"I do not just want to read books; I want to climb inside them and live there." -Anonymous

October 31, 2012

Haunted Week - Beware of Book Review ~ Day 8 ~ WARD 3 by Carole Wood

Happy Halloween!!!!! For the first time in many years, I live in a neighborhood that I will actually have children knocking on my door. I am so excited to pass out candy to the kiddos and see their costumes.
I will begin my last post for Haunted week with 'This is Halloween' from "The Nightmare Before Christmas"...press play and enjoy ;)



Day 8 of Haunted week, Beware of Book Review:


Goodreads - Amazon

WARD 3

by Carole Wood
Horror Novella
Published by: Carole Wood Books
Pub. Date July 8, 2012
eBook -Kindle
My Rating: ♥♥♥♥½





Summary:  ~ from goodreads~

After suffering a recent loss Matt Lindsey, a psychology student takes a placement in Fortraven Psychiatric Hospital.  Over the following nine weeks he discovers all is not as it seems.  He becomes concerned for the welfare of a patient named Abby after a string of violent, strange incidents occurs. Everyone in the hospital is in danger.  Can he help them before it's too late?



My Review:

I literally want to, SCREAM, YELL, SHOUT, AND SHAKE PEOPLE!!! READ CAROLE WOOD'S BOOKS!!!! She is an amazing Independent Author that is very talented.

I am having a hard time thinking how to write this review without spoilers. I normally do not read any books labeled horror, and I feel that anything I say may spoil the joy and ride you will have when you read WARD 3. 
I am instantly drawn into the first chapter and transported to a tragic beginning.  The main character Matt is later introduced.  Matt is a serious student and has set goal to achieve. A tragic event happens and he is forever changed. The path he is now on, leads him to meet Abby. Abby has her own tragic event that has affected her. She is trying to live a normal life and keep her sanity. Abby and Matt meet and together they learn to trust in others and themselves. This is a wonderful story! It is a supernatural,  horror, suspense, mystery, romance novella. It has it all. And if you read Aventurine Heart, Carole wood has a surprise for you in this book.

October 30, 2012

Haunted Week - Written in the Tombstone ~ Day 7

{This Girl Reads}

Day 7 of Haunted Week and one more day to go.
The epitaph is the inscription on a tombstone - you could say it's a person's last words.
Today, I quote the last lines of five books.

#1 - "Not filling in all the cracks, not replacing ones that lingered back in the Catskills, but filling enough that I felt a little better, a little saner".  Pure (Covenant #2) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

#2 - "We lie there together, watching the lightning and listening, to the thunder, and waiting for the beginning of a rainy dawn."  LEGEND by Marie Lu

#3 - "I lingered round them, under that benign sky, watched the moths fluttering among the heath and harebells, listened to the soft wind breathing through the grass, and wondered how any one could ever imagine uniquie slumbers for the sleepers in that quiet earth." Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

#4 - "For the first time in years, she felt as if she was finally exactly where she was meant to be."
The Souls mark: FOUND (The Soul's Mark #1) by Ashley Stoyanoff

#5 -  "He felt the steady beat of Abby's heart under his palm and the softness of her skin and he was sure that for once, he was in exactly the right place." WARD 3 by Carole Wood


This was a little difficult to do. I had to make sure there were no spoilers. I hope I did okay. :)


October 29, 2012

Haunted Week - Trick or Treated ~ Day 6

{This Girl Reads}

Day 6 of Haunted Week!!! Tricked or Treated?
Five books I've read that pleasantly surprised me, or was a nasty surprise.

The first two books on my list I felt tricked me.


#1 - My Blood Approves by Amanda Hocking,  I enjoyed Amanda Hocking's Trylle Trilogy. So I was disappointed with My Blood Approves, because I was expecting more from it. The first several chapters had too many similarities to a well known book. I am not one to give up on a book so I read on. It did improve as the story went on and it became a book I liked. I did finish the series and liked it.


#2 - The Girl With a Dragon Tattoo by Steig Larsson.  This book was recommended to me by my son in law. I had trouble getting into the story. At times it seemed to have way too much detail. I did like the mystery and suspense in the story.  Overall it was a good story, it just seemed to drag on and on for me.

The next three, pleasantly surprised  me and were definitely  treats.


