100+ Reading Challenge Progress

So yay I'm a little more than a quarter of the way through my hundred book challenge! This really excites me because it's my first challenge on my pretty new-ish blog. I just wanted to check in with everyone else whose participating and see how everyones doing? I know I have yet to review a lot of the books on my list but I actually get 2 days off this week and will have plenty of time to start catching up ( I do apologize about my lax blogging it's Easter weekend in the bakeshop....more on that later). I am having so much fun with this challenge and I hope everyone else is as well. 100 BOOKS HERE I COME!

LOL=Lots Of Love

Teaser Tuesdays

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. This week I'm reading The Chase by Clive Cussler. I was a little skeptical at first because a co-worker had loaned me this read. However; I'm growing more interested by the page. So without further ado here's my teaser:

"A terrifying wave of anxiety swept over her as she fought a losing battle. Her last barrier crumpled and along with it , her final grip on control."

~pg 197 The Chase by Clive Cussler

So far all I know on this book is that a detective is chasing down a notorious bank robber in the 1900's. I love a good mystery and although I'm only through page 60 I'm pretty intrigued . I'll have to let everyone know how this pan's out by my weekend off from work! I hope you enjoyed this little taste of whats to come. Let me know your thoughts, and as always let me know what your teaser is for the week!

LOL=Lots Of Love

Try Blog Hopping

I'm always looking for new ways to find fun and interesting blogs. Over at Crazy-For-Books they do a weekly blog hop which I discovered through Teens Read And Write's post. It's really awesome because each Link up shows what each blogger is interested in i.e YA, Sci-Fi etc. I think it's a great way to network and I definitely linked up and checked out a few great blogs. Check it out here!

LOL=Lots Of Love

The Boleyn Wife

Title: The Boleyn Wife

Author: Brandy Purdy
Reading level: All

Paperback: 320 pages

ISBN #: 9780758238443

Received From: contest @ Passages to the Past

Publisher: Kensington Books

Group Genre: Hit/Fic

Cover: A

Overall: A+

"Shy, plain Lady Jane Parker feels out of place in Henry VIII's courtly world ofglamour and intrigue--until she meets the handsome George Boleyn. Overjoyed when their fathers arrange a match, her dreams of a loving union are waylaid when she meets George's sister, Anne. For George is completely devoted to his sister, andcold and indifferent to his bride. As Anne acquires a wide circle of admirers, including King Henry, Jane's resentment grows. But if becoming Henry's queen makes Anne the most powerful woman in England, it also makes her highly vulnerable. And as Henry, desperate for a male heir, begins to tire of his mercurial wife, the stage is set for the ultimate betrayal...Encompassing the reigns of five of Henry's queens, THE BOLEYN WIFE is an unforgettable story of ambition, lust, and jealousy, of the power of love to change the course of history, and of the terrible price of revenge."

Jane Parker-Boleyn is a fascinating character in Tudor-esque England and very controversial as well. Most books paint her as an evil woman focusing on her testimony against her husband George Boleyn and sister-in-law Queen Anne Boleyn. However; few go into details of her life which catapulted her to this fate. Purdy's version of her life delves into all that makes her to become the immortalized, jealous wife!

I was thrilled when I heard about this novel finally someone is trying to set the record straight about Jane Parker. She was driven to madness by her uncle,her husband and the court itself. She was outcasted from the beginning and treated like a third wheel. In this book she is shown for who I to believe she truly is.....someone looking through a window at life passing them by! Purdy does an amazing job capturing Parker's torment and anguish over not being one of the "popular" kids so to speak. An she shows us the depth of Jane's madness as it seeps in through 5 wives of Henry VII. You begin to understand how someone could go insane from the pressures on Jane's shoulders and you even pity the poor woman hopelessly in love with a husband who doesn't even care if she exists!

