Ten About Ten: One

From Goodreads.com

Ten 
by Gretchen McNeil
Expected Publication: 09.18.2012
From Goodreads:

 And their doom comes swiftly.

It was supposed to be the weekend of their lives—an exclusive house party on Henry Island. Best friends Meg and Minnie each have their reasons for being there (which involve T.J., the school’s most eligible bachelor) and look forward to three glorious days of boys, booze and fun-filled luxury.

But what they expect is definitely not what they get, and what starts out as fun turns dark and twisted after the discovery of a DVD with a sinister message: Vengeance is mine.

Suddenly people are dying, and with a storm raging, the teens are cut off from the outside world. No electricity, no phones, no internet, and a ferry that isn’t scheduled to return for two days. As the deaths become more violent and the teens turn on each other, can Meg find the killer before more people die? Or is the killer closer to her than she could ever imagine?

I first read Ten right after I got back from BEA.  It was a book I was very excited about, even more so after meeting the adorable author and getting my book signed.  I thought instead of just doing a review I'd list ten things I loved about Ten by Gretchen McNeil in the next month and a half before it's September 18th release.

From my photo library

#1 of 10 Things I Loved About Ten by Gretchen McNeil:

It's based on Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None*.  But don't expect a complete re-telling.  McNeil has taken it into the world of YA, and brings her own murderous flavor to the story.  Never read a Christie novel? No problem, you'll still enjoy Ten!  Love Agatha Christie and have already read And Then There Were None a dozen times?  No problem, you'll still enjoy Ten!

* Little known fact about And Then There Were None-- not the original title.  The original title is actually very racist, and I'm glad that it was changed.  I'm not going to post the original title of Agatha Christie's novel, because I'm sure ya'll are pretty well versed in Google searches.

Boy's Life Review

From Goodreads

Boy's Life
by Robert McCammon
From Goodreads:

 Zephyr, Alabama, is an idyllic hometown for eleven-year-old Cory Mackenson — a place where monsters swim the river deep and friends are forever. Then, one cold spring morning, Cory and his father witness a car plunge into a lake — and a desperate rescue attempt brings his father face-to-face with a terrible vision of death that will haunt him forever.

As Cory struggles to understand his father's pain, his eyes are slowly opened to the forces of good and evil that are manifested in Zephyr. From an ancient, mystical woman who can hear the dead and bewitch the living, to a violent clan of moonshiners, Cory must confront the secrets that hide in the shadows of his hometown — for his father's sanity and his own life hang in the balance...

This tale of an 11-year-old's struggle between innocence and evil begins with the discovery of a gruesome murder and ends with the revelation that, even in Zephyr, Alabama, life is not safe and simple--and most things and people are not what they seem to be. "Recaptures the magic of being a child in a world of possibilities and promise. . . ."--Atlanta Journal Constitution.

My Thoughts:  This was an amazing read!  This is only my second McCammon book, but his writing just blows me away and I know that he'll have a place amongst my favorite authors of all time. A very, very special thanks to Midnyte Reader who not only got me this book, but got it signed by Robert McCammon himself!  And thanks to Stephen King, who recommended McCammon's book The Five last summer.  I love finding great authors by simply reading what you're favorite authors are reading.

Boy's Life is a coming of age story, but there is so much more involved!  The town of Zephyr still holds a bit of magic for young Cory and his friends, magic they desperately need as a year of bullies, outlaws, ghosts, water creatures, fallen ladies, death, racism, nose picking girl named Demon, nazis, neo-nazis, carnivals, amazing pitcher named Nemo, nightmares, visions and story telling. 

I know, it seems a lot for just one book, but McCammon weaves it all together seamlessly.

It's awful, because I already know that I am not going to do enough justice to this book.  I know that some of you are going to write this book off simply because McCammon's novels fall under the horror category.  But his writing is just amazing!  There were so many lines I was copying down in my little quote book, so many times the book had me laughing, or crying, or just plain scared and worried for Cory and his friends.  I really felt like I was part of the town of Zephyr, like maybe I was Cory's nosy neighbor. 

