New Reading Challenge Time!!! COYER Summer Vacation Challenge! YESSSSS!

 

As I was updating my blog tonight with some recent reviews . . . I noticed that I was getting a bit bored with the 2014 reading challenges that I am participating in.  It is summer and I need something new, when lo and behold one Pinterest search and I find the COYER Summer Vacation Challenge!

This is my sign up post!  Let’s get some great summer reading done!  I’m glad they bent the rules a bit for this summer challenge as I have a load of TBR paperbacks I need to get through . . .YESSSSSS!  Let’s do this.

Here are the rules if you are interested in joining . . .

Summer’s around the corner and you know what that means? SUMMER VACATION! It’s time to take a break from the work and rules and just let loose! And COYER’s going on Summer Vacation too! What does that mean exactly? That we’re throwing away all most of the rules! You ready?!

COYER Summer Vacation COYER Summer Vacation will start on the first day of summer and end the weekend after labor day. So that’s June 21st – September 5th! On September 6th we will announce the winners of TWO $10 Giftcards for Amazon or Barnes & Noble. There will be several opportunities for other prizes throughout the event.

The Rules

1. You must create a sign-up post anytime between now and August 15th -on blog, goodreads, fb, google+, etc. Yes, that means you can sign up until August 15th! But don’t wait, you’ll miss most of the fun!

2. You must link the sign-up post below (don’t link to your blog, link to the sign-up post).

3. You must post your review books somewhere & link the reviews to the review linky to be eligible for one of the grand prize giveaways.

4. Have Fun!

More information at http://www.becausereading.com/coyers-summer-vacation-sign

 

And remember,

Books Are Life,

Heather

 

2014 TBR Pile Reading Challenge!

Thank you to the people at Bookish who are hosting this fabulous reading challenge!!

Here is the scoop for this challenge:

We all have those books. We buy them, win them, they’re gifted to us.. Then we put them up on a bookshelf and there they stay, collecting dust, waiting for the time when we’ll finally decide to pick them up..

Join us on a quest to dust off your TBR Pile and read all the books you’ve been telling yourself you’ll read next time you’ll get a chance.. This is your chance! And we’ve got PRIZES!!! 😀

Challenge Guidelines:

1. This challenge will run from Jan 1, 2014 – Dec 31, 2014.
2. Anyone can enter! You don’t have to be a blogger, as long as you review the book you’ve read! (On your blog, Amazon, Random Buzzers or Goodreads/Shelfari!)
3. Any genre, length or format of book counts, as long as it is a book that’s been sitting on your shelf for some time now. Short stories and novellas are OK, too! Only books released in 2013 and earlier! NO  2014 ARCs and 2014 fresh-off-the-press releases allowed!
4. You can list your books in advance or just put them in a wrap-up post. If you list them, feel free to change them as the mood takes you.
5. When you sign up in the linky, put the direct link to your post about joining the 2013 TBRPILE Reading Challenge. (If you don’t have a blog, post about it on Facebook or Tweet!)
6. You can move up levels, but no moving down.
7. Sign-ups will be open until Dec 15, 2014, so feel free to join at any time throughout the year.
8. On the 20th of each month we will post a wrap-up post, here, on BOOKISH. Every wrap-up will have it’s unique theme, a mini-challenge, a giveaway and place for you to link up your reviews from this month. For each review you link up, you will get one entry in a drawing of one book of choice from Book Depository. It’s open to INTERNATIONALS. The giveaway will be open until the next wrap up post goes up! (i.e. the entire month)
9. If you miss a wrap-up post + giveaway, you can link up your reviews next month. Do not, however, try to link up one review twice – we will be checking 😉
10. December is a wrap-up for the whole year. All the book reviews you linked up January-November + the ones you’ll link up in December will be entered into a GRAND PRIZE giveaway.
11. You don’t have to follow Bookish Blog to join the challenge, but you do have to follow us to be entered in giveaways!

Levels:

(how many books you’re planning to read for this challenge in 2014)

1-10 – A Firm Handshake

11-20 – A Friendly Hug

21-30 – First Kiss

31-40 – Sweet Summer Fling

41-50 – Could this be love?

