Pick-a-Shelf discussion

Was there any book/s you wouldn't have picked up unless challenged by this game? Did you hate it? Did you love it? Do share your frustration or newfound love...

In this thread, you can post a review, a short rant / rave, fave quote... anything about the book/s you've read for this challenge.

I finished reading The Notebook today. I really enjoyed it, until the very last page. I would have been happier for the story to end much earlier (view spoiler)[ at the end of the day, when Noah presses the nurse call button, and the nurses arrive to Allie fighting away 'gnomes' and Noah with his head in his hands. I didn't really like the implication made on the last page, as Allie unbuttoned his shirt... really? I found it very strange. (hide spoiler)]. 3.5 stars because the ending felt weird to me.

I really enjoyed Dead Heat -read it for contemporary romance and though there is romance, it's more of a mystery kind of read. I guess it's romance as there is that tension of attraction from the very beginning. 4 stars because I really enjoyed the suspense (both of the mystery & romance) and is set in Aussie bush.

Except for this challenge, I wouldn't have read Fatal Friends, Deadly Neighbors and Other True Cases, as I'm not fond of true crime. Some of the stories are just too creepy and make you wonder about everyone you meet!

LynnB wrote: "Except for this challenge, I wouldn't have read Fatal Friends, Deadly Neighbors and Other True Cases, as I'm not fond of true crime. Some of the stories are just too creepy and mak..."

lol - there is that! And didn't they say that most serial killers look as normal as your next door neighbour?

So, no joy with the book?

Tien wrote: "So, no joy with the book? "

Well, you'd probably find it good if you like true crime. I live in the same state as the author, so some of these crimes are literally too close for comfort.

LynnB wrote: "I live in the same state as the author, so some of these crimes are literally too close for comfort. "

Ack! Definitely too close to home!

I read the romance, McKettrick's Pride by Linda Lael Miller, for this challenge. The Romance genre is definitely not a normal read for me (I tend to find them silly). I chose it as she's a local author and I read one of her books before for another challenge. This is a NY Times best-selling author and series, so I guess it's considered very good. I'll leave it at that.

-- Now on to a finishing a Thomas Hardy novel for the Classic slice. I've barely started it, but it sure doesn't appear to be a quick-read by any means :)

LynnB wrote: "This is a NY Times best-selling author and series, so I guess it's considered very good. I'll leave it at that."

oh dear, you're funny, LynnB!

Hoping your next reads are more entertaining for you! Good on you for branching out twice in a row -give yourself a pat on the back from me ;)

i wouldn't necessarily call Linda Lael Miller good just because she's a best seller - more that she is very prolific (has 4-5 books out a year i think)

Tien wrote: " Good on you for branching out twice in a row "

The romance genre is a real reach for me. When it comes to crime, though, it's more nuanced. I love fictional mystery and suspense, it's the true crime that really bothers me. And back-pats done :) Thanks!

Dee wrote: "i wouldn't necessarily call Linda Lael Miller good just because she's a best seller - more that she is very prolific (has 4-5 books out a year i think)"

Think you're right on that, Dee. Being on a list doesn't make it a good book. I reflect on how often I complain about the Man Booker prize winners.

and she's been writing FOREVER! the only author's I can think about in the romance genre who may have been around longer - Diana Palmer and Nora Roberts who are still writing

Finished - I'm probably in the minority in not really appreciating this book. Although the premise is really good, I found it slow going and despite their atrocities, the villains weren't all that threatening. Perhaps it was just too childish for me (well it is children's lit after all).

Finished . A comprehensive survey of serial killers with some interesting tidbits here and there. Nevertheless, most of the information is well-known to anyone who watches true crime documentaries.

Really enjoyed , very well and entertainingly written. The crime itself takes up very little, as is the case of the court case. Mostly it is the story of the cast of characters in the town of Savannah in the American South, and they are quite a bunch!

Amanda wrote: "Really enjoyed , very well and entertainingly written. The crime itself takes up very little, as is the case of the court..."

Ooh I'm reading this one too at the moment, I'm only a few chapters in but already hooked!

