BOOKS FROM THE BACKLOG #1

Hi,

Books from the Backlog is a weekly feature hosted by Carole @ Carole's Random Life in Books. I'm doing double features every other week: one physical book and one ebook. I'm picking my physical books through my TBR jar. For my ebooks, I'll just pick whichever catches my attention.

[MINI REVIEWS] the Neal Shusterman Edition

title: Everlost (Skinjacker #1)
author: Neal Shusterman
genre: young adult, paranormal
published: November 6, 2007 by Simon Pulse (first published October 1, 2006)
my copy: massmarket paperback, 384 pages
purchase: Amazon | B&N | Book Depository
rating: 4 / 5 stars
goodreads

Nick and Allie don't survive the car accident...but their souls don't exactly get where they're supposed to get either. Instead, they're caught halfway between life and death, in a sort of limbo known as Everlost: a shadow of the living world, filled with all the things and places that no longer exist. It's a magical yet dangerous place where bands of lost children run wild and anyone who stands in the same place too long sinks to the center of the Earth. 

When they find Mary, the self-proclaimed queen of lost kids, Nick feels like he's found a home. But Allie isn't satisfied spending eternity between worlds. Against all warnings, Allie begins learning the "Criminal Art" of haunting and ventures into dangerous territory, where a monster called the McGill threatens all the souls of Everlost. 

In this imaginative novel, Neal Shusterman explores questions of life, death, and what just might lie in between.

JANUARY WRAPUP (aka the still-finding-my-way-out-of-this-slump month)

Hi,

2020 started wild for everybody! January was so scary that it felt so long with the tragedies happening all over the world including mine (the Philippines) and with the end of the month nCov-scare going around (keep safe everyone!). The baseball world has also been wild in January with the cheating scandal going full swing concluding the month with the firing of three (3) MLB managers (and yes, the scandal continues to February. it's wild).

Reading-wise, it has been for me. I won't say I'm don't with my horrible 2019 reading and blogging slump but I'm doing it little by little. I'm trying to go through short books and slowly get to longer ones. I'm going to try out rereading this February as well and see how things work out for me.

books read

The Mist by Stephen King | Mission 27 by Mark Feinsand & Bryan Hoch | Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng | See How They Run by Tom Bale

[REVIEW] The Long Walk

title: The Long Walk
author: Richard Bachman (Stephen King)
genre: adult fiction, dystopia
published: April 19, 2016 by Pocket Books (first published July 1979)
format: paperback, 400 pages
purchase: Amazon | B&N | Book Depository
rating: 4 / 5 stars
goodreads

In this #1 national bestseller, “master storyteller” (Houston Chronicle) Stephen King, writing as Richard Bachman, tells the tale of the contestants of a grueling walking competition where there can only be one winner—the one that survives. 

In the near future, when America has become a police state, one hundred boys are selected to enter an annual contest where the winner will be awarded whatever he wants for the rest of his life. Among them is sixteen-year-old Ray Garraty, and he knows the rules—keep a steady walking pace of four miles per hour without stopping. Three warnings and you’re out—permanently.

and I thought a book about walking will be boring.

This is one of the Stephen King books I've been hoping to read and I'm so glad that I finally did. The premise itself really is something. It's simple yet knowing that it's written by Stephen King assures me that the psychological aspect of the characters will be its best asset.

2020 Reading Goals

Hi,

As expected, I miserably failed my 2019 goals. 2019 was a wild year-long reading and blogging slump in general for me. I ended my decade fairly disappointing. I have no idea how to change my outlook or motivation for 2020 but let's still try.

Also, making lists is just so much fun so let's do this again. While I'm at it, I'm also taking this time to look back at my 2019 goals.

My Year in Books in 2019

face reveal but not really. lol. there goes me weird happy bookish face. hahaha.

Hi,

I did this post for my 2018 reads, so I decided to have it again this year!

I LOVE the Goodreads numbers! Nothing much going on here since I read really few books this year and wasn't even able to finish my Goodreads Reading Challenge which kind of disappointed me. BUT I don't really dwell on that much. I had a terrible year (which I will talk about in another post) and I want to put all of that behind.

Reading challenges and personal stuff aside, which will both be on different posts, here's my Year in Books in 2019!

I read 10,908 pages across 32 books

AVERAGE LENGTH: 340 pages

NOVEMBER WRAPUP (aka the month of uneventful things)

Hi,

November was... forgettable, I guess?

I mean I can't even think of anything that's particularly notable that happened to me. I do remember being a bit busy at work, trying to get through the thicc book I was reading which was The Toll by Neal Shusterman, and generally being so focused on the whole Astros issue over at MLB. so yeah, uneventful.

My reading was pretty uneventful as well since I got stuck with The Toll. This doesn't mean it wasn't good. It was. But big books were never really my thing. I wanted to like big books but I'm always just overwhelmed by them but I pushed through with this one because Neal Shusterman is my all time fave author.

books read

Well Met by Jen DeLuca