no giveaways or book reviews today, i'm sorry!

i have a huge favor to ask of my few readers. i am getting married next year, and i have entered a contest to win a photography package for my wedding. in order to win, i need comments! go to this blog post (it is the photographer's blog) and comment on my story. you have to fill out the entire comment form in order to submit it.

please do this for me. it will only take a minute, maybe 2. but it would mean so much to me.

july 27 - Summer Lovin' giveaway

Summer Lovin' Giveaways from Confessions of a Bookaholic!

Today is Prize Pack # 3:
Let Me Love You (SIGNED) by Mary Wine
Spider's Bite by Jennifer Estep- bookmark
Web of Lies by Jennifer Estep- bookmark
In the Blood/ Rush of Wings by Adrian Pheonix- bookmark
The Blood Sword Legacy by Karin Tabke- bookmark
The Doomsday Brethren/ Wicked Lovers series by Shayla Black- bookmark
Enemy Lover by Karin Harlow- bookmark
Imperfection by Aubrey Leatherwood- card
Vampire Babylon (SIGNED) by Chris Marie Green- sticker

Click HERE to enter!

july 26 - Paranormal Preorder giveaway

Books Obsession is having a Paranormal Preorder contest! There are 3 great books up for grabs so far, and she is going to add more if when she gets more followers.

These are the books so far:

Paranormalcy by Kiersten White
The Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare
Personal Demons by Lisa Desrochers

Exciting, right?!

click HERE to enter!

july 26 - Summer Lovin' giveaway

Summer Lovin' Giveaways from Confessions of a Bookaholic!

Today is Prize Pack # 2:
Sarah Dessen Gift Set (Just Listen, This Lullaby and The Truth About Forever)
Forgive My Fins bookmark
Sea bookmark

Click HERE to enter!

july 21 - 2 great giveaways

1. Dark Fantasy Contest run by The Publication Follies of Alexandra Shostak

2. Summer Saradise 7 arc giveaway run by Babbling Flow

They are both giving away Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare, which I am so desperate to read, as well as some other great books. I do hope I win!!

Teaser Tuesday - July 20

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme,
hosted by Miz B at Should Be Reading.
Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

I am still reading The Constant Princess by Philippa Gregory.

Here are my teaser sentences:

"Shall I take a hundred wives to get a thousand clerks for the throne?" he teased her.

"We will make a kingdom that we can be proud of, just as my mother and father did in Spain."

Once Upon a Read-A-Thon - Giveaways

The read-a-thon was so much fun! I didn't read much, but I read more in 3 days than I have in the past 3 weeks. Working full-time and planning a wedding doesn't leave me with much spare time.

I won 2 giveaways during this read-a-thon, and I am excited about both of them. The first one is the book Incarceron by Catherine Fisher. I got this one from Angela at Reading Angel, just for entering the read-a-thon. The second one is a vampire swag pack from Amanda Leigh over at Not-Really-Southern Vamp Chick, for entering her challenge.

I had a ton of fun with the challenges during this read-a-thon and I am so glad that I decided to do it! I also found some great new book bloggers, so I am going to create a page for buttons, so you too can find some new book blogs to read! Don't expect it today or tomorrow, but definitely stay tuned!

Once Upon a Read-A-Thon - Mini Challenge 9

The very last challenge for this read-a-thon is hosted by Not-Really-Southern Vamp Chick. Here's what she had to say:

1. Pick up 6 random books from your bookshelf (and/or use the books you’re reading)
2. Take the first sentences from them.
3. Come up w/ the best 4 sentence opening paragraph to a book you can manage.
4. YOU GET A BONUS POINT IF IT INVOLVES VAMPIRES!
5. Leave your paragraph in the comments.
6. This could get interesting!

This looks like tons of fun; I can't wait to get started. Just let me go grab 6 random books....

Okay, I'm back. I'm going to write my paragraph first, to give you all a chance to see if you can recognize any of the sentences.

As summer wheat came ripe, so did I, born at home, on the kitchen floor. "Yep, I have a seriously sucky birthday," I told my cat, Nala. It is Nicko's first night out of the House of Foryx, and Jenna thinks he is going a little crazy. We have been lost to each for so long.

