That's What HE Said #58 ~ Thirsty Thursday & Hungry Hearts #39

That's What He Said is a weekly meme hosted by the lovely ladies @Chapter Break. Here's the deal: every Thursday, post a line from your book boyfriend to his heroine. Keep in mind, these are direct quotes from dialog in the books. The quote doesn't have to be romantic - just something our hunky hero said to his lucky lady. Be sure to link up over at Chapter Break as well.

My pick this week for That's What He Said is from:

All Lined Up by Cora Carmack

***

"You asked me once what fixes me the way dance fixes you. I'm still not sure I've found that thing that pulls me together, but I've found who pulls me together. You're the only thing that makes me feel better when I'm tired or frustrated. You're the only thing that quiets all my worries and doubts and fears. You're it for me. So run if you'd like, but I'll follow. You can try to hold me at arm's length, but I'll never stop trying to pull you close. Be scared if you must, but you're not going to lose me..."

*~*~*~*~*~*

Okay, I love this scene for a few reasons...first, Tucker's is based on a barbecue restaurant that I used to eat at when traveling between Lubbock and my grandparents. Yummy food and good memories. Second, even though it doesn't list much food here, IT'S BARBECUE! (I *am* Texan) And last, Dallas' dad used food as a kind of ice breaker here - he wanted to really talk to Dallas and this was his way of easing into the conversation. :D

"You hungry?" he asks. "I brought Tucker's home."
...
When he says he brought Tucker's...he means he brought all of Tucker's I swear there's enough food to feed the Weasley family for only the two of us.
"I wasn't sure what you wanted, so I just got a few of your favorites. Figure we can warm up whatever we don't eat later."
"Thanks, Dad."
He nods, and starts piling various barbecued and fried meats onto his plate. I'm not all that hungry, but I do the same because I know he's trying.

Bookish Bingo w/Chapter Break ~ March

The ladies at Chapter Break are hosting this fun feature where we get to play Book Bingo every month. For full details, click the banner above, but basically, you download a new Bingo card every month and mark off spaces as you read books with those elements. The same book can be used for multiple elements. At the end of each month, you can link a post or post a photo of your Bingo card in the comments for Chapter Break's post. 

If this sounds like fun to you, join in next month! The Bingo card for April will be available at Chapter Break on April 2.

Here's how I did this month:

Birthday - Rock Chick Renegade
Witch - Wicked Deeds on a Winter's Night
Started a Series - Hope(less)
Family Dinner - Where We Fell
Magic - Wicked Deeds on a Winter's Night
#ShelfLove Book - The Stars Never Rise
Private Investigator - Rock Chick Revenge
Werewolf - Wicked Deeds on a Winter's Night
Blue on the Cover - All Lined Up
Trope - Friction
Green on the Cover - Play With Me
Adversaries to Lovers - Friction
Humor - Where We Fell

With the FREE space, I ended up with 14 spaces marked off. That's one less than last month. I seem to be on a decline. ;) Maybe April will be better!

Are y'all playing? How'd you do?

Brandee's Bookish Babble #14 ~ A Conversation Starter

Welcome to Brandee's Bookish Babble. There are many, many similar posts to this one - but basically I wanted a place to discuss bookish and/or blogging stuff and I needed a title. :) I hope you enjoy!

***

My family likes wearing t-shirts with nerdy/funny things on them. You know, things like If In Doubt, C4 and I'm Silently Correcting Your Grammar. My hubs gave me a really cool one for Christmas. It says:

And yesterday, while checking out at the grocery store, the sacker saw my shirt and told me how much she loved it...how it'd be perfect for her since she'd spent her lunch reading Fragile Eternity. I told her that I'd loved that book. And then the checker, who happened to be the sacker's sister, chimed in about how she couldn't believe I knew the series. Then our conversation began in earnest. We three chatted about how we were originally drawn to the series because the covers are AMAZING. 

And then we talked about how Marr did such an incredible job with the fae world, world building in general, character development. We also discussed our favorite characters and other books from Marr. And all because of a t-shirt!

