Monday, August 31, 2015

Monthly Wrap Up: August

Hey, ladies!


My god, can you believe this is the last day of August? This month flew by, despite how work heavy it was. It seems that each month this year flies by faster than the one before it!





I read a total of 34 books this month! 12 short stories, 1 novella, 21 full length novels, 1 re-read. 23 e-books, 13 physical books, 1 audiobook.



2015 Goodreads Reading Challenge Update:

I've read a total of 200 books this year towards my goal of 220. I'm currently at 91% complete, and 55 books ahead of schedule.






August Books



(Short story)

(Short story)




(Short story)



(Short story)

(Short story)

(Short story)


(Short story)


(Short story)



(Novella)




(Short story)

(Short story)

(Short story)


(Review to come)




(Short story)


Shadowfever by Karen Marie Moning
(audiobook re-read. I freaking love this book. One of my all time favorites! Mmmm, Barrons.)






Favorites






The entire trilogy!




Biggest Disappointment







Best Smut







Most Surprising







Best Protagonists

Water
Vivian 

Annie and Ronan

Liam

King and Doe <3




Worst Protagonist 
Reena. Such an obnoxious little bitch; there's really no other way to describe her.




Book Boyfriend of The Month


Ronan Fitzpatrick! *makes grabby hands at the delicious Irish rugby player*



- The Bibliophile Babe 

Sunday, August 30, 2015

The Sunday Post/It's Monday; What Are You Reading?

Hey, everyone!




The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news. A post to recap the past week, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead. It's Monday, What Are You Reading is a fun weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey where we share what we've read and reviewed over the past week and what we plan to read next.




We had two days of beautiful weather here in Florida this week; beautifully breezy, sunny, warm and no humidity. It was so perfect! I need that climate all year long, haha. It's back to being hot and humid again, but maybe fall will come...eventually.


I've been running for four weeks now. I've only missed two days through all of that, which I'm pretty proud of. I almost enjoyed doing it on those two gorgeous days, and it was lovely. I've realized it's not so much the running I hate, as the weather I'm doing it in. I'm so ready for fall!


I've been trying out some audiobooks, and while I've found a few I like (the narrators for Karen Marie Moning's Fever series make me want to listen to them all!), I think I'll mostly stick to physical books. Most of the narrators sound the same, and I can't even begging to explain how crazy it drives me when the woman does a man's voice, or vice versa. They do seem to help me keep my focus when dealing with books written in third person, so that's a plus.
Does anyone have any good recommendations for audiobooks?



This Week's Recap








Coming Up*

 Book Review: The Hooker and The Hermit by L.H. Cosway and Penny Reid

Top Ten Tuesday: 10 Characters You Just Didn't Click With

Monthly Wrap Up

Book Review: The Unidentified Redhead by Alice Clayton

Book Haul

*Subject to change, since I can't stick to a schedule to save my life




Recently Finished

7 books this week, 6 full length novels and a short novella.

2.5 soap opera in book form stars. 

5 hilarious and sexy stars!

2.5 smutty stars. 

5 stars!

5 stars!

1 star. Laughably stupid. 
5 "hurts so good" stars!


Re-read
I just love this!





Currently Reading:


I'm having such a difficult time getting into this, but I'm pushing through. I always struggle with urban fantasy for a bit!



What Will I Read Next?

I need to pop my Maas cherry, so I might just get this one off Audible. If you've read Maas, would you suggest this one or her Throne of Glass series to start with?




- The Bibliophile Babe 


Friday, August 28, 2015

Book Haul!

Hello, ladies!


This is the second to last big book haul for a while, and this time they're from Thriftbooks and Alibris books. I've stepped a bit out of my comfort zone with a few of these, my curiosity piqued by the book blogging community.
I was pleasantly shocked to find two books I'd been looking for at the local library; this area is dirt poor and the library is old and poorly stocked. Curious to see how these goes!

I've been listening to bits of different audiobooks on YouTube (there's a surprisingly large selection!), and I'm doing a free trial with Audible.com. Right now I'm listening to Shadowfever by Karen Marie Moning on YouTube, to feel out the experience with a book I already know I love. Please tell me I'm not the only one that finds listening to a sex scene incredibly awkward. ;)
I'm not sold on audiobooks yet; I'm one of those people that's bothered by voices. It would be nice to get some "reading" in on my morning runs though, so hopefully I can find some people I like.



Without further ado, here's the haul!



