November 2016 Wrap Up: The Forgotten Month Edition -- oooOOOooo!

November was spoooky! Because it's like it never existed because I can't even tell you what I got done cause oooOOOOoooo -- spoooooky!

Or.

I'm just lame.

I kinda forgot it was December.

Which is weird because I've also been ranting all week "OMG IT'S DECEMBER AND I HAVE SO MUCH TO DO BEFORE CHRISTMAS!"

Selective memory?

Ga!

In any case, along with being lame I'm also very tired, busy, and lazy (but you love me cause I'm also awesome).

So!

Here is a (lame) list of books that I did stuff with this month!

Huzzah!

THE REVIEWS
Dotwav by Mike A. Lancaster | REVIEW 5 / 5 Stars
Sweet by Emmy Laybourne | REVIEW 4 / 5 Stars

NOVEMBER READS
The Women in the Walls by Amy Lukavics
The Diabolic by S.J. Kincaid
The Beast is an Animal by Peternelle van Arsdale

This part is new this month!
I'm wholly embracing my addiction to Instagram and really trying to up my Booksagram posts!
Here is what I put out there last month (I'm @WilowRaven if you want to give a follow - I'll most likely follow you back!)

A photo posted by Emily De Maria (@wilowraven) on Nov 2, 2016 at 3:22pm PDT

A photo posted by Emily De Maria (@wilowraven) on Nov 8, 2016 at 12:53pm PST

A photo posted by Emily De Maria (@wilowraven) on Nov 14, 2016 at 5:27pm PST

A photo posted by Emily De Maria (@wilowraven) on Nov 30, 2016 at 4:09am PST

Hope everyone had a greatNovemberHappy Reading!

October 2016 Wrap Up: The Woo hoo for Fall Edition

Summer is over!
Summer is over!

It's Fall!
It's Fall!

The leaves turned and they fell and they are crunchy and underfoot all the time and it's cold and I need socks on ALL the time and it's cider season and pumpkin spice everything season and I love love love it all!

Hey, anyone wanna guess what my favorite season is ;)

October brought so many changes. The weather finally finally turned and I don't have to think about sweating anymore! The leaves in NH are so freaken beautiful - even if they are everywhere - I love each and every one.

And guys, I'm not gonna lie. Pumpkin Spice coffee? OMG I LOVE IT!

With so much FALLNESS happening around me, I kinda got wrapped up in all and didn't really spend any quality time here at Red House Books (insert sad music here).

But, you know what I'm gonna say!

It's totally ok!

Let's see what I did manage to get done, shall we?

Oh - and no pics or links this month cause I gots no time for that tonight ;)

THE REVIEWS
Black Widow Forever Red by Margaret Stohl | 5/5 Stars
Black Widow Red Vengeance by Margaret Stohl | 5/5 Stars

OCTOBER READS
The Darkest Corners by Kara Thomas
Black Widow Red Vengeance by Margaret Stohl
The Thousandth Floor by Katharine McGee
The Continent by Keira Drake
Winterkill by Kate A. Boorman

September Wrap Up Post: Yeah

Hey guys!

Happy October!

I love October!

Fall in New England is kinda fantastic. I highly recommend it! But don't be one of those leave peepers giving me road rage - m'kay? ;)

If you read my wrap up last month you might remember it was a bit...different.


via GIPHY
Not to worry -- I'm feeling much better now!

Because it's -- OCTOBER! Woo hoo!

Oh, and I actually managed to read in September! AND looking back through things, and previous thoughts notwithstanding, I actually did read in August. Let's take a look, shall we?


READ IN AUGUST and SEPTEMBER

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling
Bluescreen by Dan Wells
Dotwav by Mike A. Lancaster
Burning by Danielle Rollins

Been Here All Along by Sandy Hall
Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard
Gemina by Amie Kaufman and
Black Widow: Forever Red by Margaret Stohl
Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Cordova

...and....it took me 9 days to realize I didn't post this....

