Category: Readathon

Book Releases, Book Review, Books!, Manga, Readathon, Signal Boost

What I’m Reading (36)

daniellethamasa

Hey all, Dani here.

Welcome back to my weekly post where I talk about the books I’ve read in the past week, the books I am currently reading, and the books I am hoping to start reading soon. This week is a fun wrap up, because last weekend I participated in Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon, so I get to include my wrap up in this post.

36641078

But first, let’s talk about the book I read prior to Dewey’s Readathon. I managed to fly through Fairy Tail Zero by Hiro Mashima, and all I can say is that I want more story following Mavis and the early days of the Fairy Tail guild. I started another book but did not finish it before it was time to focus on the readathon–thankfully I did finish it after the readathon, so I’ll talk more about what that book was in a little bit.

Okay, now let’s talk about what I read during Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon. The readathon started at 8:00 am on Saturday, October 20th, for me, but due to making chili and needing a shower, I didn’t start until 8:30 am, and my first read was a graphic novel called The Girl from the Other Side. Immediately after that I picked up Black Clover, Vol 2. Of course I was distracted a little bit from reading by needing to call my local post office and try to figure out why I never received my Owlcrate that they said they delivered to my doorstep. At 10:30 am I started All the Feels by Danika Stone. Then came the other time suck of my day…my regularly scheduled Dungeons & Dragons session. I did manage to keep doing a little reading while playing though. But at 1:30 pm, I tried to start The Monster of Selkirk: Book I: The Duality of Nature by C.E. Clayton, and I quickly realized that it was a book I needed to focus my whole attention on so I set it down for after the session.

Unfortunately later in the session is when the post office informed me that the place where they had delivered my package had never seen a package on their doorstep, so it must have been stolen. I’ve never had books stolen from me in my life, and I was so very much looking forward to the October Owlcrate box. It completely ruined my mood and made me want to stop reading for the day. My fiance, the amazing man that he is, suggested that I needed a trip to my happy place, otherwise known as Barnes & Noble. So we went, and I bought a number of manga and graphic novels. Yes, I went and bought the rest of the series for The Girl from the Other Side because it was what I really wanted to read. Expect a series (so far) review coming pretty soon. I need to gush about this series.

This led to me being able to jump back into reading for Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon. At 11:20 pm, I started The Girl from the Other Side, Vol 2. At 11:37 pm, I started The Girl from the Other Side, Vol 3. At 11:52 am, I started The Girl from the Other Side, Vol 4, and at 12:06 am, I started The Girl from the Other Side, Vol 5. That is all of that series that is currently released, because Volume 5 just came out. Then, at 12:24 am, I started Black Clover, Vol 3. But all the emotional drain from the day left me tired, so at 1:06 am, after finishing that last manga, I crawled into bed with my fiance.

34736540

When I woke up it was 7:15 am. I rolled out of bed, grabbed my glasses, went to the bathroom, and then curled up on the couch with The Monster of Selkirk: Book I again, and read for the remaining 40 minutes of the readathon, managing to complete 62 pages of the book.

So overall for Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon, I started 9 books, finished 8 of them, and read a total of 1,626 pages. That isn’t bad, though in reality I only read one book from my TBR and then made it through about 20% of another one. Oh well. Sometimes you have to be flexible with these things.

But I’m not finished yet, dear followers. Nope. I have read a couple other books this past week.  That book I mentioned before, the one I started before the readathon but didn’t quite finish? Well, that book was Rule by Ellen Goodlett. Obviously once I finished that, I had to finish up The Monster of Selkirk Book I: The Duality of Nature by C.E. Clayton. With any luck, I’ll have reviews up for both books fairly soon.

I guess that means it is time to talk about my current reads. For that I have one that I should technically be starting around the time this post goes live, actually, so I’ll go ahead and count it as a current read. Of course, it is a graphic novel, so I also imagine that I’ll finish it today as well. That is The Cardboard Kingdom by Chad Sell. It just looks cute and fun, and there was a coupon for it at Barnes & Noble when we went on Saturday, so I’m excited. My other current read is for a series that I have pretty much been binge reading the past couple months, and that is Charmcaster by Sebastien de Castell. This is the third book in what is supposed to be a six book series, and the new cover releases have been each month over the last few months, but the fourth book isn’t coming out until…December? I think. So I’m probably going to pick up de Castell’s other series to hold me over until I can continue this series.

