This week I'm linking my recap post to two memes. The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer, and It's a chance to share news, recap what has happened on the blog, what is upcoming and anything everything in between. Stacking The Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews and is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual.
My Weekly Recap
I don’t get involved in drama as a general rule, but something happened recently that made me sit up and take notice. I think we all have read THAT article that was published last weekend. I might read some crazy and twisted things in the books I read, but at the end of the day, its fiction. The book is not going to stalk me or hit me over the head with a glass bottle. But when fiction actually turns into reality… that’s when I draw a line. With everything else that’s come to light since then, I’m finding it so hard to push it aside and continue on as I usually do.
It feels like the wind has been taken out of my little blogging sails this week, and I’m struggling to find the motivation to write up all the reviews I need to. It’s not very surprising that I’ve been questioning whether all of this is really worth it. I love visiting all of your blogs and finding out about new books and other bookish things, so ultimately that means I’m here for quite a while yet! If anything, it’s started to make me more determined to do what I enjoy doing – and that’s talk about books.
NaNoWriMo for bloggers - Blog Ahead 2014
Essentially, Blog Ahead is the bloggers version of NaNoWriMo. The aim is to get as many extra posts written up as we can within the month of November, so we can have a healthy bank of posts at our disposal for future months. The goal is 30 extra posts, but in honesty, I’ll be thinking this was a huge success if I manage to get 10 or 15 extra posts ready to go! I know it will be a huge challenge, as I don’t have any posts written up for November yet, but I’ll do the best I can and see how things progress over the month. The button above is linked to the main sign up page if anyone is interested in taking part!
Books I Bought This Week
The majority of the books I ordered showed up this week, with the exception of a few stragglers - hopefully they’ll show up this coming week. Links under each picture is to the books Goodreads page.
Boundless by Cynthia Hand // Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
I have Boundless!! Finally, I’ll be able to finish this trilogy – NO SPOILERS please!! I’ve managed to come this far without having a clue about what happens, and I’d really like to keep it that way ;). And Anna and the French Kiss! I wasn’t expecting this cover actually – I had ordered a second hand pink one, but a first edition hard cover shows up instead. Go figure… (Not that I'm complaining, mind you!)
Give Up the Ghost by Megan Crewe // Dangerous Girls by Abigail Haas
I read The Ghost and the Goth over the summer – which I loved! – and I’ve been looking for similar sounding books ever since. Give up the Ghost sounds adorable, plus, I love ghostly stories, so it should be really good. And yep, I’m finally catching up and I got a copy of Dangerous Girls. I’ve heard it’s amazing, so hopefully I’ll love it! This cover was another surprise. I did a double take when I took this one out of the envelope - I didn't realise the paperback had a different cover to the hardback!
Unspoken by Sarah Rees Brennan // If I Should Die by Amy Plum
I love the original cover for Unspoken – the pink one with the gates. This one doesn’t really stand out from the crowd, but that’s only minor. I’m so excited to read this book! If I Should Die is the conclusion to the Revenants series… come to think of it, I’ve been getting into a series completion kind of mood lately. I had a shaky start with the first book, but I really enjoyed the second, and hopefully I’ll love how the series ends.
On the Blog Recently
Review: Darkness, Be My Friend by John Marsden
Review: The Wilds, by Jules Hedger
Blog Ahead 2014 - Sign Up
Face Your Fears - The Bookish Edition
Review: The Academy: Introductions by C.L. Stone
A - Z Bookish Survey
Review: Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
Teaser Tuesday: Unhinged by A.G. Howard
Review: Reborn by C.C. Hunter
Gif and Seven Deadly Sins Tags
Posts I loved
Parajunkee talks about Book Blogging 101: Justify Reviewing a DNF – Why Should I? I love this post - it sums up both sides extremely well. I generally don't DNF books... but I think this is going to have to change soon. I don't have as much time anymore to plug away and keep going with a book I'm not invested in.
Cait @ Notebook Sisters gives us lots of tips on How to Write 10,000 words in one day. I bow down to her awesomeness! If I can manage a thousand, I'm deliriously happy!
