A Winter's Respite Readathon Goals and Progress

Goals:

Starting the Read-a-thon at page 18 of Asunder by Jodi Meadows. I hope to finish Asunder this week.
Then I either want to started Cloaked byAlex Flinn or True Believer by Nicholas Sparks. I have been reading a lot of new authors so far this year so I'm looking forward into diving back into authors I love.

Day 1 January 27th

pg 18 to pg 34 7:09 to 7:27 am
pg 34 to pg 57 8:17 to 8:45
pg 57 to pg 80 8:50 to 9:18 pm
pg 80 to pg 92 9:20 to 9:31
pg 92 to pg 100 9:35 to 9:45
pg 100 to pg 118 9:49 to 10:11

Pages Read: 100
Time Read: 1 hour 57 minutes

Day 2 January 28th

pg 118 to pg 150 7:51 to 8:34 am
pg 150 to pg 153 8:55 to 9:01 pm
pg 153 to pg 156 9:11 to 9:15
pg 156 to pg 159 9:18 to 9:22
pg 159 to pg 161 9:26 to 9:29
pg 161 to pg 164 9:41 to 9:46
pg 164 to pg 168 9:49 to 9:53
pg 168 to pg 182 10:07 to 10:21

Pages Read: 64
Time Read: 1 hour 23 minutes
Total Pages Read: 164
Total Time Read: 3 hours 20 minutes

Day 3 January 29th

pg 182 to pg 200 8:26 to 8:45 am
pg 200 to pg 224 9:55 to 10:27 pm

Pages Read: 42
Time Read: 51 minutes
Total Pages Read: 206
Total Time Read: 4 hours 11 minutes

Day 4 January 30th

pg 224 to pg 234 8:28 to 8:42
pg 234 to pg 241 11:20 to 11:30
pg 241 to pg 243  7:59 to 8:05

Pages Read: 19
Time Read: 30 minutes
Total Pages Read: 225
Total Time Read: 4 hours 41 minutes

Day 5 January 31st

pg 243 to pg 250 6:52 to 7:11
pg 250 to pg 267 8:31 to 9:03
pg 267 to pg 282 9:19 to 9:42
pg 282 to pg 294 9:51 to 10:05
pg 294 to pg 300 10:12 to 10:21

Pages Read: 57
Time Read: 1 hour 37 minutes
Total Pages Read: 282
Total Time Read: 6 hours 18 minutes

Day 6 February 1st

pg 300 to pg 315 11:18 to 11:44
pg 315 to pg 316 11:50 to 11:52
pg 316 to pg 319 11:56 to 12:03
pg 319 to pg 330 12:21 to 12:42
pg 330 to pg 339 6:54 to 7:06
pg 339 to pg 382 7:08 to 8:06
pg 382 to pg 406 8:18 to 8:47

pg 0 to pg 33 10:05 to 10:32
pg 33 to pg 59 10:37 to 10:59

Pages Read: 165
Time Read: 2 hours 35 minutes
Total Pages Read: 447
Total Time Read: 8 hours 53 minutes
Books Finished: 1

Day 7 February 2nd

pg 59 to pg 66 8:48 to 8:54
pg 66 to pg 114 10:22 to 11:19
pg 114 to pg 123 4:10 to 4:19
pg 123 to pg 136 5:33 to 5:43
pg 136 to pg 146 6:00 to 6:10
pg 146 to pg 158 6:20 to 6:31
pg 158 to pg 169 7:44 to 7:55
pg 169 to pg 170 8:05 to 8:07
pg 170 to pg 173 8:19 to 8:24
pg 173 to pg 189 8:29 to 8:50
pg 189 to pg 245 8:56 to 9:55

Pages Read: 186
Time Read: 3 hours 27 minutes
Total Pages Read: 633
Total Time Read: 12 hours 20 minutes

Winter Wishes Read-a-thon Wrap Up

Hosted by Shelf Addiction and Love, Life, Read

I certainly wanted to get more reading done during this readathon, but I had a very busy weekend and wasn't very productive in this area. I watched our girls basketball time win on Saturday to a very easy team. It is actually kind of sad that this team is division I material. My friend and I got up on Saturday Morning and went to the gym. I was going for an easy workout, but then once I started running I decided I was going to run three miles. It was the first time in this running journey that I have started again that I truly believed I would be ready for the 5K race I'm going to run in May. It was also the first time that I thought to myself it might be possible to someday run at 10K. I will have posts up about this big events as the summer goes on. I'm even hoping to do one of the races with my sister. Then we went swimming on Sunday, which was a fun way to pass time. 