As for what I’m hoping to read next…well, that’s a difficult question to answer. I’m actually doing pretty good with my October TBR. All I have left is Escaping From Houdini by Kerri Mansicalco, and The Lost Queen by Signe Pike. But both of those are pretty lengthy reads, so I may pick up one to read this month, but the other will probably get pushed back to November. Plus, honestly, right now I kind of want to pick up more from my Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon TBR, since I pretty much abandoned it. I’m thinking about picking up Black Bird of the Gallows by Meg Kassel next. Then again, I did get my hands on the newest volume of The Wicked + The Divine, so I should probably read that soon too.

How was your latest week of reading? Have any good books you are dying to recommend to pretty much everyone? Let me know in the comments. That’s all for now, and I’ll be back soon with more bookish content.

Advertisements
Books!, Inspiration, Readathon, Reading Challenge, Signal Boost

Tips and Tricks for Surviving a Readathon

daniellethamasa

Hey all, Dani here.

I love readathons. I think they are really fun events that generally help to increase the number of books I read. For the most part, I feel like I do a pretty decent job with readathons and so I thought perhaps I can share some of the tips and tricks that help me get through them.

Now, I guess I should start with a general disclaimer. Just because these tips help me doesn’t mean that they will work for everyone.

Next I suppose I should clarify what I mean by readathons. When I’m talking about readathons I am referring to 24 Hour reading events, weekend reading events, or week-long reading events. For me personally if it lasts for a full month then it is a reading challenge.

So some of the tips I give will be more helpful for all the readathons, while some others are more useful for a specific type of readathon. Okay, let’s just jump into some of these tips and tricks.

Number 1: Announce Your Participation

The most important tip I can give is to let people know that you are participating in a readathon, specifically that you may not be as active or available for social media, social calls, etc. for the duration of the event. Seriously, it has been so helpful for me. And honestly, not just with readathons, but also with events like NaNoWriMo. Letting people know that you are going to be doing something that you feel strongly about and want to dedicate your time to for a day, a weekend, a week, whatever, can be pretty liberating and wonderful.

Number 2: Catch Some ZZZs

For my second tip, I totally recommend getting a good night’s sleep before the readathon starts. When it comes to 24 Hour readathons, having a full rest might mean that you can stay up for the whole duration. Of course this tip can also extend to making sure you get enough sleep for the entirety of your readathon.

Number 3: Don’t Forget to Eat

Snacks! I find that having a good stash of snacks significantly helps me with my readathons. By planning my food and snacks ahead, I don’t have to waste time during a 24 Hour Readathon trying to figure out what I want to eat or where I want to go to get something to eat. It is a serious time saver. Plus, not gonna lie, sometimes during a readathon you need a little energy pick me up, and snacks are a wonderful way to get that.

Number 4: Schedule Reading Time

Okay, so this tip is definitely aimed more towards a week long event. Schedule reading time during the readathon. Obviously during a week long readathon, most of us have work and/or school, and sleep is necessary. Outside of that you might have other obligations. If you schedule an hour or two of reading into your day every day then you can get some serious reading accomplished.

Number 5: Read, Read, Read

Read every time you have a free moment. Again, this one definitely suits a longer readathon than a shorter one. If you leave the house, take a book with you, and if you find yourself waiting for an appointment, or if you get to work a few minutes early, etc. pick up your book and read. Trust me, those minutes all add up in the long run.

Number 6: Take Breaks

So here’s the thing…even during a readathon, it is important to take a break periodically. Get up and take a short walk (though if you feel the need to listen to an audiobook while you walk then that’s fine). When I take a break, I do a quick social media check. During the readathons I participate in, I like to do status updates on my Instagram. So every time I finish a book, or at least every couple hours, I’ll log on and browse through the readathon’s hashtag just to see how other participants are doing. The trick with this is to limit your social media time. Only let yourself have a few minutes.

Number 7: Read Some Shorter/Quicker Works

This is one of my favorite tricks or cheats for readathons. It really helps to boost my books read total, and it feels really good to start off feeling successful. I like to start my readathons with a couple of quick reads. For this I use volumes of manga, a novella or two, or a couple of short novels. Being able to fly through a book in 30 minutes to an hour per book helps me to feel like my 24 Hour Readathons are super-productive.

Number 8: Hydrate

While this one could include this one with the snacks tip, I feel like it is important enough to warrant its own section. Whether this hydration means drinking plenty of water, or having tea, coffee, etc on hand, that’s up to you. I like to get myself a nice assortment of coffees and teas so that I can either make drinks that correspond with what I’m reading or that just sound good at the time. Perhaps you need to have a six-pack of your favorite soda/pop ready so you can have a pick me up to survive your reading marathon. Much like with snacks, I like to have my beverages planned and purchased ahead of time.