Cait also talks about The Ten Types of Book Bloggers. I’d aspire to be some sort of Master Jedi-blogger, and be all over #5, but in reality I think I'm #7!
Soundtrack for the Week
Madness by Muse -- Spotify // YouTube
Have a great weekend, Happy Reading!
You got some great and lovely books this week. I hope you enjoyed all of the new books. Some of the covers look really very nice.
ReplyDeleteGrace @ Books of Love
Thanks Grace! I can't wait to start them :) Trouble is, I can't decide which to start first... :D
DeleteI haven't read any of these but happy reading!
ReplyDeleteTsuki’s STS
Thanks Tsuki :)
DeleteGreat haul! I love that copy of Anna. I just recently read it and though it's normally not my type of book I thought it was so cute! Happy reading!
ReplyDeleteSarahO. @ Between Bookends
I do like the original covers for Anna. I was hoping to own a matching set... but yeah, that doesn't look like it'll happen now, teehee! Oh well, I'll settle for the hardcover! I'm trying to branch out and read more contemporary, but fantasy always wins out in the end, eek! Hopefully I'll love this one, though. Have a great weekend, Sarah!
DeleteI love Amy Plum's books! She is so talented. I hope you enjoy all of your new books!
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting my blog!
Alyssa @ The Eater of Books!
I really hope I love If I Should Die! I really liked book two, so hopefully that will carry through to this one. Thanks, Alyssa!
DeleteI've been feeling kind of down because of the drama this week, too, Alma. And it's true - if stalking is OK for some authors, is it really worth it to continue on with such an expensive hobby? Of course, I love the blogging community, and I love reading and sharing my thoughts about what I've read, so I'm hanging in there!
ReplyDeleteI loved Boundless! I hope you will, too, that series is so well done :)
And Muse! *sighs* I'm so happy they're in the middle of recording their new album :)
I hope you'll have a fantastic week, Alma, and that you'll get your inspiration for review-writing back.
Lexxie @ (un)Conventional Bookviews
Yes, the whole thing has left a terrible cloud over blogging :( What I dislike is some authors seem to think book bloggers are different to their readers and fan base. We're not free PR machines. We ARE a part of their target audience - we are readers, not just bloggers! It's so disheartening that something like this could happen, and no repercussions seem to be in the works.
DeleteI can't wait to read Boundless... and I'm terrified at the same time! I love the characters in this series, and I don't want to feel disappointed or let down.
Thanks for stopping by Lexxie, hope you have an amazing week!
Great stack of books! Yay for Anna! I have the same cover and love it! I love the new one too, but the original is sweet!
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your new reads :)
Thanks Margie! I do like both covers! I was hoping for a matching set, though, so this has put a little bit of a spin on things, teehee!
DeleteOh, the blogger/author drama was definitely not something I wanted to see....but sometimes these things happen, don't they?
ReplyDeleteNot engaging with authors/bloggers around negative reviews is the best way to cope, but sometimes hard to follow, apparently.
Enjoy your week...and thanks for visiting my blog.
Yeah, nobody likes witnessing drama :( Stalking is something I just can't tolerate though, and with the attack on a reviewer... I shudder to think what could be next :(
DeleteThanks for visiting, have a fantastic week!
I loved the What Type of Blogger are you. Quite a shake up in the blogger sphere, and it saddened and outraged me. Give Up the Ghost looks cool, and your haul is just filled with awesomeness! Until I began blogging I never DNF'd a book, but I give a book about a 100 pages and just let go if its not working. This allowed me to try new genres and authors. I don't review them on the blog, but do post to Goodreads and pub as to why it did not work for me. It's a nice compromise since I don't feel I can fairly review a book I have not completely finished.
ReplyDeleteI think I'm going to have to seriously consider DNFing. If it's just a 'not for me right now' kind of feeling, I can always come back to it at a later stage. I don't come across books that often that I feel like I'm struggling to read, but it'd be nice to know I could do it if I had to. The guilt will be a whole different thing to overcome though! Have a great week, Kimba!
