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R14: SS Team 5
Mod
Dice Roll: https://www.random.org/dice/ (2 dice on Fridays, US Central Time)
R14 SS Post Your Spot
R14 SS Discussion Thread
Time Zone Converter: https://www.timeanddate.com/worldcloc...
Mod
**titles exclude leading articles (a, an, the)
2. Published between 1950 and 1999
3. Title 'L'
4. Several authors
5. Cover: Green
6. Author 'Y'
7. Science Fiction
8. Title 'N'
9. Cover Item: Building
10. Author 'L'
11. Cover: Orange
12. Published 2020
13. Book with a funeral in it
14. New to You Author
15. MC travels by airplane
16. Title 'G'
17. MC has at least one child
18. Young Adult/New Adult
19. Europe
20. Author 'M'
21. Cover Item: Umbrella/Parasol
22. Non-Fiction
23. Number in the Title (Third Grave Dead Ahead or Every Fifteen Minutes)
24. Set on an island
25. Book to Movie/TV (must state how book qualifies: listopia, imdb, precis)
26. Africa
27. Title 'T'
28. Cover Item: Hands/Arms/Feet/Legs (no other body parts visible)
29. Author 'O'
30. Romance
31. Title 'Z'
32. Mystery/Thriller
33. Cover Item: Water
34. GR average rating >4.0
35. Set sometime before 1600 AD
36. MC is older than 60
37. Cover: Pink
38. Published 2001-2010
39. Set in a Fictional Location/Universe
40. Title 'E'
41. Cover: Black
42. Cover Item: Furniture
43. Published before 1950
44. Author 'D'
45. Cover Item: Mode of Transportation
46. Author 'H'
47. Title has a subtitle
48. Cover Item: Lamp/Candle
49. School/College/University
50. Author 'W'
51. Cover: Red
52. Award Winner (must state which/when)
53. South America
54. Cover Item: Dress
55. Cover: Brown
56. Re-read
57. Seasonal Theme (i.e Christmas, Halloween etc)
58. Author 'B'
59. Three Word Title (excludes articles like A, An, The) Behind Closed Doors or Etched in Bone
60. Published 2022
61. Set in a place you've visited
62. Cover Item: One person
63. Author 'R'
64. Title 'C'
65. Cover Item: Food/Drink
66. LGBTQ+
67. Cover: Blue
68. Author 'I'
69. Oceania
70. Four or More Words Title (excluding articles like A, An, The) The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet or Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
71. Favorite Author
72. Cover: Purple
73. Fantasy
74. Author 'F'
75. Title 'G'
76. Set in the future
77. Published 2011-2015
78. Cover Item: Weapon
79. Set anytime between 1600-1837
80. Published 2021
81. Cover: White
82. Cover Item: Sun/Moon
83. Author 'P'
84. Author uses their middle name/initial (e.g. Robert J. Sawyer, Rita Mae Brown)
85. Cover Item: Hat/Helmet/Other Headwear
86. Title 'J'
87. Originally published in a language other than English
88. Two Word Title (excluding articles like A, An, The) Deadly Silence, The Hunger Games
89. Cover Item: Book
90. Set anytime between 1837-1901
91. Asia
92. MC is in their 20's
93. Title 'V'
94. Cover Item: Animal
95. Book that a teammate rated 5 stars
96. Less than 100 ratings
97. Published the year you were born
98. Cover: Yellow/Gold
99. Author uses a pseudonym
100. Author 'S'
101. Title 'B'
102. North America
103. Debut Novel or Debut Author
104. Book with a wedding in it
105. Cover Item: Jewelry
106. MC has a pet
107. Set in space
108. Published 2016-2019
109. One Word Title (excluding articles like A, An, The) The Witness or Divergent
110. Title 'F'
111. MC travels by train
112. Cover Item: Two or more people
Mod
✸ Communication is key. Please make sure to check in regularly with your team.
✸ Let your team know if it looks like you won't get your review posted by Thursday, 11:59pm. You do have all of Friday to submit your review, but it can be intensely frustrating for your captain if they don't know when or if they can expect your review before the deadline.
✸ If you know beforehand that you won't be able to read and review a book during a certain week, you can request a pre-arranged absence from me, either by posting the request in the discussion thread or by sending me a pm. The request has to be submitted before the team rolls for the week in question, can only be approved by me as the mod in charge of running the game, and has to state a reason for the absence. (Reasons for pre-arranged absences can include e.g. going on vacation or work trips, planned hospital stays, exam period, etc.)
