The Olympic Games Reading Challenge – Experience and thoughts

For June I picked out two reading challenges simply because I was very interested in both and could not pick just one! Second reading challenge I really wanted to do was called The Olympic Games and it is thematically tied with the wonderful world of demigods created by the author Rick Riordan. The main host of this reading challenge is Ishi Time. You can check out her channel and the challenge announcement HERE

Even though these books cater to younger audiences these books are one of my favorites and I enjoy them quite a bit! So when I found the reading challenge that pays tribute to these amazing books I just had to participate. Thematically I was a lot more interested in this reading challenge than in the Make Your Myth-Taker Reading Challenge which I also picked out for June.

First part of the challenge was choosing one of the available Gods as a patron. After a long consideration I choose Hades as my patron. I like my books a bit on the darker side and Hades fits nicely with the books I can choose from my bookshelves. To honor my patron deity I have a list of five prompts I need to read books for. What I loved about this reading challenge was the freedom to pick the order of reading any way I please. I do believe this was what made me believe I can do both challenges. Since I was aware that I am doing two reading challenges I made my goal to use as many books I can for both challenges. In this regard I did pretty well I believe. Here are the books I choose for the prompts:

Hades prompt 1. – book featuring the undead

The Laughing Corpse (Anita Blake Vampire Hunter, #2) by Laurell K. Hamilton ★★★★★

I had a lot of books to choose from for this prompt since I love urban fantasy genre and one of the most often used motives in the genre is some kind of the undead as a main character, love interest, villain of just a side character. Basically my favorite book series that features variety of different types of undead is Anita Blake Vampire Hunter by Laurell K. Hamilton. I have been reading these books for almost a third of my life now and I am still looking forward to each new book and story. I loved going back to the second book of the series which I have rad only once before this.

Hades prompt 2. – reread a book

Circus of the Damned (Anita Blake Vampire Hunter, #3) by Laurell K. Hamilton ★★★★★

Having a reason to read these books again was a welcome bonus for my reading in June. Rereading the third book after so many years have passed has been an interesting experience. I was annoyed to realize some small inconsistencies in the book and it has dimmed my elation for reading these books. In spite of that small annoyance I enjoyed reading the book a lot. I realized some differences that some characters moved on in the series and it was definitely good to get that perspective on growth and progress on some of the characters. This was one of the most interesting books for me before I read it the second time and it still is very interesting in showcasing the world that the author has build for her characters.

Hades prompt 3. – book with a dark cover

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Harry Potter, #3) by J.K. Rowling ★★★★★

Even though I have never before actually read this book I was heavily influenced by how dark the movie version seemed in comparison to the first two. So when I picked out this book for the dark cover prompt it seemed a perfect fit for me. I might even say that the cover illustration looks a little creepy. Some of the major differences came out between the book and the movie while reading this book. The story was generally known to me since I’ve seen the movie so many times but I had no issues with following the story as much I used to have in similar situations before. Reading the book made me want to watch the movie again as well and made my June just a bit more magical for the Hufflepuff edition which I am proud to own.

Hades prompt 4. – random TBR book

Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Vol. 1 by John Vornholt, Arthur Byron Cover, Alice Henderson ★★★

In continuation with fantastical and undead related themes for this prompt I used my pick for TBR Jar Draw in June. You can check out more about it HERE. Buffy is one of my favorite TV shows for its humorous and witty dialogues and fantastical content. Reading the novelizations that were set somewhere in the first two seasons of the show was not the best experience and I was worried about ruining what good memories I have of it. There were three different stories that could be found as a standalone books: Coyote Moon by John Vornholt; Night of the Living Rerun by Arthur Byron Cover and Portal Trough Time by Alice Henderson. The reading experience totaled as average with one story being not so good, one just OK and the third very good for me. I am sad to say that these stories did not age well for me.

