Horror & Urban Fantasy Reading Challenge 2011

I am super excited about this challenge. =)  I'm not so much a horror fan, but Urban Fantasy?  I'm in!  This challenge is also hosted by Book Chick City.






The rules (so I don't forget!):
Timeline: 01 Jan 2011 - 31 Dec 2011 
Rules: To read TWENTY FOUR (24) horror & urban fantasy novels in 2011 

Books read for this challenge will be added to the list below, with a link to my review on Goodreads.

If you're up for the challenge, head on over to Book Chick City to sign up!

}

Mystery & Suspense Challenge 2011

I adore book challenges.  This is my favorite part of book blogging!!  As such, I'm super excited the 2011 Challenges are rolling around!  =)  The first (of what I hope will be many) is the Mystery & Suspense Challenge hosted by Book Chick City.

The rules (so I don't forget!): 
Timeline: 01 Jan 2011 - 31 Dec 2011
Rules: To read TWELVE (12) mystery & suspense novels in 2011

Books read for this challenge will be added to the list below, with a link to my review on Goodreads.

If you're up for the challenge, head on over to Book Chick City to sign up!

}

 

Review: To the Nines

To the Nines
Author: Janet Evanovich
Characters: 5 out of 5
Plot: 5 out of 5
Overall: 5 out of 5

Description: (Author Website) Stephanie Plum's got rent to pay, people shooting at her, and psychos wanting her dead every day of the week (much to the dismay of her mother, her family, the men in her life, the guy who slices meat at the deli... oh, the list goes on). An ordinary person would cave under the pressure.

But hey, she's from Jersey.

Stephanie Plum may not the best bounty hunter in beautiful downtown Trenton, but she's pretty darn good at turning bad situations her way... and she always gets her man. In TO THE NINES her cousin Vinnie (who's also her boss) has posted bail on Samuel Singh, an illegal immigrant. When the elusive Mr. Singh goes missing, Stephanie is on the case. But what she uncovers is far more sinister than anyone imagines and leads to a group of killers who give new meaning to the word "hunter..."
In a race against time that takes her from the Jersey Turnpike to the Vegas strip, Stephanie Plum is on the chase of her life.
From My Point of View:  I loved the storyline in the book.  The Web Master and his game were FANTASTIC!  I'm still unable to get enough of Stephanie and her gang, so Evanovich continues to deliver.  I love the way she is able to get and keep my attention in each and every novel.  She is truly a fantastic mystery author.  I love the lightheartedness of the series, but at the same time, I still catch my breath at the intense parts.  Evanovich does a great job of balance the two aspects of her novels.

At this point, I think I've said it all before: Evanovich rocks and book #9 is no exception.

Review: The Undead Series

The Undead Series
Author: MaryJanice Davidson
Characters: 5 out of 5
Plot: 4 out of 5
Overall: 4 out of 5

I have yet another full series of books for you today (I do belive this will be the last one)!

The Undead Series follows Betsy, the newest undead who is also Queen of all the vampires.  This interesting series tags along as Betsy attempts to figure out her new role and, shockingly, her new husband!  It's full of quirky comments and lots of shoes.  There's almost as much chick lit content as there is paranormal.  There's also a very interesting romance plot that I adore - so this series has a lot going on!

Betsy is a fantastic character.  She can be curt and rude, but also quirky and very funny.  I love reading these books because you never know when her selfish nature will come to play.  I remember in the first book, in an attempt to get her to take down a nasty vampire, the other character bribe her with designer shoes!  It's elements like this that make these vamp books a little different than all the rest.

If you're looking for a quick and quirky read, this series is for you!

And, of course, the series listing, with a description of each book from the Author's website:

Book 1: Undead and Unwed

Betsy Taylor turns 30, gets laid off, is killed by an SUV and wakes up dead all in the same week. The vampire community is convinced she's their prophesied Queen. But she's not having any of it—she's got shoes to buy! And now the undead world is being turned upside-down by a Bela Lugosi throwback and her subjects expect her to take care of it! Why didn't she read the handbook? But her would-be consort, Eric Sinclair, is (annoyingly) ever-present. If only he wasn't so tall, dark, gorgeous...and undead.

