Budget, schmudget
So, I have been sooooo good about trying to keep my 'fun stuff' budget under control. I have Amazon Prime, but I order enough that it's worth it just for the free shipping. The shows and movies are a bonus. I have Kindle Unlimited, and again I use it frequently enough that it's cheaper than what I would spend buying the books. But I've avoided Netflix, even as more and more things got added there that I wanted to see.
Until now.
It's all asphaltcowgrrl's fault! She mentioned The Umbrella Academy, which meant I looked it up, which made me realize that I've been under a misapprehension about what it's about all this time. And ROBERT SHEEHAN is in it. I love that boy.
I tumbled over the edge. I now have Netflix. Thanks, asphaltcowgrrl! (No, really. Thanks. I'm gonna love it.)
Oh! And I did stay on track for the rest of the week. Worked full days, still had some fun watching shows time, read before bed every night, and even started my next puzzle. (Okay, I just have the border done, but it's something.) Go me!
Those books I read were quite short.
72. Ghost of a Chance by Debbie Cassidy
A vampire, a golem, and a gargoyle walk into a bar… Well, they actually drive to a small town that is positively swimming with ghosts. Kat, the vampire… err, Nightblood… believes that her grandfather has sent her to the town because someone has discovered that she can communicate with ghosts, which would reveal her half-blood status and get her killed.
The world-building here is really good. The reader is thrown into the action and the aspects of the world and its supernatural inhabits are explained naturally, without the big chunks of exposition that sometimes happen in books like these. However, towards the middle of the book it just got to the point where there were TOO many types of beings, TOO much history, TOO many secrets… and honestly, too many potential love interests for Kat. There's Henri, Kris, naked guy, prison guy, and I feel like I'm missing someone. I was getting whiplash there.
The book doesn't really tie up any dangling threads, either. There's a dozen open plot points and a To Be Continued at the end of the book. I won't be picking up part two.
3/5 stars
LJ Hallowe'en Book Bingo 02 - features a ghost or a haunted house
250 pages
73. Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire
This is the story of all those kids who fall through portals into realms like Narnia or Wonderland, and what happens when they're thrust back into our 'real' world. I thought it sounded intriguing. But with the exception of Kade, I found every one of the characters (including the adults) creepy and unpleasant. It needed sooo many more pages to develop the characters, because now they feel more like a checklist. And the underlying message that it left was also disheartening. Not a fan.
2/5 stars
Popsugar Challenge 45 - on TBR list for the longest time **
176 pages
** I had this on my holds list for literally months at the library.
Books Read: 73/85
Popsugar Challenge: 45/50
LJ Book Bingo Hallowe'en Challenge: 06/09
Goodreads Challenge: 52/52
LJ Book Bingo Jan-March: 12/12
LJ Book Bingo April-June 20: 9/9
LJ Book Bingo June 20-August 31: 9/9
Goodreads Summer Challenge: 12/12
Total Page Count: 22187 pages
Hope everyone has a lovely weekend.
.
Until now.
It's all asphaltcowgrrl's fault! She mentioned The Umbrella Academy, which meant I looked it up, which made me realize that I've been under a misapprehension about what it's about all this time. And ROBERT SHEEHAN is in it. I love that boy.
I tumbled over the edge. I now have Netflix. Thanks, asphaltcowgrrl! (No, really. Thanks. I'm gonna love it.)
Oh! And I did stay on track for the rest of the week. Worked full days, still had some fun watching shows time, read before bed every night, and even started my next puzzle. (Okay, I just have the border done, but it's something.) Go me!
Those books I read were quite short.
72. Ghost of a Chance by Debbie Cassidy
A vampire, a golem, and a gargoyle walk into a bar… Well, they actually drive to a small town that is positively swimming with ghosts. Kat, the vampire… err, Nightblood… believes that her grandfather has sent her to the town because someone has discovered that she can communicate with ghosts, which would reveal her half-blood status and get her killed.
The world-building here is really good. The reader is thrown into the action and the aspects of the world and its supernatural inhabits are explained naturally, without the big chunks of exposition that sometimes happen in books like these. However, towards the middle of the book it just got to the point where there were TOO many types of beings, TOO much history, TOO many secrets… and honestly, too many potential love interests for Kat. There's Henri, Kris, naked guy, prison guy, and I feel like I'm missing someone. I was getting whiplash there.
The book doesn't really tie up any dangling threads, either. There's a dozen open plot points and a To Be Continued at the end of the book. I won't be picking up part two.
3/5 stars
LJ Hallowe'en Book Bingo 02 - features a ghost or a haunted house
250 pages
73. Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire
This is the story of all those kids who fall through portals into realms like Narnia or Wonderland, and what happens when they're thrust back into our 'real' world. I thought it sounded intriguing. But with the exception of Kade, I found every one of the characters (including the adults) creepy and unpleasant. It needed sooo many more pages to develop the characters, because now they feel more like a checklist. And the underlying message that it left was also disheartening. Not a fan.
2/5 stars
Popsugar Challenge 45 - on TBR list for the longest time **
176 pages
** I had this on my holds list for literally months at the library.
Books Read: 73/85
Popsugar Challenge: 45/50
LJ Book Bingo Hallowe'en Challenge: 06/09
Goodreads Challenge: 52/52
LJ Book Bingo Jan-March: 12/12
LJ Book Bingo April-June 20: 9/9
LJ Book Bingo June 20-August 31: 9/9
Goodreads Summer Challenge: 12/12
Total Page Count: 22187 pages
Hope everyone has a lovely weekend.
.