Category: Challenge Accepted

#ShelfLove: Free Books!

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This month’s #ShelfLove No Book Buying Challenge discussion topic is all about where we get our free books.  We might have stopped buying books, but we still need that “hit” we get from acquiring new books, right?!  Sure, you could search for free books on Barnes & Noble or Amazon, but more often than not, you’re going to come across books that aren’t free that you’ll wish you could buy.  Like window shopping when you’re flat broke, it sucks, and will wear down your willpower until you’re at the bottom of a pint of Ben & Jerry’s (studies show that being bombarded with ads and enticing store fronts leads to increased calorie consumption.)  Instead of breaking your book buying ban or eating half a pizza, check out the links to all the wonderful sites on the internet offering free books that I’ve discovered over the years.  If this lengthy list doesn’t keep you neck-deep in books, figuratively speaking, then I don’t know what will!

  • ManyBooks.net – This is a searchable site to find and download free books, from every genre, in your prefered format.  At the time I wrote this post, there were over 200 free Fantasy books being offered!
  • Podiobooks –   Until very recently, I had no idea podiobooks existed.  I subscribe to a couple podcasts that are short stories, so I got a bit excited when I found out there are whole books in podcast format, and they’re FREE!
  • Project Gutenberg – Most serious readers know about this one, but I have to list it because this is the go to place for the Classics, and it will save your wallet if you’re a Classic literature addict, or a member of The Classics Club.
  • Online Books Page – Another website to find the Classics.  There’s some overlap with Project Gutenberg.
  • Internet Archive – I LOVE this website!  It’s got so much more than free books, so make sure you’ve got some time to kill because you might not leave this site for awhile.
  • Open Culture – This site has a ton of free downloadable media, including ebooks and audiobooks.
  • Open Library – You don’t have a library card?  First of all, shame on you!  Second, go to the Open Library and sign up for a free account.  Third, start borrowing ebooks to your heart’s content.
  • LibriVox – Free audiobooks.
  • Lit2Go – Another site for free audiobooks, but many of the books also have a free downloadable PDF.
  • Free Classic Audiobooks – in case you need yet another site for finding free downloadable audiobooks.
  • Classic Short Stories – Look through the list to find the short story you want to read, and click on it to download.
  • East of the Web – This site has short stories you can read online, but you can also click on the “Printable Version” link and then save it as a PDF.
  • Nightmare Magazine – This is a Horror and Dark Fantasy short story magazine I recently discovered.  You can read the short stories online or download the audio/podcast.
  • Storynory – This is a Children’s audiobook site that, amongst so many other kid-friendly downloads, includes Classic Children’s literature.
  • Kiddie Records – If you’re looking for children’s records from the 1940’s and 50’s, this is the site to check out.  The downloads, including a Winnie the Pooh story, are all free.
  • BookBub – This is actually a website/newsletter to find out about the free (and on sale) books being offered under the genres you’re interested in by major booksellers like Amazon and Barnes & Noble.  I’ve discovered quite a few free books that I felt were worth downloading, but be careful since there is the temptation of .99 books.

March 2015 Take Control of Your TBR Pile Challenge

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March 2015 Take Control of Your TBR Pile

 

Take Control of Your TBR pile is back for its third year, but this will be the first time I’m participating.  For the month of March I’ll read books in my TBR pile that were released before March 1, 2015.

The Rules:

  • Link-up!
  • Make a Goals/updates/Results post (can be combined).
  • Begins March 1st, 2015 and ends March 31, 2015 at midnight.
  • Read/listen to books from your TBR pile.
  • ALL books must have been published before March 1st, 2015.
  • Post a review and then link it to the Rafflecopter for an entry.
  • You can combine events, challenges, etc. (I’m combining this with all of my current challenges.)
  • No novellas.
  • The rafflecopter will only allow two books to be entered per person per day, so update as soon as you finish a book.
  • Earn an extra entry for adding the Take Control Button to your blog with a link-back.
  • Use hashtag #TakeControlTBR
  • There will be a Twitter Party and a read-a-thon (To be announced).
  • The Rafflecopter will close on April 2, 2015 at midnight and a winner will be chosen within 72 hours. The Prize is a new 2015 release valued up to $20.00.

