Saturday, February 11, 2012

TBR Intervention (9)


Last Week
I am calling last week a "so-so" success.  I got a lot of reading done (success), but I did not get a lot of the TBR Intervention reading done (fail):

I finished it!  I loved it!  My review is up. 

I am almost done--close enough that I think I will be done by the end of the day.  I love it!!  I have been recommending this book to everyone I know--particularly those with kids 8-13 years old.  Review coming soon.

This is my epic fail--because I have not even started this book.  And with my giveaway--I need to read the books before I give them away!  So this one is going back on my TBR pile for a while.

This Week
My new supervisor has been recommending the Kitty Norville series by Carrie Vaughn.  I read the first one this week--and now I have to read the next one this week (absolutely have to know what happens next!):

Summary (from back cover):
Werewolves Do It Better

The country's only celebrity werewolf, late-night radio host Kitty Norville prefers to be heard, not seen.  But when she's invite to testify at a Senate hearing on behalf of supernaturals, her face gets plastered on national TV.  Kitty's been in hot water before, but jumping into the D.C. underworld brings a new set of problems.  And a new set of friends and enemies, including the vampire mistress of the the city; an uber-hot Brazilian were-jaguar; and a paranoid, Bible-thumping senator who wants to expose Kitty as a monster.  Kitty quickly learns that in this city of dirty politicians and backstabbing pundits, everyone's itching for a fight.

Adam Rex is coming to my favorite local bookstore (changing hands) so I am going to start my giveaway reading with:

Summary (from back cover):
Doug Lee is undead quite by accident--attacked by a desperate vampire, he finds himself cursed with being fat and fifteen forever.  When he has no luck finding some goth chick with a vampire fetish, he resorts to sucking the blood of cows under cover of the night.  But it's just not the same.

Then he meets the new Indian exchange student and falls for her--hard.  Yeah, he wants to bite her, but also wants to prove himself to her.  But like the laws of life, love, and high school, the laws of vampire existence are complicated--it's not as easy as study Dracula.  Especially when the start of Vampire Hunters is hot on your trail in an attempt to boost ratings...

Searing, hilarious, and always unexpected, Fat Vampire is a satirical tour de force from one of the most original writers of fiction today.

I also had a few books I have been waiting for at the library--and of course they have all come at once.  So I have to get them done before they are due.  For this week I am focusing on finishing:

Summary (from inside flap):
Crank. Glass. Ice.  Crystal.  Whatever you call it, it's all the same; a monster.  And once it's got hold of you, this monster will never let you go.

Kristina thinks she can control it.  Now with a baby to care for, she's determined to be the one deciding when and how much, the one calling the shots.  But the monster is too strong, and before she knows it, Kristina is back in its grips.  She needs the monster to keep going, to face the pressures of day-to-day life.  She needs it to feel alive.

Once again the monster takes over Kristina's life and she will do anything for it, including giving up the one person who gives her the unconditional love she craves--her baby.

The sequel to Crank, this is the continuing story of Kristina and her descent back to hell.  Told in verse, it's a harrowing and disturbing look at addiction and the damage that it inflicts.

I read Crank and it affected me--it's hard for me to say that I loved it because it is not a story to love.  But it will always stick with me.  

And of course I have to be listening to a book.  This week I think I am going to focus on listening to: 

Summary (from Amazon):
“Ruby, where is your mother?”

Ruby knows that the game is up. For the past few months, she’s been on her own in the yellow house, managing somehow, knowing that her mother will probably never return.

That’s how she comes to live with Cora, the sister she hasn’t seen in ten years, and Cora’s husband Jamie, whose down-to-earth demeanor makes it hard for Ruby to believe he founded the most popular networking Web site around. A luxurious house, fancy private school, a new wardrobe, the promise of college and a future—it’s a dream come true. So why is Ruby such a reluctant Cinderella, wary and defensive? And why is Nate, the genial boy next door with some secrets of his own, unable to accept the help that Ruby is just learning to give?

It feels like I have been away from Sarah Dessen too long!
 
What books do you plan to read this week?  Have you read the books I am planning?  What did you think?

12 comments:

  1. I love Glass cover! it's really beautiful!
    Good luck with all these books this week!
    Happy reading!!!

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    1. Thank you--I may need that luck! All of Ellen Hopkins books are similar--very understated yet striking! :)

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  2. Good luck with all your reading. Sounds like you will be busy.

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    1. I definitely like to keep busy--and always like to have a book on hand to read. :)

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  3. Kitty series sounds like lots of fun. I'll definitely take a look. Best luck this week with your TBRIC,

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    1. Kitty is wonderful! I love her as a character and I love the world that Carrie has created. :)

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  4. Wow, that's a lot of read books! (and of books to read) I'm glad you enjoyed the Future, and well, Supernaturally will come along at some point, I'm sure :)

    I hope you'll enjoy your challenge this week, and that whatever happens next on the Kitty books is good (I don't really know them yet, but I'm going to look them up)

    Hugs!

    Ron @ Stories of my life

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    1. The Kitty books have been a wonderful paranormal series. I am so glad my friend turned me on to them. :)

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  5. Rock on! I didn't get my challenge book read either, but I did get some books knocked off the TBR nonetheless, which it looks like you did too! I'm very interested in Hopkin's books, having never read one. They look like they'd be gritty, heavy and very thematic. Best of luck this week! :)

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    1. I did get a bunch of books read that I have wanted to read--so that is always a success, right?

      Ellen Hopkins books are gritty but I love them so much. I am not sure I would love them so much if they were not in verse. The poetry draws me in. :)

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  6. you've got lots of books to read and I'm excited for Lock and Key! I haven't read it and so is Glass. But I am curious about your thoughts on Crank. It's intriguing... I've been seeing those books in the bookstore but I'm still hesitant to get them. I don't know but it looks like a long, serious read... hmm...

    You consider your TBRIC a so-so, and I consider mine as an unsuccessful one. *sigh... At least you knocked out a couple of books out of your TBR! That's a win! =P Good luck for this week, and I hope you'll be able to finish your books!

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    1. I am very excited about Lock and Key--I have started it now and it is wonderful. Everything I have come to expect from Sarah Dessen.

      The one thing about Ellen Hopkins books is they are incredibly gritty. I always feel like I am getting an honest representation of the seductive nature of drug addiction and the effects it has on someone's life. Here is link to my review of Crank: http://thebookaddictnet.blogspot.com/2012/01/book-addict-reviews-crank-by-ellen.html
      I will say that with her verse they move very fast. They look huge but they usually do not take me long at all.

      I am hoping to be able to get some more reading done this week. :)

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