Last Minute Read-A-Thon Wrap Up!

Hosted by Vonnie's Reading Corner and A Night's Dream of Books

I actually surpassed my goal of reading 2 books! So excited!!! I had a blast participating with some of my amazing blogging friends and I loved taking part in the challenges!

The books I read:

1. Unspoken by Dee Henderson

2. No One To Trust by Lynette Eason

3. A December Bride by Denise Hunter

4. Made To Last by Melissa Tagg (Read the first 114 pages!)

What Countries Have I Visited Challenge 2014 Sign Up!

This challenge is hosted by my friend Abbi @Christian Novels



The Rules:
Anyone can join!
You don't have to have a blog to participate
Your own country does not count towards your number
Only actual countries! No made up places!
The whole book doesn't have to take place in the country and you can use one book for multiple countries


The Levels
Tourist-Visit 5 countries
Vacationer-Visit 10 countries
Business Traveler-Visit 15 countries
Adventurer-Visit 20 countries
World Traveler-Visit 30+ countries

-I think I'm going to sign up for the Vacationer level, but we'll see how 2014 goes, I may up my goal! :D

Last Minute Read-A-Thon Remembering 2013 Challenge and Progress!

Hosted by Vonnie's Reading Corner and A Night's Dream of Books

Remembering 2013 challenge!
Answer the following...
1. Best Book of 2013: Shattered by Dani Pettrey
2. Worst Book of 2013: Playing with Poison by Cindy Blackburn (I don't really like using the word 'worst' but this is the book that I disliked the most and gave the lowest star rating to this year)
3. Favorite New Author: Debut author: Katie Ganshert. New-To-Me Authors: Lynette Eason, and Steven James
4. Book that surprised you: There were several but the first one that came to mind was: The Rook by Steven James
5. Book that disappointed you: Aquifer by Jonathan Friesen

Progress... Today (Saturday) I finished Unspoken by Dee Henderson and read about 140 pages of No One To Trust by Lynette Eason, I'm loving this one and SO hated having to put it down!!! :D

Review: Unspoken by Dee Henderson 3 Stars

Be aware this review may contain minor spoilers, you have been warned! :D

Prior to getting this book to review I had read two books and a novella in the author's O'Malley series, and really enjoyed them. So I thought I'd give her newest release a try. This was a good book but it was definitely a slow paced read and there were a number of times that I found myself getting bored with the story. I liked the characters although I don't think any of them are favorites. This book has a very interesting premise. I think one of my favorite things about this book was the portrayal of a contemporary marriage of convenience (I don't think I've ever seen this particular storyline used in anything but historical novels, before this book!) There were several things that I liked about this book, I particularly found all the conversations about rare coins interesting!

The two biggest things I didn't like about this book are, Number 1. The length, this is quite a long book and I think that if it were a bit shorter, say 100 pages or so it would definitely speed up the pace. And Number 2. Is that it was billed a romantic suspense (The words romantic suspense are even printed on the back cover where it says what category the book is) Is there romance in this book? Yes! Mystery? Yes! Suspense? No (In my opinion) I was expecting there to be the same amount as in the other books of hers I'd read and I was a little disappointed that unfortunately it just wasn't there.

Overall, this was a good book which I did enjoy reading and I might read it again at some point in the future! I'm not sure if I will read the author's next release but I am very much looking forward to reading the rest of the books in her O'Malley series. I recommend Unspoken, just be prepared that if you are looking for a suspenseful fast paced read this book probably isn't it.



I received this book from Bethany House publishers in exchange for my honest review.
Thanks!
The above is my honest opinion.
All thoughts and opinions are one hundred percent my own

Last Minute Read-A-Thon Love it or Hate it book cover challenge

Hosted by Vonnie's Reading Corner and A Night's Dream of Books


My "Love It" Choice is a book cover that was just released... Deluge by Lisa T. Bergren
I have been waiting for this book for SO long, and it is so exciting that it is now one step closer to being released!
Anyway, I love this cover because I feel like it fits perfectly with the covers of the rest of the series. The colors are beautiful, I love the landscape picture at the bottom, and I was thrilled to find out that the little girl is the daughter of two of the main characters! For all my fellow River of Time fans, she has Marcello's curls don't ya think?!
CANNOT WAIT TO READ THIS BOOK!!!

