- Go to your goodreads to-read shelf.
- Order on ascending date added.
- Take the first 5 (or 10 if you’re feeling adventurous) books (or 20 if you keep adding like I do!)
- Read the synopses of the books
- Decide: keep it or should it go?
1. The Avery Shaw Experiment by Kelly Oram:
The state science fair is coming up and Avery decides to use her broken heart as the topic of her experiment. She’s going to find the cure. By forcing herself to experience the seven stages of grief through a series of social tests, she believes she will be able to get over Aiden Kennedy and make herself ready to love again. But she can’t do this experiment alone, and her partner (ex partner!) is the one who broke her heart.
Avery finds the solution to her troubles in the form of Aiden’s older brother Grayson. The gorgeous womanizer is about to be kicked off the school basketball team for failing physics. He’s in need of a good tutor and some serious extra credit. But when Avery recruits the lovable Grayson to be her “objective outside observer,” she gets a whole lot more than she bargained for, because Grayson has a theory of his own: Avery doesn’t need to grieve. She needs to live. And if there’s one thing Grayson Kennedy is good at, it’s living life to the fullest.
My thoughts:
Hmm, it sounds good. But will I ever get to it? And is it that original? I don't think so.
Verdict: Toss
2. Wilderness by Dean Koontz:
“The world is a machine that produces endless surprises and mysteries layered on mysteries.”
Addison Goodheart is a mystery even to himself. He was born in an isolated home surrounded by a deep forest, never known to his father, kept secret from everyone but his mother, who barely accepts him. She is haunted by private demons and keeps many secrets—none of which she dreads more than the young son who adores her.
Only in the woods, among the wildlife, is Addison truly welcome. Only there can he be at peace. Until the day he first knows terror, the day when his life changes radically and forever . .
My thoughts:
Because this is a novella and I think only available as an e-book or audiobook, I'll keep it on my list.
Verdict: Keep
3. Big Fat Disaster by Beth Fehlbaum:
Not sure I'll get to this or how original it is these days.
Verdict: Toss
4. Dark Duets by Christopher Golden:
-TRIP TRAP by Sherrilyn Kenyon & Kevin J. Anderson
-WELDED by Tom Piccirilli & T.M. Wright
-DARK WITNESS by Charlaine Harris & Rachel Caine
-REPLACING MAX by Stuart MacBride & Allan Guthrie
-T. RHYMER by Gregory Frost & Jonathan Maberry
-SHE, DOOMED GIRL by Sarah MacLean & Carrie Ryan
-HAND JOB by Chelsea Cain & Lidia Yuknavitch
-HOLLOW CHOICES by Robert Jackson Bennett & David Liss
-AMUSE-BOUCHE by Amber Benson & Jeffrey J. Mariotte
-BRANCHES, CURVING by Tim Lebbon & Michael Marshall Smith
-RENASCENCE by Rhodi Hawk and F. Paul Wilson
-BLIND LOVE by Kasey Lansdale & Joe R. Lansdale
-TRAPPER BOY by Holly Newstein & Rick Hautala
-STEWARD OF THE BLOOD by Nate Kenyon & James A. Moore
-CALCULATING ROUTE by Michael Koryta & Jeffrey David Greene
-SISTERS BEFORE MISTERS by Sarah Rees Brennan, Cassandra Clare, and Holly Black
-SINS LIKE SCARLET by Mark Morris & Rio Youers
My thoughts:
Even with some of the awesome authors in this one, we all know my stance on anthologies
Verdict: Toss
5. All Our Pretty Songs by Sarah McCarry:
In the lush and magical Pacific Northwest live two best friends who grew up like sisters: charismatic, mercurial, and beautiful Aurora, and the devoted, watchful narrator. Each of them is incomplete without the other. But their unbreakable bond is challenged when a mysterious and gifted musician named Jack comes between them.
His music is like nothing I have ever heard. It is like the ocean surging, the wind that blows across the open water, the far call of gulls.
Suddenly, each girl must decide what matters most: friendship, or love. What both girls don’t know is that the stakes are even higher than either of them could have imagined. They're not the only ones who have noticed Jack’s gift; his music has awakened an ancient evil—and a world both above and below which may not be mythical at all. We have paved over the ancient world but that does not mean we have erased it.
The real and the mystical; the romantic and the heartbreaking all begin to swirl together in All Our Pretty Songs, Sarah McCarry's brilliant debut, carrying the two on journey that is both enthralling and terrifying.
And it’s up to the narrator to protect the people she loves—if she can.