My Goals:

  • I’m going to try to finish 4 books.  I’ve already chosen 3 of them:
  • I’ll include updates in my Monday’s Minutes posts each week.
  • I’m going to do my best to participate in the Twitter Party and the read-a-thon, depending on when they will be.

 

#ShelfLove No Book Buying Challenge: Finances

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It’s February, which means those of us participating in the No Book Buying Challenge are supposed to share their book budgets, or what the money saved from not buying books will be spent on.  As you all know, my goal for this challenge is not to spend any money at all for the entire year, but gift cards and free books don’t count.

I got $75 in gift cards for Christmas and my Birthday this year.  I’m also earning gift cards by using a few different online rewards programs.  On top of that, the Boyfriend made an agreement with me that for every week I get at least 2 pages written for each 20 page research paper I have to write for my classes this semester, along with whatever other papers I have due, he will buy me one book of my choosing, as long as it’s not a hardcover.  His reasoning for this agreement is partly motivational, but also because going to the bookstore and seeing all those organized shelves of books is relaxing for me, and he wants me to keep my sanity throughout the insanity of this semester.  That’s what I call love <3

I’ve spent most of the money on my gift cards, but I’m saving the rest for the new edition of The Outlandish Companion by Diana Gabaldon that comes out in March.  I’m close to earning my 1st $5 Amazon gift card through one of the rewards programs, and I’ve also downloaded several free ebooks that I’ve come across.  I’ve earned 2 books so far from the agreement with the Boyfriend.  So, overall, I’m not feeling at all deprived for books.  However, I do have to repeatedly tell myself when I’m at the bookstore that I don’t have to buy every book on my wishlist right now because they’ll still be there when I’ve earned them.  I don’t know where that sense of urgency comes from, but I do know that my self-discipline and willpower are growing 🙂  I’ve read 5 books off of my TBR shelves towards my goal of 50, which means that if I’m able to keep that up, I’ll have met my goal by November.

I don’t have any plans for the money I’m saving from not buying books, but I will be taking the books I’ve read and decided not to keep to Half Price Books at the end of the year.  The money I get will go towards my book budget for 2016.  By then, I should have my degree and hopefully an adult job, but I want to continue spending as little or no money on books until I’ve got free space on my shelves.

Bout of Books 12: Update 1

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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 5th and runs through Sunday, January 11th 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 12 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. – From the Bout of Books team

My Goals

  • finish off the books I’m currently reading.
  • Read at least one new book off of my TBR shelf.
  • Finish at least 3 books.

Books Read

I’ll be catching up on my eARCs.

Pages Read

*FLAIL ALERT* – 64 pages!!!  I’m hoping to do considerably better today since I went to bed at the same time as The Boyfriend last night and got up at the same time as he did as well.  That means I’ve got oodles more time to read before he gets home from work.  Also, there’s no twitter chat today to distract me 😉

Mini-Challenges Completed

I participated in the Bookshelf Scavenger Hunt.

Bout of Books: Bookshelf Scavenger Hunt

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Stefani @ Caught Read Handed is hosting one of the first mini-challenges for Bout of Books 12, and it’s a Bookshelf Scavenger Hunt!  Below is the list of items, with the one’s I found in bold, and pics of the books linked to Goodreads:

Find a book with the following criteria on a bookshelf:
1. Find an author with the same initials as you
2. Find a book with the color yellow on it
3. Find an author’s name with the letter “S” in it
4. Find a book with a female protagonist
5. Find the longest book you own
6. Find a book with a map in it or on it
7. Find a book with a face on it (photograph or illustrated)
Bonus: Find something on your shelf that isn’t a book.

