Tag Archives: The Valley of Silence

Review #8

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Dance of the GodsValley of Silence

I cannot believe how much reading I have done this week. According to my planner, I have finished two books, and I am about to finish a third and start my fourth. I either excel or fail at readathons. I am hoping that I will excel in all of my readathons. Enough about readathons, you are here for a review. Well, you are in luck because I am about to give you two reviews in one. I am going to review both the Dance of the Gods and the Valley of Silence by Nora Roberts.

Both books are part of the Circle trilogy. Dance of the Gods is book two and Valley of Silence is book three of the trilogy. I have also given a review of the first book Morrigan’s Cross. In book two, you have our six traveling from Ireland to Gaell to help form the army against the vampires and in book three you have that grand apocalyptic battle. I did give both books five out of five stars on Goodreads.

To say I love both books is an understatement. I love how much more drama Roberts put in each book and how she helps the characters grow. I also love how in the second book, Roberts let you see how people in the 21st century handle life about a thousand years into the past. It was nice to see that because in the first book she showed you how people in the past handled our present. I also like how this experience helped strengthen the bond of our six warriors. In the third book, I also love the origin stories and how she ties the origin stories to the main story and how these stories become consequences for not only the characters who origins that we are telling but to our heroes as well. In addition, I also love the ending. It is rare for a story to just give you a satisfying ending. There are no words for me to explain to you, without spoiling the book, how the ending is just wonderful. It hit the wonderful balance of tying all the loose ends while not dragging on. There are questions that I do have that are not answered, but in all the ending is just perfect.

In the end, I do recommend this series. I believe that you will have fun and enjoy the books. Just to forwarn you, there are some sex scenes in all three books, and there is also some mature content. In the third book, I will also have to give a trigger warning for rape and violence, especially in the thrid book. In all, if you want to try out Nora Roberts but don’t want the romance, I would say try this trilogy. There is romance, but it is not the focus. It is more fantasy and focusing more on the battle and saving all the worlds.

That is my review. I do hope that you have enjoyed it and that you will try this trilogy out.

Until next time,

Super Bookworm

Bout of Books 27.5 – Day 2

Posted in Bout of Books, updates by

Day two went so much better than day one. I know that I only have an hour left before I go to bed, but I am hoping that I will be able to finish this post and write another before I go to sleep.

Today, I was able to finish the Valley of Silence, finishing the 174 pages that were left of the book. I also read 50 pages of Red, White, & Royal Blue. Giving me a total of 224 pages read. I didn’t realize that I have 64 pages left of Red, White, & Royal Blue. I might have hope to finish this book before my predicted date.

Tomorrow I am hoping that I will finish Red, White, & Royal Blue and start Dance Upon the Air audiobook. In addition, I am also hoping to type the update for day three as well as to write another review.

Right now I am really happy and I feel very accomplished. I am hoping to keep this feeling for the rest of the night and into tomorrow.

How are you doing? Are you enjoying the adventures of a good book? I do hope that you are well and that you are enjoying your book.

Until next time,

Super Bookworm

  • P.S. Okay, I just wanted to do one little more update. I got to read for an additional 15 minutes of Red, White, & Royal Blue.  I was able to read 32 more pages bringing my total count to 256 pages as of 9:55PM. That gives me 33 pages left of this book. I cannot believe that I will be finishing another book tomorrow.
  • P.S.S – Okay, it is 11:30 and I just finished the last 46 pages that I needed to complete Red, White, & Royal Blue. Yeah, you read that correctly. I just finished this book. This means that my plan for tomorrow is to start two new books. I am going to start both Dance Upon the Air and The Kingdom of Back.

Bout of Books 27.5 – Day 1

Posted in Bout of Books, Experiences, Read-a-thon, updates by

Let me tell you, it is freezing cold in my room. I am covered up in several blankets and items of clothing and I still want something warm. Also, the pouring rain is not helping with my mood of productivity (getting some blog posts done). The productivity of reading, however, is there, I just want a nice warm fire to go with this weather.

  • Right now it is 5:00PM and I realize that it is very early to start writing my update for Bout of Books. I am also hoping that I will get another review post made before I start reading again. If I do, I can always update this post.

Where I stand with reading is right now I have read 66 pages of Red, White, & Royal Blue and 90 pages of Valley of Silence. That gives me a total of 156 pages read. I am very tempted to go back to the Valley of Silence since I just stopped at my favorite part in the book. Let us be real here, a good book or blog post?

Hopefully, I will get another blog post before I start reading.

