Category Recaps

Mar 29 2014
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March 2014: Review Recap!

Review Recap

So, evidently I’ve fallen a little more behind on book reviews than I thought I had. Normally, I average about seven book reviews per month and this month have barely gone over half that. I have excuses, of course. Most of which involve me having a lot more fun than normal. :-)

In any case, here’s a look at the books that were reviewed this month:

The Lascar’s Dagger by Glenda Larke
Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas
Salvage by Alexandra Duncan

The Lascar’s Dagger by Glenda Larke – 5/5 stars!

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas – 4/5 stars

Selvage by Alexandra Duncan – 4/5 stars

and my favorite:

Dragon Haven

Dragon Haven by Robin Hobb – 5/5 stars!

It was, all things considered, a killer month in reading… Possibly my highest review average ever. Although, when you take into account that there’s only four of them, that’s not really an impressive sample size.

Waiting on Wednesday Features:

Invaded by Melissa Landers
Fool’s Assassin by Robin Hobb
June 17, 2014

 Even though I am dying to read Invaded, I am most excited for the new Robin Hobb book!

A Q&A with Dan Wells:

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That pretty much sums up my month of posting… I’m earnestly hoping for something a little more robust for next month, but will see what happens. Although, the Dan Wells interview was probably the coolest thing I’ve ever featured on my blog… So there’s that. :-)

by Niki Hawkes

Feb 28 2014
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February 2014: Review Recap!

Review Recap

I have been having so much fun reading lately that I’m having a difficult time doing anything else. Currently, my reading has been split pretty evenly between awesome books I already own and the endless pile of ARCs I can’t seem to stop requesting. It’s okay though, because I finally have a good way to keep track of which books need to be read by when, and it is taken away a lot of the obligation I used to feel regarding them (It also helps that I’ve somehow managed to restrain my request to just the have-to-have titles). In any case, here my:

 Books Reviewed:

Panic by Lauren Oliver
Caliban’s War by James S. A. Corey
Death sworn by Leah Cypress

Panic by Lauren Oliver – 4.5/5 stars

Caliban’s War by James S.A. Corey – 5/5 stars!

Death Sworn by Leah Cypress – 2.5/5 stars

Pale Demon by Kim Harrison
Dangerous by Shannon Hale
The Undead Pool by Kim Harrison

Pale Demon by Kim Harrison – 5/5 stars

Dangerous by Shannon Hale – DNF

 Guests Review: The Undead Pool by Kim Harrison – 4/5 stars

My favorite book reviewed this month is probably Caliban’s War by James S.A. Corey… although I am an uber fan of Kim Harrison.

Hopefully in March I will be posting a couple more reviews than I did this month. My plan to read more than I review has backfired, as I find myself a full ten books behind (meaning you are getting reviews for books I read as far back as December. Fail.). As I mentioned before, my time spent reading lately has been just ridiculous.

Waiting on Wednesday Features:

Other exciting news: Charlotte over at Apathy and Rhetoric and I started a monthly YA book club!  It has been really fun to participate in so far, and we are welcoming anybody who wants to join. For more info, click on the button below:

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 What awesome books did you read this month?

Jan 31 2014
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January 2014: Review Recap!

Review Recap

 So far in 2014 I have read a bunch of killer titles! The trouble is, I am still posting reviews for books I read in December (fail). Near the end of last year, I was making an effort to get caught up on all the great ARCs I’d been approved for on Netgalley and Edelweiss. 3/6 of the books I reviewed this month are evidence of my attempt to catch up. As one of my Top Ten Bookish Resolutions of 2014 was to quit requesting so many ARCs, next month’s ought to be a much better month in reviewing!

Books Reviewed:

These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner
Control by Lydia Kang
Sky Raiders by Brandon Mull (March 11, 2014)

These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner – 2.5/5 stars

Control by Lydia Kang – 2/5 stars

Sky Raiders by Brandon Mull – 3.5/5 stars

The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson
Outpost by Ann Aguirre
Sea Witch by Virginia Kantra

 The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson – 5/5 stars!

 Outpost by Ann Aguirre – 2.5/5 stars

Sea Witch by Virginia Kantra – 3/5 stars

My favorite book reviewed this month was by far Sanderson’s Way of Kings. I’ll have to see how the series continues before I make any drastic decisions, but suffice to say it’s in contention for one of my favorite fantasies!

