Medieval-A-Thon Reading Challenge – Experience and thoughts

In the month of May I originally wanted to relax a little after the O.W.L.s Magical Readathon in April. That all changed when I spotted this challenge. You can see my first post where I choose the books and decided to participate a whole week later – HERE.

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My goal for this challenge was to become an Empress and in order to do that I had to read at least seven books in May. The story of a a great Empress started with an awesome outfit to fight dragons with so I can impress the people before I cant truly become their leader!

First book I’ve read for this challenge answered to the prompt –

Dragon on the cover!

The Dark Prophecy (The Trials of Apollo, #2) by Rick Riordan ★★★★

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This was a friendly dragon and while its role in this book was not so big I truly enjoyed reading about it! Festus, whose name translates to “Happy” is an automaton bronze dragon originally created by the children of Hephastus. I will not make spoilers about what happens to Festus in this book but I will just say that my journey to become an Empress has been more amazing since I read about him! I had some trouble in starting to read this book and this reading challenge helped me with it! With this positive energy my quest to become an Empress began!

Second book I’ve read for this challenge helped me not to act like a snob and be more humble – the prompt for this book was

to read a book under 300 pages!

Incubus Dreaming (The Incubus, #2) by A. H. Lee ★★★★★

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This was the best book I’ve read in May! It is the third book in a trilogy and the fact that I finished the book series was an added bonus of positive energy as well. While somebody else would probably use this prompt to take it easy I choose a book that just barely fits the requirement as it has 299 pages total by Kindle account! My goal in sight and my standards still set high I moved on to the next book.

The third book I read for this challenge allowed me to grab some weapon training

start or finish a duology

The Fates Divide (Carve the Mark, #2) by Veronica Roth ★★★

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The first time I saw this challenge I knew I wanted these weapons! Training to fight with two weapons at once is as hard as reading a book that is part some of your not favorite genre. This book has been on my TBR plan for a very long time and the first book I read years ago. Sci Fi nature of this book as well as some rich cultural and original details made it harder to read but the reward of finishing another book series I was logging around for a long time was as rewarding as getting those two daggers and learning how to use them properly!

Next book brought me some companionship in the form of my favorite animal and by the prompt

A book that begins with a “C”

Carry On (Simon Snow, #1) by Rainbow Rowell ★★★★

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I knew I was going to like this book and I wanted to like it! I was looking for an excuse to add this book to my reading and had several choices for it. Pairing it with a cat companion fit nicely. Cats are perfect companions for an Empress – they hint at luxury but are very resourceful and independent as well. Every household can find cat useful and these animals are fiercely loyal and territorial which are the atributes I hold very important.

Book I decided to read next added some royal wardrobe I could really shine in and the prompt was

A shiny book

The Testament of Loki (Loki #2) by Joanne M. Harris ★★

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This shiny book was another one from my bookshelf that was weighing on me to finish a book series. As it turned out I was more of a fighter than a parading ruler or a dancer at a ball. The book did not blew me away – it was just OK. A shiny book and a shiny outfit were just OK but did not speak to me the way some other books or outfits did.

An Empress in the making that did not enjoy her shiny dresses has turned again to more unladylike ventures by acquiring her own horse to travel her kingdom and the reading prompt for this one was

A tall hardcover

Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes by Rick Riordan, John Rocco ★★★★

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I was a bit miffed by the prompt so I decided to get the biggest hardcover book I had on my bookshelves other than an encyclopedia. At first I was very happy with my choice. But as it turns out with serious rulers and kingdoms some things are not as easy as they look! This book proved very hard to read since it was too heavy to hold for longer periods of time and its bulkiness proved a problem. Traveling a kingdom did not prove to be an easy picnic either.

This next book proves that friends can be found in the unlikliest of places as I befriended a goat! The prompt for this one was

A book high on my bookshelf

Death of a Darklord (Ravenloft #13) by Laurell K. Hamilton ★★★

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This prompt was a bit confusing for me at first. I reached out to the top of my bookshelf and found one book on it that I did not read while all the rest I have at least partially read! The prompt was perfect and I was actually wondering if this could be maybe a scary book prompt as well. Befriending a goat was as interesting experience as reading this book – not exactly good or bad, just a little different!

With all my seven books read I have reached a status of an Empress with three different outfits: one a plate of armor for battle, one casual suit for adventuring and mingling with normal people and one shiny severe dress for formal functions! I got a perfect cat companion that compliments my personality and learned to ride a horse while trained to fight with two weapons to a satisfactory degree. And last but not least I have befriended a goat on my travels through the kingdom. With the bonus of three more books I have read in May I managed to befriend a Knight to accompany me on my journey of being a good Empress! In the last five days of the challenge I read more than 700 pages which was enough to repel any outside forces that wanted to mess with my empire!

May your own stories be as interesting as was mine and I hope to participate in this challenge next year as well!

May Book Wrap Up 2020

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Monthly reading review – May 2020

This May I have read:

The Dark Prophecy (The Trials of Apollo #2) by Rick Riordan ★★★★

Incubus Dreaming (The Incubus, #2) by A. H. Lee ★★★★★

Indiscretions (Scandalous Seductions #2) by Madelynne Ellis ★★★★

The Testament of Loki (Loki #2) by Joanne M. Harris ★★

The Fates Divide (Carve the Mark, #2) by Veronica Roth ★★★

Death of a Darklord (Ravenloft #13) by Laurell K. Hamilton ★★★

A Most Unsuitable Earl (Marriage By Scandal #2) by Ruth Ann Nordin ★★★★

Carry On (Simon Snow, #1) by Rainbow Rowell ★★★★

Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes by Rick Riordan, John Rocco ★★★★

Cable Volume 1: Shining Path by David Tischman, Igor Kordej ★★

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

This month I have read ten books altogether. Three were in digital form and the other seven can be seen on the picture above. I am happy to keep my reading in double digits!