Book 2: Undead and Unemployed

Betsy Taylor is back in this sequel to Undead and Unwed. Not willing to "live" off her friends, she lands her dream job selling shoes at Macy's, much to the dismay of her consort/King, Eric Sinclair, who is as loyal, protective and hot as ever. Not that Betsy has any interest in him (or does she?). And now, vampires in her kingdom are being attacked and staked by a mysterious gang. Can she solve the mystery in time to save her kingdom? Can she stop spending all her wages on shoes? Can she resist the charms of Eric Sinclair—does she want to?

Book 3: Undead and Unappreciated

Most women would love to live as royalty, but Betsy has found that being vampire queen has more problems than perks, except for always being awake for Midnight Madness sales. It may be easy to find blood (yuck) in the dark of night, but try finding a strawberry smoothie. And employees at her nightclub Scratch have been giving her nothing but grief since she killed their former boss. Some people...

But Betsy's "life" takes an interesting turn at a baby shower for her wicked stepmother, who lets it slip that Betsy has a long-lost half sister. Now twenty years old, this woman just so happens to be the devil's daughter...and destined to rule the world.

Book 4: Undead and Unreturnable

Even the undead celebrate Christmas, and Betsy is in heaven shopping for gifts.

But all is not merry in the mansion. It’s become infested with ghosts—really needy ones who have no qualms asking Betsy to run errands for them to rectify their pasts. Meanwhile, a serial killer is on the loose, and, being tall and blonde, Betsy perfectly fits his type.

They say Christmas is a time for friends and family. But with a half-sister who’s the devil’s daughter, an evil stepmother, a friend living in her basement, and assorted spirits and killers running amok, Betsy is not sure she’ll survive the holidays. Oh, right. She’s already dead…

Book 5: Undead and Unpopular

Vampire Queen Betsy Taylor already has plenty on her plate. For one thing, next week is her birthday—the big 3-1 in human years, and one in undead years. (Yes, she bit the dust on her birthday last year.) On top of that, she still has wedding plans to finalize—and it's not helping that the prospective groom is avoiding anything to do with it. And then there's her decision to stop drinking blood—something she has yet to share with Eric Sinclair, her fiancé—who also happens to be the vampire king.

The last thing she wants to deal with is uninvited guests, even if they happen to be the powerful European vampires who have finally come to pay their respects the week before her birthday. Some of them don't want Betsy as their queen and will do anything to get ride of her. As if turning 30 last year (not to mention dying) hadn't been traumatic enough. And trying to give up blood is making her really cranky.

Book 6: Undead and Uneasy

You are cordially invited to the wedding of
Elizabeth Anne Taylor and Eric Sinclair
607 Summit Ave
Midnight, July 4, 2007

RSVP by June 25, and don't be like one of those jerks who don't RSVP and then shows up with three people. Seriously.

In the days leading up the The Big Day, Vampire Queen Betsy Taylor seems to have a full house—and the wedding guests have yet to arrive. Along with her human buddies, there's a ghost, a werewolf and a Fiend crashing at her place. And though her fiancé, Vampire King Eric Sinclair, conveniently disappears when the conversation turns to seating charts and flower arrangements, he does manage to make his oh-so-sexy presence known at other moments.

Betsy knows the next few weeks won't be smooth sailing—but she never expects just what's in store for her. Cold feet are no surprise, especially with an undead groom. But when Sinclair truly goes missing—and not just to avoid wedding preparations—along with most of her friends and loved ones, Betsy is frantic. Alone and afraid for the fate of everyone she loves, Betsy can't trust anyone as she tries to find them and whoever is behind all the disappearances.