I tried to squeeze in some reading over the weekend, but wasn't entirely successful. I know I would have read more if I went home for the weekend. Next weekend just happens to be superbowl weekend so I will be traveling home and getting a lot done over the weekend. 

I read a total of 133 pages in 3 hours 2 minutes in 3 days. I read about an average of an hour per day. I read about 44 pages per day. 

Book Started:

Asunder by Jodi Meadows

Book Finished: 

The Fairest of Them All by Carolyn Turgeon

Rachael

Winter Wishes Read-A-Thon Goals and Progress

Hosted by Shelf Addiction and Love, Life, Read

Goals:

Started this read-a-thon at page 145 of The Fairest of Them All.

I'm hoping to start Asunder by the end of this readathon

Day 1 January 24th

pg 145 to pg 159 1:26 to 1:47

pg 159 to pg 173 11:10 to 11:32

pg 173 to pg 182 11:38 to 11:52

Pages Read: 37

Time Read: 57 minutes

Day 2 January 25th

pg 182 to pg 216 8:19 to 8:58

pg 216 to pg 248 9:59 to 10:47

Pages Read: 66 

Time Read: 1 hour 27 minutes

Total Pages Read: 103

Total Time Read: 2 hours 24 minutes

Day 3 January 26th

pg 248 to pg 260 1:11 to 1:25

pg 0 to pg 18 10:04 to 10:28

Pages Read: 30

Time Read: 38 minutes

Total Pages Read: 133

Total Time Read: 3 hours 2 minutes

Book that related to a life event: Looking for Alaska by John Green.

Jame @ The Perpetual Page Turner does a spotlight on the books she has read that made her think of personal experiences and wanted to talk about them. I have never had a story that went along with a book that is until I read Looking for Alaska by John Green. First of all I do not wish for you symphathy in this post. I truly just want to share a story about my life and the way it impacted my high school experience.

*Fair Warning that I might spoil sections of Looking for Alaska. If you have not read this amazing novel please do so then come back* *You can read the first section spoiler free until you get to spoiler alert*

January 25th, 2012 started out as a very normal day. It was another dreary day in January. It was foggy outside and the visibility was not great, but we still had school. I was halfway done with my Junior year of high school at this point. I was 17 years old and what happened this day is the worst thing that has happened in my life. It has changed me in ways I never thought I would change as a teenager. 

It was third period ACT Prep when things started to get strange. The phone rang and my teacher answered it. It was for my friend Lizzy, who is deaf. Her interpreter Pam talked on the phone and told Lizzy everything. I didn't know anything about that conversation the only thing I know is that Lizzy wouldn't take her eyes off her cellphone and she kept asking Pam questions. I really didn't know what to think of the conversation. 

Then we went to lunch, which is in the middle of our ACT Prep period. Lizzy disappeared into the office. I sat down with my friends to have lunch, but I couldn't stop worrying about Lizzy. I knew at this point something bad had happened and so did the rest of our lunch table. I came back to ACT Prep and Lizzy and Pam did not return. I couldn't keep my mind on the class when my friend had something wrong. 

It wasn't until Fourth Period Chemistry that I finally figured out what happened. It was all over Keloland News and I couldn't help, but hold back tears. A truck with a trailer was in a collision with a snowplow and was Jackknifed in the middle of the road. Like I said earlier the visibility wasn't great. Lizzy's mom Krista ran into the pickup truck. She was fine for a few seconds until a semi hit her car. Krista was dead at the scene. The other three drivers did not have any injuries. 

