Tag: readingrush

#StayHome Reading Rush Wrap Up

mylifewithbooksblog1 Comment

Happy Monday!

Yesterday was the last day of the #StayHome Reading Rush, so I thought it was fitting to share all I got read during the last four days. I also wanted to include a reading update with everything I plan on reading from now until the end of the month. So, onto the wrap up!

Spoiler alert, I did not win the readathon.

Last week, I posted my TBR for the readathon and it had three books on it: The Magician by Lisa Maxwell, An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir, and The Selection by Kiera Cass.

The one book I did finish reading was The Last Magician and I loved it! It took me around 150 pages to really get into it, but once I did, I was deep in the world and in love with some of the characters. At several times, the story made me pause and step back from it with my jaw wide open. While the story caught me off guard with its twist and turns, the characters just stepped right off the page. They were flawed and interesting, and I couldn’t help but have a soft spot for Esta and Harte. Overall I gave this book a 4.5/5 stars and highly recommend it.

That was the only book I completed during the readathon. Things got busy with school because I had two final essays due Saturday afternoon and kind of left them until the last minute…so Friday and Saturday were not great reading days. Neither was Sunday, to be honest, but I blame that on work and the Netflix TV show, The Elite (which I’ve been LOVING by the way). I did make progress in the other two books on my TBR though. As of today, I am 270 pages into An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir. This is another book that takes me a bit to get into, but once Laia goes to Blackcliff, I am sucked in for good. I am so happy I decided to start my re-read of this series now because it is just making me anticipate the fourth book even more.

As for The Selection, I only got 30 pages read during the readathon. I am not too sure if I am going to continue on with it this month or just re-read it some other time. The beginning is also slow, but I do not know if I am in the mood for this contemporary-dystopian type of novel. Right now, my heart is with fantasy. Whether that is urban/historical fantasy like The Last Magician or high fantasy like An Ember in the Ashes (I think it is qualified as high fantasy). All I want is far-off worlds and magic.

So, as of now, I will be continuing on with my re-read of An Ember in the Ashes before moving on to my final two books for the O.W.Ls readathon. I decided to change one of those books though. Instead of reading A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas, I want to pick up Clockword Prince by Cassandra Clare. After reading Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare, I have been dying to pick up the sequel, and it also fits with the prompt of reading a book with a shapeshifter because one of the characters is a Eidolon…but I won’t say which one because spoilers. However, I do still plan on reading The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, which I am very curious to see if I like or not.

That is all for my Reading Rush wrap up and mini reading update. I had a lot of fun participating in this surprise readathon, and cannot wait to continue on with the O.W.Ls readathon for the rest of April. Let me know if you participated in the #StayHome Reading Rush, and if you did, how your reading went because I would love to know.

Thanks for reading!

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Stay Home Reading Rush TBR + Tag

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The Reading Rush's tweet - "Announcing the #stayhomereadingrush ...

Happy Monday!

The Reading Rush (a week long readathon that takes place every summer) is hosting a shorter, surprise readathon from April 16-19 and I cannot wait to participate. There are four reading challenges along with a fun tag that I am going to answer in this post as well as share what books I plan on reading. I am already participating in the O.W.Ls readathon, but I am sure I can double up on some challenges. If not, what are a few more books?

This readathon sounds really fun and a perfect way to pass the time. I can’t wait to participate so here are the books I plan on reading!

1. Read a Book with a House on the Cover

An Ember in the Ashes - Wikipedia

I had to stretch this prompt a little because I don’t seem to have any books with houses on the covers. So, I settled for a cover that had buildings on it. If they are the buildings I am thinking of, than people do live in them so I think that counts… Anyways, the book is An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir. Yes, I’ve read this book quite a few times, but I am just so excited for the fourth book, A Sky Beyond the Storm, to come out in December. That is pretty far away, but I just love these books and want to dive back into the story.

2. Read a Book in the Same Room the Whole Time

selection-cvr

While I’ve mostly been craving fantasy books, I feel like four fantasy novels in four days is a little unrealistic for me. I think now is a better time than ever to pick up a fun and lighthearted novel so why not give The Selection by Kiera Cass a re-read? I know I can read this book in like a day or two, and I think it will be a great mood booster. It will also be nice to use it as a break between all my fantasy reads.

3. Read a Book Set Somewhere You Wish You Could Go

The Last Magician (The Last Magician, #1) by Lisa Maxwell

Currently, I am reading The Last Magician by Lisa Maxwell but it is not a small book and I feel like by Thursday, I will still be reading it so I am just going to tack it onto this TBR. This urban fantasy is set in New York City during past and present time. Honestly, I would want to visit New York City both in present time and in the early 1900s like the main character, Esta, does. It has been a dream since I was young to go there and hopefully one day soon I can.

