Book Chick City's Zombie Challenge 2012

So I may have bitten off more than I can chew already (pun intended,) and signed up for a reading challenge for the year that can easily fit within my current challenge of reading 60 books this year.

I follow a lot of book reviewers on twitter and got a link to Book Chick City's blog. They're hosting a slew of book challenges for the year, and I decided to sign up for the Zombie one. Here's the guidelines of this fun challenge taken directly from their post:

• Timeline: 01 Jan 2012 - 31 Dec 2012

• Rules: There are FOUR (4) LEVELS to choose from:

- One Chomp: Read 6 Zombie books in 2012

- Two Chomps: Read 12 Zombie books in 2012

- Three Chomps: Read 18 Zombie books in 2012

- Four Chomps: Read 24 Zombie books in 2012

• You don't have to select your books ahead of time, you can just add them as you go. Also if you do list them upfront you can change them, nothing is set in stone! The books you choose can crossover into other challenges you have on the go.

• You can join at anytime. All books read in 2012 count towards the challenge regardless of when you sign up.

• At the beginning of Jan 2012, you will find a link to specific month to add your reviews.

• Audiobooks do not count, but all other formats are accepted.

• Only fiction, no non-fiction ;)

• This challenge can crossover to other challenges.

• You don't have to have a blog to join in - for those without a blog but who use Goodreads, Amazon, LibraryThing etc, you can add the URL to where you track your books. If you don't have a URL at all then choose a name you would like to use and then copy and paste the following link:

http://www.bookchickcity.com/2011/12/sign-up-zombie-challenge-2012.html

I thought this sounded like fun, and it gets me to read outside my comfort zone. I'll be shooting for two chomps of delicious brains. So sign up for yourself, there's the link above to their home page, or the button to the right directly to the challenge itself.

Let me know if you decide to sign up for any challenges this year, I'd love to see what's out there throughout the months to challenge, inspire, or for just plain fun.

~Eileen

Happy New Year!

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday! I had a lovely time with the hubby and friends watching movies and playing Rummikub. We did the same last year and hope to have the opportunity to do it again next.

So now it's another year. According to doomsayers, who rarely change their tune, we're all going to die this year because people who've been long dead themselves said so. I wouldn't listen to them, I mean look at their luck...

I'm not one who likes New Years Resolutions. I think that, during the course of the year, you should reflect on what you're doing and if a change needs to be made, just do it. Why wait until the end of the year to change your habits when you can carpe diem and make yourself better now? So with that in mind, I began implementing some changes when I happened to have time during December, and I've never felt better. So here's a list of some things that I've started implementing, and some new things that I'd like to change to make life a little better. Hopefully it will alleviate stress rather than create it:

~Write a page daily in my real journal. The current one I began almost 5 years ago, which is shameful to my standards that I haven't finished it much MUCH sooner.

~I set a goal on Goodreads.com to read 60 books for leisure this year. That translates to 5 books per month, which I don't think is too unreasonable.

~Get involved more with my church, attend more often than I did last year, and contribute more financially.

~Update this blog at least once per week, posting reviews of books or just random posts.

~Keep up posting quotes of my favorite books on tumblr.

~Continue exercising 4-5 times per week and lose at least 20 pounds this year.

~Spend more time with family and call both my parents and my mother-in-law more at least every-other week.

~Eat better - fast food at a maximum of 4x per month.

~Spend more time with friends, not only when people need something from me (or I from them.)

I think these are all things that aren't very difficult and are easily attainable. Plus, I think they'll make daily life more enjoyable in general. What are some things that you would like to change? Did you make a resolution last year that you kept or attained? Tell me about it, I'd love to hear.

~Eileen

Current Reads

Hello!

It's been a while, this semester turned out crazier than I anticipated. I've found a little time to read for leisure during these past few weeks, and here's what I'm currently reading:




Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare

I've been waiting for this book since I first read Clockwork Angel this summer, and it took for.ev.er. for B&N to send it to me. It was also terrible timing, since that's when a lot of final projects were starting, and the theater production that I was participating in had their performances the week before it's release. Regardless, I've been trying to make time to spend with Mr. Herondale, Mr. Carstairs, Miss Tessa, and all the other characters that I missed so dearly. I'm not too far into it, but once finals are completed this week, this book is about to be devoured.



The Iron King by Julie Kagawa

I received my Christmas present from my husband earlier this month - a Kindle Fire! I've been so against the entire e-reader movement since it's hurting local book stores, plus I love the feeling of a book in my hands.... and I'm stubborn, so I just fought the change until I could fight it no more. This is one of the first books I purchased on it since I'd heard a lot about it and wanted to see what all the hype of this series is all about. I'm almost halfway through this one since I've been reading it while exercising on the Kindle (which is the best thing ever, since you don't have to worry about losing your place or the pages not lying flat. Thank you, baby Jesus, for letting me see the light finally) and have really enjoyed it. Midsummer Night's Dream is one of my favorite Shakespeare plays and was the first one I ever performed in, so I am in love with Julie already. I'll let you know what I think.