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

There were a lot of good books I read in May but the best for me was Incubus Dreaming (The Incubus, #2) by A. H. Lee. This kind of blend of traditional fantasy setting and some urban elements matched very well with erotica. I wish I could find more books like this one. Anything that is mainstream fantasy is mostly PG13 and most of all who have erotic elements turn out to be nothing but smut written by fanfiction type writers who are annoyed by the lack of sex in the fantasy books in general. This book has it all I and I loved that!

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

There were two books this May that kinda fell flat for me: The Testament of Loki (Loki #2) by Joanne M. Harris and Cable Volume 1: Shining Path by David Tischman, Igor Kordej. For The Testament of Loki I just could not seem to find a character that I could connect with. Loki seemed a bit watered down to me and the rest of the characters could have used a bit more backstory and depth for me to start caring and get myself more immersed into the story. The ending of the book seemed a bit psychedelic and kinda bland at the same time. The whole book in general seemed like an interlude to something else and not very good on it’s own. And in case of Cable Volume 1: Shining Path the story was good. I had some problems with following all the action. I kept feeling like I was missing something and had to catch up. I have some issues the artwork. Kordej’s works are very recognizable with chunky characters and muscles. What bugged me the most was actually the coloring and I really did not like how it looked with illustrators firm and dark lines.

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

For the month of May I decided to try out the Medieval-A-Thon reading challenge for the first time – you can check out my original post for it HERE. I will write a more detailed post about my experience with it soon but it is safe to say I am happy with how it all went.

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

I am actually very pleased with the reading I have done in finishing and continuing some book series in May! I finished two book series and one of those was a long time coming. I finally made some progress with The Trials of Apollo book series and I can hope to get to the next book soonish as well. I started out one new book series I plan to continue and that would be Simon Snow by Rainbow Rowell.

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

Instead of the books I would recommend the author Rainbow Rowell for her quirky yet relatable writing style and a reading challenge as creative as Medieval-A-Thon. I loved little updates on Instagram and opportunities for some extra rewards and story plots to further my reading!

Final thoughts on May 2020 reading

At first I thought May was going to be a slow reading month after doing the O.W.L.s Magical Readathon in April but after finding Medieval-A-Thon reading challenge I was hooked and a bit scared how will I manage it since I started a week later. I managed to exceed all my expectation and have fun reading some books that were on my TBR for a very long time. I’m glad for challenging myself this way. Only thing that is curbing my enthusiasm right now is that I made zero progress with my book club assignment which is due next week.

Looking forward to a fun a and more relaxed reading in June 🙂

Reading Challenges update May

Lately I’m keeping myself busy by trying out some booktube inspired challenges. In April I tried O.W.L.s Magical Readathon for the first time and this month I am trying Medieval-A-Thon. I kinda like the prompts that inspire me to search trough my own bookshelves to find the books that fit these challenges. I have several reading challenges of my own that serve a purpose of making me read the books I already own. I’m making an effort to fit books across several challenges at once.

Here are the reading challenges I am trying out at the moment:

TBR Jar Draw

This is my personal reading challenge I started out years ago. In the beginning the goal was to try and read one book I own a month. There were some bumps on the way and sometimes I stretched it longer than one month.The idea was to give myself some options because I am very bad at reading something because it is mandatory. I got a decorative jar and wrote down the titles of books I own and and are on my To-Be-Read pile on little pieces of paper which I then folded and put into the jar. I pull out three titles and chose one to read as a next book. In March I choose to read Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (Harry Potter #1) by J. K. Rowling and two other titles went back in the Jar ( see HERE for more info). After that I pulled the next three titles in April and this made my last three titles from the Jar:

1 # The Dark Prophecy (The Trials of Apollo, #2) by Rick Riordan

This book was already on my O.W.L.s Magical Readathon and did not get read for it. I managed to include it into the Medieval-A-Thon in May and already finished it!

2 # The Wolf Gift (The Wolf Gift Chronicles #1) by Anne Rice

When I was younger I had the idea I wanted to read more books by Anne Rice so I started collecting them. Now I have full shelf of them even though I still miss some of her works and have read only a few. I like the idea still but making it reality is something different still.

3 # Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe

This was one of the books I got on bargain sale while I was harbouring big dreams of reading more classics and all the books I managed to avoid reading during school. I have a whole shelf of those books as well!

Since the The Dark Prophecy (The Trials of Apollo, #2) by Rick Riordan was already on some other reading lists anyway I read it and pulled three new titles from the Jar for May.

My three new TBR Jar draw are:

1 # Into the Woods: Tales from the Hollows and Beyond (The Hollows Short stories) by Kim Harrison

I used to love The Hollows series. Until I read the last book and got real frustrated by it. I got this book just before all that and was happy to have found it. It is the last book related to The Hollows book series I own and have not read. I’m not particulary motivated to grab it and start reading since I’m still feeling bad for not enjoying the last book of the series – you can check out my review for it HERE.

2 # The Warden (Chronicles of Barsetshire #1) by Anthony Trollope

Another of the books I got really cheap and liked it since it was a classic. I keep mistaking this book with some others and I’m still liking the idea of reading it.

