[Armchair BEA] Ethics, anyone? And some non-fiction, too

Button designed by Emily of Emily's Reading Room

For those of you who don't know yet, ArmchairBEA is a way for those book bloggers who cannot attend Book Expo America in Person to get together and meet great people. I did not post an ArmchairBEA post yesterday because my giveaway was already up and running (go check it out, you can enter until Sunday!) the day before and there will be another giveaway on Sunday. Also, I did not have a clue what to write about the topic. I do not generally read literary fiction - do I even know what exactly that is??? *cringe* Today's topic is still somewhat abstract to me with non-fiction being the topic (and you know how many of those I read, don't you?), but it is interesting to dive in & I at least think I know what I'm talking about. But first up, let me give you my Top 3 Pieces of Advice on Ethics.

Ethics - a Top 3

I did not do this week's Top 10 Tuesday because I simply did not have the time, so let me at least give you my Top 3 Pieces of Advice on Ethics

1. Give credit! This one sounds easy, but it can be difficult to figure out where exactly to give credit. I would say, if in doubt, give credit. If you find a piece of advice that you like and that inspires a blog post or part of a post, say so. If you get a picture from somewhere, credit it. Think about what you do. But what if you don't remember where you found your inspiration and if you can't find the original source? Then I would at least say so. In my opinion, a simply "I read something about that but can't find it" is always better than not saying anything.

2. Be true to yourself and your readers! If there is something you do not like, say so, but without making it a personal issue. Never sell yourself, you would also sell your readers to a degree. Be yourself and stay that way. I know it sounds simple yet hard, but you can do it!

3. Be respectful with each other! We are all people, we all have feelings and you don't want to hurt others or be hurt yourself. If in doubt, one of the best pieces of advice regarding this I have heard was to write something and let it sit. If you still believe what you wrote is accurate the next day and you can smile while reading it, it is definitely most likely fine.

Non-Fiction

For the longest time, non-fiction has not been a genre I have been interested in at all. The thought of it alone was enough to make me feel bored stiff. Then, one day, I came across one Bill Bryson's collections of essays and I realized that non-fiction does not have to be dreary, boring, and factual without a sense of humor. I blame him for my occasional ventures into the land of non-fiction!

Nowadays, I can be found looking through the non-fiction section of a book store every now and then, searching for another maybe educating, definitely fun book to read. Bill Bryson is far from the only author who can achieve that.

In fact, I am no longer really put off non-fiction. Another sign for that should be the class on creative non-fiction I am taking right now. It is an interesting form of non-fiction I may have to talk about at a later point. For now, let me tell you that it is fun to read and write (because yes, the class entails us writing some CNF ourselves). Basically, CNF uses literary techniques while remaining accurate where facts are concerned.

[Armchair BEA] Blogger Development & Genre Fiction (with Giveaway!)

Button designed by Emily of Emily's Reading Room

For those of you who don't know yet, ArmchairBEA is a way for those book bloggers who cannot attend Book Expo America in Person to get together and meet great people. Below, you can find a bit about how I came to be the blogger I am today and my thoughts on genre fiction along with my favorite genres and some book recommendations. And don't forget, there's a giveaway at the bottom of this blog post!

Blogger Development

As I mentioned yesterday, I have been blogging for many years now. I will not go into the whole "how it started" again. Instead, let me tell you shortly how I feel blogging has changed over the years.

Way back, book blogging especially was mostly about telling other people about books we read, whether we liked them or not, what worked and what did not work. I would post a review (at least as soon as what I was writing could somehow qualify as a review) whenever I was done with a book. There were no cover reveals, no big giveaways (and thus no hoops you had to jump through in order to have a chance at winning the giveaway). There were not that many author interviews, in part certainly because the book blogging community was not yet perceived as a marketing tool by the industry professionals.

Nowadays, it feels like in quite a few cases it is more about promoting authors, getting the word out for the sake of the author, and no longer for the sake of the reader. I have encountered blogs that would post about one and the same book over and over again. In a few cases, this has turned me off a book or even a blog. I admit I have unsubscribed to a few (very few in comparison!) blogs because I would see one and the same book or author promoted over and over again without any content that was helpful to me as a reader who was not a "fangirl" of said author.

Among the major changes for the book blogging community is certainly the access to review copies. When I started out, review copies were - to my knowledge - for magazine and newspaper journalists only (and maybe book seller and other industry professionals?). Nowadays, in part because of the rise of the e-book, book bloggers all over the world can gain access to review copies and read books in advance. This was quite a game changer, in my opinion. When way back, you would have to order a book, wait for the publication date and the actual shipping to read the book, you can now start reading as soon as the publisher offers ARCs. Thus, the book blogging community is a lot more "part of the game and the system". In my opinion, this has both good and bad effects. On one hand, book bloggers can now talk about books and promote them as soon as they are published or even a few days in advance, which makes for an even bigger audience. On the other hand, and this is something that has been bothering me early on, the variety of books discussed on blogs has decreased and it is not unusual for me to scroll through my feed reader only to see reviews for one and the same book on ten different blogs posted over the course of two to three days. It may be only me, but this causes an oversaturation and almost a disinterest in a book if I have not yet read it. Another result of this is the run for the approval for the next big book. You hear about a book and everybody wants to be approved for an ARC for this book in order to read and review it (which then leads back to the original point of many blogs talking about one and the same book).

