Readathon Wrap-Up

Another readathon has come to an end. It's always fun to follow the #readathon hashtag on twitter and see all the books that everyone is devouring!

I ended up reading 1000 pages.

I started out with DISSONANCE by Erica O'Rourke. This YA science fiction multiverse novel clocks in at 500 pages (!!!) and has some of the most intricate worldbuilding I've read in a long time.  Look for it in July.

Then I read a short story on Tor.com, NOMA GIRL by Elizabeth Fama. It's a companion to PLUS ONE and tells the story of how Gigi met Sol's brother Ciel.

I also read another 70 or so pages of the secret 2015 novel.

Finally, I read FEARLESS by Emma Pass. It's a YA post-apocalyptic out now. I'll be talking more about it tomorrow on the Fearless Blog Tour.

And I'm out ...

How'd you do?

Readathon Kick-Off

I have a bunch of books I want to read by the end of the month, and I saw that the Readathon was happening today, so I decided to join in!

1) What fine part of the world are you reading from today?

Home in Frankfurt, Germany. It's a little past 2 pm, and sunny! I'll probably read on the balcony to enjoy the nice weather.

2) Which book in your stack are you most looking forward to?

I have a bunch of eGalleys I need to read before they expire. And I have a book by a 2015 debut author which is SO GOOD. I can't wait to get back to it.

3) Which snack are you most looking forward to?

Whoops. Forgot the snacks.

4) Tell us a little something about yourself!

I did hot yoga this morning, my 13th session this month!

5) If you participated in the last read-a-thon, what’s one thing you’ll do different today? If this is your first read-a-thon, what are you most looking forward to?

I've participated in a few. Usually I get tripped up by trying to read a book that's going too slow for me. If that happens, I'll put it down and move on.

Happy reading!

Fourth Annual Holiday #READATHON

It's been awhile since I've participated in a readathon, and I have a ton of reading to do if I'm going to complete my challenge of reading 65 books this year (downgraded from the original goal of 75 and the 100 I read last year).  And I found a superfun one!

This weekend Liza of WhoRuYou blog is hosting the 4th annual holiday readathon and there are a ton of prizes and mini-challenges for participants.

In fact, this post is a mini-challenge. If you've signed up for the readathon you can enter by posting about one of your favorite holiday memory in the comment section (Don't forget to leave a way for me to contact you). What can you win? Well since I just happen to be working on the acknowledgements for CHASING BEFORE (the sequel to my debut novel THE MEMORY OF AFTER) I thought it would be cool to thank one of readathon participants in my book.

Why holiday memories?

In THE MEMORY OF AFTER, the main character, Felicia, is trapped in Level Two, and endlessly relives memories of her life on Earth as well as renting the memories of others. To pass the time, Felicia makes top ten lists of her favorite memories, and I'm sure she has a list of her favorite holiday memories as well.

And she'd love to hear ours!

Shall I go first? Okay!

One of my favorite Christmas memories involves the grandmother who inspired THE MEMORY OF AFTER. She adored Christmas and got very excited about giving gifts. The first year I brought my husband to the US for the holidays, she asked me what was on his list. I didn't want her to stress out about giving him a gift, and I knew she had been collecting Beanie Babies to give to my cousins, so I said, "Just give him a beanie baby pig. He likes pigs."

Christmas morning, Daniel opened his gifts and he got 3 special edition beanie baby pigs that my grandmother had special ordered for him. One of them had gold feet! Daniel smiled and graciously thanked my grandmother but on the inside he was thinking, "I don't like pigs that much!"

But that's not the end of the pig story. The next Christmas, I went to the US without Daniel, but my grandmother still wanted to give him a gift. When I arrived at her house, she pulled me aside and said excitedly, "I found the best gift for Daniel!" It turned out that she bought 3 concrete lawn pigs. Each weighed 15 lbs. My weight allowance to go back to Germany was 50 lbs. See the problem? Even today, Daniel and I have a good laugh about the concrete pigs and their unsuitability for travel.

