Flights of Fantasy Reading Challenge 2015

So the idea to join this reading challenge was pretty last minute. Fantasy was one of my first YA loves, but I've gotten way away from that the past few years. I've got a friend who has been on to me to read so many series {Darkest Minds, The Raven Boys, The Grisha Trilogy, to name a few} but because they were fantasy, I've been putting them off. BUT. This is my year to finally read all these fantasy series people have been pushing on me that I've put off. This reading challenge is hosted by the lovely Alexa @ Alexa Loves Books and Rachel @ Hello, Chelly.

Guidelines:

• The challenge will run from January 1-December 31, 2015. 
• We’re welcoming all readers to join us in this challenge! In order to sign up, readers must link to their blogs or Goodreads profile in the Linky on Hello, Chelly or on Alexa Loves Books. We need to see where you’ll be sharing your reviews of the fantasies you’ll read!
• You can read as many fantasy novels as you like. No levels for this challenge! 
• We're going to host 2 giveaways, one at 6 months and one at the end of the year. More details when it's closer to those dates.
• Please help us spread the word! Feel free to tweet about the challenge using the hashtag #flightsoffantasy, or to grab the button and link to the challenge on your blog.

How to Participate:

• Challenge yourself to read a certain # of fantasy books and share this number on your blog, in the comments below or a tweet. 
• On the last Sunday of each month, we'll be posting updates on how we're doing with the challenge and we'll include a Linky in case you decide to do the same. (This is optional!) 
• As mentioned, we will have giveaways! And if you want bonus entries into said giveaways, read any (or all!) of our favorite fantasy books listed below:
• Joint Faves: Throne of Glass, Harry Potter, Fire and Thorns, Snow Like Ashes, The Queen of the Tearling
• Alexa's Faves: Eona duology, Daughter of the Forest, The Elemental Trilogy, The Hobbit, Song of the Lioness quartet
• Rachel's Faves: The Grisha Trilogy, Harper Hall Trilogy, The Fever series, The Winner’s Curse, Graceling

Okay, confession time: I've never read Harry Potter. I know, I know, most of you just had a heart attack. So, I will definitely be challenging myself to read that.
I will be challenging myself to read at least 20 fantasy books. There are 5 series I definitely want to get to before the end of the year: Harry Potter, The Grisha Trilogy, The Raven Boys, The Darkest Minds, and Falling Kingdoms. (Since these are the series that my friend, coincidentally also named Rachael, has been pushing on me the most.) But my main goal is just to incorporate more fantasy into my reading schedule. Progress will be updated here.

Fairytale Retelling Challenge 2015

I have made it perfectly clear on this blog that I looooove retellings, especially fairytale ones. So I knew that I had to sign up for this challenge. So the rules of this challenge:

• This challenge is hosted by Mel at The Daily Prophecy (thanks Mel!)
• Goes from January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2015 (duh)
• Books can be MG, YA, Adult
• Books do not have to be published this year. Rereads do count
• There are six different levels to aim for:
• Prince Charming: 1 – 4 books.
• Magic mirror: 5 - 9 books.
• Big bad wolf: 10 – 15 books.
• The wise princess: 16 – 20 books.
• Wicked fairy Godmother: 21 – 25 books.
• Bluebeard: you are killing it! 26+ books.
• The goal is to read fairytale retellings, although you can also read any other retelling.

While I want to aim for Big Bad Wolf, I'll be happy if I make it to Magic Mirror. Epic Reads made this amazing chart with YA Retellings, so I'll probably choose most of my books from that. I probably won't make a checkpoint post every month, just keep a running list of the ones I read/review here. 

Sounds fun! Want to sign up? Sign-ups are open until December 31, so still plenty of time!.

ARC August: I'm In!

ARC August is hosted by Octavia of Read.Sleep.Repeat. If you're interested in joining, head on over to read all about it, and then sign up!









When Octavia first announced ARC August, it timed perfectly with the plans I already had to just read read read through (half of) August. My summer class just ended, and I had three weeks until fall semester. Because class interfered with my blogging/reading over the summer, I had plans to just read alllll the things before school started up again.  Then, last Friday, I decided to go visit my cousins, and so now I leave Thursday for 2 weeks (my family is super-last minute about things). And school starts 4 days after I get back.

BUT even if my goals are now not as lofty as they were, I still will be participating in ARC August. So I won't be able to read as much as I was planning, but I can definitely still read! I'm not holding myself to ARC's necessarily, but review books in general (mainly because the only ones I really need to get to are ones that already came out). 

Goals: I'm actually not entirely sure. At first, I wanted to get my NetGalley ratio up to 100%, which I think is 12 more books. But then I also thought about the digital review copies I had not from NG, because a lot of those are even higher priority. So I think my goal is just going to be 12 review books read and reviewed in August. (Even though that 100% NG ratio sure would have been nice…) Hopefully, I can at least read some more, but that's how many I want to have reviewed. 

I'm not going to post any weekly checkpoints or anything. I'm just going to have one post at the end of the month wrapping everything up. 

Hopefully I can at least make a little dent in my pile!

YA Contemporary Challenge 2014

I know, I know what you guys are thinking. I couldn't possibly need yet another challenge for this year. I'm already doing two as it is. And I realize this. So, let me explain myself.

Contemporary is a fairly new genre for me, but it is quick becoming my favorite. I realized that at some point, the books I was reading was not what I liked anymore. I didn't like paranormal at all anymore (I barely did in the first place) but fantasy was quick losing my attention as well. I was trying to figure out which books I gravitated towards, when I realized...it was contemporary. So I'm more using this challenge to discover new contemporary books that I will enjoy.

Second, I'm not exactly challenging myself. I will read and review books like I normally do, without actually thinking about it. Then, each month, in the tab above where I will keep my progress, I will simply list all the contemporaries I read each month, as well as link the review, if I reviewed it. I don't know yet if I will do an actual checkpoint/round-up post every month, or just keep a running list in the tab. It may depend on how many I read, or I may do it every few months instead of each one. I think it will just be interesting to see how many books out of what I read it actually contemporary.

The 2014 YA Contemporary Challenge is hosted by Katie's Book Blog and The Book Belles. There is still time to sign up, if you are so inclined!

(And if you want to see which contemps I've already read and reviewed in February, check the tab above!)

2014 Series Challenge

So...yep. I've decided to join Octavia's 2014 Series Challenge. What is it? Well, basically, it's where you challenge yourself to read series. Oh wait. You didn't already get that from the title? Okay, it's a challenge to finish series. Now, these can be series that you've read one of or most of and just never got around to the rest. It can be series that you have always said that you absolutely going to read it....at some point and still haven't. As long as you finish the series.

For the list of official rules, as well as a run-down of the badge system and prize incentives, head on over to Read.Sleep.Repeat and read them. But here are the series that I am going to challenge myself to read in 2014.

Series I've started yet never finished:

Series I've never started:



So am I going to get to everything on this list? Gracious no. I'm a college kid after all. But it's a starting point of books that I really need to read. And so maybe I will.

Progress will be kept in a tab above, and I will be back every month with a checkpoint post.