I was not expecting this book to be so filled with magic, but once I got into the book it became my favorite part.  Some of the magic simply came from a young boy's imagination.  A magic most people put away when they grow up.  But writers don't, and I don't think us rabid readers do either.  I think we still have the touch of magic that we had as kids, and books help us tap into it now and then.

Here's some of my favorite quotes from the book:

 “See, this is my opinion: we all start out knowing magic. We are born with whirlwinds, forest fires, and comets inside us. We are born able to sing to birds and read the clouds and see our destiny in grains of sand. But then we get the magic educated right out of our souls. We get it churched out, spanked out, washed out, and combed out. We get put on the straight and narrow and told to be responsible. Told to act our age. Told to grow up, for God's sake. And you know why we were told that? Because the people doing the telling were afraid of our wildness and youth, and because the magic we knew made them ashamed and sad of what they'd allowed to wither in themselves.”

 “I'd like to be everybody in the world' I said. 'I'd like to live a million times.'
'Well'--and here my father gave one of his sagely nods--'that would be a fine piece of magic, wouldn't it?”

“I had always wondered what Reverend Lovoy meant when he talked about "grace." I understood it now. It was being able to give up something that it broke your heart to lose, and be happy about it.”

  “Maybe crazy is what they call anybody who's got magic in them after they're no longer a child.”

Boy's Life is that kind of book.  It'll help you tap into the magic.

Boy's Life gets a Midnight Book Rating of:

**My copy of Boy's Life was gifted to me by the amazing Midnyte Reader, so all opinion, comment, and snark are completely my own.**

Ali and Ramazan Review

Ali and Ramazan
by Perihan Mağden
Expected Publication: 4.24.12
From Goodreads:

Ali and Ramazan are two boys from very different backgrounds who land in the same Istanbul orphanage. They quickly see eye to eye and fall into a loving relationship as children, bringing light to one another and to the other orphans in their dreary adopted home. Ramazan is a charmer, the school master's favorite (which we later learn is not such a positive thing), the clown among the boys, and the only one with a real handle on things outside the orphanage's walls. He takes Ali under his wing, and by the time they turn eighteen and are loosed onto Istanbul's mean streets, Ali and Ramazan are a pair. What happens next is both tragic and beautiful, a testament to love finding its way even among the least visible citizens on Turkey's mean streets.

My Thoughts: Ali and Ramazan is a much different read from my usual thrillers or YA, but it's a short, powerful story of a true and desperate love that's all consuming and burns almost too bright to last. It's not a happy book, the orphans of Istanbul are not saved by Daddy Warbucks, but Ali and Ramazan do find each other, and change one another. Ali was sweet and loveable, still innocent even after his brutal upbringing, and charming Ramazan is always in control despite the out of control relationship he has with the orphanage "master". 

Once out of the orphanage, the two boys find themselves ill prepared for life outside it's walls. Love doesn't always conquer all, and sometimes we hurt those that we love the most.  Ramazan is a natural survivor, but when the chips are down he turns to the only way he has of making money, putting a wedge between him and Ali.

With it's child prostitution and violence, this book isn't for everyone. I wanted to read outside my comfort zone, and a translated book from Turkey about two boys in love is about as far as I can get from the books I usually review on here. I've read other translated books, from Japanese and  Swedish authors, and it often feels like I have too many books on my tbr list than I have time on earth.  It just blows my mind that I'm missing out on even more great books simply because the author's native language isn't English.  Maybe I'll host a Translated Reading Challenge... Would anyone be interested?

Despite it's sad ending, I couldn't help but think that it was the best (of the worst) ending for Ali and Ramazan.  I'm surprised by how long the characters have stayed with me, and while I don't think I'll ever re-read the book since it was so sad, I'll never need to because this love story will stay with me.  When I was reading it the sadness was what I thought would stay with me,  but the author brought these characters to life for me and I really felt I knew Ali and Ramazan. I'm glad I waited a few weeks before writing this review and I definitely think this is worth a read if it's caught your attention. 


