Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Really Liked but Can’t Remember Anything/Much About

January 23: Books I Really Liked but Can’t Remember Anything/Much About
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Happy Tuesday, Bookworms!!
Today we're sharing our list of books we've read and really liked,
but really don't remember much about! (I have a LOT of those. Haha!)

Listed below are just a few books that I've read,
but I seriously don't remember too much about.
AND, all of the books listed below except ONE are series that I've started,
but haven't yet finished as well. That's something I want to fix this year!

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard
Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raasch

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Die for Me by Amy Plum
Alienated by Melissa Landers

The Young Elites by Marie Lu
Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

The Selection by Kiera Cass
Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Ahhhh, so many books!
I am really looking forward to diving into these again.

And hopefully my memories will come flooding back when I do.
(I *love* it when that happens!)

(And hopefully I can finish all of these series as well.)
:)

What books made your list this week?
Leave a link in the comments so I can check them out!

My Thoughts: Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson

Truly Devious
(Truly Devious #1)
by Maureen Johnson
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Publication Date: January 16th 2018
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Pages: 432
ISBN: 9780062338051
Genre: Young Adult | Mystery | Thriller
Source: Edelweiss Review Copy

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Available for Purchase:
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New York Times bestselling author Maureen Johnson weaves a delicate tale of murder and mystery in the first book of a striking new series, perfect for fans of Agatha Christie and E. Lockhart.

Ellingham Academy is a famous private school in Vermont for the brightest thinkers, inventors, and artists. It was founded by Albert Ellingham, an early twentieth century tycoon, who wanted to make a wonderful place full of riddles, twisting pathways, and gardens. “A place,” he said, “where learning is a game.”

Shortly after the school opened, his wife and daughter were kidnapped. The only real clue was a mocking riddle listing methods of murder, signed with the frightening pseudonym “Truly, Devious.” It became one of the great unsolved crimes of American history.

True-crime aficionado Stevie Bell is set to begin her first year at Ellingham Academy, and she has an ambitious plan: She will solve this cold case. That is, she will solve the case when she gets a grip on her demanding new school life and her housemates: the inventor, the novelist, the actor, the artist, and the jokester. But something strange is happening. Truly Devious makes a surprise return, and death revisits Ellingham Academy. The past has crawled out of its grave. Someone has gotten away with murder.

The two interwoven mysteries of this first book in the Truly Devious series dovetail brilliantly, and Stevie Bell will continue her relentless quest for the murderers in books two and three.(Goodreads)

My Thoughts...
I’ve had my eye on Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson for a while now, and I was super curious to finally get started on it. I’ve read a few of Maureen’s books in the past, but it’s been a while since I read those, and I was pretty excited to read something new from her. (Yes, I’ve had the opportunity to read something new by her before now, as I own quite a few of her other books that I haven’t read yet, but I digress). I finally found this book at the top my TBR, and I’m glad that I had a chance to read it. It was an interesting book!

Stevie Bell is obsessed with true-crime, and wants nothing more than to work for the FBI when she’s older. When given the opportunity to attend school at the mysterious Ellingham Academy, Stevie decides that her main goal is to solve the cold-case murder that happened there way back when the school first opened. But when a murder happens again, it’s up to Stevie to figure out exactly what’s going on, and how a similar crime from the past could be happening again in the present.

I thought Stevie was an interesting main character. I love how interested she was in true-crime, and even though that’s something I am not at all into, I still found myself relating to her in many ways. I liked how quick her mind works, and I’m super curious to see how she’s going to figure things out over the course of the next two books in the series.

I also really enjoyed the mysterious storyline for the book, and how it kept me guessing. I also thought that the back-story of what happened at the school in the past was interesting as well, and super curious to see how all of these things will tie together throughout the rest of the series. I read this book fairly quickly, so if you’re looking for a fun, mysterious read, this may be the book for you.

Overall; I thought Truly Devious was really quick, mysterious read, and I’m really curious to see what’s going to happen in the next book. I also need to try to read more of Maureen’s books that I haven’t yet read, starting with the Shades of London series, which I keep meaning to pick up but haven’t yet. (I must do that soon!) If you’re a fan of murder mysteries, do check out Truly Devious!

My Week in Review - Week 3

Happy Sunday, and Welcome to my weekly Week in Review post!

Here I share all the things I've been up to during the previous week.
Check back every Sunday for new post updates!

Now, here's what I've been up to this week!

This week was not the best reading week for me, unfortunately, thanks to weather and school closings, as well as me being sick. I did, however, finally finish Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson, which I'm hoping to have my thoughts for up on the blog this week.

I also read The Orphan's Tale by Pam Jenoff, which is from my Winter TBR list, and I really enjoyed this book. I'll definitely be checking out more books by this author in the future.

