So here is my reading wrap up for March, April, and May. 

March

1. Golden in Death (In Death #50) by JD Robb - 4 stars

2. Juliet Takes a Breath by Gabby Rivera - 3.5 stars

3. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot - 2.5 stars

April

1. Pox: An American History by Michael Willrich - 4.5 stars

2. A Distant Melody (Wings of Glory #1) by Sarah Sundin - 3 stars

3. The Scandalous Suffragette by Eliza Redgold - 3 stars

4. The Final Days by Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein - 5 stars

5. Beauty Queens by Libby Bray - 4 stars

6. The American Plague: The Untold Story of Yellow Fever, the Epidemic That Shaped Our History by Molly Caldwell Crosby - 4 stars

May

1. The Chaperone by Laura Moriarty - 1 star

2. Eisenhower 1956: The President's Year of Crisis - Suez and the Brink of War by David A. Nichols - 4 stars

3. War on Peace: The End of Diplomacy and the Decline of American Influence by Ronan Farrow - 5 stars

4. Oklahoma City: What the Investigation Missed - and Why It Still Matters by Andrew Gumbel and Roger G. Charles - DNF

5. Stillhouse Lake (Stillhouse Lake #1) by Rachel Caine - 1 star

6. Heartland: A Memoir of Working Hard and Being Broke in the Richest Country on Earth by Sarah Smarsh - 4.5 stars

7. The Dead & the Gone (Last Survivors #2) by Susan Beth Pfeffer - 3 stars

8. 1666: Plague, War, and Hellfire by Rebecca Rideal - 3 stars

9. The Girls of Mischief Bay (Mischief Bay #1) by Susan Mallery - 4 stars

10. A New Life (West Meets East #1) by Merry Farmer - 2.5 stars

Goals and Challenges:

GoodReads: 40/125 (32%)

Library Love: 17/24 (70%) - I am thinking of moving up my goal to the next level

Participated in BoB28

Participated BL's Snakes & Ladders 2020

Participated in Dewey RAT

Participated in 24 in 48 Stay at Home RAT

2018 is now half over....I feel like I have lived 4 2018s honestly. 

Read

1. Green River, Running Red: The Real Story of the Green River Killer - America's Deadliest Serial Murderer by Anne Rule - 3 stars

2. Winds of Salem (The Beauchamp Family #3) by Melissa de la Cruz - 3 stars

3. When Summer Comes (Whiskey Creek #3) by Brenda Novak - 3 stars

4. Drifting to You: Cape Fear Shipworks Novella by Kianna Alexander - 4 stars

5. The Valcourt Heiress (Medieval Song #7) by Catherine Coulter - 3.5 stars

6. A Radiant Soul: A Sweet Way to His Heart Novella by Kianna Alexander - 4 stars

7. Wishing Lake (Finding Home #3) by Regina Hart - 4.5 stars

8. After the Eclipse: A Mother's Murder; A Daughter's Search by Sarah Perry - 3 stars

9. The Spirit of '76: From Politics to Technology, the Year America Went Rock n' Roll by David Browne - 2.5 stars

10. Born a Crime by Trevor Noah - 2 stars

11. Conspiracy of Fools: A True Story by Kurt Eichenwald - 5 stars

Photo: Gulf Shores, Alabama [While we were on vacation Aug 2017]

Today wasn't much of a reading day. I read a few more paragraphs of Secrets For The Mad by Dodie Clark, but I'm just not feeling it today.

I have several books I need/want to read and review that I got for free from Netgally, but I am going to take a step back. If I start treating my hobby as a chore or a job (though how awesome would it be to get paid) then reading will stop being fun!

I also have several books that I own that I want to read in the next upcoming months. I'll be doing a TBR video later hopefully. :)

Here is my newest YouTube video. It is my August wrap up! It is a little long. I'm not the best with editing and I have mediocre equipment.

August Reading Wrap Up

What hobbies do you do besides reading?

I like writing, though I've not done much recently, playing video games, cuddling with my 3 cats, and 1 hamster (though I don't "cuddle" her per say haha), and doing fun things with friends & family.

Hera

Phoebe & Apollo

Mogget

 June's reading was all over the place - I read some great books, some average books, some awful books. But I didn't realize how many books I read until I finished this post. This doesn't count the 4 DNFs books or the 2 I didn't even get to 10% before giving up.

I can't believe the second half of 2017 starts tomorrow. Happy Independence Day to my fellow Americans!

Currently reading Rock Courtship: A Rock Kiss novella by Nalini Singh for RB Bingo and COYER.