I. Am. Awesome.

Happy Reading Everyone!

July 2016 Wrap Up: The Full of Memories Edition

July was a hard month. My grandpa passed away at 96 years old. He lived a good life and was surrounded by family for all of it, right up until the very end.

My grandpa-pa was very special and I find that on most days, even though the sadness of his loss is still felt, I find myself smiling when I think of him.

So many many great memories!

And I'm beyond words happy that my daughter, his great-granddaughter, is old enough to have known him and most importantly, to remember him!

So yeah, not a whole lot of blog focus this month which, ( I hope at this point I don't really need to say) is totally OK!

I did do some things though...and because reading always helps my mood - I did get in some good books.

Let's take a look!

And don't forget to add your own Monthly Review post to Nicole's Round Up!

THE REVIEWS

Heir to the Sky by Amanda Sun | REVIEW 5 / 5 Stars

How to Hang a Witch by Adriana Mather | REVIEW 5 / 5 Stars

JUNE READS

Feed by M.T. Anderson
Unplugged by Donna Freitas
This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab
How to Hang a Witch by Adriana Mather
The May Queen Murders by Sarah Jude

Hope everyone had a great June! Happy Reading!

June 2016 Wrap Up: The Month of Normal Happenings Edition

Hey guys!

Guess what?

Say it with me now:

"I can't believe it's July already!"

Now that we've gotten that out of the way, let's talk about June.

Guys, June was so normal! And not in a bad way!

My daughter finished the 4th grade, and since her school is closing and I'm a active member of the PTA I had a large amount of 'Mom' things to get done and I had to travel for work and get my car serviced and all of these things are totally normal and could have been totally boring but I'm sorta cray cray and I'm really good at keeping the boring monster under that pile of old blankets in the basement - right where it belongs!

(On an unrelated note, I'm also very good at run-on sentences)

Oh!

And I scheduled the shiitake mushrooms outa posting this month!

Like, I never schedule - ok - not true - I always schedule tour posts and promo posts and sometimes TTT or WOW posts but never consistently.

But in June? I was a scheduling monster! It was fabulous and didn't feel like a chore at all because I was doing what I wanted when I wanted. #bliss

Oh wow,look at all those words up there...let's get one with things, shall we?

Linking it up all over at Nicole's cause she's the bomb diggity ;)

THE REVIEWS

Symptoms of Being Human by Jeff Garvin | REVIEW 4 / 5 Stars

Reign of Shadows by Sophie Jordan | REVIEW 5 / 5 Stars

Dark Energy by Robison Wells | REVIEW 5 / 5 Stars

The Accident Season by Moira Fowley-Doyle | REVIEW 4 / 5 Stars

Gena/Finn by Hannah Moskowitz and Kat Helgeson | REVIEW 3 / 5 Stars

JUNE READS

Change Places With Me by Lois Metzger

Safekeeping by Karen Hesse

Afterward by Jennifer Mathieu

The Girl I Used To Be by April Henry

Kill the Boy Band by Goldy Moldavsky

One Was Lost by Natalie D. Richards

Hope everyone had a great June!
Happy Reading!

May 2016 Wrap Up: The Plan All the Things Edition

Hello hello!

Happy June!

I'm so very much looking forward to sweating out of places the chilling embrace of winter helped me forget existed!
Summer is the bestest thing ever!!

#sarcasm

Whelp! Let's lookie loo and see what I was up to May - shall we?

May was...Mayish? I don't know - I wasn't really paying attention cause I was too busy making plans.

What plans? ALL THE PLANS!

Like seriously, my organizational skills were killer in May. I wrote shit down. I got shit done. I only forgot a very small pile of shit but it was gross and it's ok, we don't have to talk about it.

With all that planning going on, it's a wonder I was able to get any blogging done! I must be the most perfectest blogger ever! #evenmoresarcasm

You guys still there?

Ok, good cause it's book time baby! What was I up to last month?

