Bout of Books!

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, May 12th and runs through Sunday, May 18th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 10 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

HEY LOVELIES!!

It is once again time for the Bout of Books Read-a-thon and I could not be more excited! Last time when I participated I did really well reading around 6 or 7 books. This time around I am working and so I don't think I will be able to read as much. :( Regardless it is motivation to get some reading done!

This go around I am not making a TBR list at all. I have been mood reading a lot lately and I really have no clue what I am going to want to read this week. The only one I am sure I will pick up is City of Ashes since I just finished City of Bones. Everything else is up in the air and I'll find out as I go along. I am however setting myself the goal of reading 4 books. I think it might be a little high considering I have to work but if I manage my time I should be able to.

I will try to do separate daily updates with how much I read and what I am thinking about the book so far. And I will also try to do as many challenges as I can. They are so much fun!

Let me know if you are participating and what you will be reading!!! :)

~Judith

Kristy's Wicked Valentine's TBR

As you all may or may not know, having read my earlier post, the Wicked Valentine's Read-A-Thon begins at midnight!!! I'm excited and have compiled a rough list of the books I plan on reading these 10 days. As I had mentioned before, in the a fore mentioned post, I want to have an underlying romantic theme throughout my books so I have chosen these which, if I do say so myself, do the job quite nicely. I don't know if I'll get to them all or not or which I'll be starting first, but here is my To Be Read:

            

• Love Is Strange - by 
• Days of Blood and Starlight - by Laini Taylor
• The Devil Wears Kilts - by Suzanne Enoch
• The Dream Thieves - by Maggie Stiefvater
• First Light - by Michelle Frost

The list isn't in any particular order, though I'll probably start [or rather, continue] with Dream Thieves since I already started that one. Anyway, this list is only a rough plan of my TBRs. The books may change or some may be taken out or exchanged with others. I have a few Kindle Books that I got this morning, so who knows what will happen. I just cant wait to do absolutely nothing but read!!

Have fun with this everyone and read on!!! Let us know what you guys will be reading if you are participating in the read-a-thon and if not, just let us know what you guys are thinking, any books you want to see on here, or even any tips you guys have for getting through a book challenge.

Happy Reads!!!

Kristy <3

Wicked Valentine's Read-a-Thon Vol.2

There's no time like Valentine's to do another Read-a-Thon book challenge. We all love them! And at least now I'll have a few significant others (cough all my book boyfriends cough) to have dinner with.

This is actually the first time I have heard of this book challenge and I am excited to not be spending this Valentine's alone....I'll have all my books to keep me company!

So who's ready?! I am!!

The  Wicked Valentine’s Read-A-Thon is a time when we all get together to dedicate the days of February 7-17 to as much reading as possible. You read as much as you can in order to get yourself a little further through that huge to-read pile! We know real life gets in the way and even if you can’t participate more than one day, you’re welcome to join in on the fun! For more information about the Wicked Valentine's Read-A-Thon make sure to check out My Shelf Confessions. They've got all the details for you as well as the challenges, prizes, and more awesomeness to follow! 

This is a long challenge and I am hoping to read as many books as possible. I don't know which books I'll be reading, but I am thinking of making it all romantic themed books. Not exactly romance novels, but paranormal romances or contemporary romance. I think that's a good idea for Valentine's don't you? I'll let you guys know exactly what I will be reading in a later post, so keep an eye out for that.

I know Judith is going to want to join in on this one (she never says no to a Read-A-Thon). I wonder what she'll be reading that week. 

If you guys are going to participate in the Wicked Valentine's Read-A-Thon let us know and post what books everyone is reading! 

Good Luck and Happy Reading!!!

Kristy <3

Bout of Books 9.0

WHO'S READY FOR ANOTHER READ-A-THON!!??

I am!!! I know, I know, I just did one not too long ago, BUT they are so much fun! I love read-a-thons because they give you that little extra push to read more.

So for those of you that haven't heard about Bout of Books:

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, January 6th and runs through Sunday, January 12th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 9.0 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

I really don't have any concrete plans on how many books I want to read or what I will be reading but I think I might strive for 4 books, which is not too bad for 7 days. If I decide on a set TBR I will make a post if not I will just go with the flow and see what I am in the mood to read. I don't think I will be doing daily updates like I did with the Christmas Booktube-a-thon because that would be too many posts, I will probably do a mid-week update and then a wrap-up.

Good luck to everyone participating in the read-a-thon!!!
Let me know what you plan to read or accomplish.
HAPPY READING!