3 #  Shining Path: Cable Volume 1 by David Tischman, Igor Kordej

I got this graphic novel as a present for my boyfriend. It was just before the second Deadpool movie was about to come out and the character of Cable was about to be introduced to the big screen. I’m still curious about the character enough to read it.

Medieval-A-Thon reading challenge

I did not plan on doing another intensive reading challenge right after O.W.L.s Magical Readathon last month. But this reading challenge got me really excited. I started it about a week later and I’m kinda slow going trough it right now.

Here is a list of the books I’ve chosen for this reading challenge:

✔  Dragon on the cover

The Dark Prophecy (The Trials of Apollo, #2) by Rick Riordan

✔  A book under 300 pages

Incubus Dreaming (The Incubus, #2) by A. H. Lee

A shiny book

The Testament of Loki (Loki #2) by Joanne M. Harris

Reading now – Start or finish a duology

The Fates Divide (Carve the Mark, #2) by Veronica Roth

A book high on my bookshelf

Death of a Darklord (Ravenloft #13) by Laurell K. Hamilton

A book that begins with a “C”

Carry On (Simon Snow, #1) by Rainbow Rowell

Reading now – A tall hardcover

Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes by Rick Riordan, John Rocco

You can check out my original post on this challenge HERE.

My reading list for 2020

Last but not least is my ongoing TBR for 2020. These are all books from my shelves and these are all books I expect to enjoy one way or another. I’m not reading them in any particular order but letting myself enjoy them as the mood strikes me or as the case may be – as they fit into some other more immediate book challenge! For now I have read 12/30 books from this challenge and have another three planned for this month! You can check out the original post for this challenge HERE.

✔ Six of Crows (Six of Crows, #1) by Leigh Bardugo
✔ Crooked Kingdom (Six of Crows, #2) by Leigh Bardugo
The Fates Divide (Carve the Mark, #2) by Veronica Roth
Prey (Shifters, #4) by Rachel Vincent
Carniepunk by Rachel Caine (editor)
✔ The Witch With No Name (The Hollows, #13) by Kim Harrison
Naked City: Tales of Urban Fantasy by Ellen Datlow (editor)
✔ The Cruel Prince (The Folk of the Air, #1) by Holly Black
✔ The Wicked King (The Folk of the Air, #2) by Holly Black
Death of a Darklord (Ravenloft #13) by Laurell K. Hamilton
Carry On (Simon Snow, #1) by Rainbow Rowell
Wayward Son (Simon Snow, #2) by Rainbow Rowell
✔ The Battle of the Labyrinth: The Graphic Novel (Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Graphic Novels, #4) by by Robert Venditti, Rick Riordan
✔ Black Butler, Vol. 3 by Yana Toboso
✔ Kitchen Princess Omnibus, Vol. 3 (Kitchen Princess, #5-7) by Natsumi Ando
Saga: Book Three by Brian K. Vaughan
Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West (The Wicked Years #1) by Gregory Maguire
✔ Serpent’s Kiss (Elder Races, #3) by Thea Harrison
✔ Djevojka iz noćnih mora (Anna #2) by Kendare Blake ( Girl of Nightmares )
MOR – Plodovi osvete by Josip Kralik
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
Balzac i kineska mala krojačica by Dai Sijie ( Balzac et la Petite Tailleuse chinoise)
Neobičan događaj sa psom u noći by Mark Haddon ( The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time)
The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux
The Borders of Infinity (Vorkosigan Saga #5.3) by Lois McMaster Bujold
✔ The Dark Prophecy (The Trials of Apollo, #2) by Rick Riordan
The Burning Maze (The Trials of Apollo #3) by Rick Riordan
The Tyrant’s Tomb (The Trials of Apollo #4) by Rick Riordan
Hellboy, Volume 1: Seed of Destruction and Wake the Devil by Mike Mignola
✔ The Darkness: Darkness/ Batman & Darkness/ Superman 20th Anniversary Collection by Garth Ennis, Jeph Loeb, Ron Marz, Scott Lobdell, Marc Silvestri

Some of these challenges inspired me to try them out next year as well and hopefully some friends might join me!

Medieval-A-Thon Reading Challenge in May

After I finished O.W.L.s Magical Readathon in April I thought I could use a break and some slower book reading time.

Aaaaand then I found THIS video!

The video was a nice surprise and it gave me a big shot of reading energy for May. I actually jumped about glancing at my bookshelves looking for books that fit this challenge. I love the visual format of the prompts! Here they are:

This first picture shows the amount of books you need to read to get the status you want. The highest number of seven books is motivating and doable for me.

Just like you would customize your character in a game you get to pick out your wardrobe by using the prompts for the books. The wardrobe choices are simple and fit the medieval theme nicely.  Seeing a prompt “A pristine book” made me intrigued. The approval of getting freaky when choosing the best looking copy of the book in a bookstore made me feel warm and fuzzy on the inside.

To keep with the times there is a selection of prompts that provide you with weapons. As soon as I saw them I knew which ones I wanted even though the completionist in me wanted them all! Again the prompts are motivating and interesting. I wanted some more clarification on the “A heavy book” prompt though and decided to settle on 500+ pages book for that one.

The part of choosing one’s companions was very interesting to me and the most problematic. I am glad I’m not a dog person since I don’t really have a buddy to read books with anyway. Some of the prompts I needed clarification for. “A book high on my bookshelf” refers to a book that is on top of the TBR list or is stored on the highest shelf you have at home or in the library. “A tall hardcover” is simply a big format book in hardcover binding.