I walked through the rest of the school day more like a zombie than a person. Even now I can't write this story without tears coming to my eyes. I never got to meet Lizzy's mom, but I knew she was a great person and I grieved for my friend. I can't imagine living in this world without my mom even though I get annoyed with her at times. 

Renae, my sister had confirmation on this night. Although I was in no state to being driving I was the only person there was to take her. We got on to I-90 East and we were quickly suppossed to take the turn on to I-29 North, but we couldn't find it, so I continued to drive East thinking we would find it before I knew it we had been on the road for 30 minutes and we were beginning to freak out. We had ended up in another state before we turned around. I know part of this issue is because I couldn't keep my mind focused I just wanted to cry. We did make it to confirmation just a little bit late. 

That night I watched the story about the accident on Keloland News and that is when I finally broke down crying. It really was the first time in my life that I had discovered life wasn't fair. Sure bad things had happened to me, but never this bad. I cried myself to sleep this night. 

I watched my friend go through the grieving process. I watched her not eat for days and be as pale as a ghost at the prayer service. She gave the most beautiful speech about her mom at the funeral. I also watched my friend slowly shut people out of her life. I was one of those people. As much as I wanted to help Lizzy I didn't really know how. Even though I talked to Lizzy for the rest of high school our friendship was never the same. Now I don't really talk to her very much. Lizzy will never know how much I think of her mom and this awful day. I know what I have went through with her losing her mom is ten times easier than what she has had to go through. 

*Spoiler Alert*

I was sitting in my dorm room the other day thinking about Looking for Alaska, which became one of my favorite books of 2013. I was trying to understand why Alaska's death hit me so hard. Then I thought of Lizzy and how her mom died in much the same way as Alaska. 

We put such a big emphasize on last words. Krista is watching over all of us and the only thing she remembers is the loved she shared on this earth. Krista loved her daughter, Lizzy and her son, Ryan. She didn't want January 25th, 2012 to be her last day on Earth. Like Alaska we will knew know what Krista's last words were.

As of today it has been two years since Krista died. I think of her often. I have read the stories of her death many times. I never changes the shock I feel. It is a wonder that us as people are seldom on the internet until our obituary gets published. That is true for Krista because her story was shared in many newspapers. 

I think this is the reason I fell in love with Looking for Alaska in a way most people wouldn't because I fully related to the novel and the situation. 

For people that follow snow plow's too close and overdrive in winter condition's remember that your life is not worth getting to work on time. Leave a little bit earlier and take it easy. 

Rachael 

Book Review: Allegiant by Veronica Roth (Divergent #3) (no spoilers)

Book: Allegiant
Author: Veronica Roth
Series: Divergent #3
Publication: October 22nd, 2013
Source: Local Library
Read: January 12th-January 20th
Summary (from Goodreads):

The faction-based society that Tris Prior once believed in is shattered—fractured by violence and power struggles and scarred by loss and betrayal. So when offered a chance to explore the world past the limits she’s known, Tris is ready. Perhaps beyond the fence, she and Tobias will find a simple new life together, free from complicated lies, tangled loyalties, and painful memories.

 But Tris’s new reality is even more alarming than the one she left behind. Old discoveries are quickly rendered meaningless. Explosive new truths change the hearts of those she loves. And once again, Tris must battle to comprehend the complexities of human nature—and of herself—while facing impossible choices about courage, allegiance, sacrifice, and love.

 Told from a riveting dual perspective, Allegiant, by #1 New York Times best-selling author Veronica Roth, brings the Divergent series to a powerful conclusion while revealing the secrets of the dystopian world that has captivated millions of readers in Divergent and Insurgent.

*May spoil previous books in the series*
My Thoughts:

If the Divergent trilogy has taught me anything it is that choices make you who are. We have followed Tris though two previous books as she makes her choices in this faction-based world. Allegiant is Veronica Roth's first book in the trilogy that changes viewpoints. I do have to admit that at first I didn't like it going back and forth between Tris and Tobias. It confusing me who was talking when I stopped in the middle of a chapter. I just don't think that Tris and Tobias had different enough voices for the back and forth to work flawlessly. It wasn't until the end that I truly accepted and understood why Veronica Roth took this step towards back and forth viewpoints.

