when I started reading Young Adult (YA). 

And "Old Favorite" could be Malcolm X & Anna and The French Kiss. Twilight saga could fit here as well. 

Shadowlands is part of a Trilogy and I only picked on of the books out because this is a book I don't have an audiobook for. 

Timeless is a duology (along with one Novella). I only own the first book because it was my favorite of the two. I tried to buy the 2nd one some years ago but never did because it never fit into my budget. I haven't looked for it in at least a year or two. I remember a little about this book and remember loving it. I got this book because someone on my Goodreads list loved this book if I remember correctly. She and I don't read a lot of the same books when it comes to "fantasy" type books but this is one of two I really enjoyed. Unfortunately, the 2nd was a part of a series/trilogy as well that I never finished. Maybe I need to. 

Timeless and Kindred is some what underrated. 

Kindred has just 68,471 ratings while Timeless has 9,820 ratings on Goodreads. Which would fit Underrated/Unpopular (according to Goodreads).

So, I guess I have more to fit the prompts that I thought. 

I don't have audio books for Monster, Shadowlands and Timeless so I may only get to one of those. I hope that I can listen to at least one book before the week is out and maybe sit and read a short easy read. 

I will be going for books that will be easy to listen to and get through in a weeks time. But still have books like Monster & Malcolm X just in case I want something a bit heavier and can get through them within a few days while also reading/listening to easier books. 

No, I am not expecting to get through 7 books or even 4 books. This is just some books that I would like to attempt to reread one day. Especially seeing that I haven't read Malcolm X since after the movie came out in the 90's.

I'm done rambling. Hopefully those reading this, got this far and are participating! 

Are you participating? Let me know. 

Favorites Books of 2018

I forgot to add my Favorite Books of 2018 to my Year in Review 2018, so, I decided to do it in it's own post. I know, it's a tad bit late, but hey, it's getting done..Right?? 😊

This is in no particular order. 


                                                                Warbreaker Summary

 

                                                 
                                                                 Cane River Summary

                                                       H.P. & the Half Blood Prince Summary
                                      If you haven't read up to book 5, I wouldn't read this summary.

                                            

     Standing in the Rainbow Summary

  

                                       The Sisters' Guide to In-Depth Bible Study Summary

                                               The Nine of Us: Growing Up Kennedy Summary

                                                                   What Happened

         
                                                Leaking Laffs Between Pampers and Depends Summary

Malcolm X: The Last Speeches

Welp, that's it. I didn't have many favorites in 2018. I had a decent reading year but most of the books I read were usually just OK to "pretty good".

Black Like Me by John Howard Griffin

About This Book:
Goodreads Summary
✥Stand-Alone
✥Release Date: January 1, 1960 (approximate)
✥Format: Paperback
✥Setting: U.S.A.
✥Page Count: 200
✥Genre(s): Nonfiction, Autobiography/Memoir, Classics, Race Relations
✥Date(s) Read: 3/3/19-3/8/19
✥Rating:   Book:  5/5      Audio:  5/5 [length: 7 hrs 9 mins]   Narrator(s): Ray Childs
                  ✥2019 Favorite✥

My Thoughts:
I do own the physical and audio (from audible)

Audio:
He made it just that much easier to get through. I enjoyed listening to his voice. I could picture it actually being Mr. Griffin reading it himself (maybe that's because I have yet to hear his voice as of this post). Not sure if I would have finished the book without the audio book. Not because the book wasn't good but because I tend to find myself losing interest in books easier lately, especially nonfiction. 

Book:
(I began typing this out as I was still listening to the book)

The book was written in diary form of what he dealt with during the time he was being a black man. 

I saw a question on Goodreads about whether or not if him doing this would be offensive. 

My response was as I think it always has been for me personally: No! 

Why? 
Because I knew what I was going into when I chose to listen to this book. Also, it wasn't like he was being disrespectful by doing black face. He was wanting to see what it was to live as a black man during Jim Crow/Segregation. As I told the person who asked the question, I took more offense to the racists/bigots with the way they treated people and assumptions than I did Mr. Griffin (no offense taken on his end as I stated before). 

Further Thoughts:
So much of what was talked about in the book, still goes on today. Economically. Thoughts of how sexually active many are/are not. The things "they do" during sex. And things that I can't even remember at the time I am typing all of this. 

I am amazed at how Mr. Griffin responded to so many people based on prejudices, lies, assumptions & so on. 

It's amazing how quickly he learned the mannerisms to be taken by black people when dealing with whites and how his thoughts went towards them as well. How he began to truly understand why black people did certain things and thought the way they did. 

Him becoming a black man helped him to get their  true thoughts towards white men and women. How they wanted so much to be able to have better for themselves. The reactions to him when some realized what he had done wasn't surprising by any means. 

This book was well worth the read and I really am glad that I finally sat down and listened to it. I had put it off so many times because I wasn't sure I'd enjoy it or if I would take to it very well. I was wrong on both parts. It was good to read some things that I had some idea of the thoughts about black people but didn't realize how bold some folks were in asking questions based on assumptions & lies. 