Hades prompt 5. – Any Hermes prompt – snake on the cover

For this prompt I had a lot more choices than I anticipated. In fact I ended up reading three different books in June that fit this prompt! In the end I choose:

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Harry Potter, #2) by J.K. Rowling ★★★★★

Reading the Harry Potter books in my own Hufflepuff editions is a magical experience on its own. I loved reading articles before and after the story relating to Hufflepuffs! It was very satisfying to have it available in Hogwarts house edition of my choice. I will continue reading and collecting the whole set. It already has a special place on my bookshelf!

Hades had two Advanced challenges prompts for me to fit books for. I managed to find two books that fit the prompts but I missed out on the reading rule of the challenge to read these only after I have read all five for the main challenge. Out of these two I managed to read only one of the books I chose.

Advanced Challenge 1. – Sword and Shield

✔   The Queen of Nothing (The Folk of the Air, #3) by Holly Black

Advanced Challenge 2. – Monster fighting

  • Wayward Son (Simon Snow, #2) by Rainbow Rowell

My score on Olympic Games reading challenge:

I have read 5 books for The Olympic Games challenge

I read one additional book for the advanced challenge BUT I did not follow the rule of reading it after the first five prompts of the main challenge were done.

The second advanced challenge I did not get to read at all.

I would have loved to have chosen only one reading challenge for June in order to enjoy the experience more. I am glad I tried my own limits by reading two challenges and I hope to do better on the Olympic Games next year. In all the reading I did in June I forgot to follow and engage in some other social media platforms with other readers who were participating. Now that I got the hang of the few reading challenges I think I might be ready for that step as well. I’m kinda sorry for not putting in my books for the competition on which patron deity would inspire most readers and get most book read. I am glad for this experience though and hope to do better next time!

The figurine and the Hades visual are from the Disney Villainous: Wicked to the Core board game. You can check out more information on it HERE.

June Book Wrap Up 2020

Monthly reading review – June 2020

This June I have read:

Elves Vol. 1: The Crystal of the Blue Elves by Jean-Luc Istin, DUARTE (Illustrator), Saito (Illustrator) ★★★★★

The Gospel According to Jesus Christ by Jose Saramago ★★

Aries (The Zodiac Queen, #1) by Gemma James ★★★

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Harry Potter, #2) by J.K. Rowling ★★★★★

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Harry Potter, #3) by J.K. Rowling ★★★★★

Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Vol. 1 by John Vornholt, Arthur Byron Cover, Alice Henderson ★★★

The Queen of Nothing (The Folk of the Air, #3) by Holly Black ★★★★★

Elves Vol. 2: The Honor of the Sylvan Elves by by Nicolas Jarry, Gianluca Maconi, Diogo Saito ★★★★★

The Laughing Corpse (Anita Blake Vampire Hunter, #2) by Laurell K. Hamilton ★★★★★

Circus of the Damned (Anita Blake Vampire Hunter, #3) by Laurell K. Hamilton ★★★★

1. How many books have you read last month? Are you happy with the amount you read?

This June I have read ten books. One of them was a omnibus edition that contain three separate books so if I wanted to I could have pumped up the numbers up to twelve! I am okay with the number as it is.

2. What was the best of all the books you’ve read in June? Any scenes or characters that made a lasting impression?

More than half the books I read in June I rated with five stars. This June was a month of favorites and plenty of rereading. I loved reading the Harry Potter books. The Hufflepuff editions were extra magic for reading and enjoying. The Elves graphic novel was a pleasant surprise and I loved it. Fantastical background of the graphic novel reminds me a lot to some good and immersive RPG setting I would enjoy playing in!

3. Were there any not so good books for you last month? What made it hard or not enjoyable to read?

The least favorite book this June was The Gospel According to Jesus Christ by Jose Saramago. I really liked his Blindness. It is a book I often think about and it has left a lasting impression on me. This book I had issues with. I did not enjoy the motives the author selected for his work. This was another book club selection and the discussion was at times heated. I expected more sense from the book and was let down I guess. Second least favorite book was Aries (The Zodiac Queen, #1) by Gemma James. This was a Kindle freebie first of the series. It had an interesting intro but I was not really hooked in by the astrology references.