Number 9: Have Fun

Obviously this goes without saying, the best way to have a successful readathon is to enjoy yourself. If you aren’t enjoying what you’re reading, then set it aside and grab whatever book you really want to read right then and there. If you need to get away from your books and spend a couple hours socializing with friends, then that is perfectly fine. Yes, readathons are meant to help with reading productivity, but any amount of reading–even if it is just a sentence or a paragraph–is fine. So what if someone else has read ten books during the readathon, while you only managed one. That is one more book than you read before this event.

And I do believe that is all the advice I can think about passing on, at least right now. I’m sure I’ll remember something after this post has gone live. And for the rest of you who participate in readathons, if you have some tips to share, please feel free to let all of us know in the comments.

That is all from me today. I’ll be back soon with more bookish content.

Books!, Readathon, Reading Challenge, Signal Boost

Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon TBR — October 2018

daniellethamasa

Hey all, Dani here.

I’m back with another readathon announcement. This is a readathon I definitely look forward to twice a year–err, three times this year, since they did the reverse readathon this summer. You can get all the details about the history of the event by visiting the web site.

cropped-deweys-1

Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon has been a major part of my reading life for pretty much three years now. I discovered it back in 2016 and have participated each time since. So every April and October I try and figure out a good variety of books to try and devour in one twenty-four hour period.

Now I have had attempts at this readathon that I’ve done really well with, and some that I did just okay. But what is important is that I manage to get some reading accomplished and that I have fun. And I honestly do. I love popping on Instagram and seeing how everyone is doing with their reading.

Oh, so I think before this next session I’m going to write up a post with some of my tips and tricks for preparing for a readathon, as well as participating in one. I mean, if any of you would be interested in that sort of post anyway.

This next session of Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon will be held on Saturday, October 20, 2018. It starts at 8 a.m. EST (which thankfully is the time zone I live in) and will continue until 7:59 a.m. EST on Sunday, October 21, 2018. You can figure out your start time by going here.

Okay, so I guess it is time to go over my tentative TBR for the readathon. I don’t know how successful I will be at this, because we will have friends over for 5 or 6 hours in the middle of the readathon, but oh well. That has never deterred me from participating.

img_20180928_0852583102130725275.jpg

First up, Black Bird of the Gallows by Meg Kassel. I have been wanting to read this book since I saw the cover last year before its release. And the companion/sequel is out now (also with a gorgeous cover), so I’d like to give this one a try.

Dirty Magic by Jaye Wells is a re-read for me, so I’m predicting that I can read it fairly quickly. Also, it takes place in a fictional city in Northern Ohio, so I find that to be pretty cool. And the grittiness of it, plus the cool magic system, just makes me want to read it again.

Next is Borrowed Souls by Chelsea Mueller. I have followed the Vampire Book Club for a couple years now, and Chelsea is the founder of the blog/group, which now includes a handful of wonderful ladies who review all sorts of paranormal and fantasy stories, typically ones with romance in them. So when I heard that Chelsea was getting published I wanted to support her. That was last year, and I bought her book. The sequel is now out, so I’d like to actually finally read this book.

Then I want to talk about All the Feels by Danika Stone. It sounds like a fun and geeky contemporary, and I’ve read quite a few of those and really enjoyed them. This one has a focus on fandom and conventions and a science fiction show, so I am really excited to finally read it.

Finally, there is The Monster of Selkirk: The Duality of Nature by C.E. Clayton. This is the first book of a series that has I have watched my book blogger buddy Kathy from Books & Munches rave about over and over again. And honestly, with such high praise, how could I not pick it up? Actually, I bought the first two books. The third book is due to be published on October 16th, so now seems a perfect time to jump into the series.

Of course, my TBR can possibly change, and might shift to include some quicker reads like some volumes of manga. But we’ll see what happens during the readathon itself.

Are any of you participating? Let me know what social media accounts you’re using so I can follow your readathon progress.

That is all from me today. I’ll be back soon with more bookish content.

Book Releases, Book Review, Books!, Graphic Novel, Manga, Readathon, Signal Boost

September Wrap-Up and October TBR

daniellethamasa

Hey all, Dani here.

September has come and gone, and now we have opened our calendars up to October. That is just such a crazy thought to me. How are we this close to the end of 2018 already? The weather is starting to cool down where I am and the leaves are beginning to change color.

