ArmchairBEA Day 2: Genre Fiction

Today's discussion from ArmchairBEA is Genre Fiction, which is one of my favorite types of books to read.  Which genre do I prefer?  Since I've been blogging I think I have read just about everything, but if I had to pick an all-around favorite I think it would be a toss-up between Romance and Mystery/Thriller.  Now I could go one step further and say I prefer contemporary romance, historical romance, paranormal romance, erotic romance and romantic suspense.  There are probably a few other types mixed in as well as you know if you are familiar with the romance genre. Just like I lumped together Mystery/Thriller, but there are political thrillers, medical thrillers, cozy mysteries, regular mystery, etc.  Once upon a time I remember it was just called Romance or Thriller or Mystery, but now there are so many wonderful books of all types out there that these additional classifications seem to help narrow down the field for those that aren't scouring blogs, Amazon, Shelf Awareness or have publicists sending them wonderful announcements.

 

But back to the questions from ArmchairBEA:

 

If you’re a reader of genre fiction do you have a favourite author or series? Nora Roberts, Stephen King, James Patterson (yes I still read him for sheer entertainment value) will always be go to authors for me.  I seek out their titles from the library when they release.  Joe Hill is another great one and I still love Dean Koontz as well.  I got my start with horror books, but it seems that slowly my favorite horror authors have gone the way of thrillers.  Has anyone else noticed that?  But then again there are new great horror authors out there as well.

And what keeps bringing you back for more fantasy/sci fi/horror etc?  Well-written books, or just sheer entertainment value.  When I go to read a book, I'm not looking for life lessons unless I read non-fiction. Now if I get one in the process of being entertained, that doesn't bother me.  But I want a pure blissful, fun reading experience when I pick up genre fiction. Yes sometimes the books are heavy, but if I'm in the mood for it then it's perfect.  That's what I love about genre fiction, there really is something for everyone in it.

And if you don’t read one (or more) of these genres what is it that deters you from those sections of the bookstore? I don't think there is a section of the bookstore I am deterred from.  I love to just look and browse.  Now there are sections I will probably never buy from, but I still love to look around.  Who knows a cover or title may catch my eye and one day I may have a new favorite genre!

I’m also curious to hear why you think these genres often don’t get the recognition they deserve. I am hopeful that one day they will get the recognition they deserve.  Just because of the sheer amount of genre fiction these days, I am in hope that one day a high school class will be studying the greats of the current times, the ones that were read and lauded by the masses not the few.  I really feel Stephen King can be there one day, I mean his writing is amazing, he just happens to write genre fiction.  And character studies could be done on Nora Roberts' characters (though the books probably aren't fit for a high school classroom, but hey I read them shortly after high school).  I am pleased to see my middle schooler getting options for his reading program that run from the middle school classics (Hatchet by Gary Paulson) and new YA stuff (the Chronicles of Vladimir Tod by Heather Brewer).  Kudos to them for engaging the kids and hopefully starting a life time of reading with these choices!

What's your favorite genre fiction?  If you've posted during today's BEA question let me know and I'll hop on by your blog as well!

Armchair BEA Introduction

Welcome to ArmchairBEA!  While I would love to be in New York this week, it's just not in the cards for me, so I'm joining in from home.  And it's day one, so here's my answer to the interview questions!  Can't wait to see the others and learn more about my fellow bloggers!

1. Please tell us a little bit about yourself: Who are you? How long have you been blogging? Why did you get into blogging? My name is Crystal, I live on the beautiful coast of NC with my husband of 15 years (we've been together 21, since the end of high school), our two sons (12 & 8), a black cat, Buckwheat and our pound puppy Chewbacca, oh and a goldfish. I work in marine science (hurricane storm surge work) and read every chance I get. I've been blogging since March 2009 when I started having health problems and was home from work more. I really did it to keep up with what I was reading, but it blossomed into so much more.  I've kept up blogging because I enjoy it.
2. Where in the world are you blogging from? Tell a random fact or something special about your current location. Feel free to share pictures. I live outside of Beaufort, NC in the beautiful world called Down East.  I actually live in Otway which is named for Otway Burns who was a privateer during the War of 1812.  Also Blackbeard's ship, the Queen Anne's Revenge was found just off of Shackleford which is where we spend a lot of our time when we are boating, though we spend more time at the Cape Lookout end, which you can see the beauty here: 
   