Granted, I have done the same thing. I heard about a book and felt the need to read it right away, without waiting for the official publication date. I am not saying I am different. However, I sometimes wish the book blogging community would not only promote the latest books, but also the books that have been out there for a while. These books are still worth being read, and this is something I hope to achieve with my blogging. (There's another review coming up for a book that has been published a few years back but is still worth reading this week!)

That being said, I love the fact that the book blogging community has grown so much over the years. I believe there is not one reader out there who would not be able to find a book blogger who has a similar taste in reading and thus can recommend awesome books. I can only hope this growth will continue and we will stay big, colorful, and all-encompassing! Let's read on and promote those wonderful books!

The many events now available within the book blogging community (but not only for book bloggers) have certainly helped us all to meet new people, be it the various read-a-thons happening throughout the year, the Bloggiesta, weekly events or more. One example for this is the Bout of Books, during the last I actually met a group of wonderful people, the Book BFFs: Lindsay from A Novel Life, Melina from The Pretty Nifty (YA) Reader, Kelly from Reading the Paranormal, Octavia from Read. Sleep. Repeat., Michelle from In Libris Veritas, Rie from Mission to Read, Danielle from Consuming Worlds, Camila from Alive or Undead, Lisa from Lisa Likes Books, Jessica from Hopelessly Devoted Bibliophile, Amanda from On A Book Bender, Judith from Paper Riot, Angela & Loretta from Reading Angels, Lisa from Just Another Rabid Reader, Angie from Angela's Anxious Life, Aimee from Penmanship Smitten, and Melissa from Harley Bear Book Blog. These girls are wonderful and I cannot wait to read more books with them!

Genre Fiction

Genre fiction for me is a very interesting topic. You may have noticed that I do not stick to just one or two genres. When asked what kind of books I read, I always have a hard time explaining it and giving a concise answer.

Fact is, I love a number of genres both aimed at young adults and adults. These genres are, generally speaking:

Paranormal and fantasy - The world and the character building is fascinating. I enjoy being able to see how an author decides to change the world we live in to accommodate his or her imagination. Another big aspect for me is how it changes the characters' lives and their views of the world.

Contemporary - These books let me jump into another person's life in my time, my world. There are not too many changes from what I know apart from the surroundings and the people the characters deal with. One thing that appeals to me here is the easy way to enter the story.

Romance - It is such a nice change of pace for me, to see how other people get their happily ever after despite all the obstacles they have to circumnavigate first!

Mysteries and thrillers - The thrill of deciphering clues, figuring out who the perp is and why s/he is doing what s/he is doing is amazing! I love the feeling and always have! To figure out all that while reading the book and yet being surprised by the author is a big bonus.

Dystopia - The world building alone can be amazing if it is done right, which is something I absolutely love. Add to that the author's imagination of how characters deal with the world, the obstacles, and the hardships of life in this world, and I can be completely enthralled.

With all these genres, there is one catch: It has to work out for me. I can overlook certain flaws in the writing, but there is a line that should not be crossed. This varies from genre to genre and book to book, depending on my expectations. Nonetheless, there are some books that, in my opinion, are simply outstanding. For each of the genres mentioned above, I have one book that for me falls into this category of outstanding books that I can only recommend. (If possible, I will link to my review, which will also lead you on a time travel through my review writing.)

Paranormal and fantasy: D.D. Barant: Dying Bites (1st in series)

Contemporary: Ally Carter: Cross My Heart and Hope To Spy (1st in series)

Romance: Jill Shalvis: Christmas in Lucky Harbor (first 3 in series)

Mysteries and thrillers: Laura Childs: Death by Darjeeling (1st in a series - cozy mystery!)

Dystopia: Lenore Appelhans: Level 2 (review upcoming!)

Now for the giveaway: One of you can win one book of your choice that I have mentioned in this blog post.

I'm doing this old school with only three hoops I would like for you to jump (naturally, you must be of age or have parental consent to participate!):
1) Be subscribed to my blog one way or another (and let me know how).
2) Comment on this blog post or one of the linked blog posts with something insightful.
3) Leave an e-mail address for me to contact you (for example write kathrin.p AT gmail DOT com so that your address cannot simply be copied).

(Open until Sunday 06/02/2013 11:59pm EST) Good luck!

[Armchair BEA] Introduction & Classics

Button designed by Emily of Emily's Reading Room

For those of you who don't know yet, ArmchairBEA is a way for those book bloggers who cannot attend Book Expo America in Person to get together and meet great people. Below, you can find my introduction and my quick thoughts on classics.

Introduction

Please tell us a little bit about yourself: Who are you? How long have you been blogging? Why did you get into blogging?

Hi, I’m Kathrin, 29, and the blogger here at Stacked’n’Painted. You can use many labels to describe me – sister, daughter, soon-to-be mommy, reader, makeup addict, student… I don’t think you would get a clear picture of me though. I am just me, quite a bit nerdy with a habit of spending too much time each morning getting ready because I play around with makeup and need a lot of time to wake up – I’m so not a morning person! I love good movies and TV shows (my labeling, not others’), naturally, books are a must in every situation. I cannot imagine leaving the house without a book one way or another (usually, even if I have my phone or my iTouch, I’m good to read).
I have been blogging since about 2001, so I started way, way back. At first, my blog was mostly my very own journal, albeit online, where I would keep track of what I read and what I liked and disliked about the books. The “reviews” (and I’m using this term very loosely here!) were short and always somewhat confusing to others. I believe I still have access to that old, old journal of mine, but I haven’t read anything in a while. Maybe I should check back and see what my writing was like back then?