Ali and Ramazan gets a Midnight Book Girl Rating of:

Disclaimer: I requested and received a copy of this book in return for my honest opinion.

And because I actually have the author photo, here is the lovely Perihan Mağden:

 I would love to know what books are on her shelves!

Tales of Terror From The Black Ship Review

Tales of Terror From the Black Ship
by Chris Priestly
From Goodreads:

When Ethan and Cathy fall ill during a storm, their father must leave them to fetch the doctor. . .but they are not alone for long. A sailor comes begging for shelter. So, the children agree to let him sit out the throes of the storm as they listen to his grisly tales. But something about the man puts Ethan on edge, and he is anxious for the storm to blow over, their father to return and the long night to come to an end.  Storms whistling through the sails, evil pirates pacing the floorboards, and of course, a haunted ship of ghostly beings…  All this and more is waiting to give you goose bumps in an atmospheric and thrilling collection of spooky seafaring tales. 

My Thoughts:  I don't really consider myself a fan of pirates, but I really loved the stories of pirates and ships in this book.  The tales are gruesome and morbid, so basically they were tailor made for me. :)  I read Priestly's Uncle Montague's Tales of Terror awhile back and enjoyed it, but this was even better.  It's filled with stories that I hope to read to my kids someday.  Maybe that makes me a bad future parent, but I think it makes me awesome.  My kids aren't going to be afraid of the things that go bump in the night, they will be the things that go bump in the night.

Originally I had purchased this book on my Kindle for last October's Readathon (as I always try to read some "scary" books during that time), but usually my physical book pile is so huge I don't make it to my Kindle.  Plus, it's super hard to update my pages read status since my Kindle works on percentages... and math is not my thing, so no, I cannot convert my percentage to page numbers.  But the point is, I think Priestly's books make good readathon material, each chapter is a short story and I'm always impressed by authors who can craft good short stories.

The illustrations, by David Roberts, brings to mind the drawings of Edward Gorey.   This was definitely a plus for me, and they fit the tales so well.  I don't know if I had a favorite tale or not, but the one with the snails definitely will haunt me for a long time to come.  And for cat lovers, there's a good tale of why it's best not to cross them.  Mostly I liked the children the tales are being told to, especially Cathy.  I can easily imagine my own children demanding gruesome and spine tingling tales as a storm rages around them.  ;)


Tales of Terror From the Black Ship is not for all of you, but if you like the occasional morbid tale, or you're a big fan of pirates, then I would definitely recommend this to you!

Tales of Terror From the Black Ship gets a Midnight Book Rating of:

(because you may have trouble sleeping at night!)

The cover gets a Midnight Book Cover Rating of:

Love the illustrations!

Anna and the French Kiss 
by Stephanie Perkins
From Goodreads:

Anna is looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris - until she meets Etienne St. Clair: perfect, Parisian (and English and American, which makes for a swoon-worthy accent), and utterly irresistible. The only problem is that he's taken, and Anna might be, too, if anything comes of her almost-relationship back home.

As winter melts into spring, will a year of romantic near - misses end with the French kiss Anna - and readers - have long awaited?

My Thoughts: I have to admit, I'm impressed.  I've seen lots of reviews on Anna and the French Kiss (hundreds of them!), and everything I've ever read has been positive.  Plus my some of my best friends have read and loved the book. I bought it months ago, when sadly I benefited off the closing of my local Borders, but it lingered like so many other books on my shelf.  So a few Sundays ago I made up my mind to just read it already. 

I read the first few chapters that day and was immediately happy with it. Anna was easy to empathize with, and the book is just flat out funny.  But then I put the book down.

Are you shaking your head at me?  You should.

In my defense I've had several review books that I've had to read the past two weeks.  So the other day I was just going to read a bit more and finally get past chapter 3, when suddenly I couldn't put the book down.

