Mid-Year Reading Challenge Update

Slightly late on providing these reading challenge updates! It's July...slightly over halfway!

Reading Challenges

- Goodreads challenge: I'm slightly behind....dang wedding in May ;) 

- ROMANCE READING CHALLENGE: Nearly done!! Only 4 left!

- Audiobook  Challenge: I think I'm on schedule (if anything a touch behind)? I am currently at 29 out of 75+.

(TBR) Pile Challenge - I've read 4 of the 12. I'm behind on this one too. I really need to get reading more of these. 

• The Scarlet Lion (William Marshal #3) by Elizabeth Chadwick
• Love Medicine (Love Medicine #1) by Louise Erdrich
• Jasmine Nights by Julia Gregson
• Beautiful Assassin by Michael C. White
• Cruel Beauty (Cruel Beauty Universe) by Rosamund Hodge
• The Queen of Subtleties: A Novel of Anne Boleyn by Suzannah Dunn
• A Golden Age (Bangla Desh #1) by Tahmima Anam  
• That Summer by Lauren Willig
• As Old as Time by Liz Braswell
• Mrs. Shakespeare by Robert Nye 
• Bad Boys in Kilts (Chisholm Brothers #1) by Donna Kauffman
• The Loch (Loch #1) by Steve Alten

Book Review: Hostage to Pleasure by Nalini Singh

Author: Nalini Singh

Title: Hostage to Pleasure

(Psy-Changeling #5)

Genre: Paranormal Romance, UF, SciFi, Fantasy

Format: ebook

Pages: 330

Published: September 2nd 2008

Where I Got It: Borrowed from library

Summary: 

Separated from her son and forced to create a neural implant that will mean the effective enslavement of her psychically gifted race, Ashaya Aleine is the perfect Psy—cool, calm, emotionless . . . at least on the surface. Inside, she's fighting a desperate battle to save her son and escape the vicious cold of the PsyNet. Yet when escape comes, it leads not to safety, but to the lethal danger of a sniper's embrace.

DarkRiver sniper Dorian Christensen lost his sister to a Psy killer. Though he lacks the changeling ability to shift into animal form, his leopard lives within. And that leopard's rage at the brutal loss is a clawing darkness that hungers for vengeance. Falling for a Psy has never been on Dorian's agenda. But charged with protecting Ashaya and her son, he discovers that passion has a way of changing the rules . . .

Review:

The last one of the series was meh for me, so I was a little nervous about starting this one.

Here we follow Ashaya and Dorian. Ashaya is the perfect Psy. She is cool, calm, and emotionless...at least on the surface. When she is separated from her son and forced to create a neural implant that will mean the effective enslavement of her race, she is forced to escape. Which lands her in more danger with the DarkRiver sniper named Dorian. Dorian is a changeling, but he lacks the ability to actually transform into his animal form. After losing his sister to a Psy Killer, he has a rage building and he hungers for vengeance. Falling for each other is not on the agenda. 

I struggled a little bit with this one. Mainly because I didn't buy them as a couple. I liked them both, but as a couple? It seemed so impossible and the chemistry seemed lacking. 

However, I loved watching the story unfold. I couldn't stop reading because I had to know how everything was going to be fixed. The bad guy was fun! Super bad. 

I love this world even though there is such bad blood between the races.

Maybe in the next book, we'll see more of Ashaya and Dorian and I'll understand and see them be all in love and happy. But yes, even though I struggled with this couple I can't wait for the next book. Things are getting good. 

In the end, this was okay. I struggled with seeing them fall in love and etc, but I enjoyed the story itself and the world. Can't wait for the next book. I'll give this 3 stars. 

 

Blodeuedd's Monday Review: The Queen of Sorrow by Sarah Beth Durst

 

415 pages, Hardcover

Series: The Queens of Renthia (#3)

May 15, 2018 by Harper Voyager

Fantasy /own

This was a chore to finish. I liked book 1, book 2 was not as strong, but I still wanted to try 3. And 3 was an utter disappointment. I wanted to dnf, but since it was the third I tried my best.

I hated everyone.

The spirits should just eat everyone!

Srsly the bad guy! Whatever

Nope nope nope

Queen Daleina has yearned to bring peace and prosperity to her beloved forest home—a hope that seemed doomed when neighboring forces invaded Aratay. Now, with the powerful Queen Naelin ruling by her side, Daleina believes that her dream of ushering in a new era can be realized, even in a land plagued by malevolent nature spirits who thirst for the end of human life. And then Naelin’s children are kidnapped by spirits.

Nothing is more important to her than her family, and Naelin would rather watch the world burn than see her children harmed. Blaming the defeated Queen Merecot of Semo for the kidnapping, Naelin is ready to start a war—and has the power to do it.

But Merecot has grander plans than a bloody battle with her southern neighbors. Taking the children is merely one step in a plot to change the future of all Renthia, either by ending the threat of spirits once and for all . . . or plunging the world into chaos.

Movie Review: Turning Red (2022)

Title: Turning Red

Length:  1h 40m

Released: 2022

Genre:  Animation, Comedy, Adventure
Rating: PG
Where I Got It: Disney+

SUMMARY:

A 13-year-old girl named Meilin turns into a giant red panda whenever she gets too excited.

Click here for the trailer

REVIEW:

Finally got to finish watching this movie. I honestly kept forgetting to go back and watch the last half. Dang wedding getting in my way!

Here we follow Meilin who just turned 13. After turning 13 she finds herself turning into a giant red panda whenever she gets too excited. 

I adore red pandas so I was so excited to see them get some love here!

Plus what a fun coming-to-age story! I loved it so much! So dang cute. I'll admit I had a couple tears during a certain scene. 

This had all the feels. There are lots of laughs, sadness, joy, anger, and the feeling of wanting to dance! I would've LOVED to be friends with these guys when I was 13. 

That ending was perfect.

People are all mad about them insinuating that Meilin getting her period. Like chillax. Little kids and babies won't get adult humor or insinuations. They will be distracted by the huge red panda! People need to relax and grow up. 

In the end, I loved this film!! Def worth the watch. 5 stars from me.