Where in the world are you blogging from? Tell a random fact or something special about your current location. Feel free to share pictures.

I am blogging in Germany, but the exact location changes depending on where I’m at. Right now, I’m on a computer at university, but I also blog at our apartment or at my parents’ house (the latter two will soon be the same GPS coordinates, as we will move there in about a month in order to offer kiddo a nicer surrounding and better child care once I go back to university and work. If I were not at university right now, I would take some pictures for you, so that you can see what my blogging area looks like. I may just do that tomorrow.

Name your favorite blog(s) and explain why they are your favorite(s).

Naming my favorite blogs is difficult task. I read many blogs for different reasons and about different topics. But since this is ArmchairBEA, let me name some of my favorite blogs with ook-related content:
Jill Shalvis’ blog is an author blog, but the lady is as funny on her blog as in her books. You should check it out if you like to laugh a lot, want to hear about her I Love Lucy Real-life episodes and see some eye candy!
Two blogs I have been reading for quite some time now are Team Tynga’s Reviews and The Book Cellar. Both blogs changed a bit over time, if you ask me, but I still like them a lot. They offer reviews I read and enjoy and give me an idea whether I might like a book or not (and my taste does not necessarily match theirs 100%!).
And finally, two blogs I have recently discovered are Reading Angels and Pretty Nifty (YA) Reader, and the bloggers there are wonderful people I enjoy talking to and their book recommendations are fun!

If you could eat dinner with any author or character, who would it be and why?

For an author, I would pick Jill Shalvis because she seems to be hilarious and I love to have funny, interesting People around me. If I could have dinner with her, I would certainly grill her about future books and other mischief she has planned. And I would maybe give her some suggestions as to how to Keep track of her phone (She keeps losing it!).

What is your favorite part about the book blogging community?

I love that the book blogging community offers not only a resource for great new reading material, but that I can also find people who read similar books as I do. Most of my friends may read one genre or one subgenre just like I do, but it can be hard to find people to talk about what I just read. The book blogging community fills that void and I have met some wonderful people through this.

Are you participating in Armchair BEA or did you go to BEA in New York City? Is there any other question you would have loved to see me answer?

Classics

I’ve always had a fairly ambiguous relationship with classics. I usually hated assigned reading in school, which made life real hard back in school and even now at university. On the other hand, the classics I picked up because I wanted to read them have led me to wonderful reading experiences. I remember reading Jane Eyre way back in the late 1990s. This book still holds a special place in my reading heart! Then I was introduced to Jane Austen by a former colleague and I have quite some of her books left to read for the very first time, but I have a feeling I will enjoy most of them.
I keep wondering if it would not maybe help students if they had to read a certain number of classics off a longer list instead of assigning specific books. I’m thinking this would probably have helped me enjoy those books more when they are assigned.

What do you think about classics? Are you a voracious classics reader or do you avoid them? Do you think there could be a better way of teaching classics in school? What are your thoughts on this? And what classics would you recommend?

[Book Haul] #2

Stacking The Shelves is hosted by Team Tynga's Reviews and Showcase Sunday is hosted by Books, Biscuits, and Tea. For more information, check out their blogs!

Bought:

M.L. Brennan: Generation V
Hannah Harrington: Speechless
Flynn Meaney: Boys Wanted
Holly Thompson: The Language Inside

On my Kindle:
Allison Parr: Rush Me

For review (via Netgalley & Edelweiss):

Jennifer Estep: Heart of Venom
Abigail Haas: Dangerous Girls
Mary Louise Kelly: Anonymous Sources
Amy Andrews: Girl Least Likely To Marry
S.K. Falls: Secret For A Song
Kellie Sheridan: Mortality
Elizabeth Wein: Rose Under Fire
RaShelle Workman: Touching Melody
Brighton Walsh: Plus One
Amy Christine Parker: Gated
Marni Bates: Invisible
Tonya Burrows: SEAL of Honor
Angie Fox: The Accidental Demon Slayer
Trish Cook & Brendan Halpin: A Really Awesome Mess

Now, one of the books I've mentioned here will actually be for one of you guys, so make sure to check back here later this week!

What did you add to your TBR shelves last week? Did you write a blog post? Then leave a message. If you didn't, please comment!

[Audiobook Review] James Dashner: The Maze Runner

[YA, dystopic fiction]

You can buy it here:
The Maze Runner (Book 1)

Summary (from Goodreads):
When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his first name. He has no recollection of his parents, his home, or how he got where he is. His memory is empty.

But he's not alone. When the lift's doors open, Thomas finds himself surrounded by kids who welcome him to the Glade, a large expanse enclosed by stone walls.

Just like Thomas, the Gladers don't know why or how they got to the Glade. All they know is that every morning, for as long as anyone can remember, the stone doors to the maze that surrounds them have opened. Every night, for just as long, they've closed tight. Every thirty days a new boy is delivered in the lift. And no one wants to be stuck in the Maze after dark.

The Gladers were expecting Thomas' arrival. But the next day, a girl is sent up- the first girl ever to arrive at the Glade. And more surprising yet is the message she delivers. The Gladers have always been convinced that if they can solve the maze that surrounds the Glade, they might find their way home... wherever that may be. But it's looking more and more as if the Maze is unsolvable.

And something about the girl's arrival is starting to make Thomas feel different. Something is telling him that he just might have some answers- if he can only find a way to retrieve the dark secrets locked within his own mind.