Your turn! 

Thankful! I have reading time this week!

I turned in my revision of LEVEL 2 today.  So you know what that means? Readathon! Yep, I have a lot of reading to catch up on, and Jenn of Jenn's Bookshelves clued me into the event Thankfully Reading which is happening over the upcoming holiday weekend.  Since it has no strict rules ... I am starting now!

Here's what's on my list to read:

CINDER by Marissa Meyer
ABOVE by Leah Bobet
BORN WICKED by Jessica Spotswood
SCARLET by AC Gaughen
ARTICLE 5 by Kristen Simmons
FEVER by Lauren DeStefano
FRACTURE by Megan Miranda
A BEAUTIFUL DARK by Jocelyn Davies
OTHER WORDS FOR LOVE by Lorraine Zago Rosenthal
BETWEEN by Jessica Warman
HERE LIES BRIDGET by Paige Harbison

and way, way more.

24 Hour Read-a-thon + Emmy eats a button

So, Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon is tomorrow and for once it's not scheduled the weekend of the Frankfurt Book Fair!

I do need to catch up on my reading before going into my revision cave for LEVEL TWO, but I may not get much reading done tomorrow depending on what's going on with my cat Emmy. 

For those of you not in my twitter and Facebook loop, Emmy wasn't eating and kept vomiting so we took her to the vet. They did an ultrasound and discovered an inflamed intestine.  Today she had surgery and the vet pulled out a button - which was the best case scenario.  We're very relieved.

Assuming I do have reading time tomorrow, here's what I hope to get read:

Finish up EVERLOST by Neal Shusterman
YOU ARE MY ONLY by Beth Kephart
CINDER by Marissa Meyer
DARK INSIDE by Jeyn Roberts
FAITHFUL PLACE by Tana French

And I expect I'll be around to cheerlead a bit too.

Readathon Book Review: Dangerous Neighbors by Beth Kephart

Philadelphia 1876: Katherine's hollowness after the loss of her twin Anna drives her to contemplate suicide.  Katherine had always been the more responsible twin, self-charged with looking out for careless, carefree Anna.  So when Anna dies in an accident, Katherine feels it was her fault - and she just can't live with her guilt.

As per usual, Kephart writes with clarity, beauty and keen observation.  I felt the weight of Katherine's grief - the tragic fragility of life and how all can be lost in an instant.  Katherine cannot cope with the fact that the world bustles on, despite Anna's departure.  Her parents refuse to talk about it, she has no other friends to turn to. But the Centennial fair, and the chance encounters it provides, brings hope back into Katherine's life.

This is a quiet story - no shocking revelations or sordid twists. It's power lies in its intense emotional honesty and its finely crafted prose.

Find out more about the book at the author's blog.

Readathon Book Review: The Ivy by Lauren Kunze

It is Callie from California's first year at Harvard.  But instead of concentrating on her studies, like you might expect, Callie gets on the party circuit and is well on her way to flunking out ...

If my summary sounds like this novel is a cautionary tale, well ... that's just my takeaway.  Because in reality, THE IVY revels in scandal, parties, hooking up, and making fun of the few people who actually take their studies seriously.

It all starts out engaging enough - flip-flop wearing Callie is a fish out of water in a social scene filled with privileged teens from elite families - and at first, I rooted for her to carve out her own niche.  But then ... I started to wonder how someone as apparently brainless as Callie ever got into Harvard.

I can understand the appeal of a fun, frothy expose type read about "what really goes on" in the Ivy League.  And I am sure the type of stuff presented in this book - backstabbing, casual sex, partying, getting drunk, etc - can happen at Harvard just as much as it can happen anywhere.  Unfortunately, Callie's adventures in higher education - a blur of boys and parties - are mostly mind-numbingly boring.

Readathon Book Review: You Wish by Mandy Hubbard

Kayla's party planner mother throws her a sweet 16 birthday she doesn't even want, complete with a super expensive pink cake.  When it comes time to make a wish, Kayla wishes that her birthday wishes would come true.  And then they do ... with hilarious results.