And my "Hate It" Choice is... The Prowl Trilogy by Amber Garza
I absolutely loved these books but I'm sorry to say I hate these new covers! The colors are really pretty. But I really don't like the model. Not only do I feel like she is way too glamorous to be Kenzie, but the dress and poses feel a little too suggestive/seductive to me. Basically this is a really amazing Christian YA series and it seems like they are trying to make the covers look more like mainstream YA covers.

Last Minute Read-A-Thon Rainbow Spine Challenge and Day One Progress

Rainbow book spine challenge! I loved this challenge and had a great time with it! I did have a tough time trying to find a book on my shelf that had an Orange spine so the closest I could get was one that was partially Orange, hope that works! :D

The books I used are: Red-Unending Devotion by Jody Hedlund, Orange-When The Smoke Clears by Lynette Eason, Yellow-Love's Reckoning by Laura Frantz, Green-Insurgent by Veronica Roth, Blue-A Tailor-Made Bride by Karen Witemeyer, Violet-Swinging on a Star by Janice Thompson


Day one progress... I didn't get as much read as I was hoping, I only read about 70 pages of Unspoken by Dee Henderson but I'm hoping to read more today!

Last Minute Read-A-Thon Launch Post!

Hosted by Vonnie's Reading Corner and A Night's Dream of Books


So this read-a-thon officially starts tomorrow, but I will probably end up getting started tonight! So I decided to post my goals and launch post tonight!!! :)

I am 124 pages into Unspoken by Dee Henderson, so I am hoping to finish that one for starters!
No One To Trust by Lynette Eason came in the mail on Christmas eve, what a wonderful early Christmas present :D So I really want to read that one! Oh, and I got Made To Last by Melissa Tagg, for Christmas so I'm hoping to at least start that one too!!! So basically my goal is to read as much as I can and hopefully finish at least two books!

Last Minute Read-A-Thon Sign Up Post!

Hosted by Vonnie's Reading Corner and A Night's Dream of Books

So since a couple of my totally awesome blogging friends signed up for this read-a-thon, I couldn't resist joining in too!!! Can't wait for it to start!!! :D

I will post my goals/book list on Thursday, the first day of the read-a-thon!

#ReadingCram End Of The Year Read-A-Thon Wrap Up!

I was amazed that I was actually able to achieve my goal of reading 10 books!!! And I also read about sixty pages of an eleventh book! I had a blast participating in this read-a-thon with some of my awesome blogging friends! The challenges were so much fun and I really enjoyed taking part in them!

The books I read:

1. The Five Kisses by Karla Darcy

2. Bleeding Heart by Amber Stokes

3. 21 Prayers for Teen Girls by Shelley Hitz and Heather Hart

4. Sex and the Single Christian Girl by Marian Jordan Ellis

5. Swinging on a Star by Janice Thompson

6. Aquifer by Jonathan Friesen

7. Placebo by Steven James

8. Waiting for Dawn by Susan May Warren

9. Free Four by Veronica Roth

10. The Knight by Steven James

11. Unspoken by Dee Henderson (Read61 pages)

#ReadingCram Read-A-Thon Most anticipated 2014 releases!

Most anticipated books of 2014 challenge! Hosted by Alex @BookChick

1. No One To Trust by Lynette Eason

2. Deceived by Irene Hannon

3. A Broken Kind of Beautiful by Katie Ganshert

4. Meant to be Mine by Becky Wade

5. Silenced by Dani Pettrey

6. A Match of Wits by Jen Turano

7. Circle of Spies by Roseanna M. White

8. Deluge by Lisa T. Bergren

9. With Every Breath by Elizabeth Camden

10. Dating, Dining and Desperation by Melody Carlson

#ReadingCram Read-A-Thon Day Twelve!

