November Wrap Up

This November was Series Marathoning month, and the TBR ended up going through a few changes, but I had a good reading month and I read some really great books.

Friday Reads - November 29, 2013

Happy Friday! This weekend will be an interesting one. I'm a little behind in reading- I thought I would be done with the Precious Stone trilogy, but I've begun to feel an inkling of a reading slump coming on in the beginning of Emerald Green. Probably just because I don't want to finish the series, but I'm not sure. I've been reading samples of some other books, and if it persists I might just jump into Crown of Midnight and come back to Emerald Green in December. So this weekend's reads are kind of up in the air. How about you? Happy reading!

From a paper world,

V

A Series in Summation - Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan

Let's talk about one of the series I read in November- Percy Jackson. No, I hadn't read this before hand and a few of my friends kept telling me how great these books were, so I picked them up. Now, since I already discuss all of the individual books in my monthly wrap up that's coming, and I am definitely going to be discussing this series on the blog because I do love it, we aren't going to have a book by book breakdown on this post. Stay tuned until the end of the month for that info. For now, let's talk about the series as a whole.

Waiting on Wednesday - The Warrior by Victoria Scott

Welcome back to Paper Worlds and Swirls of Ink! Today's another Waiting on Wednesday post for you guys! This is a weekly feature that's hosted over at Breaking the Spine, and it's a great opportunity to highlight some books coming out that I'm excited to read. Last week, we talked about Unhinged, the sequel to Splintered, and I've got another book in a series that I'm spotlighting today!

Top Ten Tuesday - Top Ten Things I Am Thankful For

Welcome back to Top Ten Tuesday, and this week's theme is the Top Ten Things I Am Thankful For. I decided to make this a book edition and include books that really moved me or that I am especially thankful that I've read. Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme from The Broke and the Bookish.
These books are in no particular order, but they are all near and dear to me.

Friday Reads November 25, 2013

Welcome to a very brief Friday Reads post. This weekend I will be finishing up the Precious Stone trilogy by Kerstin Gier. This is a time traveling series, and I originally read Ruby Red about three years ago, but I reread it and enjoyed it a lot more this time. I'm currently in the very beginning of Sapphire Blue, and since I read Ruby Red very quickly (it's difficult to put that book down) I have a feeling I'll probably be done or nearly done with the trilogy by the end of this weekend. Happy reading!

From a paper world,

V

Waiting on Wednesday - Unhinged by A.G. Howard

Welcome to another weekly meme! This is Waiting on Wednesday, hosted over at Breaking the Spine. This is a weekly feature highlighting some upcoming books you just can't wait to dive into. This week's feature is probably one of my most anticipated sequels to come out next year and I can't wait to share it with you all!

Top Ten Tuesday - Top Ten Books I'd Recommend to a Middle Schooler

I had heard about Top Ten Tuesdays ages ago when I'd first started following some book blogs. I'm so excited to bring it here to Paper Worlds. Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that has different preset lists and is hosted at Broke and Bookish. This week's theme was Top Ten Books I'd Recommend to (insert a category of person here) and I picked a middle school reader.

Reading Review - Poison Dance by Livia Blackburne

Hi again! Today we are going to be talking about Poison Dance, a novella by Livia King Blackburne. This novella focuses on James, who will be a character in the novel that releases in 2014, Midnight Thief. I was really interested in Midnight Thief when I read its summary, and the mysterious leader of the Assassin Guild definitely sounded like a character I would be interested in meeting. Well, Poison Dance is his backstory, and it was fantastic to meet James. He is going to be a character to watch in Midnight Thief, and this was a great way to get to know him.

Friday Reads November 15, 2013

Welcome to another Friday Reads here at Paper Worlds. Currently, I'm still reading the Percy Jackson series, but I will definitely be finishing up this weekend. I'm about 50 pages from the end of book 4, The Battle of the Labyrinth. I'm enjoying it but this book has definitely taken me longer than I thought it would to get through, simply because it was a busy week. So, this weekend I'm going to be finishing up Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I've really been enjoying the series and I'm sad to see it end, but I have the Heroes of Olympus series to marathon sometime in 2014. Back to this weekend, I have a novella I'm going to read and review after I finish The Last Olympian, and then I'm going to start the Precious Stone trilogy by Kerstin Gier, starting by rereading the first book, Ruby Red. 
So there's a bit of a book filled weekend. I'm definitely excited for it. Happy reading!

From a paper world,
V

Booktube to Blogspot- How I Read Tag

Whenever I pull up Youtube, nothing makes me happier than seeing a ton of new Booktube videos. So, I thought we could bring some of that Booktube love to the blog here and start doing tags. My Sister Blog Sunny of Stardust and Words is doing the same, so expect some Tag Collaborations and some more fun to come from the both of us. She actually just did the Bump in the Night Tag (I'll link below) and I was going to do something along those lines, but then I saw the 'How I Read Tag' on Youtube. I checked out the questions and fell in love! So, without further ado, welcome to the How I Read Tag.

