Today I...

Picked up a copy of Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. I'm so thrilled! Happy sigh's all around. I have the hard bound copy. It's such a beautiful book. 

I also got these awesome, new glasses.

books, television, & movies

I  finished reading The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa. It was a really enjoyable read, and not quite what I had expected it to be. It isn't a traditional 'vampire' story. Allison Sekemoto was such a great protagonist. I'm looking forward to picking up the second book in the Blood Eden series called The Eternity Cure. 

I recently began Once Upon a Time again. I had only watched the first 3 episodes of the television series. I'm now on episode 8 of the first season. I'm so hooked! I love, love, love the story-line and how it meshes with the 'fairy tale' world. Wonderfully done!

Saw Catching Fire this past weekend! Completely loved it. It brought back every memory of reading the book. Jennifer Lawrence does an insanely perfect job of bringing Katniss Everdeen to life. It was so exciting!

What I'm Reading

"Just know that, whatever you choose, you will die today. The manner of your death, however, is up to you."

Taken from Goodreads: Allison Sekemoto survives in the Fringe, the outermost circle of a walled-in city. By day, she and her crew scavenge for food. By night, any one of them could be eaten. Some days, all that drives Allie is her hatred of them—the vampires who keep humans as blood cattle. Until the night Allie herself dies and becomes one of the monsters.

Forced to flee her city, Allie must pass for human as she joins a ragged group of pilgrims seeking a legend—a place that might have a cure for the disease that killed off most of civilization and created the rabids, the bloodthirsty creatures who threaten human and vampire alike. And soon Allie will have to decide what–and who–is worth dying for…again.

This book is phenomenal so far! I'm about 40-50% in. It's difficult to put it down. I can't wait to finish it, and start the next.

insurgent review

#2 in the Divergent Trilogy

Every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Prior must continue trying to save those she loves, and herself, while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.

***

NO SPOILERS

It took me a bit to read Insurgent after finishing Divergent. I wanted to bask in the glow of reading such a great book, and prolong the trilogy. (Okay, maybe I didn't wait that long...a couple of weeks?) The entire time I wasn't reading it, I wanted to read it.

Insurgent picks up immediately following Divergent. Tris and her friends are back to deal with the devastation that occurred, and the balance of power has shifted. 

It's very interesting to see how the characters change and grow, especially after Divergent. We learn so much more about each of them. Tris has gone through so many changes, and we see a side of her in Insurgent that we hadn't before. 

Many people have said that they didn't think Insurgent quite lived up to the amazing quality of Divergent. In my opinion, Divergent was a bit better because it had this wondrous quality, but Insurgent is such a great read. It's a wonderful, action-packed sequel with so much emotion and an amazing plot.


I gave this  book 4 out of 5 stars on Goodreads.

What I'm Reading

Taken from Goodreads:A postmodern visionary who is also a master of styles and genres, David Mitchell combines flat-out adventures, a Nabokovian love of puzzles, a keen eye for character, and a taste for mind-bending philosophical and scientific speculation in the tradition of Umberto Eco and Philip K. Dick. The result is brilliantly original fiction that reveals how disparate people connect, how their fates intertwine, and how their souls drift across time like clouds across the sky.

I'm approximately 15 -  20% in & really excited to finish this book. I absolutely loved the movie. 

classic book haul

I found the following books (used) for a really cheap price. I'm pretty excited. I haven't photographed them, so I tried to find images that matched the books I have as closely as possible.

A Room With a View - E.M. Forster 

Night and Day by Virginia Woolf

The Voyage Out by Virginia Woolf

Bleak House by Charles Dickens 

Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

an update

I have been so busy that I feel like I haven't spent as much time reading as I would have liked.
My busyness hasn't hindered the fact that I have added more books to my 'currently reading' list. In addition to Unearthly by Cynthia Hand, I'm also reading Insurgent by Veronica Roth (yes!!! preparing for Allegiant) and an Agatha Raisin mystery by M.C. Beaton. 

I have been thinking about books that I would like to read in the future. I want to add more historical nonfiction and American/British classics to my list. I actually picked up a few used classics recently, so hopefully I will get around to reading them in the near future. 

Nanowrimo is going...um just going. I had an original idea, changed it up a bit but left the basic storyline. I've written a bit, and I've met my goal for the majority of the days. It's an interesting concept, and really forces you to pick your brain to improve the original story that you come up with.

Coffee has been my saving grace each day.