What I love is that as it gets colder outside, all I want to do is to curl up under a blanket inside. Oh, and naturally I want to have that cozy beverage of hot tea or hot cocoa beside me while I’m enjoying all the extra reading time. This is definitely the time of year where I want to delve into longer fantasy reads, or just larger TBR stacks in general. The cold weather and I just do not get along.

Anyway, it is time once again to wrap up everything I both read and watched over the last month, before diving into my book haul, my monthly OwlCrate unboxing, and my tentative TBR for this lovely and spooky October. It has been a pretty good month, so I’m excited to talk about everything with all of you.

First up, let’s go over everything I managed to read in the month of September.

Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco — 5 stars

Fairy Tail Vol 1 by Hiro Mashima — 5 stars

Heretics Anonymous by Katie Henry — 4 stars

Kill the Queen by Jennifer Estep — 5 stars

Fairy Tail Vol 2 by Hiro Mashima — 5 stars

Queens of Fennbirn by Kendare Blake — 4.5 stars

Captain Marvel: Earth’s Mightiest Hero Vol 1 by Kelly Sue Deconnick — 4 stars

Shadowblack by Sebastien de Castell — 4.5 stars

Two Dark Reigns by Kendare Blake — 5 stars

Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco — 5 stars

Endless Quest: Into the Jungle by Matt Forbeck — 4 stars

Endless Quest: Escape the Underdark by Matt Forbeck — 4 stars

==

Next up is what I watched for the month. Now, I can’t exactly fully count some of my watches, because while we were at our hotel for our renaissance faire weekend, SyFy was doing a Star Wars movie marathon, and we ended up watching part of Episodes 2, 3, and 4, but not enough of any of them to fully count them as a watch.

The Emperor’s New Groove (5 stars), Princess Diaries 2 (5 stars), Robin Hood: Men in Tights (4 stars), The Princess Bride (5 stars), Scott Pilgrim vs the World (5 stars), My Hero Academia: Two Heroes (5 stars), Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (5 stars), Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi (5 stars). As always we are continuing with watching Critical Role Campaign 2, as well as keeping up with My Hero Academia’s current season.  Oh, and we are continuing with our watch through of Fairy Tail, and have finished season three of the show. I am currently so obsessed with the characters and the world of this anime. So, expect to see me start reviewing the manga volumes that I have read very soon. The final watch I need to mention is the fact that I managed to get my fiance to watch A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Bad Beginning (5 stars) on Netflix, and he actually really enjoyed it; I believe we will be watching the rest of the series soon. Our main focus right now is Fairy Tail because the final season of the anime will be airing starting at the end of the month, and it would be really cool if I am caught up by then.

==

Oh boy…now it is time for my book haul for the month. We went to Barnes & Noble twice this month, and made a trip to Half-Price Books as well. Pretty much that alone should tell you about my lack of self-control when it comes to adding to my library.

Wow, okay, that was a big haul. Let’s just move on to my OwlCrate unboxing. This month’s box was pretty cool too. I’m definitely happy about the fingerless gloves. Oh, and apparently the October box will have two hardcover books in it, so I am absolutely looking forward to getting this next box.

img_20180921_141328826-185248117.jpg

Finally, I guess all that is left is my October TBR. I’m going to start with a smaller list, because I’m definitely in a bit of mood reader time right now. Also, October is when the next session of Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon is being held (Oct 20th), so I will be posting a TBR for that when we get a bit closer to that time.

img_20180928_0851073041617560270.jpg

Clearly based on my September reading, I need to read Escaping From Houdini soon, and the same goes for Charmcaster. These are both series that I am enjoying so so much. Then I have a little fairy tale poetry collection, which I’m sure will be a pretty quick read, so that will be nice. Rule is about three illegitimate daughters fighting for the crown, and honestly I sort of get a little Three Dark Crowns vibe from it all. Finally, The Lost Queen is a story about the sister of the man who would come to be known as Merlin, and it is described as appealing to fans of Outlander, so I am willing to give it a shot.

Oh, and I do think that I have selected my TBR for Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon, but I’m just going to prep the post, and you all will see it in another week or so.

That should be all for today, but I will be back soon with more bookish content. Let me know in the comments what your favorite book purchase was in September.

Book Releases, Book Review, Books!, Calendar Girls, Graphic Novel, Manga, Readathon, Signal Boost

August Wrap-Up and September TBR

daniellethamasa

Hey all, Dani here.

August is over already, and I have been 30 years old for a whole month now. Wow, time just keeps passing by so quickly. Where is my ability to pause time for a bit so I can catch up on all of this reading I need to do? Anyway, August was a pretty productive month, so that was nice.