Although I love Tris and Tobias. I love a lot of the characters for me there were parts in the middle that I believe dragged on a little. With the back and forth viewpoints I do believe I grew closer to Tris and Tobias in this novel. I continue to love how brave both of their characters are. The romanticist in me would have liked a bit more romance in Allegiant. I understood why Veronica Roth needed to show other aspects of the story instead and I respect her decision to show flaws in her characters. So many novels I have read the characters have perfect lives, but when I find characters that have flaws and show them I end up loving them as characters even more. I feel deeply involved with Tris and  Tobias.

As I said with Insurgent I did find all of the new characters a bit confusing and hard to keep straight who belonged where. I had love, hate relationship with some of the new characters and they proved to be instrumental in the ending of the story. Nita and David were two new characters I was okay with at some points and really hated at other points.

I continue to get to know more about the characters that have made up the Divergent world for the last two novels. Of course Tobias' parents, Marcus and Evelyn play key roles in the novel. Then there is Christina, who despite all she has been through continues to remain optimistic about life. Uriah had to be one of my favorite characters of this novel, which made his ending so much harder to handle. Throughout this series I have always hated Caleb as many people who have read this series would understand. This novel showed a different side of Caleb. There still was a part of me at the end that thought he was getting what he deserved. A part of me expected to see more Johanna in this novel. Allegiant continued to be a very character driven novel in this trilogy.

I really enjoyed getting to know about the outside world in Allegiant. I knew that Divergent was based in Chicago, but in my mind Chicago was all there was to this world. Now I know that there is a world beyond Chicago city limits. I enjoyed that fact.

I'm so glad the ending was not spoiled for me so I will not spoil it for you. Veronica Roth made a very bold choice with the ending of the Divergent trilogy. She risked every Divergent fan hating this novel for what she did with the ending. The ending I would have wanted would have been the easy way. Veronica Roth reminds us that not every story has to have a happily ever after. Things in life rarely turn out as perfect as we would like them to. I think she explored some very important lessons in Allegiant's ending. Love can change people in ways they least expect it. Love is a gift that can't be taken away. The other thing that gave me a lot of peace with this ending is all I know about Tris. Tris is the strongest, bravest character I have ever met and she has proved through these three novels that a) she is a little reckless and b) she is going to do whatever it takes to protect the ones she loves. In knowing what I know about Tris I believe the choice she made was not out of character at all. Although I understand why people might not like Allegiant. I have to say that Allegiant made me deeply respect Veronica Roth as an author. If she wasn't on my list before she is definitely is on my list now as one of my favorite authors and I can't wait to see what this author comes out with next.

Series 2014

I did a Top Ten Tuesday Post Last Year stating all the series I wanted to start, but haven't yet. I wanted to come back and update my progress on that post.

Started Need to Finish

Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer- I read Cinder and Scarlet in 2013. I loved both of them and can't wait to get my hands on a copy of Cress. The Lunar Chronicles series will be complete in 2015 with Winter. 

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins- I read Anna and the French Kiss in December 2013. I loved the novel and can't wait to read the next two in the series Lola and the Boy Next Door and Isla and the Happily Ever After, which comes out in March. The series will be complete this year. 

Divergent Trilogy by Veronica Roth- I read Divergent and Insurgent in November. I have been patiently waiting for Allegiant to come for me at the library. I expect to finish this series early this year. 

The Mortal Instruments Series by Cassandra Clare- I read the first five books in 2013. I will be ready to read the 6th  and final book in May when it comes out. I'm excited to see where this story will end. 

The Cedar Cove Series- These are the books I managed to read this year. I still got quite a ways in the series to go, but I hope to get some more books done this year. 

The Caroline Series by Maria D. Wilkes and Celia Wilkins-  I have the last two books left. I have been reading The Little House on the Pairie series since around 6th grade and I really want to complete these last two novels this year. 

Once Upon a Time Series by Various Authors- I just started this series with Golden. I'm in no rush to finish this series. I'm just going to read the books as I feel like it. I love fairy tales and I believe these will be books I will thoroughly enjoy. 