This is a fun, frothy read that mostly hits the right notes.  I loved how perfectly the various wishes Kayla made over her years of birthdays fit into the narrative (though the pink pony wore out his/her welcome pretty quickly) and the idea of Raggedy Ann coming to life was brill!  In fact, Ann was probably my favorite character of all.  Though there were a lot of wacky, over the top scenes, there was also a definite heart behind it all.  Aww!

Find out more about the book at the author's website.

Readathon Book Review: The Red Umbrella by Christina Diaz Gonzalez

14 year old Lucia lives in Cuba with her parents and younger brother.  Her concerns are mainly the latest fashions and attending the school dance until soldiers of the revolution come to her town and change her life forever.  Realizing it is no longer safe for them, her parents send Lucia and her brother to the US where they end up living with a family in Nebraska.

Probably the most engaging part of this book was the first part where Lucia slowly comes to realize that something is very wrong in her country.  She has to grow up fast and friendships are tested.  Lucia's relationship with her brother is also a strong anchor in the story, one that keeps her hope alive even set adrift in an unfamiliar environment, not knowing if she'll ever see her parents again.

Powerful and touching historical fiction! Find out more about the book at the author's website.

Readathon a GO!

I'm participating in the 24 hr Readathon today.  As usual, when I finish a book, I'll post my review immediately.  So look for those throughout the day.

First order of business: The welcome meme!

1)Where are you reading from today? At home, in Frankfurt, Germany.


2)Three random facts about me… I am addicted to spinich (seriously!), I've visited 55 countries and 46 states so far, I have two brothers, 1 step-brother and 1 step sister.

3)How many books do you have in your TBR pile for the next 24 hours?  Zillions!

4)Do you have any goals for the read-a-thon (i.e. number of books, number of pages, number of hours, or number of comments on blogs)? No goal - just have fun!

5)If you’re a veteran read-a-thoner, any advice for people doing this for the first time?
Choose short books! Now's not the best time to tackle War & Peace.

See you soon!

Read-a-thon End of Event Meme

1. Which hour was most daunting for you? Must have been the hour I feel asleep - hour 11?
2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year? Most of the ones I read would fit the bill.
3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year? Nope! Great fun!
4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon? The support was really helpful. A lot of the mini-challenges looked fun, though I preferred the ones you could do in the comments. I felt like I was posting too many updates already.
5. How many books did you read? 8 books, 1829 pages
6. What were the names of the books you read? (links to reviews)

Beware, Princess Elizabeth by Carolyn Meyer

Funny Business by Leonard S. Marcus

The Blonde of the Joke by Bennett Madison

The Vampire Is Just Not That Into You by Vlad Mezrich

Stolen by Lucy Christopher

Jumped by Rita Williams-Garcia

The Girl She Used to Be by David Cristofano

Tethered by Amy MacKinnon

7. Which book did you enjoy most? Hard to say - they were so different. I thought The Girl She Used to Be was the best choice for the readathon, and probably The Blonde of the Joke surprised me most in terms of how much I enjoyed it.
8. Which did you enjoy least? I liked all of them, but Stolen was probably the least ideal for a readathon because it did drag in the middle.
9. If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders? Wasn't one this year, though I did leave some comments, especially in the beginning.
10. How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time? Let's see what's going on when the next one comes along. I felt like I accomplished a lot of reading this time around, and all were books I wouldn't have gotten around to for a long time otherwise - back burner books if you will.

Read-a-thon Book Review: Beware, Princess Elizabeth by Carolyn Meyer

Elizabeth and her sister Mary have never been close, but Elizabeth never imagines that her very life will be threatened by her.

This historical retelling unfolds from Elizabeth's perspective from the time her father, King Henry VIII dies when she is 13 up until the day she becomes queen. It's familiar territory, at least for me, but Meyer manages to imbue the story with urgency and intrigue. The Tudors are endlessly fascinating, and it's always fun to revisit them from a new angle.