  • It is now 6:36PM and I lost my reserve to no pick up the Valley of Silence. During Bout of Books last sprint of the day, I manage to read an additional 29 pages, bringing my page count to 185 pages. Where I stand right now is that I am a little over halfway done with this book. I am almost done with the book review that I was working on.

If I continue at this pace, I believe that I will finish this book (Valley of Silence) by either Tuesday or Wednesday. In addition, I am 72% finished with Red, White, & Royal Blue. I am hoping that I will be able to keep up with this pace and finish this book by Wednesday, no later than Friday.

Until next time,

Super Bookworm

Bout of Books 27.5 TBR

Posted in Bout of Books, challenges, Experiences, Read-a-thon, updates by

Before we begin, I would like to be honest with you and tell you that a part of me seriously considered doing a grand TBR for all of the readathons for this month. But then I looked at what I needed and realized that I am not in the mood to create a TBR list for three readathons. With that stated, let’s begin with the Bout of Books 27.5 readathon TBR.

This readathon does not have any challenges to complete. The purpose of this readathon is to help people to connect with each other while we are in social isolation. Let me repeat that, the idea of this readathon is to connect with others while we are reading books.

Because there are no challenges beyond connecting with each other on twitter, I have made my TBR list very small. Small compared to the seven-day readathon. I am also hoping that by making this TBR list shorter, I will be pacing myself better for the four readathons during SIP.

So here are the books that I hope to read during this readathon.

  1. Red, White, & Royal Blue – I have started reading this book last month, and I did not get a chance to finish reading it. Right now I am on page 252, which means I have 166 pages left in the book. Next week, I will be babysitting for four days, and I am hoping that I will be able to read about 41 to 42 pages a day.
  2. Valley of Silence – This will be the third reread that I have done since the SIP. I talked about how rereading these books is like hugging my grandma one more time. This is the last book in the circle trilogy.
  3. The Kingdom of Back – When I finish Red, White, & Royal Blue, I am hoping to start this book. This book is 313, and it is one of my smaller books in this readathon.
  4. Dance Upon the Air – This will also be a reread that has ties with my grandma. I am debating about saving this book for the next readathon because it will follow one of the reading challenges.

These are the books that I hope to read during this readathon.

Are you participating? If so, what books will you be reading?

Until next time,

Super Bookworm

2020 April TBR

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This is going to be an interesting month. Like last month, I am not going to be too hard on myself and force myself to read. I am still working on how to balance my new work schedule and my new life. I do want to set up a plan to help me cope with all the changes that are happening.

So here is my April TBR.

  1. Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston – I started this book last month while I was watching a student and helping them do their school work. There is a designated time where we read for 20 to 30 minutes in the morning. I mainly put this book on this TBR list because I am not sure if I will be able to finish this book by the end of March. If not, I know that I can finish it for the month of April.
  2. The Kingdom of Back by Marie Lu – This is last month’s Owlcrate book and I really want to read it.
  3. Dance of the Gods by Nora Roberts – all the books you see will be by Nora Roberts. I mention in the last TBR that I wanted to reread these books because reading these books was like getting a hug from my late Grandma. I miss getting hugs. With these books, I also have the audiobooks so I can mix mediums and listen and read them at the same time.
  4. Valley of Silence
  5. Dance Upon the Air
  6. Heaven and Earth
  7. Face the Fire

That is my list of books that I am planning on reading for the month of April. What books are you planning on reading this month?

Until next time,

Super Bookworm

A little update and March TBR

Posted in Experiences, TBR, updates, Wrap-ups by

Alright, let me be honest with everyone. I did not do any reading during the month of February. Okay, part of that is a lie. I did do some Fan Fiction reading. If we are looking at books or audiobooks, then no. I did not do any reading. I am not sorry about that. I was just a bit burned from January’s load.

Let me explain to you about my plans for March. I have actually read two books. I have read Our Cats Are More Famous Than Us and This Was Our Pact. However, even though I am reading more, I do not expect to get to a lot of books. With shelter in place happening where I live and the constant worrying about being able to pay my bill due to Covid-19, I am purposely not making a TBR right now. I am focusing on my mental health and focusing on what will make me feel better. I do have a tentative plan on what books I would like to focus on while I am at home.

  1. Red, White, and Royal Blue – I have started this book while I have been babysitting/ tutoring. I am enjoying the book and I am understanding all the hype that went around this book. I just hope that it continues to be this good.
  2. Morrigan’s Cross – This was one of the six last books that my Grandma bought me before she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. In a world where we cannot give and get hugs, I need something that is like a hug from someone who has past a while back.
  3. I am also hoping to finish the circle trilogy since these were part of the last books that my Grandma bought me. Those books are Dance of the Gods and Valley of Silence.
  4. I would like to see if I can finish the Paper Girls comics by skimming Vol. 4as a reminder as to what happened and read Vol. 5 and 6.