At first glance these are the books and prompts I picked out right away. First three books are wardrobe related prompts. The fourth book is weapon related prompt. And last three books are companion related!

Dragon on the cover 

The Dark Prophecy (The Trials of Apollo, #2) by Rick Riordan

This book I just missed out on the April challenge and it is a great opportunity to get myself to read it! The dragon on the cover is mechanical but it is still a dragon! The outfit this prompt comes with is cool looking and I like it.

 

A book under 300 pages

Incubus Dreaming (The Incubus, #2) by A. H. Lee

This is the third and final book in the series and I was meaning to finish it soon anyway. I was looking for a prompt to pair it with and finding out it has 299 pages made it perfect for this prompt. The outfit for this prompt are okay for a working clothes when going undercover or something.

 

A shiny book

The Testament of Loki (Loki #2) by Joanne M. Harris

For this prompt I had a few options and then I decided to go with this one. The cover has some nice shiny decorations and I really like the design. I read the first book not that long ago and I liked it enough to push this book higher on my TBR list. I really love the outfit for this prompt it looks severe and cool and I kinda like that right now.

 

Start or finish a duology

The Fates Divide (Carve the Mark, #2) by Veronica Roth

It has been a really long time since I’ve read the first book of this duology! When I got the perfect prompt to include this book I could not stop grinning! I was apprehensive about reading this book because I feel unsure if I will be able to get into it since too much time has passed between now and the first book. This is my only weapon prompt and it is for the dual wielding swords! I knew I wanted them right away.

 

A book high on my bookshelf

Death of a Darklord (Ravenloft #13) by Laurell K. Hamilton

This book sits atop of my bookshelf and it is one of the rare unread books there. I am fascinated by Ravenloft setting and I love other book series by this author. I’m kinda scared what this book will be like. As a prompt for the companion a goat was not my first choice but I know how fierce those animals are!

 

A book that begins with a “C”

Carry On (Simon Snow, #1) by Rainbow Rowell

I had few options for this prompt and was pleasantly surprised when I realized just how many options I did have. I could use this book for other prompts as well – I have kinda high expectations from this book and there is a dragon on the cover, also the color on the cover is one of my favorites. I am a cat person so a cat companion prompt was a must!

 

A tall hardcover

Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes by Rick Riordan, John Rocco

“A tall hardcover” got me a bit confused. I had to look it up just to be sure but right away I choose one of the biggest hardcover books I had that were not encyclopedia type of a book. My boyfriend got this book for me on one of hist travels and I was super happy about it. The horse companion was a must so I was glad I could cover this one!

I loved the prompts and how easy it is to pick a doable number of books and prompts to achieve a result. After the books I read in April this challenge looks like a great way to keep my reading numbers up. I had to stop myself at picking only seven books for the title of Empress even though I wanted to add some more books that I could connect to the prompts. This speaks just how delighted with this reading challenge I really am! I am so thankful and happy to the Medieval-A-Thon creator Holly Hearts Books for making such a wonderful reading challenge! Give her YouTube channel some love HERE.

I’m going into this challenge almost a whole week late so wish me luck!

 

O.W.L.s Magical Readathon – Experience and thoughts

This year I decided to try the O.W.L.s Magical Readathon for the first time. I looked it up last year but it was a bit too confusing for me at the time. After going trough the announcement video ( you can check it out HERE ) I was still a bit lost and like a newbie that I am decided to go all in and see how I will manage. The twelve prompts for the book picking were these:

There are threads and helpful lists people contribute to and use as a help with picking out books for the prompts. There is also a counter where people can write down and contribute the books they read towards one general goal of the number of books read for the challenge.

I decided not to be a part of it. I was unsure about my picks being appropriate for most of the people that join the challenge since I read a lot of mature content and was planing to read some of it for the challenge as well.

Before I go over my picks let just clarify some things first. My main goal was to use the books I already own or have on the reading lists from other challenges as much as possible. For over a year now most of my reading challenges were focused on reading the books I already own. For this reason I did not use the helpful lists that people offered for the prompts as well. In some of my choices I was also guided by the availability of books on Kindle as freebies as much as possible. In some cases I got lucky and some were a complete dud. Here are the choices I ended up reading for the challenge:

 

Ancient Runes – heart on the cover/or in title

✔ Kitchen Princess Omnibus, Vol. 3 (Kitchen Princess, #5-7) by Natsumi Ando ★★★★

I was very eager to get this one into the challenge. I did not actually notice the heart on the cover right away. Hint: there are hearts on the cooking glove. I was happy when I managed to pair it with this prompt since this manga is on two of my other reading challenge lists. The manga is and omnibus edition that collects three volumes in one big book. I had to continue and try getting into the story after a few years pause since I rad the last volume. The experience of reading was much better than expected. The story and the characters are easy to understand and the food recipes that accompany every volume are something I still want to try out!

 

Arithmancy – something outside my favorite genres (not romance or fantasy)

✔ The Vegetarian: A Novel by Han Kang ★★★★

Choosing a book outside my comfort zone that I already own was a task I was not looking forward to. I got this book on my first visit to Bratislava few years ago. I found it interesting and was eager to read a book by a Korean author. When the book was translated into Croatian I got the idea to push it in for my book club reading some time. I still plan to do that after reading it. Some parts of this book were a bit traumatic for me to read since they dealt with animal abuse. Most of it was cultural and generational gaps that I was sensitive to. The book deals with some sensitive topics and provoking thoughts. It has given me a lot to think about and I can’t wait to get the discussion going for it.