50+ – Married With Children

What’s New:

1. 2014’s edition of the TBR Pile Reading Challenge will be hosted EXCLUSIVELY on Bookish. Co-hosting with other awesome bloggers was fun, but due to too many hiccups along the way, our Bookish Team has decided to take over to ensure that everything goes smoothly this time.
2. For your convenience and to ensure you won’t miss any important posts / wrap-ups / updates / contests, we have created a mailing list! We invite you to sign up to receive all the important news in the mail (no more searching the web for wrap-up posts and missing out on all the fun!). You can sign up here: !! JOIN 2014 TBR PILE READING CHALLENGE MAILING LIST!! !!
3. To help you tackle your TBR Piles, we will also be hosting monthly Read-A-Longs with prizes! And this time, you’ll get to VOTE on the book we’ll read together! Join the mailing list mentioned above to never miss out on the fun! Please note: You don’t have to take part in our read-a-longs to participate in the TBR Pile challenge – or you can just take part in some of them, and skip the rest – participation is optional, tho we would certainly love to discuss the books with you!
4. We have sponsors! Which of course means more fun prizes!! YAY!

Considering the size of my TBR piles . . . yes piles . . . I believe I will be going for the:

First Kiss: 21-30 books

Here is hoping by TBR piles go down in 2014!

And remember,

Books Are Life,

Heather

Cruisin Through The Cozies Challenge 2014

 

Welcome to the fourth annual Cruisin’ thru the Cozies Reading Challenge! I’m still loving the cozies and this is one of the few challenges I plan to continue hosting.

To find out exactly what a cozy mystery is, check out Cozy-Mystery.com. This site is dedicated to cozy mysteries and does a great job of defining them as well as giving a list of cozy mysteries. This challenge is NOT restricted to what is on their list, it’s just to be used as a guideline in case you need some hints on what to read.

So, here are the rules…

1. Choose the level you wish to participate:

Level 1 – Snoop – Read at least 6 books

Level 2 – Investigator – Read 7-12 books

Level 3 – Super Sleuth – Read 13 or more books

****AMENDED:  LEVEL 3 – SUPER SLEUTH – READ 13-20 BOOKS

LEVEL 4 – Sleuth Extraordinaire – Read 20 or more

2. The challenge runs from January 1, 2014 and ends December 31, 2014.

3. You don’t have to choose your books in advance. If you do, you can change your list at any time during the year. Books can overlap with other challenges.

4. Books can be in any format – paper, audio, ebooks…it all counts!

5. You don’t have to post a review, but I’m sure others would love to know about the books you are reading and may even want to add it to their reading lists.

NOTE: If you don’t have a blog and want to participate, that’s fine. You don’t have to have a blog, just post in the comments section as you finish books.  If you belong to a site like Goodreads and review the books there, that’s fine too.  Just leave us the link.  I also have a group for this challenge on Goodreads and you can sign up by clicking here.

6. Take the button above, put it on your blog and post about the challenge. Then add your name to Mr. Linky below. Please use the link of your challenge post, not the link to your home page.

7.  I’m going to have one link for signing up, one link for completed reviews and one link for your wrap up posts.  I won’t be having a monthly link, just one for all reviews read for this challenge.

Yay!  This is definitely one of my favorite reading challenges of every year as I absolutely LOVE all of my cozy series . . . especially many of the new ones that are coming out! 

I’m jumping right on the:

LEVEL 4 – Sleuth Extraordinaire – Read 20 or more

Can’t wait to consume many cozies this year!

And remember,

Books Are Life,

Heather

Foodies Read Challenge 2014

Welcome to the 2014 edition of Foodies Read! 