4. How did the books you were reading last month fit in your reading plans if you had any?

This June I overextended myself by trying out two reading challenges. Most of the books I’ve read were part of the reading challenge. I managed to set up an impressive number of books to fir both of the reading challenges. Instead of being happy and pleased by my reading for the challenge I was a bit under pressure. I ended not feeling as accomplished as I wanted to because I just barely made the challenge and did not read the additional books I wanted to. It was a learning experience and I will write a bit more about it in my reading challenge review next week.

5. Any updates on the series you are reading or are you starting any new series?

I started a new graphic novel series I am very happy about and will continue it into next month. I did a lot of rereading of favorite book series. I read two books in Anita Blake Vampire Hunter book series I have been planing rereading for years now. I’ve finished book 3 in the series and hope to continue with rereading the whole series since it has been a really long time since I’ve read these book the first time. It was amazing reading the Harry Potter book series and as soon as I get the next book I will continue that as well!

6. Would you like to recommend any books or authors you’ve been reading this last month?

This has been a month of rereading and favorites for me. I guess my recommendation is to go back to your own favorites: enjoy them all over again and question why you enjoyed them in the first place. It provides a perfect opportunity for reflection. With that being said The Elves graphic novel series by Jean-Luc Istin, DUARTE (Illustrator), Saito (Illustrator) is an amazing piece of work you should definitely check out if you get the chance!

Final thoughts on June 2020 reading

My decision to try out two reading challenges in June was very optimistic. The feeling of accomplishment was not as rewarding as I expected. I was under pressure to follow the reading order of the challenge and that made a huge difference for my reading enjoyment. This June I was reading more books I already read than ever before. Three books were actual rereadings and one of them was a second time read this year alone. Harry Potter books seemed so familiar that those felt a bit like rereading too. Reading 3in1 book with Buffy theme was another thing that made this June kinda nostalgic for me as well. Only new reading I did was in the e-book form and that felt a bit weird as well. It was a different reading month for sure. I did not make any book reviews this month since I was trying to get trough the reading challenge books. I would have probably enjoyed both reading challenges more if I tried them one by one!

June reading challenge 2 – Olympic Games

Second reading challenge I decided to participate in this June is The Olympic Games hosted by Ishi Time. You can check out her channel and the challenge announcement HERE. This reading challenge lasts for the whole month of June. What pulled me in to add this challenge as soon as I discovered it was that it is thematically tied to the world of Percy Jackson and I looove those books!

Here is the Camp Half Blood Letter for more details!

For my patron God I picked out Hades. I like my books a bit on the darker side and Hades fits nicely with the books I can choose from my bookshelves. To honor my patron deity I have a list of five prompts I need to read books for. Again I will concentrate only on my own reading journey and not explain other prompts and deities prompts. I love that the order I complete the books is up to me and that there are some advanced challenges after I finish the five mandatory ones! Here is what my patron Hades is all about!

Hades prompt 1. – book featuring the undead

The Laughing Corpse (Anita Blake Vampire Hunter, #2) by Laurell K. Hamilton

I’m stealing this book from the Make Your Myth-Taker challenge and it fits perfectly here as well!

Hades prompt 2. – reread a book

Circus of the Damned (Anita Blake Vampire Hunter, #3) by Laurell K. Hamilton

I decided to reread this series long ago and this might be a good time to add another book of the series. also I kinda like how the theme fits to Hades a s well.

Hades prompt 3. – book with a dark cover

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Harry Potter, #3) by J.K. Rowling

I made a plan to make as many crossovers with the Make Your Myth-Taker reading challenge that I’m not even ashamed how well I am pulling it all off! I plan on fitting the other Harry Potter book with another prompt as well!