Needless to say that not a lot other than reading went down in my house, because housework can wait until the people from Hoarders show up and help me clean my house with shovels and stuff. 

Etienne and Anna... sigh.  Paris... sigh. Old movies on the big screen... sigh.  I fell in love. 

Afterwards I kind of cuddled the book... just a little. 

Don't worry, nothing got creased.  I'm a careful reader and cuddler. 

Oh, young love and its misunderstandings.  Please, read this book.  You know you want to!  And don't be put off by how wildly popular it is, because it's not just bunk, it's actually worth the hype.

Anna and the French Kiss gets a Midnight Book Rating of:

The cover gets a Midnight Book Cover Rating of:

It's okay, but it doesn't blow me away.  And where's her stripe?!

Miracle Review

Miracle
by Elizabeth Scott
Expected Publication: 6.05.12
From Goodreads:

 Megan survived the plane crash—but can she survive the aftermath? An intense, emotional novel from the author of The Unwritten Rule and Between Here and Forever.Megan is a miracle. At least, that’s what everyone says. Having survived a plane crash that killed everyone else on board, Megan knows she should be grateful just to be alive. But the truth is, she doesn’t feel like a miracle. In fact, she doesn’t feel anything at all. Then memories from the crash start coming back.      Scared and alone, Megan doesn’t know whom to turn to. Her entire community seems unable—or maybe unwilling—to see her as anything but Miracle Megan. Everyone except for Joe, the beautiful boy next door with a tragic past and secrets of his own. All Megan wants is for her life to get back to normal, but the harder she tries to live up to everyone’s expectations, the worse she feels. And this time, she may be falling too fast to be saved....

My Thoughts:  I've only read Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott so I haven't read her happier YA books.  I like her darker themes, and I'm a bit surprised I haven't read Grace yet, but I'm pretty sure I have it somewhere on my Kindle.  She writes about real teens in uncomfortable situations, and Megan is certainly in one as the main character of Miracle.

I found it easy to identify with Megan, how apathetic she felt towards her life after surviving the plane crash that she can't even remember.  How everyone stopped seeing her as Megan, and more as some miraculous being.  Her connection with Joe, who is also associated with events in his life rather than for anything he's ever done, felt true.  Although my favorite part of the book was Megan's friendship with Margaret, and that they both really began to see one another.  Margaret knew exactly what Megan needed, saw the trouble and despair that Megan's parents pretended not to see.

I really wish Scott had delved into Margaret's past in Vietnam, because I was interested in her character.  It's great to have a positive lesbian character in Miracle, but I just wanted her role to be a bit bigger. The fact that Margaret and her deceased partner were a devoted gay couple was not glossed over considering the small town they live in, but it's also not blown out of proportion.  Margaret's character was not a stereotype, or a token character.  I found her very compelling and would be happy to read a book about her time in Viet Nam.

There were some misses for me.  In part it's because the book is short and told from Megan's pov, we only get information as she decides to parcel it out.  I felt, at least with Joe and Megan's little brother, that certain things were too slow to be revealed, like how Joe's sister died and what was wrong with her younger brother when he was a kid.  Of course, I guess that shows how into the book I was, that I was impatient to get more information.  But it was also a bit frustrating at times.

I also had a hard time with Megan's parents.  I understood how devastating it must have been to be told your child was dead, only to be presented with a living daughter at the hospital.  It would be a miracle, and I understand their attitude toward her in the book.  But I had a struggle with their new treatment of their young son.  I think it would have been more believable if they'd continued to be overly concerned for both their children.  But that's just a minor complaint. Teensy, really.

I will definitely be reading more by Elizabeth Scott.  I find the subjects she tend to pick for her books to interesting, the books are always quick page turners (I read Living Dead Girl in one sitting at Barnes and Noble), and she always leaved me wanting just a bit more.

Miracle gets a Midnight Book Rating of:

The cover gets a Midnight Book Rating of:

 I think it does a great job of conveying how alone Megan feels, although the girl in the picture seems a bit younger than Megan.