Haven't Started, but Want To

Blossom Street Series by Debbie Macomber- I plan to start this series after finishing the Cedar Cove Series. 

Hundred Oaks Series by Miranda Keaneally- I have seen many good reviews on this series and my friend says that she liked the series so I'm excited to read it. 

Delirium Trilogy by Lauren Oliver- My sister loved the series so I hope so too when I finally do start it. 

Faerie Tale Collection by Jenni James- I have to interlibrary loan this whole series so it will be slow moving making my way through it, but I think I will enjoy these books. 

The Infernal Devices Trilogy by Cassandra Clare- I have finished The Mortal Instruments or will in May so it is time to move on to Cassandra Clare's other series. 

Legend Trilogy by Marie Lu- This was on my list last year. I hope I actually get to start it this year. 

Newsoul Series by Jodi Meadows- Another one that I have to interlibrary loan. I hope to enjoy this series. I'm joining the readathon in January

Summer Series by Jenny Hann- This was also on my list last year and I never started it. 

Unearthly Trilogy by Cynthia Hand- another one from last year's list that never happened. 

Just One Day by Gayle Forman- I did start reading Gayle Forman last year and I loved her, so I hope to get to this series soon. 

Series Finished:

If I Stay Duology by Gayle Forman- From the list last year this is the only series I finished. I made good progress in many of the series, but didn't finish them because the last book wasn't out. 

Firefly Lane Duology by Kristin Hannah- my favorite series for 2013 and the reason I started The Kristin Hannah reading challenge. I highly recommend these emotional novels. 

Thanks 

Rachael 

Incarnate Series Readathon: Book Review: Incarnate by Jodi Meadows (NewSoul #1) (no spoilers)

Book: Incarnate
Author: Jodi Meadows
Series: New Soul #1
Publication: January 31st, 2012
Source: Interlibrary Loan
Read: January 9th-12th, 2014
Summary (From Goodreads):

NEWSOUL

Ana is new. For thousands of years in Range, a million souls have been reincarnated over and over, keeping their memories and experiences from previous lifetimes. When Ana was born, another soul vanished, and no one knows why.

 NOSOUL

Even Ana's own mother thinks she's a nosoul, an omen of worse things to come, and has kept her away from society. To escape her seclusion and learn whether she'll be reincarnated, Ana travels to the city of Heart, but its citizens are afraid of what her presence means. When dragons and sylph attack the city, is Ana to blame?

 HEART

Sam believes Ana's new soul is good and worthwhile. When he stands up for her, their relationship blooms. But can he love someone who may live only once, and will Ana's enemies—human and creature alike—let them be together? Ana needs to uncover the mistake that gave her someone else's life, but will her quest threaten the peace of Heart and destroy the promise of reincarnation for all?

 Jodi Meadows expertly weaves soul-deep romance, fantasy, and danger into an extraordinary tale of new life.

My Thoughts:
I have a feeling 2014 is going to be the year I read amazing debuts. I have read two debuts novel in a row now and they both have been amazing and have got me totally addicted to the authors. Jodi Meadows explores the concept of reincarnation. Do we come back in a different body after we die? Do humans really live more than one life? Then there is Ana. The only person in the land of Range who did not come back as another person. Jodi Meadows also explores how it feels to feel left out, like you aren't worthy and don't belong.

At the beginning of Incarnate I was skeptical that I was going to love the novel. I was having a hard time relating to Ana, but the novel quickly picked up and I fell in love with the world Jodi Meadows created. It is vivid and imaginative like I never expected. She created real pictures in my mind of walls with a beating heart, a library filled with millions of books, and a temple without a door. I like the fact that Jodi Meadows was not afraid to address religion as being the reason for reincarnation in this novel. I think this is a topic many authors have been afraid to cover, but Jodi Meadows wrote it in a beautiful way. This novel has its moments where is full of action, but there are many times the novel is rather calm and I liked it that way. There would be the action then time for Ana and Sam to just be humans.

I could tell how much imagination Jodi Meadows put into this amazing novel. We had dragons, slyphs, and as I mentioned before the heart beating walls of the city Heart. I'm so excited to learn more about these elements in the sequel Asunder. I loved the role these mythical creatures played in the novel.