Spell it out challenge!
Hosted by Kim @Kimberly Faye Reads

"Use the first letter in any book you read in 2013 to spell out a word. You can chose first name, initials, your birthday month, or your zodiac sign."

So I was originally going to do my first name but I couldn't find books for all the letters. So since I have two middle names I decided to both of those: Assunda Grace

A Tailor-Made Bride by Karen Witemeyer

Stealing The Preacher by Karen Witemeyer

Stranded by Dani Pettrey

Undeniably Yours by Becky Wade

No Safe Haven by Kimberly and Kayla Woodhouse

Dark Justice by Brandilyn Collins

An Honest Heart by Kaye Dacus



Grave Consequences by Lisa Tawn Bergren

Ring of Secrets by Roseanna M. White

A Bride For Keeps by Melissa Jagears

Calculated Revenge by Jill Elizabeth Nelson

Escapement by Rene Gutteridge

#ReadingCram Read-A-Thon Day Nine!

Song challenge Hosted by Book Loving Hippo

Pick any book you read in 2013 and choose a song(s) that best describe it!

I had so much fun with this challenge! I actually decided to do one song for the first two books in a series!

The books:

The Pawn and The Rook by Steven James.

The song "Hero" by Skillet

Why I chose this song. These books are both very suspenseful, thrilling reads (I love them!) and the fast paced music of this song fits the pace of the books perfectly. And the lyrics feel almost like they were written for these books! This has been one of my favorite songs for a while now and one day I heard it on the radio and it just hit me that it should be the theme song for these books!

#ReadingCram Read A Thon Day Eight!

Movie cast challenge Hosted by Alex @Book Chick

--pick any book read in 2013, and create a real life cast of characters--


Okay so I chose one of my favorite reads of 2013. The Doctor's Lady by Jody Hedlund

And the cast I picked for this book is...

Rhys Coiro as Dr. Eli Ernest

And Claire Danes as Priscilla White/Ernest

Photos borrowed from Google Images

#ReadingCram Read-A-Thon Day Six!

Seasonal book recommendations challenge. Hosted by Michelle @BookBriefs


Recommend a book good for a Snow Day...Trapped by Irene Hannon

Recommend a book good for a Rainy Day...Greetings from the Flipside by Rene Gutteridge and Cheryl McKay

Recommend a book good for a Beach Day...Fools Rush In by Janice Thompson

Recommend a book good for a Spooky Night...The Pawn by Steven James

Review: Sex and the Single Christian Girl by Marian Jordan Ellis 5 Stars!!!

I first committed to purity about seven years ago when I was fifteen years old! Since that time I have read several books on the subject of purity, some of which were helpful and some of which were not.
This was a new to me author so when I started this book I didn't really know what to expect, but I am very pleased to say that this book changed how I think about purity and made me look at purity in a whole new way! Once I started this book I really hated to put it down, and even though some parts didn't really apply to me as I've never been in a relationship with a young man before. But regardless, I loved this book!
This book is so much more than just a book about purity, this is a book about learning to rely fully on Christ.
I learned so many things from this book, it helped me to see problems in my own life that I wasn't even aware of!
This book definitely has a spot on my keeper shelf, and I anticipate rereading it many times in the future!
Highly recommend!



I received a free copy of this book from Bethany House publishers in exchange for my honest review.
The above is my honest opinion.
All thoughts and opinions are one hundred percent my own

#ReadingCram Read-A-Thon Day Five!

Book to movie adaption challenge
Hosted by Emily @Falling For YA

For this challenge you pick your favorite book to movie adaption of 2013!