**Disclaimer- I briefly received the ARC of this book through Around the World ARC Tours in exchange for my honest opinion.

 

Masque of the Red Death Review

Masque of the Red Death
by Bethany Griffin
Expected Publication: 4.24.12
From Goodreads:

Everything is in ruins.

A devastating plague has decimated the population. And those who are left live in fear of catching it as the city crumbles to pieces around them.

So what does Araby Worth have to live for?

Nights in the Debauchery Club, beautiful dresses, glittery make-up . . . and tantalizing ways to forget it all.

But in the depths of the club—in the depths of her own despair—Araby will find more than oblivion. She will find Will, the terribly handsome proprietor of the club. And Elliott, the wickedly smart aristocrat. Neither boy is what he seems. Both have secrets. Everyone does.

And Araby may find something not just to live for, but to fight for—no matter what it costs her.

My Thoughts:  I was so excited when I read the summary for this book!  I have no idea why, other than the fact that I am a morbid midnight book girl, but I have an intense interest in plagues.  Weird, right?  And like a good horror fan, I dig all things Poe.  So a YA book that updates a Poe story?  I am so with that.

This is not just a simple retelling of a Poe story, this is Poe meets Moulin Rouge meets sci fi.  Everything is decadence and decay, with a bit of steam punk thrown in. I'm not sure this is 100% steam punk, but there's air ships and steam carriages and balloons. And there's a parasol on the cover, which is pretty much all I know to look for in the steam punk genre.  I imagine some readers will have issues with the time/period setting, since it's kind of a mish mash of the past and the present, but I think it works in this story.  Plus, I don't read for realism, I read to get out of my head and into a new world.  Masque of the Red Death definitely feels both familiar and alien, which I liked.

Araby is the daughter of a very important scientist, one who has helped keep the plague at bay- at least for those that shadowy Prince Prospero wants kept alive, but most of what defines her throughout the book is that she is the former sister of dead twin brother Finn.  Because she feels guilt over his death, Araby is all about denying herself happiness, and is careful not to experience anything that Finn never got a chance to do.

This does not apply to drugs though.  Araby does drugs to numb herself, even as she dresses in skimpy clothes (the idea is to show your arms and legs as much as possible to prove you aren't diseased) and gorgeous corsets and lounges around the most popular club in the Debauchery District. Honestly, the drug use was probably the only part of the book that I didn't really enjoy, but I do think it adds to the overall decadent tone that Araby sets in the beginning. It doesn't feel like it's advocating drug use, but it also doesn't seem like there's a whole lot of consequences for all the drug use going on either.

Everyone, and by everyone I mean the rich people, wear masks constantly to protect them from the plague.  Imagine a society where your nose and mouth are always covered, it would be hard not to feel detached from each other.  Of course, I'd be fine since my eyes are my best feature.  But it'd be weird to not be able to see people's mouths and things like sneezing are never addressed. I think the masks add to the mystery and isolation that surrounds the characters.  Her mask helps numb Araby to the world around her.

But things happen, and suddenly Araby begins to not feel so numb.

And of course that's partly due to the new boys in her life.  Because what's a YA novel without some yummy boys?

First there's poor, but sexy and tattooed Will.  They start of strong and sexy because he's the one that checks the ladies coming into the club, so there's lots of lingering caresses and whispers. Will's also raising his two adorable moppet siblings. Who can resist a sexy guy that's also in touch with his nurturing side?

Then there's Elliot.  He's the older brother of Araby's bff April.  I didn't know what to think about him at first, because it seemed clear to me that Will was the main love interest, but I have to say Elliot won me over.  He's a bit broken, a bit radical, but the passion that he feels towards wanting to end his uncle's control over the city and his crusade to get masks to the poor is kind of attractive.  He and Araby have a slow burn, compared to the white hot flash that she and Will have, so I'm a bit torn. Towards the end of the book I was kind of over Will.  I mean, I wished him well, but I felt like I might want to board the Team Elliot band wagon.  We'll see.