   
   
3. What are you currently reading, or what is your favorite book you have read so far in 2013? I'm currently reading Infinity by Sherrilyn Kenyon. I love the Nick Chronicles books and this one is pretty good.  My favorite book changes at least once a month, but right now I would say it has been Whiskey Beach by Nora Roberts.
4. Tell us one non-book-related thing that everyone reading your blog may not know about you. I'm what my husband calls a lizard. I love to be out in the sun all warm and cozy. It can be 90+ and high humidity (like we have anything else around here) and I will be on the boat laying out while Mitch and the kids are playing in the water complaining about the heat.  That makes me happy.  Oh and I have to have a book of course.
5. What is your favorite part about the book blogging community? The camaraderie, the friendliness and the helpfulness of so many bloggers.  I haven't been commenting like I use to but I plan on getting back to it as soon as my son's ball season is over and summer starts.  I also love getting feedback on books, finding new-to-me authors and just enjoying reading posts.

Click on the banner for the original post to visit lots of blogs and read their intros.

If you are new to my blog or new to the blogosphere please comment and let me know you stopped by and I will get by your blog as well.  I hope to make my way through the list, but it's usually huge.  Also if you are an oldie like me, please comment as well, I know I'm missing some great blogs out there! 

Armchair BEA Day 5: Ask the Experts: How do you handle Burnout?

Welcome to the last day of Armchair BEA.  I will admit to being slack the last couple of days, but we had a death in the family (husband's great uncle, but he was close to him) so that put a crimp in things with visitation and viewing and I didn't pre-plan my posts as I should have.  But I am back today for the final day and I had a blast last night co-hosting the final twitter party.

Today's suggested topic is Ask the Experts and I'm supposed to ask you, my readers and wonderful Armchair BEA participants stopping by any burning questions I might have.  And I do have one.

I am currently suffering from blogging burnout.  Something that has come and gone in the past but this is the longest it has stayed with me. I honestly don't want to quit my blog.  I have developed wonderful relationships with bloggers and publicists and love reading and writing here, so to you dear bloggers and readers, how do you handle burnout?  What advice and suggestions do you have?  I admit Armchair BEA has helped some, but do you have others?  A big huge thanks in advance because I need all the help I can get right now :)

Armchair BEA Day 2: Best of 2012

Welcome to Armchair BEA Day #2.  Today's suggested topic is best of 2012.  So I've been going over what I've read so far this year and I must admit it hasn't been the best reading year, not in quality, but in quantity.  I'm far behind on my goals, but the good news is I have read a lot of great books.  Here are some highlights of my "best of" so far this year:

YA:

    

Cinder by Marissa Meyer, cyborgs, cinderella and the future, what's not to love?  I honestly didn't know whether I would like this one, but I was sucked in from the first page and now cannot wait for the next installment.

Delirium by Lauren Oliver, romance, dystopian, just amazing. Read it if you haven't, swoon with me if you have.  Must get my hands on Pandemonium!

The Selection by Kiera Cass, reality TV, big dresses, a girl who bucks the system. Loved it!

Romantic Suspense:

  

When the Smoke Clears by Lynette Eason, Ms. Eason is quickly becoming my go-to author for Christian romantic suspense and this tightly woven suspense thriller is everything it should be and more.  Add to that it's the start of a great new series with some characters from an old series that return for cameos :)

A Perfect Storm by Lori Foster, broken characters, great suspense, interesting romance and revisiting all the characters from the previous three books make this a major winner for me.
 
General Fiction:

The Good Father by Diane Chamberlain, okay I'm a little biased because this one takes place near me but that set aside I could not put this book down.  Interesting issues, good suspense to keep me interested and great characters.  Love, love, love it!

Women's Fiction/Romance:

  

Just Down the Road by Jodi Thomas, Jodi Thomas does it again with her Harmony, Texas series. I probably read this one the fastest of the series and that is saying something.  Loved it and can't wait for more. If you haven't started this series, you simply must!

Barefoot in the Sand by Roxanne St. Claire, her return to contemporary romance from romantic suspense is a winner for me, this is the start of a series about four friends and a great start.

