Friday Finds

Here are two books I discovered while browsing at the library:

The Best of Everything by Kimberla Lawson Roby
What Doesn't Kill You by Virginia DeBerry and Donna Grant

Waiting on Wednesday

Title: Easy on the Eyes
Author: Jane Porter
ISBN-10: 044650940X
Release Date: July 22, 2009

From Amazon:

At 38, Tiana Tomlinson has made it. America adores her as one of the anchors of America Tonight, a top-rated nightly entertainment and news program. But even with the trappings that come with her elite lifestyle, she feels empty. Tina desperately misses her late husband Keith, who died several years before. And in a business that thrives on youth, Tina is getting the message that her age is starting to show and certain measures must be taken if she wants to remain in the spotlight. It doesn't help that at every turn she has to deal with her adversary--the devilishly handsome, plastic surgeon to the stars, Michael Sullivan. But a trip away from the Hollywood madness has consequences that could affect the rest of her life.

Shopaholic & Baby by Sophie Kinsella

Title: Shopaholic & Baby
Author: Sophie Kinsella
Series: Shopaholic #5
ISBN-10: 0385338716
Pages: 358
Year Published: 2007
Genre: Chick Lit
Date Finished: January 25

I started reading the Shopaholic series in 2004. I loved the first book, Confessions of a Shopaholic and immediately jumped into Shopaholic Takes Manhattan, which is still my favorite of the series. It's filled with humorous situations, however it takes a real look on the consequences of impulsive shopping. I read books 3 and 4, but when Shopaholic & Baby was released, I started it and then put it down.

Fast forward to 2009. It's two years later and I've finally picked this up again to read. I decided to listen to the audio book and the narrator, Rosalyn Landor, did a fantastic job of bringing the characters to life. Becky and her husband, Luke, are expecting their first child. Always wanting to have the latest "in" thing, Becky convinces Luke they must have Dr. Venetia Carter as their OB-GYN as she is also the physician to the celebrities. During their initial visit, Becky learns that Dr. Carter and Luke are former school mates and previously dated! Becky is stunned by the news and gradually begins to feel insecure about herself and her marriage.

True to the series, Ms. Kinsella fills the pages with humor as we read about the predicaments Becky finds herself in. Having doubts about her marriage, Becky hires a private detective, only what he discovers is not what she asked for. Becky learns that things are not always what they seem.

So is it a girl or boy? I guess you'll have to read Shopaholic & Baby to find out!

Tuesday Teasers

Tuesday Teasers asks you to:

• Grab your current read.
• Let the book fall open to a random page.
• Share with us two (2) "teaser" sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.
• You also need to share the title of the book that you're getting your "teaser" from...that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you've given!
• Please avoid spoilers.

My teaser sentences are:

"They had only seen me once during what was now known in my mind as the 'great hospital debacle,' an event that occurred when I had stopped in to visit Crawford while he was recuperating from a stabbing incident. While there, I introduced myself to his wife-a wife I didn't know he had."
(p. 17)

~Extracurricular Activities by Maggie Barbieri~

What's on Your Nightstand?

I recently discovered this monthly meme hosted by Jennifer of 5 Minutes for Books. Each month, she asks that we :

• Write a post on your own blog (or leave us a comment here if you're blogless) and tell us a little about what is on your nightstand.
• You could give a mini-review of a book that you're currently reading or just recently finished.
• You can also use it as a goal-setting exercise. Which books do you plan to read this month.
• As always, if you want to share the hows and whys of what you're reading or how it came to be on your nightstand, feel free. We love details!
• Please link back to this page (or our main page) in your post so that your readers can find out more about the carnival.

January has been a month for reading series. I discovered the Pretty Little Liars series by Sara Shepard and read the first 5 books in two weeks. Currently, I am reading Extracurricular Activities by Maggie Barbieri and will follow up with Quick Study, which is the 3rd book in the Alison Bergeron (Murder 101) series.

Earlier in the month, I finished book 9 of the Princess Diaries series, Princess Mia, by Meg Cabot and added my name to the wait list for book 10 (the series finale) Forever Princess at my library. Over the weekend, I finally finished the Shopaholic series. . .which reminds me, I still need to write the review.

Last week I checked out The Black Echo and The Black Ice, books 1 and 2 of the Harry Bosch series by Michael Connelly. I may start this series next because it has been repeatedly recommended to me. Or I may decide to read a book that I own (I did sign up for the Read Your Own Books challenge and committed to 25 books). This particular stack includes Good Luck and Mommy Tracked by Whitney Gaskell, LoveHampton by Sherri Rifkin and Fifteen Minutes of Shame by Lisa Daily. I also committed to reading these books for the TBR Challenge.

We'll see what I decide to read in February. Who knows. . . my list may change by the end of the month. Anyway, what's on your nightstand?

Sunday Salon

Series

The last two weeks, I've spent reading a new series: Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard. It's a young adult mystery series focused on four former best friends receiving threatening messages. Each believes the text messages are from their friend Ali, who went missing during the summer three years ago, but when Ali's body is discovered, they have no idea who is behind this.