Of course, when it comes to looking back over the past month, it also shows me just how lazy I have been when it comes to reviews. Over the last few months I have read quite a few books, and yet have only written a handful of reviews. So I need to try and get some more of those prepped up for all of you.

Let’s start with everything I read in the month of August.

Game of Secrets by Kim Foster – 4 stars

Beyond a Darkened Shore by Jessica Leake – 5 stars

My Hero Academia, Vol 14 by Kohei Horikoshi – 5 stars

Dawn of the Arcana, Vol 1 by Rei Toma – 4 stars

Blue Exorcist, Vol 1 by Kazue Kato – 5 stars

Avatar: the Last Airbender: North and South Part One by Gene Luen Yang – 5 stars

Avatar: the Last Airbender: North and South Part Two by Gene Luen Yang – 5 stars

Avatar: the Last Airbender: North and South Part Three by Gene Luen Yang – 5 stars

Blue Exorcist, Vol 2 by Kazue Kato – 5 stars

Blue Exorcist, Vol 3 by Kazue Kato – 5 stars

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows – 5 stars

The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken – 3.5 stars

Black Clover, Vol 1 by Yuki Tabata – 4.5 stars

I’m in the middle of reading a book right now. I was hoping to finish it before August ended but that didn’t happen. Still, I’m pretty happy with the number of books I read.

Next up is what I watched in the month of August. I started my month watching Legally Blond while finishing up a costume for Gen Con. It is still a cute and fun movie, and I give it 4 stars. Then we all sat in our hotel room and watched Monsters University, which obviously still gets 5 stars. My fiance and I finished watching Legend of Korra, which I give 5 stars to as well. Then we watched Ready Player One again, and I still have to give the movie 5 stars. I’ll do a multi-format review for the book, audiobook, and movie soon. After that I got to see the Disney movie Bolt for the first time, and I give it 4 stars. Next up was Monty Python and the Holy Grail, which gets 4 stars. Then it was time to watch the cuteness that was To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before, which definitely gets 5 stars from me. After that I finally got to see the new-ish Goosebumps movie, which I liked and gave 4 stars to. At the very end of the month I managed to watch The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (4 stars), so I will try to have my review of both book and film up fairly soon.

We are still keeping up with Critical Role Campaign 2, and as always, I am finding the storylines and character development to be really interesting. We are also keeping up with the current season of My Hero Academia, because we are both obsessed with it. Finally we are continuing to try and get me all caught up on Fairy Tail, which is going to take a lot more hours. We’re only on the second season right now, but I am really enjoying it. Oh, and my fiance decided to start watching Black Clover as well. It is an interesting premise, but we are both annoyed by the gratingly loud voice of main character Asta. He really doesn’t have to yell everything, but he pretty much does.

Okay, that’s all for what I watched over the month, so now let’s jump into the book haul and OwlCrate unboxing portions of this post.

img_20180826_1117437242009488125.jpg

Fun fact…my September book haul is already looking a bit crazy, because my fiance and I went to both Barnes & Noble and Half-Price Books on September 2nd. The deals were just too good, you guys. I regret nothing…but I may need to try and do another book unhaul sometime soon, or at least a reorganization of my bookshelves.

The last portion of this post is the TBR, and as per usual, I should really spend a little time staring at my bookshelves before I try to write these. I need to go figure out what books I’m going to try and read this month. Hmm… Okay, so I think I’ve found a pretty decent list.

And that is all I have for you guys today. Did you have a nice reading month in August? What books are you hoping to read in September? Let’s talk books in the comments. As always, I’ll be back soon with more bookish content.

Book Releases, Books!, Graphic Novel, Manga, Readathon, Reading Challenge, Signal Boost

What I’m Reading (26)

daniellethamasa

Hey all, Dani here.

Okay, so this week I am proud to say that I have made a lot of progress when it comes to reading. August is starting to look like a productive reading month. And I hope to continue this pace over the next few weeks, so we’ll just see what happens.

And since I have been doing these weekly reading updates, I probably won’t be doing a Manga Madness Readathon post. You’ll get part of my reading progress today and then the rest will be in next week’s post.

All right, and with that I think I’m ready to jump in and talk about all the books I’ve finished reading in the past week.

Whew…that was a lot of books. Okay, yes, so many of these are manga or comic book/graphic novels. But still. It has actually been a pretty busy week. My fiance and I ended up buying Diablo III for our PS4 and we have been spending a lot of our non work time playing the game. I am really enjoying it, but I wish we could find more similar games that are multiplayer (without us needing to buy another TV/PS4/etc). We like playing together but a vast majority of non-PvP games are single player.

