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It’s Monday! What are you reading? May 6, 2013

Posted May 6, 2013 By dorolerium

Reading on MondayThis is a weekly meme run by Book Journey!

Post the books completed last week, the books you are currently reading, and the books you hope to finish this week.

Mailbox Monday is a weekly meme that was created by Marcia at The Printed Page, who graciously hosted it for a long, long time, before turning it into a touring meme (details here).  It is hosted at 4 the Love of Books for the month of May.

*****

This was a pretty good reading week for me.  I don’t anticipate much free time this coming week so I kind of made up for it last week!

Books completed last week:
The Yard – Alex Grecian: I really liked this mystery, I didn’t want to put it down!

Fly Away – Kristin Hannah: This was the recently released follow up to Firefly Lane.  It was a decent sequel.

Books I’m reading this week:
Wolf Hall – Hilary Mantel ~ Page 40: This book has been on my to read pile for ages, and it has totally sucked me in.  Oh how I love Tudor England!

Books ongoing:
Emma – Jane Austen ~ 25%: No Emma progress.

The Panem Companion – V. Arrow ~ 23%: No progress.

Books I acquired this week:
No new books this week

What I watched this week:

  • Fashion Police, The Soup, Chelsea Lately,  The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, 1 girl 5 gays, The Graham Norton Show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show
  • Castle
  • Defiance
  • Smash
  • The Big Bang Theory
  • Community
  • Modern Family
  • Hannibal
  • Parenthood
  • Once Upon a Time
  • Revenge

My Top 5 Artists This Week:

  • Marvin Gaye
  • Aimee Mann
  • The Smashing Pumpkins
  • David Bowie
  • Oasis
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It’s Monday! What are you reading? April 28, 2013

Posted April 28, 2013 By dorolerium

Reading on MondayThis is a weekly meme run by Book Journey!

Post the books completed last week, the books you are currently reading, and the books you hope to finish this week.

Mailbox Monday is a weekly meme that was created by Marcia at The Printed Page, who graciously hosted it for a long, long time, before turning it into a touring meme (details here).  It is hosted at Mari Reads for the month of April.

*****

I’ve had a couple of busy weeks, luckily I did get some reading done.  The next couple of weeks are going to be really busy…my cousin is graduating from college, so a lot of family will be in town to celebrate and congratulate!

Books completed last week:
Bossypants – Tina Fey: I liked this amusing and insightful memoir.  It made me like Tina Fey more!

The Manufactured Identity – Heath Sommer: I received a review copy of this book a bit ago and it seemed like a good time to try it out.  It was interesting, although I’m still not quite sure how I feel about it.

Books I’m reading this week:
The Yard – Alex Grecian ~ Page 89: I’ll be reading this for Royal Reviews in a couple of weeks.  It’s really interesting so far!

Books ongoing:
Emma – Jane Austen ~ 25%: No Emma progress.

The Panem Companion – V. Arrow ~ 23%: No progress.

Books I acquired this week:
The Boleyn King – Laura Andersen: I won this through LibraryThing and it came earlier this week!

What I watched this week:

  • Fashion Police, The Soup, Chelsea Lately,  The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, 1 girl 5 gays, The Graham Norton Show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show
  • Castle
  • Defiance
  • Smash
  • The Big Bang Theory
  • Community
  • Modern Family
  • Hannibal
  • Parenthood
  • Too Big To Fail

 

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It’s Monday! What are you reading? April 15, 2013

Posted April 15, 2013 By dorolerium

Reading on MondayThis is a weekly meme run by Book Journey!

Post the books completed last week, the books you are currently reading, and the books you hope to finish this week.

Mailbox Monday is a weekly meme that was created by Marcia at The Printed Page, who graciously hosted it for a long, long time, before turning it into a touring meme (details here).  It is hosted at Mari Reads for the month of April.

*****

This was a decent reading week.  A not so fun spring snow storm kept us all curled up in the house instead of outside!

Books completed last week:
The House of Velvet & Glass – Katherine Howe: I quite liked this novel, I thought it was a good follow up to The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane.

Firefly Lane – Kristin Hannah: This was my first time with Firefly Lane and I really loved it.  But wow was that a tear jerker!

Books I’m reading this week:
Bossypants – Tina Fey ~ Page 45: I’ve had this one on my shelf for awhile, and decided to read it for an upcoming week on Royal Reviews.  Hopefully it’s lighter than Firefly Lane, cuz I need an emotional break!

Books ongoing:
Emma – Jane Austen ~ 25%: No Emma progress.