I have to admit, I was hooked on this series from the start and glad I was able to read it back-to-back. I can't wait for book 6, Killer, to be released in June. I read the author is planning 8 books total for this series and there are rumors that ABC may turn it into a TV series. Here are the books in order:

1. Pretty Little Liars [review]
   
2. Flawless [review]
   
3. Perfect [review]
   
4. Unbelievable [review]
   
5. Wicked [review]

Earlier this afternoon, I finished listening to Shopaholic and Baby. I'm so glad to finally cross this one off my TBR list. It has been on my list for awhile and is that one book that I've been meaning to read, but just haven't yet. My review will be posted later this week.

January just may be the month for reading series. I listened to Princess Mia earlier in the month, started the Pretty Little Liars series, finished the Shopaholic series and the next two books I plan to read are from the Alison Bergeron series (Murder 101 Mystery): Extracurricular Activities and Quick Study. I don't usually read series back-to-back and wonder why I don't. (Last month I read several books from A Flower Shop Mystery series only due to reaching the maximum renewal limit at my library.) I have no problem spending a weekend catching up on an entire season of a TV show on DVD, so what makes reading a series back-to-back any different? Honestly, I can't see any differences. Just something for me to keep in mind, I guess. Having said that, I do want to start reading Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch series soon, as it has been repeatedly recommended to me. Actually there are numerous series I just discovered while browsing at Borders and the library that I've noted and added to my TBR list. And not to mention, there are a few that I would like to finish reading this year as well.

What about you? Do you enjoy reading series? If so, are you always looking for a new series to start?

Wicked by Sara Shepard

Title: Wicked
Author: Sara Shepard
Series: Pretty Little Liars #5
ISBN-13: 9780061566073
Pages: 310
Year Published: 2008
Genre: Young Adult (Mystery)
Date Finished: January 25

From the dust jacket: In idyllic Rosewood, Pennsylvania, where Burberry earmuffs keep diamond-studded ears warm, four very pretty girls have done some very wicked things. . .

High school juniors Hanna, Spencer, Emily, and Aria have paid dearly for their sins. A stalker named "A" terrorized them for months and revealed their darkest secrets. But now that A's true identity has been revealed, the girls can finally go back to their pretty little lives.

Only, once a pretty little liar, always a pretty little liar—and these girls just can't help but be bad. Hanna will do anything to be Rosewood's queen bee. Spencer's digging up her family's secrets. Emily can't stop thinking about her new boyfriend. And Aria approves a little too strongly of her mom's taste in men.

As the secrets get darker and the scandals juicier, the consequences turn deadly. After all, girls who forget the past are condemned to repeat it. And in Rosewood, someone is always watching. . .

My review: I finished reading Unbelievable yesterday and immediately started Wicked. At the end of Unbelievable, we learned "A's" identity and someone was arrested for Ali's murder. At the beginning of Wicked, it's a few months later and the trial for Ali's murder is set to begin. Spencer, Hanna, Emily and Aria will testify against the defendant, hoping to finally bring this tragedy to an end. Unexpectedly, the accused murderer is released on bail due to a family emergency until the trial's start date. Everyone is stunned after hearing this, especially the four former best friends. Moments later, each girl receives another text from "A". Not sure whether or not to take it seriously (after all we already know who "A" is) or not, the girls shrugged it off thinking someone is just playing with their minds. Until they each start to receive more texts and soon realize that "A" is back. This time, it's a "new A" and this "A" seems more deadlier than the first.

Wicked takes the reader back in time to show the events that led up to Ali choosing Emily, Aria, Hanna and Spencer as her new best friends. The four girls were thrilled to belong to Ali's new clique, but each will learn that there was a price to pay. As each girl tries to accept "A's" identity, Ali's murder trial and letting go of their past friendship with Ali, each realizes that it's not easy to bury the past. Especially when someone is trying very hard to not allow them to forget.

Like the four previous books, Wicked ends with a cliffhanger. I've been reading this series back-to-back for the last two weeks and I have to admit, I cannot wait for book 6: Killer. The only problem is, it's not released until June!

Unbelievable by Sara Shepard

Title: Unbelievable
Author: Sara Shepard
Series: Pretty Little Liars #4
ISBN-13: 9780060887414
Pages: 335
Year Published: 2008
Genre: Young Adult (Mystery)
Date Finished: January 24

From the back cover: Four pretty little liars' charmed lives have turned into living nightmares. Emily's been shipped off to Iowa to live with her überconservative cousins. Aria's boyfriend is behind bars—because of her. Spencer's afraid she was involved in Ali's murder. But Hanna's fate is far worse: She's clinging to life in the hospital because she knew too much. If these girls don't start listening to me, Hanna's ging to look like the lucky one. ~A

First sentence: Ever wish you could go back in time and undo your mistakes?

My review: Unbelievable picks up where Perfect left off: moments after Hanna's accident. While her friends and family pace the hospital's waiting room to learn Hanna's fate, "A" continues to threaten each girl. Emily is sent to live with her cousins after her parents learn she kissed the new girl, Maya. Little does Emily (or her parents) know that her cousins aren't so innocent and have issues of their own. Meanwhile, Aria is trying to cope with her parents' imminent divorce. Just recently broken up with her boyfriend, Sean, Aria has no place to live. She's forced into moving in with her father and his mistress and isn't thrilled to hear their latest news. Spencer is up for the Golden Orchid award. . . something she has always dreamed about. The only problem is she plagiarized her sister's paper. When she learns she made the finals, will she come clean and confession or will "A" out her? Hanna is in the hospital recovering from her accident. She doesn't remember the events of that fateful evening, although pieces of memories flood her mind.