At its heart Incarnate was a character driven novel. A million souls have been reincarnating for five thousand years so at this point many of them have had several lives and have bold personalities. Ana is a great character mostly because of her flaws. Her whole live she has been told that she is a NoSoul and that she stole Ciana's life. She is told that she is worthless by her own mother, Li. After going through that it is no doubt that she lacks self-confidence. I think her lack of confidence is what made her character and her decisions as a character so powerful. Although Ana may not know it though she is strong and makes many brave choices in this novel.

Then there was Sam, who rescued Ana. I fell in love with his character even after discovering that his real name was Dosam. Sam is a musician who hasn't written forever that is until he meets Ana. He finds new discoveries in his life. Sometimes I wonder if it would be rather humdrum to live a million lives in the same world. Sam was a very sweet character and complicated in so many ways. There always seemed like there was some secret that he just wasn't telling. I can't wait to find out more about his past.

Ana and Sam's love story was awe inspiring and the perfect addition to this novel. Their love was slow-moving and I liked that. I think Jodi Meadows picked the perfect scenes for them to show their love for each other. It took Sam to making Ana believe that her life is worth living. That she is not a NoSoul, but a NewSoul.

The question remains if the world should be populated by NewSouls or if Ana should remain the only NewSoul in a world full of people who have lived a lot of lives.

My favorite part of this novel had to be the Masquerade. Every moment of this scene was as breathtaking beautiful as the cover. This is the moment I really fell in love with Ana's character. I think it might have been the moment I knew for sure that Incarnate was a novel that I loved.

The ending was intense and action packed all the way to the end. I really wish I could just explode all my feelings about the ending, but that would spoil the novel. I felt awe, fear, anger, and happiness all at once at the end of Incarnate. Although I believe Incarnate wrapped up pretty well that it could be one novel. I'm so glad there is a sequel and a third book. I'm still curious about Ana's world. I want to find more and I want to read Asunder now. It is going to be impossible to wait to read Infinite.

Hosted by Bonnie @ A Backwards Story and Alexa @ Alexa Loves Books

It is not too late to join the Incarnate Series Readathon. I will have some other posts about Incarate up this week as part of the readathon. I hope you will consider reading the series. 

If you need another reason Incarnate is 1.99 on Amazon right now. 

Rachael 

Book Review: Pivot Point by Kasie West (no spoilers)

Book: Pivot Point
Author: Kasie West
Series: Pivot Point #1
Publication: February 12th, 2013
Source: Local Library
Read: January 6-9th, 2014
Summary (From Goodreads):

Knowing the outcome doesn’t always make a choice easier . . .

 Addison Coleman’s life is one big “What if?” As a Searcher, whenever Addie is faced with a choice, she can look into the future and see both outcomes. It’s the ultimate insurance plan against disaster. Or so she thought. When Addie’s parents ambush her with the news of their divorce, she has to pick who she wants to live with—her father, who is leaving the paranormal compound to live among the “Norms,” or her mother, who is staying in the life Addie has always known. Addie loves her life just as it is, so her answer should be easy. One Search six weeks into the future proves it’s not.

 In one potential future, Addie is adjusting to life outside the Compound as the new girl in a Norm high school where she meets Trevor, a cute, sensitive artist who understands her. In the other path, Addie is being pursued by the hottest guy in school—but she never wanted to be a quarterback’s girlfriend. When Addie’s father is asked to consult on a murder in the Compound, she’s unwittingly drawn into a dangerous game that threatens everything she holds dear. With love and loss in both lives, it all comes down to which reality she’s willing to live through . . . and who she can’t live without.

My Thoughts:
This book was beautiful, absolutely  beautiful. Kasie West's debut was a book I have seen all over the blogosphere and every review I had read raved about this novel. Yet I didn't pick up Pivot Point until my sister told me how much she thought I would enjoy it. I finished a novel and with no other book sitting around started Pivot Point.