4. Read a Book That Will Make You Smile

selection-cvr

I hate doubling up on challenges because I like to challenge myself to read as much as possible, however, I know it is unrealistic for me to be able to read four books in four days because of the ones I’ve chosen to read. I am going to also use The Selection by Kiera Cass for this reading challenge. I’ve read this many times and the cliche, often cringey plot never fails to make me smile. And grimace, but hey, I’ll take it.

 

#StayHomeReadingRush Tag

1. How is Your Reading Going while Staying Home?

So far, it has been going really good. Already this month, I have gotten through two, almost three, books which is usually what I get read in a whole month during the school year. It is nice spending anywhere from one to three hours reading inside and outside, and always making a decent chunk of progress in whatever I am reading. It is helpful having all these readathons too because they motivate me to read even more.

2. Where Have You Been Reading At Home?

I have had two main reading spots lately. The first one is my couch where I retreat to first thing in the morning when I wake up to read. The second one is on my deck because we have couches and other furniture set up out there. Also, the weather has been so nice lately it is hard not to want to spend time outside.

3. Best Book You’ve Read During Isolation?

Definitely Chain of Gold by Cassandra Clare, which if you have read it, might come to no surprise. The characters and atmosphere are just so addicting that I was stuck reading it for hours and hours every day. It is no short book either, so it took me surprisingly little time to read it because I just flew through it. Which is common with me for Cassandra Clare books. Another favourite I have read so far is The Toll by Neal Shusterman because it was the conclusion to the Scythe series which I am a huge fan of. It was bittersweet but the story took me completely by surprise to say the least.

4. What’s Your Favourite Feel Good Book?

Honestly, Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell is my feel good book. I always have such a fun time reading it and it makes me so happy. Even though Cath can be annoying, she is a relatable main character for any reader and writer, and overall, the story is adorable.

5. Book You Wish You Could Buy or Borrow from the Library?

I want to buy A Reaper at the Gates by Sabaa Tahir, the third book in the An Ember in the Ashes series because I only own the first two books. I want to complete my collection of her books but when I first read it, I borrowed it from the library to save money. Now, I want to own it!

6. Author You Want to Shout Out During This Time?

The host of this readathon, Ariel Bissett, shouted out A.S. King and I have to agree with that. I’ve only read one of her books, Dig, but she has such a captivating way of story telling that resulted in her book completely destroying and amazing me. I cannot wait to read more of her books and I cannot recommend her enough..

7. What is Your Reading Rush TBR?

I don’t need to answer this because I just did above, but if you are also participating, let me know what you are reading in the comments!

 

Those are all the books I plan on reading during the #StayHomeReadingRush readathon, and also my questions to the tag portion. I hope you enjoyed and don’t forget to check out my last blog post as well as my social media accounts linked down below.

Thanks for reading!

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Readathon Update!

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Happy Thursday!

Today marks the fourth day of the Reading Rush, the second readathon I have participated in this July, and I thought it would be fun to give a little update!

Anyways, currently, I am on track with reading seven books in seven days which is shocking, to say the least. A few years ago, reading that many books in that little amount of time would have been easy even if I had a million other things going on. As I get older, reading for long stretches of time seems to get harder and I do NOT know why. Shouldn’t I be less fidgety and more willing to slump on my couch for like five hours?

Apparently not.

While I did not finish a full book on Monday because I thought it was a smart idea to try and read half of two books and then finish them both the next day (this did not happen!), I did catch up yesterday. I tried to read Blue Lily Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater (which I successfully finished yesterday) and We Hunt the Flame by Hasaf Faizal (which I did not successfully finish yet) on Monday and Tuesday, but only finished the first because while We Hunt the Flame is good, it’s moving a little slow for me. I’m thinking of replacing it with Again, But Better by Christine Riccio because it JUST came in from the library for me and I really want to read it. Plus, it would be an easy replacement for We Hunt the Flame because it is also a debut book.

I do want to finish We Hunt the Flame because I enjoy the rich world and story, but I don’t think it is readathon material.

Yesterday, I finished reading Avatar the Last Airbender: The Promise: Part Two by Gene Luen Yang which I read for the challenge of “read a book in one place”. It took me literally 20 minutes to read and I had a fun time! Yesterday, I also started and finished reading Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Richard Stevenson which was a nice, short read at 68 pages. As you can see, I am only on track because I’ve been reading my short books HOWEVER, none of the books left are anywhere near that short. Well, maybe except for Again, But Better which I started last night and am 50(ish) pages into already. But that is it.

