It's Monday...What Are You Reading?

This meme started with J Kaye's Blog   and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date.  It's a meme where you share what you read last week, what you're currently reading and what you plan on reading that week. 

This Week I Plan To Read 

The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater

I really enjoyed the first book in this series and can't wait to start this one.

 If you could steal things from dreams, what would you take?

Ronan Lynch has secrets. Some he keeps from others. Some he keeps from himself.

One secret: Ronan can bring things out of his dreams.

And sometimes he's not the only one who wants those things.

Ronan is one of the raven boys—a group of friends, practically brothers, searching for a dead king named Glendower, who they think is hidden somewhere in the hills by their elite private school, Aglionby Academy. The path to Glendower has long lived as an undercurrent beneath town. But now, like Ronan's secrets, it is beginning to rise to the surface—changing everything in its wake.

Of The Raven Boys, Entertainment Weekly wrote, "Maggie Stiefvater's can't-put-it-down paranormal adventure will leave you clamoring for book two." Now the second book is here, with the same wild imagination, dark romance, and heart-stopping twists that only Maggie Stiefvater can conjure.

Never Fade by Alexandra Bracken

Again another book series that I loved the first book and can't wait to read this one. I'll be listening to this one, like I did the first. 

Ruby never asked for the abilities that almost cost her her life. Now she must call upon them on a daily basis, leading dangerous missions to bring down a corrupt government and breaking into the minds of her enemies. Other kids in the Children’s League call Ruby “Leader”, but she knows what she really is: a monster.

When Ruby is entrusted with an explosive secret, she must embark on her most dangerous mission yet: leaving the Children’s League behind. Crucial information about the disease that killed most of America’s children—and turned Ruby and the others who lived into feared and hated outcasts—has survived every attempt to destroy it. But the truth is only saved in one place: a flashdrive in the hands of Liam Stewart, the boy Ruby once believed was her future—and who now wouldn’t recognize her.

As Ruby sets out across a desperate, lawless country to find Liam—and answers about the catastrophe that has ripped both her life and America apart—she is torn between old friends and the promise she made to serve the League. Ruby will do anything to protect the people she loves. But what if winning the war means losing herself?

So this is my list for this week, getting back in the swing of things so I figured my list should stay a little small.  Anyway, what's on your reading list for this week? 

 

Ali Talks: Life

So I know I haven't been posting on this blog lately, life has decided to kick my butt this past month and the blog has fallen to the way side. That is stopping today! I feel horrible that this has happened, but I'm going to give you a glimpse of what has been going on, in hopes that you might understand. I don't usually share much of my personal life here on the blog, I'm usually a very private person, but there again it's time to do so. 

See I was supposed to get married this month, on the 11th to be exact. Well, we had to cancel the wedding, the only reason being is that my amazing fiancé, who would do anything for anyone, has a disease that they don't know how to treat. This said disease, well it somehow morphed into another disease that only three other people has had. Which of course they don't know how to treat that either. Now I'm not telling you all of this to get you to feel sorry for him or me, but I'm telling you this so you might understand me a little more.  His disease attacks his kidney's and makes him terrible ill and at times swell up. He was on chemo for it and it worked for awhile, now though it's gotten worse and he's on dialysis. (Which is a whole other story and I really don't want to get into it.)

So we pushed the wedding back and we're not sure when we will be able to actually say I Do and be married. I of course, had to contact all vendors and let them know. Cancelling a wedding is not easy. I had one vendor that got really angry and demanded full price, which isn't how you do business and I refused and told him to look at the contract. The others were amazing! Anyway, on top of all of this, it's Summer Vacation and my kids are running around like crazy, which I wouldn't have any other way. I haven't had much time to read, (Which I'm changing tonight, I'm making the time!) or do anything else for that matter. 

 If you know me personally, you know that I'm usually a very strong person. I can take a lot and keep going, but lately after everything I've had to deal with I just needed a break from the not so required and just worried about the things that need to be done. I've kind of been on autopilot and I hate feeling that way. Today though, I made a promise to myself that I would start making time for this blog and reading, starting today! Right this minute, I have several reviews drafted and other posts drafted as well.  This week this blog is going back to normally scheduled programming. 

I just hope you all will stick with me, thank you to all that have throughout the past several years. You all are amazing! Wish I could give each and every one of you a hug. 

Teaser Tuesday #95

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books and a Beat. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other Teaser Tuesday participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teaser.

"I think it's if. They all say if." "Bummer. So you're never going to kiss anyone?" "Looks that way." 

 

Sorry I haven't been around this month, it's been a really rough month for me in real life. My wedding was supposed to happen this month and we had to push it back due to health issues. So I've been spending time getting hold of vendors and all that. Plus it was my birthday, so it's been a crazy month.  I'm back now and have got a great deal of reviews to share with you.  So get ready for some reviews, hopefully I'll have a few up this week and a few next week.  Also a few movie reviews as well are coming. 

Hope you all have a great Tuesday!! 

It's Monday...What Are You Reading?

This meme started with J Kaye's Blog   and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date.  It's a meme where you share what you read last week, what you're currently reading and what you plan on reading that week. 

Also wanted to say Happy Memorial Day! I'm a huge supporter of our military, seeing as two of my brothers were in our military!  So I want to say a huge thanks to everyone who has served and came home and to those that haven't. 

Last Week I Read

A Girls Guide to Moving On by Debbie Macomber 

This Week I Plan To Read 

 Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

I'm super excited to read this book, it's been on my TBR for awhile now and it's a book that I've heard so many great things about.  I'll be starting this one tonight!   

 After serving out a year of hard labor in the salt mines of Endovier for her crimes, 18-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien is dragged before the Crown Prince. Prince Dorian offers her her freedom on one condition: she must act as his champion in a competition to find a new royal assassin.