 

Astronomy – read the majority of the book at night

✔ Bite Me (Bitten, #1) by C.C. Wood ★★★

Picking a book for this prompt for me was just about picking a book I can read on my Kindle before sleep. It was a random pick out of free urban fantasy for adults that were available at the time. It was okay book and I can’t pick out anything that was especially great or bad about it. Even now after reading I need some time to remember what it was really about since I read a lot of similar stories in this genre with vampires. I decided not to continue the series and later on I realized there were so many other books I could have picked for this prompt.

Care of Magical Creatures – creature with a beak on the cover

The Dark Prophecy (The Trials of Apollo, #2) by Rick Riordan

I had a lot of issues with finding a book that fits this prompt. What made me frustrated is that in March I was reading a book that would have been perfect for it! After much frustration I ended up picking the book above. I decided to count the Festus mechanical dragon as if he had a beak instead of a snout. In the end this decision did not sit well with me at all and I ended up pushing it to the end of the month and then not reading it at all.

 

Charms – white cover

✔ Ender’s Game (Ender’s Saga #1) by Orson Scott Card ★★★★

It was a surprise at just how many books with white cover I read this year so far. This book was an excellent choice and I was so proud of picking it out for this prompt. It was a book I wanted to read for a long time and it was also a book I had leftover from another challenge. There was some controversy about the author of this book and some of his opinions but I decided to try really hard not to let those affect me. The book was very good and even though I expected dark themes I think I was prepared for more graphic writing that it was for me. I loved reading the foreword and learning more about the impact of the book as well as reading it.

 

Defence Against the Dark Arts – book set at sea / coast

✔ Children of the Spider by Imam Baksh  ★★★

I am not a fan of challenge prompts that make me do much research for the book. I like going into the book without knowing too much. At first the prompt for sea setting was daunting. I was relived when I browsed my shelves and found this book. It is a YA book my boyfriend got for me on his trip to Jamaica. The book won a Burt Award for Caribbean Literature. I check just to make sure the setting fits the prompt and added it. Ir would have been a usual YA adventure book if not for the huge cultural chasm that stood before me. I had no issues with reading about poverty and fantastical elements but some real life issues made it hard for me to connect with the book.

 

Divination – random TBR pick

Balzac i kineska mala krojačica by Dai Sijie ( Balzac et la Petite Tailleuse chinoise)

I never used any apps that generate random numbers. Instead I want over my TBR for this year and made my boyfriend pick a number. Under the number he picked was this book. After reading the Vegetarian I was less motivated to read this book since I have a feeling that it will be one of those hard to process books. I generally love book drama but this book might be too serious for me right now. I ended up not reading it in April but it is still a part of my reading list for this year.

 

Herbology – title starts with the letter M

✔ Maneuver (Men of Inked: Southside Book 1) by Chelle Bliss ★★★

For this prompt I was searching the Kindle freebie section for any book that starts with letter M. This is the first one that popped out! I don’t find the beefy cover that appealing and it made some of my friends snicker at it. After reading this I was a bit surprised. Even the short description of it hinted at some bad boy main character. The main male character is tattooed and muscled and that’s about all of the “bad boy” it gets. Targeted audience seemed to be single moms, otherwise not a bad read for a Kindle freebie.

 

History of Magic – book featuring witches / wizards

✔ Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (Harry Potter, #1) by J.K. Rowling ★★★★★

I had a few choices for this prompt but since I wanted to start reading my very own Hufflepuff editions I picked up a Harry Potter book for the Harry Potter themed reading challenge. It was only much later that one of my friends informed me that everyone was picking a Harry Potter book for this prompt. There are some great books about witches on my shelves and if I had known I would have made an effort to include one of them instead. Reading this book was a dream. Even little stars around every chapter title gave me butterflies and lots of Hufflepuff details and the very design of the book made me very happy and more intent on collecting the whole series in this edition!

 

Muggle Studies – contemporary

✔ Fork In The Road by J. Coyne ★★

This is one of the prompts I had most problems with picking out a book for. As it turns out I don’t read or buy many contemporary books. I excluded urban fantasy from contemporary and it left me empty handed mostly. Again this is one of the prompts I turned to Kindle freebies for help. It took me a while to find something that interested me and in the end I settled on this one. Reading this book was like reading someones idea or romanticized memoires. It felt mostly rough around the edges and not really good.

 

Potions – book under 150 pages

✔ Le Petit Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry ★★★★

For this prompt I decided to use a very old edition I had since I was little. It also coincides that this book was a reading assignment for my book club in April. I was actually surprised to fit it with this prompt and as shocked to find it was under 150 pages. In the book I found my elementary school notes. Reading them made me feel a bit embarrassed about how naive I was back then. We had an online book discussion and I loved it.

 

Transfiguration – book with shapeshifters

✔ Storm Cursed (Mercy Thompson, #11) by Patricia Briggs ★★★★★

I read a lot of books with shapeshifters in general. This is one of my favorite book series and authors. In the sea of urban fantasy books there are a few who can keep my interest and have adult characters with adult issues and lives. It was one of the books I enjoyed the most in April. The main character shifts into a coyote and is married to a werewolf. The series includes lots of supernatural creatures of all kinds and it keeps surprising me in a good way.