My plan for today is to finish Again, But Better which I have no doubt I will do and then get at LEAST halfway through The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzie Lee because that is a hefty one being over 500 pages.

After that, I will only have two books left: City of Bones by Cassandra Clare and The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater. Hopefully, I can finish these books in the next three days and I can win this readathon! However, I’ve been doing a lot of writing and other activities lately, so it will be slightly challenging but doable, I think?

If you’re participating in the readathon, let me know how it’s going!

Anyways, that is all for this reading update and I hope you enjoyed! Don’t forget to check out my last blog post as well as all my social media accounts linked down below. Thanks for reading 🙂

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Reading Rush TBR

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Happy Monday and also, day one of the Reading Rush!

It’s been two days since the last readathon I participated in, but I am already SO ready for the Reading Rush! I’m looking forward to yet another whole week dedicated to reading as much as possible because like I’ve mentioned before, I am trying to read a lot before I head off into my first year of university.

WHAT IS THE READING RUSH?

The Reading Rush was formally known as the BookTubeAThon and takes place from July 22 @ 12am – July 28 @ 11:59pm. It is an entire week dedicated to reading as much as you can, and is filled with video, reading, and Instagram challenges!

Anyways, here is what I plan on reading for this Reading Rush!

Read a Book with Purple on the Cover

Blue Lily Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater

Image result for blue lily lily blue

This has a liiitle purple on the cover so it counts! I mostly just really wanted to find a way to incorporate the last two books in the Raven Cycle into my Reading Rush TBR because I am LOVING my re-read of these books. Blue Lily Lily Blue is the third book out of four and I haven’t read it for a while so I kind of forget what happens, making me even more eager to jump into this book.

Read a Book in the Same Place Every Time

Avatar the Last Airbender: The Promise: Part Two by Gene Luen Yang

Image result for avatar the last airbender the promise book two

For the Biannual Bibliothon, I picked up the first installment in this graphic novel series following the events of season three of the TV show, Avatar the Last Airbender. While it wasn’t EXACTLY what I expected, I did enjoy my time reading it and definitely need another short book for the readathon so this is perfect. Especially if I have to stay in the same place to read it, which I have decided will be outside on my deck.

Read a Book You Meant to Read Last Year

The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzie Lee

Image result for gentleman's guide to vice and virtue

Recognize this from my Biannual Bibliothon TBR? Well, you’re right because I never got around to it the first time! This is a book I’ve been thinking about for the past year or so because I have heard NON-STOP, great things about it. So, I decided this month it is definitely time to give it a read. It is a bit longer (over 500 pages!), but I am hoping that because it is apparently so good, I won’t want to stop reading it.

Read an Author’s First Book

We Hunt the Flame by Hasaf Faizal

Image result for we hunt the flame

I follow this author on Twitter and honestly, her book promotion REALLY worked on me. Not only is the cover for this book beautiful, but the premise is really intriguing and something I am currently in the mood for. It has to do with a female hunter disguising herself as a man and being badass which I am ALL here for. I cannot wait to see if this book is worth the hype but honestly, I am sure it is. Even if it is the author’s debut!

Read a Book Featuring a Non-Human Character

The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater

Image result for the raven king

Okay so TECHNICALLY, Ronan is NOT completely human. He is a greywaren, a magician of sorts, which is NOT HUMAN. This counts because of all of that. This is the fourth and final book in the Raven Cycle which is sad, but I feel like during my first time reading this book, I didn’t really appreciate it for all it was. I sped through it and despite being in a readathon, I really don’t want to do that this time.

Pick a Book That Has More Than Five Words in the Title 

Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Stevenson 

Image result for strange case of jekyll and hyde

Not only am I trying to read more classics making this book a great pick, but Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is a novella so it is SUPER short. I have an edition where most of the book is short stories and the actual story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is like, 70 pages. Hopefully, the story is interesting and I can fly through those 70 pages in an hour or so! I haven’t dived into the world of gothic literature really, so I am looking forward to exploring this area of literature.

Read and Watch a Book-to-Movie Adaptation 

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

Image result for city of bones

At first, I was going to combine this challenge with the first and read Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, but honestly, I am not really in the mood for a cozy, atmospheric story. SO, instead, I am going to read and watch City of Bones! It’s been a hot minute since I visited the world of the Mortal Instruments except for when I did my audiobook listen of (most) of the books a year or so ago. I am very excited though because I have such a special place in my heart for this book and even the movie!

 

That is all for my Reading Rush TBR and I hope you enjoyed! Don’t forget to check out my last blog post as well as my social media accounts which are all linked down below. Thanks for reading 🙂

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