Sunday, May 4, 2014

April 2014 Monthly Wrap-Up


Best of the Bunch is a book blog hop hosted by Always Lost in Stories, where we can look back over the books we have read over this past month and give a Best of the Bunch award to our favorite book of that month.

Loving the Language of Literacy Lookback:
-Ugh! This entire freaking month has been filled to the brim with projects, essays, presentations, and more. Until around the middle of the month, I will still have all of this going on. The teachers are intent on loading assignment upon assignment to show at Open House. 

-LGBT+ Month hosted by Laura @ Laura Plus Books & Cayce @ Fighting Dreamer is over and it was a TON of fun. I had hoped to be a lot more active in this, but I still read 2 LGBT books, and reviewed one. I also spent a lot of time reading their wonderful posts, and getting some really good recommendations. 

-This moth, I participated in the posts for the Dear Nobody Street Team, I have shared the exclusive trailer, reviewed the book, created a playlist, and even a discussion post.
Loving the Language of Literacy Lookout:
-Media Mondays!!! This is a new feature I will be having every Monday (what a concept đŸ˜±). I'm not trying to copy any names, or meme ideas, and if there are any with the same name, I implore you to tell me because I don't want to be accused of plagiarism. Anyway, these are reviews that will cover television shows, movies, and music. I can't wait because I think it will be a lot of fun. *Quick Note: As of May, Media Mondays will take place on Wednesdays because all my Mondays are filled with blog tours* 

-The Clean Sweep ARC Challenge hosted by Kimba @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer & Angie @ Angela's Anxious Life. All information can be found in the sign up post, but the basic gist of the challenge is to read as many ARCs as you can in the month of May. That doesn't sound too difficult, right? In my case, I will be taking the entire month to try and improve my Netgalley Ratio, because it's....How do I put this nicely? Atrocious. 

-Bout of Books 10 is happening this month from May 12-18. If you didn't know, Bout of Books is a quarterly Readathon (people still haven't corrected me on this, so I'm crossing my fingers that it's quarterly) just for the sake of all is crazy book lovers to have a chane to participate in mini-challenges, camaraderie, and the twitter chat (which I am DETERMINED to participate in this time). 

-For once, I didn't overbook myself with Blog Tours, and only have four books to read this month for tours, which compared to the stress of some other months, feels amazing. I also have some really fun posts such as interviewing the authors of Branded, and a guest post was written for me by Deborah Ellis, someone I have admired since I was in third grade.

  • 5/5: {Guest Post+Giveaway} Moon at Nine: Deborah Ellis
  • 5/12: {Review+Giveaway} Assured Destruction: Michael F. Stewart
  • 5/19: {Review+Giveaway} Only With You: Celia Gray
  • 5/23: {Review+Giveaway} The Only Boy: Jordan Locke
  • 5/26: {Interview+Review+Teaser+Giveaway} Branded: Abi Ketner

-From the 29th of May to the 16th of June, I will be on vacation, and I am not entirely sure if I will be having wifi, so I will have all my posts scheduled. This is just a quick warning, and I intend to be active on the blog still, although I probably won't respond to comments or anything like that. 
April Reads
1. Lean In: Women, Work, and Will to Lead: Sheryl Sandberg ~ 4 Ink Jars
2. The False Prince (The Ascendance Trilogy #1): Jennifer A. Nielsen ~ 5 Ink Jars
3. The Runaway King (The Ascendance Trilogy #2): Jennifer A. Nielsen ~ 5 Ink Jars
4. The Shadow Throne (The Ascendance Trilogy #3): Jennifer A. Nielsen ~ 4 Ink Jars
5. Dear Nobody: The True Diary of Mary Rose: Gillian McCain & Legs McNeil ~ 2 Ink Jars
6. The Here and Now: Ann Brashares ~ 2 Ink Jars
7. Between Shades of Gray: Ruta Septys ~ 4 Ink Jars
8. These Gentle Wounds: Helene Dunbar ~ 4 Ink Jars
9. Hidden Girl: The True Story of a Modern-Day Child Slave: Shyima Hall ~ 2 Ink Jars
10. The Hiding Place: Corrie Ten Boom ~ 3 Ink Jars
11. Every Day: David Leviathan ~ 2 Ink Jars
12. Final Stand: Rose Garcia ~ 3 Ink Jars
13. How to Say Goodbye: Amber Lin ~ 4 Ink Jars
14. Keeping You a Secret: Julie Ann Peters ~ 3 Ink Jars 

April Best of the Bunch:

.....DRUMROLL!!!.....

