Month: August 2014

Bookmark Lit Bulletin: August 2014

Posted August 31, 2014 / Bookmark Lit Bulletin, Features, Wrap-Ups / 2 Comments
Bookmark Lit Bulletin: August 2014

Hello friends! As you may remember, I introduced the Bookmark Lit Bulletin earlier this month as a mid-month update. Since then, I’ve decided it makes sense to condense my monthly book haul/update posts with the Bookmark Lit Bulletin. Now, you’ll see a post like this on the 15th of the month and on the 30th/31st of the month. The Book Haul piece will only be in the end of the month segment. What a great month of books. Most of my books were rated very high!  My lowest rating was three stars and that was only ONE book. I got so much reading done in August, it’s been amazing. Bout of Books really helped me in that regard. Reading 6 books in 7 days was crazy and so, so fun.  I was able to stop by my favorite used book store, Annie’s Book Stop, up in Wells, Maine, during my (short) family vacation to Kennebunk. I didn’t find as many books as usual, but still managed to walk away with a few! This has been my first full month with this blog and I’m super grateful to the people who started following me. I’ve enjoyed getting to know some of you and hope we can partner on some features in the future. I wish I spent a little more time outside enjoying the summer and going on walks, but my boyfriend and I have just been so lazy! Since we’re moving soon (less than a week!!) to an apartment with a cute […]

Review: There’s Cake in my Future

Posted August 31, 2014 / Book Reviews / 2 Comments
Review: There’s Cake in my Future

Review: When I saw this book at Barnes & Noble for less than $5, I knew I needed to have it. I haven’t read a lot of adult fiction books lately, but this one was a nice break from the YA. The plot summary sounds so unique and interesting. A bride-to-be, Nicole, organizes a cake pull for her friends at her bridal shower. She rigs it so that the girls receive exactly the charms they’d be best suited for: the engagement ring for Mel, whose boyfriend of six years STILL hasn’t asked to marry him; the red hot chili pepper for Seema, who has been in love with her best friend Scott for a long time; and the shovel for Nicole, who needs some luck in finding a new job and getting her career back on track. When each person accidentally picks the wrong charm, each person at the shower finds their fortune coming true. What is Mel going to do with a chili pepper charm when she doesn’t need any hot lovin’ in her life? She already has a boyfriend. What is Seema’s life going to be like now that she has the shovel? Her career is already in a good place. How does Nic feel about the baby carriage, when she doesn’t feel ready to be a mother yet? This book alternates between the perspectives of all three women as their lives begin to change. I didn’t really feel super attached to the characters and didn’t feel like the […]

30 Day Book Challenge – Day 30

Posted August 30, 2014 / Book Challenges, Features, Uncategorized / 1 Comment
30 Day Book Challenge – Day 30

Your favourite book of all time (Don’t make me do this!!!! How does a girl pick?!) Looking for Alaska by John Green I remember finishing this book and just staring off into space, thinking. I’m not sure how or why the book affected me so much, but it left such an impression on me. It’s so insanely quotable and characters were interesting and unique. I can’t put to words how I feel about this book, but I highly recommend you give it a shot. I’m a John Green hipster and read all of his books years before he was popular, so he holds a special place in my heart. Here are some of my favorite Looking for Alaska quotes. “It always shocked me when I realized that I wasn’t the only person in the world who thought and felt such strange and awful things.” “Francois Rabelais. He was a poet. And his last words were “I go to seek a Great Perhaps.” That’s why I’m going. So I don’t have to wait until I die to start seeking a Great Perhaps.” “I wanted to be one of those people who have streaks to maintain, who scorch the ground with their intensity. But for now, at least I knew such people, and they needed me, just like comets need tails.” “Thomas Edison’s last words were ‘It’s very beautiful over there’. I don’t know where there is, but I believe it’s somewhere, and I hope it’s beautiful.” I hope you’ve enjoyed following along […]

30 Day Book Challenge – Day 29

Posted August 29, 2014 / Book Challenges, Features, Uncategorized / 0 Comments
30 Day Book Challenge – Day 29

A book that is most like your life Girls in White Dresses by Jennifer Close Okay so despite not really liking this book that much, it is certainly the closest to my life. It’s about a bunch of 20-somethings who are growing up, getting jobs, and having all of their friends get married. I’m coming to that point in my life where plenty of people are getting engaged or having kids. It’s a weird place to be and this book captured a lot of that awkwardness.

Review: To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before

Posted August 29, 2014 / Book Reviews / 10 Comments
Review: To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before

Okay honestly I can’t believe I didn’t read this book sooner. It has been my most anticipated read of the year, hands down, and I guess I kept waiting to see if it would go on sale. I decided to just say fuck it and decided to make it a part of Bout of Books. I am so, SO glad I finally read this one (although I kind of wish I waited a little longer so it would be closer to the release of the second book). To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before easily gets five stars from me. I loved every second of it. I LOVED loved LoVeD the characters. Before I get too carried away – this book is about how Lara Jean’s life is turned upside down when her box of letters is released to their intended recipients. In order to get over a boy she likes, she writes a letter to them and hides it in a hatbox under her bed. One day, the letters are mysteriously sent out and she has to deal with the repercussions. One of the boys is her sister’s ex-boyfriend Josh, who is also their longtime friend/neighbor. Another is the popular boy at school, Peter, who was her first kiss. Lucas, a third boy at her school, becomes her close friend after getting her letter and helps her make sense of everything happening to her. Every character in this book was so fun to get to know. Lara Jean was blessed with an amazing […]

30 Day Book Challenge – Day 28

Posted August 28, 2014 / Book Challenges, Features, Uncategorized / 0 Comments
30 Day Book Challenge – Day 28

Favorite Title A Little Something Different by Sandy Hall I haven’t read this one yet, but the title of this book seems to really capture what it’s about. The story features two best friends who are avoiding the fact that they’re in love. A Little Something Different shows all of the different perspectives that people surrounding them have; it includes chapters from a squirrel, a bench, and the Starbucks baristas. It seems like a really cool concept that reflects the title pretty well. This is fairly high up on my TBR list, so I’ll see for sure how appropriate the title is!

Top 10 Book Words that Grab Me

Posted August 28, 2014 / Book Lists, Features / 2 Comments
Top 10 Book Words that Grab Me

I realized I haven’t done a Book List in a while! Things have gotten crazy here between readalongs, readathons, weekly memes, and other features I’m developing for my blog — I’ve been neglecting one of the very things I intended to feature on my blog. I took a look at some past Top 10 Tuesday topics over at Broke & Bookish to give me some inspiration. Top ten words or topics that will make me pick up the book – with the books that caught my attention!   These books are some of my favorite examples of books within these topics. (I haven’t read Pivot Point yet, but it’s one of the books I’m most looking forward to reading based on the topic.) What words in a book’s description will make you buy the book?

30 Day Book Challenge – Day 27

Posted August 27, 2014 / Book Challenges, Features, Uncategorized / 6 Comments
30 Day Book Challenge – Day 27

The most surprising plot twist or ending Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn Dang. This book had more plot twists and surprises than I thought were possible. Every time I finished a chapter, something wild happened or was about to happen. The ending was pretty wild (and not what I was hoping for). It’s not easy to give any kind of plot summary because the spoilers and twists start happening within the first few chapters (primarily starting in the second part). This book was amazing.