Thoughts for Thursday: Binge Watching

binge watch·ing

verb

1. the practice of watching multiple episodes of a television program in rapid succession, typically by means of DVDs or digital streaming.

Our thoughts for Thursday is going to be all about binge watching! What is binge watching you ask? It's where you find a show, and just watch it, like a mega marathon. It's great. A lot of times, it will completely consume you. You won't sleep, all you will want to do is watch that show until it's done. ( no sleep and lots of food,l no body movement  in Jenn's world = trouble . So binge watching is not good for the health)  Once it's done, it feels like your entire world is done. Oh its over for sure. What in the world do I do now. 

Netflix is the single best thing for binge watching shows. I probably binge watch just a bit too much, every time I find a show I love, I have to watch it all at once. My current show is Grey's Anatomy, ( and she has me hooked to but is way ahead of me so yes it causes conflict in the homestead)  which is great, because there is like 11 seasons on netflix, with the 12th coming out this September. Another great one that I watch over and over is One Tree Hill. I cannot tell you how many times I have seen that show all the way through. 

 

Here is my list of Binge worthy shows (I probably have a ton more I can't think of right now) :

The Walking Dead

One Tree Hill

Grey's Anatomy

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Angel

Doctor Who 

Supernatural

Friends

How I Met Your Mother

Pretty Little Liars

Once Upon a Time

American Horror Story.

I probably took some of Jenn's, but oh well. Any other great shows that are binge worthy? (yes yes you did ) 

Here are Jenn's Thoughts:

My current one is Veronica Mars... this all started with reading a veronica mars book and I loved it I have  never seen the show so I tried it out and I was hooked. unfortunately it has only 3 seasons. Crying yes I am. So I am on the third season and I am going really slow.

Unlike Ash I binge watch on my DVR instead of Netflix. I love to read as we all know, so my shows tend to stack up on my DVR. So I take a weekend and watch a show that has about 5 or 6 shows stacked up. Just did this with The Whisperers and Wayward Pines. I don't  have many shows I regularly binge on. I like to find new ones if I don't have them stacked on my DVR. Shows I haven't ever seen but have always wanted too. Or shows that I missed out on in the latest seasons. Like Vampire Diaries. That will be my next binge. 

My comfort Binge is Friends and Big Bang Theory, and Charmed. I have binged on on 24 and that one is so much better on binge then on live TV. 

when I binge, I like to take breaks and sometimes read but when Ash binges... you can't tear her away. Its a really sad thing to watch really. It's a mess.

So do you binge watch? what do you binge watch?

 

Review: Daughter Of Deep Silence By Carrie Ryan

Title: Daughter of Deep Silence

Author:  Carrie Ryan
Publisher: Dutton Books for Young Readers

Publishing Date: May 26 2015

Pages: 375
Genre: YA Psychological Thriller

Series: Stand Alone
Source: Audio

 

I’m the daughter of murdered parents.
I’m the friend of a dead girl.
I’m the lover of my enemy.
And I will have my revenge.

In the wake of the devastating destruction of the luxury yacht Persephone, just three souls remain to tell its story—and two of them are lying. Only Frances Mace knows the terrifying truth, and she’ll stop at nothing to avenge the murders of everyone she held dear. Even if it means taking down the boy she loves and possibly losing herself in the process.

Sharp and incisive, Daughter of Deep Silence by bestselling author Carrie Ryan is a deliciously smart revenge thriller that examines perceptions of identity, love, and the lengths to which one girl is willing to go when she thinks she has nothing to lose.

I was so super duper excited for this book. I enjoyed Forest of Hands and Teeth and I was thinking this book was a bit more up my alley so I should love it. I so loved it. I don't normally compare books to any other books, tv shows, or movies but this this book reminded me a bit of the show revenge. It was a bit different and but the concept pretty much the same. The insanity, pretty much the same. The cruelty, yup pretty much the same, SO I Loved it. There wasn't much thrills to the end but there was plenty of suspense and nerve racking moments. There was mystery too. It was pretty much CRAZY. 