DeleteI've only followed the drama around the edges, but yeah. It's too bad really, but with so many book blogs and authors now I guess things are bound to happen occasionally. Hopefully people keep things cool in the future.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with Blog ahead!
Thanks Greg! Blog Ahead will be a challenge, but it'll be worth it to have some posts taken care of for December, and all it's craziness that goes with that month :)
DeleteYeah, there have been clashes before, but this one felt different to me for some reason. Saying stuff on the internet is one thing, but to actually move into the realms of stalking... I'm not very comfortable with that :/ I really hope it never happens again, it's not something we need to deal with!
Hope you have a great week, Greg!
Blog Ahead looks really helpful! I think I'll join. :) I hope you love Dangerous Girls and the rest of the books you got!
ReplyDeleteOh that's great! It'll be a lot of work, but it'll be worth it. I'd love to say I'll be able to do all 30 post, but if I go in with that mentality, I think I'll be putting too much pressure on myself. 15 sounds do-able, but I'd love to get even more than that done if I can :D Have a fantastic week Kaitlin, thanks for stopping by!
DeleteOOOh nice! The only one I've read is Boundless and I did enjoy its ending! Which sadly I read earlier this year and I'm struggling to recall it! LOL! Wayyyy too many reads on the brain. It's sad sometimes that I can't always remember specific ones!
ReplyDeleteHappy Reading! Thanks for visiting my STS!
Have a GREAT day!
Old Follower :)
LOL! Oh I know the feeling! I can't wait to read Boundless, but I'm kind of scared too... Hopefully I'll love it! Thanks for stopping by Jessica, have a fantastic week =)
DeleteFantastic haul Alma! I really want to get Anna and the French Kiss as well as If I Should Die.
ReplyDeleteI am absolutely going to sign up for the NaNoWriMo for bloggers. What a fantastic idea! Thank you for sharing :)
Madness by Muse is one of my favourite songs.
Monique @ Mo_Books
YAY, oh that's fantastic, Monique! It'll be a big challenge, but it'll be so worth it to have some posts taken care of in advance. I'd love to think I could manage all 30 posts, but it's putting a bit too much pressure on my shoulders. If I can manage 15, I'll be extremely happy :D
DeleteI love Madness! It's one of my fave songs of theirs :D Have a great week!
I couldn't agree with you more about that article! Also, a NaNoWriMo for bloggers? That's like the coolest thing ever! I would do it, but I'm actually doing real NaNoWriMo and I think it would be a bit too much to try and do both in the same month! So many awesome books!
ReplyDeleteHope you have a lovely week and good luck with Blogger NaNoWriMo!
Oooh best of luck with NaNo! I'd love to try the real thing one year :D And yeah, tackling TWO NaNo's in the one month would be way too much pressure! I'm glad there isn't a word limit on the posts for Blog Ahead - that would freak me out actually. Some posts I can chat away, and the words flow really well, but other are a little... erm, short, or forced! Thanks for stopping by, and good luck with NaNo!!
DeleteBoundless was a great book! Great book haul!
ReplyDeleteYay!! I hope I love it :D Thanks for stopping by :)
DeleteOooh lots of good books. I need to read Dangerous Girls and Dangerous Boys.
ReplyDeleteThanks Christy! I can't wait to read Dangerous Girls. I've seen so much praise for it, hopefully I'll love it too :)
DeleteDANGEROUS GIRLS DANGEROUS GIRLSSSSS :D :D :D YOU WILL LOVE IT!
ReplyDeleteI didn't know that this BlogAhead thing was a thing? I would love to participate, but I just don't have enough material to keep my blog updated everyday or every week. And it sucks! BUT GOOD LUCK WITH THAT! At least there isn't a word count total for your blog posts! haha!
I can't WAIT to read Dangerous Girls!! I really hope I love it :D
DeleteHahahaha, I'm VERY happy there isn't a word count for Blog Ahead! I'd be freaking out! I'd end up trying to repeat words here and there, just to add a few extra to the total! That's what keeps me away from the real NaNo in honesty - I really don't think I'd be able to write 50k in a month. WAY too much pressure! I have had a look at the future TTT topics... so most likely they'll be some of the post I'll be writing up in advance. I love all the topics for December, so I'll definitely try to chip away at those. Erm... that's as far as my planning has gone. Yeah. Now I just need another 20-25 ideas... No pressure then!!