Romance (Novella):

 

On One Condition by Diane Alberts , Ms. Alberts has quickly won me over with her writing and I love this romance.  Great characters, a fun and sassy plotline and great romance.  What more does a girl need?

There are others, but this touches on the highlights of my year so far.  What is one (or more) of your favorites of this year?

Armchair BEA Day 1: Introductions First

 Wecome to Armchair BEA Day #1.  This is introduction day for all of us who are staying at home while this wonderful book convention is going on in New York City.  One year I plan on going, but this isn't the year.  So I plan on participating in Armchair BEA all week and I'm even helping host a Twitter party on Thursday night starting at 8pm, so stay tuned for that.  But until then enjoy the daily postings.

1. Please tell us a little bit about yourself: Who are you? How long have you been blogging? Why did you get into blogging?  My name is Crystal, I'm a Mom, a Wife, and an avid reader and therefore a blogger.  I also work in Marine Sciences and really enjoy my job.  I have been blogging for a little over 3 years now and I got started with the simple plan to help keep up with the books I read and how I felt out about each book I read.  In it's simplest form, it was suppposed to be reviews of my library books and books on my TBR piles.  It has quickly morphed from books I owned or checked out to books from publicists/authors and others in the buisiness.  I also have expanded past just book reviews, though I am lagging a bit at the moment.  I am hoping Armchair BEA will give me the spark I need back.
2. What are you currently reading, or what is your favorite book you have read so far in 2012?  I'm currently reading Guilty Wives by James Patterson adn David Ellis.  James Patterson is still one of my guilty pleasures.  I know a lot of people don't necessarily like him and I don't enjoy all of his new books, but this one has been good and different so far.
3. What is your favorite feature on your blog (i.e. author interviews, memes, something specific to your blog)?  I am really starting to enjoy author interviews.  I am getting better at questions to ask and feel like I am coming into my own with these.  Plus I love the chance to interact  with authors and learn something personal and professional about them at the same time.
4. If you could eat dinner with any author or character, who would it be and why?  I think I would choose Stephen King because he is honestly the one who bridged my love of reading from childhood to adult reading when I was a teenager (not so much YA back then).  I read It and was in love so I would love a chance to talk to him and just sit and listen to him for an hour.
5. Have your reading tastes changed since you started blogging? How?  Yes they have in a way. I'm coming full-circle at the moment.  I came in reading suspense and romance, then the blogging world introduced me to the world of young adult and the many variations out there in this genre/age group of literature.  But now I'm kind of coming back to the adult books I read to begin with.  I am falling in love with romance again and suspense again and really enjoying it.  I still read YA too, but not to the full exclusion of books I use to read.  I am also tackling my tbr pile that has been neglected as well.  I am looking at it less like a job and more like an enjoyment again.

Armchair BEA Day #4: Nurturing Relationships + Giveaway

 

Wow the week is almost over and while I have kept up with getting my own posts posted, I haven't been as good about getting around to others posts.  I am going to work on that today, and what better day than the day we are talking about nurturing relationships.

There are several topics we can talk about today, but I am going to talk about one of  my well-nurtured relationships with an author.  

Shortly after I began blogging in 2009, an author got in touch with me asking me if I would review his two books.  Both books focused on a PI and the blurbs sounded really interesting to me.  The whole books for free thing was rather new to me at the time too, so I jumped.  What I really liked about this author was he stayed in touch.  I had surgery, he wished me well, I got better, he politely inquired when I could read and review his book, and I do mean politely.  I liked that he followed up in a very professional way and it made me move the book to the top of my TBR pile.  And I was very glad I did.  I read Fatal Gamble and fell in love with the main character, Gallagher.  He's not perfect, but he tries to do his best, he has a good head on his shoulders and a definite sense of right and wrong.  The story provided suspense, a romance between Gallagher and a special lady and a satisfying conclusion.  I was hooked.

 

After posting the review, JP stayed in touch, he sent a get well gift when I went through my second surgery in a 6-month period.  Then a little while after I got better politely inquired about me reading Deadly Codes.  No convincing needed now, I read it, loved it and started begging him for more books in the Gallagher series.  The second review was done in 2010, and I think we email about once or twice every few months, just a check-in, a sharing of news (he's going to be a grandfather) and friendly talk.  He probably knows more about my boys than he wants to because I tend to gush (or complain, depending on the day) when I email.

