It's Monday, What Are You Reading? (Sept. 3, 2012)

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? is a meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.

It’s Monday!  What Are You Reading, is where we gather to share what we have read this past week and what we plan to read this week.  It is a great way to network with other bloggers, see some wonderful blogs, and put new titles on your reading list.
My school workshop week was even busier than I had anticipated leaving very little time for reading. While Monday was of ordinary length (7:30-3:30), Tuesday and Wednesday both stretched from 7 AM until 8:30 PM to accommodate the workshops, open houses, and laptop roll-outs. And, even though the days were not scheduled, I spent many hours at school on Thursday and Friday as I tried to get ready and organized for our opening day. 
It also didn't help that I couldn't get into the review book I was supposed to be reading and wasted three days before I finally gave up on the title. I did read 1/3 of Redemption (Hearts of Stone) by Veronique Launier but I kept getting the feeling that there was a prequel that I hadn't read that would have explained the characters.
I did finish five books:

About all I could handle after my long days were two picture books that I hope to be sharing with my students this school year. Z Is for Moose by Kelly Bingham and illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky is an alphabet book which is also a book about friendship and about the antics of a misbehaving moose. Otto the Book Bear by Katie Cleminson looks like a more old-fashioned story. It tells the tale of a bear in a book who gets out to see what else there is to see and eventually wanders into a library where he meets other book characters and new readers for his book. 

I read Line of Fire by Stephen White which is the nineteenth book in the Alan Gregory series. The publicist convinced me that I could jump into the series there but I found that it didn't work very well for me as an entry book. There were tantalizing hints of things that had happened in previous books and, in fact, the major plot of this one is about earlier actions rearing their ugly heads again. I also didn't feel I got to know the characters very well because I didn't have eighteen books of background with them. My review will be posted on Sept.13. The book was released on Aug. 7.

I also finished Judgment in Death by J. D. Robb which was the eleventh book in that series. I am a little disappointed to have to stop my re-reading in order to read the masses of September releases that are on my review stack. I am looking forward to receiving Delusion in Death (Book 35) on Sept. 11 and can't wait to read it. I don't think that I will be reviewing this one on my blog. 

I also read Hanging by a Thread by Sophie Littlefield this week. This was an eARC that I got from NetGalley for review. I enjoyed this murder mystery with a touch of the paranormal and a romance too. The story had strong characters and a compelling plot. My review will be posted on Sept. 10 and the book will be released on Sept. 11.

I have two adult and two young adult books on the stack for next week. All of them are review books.

Midnight Exposure by Melinda Leigh was one of my Amazon Vine picks. This one is described as a "sexy thriller." It was released on Aug. 21.

Clean by Alex Hughes is a review book I am reading at the request of the author. The story combines mystery with urban fantasy as a telepath works with the police to find a serial killer. This book will be released on Sept. 4. I said I would have my review done by Sept. 15.

Both of these young adult books came to me from Macmillan Children's Publishing Group and both will be released on Sept. 18. Because It Is My Blood by Gabrielle Zevin is a futuristic and the sequel to All These Things I've Done which I enjoyed and review a year ago.

Safekeeping by Karen Hesse is the author's vision of a futuristic America in which "all hell has broken loose." It is also illustrated with the author's own photographs. It sounds like an interesting near future dystopia.

Here are the reviews I posted this week:

• Outpost by Ann Aguirre
• My Book of Life by Angel by Martine Leavitt
• Bloodrose by Andrea Cremer
• Garment of Shadows by Laurie R. King
• Tears of the Jaguar by A. J. Hartley
• Chilled by Kendra Elliott

I am also currently running a contest to give away a box of ARCs to one of my followers. You can find the details here.

I am hoping that things will settle down once the new school year starts on Tuesday. I am eager to get back into my routine both at home and at work. What do you have planned for the coming week?