Read-A-Thon October 2010

I started to read in hour 5.

Progress:

Update 1

Time: 18:51 GMT +1
Current Book: Darkness Calls by Marjorie M. Liu
Books Finished: 0
Books Abandoned: 0
Pages this session: 110
Pages total: 110
Hours Reading: 1
Challenges Completed: 0
Prizes Won: 0

Update 2

Time: 20:44 GMT +1
Current Book: Darkness Calls by Marjorie M. Liu
Books Finished: 0
Books Abandoned: 0
Pages this session: 102
Pages total: 212
Hours Reading: 2:30
Challenges Completed: 3
Prizes Won: 0

Update 3

Time: 01:02 GMT +1
Current Book: Tempest Rising by Nicole Peeler
Books Finished: 1
Books Abandoned: 0
Pages this session: 224
Pages total: 436
Hours Reading: 5:20
Challenges Completed: 6
Prizes Won: 0

Update 4

Time: 10:22 GMT +1
Current Book: A Little Bit Wicked: Life, Love, and Faith in Stages by Kristin Chenoweth
Books Finished: 3
Books Abandoned: 0
Pages this session: 844
Pages total: 1280
Hours Reading: 15:20
Challenges Completed: 12
Prizes Won: 0

Update 5

Time: 12:15 GMT +1
Current Book: A Little Bit Wicked: Life, Love, and Faith in Stages by Kristin Chenoweth
Books Finished: 3
Books Abandoned: 0
Pages this session: 173
Pages total: 1453
Hours Reading: 16:50
Challenges Completed: 14
Prizes Won: 0

Challenges:

Hour 6

Microfiction

As I walk by the street I see the reflection of a man in a storefront's mirror. He seems familiar but I can't quite place him so I decide to turn around to get a better look. Pale blonde hair hides most of his face but I can almost be sure that it's him, the one that got away, my one regret in life. My heart starts to pound and I start running toward him.
"Jack!" I shout, "You're back!"
But as the wind lifts the hair out of his face I realize that it's not him, and that I may never right the wrongs I once did.

Hour 7

Armchair Travelling

Right now I'm reading Darkness Calls and it's set in Seattle. It seems like an interesting city, seeing as how they have the mountains and the sea/lake nearby. I also finished yesterday the Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan and it was great hearing and learning about all these new places, especially Egypt.

Hour 8

Love To Hate

1. Reth - Paranormalcy by Kiersten White: He was one of the bad guys but there was something about him that I really like.

2. Roland - Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews. He's the ultimate bad guy, powerful, clever and has penty of resources. Still, there is something about him that it's mysterious and makes him interesting.

3. Marsilia - Mercy Thompson series by Patricia Briggs: She's an evil vampire that can kick mayor ass. What's not to love or hate?

4. Queen Mab - Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher: She's a faerie queen, powerful, manipulative, cold, intelligent ... I shouldn't like her but I do. She makes the books much more interesting.

5. Trent - The Hollows series by Kim Harrison: When I'm sure he's a bad guy he goes and does something nice. I don't really understand him, which is why he still is a bad guy to me.

Hour 9

Shake your Pom-Poms

Cheer with your heart,
Cheer what you feel,
That's when you know the book is real!

Hour 10

Pet Pics

The only book with a "pet" that I really liked was His Majesty's Dragon with the dragon Temeraire (not sure if a dragon counts).

Temeraire threatens to trash the tall trees.

Hour 12

Mid-Event Survey

1. What are you reading right now? Tempest Rising by Nicole Peeler

2. How many books have you read so far? 1

3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-thon? Masques by Patricia Briggs.

4. Did you have to make any special arrangements to free up your whole day? No.

5. Have you had many interruptions? How did you deal with those? I've had a few and I try really hard not to scream at people to stop interrupting me.

6. What surprises you most about the Read-a-thon, so far? Apparently I'm reading less and slower than the one in April.

7. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year? Not really.

8. What would you do differently, as a Reader or a Cheerleader, if you were to do this again next year? I would set some books aside to read them in the 24 hours period. I spend almost an hour trying to decide what to read.

9. Are you getting tired yet? Yes, I really want to go to sleep.

10. Do you have any tips for other Readers or Cheerleaders, something you think is working well for you that others may not have discovered? Haven't though of anything yet.

Hour 13

Title Word Scramble

1. Firefly Lane
2. East of Eden
3. Water for Elephants
4. To Kill A Mockingbird
5. The Great Gatsby
6. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
7. The Art of Racing in the Rain
8. The Time Traveler's Wife
9. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
10. Diary of a Wimpy Kid
11. A Wrinkle in Time
12. The Polar Express
13. Love Walked In
14. Where the Wild Things Are
15. The Shining
16. Goodnight Moon
17. Interview with a Vampire
18. The Secret Life of Bees
19. The Search
20. The Help

Hour 14

Under the Covers

The 2 books I've read that where different from their cover and/or blurb are:
- Second Hand Heart by Catherine Ryan Hyde: I though it was a romance but it turned out to be a story about growing up and maturing.
- Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder: I though it was a historical book but it turned out to be a fantasy. It was great anyway.


Hour 18

Pitch Your Book

Right now I'm reading Tracking the Tempest by Nicole Peeler. This is an awesome follow up to the previous book Tempest Rising, that has a great cast of characters that have some great powers (this is an urban fantasy novel) and has plenty of humour in it.

Hour 19

Non-Fiction Readthon

The non fiction book I'm reading is A Little Bit Wicked: Life, Love, and Faith in Stages by Kristin Chenoweth. I'm just starting it, though.

Hour 20

Memoir/True Story

1. Have you ever read a memoir/true story (Or book 'based on true events'?) Yes

2. If so, what was the title/author? Open by Andre Agassi

3. What what it about? It was about the life of tennis player Andre Agassi.

4. Did you like it? Would you recommend it? I did like it and I would recommend it especially to tennis fans.

5. How many have you read? 2 or 3

6. Why or what made you want to read it? The story seemed interesting.

7. What was the saddest/scariest one you read? I read one about Marlon Brando and it was pretty sad at the end.

8. Did it have a 'happy ending'? It depends on what you think is a happy ending. Personally, the one about Brando didn't.

9. When choosing a memoir/true story, do you look for a certain kind? ( i.e. historical diary, inspirational like The Freedom Writer's Diary, Christian, non Christian) I have to be curious about the person and/or story.


10. Bonus question(s-it's in parts:) for my giveaway: Have you read 3 or more memoirs/true stories? Title/Author, would you recommend them?If you were to win the giveaway prize, would you want the book, (Sizzling 16 by Janet Evanovich) and would you prefer the coffee or tea? or both? I think I've read 3 (I'm reading the 3rd now): Open by Andre Agassi, A Little Bit Wicked: Life, Love, and Faith in Stages by Kristin Chenoweth and one about Marlon Brando (don't remember the title or author, I read it a long time ago). I'm a fan of Evanovich and I haven't read her last 2 books, so Sizzling 16 would be fine. I don't drink either coffee or tea, but if I had to choose I'll say tea.

Hour 21

Character Photo Challenge

This would be Maxine Kiss from Darkness Calls by Marjorie M. Liu. I know I'm supposed to take a picture, but my camera is broken.