✸ If you do not have a pre-arranged absence and won't be able to finish your book in time for an unforeseen reason, please let your team know as soon as possible. If the team has earned the free pass, it can be used to cover the missing review. Without a free pass, the team has to sit out the next roll.
✸ We all know that real life gets in the way sometimes, be it through family emergencies, work emergencies, natural disasters, technical problems making it impossible to get online, or in other ways. That being said, please do keep in mind that this is a team challenge and your team relies on you to do your part unless an emergency occurs.
✸ If you find that the pressure of keeping up with the pace of the game gets too much for you or you wish to stop playing for any other reason, you can drop out of the challenge at any time. In that case, please let your team captain and/or me know that you wish to drop out rather than just disappearing without a word so your team won't be penalized when you fail to turn in your review. Thank you!
Captain's Handbook
✸ The team's captain is its chief organizer. This includes rolling the dice, posting the team's new spot to the team thread and the Post Your Spot thread, collecting links to team members' review posts in a single post to be linked in the Post Your Spot thread, doublechecking that books and review posts comply with requirements, reminding team members to post their reviews in time if necessary, etc.
✸ The captain may delegate some tasks, such as rolling and posting the new spot to the team thread, to another team member if they so choose. (Either a designated roller who fulfills this role every week, or whichever team member is online first once rolling is possible.) Collecting reviews into a single post and posting to the Post Your Spot thread should always be handled by the captain.
✸ Instead of having everything handled by a single team captain, teams can also choose two co-captains to handle the workload.
✸ Selection posts are not strictly required by the game's rules and I won't be checking for them. It's up to the team captain to decide whether they want them.
✸ If the team captain requests a pre-arranged absence, it's their responsibility to arrange for another team member to step in as temporary captain.
✸ The team captain is my primary point of contact for the team and should allow receiving private messages.
Hi everyone! This will be my first time playing this challenge:-) I've heard it's lots of fun!
Hi Team! Looking forward to getting started. This is one of my favorite challenges. :)
Hello everyone! This will be my second time playing this. I enjoyed it last year
Hi, team! Super excited to start. I love this challenge. This will be my third time playing.
Since we are getting close to rolling time, does anyone want to be Captain? I've done it before, and don't mind doing this round but....
1. I have terrible luck with the dice and
2. I'm east coast of the States, and not awake at the midnight Thursday rolling time, so it would be Friday am at the earliest before we get our next roll.
No, I'm already captaining for another challenge.
No to captain for me. Unless absolutely need be.
Looks like you all are stuck with me then! :) Does anyone have any team name ideas? I'm usually good with leaving as is as I have no imagination for names, but is someone has a good option for 5?
It would be a good thing to try to get the free pass in the first few rounds, just to have that as backup.
Selection posts would be helpful so I know you are all aware of the roll and have made a pick. Plus it helps me get the tracking post together ahead of time.
I'll plan to post and roll early Friday morning if all of us are finished by Thursdays. If you think you won't be finished with your book until Friday, just please PM me so I know roughly when you may be done during the day so I can post us and roll. Otherwise I'll be obsessively refreshing all day. :)
Happy Reading everyone!
Here are the bonus point options -- does anyone have plans to read for any of these? I usually try not to read from the list, but that won't usually come in to play until later in the game. BONUS POINTS:
✸ One point can be earned for reading a book with >500 pages.
✸ One point can be earned for starting and finishing a series. (Cindy)
✸ One point can be earned for never picking a book from the alternate list. This point is awarded when your team rolls past 90. (Stacey, Cindy)
✸ One point can be earned for always picking a book from the alternate list. This point is awarded when your team rolls past 90.
Week 1Roll: 4 + 6 = 10
Options:
Standalone
Book 1
Book 10
Author "L"
Stacey - Magic Tides -- Review
Jamie (TheRebelliousReader) -- Moving Pictures -- Review
Laura - The Way We Fall (Author Leo) --Review
Donna -- Harley Merlin and the Secret Coven --Review
Cindy - If She Knew --Review
Bonus Points Earned: 2 for 1 -- Laura
Thank you Stacey for taking on the captain roll! Off to find a book to fit:-)
Awesome, thanks Stacey! I'm going to look through my kindle and see what series I want to start since I'm not on book 10 for any of my active series.
Okay, so I'm on book 10 in the Discworld series so I'm going to read Moving Pictures by Terry Pratchett
I will try to start and finish a series for the bonus point. And I try to avoid the alternate list. I will be starting with If She Knew. #1 in series
I'm pretty sure I can complete this bonus: *One point can be earned for reading three or more books in a series.