I instantly fell in love with Addison Coleman and her life in the compound where every person has an ability. Addison just happens to be a searcher meaning faced with a choice she can see how her future will turn on depending on the choice she makes. Addison is faced with the ultimate decision in Pivot Point. Her parents have announced that they are getting divorced and she has to choose whether to live with her mom and the life she is used to in the compound or to live with her dad outside the compound with the "Norms" or the people without abilities. At first Addie thinks the decision will be easy, but her search will prove that neither option will be an easy decision.

The way the book is set up adds to the uniqueness of the plot. The chapters switched back and forth between Addie's life in the normal world and Addie's life in the compound. I think the author really played with my emotions well because there was a life I was particularly drawn to and still am. The author took the life I liked and made it the life I would never want for Addie.  She really proved to me that the choice for Addie was not easy. Even after all the bad things happened I was still wishing for Addie to be with one guy in the story.

The characters in this story were amazing. It starts off with Addie and her best friend Lailia. Lailia and Addie have been best friends forever so of course the fact that Addie might be leaving doesn't settle well with Lailia. Their friendship is the kind of friendship I would always have liked to have. They understand each other and push each other to try new things. In the end no matter what happens they would there for each other. It was fun to see their friendship develop. Then there is Duke the star quarter back. I didn't dislike Duke, but there was always something about him I was uncomfortable with. Duke's friend Bobby is the one I totally disliked and I understood why at the end. Then there are Addie's friends in the normal world. Trevor was an excellent character. I loved the way he was so shy, but yet he subtly found ways to hang out with Addison. Then there was his friend Rowan who was the exact opposite.

Addie was a complicated character. You could clearly see how the decision would change Addie. She changed so much throughout this novel. I really connected to her and how many choices she had to make. Her love story was amazing in this novel. I did have a favorite guy, but I won't tell you which one if you can't tell from above. I loved how different each relationship was because it really showed how different her life would be depending on the choice she made. I think each relationship had its strengths as well as its weakness as they are human after all and no relationship is perfect. Pivot Point also showed how a relationship can change the guys Addie was with whether it was for good or for bad is for you to find out when you read the novel.

Kasie West created a novel that swayed me as the reader towards one life and made me side with one Addison over the other. I said to my sister that it was almost like they were really twins like the cover shows. I think every step of this novel was amazing. I loved how much her two lives intermixed. I think that the intermixing will be an important element in the second novel Split Second. I really want Addie to have her happy ending probably because I'm a romantic at heart. Kasie West twisted my emotions and changed the novel in a way I wouldn't have wanted, but complicated the novel so there was room for a second novel. She also gave a cliffhanger ending that has me wondering the possibilities for Split Second.  The ending literally had me shaking waiting to turn the page and find out what happens. Sometimes I forgot she was in a search and thought it was real life. I can't wait to read the second novel. Pivot Point was everything I expected and more.

Pivot Point is a new and exciting adventure. I invite you to hop on and be prepared for a crazy ride.

Bout of Books Wrap Up

Bout of Books

This Bout of Books was actually really great for me. My goals were to read 700 pages, read 2-3 books, and read for at least 12 hours. This was my reading pile when I started Bout of Books Of Course it changed as the week went on. 

I read a total of 892 pages in 19 hours and 27 minutes in 7 days. That is an average of 127 pages per day and 1 hour and 46 minutes per day.  I'm really proud of this total. Last Bout of Books I read less pages in more hours, which was different because of the font size of the books I was ready and how close I had to pay attention to read them. This time I think I started out with some books that were quicker reads, but still easily amazing. This Bout of Books took place during my last week of winter break. I spent the mornings reading and the afternoons over at my neighbor's house to help out with the daycare kids. Then when I came home around 6 I would eat and spend the rest of the night reading. Now that I'm back at college I don't have the luxury to read as much, but my goal this semester is to keep up with homework so I have more time to read. 

Books Finished:

My goals compared to what I actually read is pretty good. I finished Zel and Pivot Point as planned. Then my interlibrary loan for Incarnate came in and I read that so my sister could have the book and read it. All of these were 5 stars novel and I'm so excited to share my love of the novels with you guys. I would suggest moving all these books up on your TBR list. 

Book Started:

I just started Allegiant and well it is amazing. 

Rachael