I did watch quite a few movies this week, mostly because I've been too sick to do anything else, and there's just something about curling up with a blanket and watching your favorite movies when you're sick. Am I right? I really enjoyed rewatching all of these. Actually, it was my first time watching Bridget Jones Diary, which I watched with my book club ladies. I can't believe I have never seen the movie before! I love Mark Darcy. Sighhhhhh.

As I mentioned above, this has been a pretty crazy week with the weather, school closings, basketball games, doctors appointments, and illness. I'm tired just thinking about it. Ha! Hopefully next week things will be back to normal, as normal as they can be for January, anyways. Now if I can only survive the next few weeks, then hopefully everything will be back to normal for a while. We shall see!

So, how was your week this week? Did you read a lot? Watch a lot?
I hope you all had a great week!

Waiting on Wednesday #301 - To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo

To Kill a Kingdom
by Alexandra Christo
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Publication Date: March 6th 2018
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
ISBN: 9781250112682

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Available for Pre-Order:
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Princess Lira is siren royalty and the most lethal of them all. With the hearts of seventeen princes in her collection, she is revered across the sea. Until a twist of fate forces her to kill one of her own. To punish her daughter, the Sea Queen transforms Lira into the one thing they loathe most—a human. Robbed of her song, Lira has until the winter solstice to deliver Prince Elian’s heart to the Sea Queen or remain a human forever.

The ocean is the only place Prince Elian calls home, even though he is heir to the most powerful kingdom in the world. Hunting sirens is more than an unsavory hobby—it’s his calling. When he rescues a drowning woman in the ocean, she’s more than what she appears. She promises to help him find the key to destroying all of sirenkind for good—But can he trust her? And just how many deals will Elian have to barter to eliminate mankind’s greatest enemy? (Goodreads)

Whoot! Is this cover awesome, or what??
And the story sounds pretty awesome as well!!
I snagged an advanced copy of the book recently,

and I absolutely can't wait to check it out!!

**"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine,
that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.**

Top Ten Tuesday: Bookish Resolutions & Goals

January 16: Bookish Resolutions/Goals

Happy Tuesday, Bookworms!!
Do you have any bookish goals and/or resolutions for 2018??
I have quite a few, and I really hope I can keep up with them.
:)

1. Reading Goal: 150 Books - I read 150 books in 2017, and I'm hoping I can do it again this year!

2. Read More books I Want to Read - This is another thing I started doing last year, and I love it. I'm reading all the books I'm behind on, or even ones I want to read or re-read just because, and I love the freedom of it!

3. More Audiobooks - I've listened to audiobooks for a while now, but sometime in the middle of last year something clicked, and now I'm OBSESSED with them! Here's to many more great audiobooks in 2018!

4. Read More I Normally Wouldn't Read - I just started doing this a little last year, stepping out of my comfort (reading) zone, so to speak, and I ended up really enjoying the new books I checked out! I'm definitely doing it again this year!

5. Stay Caught Up - I attempt this every year, but it seems like you knock one book off the list, and 5 more take its place!

6. Add in some Non-Fiction - I'm definitely checking out more non-fiction books this year, starting with autobiographies of some of my favorite actresses!

7. Less Review Books - I cut way back on this last year, and it was actually nice! I think I'm going to cut down even more this year.

8. Read More Classics - The first book I read (re-read, actually) this year was Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, which happens to be one of my most favorite books ever, and I LOVED being back in that world! I do not read nearly enough classics, so I'm definitely going to work on that.

9. Book Buying Ban - Ugh. I don't even want to do this, and I probably wont stick to it, but I have GOT to stop buying books that I don't have time to read! I'm definitely going to try, but I don't really see it happening. HAHA!

10. Keep Track of What I Read - I'm trying to keep up with what I read somewhere other than on Goodreads and Pinterest, but I'm always forgetting to update my bullet journal. I ordered a reading journal though, so hopefully I can keep up with it!

There you go, friends! Just a few of my bookish goals and resolutions for this year.
What are some of YOUR goals and resolutions??
Share your link below so I can check out your post for today!!

My Week in Review - Week 2

Happy Sunday, and Welcome to my weekly Week in Review post!

Here I share all the things I've been up to during the previous week.
Check back every Sunday for new post updates!

Now, here's what I've been up to this week!

Hey friends!! This week I had another really good book week with 5 books read! The first book I finished was Unearthed by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner, and I shared my thoughts for the book earlier this past week on the blog!

I also finished my re-read of After You by Jojo Moyes, and I'm officially ready to start Still Me once it arrives at the end of the month. I almost had myself convinced not to re-read the first two book, but now that I've read them again, I'm really glad I did. :)

Illuminae is another book I finished my re-read of this week, and I'm really excited to move on to Gemina in February. Hopefully I will have it finished before Obsidio is released in March. :)

After reading Pride and Prejudice last week, I felt the need to read another book by Jane Austen, and Northanger Abbey is one of the few books I had not yet read by her. I was excited to finally check it out, but unfortunately I didn't love it as much as some of Jane's other books. (I didn't hate it like Mansfield Park, so that's something!)