If you are new to a food/reading challenge, you may be wondering – what is a “food book”? A food book is a book which is centered around food and/or drinks. That could be a cookbook, a food biography or memoir, a non-fiction book focused around a specific food, wine, chef or restaurant, or a fictional story in which food plays a major role.
Here’s how the challenge works:

1. Decide how many food books you want to read in 2014.  Pick one of the reading levels below:

Levels:

Short-Order Cook: 1 to 3 books

Pastry Chef: 4 to 8 books

Sous-Chef: 9 to 13 books

Chef de Cuisine: 14 to 18

Cordon-Bleu Chef: More than 19
2. Grab the challenge button and write a post on your blog so we can spread the word. If you want, you can also add the button to your sidebar to help get the word out that the challenge is a go for 2014. Want to join but don’t have a blog? That’s fine, just post a comment below in the comments section saying so, and then post your reviews in the comment section of the corresponding tab at the top of the blog under the header.

3. After you read each book for the challenge, come back here and tell us about it. Click on the correct category for your book on the menu bar, and post the link to your review. We’ll use the same categories as last year: Cookbooks, Memoirs/Biographies, Fiction, and Nonfiction. There’s also a tab for you to link up your Challenge Wrap-Up post.

Guidelines:

The challenge runs from January 1 through December 31, 2014.

You don’t need a pre-selected list of books.

It’s okay to cross over with other challenges.

Any book format is allowed (print, audio, ebook)

 

Well with all of the food and drink themed cozy mysteries I have to catch up on in 2014, I’m jumping right on board with the level:

Cordon-Bleu Chef: More than 19

Here we go,

And remember,

Books Are Life,

Heather

Full House Reading Challenge 2014

 

Thank you to the folks at Book Date for hosting this fun reading challenge for 2014!  I’m excited to participate!

Challenge will run from Jan 1st to December 31st 2014

• Write and publish a post stating your intention to participate. In the post please include the Challenge graphic and a link back to this post. Then link your intention post at the bottom of this post.  Make sure it is the actual post and not just a generic link to your blog.
• Entries will be accepted up until the end of November 2014.
• Add your reviews here. At the end of every two months there will be a U.S. $10 prize with a book of your choice from the Book Depository or Amazon voucher, (International) for the entries. There will be a new list then for every two months until the end of November.

• Each review can only be linked up once in the year.
• Books may cross over from other challenges that you are doing.
• On the 22nd of November a post will go up to link a summary post for the challenge for those who have completed a full house. This will close on the 31st of December and a winner will be chosen using random.org for a U.S. $50 prize which again can be used at the Book Depository or go as an Amazon voucher.

 

• If someone completes a full house and would like to complete another, that is fine too, and would mean two entries at the end of the year.

The Challenge:

• Complete the card below.  You can do it in any order you wish.  You are allowed “one free exchange”, if there is something on the square you really dislike you may change it to something of your choice. Once you have played this free card that is it. Mention the exchange in the final summary post.

Full House Reading Challenge Card

On we go to 2014!

And remember,

Books Are Life,

Heather

Challenges for 2014 – Series Challenge

2014 Series Challenge

 Thanks to the folks over at Read. Sleep. Repeat. who are hosting a 2014 Series Challenge!!!!!

Here is the scoop:

How many of you have started a series, loved it and for some reason never continued? Who here is sick and tired of getting the judgey face because you haven’t read “that” series yet? How often have you said “I really want to read that series!” only to not even glance at it in the bookstore? By a show of hands how many of you have added an entire series to your Goodreads TBR shelf more than 3 months ago and STILL haven’t started yet?! The 2014 Series Challenge is your chance to take all those empty promises and make them real. This is a challenge for YOU, so you’ll set your pace and decide what you will read but I do have a few guidelines:

• You have to FINISH the series
• If the series isn’t complete yet, or will not be completed before December 1st, 2014 read up to the most recent book in said series.
• Novellas count, but are optional.
• HAVE fun
• If you decide to break up with a series after book one, it does not count!
• You do not have to START the series in 2014, you just have to FINISH it in 2014
• Series that you started prior to 2014 are fine as long as you FINISH the series in 2014
• The series has to have at least 2 books out prior to December 1st, 2014
• Proof that you finished the book is required. It could be a full review, a mini review, or a rating with a few lines.
• DNF’s do not count. PERIOD.