My thoughts:
We have this book in the school library where I work. So I could always pick it up to read if I want. Don't know that I need it on the TBR list though.
Verdict: Toss
6. Sought by Margaret Peterson Haddix:
Thirteen-year-old Daniella McCarthy begins receiving a series of unusual phone calls right before her family moves from Michigan to Ohio. How is it that total strangers seem to know more about her background than she does? And could it be possible that these strangers also know something about her future?
My thoughts:
Since this is an e-book only, I want to keep it as a reminder to find and read at some point since I like this series.
Verdict: Keep
7. I Zombie by Jo Michaels:
Trixie Collins is a normal teen making her way through high school. One night at a party, a boy comes on to her and won't take no for an answer. As she jerks her arm away, his fingernails cut into her skin.
When she finds her dog's mutilated body and realizes she's to blame, she starts to think maybe the zombie apocalypse they've been screaming about on the news isn't a hoax after all. Worse, she begins to think maybe she's one of the infected.
Now it's a fight for life as she joins together with her brethren to stop the humans intent on destroying them. Are zombies all bad, or is it just a huge misunderstanding?
My thoughts:
Eh, I really don't read a lot of zombie books.
Verdict: Toss
8. The Unseemly Education of Anne Merchant by Joanna Wiebe:
One by one, unanswered questions rise. No one will tell her why a line is painted across the island or why she is forbidden to cross it. Her every move—even her performance at the school dance—is graded as part of a competition to become valedictorian, a title that brings rewards no one will talk about. And Anne discovers that the parents of her peers surrender million-dollar possessions to enroll their kids in Cania Christy, leaving her to wonder what her lowly funeral director father could have paid to get her in… and why.
As a beautiful senior struggles to help Anne make sense of this cloak-and-dagger world without breaking the rules that bind him, she must summon the courage to face the impossible truth—and change it—before she and everyone she loves is destroyed by it.
My thoughts:
Doesn't sound that original.
Verdict: Toss
9. This Star Won't Go Out: The Life and Words of Esther Grace Earl:
My thoughts:
I wanted to read, but I do have it in my school library, so I can just get it from there and don't need to leave it on my TBR.
Verdict: Toss
10. Talking Pictures: Images and Messages Rescued from the Past by Ransom Riggs:
My thoughts:
After getting to hear the author speak about this, and seeing the pictures he used in his book Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, I decided I wanted to find pictures like that, so I went to antique stores and flea markets and looked around. I still kind of want to read this at some point, so I'll keep it on my list!
Verdict: Keep
11. Phantom File by Patrick Carman:
My thoughts:
I liked the series, so I'll probably want to read this.
Verdict: Keep
12. On the Road to Find Out by Rachel Toor:
On New Year’s Day, Alice Davis goes for a run. Her first ever. It’s painful and embarrassing, but so was getting denied by the only college she cares about. Alice knows she has to stop sitting around and complaining to her best friend, Jenni, and her pet rat, Walter, about what a loser she is. But what doesn’t know is that by taking those first steps out the door, she is setting off down a road filled with new challenges—including vicious side stitches, chafing in unmentionable places, and race-paced first love—and strengthening herself to endure when the going suddenly gets tougher than she ever imagined.
My thoughts:
Sounds like it could be good, but nothing that original
Verdict: Toss
13. How Hard Can it Be by Robyn Peterman:
One happy ending coming right up…
*************************************************
What happens when an accountant decides to grab life by the horns and try something new? Apparently a pirate named Dave, a lot of pastel fleece, and blackmail—just to start with…
Visualize and succeed, Oprah said. I was sure as hell trying, even if my campaign to score a job as the local weather girl had ended in a restraining order. Okay, TV was not my strength. But a lack of talent has never stopped me before. Which is why I’ve embarked on a writing career. I mean, how hard can it be to come up with a sexy romance?
Leave it to me to wind up in a group of grandmotherly porno writers who discuss sex toys and apple cobbler in the same breath. Also leave it to me to leak an outlandish plot idea to a bestselling author with the morals of a rabid squirrel. And only I could get arrested for a jewelry heist I didn’t commit—by a hunky cop whose handcuffs just might tempt me to sign up for a life of crime. Maybe I’ve found my calling after all…
My thoughts:
Sounds like a lot of stuff is going on in this one, and I have so many other romances to read, I'll probably skip this.
Verdict: Toss
14. A Rare Titanic Family: How the Caldwells Survived the Sinking and Traveled the World by Julie Hedgepeth Williams:
My thoughts:
I don't even remember adding this one, but again I am fascinated by all things having to do with the Titanic.