Anyway, let’s just move on to my current reads. I’m still trying to squeeze in as many volumes of manga as I can before the readathon ends this Friday, so naturally I am reading more of that. But I also picked up a book at the grocery store and I have read about 70 pages of it over the past few days as well…just so I can watch the movie on Netflix, because it looks pretty good too.

Reading Blue Exorcist just makes me want to watch the anime again, which isn’t the worst thing, because I rather liked it, and I’m sure I would pick up on more of what’s going on this second time viewing it, but it will have to wait because my current anime watches are dedicated to Fairy Tail and keeping up with the newest season of My Hero Academia.

Finally, as for what I’m hoping to read over the next week…well,a bunch more manga, that’s for sure. I think I own through Volume 6 for Blue Exorcist, so I’m going to try and finish that, and then maybe I’ll try to finish reading the volumes of The Ancient Magus’ Bride that I have. Oh, and I just got the first volume of Black Clover in the mail, so perhaps I can squeeze that in to my reading schedule as well.

Then I suppose I’d like to finish reading Guernsey Society and then I’ll probably jump into a couple other books.

That’s all for today. Let me know what you’re reading and loving in the comments below, because I would love to know what else to add to my TBR. I’ll be back soon with more bookish content.

Books!, Graphic Novel, Manga, Readathon, Reading Challenge, Signal Boost

What I’m Reading (25)

daniellethamasa

Hey all, Dani here.

As can be predicted, I actually did not accomplish a lot of reading over the last week. That tends to happen when it comes to going to conventions. But I did manage to finish one book and start a few others, so I’ll talk about all of those here.

But first, Gen Con was actually a lot of fun. I bought a lot of books, a few games, several sets of dice, and I just had a wonderful time hanging out with a bunch of awesome geeks. My fiance and I are already planning on attending again next year. If you’re interested in hearing more about my Gen Con experience, let me know in the comments and I can write up a post about the whole trip.

Okay, so for the book that I finished in the past week, it was a good read, and it didn’t take me all that long to actually finish it, so that was nice. I had hoped to finish it before we left for Indianapolis, but that didn’t happen. Still, I enjoyed reading Game of Secrets by Kim Foster. The concept was an interesting one and I’m glad I gave it a try.

34138306

Then there’s the books I started while at Gen Con or over the past couple of days. Needless to say, I am in the middle of a good number of reads, but sometimes that just happens. With any luck I’ll finish most of these in the next couple of days and move on to the next books on my TBR…oh, and of course seeing how many volumes of manga I can read because the next round of Manga Madness Readathon starts very soon.

Anyway, here’s everything I’m currently reading.

The first book I started reading is the Looking for Group Omnibus, which contains Volumes 1-3 of the web comic print bind-ups. Back in college I read Looking for Group online for awhile, but it has been so long that I don’t remember specifics. I’ve only read about 20 or 30 pages, but it is fun being reintroduced to the characters. The second book is another gaming guidebook from Kobold Press. I love their worldbuilding book, and actually recommend it for not just game masters, but also authors. The great thing is that I don’t have to read this book all at once or anything since it is just a collection of essays, but I am really looking forward to reading most of the advice I’m sure to get from all these amazing gamers and writers. Finally, I just started Beyond a Darkened Shore on Monday as my work read, and I am really enjoying it. Actually, I think I should be able to finish it soon.

Oh, I almost forgot about the books I want to start reading soon. Obviously my focus is going to switch to manga starting on Friday and going until next Friday. I imagine that I’ll be starting with Volume 14 of My Hero Academia, but I also definitely want to read the first volume of Dawn of the Arcana. After that I’m not sure what I’ll read, but hopefully I will have a lot of updates for next week.

Thanks for reading everyone. Let me know in the comments if you’ve recently finished or are currently reading something interesting. I think that is all for today, and I will be back soon with more bookish content.

Books!, Manga, Readathon, Reading Challenge, Signal Boost

Manga Madness Readathon (Round 3)

daniellethamasa

Hey all, Dani here.

Today is Day Two of Gen Con, and when this post goes live, my fiance and I will be wrapping up our time at the convention center and be heading across the city to the theater where we will watch a live episode of Critical Role, and we are both very excited about it. Anyway, I am not here to talk about my convention fun (yet…I will have a con wrap up post coming after the weekend is over).

