Wednesday, September 4, 2019

Waiting on Wednesday #148: The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow




Hello everyone! "Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, that is hosted by Breaking the Spine and the purpose of this event is that we spotlight upcoming releases of books that we are excited for!  This will also tie into Wishful Ending's Can't Wait Wednesday post!







This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:






Title:  The Ten Thousand Doors of January
Author:  Alix E. Harrow
Expected Publication Date:  September 10th, 2019


In the early 1900s, a young woman searches for her place in the world after finding a mysterious book in this captivating and lyrical debut. 

"A gorgeous, aching love letter to stories, storytellers and the doors they lead us through...absolutely enchanting." -- Christina Henry, national bestselling author of Lost Boys and Alice

In a sprawling mansion filled with peculiar treasures, January Scaller is a curiosity herself. As the ward of the wealthy Mr. Locke, she feels little different from the artifacts that decorate the halls: carefully maintained, largely ignored, and utterly out of place.

Then she finds a strange book. A book that carries the scent of other worlds, and tells a tale of secret doors, of love, adventure and danger. Each page turn reveals impossible truths about the world and January discovers a story increasingly entwined with her own.


Oooh! This sounds like an interesting story collections novel!  And I'm really loving that cover!



So, what upcoming books are you looking forward to?  Please respond below!




Monday, September 2, 2019

☀Daily Book Chat #35:☀ My Brand New Beta Reading Service!





 Hello everyone! Welcome to my  ☀Daily Book Chat☀ where I do some SERIOUS discussions that fellow book fans will get a kick out of and relate their thoughts about the subject to other book fans!

Today's discussion question is My Brand New Beta Reading Service!






I know, I know.  Are you tooting your own horn on this?  Mmm...maybe...

But on a SERIOUS note, I have been reading books like my ENTIRE life and I wanted to try my hand in helping upcoming authors on improving their works before they send it out to the WONDERFUL world of book publishing!  So, I had actually started a BETA READING SERVICE a few years back to help out authors with their works before they are published. But unfortunately, the word hasn't quite spread out the way that I planned.  So, I'm going to try another tactic in spreading the word...THROUGH BLOG POSTS...LIKE THIS ONE!


What's BETA READING, you ask?




Well, Beta Reading is basically when a blogger, an author...basically ANYONE, looks over your finished or unfinished manuscript and provide CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM on your work.  Of course, the beta reader is not looking at your work as an editor or as a proofreader, but as a fellow READER.  Beta Reading involves you looking over various elements in the work, such as DIALOGUE, PLOT, PACING, CHARACTERIZATION, PLAUSIBILITY and INCONSISTENCY and you give out your feedback on the work and discuss about what works, what doesn't work and what needs to be improved on.


So, now that I talked about what BETA READING is all about, let's talk about what I could do for you!  Since I've been reviewing books for the past 7 YEARS (so technically, I've been reviewing books since 2012.  Man, that's a LONG time)!  I have A LOT of experience in analyzing the PROS and CONS of the works in general.  I also like to give out HONEST opinions about the works that I read because LYING about my feelings on a work is not going to give the work (or me) any CREDIBILITY.   So, expect some HONESTY coming from me when I review your work.  However, when I say that I'm going to be HONEST in my opinions about your work, that doesn't mean that I'm going to be DOWNRIGHT OFFENSIVE or HARDCORE with you.  I understand that some writers are just starting out and sometimes mistakes can happen with their works.  But, the whole goal of this BETA READING is to help writers improve on their works and make them more accessible to ALL READERS.  




Alright, so I just talked about the HONEST OPINIONS aspect of BETA READING and now, you are probably wondering: what GENRES and DEMOGRAPHICS do I prefer beta reading?  Well, I prefer to beta read the following genres and demographics:

1. YOUNG ADULT
2. CHILDREN'S BOOKS
3. HORROR
4. FANTASY
5. ROMANCE (PARANORMAL, CONTEMPORARY and PARANORMAL)
6. MYSTERY
7. GRAPHIC NOVELS
8. ADULT

And as for genres that I WON'T DO, they are:

1. NON FICTION
2. MEMOIRS
3. EROTICA

Alright!  So now that I pretty much laid out the GROUND RULES for my BETA READING SERVICES, let's provide some good ole LINKS, shall we?

So, if you want to check out what kind of BETA READING SERVICES that I have, then check out my gig over at Fiverr at:



Once more with feeling, that's:




So, are you interested?  Then please check out my Beta Reading Services!  And let me know in the comments down below, how do you feel about Beta Reading Services?  Are they actually helpful in providing criticisms on authors' works before they are published?  Or are they not that good?  

And do you have your own BETA READING SERVICES? If you do, what blog or website do you host your own BETA READING SERVICES?



And as always:




HAPPY READING, BOOK FANS!!!!









Friday, August 23, 2019

July Monthly Wrap Up (2019)



Off the Blog:


Hey everyone! July was a pretty slow month in regards to much activity.  However, I did watch a ton of great movies this month, which included "Spider-Man: Far From Home," which I loved!  Also, a tragic thing had happened in July and that was the passing away of book blogger Rebel Mommy, who was battling cancer. May she rest in peace...



