Thursday, April 2, 2015

Month in Review for March: Reading Challenge Updates, The Dovekeepers Letdown, and My Upcoming Blogoversary

Torrie's "Bat Signal"
March has gone by very fast, and I feel a bit cheated. I think part of the reason it didn't drag on is I'm constantly doing things- with physical therapy three times a week, stretching daily, crazy dogs demanding my complete attention during the time I'd allotted for reading, and writing up (and viciously promoting) my blog posts, I haven't had a lot of 'me' time to stare into space and wonder where the time is going. Currently, my page-a-day "Forgotten English" calendar is on March 3rd- I obviously haven't had much free time to rip off the sheets despite it being right next to my computer.

I keep thinking I'm a newbie blogger, despite my eminent one year blogoversary on the horizon (as in, this Saturday). It honestly doesn't feel like I've been blogging that long, but the calendar begs to differ. I feel that in part, this is due to my previous participation on Goodreads groups- although not all the people on GR are bloggers, you begin to develop pretty strong opinions when discussing things with certain groups. Articulating my thoughts here on specific books wasn't a stretch for me at all. Anyway, I think I may write up a Confession this weekend on what I wish I knew when I started book blogging.

My Blogoversary:



As you might imagine from ^that^, I have some things planned for this Saturday in celebration of my blogoversary. Of course, this Sunday is also Easter Sunday, so the things I've planned won't be exclusive to one day/weekend.

The Dovekeepers Letdown...



You may have heard me get all excited about this tv mini series. I was so pumped to see all my favorite characters brought to life that I hadn't expected it flop so hideously. These are my unorganized thoughts about my expectations and the reality:

1. I had hoped the tv 'mini' series would redeem itself with the second episode. Instead, it got worse. Much worse.

2. The only things I felt they got right about the book were the portrayals of Yael and Shirah- but then again, half the time they were busy getting handsy with whichever male happened to be present. Although some of The Dovekeepers did revolve around their romances, it was less "sex scene, sex scene, -not enough sex scenes in this book, add another dozen for the screenplay- sex scene, sex scene, secret tryst, ad nauseam" and more "I love you, even though I know I shouldn't, even though it'll probably get me killed".

3. Nothing like deleting a main character (who actually had her first person account told in the book- Revka). I guess the old gal didn't cut it because she didn't have a romance going on that they could exacerbate/ruin.

4. Adding on a Roman man who interrogates them to "make" them narrate the story? That made it one of the corniest book to screen translations I've ever seen. It also gives away the ending.

5. They weren't The Dovekeepers. Much of the book takes place in the dovecote. Less than 10% of the screen adaptation was within the dovecote. You barely see them handling the doves, which was also a big part of the book.

6. Does this tv series put you off reading the book? I know it would've put me off. And I pretty much loved the book.

In conclusion- the book rocks. The mini series sucked, despite Cote de Pablo (who is awesome) being in it. My mother fell asleep during the second part, as it was pretty yawn worthy, despite some parts being true to the book.

Is the mini series true to the book?


Hell. No.


*End of Fangirl-Turned-Ax-Murderer Rant*

Blog Stuff: 


Statistics:
 Total Posts: 18
  Total Critiques: 11
  Genres:
    Fantasy: 1
    Classic about a Hideous Man-Child: 1
    Historical: 1
    Historical Romance: 1
    Part of a Series: 6
    Sci-fi/Dystopia: 3
    Out-of-Orbit: 1
    Urban Fantasy: 1

Most Popular Posts of March:
NQAC: Biweekly Update #8: Book Buying Binge, Zoolander Face, and Hardcore Chew Toys
Release Day Review: "The Secret (Irin Chronicles #3)" by Elizabeth Hunter
SFF: The 5 Books with Endings that Made You Mad
O.o.O.C.: "Born to Be" by (Emmanuel) Taylor Gordon
Prequel Review: "The Governess Affair (Brothers Sinister #0.5)" by Courtney Milan
Release Day Review: "Rebel Queen" by Michelle Moran

Pageviews for the Month: 780+
Comments: 10!