I think I am becoming a bit more repetitive now. So, I'll hush. 
(BTW: Yes, I am a woman of color. As if it should matter for this post)


                                                                    (Cover I own)

Harry Potter & the Cursed Child (Pts 1 & 2) by J.K. Rowling, John Tiffany & Jack Thorne

About This Book:
Goodreads Summary
✥Series: #8
✥Release Date: July 31, 2016
✥Format: Hardcover
✥Setting: England (?) & Hogwarts
✥Page Count: 309
✥Genre(s): YA, Fantasy, Fiction, Plays
✥Date(s) Read: 2/16-2/27/19
✥Rating:   Book: 2.5/5   Audio:  3.5/5        
   Narrator(s):Not Sure. If it was said, I missed it & I didn't want to search  it out. 


My Thoughts:

Audio:
I wasn't wild about him, but he made it easier to get through so that's why he got a 3.5/5 instead of a 3/5 or less.

Book:
It was nice to read, well, listen to this book. I started off trying to read it on my own but wasn't feeling it so I went searching online trying to find the audio & thankfully, I did. 

This wasn't a bad book, but not great to me either. It wasn't the fact that it was a play that was an issue, I've read a play before. I think it was the fact that in the beginning, I wasn't fond of a character or two. 

As it got closer to act 3, it started getting better. By the time it hit act 4, I was enjoying it quite a bit more. I'll be glad when I can find the 'play' some where. I haven't really followed it enough to know if they have or ever will put it on DVD. That is something I can look for eventually just to see what I can find. I am hoping to like it that much more but I think I should have seen if I could watch it first then read it. But I thought it would ruin it for me. Now, I think reading it first may have ruined it; but maybe not. Maybe, just maybe, once I am able to watch it, I will have "forgotten" much of it. 

I do believe I may watch Fantastic Beasts first before trying to go for the book After reading this one but I will also take this as it comes. If I find the book at a good price, I may get it and do my best to hold off reading it first.  😊

At the time I am typing this, I am still listening to the book. I've got about 30 or so pages left so I'm sure my final thoughts will come together about the book as a whole will come then but it may not change too much. At this point, I still have a pretty clear idea of my thoughts on the book, I will just need to figure out the rating. 

When I started this book, I didn't know what to expect. I wasn't expecting to 'see' some characters show up. Many characters  I was glad to 'see' again. Many of those I began to love by the end of the seventh book (throughout all of the books actually).

I don't go under 3 stars often but usually, if there are books that are going to get under 3 stars, nothing it does redeems itself. Rarely do I give 1 stars to books because if they're that bad, I've already DNF'd. Unfortunately, there have been times I've struggled through just because I wanted to know what happened. But, I've gotten off track. It was decent! 😊

Alex, Approximately by Jenn Bennett

About This Book:
Goodreads Summary
✥Stand-Alone:
✥Release Date: April 4, 2017
✥Format: Hardcover
✥Setting: California
✥Page Count: 391
✥Genre(s): Romance, Contemporary, Young Adult
✥Date(s) Read: 2/16-2/23/19
✥Rating:   Book:  4/5     Audio:  4/5        Narrator(s): Amy Melissa Bentley 

My Thoughts:

Audio:
I liked her quite a bit. Her voice was easy to listen to in my opinion.

I think the only reason I gave it the rating I did because I listened to it online and it would "jump" (don't know how else to describe it) and sometimes I couldn't understand a word or two. I don't think it's the fault of the audio book..maybe just a 'glitch' when it was uploaded online. 


Book:
The book itself wasn't perfect by any means, but I gave it a solid, 3/5. I liked the characters. I especially liked Dad. It's a fun book to listen to. It had it's rough moments with the two main characters talked about some of the things they went through but the book wasn't completely engulfed in their "issues", it was about their relationship with each other, their friends and families. 

I love the fact that they talked about movies, some I have seen, many, I have not. It has me wanting to go through them and watch some of them when I am in the mood. This book is perfect timing because I said would spend this year getting back into movies. Watching ones I have missed in the last 18-20 years. Some classics. Some of my well loved movies from the past (from my childhood , teens & 20's) and within the last 20 or so years. So, again, Perfect Timing! You know what, for that matter, I will take it up to a 4 stars, just because of the timing & the ideas! So, I guess that's a 3/5 for the book itself & an extra star for the perfect timing!

I love Porter's & Bailey's relationship. It started off rough, but I just thought they were funny most of the time. They pushed each other to come out of their shells. Very much a coming of age story. Bailey's relationship with her father was a strong bond that I loved but even with her relationship with her mom, was semi-understandable but as a mom, I don't think I could do (or not do) some of the things she did (or didn't do). Porter's family bond I loved too. How protective of each other they are. You mess with one, you get them all! lol...

I'm going to hush now because I feel like I am already giving away too much of the story. 

This is not the best cover but I guess it could be worse. I've seen a few other covers for it online, to me, this one is the best though. I guess my feelings about it are mixed. I don't love it, but I definitely don't hate it either.