My thoughts:
The Maze Runner was the first book I finished through the last Bout of Books. This book left me with somewhat mixed feelings. At times I wished it progressed faster, the timing did not always work out for me. At times, it just felt too long until something happened. I was never close to not finishing the book, but occasionally it took me a bit to get into the story. It just did not always flow as easily for me. Nonetheless I enjoyed the developments and the story, all things considered. If it were not for the pacing, I would not have much to complain about with The Maze Runner.

As it happens in series, some questions remain unanswered at the end of The Maze Runner and I hope they will all be answered by the time the series is over. The end of The Maze Runner certainly made me curious to find out more about the world the teenagers live in, what happened and what other obstacles they will have to face.

The narrator's voice was pleasant to listen to. Not once did it put me off and I could easily follow. I have sometimes made the experience that I have to be in rather quiet surroundings in order to not misunderstand parts and subsequently have to go back a bit in the story to catch up. Here, Mark Deakins, the narrator, spoke clear and without an Accent (something I do enjoy if it works with the book, like M.C. Beaton's Hamish MacBeth series, which drips with accent and Scottish colloquialisms).

Rating:
3.5/5

FTC: Purchased with 1 credit from my Audible subscription (for which I pay for myself)

[Book BFFs] Interview with Lindsay of The Novel Life

During Bout of Books 7.0, I met a group of wonderful people who happen to be fellow book lovers who spread the word. We decided to stay in contact and do some wonderful blog-y things together like the Summer Solstice Read-a-thon. This interview is one of the things we came up with.

Without further ado, let me introduce you to Lindsay of The Novel Life:

The Novel Life    @lindsaychurch    Goodreads    Facebook

1. Tell me about yourself, what kind of person are you behind the computer/phone screen?

I am a full time creative writing and acting student! I love movies, books, acting, writing, musicals, and dancing- contemporary and ballet. I get very attached to the things I love (books, movies, tv shows etc). I am also obsessed with watching bookshelf tours and room tours on youtube. I have an unhealthy love of peanut butter- especially Reese peanut butter cups!

2. How long have you been blogging and what made you start?

I've actually only been blogging for about a month. I've WANTED to for years, I always start a blog and then stop it after one post. I started this time because I found a base topic that I really love - books! It makes it easier to blog if you have a solid thing to base the blog around.

3. In your opinion, what makes a book a great read?

A strong cast. If the lead characters are compelling and seem like real people I will read about anything. I love it when book characters end up feeling like people you know. It doesn't hurt if there is lots of conflict and humor and "all the feels" either!

4. What are the first 5 books that come to mind?

The Maze Runner series by James Dashner
Infernal Devices series by Cassandra Clare
Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory
The Farm by Emily McKay

5. What are your blogging tactics/strategies? How do you, personally,manage blogging and your real life?

I'm still figuring this one out. I'm having a hard time balancing school/work/blogging at the moment, but I'm starting to schedule things into my phones calendar which is really helping. I love lists so I'm finding that making them is helping a lot!

6. If you could pick any 5 fictional characters to have brunch with, whom would you pick?

I would choose
Fire from Fire by Kristin Cashore - she's lovely and can teach me how to shoot a bow and arrow afterwards.
(I'd pick Katniss but I don't think she'd talk to anyone else and it might be awkward)
Fred and George Weasley - they would liven the brunch up. (they count as one!)
Will Herondale from Infernal Devices - so that I can force him into a relationship with me.
Katsa from Graceling, though if she's unavailable I'll take Po!
And
Wanderer from The Host - preferable when she's in Melanies body so that Melanie can come too! (see how I cheat?)

7. What was the first book that left a lasting impression with you?

I want to say Harry Potter, because.. hello Harry Potter! But I think the FIRST book that I read that made me feel all the feels was actually a few years before HP came out. It was The Guests of War trilogy by Kit Pearson. I have the omnibus of it but it's "The Sky is Falling" "Looking at the Moon" and "The Lights Go On Again." I still read it every couple of years. It's a beautifully written story.

8. Who initially fueled your love for books? How?

I'm not actually sure but I think a mixture of my mother and the Scholastic book club that came once a month at school. You got to take this big catalog home and choose books from it and then magically a week later they'd come to school for you! My mom bought me books from when I was little though and really encouraged reading.

9. If you could only take 3 books on a yearlong sabbatical in another country, which ones would you pick?

Hmmm.. Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
Harry Potter (magically they've become one GIANT book)
and Fire by Kristin Cashore

10. What do you need for your perfect reading surroundings? (Area, foods, drinks etc)

I don't actually need anything, I'll read anywhere. But IDEALLY, a drink (tea or coke zero!) and a snack that won't get all messy on the book - so unfortunately no chocolate :(

[Waiting on Wednesday] Vicious by Victoria Schwab

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature hosted by Jill of Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases we're eagerly anticipating.

Summary: (from goodreads.com)
A masterful, twisted tale of ambition, jealousy, betrayal, and superpowers, set in a near-future world.

Victor and Eli started out as college roommates—brilliant, arrogant, lonely boys who recognized the same sharpness and ambition in each other. In their senior year, a shared research interest in adrenaline, near-death experiences, and seemingly supernatural events reveals an intriguing possibility: that under the right conditions, someone could develop extraordinary abilities. But when their thesis moves from the academic to the experimental, things go horribly wrong.

Ten years later, Victor breaks out of prison, determined to catch up to his old friend (now foe), aided by a young girl whose reserved nature obscures a stunning ability. Meanwhile, Eli is on a mission to eradicate every other super-powered person that he can find—aside from his sidekick, an enigmatic woman with an unbreakable will.

