Friday Fill-In

1. All children alarm their parents, if only because you are forever expecting a hand-out.

2. Show me a good loser and I will show you a patient person.

3. A couple of glasses of great wine is like eating an entire box of chocolate liqueurs at one time.

4. Too bad that all the people who know how to run the country are busy being in love with the sounds of their own voices and hating on Obama.

5. I have yet to hear a man ask for advice on how to combine money and a great date.

6. It is impossible to think of any good meal, no matter how plain or elegant, without chocolate or ice cream in it.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to bloggiesta, tomorrow my plans include blogging, reading, cleaning the apartment, and catching up with my friends Marcus and Anthony and Sunday, I want to read some more!

Friday Fill-In

1. I grew up thinking that I wanted to be a singer/gymnast/figure-skater/fashion designer.

2. LibraryThing was the last website I was at before coming here.

3. Why don't you spread the word about my site?

4. Reading helps me relax.

5. Thanks for the memories.

6. Thirstiness (over-eagerness) very off-putting.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to chilling in my apartment (maybe with a glass of wine), tomorrow my plans include reading and Sunday, I want to watch the True Bloodseason premiere!

Booking Through Thursday: Niche Books

"There are certain types of books that I more or less assume all readers read. (Novels, for example.)But then there are books that only YOU read. Instructional manuals for fly-fishing. How-to books for spinning yarn. How to cook the perfect souffle. Rebuilding car engines in three easy steps. Dog training for dummies. Rewiring your house without electrocuting yourself. Tips on how to build a NASCAR course in your backyard. Stuff like that.

What niche books do YOU read?"

I love reading books about fashion and style. Everything from manuals and dictionaries to histories and biographies.

A Few Examples:

Fashion Babylon by Imogen Edwards-Jones

Eccentric Glamour: Creating an Insanely More Fabulous You by Simon Doonan

Things a Woman Should Know About Style by Karen Homer

The Fabulous Girl's Guide to Decorum by Kim Izzo


The Beautiful Fall: Fashion, Genius, and Glorious Excess in 1970s Paris by Alicia Drake

Front Row: Anna Wintour: The Cool Life and Hot Times of Vogue's Editor in Chief by Jerry Oppenheimer

The Thames and Hudson Dictionary of Fashion and Fashion Designers by Georgina O'Hara Callan

What about you guys? What sorts of niche books do you read?

Review Policy

Authors/agents/publicists can reach me at Jax1204@gmail.com

Style

I'm a journalist, so I believe in always offering an unbiased opinion in my reviews. While you won't find anything written here to be mean-spirited, it will definitely contain my honest impressions.

My reviews are usually in a basic capsule format. They always include bibliographical info as well as links to Amazon. I include a plot summary either from Amazon or the author's/book's site. I never include spoilers. Instead, I speak about tone, writing style, flow, and plot and character development.

Each review contains a letter grade at the conclusion of the post. Below is a summation of my feelings on the book as it pertains to the grade. There are the occasional +'s or -'s depending on the book. Everything just doesn't fit into the following categories so neatly.

Note: I am open to blog tours, author interviews and guest bloggers.

Grading System:

A - Couldn't be much better

B - I'm happy I read it

C - Just ok. If it's part of a series then I'll probably check out the next one.

D - Something went wrong there.

F - Frankly, it sucked. Period.


Accessibility

All of my posts get a portion of them cross-posted, with a link to the entire review, on Goodreads and LibraryThing. My feed is also automatically published on Facebook, Twitter and several Ning groups such as Book Blogs. I occasionally post on Amazon and Barnes & Noble but, if a request is made, I'll definitely include them. For the links to my profiles on some of these sites, see my About Me page.


Priority

Books reviewed here are often a combination of review copies/ARCs and books that I have bought myself. Any book that I request specifically will be given top priority. If I choose to review unsolicited books, I will try to post in close proximity to their release date. I do not review self-published books and I will consider e-books on a case-by-case basis.

Genres that I will accept:

Literary & General Fiction

Mystery/Suspense

Humor

Chick-lit

Contemporary Romance

Graphic Novels

YA fiction

Biographies/Memoirs

Classics

Non-fiction about Art or Fashion/Style

Genres that I won't accept:

Middle grade or Children's

Self-help

Christian Fiction

Poetry Collections (I enjoy them but won't review them)

Any other sort of non-fiction

Note: I accept fantasy novels at my other site Undercover Book Lover.


Site Stats

The numbers for my site are constantly increasing. Below is a link to my statistics gathering account.

Statcounter

In addition, information on my feed subscribers and blog followers can be found on the sidebar.