That is my reading focus for the next week or so.

What are you doing during this time? Are you staying safe with family? Are you working?

I do hope that you do feel safe and that you will stay healthy during this time period. Please be safe if you have to go out. I do hope that we will get the cure and the vaccine soon for Covid-19 so that we can start having our normal life again.

Until next time,

Super Bookworm.

Bookish Academy Awards 2015!

Posted in Book Tags, Experiences, Goodreads, Wrap-ups by

Last year I did a tag awarding all the good books that I have read. You may check out the previous post here.  It was so much fun, I thought that a great way to look back and the multitudes of books that I have read, I will be doing the same thing. This time I am only focusing on books that I have read during the year 2015. There are 15 categories and the bonus challenge of not using the same book twice. So let us begin.

  1. Best Actor (Best Male Protagonist): I am giving this award to Mathew from Say What You Will by Cammie McGovern. Mathew was a great lead, who always tries to do his best. I loved seeing how he grew and tries to over come his OCD.
  2. Best Actress (Best Female Protagonist): This award is going to Celena Sardothien from Throne Of Glass by Sarah J. Mass. I enjoyed seeing her strength and playing out all the different odd for her advantage. Even with all the negativity, Celena is still positive and holds onto light and good that is still in her world.
  3. Best Cinematography (Best Plot Twist): This is going to Daughter Of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor. If I even gave you an inkling of what the plot twist is I would be spoiling the book. Trust me. It is good and gets you hooked onto the rest of the series.
  4. Best Costume Design (Best Book Cover): I have two books for this category. The first is The Undertaking of Lily Chen by Danica Novgordoff. The cover was so beautiful that it alone made me want to read the book. However, the story itself, as well as the artwork inside was not what I expected. Let’s just say that I regretted that I judged this book by its cover. The second book that is getting this award is Soundless by Richelle Mead. The book was good. I gave it three out of five stars. he cover is amazing and give it this epic feel.
  5. Best Supporting Actress (Best Female Sidekick): I am giving this award to Keisha from Fish In A Tree by Lynda Mullay Hunt. She is a very supporting friend who helps our character grow.
  6. Best Supporting Actor (Best Male Sidekick): I have to give this award to Jack the talking sword from Magnus Chase and the Sword of Summer by Rick Riordan. I love Jack. He is so funny, but at the same time is supportive to Magnus and guides him through his battles. Personally Jack is the inspiration for the desire of wanting a flying, talking sword. I don’t know how I am going to us it, but I want one.
  7. Best Original Screenplay (Most Unique Plot/World): If you have been reading my blog for the past year, especially since July, I believe that you have already guessed which book earned this award. This world was amazing and my favorite part of it was its unique magic system of art being magic. It almost replaced my desire for going to Hogwarts, since its magic system is something that I could work with. The book that has won this award is The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann.
  8. Best Adapted Screenplay (Best Book-to-Movie Adaptation): I have only watch one book to film adaptation this year, in which I have read the book. So the automatic award goes to Mocking Jay Part 2.
  9. Best Animated Feature (A book that would work well in animated format): I am giving this award to a graphic novel. I know that most people would feel like it is already done in animated format and most of the work would be done, but I still feel like there is so much potential in this series that I would love to see in either on the big screen or on television/computer. It is the story line that is intriguing and I feel that it would be great to the switch. I would love for the artwork to stay consistent between the two formats. In the end, I do believe that the switch would work well. The series that I have chosen for this award is The Amulet by Kazu Kbuishi.
  10. Best Director (A writer you discovered for the first time): This book has become my new obsession since I finished reading it as an audiobook. I have never heard of this author until I saw this book on audible. Trust me this book is amazing. Part of me wished that I actually read the book and not listen to it. The author that is receiving this award is Cherie Priest with her book I am Princess X.
  11. Best Visual Effects (Best Action in a Book): I do not know if I gave this book an award last year, but I did reread it in 2015. I am giving this book the award for its epic battle scene. I not giving the award for just its bloods and guts during the battle, but for the symbolism that happens throughout the battle. The book that won this award is The Valley of Silence (The Circle Trilogy #3) by Nora Roberts.
  12. Best Musical Score (Best Music in a book-to-movie adaptation): I will admit that the musical score in Mocking Jay Part 2 is amazing however, not amazing enough to give it another award. I am giving this award to a book that is completely inspired by an 80’s soundtrack. Let’s just say that I am a little upset that I could not download the soundtrack as an album anywhere, but I could recreate it (let’s be real, that takes up to much time and effort). Armada by Ernest Cline, won this award for some pretty awesome music that goes not only great with video games but with the book as well. I was listening to 80’s music for a few months, which was annoying my sisters.
  13. Best Short Film(Best Novella or Short Book): Rick Riordan wins again. Are we at all surprised by that? No? Good. I am giving this award to his Percy Jackson and Kane Chronicle crossover novella series. They were fun and adventurous. Long enough to get the story and enjoy it, but short enough that you still want more.
  14. Best Picture (Best Stand-Alone): I am giving this particular book this award because I was not only obsess with this book but upset that it was a stand a lone. I am still wanting more. That, in and of itself is a good reason to give this award to The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black.
  15. Best Documentary (Best Historical Fiction or Non-Fiction): Again, I am putting up another reread. However I realize that I lacked a lot of historical fiction and non fiction books. This particular book is a shoe in for this award. Not only was the writing amazing, but the story itself is beautiful and its meaning amazing. The winner of the Best Documentary goes to To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee.