Armed with terrible power on both sides, driven by the memory of betrayal and loss, the archnemeses have set a course for revenge—but who will be left alive at the end?

Release Date: September 24, 2013

[Top 10 Tuesday] Cover Love

Top Ten Tuesday is a bookish weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Today's topic is: Top Ten Favorite Book Covers of Books I've Read (in no particular order)


I love the James Bond feeling of this cover with the girly colors. It gets me in a good mood right away & if fits the book perfectly, if you ask me.


For some reason, it just calms me down to look at the two lower body halves of the very different girls who switch their lives in this book.


I love America's dress! It's as simple as that, I can look at the dress for hours!


The German cover of The Iron Duke is so much more appealing to me than the other covers I've seen. (I took this one from Goodreads.) It is one of the few series I buy translated to German because the covers are just beautiful. I love the feel and the colors. The Iron Duke looks like a manga picture of the man I picture whenever I read about him.


Doesn't the girl just rock this cover? She looks a little bad-ass with quite some spunk - and you have the Greek pillars right next to her. It's simply, but I really like it!


This is another case of "that dress" swooning for me. I love the color and wish I could own or at least wear a dress like that just once. It's beautiful!


This cover stands in lieu of all the covers in this series. On first sight, they have this quaint feeling that goes perfectly with the setting, but when you look closer, you will usually find some hint to the murderous affairs that happen in the books. I love how they always manage to pull it off!


This cover just drips with dark humor (as does the book!)!!!


If you are a nerd like me, you'll probably love Star Wars and the thought of Origami Yoda itself makes you laugh. This book not only has an origami Yoda on the cover, it also shows you how to reproduce him... How cool is that?!


Can I have her hair, please? Really, whenever I look at that cover, that's what I think right away. I want her hair, and I want it bad! LOL And it has this easy-going feeling, just like the story...

What are your favorite book covers?

[Summer Solstice Read-a-thon] Sign ups

Created by: Rie of Mission To Read 

and 

Cohosted by: Melissa of Harley Bear Book Blog, Lindsay of The Novel Life, Kathrin of StackedNPainted, and Melina of The Pretty Nifty YA Reader. 

The summer solstice is the longest day of the year.  And you know what that means...

So no matter where you are on the planet we want you to celebrate the first day of summer with us in a 24 hr read-a-thon!  Just think of all those summer reads you've been waiting to start!  

1. Create a sign up post on your site saying that you're planning to join in the read-a-thon on the 21st.  You can post a goal list of books you want to read that day, but it's not mandatory.  Include the read-a-thon button and this blurb:

Summer Solstice Read-a-thon is a 24 hr event taking place on the longest day of the year...June 21, 2013.  It was created by Rie @ Mission To Read and is cohosted by Melissa of Harley Bear Book Blog, Lindsay of The Novel Life, Kathrin of StackedNPainted, and Melina of The Pretty Nifty YA Reader.  The goal of this read-a-thon is to take advantage of all the extra daylight and read as much as you can!  Mini challenges and a giveaway will be happening this day so make sure to check out any of the host's blog's the day of for more information.  Don't forget to chat with us at the twitter party 12pm CST #SSRead. 

2. Add the link to your sign up post in the linky below.

3. Check back to any of the host's blogs on the 21st for mini challenges and a chance to win a giveaway!

4. Read till the sun goes down

[Bout of Books] Wrap up

I'm sad that Bout of Books is over already. Last week flew by and I was busy with so many other things, I still don't know what happened or believe that it was actually an entire week.

Last night, I really scrambled to finish the two books I has started to get to a somewhat decent result for Bout of Books. I was about 70% done with The Selection by Kiera Cass and 50% done with a short German audio book produced by Audible.de.

Here's the result:

Goal: Read 4-5 books
-> Well, that one was a miss. I finished 2 audio books and 1 e-book, so I'm one short of my goal. I usually read about 2 books per week, so I really hoped I could double it up with the week-long readathon. Unfortunately, I was so busy with work, university, and my first Lamaze class, that I just couldn't get it done. I'm a little bit sad about that, but in the end, 3 books is a good result with all that was going on.

Goal: Participate in one Twitter chat
-> That was an all-out success! I participated in the last Twitter chat on Saturday and had a lot of fun. With the time difference, the other two would never fit in because I'm either fast asleep or busy with work/university. The weekend chats usually work out for me, though, because I can arrange my schedules accordingly.

Goal: Write reviews for the finished books.
-> Yeah, I've started, but I did not finish them yet. If I am lucky, I can finish them by Wednesday.

If you participated in Bout of Books, how did you do? Would you participate in an upcoming Bout of Books?

[Bout of Books] Update Day #7

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Are you all ready for the last day of Bout of Books? I cannot believe it is almost over and I haven't gotten nearly as much done as I had planned to. In fact, I've managed to forget the goals I had set. That's embarrassing, if you ask me...

Yesterday, I participated in the last Twitter chat and met some great people - who I am now stalking on Twitter ;-) I also started to listen to a German audio book, which so far is very entertaining, but due to the language barrier will probably only get a quickie review here, if that.

Updates for today will follow here as I go:

11:30am
I listened some more to my audio book this morning, which leaves me at about 50% of the story. I really hope to finish it today because I want to know how it ends. And last night, before I fell asleep, I also read some more of The Selection by Kiera Cass. I had thought I'd be able to finish it faster, but with the lack of reading time I had to deal with this past week, there was no chance, even though I love the story and the main character so far.