Have y'all had any interesting conversations sparked by something as simple as a t-shirt? Do y'all have any bookish-themed t-shirts?

2016 Bookish Resolutions Challenge Update ~ March

Laura @Trips Down Imagination Road and Michelle @Because Reading are once again hosting the Bookish Resolutions Challenge in 2016. I participated in this challenge last year and it was a good way to keep me motivated in certain areas, so I decided to do it again this year.

My Goals for 2016

• Blogging Goals
• Keep up with commenting back weekly
• Link up my challenge posts bi-weekly
• Learn some HTML to change up format of posts
• Reading Goals
• Raise my Netgalley rating to 50%
• Read books my kids *need* me to read
• Alice in Wonderland
• Death with Interruptions 
• Everything is Illuminated
• The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
• Listening for Lucca
• School of Good and Evil
• The Things They Carried
• Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf
• Wonderstruck
• Personal Goals
• Stick to my daily schedule

Progress made in March

Blogging Goals

• I've done a fairly good job at keeping up with commenting back this month. :)
• I've yet to link any of my challenge reviews this month but plan to get my New Release Challenge reviews linked today.
• I've *still* learned NOTHING towards my goal but I did register with Code Academy and I'm hoping to get started this week.

Reading Goals

• I didn't post any reviews to Netgalley this month. :(
• I *still* didn't read any books off my Kids' Recs List in March, but have one planned for early April.

Personal Goals

• My schedule is something I'm still working on. I did do better with exercising this month. Yay! But there's still room for improvement there. Once the snow has all melted (and the mud has dried) I'll get back to exercising outdoors. :) As far as writing, I've made some changes in my schedule so I can fit more writing time in. My book is *NOT* going to write itself, y'all. So I'll work within my new schedule and tweak it as necessary. Man, figuring out the right balance for everything is quite a challenge! 

Review ~ Play With Me ~ Anna Katmore

Play With Me by Anna Katmore
Grover Beach Team #1
Release Date: December 8, 2013
Genre: YA Contemporary Romance
Source: Kindle Freebie
Rating: 4 Bookworms
Challenges: #COYER B2B, #ShelfLove, #TakeControlTBR
Goodreads

Synopsis
What is you had to do the one thing you hated most to get the guy you loved to notice you?

Ryan Hunter's parties are legend. And tonight she's going to be there.

Lisa Matthews anticipates the return of her best friend and only love since kindergarten from soccer camp. But when Tony finally shows up, his mind is more focused on another girl. And worse, she's a soccer player. Fighting for the attention Lisa craves, she's just a hairbreadth away from making a very stupid decision. But when extraordinary measures, she's prepared to play ball to get her man.

The tryouts are hell, the first match ends bloody, and the morning after the selection party she wakes up in the worst place possible--in the arms of the captain of the soccer team. The hottest guy in school...Ryan Hunter.

I grabbed Play With Me after reading Naomi's review of it, and since it was a freebie. I've been reading some pretty heavy things lately and this light and sweet YA contemporary was the perfect palate cleanser.

Lisa Matthews has been in love with her best friend, Tony Mitchell, since forever. She's just biding her time until he figures out he feels the same. But when Tony returns from summer soccer camp, something has changed. Determined to draw his eye, Lisa goes out for the soccer team and in the process, realizes maybe she didn't know what she wanted.

This was a quick read but Ms. Katmore was able to flesh out the characters really well and I adored the storyline. Lisa figuring out a few things about herself was a pleasure. They friendship between her and Tony felt genuine and even if Tony's actions and reactions to certain events made me want to smack him, they were realistic for a teenage boy. Ryan Hunter - the misunderstood captain of the soccer team - was awesome and totally swoon-worthy! He saw an opportunity to achieve his own goal and he took it. Gotta admire that! ;) I enjoyed getting to know him as Lisa did. And I really enjoyed how everything concluded. I will absolutely be continuing this series.