Waiting on Wednesday Features:

There are some really awesome titles coming out, but the one I’m most excited about featured this month is Lascar’s Blade by Glenda Larke.  She’s easily one of my favorite authors and I vowed I would drop everything to devour anything new from her.

I am participating (and I use the term loosely) in two reading challenges this year: a Dystopian Challenge (hosted by Blog of Erised) and a Series Challenge (hosted by Read. Sleep. Repeat.). As you can see, I have accrued zero points for both challenges thus far this year. Although I’m not too bent up about it because my biggest challenge this year is a personal one: read only the books that excite me the most. For the record, I am doing a smashing job in that one so far!

Other exciting news: Charlotte over at Apathy and Rhetoric and I started a monthly YA book club!  It has been really fun to participate in so far, and we are welcoming anybody who wants to join. For more info, click on the button below:

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 What awesome books did you read this month?

by Niki Hawkes

Dec 30 2013
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Top Ten Books I Read in 2013!

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Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

This week’s topic is the one I’ve been preparing for all year:

Top Ten Twelve Books I Read in 2013! 

Young Adult:

 And my Favorite:

The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

All Our Yesterdays Review

 The Deepest Night Review

Hex Hall Review

Alienated Review

The Selection Review

The Naturals Review 

Adult:

 And my Favorite:

Black Magic Sanction by Kim Harrison

Black Magic Sanction by Kim Harrison

Leviathan Wakes Review

The Ghost King Review

Gameboard of the Gods Review

 A Shadow in Summer Review

Fair Game Review

Black Magic Sanction Review

 It was such a great year in reading that I had difficulty figuring out which books to feature in this post. Per my new resolution to read only the books that excite me most, I’m betting the 2014 is going to be an even better year! I’d have to say my favorite book of the year was probably Harrison’s Black Magic Sanction.

What were your favorite reads of 2014?

by Niki Hawkes

Dec 30 2013
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Dystopian Reading Challenge 2013 – The Yearly Recap Edition!

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Hosted by Blog of Erised (one of my favorite blogs), this feature challenged readers to pick up as many dystopians as they could throughout 2013. Here’s a look at how I did:

The official tally:

25/24

Level 4: Leader!

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Considering I only read about eighty books this year, you can see how much I love the genre. Just think how many I could have read had I been actively working towards a goal all year (although that way of thinking is dangerous, as discussed in my post on Reading Challenges). I will say, as much as I love it, I’m getting a little burnt out on the genre. I don’t think I’ll get anywhere near 25 in 2014.

 How many dystopian’s did you read this year?

Dec 27 2013
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2013 Review Recap!

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 The end of the year is finally here! And I’m celebrating by putting together the post I’ve been most looking forward to: the annual book review recap!

 I started a book blog for a couple reasons, but one of them was because it is a great way to keep track of all the fantastic books I’ve read (one that didn’t involve a journal and printouts of the covers – the method I was using before I discovered the wonders of blogging).

Sharing my love of books has become a passion all its own, and I have discovered some profound things in my own reading habits that I may not have if not for the blog. Most notably, I have come to truly appreciates the idea that life is too short to read boring books. I finally figured this out at the beginning of the year when I had published three posts in a row with 2.5 or lower ratings a week before sharing the top ten books on my spring reading list. It was eye-opening because I realized the books I was most looking forward to reading were getting left on the shelf in favor of books I felt like I was obligated to read (does anybody else have that problem?). Anyway, I made the decision to read the books I was most excited for first rather than last, and it has made for the best year of reading I have ever had!

So without further a do, here’s a look at The Obsessive Bookseller’s year of book love:

 (You can find full-length reviews for all of these titles under the Review Archive tab at the top of the blog)

DNF:

1 Star:

2 Stars:

2.5 Stars:

3 Stars:

3.5 Stars:

4 Stars:

4.5 Stars:

5 Stars:

Look how many are above 4 stars!! Reading the books at the top of your list, rather than the ones you feel obligated to read really does make a difference – here’s hoping 2014 is an even better year!

 I will say this year seemed rather focused on Young Adult. I couldn’t help it, there were just too many great books in that genre and there are many I still have yet to read. Although, because I’ve recently combed through and reorganized my Fantasy novels, I’ve been reminded of how many awesome looking books I still have in that genre and am thinking 2014 could be a great year for a High Fantasy focus…

What awesome books did you read this year?