So I said all of this to say - bloggers and authors can become friends.  JP lives in Massachusetts with his wife, I live in NC with husband and kids but we still find time to catch up and see what each is doing.  I treasure this friendship and it makes me more open to friendships with others I meet through my blog.  

Thank you JP for your books, your kindness and  your friendship!

Check out J.P. O'Donnell's website.

Giveaway Day #4

This is for two more books from my giveaway page that I plan to add more books to by weekend.  When all is said and done I should have 40+ books on this page.  To enter today, tell me if you have ever met an author in person or gotten to know one on the internet.  Open to US/Canada only due to shipping costs (I do have two international giveaways going this week so check out the sidebar).  Ends 6/1/2011. 

Armchair BEA: Interview with Carrie from Just One More Chapter (+ Giveaway)

Welcome to Day #3 of Armchair BEA. We've talked about me, my favorite books this year and have had two giveaways.  Today you will get to know another book blogger.  I bring to you today an interview with Carrie from Just One More Chapter.  It was great to get to know Carrie since she only lives about an hour away from me - I didn't even realize there was a book blogger that close by.  Carrie is also pregnant with her first child - a little boy and is due in August.  How fun - I remember the days of being pregnant, so the interview has brought back wonderful memories.  I could probably go on and on (as most of you know), but let's get to know Carrie!

How would you describe your blog in 140 words or less?

Just One More Chapter is a place to explore new worlds through books. Just One More Chapter was started in November 2009 as a way for me to give recommendations of books to the many friends who are always asking. It is a place for you to come read a variety of reviews and explore new books. I also host
giveaways and participate in memes. Just One More Chapter has grown into so much more since I first started it and love that it continues to grow.

The latest post I saw when exploring your blog was The Magnolia League by Katie
Crouch. What made you choose this book to read? (I am dying to read it)

Actually I was just wandering around Barnes and Noble looking for some more books to read like I don't have any here at the house. But I was there before we went on a trip and so I came across it and immediately started reading it. The cover is what drew me in first but I love books dealing with the south so I picked it up!!  I didn’t realize until I got home and started looking for reviews that it hadn’t been
released yet and wasn’t supposed to be out until the following week! Oh well Barnes and Nobles mistake, my gain!!


Crystal: I hear you - I love to wander bookstores to buy a new book even though I don't need any!

What type of books would you say you read the most?

I probably read YA novels the most that seems to be what most of the books on my TBR list are. That being said I love books in general and I don’t try to focus on one genre. I love historical fiction and I have been known to read some non-fiction. I am trying to expand the types of books I read.

What is your favorite book you have read this year?

I honestly couldn’t tell you! I have a hard time picking out favorites in all the books I have read.

What is your favorite book of all time?

This is another hard one! I can’t pick just one but I would have to say Harry Potter is my all time favorite series!

I saw you are expecting your first baby boy in August - have you picked out names yet or are you still working on it?

We are very excited about our baby boy that will be coming into our lives in a few months. Yes we have picked out a name it is Alexander Thomas. My husband came up with Alexander it was just a name he thought of one day when we were driving somewhere. Thomas is after my father who passed away last September. For the most part I think we will just call him Alex in the long run but as of right now he is
Alexander.

How did you end up in Greenvile, NC?

We came to Greenville because of East Carolina University. My husband is in grad school for Industrial/ Organizational Psychology which is a relatively specialized field. East Carolina happens to be one of the top 10 schools with a master’s program.  So when he got accepted we packed up to move. We actually have really enjoyed being in this part of the country but we do know this is just a temporary place.

What is your favorite thing to do on a nice spring day?

I love to just sit outside and enjoy the beautiful weather. I also love to open the windows and doors and let the breeze come in with the sounds of the birds however I cant do that as much here because we don’t have screens on all of the windows and I hate bugs!! I also loved to go ride around on the golf course with my dad and now my husband but now that I am pregnant it gets too hot for me too fast.

What is your favorite room in your house?

My favorite room in this house is guest bathroom. We just had it redone and put in a soaker tub with air jets. We painted it a light blue and added chocolate accents. It is an absolutely wonderful place to get away from everything and relax!!


Crystal:  That sounds dreamy - I think I'm going to come move in with you just to use the tub ;)

What is your favorite snack?