[Book Haul] #1

There are so many posts featuring book hauls I simply lost track. The options for us to show off our newly acquired books are broad: There is In My Mailbox by The Story Siren, Stacking The Shelves by Team Tynga's Reviews and Mailbox Monday, which is hosted by a different blog each month.

I've (obviously) decided on Stacking The Shelves because it is the one that is still running that I like best, in part because it also fits best genre-wise.

I don't have all the books in the same place, so here's the majority of the goodies (Please ignore the kitty butt on the right side, he likes photo bombing ;-) ):



Bought:

Jessi Kirby: Golden
Cris Beam: I Am J
Robin Benway: Also Known As
Terence Blacker: Boy2Girl
Gail Carriger: Etiquette & Espionage
Dave Cousins: 15 Days Without A Head
Ashley Elston: The Rules for Disappearing
Elizabeth Eulberg: Revenge of the Girl with the Great Personality
Janet Gurtler: How I Lost You
Christina Henry: Black Wings
Stacy Kramer & Valerie Thomas: From What I Remember
Annabel Monaghan: A Girl Named Digit
Chelsea Pitcher: The S-Word

Not pictured:
Rick Yancey: The 5th Wave

For review: (e-ARCs through Netgalley)

Kim Firmston: Touch
Kiera Cass: The Elite
Leah Rae Miller: The Summer I Became A Nerd
Kim Barnouin: Skinny Bitch in Love
Rainbow Rowell: Fangirl
Katie McGarry: Dare You To

[Bout of Books] Update Day #6

After a slow start with me sleeping in way too late (I was supposed to run errands) and a late breakfast (at around 12:30pm), I finally managed to crawl upstairs to update my files for my TBR with the two books that arrived in the mail today (I will post a Stacking the Shelves post later on!) while catching up on Bones Season 5 as the mister watched some episodes without me (shame on him!).

Today, for the first time in this Bout of Books, I will actually update this post as I go along, so check back if you want to know how I fare...

For now, I will try to finally catch up on the last few hours of Bout of Books tweets. I may not have been able to participate in the Twitter chats, but I try to stay up to date with what everyone is doing & I have met some wonderful people already! This, to be honest, is always one of the two reasons why I sign up and participate in Bout of Books.

6:30pm
I have accomplished one of my goals! Can you believe it? LOL I participated in the Twitter chat earlier (right after the Bloggiesta Twitter chat, which means I spent 2 hours on Twitter). I met great people and have set up a bookmark folder so that I can check out all the blogs after Bout of Books. Now, I will head on to my books, who knows, maybe I'll go listen to an audio book.

10:25pm
I started a German audio book earlier and didn't get very far. The mister kept talking. Imagine a very, very annoyed look on my face. He didn't get it... Off to my book!

[Bout of Books] Update Day #5

Bout of Books sadly is coming to an end soon and I have not achieved my goals yet - not nearly *sigh* I almost feel like a failure this time around, but life just took over.

I managed to read for two more hours on Thursday night and Friday, leaving me at eight hours of reading so far. I have finished The Maze Runner and about a third into The Selection. I hope to be able to finish this one soon, preferably on Saturday, but we'll see.

I have not yet taken part in any of the challenges (but I didn't plan to anyway) and none of the chats, as the time was never suitable for the time zone I am in. If I am lucky, I can participate in tomorrow's chat, as that is during my daytime. Wish me luck!

How are you doing so far?

[Bout of Books] Update & General Thoughts

Until 10:30am this morning, I was determined to finally write a review I've been planning. And then I remembered that after work, I'd have my first Lamaze class. Each class takes two hours, so I knew then that I'd be coming home late. And now, after some relaxing and dinner, it's almost midnight. There is no way I can coherently type up my thoughts. So I decided to wait until tomorrow.

However, it is not like I haven't been thinking about books and reading lately, especially with Bout of Books. So, first a short update on how that has been going:

I so far read for about 6 hours this week, but I haven't finished anything yet. This is such a fail! But between work, university, a doctor's appointment, and the Lamaze class, I didn't have much spare time. This, hopefully, will be better during the next 4 days - and lucky me, Monday is a holiday here, so I will be reading on Monday as well. I am working on the last few pages of The Maze Runner and The Selection. By tomorrow, I should at least have finished one book.

And then a general thought:

I have been on a semi-successful book-buying ban (more like a limitation) since January and in theory it is going on until the end of the year. My basic goal was to read at least 3 more books than I acquired. So far, I've been doing quite well, in some cases working up to 9 more books off of my TBR shelves than I added to them. This month, however, I can already say I failed miserably! I added around 20 books to Mt. TBR (if they all arrive this month). I cannot possibly read 23 books, so that's that for May. It will be big, fat fail!

Nonetheless, I think the books I will be receiving soon are totally worth it. Just wait until you see the goodies!

[Bout of Books] Goals 7.0

So, Bout of Books starts on Monday and I guess it is time to actually decide on goals and what books I want to read and all that.

For books, I will go with the ones I have on my reading stack for May 2013. The only book missing on that stack is King Solomon's Mines by H. Rider Haggard because I didn't have it with me when I took the picture and wrote the post.

I hope I will be able to read 4-5 books off of that, along with my current reads if I don't finish them before then. I will most likely not read much on Monday as a good friend of mine will celebrate her birthday, so I will head on to my parents for the night to meet with her and some others.

If I can fit it in my rather tight schedule, I will participate in one of the twitter chats (probably on Sunday). I enjoyed that a lot the last time and I got to know a number of awesome bloggers I had not known before.