THE REVIEWS
A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab | REVIEW 5/5 Stars
Shallow Graves by Kali Wallace | REVIEW 5/5 Stars
The Mystery of Hollow Places by Rebecca Podos | REVIEW 3/5 Stars
Harmony House by Nic Sheff | REVIEW 2/5 Stars
Half Bad by Sally Green | REVIEW 5/5 Stars
Into the Dim by Janet B. Taylor | REVIEW 3/5 Stars

MAY READS
You Were Here by Cori Mccarthy
Gena / Finn by Hannah Moskowitz and Kat Helgeson
Heir to the Sky by Amanda Sun
And I Darken by Kiersten White

Hope everyone had a great May! #notsarcasm

Happy Reading!

April 2016 Wrap Up: The Mini Blarg Edition

March was very blarg - very very very blarg.

April was only a little blarg. Kinda like the annoying littler brother of March.

I felt horrible in March -- and only slightly horrible for a small part of April.

It just took so so long for me to get back on track - of everything! Blogging, reading, life!

Very happy to say that everything is just about normal here in my little chunk of crazy town.

And! Because I do still live in crazy town (I should stress, of my own choosing) I'm keeping it simple again this month with the visuals.

:)

THE REVIEWS
Read Bottom Up by Heel Shah and Skye Chatham | REVIEW 4/5 Stars
Wink Poppy Midnight by April Genevieve Tucholke | REVIEW 2.5/5 Stars

APRIL 2016 READS
Seven Black Diamonds by Melissa Marr
Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire
The Accident Season by Moira Fowley-Doyle
Username: Evie by Joe Sugg
Harmony House by Nic Sheff
Winky Poppy Midnight by April Genevieve Tucholke

Hope everyone had a great
March!
Happy Reading!

March 2016 Wrap Up: The I went bye bye Edition

March sucked.

A minor, extremely inconvenient and very persistent medical condition kept me sidelined for most of the month.

I'm still recovering and it could have been worse.

Today I can say that I have put everything in perspective. A few weeks ago, no amount of perspective was keeping the 2am panic attacks at bay.

On a totally related note, my boyfriend is a saint.

A saint I say!

He took care of me, the house, me some more, our daughter, me again -- and he's still going strong.

Love you babe!


Also on a related note, my energy levels are still way low...and I'm lazy...

So.

Here's a list of stuff and things :)

I reviewed stuff!
Jane Steele by Lyndsay Faye | REVIEW 5/5 Stars
Until the Beginning by Amy Plum | REVIEW 4/5 Stars
Strangelets by Michelle Gagnon | REVIEW 4/5 Stars

I read things!
The Rule of Mirrors by Carah M. O'Brien
Into the Dim by Janet B. Taylor
A Gathering of Shadows by V.E. Schwab

Still linking it up at Feed Your Fiction Addiction cause even thought I'm lame Nicole is not ;)

Happy Reading everyone!

February 2016 Wrap Up: The Winter Edition...NOT!

It's March and I still feel like I'm waiting for winter.

This has been such a strange season. Almost no snow, thunder storms. -40 degree wind chills, SUN -- like seriously, I'm confused.

My system is all kinds of, not knowing what the hell to feel. Should I be looking forward to spring and warmth? But it's already not very cold. Am I looking forward to the snow melting? Except it's pretty much already gone. What about all those no school, snow days I love?! One -- I got one!

Yeah - I really don't know what to do with February.

At least my reading and blogging were (pretty) good!

I mean, I'm not looking for perfection here! (And seriously, how would one be a 'perfect reader' or a 'perfect blogger'? Sounds boring to me ;)

So! Let's see what I was up to, shall we?

Linking it up over at Feed Your Fiction Addiction cause Nicole = awesome ;)

THE REVIEWS

The Detour by S.A. Bodeen | REVIEW 4/5 Stars
Amity by Micol Ostow | REVIEW 4/5 Stars
After the End by Amy Plum | REVIEW 4/5 Stars

FEBRUARY READS

Reign of Shadows by Sophie Jordan

The Abyss Surrounds Us by Emily Skrutskie

Dark Energy by Robison Wells

Symptoms of Being Human by Jeff Garvin

Stars Above by Marissa Meyer

Read Bottom Up: A Novel by Neel Shah and Skye Chatham

Hope everyone had a great
February!
Happy Reading!