Sunday Post #9 ~ Ah, Spring Snow...

As y'all probably all know, the Sunday Post is hosted by Kimba @Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It's a chance to share my news from the week whether it be book, blog, or just life news. Since I read so many of your Sunday Posts and I wanted to add something new in 2016, I've decided to join in the fun!

***

Y'all Spring Break has been fan-freakin-tastic! The kids have rested and relaxed. We did some fun things like snow-shoeing. And, since it's springtime in Colorado, we got some SNOW! It dumped about ~18 inches Tuesday night into Wednesday, and then snowed again Friday afternoon and all day Saturday. The Wednesday storm knocked out our power for ~6 hours. Luckily we already had a fire going and, since the outage lasted until almost 9 pm, we were lucky we had headlamps! ;) Spring snow...good for moisture, but terrible for you back when you're shoveling. 

Reading-wise, I'm still listening toWicked Deeds on a Winter's Night by Kresley Cole. I did finish my re-read of  Rock Chick Revenge...LUKE!! I just love him and Ava. :D I also finished The Stars Never Rise by Rachel Vincent and Pent Up by Damon Suede. I'm currently finishing Always by Kindle Alexander and reading All Lined Up by Cora Carmack.

My kids are home one more day before going back to school. Y'all enjoy the upcoming week! :D

***

Challenge Updates

I think I have Goodreads all updated. Here's my progress by the numbers: 

#ShelfLove - 27
Blogger Shame - 5
New Release - 10
Take Control of Your TBR Challenge - 6
Goodreads - 43

How are y'all doing with your challenges?

My TBR List Review ~ The Stars Never Rise ~ Rachel Vincent

My To-Be Read List is a meme hosted by Michelle @Because Reading. I think it's a fabulous idea because it gets y'all in the game and it helps me knock off some of the many, many books on my TBR list. You're more than welcome to join in the fun! I've included the basic rules below but you can click on the graphic above to hop over to Michelle's site where you can find all the details. 

Here's how it works:
On the first Saturday of each month, I will make a post with three books from my TBR List (these books can be already on your ereader or bookshelf OR books you might want to purchase) and add your link on the linky that will be provided on Michelle's post. Y'ALL will help me choose which book I will read next. The following Saturday, I will announce which book won. Then the last Saturday of the month, I'll post my review.

Fun, right?!?

***

The Stars Never Rise Rachel Vincent
The Stars Never Rise #1
Release Date:
Genre: YA, Fantasy
Source: Received as an ARC from the publisher at RT 2015
Rating: 5 Bookworms
Challenges: #2016HW, #BloggerShame, #ShelfLove, #TakeControlTBR
Goodreads

Synopsis
Sixteen-year-old Nina Kane should be worrying about her immortal soul, but she's too busy trying to actually survive. Her town's population has been decimated by soul-consuming demons, and souls are in short supply. Watching over her younger sister, Mellie, and scraping together food and money are all that matters. The two of them are a famiy. They gave up on their deadbeat mom a long time ago.

When Nina discovers that Mellie is keeping a secret that threatens their very existence, she'll do anything to protect her. Because in New Temperance, sins are prosecuted as crimes by the brutal Church and its army of black-robed exorcists. And Mellie's sin has put her in serious trouble.

To keep them both alive, Nina will need to trust Finn, a fugitive with deep green eyes who has already saved her life once and who might just be an exorcist. But what kind of exorcist wears hoodies?

Wanted by the Church and hunted by dark forces, Nina knows she can't survive on her own. She needs Finn and his group of rogue friends just as much as they need her.

Y'all. This book. THIS. BOOK. It was sooo good. And once again, I'm speechless at the awesome I've had sitting on my shelf for almost a year. If y'all haven't read this yet, I highly encourage you to snap to it. GO! (okay, you can finish reading my review first :) )

This is gonna be a review where I gush a lot but don't say much. The premise is fantastic - original and fresh - at least, I've read nothing like it. There were several moments of gasps, "holy..."s, and "oh"s with events and plot twists I didn't see coming. There was even a line where I stopped and told my daughter, "This is why you're gonna love this book," and then read the line to her. The story is well plotted and well crafted, and the characters are fully realized. I felt I was right alongside them in all they experienced. And one thing I really appreciate about Rachel Vincent's YA...it's YA but feels so mature.

