Category: Discussion

Are You a Character Driven or Plot Driven Reader? | Discussion

Posted April 6, 2018 by Jana in Discussion / 39 Comments

This week’s Top Ten Tuesday has brought up an interesting discussion that I wanted to expound upon. Let me set the stage: I have a Top Ten Tuesday topic suggestion form, where participants can submit their suggestions for future TTTs. The topic “Characters I Liked from Non-Favorite/Disliked Books” came through and I was kind of intimidated by it, but figured I’d put it on the schedule because I want topics to apply to a variety of readers and not just be ones that are easy for me.

As I started building my list a couple weeks in advance I realized how unbelievably hard it was for me to come up with 10 characters I liked from books I didn’t like. I am a very character driven reader. If I don’t like a book it’s usually because I did not like the characters. I’ve never disliked a story but liked the characters enough to continue reading it. If I can’t connect with or fall in love with the characters, then it’s a pretty automatic DNF for me. There’s just no reason for me to stick around. I started looking at all my one and two star reviews to try and find books I rated low, but found redeeming qualities in the characters. Most of the time I was actually complaining about the characters! I ended up picking a lot of characters that I used to love, who took a bad turn in sequels and series books because I couldn’t come up with much else.

Once this TTT went live and the Linky was open for people to link up their posts, I quickly noticed how slowly the links were submitted. Usually the Linky explodes with submissions within minutes of the post going live. I started visiting the blogs who participated, and made it through the first 20 or so posts before sleep took over. I noticed that many people were in my same boat and struggled with coming up with their lists. Some of them reversed the topic and wrote about characters they hated from books they loved, which would have been so much easier for me. Someone even changed the topic to characters they loved. Period. Participation was also down. By the next day only 85 people had linked up their posts, as opposed to the 300-350 I usually see.

Clearly, I’m not alone! I saw several posts where people said they loved the topic, and easily came up with 10 picks. For a lot of us, though, I know how tricky it was and I feel bad that so many people struggled with it. I’ll do my best to not make such a hard topic anymore.

So, let’s discuss!
– Are you a character driven reader like me, or plot driven reader?
– Or does something else drive your love of books? The writing? The world? The author? Your own stubbornness? All of the above?
– Do you DNF over characters you can’t connect with, or can you keep going with a book even if you don’t like them?
– Which books come to your mind when you think of this discussion topic? 

There’s so much to talk about!


Books That Belong In the Freezer | Discussion

Posted March 22, 2018 by Jana in Discussion / 33 Comments

Ok, so I re-watch the TV show Friends, in all of its silly and heartwarming glory at least once a year and recently I came across the episode where Joey and Rachel push books on each other. Rachel comes across a copy of The Shining by Stephen King in Joey’s freezer and learns that Joey puts books in the freezer if they get too scary for him to handle. Anyway, they end up trading books: Joey has Rachel read The Shining, and Rachel has Joey read Little Women. Hilariousness ensues. Watch the clip here!

So my question for you today is: have you read any books that you would put in the freezer if you were Joey? Maybe they are scary or something sad is about to happen and you don’t want it to. I don’t read sad books, so that aspect doesn’t apply to me. And I haven’t read many REALLY scary books because I’m a wimp, but I’ve read a few that had me pretty freaked out (you might think I’m a chicken, which is fine):

Hold Your Breath by Katie Ruggle is an amazing romantic suspense book with a bad guy who watches his victim through the window at night while she sleeps. I pretty much only have time to read in bed at night, and I’ve never been more grateful for living on the second floor and having mini blinds AND curtains. Nobody will ever see me.

Till Death by Jennifer Armentrout is terrifying. lol. Luckily I read it while on a cruise with my family, so I was never alone.

The Woman In Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware takes place on a cruise liner, and the heroine hears evidence of a murder and nobody believes her except the killer who is now after her. AHHHH.

Shadowlands by Kate Brian scared me way more than I thought it would. Girl escapes the clutches of a serial killer, enters the witness protection program, and then uh oh. The writing is pretty great, so I was super scared.

Don’t Look Back by Jennifer L. Armentrout features a girl who went missing with her friend and then returned alone with no memory of who she is or what happened to her. This is kind of my worst nightmare, guys.

Ok, so throw your scary/super sad/traumatizing books
at me that make you totally understand where Joey is coming from. 


The Dreaded Blogging Slump | A Call for Advice/Commiserating

Posted May 5, 2017 by Jana in Discussion, Personal / 10 Comments

Hello!! Remember me!? I’m the person who you think fell off the Internet. I’m here! I’m just having trouble finding my blogging mojo at the moment. I’m reading, but I’m months behind on writing reviews. I’m staying on top of the Debut Author Challenge, but not as much as I’d like. What’s happening to me!?

