Monday, February 29, 2016

End of the Month 2016 [February]


February was such a good month for me reading wise. For the first time ever I just about finished my entire monthly TBR goal. There was only one book out of the ten that I wanted to read that I did not finish. But I'll get to that and the reasons in just a sec. But first here's what my month looked like.


Plus some extras:


So I'm sure a lot of you are thinking, "Wait a minute. You didn't read what was probably the best book on your February TBR? You could've skipped those extra four and read Illuminae! You disappoint me..."

Hold on there Judgey McJudgerpants! I actually had plenty of time to finish Illuminae as well. When I started it in the middle of the month I got around 27% done but I got to a part where I realized that I was spoiled on something that is probably a bit minor but still large enough that it irritated me. And it's not like I was out searching for spoilers I simply opened Twitter one day and saw a status update. Sigh. I'll eventually get back to it. Maybe in a few months. But I was just too irked to move on at that point. 


Total Read: 9/10 TBR + 4 Extras!












I am so in love with this book. The perfect blend of sweet, swoony angst! I ship Simon and Blue so hard!!



So this book started off great. I mean, the first 100 pages or so I was so invested and intrigued and just really into it! And then it just started to get...strange. Like not in a good way kind of strange. And then once that strangeness became obvious to me, other things started to jump out at me too. Like how freaking awkward and unnatural the dialogue was and how...I don't know. I'll just leave it at that. Still probably one of my most favorite book covers of all time. I just wish the inside matched the outside. :( Do not recommend....



So I'm stealing a tiny part of how Wendy from Book Scents formats her reading challenge section by adding her goals and progress. It won't look as pretty as her post but thanks for the inspiration Wendy! 


Goal: At least 1 book each month that I've owned prior to 01/01/16
February Progress: 11 out of 13 books read
Books: Clockwork Angel, Clockwork Prince, Clockwork Princess, Simon vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda, The Rest of Us Just Live Here, Illusionarium, In Real Life, Jake Undone, Prick, The Coldest Girl in Coldtown, When a Scot Ties the Knot


Goal: To complete a (mostly) unread series each month!
February Progress: The Infernal Devices. All 3 books were new to me!
Books: Clockwork Angel, Clockwork Prince, Clockwork Princess (My new favorite series of all time!!!)


Goal:  To be safe I'm aiming for Home Run (16-20 books) because I wanted to read more Fantasy, Paranormal and Sci-Fi this year. But I may be able to hit the Grand Slam goal of 21+ books!
February Progress: 5 this month
Books: Simon vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda, Tied to Trouble, Strong Signal, Jake Undone, Prick
Total Progress: 8/20


Goal: Level 4 (Expert Series Reader) - Complete 7 or more series that you started previously but never finished.
February Progress: Nothing this month. The entire Infernal Devices series was new to me.
Total Progress: 1/7


Goal: There are 40 different types of books to read in this challenge. If I hit 30 I'll be happy and satisfied!
February Progress: Checked off a total of 7 (Click the image above to see a more detailed answer)
Total Progress: 11/40


So that was my February 2016 in...well I was gonna say in a nutshell but that did go on a bit long didn't it? How are you doing on your 2016 goals or just monthly goals in general? :)


The Monday Musts #07 [The Sculptor, Panic! and Fuller House]



The Monday Musts is a new feature created by Jessica from Lovin' los libros where we share with you each week all the musts you're missing out on. The must reads, the must listens, and the must sees (This can be ANYTHING that catches our eye. Other blogs, bookish things, pictures, etc)




Here's the thing. I've felt this very strong need lately to really branch out and grab things that are out of my usual normal. Maybe even out of my comfort zone or at the very least straddling that line. Which is something I plan to start incorporating very soon. (I think I just heard my debit card sobbing and begging me to stay off of BookOutlet. We'll see how that works!)