My thoughts on my O.W.L.s Magical Readathon experience

First of all I’m glad I did this. Some questions could be asked did I really participate or just used the prompt to get myself another reading challenge to try out. I’m kinda divided and still feel that some of my choices would have been inappropriate for most of the readers who participate in this challenge. I felt weird and at first I wanted to put down some of my books toward the general Readathon book count but in the end I did not do it. I guess I’m not much of a group person even when I want to try to be one.

I will take a month off and then latter in June will try to come up with some books to fit the next part of the challenge for August. I still have to go trough a rather big PDF file that explains how to try out for a profession out of the reading prompts I managed to pass – you can check them out yourself HERE.

I’m pleased with the pile of books I’ve read for this challenge and consider the experience a good one. The fact that I did not manage to read all twelve prompts does not bother me as much as I thought it would. Ten out of twelve is a good score considering I had no direction what so ever.

 

O.W.L.s Magical Readathon – April 2020

This April I have decided to join YouTube Book Roast’s O.W.L.s Magical Readathon for the first time You can check this year’s announcement for more information HERE.

It is a reading challenge she is organizing a third year in a row. I’ve been looking at it before but for someone who is not that much into Harry Potter YouTube fandom I had some trouble understanding how it works. In order to get a better understanding of how it all works and how I’m going to participate I will try to explain how I decided to choose books for the challenge.

First a little bit on this reading challenge as I understand it. There are two Harry Potter thematic reading challenges that are put up a year. First is the O.W.L.s Magical Readathon based on the Ordinary Wizarding Level Examinations from the Harry Potter books. They represent a sort of an entry challenge. There are twelve reading prompts based on the subjects at the Hogwarts school. These prompts are different each year and this year they are loosely based on the third book of the Harry Potter series.

The reader chooses the prompts from the list and finds a book that fits the the challenge prompt. Later on in August the subjects that were chosen for the O.W.L.s Magical Readathon will be eligible for the N.E.W.T.s Magical Readathon and the choosing of a magical career accordingly.

The O.W.L.s Magical Readathon lasts trough whole month of April. As I am new to this and since I am kinda drifting in my reading endeavors AND life in general – I decided to go with all the available prompts in a rather optimistic and arrogant push to read twelve books in April.

I’ve chosen my books and picked some of them from the from the already existing reading lists I made as much as I could since the twelve books is a lot for me now and I want to keep up with my other reading challenges as much as possible.

Here are my choices:

Ancient Runes – heart on the cover/or in title

Kitchen Princess Omnibus, Vol. 3 (Kitchen Princess, #5-7) by Natsumi Ando

Arithmancy – something outside my favorite genres (not romance or fantasy)

The Vegetarian: A Novel by Han Kang

Astronomy – read the majority of the book at night

Bite Me (Bitten, #1) by C.C. Wood

Care of Magical Creatures – creature with a beak on the cover

The Dark Prophecy (The Trials of Apollo, #2) by Rick Riordan

Charms – white cover

Ender’s Game (Ender’s Saga #1) by Orson Scott Card

Defence Against the Dark Arts – book  set at sea / coast

Children of the Spider by Imam Baksh

Divination – random TBR pick

Balzac i kineska mala krojačica by Dai Sijie ( Balzac et la Petite Tailleuse chinoise)

Herbology – title starts with the letter M

Maneuver (Men of Inked: Southside Book 1) by Chelle Bliss

History of Magic – book featuring witches / wizards

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (Harry Potter, #1) by J.K. Rowling

Muggle Studies – contemporary

Fork In The Road by J. Coyne

Potions – book under 150 pages

Le Petit Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Transfiguration – book with shapeshifters

Storm Cursed (Mercy Thompson, #11) by Patricia Briggs

Due to explicit nature of some of the books I will probably not enter my choices to the Hogwarts library form that readers use to count their books and participate in the community challenge. For now I’m opting to keep this challenge for myself alone in that regard. As for the N.E.W.T.s Magical Readathon I will have to see how I will do with this challenge.

Wish me luck?

Reading guide to worlds of Rick Riordan

I’m a big fan of Rick Riordan’s books. His heroes are lovable and inclusive and his books are filled with light intelligent humor. Before becoming a writer, Rick Riordan was a  English and history teacher in private schools in the United States. After successfully publishing some books for adults, he gained inspiration for his first book for young adults by making up a bedtime story for his son. He has written over twenty books for teenagers and young adults and filled them with stories inspired by world mythologies. To help you navigate this small sea of ​​books, I present to you a reading guide.

The books are arranged chronologically and even though they can be read out of the order given here since there are several interwoven literary series, you will surely achieve the greatest pleasure in reading if you know the correct order.

What is common to all the books in all the series I am about to talk about here are the main characters who learn that one of their parents is a deity from various mythologies of the world. The author skillfully approaches young audiences and uses teenage issues in a stimulating and imaginative way, presenting possible learning difficulties such as dyslexia or attention deficit disorder as symptoms of young demigods and their gifted abilities. Young readers will be able to find many opportunities to identify themselves through many of the characters who take turns as the action-bearers. In addition to the problems of young adults through the prism of fiction, the books deal with a multitude of topics covering various religious attitudes, racial issues, understanding of good and evil, and issues of sexuality. The author often uses intelligent humor to tell his stories. The age of the characters ranges from twelve in the first novels to eighteen and over in some cases.