The Panem Companion – V. Arrow ~ 23%: No progress.

Books I acquired this week:
No new books.

What I watched this week:

  • Fashion Police, The Soup, Chelsea Lately,  The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, 1 girl 5 gays, The Graham Norton Show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show
  • The Big Bang Theory
  • Being Human
  • Community
  • How I Met Your Mother
  • House of Lies
  • Modern Family
  • Kourtney & Kim Take Miami
  • The Perks of Being a Wallflower
  • Hannibal
  • Win a Date with Tad Hamilton
  • Parenthood

My Top 5 Artists This Week:

  • The Beatles
  • The Smashing Pumpkins
  • Björk
  • Lenny Kravitz
  • Oasis

 

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It’s Monday! What are you reading? April 7, 2013

Posted April 7, 2013 By dorolerium

Reading on MondayThis is a weekly meme run by Book Journey!

Post the books completed last week, the books you are currently reading, and the books you hope to finish this week.

Mailbox Monday is a weekly meme that was created by Marcia at The Printed Page, who graciously hosted it for a long, long time, before turning it into a touring meme (details here).  It is hosted at Mari Reads for the month of April.

*****

April 7 – Easter had me pretty busy last week, so I completely missed on posting, which means this is two weeks worth of books!

I had a lovely Easter – the following day was my cousin’s birthday, so we did a combined Easter/birthday brunch at my aunt and uncles house, followed by a dog walk.  After that, I took the dog to a friends house for Easter dinner.  It was a day full of food!

Books completed last week:
The Conjuring Glass – Brian Knight: I liked this story  quite a bit, it’s a middle grade book about magic, kind of.  It would be great for young readers!

Red is for Rage – Connie Corcoran Wilson: This is the sequel to The Color of Evil and I read it for a blog tour on April 9.

Books I’m reading this week:
The House of Velvet & Glass – Katherine Howe ~ Page 136: Several years ago, I read Katherine Howe’s first book, The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane, and I absolutely loved it.  When I learned she had finally released another book, I ordered it intending to read it soon.  It’s been a few months, but I’m now reading this one for Royal Reviews in a couple of weeks.

Books ongoing:
Emma – Jane Austen ~ 25%: No Emma progress.

The Panem Companion – V. Arrow ~ 23%: I read about two chapters in here this week.

Books I acquired this week:
Firefly Lane – Kristin Hannah: A couple of weeks ago, I received an ARC of the sequel to this one…which made me realize I had never read the first one!  I had a gift card that I needed to use anyway, so it seemed like the perfect opportunity to pick this one up.

Blood & Beauty – Sarah Dunant: I’ve been a big fan of everything I’ve read by Sarah Dunant in the past, so I was really excited to win this one through Library Thing recently.  I have been getting some pretty awesome LT books lately!

What I watched this week:

  • Fashion Police, The Soup, Chelsea Lately,  The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, 1 girl 5 gays, The Graham Norton Show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show
  • Once Upon A Time
  • Revenge
  • Castle
  • Justified
  • The Big Bang Theory
  • The New Normal
  • Arrow
  • Being Human
  • Community
  • The Vampire Diaries
  • Beauty & the Beast
  • How I Met Your Mother
  • House of Lies
  • Modern Family
  • Kourtney & Kim Take Miami

My Top 5 Artists This Week:

  • Snow Patrol
  • Björk
  • Lenny Kravitz
  • N*E*R*D
  • David Bowie
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It’s Monday! What are you reading? March 24, 2013

Posted March 24, 2013 By dorolerium

Reading on MondayThis is a weekly meme run by Book Journey!

Post the books completed last week, the books you are currently reading, and the books you hope to finish this week.

Mailbox Monday is a weekly meme that was created by Marcia at The Printed Page, who graciously hosted it for a long, long time, before turning it into a touring meme (details here).  It is hosted at Chaotic Compendium for the month of March.

*****

This was a reasonably busy week, I had several social engagements during the week, and then it was my birthday Friday, so I was busy due to that as well.  I did some reading, but it was hard since it was so busy.

Books completed last week:
The Cruelest Month – Louise Penny: I adored this mystery even more than I thought I would.  By far one of my favorite series!

Books I’m reading this week:
The Conjuring Glass – Brian Knight ~ 11%: This was a Library Thing win from a month or so ago, and it seemed like a fun read to throw in.

Books ongoing:
Emma – Jane Austen ~ 25%: No Emma progress.

The Panem Companion – V. Arrow ~ 23%: I read about two chapters in here this week.

Books I acquired this week:
No new books this week.