The Bronze Horseman by Paulina Simons
Death, Doom and Detention by Darynda Jones
Still Life With Strings by L.H. Cosway
Blood Oath by Rachel Vincent


Chasing River by K.A. Tucker

Becoming Rain by K.A. Tucker

The Redhead Revealed by Alice Clayton

The Redhead Plays Her Hand by Alice Clayton


Gabriel's Inferno by Sylvain Reynard

Ooops! I posted Five Ways to Fall last week. :p

Seven Years to Sin by Sylvia Day

Shadow Bound by Rachel Vincent

 

Magic Burns by Ilona Andrews

Magic Strikes by Ilona Andrews

Once Burned by Jeaniene Frost

Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews

Stray by Rachel Vincent

Rouge by Rachel Vincent

I didn't realize the last two books feature a low triangle until I'd bought them. Damn.

 




Here are the two I found at the library! While neither of these are what I'd pick up of my own accord, I've heard buzz about the Abbi Glines book, and I've never read Rainbow Rowell. We'll see.

Until Friday Night by Abbi Glnes
Attachement by Rainbow Rowell


- The Bibliophile Babe

Thursday, August 27, 2015

Series Tour: Caged by Shay Savage




I am so excited to be participating in this tour! Shay Savage is one of my favorite authors, and Caged did not disappoint. There's around 900 pages between the three books, and I devoured them all in less than three days. One of the best series I've read all year!
The third and final book just released, so I'll be doing a review for the series as a whole. Spoiler free (for book 3, at least...I'll try and keep it completely free!), I promise!







This is not made for TV. This is the raw, brutal underground of no-holds-barred combat. Inside the cage there is nothing but me and the pain I inflict on those who dare enter. In the cage, I never have to worry about anyone but myself. Yet, when she began standing outside of the cage, everything changed. I was no longer fighting for the money or the glory – I was fighting for her. 

Takedown (Book One) Caged Series
Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/1HnHZ3T



Bizarre rituals on a remote island in Maine.
My crazy neighbor lying naked in the produce section of a grocery store.
The sting of a knife as it slices through my flesh.
Now I know why they say life is never easy.
The soft touch of Tria’s hand against my chest is the only thing that keeps me going, but there are consequences. As a fighter, I should be able to deal with anything life throws at me, but there is one circumstance I simply can’t handle.
I only have one coping mechanism: a tube around my arm and a needle in my vein.

Trapped (Book Two) Caged Series
Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/1MnJZdI




Oblivion is a sweet, sweet place.

No pain. No disturbing thoughts of the past. No guilt from my recent actions.

Deep down, there is still a part of me that knows how screwed up I am. I don’t see a way out, not now. Tria’s gone, and the possibility of her forgiving me in my current state is exactly zero. I know I have to pull myself together, accept my responsibilities, and try to make amends, but I have no idea where to start.

No job. No apartment. I’m living on the streets with the other junkies. As little as I had to offer Tria before, I have nothing to give her now. The only way out is to come clean and tell Tria the truth about my past, but the idea of reliving the memoires is so painful, I can’t think about it long enough to figure out a solution.

I’ve hit rock bottom, and I don’t even know which way is up any more.

Released (Book Three) Caged Series
Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/1D2xeFY





My Review

Liam Teague came from a privileged family, but after a tragedy destroyed his relationship with his parents and broke something inside him, he walked out and turn to the only thing that would numb his pain: heroin. 
After a near death experience and with the help of a fighting trainer who took him in, Liam's been clean for four years, though that itch is always in the back of his head.
With next to no money and completely alone, cage fighting is his escape and his passion. That is, until he meets Tria.
Tria is a young woman from a very remote town, alone in a big city and putting herself through college, against the wishes of her adoptive family. She has more than her fair share of heartache, but stays positive and works hard to build herself a better future.

One night after one of Liam's fights, he spots a lone woman being threaten by a group of drunk men. He saves her, and soon discovers that this fiery girl with an enormous purse is none other than his new neighbor, Tria. 
They form something of a friendship (with plenty of sexual tension), and when Tria is laid off at her job and can't afford the rent for her apartment, Liam suggests they become roommates. 
Things start heating up for the pair, and they become a couple. Liam is refuses to tell her just what exactly happened to him, which causes a bit of stress between them, but for the most part they're happy together in their little slice of sunlight in a dark world.
It can't last though, and a few months into their relationship, something rocks their world to the very core. With history repeating itself and completely unable to cope, Liam walks out. He gives into that little itch in the back of his head that's now screaming at him, and puts needle to vein. 
He hits rock bottom, and he hits it hard. Will he be able to pull himself out of this darkness and get his life back on track, and Tria back? Or will he succumb to his addiction?