#3 - City of Bones by Cassandra Clare. In January 2009, I stumbled upon a blog that had a link to Cassandra Clare's, City of Bones. Cassandra Clare had her book free to read online(for a limited time). I decided to give it a try. I found myself instantly sucked into the shadow hunter world. I couldn't stop reading it, and my back was getting sore reading it at my desktop computer. I made the decision to go to my local 24 hour grocery store and find a copy to buy. I found it, bought it and took it home to read and finished it that night. I became a huge fan and I have loved everything she has written.


#4 - Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen This book was an impulse buy. I needed something to read on the plane. I new the movie was coming out and decided it may be interesting. This book is amazing!! I love that this is a historical fiction story. It was wonderfully written. Sara Gruen obviously did a lot of research to create this world. I felt transported back in time.


#5 - The Host by Stephenie Meyer I would first like to say I do like Stephenie Meyer's Twilight Saga. I know there are some readers who do not like the books because they feel she is not a good writer. In her book The Host, she shows she has grown and improved as a writer. I loved this book. This story takes on the human complexity of relationships and the human psyche. This was a wonderful surprise and treat.

October 28, 2012

Haunted Week - It Came From the Web ~ Day 5

{This Girl Reads}
Five Amazing Book Blogs I have recently discovered

There are so many book blogs out there that I find amazing. Here are my 5 most recent discoveries in random order:

Chocolate Coated Reviews
♥Lace Vintage Book Reviews♥
The World of Ashley Stoyanoff
{ This Girl Reads }
Walking on Bookshelves

Haunted Week - Back from the Grave ~ Day 4

{This Girl Reads}
(I am a day late with this post, I am still going through the unpacking stage and I am overwhelmed)
Here are several books I dug up from my past.

Caution : I was born in 1967 :P

Looking back to what I have read...I have to admit, I was not much of a reader as I am now.
I decided I want to share the books that I can remember as far back as First grade.
These books sparked my interest and stayed in my memories.



#1 - Richard Scarry's - What Do People Do All Day? 




#2 - Richard Scarry's - Best Word Book Ever!



Richard Scarry

“I'm not interested in creating a book that is read once and then placed on the shelf and forgotten. I am very happy when people have worn out my books, or that they're held together by Scotch tape.”


― Richard Scarry

Richard Scarry's books are the earliest books I remember and love. I still read them to my preschool class today.

#3 - Nancy Drew Series by Carolyn Keene, Mildred A. Wirt Benson
Love a good mystery! I enjoyed reading these books when I was in 5th and 6th grade.


#4 - A Ring of Endless Light by Madeleine L'Engle
A book  I absolutely loves and it introduced me to Madeleine L'Engle's other books, such as her well known book A Wrinkle in Time.   This book also became my daughters favorite.

#5 The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
On of the most memorable books I read in school.  I now have discussions at school with my older children in our after-school care program, who have read it. 

October 26, 2012

Haunted Week - Skeletons on My Bookshelf ~ Day 3

{This Girl Reads}

Day 3  of Haunted Week.
I confess, I do have a few skeletons in my closet - I also a few skeletons on my bookshelf.
Since this is a meme about books, I will share with you, my five books that I have owned for a long time but never read. I plan on reading all of them I just have such a huge "to read" list O_o



#1 - The Help by Kathryn Stockett
I loved the movie, I heard great things about this book.




#2 - The Sight by David Clement-Davies
Recommended to me love the cover.



#3 - Hourglass by Myra McEntire
Another book I love the cover and was a recommended to me.



#4 - Sweep: Volume 1 by Cate Tiernan
A friend said she loved this series so I bought it. I love the paranormal genre sounds interesting.


#5 - A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
One of several classic books I want to read just trying to find time to put in my schedule of my long list of books to read.



It is so hard to pick what to read next. I have a lot of new releases that I want to read also. If only I can be paid to read!!! :P

October 25, 2012

Haunted Week - Bats In Your Book Pages ~ Day 2

{This Girl Reads}

Day two of Haunted Week.
Time to list my top 5 things that drive me batty!!

#1 - Girl drama! I am okay with a little bit of it here and there in a story. I do not like it when the drama seems to take over the story. I don't like it in real life, I surely do not want to read about it. Just give me enough to establish the characters and their relationship with each other.

#2 - Long Introduction to a Character. Being introduced to the main character by giving away every detail possible can make me want to stop reading right away. Give me time to develop a relationship with the character to feel for the character. It's like meeting someone for the first time and he/she wants to tell you everything about themselves in 15 min. Ugh!