Unbelievable finally reveals "A's" identity and the motive behind the threats and texts. As each girl begins to remember their past friendship with Ali, each slowly realizes that Ali just wasn't the sweet, innocent girl everyone loved. Ali kept secrets of her own. . . secrets that could have killed her.

I figured out "A's" identity after reading book 2: Flawless, however after reading the last chapter in Unbelievable, I just can't help but to wonder is there more to "A" and these four former best friends. I mean, the series isn't finished yet. . .

Tuesday Teasers

Tuesday Teasers asks you to:

• Grab your current read.
• Let the book fall open to a random page.
• Share with us two (2) "teaser" sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.
• You also need to share the title of the book that you're getting your "teaser" from...that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you've given!
• Please avoid spoilers.

My teaser sentences are:

"And four former best friends would do anything to travel back in time and make things right. But what if they really could go back? Would they be able to keep their fifth best friend alive. . .or is her tragedy part of their destiny?" (Prologue)

~Unbelievable by Sara Shepard~

Ok, so it's more than 2 sentences. I wanted to include the last sentence.

Musing Mondays

Reading while sick. . .

How does your being sick (or injured) affect your reading?  Do you read more?  Less?  Do you pick out a different book than you had already planned?  Do you have a "comfort book" that makes you feel better?

When I'm sick I do read. . . a lot.  I remember a few years ago, I was really sick and missed a week of work.  I spent most of that time reading.  I read eight books that week!  One of the books I read was The Shining by Stephen King.  I've always wanted to read it and I had just checked it out from the library a few days before.  Although I really liked the book, looking back I don't think it was the best choice to read while sick.  I wasn't able to sleep at night from all my coughing and, not to mention, having the book's scenes flashing in my mind didn't help either!

I don't spend a lot of time in bed when I'm sick.  I'm usually on my couch, so because I do most of reading on my couch, it's out of habit that I will pick up a book and start to read.  I don't have a comfort book to read while sick.  I just read my current book and when I'm finished I will read whatever I have on my night stand or what I've checked out from the library.

Perfect by Sara Shepard

Title: Perfect
Author: Sara Shepard
Series: Pretty Little Liars #3
ISBN-13: 9780060887384
Pages: 298
Year Published: 2007
Genre: Young Adult (Mystery)
Date Finished: January 18

From the back cover: In Rosewood, Pennsylvania, four perfect-looking girls aren't nearly as perfect as they seem. Aria can't resist her forbidden ex. Hanna is on the verge of losing her BFF. Emily is freaking out over a simple kiss. And Spencer can't keep her hands off anything that belongs to her sister. Lucky me. I know these pretty little liars better than they know themselves. But it's hard keeping all of their secrets to myself. they better do as I say. . . or else! ~A

First sentence: Have you ever had a friend turn on you?

My thoughts: Hanna, Spencer, Aria and Emily are still dealing with Ali's murder investigation. Someone leaked a home video of the five girls together days before Ali went missing and the media can't stop playing it. Repeatedly watching the video makes each girl wonder if they really did know Ali at all. Spencer sums it up by saying:

"Being Ali's friend was great, but we had to make a lot of sacrifices. We went through a lot together, and some of it wasn't good. It was like, 'We go through all this for you, and you repay us by ditching us?'" (p. 153)

As each girl struggles to deal with "A's" threats, "A" begins to up the ante. "A" is now sending texts and leaving messages to the people in their lives exposing their secrets. As each girl is on the verge of losing it all, one of them desperately tries to remember the night Ali went missing. Is it possible she's responsible for Ali's death? "A" makes one little mistake and one of the four friends realizes "A's" identity. Before she can tell the others, she's mysteriously involved in an accident. Will she survive to reveal "A's" identity? Or will "A" have to take drastic measures to fix his/her mistake?

Perfect, so far, is my favorite in the series. The author does a great job of showing how each girl is struggling to maintain her sanity and keep her life intact while dealing with "A's" threats. I didn't see the end coming and I can't wait to start Unbelievable to see what happens next.

Waiting on Wednesday

Title: While My Sister Sleeps
Author: Barbara Delinsky
ISBN: 9780385524926
Release Date: February 17, 2009

From Barnes and Noble:

Following the success of The Secret Between Us, a book the Boston Globe hailed as “one of her best,” Barbara Delinsky returns with another moving and deeply satisfying novel, this one about the unique and emotionally complex world of siblings.

Molly and Robin Snow are sisters, and like all sisters they share a deep bond that sustains them through good times and bad. Their careers are flourishing—Molly is a horticulturist and Robin is a world-class runner—and they are in the prime of their lives. So when Molly receives the news that Robin has suffered a massive heart attack, she couldn’t be more shocked. At the hospital, the Snow family receives a grim prognosis: Robin may never regain consciousness.