Septimus Heap, Book 5: Syren by Angie Sage
Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse
The Constant Princess by Philippa Gregory
The Tender Years by Janette Oke
The Red Tent by Anita Diamant
House of Night 3: Chosen by PC Cast and Kristin Cast

If you can guess which books I didn't use, I'll give you a week-long spotlight on this blog and my main blog (Artistically Amy).

Once Upon a Read-A-Thon - Mini Challenge 8

The second challenge for today is hosted by Book Faery. Here's what she had to say:

1. Go to this link (you'll need a Google account)

* Zoom in to find the location you want.
* Hit edit (it's at the top right corner to the left of the map)
* You'll now have the ability to add a pin mark to the map. To locate the pin mark, look at the top left hand corner of the map. It should be the middle button.
* Enter the location(s) of where your books took place! Be sure to include the author's name & the title of the book and your blog name & address.
* Click OK to add your pin to the list.
* Click DONE in the left sidebar.
* Check out all the other locations.

2. Come leave a comment telling me you posted your pin(s) & your email address.

If you click the link, you can go look at my pin! It's located in Ludlow, Great Britain. Since I am currently reading The Constant Princess by Philippa Gregory, which takes place in several different places, I just picked one spot.

Once Upon a Read-A-Thon - Mini Challenge 7

The third and last challenge for today is hosted by Book Soulmates. Here's what she had to say:

1. Which author do you credit for your love of romance novels?
{Most of us have one particular author that we thank for introducing us to romance. Isalys's happens to be Jennifer Haymore. Who is yours?}

2. What is your favorite type of romance?
{ie: Historical, Highlander, Paranormal, Contemporary, Suspense}

3. Who is your favorite romantic couple?
{Please don't say Bella & Edward, that's considered YA.}

Ooh la la! Romance!

1. Hands-down, my favorite romance author is Maggie Osborne. The first book I read by her was Silver Lining, and I've been hooked ever since. I've read almost every single one of her books, and I can read them over and over and over...

2. I tend to prefer historical romance over contemporary romance. Paranormal romance is not bad, as long as it leaning more toward fantasy and less toward science fiction or time travel.

3. This is tough... I don't read romance novels for the characters; I read them for the stories. But I love the chemistry between Tempest and Adrian in Dragon Witch by Dolly Lien.

Once Upon a Read-A-Thon - Mini Challenge 6

The third and last challenge for today is hosted by A Blog About Nothing. Here's what she had to say:

In the comments tell me the name of a book or series that you would love to see get made into a movie or a TV show and your cast choices for the main characters. You can even make a little mini post if you want and post pics/links, go to storycasting.com, or just tell me your choices in the comments, it's up to you. Just make sure you post on the comments the links or your answer and leave an email address so I can contact you!!

A fun one!

I'm going with a kids' book for this one, because I use this as an alternative book report so often when teaching intermediate grades.

The book is Island: Shipwreck by Gordon Korman. It's the first book in a trilogy that I absolutely love. Full of adventure and honesty, great for both struggling readers and boys.

Luke: Jake T. Austin
JJ: Cole Sprouse/Dylan Sprouse
Lyssa: Selena Gomez
Will: Josh Peck
Charla: Alyson Stoner
Ian: Forrest Landis
Mr. Radford: James Franco
Captain Cascadden: Steve Martin

Once Upon a Read-A-Thon - Mini Challenge 5

The second challenge for today is hosted by Confessions of a Bookaholic. Here's what she had to say:

In a comment:

1. Tell me what makes you the most emotional when you read it in a book.
It doesn't have to be only negative emotions. Examples: a character never telling a secret, a stubborn character, when they never tell someone how they really feel, a book dealing with loss or death, a book that really had a romance that kept you on the edge of your seat and blushing the entire time, etc.

2. Leave a comment telling me what book has made you the most emotional.
Was there ever a book that had you screaming at the characters or running for some tissues? Or, one that had you so full of emotion you just had to sit it down for a while.Tell us the name of the book, author, and why it made you so emotional. (No spoilers please).

