BOOKSHELF SCAVENGER HUNT 2.0

May 12, 2018May 12, 2018 bookishluna5 Comments

TagTimel12:17 Hello everyone, today I decided to have a bit of fun and do a tag. This time I am doing one that lets me share a bit about the books on my bookshelf and what I thought about them. I will admit I wanted to reuse a book or two to answer multiple prompts, but I thought it would be fun to challenge myself and share more books on my shelf. Without any more delay, here is the Bookshelf Scavenger Hunt 2.0 Tag.

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Find a book that starts with and “N”

Never Caught by Erica Armstrong Dunbar

Never Caught: The Washingtons' Relentless Pursuit of Their Runaway Slave, Ona Judge

This was a great short non-fiction novel that I read earlier this year. I found it enjoyable and eye opening.

Find a book cover that’s mostly brown

The Way I See It: A Personal Look at Autism & Asperger’s by Temple Grandin

The Way I See It: A Personal Look at Autism & Asperger's

If you want a bit of insight into Autism Spectrum Disorder, this is a wonderful book to read. I read it very quickly and found it enlightening.

Find a book that is based on a true story

The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt by T.J. Stiles

The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt

This is my one of my two FAVORITE non-fiction. It is both informational, but I love how it is written. It id not bogged down by facts, but reads more like a narrative.

Find a multi perspective book

Replica by Lauren Oliver

Replica (Replica, #1)

I have yet to read this, but I can’t wait to try reading this interestingly formatted duel perceptive novel.

Find a book you read last year

The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware

The Woman in Cabin 10

I love this thriller, It was one of my top 5 of the books I read last year. It kept me on the edge of my seat and took twists and turns I could not predict.

Find the most recent book that you bought

When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon

When Dimple Met Rishi

I very recently picked this up on discount at Barns and Nobel. I mainly picked it up because I heard so many great things and I wanted to see for myself.

Find a book cover you don’t like

The Nest by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney

The Nest

Okay, this one might sound wrong, but hear me out. The reason I don’t like this cover is because my copy the cover is ripped. That is why I don’t like the cover.

Find a retelling

All the Ever Afters by Danielle Teller

All the Ever Afters: The Untold Story of Cinderella’s Stepmother

This is a retelling of sorts of Cinderella’s Stepmother. I have yet to read this, but I cannot wait to get to it.

Find a book that is also a movie

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie

Murder on the Orient Express (Hercule Poirot, #10)

I have yet to see the movie adaptation, mainly because I don’t want to buy a copy but, I did enjoy the novel! I read it very quickly.

Find a book written this year

Circe by Madeline Miller

Circe

This was a book that came out pretty recently, but I read it and I read it in a single day. I found it interesting and I felt for Circe.

Find a non fiction book

The Witches: Salem, 1692 by Stacy Schiff

The Witches: Salem, 1692

This is one of my top 2 non-fiction reads. Once again this non-fiction account of the Salem witch trials reads more as a narrative than a non-fiction. It is not bogged down by facts and quotes, but flows nicely.

Find a book you have told others to read

50 Children: One Ordinary American Couple’s Extraordinary Rescue Mission into the Heart of Nazi Germany by Steven Pressman

50 Children: One Ordinary American Couple's Extraordinary Rescue Mission into the Heart of Nazi Germany

This is a magnificent story of a couple who required as many children from Nazi Germany that they could. Anyone who shows a slight interest in WW2 stories I tell them to read this.

Find a book with a tree on it

Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire

Every Heart a Doorway (Wayward Children, #1)

This is a wonderful series, if you have not read at least this first book I suggest you try it. They are short, but pack your bags for an adventure.

Find a book where the authors name is the same as yours – first, middle or last

I have nothing for this prompt

Find a book you have read more than once

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Harry Potter, #7)

Do I really need to say anything? I mean it is Harry Potter.

Find a book you didn’t finish

If I DNF a book, I donate it right away. So I have none on my shelf.

Find a book with a king in it

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

A Court of Thorns and Roses (A Court of Thorns and Roses, #1)

While they do not use the term King, You can call a few of the characters kings in this novel/series/

Find a book that is purple with its dust jacket off

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Harry Potter, #3)

I had no idea that a purple colored book was so difficult to find. This was the only one that I could find on my shelf. Obviously, I love it.

Find a book you will read by the end of the year

The Wicked Deep by Shea Ernshaw

The Wicked Deep

I got this very recently for my birthday, I am VERY excited to get to it! If you have read it, please tell me what you thought of it.

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I Tag:

Jasmine bookishwisps

thebookhamster

Justine bookishwisps

weavinglife

Abigail abigailstalesbooks

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I hope you enjoyed this little look at my bookshelf and maybe even found a book that might interest you. Have a great day!

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Reviews

REVIEW | The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware

December 16, 2017December 16, 2017 bookishluna6 Comments

Book Review

18302455 Description

In this tightly wound story, Lo Blacklock, a journalist who writes for a travel magazine, has just been given the assignment of a lifetime: a week on a luxury cruise with only a handful of cabins. At first, Lo’s stay is nothing but pleasant: the cabins are plush, the dinner parties are sparkling, and the guests are elegant. But as the week wears on, frigid winds whip the deck, gray skies fall, and Lo witnesses what she can only describe as a nightmare: a woman being thrown overboard. The problem? All passengers remain accounted for—and so, the ship sails on as if nothing has happened, despite Lo’s desperate attempts to convey that something (or someone) has gone terribly, terribly wrong…

With surprising twists and a setting that proves as uncomfortably claustrophobic as it is eerily beautiful, Ruth Ware offers up another intense read.

