This year held a lot of changes and that was reflected in my online presence. I simply poofed out of existence without a single warning or explanation. I am not going to dive into the past for now. Let's focus on the oncoming year.  Sidenote: This last few months my work has been trying to get us to move forward in those self-help books. One thing that was driven until it landed was the SMART method of setting goals.  So I am going to use that logic while setting up my reading goals for this year. Let's break them down. I mean most are very straightforward. Overall my goal is to read 300 books. From those, the minimum is 250 new reads. The other subcategory includes a few rereads, my ideal plan is to have 1 or 2 per month. In other words, something like 12 (minimum) to 24 (ideal). I have several personal challenges. Finish 12 series. I have the bad habit of starting many series. I lost count of how many I am in the middle of and still plan to continue. So the plan is t...

  This list is not of the 2020 released books but only of books, I read for the first time this year. I enjoyed most of the books I read this year but I will include here the ones I absolutely loved, it was very hard to narrow it down. Top 5 favorite books, this are in no particular order but are my favorite read of the year. The First Law trilogy. This is a grimdark fantasy story following a few characters who are fighting in a war with different countries but also internal fights amongst their own people. You fall for the characters, they are not very good people but still, you care about them and their struggles. We follow Logan Ninefingers and his view of the world is very peculiar, a brute in many's standards but with loyalty to a fault. We have Glotka, a character either you love or care for even in his weird moral sense. so many things to catch your eye but so little time to express it! A very character-driven book, slow to get through but very worthy of investing the time....

  Series: Dreamer trilogy  Author: Maggie Stiefvater Genre: Fantasy, Magical Realism Original publication date: November 5, 2019 Book description:  The dreamers walk among us . . . and so do the dreamed. Those who dream cannot stop dreaming – they can only try to control it. Those who are dreamed cannot have their own lives – they will sleep forever if their dreamers die. And then there are those who are drawn to the dreamers. To use them. To trap them. To kill them before their dreams destroy us all. Ronan Lynch is a dreamer. He can pull both curiosities and catastrophes out of his dreams and into his compromised reality. Jordan Hennessy is a thief. The closer she comes to the dream object she is after, the more inextricably she becomes tied to it. Carmen Farooq-Lane is a hunter. Her brother was a dreamer . . . and a killer. She has seen what dreaming can do to a person. And she has seen the damage that dreamers can do. But that is nothing compared to the destruction...

 Mondays are usually very busy days at work; so I wanted to pick something I was sure I would be able to complete. I choose the next installment in the Series of unfortunate events.   It was a questionable plan as I want to review each book for the series, and I was a bit behind on writing and posting those reviews. I had to get them ready before I was able to publish the one book I was reading for this challenge.  Mission accomplished, the reviews for the missing books went up yesterday, just in time so I could publish this Tuesday as promised. I had a bit of a hard time trying to write it and post it before the end of my shift while still getting things done.  I hope to be able to pull that off each day. I want to start my designated read right after work, so I have quite a few hours of the day and if necessary around 10 pm be done and get my review ready and scheduled to go up the next day. I am making that my set schedule but it's not like I can't push it to...

Author: Neil Shusterman 433 pages Genre: YA Sci-fi Book description (from goodreads):  A world with no hunger, no disease, no war, no misery. Humanity has conquered all those things and has even conquered death. Now scythes are the only ones who can end life—and they are commanded to do so, in order to keep the size of the population under control. Citra and Rowan are chosen to apprentice to a scythe—a role that neither wants. These teens must master the “art” of taking life, knowing that the consequence of failure could mean losing their own. So using the new lovely rating system: Characters 10 The main characters are lovable, Rowan and Citra simply are great. They are not perfect each has their own teenage issues be it as they may be. Then they each show such growth they both become mature beyond their years.  Roan especially faced huge moral fights and yet still tried to escape from, I mean tried no one is perfect. Scythe Faraday and Scythe Curie are also h...

Esta obra la escuche en una clase de Literatura Mundial. Segun expertos es la escritura mas antigua. Por pura y mera curiosidad la empece a buscar en Amazon para ver si era posible comprarlo o no.  Tambien es conocido como el Poema de Gilgamesh es una narración de la Mesopotamia de origen sumerio, considerada como la narración escrita más antigua de la historia. Se emplearon tablillas de arcilla y escritura cuneiforme, lo cual favoreció su preservación. La versión más completa preservada hasta la actualidad consta de doce tablillas. La obra es muy leída en traducciones a diversos idiomas y el héroe, Gilgamesh, ha pasado a ser un icono de la cultura popular. A decir la verdad en lo personal nunca lo habia escuchado mencionado en ningun lado. Es mas que nada habla de mi falta de conocimiento en cultura general, y no un reflejo de la popularidad de la obra en si. El poema trata sobre las aventuras del rey Gilgamesh, también conocido como Istubar, y su amigo Enkidu. Una de ...