BEWARE, PRINCESS ELIZABETH is availbable in paperback.

Read-a-thon Book Review: Funny Business by Leonard S. Marcus

Children’s book expert Leonard S. Marcus interviews authors of comedic books including Daniel Handler (aka Lemony Snicket), Judy Blume, Beverly Cleary, Louis Sachar, Norman Juster, Sharon Creech, Carl Hiaasen and others.

I enjoyed the interviews about these author’s early lives, what inspired them to become writers, and how they came up with some of their famous characters and scenes. Marcus also includes pictures and portions of manuscripts or e-mail excerpts between author and editors. Fascinating stuff!

Did you know for example that:

The first time Judy Blume saw a book of hers in the store, it was her debut ARE YOU THERE GOD? IT’S ME, MARGARET and it was shelved with the bibles?

Carl Hiassen never felt he had to go to NYC to make it as a writer because “you can’t beat Florida for raw material. It’s a freak show.”

Louis Sachar had no plan for writing the perfectly constructed HOLES. He just made stuff up as he went along and made everything make sense during revisions.

The famous scene in Beverly Cleary’s RAMONA QUIMBY, AGE 8 where a stranger complements the family, telling them they look like a happy family, which makes them feel like a happy family even though they hadn’t before, is semi-autobiographical.

Daniel Handler is hilarious (obvs!) – I loved every word of his interview.

FUNNY BUSINESS: CONVERSATIONS WITH WRITERS OF COMEDY is out now in hardcover.

Read-a-thon Book Review: The Blonde of the Joke by Bennett Madison

Val, a brunette, has always blended in, never stood out. That is until she meets Francie, a seemingly invincible blonde who takes Val under her wing and shows her that life is for the taking.

For a novel about shoplifting, it’s interesting that shoplifting really isn’t the point. Francie teaches Val how to steal, but in the end, it’s not about stealing the insignificant items that they do from the mall – it’s about finding that Holy Grail of theft – stealing an aura.

As Val blossoms (or some might say, self-destructs), Francie starts to fade. It’s a novel about the slipperiness of identity and about betrayal on so many levels. A lot of the details are vague. There’s something wrong with Francie’s mom, Val’s older brother is dying, and a teacher disappears without explanation. But it all fits the mood which is decidedly wistful and melancholic.

A complex, fascinating novel which doesn’t go where you think it will and doesn’t bother tying up loose ends. Perhaps not the best read-a-thon read, especially nearing the final hours, but it definitely makes you think and would make for a great discussion.

THE BLONDE OF THE JOKE is out in hardcover now. Find out more about it at the author’s website.

Read-a-thon Hour Update: Hour 19

My plan was to update my progress at hour 13, halfway through but then two cuddly kittehs, a slumbering husband, and darkness conspired against me, and I feel asleep 30 pages into my 6th book: The Blonde of the Joke by Bennett Madison.

But I am back now!

Total books completed and reviewed so far: 5
Running total of pages read: 1173
Time spent reading so far: Approximately 10 hrs
Mini-challeges done: I think 3?
Prizes won: THE LOST SUMMER OF LOUISA MAY ALCOTT (yay!)
Blogs visited: At least 25

Whew.

Read-a-thon Book Review: The Vampire Is Just Not That Into You by Vlad Mezrich

Vampire Vlad Mezrich gives mortal girls tips to attracting, dating and breaking up with the undead.

Clearly this humorous faux dating guide is aimed at the legions of Twilight fans (there are numerous references to Edward, werewolves, a vampire’s attraction to the new girl, and a vampire’s tendency to watch girls while they sleep). It is quite funny, and made me laugh a lot, though it’s probably more fun to dip into bit by bit over a longer period of time rather than reading straight through as I did.