Overall this was a fast paced read for me.  I wasn't sure I liked Araby in the beginning.  First there's her name, which conjures up the old song The Sheik of Araby in my head which plays over and over again anytime her name is mentioned.  In fact, it's playing right now.  This probably won't be a problem for most of the readers since not a whole lot of people under the age of 70 even know it.  But I also had a problem with her drug use.  I'm just not a fan, and I thought it was at odds with her pledge to not experience anything her twin wasn't around to enjoy.  But once Araby started to get over herself, and her own loss, and began to really care about people and events going on around her, I was able to connect with her. 

I didn't sit down and read this book in one sitting, but it's the kind of book you can devour.  There's a lot of action, not just feelings and pretty dresses.  Araby, Will and Elliot don't just sit around, sighing and looking attractive.  They are all balancing on a very thin wire, one constantly shaken by death and danger.  So while there is a love triangle, there's also a real plot underneath it. 

Masque of the Red Death gets a Midnight Book Rating of:

The cover gets a Midnight Book Cover Rating of:

I love it!  I'd seriously buy this book summary unseen just based on title and cover art.

Disclaimer: I briefly received a copy of this book for review as part of an ARC tour in exchange for my honest opinion.

What My Best Friend Did Review

What My Best Friend Did
by Lucy Dawson
From Goodreads:

From Lucy Dawson, author of "His Other Lover," comes a smart and chilling look at the shadowy side of friendship.
For Alice, life's a bit too boringly grown-up lately--weekends at weddings and baby showers; celebrating friends' transitions to a life she isn't quite up for yet; and a sweet, stable boyfriend she suspects she's outgrown. So when she meets Gretchen for the first time, it feels a bit like falling in love. Gretchen, with her air of impulsiveness and intuitive style, is that rarest of treasures: a true friend who knows how to have fun. Plus there's Gretchen's gorgeous brother, Bailey, who might turn out to be exactly what Alice needs. Before she knows what's hit her, Alice's brilliant new best friend is turning her world upside down--seemingly for the better.
But Gretchen has a dark secret, which, like a time bomb, won't stay hidden forever. The explosion may teach them both more than they ever wanted to know about how female friendships can go frighteningly wrong.

My Thoughts: What My Best Friend Did was a total impulse buy.  I'm still a member of Doubleday even though I long ago fulfilled my membership requirements because they still have the occasional awesome sale on hard back books.  This book was bought in one of those buying sprees where I find my cart filling up magically.  On it's own.  Honestly.

So of course, like most impulse books purchases, this book was lingering on my TBR bookcase (no longer content with just a single shelf or two, it has taken over an entire large book case).  Thankfully I'm taking my 2012 tbr challenges seriously, reading books off my shelves or my kindle back log.  I picked this one because I just love the cover and the title is definitely intriguing.

Sadly it didn't quite live up to my expectations.  Alice as a main character is pretty unlikeable.  She's mean to her nice, albeit boring, boyfriend, and she flings herself into a friendship with Gretchen and a relationship with Bailey, Gretchen's brother, with all the maturity of a YA character.  But What My Best Friend Did is not a YA novel.  

I almost gave up a few times, but once the book gets to the back story of Gretchen's mental illness and we begin to get hints that the latest episode with her was not as it appears to be, I was sucked in.  I might not like Alice too much, but it was hard not to yell in horror at some of the things Gretchen did to her.  Plus, even though I've just said I don't like Alice, she was refreshingly flawed.  She gets caught in lies, she makes mistakes, and she has a toxic female friendship.  Which is probably why I don't like Alice, she's just a bit too much like me. ;) 

The ending did surprise me a bit, and while I thought it ended when it should have, I kind of wanted to stick around for some of the fall out.  This isn't a book I'm dying to share with my friends and fellow book bloggers, but it's a fairly quick read in the vein of a very toned down Single White Female.