Since I am pregnant this changes frequently cause it is whatever baby wants!! Right now it happens to be honey buns!! I know these aren’t the best but I am obsessed with them. In the beginning of my pregnancy it was kiwi and grapefruit!!

Crystal: I started my first pregnancy craving salads and finished up craving spicy chicken sandwiches - my oldest won't touch anything spicy!

Where is your favorite place to read?

My favorite place to read is laying in bed. I also love to read in the car while my hubby is driving. The pool is a great place to read too!!

Have you explored more of NC? If so where is the best place you have been?

Yes we have explored NC some. We have gone to Charlotte, Statesville, Winston Salem, Raleigh, New Bern, and Atlantic Beach. We love Atlantic Beach its about an hour away and its very easy to make a day trip to the beach!


Crystal: Since I live near Atlantic Beach - I fully agree that it's a great place!

If you had a chance and the stars aligned just right, would you attend BEA in New York?

Yes absolutely!!! I was actually planning on going and registered and everything. I even got my press badge however then I found out I was pregnant so we decided we were still gonna go but then family and friends started talking about showers, etc so now we are going on a 2 ½ week trip. We will drive from here to Louisville, Ky then to Richmond, Ky for a wedding then to Murray KY to visit my best friend, then to
Vicksburg, MS (my hometown) to visit family and friends. It will be a long trip and I will be exhausted afterwards.

Crystal: Wow - I'm exhausted just reading that!

What would you say your main reason for blogging is?

The reason I started blogging was to keep up with what I thought of the books I read and for my family and friends to go to instead of asking me all the time. It has since grown. Now I do it cause it helps other people decide what books to pick and choose. I also still do it to keep a track of what books I have read but I do enjoy that it helps other people as well.

What is one piece of advice you would give to new bloggers?

To get as much material up as you can, don’t focus on followers or receiving ARCs focus on your material for your blog the others will come. Also meet other bloggers and participate in MeMes. The followers will come. Kind of like Build it and they will come from Field of Dreams.


Crystal:  I think that is great advice!

Where is your dream vacation destination?

My dream vacation destination is the Maldives. I have always dreamed about going there. It is so remote that the beaches are virtually untouched and it is absolutely beautiful. We are currently planning on going for our 5 year anniversary. Only 3 more years to go. However I love to travel and we will be going lots of new places before that!!

Have you decorated your nursery yet or picked out how you want to decorate it? If so, what does it look like? (I love nurseries!)
 
Yes we have been working on the nursery since we found out everything was good to go and what we were having at 18 weeks. We knew before hand whether it was a boy or girl we would be doing some type of jungle theme but once we found out it was a boy we made it into much more of a boyish room. We went and picked out the nursery furniture and went with an espresso finish that I absolutely love. After that we picked out the bedding I originally wanted it to be all neutrals and accent with the jungle animals but my husband found the bedding we choose in a book and we had to have it. It is tan with blue accents. We took the bedding to Lowe’s and they color matched the blue for the walls. We then bought a chocolate glider and ottoman. Our friend is painting artwork for the walls with the various jungle animals on it. We also bought a blue and chocolate zebra rug that goes perfect with the room.  We added a espresso book shelf for decorations and more storage.

Crystal:  Sounds like a dream nursery. 


Thank you so much Carrie for being with us today!  Please head to her blog if you haven't visited before and say hi.

Giveaway #3:

Give Carrie a piece of parenting advice, it can be serious, funny, or an anecdote of what your kids have done to make her laugh or terrify her (in a good way) - I could do those ;), or a favorite parenting book  and you will be entered to win 2 books from my book selection page (which I am adding more to later today).  Open to US/Canada only, ends 5/30.

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Armchair BEA Day #2: Best of and Giveaway #2 (international)

Welcome to Day #2 of Armchair BEA and I am already having a blast.  I loved all the comments yesterday and getting to know all of you a little bit.  I also enjoyed the blogs I visited and plan on visiting more today - so many great blogs that I did not know about. 