Por;  Natalia de Jesus Genero:  Descripcion del libro: Con la tierra invadida por criaturas fantásticas de las que se pensaba que eran solo producto de la mente de las personas, la raza humana estuvo a punto de extinguirse con la única solución de refugiarse bajo domos junto a la protección de sus guardianes. Zeva, no es más que una chica híbrida y adoptada quien ha vivido bajo el domo durante toda su vida, soñando con la libertad de poder adentrarse en la profundidades de lo que hay afuera. Cuando lo logra, comienza a vivir aventuras que la ayudan a descubrir que hay más criaturas y lugares de las que ya se conocían, y descubre el dolor de que solo ha sido un títere que siempre estuvo controlado. ¿Será ella tan valiosa como le dicen? ¿Será que la invasión nunca terminó? ¿Será que enamorarse de una persona conectada a su pasado será aún más peligroso? Lo único seguro es que ella no es quién pensaba, y el mundo tampoco. Mi opinión: Es una historia que empieza un poco len...

By Frances Hodson Burnett Genre: Classic children  Date published: 1905 Book Description:  Sara Crewe, an exceptionally intelligent and imaginative student at Miss Minchin's Select Seminary for Young Ladies, is devastated when her adored, indulgent father dies. Now penniless and banished to a room in the attic, Sara is demeaned, abused, and forced to work as a servant. How this resourceful girl's fortunes change again is at the center of A Little Princess, one of the best-loved stories in all of children's literature. My thoughts: I heard another audiobook in Liverbox of course. The narrator and the story are noteworthy. It is a nicely told tale, the story is kind of cliché because there is always a nice little girl, orphaned like so many other stories I have come across in different means be it movies, books or cartoons... Oh well, but it is a nice story. Sara is a likable girl, Becky the servant girl she befriends and works alongside. The woman who ends up as S...

By W. S. Harris  Date Published: 1905 Genre: Sci-fi Book Description: A jolly romp, which could be perhaps be described as Gulliver's Travels through our Solar System and Beyond, as written by a great admirer of C.S. Lewis, on a rainy Sunday afternoon, after one too many mugs of cocoa. Includes some thought on alien philosophies and how to apply them to moral and social problems here on planet Earth.  My thoughts: It is a very peculiar sci-fi. It is very old sci-fi and it shows an amazing imagination to give unique properties to several worlds, giving them beings nothing like humans aspect yet they all had a few similarities: Every world is had a strong belief most of the time of religion and they all believed that there was a single sole creator and a sole heaven where the righteous would be after their death. I like the way the worlds were so different and the technological advances they possessed were interesting. My one complain is the ...

by Iain S. Thomas Date published December 2011 Book Description: I need you to understand something I wrote this for you. I wrote this for you and only you- Everyone else who reads it, doesn't get it. They may think they get it, but they don't. This is the sign you've been looking for. You were meant to read these words. My thoughts:  I like the pictures and the little thoughts and poems. I found the pictures not as relatable to the words in some cases but each as separate beings themselves were pretty good. It is easy to relate to the small little poems. They are pretty good and I can see myself reading them several times. They deserve to be enjoyed over time. You never know each time depending on your current mood you find new favorites or get reasons to smile or cry over. That is the joy of poetry it makes you feel or releases feelings you have been ignoring.

by Marion Zimmer Bradley Date published 1963 Book description: unimportant. I just picked this beause it sounds like a nice Sci-Fi to try. The story is fast moved and is full of intrigue of not knowing really who the real enemy is and how to defeat them. The way this story is wraps up is something I really like. It gives you important life lessons: 1. You need to communicate in order to really work well with others. 2. Acceptance is beyond simply cordial co-existance. 3. Beyond color of skin and shape of your face or other peculiarities of looks, everyone is the same. It is a nice book, people should definately read it and to top it off it's free so that's a big plus.  It's a nice and easy to read book. I gave it a nice 4 out of 5 stars. It does help to get out of a reading slump because its a fast read and it gives you a nice sense of acomplishment to get books done. :)

by Anna Sewell Date Published: Marh 2003 Book description:  Black Beauty spends his youth in a loving home, surrounded by friends and cared for by his owners. But when circumstances change, he learns that not all humans are so kind. Passed from hand to hand, Black Beauty witnesses love and cruelty, wealth and poverty, friendship and hardship . . . Will the handsome horse ever find a happy and lasting home? My thoughts: I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked it, it is a nice change to have a book told from the P.O.V. of a horse. It is true that they are the beings that suffer the most, they are bred, raised and trained. But they have no control over their lives: they do not control how to act, where to go, how to stand and not even when to rest.  I felt it nice and refreshing. I gave this in 4.5 out of 5 stars. 

