Wicked Wildfire Read-a-Thon - The Wrap-Up Post

This was my first read read-a-thon, and I must say it was an interesting thing to do for a few days. It made me focus on reading instead of blogging, and it got me reading things I probably wouldn't have these days.

As for stats, I read:

• 937 pages
• in 14 hours and a half
• 6 books: 1 from my first pile, Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout; 1 from the second pile, The Other Countess by Eve Edwards; and 4 books from the last pile, the comic book pile.

I did accomplish every of my goals:

• I read every day for an hour or longer (I read 3+ hours in Friday, Saturday and Sunday)
• I updated my progress everyday
• I entered all the challenges (and it was most fun trying to figure out them, or trying to come up with a decent answer to them).

I can't tell if I read more than I usually do, but I can tell I made a bigger effort as the days went by, and the weekend days were the best, because I did read a lot.

I am interested in trying to do a read-a-thon again, because this was a great experience, though I can already tell my dream read-a-thon would be on vacation... which is a bit far away now.

Below are my posts during the read-a-thon, including the starting post and the daily update posts.

Starting Post

Wednesday, June 20th

Thursday, June 21st

Friday, June 22nd

Saturday, June 23rd

Sunday, June 24th

Wicked Wildfire Read-a-Thon - Sunday, June 24th

Pages: 162 (The Other Countess, Eve Edwards)

Hours: 3 hours and 10 minutes (The Other Countess, Eve Edwards)

Books: The Other Countess, Eve Edwards - finished it.

Challenge: Wicked Summer Scorcher hosted by April @ My Shelf Confessions

For this Wicked Wildfire Challenge you are a VAMPIRE who cannot be out in the sun or – you guessed it, you get scorched. Szzzzzz. Smoking skin, you get the picture. It’s not going to be pretty. However, YOU don’t have a choice!

You see you have several beloved objects you must grab otherwise they will be forever lost to you. What are those objects? Well we’ve peaked inside your minds and made sure to grab 3 of your MOST treasured belongings, which since they are unique will be different for each of you – but you know what they are.

So knowing two things, that you’re a vampire who HAS to run in the sun to grab 3 precious items, you have some thinking to do. How are you going to protect yourself from the sun; from getting scorched to a little vampire crisp? Tell me what you’d do and how you’d do it and HOPEFULLY you’ll survive to see another sunset.

Greetings, human. What is this nonsense about beloved objects you speak of? I have lived through many years, seen many things, lived many lives. Prized possessions is a concept with no meaning to one so old such as I, and it is so last century.

Even if I were to find myself in such a scenario, I would never risk my safety. There's a reason why I keep compelled human servants. Any of them could safely retrieve such items without risking myself or any of the companions of many years that reside in my household.

This must answer your inquiries, human; so now I may go back to enjoy the delights of blood and flesh. What is it, you say? You offer yourself? Why, so generous of you. I can't promise you will enjoy this... but I will.

Wicked Wildfire Read-a-Thon - Saturday, June 23rd

Pages: 224 (the 4 graphic novels)
171 (The Other Countess)

Hours: 1 hour and a half (the 4 graphic novels)
3 hours and a half (The Other Countess)

Books: Le Sursis Volume 1 and Volume 2, Jean-Pierre Gibrat;

L'Étoile du Désert Volume 1 and Volume 2, Stephen Desberg and Enrico Marini
The Other Countess, Eve Edwards

Challenge: Match the Quote! hosted by Benji @ The Non Reluctant Reader
I guessed which quote matched which book, but I haven't entered this challenge yet, it doesn't seem to be working.

It seems fixed. I just entered. It's funny, because when I first read the Game of Thrones quote, without even knowing the book was on the list, I thought the quote was familiar, and a few seconds after, it clicked.

Challenge: Party Up With Literature hosted by Preet @ A Written Rhapsody

In a comment or post(leave a link), pick a character(s) from your current read and do at least two of the following:

• Create a catchy band name for your group of characters or solo artist.
• Tell me what genre they would sing.
• Find a song and/or lyric that would fit the book and tell me who it’s by and why it fits.
• Find a music video that would relate to the book and leave the link.
• Create a playlist of three to five songs that would go with your book.

Since I'm reading The Other Countess by Eve Edwards, which happens in Elizabethan times, I'm calling my band Shakespeare Sings, and all the main characters are in the band - Ellie, Will, Jane, Henry, Robert, Charles. It would be fun to see all these clashing personalities to create a band and spend time together.

There's a song I love and that might be a good fit for the book - Fly Away by Emma Townshend. I watched countless times the movie where this song plays (The Magical Legend of the Leprechauns), and since the movie is inspired by a Shakespearean play (Romeo and Juliet), I chose a video of the movie's ending, when this song plays, to add to this challenge. I'm a huge fan of the ending, since after all the drama and trouble everything ends on such a happy note.

Wicked Wildfire Read-a-Thon - Friday, June 22nd

Pages: 200

Hours: About 3 hours and 20 minutes

Books: Obsidian, Jennifer L. Armentrout - finished it.

Challenge: Sonnets and Serenades hosted by Amanda @ Letters Inside Out

I challenge you to write an original love poem or song to or from a book character! (It can be written to a character, from a character to another character, from the character to you, from the character to me…) It can be “hot”, “sweet”, funny, or whatever! (I want to swoon…or laugh, as the case may be.)

To Be Updated... maybe. I'm lacking inspiration and I'm no good at poetry, so we'll see.

OMG, this took forever... I spent over an hour agonizing over the last stanza and the final couplet. (I now hate rhyming. This is so much harder when you're not a native speaker.) And I didn't even think about meter. (That might become a nightmare, LOL.)