Stand Alone and Shine - Strands of Bronze and Gold by Jane Nickerson

This series on the blog is going to be more focused on stand alone books that were fantastic to me- four or five star books. Let's start with one of my favorites from the past month. 

Strands of Bronze and Gold by Jane Nickerson

The Bluebeard fairy tale retold. . . .

When seventeen-year-old Sophia Petheram’s beloved father dies, she receives an unexpected letter. An invitation—on fine ivory paper, in bold black handwriting—from the mysterious Monsieur Bernard de Cressac, her godfather. With no money and fewer options, Sophie accepts, leaving her humble childhood home for the astonishingly lavish Wyndriven Abbey, in the heart of Mississippi.

Sophie has always longed for a comfortable life, and she finds herself both attracted to and shocked by the charm and easy manners of her overgenerous guardian. But as she begins to piece together the mystery of his past, it’s as if, thread by thread, a silken net is tightening around her. And as she gathers stories and catches whispers of his former wives—all with hair as red as her own—in the forgotten corners of the abbey, Sophie knows she’s trapped in the passion and danger of de Cressac’s intoxicating world.

Glowing strands of romance, mystery, and suspense are woven into this breathtaking debut—a thrilling retelling of the “Bluebeard” fairy tale.

         I first picked this up at the beginning of the month, looking for a spooky read. I had noticed the beautiful cover on Goodreads and the idea of this sort of retelling interested me.This Bluebeard retelling certainly delivered! Strands of Bronze and Gold is a haunting novel set in an isolated abbey in the mid 1800s. The main character goes to live with her guardian after her father dies. Sophia is an interesting character. She undergoes some major character development as she first arrives a frivolous girl excited to see her wealthy benefactor. The relationship between these two was so complex I was amazed at how it had been developed within one novel. Sophia was an excellent narrator for her life at Wyndriven Abbey, and I loved the suspense that heightened as the story went on.
         Let's talk about Bernard for a second. He was an excellently written character, and part of what makes the drama in this story so intense. Whenever I was reading this, scenes with Bernard were always keeping me on the edge of my seat. You cannot predict this character, and he took an already fascinating and enthralling story to a whole new level.

        Some other key aspects of the book were the supporting characters. Whether they were servants or slaves within the Abbey, or those who were not a part of it, each character was unique and memorable. I appreciated the supporting characters because they really added to the atmosphere that was already eerie and strange. 
        I found this novel exceptionally well written with very interesting characters and a story that had me engrossed from the first chapter. I'd never read a Bluebeard retelling before and I enjoyed this story immensely. I gave this a 5 stars and think it is definitely a great read.

From the paper world,

V

Find it on Goodreads    Visit the Author's Site

Friday Reads - November 8, 2013

Alright, let's start Paper Worlds and Swirls of Ink's very first Friday Reads! This began as a twitter trend, transported into the Booktube-sphere, and now we are bringing it to the blogs. This Friday, I am still immersed in the Percy Jackson series. The Titan's Curse is the third book in the Percy Jackson series.  I had thought I would be finished reading through the series by now, but I'm definitely enjoying the books. Over the weekend I'll definitely be finishing up the series and starting on A Song of Ice and Fire this weekend. 

I've got a full review of the Percy Jackson series being written, probably as a Series in Summation piece (and stay tuned for a few of those coming out this month!) and I've been writing my segments for the Wrap Up as I finish the book so the review is fresh and can have more detailed thoughts. To see what I'm hoping to read throughout the month of November, check out the November TBR.  In the meantime, happy reading over the weekend, good luck to all of the Nanowrimo participants, and hope you're enjoying your Friday Reads!

From a paper world,

V

November TBR

Ok, let's take a quick look at the To Be Read pile for November.

November is series marathoning month, and I've got quite a few that I've been looking forward to getting through. I haven't marathoned a series in quite some time and I can remember being irritated by sequels taking time to explain the occurrences in a first book  I'm reading, but lately I've felt like I've needed some refresher since I get so busy plotlines fly out of my head. Book marathoning is reading multiple books in a series, or an entire series, back to back. It is great to immerse the reader in the world and stay in touch with the series. I'm excited to marathon series again since it has been awhile, and hopefully enjoy the series more.

Now that you've gotten a quick refresher on the book marathoning, let's get into the series.

October Wrap Up

I cannot believe it is the end of the month already! October is always wonderful, I love the fall time and Halloween especially is a favorite of mine. This month I didn't get through quite as many books as I'd anticipated, but I did really enjoy the books that I read this month in my spooky filled picks.