What I watched this week:

  • Fashion Police, The Soup, Chelsea Lately,  The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, 1 girl 5 gays, The Graham Norton Show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show
  • Once Upon A Time
  • Revenge
  • Castle
  • Justified
  • The Big Bang Theory
  • The New Normal
  • Arrow
  • Being Human
  • Community
  • The Vampire Diaries
  • Beauty & the Beast
  • How I Met Your Mother
  • House of Lies
  • An Idiot Abroad
  • Sex & the City

My Top 5 Artists This Week:

  • The Smashing Pumpkins
  • Dixie Chicks
  • Green Day
  • Gorillaz
  • Scissor Sisters
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It’s Monday! What are you reading? March 17, 2013

Posted March 17, 2013 By dorolerium

Reading on MondayThis is a weekly meme run by Book Journey!

Post the books completed last week, the books you are currently reading, and the books you hope to finish this week.

Mailbox Monday is a weekly meme that was created by Marcia at The Printed Page, who graciously hosted it for a long, long time, before turning it into a touring meme (details here).  It is hosted at Chaotic Compendium for the month of March.

*****

My cold came back with a vengeance, so I took a lot of cold medicine and went to bed early most nights.  Hopefully it’ll go away completely soon!

Books completed last week:
The Color of Evil – Connie Corcoran Wilson: After finishing this book, I decided flat out that I didn’t like it.  I committed to reading the follow up for a blog tour, and I’m really hoping I enjoy it more than this one.

Books I’m reading this week:
The Cruelest Month – Louise Penny ~ Page 202: Oh how I love a Chief Inspector Armand Gamache novel!

Books ongoing:
Emma – Jane Austen ~ 25%: No Emma progress.

The Panem Companion – V. Arrow ~ 19%: I didn’t pick this one up this week. It’s a little dry and that’s hard to read when your brain is already fuzzy.

Books I acquired this week:
No new books this week.

What I watched this week:

  • Fashion Police, The Soup, Chelsea Lately,  The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, 1 girl 5 gays, The Graham Norton Show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show
  • Justified
  • The Big Bang Theory
  • The New Normal
  • Arrow
  • King of the Nerds
  • Being Human
  • Community
  • How I Met Your Mother
  • House of Lies
  • Oz the Great & Powerful
  • Cabin in the Woods
  • An Idiot Abroad
  • Sex & the City

My Top 5 Artists This Week:

  • The Beatles
  • New Order
  • The Smashing Pumpkins
  • Lenny Kravitz
  • Oasis
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It’s Monday! What are you reading? March 10, 2013

Posted March 10, 2013 By dorolerium

This is a weekly meme run by Book Journey!

Reading on MondayPost the books completed last week, the books you are currently reading, and the books you hope to finish this week.

Mailbox Monday is a weekly meme that was created by Marcia at The Printed Page, who graciously hosted it for a long, long time, before turning it into a touring meme (details here).  It is hosted at Chaotic Compendium for the month of March.

*****

I spent a few days this week sick, so I did even more TV watching than I normally would have.  Despite that, I did get a fair bit of reading done.  My throat was on fire for a few days so I didn’t do much socializing, lol.

Books completed last week:
All This Talk Of Love – Christopher Castellani: This was a good novel, but also a sad one, it got me pretty emotional.

Requiem – Lauren Oliver: I absolutely loved this one, it was beautiful.  I haven’t cried that much while reading a novel since I read the last Harry Potter.

Books I’m reading this week:
The Color of Evil – Connie Corcoran Wilson ~ 23%: I’m reviewing the sequel to this one in a few weeks, so I’m reading the first book in the series.  I don’t quite know what to think of it yet.

Books ongoing:
Emma – Jane Austen ~ 25%: No Emma progress.

The Panem Companion – V. Arrow ~ 19%: I read about a chapter in this one this week.

Books I acquired this week:
Fly Away – Kristin Hannah: This ARC came in the mail on Monday, which is always exciting because I didn’t know I got one until I opened it up!

Requiem – Lauren Oliver: This one is the final installment in the Delirium series and I basically tore into it right away.

The Manufactured Identity – Heath Sommer: I received a request to review this one and it arrived in the mail this week as well.