As Robin’s parents and siblings struggle to cope, the complex nature of their relationship is put to the ultimate test. Molly has always lived in Robin’s shadow and her feelings for her have run the gamut, from love to resentment and back. The last time they spoke, they argued. But now there is so much more at stake. Molly’s parents fold under the devastating circumstances, and her brother retreats into the cool reserve that is shattering his own family. It’s up to Molly to make the tough decisions, and she soon makes discoveries that destroy some of her most cherished beliefs about the sister she thought she knew.

Once again New York Times bestselling author Barbara Delinsky brings us a masterful family portrait, filled with thought-provoking ideas about the nature of life itself, how emotions affect the decisions we make, and how letting go can be the hardest thing to do andthe greatest expression of love all at the same time.

Library Loot: January 14-20

Eva and Alessandra are co-hosting this weekly event. Each week, they ask us to post about our visits at library and what we checked out while there. This week I started a new series by Sara Shepard called Pretty Little Liars. I finished books 1 and 2, so I decided to check out the rest of the series.

Flawless by Sara Shepard

Title: Flawless
Author: Sara Shepard
Series: Pretty Little Liars #2
ISBN-13: 9780060887353
Pages: 330
Year Published: 2007
Genre: Young Adult (Mystery)
Date Finished: January 13

Flawless immediately begins where Pretty Little Liars ends: the afternoon of Ali's funeral service. Aria, Spencer, Emily and Hanna are still stunned that their former friend's body was found. The police have reopened the case and now consider it as homicide. Each girl admits to receiving texts and e-mails from "A" and agree to disclose if any more are received. All four have secrets that they have kept from each other and the only other person who knows is Ali. Now Ali is dead and that leaves no explanation for how "A" knows all about these secrets.

Flawless goes more in depth with each character and her back story. Spencer constantly feels inferior to her older sister, Melissa. When Melissa catches Spencer with her boyfriend, her parents shun her and barely speak to her. They are nonchalant about Ali's death and hardly acknowledge Spencer's grief. Feeling ousted by her family, Spencer resumes her relationship with Wren and soon her perfect facade begins to crack. Spencer also feels guilty about what really happened the night the Jenna thing occurred, but remains silent. Her silence may eventually put her friends in harm's way.

Hanna is desperately trying to hold it together. She no longer feels like the "confident, popular" Hanna, but more like the "insecure, overweight " Hanna of years ago. Hanna continues to make poor decisions and tries to live with the consequences. Her dad is back in her life, but he comes with his soon-to-be bride and Hanna's nemesis, step-sister Kate.

Emily is trying to understand her feelings for the new girl, Maya. She begins to avoid Maya and soon finds herself on a date with someone she never considered dating potential. She's also dealing with her ex-boyfriend's hatred after he caught Emily kissing Maya.

Aria is trying to get over her feelings for her teacher. She finds a new love interest, but isn't quite sure what to expect. In the meantime, she's also carrying the burden of the real reason why her dad moved her family to Iceland and realized the problem hasn't gone away at all.

So, you think each girl has enough to deal with, right? Well, apparently "A" doesn't think so. "A" not only continues to send texts and e-mails, no, he/she has upped the ante and begins leaving notes on their car windshields, in their textbooks and at school. "A" is carrying out his/her threats and forces the girls to do the unspeakable to protect their secrets.

Honestly, I can't believe how much I like this series! It's very quick reading and the more I learn about each girl and their secret, the more I want to know "A's" identity. I've narrowed it down to two people, so we'll see if I'm right. "A" definitely turned up the heat at the end of Flawless, so I can't wait to see what happens in book 3, Perfect.

Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard

Title: Pretty Little Liars
Author: Sara Shepard
Series: Pretty Little Liars #1
ISBN-13: 9780060887322
Pages: 286
Year Published: 2006
Genre: Young Adult (Mystery)
Date Finished: January 11

From the back cover: Everyone has something to hide-especially high school juniors Spencer, Aria, Emily and Hanna. Spencer covets her sister's boyfriend. Aria's fantasizing about her English teacher. Emily's crushing on the new girl at school. Hanna uses some ugly tricks to stay beautiful. But they've all kept an even bigger secret since their friend Alison vanished. How do I know? Because I know everything about the bad girls they were, the naughty girls they are, and all the dirty secrets they've kept. And guess what? I'm telling.

My thoughts: Imagine you are BFF with the most popular girl in school. Everyone else wants to be you. Of course you love the power you have that so many people are envious of you, but secretly you truly wonder if being her BFF is a blessing or a curse. Now imagine it's the start of the summer between seventh and eighth grade and you and your BFF are celebrating by having your annual summer sleepover. Things don't go quite as planned and the two of you end up fighting and she walks out of your house. The very next morning you hear from her mom and you just know something terrible has happened. Suddenly days turn into weeks and before you know it the summer has ended, school has started and still no word from your BFF. She just simply disappeared off the face of the earth. Although you do not wish her any harm, you have to admit, there's a part of you that's relieved that she's gone. You start to feel freer and less burdened because all the secrets she knows about you, have vanished along with her. Horrible to think, some might say, but if they knew what she knew about you, they might feel exactly the same.