And thanks to Anya of On Starships and Dragonwings I’m going to sweeten the pot for you folks. Even though finishing a series is motivation enough for some of you, I know that 4 months in a lot of you will quit, and because of that I am implementing a badge system:

 

 

If you complete 1-3 series you will earn the Bronze Badge. Those who earn this badge will be entered into a giveaway for a $5 gift-card to Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Kobo at the end of year 

If you complete 4-6 series you will earn the Silver Badge. Those who earn this badge will be entered into a giveaway for a book of  their  choice from The Book Depository, Amazon, Barnes & Noble or Kobo, valued at no more than $15 dollars.  

If you complete 7-11 series you will earn the Gold Badge. Those who earn this badge will be entered into a giveaway for a $20 gift card to Amazon, Barnes & Noble or Kobo.  

If you complete 12 OR more series you will earn the Platinum Badge. Those who earn this badge will be entered into a giveaway for a chance to win a box (3-5) of books. Since December is a ways away I don’t know what will be in the box yet. But there definitely will be an ARC…. or 3. HOWEVER I am not made of money so, if the Platinum winner is international they will win a $30 gift card to Amazon.

It is that wonderful time of year to choose my reading challenges for the year and write up all of the corresponding posts to get myself officially signed up.  I love the feeling of a New Year as it always feels like a fresh start and clean slate to start everything fresh.   This certainly holds true for my reading and my love of books as well.  I love challenging myself to read more!  Therefore, I am officially going to sign up for 6 reading challenges in 2014 . . . for fun and more fun!

This Finish the Series Challenge is so appropriate for me given my love of cozy mystery series (many of which I have started and never finished) and of course for the overall state of my bookshelves 🙂

I am going to challenge myself to the Bronze Badge Status, with the hope of finishing 3 series!

Avery Aames (Cheese Shop Mystery)

3.  Clobbered by Camembert

4.  To Brie or Not to Brie

5.  Days of wine & Roquefort (comes out in 2014)

Jenn McKinlay (Cupcake Bakery Mystery)

4.  Red Velvet Revenge

5.  Going, Going, Ganache

6.  Sugar & Iced (comes out in 2014)

Jenn McKinlay (Library Lover’s Mystery)

3.  Book, Line and Sinker

4.  Read it and Weep

Ok, let’s go 2014!!!!!

And remember,

Books Are Life,

Heather

2013 Reading Challenge – Monthly Key Word Challenge 2013

 

My Reading Challenge #4 that I will be working on for 2013 will be the Monthly Key Word Challenge 2013!  This one is new to me and should be really fun!  Join in!

 

For this challenge I have chosen ten key words associated with each month in 2013. Your task is to read one book each month whose title includes one or more of the key words for that month. For instance, in January I might read Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah. The key words are listed below.
GUIDELINES
* The title you choose can be a variation on one of the key words. For example- your title could include the word ‘snowing’ or ‘snowflake’even though the key word is ‘snow.’
*Key words can be tweaked. For example- You could read “Cinder” or “Ashes” for the key word ‘Fire’ and that would be just fine. If the key word is ‘family’ then your title could include the word ‘sister’ or ‘mother.’If the key word is ‘food’ then your title could include the word ‘cake.’
* Link up below to participate and add additional links any time you post about the challenge or post about a book you read for the challenge.
Monthly Key Words:

 

Have fun!

And remember,

Books Are Life,

Heather

 

2013 Reading Challenge – Foodie’s Read Challenge 2013

My Reading Challenge #3 for 2013 is this Foodies Read 2013 Challenge hosted by I’d Rather be at the Beach Reading.  I’m looking forward to this one as I love reading cozy mystery books having to do with food/drink!  Can’t wait!

Here’s how the challenge works: 1. Decide how many food books you want to read in 2013. Pick one of the reading levels below. Remember, this is a challenge, so try pushing yourself.
Levels: Short-Order Cook: 1 to 3 books Pastry Chef: 4 to 8 books Sous-Chef: 9 to 13 books Chef de Cuisine: 14 to 18 Cordon-Bleu Chef: More than 19
2. Grab the challenge button and write a post on your blog so we can spread the word. No blog? That’s okay. Sign up in the comments section.
3. After you read each book for the challenge, come back here and tell us about it. Click on the correct category for your book (on the menu bar) and post the link to your review. We’ll use the same categories as last year: Cookbooks, Memoirs/Biographies, Fiction, and Nonfiction. I’ll also include a page where you link up your Challenge Wrap-Up post.
Guidelines:

The challenge runs from January 1 through December 31, 2013.