I also *FINALLY* read Victoria by Daisy Goodwin, which I have been meaning to read for FOREVER. I really didn't have time to read it this month, but I REALLY want to watch the series, so I worked it into my schedule. I can't wait to watch the show!

Unfortunately it was a pretty busy week, so I didn't really get to watch much. But the hubby and I did work in a little movie night and watched Minority Report, which neither of us had seen before. (One of my movie goals for this year is to watch more new-to-me movies.) This was a confusing little movie, or maybe I was just tired. *shrug* Here's hoping I can fit in some movies this coming week!

Ahh, what a week! Not only did school start back, but Basketball Cheer for Kid #2 started back as well. Sigh. Her game schedule for the next few weeks is pretty insane, but we only have FOUR weeks left, and then we are done! I love watching my kid cheer, but basketball isn't really my thing, which is usually why I'm the one in the stands with a book. ;)

I also wanted to say a quick thank you to everyone for the Blogoversary wishes! I can't believe it's been 7 years. (I can't believe I FORGOT about it!) Haha! It really has been a great 7 years, and many thanks to everyone that's still around. I pretty much suck at blogging lately, but I am trying to do better, especially about visiting other blogs and returning comments! *blush*

That's it for today! Now it's time to catch up on reading and review writing. :)

How was your week this week??

Happy 7th Blogoversary to ME!!

Whooooo Hoooooo!!

Today is my 7th Blogoversary!!

And I COMPLETELY FORGOT!!

Ah well. It happens, right??

It's been a crazy week, and I have nothing planned,
so today I'll celebrate by curling up with a good book,

and hoping that I have another great year of blogging ahead of me.
Thanks for helping to make the 7 last years really awesome!!

Happy Blogoversary to Me!!

My Thoughts: Unearthed by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner

Unearthed
(Unearthed #1)
by Amie Kaufman
Website | Twitter | Facebook
& Meagan Spooner
Website | Twitter | Facebook

Publication Date: January 9th 2018
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Pages: 336
ISBN: 9781484758052
Genre: Young Adult | Science Fiction
Source: Review Copy

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Available for Purchase:
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository

When Earth intercepts a message from a long-extinct alien race, it seems like the solution the planet has been waiting for. The Undying's advanced technology has the potential to undo environmental damage and turn lives around, and Gaia, their former home planet, is a treasure trove waiting to be uncovered.

For Jules Addison and his fellow scholars, the discovery of an alien culture offers unprecedented opportunity for study... as long as scavengers like Amelia Radcliffe don't loot everything first. Mia and Jules' different reasons for smuggling themselves onto Gaia put them immediately at odds, but after escaping a dangerous confrontation with other scavvers, they form a fragile alliance.

In order to penetrate the Undying temple and reach the tech and information hidden within, the two must decode the ancient race's secrets and survive their traps. But the more they learn about the Undying, the more their presence in the temple seems to be part of a grand design that could spell the end of the human race... (Goodreads)

My Thoughts...
Unearthed by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner is definitely one of my most anticipated reads for 2018, and I absolutely couldn't wait to get started on the book. I have read two books from the Starbound series by these authors in the past, as well as Amie's Illuminae series (co-written with Jay Kristoff), and I enjoyed all of these books immensely, so I knew I would enjoy this book as well. And I did!

The story is told from alternate viewpoints between Mia, a scavenger who has traveled to an alien planet to look for loot to sale, and Jules, a scholar who wants to study the alien culture before scavengers like Mia destroy it all. Mia is a survivor; she does what she has to do it make it through the day to day, and wants nothing more than to take care of her sister, the only family she has. Jules is the brains, wanting to know more and more about the ancient world that could eventually save the dying Earth. When these two form an unlikely alliance, they are pretty much unstoppable.

I've never really been much of a sci-fi fan, at least not until recently, but the more I read the genre, the more I enjoy it. (At least books like these, anyway.) I love the whole alien planet, and being in outer space. This book has all that, and also has a bit of an Indiana Jones feel through the first half of the book, which was interesting, but also a bit slower-paced than the second half of the book. That's where the action really kicked in. But that ending... that ending is what really got me. (Seriously?! How could the book possibly end that way??) Gah. What a great way to ensure I'll be over here pining away for the rest of the year waiting on the next book to be released! *grin*

Overall; If you can't tell by all the gushing I did above, I really enjoyed Unearthed! Especially the last half of it, and after that ending, I will definitely anticipating the release of the second book. Lucky for me I still have the Illuminae and Starbound series to read this year, both series I am starting over so I can read them from start to end, so I'll at least have something to keep me busy while I wait! If you're a fan of either of these series, or just a fan of sci-fi in general, do check out Unearthed when you can!