And last, but not least, I will try to write at least the reviews for books I finish during the readathon, so I can schedule them. That way, I don't have to fiddle with taking notes, which usually end up being illegible anyway. Hehe! Trying to outsmart myself here, hopefully!

Are you participating in Bout of Books? What are your goals?

[Cover Reveal] Allegiant by Veronica Roth - finally!

Finally! Finally, after about a year of anxiously awaiting the 3rd installment in Veronica Roth's Divergent series, Harper Teen unveiled the cover to Allegiant. First on TV where Veronica Roth was interviewed by Ryan Seacrest, and then on their Facebook page. And here is the goodie:

(source: Harper Teen Facebook page)

This cover seems to shout turmoil, confusion, and danger, at least in my eyes. I'm still trying to understand what the wave is all about, but hey, we'll know more when the book is out, right? And the tag line One choice will define you? I cannot wait to get my hands on Allegiant! Granted, if you thought they went with a color scheme for books one and two, this one certainly stands out and is different. The first books were more blue-ish, green-ish. But the earthy reds that make up the majority? They look amazing while not breaking with the general design of the first two books. Personally, I have to say I like the cover just the way they designed it. I can happily put this on my shelves and look at all three smiling.

And yes, I already pre-ordered it!

What about you? Do you like the trilogy? How excited are you about both the cover and the book? Or do you maybe dislike the cover?

[Waiting on Wednesday] Reboot by Amy Tintera and Golden by Jessi Kirby

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly feature hosted by Jill of Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases we're eagerly anticipating.

Now, the first book I have for you today is a bit of a cheat, as you will see. But it's so good, I need to mention it. But I so cannot wait to read either book!

Summary: (from Amazon.com)
In this fast-paced dystopian thrill ride, a seventeen-year-old girl rises from the dead as a Reboot and is trained as an elite crime-fighting soldier . . . until she is given an order she refuses to obey.

Five years ago, Wren Connolly was shot three times in the chest. After 178 minutes, she came back to life as a Reboot—stronger, faster, able to heal, but less emotional. The longer Reboots are dead, the less human they are when they return, making Wren 178 the deadliest Reboot in the Republic of Texas.

Callum 22, on the other hand, is practically still human. He's the worst trainee Wren has ever had—his reflexes are too slow, he's always asking pesky questions, and his ever-present smile is freaking her out. Yet he's still her newbie. When Callum fails to measure up to Reboot standards, Wren is told to eliminate him. Wren has never disobeyed before, but she'll do whatever it takes to save Callum's life.

The perfect soldier is done taking orders.

Wren's captivating voice and unlikely romance with Callum will keep readers glued to the page in Amy Tintera's high-stakes alternate reality ideal for fans of The Hunger Games, Legend, and Divergent.

Release Date: May 7, 2013 (That was yesterday!)



Summary: (from Amazon.com)
Seventeen-year-old Parker Frost has never taken the road less traveled. Valedictorian and quintessential good girl, she’s about to graduate high school without ever having kissed her crush or broken the rules. So when fate drops a clue in her lap—one that might be the key to unraveling a town mystery—she decides to take a chance.

Julianna Farnetti and Shane Cruz are remembered as the golden couple of Summit Lakes High—perfect in every way, meant to be together forever. But Julianna’s journal tells a different story—one of doubts about Shane and a forbidden romance with an older, artistic guy. These are the secrets that were swept away with her the night that Shane’s jeep plunged into an icy river, leaving behind a grieving town and no bodies to bury.

Reading Julianna’s journal gives Parker the courage to start to really live—and it also gives her reasons to question what really happened the night of the accident. Armed with clues from the past, Parker enlists the help of her best friend, Kat, and Trevor, her longtime crush, to track down some leads. The mystery ends up taking Parker places that she never could have imagined. And she soon finds that taking the road less traveled makes all the difference.

Release Date: May 14, 2013

[Top 10 Tuesday] Light & Fun Reads

Top Ten Tuesday is a bookish weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Today's topic is: Top Ten Light & Fun Reads

1) Susan Elizabeth Philipps is always a winner in the "light & fun" category. Her novels are not for the younger readers (I would say age 16+), but I cannot leave her off this list.

2) Both of Ally Carter's series (Gallagher Girls and Heist Society) are fun, relatively easy, and engaging. On top of that, they're also action packed. For me, they're a go-to and I wish she would write faster.

3) Nancy Drew mysteries are not only light and fun, they're also short. I mostly listen to them as audio books, but so far I've never been disappointed.

4) Meg Cabot's The Princess Diaries are hilarious!

5) P.G. Wodehouse's Jeeve short stories! They're absolutely hilarious and I love that you nonetheless get a good insight in the life of aristocratic people and their servants at that time.

6) Tera Lynn Childs' Oh.My.Gods certainly falls into this category. The main character is a descendant of one of the Greek gods through her Dad which means she has special powers that she is slowly getting to know in the book.

What about you? Can you recommend any light & fun reads?

[Reading Stack] May 2013

With a TBR "stack" like mine, it is incredibly overwhelming to pick my next read. Thus, I have recently started to make monthly short lists. That way, when I am not absolutely certain I want to read that one particular book, I am not overwhelmed standing in front of my shelves of unread books. Instead, I simply look at a small stack and go based off of that.

It is nice to spend a while in front of my bookshelves at the end of each month to look at all the goodies and to shop my stacks. Deciding which books I want to add to my stack for the upcoming month is never easy, I never know how many books I should add. But it is also fun to try to pick a variety of books I still feel like reading.