3. Please add your email address to the comment so I can contact you if you win.

Another thought-provoking challenge.

What makes me the most emotional when reading? Rape. I hate reading about it. It makes me feel angry and sad and scared. I recently read Push by Sapphire. It practically made my eyes bleed from the negative emotions caused by the constant rape and abuse. Sure, it's a powerful novel and a wonderful story of how a victim can overcome what done to her. But it's very explicit.

What book has made me the most emotional? Ah, tough one. HP and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling, of course... The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephenie Meyer... A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith. All 3 of these novels (well, 2 novels and a novella) have made me feel a plethora of emotions, including anger, sadness, and happiness.

Once Upon a Read-A-Thon - Mini Challenge 4

The first challenge for today is hosted by Lauren's Crammed Bookshelf. Here's what she had to say:

For my challenge, I'm asking you to pick your favorite book you've read so far for the read-a-thon and write a review for it. It doesn’t have to be wordy (along if it's 3 sentences or more it counts!) nor does it have to be posted on your blog (Goodreads/Amazon/Barnes and Noble//etc. are all fine places to post!), and because I know I love hearing about new books that are great (and I'm sure you do too!) I've included a linky post below so that everyone can link to their review and then read some others.

Darn. Another challenge I won't be able to complete. I want to write a review of the book I am reading, but I'm at work. So, no reading will be getting done until I get home later. So, no review. But I will post a review as soon as I finish the book, I promise.

Once Upon a Read-A-Thon - Mini Challenge 3

The third and last challenge for today is hosted by The Eager Readers. Here's what they had to say:

We are giving away two books featuring couples we love, and all you have to do to be eligible for both prizes is to post about your favorite fictional couple and a crossover couple that you would like to see. A crossover couple is a pairing that brings together two characters from unrelated books.

This is an easy one! I have several favorite fictional couples:

1. Alice and Jasper from The Twilight Saga. I am Team Alice to the core, meaning that I couldn't care less about the love triangle a la Bella, Edward, & Jacob. Alice and Jasper have the cutest love story - she saw him coming, and he felt hope when he found her.



2. Zoey and Loren from the House of Night series. Now, I KNOW that Loren was using her, and he's dead. But in my head, she looks best with him. Obviously, he felt passion for her, if even Neferet couldn't tell that he was acting.

(Image)

3. Gemma and Kartik from the Gemma Doyle trilogy. Kartik is so unbelievably sexy, and he turns Gemma into the woman she yearns to be. Not to mention his choices in the last book that showed how much he loved her.



4. Samantha and Nathaniel from The Undomestic Goddess by Sophie Kinsella. She needed him in the worst way. I love how he was able to open her eyes to love and affection, without being stereotypically "perfect."



5. Jenna and Beetle from the Septimus Heap series. Ah, young love. Of course, they don't know it yet. But when those 2 get older, they will have a very happy life in the Palace.



6. Harry and Ginny from the HP series. There is no better combination than a black-haired boy with glasses and a red-headed girl. End of story.





Now, a crossover couple. I'm going to shoot for some secondary characters here: Jessica Stanley from The Twilight Saga and Heath Luck from the House of Night series. I think they are perfect for each other. They are both annoying, petty, immature, and oblivious.

Slightly off-topic, but that reminds me... Twihards who saw Eclipse: WTF was up with Jessica being valedictorian?!? Can someone please explain that to me?!?

Once Upon a Read-A-Thon - Mini Challenge 2

The second challenge is hosted by I Just Wanna Sit Here And Read! Here's what she says:

Rules!
~In a comment:

1. Choose a song (sung or instrumental) that represents a chapter that you are currently reading or have read during the read-a-thon thus far. If the book was turned into a movie, and this chapter was shown, what music would you want in the background to convey the emotion or environment.

2. List the book/author/chapter that you choose along with the song(s) you choose.

3. Give a quick synopsis about the chapter (No SPOILERS please!) or the circumstances that take place and why you chose the song to represent it.