We all know I’ve been in grad school the last 3.5 years, so the blog took a back seat in my life. But I graduated in December! But then I went to Hawaii and California for a month. But I’ve been home!! I’ve been reading!! What’s going on? I still love reading and blogging, so that’s not the issue. I’m not going anywhere, so it’s not like I’m phasing myself out.

What do I do?? Has this happened to you? Any tips for getting a handle on the reviews I still need to write? How do I make blogging a priority again? Every time I think of sitting down to write a review I go to Netflix or play Two Dots on my phone because I’m great at adulting and being responsible. I used to be so ON IT. Anyone else feeling this way? I need some help. Or a blogging intervention.

Throw your thoughts at me, and while you’re at it tell me what you’ve been up to!


29 Bright Candles | 50 Things About Jana

Posted June 23, 2016 by Jana in About Me, Discussion, Personal / 2 Comments

Yesterday was my 29th birthday!! I can’t believe it! So often it’s all about books or blog tours or the Debut Author Challenge here on the blog, so I thought it would be fun to post a little about myself today so you can get to know me better! So I interviewed myself with questions I found around the Internet.


1. If you could live anywhere, where would it be?
I’d love to live in a little villa in Italy somewhere, probably in the middle of the countryside but close enough so that I can visit all the beautiful places there. I’d also want to be close to a town markets and bakeries so I can buy all the yummy foods.

2. What is your biggest fear?
Losing my mom too soon.

3. What is your favorite family vacation?
A few years ago, my family and I went on a transatlantic cruise that ended in Rome, Italy. We made so many amazing stops along the way, and then spent a few days in Rome. Then my dad and little sister flew home and my mom and I spent three more weeks traveling through Italy, Switzerland, France, Belgium, and The Netherlands. It was amazing!

4. What would you change about yourself if you could?
My health. Definitely.

5. What really makes you angry?
Injustice! lol. I get so mad if something happens to me or anyone I’m even aware of really, that was just wrong. Or if someone gets away with something they shouldn’t have. I also get angry when someone is rude just for the sake of being rude. This happens a lot on the Internet and it bothers me so much.

6. What motivates you to work hard?
I’m a perfectionist, so my inner drive to do everything right is more motivation than I need.

7. What is your proudest accomplishment?
Wow, this is hard. I’m proud of myself for a lot of different things. I’ll be graduating grad school this December with a 4.0 GPA, I’ve got a blurb in a book and am mentioned in several acknowledgments pages, and I’ve made some choices regarding my church that were really big.

8. What is your favorite book to read?
This is hard, but it’s got to be A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas. It was my first and only re-read to date!

9. What makes you laugh the most?
Lots of things make me laugh, so it’s hard to narrow it down. Funny/cute cat videos do it for me the most, probably.

10. What was the last movie you went to? What did you think?
I saw Finding Dory on Tuesday, and thought it was really cute! Baby Dory was cute, but that short called Piper at the beginning was amazing.

11. What did you want to be when you were small?
A teacher, because I wanted to write on a chalkboard all day.

12. If you could choose to do anything for a day, what would it be?
Hmmm… Well, this might be cheating a little… but I’d love to have a day where booking travel arrangements was free. Like, all plane tickets, cruise fares, hotels, etc. are free. I’d book everything for the rest of my life!

13. What is your favorite game or sport to watch and play?
I don’t really enjoy playing sports or watching sports on TV, but I do like going to the occasional football game.

14. Which would you rather do: wash dishes, mow the lawn, clean the bathroom, or vacuum the house?
Vacuum the house.

15. If you could hire someone to help you, would it be with cleaning, cooking, or yard work?
Cleaning, for sure.

16. If you could only eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Pasta with chicken in it. I need my protein, but pasts is love.

17. Who is your favorite author?
This is a rude question. Marissa Meyer.

18. Have you ever had a nickname? What is it?
I’ve had a TON from friends and family. Probably my favorite is “Squirtie Bird”, which is what my grandpa calls me.

19. Do you like or dislike surprises? 
I LOVE them!

20. In the evening, would you rather play a game, visit a relative, watch a movie, or read?
Read!

21. Would you rather vacation in Hawaii or Alaska, and why?
Hmm… Depends on the time of year. I love Alaska (been twice) and I’m going to Hawaii next year. I don’t love hot weather, so Hawaii in the winter would be very fun.

22. Would you rather win the lottery or work at the perfect job? And why?
I’d rather win the lottery so I can stop worrying about money and do things I love.

23. Who would you want to be stranded with on a deserted island?
My mom!

24. If money was no object, what would you do all day?
Travel. I’d love to spend my life traveling.

25. If you could go back in time, what year would you travel to?
Hmm… I’d like to go back to Rome in 1508 and watch Michelangelo paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

26. How would your friends describe you?
I’ve asked this over the years, and people have described me as being doe-eyed, sweet, caring, a good listener, trustworthy, and funny.