Of course, not all the books are random. I also add books I intend to read for a certain occasion or because I intend to read them for a challenge maybe - or for educational purposes (for university, because I feel I should read them at least once etc).

For May I have picked the following books:



The bottom three are books I dared Hollie from Music, Books and Tea to read before I get to them when she posted about her April book haul and how she bought far too many books:

Maureen Johnson: The Name of the Star
Tahereh Mafi: Shatter Me
Mira Grant: Feed

Then we have some books I had to put on the stack because I cannot wait to read them:

Abby Grahame: Wentworth Hall
Suzanne Young: The Program (I received this ARC from Lenore of Presenting Lenore after she read it. Thanks again!!)
Ally Carter: Uncommon Criminals
Joseph Conrad: The Heart of Darkness
Kody Keplinger: Shut Out

And the top three are somewhat different. First we have a book on breastfeeding which I want to read ahead of time. The same goes for Harvey Karp's The Happiest Baby on the Block. And last, but not least, the German edition of Nalini Singh's Caressed By Ice.

Do you create monthly reading stacks? What does your TBR stack look like?

Under Construction!

As you might have noticed already, this blog is currently under construction! I have recently gotten my own web address to match the blog, after quite some pondering. I'm really happy with this as I now have it all under one name - my blog, Twitter, Instagram, Goodreads - you name it!

Naturally, this also means I have to change my overly long blog name to the name I've had in mind for months now. And I need a new header as well. I'm lucky that my brother is very helpful with this. He agreed to once again help me with my header, which makes me happy. He already created the old header which I loved a lot! Now, he is still working on the header, but as you can see up top, we already have a general idea and he has already put in some work. We're not yet all done, so the header might change back and forth occasionally as we try out new things. Same goes with the template.

If you see something that looks odd, please let me know! And of course, if there is something you would like to see added, let me know too!

[Random Acts of Kindness] May 2013 (with March & April wrap-up)

I am again participating in the Random Acts of Kindness (RAK) hosted by the lovely ladies from Book Soulmates! It's a fun and nice way to interact with other book lovers and a chance to maybe fulfill a wish of theirs - and have a wish of yours fulfilled. You can find the rules on their website (the basics: have a wishlist or create one, sign up and send off books - and get some in return).

April was actually my birthday month, but like in March, I did not receive any RAK. However, I sent some out:

In March I sent out two books: I sent Web of Lies by Jennifer Estep to Amanda from Awesome Sauce Book Club and Mage in Black by Jaye Wells to Isabelle of Lecture Toute Une Aventure.
In April, I sent out Mortality by Kellie Sheridan to Stephanie from A Dream Within A Dream.

You can find my wishlist on Amazon: It's the 2013 wishlist, which I am always trying to keep up to date.

While I would be incredibly happy about either of the books on there, my top 5 would probably be:
Stephanie Perkins' Anna and the French Kiss
Stormdancer by Jay Kristoff
Joy Preble's The Sweet Dead Life
Zenn Scarlett by Christian Schoon
The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily Danford

If you would like to offer me one of these books, simply send me an e-mail at kathrin.p AT gmail DOT com and I will send you my mailing address.

[Review] Ally Carter: Out of Sight, Out of Time (Gallagher Girls #5)

Ally Carter: Out of Sight, Out of Time
[YA spy/mystery]
Disney Hyperion
ISBN: 978-1-423-14804-3
320 pages

You can buy it here:
Out of Sight, Out of Time (Amazon, paperback)

Summary:
The last Thing Cammie remembers is leaving the Gallagher Academy. After that, there's nothing. She knows she left school in order to protect her friends and family, but what happened in the months she has been missing? With the help of her friends who are still upset with her, Cammie has to find out what happened in the previous months before she resurfaced at a nunery in the Alps.

My thoughts:
So, I do not need to repeat how much I love the Gallagher Girls. The series is amazing as it is and I could not possibly imagine what it will be like when Ally Carter decides to write the last entry in the series. Sadness all over? Certainly! But what else? I'm sure it will be hard for fans like me. But with this fifth installment in the Gallagher Girls series, we come very close to the end of the girls’ senior year, so it is a valid point - one we need to think about. But not right now, as there is no end in sight yet.

Ally Carter lets us jump right into the story of Out of Sight, Out of Time. There is no time left to reacclimatize with the characters and what happened in previous books. While this can sometimes be annoying, Ally Carter seems to have mastered the art of putting us right back into the story, even if it has been a while since the last Gallagher Girl novel (in my case it was even longer than usual because my copy just would not ship and I had to cancel and re-order it). Also, in the case of Out of Sight, Out of Time, there is probably no smooth way to bring us into the story. After all, Cammie has lost her memory!

Ally Carter brings us to a number of settings outside of the school in this installment and while they are mere backdrops, the feeling is always different. The nunery in the Alps feels different from the Italian streets we walk on, and we revisit many old acquaintances from previous books - and there is even a big surprise in it for everyone! In fact, there's even more than one surprise. But you have to read Out of Sight, Out of Time yourself, to find out. I'm not giving anything away here.

Out of Sight, Out of Time is another wonderful installment in a series that shows girls that they can do it too! They do not need men to fight the bad people and they are not less intelligent, a sentiment that is still prevalent in some areas. The language at times may not be suitable for girls under 11 years old (but realistically, chances are they heard it all before).

Rating:
4.5/5

FTC: I bought this book with my own money.