 Book 7: Undead and Unworthy

No one does humorous romantic fantasy better than the incomparable MaryJanice Davidson” (The Best Reviews), and nobody reigns over the undead with more savvy than her heroine Betsy Taylor, back to rule the nights as Vampire Queen––and survive the days as a new suburban bride. But it’s not all marital bliss. Betsy’s husband, Sinclair, has been perusing The Book of the Dead, Betsy’s being hounded by a ghost who’s even more insufferable in death than in life, and a pack of formerly feral vampires has decided to pay an unwelcome visit…

Book 8: Undead and Unwelcome

Betsy Taylor has problems that only a vampire queen/suburban wife could possibly understand. Such as taking the body of her werewolf friend Antonia—who died in her service—to Cape Cod, where she's not sure if the Wyndham werewolves will welcome her with fangs or friendship. Meanwhile, her posse back in St. Paul is sending frantic e-mails alerting Betsy to her half-sister's increasingly erratic behavior. Looks like the devil's daughter is coming into her own—and raising hell.

Book 9: Undead and Unfinished

MaryJanice Davidson once again proves that her humorous New York Times best-selling Undead series is unlike any other. In Undead and Unfinished, the ninth novel featuring the adventures of Vampire Queen Betsy Taylor, Betsy strikes up a deal with the devil. Now, Betsy has the ability to read the Book of the Dead without going insane and she finally gets the chance to discover all the dark mysteries it holds. When a visit to Hell turns into a time traveling journey filled with risky encounters, Betsy gets more than she bargained for. As she interacts firsthand with her past generations, Betsy’s meddling will impact the future in ways she does not yet understand.

I haven't read book 9 yet, my I'm dying to!

Browsing Bookshelves (3): Terri's Bookshelf

For this feature of Browsing Bookshelves, one of my readers, Terri, submitted pictures of her new bookshelf in her new house.  Terri is a blog reader, but not yet a writer, so I am unable to share her blog with you as it does not exist!  Terri said that putting her bookshelf together was one of the first things she did when she moved in.  This was the first house in which she had the room to have a bookshelf.  She's very excited and, so, without further ado: her bookshelf!

So cute, Terri!  I love the puppy pictures!



Do you have a bookshelf you'd like to share?  We'd love to see public, private, whatever you want to share!  Be sure to e-mail me here!

The Versatile Blogger Award!

I'm very pleased to make this post because the The Enchanted Book and Hale & Salvatore Supernatural Must Reads have awarded me the Versatile Blogger Award!  Thank you so much!  This is my first blog award, so I'm pretty excited!


Here are the rules of the award:

1.  Share 7 things about yourself.
2.  Pass the award to 15 bloggers recently discovered.
3.  Notify the blogger recipients.
4.  Link to the blogger who gave the award.


7 things about me:

1.  I started book blogging about 2 months ago and am loving every minute of it.  I've always been a huge reader, so having the ability to share my thoughts and feelings about a book is great!
2.  I only read one book at a time, not matter how badly I want to pick another one up.  Once I start something, I have to finish it.
3.  Once I start a series of books, as long as I like them, I have to finish them.  Sometimes other books will come in between, but I have to read a series all the way through as quickly as possible. =)
4.  I use a Mac.  After having this baby, I find it hard to believe I ever used a PC.
5.  I desperately want an e-reader, but know the second I own one I won't use it.  I have a thing for physical books and it just won't go away.
6.  I could live in a bookstore.  Literally.  When I do go, I spend HOURS there.  It drives my fiance mad, but I can't seem to help myself!
7.  I judge a blog by it's layout.  I can't help myself.  If the layout is messy and disorganized I find I won't follow that blog, even if the blog has good content.




15 bloggers I've recently discovered: 

1.  21 Pages
2. The Cozy Reader
3. About Happy Books
4. All About {n}
5. Avery's Book Nook
6. Blood Rose Books
7. Book Soulmates
8. Bookalicious Ramblings
9. Kate's Library
10. Lily's Bookshelf
11. The Book Junkie's Bookshelf
12. The Unread Reader
13. Bon Bons and Reveries
14. Xenophobic Bibliophile
15. Crazy Book Slut

Review: Hard Eight

Hard Eight
Author: Janet Evanovich
Characters: 5 out of 5
Plot: 5 out of 5
Overall: 5 out of 5

Description: (Author Website) Fugitive Apprehension Agent Stephanie Plum has a big problem on her hands: Seven-year-old Annie Soder and her mother, Evelyn, have disappeared.