Laura wrote: "I'm going to read The Way We Fall #1 in series"Nice, Laura -- that book will get us the 2 for 1 bonus.
Ha, didn't plan it! I'm still trying to familiarize myself with the rules and bonuses
Mod
Week 1, Spot 10
Moving Pictures by Terry Pratchett
Date Read: 1/28/23
How It Fits: Book 10 in the Discworld series
Pages: 337
Rating: ★★★
Review: 3 stars. I was excited for this installment in the series because I love good satire especially when it’s taking a poke at Hollywood but this was just way too on the nose for me. Still very humorous as these books usually are but it lacked subtlety for me which was disappointing.
Also, at 30 years old I’m still childish as hell because I laughed every time I read Throat Dibbler’s name. Seriously, just writing it out makes me giggle. Anyway, this was fine didn’t really give me what I wanted but it was still a fun read overall.
Mod
Harley Merlin and the Secret Coven by Bella Forrest
Date: 2/1/23
Fits: Book 1 in the Harley Merlin series
Pages: 402
Rating: 5 stars
Review: I was excited to read another book by this author. I was only temporarily disappointed when I thought I couldn't get the book because the author seems to have pulled her books from multiple platforms (but I found her website was selling them). I was even more excited when the book started off with Harley working at a casino using her empath powers to root out people cheating. That seems like such a fun job. I think I would have so much fun with her skills working in a place like that.
The book quickly picked up the pace and I couldn't put it down. I loved the gargoyles as they were a fun added element that I don't see often in books. The mystery was interesting and not too obvious but when they solved it, you felt like the answer was right there all the time. The characters were fun and you learned a lot about them with Harley's empath abilities. I absolutely loved the banter between her & Wade. There were many times I giggled at her antics. Harley is snarky, fun, and overall one of my favorite characters.
I am loving this world that Ms. Forrest has created and I can't wait to explore it more. Fortunately, I now know where to find the rest of the books.
Donna wrote: "Sorry I am late. Not feeling so well and I missed the notification."Sorry I'm late, but welcome Donna! Hope you are feeling better now. :)
I forgot how fast Thursdays/Fridays sneak up on me with this challenge. I'm changing my book to a shorter one, and I'll be done tomorrow by tomorrow evening.
I'm still working on mine! I should be finished Thursday evening, my time.
I should have mine done tomorrow evening also
Week 1Spot 10
The Way We Fall by Cassia Leo
qualification: book 1 in The Story of Us series
rating: ★★
review: The synopsis states that this book is "twisted". It's true, it 's a very twisted read and maybe that is why I didn't like this story. I really wanted to like this book so much especially since a few of my friends enjoyed it but I couldn't get past a couple of things. So many lies; it seemed like each relationship was built on lies- that turned me off. I found Houston impossible to like. Houston and Rory have incredible chemistry and even 5 years later when they reconnect still great chemistry but he cheated on his wife with Rory and that was another turn off. Rory's dad cheated on his wife and it becomes a huge part of the plot but again, it just didn't work for me.
2 stars because I did like that the storyline switched from past to present and I did like Rory. I also enjoyed the cliffhanger ending. I was relieved when Rory and Houston did not find happily ever after in this book. Will I continue with the series? Probably not
bonus: ✸ 2 in 1: One point can be earned for reading a book that fits both the series number and the alternate for the spot you are on.
#1 in series (see above ) & author L -Cassia Leo
[*book:The Way We Fall|22891184]
Completion Post -- Week 1Spot: 10
Book: Magic Tides
Completed: 2/2/23
How it Fits: #1 in Kate Daniels: Wilmington Years
Rating: 4 stars
Review: The Kate Daniels series is one of my favorites -- I've re read all of them... several times. :) I didn't realize how much I missed them and getting new stories until I started reading this one. The snark, the relationships, the kicking ass in general is just perfect. Kate and Curran haven't lost a step, and now they've thrown Conlan into the mix with a whole new group of people who have no idea who just moved in next door. I'm looking forward to seeing how this eventually ties into Julie's books (fingers crossed).