Her opponents are men-thieves and assassins and warriors from across the empire, each sponsored by a member of the king's council. If she beats her opponents in a series of eliminations, she'll serve the kingdom for four years and then be granted her freedom. Celaena finds her training sessions with the captain of the guard, Westfall, challenging and exhilirating. But she's bored stiff by court life. Things get a little more interesting when the prince starts to show interest in her... but it's the gruff Captain Westfall who seems to understand her best.

Then one of the other contestants turns up dead... quickly followed by another. Can Celaena figure out who the killer is before she becomes a victim? As the young assassin investigates, her search leads her to discover a greater destiny than she could possibly have imagined.

 What I'll be Listening To

The Bourbon Kings by J.R. Ward

I am almost finished with this one and will hopefully have it done by Friday.  I'm loving it so far, but I knew I would.

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Black Dagger Brotherhood delivers the first novel in an enthralling new series set amid the shifting dynamics of a Southern family defined by wealth and privilege—and compromised by secrets, deceit, and scandal....

For generations, the Bradford family has worn the mantle of kings of the bourbon capital of the world. Their sustained wealth has afforded them prestige and privilege—as well as a hard-won division of class on their sprawling estate, Easterly. Upstairs, a dynasty that by all appearances plays by the rules of good fortune and good taste. Downstairs, the staff who work tirelessly to maintain the impeccable Bradford facade. And never the twain shall meet.

For Lizzie King, Easterly’s head gardener, crossing that divide nearly ruined her life. Falling in love with Tulane, the prodigal son of the bourbon dynasty, was nothing that she intended or wanted—and their bitter breakup only served to prove her instincts were right. Now, after two years of staying away, Tulane is finally coming home again, and he is bringing the past with him. No one will be left unmarked: not Tulane’s beautiful and ruthless wife; not his older brother, whose bitterness and bad blood know no bounds; and especially not the ironfisted Bradford patriarch, a man with few morals, fewer scruples, and many, many terrible secrets.

As family tensions—professional and intimately private—ignite, Easterly and all its inhabitants are thrown into the grips of an irrevocable transformation, and only the cunning will survive.

 Up Next:

The Angels Share by J.R. Ward 

Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick

That's it for me this week, both of these books are rather large, but if I finish one I'll probably be adding one from the list above.  

Audio Book Review: Ready Player One

Ali Listens is my new review title for Audio book Reviews.  I wanted to start splitting up my reviews into categories.  Something I've been wanting to do for awhile, just haven't had the chance.  More categories coming soon, but this is the one I wanted to start with.

Title: Ready Player One
Author: Ernest Cline
Publisher: Random House NY
Audio Publisher: Random House Audio

Narrated by: Wil Wheaton

Length: 15 Hours and 46 Min.

Read From: October 10th - October 17th

Reading Challenges: None

In the year 2044, reality is an ugly place. The only time teenage Wade Watts really feels alive is when he's jacked into the virtual utopia known as the OASIS. Wade's devoted his life to studying the puzzles hidden within this world's digital confines, puzzles that are based on their creator's obsession with the pop culture of decades past and that promise massive power and fortune to whoever can unlock them. When Wade stumbles upon the first clue, he finds himself beset by players willing to kill to take this ultimate prize. The race is on, and if Wade's going to survive, he'll have to win—and confront the real world he's always been so desperate to escape.

I have put this review off for awhile now, mainly because after reading this book my mind was in a million different places at once and I wasn't sure how to explain to you how amazing this book was.  If you're a gamer like me or anyone that likes comic books, you will love this book.  It's filled with tons of references to other things from our pasts, but it in a good way that didn't make me feel old while reading.

Ernest Cline is an extraordinary author that drew me into this future world he came up with right away. I loved every second of reading this book and I caught myself many times on the edge of my seat wondering what was going to happen next. The best thing about this book was how unpredictable it was, I wasn't sure what was going to happen in the end.

The characters themselves were ones that I connected with on a great level, being a gamer (Yep people I'm a gamer who plays World of Warcraft and her Xbox all the time!) this book and made me feel right at home, but the characters felt like people I had known my whole life.

The audio book was fantastic as well, the story of course drew me in and kept my attention wrapped up in the story, but the narrator they chose to read the book was perfection! There are times when I'm listening to books and the voice drives me nuts so I just stop listening or I have to force myself to listen, not with Ready Player One.  Wil Wheaton was perfection for this story! 

As you should know, I'm a spoiler free review blogger and I don't like spoiling anything for readers, but seriously I really loved all the action in this book and the tasks were fantastic! It made me want to go back and play those games again or watch those movies that were referenced.  Ready Player One is a book that I could read/listen to over and over again and still love it even more every time I re-read.  Which I intend to do! 

The only thing I didn't like about this book was when it ended, I need more of what happened next, I need more of these characters. Author Ernest Cline if you're reading this, please write more!!! 

If you haven't read Ready Player One, what are you waiting for? Seriously, this book has made it to my Top 10 Favorite Books of All Times List! (I'll link this list as soon as I post it!)  I highly recommend this book to anyone that loves adventure, games, movies, music, damn I would recommend this to any adult! Go get you a copy today, that is if you don't already have it.   This is a book that will stay with you forever.  I know I could talk about it all day, especially with someone who has read it, so go do that and come back and chat with me about it. 

I'm guessing you know what rating I'm going to give Ready Player One by Ernest Cline.  If you read the review above it's not really that hard to figure it out. 

The Story Rating 

Audio Rating

 Here at Ali's Bookshelf we accept books in exchange for a honest review. The book above came from my own self.   The Audio, I bought myself through Audible. We also use Amazon Affiliate links at times.