#3 - Instant Love. An instant connection towards someone is okay. There of course needs to be an interest in one another to even start any relationship. I want to get to know my characters first. Show me the heart warming events and struggles they go through, the journey the take to become madly in love.

#4 - Instant Sex. Hey, I admit it, I like romance and the heated scenes. I do not like it when it takes over the entire story. Give me a story of two people gradually getting to know each other then leading up to the OMG! scene. I like my stories with substance sprinkled with a few hot moments. :P

#5 - No Closure.  Okay this is tricky. I am not a writer I am just a reader. The last chapter of any book needs some resolve from the story being told. If there is going to be a sequel leave me with a bit of mystery.
I also love cliff hangers that leave me screaming at the author. But I do not like a cliffhanger leaving me with confusion and asking myself " what just happened? " O_o Then I am left with wondering if I should read the next book or not. I love to read, but when I read, I am investing my time to the lives and world that the author created. Make it worth my time.



October 24, 2012

Haunted Week - Ghosts of Books Half-Read ~ Day One

{This Girl Reads}
Five books I have never finished

Today is Wednesday October 24th, and it is the first day of Haunted Week!!

I do have to say that I do plan on finishing a few of these books. I have stopped reading because of time or because I was in the mood to read a different genre.
Books are like food for me. I love to devour them. Sometimes I just have a craving for something else. For example, I love cookie dough ice cream but I really want a  pumpkin pie blizzard instead.

Cutting For Stone by Abraham Verghese - I checked this book out from the library and I did not have time to finish. My mother was visiting and I had to return it. I have not been back to the library since. I do plan on finishing this book.


A Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice and Fire#1) by George R.R.Martin - I was given books 1 thru 4 as a Christmas gift. (they were on my on my I want list) I did begin to read it and did not finish it because I promised a few authors I would read their book and post a review. I do plan to read it.


Into the Wild by Erin Hunter - I downloaded this book for free to my nook. I told a student of mine I would read this. I started to read at the end of the summer. It just did not catch my interest. I still might read it in the future.





Tributary (Riverof Time, 3.2) by Lisa Tawn Bergren - I really enjoyed the books before this one. I tried reading it. I just could not stay interested in it. I do not know if I will pick this book back up again.




When Darkness Comes (Guardians of Eternity #1) by Alexandra Ivy - I do want to finish this book. It was highly reccommneded to me. For some reason the story line is just moving to slow for me. I have tried a few times to pick it up, but then I stop and start reading something else. I think I just need to start from the beginning and give it a fresh start.






October 23, 2012

Haunted Week starts tomorrow!!

{This Girl Reads}

 A big thanks to Cheyenne, from {This Girl Reads} for hosting Haunted Week. There will be eight topics, one each day leading up to Halloween Day. The eight topics are:

10/24 -  Ghosts of Books Half-Read
Five books I began reading and never finished.

10/25 - Bats in Your Book Pages
Five things that drive me crazy in books.

10/26 - Skeletons on My Bookshelf
Five books that I have owned for a long time and never read.

10/27 - Back from the Grave
Five books I have read and loved as a kid.

10/28 - It Came from the Web
Links to five amazing book blogs I have discovered recently.

10/29 - Tricked or Treated
Five books I have read that was either a pleasent or nasty surprise.

10/30 - Written in the Tombstone
Five quotes from the last line of five books.

10/31 - Beware of Book Review
My review of a scary story I have just read for Halloween Week.



October 21, 2012

I am finally moved! Dreams do come true!!



I have been very busy going through the process of buying my first house! It took three months to finally close on the house and another month of packing. I have spent the last four days moving in to my house and thanks to my son and his friends the move is complete. I had a lot of obstacles thrown my way, and it looked at times it was not going to happen. I am so thankful and feel very blessed to have a wonderful daughter, son, mother, and close friends. There were times I started to feel discouraged, but they never let that happen. They became my  biggest cheerleaders in life. A special thanks to my daughter Beth who lives far away from me and could not be with me to enjoy the move. Without her I would never have considered and thought it was possible for me to own a house♥

♥My moving crew♥
I'm in the back, and from left to right: Ryan, Alex ( my son) Bay and Britt.
Not shown Adam( who helped later)
 and my BFF Christy who took the picture


Now the unpacking and decorating begins!!

Dreams do come true !!
 "who said that every wish would be heard and answered, when wished on the morning star......Someday we'll find it a rainbow connection the lovers the dreamers and me...."