Another thing that makes me hesitate to recommend this book is the way it deals with mental illness.  In some ways its a perfect look at manic depression, but it might offend some people by the way the mentally ill character uses her illness to manipulate others.  I think it does bring up an interesting argument, how much can be attributed to mental illness and just plain old bad behavior? 


What My Best Friend Did gets a Midnight Book Rating of:

The cover gets a Midnight Book Cover Rating of:

I love the colors, and I'll probably just keep the book to decorate my yellow shelf (yes, some of my bookcases are organized by color).

Drive Review

Drive
By James Sallis
From Goodreads:

Much later, as he sat with his back against an inside wall of a Motel 6 just north of Phoenix, watching the pool of blood lap toward him, Driver would wonder whether he had made a terrible mistake. Later still, of course, there’d be no doubt. But for now Driver is, as they say, in the moment. And the moment includes this blood lapping toward him, the pressure of dawn’s late light at windows and door, traffic sounds from the interstate nearby, the sound of someone weeping in the next room....”

Thus begins Drive by one of the nation’s most respected and honored authors. Set mostly in Arizona and L.A., the story is, according to Sallis, “about a guy who does stunt driving for movies by day and drives for criminals at night. In classic noir fashion, he is double-crossed and, though never before has he participated in the violence (I drive. That’s all.), he goes after the ones who double-crossed and tried to kill him.”

My Thoughts: A lot different from the movie, but in someways even better. Driver's quest for revenge is even more bloody and successful in the book. While characters like Shannon in the movie have a smaller role in the book, great side characters like Doc and Manny add flavor to the story. Plus, I was still able to picture Driver as Ryan Gosling, so the book was a total win. It does not have the sweet, subtle romance that the movie had, but you get Driver's back story which helps you understand why he is the way he is and how he's able to do what he needs to do in order to survive.

Seriously, even if the summary doesn't interest you even if my opinion doesn't sway you, buy the book just for the yummy Ryan Gosling cover. 

Drive get's a Midnight Book Rating of:

The book cover gets a Midnight Book Cover Rating of:

Because Ryan's so delicious!

And my attempt at a Ryan Gosling meme:

More 2012 Challenges!

So, you know I can't resist a Reading Challenge... although I am pretty resistant at finishing them... Oh, well, 2012 will be a new year so you never know when they'll come up with a cure for procrastinator's like me!

Here's some more challenges I'm joining, you can find the complete list on my left hand side bar.

Read Your Name Challenge:

Basically all this challenge requires is for you to pick book titles (the first letter in each title) that spells out your name. Now obviously, Midnight Book Girl would be a ridiculous choice, so I'm going with KATE.  It seems like a fun challenge, and one that's within my powers to actually finish!!

What's In A Name 5 Challenge: 

I did this challenge in 2011 and actually finished it!  I love the treasure hunt aspect to this challenge, and this year I'll have to read books who's titles refer to: topographical features, something you'd see in the sky, creepy crawly, type of house, something you'd carry in your pocket, purse or backpack, and something you'd find on a calender.  This one can be a bit tricky, but it's 6 books in all and I'm hoping it will lead to some creative reading on my part!

Mount TBR Reading Challenge: 

What I like about this challenge is that I have already decided that I have to do something about my crazy TBR shelves.  Most of them are books I really, really want to read!  It's insane to keep piling up books that I'm not reading.  So no more of that!  I'm going to focus on trying to get it under control so that I can enjoy shopping for new books without the guilt of those dying a slow death on my shelves.  There's different levels for this challenge, but I'm choosing Mt. Ararat, which is 40 books.  I hope to go higher, but I want to keep it realistic too.  I read 175 books or so in 2011, there's no reason on earth that I can't get to 40 books off my own darn shelves in 2012!  I plan on getting to 3-5 books on my tbr shelves a month, which would put me at 60 tbr books, but I don't want to push my luck.  