By R.H. Sin Genre Poetry Date published: November 2017 I did not find a book description of this and because I never know what the book is bout before reading it, well I just bought it to try to get more poetry into my picks.  I really liked this book, the cover is interesting like abstract art calling to you to pick it up and so I did. I had not realized this was the author of the poetry collection that one of the youtubers I follow. Had I known I would have picked another one of the collections, but I'm glad I picked this one. I really liked the concept, the message and the writing style. I still feel that it was a bit on the short side for the most part but the content in itself made up for that. I gave this 4 out of 5 stars. I think this one of my favorite poetry books so far.  Again, I am still learning about poetry and have a long way to go so maybe after seeing other people's work I will come to like this one less like I have seen it happen to other peopl ...

by Sara Raasch Genre: Fantasy Date published: October 2014. Book Description:  Sixteen years ago the Kingdom of Winter was conquered and its citizens enslaved, leaving them without magic or a monarch. Now, the Winterians’ only hope for freedom is the eight survivors who managed to escape, and who have been waiting for the opportunity to steal back Winter’s magic and rebuild the kingdom ever since. Orphaned as an infant during Winter’s defeat, Meira has lived her whole life as a refugee, raised by the Winterians’ general, Sir. Training to be a warrior—and desperately in love with her best friend, and future king, Mather — she would do anything to help her kingdom rise to power again. So when scouts discover the location of the ancient locket that can restore Winter’s magic, Meira decides to go after it herself. Finally, she’s scaling towers, fighting enemy soldiers, just as she’s always dreamed she would. But the mission doesn’t go as planned, and Meira soon finds herself thru...

By Rupi Kaur Genre: Poetry Date first published: Octuber 6th, 2015 My thoughts: So it is divided on 4 parts: HURTING, LOVING, BREAKING and HEALING: For starters you already know that the first part is going to be depressing, I was mentally prepared for that. #1. I dislike sexual content in most things be it in films, movies, shows, writing, whatever. If it isn't consensual; actually be if it doens't go into detail or does little more than a slight reference to it (non-consensual in any way) it still fills me with dread and makes the whole thing uncomfortable to watch or read.  Back to the book. I did not like the way it made me feel. It's not so much as poetry in my opinion but a collection of thoughts that spiral downwards towards darker feelings. That feeling I get I'm not sure if it is the writing style that does not necesarily classify as poetry in my opinion or because of the topics it deals with. It moves from those topics of darkness and unto other th...

by Robert Louis Stevenson  Genre: Classic First published in January 1882 Book description:  From the moment young Jim Hawkins first encounters the sinister Blind Pew at the Admiral Benbow Inn until the climactic battle for treasure on a tropic isle, the nevel creates scenes and characters that have firetd the imaginations of generations of readers. Written by a superb prose stylist, a master of both action and atmosphere, the story centers upon the conflict between good and evil - but in this case a particularly engaging form of evil. It is the villainy of that most ambiguous rogue Long John Silver that sets the tempo of this tale of treachery, greed, and daring. Yes believe it or not this is the very forst time I read the book. I have heard so much about it, seen plenty of references and other stories based on it but never had I read the original story. And I use "read" very loosesly here.  I had been in a reading slum especially with Audio books and just gooff...

by Paula Brackston  368 pages Genre : Historical Fiction Fantasy  Date fist published: January 2013 Book description: In her small early nineteenth century Welsh town, there is no one quite like Morgana, who has not spoken since she was a young girl. Her silence is a mystery, as well as her magic. Concerned for her safety, her mother is anxious to see her married, and Cai Jenkins, a widower from the far hills, seems the best choice. After her wedding, Morgana is heartbroken at leaving her mother, and wary of this man, whom she does not know, and who will take her away to begin a new life. But she soon falls in love with Cai's farm and the wild mountains that surround it. Cai works to understand the beautiful, half-tamed creature he has chosen for a bride, and slowly, he begins to win Morgana's affections. It's not long, however, before her strangeness begins to be remarked upon in her new village. A dark force is at work there--a person who will stop at nothing to ...

Jack London Audiobook Date first published: 1903 Genre: Classics Book description: Life is good for Buck in Santa Clara Valley, where he spends his days eating and sleeping in the golden sunshine. But one day a treacherous act of betrayal leads to his kidnap, and he is forced into a life of toil and danger. Dragged away to be a sledge dog in the harsh and freezing cold Yukon, Buck must fight for his survivial. Can he rise above his enemies and become the master of his realm once again? It is a very intriguing story. You just get connected to it regardless if you love animals or simply have a reasonable tolerance towards dogs. It is a very captivating story. The narrators do a great job. Especially because it's like you're experiencing it from the dog's P.O.V nad it makes the story even more meaningful; the way they see the connections, the firendship loyalty, but also the cruelty and disregard people generally give the animals. Imposible not to enjoy it! It is a...

by Lisa Maxwell  500 pages Genre: Historical Fiction, Fantasy Book Description: In modern-day New York, magic is all but extinct. The remaining few who have an affinity for magic—the Mageus—live in the shadows, hiding who they are. Any Mageus who enters Manhattan becomes trapped by the Brink, a dark energy barrier that confines them to the island. Crossing it means losing their power—and often their lives. Esta is a talented thief, and she’s been raised to steal magical artifacts from the sinister Order that created the Brink. With her innate ability to manipulate time, Esta can pilfer from the past, collecting these artifacts before the Order even realizes she’s there. And all of Esta’s training has been for one final job: traveling back to 1902 to steal an ancient book containing the secrets of the Order—and the Brink—before the Magician can destroy it and doom the Mageus to a hopeless future. But Old New York is a dangerous world ruled by ruthless gangs and secret soc...