As I’ve mentioned before, there are several book series, let’s start with the first one –

Percy Jackson and the Olympians

1. The Lightning Thief
2. The Sea of Monsters
3. The Titan’s Curse
4. The Battle of the Labyrinth
5. The Last Olympian

Named after the main character Percy Jackson, this book series has a total of five books. The theme of this series is based on Greek mythology. First book – The Lightning Thief first appeared on shelves in the spring of 2006. The movie version followed in 2010. The second book – Sea of ​​Monsters, came out just one month after the first book, while the movie version took a full three years after the first movie. The third book, and also the last translated into Croatian, is The Titan’s Curse. The other two books in this series are: The Battle of the Labyrinth and The Last Olympian. The main character at the beginning of the series is 12 years old.

A little guide came out for this book series in 2009 called The Demigod Files (Percy Jackson and the Olympians Companion). It holds an interview with the author and various interesting tidbits. There are also three short stories in this issue.

The Demigod Files (Percy Jackson and the Olympians Companion)

• Percy Jackson and the Stolen Chariot
• Percy Jackson and the Bronze Dragon
• Percy Jackson and the Sword of Hades

According to the release chronology, the second series is The Kane Chronicles trilogy.
The main characters in this trilogy are brother and sister: Carter and Sadie Kane. The first book of this series was released in May 2010, and by May 2012, all three books were published and available in complete sets. The Kane Chronicles is based on Egyptian mythology and can be read completely separately from the Percy Jackson series. Carter Kane is 15 at the beginning of the series, while his sister is 12.

The Kane Chronicles

1. The Red Pyramid
2. The Throne of Fire
3. The Serpent’s Shadow

Before the last installment of the trilogy – The Serpent’s Shadow, a little guide came out for this series with interesting facts and details from the world of Carter and Sadie Kane.

The Kane Chronicles Survival Guide

The author linked the two series by writing several short stories in which the characters meet, thereby letting the audience know that all the characters are in the same world and opened up opportunities for common adventures and encounters. Three stories where characters from the Percy Jackson series meet characters from the Kane Chronicles trilogy are published in

Demigods & Magicians: Percy and Annabeth Meet the Kanes

At the same time with the aforementioned Kane Chronicles trilogy, a new series of five books, The Heroes of Olympus, was also published. The first book was released in late 2010 and continues where the last book of Percy Jackson and Olympians series ended. The books slowly introduces the motifs of Roman mythology, and the number of leading characters doubles. In addition to the fantastic elements of the book, the books convey in an educational manner the assimilation of elements of Greek culture into Roman. The characters in this series are about 15 years old.

The Heroes of Olympus

1. The Lost Hero
2. The Son of Neptune
3. The Mark of Athena
4. The House of Hades
5. The Blood of Olympus

In 2012 for the series was published a small guide The Demigod Diaries (The Heroes of Olympus Companion) with four short stories and curiosities related to characters and mythology, as well as a cute informational book about heroes from Greek mythology told from Percy Jackson’s perspective – Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes

The Demigod Diaries (The Heroes of Olympus Companion)

• The Diary of Luke Castellan
• Percy Jackson and the Staff of Hermes
• Leo Valdez and the Quest for Buford
• Son of Magic

Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes

The next  book series is the Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard trilogy. The trilogy, which bears the name of Magnus Chase, started coming out from the end of 2015 to the end of 2017. This trilogy is based on elements from the Nordic mythology. The title character is related to the character Annabeth Chase, who is one of the main characters in the previous book series. Magnus Chase begins his story as a sixteen-year-old and the plot of this trilogy is a little darker and heavier than the previous book series.

Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard

1. The Sword of Summer
2. The Hammer of Thor
3. The Ship of the Dead

As with all other series in the world of Rick Riordan, a guide has been released for this trilogy, which brings some interesting facts from Nordic mythology and culture. After the trilogy, a short story collection called 9 From the Nine Worlds came out.

• For Magnus Chase: Hotel Valhalla, Guide to the Norse Worlds

• 9 From the Nine Worlds

Rick Riordan’s latest and still up-to-date series started coming out in 2016 alongside the Magnus Chase trilogy and is titled The Trials of Apollo. Various characters and heroes from all previous books appear in the series, and unlike all the previous ones, in this one, the god Apollo himself, who is imprisoned in the body of a teenager, is the main character. This series will have five books, and so far the first three are out while the fourth – The Tryants’ Tomb, is announced for Fall 2019.

The Trials of Apollo

1. The Hidden Oracle
2. The Dark Prophecy
3. The Burning Maze
4. The Tryants’ Tomb
5. ?

The guide to the Trials of Apollo series came out after the second book The Dark Prophecy in 2017 and is titled Camp Half-Blood Confidential. This is a guide to the camp for the demigods and continues with the interesting facts of Greek mythology from the perspective of Apollo trapped in the body of a mortal teenager.

Camp Half-Blood Confidential

In addition for film adaptations for the first two books, there were also graphic novellas for all five books in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. Graphic novellas were relatively well received, while for the movie versions the author himself said that it was best to skip them because they did not reflect all the educational elements with which he filled the books.

The themes of myths, legends and heroes is timeless and through popular culture it constantly experiences new versions and approaches in literature for children, young adults and adults. I warmly recommend this author and his fantastic world of extraordinary heroes.
Try it, you might also like it 😊

Reading in progress December 2017

This December I’m counting down how many books I’m behind on my reading goals for GR and how did I do for this year in general. I’m barely half trough my reading goal and I’ve made my peace with the fact that I will not complete my GR reading goal. This year was not a good reading year for me. Some big changes happened and I had trouble copping. Out of 100 book goal I read only 52 so far. For now I’m making myself busy with reading more books at the same time this December.