Bucket List Reading Challenge:

I'm going big on this one, since it coincides with my Mount TBR challenge.  I'm choosing to do the Semi level and here's the 13 books I plan on getting to:

1. Across the Universe

2. Bran Hambric and the Fairfield Curse

3. Anna and the French Kiss

4. Matched

5. Anna Dressed in Blood

6. The Invention of Hugo Cabret

7. Twenty Boy Summer

8. Drive

9. What My Best Friend Did

10. The Forest of Hands and Teeth

11. Feed

12. Uglies

13. The Screwtape Letters 

Books You Can Read In A Day Challenge:

I'm going with Level 1 on this challenge, which is to read 15 books- not all at once, but separately, in one day.  Here's a (partial) list of books I already have in mind:

1. Digit: She's Got Your Number by Annabelle Monaghan

2. Drive by James Sallis

3. Anna Dressed in Blood

4. Bewitching

5. Smokin' Seventeen

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

15.

A-Z 2012 Challenge

I love this challenge and am so glad that Kim of Page After Page is hosting it.  I had a huge problems with letters K and Y, but was able to pull out a win in 2011.  Of course I got lucky with some of my letters, like Queen of the Dead, Zombies Vs. Unicorns, and XVI... so 2012 might be a bit more difficult!!

 
Reading Challenge Addict!

Feeling as addicted to reading challenges as I am?  Then this is a great group to join!  Plus it's a great way to learn of even MORE Reading Challenge!!

It's Challenge Time!

That's right, readers, it's Challenge Time!  And yes, I am doing the hammer dance as I type this up.

So 2011 went better for me than 2010 as far as challenges go.  I actually completed several, crashed and burned on a few, and made a poor attempt to host my own challenge (which I will be wrapping up soon, so for those participating in the Read Me Baby, 1 More Time challenge, I have not forgotten you!).  I doubt I'll be hosting any challenges this year, although I thought about doing the Re-read challenge again but the truth is that I've had less and less time to re-read books since finding a billion new books to read through all of your blogs.  So what challenges will I be doing in 2012?  Here's what I'm starting with:

1. The 15,000 Page Challenge hosted by my friend, Courtney, at Abducted By Books.

Requirements:

The challenge is to read 15,000 pages in 2012!

Basically, in the year 2011 a lot of my reading centered around reading graphic novels and listening to audio books. So when I was thinking about how I wanted to challenge myself in 2012, I decided to challenge myself on how many pages I read.

It will break down like this...

read 41 pages a day

read 100 books of 150 pages 

read 75 books of 200 pages

read 50 books of 300 pages

read 30 books of 500 pages

read 15 books of 1000 pages

Do you see how easy this will be?

THE RULES:

1. You have to actually read the pages, i.e. no audio books but I will include e-books since you are actually reading the words. Just look up the book on goodreads or amazon to get a page count number and I trust you to be fair.

2. Graphic Novels are not including because a majority of this genre is centered around the graphics and not the text.

3. You can only include the pages you read between January 1st, 2012 and December 31st, 2012.

4. You can only include the pages you actually read, so if the book has appendixes but you choose not to read them, don't include them in your final tally.

 Chances of Success For Yours Truly: High

2. 2012 YA Contemporary Challenge hosted by Reading Angel and Katie's Book Blog.

Requirements:

There are different levels that you can choose to challenge yourself in:

Level 1: 5+ books

Level 2: 10+ books

Level 3: 15+ books

Rules:

You can read any contemporary YA novel that is published between January 1, 2012and December 30, 2012 but you must read them in 2012! (All formats accepted: paperback, ARC, e-book)

I'm going for Level 2 for now.  I do a lot of ARC tours now so that will help, especially as I'm really trying not to buy any books that aren't absolute must haves.

1. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
2.  Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler
3.  Red Heart Tattoo by Lurlene McDaniel
4.  Dead To You by Lisa McMann
5.  Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

I will add links to the titles as I read and review them for this challenge.

Chances of Success For Yours Truly: Fairly High

More to Come!