Completion Post- Week 1Spot: 10
Book: If She Knew
Read: 2/2/23
Fits: 1st book ok Kate Wise Series
Rating: 3stars
Review: This was a good first start to the series. It was a quick read. I always enjoy a Blake Pierce book. I enjoyed the characters. I really liked Kaye and her personality and way of thinking. Even though she was supposed to be retired, she never could really step away. Started a little slow but other than that I enjoyed it
Week 2 Previous Spot: 10
Roll: 3 + 5 = 8
New Spot: 18
Options:
Standalone
Book #1 in series
Book #8 in series
Book #18 in series
Young Adult/New Adult
Stacey - Pachinko - Review
Jamie (TheRebelliousReader) - Dancing in the Darkness - Review
Laura -- The Rules of Dating - Review
Donna -- Different - Review
Cindy -- Everything and More - Review
Mod
#1 in series
Week 2, Spot 18
Dancing in the Darkness by Lexa Luthor
Date Read: 2/4/23
How It Fits: Book 1 in the Alpha God series
Pages: 240
Rating: ★★★★
Review: This was a really great start to the series. I really liked the writing style and how fast paced it was. The world building was solid but I can tell that it’s going to be expanded upon more as the series goes on. I liked the characters a lot. Charlie and Kal are great and I really liked their chemistry together. There was some great actions scenes, especially in the end and I liked how this wrapped up. I’m excited to continue on with the series as this was a fantastic first book.
Mod
Different by Alycia Linwood
Date: 2/9/23
Fits: book 1 in Tainted Elements series
Pages: 241
Rating: 3 star
Review: It was an interesting start to the series. I like all the different types of elemental powers that there are. I wish there was a bit more character & world-building happening. The only character that I feel I know anything about is Moira and even that is limited. The other characters seem kind of one-dimensional. The storyline was interesting though and held my attention.
Completion Post -- Week 2Spot: 18
Book: Pachinko
Completed: 2/8/23
How it Fits: Standalone
Rating: Only because I have to - 2 stars
Review: I'm not a big historical fiction girlie -- but it was book club, so my rating is skewed by my general lack of interest in the genre. This was a story about immigrant Koreans in Japan during the 30s - 70s, and I did learn a lot about that history and their relationship with each other. The other interesting thing is that although I thought the book was fairly simply written, it did stimulate varied and deep discussions in book club.
Completion Post-Week 2Spot: 18
Book: Everything and More by E.L. Todd
Read: 2/9/23
Fits: 8th book of series
Rating: 4
Review: Even though I started this series last year and it has been a while since I read book 7, I still enjoyed this read. I'm still loving all the characters and seeing how some people are growing and working towards something. Its nice to see all the different conflicts and knowing not everything is always all peachy. It did take me a little to get into in the beginning since its been so long since reading book 7 but that did not slow down my enjoyment at all. Can't wait to see what will happen with everyone next
Completion postSpot 18
The Rules of Dating by Penelope Ward
Read : Feb 9
Fits: #1 in series ( see above link)
Rating: 3 stars
Review: This was a fun read. There is great chemistry between Billie and Colby. Some steamy scenes. Lots of warm tender moments between Billie and Colby and Billie and Saylor, Colby's daughter. Saylor is definitely cute! Colby's friend group brings some humor and friendship to the story. I like that a fair amount of the story takes place at Billie's workplace which is a tattoo shop. The conflict in the story is about Saylor's mom who walked away from Saylor when she was an infant. Overall, Ward delivers another entertaining read.
[*book:The Rules of Dating|61645755]
Week 3 Old Spot: 18
Roll: 1 + 1 = 2 (Sorry y'all)
New Spot: 20
Options:
Standalone
#2 in series
Author M
Stacey -Review
Jamie (TheRebelliousReader) -- Review
Laura --Review
Donna -- Review
Cindy -- Review
Week 3, Spot 20 - Alternative
If You Kiss Me Like That by Harper Bliss
Date Read: 2/11/23
How It Fits: Standalone
Pages: 291
Rating: ★★★★
Review: Was expecting just a bit more from this one. It was still really good hence the four stars but I don’t know I honestly wanted more angst and drama.
This was a really sweet romance and I really liked both of the main characters Ash and Gloria. There was a bit of an age gap which I am a sucker for as Ash is 42 and Gloria is 54 and also Gloria is close with Ash’s mother. All of those things I like but the drama factor was low. Both women had great chemistry with one another and Bliss always delivers on the steam. Just a very quiet type of read and it was overall very enjoyable despite me wanting just a bit more angst and drama from it.
The Challenge Factory
Books mentioned in this topic
If She Heard (other topics)It Had to Be You (other topics)
Scars (other topics)
Harley Merlin and the Detector Fix (other topics)
Going Up (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Blake Pierce (other topics)Bella Forrest (other topics)
Jill Shalvis (other topics)
A.E. Radley (other topics)
A.E. Radley (other topics)
More...
Captain: Stacey
Jamie (TheRebelliousReader)
Laura
Donna
Cindy
Bonus Points:
Earned: 4
Used: 0