This is how it is for Aria, Spencer, Hanna and Emily. Alison, Ali, disappears during their slumber party. After her disappearance, the four friends gradually drift apart until no one can even recall they were once friends. It's now three years later and the teens are about to start their junior year. Spencer is very anal, in competition with her older sister about everything (and a certain someone); Hanna is now the new "it" girl, but carries a terrible secret about her drastic makeover; Aria is back from Iceland with her family and has a crush on a new boy, unfortunately she just found out he's her new English teacher; and Emily is the all-american good girl doing what she can to please her parents, that is until she meets Maya...

All four have secrets, secrets that they want to stay buried. Secrets that only one other person knows about: Ali. During the first week of school, each start to receive texts about their secrets, threatening to expose them. Each text is simply signed "A" and naturally the girls think Ali is back. But is she? Not only does "A" haunt them with their past, "A" knows what they are hiding now. It's as though each girl is being watched.

I really enjoyed this first book of the series and devoured it in one sitting. It's fast-paced, with short chapters and you just want to keep reading to learn more about what each girl is hiding. The story goes back and forth between past and present, but it's not confusing at all. After each girl receives a text, the author will go back to the past to explain its relevancy. Actually, I thought it added to the suspense.

Although this is a young adult novel, I have reservations about preteens reading it. There are mature themes discussed in the book and if younger children read it, I suggest the parents read it as well and have a conversation about these topics.

Sunday Salon

After a slow reading start, I think I'm back into my groove of reading. This week I finished Time of My Life by Allison Winn Scotch (review), Princess Mia by Meg Cabot (review) and The Pre-Nup by Beth Kendrick (review). I'm currently reading Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard. I started reading it today and I'm halfway through. I'm already wondering "A's" true identity and what exactly is this Jenna thing these four former friends are hiding.

I'm also listening to Shopaholic and Baby by Sophie Kinsella. I started this series a long time ago and had every intention to read this series finale when it was first released. . .in 2007. As you can see, that never happened. Thank goodness for audiobooks. I'm about 45 minutes into it (approximately 11 hours total) and Rosalyn Landor does an fantastic job narrating the story. It will probably take me awhile to finish this book; I listen to it only during my daily commute to and from work.

That's it for me. What are you currently reading?

The Pre-Nup by Beth Kendrick

Title: The Pre-Nup
Author: Beth Kendrick
ISBN-10: 0553591509
Genre: Chick Lit
Pages: 290
Date Finished: January 10

First sentence: "Another exciting, exhilarating extravaganza."

Go on, tell me more. Ellie is married to Michael and they appear to be "Ken and Barbie" of Mayfair Estates. Michael works for his parents' real estate company and Ellie is a SAHM for their daughter Hannah. Ellie also volunteers on numerous committees with her mother-in-law Patrice. Ellie thinks she has a solid marriage until she accidentally reads a text message to her husband from his mistress. She's outraged by his betrayal and impulsively declares their marriage is over. Michael begs her to forgive him and informs her the affair is over. They agree to give their marriage a second chance and start marriage counseling. The only problem is, Michael has another agenda in mind.

Jen is married to Eric, her best friend. Which to some may sound "happily ever after", however Jen isn't in love with him. Together they have build a business which Jen uses as an excuse to not spend time with her husband. Eric, meanwhile has a job that demands he travels and spends several weeks at a time away from home. Eric truly loves Jen and believes he loves her enough for the both of them, but is it really enough to make their marriage work?

Mara is engaged to Josh and is currently planning her wedding. She thinks it is wise they sign a pre-nup before saying "I do" and Josh reluctantly agrees. Mara should have been careful for what she wished for because Josh added his own clause in their pre-nup regarding fidelity. Mara had a one-night stand early in their relationship and thought they had moved beyond it. Seems like, Josh hasn't. Exhausted from arguing with Josh about this new clause, she comes up with an idea that will make them even. Again, before careful what you wish for.

The Pre-Nup is a story about what really defines a marriage. Is it really about love? Sacrifice? Comprise? Or is there an element of comfort that no one wants to admit to. What these three friends realize is that marriage is more than signing the pre-nup. It's about what happens after the ink dries and the honeymoon ends.

Have you read any other books by this author? I've read all but one of her books. The last book I have to read is My Favorite Mistake.

Amusing scene from the book: This occurs after Ellie catches her husband cheating.

"The red convertible's alarm had stopped blaring but Ellie triggered it again when she pulled up behind the car and lobbed the vomit-soaked wipes into the driver's seat." (p. 36)

Blog Improvement Project - Week 1

Week 1 - Setting Goals

The 2009 Blog Improvement Project officially started this week. Kim has asked us to think about our goals for our blogs. I have to admit, when I first starting blogging, I had no idea what I was doing. I found a few book blogs and thought I could do that. I wasn't sure how often I would blog or what I would blog about, but I wanted a new project so I decided to give it a try.

Having a blog has really tapped into my creativity (unfortunately it has been sleeping for awhile) and I am enjoying it more so than I thought I would. I do have to say it's very time-consuming, however I am staying organized so it doesn't become a burden.