Nina - I adore her. There were a couple of characters who referred to her lack of intelligence. I never saw anything to make me think she lacked smarts but I would absolutely want her on my team. She is courageous in the face of danger and terror and fierce in her love, protection, and loyalty.

Nina's new friends, Finn, Devi, Reese, and Grayson are a fine group and are people I'd also want fighting on my side. I barely know they but feel like I've always known them. They, too, are brave and loyal, and embraced Nina, enfolding her into their lives. They all have each others' backs and I have a feeling that's going to be important when they face what's yet to come. Mellie, Nina's sister, is a character I hope to learn more about in the next book. I know she loves Nina and Nina loves her, but I didn't get a real good feel for her yet.

So, fast-paced, brilliantly written story and characters I'm already fully invested in. What's not to love? Nothing. I finished in a day and have already promised to loan our my copy to 4 people (my daughters included). Read it. You won't be disappointed.

Bought, Borrowed, & Bagged #84

Bought, Borrowed, & Bagged is a weekly meme, hosted by TalkSupe, where I share with you the books I have bought, borrowed, or bagged (gifted or won) plus a recap of the previous week's reviews, upcoming reviews, and any other bookishness I want to share. :)

***

I kept my one-click finger under better control this week. :)

Bought

Both these were *freebies* and I have no one to blame but myself. ;)


Bagged

I won Broken by Cynthia Eden and some swag in a COYER giveaway. Thanks, Berls, Michelle, & Stormi! :D

I received Discovering You for review. Thanks, Brenda Novak!


Last Week's Reviews

Friction by Sawyer Bennett
Where We Fell by Amber L. Johnson
Hope(less) by Melissa Haag
The Stars Never Rise by Rachel Vincent

Upcoming Reviews

Pent Up by Damon Suede
Two Minutes by Dannika Dark
Facade by Nyrae Dawn
The Guardian by Margaret Mallory

Review ~ Hope(less) ~ Melissa Haag

Hope(less) by Melissa Haag
Judgement of the Six #1
Release Date: November 18, 2013
Genre: YA/NA Paranormal Romance
Source: Kindle Freebie
Rating: 4 Bookworms
Challenges: #ShelfLove, #TakingControlTBR
Goodreads

Synopsis
Gabby's brain is like a human fish finder. It comes in handy when she wants to avoid people. Mostly men. They seem to like her a bit too much. It's lonely being different, but she's adapted to it. Really. She just wishes she knew why she is different, though.

In her search for answers, she discovers a hidden community of werewolves. She immerses herself in their culture, learning about their world until she meets Clay. He's unkempt, prone to mood swings, intense without saying a word, and he thinks Gabby is his.

It's going to take every trick she knows to convince Clay to go away, and every bit of willpower not to fall for him when she discovers the man beneath the rough exterior.

Judgement has begun...

Hope(less) started off a little slowly for me but about a quarter of the way in, I was fully invested and loving it. I think the slow start came from the world building - there were questions Gabby had about herself and then questions from me, created during her introduction into her new world - that of werewolves. The first part played into the mystery of the story and by the end, Gabby was beginning to get some of the answers she was looking for. The second part, I believe, plays into the overall story plotline and I am eager to see how it plays out.

Gabby has always known she was different. She has what she refers to as a 'second sight', where she can see the 'light' of people - not an aura - she can locate a person by their light like a sonar can locate a fish. She also has what she refers to as her 'pull' whereby males are oddly drawn to her. And now she's been made aware she's different in a whole new way, in relation to werewolves.

