Follow the Yellow Book Road

Netgalley & Edelweiss Reading Challenge Update

This challenge is hosted by Falling for YA. Basically the goal is to tackle your review books and get your feedback percentage up.

My goal is 25 books and to maintain a percentage of 80% or better.

Here's a fun update: I finally posted my Netgalley badges on my blog!!

My current percent is 93%.

Unfortunately, my progress is pretty slow... I have been struggling to find titles that I am honestly interested in reading an reviewing. I just can't bring myself to request books, just to request them.

Here is my progress so far:
1. The Donor by Nikki Rae
2. A Wizard Rises by AJ Nuest
3. Seeker by Arwen Elys Dayton
4. A Time of Reckoning by AJ Nuest
5. The Girl at Midnight by Melissa Grey
6. Hidden Huntress by Danielle Jensen
7. Spelled by Betsy Schow
8. Lion Heart by AC Gaughen

August 2015 Book Blog BINGO Link-Up

Welcome to the June Review and Progress Link-Up for the 2015 Book Blog BINGO Challenge. Before linking up, make sure you signed up for the challenge. Don't forget, you can update or change your goal at any time!

My Goal

A Double BINGO (2 traditional BINGOs in any direction)

My Progress

A book that takes place in a school: The School for Good and Evil

A book purchased in 2014: Shadow and Bone
The second book in a series: Siege and Storm
A book with magic or paranormal characters: Ruin and Rising
A book written by an author that you've never read before: The Donor
A book with romance: A Wizard Rises
A book published in 2015: Bright Fire
A book that made you cry: The Sin Eater's Daughter
A review persuaded you to read it: The Winner's Curse
A book outside your comfort zone: Moneyball
A book that has been on your TBR shelf for two years or longer: Ashes of Foreverland
A book with a dragon: The Girl at Midnight
A book more than 500 pages: Days of Blood & Starlight
A book with a beautiful cover: Daughter of Smoke & Bone
A book with a color in the title: Scarlet

How is your challenge going? Share and link up in the comments

Stacking the Shelves #35

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. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!

Purchased

Dreams of Gods & Monsters

Laini Taylor

Days of Blood & Starlight

Author: Laini Taylor
Series: Daughter of Smoke and Bone #2
Publication Date: November 6, 2012
Source: Purchased

Summary from Goodreads: Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love and dared to imagine a world free of bloodshed and war. This is not that world. Art student and monster's apprentice Karou finally has the answers she has always sought. She knows who she is—and what she is. But with this knowledge comes another truth she would give anything to undo: She loved the enemy and he betrayed her, and a world suffered for it.
In this stunning sequel to the highly acclaimed Daughter of Smoke & Bone, Karou must decide how far she'll go to avenge her people. Filled with heartbreak and beauty, secrets and impossible choices, Days of Blood & Starlight finds Karou and Akiva on opposing sides as an age-old war stirs back to life.
While Karou and her allies build a monstrous army in a land of dust and starlight, Akiva wages a different sort of battle: a battle for redemption. Forhope.
But can any hope be salvaged from the ashes of their broken dream?

Rating: êêêê

Review

I had mixed feelings about starting this book; the first was REALLY good and I felt like it was complete, even though there was an openness for a second book.

I am so glad I decided to read the second book. I devoured it!

Laini Taylor has found her calling for sure, she is a talented author. The writing is high quality and easy to read.

This book is deep, it's complex, and at times dark. Karou grows and begins to establish herself within her community, but she still has so much work to do. Karou is also trying find the balance between her human life and her knowledge of the answers from Book 1. We learn more about Akiva in this book and begin to understand him better. As the summary states, Karou and Akiva are on opposing sides of the war and it is truly agonizing. Zuze - I wish I had a friend like her, she is amazing, like the best book friend ever.

The plot has plenty of action and lots of important things happen. This book is about war and the events make that very clear. We learn a ton about the world that Korou and Akiva come from and there is still so much more to learn. The ending is fantastic, but will leave you hanging so be sure to have book 3 ready!

Daughter of Smoke & Bone

Author: Laini Taylor
Series: Daughter of Smoke and Bone #1
Publication Date: September 27, 2011
Source: Purchased

Summary from Goodreads: Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.
In a dark and dusty shop, a devil’s supply of human teeth grows dangerously low.
And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherwordly war.
Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real, she’s prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands", she speaks many languages - not all of them human - and her bright blue hair actuallygrows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she’s about to find out.
When beautiful, haunted Akiva fixes fiery eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?

Rating: êêêê

Review

I was initially drawn to this book because of its stunning cover, but I was hesitant because I found out that it had to do with angels and devils and I typically can't stand those types of books. But, the othersbooks in the series got quite a bit of hype in the blogosphere and I spotted this at a used bookstore at a reasonable price.

My initial thought when I started reading this book was: "Wow, this is really easy to read". I have no idea what it is about the author's style, but it truly was a breeze to read - and it is not low level reading, just well written I guess. The next thing that stuck out to me about the author's style was how the chapters were titled based on something within each chapter - yes I know that is typical, but the way she did it was really unique.

So, onto the review...

Like I said I breezed through this book, I enjoyed it, I found myself drawn to it before going to sleep at night. The world building is well done, I have officially added Prague to must must visit list. I was intrigued by Karou's life and her role within her monstrous family, especially her relationship with Brimstone. I wanted to know about the teeth and the errands. I wanted to know who Karou was just about as much as she wanted to know who she was. And then Akiva slammed his way into the story and I was fascinated by him. The plot moves at an excellent pace and peppers you with questions along the way. And then questions are answered in the most tantalizing way. It was really well done. I loved the big reveal, but wasn't entirely surprised by it. The ending of the book felt complete to me, but there is clearly an openness for a sequel.

Glass Arrow

Author: Kristen Simmons

Publication Date: February 10, 2015

Source: Purchased

Summary from Goodreads: The Handmaid’s Tale meets Blood Red Road in Glass Arrow, the story of Aya, who lives with a small group of women on the run from the men who hunt them, men who want to auction off breeding rights to the highest bidder.
In a world where females are scarce and are hunted, then bought and sold at market for their breeding rights, 15-year old Aya has learned how to hide. With a ragtag bunch of other women and girls, she has successfully avoided capture and eked out a nomadic but free existence in the mountains. But when Aya’s luck runs out and she’s caught by a group of businessmen on a hunting expedition, fighting to survive takes on a whole new meaning.

Rating: êêêê

Review

I LOVE that this book started with action right away, I really feel like when authors successfully do this, I am hooked. The world building in this book was terrific. It is an interesting world, the author has clearly drawn from many resources, but she has created something totally unique and terrifying. While the book took off running, it did slow down a bit, but it felt purposeful. Aya is an amazingly well developed character; she is wild, tough, and true to herself. I loved her friendship with Kiran, it was surprising and interesting. The ending was perfection.