Now that I've been blogging for little over 6 months, I am starting to envision how I want my blog to be. Here are goals that will help me accomplish this.

Write a review for all books read in 2009. Last year I was very selective with writing reviews. I mostly wrote reviews on fiction and mystery novels. I decided to not review young adult fiction or audiobooks. Having said that, my plan is to post each review within 5 days of finishing the book.

Keeping on this review theme, my reviews will not all follow the same format. I found myself quickly becoming bored with writing the same type of review each time. I brainstormed other ways to add variety and will incorporate these ideas throughout the year. I'm not sure if I will continue using a 1-5 star rating system. I thought about using a letter system instead, but until I make a decision, I will not include ratings as part of my reviews.

Write down ideas for reviews as I am reading. I keep a little notebook nearby to jot down ideas and thoughts that come to me so I won't forget them. It never occurred to me to take notes as I'm reading to help organize my reviews. Often, I think about something to include in my review as I am reading or I read a great quote that's worth mentioning. When it's time for me to start writing, I'm flipping through the pages looking for the quote or trying to remember what I had wanted to say.

Keep current with weekly posts and events. I've joined several weekly events and I want to keep the commitment of posting every week. This may mean I may have to do more scheduled posts.

Redesign my blog. Late last year I started thinking my blog was becoming unorganized so I created two new blogs for my reading challenges and reading journal. Both of these blogs are on Wordpress and I'm contemplating if I want to move this blog there too. In the meantime, I want to think of other uses for my sidebars (which I'm not satisfied with right now).

Leave comments on blogs I visit. I'm very good at visiting blogs, but am horrible about commenting. In addition, I need to start responding to comments that are left on this blog.

So, that's it. These are my blog goals for 2009.

Library Loot

Eva and Alessandra are co-hosting this weekly event. Each week, they ask us to post about our visits at library and what we checked out while there. I love the library, so this is perfect for me. Actually, it could not have come at a better time. As I mentioned before, I'm trying to limit how many books I have checked out at a time. Right now, I'm weeding through my stack and deciding which to return. Here are the books that I plan to keep:

Row 1:

• The Pre-Nup by Beth Kendrick
• Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard
• Extracurricular Activities by Maggie Barbieri

Row 2:

• Flawless by Sara Shepard
• Shoots to Kill by Kate Collins
• I Know It's Over by C.K. Kelly Martin
  

Friday Finds

Title: Private
Author: Kate Brian
Series: Private #1
ISBN: 1416918736
Genre: Young Adult

I discovered this book while browsing book blogs. Melody wrote a great review and I immediately added it to my TBR list. I went to Border's after work this evening and I decided to purchase the book. I had $5 off coupon on a $5 or more purchase, so I paid $3.99. Not bad. . . can't remember the last time I paid $3.99 for a book. Perhaps in the '80s?

Princess Mia by Meg Cabot

Title: Princess Mia
Author: Meg Cabot
Series: The Princess Diaries v. 9
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
ISBN: 9780060724610
Date Finished: January 8
Pages: 274

What led me to read this book? I started reading this series last year for the Young Adult Challenge. At that time, I didn't think I would read the entire series. . . then I discovered the audio books read by Clea Lewis and was immediately hooked. Ms. Lewis does a fantastic job of bringing the characters to life.

So, what's it about? Princess Mia immediately begins where volume 8, Princess on the Brink, leaves off. Mia is obsessed with hearing back from Michael, her one true love, as he just left NYC for a year in Japan. Mia said (and did) harsh things to him before he left and she wanted to take it all back and try to make their relationship work. He finally contacts her, only to tell her the dreaded words no woman wants to hear: "Maybe we should just be friends." Mia is devastated by this and begins a downward spiral.

Her parents are concerned for her and make an appointment (against her will) to see a therapist. Not only does she have to deal with the breakup of her first real relationship, her best friend accuses her of stealing her boyfriend and is not speaking to her and someone has created a website to torture her: www.ihatemiathermopolis.com. Just when things start to go from bad to worse, her nemesis wants to be friends with her. Are her intentions real or is there a secret agenda?

My thoughts: Overall, I thought Princess Mia was a good installment for the series, however it wasn't my favorite. Mia does a lot of self-reflecting during her therapy sessions. She's starting to understand her role in her friendships (and just maybe not having Lilly as her best friend isn't such a bad thing after all) and realizes that life can still be good after experiencing a loss.

Do you recommend any other books by this author? Well, because this is a young adult novel, I will list other young adult books to read:

• Teen Idol
• How to Be Popular
• Pants on Fire

More about Meg Cabot: The first book I read of hers was The Boy Next Door. I loved it! It was written in e-mails and I thought it was different. Not only does she write for teens, she's also famous for her chick lit books (Queen of Babble Series, The Boy Series) and cozy mysteries (Heather Wells series). If you haven't read anything by her, I think it's time that you did. . . don't you think?

Booking Through Thursday

The Best?

It's a week or two later than you expect, and it may be almost a trite question, but. . .what were your favorite books from 2008?