Blog Schedule and Features: Critiques on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. On Sundays, I rotate between the Sunday Fun Five, and Confessions of an Insomniac Book Devourer (or Not Quite a Confession).


Reading Challenges Updates:

Snowflake and Spider Silk Bingo Challenge


Applicable Books:
From January:
Song of Blood and Stone (Earthsinger Chronicles #1) by L. Penelope (POC main character)
Soulless (Parasol Protectorate #1) by Gail Carriger (New to me author)
Changeless (Parasol Protectorate #2) by Gail Carriger (2nd book in a series)
Blameless (Parasol Protectorate #3) by Gail Carriger (female author)
From February:
Unseen (Unborn #2) by Amber Lynn Natusch (published 2015)
Written in Red (The Others #1) by Anne Bishop (Urban Fantasy)
From March:
Stardust by Neil Gaiman (written before 2000- it was first published in 1998)
Anthem by Ayn Rand (Novella/Short Story)
Moxyland by Lauren Beukes (Dystopia)

I may do some rearranging later in the challenge, since that's allowed.

Travel the World in Books Challenge



Applicable Books:
Well, nothing much this month. I only read seven books this month, and while some of them were based on soil that wasn't American, they didn't quite strike me as being anything destination-centric. I like the books I read for this challenge to give me a real flavor of the land I'm "traveling".

Reading Stats:





Books read in March: 7

Book Stats:
Has a Diverse Main Character: 1
Doesn't Have a Diverse MC: 6
Female Main Character: 3
Male Main Character: 3
Pair and/or Group of Female/Male Main Characters: 1
Genre:
 Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Romance: 1
 Steampunk: 1
 Classic/Spy Thriller: 1
 Historical Romance: 1
 Fantasy: 1
 Science Fiction Dystopia: 2
Published in 2015: 2
Published in 2000-2014: 2
Published in 1990s: 1
Published in 1950-70: 1
Published in 1900-1950: 1
Self-Published, Small Press, or Other: 2
Traditionally Published: 5
Series Books: 4
Standalones: 3
Ebook Version: 7
Paper Version: 0
Favorite of the Month: a Tie- The Secret (Irin Chronicles #3) by Elizabeth Hunter and Unseemly Science (The Fall of the Gas-lit Empire #2) by Rod Duncan
Least Favorite of the Month: Casino Royale (James Bond #1) by Ian Fleming
From the-pile: 0
From the-invisible-pile: 4
Recently acquired: 11
Added to the-invisible-pile in March: 6
Books bought: 6 ebooks, 5 books
Pages Read in 2015 (according to Goodreads): 7983

Ratings:
5 Stars: 0
4-4.5 Stars: 5
3-3.5 Stars: 2
2-2.5 Stars: 0

Author Stats (1 = 1 book read by x author):
Male: 3
Female: 4
Diverse: 0
Not-so-Diverse: 7
Living: 5
Deceased: 2

Planning to Read in April:



Dreams of Shreds and Tatters by Amanda Downum (Review Copy)


The Preview Edition of When the Heavens Fall by Marc Turner (Review Copy)

I'm still working on finding an epic fantasy to suit my mood- I've been switching books a lot lately, which is unlike me. Usually I read several books start to finish within a few weeks, but my crazy schedule is interrupting my reading time.

Upcoming Reviews and Other Posts:



Unseemly Science (The Fall of the Gas-lit Empire #2) by Rod Duncan
One of my favorite books of the month, Unseemly Science is much more grim and macabre than I expected it to be- but I was warned. There's a skull on the cover, for heaven's sake. I just thought it would be a bit lighter like the previous installment. Still, it was lovely, and I can't wait to hash out my feelings about it.

The First Blogoversary of Victorian Soul (Book) Critiques
This Saturday, 6PM MDT. You've been warned.

...and so far I don't have anything else planned. Except my Sunday features, which are always pre-planned, luckily.

                       Until Saturday.


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