Hades prompt 4. – random TBR book

Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Vol. 1 by John Vornholt, Arthur Byron Cover, Alice Henderson

My random book of the month just happened to be a part of three different challenges this month! Since this book is actually collection of three different books by three different authors and also almost 700 pages long I will not even try to hide how well I am pairing these books to my reading challenges in June!

Hades prompt 5. – Any Hermes prompt – snake on the cover

I choose snake on the cover prompt since it gave me the most room to plan my reading this month – I was surprised when I realized this as well! There were three books I will be reading this month that have snakes on the cover! I choose this snake:

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Harry Potter, #2) by J.K. Rowling

My patron Hades has two available challenges: Sword and Shield and Monster Fighting. The rule of the challenge that these are not mandatory and can be only read after the five mandatory prompts have been done already. Here are all the prompts for the advanced challenges:

Advanced Challenge 1. – Sword and Shield

The Queen of Nothing (The Folk of the Air, #3) by Holly Black

The prompt is to read a book with characters whom I would not get along with. This prompt is a bit tricky unless you have already read the book in question so I picked out another reread. There are so many characters in this book I would not get along with. When I first read this book I was very invested in the story and on the edge constantly. There are so many conflicts between the characters and those provoked many contradictory emotions in me. It was an emotional roller coaster all the way and it did not help that it was the last book in the series I loved reading!

Advanced Challenge 2. – Monster fighting

Wayward Son (Simon Snow, #2) by Rainbow Rowell

This is a book I really wanted to include in this months reading so I picked it up for and advanced challenge here. I consider both Simon and Baz magical creatures for obvious reason – one has wings and a tail and the other is a vampire – also there is Penelope who is in a class of her own of how much magic she can wield.

My reading pile for June got a bit bigger now. But I am still looking forward to some great reading this month and hope to rise to the challenge! Both challenges actually!

Books that changed me – Circus of the Damned

A book that signaled a change in my life is Circus of the Damned. Third book in Anita Blake the Vampire Hunter series by Laurell K. Hamilton.

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I got it almost a decade ago in my early twenties. I read some other books by this author and decided to start with Anita Blake series. I’ve heard some really strange and different opinions on it that I just had to read it. This book came as a part of a box set.

box panorama

I shamelessly used these books to avoid preparing for exams. For four days I read a book each day. The reason I single out third book in the set – Circus of the Damned is because that’s the book that got me hooked on urban fantasy genre. Up until then I’ve spent countless hours reading fan fiction and any other morally ambiguous stories I managed to find online. I would read the night trough and watch the sunrise before actually going to sleep. sunrise-quotes-6

There are few reasons that make this book and the whole series in general special for me.

Firstly, I did not become a book lover until after my formal education. Back then I loved stories but not really appreciated books as a medium. I was never a fan of required reading and I never had the discipline to make myself do the things I needed to do. It was a strange and lost period for me while I was in my first years in college and did’n really know what to do with myself. Reading was an escape from things that bothered me in real life. It was somewhere in reading these books that I started using my own imagination and that gave me a deeper perspective and satisfaction for reading as well.

Secondly, this book made a turning point in my transformation to a book lover AND collector. Up until this book I did not buy books at all. This book signaled a plunge into living with my wallet empty most of the time. It kick started my inner collector into gear and now I patiently wait and buy each new book no matter what the reviews or critics say about it. May I remind you how long Anita Blake book series is? Let this picture speak for me.

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Ever since then I’ve been meaning to read trough the whole series again. It is the longest book series I own. So far I’ve managed to read first two again. I’m currently reading Dead Ice – last one in the series. After that I will be  reading Circus of the Damned again for the second time.

I will not bore you with it anymore since this is not the first time I’m writing about these books and probably not the last either. I’ve been looking at some older posts and decided that my pictures need a sprucing up. I’ve got a better camera for it now than I did when I first started posting my own pictures 🙂