I posted my favorite reads earlier, so I will paste my response here:

Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult was my favorite read. I started this on January 1st and finished it a few days later. The book centers around the aftermath of a school shooting. Ms. Picoult also provides the history which led the student down the path of deciding to kill several of his classmates. Over the course of this year, I often thought about this book. It was such an emotional read for me and left me with more questions. This may be one that I will read again in the future. Highly recommended.

Here's a list of more of my favorite reads:

• Change of Heart by Jodi Picoult
• Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah
• Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen
• Hold Tight by Harlan Coben
• Keeping Faith by Jodi Picoult
• Love the One You're With by Emily Giffin
• Mrs. Perfect by Jane Porter
• Names My Sisters Call Me by Megan Crane
  
• New Moon by Stephenie Meyer
• Odd Mom Out by Jane Porter
• Perfect Match by Jodi Picoult
• Salem Falls by Jodi Picoult
• The Opposite of Love by Julie Buxbaum
• The Woods by Harlan Coben
• They Did it With Love by Kate Morgenroth
• To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee (re-read)
• Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

Time of My Life - Allison Winn Scotch

Title: Time of My Life
Author: Allison Winn Scotch
Genre: Chick Lit
ISBN: 0307408574
Date Finished: January 7
Pages: 283

From the outside looking in, it appears as though Jillian Westfield has the perfect life. After marrying and moving away from New York City into the suburbs, Jillan and her husband, Henry, have a daughter, Katie, a nice home and Jillian does not have to want for anything.

For Jillian, something is missing. She feels an emptiness inside, that she is uncertain if anything will ever fill it. Then one day while walking with a friend, she learns that her old flame, Jackson, is getting married. Trying to hide her true feelings, Jillian shrugs it off and politely wishes him the best. It's not until Jillian is alone that she allows her true feelings to emerge: what if Jackson was the one who got away? How different would her life be if she and Jackson never broke up and she never met and married Henry? To Jillian's surprise, she travels back in time to have those questions answered.

Time of My Life is a book for those of us who wake up one morning thinking: How did I get here? and There has to be more to my life than just this! Jillian gets the opportunity to attempt to correct those past mistakes and live the life she thinks she wants. As Jillian desperately tries to alter her future by cleaning up her past, she fails to realize that each action will have a consequence. She also comes to understand that no matter how hard she tries to manipulate situations to transform her life into what she wants it to be, events still occur that are out of her control. Jillian realizes running back into the past isn't always the answer. Just maybe, we need to release our past so that we may be able to fully appreciate what we have in front of us.

Waiting on Wednesday

Title: The Neighbor
Author: Lisa Gardner
ISBN: 0553807234
Release Date: June 23, 2009

From the author's website:

This is what happened…

It was a case guaranteed to spark a media feeding frenzy—a young mother, blond and pretty, disappears without a trace from her South Boston home, leaving behind her four-year-old daughter as the only witness and her handsome, secretive husband as the prime suspect.

In the last six hours…

But from the moment Detective Sergeant D. D. Warren arrives at the Joneses’ snug little bungalow, she senses something off about the picture of wholesome normality the couple worked so hard to create. On the surface, Jason and Sandra Jones are like any other hardworking young couple raising a four-year-old child. But it is just under the surface that things grew murkier.

Of the world as I knew it….

With the clock ticking on the life of a missing woman and the media firestorm building, Jason Jones seems more intent on destroying evidence and isolating his daughter than on searching for his “beloved” wife. Is the perfect husband trying to hide his guilt—or just trying to hide? And will the only witness to the crime be the killer’s next victim?

Tuesday Teasers

Tuesday Teasers asks you to:

• Grab your current read.
• Let the book fall open to a random page.
• Share with us two (2) "teaser" sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.
• You also need to share the title of the book that you're getting your "teaser" from...that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you've given!
• Please avoid spoilers.

My teaser sentences are:

"I wonder if I really can do it all over again; if this time, I can do it right, and if so, what that might mean for my old past and thus, for my new future." (p. 37)

~Time of My Life by Allison Winn Scotch~

Musing Mondays

Library Books

Do you have a system for borrowing out books from the library? Do you know what you're going to borrow before you get there? How often do you borrow out books?

I usually go to the library at least once a week, sometimes more. Most of the books I read are library books. I tend to check out more than I can possibly read in a 3-week period, so I'm constantly renewing books until I reach the renewal limit. I often take books back unread. I'm working on limiting myself to the number of books I can have checked out at a given time.

For the most part I do know what I will check out. I either have holds to pick up or I checked online, prior to going, to see if the library has a specific book on the shelf. I generally have an idea of what I'm looking for. Having said that, I also spend time browsing and will find more books to check out. I rarely leave empty handed.

Sunday Salon

Hmmm. . . what shall I read first?

Days leading to 2009 I spent debating which book to read first. My choices were Time of My Life by Allison Winn Scotch or The Host by Stephenie Meyer. My next thought was: maybe I should just read something else. I don't know why I make such a big deal about which book to read at the start of each year. May be it sets the tone for the rest of the year, who knows. What I do know is I just want to read a really good book. After several days of debating and no reading, I finally made my decision: Time of My Life. I love the cover--it's very cute and wintery (not to mention the colors are pink and green, my sorority colors) and I've read great reviews about this book. It sounds like a fun book to start the year with. I like that the book deals with the "what if" question. Actually, isn't that what we think about in the new year with resolutions? "If only I did this, then may be my life would be better..." "If I didn't make that decision, then may be I wouldn't be on this path leading me away from my dreams..." Aren't resolutions ways to learn from and correct (if we can) our past mistakes?

