Eleni's Reading for 2018

As mentioned in my previous post, my results from last year were mixed. While I read over 126 items, they were mainly audio books and books in series not always in the TBR pile. That is I borrowed them from the library to read or listen to.

While that's fine-it allows me to discover new authors-that's not so good for the TBR piles and mine are in absolute Mt. Everest sized proportions.

So in 2018, while I will continue listening to audio, it won't be the main focus. The TBR piles will be the ones I concentrate on.

Here is a list of the challenges I will be doing. Click the image to links to the challenge page.

  

This is the overall 2018 TBR list.

Of course, I'll continue to read series, which should fall into one or more of the challenges above.  To see the series I'm currently reading, click HERE.

I'll also list any Graphic Novels I'm reading on a seperate page.

Happy Reading! Yia!

~Eleni x

2017 Reading Challenges - lace up those shoes!

The one good thing in 2016 I can safely say is that it had been a good year of reading. I'm aiming to do more challenges in 2017 to keep motivated and to maybe put some order into the chaotic world of my reading lists and TBR piles.

100 book challenge

Goodreads asks that you set the number of books you would like to read in a given year. For 2017, I chose 100 books. It's more than the 60 I set last year but less than the actual achievement of last year. This year, I'll be including short stories/picture books that are published separately as one read each. It makes it easier to equal that up with the Goodreads read count.

I've already finished off six titles:

• Hands of Flame (Negotiator/Old Races Universe #3) by C.E. Murphy
• City of Bones (The Mortal Instruments #1) by Cassandra Clare
• Someday, Someday, Maybe by  Lauren Graham (audio)
• Kiss Me, Annabel (Essex Sisters #2) by Eloisa James
• Helloween: a collection of horror short stories by Samantha Comb 
• Fairy Dust (Sookie Stackhouse #4.1) (short story) by Charlaine Harris

100 book challenge page



Audio

I'm aiming for 45 books this year, the 'My Precious' level or should that be My Precioussss?

I'm currently listening to

• The Time of My Life by Cecelia Ahern
• Big Girl Panties by Stephanie Evanovich
• Split Second (Sean King & Michelle Maxwell #1) by David Baldacci

Audio Challenge page



Australian Women Writers Challenge

I'm aiming for 25 books this year and to review 15 of these.

I'm currently reading

• Stone Castles by Trish Morey
• Dead Actually by Kaz Delaney

AWW page

TBR list

I'm tackling the TBR pile a little different this year. While I will have both print and ebook lists, I will be having two (count them - one, two) challenges to tackle them. I'll accept books from other non-TBR challenges to fill these but not between the two challenges.

Author Name -TBR Challenge

I decided this year the Author Name challenged should be linked to my TBR pile. This will help me read more a wider ranger of authors. This will be with either the first letter of either of the first or last name of the author corresponding with the letter of the alphabet.

This means 52 books - 26 for print and 26 for ebooks.

Author name - TBR page 



Book Title -TBR Challenge

For those books that don't fit into the Author Name challenge, I'll be using the book titles to correspond to the alphabet. Again, I hope to have one list for print and one list for ebooks. However, I won't be as strict with this one if at the end of the year, I need to combine them. After all that will be another 26 to 52 books on top of the challenges above (which really add up to more than 100 books).

Book title - TBR page

Hopefully this will help clear a backlog from the TBR pile!!


I'll also be keeping a master list of TBR books read from all the lists.



A-Z Author Name Reading Challenge

This one is not my own personal one but one by the group I belong to, DarkSide DownUnder. The name of the game is to read as many DarkSider author books that fit into the alphabet. I'm able to use other challenges in this one if I want to.

DarkSider A-Z Author Name page


As you can see these challenges will keep me out of trouble - I hope *wink*.

Why not join me in a challenge or two?

Happy Reading to you all in 2017!

2016 Australian Women Writers Challenge- it's a wrap!

2016 was a good year for reading books by Australian Women authors jumping to 25 reads from 14 reads in 2015.

This makes 20% of books read were written by Australian Women.