You don’t need a pre-selected list of books.

It’s okay to cross over with other challenges.

Any book format is allowed (print, audio, ebook)

I’m challenging myself to the Cordon-Bleu Chef Level: 19 or more!

Have fun!

And remember,

Books Are Life,

Heather

2013 Reading Challenge – Finishing the Series Reading Challenge

 

Here are the rules guidelines.

1) All books that are part of a continuing
series qualify (i.e. Debbie Macomber’s Cedar Cove, Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie
Plum, James Patterson’s Alex Cross, etc. etc.)

2) It doesn’t matter if
you have 1 or 10 books in a series to complete it, it qualifies (i.e. if you
only need to read one more Sookie Stackhouse book to complete the goal, that’s
fine) The goal is to complete a series from wherever you are up to until the
last published book.

3) The qualification period is January 1, 2013 to
December 31, 2013. Books must be read during this time frame to count.

4)
Take the button above and post about it. Use the Mr. Linky below to sign up and
make sure you link it directly to your post about this challenge. (Note: I’m not
going to be using the Finishing the Series Blog I created last year. I’m going
to keep everything here.)

5) If you don’t have a blog, that’s fine. Just
leave a comment to sign up and tell us what you are reading.

IF YOU WANT
TO LINK UP YOUR REVIEWS OR, FOR THOSE WITHOUT A BLOG, LEAVE A COMMENT
BELOW.

6) Any format of book counts – audio, ebook, etc.

7) You
should choose the series you want to finish before the challenge begins, but it
isn’t necessary. It’s fine to change series during the year – as long as you
complete whichever series it is.

8) Choose a level….

Level 1 –
Complete 1 series.
Level 2 – Complete 2 series.
Level 3 – Complete 3 or
more series.

I am going to do the Level 3 and challenge myself to finish the following series:

1.   Tess Gerritsen Rizzolli and Isles series (#9, 10)

2.  Jenn McKinlay Library Lover’s series (#2, 3)

3.  Kathy Reichs Temperance Brennan series (#13, 15)

Have fun!

And remember,

Books are Life,

Heather

2013 Reading Challenge – Cruisin’ Through the Cozies Reading Challenge 2013

Hi all,

It is that very exciting time of year where I can once again choose which reading challenges I want to be a part of – LOVE THIS time of year!   I did pretty well in my 2012 challenges (a wrap up post is coming soon!), so I think I am going all out this year and signing up for even more – after all, what is the worst that can happen – I simply don’t finish 🙂

Here is Challenge #1 for me, one of my favorites, The 2013 Crusin’ Through The Cozies Challenge hosted by Socrates Book Reviews.

So, here are the rules…

1. Choose the level you wish to
participate:

Level 1 – Snoop – Read at least 6 books

Level 2 –
Investigator – Read 7-12 books

Level 3 – Super Sleuth – Read 13 or more
books

2. The challenge runs from January 1, 2013 and ends December 31,
2013.

3. You don’t have to choose your books in advance. If you do, you
can change your list at any time during the year. Books can overlap with other
challenges.

4. Books can be in any format – paper, audio, ebooks…it all
counts!

5. You don’t have to post a review, but I’m sure others would
love to know about the books you are reading and may even want to add it to
their reading lists.

NOTE: If you don’t have a blog and want to
participate, that’s fine. You don’t have to have a blog, just post in the
comments section as you finish books. If you belong to a site like Goodreads and
review the books there, that’s fine too. Just leave us the link.

6. Take the button above, put it on your blog and post about the challenge. Then add
your name to Mr. Linky below. Just click here. Please use the link of your
challenge post, not the link to your home page.

7. I’m going to have one link for signing up, one link for completed reviews and one link for your wrap
up posts. I won’t be having a monthly link, just one for all reviews read for
this challenge.

I’m signing up for the Super Sleuth level – read 13 or more books!

Have fun!

And remember,

Books Are Life,

Heather