SO this is a tale of lies, betrayal, secrets, and revenge. A 14 year old girl on a cruise ship, it gets hit by men with guns. Kills everyone but her and her friend and her on board boyfriend and his father. On the raft after the boat goes down the main character, Frances and her best friend are alive.,. for a while. One makes it the other does not. Fast forward to 4 years later and Frances life is a bit different after the boat incident and she is on a mission to expose the truth about what really happened and make those responsible for the murders and the lies go down. Oh and of course love comes along and makes things really messy,

LOVED LOVED LOVED this book. First thing it grabbed me. First chapter, first page,  first line it was on. I was hooked. IT just started off that great for me. I felt something great was coming. The first chapter was the incident and of course that had me on the edge of my seat. It as very real feeling and it was intense. I knew at this point there was no going back. 

The book just got better and better as I went. The story was good. It was a story that made me mad but also intrigued me and I felt it was wrong but I wanted to justify all the actions the main character was making.Unlike the show Revenge,. I liked the main character. Her choices weren't always the best but she was likable and I felt for her. I rooted for her. 

The story from the beginning was full of secrets and they unraveled as the story unfolded. The reader only knows as much as the main character. So there is a ton of mystery,. What really happened we knew. The boat was attacked by men with guns but why and who and the secrets behind it all. I was as clueless as Frances. So that was pretty awesome to take part in, the discoveries. The other part was evil to enjoy. I enjoyed all the masterminded plans she had and put into place to destroy the bad guys. Yeah that was fun. I really enjoyed it. Frances was pretty sly and clever. Evil at times. 


So the characters. I liked them all. The focus was on Frances and she was complicated. Many layers. She was definitely disturbed and scarred from her experience. Not that I can blame her. It was a pretty traumatic thing. She lost her friend, her family. She was left alone, She had survivors guilt. She was a mess. She had therapy and such but it could only do so much. She was out for blood. She was out to right a wrong. She was a girl on a mission and no one was going to get in her way...well except a boy. 

There are two boys... and no love triangle. Love is there but very minor. Very in the background and it is definitely only for one boy. The one from the boat,. The one whose family she wants to destroy. Grey. Grey was a great guy. Couldn't help but like him. He was sweet and troubled. I just liked him. In the end I loved him. 

Shepherd was the other guy. I liked him too. A lot really and I wish he was in the story more. He was there but not constant and I would have loved to get to know him more. He was the only one that seemed to have his head on straight and saw things through the emotions. Logical. I liked him. 

The story was told in present and flashbacks. Alternating between the two.. the incidents on the boat and what was presently going on. A few from other past experiences too. Slowly the entire story develops. I enjoyed the way it was done. It leaves the mystery but gives little snippets to satisfy ones curiosity, It was well done too. I never felt lost or confused. 

The narrator of the audio really did bring lots the overall feel of the characters and the story. I think if I would have read the book instead of listened I may not have liked Frances as much as I did. The narrator definitely brought Frances alive for me and made her voice authentic and real. 

I really was blown away by this read. Unexpectically

Carrie Ryan is the New York Times bestselling author of the critically acclaimed Forest of Hands and Teeth series and Infinity Ring: Divide and Conquer. Currently she’s working on a four book middle grade fantasy adventure series co-written with her husband, John Parke Davis, the first book of which, The Map to Everywhere, will be out November 4, 2014. Her next YA is a romantic thriller titled Daughter of Deep Silence which will be out summer 2015.

A former litigator, Carrie now writes full time and lives with her husband, two ornery cats and one gullible dog in Charlotte, North Carolina. You can find her online at www.carrieryan.com or @CarrieRyan.

Bookish Banter : Why YA?

A little Bookish Banter to get us through.  Bookish Banter is a little bit of banter about our bookish thoughts as we have a friendly discussion over a nice cup of tea. 