Awesome haul! Some great books there! Love Anna! One of my all time fave books! I also quite enjoyed Boundless and If I Should Die! I hope you do as well! Enjoy all your books! I actually won Give Up The Ghost earlier this year, but haven't had a chance to read it. Glad to know you enjoyed it!
ReplyDeleteMy STS
Brittani @ Hope, Faith & Books
Thanks Brittani! I'm thinking of starting Anna next actually. I had intended on reading lots of spooky reads leading up to Halloween, but I end up getting into a contemporary reads kind of mood! LOL, I should know not to expect my reading moods to stay consistent :D Have a great week!
DeleteI stayed away from the blogger drama. It just drags me down and I never comment on it anyway.
ReplyDeleteI'm really wanting to read If I Should Die and Give Up The Ghost. Lucky you!
Here's my post - http://fuonlyknew.com/2014/10/26/whats-new-on-my-bookshelf-84-and-the-sunday-post/
I usually stay back, but when a blogger is actually stalked, and another blogger is physically attacked... it crosses a line I can't condone, under any circumstances.
DeleteThanks for stopping by Laura! I can't wait to read both Give Up the Ghost and If I Should Die :D
You have amazing books and I cant wait to check your review for Unhinged. Ive read it and I want to know if we feel the same way. :D
ReplyDeleteHere's mine:
NYZE@everythingnyze
I LOVED Unhinged! Oh my goodness, I have no clue how I'll be able to write up all my feelings about that book! With regards to the Jeb/Morpheus situation - I just might be crushing on a certain netherling moth... lets put it that way :D Now, I just need Ensnared! Thank goodness it's only a few more months. I don't think I could last waiting an entire year!
DeleteAHHH! THANKS FOR LINKING TO ME!! SQUEEE. *flails forever*
ReplyDeleteI agree the Hale incident was awful and sooo super depressing. It definitely made me unenthusiastic about blogging. I mean, not even JUST the author, but like the fact publishing houses would give out addresses and stuff too was just sick. I was totally anxious over the whole cacophony.
Thanks for stopping by @ Notebook Sisters!
Keep creating the awesome posts Cait! I love 'em all! :D
DeleteOh gosh, the whole Hale thing is so hard to come to terms with. I mean, who would DO that kind of thing!?! And to think it's acceptable!! What makes it even worse, it doesn't seem like she'll be reprimanded in any way. Good grief, it's sickening. Then, when I heard about the reviewer that was attacked in Scotland... it's terrifying and completely sickening to think what incidents like this could escalate into :(
Great haul! I love The Ghost and the Goth - I got the last book in the series a few weeks ago and need to make time for it :)
ReplyDeleteI also love the original cover for Unspoken! I was really disappointed when they changed it. I like my books to match. You also reminded me that I have Boundless on my Kindle but haven't read it yet... there's just not enough time for all the books!!
Happy reading, and thanks for stopping by :)
Oohh, I need to continue on with The Ghost and the Goth trilogy! It was such a fun read, and I loved the characters :D
DeleteThe original Unspoken cover was so beautiful! I really hate when covers change - especially in the middle of a series. That annoys me so much! I love matching sets of books, and I do the best I can to get them matching, but unfortunately, I'm not a billionaire!! I can't afford to re-buy books I already own just to have a pretty matching set :( *Phew* Sorry for the mini-rant!
I can't wait to read Boundless, and I know what you mean! It's so hard to get around to all the books I want to read. One day, when they actually create an eight day of the week entirely dedicated to reading... I shall be happy ;-)
Thanks for stopping by Carmen, have a great week!
Brilliant haul this week. I loved Dangerous Girls, I really hope you end up enjoying that one. NaNoWriMo for writers is something I really want to take part in. I am terrible at scheduling posts and I really need to start. Especially since I have ten reviews waiting to be written, I should really hurry up and do them.