I loved this book and could not put it down once I started! Every line is suspenseful and foreboding to the later events of the book. And although it tells the tale through 5 of Henry's wives it doesn't seem rushed or hurried along. I felt drawn to Janes character wanting to fight for her, wanting to comfort the character as if she were my own sister! The author does a beautiful job of capturing a more realistic version of Jane Parker and for anyone who thought she got the wrong end of the stick this novel will cast some light on a woman only deemed a liar and a husband -killler!

LOL=Lots Of Love

Pride And Prejudice And Zombies: Dawn Of The Dreadfuls

Title: PPZ:Dawn Of The Dreadfuls
Author: Steve Hockensmith
Reading level: All
Paperback: 287 pages
ISBN #: 9781594744549
Received From: FSB Media
Publisher: Quirk Books
Group Genre: Fiction/Horror
Cover: A
Overall: B-

"Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: Dawn of the Dreadfuls -- Journey Back to Regency England—Land of the Undead! Readers will witness the birth of a heroine in Dawn of the Dreadfuls—a thrilling prequel set four years before the horrific events of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. As our story opens, the Bennet sisters are enjoying a peaceful life in the English country side. They idle away the days reading, gardening, and daydreaming about future husbands—until a funeral at the local parish goes strangely and horribly awry. Suddenly corpses are springing from the soft earth—and only one family can stop them. As the bodies pile up, we watch Elizabeth Bennet evolve from a naive young teenager into a savage slayer of the undead. Along the way, two men vie for her affections: Master Hawksworth is a powerful warrior who trains her to kill, while thoughtful Dr. Keckilpenny seeks to conquer the walking dead using science instead of strength. Will either man win the prize of Elizabeth's heart? Or will their hearts be feasted upon by hordes of marauding zombies? Complete with romance, action, comedy, and an army of shambling corpses, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: Dawn of the Dreadfuls will have Jane Austen rolling in her grave—and just might inspire her to crawl out of it!"

Hilarious, gory, and action packed this is definitely not your average Pride And Prejudice sequel. I found the book charmingly amusing although if your a die-hard Jane Austen fan this one may not be for you. Although the characters are still present they hardly relate to the original counterparts. And I know the author didn't have a prequel to work from as he did in his first novel using Pride And Prejudice as the backbone for P&P&Z; however, I expected this novel to be just as great. The gore doesn't disappoint though and it still makes me giggle to think of Elizabeth as a ninja-like, sword wielding zombie killer. ( I kinda pictured Elizabeth as a 19th century Buffy the Vampire er...Zombie slayer) And I also enjoyed the pictures in the book that add to the amusement factor( if you can't picture whats occuring these will definitely give you a hilarious visual).But I really think Hockensmith's first take on Zombies in the 19th century was by far the better novel. P&P&Z imitated the original Austen writings even with the addition of zombies. So if your looking for quick, fun read definitely check out this spin-off but I suggest not trying to compare it to the original classic!

LOL=Lots Of Love

Teaser Tuesdays

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. This week I'm reading To Ruin A Queen by Fiona Buckley. As most know I'm a huge fan of historical fiction/mystery. And Ms. Buckley's Ursula Blanchard series is one of the best I've read about Elizabethan England. So here's this weeks teaser:

"Once more the study was occupied, but not, this time by a pair of lovers. Only one person lay there on the floor, a rug pushed awry under his twisted body."

~pg. 117 To Ruin A Queen by Fiona Buckley

So far this book has it all historical facts, mystery, suspense, ghosts, and murders. I've read two other books in this series thus far and have not been disappointed. I will be posting my review shortly but if your as curious as I, I encourage you to try this series. That's my teaser hope your intrigued, let me know yours for the week!

LOL=Lots Of Love

Contest over at "Bloody Bookaholics"

So one of my favorite blogs is hosting an Amazing giveaway! Taschima over at Bloody Bookaholics is initially giving away to 7 winners 28 books. And taking a cue from Teens Read and Write, she'll be adding more books and more winners as her followers increase. (Not that you need a reason to follow because her blog is fantastic) Shes got a fabulous assortment of books so far and has pics up to make your mouth water. To check out more of the details on the contest or to enter click here to check out her site!

LOL=Lots of Love