Being a member of the Romance Writers of Australia and associated groups, I tend to read more by women authors more than men anyway. Writing friends and acquaintances release books all the time - almost all of who are women - and I like to support when I can.

Because of have such a backlog of books of these books, I have been concentrating on them.  I do want to expand this at some stage but this may not be the year for it.


All the books I read for the challenge in 2016 were exceptional. These are talented authors and I look forward to reading more from all of them.

1. Bloodlust Denied by Christina Phillips - 5 stars! - review on Goodreads
2. The Patterson Girls by Rachael Johns - 5 stars! - review on Goodreads
3. Hellcursed (Shadowfae #0.5) by Erica Hayes (short story) - 5 stars! 
4. How to Get Over Your Ex (Valentine's Day Survival Guide Duet #1) by Nikki Logan - 5 stars! - review on Goodreads
5. To Catch A Bride (Devil Riders #3) by Anne Gracie - 5 stars! - review on Goodreads
6. The Seven Month Itch (Living Blond #2) by Allison Rushby - 5 stars! - note on Goodreads
7. Chaos Born (Chronicles of Applecross #1) by Rebekah Turner - 5 stars! - review on Goodreads
8. Little Gems Short Story Anthology: Diamond (2012) by Romance Writers of Australia (various authors)
9. His Princess in the Making (Suddenly Royal #2) by Melissa James
10. This is Your Afterlife byVanessa Barneveld (YA) - 5 stars! - review on Goodreads
11. The Accidental Wedding (Devil Riders #4) by Anne Gracie! - 5 stars - review on Goodreads
12. Blind Attraction (Reckless Beat #1) by Eden Summers - 5 stars! - review on Goodreads
13. The Lone Warrior (Four Sided Pentacle #3) by Denise Rossetti 5 stars! - review on Goodreads
14. Evermore: a post-apocalyptic fairy tale by Isobelle Carmody & Daniel Reed (graphic novel)
15. A Pretty Mess (Astonvale #1) by Carla Caruso - 4 stars - review on Goodreads
16. Bound by the Unborn Baby by Bella Bucannon - 4.5 stars - review on Goodreads
17. Bride by Mistake (Devil Riders #5) by Anne Gracie - 5 stars - review on Goodreads
18. The Spider Goddess (Pandora English #2) by Tara Moss (YA) (audio) - 4 stars - review on Goodreads
19. Darkness Rising (Dark Angels #2) by Keri Arthur - 5 stars - review on Goodreads
20. Captive of Sin by Anna Campbell - 5 stars - review on Goodreads
21. The Final Wish (Hot Down Under) by Tracey O'Hara - 4 stars
22. Dark Child (the Awakening) Episode 1 by Adina West - 4.5 stars - review on Goodreads
23. Angel Thief (Out of the Bottle #2) by Jenny Scwartz - 4.5 stars - review on Goodreads
24. Christmas at the Castle by Marion Lennox - 4 stars
25. South of Salem (Allegra Fairweather #2) by Janni Nell - 5 stars - review on Goodreads

Most were with romance or romantic elements (no surprise there!) with the majority being paranormal romance/urban fantasy/fantasy.

15 books were part of a series/continuation with most having the next instalment waiting oh-so-patiently on my TBR pile for 2017.



Happy AWW Reading!
~Eleni

Australian Women Writers Challenge 2013 - Overview

A much better year for reading Australian Women Writers. I branched out with a couple of new to me authors. However being part of the Romance Writers of Australia, I read many books by members in a mixture of genres.

I look forward to 2014.

1. Finding Veronica by Louise Forster (review on Goodreads)
2. The Inner Gentlemen by Alli Kincaid  (review on Goodreads)
3. Tangled Reigns by Stephanie Laurens (review on Goodreads)
4. Cityglitter by Carla Caruso (review on Goodreads)
5. Sin's Darkest Caress by Tracey O'Hara (on Goodreads)
6. Creating Wings by Lilliana Rose (on Goodreads)
7. Boyfriend In A Bottle by Shona Husk (review on Goodreads)
8. Gather the Bones by Alison Stuart (review on Goodreads)
9. Wild Encounter by Nikki Logan (review on Goodreads)
10. Archangel of Mercy by Christina Ashcroft (review on Goodreads)
11. Shut Up and Kiss Me by Rhian Cahill (review on Goodreads)
12. Thief of Light by Denise Rossetti (review on Goodreads)
13. In Focus by Anna Jacobs (review on Goodreads)
14. Cocaine Blues by Kerry Greenwood (review on Goodreads)
15. Harbinger by Peta Crake (review on Goodreads)
16. It's Love, Dude by Jenny Schwartz (review on Goodreads)
17. A Sporting Chance by Rhyll Biest (review on Goodreads)
18. Flesh by Kylie Scott (review on Goodreads)