Penumbra Historian Girl

 

Hobbit Max

Sci-Fi and Fantasy Bingo Challenge

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S&S Bingo2
Snowflakes and Spider Silk has a SF/F Bingo Challenge that I’m going to participate in.
Rules:
1. One book can only count as one square, but feel free to shuffle which square you’re using the book for as the year progresses.
2. Although this card is geared towards SF/F, you can use other genres for squares like “debut author” or “reread a favorite”.
3. Fill out the entire square if you’re feeling motivated, or 5 in a row (across, vertically, or diagonally) for a more relaxed challenge. You are welcome to fill out as much or as little as you like!

No Book Buying Challenge: TBR List

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There’s no way I could possibly list every single book on my TBR bookshelf and all the ebooks I have in my 1st gen Nook (thankfully, Kindle links to Goodreads).  Even just randomly listing the amount of books for the level I chose (Black Belt: 51+ books) is daunting.  Since I signed up for this challenge, I’ve been very slowly adding books I already own onto a newly created TBR shelf on Goodreads, but those are only a drop in the bucket.  So, my TBR for this challenge is a weird combination of lists and photos:

To start off, I’ll be reading my review books:

  1. The Kingdom Lights by Steven VS
  2. Those Rosy Hours at Mazandaran by Marion Grace Woolley
  3. The Very Best of Kate Elliott by Kate Elliott
  4. The Eterna Files by Leanna Renee Hieber
  5. Cannonbridge by Jonathan Barnes
  6. Onyx Webb: Episode One: The Story Begins by Andrea Waltz
  7. Feast of Fates by Christian A. Brown
  8. Walking the Labyrinth by Lisa Goldstein
  9. Tommy Black and the Staff of Light by Jake Kerr

Then, I’ll be clearing out as many of my ebooks until March 6th, which marks the end of COYER.  These are the ebooks I’ve managed to get listed on Goodreads:

Foreign Correspondences Lesley Krueger
Little Boy Lost (The Librarian, #1) Eric Hobbs
The Princess of Dhagabad Anna Kashina
Ren of Atikala (Kobolds, #1) David  Adams
Turn of the Tide Margaret Skea
The Uncanny Valley: Tales from a Lost Town Gregory Miller
Lights Out Holly Black
Birth Of The Monster Shane K.P. O’Neill
The City of Worms (Everville. #2) Roy Huff
Everville: The Rise of Mallory Roy Huff
The Magic of Highland Dragons (The Clan MacCoinnach, #1) Kella McKinnon
Vigilante of Shadows (Novel 1 of The Scarlet Rain Series) Miranda Stork
The Final Formula Becca Andre
A Sea of Shields Morgan Rice
Gods & Dragons: 8 Fantasy Novels Daniel Arenson
The Lord of the Plains (Mixed, #1) Sarah Chapman
Fell’s Hollow A.J. Abbiati
Penny Dreadful Multipack Vol. 3 Robert Louis Stevenson
A Tide of Shadows (Chronicles of Llars, #1) Tom Bielawski
A Quest of Heroes (The Sorcerer’s Ring, #1) Morgan Rice
Mad Tinker’s Daughter (Mad Tinker Chronicles, #1) J.S. Morin
The Great Darkening (Epic of Haven Trilogy) R.G. Triplett
A Shadow of Lilies (The Last Savior) R. Moses
The Sibyl Cynthia D. Witherspoon
Sabriel (Abhorsen, #1) Garth Nix
The First Pillar (Everville, #1) Roy Huff
The Queen of the Tearling Erika Johansen

After COYER ends, I’ll move over to my physical TBR shelf.  Here are the 3 I’ve added to Goodreads:

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making (Fairyland, #1) Catherynne M. Valente
The Haunted Bookshop Christopher Morley
The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry Gabrielle Zevin

And here are pictures of my bookshelf, sans knick knacks, with the books I’ve already read, and decided to keep, blacked out:

first shelf

second shelf

third shelf

As you can see, I have way more books to read than I will get through this year, and it doesn’t include the 136 books I have on my Nook.  I would be ashamed if I didn’t know that I’m not the only one with a major book buying addiction.