Synopsis: A kingdom teetering on the brink of destruction. A king gone missing. Who will survive? Find out in the highly anticipated sequel to Jennifer A. Nielsen's blockbuster THE FALSE PRINCE!

Just weeks after Jaron has taken the throne, an assassination attempt forces him into a deadly situation. Rumors of a coming war are winding their way between the castle walls, and Jaron feels the pressure quietly mounting within Carthya. Soon, it becomes clear that deserting the kingdom may be his only hope of saving it. But the further Jaron is forced to run from his identity, the more he wonders if it is possible to go too far. Will he ever be able to return home again? Or will he have to sacrifice his own life in order to save his kingdom?The stunning second installment of The Ascendance Trilogy takes readers on a roller-coaster ride of treason and murder, thrills and peril, as they journey with the Runaway King!


I have so many reasons why The Runaway King by Jennifer A. Nielsen has been given the crown, but I think what you really need to do is read the review to realize just how astoundingly phenomenal the book and author is. Spoiler Free. Spoiler Alert. 
April Posts:


Challenge Updates:

UPDATED GOAL eBooks: 24/50
Dystopia: 10/29
Library: 19/50
First Reads: 31/50
Chunksters: 3/10
Real Books: 24/50
Netgalley: 10/21
New Author: 31/50

Favorite Albums: 

My music taste has grown immensely in this past month. This is because I have discovered spotlight, so I can listen to a whole albums at once instead of singles from Pandora or iHeartRadio. I will be doing "Media Mondays" on a handful of these, and I can't wait to share my opinions on them with you. 

Night Visions: Imagine Dragons ~ I had always liked the singles 'Radioactive', 'Demons', 'It's Time', and 'Bleeding Out', but this month, I have lostened to the whole album from beginning to end multiple times. 

My Head is An Animal: Of Monsters and Men ~ I listened to covers of 'Little Talks' the ENTIRE summer of 2013, and I finally (probably out of boredom) listened to the whole album and am loving it. 

Bad Blood: Bastille ~ To be honest, I never liked their single 'Pompeii', but my friend from Syracuse visited and she loves the band a lot. I begrudgingly listened, and have found that I enjoy listening to them a lot. 

Cut to Impress: Maggie Rose ~ A long time ago, I had heard the song 'Lookin Back Now' which had just enough country mixed in with a touch of rock and sultriness. Yet, it was only in April that I pursued Maggie Rose, and created a Spotify playlist for her. Because when I create a Spotify playlist, I get serious.

Nashville On The Record ~ I am SO excited to tell you that this will be my very first Media Mondays post so I won't say too much right now. What I can say is that the cast is amazing singing live, despite recorded versions being played during the show. That Finale....check back on Wednesday for a full report.

Shakira: Shakira ~ My mother gave this album to me for Easter, and I was skeptical. Latin American music was certainly not on my radar and unlike anything I have ever heard before, but I do love the album. The songs 'Can't Remember to Forget You', 'Empire', 'That Way', and 'Loca Por Ti' are some of my new favorites that my mom practically knows the words to now.

Light Up the Night: Jess Moskaluke: I have been waiting, wondering, pondering, and even begging Jess Moskaluke via Twitter to come out with new original music because I think her voice is unlike any others and just has this 'it' factor. Anyway, the album did not live up to her Catch Me if You Can EP, but it is still wonderful.

WIth Love: Christina Grimmie ~ We all know by now that Christina Grimmie is in the Top 8 of The Voice, right? Well besides the covers that got her famous, last August, she came out with original music. While I'm not the biggest fans of her more rock songs, I am in love with the more acoustic ballands like 'I Bet You Don't Curse God', 'Think of You', and 'With Love'

The Covers Vol. 4 EP: Alexi Blue ~ I had hoped that by now, her full 10 song version of The Covers Volume 4 would be released, but alas, it was not meant to be. Nevertheless, the 5 songs on the album that she does have are spectacular, especially her cover of 'Best Days of My Life' by American Authors.

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