Moving on to The Host. Numerous people have told me that if I like the Twilight series, then I would love The Host. On the flip side, numerous people have told me if I liked Twilight, then I would be extremely disappointed with The Host. Um... okay.... So I decided to keep both in mind and just read it with an open mind. When I read the book description, it didn't appear to me that they can be compared, but maybe I'm missing something because I haven't read The Host yet and I'm not sure what exactly they are comparing (Ms. Meyer's style of writing, characters, plot, etc.) Anyway, I think I may hold off reading this one for a bit. I'm waiting for the Chunkster Challenge to start so I can include this book to my list.

I'm not sure where my reading will take me after I finish Time of My Life. I may start reading a new-to-me young adult series or continue reading books I've purchased, but yet to read. One of the reasons I find it difficult to read books I've purchased is that I'm reading more library books. I absolutely love going to the library!! The problem with that is I find myself checking out more books than I can possibly read in a 3-week period. So, I renew and renew until I reach my renewal limit and often take back books unread. So, I ask you (well, okay... may be I should be asking myself this question...) why do I put myself through this? Honestly, there's no answer...

My main project (I no longer do resolutions; I do projects. I respond better to projects.) for 2009 is to get organized! I really need to let go of unused items, clean out drawers, my closets, throw out clutter, etc. I need to release those things that I am allowing to trap me. I now see that continuing to check out more library books than I can read is producing unnecessary stress. I will admit it... I have no discipline with this, so it's time for me to work on it. Maybe I can learn something from Blockbuster: I can only check out so many at a time and when I reach that limit, then that's it. When I return a book, then I can check out another. I know this may sound kind of "structured", but maybe that's what I need. Even as a young girl, I never had a limit placed on me about how many books I can check out. My parents just allowed it. That thinking has spilled over into my adult life. Not that I'm blaming my parents. I just haven't factored in all the responsibilities I have now in my life combined with the amount of time I can read versus what I had then.

Yesterday I returned books and today I plan to sort through more to return tomorrow. Let's see, I need a deadline date to have the books returned by and I need to start thinking, realistically, how many books can I read in a 3-week period. Baby steps, right?

How are you spending your Sunday?

2008 in Review

2008 was a great reading year for me. Here are my stats:

YTD Stats:

• Total books read: 114 (my complete list)
• Pages read: 32,922
• Books read published in 2008: 35

Authors:

• New-to-me Authors: 25
• Total authors read: 48 (37 females; 11 males)
• Author with most books read: Meg Cabot (17 books)

Books:

• Month with most books read: March (17 books)
• Months with least books read: April, September, October (tie with 6 books)
• Month with most pages read: July (3,831 pages)
• Month with least pages read: April (1,940 pages)
• Longest book read: Breaking Dawn (754 pages)
• Shortest book read: If You Give a Mouse a Cookie (28 pages)
• DNF: Wife For Hire by Leslie Lehr
  

Happy 2009

I love the beginning of a new year. It's a fresh start, a clean slate to begin again, to make plans, to dream big. It's chance to release the past and all its mistakes and just move forward. I hope this year will be filled with blessings for each of you.

In December, I began thinking of how I want to continue my blog. Honestly, when I started blogging in June, I had no idea what I doing, let alone the direction I was headed. I was just excited to start this new project and meet new friends. After 6 months of learning, I'm ready to try something new.

The first change I want to make is my book reviews. Lately, I've started to feel bored and trapped by following the same format. So I decided to mix it up some in 2009. I joined the Read & Review Challenge to help me with this. I plan to experiment with my reviews until I find a pattern that I'm comfortable with.

I signed up for the Blog Improvement Project to assist me with my other ideas, so stay tuned for this. I'm excited to see where my blog is headed in 2009. It will be a work in progress, I'm sure, and I'll just enjoy it along the way.

Happy New Year!

Booking Through Thursday

New Year's Resolutions

So … any Reading Resolutions? Say, specific books you plan to read? A plan to read more ____? Anything at all? Name me at least ONE thing you’re looking forward to reading this year!

2008 was a great reading year for me. So hopefully 2009 will be even better. My 4 top goals for the year are:

1. Read 120 books
2. Read 35,000 pages
3. Read 30 new-to-me authors.
4. Read 45 books that are published in 2009.
   

Click here to see all my 2009 goals.

I have many titles that I'm looking forward to reading this year--Handle With Care by Jodi Picoult, Long Lost by Harlan Coben, Basketball Jones by E. Lynn Harris, James Patterson's new releases and Time of My Life by Allison Winn Scotch--but I think what I'm most looking forward to is finding books that are outside of comfort zone. Last year I stepped outside my box and discovered great books and authors and I want to continue this year. I'm also looking forward to catching up on current series and starting new ones.

Finally, I hope to complete the many, many (did I say many?) reading challenges I've signed up for. What are you hoping to accomplish in 2009?