Anyway, I've been reading Obsidian, so I came up with this poem, from Katy to Daemon:

How do I hate thee? Let me count the ways:

I hate thee and the way you speak,

And the way you leave me in a daze,

How around you my knees feel weak.

  You just drive me insane

  With how you stop and stare,

  Around you I feel a plain Jane

  And that I cannot bear

To be honest, hate is a word too strong

You set my heart and soul afire

I see how much this could go wrong

But there is nothing I most desire

  If I am to go down in flame

  I'd rather be in your arms, if that's the same

Challenge: Beach Soiree hosted by Kriss @ The Cabin Goddess Reviews

• Your perfect beach (from a book, or a place or a cover)
• Your perfect date (provide a link to cover or book)
• In your preferred swimwear (description, or link to image or cover)
• With your first choice of books to read (title with link to book or to cover)

Well, I'd like to go back to a beach of my childhood, S. Torpes in Sines, Portugal, and see how much it's changed. I'd ask on a date the cute model that represents Daemon on the covers of the Lux series by Jennifer L. Armentrout. (For him, I can almost forgive them for changing the cover and using a different image in which we can no longer see Katy's model's face.) I'd use a bikini with shorts (I'm a big fan of those), and I'd probably read something fun and light and contemporary like The Summer I Turned Pretty or Perfect Chemistry.

Wicked Wildfire Read-a-Thon - Thursday, June 21st

Pages: 120

Hours: 2 hours

Books: Obsidian, Jennifer L. Armentrout

Challenge: Cover Lover hosted by Marie @ Ramblings of a Daydreamer

I love these challenges where you have to guess the book with just a bit of the cover, so I feel at ease with this challenge. I've guessed 7 out of the 9 books, but I think I may be able to guess the last two... I'll take a look later. Scratch that, I just figured out the last two. Phew! They took a little more research and paying attention.

Challenge: Wicked Title Trouble hosted by Melissa @ Melissa’s Eclectic Bookshelf

Using at least 3 of the titles of the books below...make up the most interesting, creative, funny, romantic, mysterious, or simply ridiculous sentence that you can!

So, here's my try... I couldn't resist using all of the titles.

I was Born Wicked, so That Summer, amidst a Heat Wave, I was Catching Fire at the Beach House, in the time of the Rising Sun of the Solstice; I then became one of The Sandcastle Girls and learned How to Ruin a Summer Vacation.


Bonus Challenge: Sing Us a Song hosted by April @ My Shelf Confessions

I won't enter this one, it looks fun but I'm shy, a crappy singer and no good at recording things at all, so I'd just embarrass myself.

Wicked Wildfire Read-a-Thon - Wednesday, June 20th

So, here are my updates for the day.

Pages: 60

Hours: About 1 hour

Books: Obsidian, Jennifer L. Armentrout

Challenge: Something Wicked This Way Comes… hosted by Rebecca @ Kindle Fever

“A wildfire is quickly coming your way! What thing/s do you grab when you only have a few minutes to make it out?” (I’ve saved any people or pets in there already!)

Er... hopefully I'd be dressed, otherwise I'd use my time to put some clothing and shoes on and grab some money and my documents, I guess. But assuming this would somehow be all prepared, I'd save the laptop, the Kindle, the photographic camera and on the way out to save my life I'd greedily grab a couple of unread books from my TBR pile, if I could.

Challenge: Slake Your Thirst hosted by Kimberly @ The Caffeinated Book Reviewer

"Share your favorite drink recipe and the cover of your favorite/most anticipated summer read! Have fun with this, include pictures, the recipe (so we can all try it) and tell us about your book choice. Have you read it? Are you anxiously awaiting its release this summer? Why?"

My most anticipated summer read is easy:

Foretold, by Jana Oliver. I'm such a fan of Riley and Beck, so I'm dying to read the final part of their story... hopefully with a somewhat happy ending for them.

The beverage is harder to describe, since I improvise it everytime and don't follow a recipe, but I'll outline one:

Tricolored Coffee

- a shot of espresso

- whipped cream and canned milk at your discretion

It's really easy: you serve a shot of espresso and add a bit of canned milk - as much as you prefer. Be careful though, too much and it becomes too sweet. At this point, you can mix the coffee and the milk, but it's more fun not to do so, to obtain the tricolored effect. Add some whipped cream, again as much as you like, and voilá!, it should sorta look like the above picture. You can sprinkle the whipped cream with chocolate powder if you'd like.

Wicked Wildfire Read-a-Thon - Starting Post

So I found out about this read-a-thon through a blogging friend, and got this crazy idea that I should try to enter. I've always wanted to enter one, but it never was the right time. Now is the time, I guess, even though I don't have as much time available as I'd like.

The Wicked Wildfire Read-a-Thon is hosted by Rebecca @ Kindle Fever and April @ My Shelf Confessions, and it runs from June 20th to June 24th. The sign up post is here.

My goals - well, I'll try to be modest (or not):

• To read every day, and at least an hour (longer on the weekend);
• To enter some of the challenges;
• To update my progress everyday.

I'm planning to read the following books:

- Obsidian, Jennifer L. Armentrout

- Fifty Shades of Grey, E.L. James

- Looking for Alaska, John Green

And these are my back-up books, if I ever finish the ones above (yeah, right, like that's going to happen):

- The Other Countess, Eve Edwards

- Changeling, Philippa Gregory

- Pavane, Keith Roberts

I am thinking of reading a few comic books and albums and manga I own in the weekend, in order to lower my TBR pile a bit, so here they go, just in case:

So, modest goals, huh?