Books I read in 2011

As most of you know I challenged myself to read 100 books last year. I did it! It seems kind of silly to be so proud of something small like that. It's something I did just for me. It was a selfish goal, completely indulgent. I adore books and reading and it's a little escape for me. I'm so doing it again this year.  I'm sure some of you may be wondering just which 100 books kept me company this year... you're not? Hm, well too bad, I'm sharing with you anyway...

Actually, I'll just share my top  books of the year and I'll give you guys a lovely link to explore the whole list on your own. :)

My  Favorite Books of 2011.

1. The Hunger Games Trilogy. by Suzanna Collins



This is easily one of my favorite series EVER. I was completely transported and lost in the world Suzanna Collins created. (Yes, I'm aware that it may be considered "young adult' but it was captivating. I wasn't the only one sucked into this world. The Hunger Games *the 1st book* was made into a movie and will be released on March 23, 2012!! I think I may be more excited about this movie than I was about the Twilight movies.

2. A Song of Fire and Ice series. (A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings and A Storm of Swords) by George R.R. Martin

I have not finished the series. I stopped roughly in the middle of A Storm of Swords. I needed o read something light and easy. This is an amazing series though and is also a show on HBO which I LOVE!


3. A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness.


Oh my goodness! I read this book in one day! Of course, I stayed up way to late during the week to do it. I LOVED it and I am very excited to read the second book!


4. The Meredith Gentry series by Laurell K. Hamilton

 Very fun and smutty series with fairies,magic and a few sexy scenes.

5. Blood Ties by Kay Hooper


 Loved these book.. It is dark and twisty. It's part of a larger series 12 books so far with 13 coming soon. It's got violence, magical elements and crime fighting!


6. Pale Demon by Kim Harrison


This is book number nine in The Hollows series. I was not disappointed! This series is a must read for fan of the Sookie Stackhouse novels.  Just read the series!


7. The Sabrina Kane series.



Very fun series. Magic,vampires and family drama! I'll be reading book four as soon as I get my hands on it.





I've noticed a theme in my reading choices. Vampires, magic,witches, demons and fantasy. I think I'm drawn to these books because there are soooo vastly different from the real world.


Here's a link to my goodreads books list. If you're a bookworm like me you'll love goodreads. Check it out.


my read shelf:



I'm also linked up with The Nester and her linky of books read in 2011.



What were you favorite reads of 2011? What do you plan to read in 2012?

Just a quick little review or two

I don't know if any of you readers have noticed but I love books! I love reading and if I get 5 minutes to myself I'll try to read a chapter of my current book.  One of my favorite series just released the latest novel. I was soooo excited. It came out last Tuesday and I've already finished it.

Smokin' Seventeen by Janet Evanovich.

I was so dissappointed. It felt rushed and I never laughed out loud like I have many times before. I hate when I have high hopes for a book and its not as good as I thought it would be. This novel really felt like it was pieced together from her other novels. Once I started One For the Money I fell in love with Evanovich's humor and Stephanie's crazy ways. I loved the love triangle and though I've always been a Ranger fan, I didn't mind Morelli scenes either. Seventeen books later and I could just scream. It's not even remotely funny anymore, Stephanie is so embarrassingly bad at her job that I just sigh when another 80 year old escapes her, and her Morelli/Ranger decision is snooze worthy. At this point, I don't care if she picks either one of them but I don't want to hear her talk about it anymore! There's just no progression. Stephanie has already admitted she loves Joe and they even moved into together at one point but once she moved out and back into Lonelyville with Rex the hamster, I've just been stifling the screams. The dialogue between these three could honestly be copy and pasted from book to book. And please, there was no cliffhanger in Seventeen. *SPOILER* Stephanie is taking Lula on the trip with her and the hemming and hawing will continue. So boring! I dont know if I'll bother with reading 18 when it comes out in November.





On the upside, three of my FAVORITE t.v. shows are back!!!

1.Drop Dead Diva on Lifetime. *Yay* I love the entire show!!!  For those of you that don't know what its about its a little tricky to explain but I'll try.. A vapid aspiring model killed in a car crash gets brought back to life as an intelligent, overweight lawyer, hoping to find the meaning of inner beauty and her place in the world....  Sounds dopey I know but it's cute funny quirk smart and theres a bit of romance and drama thrown in for good measure.
 It's a very charming show. Brooke Elliot is delightful to watch! She captures the flirty sorority girl trapped in a plus sized body with panache. The rest of the cast is delivers interesting performances and I really want to get to know them all. It will be interesting to watch the development of her guardian angel as he figures out life on earth. The court cases are interesting to observe. It's greatness!



2. True Blood. *sigh* I LOVED the books and the shows are a very adult spin on them. Alan Ball is a brilliant man! If you don't know about this show then you must live under a rock!


3. Weeds is back!!! LOVE this show. I'm very curious to see how its going to play out...





What are you guys watching? Any one else love these shows?