Here is a food for thought..... Why YA. That is a question I get asked all the time. I am 39 years old, I have two grown kids. Why do I like  YA. SO I know why I like...er love YA.... So yes I will answer this and Ash will comment. Agree...disagree.. don't care. We will see as we banter with the question ... why YA?


So here are the top three reasons I love YA.... yes there is more than three but I feel as if some would fall under these bigger categories.



1. They are INNOCENT.... well for the most part. 

• Light on the Sex but not non-existent. I can still get my passion fill but I don't feel like a peeping Tom or an old perv. I can appreciate the build up, the tension, and knowing it happened. I cannot handle the during details. It's just not me. Some people like it, I am not one of them... so No to Fifty Shades of Gray
• Bad language is a no no no for me. There is a simple reason for this. I don't like to use curse words. I feel my vocabulary and my properness (yes I know what that says about my vocabulary) is much higher and I don't need these ugly words. I don't want them in my books because I read a lot.. all the time... The more I read them, the more they are in my head, the more they will sneak out of my mouth. Lol you talk about having a high vocabulary, you realize properness is not word. It is a word... I just made it up. 
• Violence and Drugs.... well I had my fair share of these when I was young so I don't need to relive any glory days here. Now I will say that I think these do play a part in some stories and if it's present but not overwhelming I am okay with that. I just have a low tolerance for any book that glorifies these two things. I don't think there is ever a time they are okay. 

2. They are faster paced.... not as much nonsensical input overload

• So I have a bit of ADD. I get a bit lost and unfocused if there is a vomit of details. I am not a big lets imagine the entire picture kind of person. I do imagine some scenes and characters but I am okay with just the story and the feelings. I do not need three pages on they way the ceiling looked or how the tree fit perfectly into the forest. I just need enough to get the feel, the tone, and the setting. Than I need lots of feelings The more the better. I am a real feeler. She says she has a BIT of ADD. You should live with her, it's a whole "squirrel!" from UP type of thing, I swear. But it is very true that YA books are much faster paced, I have a very vivid imagination when it comes to reading, so sometimes I like a bit more detail than what a lot of YA have, but for the most part it's much easier to read. Hey Ash...SQUIRREL!!!. Really this is not me. Hmmm squirrel is a very strange word with a very strange spelling. I guess it fits for a very strange animal. 
• They are shorter (most of the time) Yes there are some over 500 pages in ya....mostly in fantasy which do need the vomit of details... but generally speaking 300-400 pages is average for a YA book. That is about 2 days of reading if I am really into the book, Or half a day if its a weekend. This means I can read more books and that is wonderful for my ADD. Ha, I'm lucky to read a book a week anymore, but yes, shorter books are good. I generally like to read more than one book at a time anyway, so shorter books make it a bit easier to read a bunch at once. See I am not the only one with ADD. I read about 4 books at once. Or more, it depends if I have the one I am currently reading where I am currently sitting. If not... I pick up another one. Lazy or ADD hmmm. 
• Things happen faster. I don't 2 hours reading a 10 chapters and just begin to find out what is going on... Who did what... Where we are.... What's the objective again. That drives me insane. I want things to happen in the first few pages... at least he first chapter. Also shorter chapters, means that whole "only one more chapter until bed" thing a lot easier. Even though most of the time, "one chapter" turns into 5, or 10, or more...

3. They are fun,. I like to feel a bit carefree and young every now and again

• I remember being a teen. Yes it was a while ago but my memory hasn't forsaken me completely. Everything was new and interesting and exciting. First kiss, first love, first drive.... Oh it was wonderful. Now given I never had a first chased by a serial killer, first discovery of a dead body, or first monster sighting.... but I could imagine how that would feel because I remember when everything was so real and so big. Now life is stable and simple and well sometimes a bit boring. Uhm, I haven't had the whole.. first discovery of a dead body thing either.. the whole first monster sighting, I don't want to talk about that one. But it is definitely very exciting reading a book and knowing exactly how they feel, because as teens they feel everything so much harder and stronger, and it is more fun to read.  I can't believe you found my monster! 
  