What I Liked

This is one of the best books I have read in 2017. It is a thriller that keeps you guessing and on edge. Ruth Ware’s Woman in Cabin 10 following the events on a luxury cruse from the point of view of Lo. While you start off neutral when it comes to Lo soon you come to see that she is an unreliable narrator. Lo is written in such a way that it is hard to tell what is real and what isn’t, I found her to be one of the better examples of an unreliable narrators because she is so relatable and seems so real. Another bonus for this book was that nothing was predictable, there were so many twists and turns and I did not predict most of them. I don’t know about you, but I have found a lot of mystery or thrillers to be very predictable and it can be such a bore. The Woman in Cabin 10 is not this.

Another thing I enjoyed about this book was the atmosphere of the story. I loved that it took place on a secluded ship in the middle of international water. It added so much to the story because you knew that no one has left the ship and no one knew came into the ship. It also seemed to mirror Lo. Not only was she mainly on her own trying to solve this mystery, the ship was alone at sea sailing to the port across the Atlantic Ocean.

What I Didn’t Like

While I absolutely loved this book I felt like the first 50 pages or so were not as expected and at times unneeded. I was actually thinking about putting it down because we weren’t on the ship just yet. So if you do decide to pick this book up, keep this in mind. Also, I felt that some of the relationship events that happened didn’t always add anything to the story, but was there just to create friction in the story.

Overall Thoughts

This book, even with its faults, is one of the better thrillers I have read. Not only is it one of the best thrillers, it is one of the best books I have read in 2017. Ruth Ware is an author I can easily see myself picking up more of her novels. In fact the day after I finished this book I went out and picked up The Lying Game. Her writing is lovely and easily flows. I found myself reading for hours without realizing the time passed.

If you want to read a thriller pick up this book. If you want to read a book with an unreliable narrator pick up this book. If you want to read a book that will keep you on edge pick up this book. If you want to read a book that will throw you for a loop read this book! If you couldn’t tell already, I think everyone should pick up this book.

Book Information

Publisher: Gallery/Scout Press

Publication Date: July 19th 2016

List Price: $26.00 (Amazon.com)

ISBN: 978-1501132933

Pages: 352 pages

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Wrap Up

November 2017 | WRAP UP

December 9, 2017November 30, 2017 bookishluna12 Comments

Wrap Up

This month was busy, busy, busy. There was NaNoWriMo, holidays, and some bookstore adventures with my friends, but I somehow managed to read a good amount of books this month. I have to say that this month I read a wide range of genres, new authors and some well loved authors, and some good reads and a few not so great ones.

I READ:

Misery by Stephen King

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I ended up giving this 3 stars. While I did enjoy the story I have enjoyed other works by Stephen King a lot more.

Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders

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This was a very interesting twist on the death of Abraham Lincolns son. I found it heart wrenching and it caused me to do a bit of self reflection. I loved this book, I gave it a very strong 5 stars.

Never Caught: The Washingtons’ Relentless Pursuit of Their Runaway Slave, Ona Judge by Erica Armstrong Dunbar

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This was a wonderful story and I still cannot believe how brave Ona Judge was by sharing her story by giving interviews while she was still on the run. I have to say we are very lucky to have those interviews, she put herself in so much danger to tell her story and share what slaves truly went through. I very much enjoyed this book and learning about this brave and determined woman. I gave it 5 stars.

Origin byDan Brown

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Ah! I am still so torn about this book. I love Dan Brown and Robert Langdon, but I felt that this book lost its spark somehow. While there was still an adventure and some clues dealing with art, there was a lot less and I felt myself getting board because not that much actually happens in the book action wise. I ended up finally settling on a 2 star rating.

Uncommon Type by Tom Hanks

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First, I have to say that this book shocked me a bit. When I think of Tom Hanks I think of a wholesome, family friendly individual. When I first started reading this book I was a little shocked by some of the phrases he wrote, but honestly the shock wore off very quickly. I enjoyed these short stories very much. All of them were very different from one another, but all seemed very thought out. I also enjoyed the touches of adding pictures and references to old type writers. I have always loved type writers and I have always had one since I was a little girl. I ended up giving this short story collection a 5 star rating.

The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware

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Now I do not want to say much about this book because I have typed up a whole review that is coming out in the next week or so. But, I will say that I truly enjoyed this book. It is one of the top books of 2017 for me. I gave it a 5 star rating.

Joyland by Stephen King

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Joyland has turned out to be one of my top Stephen King reads. It mixed real world horror and paranormal horror is such a way you are almost forced to see the possible evil of ordinary people. I ended up giving this book a 5 star rating.

Cycle of the Werewolf by Stephen King

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So I picked up this short little horror when I couldn’t sleep one night hoping I would be able to fall asleep or at least get sleepy about 20 pages in. Well, that did not happen. I ended up staying up even later and completely finished the book in one sitting. I gave this read a very solid 4 stars. It was just right amount of mystery and horror that I love.

See What I Have Done by Sarah Schmidt

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So this beautiful book is a historical fiction/retelling/thriller. It deals with the horrific story of Lizzie Borden and what she may or may not done to her parents in 1892. I loved how the author told the story from multiple points of view. Each one was very distinct and I found interesting to read. Usually when I read a book that is in multiple points of view I tend to start skipping one, but not with this one. I ended up giving this book 4 stars.