Some things I learned:

My blood type (A-) has a full-bodied, woody flavor with notes of cinnamon, meaning I attract active, clean cut vampires who enjoy hiking (on cloudy days – or at night)

The famous phrase, I want to suck your blood, has a different meaning depending on what word your vampire crush puts his emphasis on. (Hint, best case scenario is that he emphasizes YOUR rather than BLOOD.)

Tori Amos made “The Infinite Vampire Playlist” with her song Blood Roses.

If your vampire boyfriend treated you badly, you might want to next date a slayer.

THE VAMPIRE IS JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU is available in paperback now.

Read-a-thon Book Review: Stolen by Lucy Christopher

Gemma is going on holiday with her parents and is changing planes in the Bangkok airport when she kidnapped by a delusional young man who takes her to live in the Australian outback.

STOLEN is a written as a letter from Gemma to her captor Ty. He expects her to fall in love with him, but how can she when he has taken her against her will away from everything she’s ever known? It’s a compelling story of how Stockholm Syndrome develops, and as the reader, you are both repelled by and yet also strangely attracted to Ty, just as Gemma is. Quite an achievement really.

The novel begins and ends with a bang, though the narrative drags a bit in the middle, which is not so ideal for a readathon pick. It really did put me through the emotional wringer – especially the scenes with the camel.

STOLEN is available in paperback in the UK and is being released in hardcover in the US on May 1st. Find out more about it at the author’s website.

Read-a-thon Book Review: Jumped by Rita Williams-Garcia

One morning before school starts, Leticia sees Dominique tell her girls she’s going to jump Trina after school for disrespecting her space. Leticia’s friend Bea tells her she has the responsibility to warn Trina, but did Leticia see it all from the wrong angle? Why would she want to get involved anyway?

This slim novel is told in the alternating, authentic voices of the three girls. Dom is all frustration and restlessness, angry that one teacher won’t improve her grade by just a few points so she can play basketball. Trina is all cluelessness and bounce, imagining that everyone loves her and wants to be her. Leticia is all gossipy yet detached, wrapped up in herself and her own problems. All make choices, and those choices, however insignificant they may seem, all come together one fateful day with explosive results.

A stunning novel, and great for the readathon since it’s short and hard to put down.

JUMPED is available in hardcover now. Find out more about it at the author's website.

Read-a-thon Book Review: The Girl She Used to Be by David Cristofano

As a 6 year old, Melody and her parents witnessed a murder in Little Italy that put them in the Federal Witness Protection Program. Melody has been on the run for 20 years when one day, Jonathan, the son of the criminal her parents testified against catches up with her – and against all odds, they fall in love.

Talk about impossible romance! Melody has never felt safe since that fateful day when her life changed forever, and as someone protected by the government who has to be ready to start all over again at the drop of a hat, she has never been able to form close attachments to anyone. Jonathan wants to do the right thing, but the pressures of being in a mafia family are overwhelming. Melody and Jonathan have an amazing chemistry together though, and you really wish things could somehow work out for them.

Fast paced and with tight writing and plotting, this was a perfect readathon read.

THE GIRL SHE USED TO BE just came out in paperback. Find out more about it at the author’s website.

Read-a-thon Book Review: Tethered by Amy MacKinnon

An undertaker who has cut herself off from life due to childhood abuse learns to live again via a case concerning an abused young girl.

TETHERED was a remarkably layered read and unlike anything I’ve read for quite some time. While the plot is driven forward by a murder mystery, it is mainly a character study of Clara the undertaker and why she feels more comfortable dealing with the dead than with the living. Clara’s story in deeply infused with sadness and the narrative had me alternatively outraged, depressed, and surprised by its complexity.

As a readathon read, it served me well, but probably only because I read it first with fresh eyes. It does get off to a bit of a slow start, with a rather off-putting scene of Clara preparing a body for a wake, but once I got into it, I couldn’t put it down. And then, once I finished, I had to go back and look for the clues that were dropped that I had missed. Very clever indeed.

TETHERED is out in paperback now. Find out more about it at the author’s website.