Judith <3

Kristy: New Years Bookish Resolution

HAPPY NEW YEARS LOVELIES! 

The new year is upon us and I have already made tons of resolutions that I intend to keep. It's going to be hard but I am determined to go forth and push myself, especially this year when I have so many. These, however, are my lovely fun and crazy bookish resolutions. I don't know if I'll do ten like Judith or more or less, but the year is young so who knows?!

1. Read 50 books (minimum-which is 1/week, 4/month)
2. Reread and finish Blue Bloods series
3. Finish all the books I own but haven't started (it's a lot!)
4. Read more non-fiction books
5. Post at least 3 times a week
6. Read more short stories and poetry
7. Read a book whose title starts with each of the letters in my name (stole this from Judith...grins evilly)

That's what I have so far, but like I said, the year is young so that can change at any moment. The one I really want to get through is the 50 books because last year I was barely able to read. Between school and work, I pretty much had no time for anything else, much less reading. How depressing. So this year I am determined to read more despite having work and school. I must make time for it, even if it's while I'm on break or an hour at the library. Any little bit counts. The rest are fun and entertaining but I won't go crazy if I don't finish those, though I will most definitely try! I can't wait to start and get these resolutions underway!

If you awesome readers have any bookish resolutions let me know in the comments! Would love to know what kinds of challenges and resolutions you all have set up for yourselves. But don't forget to just have fun with these.

Hope you all have an amazing year!!!

Judith: My Top Ten Bookish Resolutions!

HAPPY NEW YEARS LOVELIES! 

It is that time of year again where we all make resolutions for the upcoming year! ...and then give up on them one month in... ;) BUT I have faith this year will be different! I have set for myself 10 bookish resolutions that I really want to stick to in 2014. Some are quite big while others are small and just for added fun! So here is the list:

1. Read 100 books (Still torn on whether to count novellas or not!)

2. Read a total of 40,000 pages

3. Complete 15 series

4. Read 10 Non-fiction books

5. Read 5 books dealing with a genre or topic I don't normally read much about

6. Post a review for at-least 50 books

7. Post at least 3 posts a week

8. Re-read all the Harry Potter books

9. Read all of John Green's novels

10. Read a book whose title starts with each of the letters in my name

Those all all my resolutions at the moment, thought I could always add more throughout the year! I will post an update  at the end of the month on how I am doing so far! The scariest ones are definitely the 100 books, 40,000 pages, and the 50 reviews! But all the other ones shouldn't be too much trouble. Of course, this is not a set list and I won't be too upset if I don't achieve all of them, but it is always fun to have a goal to work towards.  

What are your bookish resolutions?!! 

Let me know in the comments! 

Hope you all have an amazing year!!!

Kristy: Christmas Booktube-a-thon Wrap-Up!

So you've heard....it's over and the results are in!

As the clock struck twelve, I'm sorry to say that the carriages turned back into pumpkins, the horses back to mice, and Cinderella, well, she lost a shoe. I guess, if you were Cinderella, of course, that's what would have happened, but here it was a different story entirely. For us here at The Cozy Corner, and I'm sure for many of you book lovers out there, twelve signified the end of the Christmas Booktube-a-thon for the year. Here is how it went...

It was a stormy day, dark clouds filled the sky....and there was NO rainbow! Ok, that's not entirely true. There were no clouds or rainbows and the sun was glowing hot in the sky...and many things were going on around me. I had just gotten home right before 12 midnight (Thursday-Friday) from Santa's Enchanted Forest (which my novel of choice was way more enchanted) ready to dive in to a new book. Honestly, I didn't think I would even get to read much because I was so tired from walking and laughing, and riding sketchy carni rides the night before, but alas, as soon as i opened the book I was transported into a world that I just couldn't deny. So I read and I read and I read, until I knocked out at 4 or so in the morning.

It took me all weekend, but I finished all 418 pages of Daughter of Smoke and Bone. It was magical. I hated that throughout the weekend I had to put it down so many times.

I'm sure you read Judith's account of my mini spazz-attacks I had throughout the challenge. (I think that in itself was a challenge). Let me tell you, they were more like "unparalleled spazz-attacks of the internal membrane," at least that's how I put it at the time. I think I may even be having withdrawals, however, more about that in my book review, so keep your eyes peeled!

Unfortunately, I only got to the one book, though I'm happy I got to read at all, with all the work and preparations for the holiday festivities going on.

And my lovely partner in crime, Judith, is way too fast at everything. I wanted to freeze her just a bit so that I could catch up to her, but oh well, it was still fun and I got a good fill. Now I just wish that I had the next segment because after such an intense read, I don't think I can sleep or read anything else. (Here lays Kristy is fetal position, rocking back and forth, while caressing my baby--I mean book!)