27. What are your hobbies?
Reading, organizing, making jewelry, graphic design, shopping, traveling, watching movies, going to museums, playing games, book blogging, and so many more.

28. What is the best gift you have been given?
This is hard! I’ve gotten lots of great things, but those are not as important to me as the experiences I’ve had in my life and the people who are in it.

29. What is the worst gift you have received?
Oh wow. When I was a kid I got this weird pottery kit from a friend who came to my birthday kit that had a mold that you pour plaster into and then paint with pastel acrylics. It was the ugliest thing. lol.

30. Aside from necessities, what one thing could you not go a day without?
Honestly, my phone. And that’s pitiful.

31. List two pet peeves.
Poor grammar/spelling and people who wander through stores oblivious to the fact that they are not the only ones there.

32. Where do you see yourself in five years?
Working as a librarian, possibly married?

33. How many pairs of shoes do you own?
I should know this since I just organized them all, but probably 40-50.

34. If you were a super-hero, what powers would you have?
Teleportation, the ability to read minds, and the power to eat whatever I want and stay perfectly thin.

35. What form of public transportation do you prefer? 
Cruise ship.

36. What’s your favorite zoo animal?
Polar bears and penguins.

37. If you could go back in time to change one thing, what would it be?
I never would have stayed at that one job that sent my health into a downward spiral.

38. How many pillows do you sleep with?
Four.

39. What’s the longest you’ve gone without sleep (and why)?
I think it was roughly 24 hours when I flew home from Amsterdam. I don’t even know.

40. What’s the tallest building you’ve been to the top of?
Empire State Building

41. Would you rather trade intelligence for looks or looks for intelligence?
Looks for intelligence. Dumb people bug me.

42. How often do you buy clothes?
One or two times a month.

43. Have you ever had a secret admirer?
I have! I had a couple in high school and one in college.

44. What’s your favorite holiday?
Christmas.

45. What’s the most daring thing you’ve ever done?
I’ve taken a lot of pictures

46. What was the last thing you recorded on TV?
The Bachelorette.

47. What was the last book you read?
I’m currently reading 738 Days by Stacey Kade. The last book I finished was Frayed by Kara Terzis.

48. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?
I shower at night, so it takes me about 30-40 minutes to do my makeup and hair in the morning.

49. What’s your favorite movie?
Father of the Bride (the one with Steve Martin)

50. What language do you wish you spoke?
Italian

Thanks for stopping by to get to know a little about me! Pick a question (or a bunch) and answer it in the comments! I’d love to get to know you better as well. 


Discussion: Lauren Oliver’s Delirium Trilogy Gets New Covers

Posted May 17, 2016 by Jana in Cover Talk, Discussion / 15 Comments

We’ve all come to expect that the trilogies we love might possibly get new covers. It’s kind of a thing that happens. I’m usually not ok with it. I was not happy when Stephanie Perkins’s Anna and the French Kiss companion books were redesigned, I hate the new covers for The Winner’s Curse trilogy by Marie Rutkoski, and redesigning the covers of the Ruby Red trilogy by Kerstin Gier is a downright sin.

The Delirium trilogy has been redesigned three times now. I loved Delirium‘s original cover, especially on the hardback because removing the dust jacket gives you more cover detail of the woman’s face.

I’m not the biggest fan anymore (what can I say? Tastes change). But I like it much better than the “random girl on the cover” syndrome we have been exposed to with the most recent cover redesign.

Delirium-Trilogy-delirium-31382340-780-392

Boy, did I hate these. At least the original cover stood out from the crowd. These ones look so generic and weird (who shoves flowers in their faces like this?), plus the model looks like she can only make one facial expression: “I’m going to seduce you with my slightly separated lips and my bedroom eyes,” which doesn’t even make sense because love is outlawed in this trilogy. To be honest, I’ve always loved random girls on covers because I like to picture my own characters, thank you very much.

H_DeliriumSeries

But now… LOOK at this re-design. I love them! I want to re-buy these books with these covers, and this rarely happens to me! But these are so pretty! I love the minimalist design and the colors and the symbolism. SO great. I can see adults, teens, boys, girls, etc. reading these whereas the older covers make the series look so juvenile and geared towards girls. This is so much better, and I can see the trilogy popping back up on everyone’s radar as a result of these new covers. And the novella covers are pretty great too.

I_DeliriumStoriesNovellas

So! What do you think of these new covers? What do you think of cover changes in general? Do you usually like the change? Do you get mad having to re-buy books so your covers match? Do you care at all? Let me know in the comments!

(New cover images taken from the Epic Reads site.)