That is it everyone. That is the Bookish Academy Awards for 2015. I do hope that your new year is going great and that you are having a lot of fun with friends and family. I hope to see you later.

Happy reading!

2015 Reading Challenge

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I originally found this challenge on Facebook and few months ago and decided that I wanted to participate in it. It is a year-long challenge that would force me to read books out of my comfort level. I thought it would be really cool and fun. Recently I found the original Goodreads group that set up the challenge and all the mini challenges to read throughout the year. I found out that there are a lot more challenges that what was posted on Facebook. With this new list, I have taken all the books that I have read this year and placed them in each category. I have doubled up on books because a lot of challenges allow you to do that. My goal for the rest of the year is to make updates on this challenge periodically.

  1. a book with more than 500 pages
  • The Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare
  1. a romance
  2. a book that became a movie
  • Harry Potter Series by J. K. Rowling
  1. a book published this year
  • The Crown of Ptolemy by Rick Riordan
  1. a book with a number in the title
  1. a book written by someone under 30
  2. a book with nonhuman characters
  • Rat Queens Vol. 1 & 2
  1. a funny book
  • The Crown of Ptolemy by Rick Riordan
  1. a book by a female author
  • Adventures of Funeral Crashing #1 by Milda Harris
  • Harry Potter Series by J. K. Rowling
  • Magic Tree House Series by Mary Pope Osborne
  • How to Steal a Dog by Barbara O’Connor
  1. a mystery or thriller
  1. a book with a one-word title
  1. a book of short stories
  1. a book set in a different country
  1. a nonfiction book
  2. a popular author’s first book
  1. a book from your favorite author that you haven’t read yet
  2. a book a friend recommended
  3. a Pulitzer-prize winning book
  4. a book based on a true story
  5. a book at the bottom of your to-read list
  • Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
  1. a book your mom loves
  2. a book that scares you
  3. a book more than 100 years old
  1. a book based entirely on its cover
  1. a book you were supposed to read in school but didn’t
  2. a memoir
  3. a book you can finish in a day
  • Ms. Marvel Vol. 1
  • Ms. Marvel Vol. 2
  • Rat Queens Vol. 1
  • Rat Queens Vol. 2
  • Smile
  • Anya’s Ghost
  1. a book with antonyms in the title
  2. a book set somewhere you’ve always wanted to visit
  1. a book that came out the year you were born
  2. a book with bad reviews
  3. a trilogy (the first)
  1. a trilogy (the second)
  1. a trilogy (the third)
  1. a book from your childhood
  1. a book with a love triangle
  1. a book set in the future
  1. a book set in high school
  1. a book with a color in the title
  1. a book that made/makes you cry
  2. a book with magic
  1. a graphic novel
  1. a book by an author you’ve never read before
  • Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy by Karen Foxlee
  1. a book you own but have never read
  2. a book that takes place in your hometown
  3. a book that was originally written in another language
  1. a book set during Christmas (or similar holiday)
  2. a book written by an author with your same initials
  3. a play
  4. a banned book
  5. a book based on OR turned into a tv show
  6. 52. a book you started but never finished
So far that is what I have completed for the 2015 reading challenge. I am planning on giving you an update for this challenge either the end of August or the end of September. I am not doing the challenges in order like everyone else since I started so late. I do hope that you will enjoy seeing my progress. See you next time. Happy Reading!