This was actually really easy for me (Granted, I've only seen one book to movie adaption this year. But it would be my favorite even if I had seen more!)
So my choice is (Drumroll please!)
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
Catching Fire was my favorite book in the Hunger Games series, so I was a little nervous beforehand that it wouldn't live up to my expectations. I needn't have worried, it was AMAZING! My favorite scene from Catching Fire (The Book) is the Tribute interview scene before the 75th Hunger Games. And I have to say that if that scene hadn't been done right, I might have hated the entire movie! But I was so happy that that scene as well as the rest of the movie was done PERFECTLY! I loved, loved, LOVED the movie! I can't gush about it enough!!! In my opinion they stayed incredibly close to the book (Much to my delight!) And we all know how rare that is!!! :D
So do I recommend this movie? Hmm let me think... YES!
If haven't seen it yet, you should absolutely get yourself to the theater as soon as possible! I can't wait for it come out on DVD so that I can own this piece of brilliance!!!

#ReadingCram Read-A-Thon day three!

Top Ten Books I read in 2013 challenge
Hosted by Jessica @Let Me Tell You A Story

So this was REALLY hard for me to do because I've read so many amazing books this year, but to make it a little easier I limited myself to books that were released in 2013!
So here's my list!

1. Shattered by Dani Pettrey

2. Stealing The Preacher by Karen Witemeyer

3. When A Secret Kills by Lynette Eason

4. Undeniably Yours by Becky Wade

5. Trapped by Irene Hannon

6. Unrivaled by Siri Mitchell

7. Wishing on Willows by Katie Ganshert

8. Ring Of Secrets by Roseanna M. White

9. Greetings from the Flipside by Rene Gutteridge and Cheryl McKay

10. Stranded by Dani Pettrey

#ReadingCram Read-A-Thon Day Two Teaser Challenge!

Hosted by Book loving hippo


The rules are to open the book you are currently reading to a random page and post two sentences.


I am currently reading a non-fiction book called Sex and the Single Christian Girl by Marian Jordan Ellis.

"Purity is not defined by whether we are married or single or if we are in a relationship or not. Purity is about exalting Jesus to the watching world as better."
Page 24, Sex and the Single Christian Girl by Marian Jordan Ellis

End Of The Year #ReadingCram Read-A-Thon Goals and Book List!

So since the read-a-thon starts tomorrow, I decided to post my goals and the list of books I plan to read! I have already completed my goal of reading 100 books this year, but I have given myself a lofty goal of reading at least 10 books between the 9th and the 22nd. Also the challenges for this read-a-thon look like so much fun, I want to participate in as many of them as I can!

This is the list of books I'm planning to read! :D

1. The Knight by Steven James

2. Placebo by Steven James

3. Singularity by Steven James

4. Swinging on a Star by Janice Thompson

5. 21 Prayers for Teen Girls by Shelley Hitz and Heather Hart

6. The Five Kisses by Karla Darcy

7. Waiting for Dawn by Susan May Warren

8. Bleeding Heart by Amber Stokes

9. Cuts Like A Knife by M.K. Gilroy

10. Aquifer by Jonathan Friesen

11. Free Four (Divergent 1.5) by Veronica Roth

Monthly Reflections #6

My goal for November was to read 10 books. Last month ended up being a lot busier than I thought it would be and I was in a bit of a reading slump so I only managed to read 5 books! But I loved all of them and I'm happy that I was able to get that many books read!

The books I read:

1. The Pawn by Steven James

2. Prince Incognito by Rachelle McCalla

3. Grave Consequences by Lisa Tawn Bergren

4. The Rook by Steven James

5. A Necessary Deception by Laurie Alice Eakes

Favorite read of November: While I loved all five of these books, my favorites were by farThe Pawn and The Rook. Such amazing suspense books! I can now officially say that the Patrick Bowers series is one of my favorite series and Steven James is one of my favorite authors! Thanks so much to my blogging friend Melanie for recommending Steven James' books to me!!! :D

Goal for December:
In December my goal is to read 15 books. I've signed up for the End Of The Year Read-A-Thon and my goal is to read ten books during the read-a-thon, a big goal but I've got several novellas and shorter novels on my list for the read-a-thon so I'm hoping I can achieve that goal!!! :D