What I watched this week:

  • Fashion Police, The Soup, Chelsea Lately,  The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, 1 girl 5 gays, The Graham Norton Show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show
  • Justified
  • The Big Bang Theory
  • The New Normal
  • Arrow
  • King of the Nerds
  • Being Human
  • Community
  • How I Met Your Mother
  • House of Lies

My Top 5 Artists This Week:

  • Muse
  • Björk
  • Echobelly
  • The Smashing Pumpkins
  • David Bowie
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Teaser Tuesday! March 4, 2013

Posted March 4, 2013 By dorolerium

Teaser TuesdayTeaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

  • Grab your current read
  • Open to a random page
  • Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
  • BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
  • Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My teaser:

He doesn’t understand people who parade their entanglements before their families like it’s a beauty pageant, seeking their ratings and recommendations.  Love, like art, has no use for committees.  If your instinct’s not an accurate enough guide, you’ve got some growing up to do.

~ “All This Talk Of Love” by Christopher Castellani, p. 180

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It’s Monday! What are you reading? March 3, 2013

Posted March 3, 2013 By dorolerium

Reading on MondayThis is a weekly meme run by Book Journey!

Post the books completed last week, the books you are currently reading, and the books you hope to finish this week.

Mailbox Monday is a weekly meme that was created by Marcia at The Printed Page, who graciously hosted it for a long, long time, before turning it into a touring meme (details here).  It is hosted at Chaotic Compendium for the month of March.

*****

I did an okay amount of reading this week.  Things were a little busier than I expected, I feel like it’s a sign that spring is coming!

Books completed last week:
The Titan’s Curse – Rick Riordan: I really enjoyed this third installment of the Percy Jackson series.

Books I’m reading this week:
All This Talk Of Love – Christopher Castellani ~ Page 58: I received this one from the Library Thing Early Reviewers program a bit ago, and I’m enjoying it.  It’s about an Italian American family visiting the mother land.

Books ongoing:
Emma – Jane Austen ~ 25%: No Emma progress.

The Panem Companion – V. Arrow ~ 14%: No progress.  I need to buckle down with this one

Books I acquired this week:
Sever – Lauren DeStefano: I somehow forgot that the closing chapter in this series came out recently, so I ordered that puppy up from Amazon and it came this week.  I’ll be reading it soon I’m sure.

What I watched this week:

  • Fashion Police, The Soup, Chelsea Lately,  The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, 1 girl 5 gays, The Graham Norton Show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show
  • Justified
  • The Big Bang Theory
  • The New Normal
  • Modern Family
  • Arrow
  • King of the Nerds
  • Being Human
  • Castle
  • Community
  • How I Met Your Mother
  • House of Lies

My Top 5 Artists This Week:

  • Franz Ferdinand
  • The Smashing Pumpkins
  • The Beatles
  • Aimee Mann
  • Björk
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How I found out a lengthy review means I must have gotten paid…

Posted February 26, 2013 By dorolerium

I was going through my email today, and to my delight, I saw one from Amazon saying someone commented on one of the reviews I posted over there.  I’m sure a lot of us in the book blogging community cross post to various sites, and I make a point to post my full reviews to Amazon for a book.  I like that I can help people by doing so, and they give me other recommendations based on things I review, so it works out well for me.  I’ve been doing this for a couple of years, and it’s just part of my process when I put a review up these days.

I click to the comment and sadly, I see it’s someone complaining about the length of my review, and then wondering if I got paid for the review as an incentive to write so much about the book.  I was confused by the comment, mostly because, well, I’ve been writing lengthy reviews for years.  It’s just how I work.  Most of the time, I write long reviews.

My first thought was that whoever this person is, they are probably not involved in the book blogging community.  Because I’ve never gotten the feedback from anyone within our community that my reviews have ever been too long.  We all have our own reviewing style, but I’ve honestly never seen a complaint about a lengthy review.  Honestly, if I’m finding myself uninterested in a book or review, I move on.

I made a point to respond to the comment and explain that I did not receive compensation for my review, and that I just write a lot much of the time.  That I personally prefer a long review if it lists specific points about the book that the reviewer liked or didn’t like, and so I do the same with my own reviews.  Also, in trying to learn more about the commenter, I looked at their Amazon profile and I saw that they write one sentence reviews much of the time.  Obviously, this person and I have opposite ways of expressing things, cuz I always overlook the one sentence reviews on pretty much every product I look at!

I’m cool with people having their opinions about my reviews, I wouldn’t post if I was opposed to receiving feedback.  But I’m still confused about why they thought I must have received payment for my review.  It would be awesome to get paid for reviews, but I write what I write because I like to.  I love seeing what other people thought of a book I really enjoyed, or hated, and I also adore the ability to go back and reread a review to see what I thought, and wonder how that has potentially changed over time.

Has anyone ever assumed you were paid for a review when you weren’t?

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