So those are the two must-finish-before-the-end-of-the-year books I have right now. I've probably downloaded 100 free books on my Kindle, many of them classics, that I'd love to get to, as well as a bookshelf full of "to read" books as well. Looks like I have my work cut out for me.

If you're not already a member of Goodreads.com, you really should be. It's like a social network for book nerds where you can share what you're reading, see what your friends are reading, read reviews, find suggestions for books you may like, and so much more. I follow quite a few authors on there that are favorites, and it's so cool being so in touch with people you admire. It's a free site to join and very addicting, so go for it!

I hope you're all having a wonderful holiday season sofar. God Bless and keep reading!

~Eileen

Unabridged Audra and the Spooktacular Blog Hop Giveaway!

There are many MANY different blogs participating in this particular blog hop, so you should go to Unabridged Audra's blog and check out what they're giving away - this is one of the easiest ways to get books, and doesn't even cost you anything. She's giving away a box of 15 books... yes, you read that right A BOX OF 15 DIFFERENT TITLES FOR FREE. Go enter now, seriously.

Among those blogs that are participating in the Spooktacular Blog Hop is Stuck In Books Blog, giving away one of three titles: Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon, The Iron Knight by Julie Kagawa, or Half-Blood by Jennifer Armentrout. I already have the first book on my "to-read" shelf at home, and look forward to getting the other two titles (one way or another) since they're both so highly recommended. Iron Knight just came out this week, so it's a pretty hot commodity. Go enter to win it for free!

Another blog that I happened across that's giving away the award-winning Margaret Stohl's Beautiful Chaos, the third book of the Beautiful Creatures series, is Chick Loves Lit. It's super easy to enter, and as always it's no cost to you. Go enter and win some free stuff!

Most of these I hear about on twitter from this woman: Patricia Leppla. If you're not on there, it's worth creating an account just to follow her about book giveaways. She posts tons of them all the time, and it's super fun to find new book review blogs with suggestions for new reads! Her blog is also here, so go check it out for yourself!

Bookaholic's Book Club Giveaway

There's an international book giveaway of so many great titles going on at the Bookaholics Book Club Blog! You should definitely check it out, it's super easy to sign up and just as easy to win!

PS I should really start writing again... *sigh* I'll just stick to reading for now until I can come up with something write-worthy.

In the meantime, I'll try to post some more good giveaways that I find soon.

~Eileen

Recent Giveaways

Okay, so there are a lot of book giveaways out there right now, it almost seems overwhelming at first, but it's the easiest way to get free (sometimes not-yet-published) books. I'm pretty excited about some of these, perhaps you can also partake in these:

The Book Worms blog is giving away Glow by Amy Kathleen Ryan here. All you have to do is leave a comment and you're entered!

Goodreads.com (highly recommended site for avid readers for great reviews, suggestions, and it's almost like a social network for book worms - so cool!) is giving away some ARC's, like:

Fever (The Chemical Garden #2) by Lauren DeStefano here,

Clockwork Prince by the amazing Cassandra Clare here.

Here's an entire novel you can download for free by Michael Hicks. That's right, you can download his entire novel In Her Name: Empire for free. Just follow the instructions and it's yours. I already got mine, let me know what you think!

Author K.C. Neals is giving away a $10 Amazon gift card as well as an ARC of his book Pyxis here.

Fangs, Wands, & Fairy Dust is having a super fun giveaway for either a fairy Halloween costume or some other fun prizes here. Oh, the variety!

Win a signed copy of Melissa de la Cruz's Lost in Time at this (appropriately named blog) I Just Wanna Sit Here And Read.

And lastly, some giveaways for kids books (aka NOT Young Adult lit:)

Patricia Particularly's Halloween Bash Giveaway with a fun pack full of goodies from R.L. Stine... how nostalgic can you get?! Also Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carmen series is up for grabs on her site.

I'll keep posting more giveaways as I find them. They're all over Twitter and Blogger, so if you need any suggestions just let me know!

~Eileen

Lisa Desrochers Last Rite Contest

Hello again!

There's another ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) out there for everyone, so long as they're willing to enter for it! There's a fun blog scavenger hunt going on as well for some awesome other prizes like the entire series set AND an Ipod shuffle with a songlist already on it. I haven't read these books, but from some accredited reviews, they do look interesting. Go to this blog Bookalicio.us. It should take you right to her page about the contest and scavenger hunt information. It's lots of fun, doesn't take much time, and introduces you to some really great sites for YA (Young Adult) critic sites for suggestions of other awesome books to read. Trust me, with these people around, your "To Read" list will never be longer!

~Eileen