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to read Dangerous Girls! I've seen so much praise, and I really hope I love it. I have so many books I really want to read right now, it'll be so hard to pick the ones I want to read first :D
DeleteGosh, I'm really behind on reviews right now as well. I just finished off the book I was reading this morning, and now I'm up to five reviews that I need to get written up. It's so hard to get in the mood to write though! Hopefully with Blog Ahead, the added pressure will help me kick my rear into gear, and get writing :D
Yeah, seriously. I saw it when it first showed up but didn't read it until the weekend and holy shit. I mean, it's just, how can anyone justify stalking? I mean, we go on some peoples blogs a lot, I check a lot of twitter feeds to see about new books coming out etc, but actually getting somebody's address, hire a car to go to their house How the hell haven't authorities gotten involved? I know you have to have proof of stalking, and she freaking admitted it out there and clear. If that wasn't bad enough, the Danielle Paige comment, because, sure, all authors want to on a road-trip to somebody's house to confront them about a negative review. Crazy unethical shit. But, she got what she wanted. Attention. Whether positive or negative, everyone was talking about it.
ReplyDeleteI've read Dangerous Boys and holy crap, so damn good. I have the black cover (though I waaaay prefer that paperback cover) reading It for Halloween since I need a good psychological thriller, and you just know it's going to be. I have that Unspoken cover too, since I've bought too many hardbacks in the past instead of paperbacks and didn't end up liking that much, so unless it's from an author I've read before, I'm sticking to paperbacks (even though, yeah, the hardback cover is so much better.) Enjoy! :)
YES!! I completely agree! She publicly ADMITTED it, and then bragged about it. She needs some serious help. I'm even more sickened with all the people coming to her defense, saying she did the right thing. STALKING someone is NEVER the right thing!!! NO excuses. She certainly got attention, but I'll never support her in any way. Ever. The whole thing got even worse - did you hear about the reviewer in Scotland? She was physically attacked in a supermarket. She was hit over the head with a glass bottle!! It's sickening! Who does things like this, and then to think it's justifiable!? I can't even... arrghh!
DeleteI can't wait to read Dangerous Girls! I really like this cover but it was a surprise! I was expecting the other cover :D I love the hardback Unspoken cover! In honesty, I can't afford hardbacks so paperbacks will have to do! It's not the end of the world, but it's a bit disappointing when the HB and PB covers differ. I'd love to have the pretty covers, but if I can get two or three PBs for one HB... the paperbacks will always win out! Thanks Kirsty-Marie, have a great week!
Nice haul. And you have two that have the Eiffel tower on the cover. Sweet. Happy blogging in November.
ReplyDeletehere's my sts:
http://vvb32reads.blogspot.com/2014/10/stacking-shelves-102514.html
and if you like Jane Austen, please join me at the Pemberley Ball:
http://vvb32reads.blogspot.com/2014/10/pemberley-ball-2014-next-month.html
Thanks!
DeleteThat article really did shake things up a bit huh? I'm glad you didn't let it scare you away - I feel like this was an extreme case and I HOPE it will end up being dealt with in the courts, making it even less likely to happen in the future. I'm not changing anything I do though, that's for sure. Thanks for the links - I missed a couple of them. Have a great week!
ReplyDeleteIt's definitely shaken things up! I don't want to change the way I blog - I like being open and honest, but at the same time, I know I won't be letting down my guard as much from here on out. I want it to be an isolated case... but it's at the back of my mind that things could get worse :/ Sigh, hopefully it doesn't!
DeleteYou got some books that I've loved in your stack. I hope you enjoy them all! I need to go look up that article. I've been so busy that I haven't been keeping up with what's going on. I'm going to go look at your review for Scarlet. Loved that book and I love that series! Thanks for stopping by!
ReplyDeleteTressa @ Wishful Endings
That article was a real eye opener. It's worrying the extent someone would go to over a book review :/ I loved both Cinder and Scarlet! I haven't bought Cress just yet - I'm thinking of trying to hold off until the new year, and cut down on the wait time until Winter is released. LOL, it probably won't last long, but I can try :D
Delete