Anyway. This definitely wasn't one of those kinds of reads for me but it was my first graphic novel when all I've read in the past are straight comics. So for people who might be thinking "Oh I'd love to give a graphic novel a try but I have no idea where to start" Well I'm definitely not the expert to give advice on such a thing but in my opinion this would be a great start. Now it is almost 500 pages but trust me I read it in less than a day. The story is captivating, the artwork is beautiful and it totally annihilated my feels!

This was probably my most favorite read of 2015.




Artist: Panic! at the Disco
Album: ALL OF THEM
Favorite Song(s): Girls/Girls/Boys | This is Gospel | Death of a Bachelor | Emperor's New Clothes

In my lineup of top 3 musical groups of all time Panic! would actually come in at second. I think the next two weeks I'll do both my first and third favorites as well. But the last few weeks I've been on a major Panic! kick (currently listening as I type up this post) so I figured I'd throw this one up first.  I'm usually partially deaf by the end of the day after listening nonstop so....what?


Plus Brendon Urie = everything 



and just because he's so freaking sexy...




and because I want the camera to drop at 0:52, 1:48, 2:03 and 2:56... don't judge me


I swear I'm done. This won't ever happen again.

I think this post took way too deep of a turn into my psyche...

Just don't look me in the eyes for a few days.

*Ahem*

Yeah...so my 19 year old walked by as I was doing "research" for this post with this last video and all he could  say is "holy crap mom!" and laugh and walk away as I turned 50 shades of red. Sigh. I feel so dirty!




So when I threw this post together in the middle of last week I had something else entirely for this section which I'm now going to save for next week instead. Here's the thing. Full House...was my childhood. I know it's cheesy and silly and like I don't even care. I loved that show. I still catch it on Nickelodeon on occasion. So Friday when Fuller House hit Netflix...I was all over that. I completely binged the first season. 

Guys....I freaking love it! I was so scared because you're taking this iconic show, this thing that, like I said, was my childhood. I mean what if they messed it up? No need to worry there!

So if you're a lover of Full House like I am and haven't watched Fuller House yet or have been on the fence about giving it a shot then I say go for it! Give it a try! I laughed so hard and it even made me cry twice!

Fuller House guys! 




So what are some of your musts this Monday? :)


Sunday, February 28, 2016

BOOK HAUL! [February 2016]


I really haven't done one of these in a while. And the last one I did was a lazy one because I didn't feel like doing all my BookOutlet purchases at the time. So what I'm trying to say is....this one is kind of huge. I've got 2 BookOutlet Hauls worth of books plus a few from Amazon.

Let's see some books shall we?!



(The two in the middle are from Amazon the rest BookOutlet)


What's in there:



Stray (Shifters #1) by Rachel Vincent




by Gail Carriger

Beautiful Creatures (Caster Chronicles #1) by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl

by Laini Taylor

by Sarah Fine

Lock & Mori (Lock & Mori #1) by Heather W. Petty





Shadowfell (Shadowfell #1) by Juliet Marillier

Complete Trylle Series bind up by Amanda Hocking


Fates (Fates #1) by Lanie Bross

Loop (Loop #1) by Karen Akins

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

Golden by Jessi Kirby




That's it for my physical books here's some things I've added to my Kindle in the last couple months! I've already read the first two in the list and loved them. L-O-V-E looooved!



Strong Signal (Cyberlove #1) by Megan Erickson & Santino Hassell

Tied to Trouble (Gamers #3) by Megan Erickson


The Cranes Dance by Meg Howrey


Flirting with the Competition by Kerri Carpenter

What Wendy Wants by Nikki Sex




If you're still here with me...congratulations! You made it to the end :D! Ha! I know this was a huge post. If it makes me look any better (which I doubt) this is 2 months worth of books Plus I took major advantage of a BookOutlet deal that was going on so this haul wasn't as expensive as it would seem when you first look at it.

But that's it for now. The only things that I already plan on getting sometime next month are Morning Star and Winter so that I can read both of those series in the next couple months. Hopefully I will be able to control my impulses and only get those two. *Fingers crossed*!

So what have you added to your shelves lately? :)