Forgot to post that I finished The Mayor of Casterbridge by Thomas Hardy. I hadn't expected to like it all that much (Thomas Hardy, you know), but found it was a good story.

finally got a pie piece...lol! but the book (while I normally like paranormal romance - even if the book was shelved as contemporary) was underwhelming - the main character had been in the previous book and I wasn't a fan of her then, or now

Isla and the Happily Ever After - not my favorite in the trilogy - for all the delays in it being released (pushed back over a year), I kind of expected more - I really liked the first one; the second one was ok, and this one also ok - if I were to recommend, I'd say read 1st and only go further if you REALLY want more ;)

I read Ender's Game, for Space Opera, and barely managed to finish reading it. Maybe it's a genre issue, but I think it may be more of an author issue. I picked up lots of racism, sexism and other bigotry that I did not expect to see in a book set so far into the future. Women are not good enough for the military, these children are still making snide remarks about slavery, an asian is referred to as 'slanty-eyed.' What the actual eff. Does Card have such a grim view of humanity that he believes however many centuries into the future, we will still be as racist and sexist as he was in 1985? To top it all off, it's simply a poor premise, I never really understood the battle rooms or the game rooms, and the switching between third person narrator and Ender's thoughts was poorly conveyed.

-1 Star, because I really REALLY despise this book, and won't recommend it to anyone.

I am so glad I finally had a reason to read Vampire Academy. It was definitely an overdue read for me, but now I want to keep rolling the same so I can finish the series haha.

Ebony wrote: "I read Ender's Game, for Space Opera, and barely managed to finish reading it. Maybe it's a genre issue, but I think it may be more of an author issue. I picked up lots of racism, s..."

Oh, I don't remember that, Ebony... I remembered liking it though, hmmm... Most people I know liked this book, you're probably the first person I've heard to "really REALLY despise" it! You gave a good reason though I don't recall it at all, it's been quite a number of years since I read it so I've probably forgotten exactly what I thought but nothing so averse.

Melissa wrote: "I am so glad I finally had a reason to read Vampire Academy. It was definitely an overdue read for me, but now I want to keep rolling the same so I can finish the series haha."

umph, not a series I enjoyed, Melissa :p
However, I'm sure the rest of the series will fit in a quite number of shelves. Just check the top shelves listing of the book for the shelves you've rolled.

Tien wrote: "umph, not a series I enjoyed, Melissa :p
However, I'm sure the rest of the series will fit in a quite number of shelves. Just check the top shelves listing of the book for the shelves you've rolled. "

hah, wouldn't be very interesting if we all liked the same thing :P
I have been doing that! all books that are next up in series that I'm reading as well as all others that I've set myself to read for other challenges :)

I was kind of dreading reading a mermaid book, but Siren ended up being a nice surprise in the horror genre that I love!

I read the first 2 last year, but I think Isla and the Happily Ever After may be my favourite of the series!

Whilst at the cricket yesterday my daughter and I read Still Angry Little Girls, which is basically a comic strip, but quite funny. I noticed a teenage boy reading over our shoulder at one point (and he didn't stop after he saw me notice him! ), and I had to keep showing pages to my husband, which had him laughing too.

Not my usual thing, and only a 20 minute read, but definitely some things there to stick on the fridge ;)

Matt wrote: "I was kind of dreading reading a mermaid book, but Siren ended up being a nice surprise in the horror genre that I love!"

Yay! #winning
:D

Diary of a Stage Mother's Daughter: a Memoir - ugh horrible, horrible! i read this for true story since it was an ebook that my library had available, but ugh! her mother was horrible; she wasn't much better - personally, i was never a fan of her on little house (she was one of the children the ingall's adopted later on) - just ugh

- I teach a course on myths and legends, so this book was very useful in helping me update my Powerpoint on Cryptozoology. It is a particularly interesting field, especially since several new species have recently been discovered.

I don't read paranormal, but needed a "ghost" one, so I picked a cozy mystery Ghost at Work by Carolyn Hart as I've liked her other cozy mystery series (non-paranormal). This is book #1 of this series -- and will be the last one I read of the series -- too silly.

Wilde in America: Oscar Wilde and the Invention of Modern Celebrity by David M. Friedman isn't the usual biography, but studies Wilde's rise in fame from nothing -- like a Paris Hilton or Kim Kardashian of today. An eccentric fashion sense and wit gave him the basis for his self-promotion. Famous for being famous (his writing came later). I hadn't read a biography on him before so this was interesting.