January 2016 Wrap Up: The Where Did I Go? Edition

Hello hello!
It's February! Happy Leap Year!

January is done and gone and bye, bye, don't let the door hit you on the way out!

I did...a lot of stuff...

Holiday hangover (which lasts ALMOST all month),
de-decorating (why does it take so long!),
birthdays (woo hoo! yeah baby!),
ALA (never been before - it was so much awesome!)

and blogging!....Blogging? Um...yeah...no....not so much.

Yeah - I had a whole lotta 'aint got time for that' laying around and thought it would be fun to smear it all over January ;)

The books though, people! We can't forget about the books!
I read all of them and it was fabulous! (p.s. all = 10)

:)

Link it up over at Feed Your Fiction Addiction - cause she was my OTSP Secret Sister these past months and it was so so so much fun spoiling her and I'm going to miss her so much! Thanks for putting up with me as your secret sis Nicole!!

Alrighty then!

THE REVIEWS

Sanctuary Bay by Laura J. Burns and Melinda Metz | REVIEW 4/5 Stars
My Second Life by Faye Bird | REVIEW 4/5 Stars

JANUARY READS

Sanctuary Bay by Laura J. Burns

My Second Life by Faye Bird

The Big Dark by Rodman Philbrick

Jane Steele by Lyndsay Faye

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

Zeroes by Scott Westerfeld

Shallow Graves by Kali Wallace

Rebel Mechanics by Shanna Swendson

The Mystery of Hollow Places by Rebecca Podos

Until The Beginning by Amy Plum

Hope everyone had a great
January!
Happy Reading!

December 2015 Wrap Up: The I didn't do anything so this is a really easy post...Edition

Easiest Wrap Up post eva!!

Why?

Oh, it's just a little matter of the fact that I did almost NO reading in December and NO blogging in December and the fact that I remembered to put shoes on leaving the house each day was cause for celebration.

December was wonderful - and stressful - but mostly wonderful - and BUSY!

(I'm so sorry my lovey little books...I do love you...even though all I did last month was shuffle your piles and cram you onto shelves to get you out of the way)

So? What did I read and review?

2 things...TWO!

But really - the month was wonderful, so I'm actually not complaining :)

THE REVIEW

Winter by Marissa Meyer | REVIEW 5/5 Stars

DECEMBER READS

The Detour by S. A. Bodeen

Hope everyone had a great

December!

Happy New Year!

November 2015 Wrap Up: The Yeah, It's That Time of Year Edition

It's December and it's cold and it might snow soon and I have ALL the things to get ready and ALL the cookies to bake and ALL the Merry Making to Make!

November was a bit of a blur and I haven't actually been able to blog for a few weeks .

I'm not letting it get me down though.

One of the reasons I stopped blogging a few years ago was because it felt like a chore and it wasn't fun anymore because I would get so upset and so mad when I didn't blog -or if I didn't blog 'right'.

I'm done with all of that.

That's not to say I didn't get some twinges of angst as more and more days went by without a post going up.

But you know what? It's all good.

I'm still happy doing what I'm doing!

Now - let's see what I was up to in November.

(Linking it up over Feed Your Fiction Addiction and if you post a monthly wrap up you should too!)

THE REVIEWS

Daughters Unto Devils by Amy Lukavics | REVIEW 5/5 Stars
The Bargaining by Carly Anne West | REVIEW 3.5/5 Stars
Hello? by Liza Wiemer | REVIEW 4.5/5 Stars
Fairest by Marissa Meyer | REVIEW 5/5 Stars
Nirvana by J.R. Stewart| REVIEW 2/5 Stars

NOVEMBER READS

Strangelets by Michelle Gagnon
Hello? by Liza Wiemer
Fairest by Marissa Meyer
Winter by Marissa Meyer
After the End by Amy Plum

Hope everyone had a great

November!