Day #2 is about Giveaways and Best of 2011.  First let's talk about some of my favorite books in 2011, this was very hard to narrow down, I have read 72 books so far this year, but I made myself do the best 9 books I have read this year (not necessarily published this year):

• Night Road by Kristin Hannah - general fiction
  
• Ordinary Thunderstorms by William Boyd (one of my husband's favorites as well) - literary suspense
  
• Fatal Judgment by Irene Hannon - romantic suspense
  
• Little Princes: One Man's Promise to Bring Home the Lost Children of Nepal by Conor Grennan - nonfiction
• These Things Hidden by Heather Gudenkauf - suspense, general fiction
  
• Between Shades of Gray by Ruth Sepetys  - young adult, historical
  
• Love You More by Lisa Gardner - suspense
  
• Exposure by Therese Fowler - general fiction
  
• Secret Daughter by Shilipi Somaya Gowda - general fiction, foreign locale

So my giveaway is simple and open internationally (if you live where the Book Depository ships).  To enter comment and tell me your favorite book you have read this year.  The winner will receive the book of their choice $15 or less value from the Book Depository!  Giveaway ends 5/30/11.

Check out this link for other giveaways.
Check out this link for other Best of posts.

Armchair BEA Introduction and Giveaway #1

Since my health and my finances prevent me from attending BEA (though one day I hope to go), I am staying home and enjoying Armchair BEA this week with lots of other great bloggers.  Today's post is simple:

Who are you, and how do you Armchair?

 

My name is Crystal and I am a bookaholic, I know I am and I am not undergoing any 12-steps to get rid of it. You see I could have worse habits, like 300 cats instead of books. Books don't need feeding or have to use the bathroom, they just sit there and look pretty on my shelves and only cause me some pain when trying to decide what to read next.

Okay that was me two years ago, now that number has probably tripled no matter how many books I give away on my blog. I'm pretty sure my husband is eying me and considering whether the insane asylum is a good idea or if I was gone there would he end up there after having to care for the kids by himself for that period of time. I'm pretty sure the books will win out in the end. Plus he has the benefit of me saying "hey honey, I think you would enjoy this book" and I haven't been wrong yet with book or author recommendations for him.

So who am I? I am an obsessed book blogger, who is going through a rough patch in my health at the current moment and that may have me in Duke Hospital within the next month, but it won't be in the mental health ward. With all of that I also get to say this is the last week of little league for my boys and while I have enjoyed watching them play and the camraderie of the other parents, I will be glad to see it end, because I do work as well and this 8-4 work, then 5:30 - 8:30 running the kids around and finally eating at 8:30 gets old pretty darn quick (and it was close to landing me in the insane asylum). I will be happy to catch back up on my reading and to actually see my boys more nights of the week. I hope also to get back to my blog more and visiting other blogs I have missed out on that while socializing at the ball field lately.

So that leads to the personal me. I am a wife of 13 years and my husband and I have actually been together for 19 years (since the end of our senior year of high school) and no you cannot do the math! I have a 10-year-old who is becoming a know-it-all, but he is a sweet boy and a 6-year-old who keeps me on my toes (he was singing California Gurls by Katy Perry while waiting in line at Walmart yesterday - Bikinis, zuchinnis, martinis). We also are owned by a sweet black cat who keeps getting into disagreements with snakes and his name is Buckwheat. And the final member of the family is our pound puppy Chewey (short for Chewbacca - my boys' are Star Wars addicts). Chewey is part lab and has the prettiest coat. He's also the perfect size, about 3/4 the size of a full-blooded lab. Everyone but Chewey and Buckwheat love to read, and Buckwheat loves to pester us when we read, so maybe he loves to read as well.

That's pretty much it - I have to say that blogging for the last two years has really led me to branch out in my reading and I love that. No longer am I waiting on 3-4 of my favorite authors to release new books, now I have a whole world open to me. Oh and I have a Kindle so I have even more books than my husband knows about, but hey a lot of them were free, okay some of them were free, he doesn't have to know about the ones I do the one-click thing with - you know it doesn't even seem like spending money ;)

So what about you? Tell me something about yourself and be entered in to win your choice of two books my read pile. I'll be putting up a page to look at the choices later today (it's here now), but there is something for everyone. I do have to limit this one to the US/Canada because of postage costs. It takes a lot of money for my book habit, ooops I mean to raise two hungry boys. LOL. Giveaway ends the end of this week, 5/27/11.

I'll also be running other giveaways this week because I like to share the wealth (and my husband likes me to remove some books from the house from time-to-time).