~Eleni

January reads

In addition to the two books I read and posted about previously, I have one more book to add to January's bundle.

Finding Veronica by Louise Forster.

I reviewed it at Goodreads, but here it is below...

4.5 stars

I thoroughly enjoyed this book - the characters were witty and likeable, the Aussie town was quirky, and the mystery of Veronica and the foreign men was a good subplot. I really enjoyed the romance and the banter between Jennifer and Callum, and also the family closeness of Jennifer with her sister and niece. Lots of laugh out loud moments- firemen, bagpipes, and bulls - and some really emotional moments remember the uncle.

I know that there is another book called 'Finding Elizabeth' on the way. Can't wait to read it.

Being an Australian Author, this has gone into the AWW challenge.

~Happy Reading~

The year that will be 2013....

I've gotten around to working out what challenges I want to do for 2013. I had already mentioned last year, that I will be doing the Australian Women Writers, and the Audio Book Challenge. Other than that, I've decided to my own 100+ challenge, which is anything I read that has an ISBN - novels, novellas, short stories.

I've decided that instead of doing a separate DarkSiders challenge, I will be having a list of books I've read by DarkSiders, so it's easy to find. Same with the SARAs, RWAus members, and the Musalings (Musa Authors). I'll add Aussie Women to the AWW challenge to help with the numbers.

I hope this helps you reach for one of these books to read or listen to.

~happy reading~

AWW Challenge 2013

I've just signed up for this challenge. I'm going to aim for: as much as I can, because frankly, I have no idea how 2013 will pan out with study and writing.

And I'll be reviewing the books as well.


Why don't you sign up? It's available HERE.


~Happy Reading~

Fetish by Tara Moss

Blurb

Tall, blonde and beautiful – It’s no surprise that Canadian Makedde Vanderwall is a model. What is surprising is her street-smart ways and her own recognition that modeling is only a stopgap career, a lucrative means to fund her tuition for a degree in forensic psychology.

But more surprising – and disturbing – is that while on assignment in Sydney, Australia, Makedde finds herself in the middle of a grisly, sensational hunt for the “Stiletto Murderer” – a serial killer who brutally murdered Makedde’s best friend – and may see Makedde as his next fashion victim. Who is this murderous monster with the penchant for sexy shoes?

The world of fashion takes on sinister tones – a photographer who get off on snapping photos of dead bodies; beautiful women with rich but mysterious sugar daddies; and bottom feeders who cruise the murky ocean of high fashion and low morals. And now, seemingly deserted by the one cop who can save her, Makedde is a girl on the edge of unimaginable terror, in a place where perfect beauty is transformed into darkest death…





My Goodreads review...
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/407074584




3.5 stars

I listened to this on the way to and from campus for night classes. A fascinating story with the POV of the killer really chilling. The story of a Canadian model who is caught up in a serial killer's fantasies is a good premise and I did like reading the book. I did however, find some of the dialogue stilting, maybe even more so since it was the audio version. And the pronunciation of 'skata' by Jimmy was something that jerked me out of the story for a second because was it was wrong. Again this was because it was the audio version. In a print version, it wouldn't have been an issue.

I do want to know what happens to Markedde Vanderwall next. She's an interesting character and I would like to see more of her with her family. I liked the chemistry between her and Detective Flynn, and did like he was a bloke, and not perfect by any stretch, but he cares and is a good cop.

Chilling images of the killings, and the man behind them. While also looking at the psychology of what made him that way, the cat and mouse hunt is on the edge of your seat stuff.