I guess I’m just really in a readathon mood lately. Plus, my fiance and I just bought a bunch more manga to add to our collection. So it seems appropriate to announce that we are participating in the upcoming round of the Manga Madness Readathon.

It will be taking place from August 10th-18th, and the goal is to read as many manga as possible in that time. Now, there are a couple more specific ways to participate, like trying to complete a bingo board of different types, themes, or genres of manga, or focusing your attention on one specific series, but I just want to read some manga instead of trying to find a specific TBR for the event.

You can find out all the details on Jade’s blog here.

As for what the two of us will be reading, well it will probably be something on these shelves, though we may have added more volumes since this photo was taken. Oh and the shelving of the manga is not my decision. This bookcase is my fiance’s and he has complete control over where they all go and how they are stacked. He’s still figuring out his shelving preferences.


That is a really vague TBR, isn’t it? Well, I personally want to read the rest of Ancient Magus’ Bride, read the newest volume of My Hero Academia, since it comes out on August 7th, and then I’ll start reading whatever sounds interesting. I believe my fiance will be trying to work on getting manga completed and reviews formulated so he can start posting. We’ve already figured out his bio blurb and his review policy, so those are both up on the blog. Now we just need content.

So really, I do believe that is all for today. I just wanted to announce that I am doing another readathon. Let me know if you plan on participating as well, or let me know if you have any manga recommendations. I will be back soon with more bookish content.

Book Releases, Book Review, Books!, Conventions, Graphic Novel, Manga, Readathon, Reading Challenge, Self-Published Books, Signal Boost

July Wrap Up and August TBR

daniellethamasa

Hey all, Dani here.

Welcome to August. At the time this post goes live, I will probably be sitting in an Irish pub in Indianapolis, relaxing before the start of Gen Con. Why an Irish pub, you may ask? Well, as today is my birthday I got to choose where to eat dinner, and I just really wanted to hang out with my fiance and our nerd friends who came with us, and have a nice adult beverage…because I turned 30 today, so I can do that.

Also, heads up, sorry if I am not as quick at liking or responding to your comments over the next several days. Gen Con runs from Thursday through Sunday, and I will likely be soaking in all the nerd gear and books and gaming equipment, instead of playing on my phone. But I promise, I’m still here, and I will get back to you as soon as I am able.

Okay, let’s get started. First up, the books I read over the month of July. I feel like this past month was a pretty good one for reading. I participated in two different readathons and just generally was in a mood for devouring stories. As always, if I have a review up, I will include the link back to it, just in case you are interested or missed it.

The Emerald Sea by Richelle Mead — 5 stars

All of This is True by Lygia Day Penaflor — 4 stars

Save the Date by Morgan Matson — 4.5 stars

Little Do We Know by Tamara Ireland Stone — 5 stars

Little Moments of Love by Catana Chetwynd — 5 stars

My Hero Academia Vigilantes, Vol 1 by Hideyuki Furuhashi — 4 stars

And I Darken by Kiersten White — 5 stars

Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse — 4.5 stars

Blackened White by Brian W Foster — 4 stars

Terminal Alliance by Jim C Hines — 4.5 stars

Spellslinger by Sebastien De Castell — 5 stars

Kill the Farm Boy by Delilah S Dawson and Kevin Hearne — 5 stars

Game of Secrets by Kim Foster — 4 stars

Vox Machina Origins by Matthew Coville, Chris Northrop, Olivia Samson, and Matthew Mercer — 5 stars

All right, and then there were the other stories I consumed over the month, namely movies and TV shows. I kept track of them just in case anyone was interested, and I guess I enjoy having a record of what I’ve seen, so this segment of my monthly wrap up may be here to stay.

Pokemon: the series — Sun & Moon (season 1) — 4 stars, Kung Fu Panda 3 — 4.5 stars, Ant-Man and the Wasp — 5 stars, The Princess Diaries (again) — 5 stars, Ella Enchanted (again) — 4 stars, Happy Gilmore (again) — 5 stars, The Mummy — 4 stars, The Mummy Returns — 4.5 stars, Journey to the Center of the Earth — 4 stars

Also, as usual I am still watching “Critical Role” each week and things got really intense and emotional in July. I am so looking forward to seeing the show live and in person this weekend. My fiance and I also started watching a summer show on the CW called “The Outpost,” and it is really interesting so far. The show is created by the same people who did the Mythica series of movies, and those movies are what my fiance and I watched on our first date, so obviously we feel a special connection to all five films. This new series actually has a couple of the same cast members and has a similar feel to the magic as Mythica, so I’m excited to see where it goes from here. Finally, my fiance and I decided that we had taken enough of a break to separate Avatar from Korra, so we started watching The Legend of Korra. We finished Books One and Two, and are almost finished with Book Three, and I am really enjoying it so far. So many of the characters are either connected to characters from the original series or act in a similar manner, and it is really entertaining to watch.