I was trying really hard to take part in this challenge, but I just won't be able to. To take part in this read-a-thon, I put aside the self-help book I am currently reading and started reading a historical fiction book, but I am not that far into it yet. Working full-time really puts a damper on my reading style. Usually, I pick up a book, curl up in a corner, and read for hours. It's hard for me to read just a chapter at a time, but that's all I can after working 8 hours a day.

But I am reading! And fully enjoying it. I've chosen The Constant Princess by Philippa Gregory for my first read-a-thon book. (It may be my ONLY book, though, since I don't have much free time.) I'll post a review when I finish it.

Once Upon a Read-A-Thon - Mini Challenge 1

This first challenge is hosted by Book Crazy. Here's what she says:

We all have a favorite book, right?
We all have a favorite character, right?

What I want you to do, since I am a lover of all things music and photo related is to pick one - or both - and put them together!!

Does that make sense? HMM, lets see if I can explain better, basically pick your favorite book and/or character and pair it with a song and/or photo that reminds you of the person or setting in the book!

Hmm... Tough one. I have SO MANY favorite books. I'll have to cave and use The Twilight Saga for this part. The setting is Forks, Washington. Now, I've never been to the West Coast. But there are some areas here on the East Coast that could easily pass for Forks. This is a photo I took in New Hampshire when visiting friends. I joke that I can see Edward hiding in a tree.



And as for a favorite character, again, SO MANY. But I did this part backwards. One of my favorite songs that I listen to often is Thom Yorke's Hearing Damage. This song is on my novel playlist because it really evokes feeling. It helps me see things happening.



This song reminds me a lot of Jace Wayland from the Mortal Instruments trilogy because of everything that poor kid goes through. I can hear this song as he is standing there, holding the knife to Valentine, and as he runs through the boat, looking for Clary. This guy, Alex Pettyfer, is pretty much spot on for Jace.

Book Review: City of Bones

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

The first time I read this book was actually almost a year ago. I had bought the book because I was going to be meeting the author (although it fell through and never happened) and I wanted to be able to truthfully say that I had read the book. I was unsure at first, because it mixes so many fantasy items and theories, such as angels, vampires, demons, warlocks, and fairies. But it was written in a style that is easy to read and humorous as well. It can be hard to keep all the characters straight, at first, but they are all developed enough that you begin to really know them.

Quick summary: Clary is a regular girl who suddenly starts seeing people out of nowhere. At the same time, her mother disappears and random demons start attacking her. (It's hard to believe that everything can go wrong all at once for this 16 year old girl, but I know the feeling.) Jace, one of the people who basically appeared out of nowhere, takes Clary to his "home" so she can recover from the demon attacks and they can try to find her mom. Almost instantly, her life is turned upside down and she is introduced to a whole new world, one filled with Shadowhunters and Downworlders. She has to team up with Jace and his family to find her mom, discover the truth about herself, and still try to overcome normal teenage drama.

My age recommendation: 13+

About halfway through the book, I was hooked. I devoured it quickly and rushed to the bookstore to get the next in the trilogy, City of Ash. Once I finished that, I immediately started on the last one, City of Glass. Basically, there is no point to read CoB if you are not going to read the rest of the trilogy. It's like the HP series, everything builds up and builds up to finally reach the main climax in the last book. It's like 1 big book split into several smaller ones. (That's what I love about series in general).

Rating:


PS - I forgot to mention that I wrote this review for Ashley's Bookshelf. She is doing a giveaway, but I thought it'd be cool to see other people's reviews of this book! So, if you read the book and write a review before July 31, then you can be entered into the giveaway!

Once Upon a Read-A-Thon signup

This is the first read-a-thon that I'll be taking part in.



Check out Pure Imagination for details and to sign up!

i heart reading

This blog is going to be dedicated to my favorite hobby: reading! I love to read more than anything. It's a huge distraction for me, and it leads to a lot of daydreaming (hence, daydreamingbooks.blogspot.com).

I'll be posting book reviews on here, as well as an updated reading list and a "What I'm reading" gadget. I'll also be taking part in book giveaways and read-a-thons and such.

If you would like book recommendations, or want me to review YOUR book, please comment and let me know!