Happy Reading!

October 2015 Wrap Up: The I Love Read-A-Thons and Holy Hell how did all this candy get into my house...Edition

It's November!

That means it's almost December!

That means...shut your face! It is NOT almost Christmas people - DO YOU HEAR ME!?


Ok...so I might be one of those last minute holiday EVERYTHING people. I'm pretty old and set in my ways so I don't see that changing anytime soon - might as well embrace it right?

Good thing I have ALL THIS CANDY to sooth me.

There's the: bought for trick-or-treaters but really some of it is for me candy
There's the: from my wonderful #OTSPSecretSister candy
There's the: daughter who trick-or-treated the hell out of the entire neighborhood candy
There's the: oops, forgot about that pile of candy candy

Basically there is candy everywhere and while I'm all perfect parent "No, honey no candy tonight" I'm also all "Is she asleep yet? Will she hear me rip open this Snickers and shove it in my face?"

Yeah - I gotta say I have a love / hate relationship with October.

One thing (new to me!) that I did absolutely love was the 24 Hour Dewey Read-A-Thon! Totally a last minute join in on my part and I didn't make it through all 24 hours but I did get a ton read AND it kicked my reading into high gear for the rest of the month!

Linking it up over at Feed Your Fiction Addiction!

Let's see what I got up to last month!

THE REVIEWS

Undertow by Michael Buckley - REVIEW | 5/5 Stars
Dark Metropolic by Jaclyn Dolamore - REVIEW | 5/5 Stars
Signs Point to Yes by Sandy Hall - REVIEW | 5/5 Stars

These SHallow Graves by Jennifer Donnelly - REVIEW | 4/5 Stars
The Devil and Winnie Flynn by Micol Ostow and David Ostow- REVIEW | 3/5 Stars
Cress by Marissa Meyer - REVIEW | 5/5 Stars


OCTOBER READS

These Shallow Graves by Jennifer Donnelly
Daughters Unto Devils by Amy Lukavics
George by Alex Gino
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

This Dark Endeavor by Kenneth Oppel
The Truth About Alice by Jennifer Mathieu
You're Never Weird on the Internet by Felicia Day
Cress by Marissa Meyer

All the Truth That's In Me by Julie Berry
Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
Nirvana by J.R. Stewart

Hope everyone had a great

October!

Happy Reading!

September 2015 Wrap Up: The I'm a Broken Record and a Total Cliche Edition

Hey guys!

Guess what?

"I can't believe it's already October."

"Last month flew by so fast."

"It feels like summer just started"

*sigh*

Yeah -- all of that.

BUT!

It totally feels like Fall here in New England and it's fabulous! Apple Cider and pumpkins and comfy socks and cozy blankets -- I freaken love it all!

Anyone else love this time of year as much as I do? :)

Now - onto the books!

Linking up again over at Feed Your Fiction Addiction :)
(so sorry for leaving out "Fiction" in my mention / link last month!)

THE REVIEWS

Powerless by Tera Lynn Childs and Tracy Deebs - REVIEW | 3.5 /5 Stars
The Body Electric by Beth Revis - REVIEW | 2 /5 Stars
The Lost Girl by R.L. Stine - REVIEW | 5 /5 Stars
The Sweet Dead Life by Joy Preble - REVIEW | 2.5 /5 Stars
Scarlet by Marissa Meyer - REVIEW | 5 /5 Stars

SEPTEMBER READS

The Lost Girl by R.L. Stine
Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
The Devil and Winnie Flynn by Micol Ostow and David Ostow
Signs Point to Yes by Sandy Hall
Tomboy: A Graphic Memoir by Liz Prince

Hope everyone had a great September!

Happy Reading!!

August 2015 Wrap Up: The What the Hell Do You Mean It's September Edition

Ga!

It's September.

Summer is oooo-va!