I am still reading (but expect to finish today) Working in the Shadows: A Year of Doing the Jobs (Most) Americans Won't Do. This is one book I would not have read except for this game. Really interesting.

Bea wrote: "I am still reading (but expect to finish today) Working in the Shadows: A Year of Doing the Jobs (Most) Americans Won't Do. This is one book I would not have read except for this gam..."

That's what I'd love to hear, Bea :)

Tales From The SFR Brigade was a fast and entertaining read. I liked that it was an anthology. It gave me a chance to experience several different authors. Also, if I didn't like one story as much, it didn't matter because each story was very short. I recommend this book to anyone who rolls romance science fiction.

Fallen was okay and almost great, but the pacing was a bit slow for me. The story dragged me in enough for me to make it to the end and to be curious about what happens next, but not enough that I am going to continue on to the next books in the series.

Blarneygod wrote: "Fallen was okay and almost great, but the pacing was a bit slow for me. The story dragged me in enough for me to make it to the end and to be curious about what happens next, but not..."

yea, that's me too, Blarneygod... just didn't care enough to keep going and I've probably forgotten what's happened already in book 1, oh wells.

Tien wrote: "Blarneygod wrote: "Fallen was okay and almost great, but the pacing was a bit slow for me. The story dragged me in enough for me to make it to the end and to be curious about what ha..."

I just felt like I had read this book before. I don't mind predictability in a book because there are not many new ideas out there, just new interpretations on an idea... But I still need to be entertained, to enjoy and be dragged into what I am reading. I felt like what drove the book was unanswered questions rather what was happening in its present time. And the big reveal that he was an angel was pretty anticlimactic considering that was revealed on the back summary of the book.

do you still plan to go see the movie?

Tien wrote: "do you still plan to go see the movie?"

Yes. The fact that the book is being turned into a movie was part of the reason that I wanted to read it:) Sometimes, the books that I don't like as much make better movies.

Blarneygod wrote: "Tien wrote: "do you still plan to go see the movie?"

Yes. The fact that the book is being turned into a movie was part of the reason that I wanted to read it:) Sometimes, the books that I don't li..."

yes, like Insurgent! I just saw it this morning and I really like it a lot better than the book!

I still need to see Insurgent.

Just finished The Girl on the Trainand actually enjoyed it. I was hesitant at first because many compared it to gone girl and I did not like that book, but this book was more enjoyable.

I am really enjoying the challenge. I don't think I have read this much in years and I have realized that I missed it :)

Margaret wrote: "Just finished The Girl on the Trainand actually enjoyed it. I was hesitant at first because many compated it to gone girl and I did not like that book, but this book was more enjoya..."

ooh, didn't like gone girl either and i have TGOTT at home too, so this is good to hear. Thanks, Margaret.

Tien wrote: "Margaret wrote: "Just finished The Girl on the Trainand actually enjoyed it. I was hesitant at first because many compared it to gone girl and I did not like that book, but this boo..."

I would recommend reading it. It was not up to the level of a favorite for me but, the characters were a little better and the story line was way more believable to me or at least more plausible.

I read The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing for Round 1:Fiction Humor. I liked this book, but I myself would not have classified it as humor.

I know that this thread is supposed to be about the books we have read during this challenge, but I would like to rave about the game itself. Marvelously creative! Deceptively easy - hard. Evil. Fun. Challenging. I am reading books I would read and those I would never have looked at. I am reading plays of all things! I find that I get up and scan over my Excel spreadsheet to review what I am reading for each round and to dream of what books will come next several times a day. I do not remember being so enticed before by a game. It is FUN! Thanks, Tien.

Aw Bea, thanks so very much

Agreed Bea, This game is hard but fun. I've just realized I have to read 6 books for slice #12. That's going to take some time :0)

Tien wrote: "Aw Bea, thanks so very much "

I posted this comment from my phone and for some reason, it's only posted a tiny bit of what I typed?!?!

Anyway, I said that I'm so happy to see so many of you enjoying the game & I loved your description of the game, Bea, "Marvelously creative! Deceptively easy - hard. Evil. Fun. Challenging."

It's like a REVIEW ha ha ha... I feel like creating a banner or something like they do with quotes from book reviews lol

I also said that it'll be terribly hard to live up to this standard ;p