  
• The young adult characters are so vibrant and colorful. I like vibrant I like color. I love that they live the moment and they seem to live as full as they can for their life. No fear, no hesitation. They make stupid choices, spur of the moment decisions, and they do regrettable stuff. Stuff I would never have the courage to do. Its good though. My main characters live through it. (except in horror stories... they usually have dead characters) SO its nice to live carefree and un-judged. It's funny because horror stories are my favorite. Anyway, but yes sometimes it is nice to have a happy ending, a "this is the exact same thing that happens in every fairytale" kind of ending. Sometimes I want something unexpected and gasp worthy though. Yes happy endings are nice but I love the books I want to to throw because of the "that did not just happen" moments. Especially in the end moments
• So much passion.... oh my goodness. The emotions are everywhere and everything is so over the top its ridiculous.. but in a good way.  I mean insta love for instance. I know some of you guys out there hate insta love but truly most teens I know including me when I was one... the guy was the whole world and it didn't take long to make that revelation. So even though its not really love its true emotion and its wild and deep and just so much PASSION. They feel hard! I already commented on this up there, but again. Yes it's nice to feel everything they feel on every level. 

SO there  you have it guys... that is why I like YA and I guess ash agrees. 

Delightful Discoveries #105

Delightful Discoveries are books that I have discovered recently... old, new, just released... from blogs, Goodreads, libraries, friends, or bookstores. 

After The Woods by Kim Savage 

An emotionally-charged debut novel about the deadly lies hidden beneath a destructive friendship.
One year ago, two best friends, Liv and Julia, were attacked in the woods by a paroled predator. In an attempt to save Liv, Julia was left behind while Liv escaped. After spending three days in the woods trying to escape her abductor, Julia was rescued. She only remembers what happened in the woods in terrifying flashbacks. Now, on the eve of the anniversary of the attack, a body is found in the woods. This discovery rips open fresh wounds between the two girls as the truth about Liv's role in the kidnapping is revealed.

A Drop of Night by Stefen Bachmann

Five gifted teenagers are selected out of hundreds of other candidates to fly to France and help with the excavation of a vast, underground palace buried a hundred feet below the suburbs of Paris. Built in the 1780's to hide an aristocratic family and a mad duke during the French Revolution, the palace was sealed after the aristocrats fled there. No one has set foot in it for over two centuries.

Now, in the present day, the teenagers enter with cutting-edge technology, state-of-the-art security, scientists and chaperones. And then a brutal accident occurs. No way out. Caught in the dark.

They will have to fight to survive. But are they really alone in the depths?

Revenge and The Wild by Michelle Modesto

The two-bit town of Rogue City is a lawless place, full of dark magic and saloon brawls, monsters and six-shooters. But it’s perfect for seventeen-year-old Westie, the notorious adopted daughter of local inventor Nigel Butler.

Westie was only a child when she lost her arm and her family to cannibals on the wagon trail. Nine years later, Westie may seem fearsome with her foul-mouthed tough exterior and the powerful mechanical arm built for her by Nigel, but the memory of her past still haunts her. She’s determined to make the killers pay for their crimes—and there’s nothing to stop her except her own reckless ways.

But Westie’s search ceases when a wealthy family comes to town looking to invest in Nigel’s latest invention, a machine that can harvest magic from gold—which Rogue City desperately needs as the magic wards that surround the city start to fail. There’s only one problem: the investors look exactly like the family who murdered Westie’s kin. With the help of Nigel’s handsome but scarred young assistant, Alistair, Westie sets out to prove their guilt. But if she’s not careful, her desire for revenge could cost her the family she has now.

This thrilling novel is a remarkable tale of danger and discovery, from debut author Michelle Modesto.