And it's still freaken hot.

Where is my deliciously brisk and wonderful Fall weather?

Hmmm?

Oh - and yes, there was still sweat. Icky sticky icky ick sweat.

Hey, you know what's better then all these things?

BOOKS!

Woo hoo!

Let's see what I was up to this month.

Linking it up over at Feed Your Addiction again cause I'm cool like that :)


THE REVIEWS

The Vault of Dreamers by Carah M. O'Brien - REVIEW | 3.5/5 Stars
Murwood Graphic Novel by Jeff Wheeler - REVIEW | 3.5/5 Stars
Glitch by Brenda Pandos - REVIEW | 4/5 Stars
Killer Instinct by S.E. Green - REVIEW | 5/5 Stars
The Sculptor by Scott McCloud - REVIEW | 3.5/5 Stars
Cinder by Marissa Meyer - RE-REVIEW | 5/5 Stars


AUGUST READS - BOOKS

The Body Electric by Beth Revis
Sweet by Emmy Laybourne
Cinder by Marissa Meyer (re-read)
Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Thomas Sweterlitsch
Amity by Micol Ostow

AUGUST READS - COMICS

Muirwood: The Lost Abbey #1
Doctor Who The Ninth Doctor #2
Jem #3
Jem #4
Jem #5

AUGUST READS - COMICS (Bound Vols)

Captain Marvel Vol 1: Higher, Further, Faster, More
Ms. Marvel Vol 3: Crushed
Batman / Superman Vol 1: Cross Worlds

AUGUST READS - GRAPHIC NOVELS

The Good Neighbors Book Two: Kith by Holly Black
The Good Neighbors Book Three: Kind by Holly Black
The Bad Doctor by Ian Williams


Hope everyone had a fabulous August!

Happy Reading!

July 2015 Wrap-Up: The Sweaty Edition

The last half of July was hot and gross for me -- I got a lot of sweating out of the way so let's hope I'm all dried up for August!

What? It doesn't work that way?
*sigh*

Ok - I guess I did a few more things in the last month besides sweat -- like START BLOGGING AGAIN!!

Woo hoo!

*throws confetti*
*gets confetti in mouth*
*chokes on confetti*
*sits down down quietly in the corner*

Anyway!

Here's what I was getting on to in July!

Linking it up over at Feed Your Addiction's Monthly Wrap-Up Round-Up (and you should too ;)

POSTS

• The 'I'm Back' one
• Review of THE LAST MARTIAN (go read this)
• Review of INKED (read this also!)
• Wishlist books added in June

ADDED TO MY WISHLIST IN JULY

 

You're Never Weird on the Internet by Felicia Day / August 2015

(love her!)

Beauty's Kingdom (Sleeping Beauty #4) by A.N. Roquelaure aka Anne Rice

(The only erotica I have ever, and probably will ever, read!)

Wide Open by Deborah Coates

(1st in a contemporary fantasy series)

The Three-Body Problem by Liu Cixin

(It's huge in China! 1st in a sci-fi series translated to English. Fermi Paradox baby! Ooo yeah!)

Beautiful Creatures: The Manga by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

(Didn't know this existed until recently and now I wants!)

OTHER FUN STUFFS

I became part of the world of the On The Same Page Secret Sister project (OTSPSecretSister).
Run by a trio of bloggers - Brittany from Book Addicts Guide, Alyssa from Books Take you Places and Amy from Tripping Over Books, OTSPSecretSister is a like a six month secret santa. We each get matched with a 'sister' and for the next 6 months we're sending all sorts of goodies (while trying to keep our identity secret). This round runs from August - January and I'm having a blast!

I've joined the Lunar Chronicles Read (or re-read) Along! This month we are reading Cinder and will continue with 1 book a month until the release of book 4 in November. If you haven't read this series, now is a good time to start!


That's all for now!
Be sure you leave your warp-up posts in the comments and / or add yours to the list over at Feed Your Addiction.

Happy Reading everyone!