In other news, Judith and I are going to escape reality, hide out in a library, create a fortress of books and create our own secret tongue. You are all welcome to join in on the fun and if any of you awesome readers decide to actually build a book fortress, take a pic (with you [and friends] inside) and send it to us!

Anyway, keep an eye out for next week's posts:

1. Judith's review for Demon Glass, Catching Fire, and Legend .
2. My review for Daughter of Smoke and Bone.
3. Genre Spotlight: Fantasy

That's all for tonight (or morning, depending where in the world you all are). I hope you all had fun with this challenge and read as much as you could. Keep on reading and let us know with a few comments what you all will be reading in the week to come, books you hope to get for the holidays, or just anything at all that you would like to tell us. 

Judith: Christmas Booktube-A-Thon Wrap-Up!

THE END IS HERE!!!

The end of the Booktube-a-thon that is! Well, really as I am typing this there is still 30 more minutes left before it officially ends but by the time I stood in front of my bookshelf and picked what book to read next and picked a bookmark to match it, and got comfortable, time would be up anyways! So instead I am taking those last thirty minutes to tell you lovelies how it all went. AND I mean, I am technically reading this as I type it...that counts for something right??? No? Fine...

The weekend didn't go necessarily as planned. I had initially picked out three books to read during the Booktube-a-thon, one for each day but I didn't account for all the distractions I would have! My days turned out as follows:

FRIDAY: Read about 100 pages total from Catching Fire.
SATURDAY: Finished reading Catching Fire and read about 90 pages of Legend.
SUNDAY: Finished reading Legend.

NOTE: I did also manage to listen to about 2 hours worth of the Audiobook for Three Little Words by Susan Mallery.

I really wish I would have gotten to a third book but I am not too disappointed considering I did finish Demon Glass on Thursday right before the Booktube-a-thon! I am so happy though because all three books this week were incredible and I am itching to pick up all the sequels to them!!

I'm not sure if I will be reading anything else tonight, I might just catch up on some videos and TV shows for the rest of the night. Either way I had quite a blast participating in this Booktube-a-thon and I can't wait until the next read-a-thon comes a long!

Some posts to look forward to in the coming week:

1. My review for Demon Glass.
2. My review for Catching Fire.
3. My review for Legend.
4. Kristy's review for Daughter of Smoke and Bone.
5. Kristy's Booktube-a-thon wrap-up.
6. Genre Spotlight: Fantasy

Well lovelies, I am off! Let us know in the comments what you read this weekend! :D

Judith: Christmas Booktube-A-Thon Update!

Howdy everybody!!!

I wanted to write up a quick update on how the Booktube-a-thon has been going on my end. As I had mentioned in my Cozy Reads post, I was reading Demon Glass and finished it Thursday night. It was soooo good!!! I think I have decided I will post the review of it and Hex Hall soon because it was just too good not to! I ended up totally wishing I had the third one with me to pick up right away! I finished reading it about an hour before the Booktube-a-thon was set to begin and had a snack and surfed the internet for a bit while I waited. I thought I was going to be able to read right away but kept getting distractions! One thing after the other led to me not being able to even pick up Catching Fire until about 1:30 or 2:00 AM. I read about 44 pages but by that time my eyes were hurting from all the reading I did earlier and doing work on the computer. I had to put it down for the night, which I was quite disappointed about! By the time I woke up and did some chores around the house it was already 10 PM! I was quite upset that I was so far behind on my reading but decided to power through it and just focus on my book. I had a couple distractions (one of them being Kristy completely having mini freakouts while reading Daughter of Smoke and Bone! I think she might have found her one true love! Hahaha) but I managed to finish Catching Fire at a bit past 6:00 AM today! Once I really got into it I couldn't stop reading!! Gah! Now I want Mockingjay! But I don't have it either! :( I really can't wait to have some more book money...my resolution for this upcoming year will be to win the lottery and buy ALL the books! Sounds like a plan! I am sure that Kristy is totally down with me on this plan because she knows I would buy her ALL the books too! :) Anyways, I am off to see the wizard! By wizard I totally mean off to read something else!

Happy Reading!!!!

If any of you are participating in the Booktube-a-thon leave us a comment telling us which books you have read already. :)

Kristy: The Christmas Booktube-a-Thon!

Hey all my lovely readers!