When she meets Sam, it's at a time when she's going to be needing to leave her foster home anyway, so Sam becomes her guardian - like a grandpa to Gabby - and initiates her into the world of werewolves. As part of learning to live in the world of werewolves, Gabby makes a deal with Sam in regards to finding a Mate. When her deal with Sam is about to expire, she meets Clay.

Clay is one clever wolf! I enjoyed getting to know him right along with Gabby. He's fiercely loyal, protective, and smart. He seemed to have known the way into Gabby's heart from the start. Gabby, for her part, took awhile warming up to Clay. At first, I didn't get it. But then, I realized that with her 'pull' what she most desired was having a choice in how her love life was determined. When males have always been drawn to you, the Mate pull would feel similar. But with Clay and his approach to Gabby, she finally found someone with whom she could confide in and be her true self around.

There was some tension and conflict via rules Gabby wasn't aware of, breach of trust, and the mystery surrounding Gabby's 'second sight'. It all meshed together well to create a compelling story. The only pacing issue was at the beginning and by the end, I was wishing I already had #2 downloaded. I'll return to this series soon as I'm eager to have all the answers promised and to see Gabby and Clay through to the end of their story.

Review ~ Where We Fell ~ Amber L. Johnson

Where We Fell by Amber L. Johnson
Release Date: October 28, 2013
Genre: New Adult, Contemporary Romance
Source: Purchased on Kindle
Rating: 4.5 Bookworms
Challenges: #ShelfLove
Goodreads

Synopsis
Oliver Bishop is having a seriously bad day. With one diagnosis, his life suddenly has an expiration date. Confused by the numbness he feels upon hearing the news, he decides that he needs some time to come to terms with it. One decision to visit his favorite diner causes him to unwittingly put himself directly in the sights of a girl that just may give him a reason to fight - and to live.

Because there's a difference between living and just being alive.

Amber (yes, we're on a first name basis - I met her at RT last year) quickly made my list of favorite authors after I read Puddle Jumping. She brilliantly crafts stories that are compelling, bring all the feels, and are inhabited with the most unique yet real characters. And she does this no matter the length of the book. Where We Fell was no exception.

Oliver has just had his world tilted off its axis. In an attempt at some normalcy, he heads over to his favorite diner. Enter Hannah - his waitress who makes quite an impression. From there, things get interesting.

As Oliver deals with his life altering diagnosis, Hannah, who knows a thing or two about living with a life altering diagnosis, goes about showing Oliver how to really live.

Amber does an amazing job in conveying the reality of the impact of such a diagnosis - on the person, their family and friends. She also wrote a lovely story of first love, wringing emotions out of me over the unfairness of life. In Oliver, we see a young man whose life just veered off course. He had path and he's not very hopeful about things getting back on track. Hannah is a breath of fresh air. She sees something in Oliver and she sets about giving him the hope he's lacking. Their story felt so real, so heartbreaking and heartwarming, and Amber did all this is such few pages!

Y'all know I'm a big believer in things happening the way they're supposed to, so I very much enjoyed Oliver and Hannah's story. They came into each other's lives for a reason and at just the right time. I'd love to see more from them. But until then, I'll content myself with reading her other backlist - the few I haven't gotten to. I have a feeling she won't disappoint.

That's What HE Said #57 ~ Thirsty Thursday & Hungry Hearts #38

That's What He Said is a weekly meme hosted by the lovely ladies @Chapter Break. Here's the deal: every Thursday, post a line from your book boyfriend to his heroine. Keep in mind, these are direct quotes from dialog in the books. The quote doesn't have to be romantic - just something our hunky hero said to his lucky lady. Be sure to link up over at Chapter Break as well.

My pick this week for That's What He Said is from:

Where We Fell by Amber L. Johnson

***

"We're not guaranteed much in this world, but if you're lucky, someone might come along and will show you exactly how much life there is to live."