Here are the books I am reading at the moment:

Sweet Ruin (Immortals After Dark, #16) by Kresley Cole

This book is one of the more recent additions to my collection from this summer. I actually started reading it only because I am really looking forward to the book Shadow’s Seduction that is the next one in the Immortals After Dark book series. I’m halfway trough and I did not expect to enjoy it this much. There are some cringe worthy phrasing but I’m having fun reading this book and that is all that matters for me right now. Hopefully I will make a book review on this one soon.

Kings Rising (Captive Prince, #3) by C.S. Pacat

Not that long ago I’ve devoured the first two books of this trilogy. I had some problems getting the third book. I went trough first two books at a fast pace and now I had some trouble getting into the third book. I’m halfway trough and this is a very suspenseful book.

A Man for Himself: An Inquiry into the Psychology of Ethics by Erich Fromm

I’m taking my time with this book. It takes concentration and I’m trying to savor some thoughts while I evaluate the meaning they carry. So far most of this book can be used as motivational/demotivational quotes one can find across the Internet. Contempalting and meditating required.

The Golden Compass (His Dark Materials, #1) by Philip Pullman

This month’s TBR Draw has been on my reading list for a few years now. I put it on the pile with the other books I’m reading this month but have barely openned it so far. I’m kinda apprehensive about starting this book since I will probably want to finish off the whole trilogy right away.

Aside from the books above that I’ve already started here are some books I’m planning to squeeze in my reading this December as well:

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (The Chronicles of Narnia (Publication Order) #1) by C.S. Lewis

This is actually one of the books for my book club! I’m looking forward to it and at the same time I’m thinking about how could I add other books from the series to my TBR. I just hope mix the movies or the TV series with the books too much…

Shadow’s Seduction (Immortals After Dark, #17; The Dacians, #2) by Kresley Cole

While I did not expect to enjoy Sweet Ruin as much as I’m hoping to enjoy this one I really want to read Shadow’s Seduction by the end of the year! Immortals After Dark book series brings me joy and I love reading this series. The reason I’m soo looking forward to this books is  that one of my favorite characters of all time is in it!

Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman

This is the last book I’ve bought! I waited for the super fancy Croatian edition to come out. Croatian edition one the right in the picture glows in the dark and has a custom box. This edition is the first book from a new publisher and they are trying to set some new standards in the publishing industry by creating a really beautiful book editions. Every book is numbered and they are published in a limited quantity. This book is like a delicate piece of art to be enjoyed on more than one level!

The Ship of the Dead (Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard #3) by Rick Riordan

This book goes in hand with Norse Mythology. I’m not sure if this series is meant to be just a trilogy and if that is so this could be the last book! I’ve loved Magnus since his first book and hope to read more books about him.

The Dark Prophecy (The Trials of Apollo #2) by Rick Riordan

Thematicaly I wish to finish this years reading in fun and adventure. While not so high on my reading list by the end of the year; this book will be a perfect fit for my reading repertoire. Festus and Leo making an appearance is an added bonus!

New Books November

Only three weeks after my trip to Essen Spiel I visited a book fair Interliber in Zagreb. At Essen Spiel I bought many games and one graphic novel String Theory (Wayward volume 1) by Jim Zub and Steve Cummings. This time since it was a BOOK FAIR after all I went and bought some books I planned, some I did not plan and some I just had to have. On the picture above is my Interliber loot! I am sorry for the bad quality of the photo. This year I was a bit more controled by my budget and have bought eight books in total. I managed to snag a nice amount of bookmarkers 🙂

Here are the books I got:

Cable, Vol. 1: Put Svjetlosti

(Cable, Volume I #97-100)

by David Tischman

This was bought as a gift for my boyfriend. It is a Croatian translation. Cable from the Marvel Universe is a villain  from the Deadpool storyline. The English title is Cable, Vol. 1: The Shining Path (Cable Volume I #97-100).

Saga, #2

(Saga, #4, #5 and #6)

by Brian K. Vaughan (Writer), Fiona Staples (Artist)

I had waited a whole year for this one. I’ve decided to own Saga in Croatian edition by the publisher Fibra. It has been a few years since I’ve read the first three in English. conveniently Croatian edition is a really chubby compilation that collects three volumes by six chapters each in one big hardcover package. I’ve bought the first compilation earlier this year and now I’ve finally gotten the new one at Interliber. The publisher decided to release them once a year at Interliber in these chubby hardcover editions. They are quite heavy!

Leviathan Wakes  (The Expanse #1)

AND

Caliban’s War (The Expanse #2)

by James S.A. Corey

I have been trying to decide on this series for over a year now. Usually I don’t buy Croatian translations since there is a problem with publisher not finishing translating the series. I decided to trust this small Croatian publisher Hangar 7 to keep translating the rest of the series. They decided to keep the original English edition cover and I like that. It was a big step for me.

The Hundred Secret Senses

AND

Saving Fish from Drowning

by Amy Tan

These two books were bought as a gift for the mother of my boyfriend. I was looking for a something for her and these had the melancholy historical vibe that the woman likes. I got them on sale for an excellent bargain price I hope she likes them.

The Ship of the Dead

(Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard #3)

AND

The Dark Prophecy

(The Trials of Apollo #2)

by Rick Riordan

I actually agreed to order these after Christmas. I asked around with the sellers that sold books in English and none of them had it. Until I came across one of the seller booth that were just making room for the books that just arrived…As soon as I saw them I had to have them. What I loved about them is that they were exact same hardcover edition as the others I already have. I binged! I’m already halfway trough Apollo Trials first book so I can continue with these two! It’s very motivating!