Verdict: Keep
15. The Chapel Wars by Lindsey Leavitt:
And then there's Grandpa's letter. Not only is Holly running the business with her recently divorced parents, but she needs to make some serious money—fast. Grandpa also insists Holly reach out to Dax, the grandson of her family's mortal enemy and owner of the cheesy chapel next door. No matter how cute Dax is, Holly needs to stay focused: on her group of guy friends, her disjointed family, work, school and... Dax. No wait, not Dax.
Holly’s chapel represents everything she’s ever loved in her past. Dax might be everything she could ever love in the future. But as for right now, there's a wedding chapel to save.
My thoughts:
Sounds good, but don't know when I'll get to it.
Verdict: Toss
16. Undiscovered by Jessica Brody:
There was a top-secret research compound hidden deep in the desert.
There was a girl held prisoner in a restricted sector.
And there was a boy who found her. And risked everything to set her free.
Romantic and action-packed, Undiscovered is sure to thrill fans of Jessica Brody’s Unremembered trilogy. In this 100-page novella, told from Zen’s point of view, more secrets are revealed about Seraphina’s forgotten past, the corporation that created her, and the boy who fell in love with her. Undiscovered also includes a sneak peek of Unforgotten, the anticipated second book in the trilogy.
My thoughts:
I think I'd decided since I only rated the first book in this series 3 stars I wasn't going to continue, so don't need to read this novella.
Verdict: Toss
17. The Headhunters Race by Kimberly Afe:
With a mechanical collar timed to strangle the prisoners if they're not back in nine days, Avene allies herself with seventeen-year-old McCoy, another prisoner that insists on helping her at every turn and a boy she's trying hard not to fall for. Together they battle nature, other prisoners, and the timed death collars to win the coveted prize. But when Avene is tested with one deadly conflict after another, she realizes there is more at stake than winning her freedom – first she has to survive.
My thoughts:
This cover looks really familiar, like a similar one has been used on other books. Not sure I need to read it.
Verdict: Toss
18. Dead and Beloved by Jamie McHenry:
Ryan is craving flesh, turning more and more into the monster that everyone fears, and is determined to keep the virus from spreading. He also hasn't forgotten his promise to Jessica. He'll stop the apocalypse and take her to prom . . . if her dad doesn't kill him first.
My thoughts:
Doesn't sound that original to me.
Verdict: Toss
19. Soul Screamers Vol. 4 by Rachel Vincent:
The final collection of New York Times bestselling author Rachel Vincent's Soul Screamers series is packed with emotion, with intrigue, with secrets, with family and above all, with love.
Don't miss WITH ALL MY SOUL, FEARLESS and a brand-new novella, LAST REQUEST.
My thoughts:
First off, I want that dress on the cover. Secondly, I love this series, so I will totally need to read this at some point!
Verdict: Keep
20. Defy the Night by Heather Munn:
In 1941 France is still “free.” But fifteen-year-old Magali is frustrated by the cruel irony of pretending life is normal when food is rationed, new clothes are a rarity, and most of her friends are refugees. And now the government is actually helping the Nazis. Someone has got to do something, but it seems like no one has the guts—until Paquerette arrives.
Smuggling refugee children is Paquerette’s job. And she asks Magali to help.
Working with Paquerette is scary and exhausting, but Magali never doubts that it is the right thing to do. Until her brash actions put those she loves in danger.
My thoughts:
Another time in history that fascinates me and I want to read about is of course World War II, so this is one I need to read.
Verdict: Keep
Final Thoughts:
Keeping 7 again this week, less than half, so that is good.
When I last said how many were on the list last week, it was 3,065, with cutting 13, I'm down to 3,059, and I know I added a bunch from Edelweiss last week!
Have you read any of these? Would you suggest I keep any I'm tossing? And if you're inspired to do this on your blog, please feel free to join in and share a link in the comments, since it will also get you an extra entry into my giveaway at the bottom of this post.
Giveaway:
Once again this is a US only giveaway, unless you are International and see a book here you really want and would be willing to pay for the difference in the shipping through Paypal or some other way. You get to pick any two books from the pictures below, as long as they don't get traded away, or picked by last week's winner, and I will pick a surprise book from the piles to add to your choice. As I mentioned above, unpacking is finding a lot of books to get rid of, so you have even more to pick from this week! Here are your choices:
2018 ARCs:
2013-2016 ARCs (if you pick Zodiac, I kind of want to keep it with Wandering Star):
I'm continuing to add in my 2019 ARCs now. You can pick one of your two choices from the picture below, the other book you pick needs to come from the pictures above.
a Rafflecopter giveaway