Challenges

BL/GR: 97/150

Pop Sugar: 1

Library Love: 3; 35/36 for the year

COYER: 7/30

RB Bingo: 9/25

1. Diary of an Accidental Wallflower by Jennifer McQuiston (RB Bingo)- 2.5 stars 

2. Not My Father's Son: A Memoir by Alan Cummings (Pop Sugar prompt - family member term in title) (Library Love) - 4.5 stars

3. Loose Lips (Dusty Deals #5) by Rae Davies (COYER) - 3.5 stars

4. Undercover in High Heels (High Heels #3) by Gemma Halliday - 3.5 stars

5. Christmas in High Heels (High Heels #3.5) by Gemma Halliday - 1 star

6. Alibi in High Heels (High Heels #4) by Gemma Halliday - 5 stars

7. A Charming Cure (Magical Cures #2) by Tonya Kappes - 2.5 stars

8. Any Means Necessary (Luke Stone #1) by Jack Mars - 2 stars

9. A Lesson in Chemistry with Inspector Bruce (Gentlemen of Scotland Yard novella) by Jillian Stone - 3 stars

10. An Encounter in Hyde Park (Anthology) by Various Authors (RB Bingo)- 2 stars

11. The Captain's Kidnapped Beauty by Mary Nichols (RB Bingo) (Library Love Challenge) - 1 star

12. Heat Wave (Nerds of Paradise #4/Magnolias and Moonshine) by Merry Farmer (RB Bingo) - 4 stars

13. Midnight Unbound (Midnight Breed #14.5) by Lara Adrian (COYER) - 1 star

14. Midnight in Legend, TN (The McClains of Legend, Tennessee #1) by Magdalena Scott (COYER) - 1 star

15. Double Trouble (PJ Sugar #2) by Susan May Warren (Library Love Challenge) - 4 stars

16. The Bull Rider's Homecoming (Blue Thorn Ranch #3) by Allie Pleiter (COYER) (RB Bingo) - 4 stars

17. A Lady for Lord Randall (Brides of Waterloo #1) by Sarah Mallory (COYER) (RB Bingo) - 4.5 stars 

18. A Mistress for Major Bartlett (Brides of Waterloo #2) by Annie Burrows (COYER) (RB Bingo) - 4.5 stars

19. A Rose for Major Flint (Brides of Waterloo #3) by Louise Allen (COYER) (RB Bingo) - .5 star

21. Homefront Hero by Allie Pleiter (COYER) (RB Bingo) - 5 stars

May went by so fast! But the big project, reading the 800+ page book for the Pop Sugar challenge, was a success and now I can easily finish the challenge in the second half of the year.

I took a day to read some really short freebies from my NOOK, none of which worked for me. Hurtling through space and time in a tin can for two days provided a lot of time for me to read. My BL-opoly bank balance is sitting at $68.00.

Highlights/Lowlights:

Best Books: London, Forbidden, Vision volumes 1 and 2

Worst Books: Shimmy for Me, Summer Flings series

Disappointing book: A Charming Cure - I had big expectations for this series and I hope the second book can live up to those expectations

Challenge Progress

Pop Sugar: 4; 33/52 for the year

Library Love: 4; 32/36 for the year

BL/GR: 77/150

BL-opoly: 10

1. Deep Deception by Cathy Pegau (BL-opoly) - 3.5 stars

2. Forbidden (Old West #1) by Beverly Jenkins (BL-opoly) - 4.5 stars

3. Killer in High Heels (High Heels #2) by Gemma Halliday (BL-opoly) - 2.5 stars

4. A Charming Crime (Magical Cures #1) by Tonya Kappes (BL-opoly) - 2 stars

5. A Wedding in Springtime (Marriage Mart #1) by Amanda Forester (Pop Sugar prompt - 1 of 4 seasons in title) (BL-opoly) - 3.5 stars

6. The Dateless Wonder by Anjali Mya Chadha - 3 stars

7. Shimmy for Me: A California Belly Dance Novella by DeAnna Cameron - 1.5 stars

8. Learning to Swim (Troy Chance #1) by Sara L. Henry (BL-opoly) - 2 stars

9. Selkie Heart by Sam Asher - 1 star

10. Trouble in Tinseltown (Summer Flings #1) and Misbehaving in Miami (Summer Flings #2) by Aimee Duffy - 1 star

11. London: The Novel by Edward Rutherfurd (Library Love challenge) (Pop Sugar prompt - book with 800+ pages) - 5 stars

12. Nothing But Trouble (PJ Sugar #1) by Susan May Warren (Library Love challenge) - 3.5 stars

13. A Christmas Hope (Of Love and War #1.5) by Stacy Henrie (BL-opoly) - 4 stars

14. After the Storm (Kate Burkholder #7) by Linda Castillo (BL-opoly) - 3.5 stars

15. Her Last Breath (Kate Burkholder #5) by Linda Castillo (BL-opoly) - 3 stars

16. Vision Volume 1: Little Worse Than a Man by Tom King (Pop Sugar prompt - Re-read a shelf keeper) - 4 stars

17. Vision Volume 2: Little Better Than a Beast by Tom King (BL-opoly) (Pop Sugar prompt - non human perspective) - 4 stars