Holy. Fucking. Hell. This trilogy blew me away! I laughed, I brooded, I ached, I swooned, and I flat-out bawled. Shay Savage is a gifted, gifted storyteller, and that really came out in the Caged series. 





Liam's family issues may sound a bit trite and dramatic, but once you find out just what happened, you're torn in two. It's not often I can clearly see and sympathize with both sides of a rift in a story, but Caged had me split down the middle with my feelings on the matter. While I'm firmly in Liam's camp, I could see and appreciate his parents' angle as well. Right intentions, wrong execution. 
It was such a deep-seated issue between them, and watching the way it unfolded was incredibly raw and heart wrenching. I'm so pleased to finally have a story were there is some genuine healing between the two parties, even if it's not perfect. It was so tangible, and felt like it could happen in anyone's life. 



Caged had some of the best character development I've read in months. It's not an easy path by any means, but Liam completely transformed himself from the person he was in Takedown by the end of Released. There were setbacks, there was failure. There was hope, and there was success. 
Liam hit rock bottom, truly hit rock bottom. You can't get lower than he was without being dead. The way he clawed his way back on nothing but sheer willpower and the love of a woman was astounding, and humbling. Despite his shit choices in life (that were actually quite justifiable, given the circumstances), he came to be someone I admired and respected.
Tria also has a fantastic arc, though her's is bit more subdued than Liam's. She's a little younger than he is (6-7 years, I think?), so she's still growing up as all of this happens around her. She had a quiet strength and courage about her that I loved. 



"It's how beautiful you are when you're pissed off at me. It's how you smile when you're making me breakfast. It's your eyes, your voice, the smell of your hair. It's how your skin feels against mine."



Every character is well developed and fully fleshed out; it created such a vivid backdrop for Liam and Tria's story. It wasn't just them dealing with the effects of life and their choices, it was everyone around them. It made me view things differently than if it were more introspective, and it was a nice change of pace. Once again, this book felt like someone's life, rather than a fictional story. I almost felt like I was intruding in a few places. It was a very intense feeling, and one I loved. 



I was lost. Completely and totally lost within her.



The connection and romance between Liam and Tria was incredible. Absolutely incredible. They go through so much, and to be able to come out of all of it stronger than ever was awe-inspiring. 


"Please let me try to be what you need me to be."


I have't cried that hard while reading in a long, long, time. I'm not talking delicate, pretty tears either, oh no. Full on ugly, tight throat and clogged nose, can't see the Kindle screen from sobbing so hard crying. I was so attached to the characters, and their pain felt like my pain.
Liam's issues are heartbreaking, what he goes through is heartbreaking, and his determination is heartbreaking. It all hurt me, but in the best way.


"I want you because you are beautiful, inside and out. You're putting yourself through school and trying to do something with your life. Everything about you is admirable, and I don't even deserve to be in your company.
I've spent a long time not feeling anything, because all I felt was...bad. I was only happy when I was fighting, but you...you changed all of that. For the first time in a decade, I have a reason to be outside the cage."




There was the perfect amount of humor to balance the agony of some parts. Tria carries around an enormous purse that Liam is constantly baffled by, and the various names he calls it had me cracking up.

"How do you even carry that thing around?"
"What?"
"That...that purse-bag-thingy there. It's insane."
"There is nothing wrong with my purse!"
"It's huge."
"It has everything I need in it."
"It has everything you and then of your friends could need for a week. I know there are people who carry Chihuahuas in their purse, but you could fit a Dane in there."
"Don't be ridiculous."
"Okay, a decent-sized Schnauzer, then."



As I said earlier, this series is about 900+ pages between the three books. I started the first Monday morning, and finished the last late Tuesday night. I couldn't put them down!



She surrounded me, engulfed me, and made me whole as I came apart inside of her.




Since I can't say much more without being spoiler-y, I'll leave you with a GIF lineup of my reading journey.



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Ovearlly, Caged is an emotional, incredibly deep and realistic trilogy that kept me on the edge of my seat. I fell in love with Liam, shipped the crap out of Liam and Tria, and had my heart broken and put back together. I highly, highly recommend them! 
Book 1 and book 2 end on pretty major cliffhangers, so you'll want to grab them all!




STATS:

Rating: 5 stars for each!
Genre: New adult/adult (toes the line) contemporary romance
POV: 1st person
Steam/sexual content: Deliciously steamy, hot sex
Series: Caged Trilogy
Warnings: Explicit violence, explicit drug use, explicit sex
Cliffhanger: Book 1 and 2, yes
HEA: Yes, and so well deserved!
Thank you to the author and TRSOR Promotions for the ARCs! All opinions are my own.



- The Bibliophile Babe