Blackhearts by Nicole Castroman

Blackbeard the pirate was known for striking fear in the hearts of the bravest of sailors. But once he was just a young man who dreamed of leaving his rigid life behind to chase adventure in faraway lands. Nothing could stop him—until he met the one girl who would change everything. This is their story.

Edward "Teach" Drummond, son of one of Bristol's richest merchants, has just returned from a year-long journey on the high seas to find his life in shambles. Betrothed to a girl he doesn’t love and sick of the high society he was born into, Teach dreams only of returning to the vast ocean he’d begun to call home. There's just one problem: convincing his father to let him leave and never come back.

Following her parents' deaths, Anne Barrett is left penniless and soon to be homeless. Though she’s barely worked a day in her life, Anne is forced to take a job as a maid in the home of Master Drummond. Lonely days stretch into weeks, and Anne longs for escape. How will she ever realize her dream of sailing to Curaçao—where her mother was born—when she's stuck in England? 

From the moment Teach and Anne meet, they set the world ablaze. Drawn to each other, they’re trapped by society and their own circumstances. Faced with an impossible choice, they must decide to chase their dreams and go, or follow their hearts and stay. 

The Stars Turned Away by Lisa Maxwell

For as long as she can remember, Gwendolyn Allister has never had a place to call home—all because her mother believes that monsters are hunting them. Now these delusions have brought them to London, far from the life Gwen had finally started to build for herself. The only saving grace is her best friend, Olivia, who’s coming with them for the summer.

But when Gwen and Olivia are kidnapped by shadowy creatures and taken to a world of flesh-eating sea hags and dangerous Fey, Gwen realizes her mom might have been sane all along.

The world Gwen finds herself in is called Neverland, yet it’s nothing like the stories. Here, good and evil lose their meaning and memories slip like water through her fingers. As Gwen struggles to remember where she came from and find a way home, she must choose between trusting the charming fairy-tale hero who says all the right things and the roguish young pirate who promises to keep her safe.

With time running out and her enemies closing in, Gwen is forced to face the truths she’s been hiding from all along. But will she be able to save Neverland without losing herself?

Answer Me This......Coffee or Tea

Answer Me This. We are hoping this will help our friends get to know us a just a tad bit better. 

A question will be asked and answers will be given by both Ash and Jenn. We hope you enjoy getting to know us outside of the bookshelves.

Question: 

Are you a coffee girl or are you a tea girl?

Jenn's answer:

I am both. I love coffee and I love tea. I like my coffee first thing. Hot or cold.    

I like a strong coffee taste and just a little bit of sweet. My favorite during the weekday mornings is my breakfast blend with a bit of all natural sweet cream. On the weekend mornings or every now and then afternoon treat.. Starbucks Toffee Nut frappuccino with non fat milk and an extra shot.  

 I like my tea iced unsweet or naturally flavored, peach or raspberry are my favorite. I like them with my meals or just as refresher. I do like hot tea when I am feeling off... orange or lemon black tea. Not much of a green tea person. Wish I was, its good for you but I don't like the taste. 

So that is it for me.   

What about you Ash....

Ash's Answer:

Oh hello.. I too love both coffee and tea. I love my tea unsweet and iced, though every once in a while a hot cup of chamomile is great. My favorite tea is the unsweet iced tea from Starbucks, if you ever want to get me anything, you can never go wrong with that.

As for my coffee, I am a bit of a coffee snob. I really don't like homemade coffee. I'll drink it if it's all I have, but really I like to have iced (or sometimes hot) coffee from Starbucks. If I drink it at home, I have a few giant coffee mugs that I use, and literally two thirds of the cup is filled with cream, the rest is coffee. My choice of coffee from Starbucks is a white mocha with caramel (The drizzle AND the syrup) with light ice, and an extra shot. Always have to have the extra shot. Believe I'm a coffee snob now? 

Here's the mugs that I have: 

From left to right;

Disappearing Tardis, Classic Marvel Comics, Classic Ironman, Chewbacca, Yoda, Jack Skellington, and a Mustache mug.