*~*~*~*~*~*

Hannah, a waitress at Oliver's favorite diner, just spilled coffee all over his order, ruining his BLT and soaking him. This is how she attempts to make it up to him. :)

"We have the best pie. Ever. I'll get you a piece of that. On me. I made about three dollars in tips today, so I can cover it." She's just said she's poor but she's smiling. "You're not allergic to nuts or whatever, right? Because I swear the peanut butter pie is made by angels and kissed by Jesus before it's plated."
I actually laugh. "No. No allergies."
"Great. I'd hate to be responsible for the death of someone so damn cute."
If only she knew...
She's back in two minutes with a plate and two forks. With a heavy sigh, she takes her apron off and plants herself across from me in the booth. She slips her feet underneath her butt, leaning forward to jam her fork in the top of the pie. "You said you weren't all that hungry, so I figured I'd help you eat it. Since I'm buying and all."

Cover Reveal & #Giveaway ~ Right ~ Jana Aston

I am so excited to share the cover for RIGHT,
the highly anticipated 2nd book by Jana Aston,

releasing on April 6th!

My childhood was perfect.

I’ve led a charmed life, and I’m not going to blow it now

by picking the wrong guy.

I’ve got my sights set on my brother’s best friend.

He’s known my family for years. He’s reliable and kind and handsome.

Sure, he’s been avoiding me since I was six.

I’m a bit aggressive for him, maybe.

But he’s the one… right?

RIGHT is a standalone novel by Jana Aston

Goodreads

Release Date: April 6, 2016

Cover Designed By: J.A. Huss

Jana Aston is the New York Times bestselling author of WRONG.

She quit her super boring day job to whip up another book & is hoping that was not a stupid idea.

In her defense, it was really boring.

Facebook | Twitter | Website | Goodreads | Amazon | Newsletter

a Rafflecopter giveaway

♥ OTHER BOOKS BY JANA ASTON ♥

WRONG

Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon CA | Amazon AU |

B&N | Kobo | iBooks

Books & Crafts #2 ~ #BookBlogger #CraftCircle

Welcome to Books & Crafts, a craft circle composed of book bloggers, a sporadic meme where we share our other creative pursuits aside from reading and blogging. Everyone is welcome to join, just add yout tag/label links below and you're good to go!

***

I'd originally planned to share something else this month but my anniversary was last week and I really like the card I made for Hubs, so I decided to share it instead. ;)

I started with an 8.5x11 piece of paper and cut it in half. Then I used a bone folder to crease the paper to create the fold. I used some paper scraps, in a pattern I adore, for the stripes at the bottom. I also used buttons - the big ones already had adhesive on the backs but for the smaller ones, I used foam adhesive so they'd 'pop' from the page. Then I picked a paper scrap in a coordinating color for the writing, and using my Big Shot and Script alphabet, I cut the letters for the words. Voila! A cute card that Hubs appreciated. :D

As an aside, if y'all have been following me, I recently quoted Rock Chick Redemption in a Thirsty Thursday & Hungry Hearts post, where Hank took Roxie to the Buckhorn Exchange for dinner. Hubs and I went there for dinner on our anniversary. :) I didn't have alligator, but not because I think they're cute. I *did* have a delicious steak dinner though and the ambiance just can't be beat in Denver's oldest restaurant. Here are a few photos from inside...

Do you craft too? Wanna get in on the fun? Just add your link below. And don't forget to check out the other hosts' crafts! :D
(I had problems with the linky - I've included it below. BUT if it doesn't appear correctly or doesn't work, head over to Talk Supe and link up there. Thanks!)

Audio Review ~ Friction ~ Sawyer Bennett

Friction by Sawyer Bennett
Legal Affairs Series #8
Narrated by: Sebastian York, Kendall Taylor
Release Date: November 25, 2015
Genre: Adult, Contemporary Romance
Source: Audible credit
Rating: 4 Bookworms
Challenges: #ShelfLove, #TakingControlTBR
Goodreads

Synopsis
At the powerhouse law firm of Knight & Payne, winning comes first and ethics a distant second. Leary Michaels uses her female charms to daze opponents, and it's always worked well--until now. On her most personal case yet, she finds herself going up against a defense attorney just as skilled, shameless, and seductive as she is.