Evelyn's estranged husband, Steven, a shady owner of a seedy bar, is not at all happy. During the divorce proceedings, he and Evelyn signed a child custody bond, and Steven is demanding the money guaranteed by the bond to find Annie. The money was secured by a mortgage on Evelyn's grandmother's house, and the True Blue Bonds Bail Agency wants to take possession of the house.

Finding a kidnapped child is not an assignment for a bounty hunter. But Evelyn's grandmother lives next door to Stephanie's parents, and Stephanie's mother and grandmother are not about to see their neighbor lose her house because of abduction.

Even though Stephanie's plate is full with miscreants who missed their court dates, including old nemesis and violent drunk Andy Bender and an elusive little old lady accused of grand theft auto, she can't disappoint Grandma Mazur! So she follows the trail left by Annie and Evelyn-- and finds a lot more than she bargained for. Steven is somehow linked with a very scary Eddie Abruzzi. Trenton cop and on-again, off-again fiance Joe Morelli and Stephanie's mentor and tormentor, Ranger, warn Stephanie about Abruzzi, but it's Abruzzi's eyes and mannerisms that frighten Stephanie the most. Stephanie needs Ranger's savvy and expertise, and she's willing to accept his help to find Annie even though it might mean becoming too involved with Ranger.

Stephanie, Ranger, Lula (who's not going to miss riding with Ranger), and Evelyn's lawyer/laundromat manager set out to find Annie. The search turns out to be a race among Stephanie's posse, the True Blue Bonds' agent, a Rangerette known as Jeanne Ellen Burrows, and the Abruzzi crew. Not to mention the fact that there's a killer rabbit on the loose!

From My Point of View: You're probably getting tired of this, but once again, Evanovich has written another winner.  And, yes, it was the best one yet.  The storyline of the novel was FANTASTIC.  I adored the stalker bunny and was incredibly touched by the mother/daughter aspect.  It's easy to tell that being a bounty hunter is finally getting to Stephanie.  This book alludes to many future changes -- including relationship wise, but not in a way I had expected.  I can't wait to see the course the novels will follow from here on out.  This this being the current halfway point in the series, I have a feeling they are only going to continue to get better.

Blog Hop! (4)

This week's question is:  What is your favorite book cover?

This is probably one of the most difficult questions you could ask me.  I am very much a "judge a book by it's cover" girl.  I don't think I can fairly choose just one, so here's a smorgasbord of my loves (and if it's part of series, I tend to love that entire series' covers):

No Question this week.  Too much turkey for in-depth thinking --  I hear ya!

If you stopping by this week, be sure to check out my latest giveaway!  Click here to head on over.

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope everyone has a fantastic Thanksgiving (if you're celebrating that today)!  Stuff yourselves full of turkey and head off to bed for a mega nap! =)  And for the night owl shoppers -- enjoy!  I myself will be heading out this evening to do a bit of midnight shopping for some serious deals.  I can't wait!

I am beyond thankful for my amazing family, friends and fiance.  I am thankful that he (my fiance) has not yet been deployed (even though it's a pain in my wedding planning butt) and that it looks like it will be some time still before he leaves.  And I'm also thankful for all my wonderful followers!  You are what inspires me to keep reading and posting!  This blog would be nothing without you!

So, tell me: What are you thankful for today?

Wanted Wednesday (4)

This week's Wanted Wednesday is a book, but it's not EXACTLY a book.  I was browsing Tales of Whimsy the other day when I discovered a post on this:

They're covers for your iPad or MacBook -- that look like books!! They are the coolest thing I think I've ever seen.  I was all set to order one when I found out they're not suggested for white MacBooks because they might discolor it. =(  Talk about depressing.  So, regardless of the fact that I can't use one on my laptop (or rather, that I shouldn't) and the fact that I don't own an iPad, I still want one.  If I ever end up with a new mac or ipad, I am so ordering one of these!

Don't forget the Giveaway!

We're now just 40 followers from the end of the giveway -- and who knows! That could be this Friday!  Make sure you get your entries in!! For all the details click the graphic below to head on over to the giveaway post.