Books, books, books

As many of you know yesterday was Independent Bookstore Day. I thought this was a perfect excuse to buy more books. (Although I had just ordered a handful of books from Amazon two days prior.) However, I couldn’t go to a local bookstore in Chicago because my boyfriend and I spent the weekend in Milwaukee. So as one would guess I searched high and low, spent hours doing research, calculated distances, lost track of time, forget where I was, my hair became frazzled, my nails bitten down to short stubs, and then finally I found a bookstore worthy for me to spend all my hard earned money at. (Okay, so I took about 3 minutes by googling best bookshops in Milwaukee.) I ended up at this fun place…

Boswell Book Company! It was a cute bookshop. There was plenty of room to shop and move around. Every section contained used and new books, although about 80% of the books were new. There were a few small sections with just second hand books as well. I prefer when they are all together on the same shelf, it makes life easier. They also had an area for book signings and readings. There were a few things going on because of the day but I also saw a few signs for upcoming author appearances. One of the cooler parts about the bookstore is that they had a section for book clubs. It’s a great way to find out about all different books that clubs are reading to really expand your own collection. So let’s get down to the good part.

Here is everything I got between my amazon order and my bookstore shopping.

Another Fine Myth and Myth Conceptions by Robert Asprin (I’ve been trying to find the MythAdventures series forever and they are out of print. But at least I found this book with the first two combined!)

Lirael and Abhorsen by Garth Nix (Now my collection is complete!)

Angelfall by Susan Ee

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets to the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

Bone Gap by Laura Ruby (I am so ashamed. This was on my most anticipated list for 2015 and I just bought it. eeep.)

An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

The Crown of Embers by Rae Carson (I am finally going to continue this series. Although, I only bought the second book. Eventually I’ll by the last one.)

The Diviners by Libba Bray

The Night Angel Trilogy by Brent Weeks (Random find. But it sounds so good! This includes all 3 books in the trilogy. Way of Shadows, Shadow’s Edge, Beyond the Shadows)

Well I am off to go read for a bit before the Blackhawks game tonight. Talk to you all soon!

November, November

It’s finally here, the crazy busy month of November.  So many things are happening.  I have books to read, Yallfest, books to read, NaNoWriMo, books to read, moving into a new place, books to read, and oh wait, yes, more books to read. I goaled myself at 100 books this year but the last few months I have been slacking. I am currently at 66 books and 2 novellas, so I’m just going to count that as 68! 32 books in 55 days sounds challenging but as Barney Stinson would say,  challenge accepted!

As far as NaNoWriMo goes, I am determined to make some headway in my novel I am writing. I don’t think I will be able to hit 50,000 words by the end of the month but I hope for at least 30,000. I will keep you all up to date on my progress.  If you are also joining in on NaNoWriMo, my username is Aurora Spenser.

As you may have read I went to a Q&A with Veronica Roth and Garth Nix two weeks ago. It was a lot of fun! Both of them were very interesting to listen to and funny in an awkward way. I was super excited to meet both of them and they were both such down to earth people. The best part…V. Roth loved my Dauntless tattoo!
Here are a few pictures. Sorry the lighting kinda sucks and unfortunately the pic of me and V. Roth was blurry. (But maybe at Yallfest I’ll get another shot at it!)

And last but not least I LEAVE FOR YALLFEST TOMORROW!!! Just a tad bit excited if you couldn’t tell. So definitely check back for updates over the weekend while I am there!

Oh one last thing for fun. Halloween is my favorite holiday so why not leave you with some fun Halloween pictures of me!

Talk to y’all soon!!!

Second star to the right and straight on til morning…

Sorry I have been MIA lately. Vacation and work have been taking up my time. But this morning I woke up and it was 42 degrees outside! That means it is just about time for late nights curled up on the couch with a book and a hot cup of tea and plenty of time for book reviews. Also have a few exciting things coming up including Yallfest in November. Tomorrow night is a Veronica Roth and Garth Nix reading and signing! If none of you have read the Abhorsen trilogy by Garth Nix YOUR LIFE IS NOT COMPLETE! It is an amazing high fantasy series. The prequel, Clariel, just came out last week.

I do have quite a few books piled up waiting for review including City of Heavenly Fire, Dreams of Gods and Monsters (which if anyone knows me, knows I’m obsessed with this series and Laini Taylor), Code Name Verity, Graceling, To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before, The Raven Boys, and The Dream Thieves (my current read).

Chat with y’all soon!