Reeve Holloway has never met a woman as sure of her own sexuality, or as ruthless in wielding it, as Leary is. But he won't be toyed with. What Leary starts, he'll finish--in the courtroom, the bedroom, or any-damn-place he wants. The sex is uninhibited, electrifying, and absolutely against the rules. Reeve's job is to ruin Leary's case...even if it destroys her in the process and costs him the woman he's come to love.

Although this is #8 in the Legal Affairs series, it can absolutely be read standalone. And I hope you read it because it's a lot of fun but also incorporated a meaty story. And the narration was wonderful!

Leary is my kind of heroine and attorney. She is wily, intelligent, uses all her skills and isn't afraid to jeopardize her law license for a worthy cause. If I'd know there might be law firms like Knight & Payne in real life, I might have gone ahead and pursued law school. :D

Reeve, while serving the 'dark side' of law, was an admirable adversary for Leary. He's witty, determined, and while getting to know Leary, he learned he had a higher moral code - ethical standard - than he'd thought.

The banter between these two, particularly when they first met and began their interacting, was like watching sparklers - mesmerizing and fun! As things developed further, things became more intense and I really had to wonder if a relationship between opposing counsel was doomed.

I completely enjoyed Bennett's choice of litigation - a medical malpractice suit - where a huge insurance company doesn't want to pay out. I also appreciated how Bennett tied the case to Leary, making it so personal and therefore more difficult to keep emotions out of things both in the courtroom and out.

The narrators rocked! This was my introduction to Sebastian York and although he doesn't have much inflection, his gravelly voice rolled over me live a velvet blanket and he embodied Reeve. This was also my introduction to Kendall Taylor and her portrayal of Leary was spot on. I'll certainly be looking for more listens from these two.

This is only my second experience with Bennett, my first being her debut, but I find I was right about her writing. It has matured, tightened, and made her storytelling that much more compelling. I'm eager for more!

Sunday Post #8 ~ Sleepin' While Awake

As y'all probably all know, the Sunday Post is hosted by Kimba @Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It's a chance to share my news from the week whether it be book, blog, or just life news. Since I read so many of your Sunday Posts and I wanted to add something new in 2016, I've decided to join in the fun!

***

So, I missed last week's post. It was a hairy weekend with all the kids' activities. There was the musical on Thursday night, a matinee and evening performance on Friday, an indoor percussion competition, toss-a-thon fundraiser, and evening performance on Saturday, a matinee performance on Sunday, AND a spaghetti dinner fundraiser afterwards. Phew! My week had started with a migraine and then just dealing with keeping kids on track, and feeding the pit orchestra...well, it was a job. I had kids vomiting, sniffling, crying... It was just a lot on us all. And then after this past weekend, I was working on a 'job' doing some editing which took more time than I anticipated. So it's been a busy few weeks and I apologize for not being around so much. But now my kids are on Spring Break and we'll ALL enjoy a bit of downtime. :D

Reading-wise, I finished Friction by Sawyer Bennett (in audio), Where We Fell by Amber L. Johnson, Wild Abandon by Jeannine Colette, and a re-read of Strange Magic and a read of Dream Magic by Michelle Mankin. Oh I also finished Hope(less) by Melissa Haag, and re-reading Rock Chick Redemption by Kristen Ashley. I'm currently listening to Wicked Deeds on a Winter's Night by Kresley Cole and re-reading Rock Chick Revenge. I have to tell you, despite planning for Taking Control of Your TBR Pile, I'm not doing so well with making my pile smaller!

I hope the upcoming week is wonderful for y'all! :D

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Challenge Updates

Y'all, I haven't updated Goodreads for the past 2 weeks! Ugh! So I'm kinda guessing here but I think I'm at 22 books for #ShelfLove, 4 books for Blogger Shame, and 10 books for my New Release challenges. As for Take Control of Your TBR Challenge, I've read 4 books so far. Some of these overlap - I've read 44 books so far this year.

How are y'all doing with your challenges?