About Me

I'm a twenty-something budding journalist with a not-so-secret desire to branch out into publishing too. I grew up in Metropolitan Detroit and currently reside just outside of Washington, D.C. Books have been a passion of mine since the age of three when my mother would take me on weekly weekend trips to the local library. I refuse to label myself a bookaholic :), but I will admit to frequent reading binges where I consume about one book per day.

While I am a published journalist and not new to blogging, I am a novice when it comes to running my own site. Feel free to offer up any suggestions or link to my site. To authors, publicists and publishers: I would love any ARC's that you may have to throw my way. My reviews get cross-posted at Goodreads and LibraryThing, as well as Amazon (on request). My feed can also be found on a number of social networking sites including Facebook, Twitter, BookBlips and several Ning groups.I am also open to blog tours and giveaways. Anyone can contact me by at jax1204(at)gmail(dot)com.

You Can Find Me At

Goodreads

LibraryThing

Twitter

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Basic Book Meme:

1. Hardback, trade paperback or mass market paperback?

Hardback when I have the extra cash or want the book badly. Trade paperback usually. Mass market for authors I'm new to, books I haven't heard much about or am skeptical about, or simply if I'm on a budget.

2. Barnes & Noble or Borders?

Borders. They have better deals through they their Rewards program. Plus, for some reason there always easier to find or access.

3. Bookmark or dog-ear?

Bookmark. Dog-earing a book is akin to blasphemy.

4. Amazon or brick and mortar?

There's just something about a bookstore . . . but, I will get things online if the price is really good (including the addition of S + H) or the book is hard to find.

5. Alphabetize by author, alphabetize by title, or random?

My bookshelves are completely random. Although I've been thinking about organizing by color one day.

6. Keep, throw away, or sell?

Keep usually. I used to sell my textbooks, but I find that selling novels is usually a waste. It's all aroung better to swap them. Throw away? Again - blasphemy.

7. Keep dust jacket or toss it?

Keep

8. Read with dust jacket or remove it?

Remove

9. Short story or novel?

Novel

10. Harry Potter or Lemony Snicket?

Harry stomps on Snicket.

11. Stop reading when tired or at chapter breaks?

When I'm tired I try to make it to a chapter break, but that's not always possible.

12. “It was a dark and stormy night” or “Once upon a time”?

"Once upon a time". It's a great way to start off something really dark. What can I say? Nostalgia . . .

13. Buy or borrow?

Buy. I hate not being able to keep a book at my leisure. Almost as much as I hate lending my own out.

14. New or used?

New if I can afford it. I used to abhor used books, but lately I've fallen in love with Bookmooch. Just don't have the disposable income right now.

15. Buying choice: book reviews, recommendations, or browse?

Reviews and recommendations from certain people. But like I said earlier, there's just something about a bookstore. They always induce an urge in me to browse.

16. Tidy ending or cliffhanger?

It depends. Tidy endings are nice (although cliched) for romances and chick lit. I think there's a difference between books with cliffhangers and those that just leave loose-ends. Cliffhangers, in my opinion, should only be employed in books where the story will continue, a la sequels or series. Loose-ends are good for more complex novels where it would be more realistic for the story to not be wrapped up nicely.

17. Morning reading, afternoon reading, or nighttime reading?

Anytime of the day is a good time to read for me.

18. Stand-alone or series?

Both

19. Favorite series?

Whoa, there's a long list. I'll just list some that I've recently read an installment from: Ilona Andrews's Kate Daniels, Jeaniene Frost's Night Huntress, Kim Harrison's The Hollows, Charlaine Harris's Southern Vampire Mysteries, Richelle Mead's Georgina Kincaid, Jaye Wells's Sabina Kane, Patricia Briggs's Mercy Thompson and Chloe Neill's Chicagoland Vampires.

Non-paranormal faves include: the Shopaholic series by Sophie Kinsella and the Jessica Darling series by Megan McCafferty.

20. Favorite books read last year?

The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood, Emma and Persuasion both by Jane Austen,Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates and the complete Southern Vampire and Mercy Thompson series because they were my introduction to adult Urban Fantasy (outside of the Buffy novels that I used to love back in the day).

21. Favorite books of all time?

Impossible to choose a few. I love too many.

22. What are you reading right now?

Black and White by Jackie Kessler and Caitlin Kittredge, Magic to the Bone by Devon Monk,Another One Bites the Dust by Jennifer Rardin.

I'm about to start Of Bees and Mist for this blog specifically.

23. What are you reading next?

Broccoli and Other Tales of Food and Love by Lara Vapnyar.

24. Favorite book to reread?

Austen's Persuasion

25. Do you ever smell books?

Of course, especially the used ones.