I do believe that is all for what I saw this month.

Next up is the book haul and OwlCrate unboxing portions of this post. This month is a little special because I am separating my fiance’s haul into its own section. There was a manga sale on Barnes & Noble and he decided to stock up on some reads and start prepping posts, because he is getting really excited about joining me here on this blog. He has figured out what name he wants to go by, because he doesn’t want to use his real name, so like me he has come up with a pen name, and now we are just figuring out his review policy and rating system. So his debut should be soon. Okay, let’s just get into his haul already.

There are a few of these manga volumes that I plan to check out as well, so we may see me switch to mini reviews on the manga when he starts doing his reviews.

Next up is my haul, and I also purchased some manga because that deal was too good to pass up. Plus I got a few other books I was pretty excited about. And I am so happy with the OwlCrate for July, though it was a book I had recently purchased, so I now have two copies. I actually do prefer the OwlCrate cover, so I may end up unhauling the original.

img_20180712_1632574953184432.jpg

Finally, there is my August TBR to announce. And I can honestly say that I haven’t exactly planned out a TBR really just yet for this one. Oh boy, I guess I need to go stare at my shelves and figure that out. Hold on a moment.

Okay, so the next volume of My Hero Academia will be released in August, as will the fifth volume of Rat Queens. I will most likely be getting and reading both of those. My most anticipated release of the year will be out in August, but not until the 28th, so I don’t exactly think I can include it on my TBR, but you can definitely expect Access Restricted by Gregory Scott Katsoulis to be on my September TBR. Oh, and the next round of the Manga Madness Readathon is taking place in August as well, so I will probably be reading quite a few volumes, but I’ll have a TBR announcement post up for that one soon.

img_20180729_1019288461726936533.jpg

There, that seems like a decent TBR, though I could always change those up or add more, depending on how the month goes. And I do believe that is all for today. Thanks for reading and commenting and being awesome bookish friends. I’ll be back soon with more bookish content.

Book Releases, Books!, Readathon, Reading Challenge, Signal Boost

Change of Reading Plans

daniellethamasa

Hey all, Dani here.

This will be a pretty short post, because I have had a lot to do this week in preparation for my birthday trip to Indianapolis for Gen Con. I’ve been trying to finalize decisions on panels and seminars and stuff to try out, and figuring out what outfits to pack, and what books to bring–because sometimes there are lines and books are good to have. At the same time I will be buying a lot of nerd gear and I don’t have infinite space to pack it in, so book selection is super important.

Anyway, I had a plan for Dewey’s Summer Reverse Readathon, which will be starting in just four more hours for me (at the time this post goes live), and I was pretty excited about the plan, even though I made it a few weeks early. But I guess I wasn’t planning on discovering and buying so many books that sound so interesting that I just want to drop my current reads and start reading them now regardless of plans.

So…I’m changing my TBR.

It used to be this, and I will still get around to these books, eventually.

img_20180706_090505099_ll518073011.jpg

But now I am excited to announce that I will be reading these lovely little novels. One of them I already somewhat started to read, but I’m only a couple chapters in. And depending on how things go, I may get to go back and toss in one of my previous TBR choices, but it all really depends on how much reading I accomplish and how much sleep I get, and how long D&D goes tomorrow, because it will start (and probably last) the last six hours of the readathon.

The book I somewhat started already is Spellslinger by Sebastien De Castell, and it is so interesting so far. I’m thinking it will be a pretty fast read. Then there is the lovely Kill the Farm Boy by Delilah S Dawson and Kevin Hearne. You guys, this book sounds so hilarious and awesome and I am so darn excited to start reading it. The world map is wonderful and pun filled, and I am ready to devour this book. Then there is this book that I found…last month, I think…at the book store, and it sounds really interesting as well, set in Victorian England with an intriguing monster premise and a school for training people to be spies and assassins for the queen.

So, I guess that is all for now. Oh wait. Technically if you want to keep up with what I’m reading or how I’m doing for this readathon, I will be posting photo updates on my Instagram, so you can go find me there. Good luck to everyone who is participating, and I will have my readathon wrap up next Wednesday when I do my usual monthly wrap-up and TBR.