I'm pretty sure you read Judith's earlier post and how I got conned into doing the Christmas Booktube-a-thon Challenge. However, thanks to her I'll be joining in on all the book reading fun. You guys can check out all the details on Ariel's and Katy's youtube pages.

So from Friday the 20th to Sunday the 22nd, beginning at midnight, I will crack open a new book along with many of our fellow readers because obviously I don't need sleep. I'm not sure if I'll be reading 3 books like my partner in crime or even half a book, but regardless, it is the perfect opportunity to read (not that I need a reason for that) and cross off some of the books from my reading list.  I do have a few books that I want to get to and so I'll be adding them to this wonderful list!

To start off this challenge, my first book is going to be Daughters of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor. I am a major buff for fantasy (and often live in my own little world) and have heard great things about this one. Star-crossed lovers, Romeo and Juliet, who doesn't love stories like that, where you get to fall for the bad guy who is really a good guy? I know I do! I also heard that Laini Taylor does an amazing job at capturing and telling the story. And apparently it's filled with monsters, demons, and HOT guys!! (Insert fangirl scream.)









Up next is Perfect Scoundrels by Ally Carter. Throw in a crafty family of thieves, a hunky male lead, and an elaborate con and you have yourself the third book in the Heist Society series. I have been a fan and faithful reader of Ally Carter's beginning with her Gallagher Girls series (which are amazing and a must read). I've had a copy for a while now but have yet to open it so perhaps this weekend I can take a crack at it. It's a perfect read that keeps you on the edge of your seat and that's what I love about Ally, she isn't scared to push you off (if need be).










Those are the books I intend to read for this challenge though I may add another (if I can find one I haven't yet read in my mini library). You know what this means don't you....I need to go buy me some more books! There is no way I can run out that fast.

Anyway, I hope you all are able to partake in this challenge and have tons of fun gushing over your favourite characters, I know I will.


Check the links:

Ariel's Video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIXfCFN6qss

Kat's Video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sC7d8-lNl2g

Judith: The Christmas Booktube-a-thon!

Hey everyone!!!

I have some exciting news today! I will be participating in the upcoming Christmas Booktube-a-thon! Yes, yes, I know that this is a blog and not Youtube, but there is nothing saying that I can't follow along! :) I thought this would be a great opportunity to buckle down and read some books! The booktube-a-thon will be from Friday the 20th-Sunday the 22nd. The great thing is that it will start at midnight Friday no matter where you are in the world! That means no having to worry about it starting at 4AM or something of the sort. I'll leave links down below to both Ariel's and Kat's video's discussing all the details!

Now, onto the books that I will be attempting to read during the booktube-a-thon! I thought I would do what everyone else is trying to do and go for the goal of reading 3 books, one book each day. I think this is pretty do-able considering I am done with school for the semester! I thought It would be fun to pick a theme for the books I'd be reading...so what's my theme? Books that I have been meaning to read for a long, long time! Or you can also call it, books the whole world has read but me. There are so many books that I have been dying to read but something always comes up when I am about to.  And these are all one's I am very excited to read!

First up, Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins! This is the second book in The Hunger Games trilogy. Please don't kill me for not having read this sooner! The thing is I read The Hunger Games a while before the movie came out and I absolutely loved it but it is one of those books that the ending wraps up so well that I was in no immediate rush to run and read Catching Fire. I guess I let time pass by and now the second movie is out and I feel like I can't see it until I read the book! I have heard this is a brilliant sequel and can't wait to jump back into this world!!

The second one I want to read is City of Bones by Cassandra Clare. This is another one people are going to kill me over! With this one, I was a bit apprehensive to start the series because I really wasn't sure if the plot appealed to me or not. It is kind of a hard plot to explain and get across and I couldn't make my mind up. I did the unthinkable and I watched the movie before reading the books! But on the bright side I completely loved the movie and the characters and was able to understand the idea behind it a bit more. This definitely sealed the deal for me and I knew I had to finally go and pick up the series!

Last, but certainly not least I want to read Legend by Marie Lu. I wanted to pick up this series since the first book came out but for some reason I just never did. Recently the third and final in the trilogy came out and I thought, what better time to start than now that I have them all at my disposal! And I know EVERYONE has mentioned this but AHHH some of the ink is gold! That is just too cool!












Okay! So that is it for the books I plan to read for the Christmas booktube-a-thon! Of course plans can always change and I could end up reading none of these but I really, really want to. Let me know if you guys are participating and what you are planning on reading! :) I'm in the process of trying to convince Kristy to participate as well! *bats eyelashes*

Links:

Ariel's Video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIXfCFN6qss

Kat's Video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sC7d8-lNl2g