Resolutions and Announcements

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“New Year’s Day… now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions.  Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual.” – Mark Twain

It’s New Year’s Day, so instead of “Thursday’s Quotables”, I’ve decided to let all of you know what changes I’ll be making for 2015!

First up are my resolutions for the year:

  • In keeping with the challenges I’ve chosen to take up, I need to read at least 65 books by the 31st of December.  At least 50 of those books will be those that I already owned as of yesterday, and 50 of them will need to be from Netgalley or Edelweiss.  That means I will actually have to read 84 books, so that’s my “true” goal.
  •  I’m participating in #FitReaders.  My goals for that are to start off the 1st week of the year with at least 1K steps per day, and then increase my total steps per day by 1K each week until I’m walking at least 12K steps per day during the 12th week.  I’ll repeat the week if I don’t make the steps for that week before moving on to the next one.  After that, I’m going to add some weight-bearing exercises and start either a cycling or jogging program, but that’s all dependent on my knees.  The Boyfriend and I also have plans to do Hot Yoga, so I’m hoping to do that at least once a week.
  • I have a bookmarks folder full of blog tips and tricks that I will attempt to clear out by the end of the year.  This will probably mean some changes to the blog over time, but they may or may not be as noticeable as the changes I’ve listed below, since some of them have to do with my editorial calendar, writing schedule, and other behind the scenes stuff.

Now on to the changes I’ll be making to the blog:

  • What I’m Reading Monday will now be called Monday’s Minutes.
  • Tuesday’s Tunes and Things will be split up into Tuesday’s Tunes and Thursday’s Things.  They will remain monthly features.  On “off” weeks, I’ll be posting book reviews.
  • Thursday’s Quotables will be moving to Wednesdays and will be called Wednesday’s Words.
  • I’ll be adding a new feature called Friday’s Fairytales starting Jan. 9th.  I’ve yet to decide if it will be a weekly or monthly feature.
  • Saturdays will be for author interviews or other book related posts that don’t fit into one of the features; otherwise I’ll be taking the day off.
  • Unless I’ve got something time sensitive and/or I just don’t want to wait to share it, I’ll be taking Sundays off.

What resolutions have you made?  What are your thoughts on the changes I’ve mentioned, or is there anything you wish I would add or that you would like to see more often?  Let me know in the comments!

COYER New Year’s Read-A-Thon

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NewYearsRAT

I’m participating in the COYER New Year’s Read-a-thon! Anyone can participate, whether you’re a COYER participant or not. The Read-a-thon will run from 12 AM Thursday, January 1 2015 – 11:59 PM Sunday January 4 2015.

New Year’s Read-a-thon Rules

  1. All books must meet the COYER Price Guidelines (so Free/Nearly Free eBook or Audiobook)
  2. It’s a new year, so read an author, narrator, or series that’s new to you.
  3. Sign-up on the linky before 11:59 PM December 31st.
  4. Before 11:59 PM December 31st, post on your blog, twitter, FB, Google+, Booklikes (you get the idea… somewhere!) that you’re participating. That’s the link you’ll need for the Rafflecopter.
  5. Have Fun!

It’s not required, but my “goal” is to read Tommy Black and the Staff of Light by Jake Kerr and I’ll include a wrap-up in my “What I’m Reading Monday” post on Jan. 5th.  The great thing about this read-a-thon is that it ends the day before Bout of Books 12, which ends before the COYER Dusting off the Shelf Read-a-thon.  TWO WEEKS OF READ-A-THONS before I head back to school for the Spring semester! 🙂

2015 Netgalley & Edelweiss Reading Challenge

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Falling For YA
Challenge:
  • Jan 1, 2015 – Dec 31, 2015.
  • Any genre, release date, request date, length, etc. counts so long as it came from Edelweiss or Netgalley.
  • Falling For YA will have a round up post every month to link up reviews.

Levels (I’m going to try for Gold):

Bronze – 10 Books
Silver – 25 Books
Gold – 50 Books
Platinum – 75 Books
Diamond –  100 Books