On the Blog:



I had a pretty good reading month, although not as big as June.  But, I managed to finally finished reading "Illuminae," which I really enjoyed and I can't wait to dive into "Gemina" next!  I'm also currently reading "The Cruel Prince," which is pretty good so far!  Also, I had managed to buy a couple of my own designs from Society6 and they look awesome!  Look at my photos down below and if you like these designs (they are the "Daughter of Smoke and Bone" sticker, the "A Thousand Perfect Notes" Mug and the "Alice in Wonderland" tote bag), then please feel free to buy these products on my Society6 account! 















Books Read this Month:










Other Reviews and Activities Completed this Month: 




MISCELLANEOUS


1. [Miscellaneous]  ARC August Challenge Sign Up!


GUEST POSTS


NOPE!!!


BLOG TOURS


NOPE!!!
DISCUSSIONS


NOPE!!!



OLD BOOK REVIEWS

NOPE!!!



READING CHALLENGE UPDATES


2019 European Reading Challenge:
2019 Beat the Backlist: 3
NetGalley and Edelweiss Reading Challenge 2019: 6
2019 Picture Book Reading Challenge: 14
2019 Humor Reading Challenge:
2019 Alphabet Soup Author Edition: 3

2019 Discussion Challenge: 1
2019 Diversity Reading Challenge: 3
2019 Color Coded Reading Challenge: 2
2019 Read It Again, Sam: 2
2019 12th Annual Graphic Novel / Manga Challenge: 






 Book Stats for July:

Total Number of Books Read: 3
Children's Books: 2
Young Adult Books: 1
5 Star Reads: 2
4 Star Reads: 1
Average Rating: 4.7
Male Authors: 2
Female Authors: 2
Unknown Authors: 0
Series: 2
Stand Alone: 1
Re-Reads: 0
Total NetGalley Books for the Year: 4
Total ARC Books for the Year: 2
Total Edelweiss Books for the Year: 2
Total Re-Reads for the Year: 2
Total Number of Books Read for the Year: 17


Genre Stats:

Humor: 0
Science Fiction: 1
Horror: 0
Fantasy: 2
Drama: 0
Family: 0
Romance: 0
Paranormal: 0
Contemporary: 0
Historical: 0
Total Science Fiction Books for the Year: 1
Total Humor Books for the Year: 7
Total Horror Books for the Year: 0
Total Fantasy Books for the Year: 4
Total Drama Books for the Year: 2
Total Family Books for the Year: 1
Total Romance Books for the Year: 2


Blog Stats for July: 


Most Viewed Post: The Sunday Post Meme (175) - 166 views
Most Commented Post: The Sunday Post Meme (176) - 32 comments




POST SPOTLIGHT:





BEST OF THE MONTH: Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff






Books Bought in July:



* I actually bought mostly books that were by Jay Kristoff (which is awesome since I wanted to buy his books for awhile now). I can't wait to dive into these books soon!







August TBR:

* I finally finished reading "Illuminae" and it was AMAZING!  I just loved the sci fi aspects of this book and now I can't wait to read "Gemina" next!  Also, I'm currently reading "The Cruel Prince," which is pretty awesome so far!









Favorite Blog Posts from Around the Blogosphere: 


☀  Cait @ Paper Fury discusses about 24 YOUNG ADULT ENEMIES TO LOVERS BOOKS YOU’VE BEEN SEARCHING FOR
☀  AJ @ Read All the Things!discusses about Discussion: Best Books Of 2019 (So Far)
☀  Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addition discusses about Goodreads’ YA Books Lists: 2019 Edition. Let’s Discuss.
☀  Jessica @ a GREAT read discusses about Toy Story 4: Part Review, Part Rant
☀  Greg @ Book Haven discusses about Liveblogging Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom  
☀  Sam @ We Live and Breathe Books discusses about Is It a Dealbreaker - Secondary Character Deaths
☀  Shannon @ It Starts at Midnight has reviewed THE 100 EPISODE 6×10: MATRYOSHKA  
☀  Genesis @ Whispering Chapters discusses about Underrated Authors + Books | Top Ten Tuesday
☀  Jenna @ Happy Indulgences discusses about HOW TO START A BOOK BLOG IN 8 EASY STEPS





This will be linked to Feed Your Fiction Addiction's Monthly Wrap Up and A Cocoon of Books Best of the Bunch! 




Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Waiting on Wednesday #147: Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin




Hello everyone! "Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, that is hosted by Breaking the Spine and the purpose of this event is that we spotlight upcoming releases of books that we are excited for!  This will also tie into Wishful Ending's Can't Wait Wednesday post!







This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:






Title:  Serpent & Dove
Author:  Shelby Mahurin
Expected Publication Date:  September 3rd, 2019


Bound as one to love, honor, or burn.

Two years ago, Louise le Blanc fled her coven and took shelter in the city of Cesarine, forsaking all magic and living off whatever she could steal. There, witches like Lou are hunted. They are feared. And they are burned.

Sworn to the Church as a Chasseur, Reid Diggory has lived his life by one principle: thou shalt not suffer a witch to live. His path was never meant to cross with Lou's, but a wicked stunt forces them into an impossible union—holy matrimony.

The war between witches and Church is an ancient one, and Lou's most dangerous enemies bring a fate worse than fire. Unable to ignore her growing feelings, yet powerless to change what she is, a choice must be made.

And love makes fools of us all.


Cool! I hadn't read a book about witches for awhile now!  Definitely checking this book out!



So, what upcoming books are you looking forward to?  Please respond below!