Audiobook Second and Third Quarter Update

If you're interested in joining, you still have time. The challenge began at the beginning of this year but they accept new people all year. Just go here and sign up.

My chosen level for this year is: Marathoner (Look Ma no hands) 50+. More specifically, I planned to read at least 85+ audiobooks. Lets go into how I've done:

For the first quarter I read a total of 25 books. Feel free to see my first quarter update here.

Since then, I forgot to do my second quarter update, so this will be a combined 2^nd and 3^rd quarter update:

Second Quarter:

1.       Dead of Winter (The Arcana Chronicles #3) – Kresley Cole

2.       Losing Hope (Hopeless #2) – Colleen Hoover

3.       The Snow Queen – Hans Christian Anderson

4.       Beautiful Bastard – Christina Lauren

5.       Half Blood (Covenant #1) – Jennfer L. Armentrout

6.       Dark Lover(Black Dagger Brotherhood)  – J. R. Ward

7.       Slammed (Slammed #1) – Colleen Hoover

8.       Addicted (Club Destiny 2.5) – Nicole Edwards

9.       Kades Dark Embrace (Immortals of New Orleans #1) – Kym Grosso

10.   Seduction (Club Destiny #3) – Nicole Edwards

11.   Ruby Red (Ruby Red #1) – Kirstin Geir

12.   Better Homes and Hauntings – Molly Harper

13.   Maybe Someday (Maybe #1) – Colleen Hoover

14.   Maybe Not (Maybe #1.5 ) – Colleen Hoover

15.   Lick (Stage Dive #1) – Kylie Scott

16.   The Interview (Office Party #1) – Andie Devaux

17.   Infatuation (Club Destiny #4) – Nicole Edwards

18.   Captivated (Club Destiny 4.5) – Nicole Edwards

19.   Finding Cinderella  (Hopeless 2.5) – Colleen Hoover

20.   Fearless (Fearless #1) – Francine Pascal

21.   A Court of Thorns and Roses (A Court of Thorns and Roses #1) – Sarah J. Maas

22.   Thirteenth Child (Frontier Magic #1) – Patricia C. Wrede

23.   Wallbanger (Cocktail #1) – Alice Clayton

24.   Succubus Blues (Georgia Kincaid #1) – Richelle Mead

25.   The Professional (The Game Maker #1) – Kresley Cole

26.   Siege and Storm (The Grisha #2) – Leigh Bardugo

27.   Ruin and Rising (The Grisha #3) – Leigh Bardugo

28.   The Beautiful Ashes (Broken Destiny #1) – Jeaniene Frost

29.   Ugly Love – Colleen Hoover

30.   An Ember in the Ashes (An Ember in the Ashes  #1) – Sabaa Tahir

31.   Fallen Too Far (Fallen Too Far #1) – Abbi Glines

32.   In Flight (Up in the Air #1) – R. K. Lilley

 

Third Quarter:
 

1.       Dark Heir (Jane Yellowrock #9) – Faith Hunter

2.       Storm Born (Dark Swan #1) – Richelle Mead

3.       Fixed on You (Fixed #1) – Laurelin Paige

4.       Addicted to you (Addicted #1) – Krista and Becca Ritchie

5.       Talon (Talon #1) – Julie Kagawa

6.       Mud Vein – Tarryn Fisher

7.       Never Seduce a Scot (The Montgomerys and Armstrongs #1) – Maya Banks

8.       Confess – Colleen Hoover

9.       First Grave on the Right (Charley Davidson #1) – Darynda  Jones

10.   Yes Please – Amy Poehler

11.   Switched (Trylle #1) – Amanda Hocking

12.   Torn (Trylle #2) – Amanda Hocking

13.   Ascend (Trylle #3) – Amanda Hocking

14.   Half Bad (The Half Bad Trilogy #1) – Sally Green

15.   Red Queen (Red Queen #1) – Victoria Aveyard

16.   The Elite (The Selection #2) – Kiera Cass

17.   The One (The Selection #3) – Kiera Cass

18.   Magic Shifts (Kate Daniels #8) – Ilona Andrews

19.   The Young Elites (The Young Elites #1) – Marie Lu

20.   Magic Bites (Kate Daniels #1) – Ilona Andrews

21.   Magic Burns (Kate Daniels #2) – Ilona Andrews

22.   Magic Strikes (Kate Daniels #3) – Ilona Andrews

23.   Magic Bleeds (Kate Daniels #4) – Ilona Andrews

24.   Magic Slays (Kate Daniels #5) – Ilona Andrews

25.   Magic Rises (Kate Daniels #6) – Ilona Andrews

26.   Magic Breaks (Kate Daniels #7) – Ilona Andrews

27.   Golden Son (Red Rising Trilogy #2) – Pierce Brown

28.   The Coldest Girl in Coldtown – Holly Black

29.   My Blood Approves (My Blood Approves #1) – Amanda Hocking

30.   Fate (My Blood Approves #2) – Amanda Hocking

31.   Queen of Shadows (Throne of Glass #4) – Sarah J. Maas

32.   Flutter (My Blood Approves #3) – Amanda Hocking

33.   Watch Me – Shayla Black

34.   Naughty Little Secret – Shayla Black

35.   Throne of Glass (Throne of Glass #1) – Sarah J. Maas

36.   Crown of Midnight (Throne of Glass #1) – Sarah J. Maas

Combined that means I have read 93 audiobooks. Therefore, I have already met and passed my goal of 85 audiobooks. I still plan to keep up my current progress, so I am looking to see if I can finish with more than 110 audiobooks. We will certainly see! For updates of my progress, follow my 2015 Audiobook Challenge shelf on Goodreads.

Head on over to the hosts site to check out her progress, and check out other participants and to enter into a giveaway! Good Luck everyone on the Last quarter of the contest!

Review: Fearless by Annie Jacoby

Book: Fearless (Fearless #1)
By: Annie Jaocby
Published: July 15, 2014
Published by: Self Published
*this book was given to me in exchange for an honest review by the author*

My Thoughts: Fearless was an interesting story about a woman who just wants to feel again, and the man who helps her.

The Story: We follow Dalilah Gallagher, a former child art prodigy who was put down by an art critic and who now desperately wants to find her place and purpose, and find a way to see the passion in the world again. Struggling to find her muse again, or even to feel something, she spends her days modeling for other art students, and her nights trolling the bars and engaging in various acts with the strangers she meets. Soon, she runs into Blake Nottingham, a rich man who is obsessed with her, and who commissions a broke, but talented artist, Luke Roberts, to paint a nude painting of Dalilah. Blake wants Dalilah, but he's into some dangerous things. Things that Dalilah knows would ruin her forever. Dalilah is quickly intrigued by Luke, and wishes she can do something to help the artist succeed. She later realizes that only Blake can help Luke, and she will do anything to help Luke reach his dreams, even if that means getting involved with Blake. What she doesn't know is that Blake may have motivations of his own, and she must decide if she can deal with them.

The Characters: I wasn't really a fan of our MC Dalilah. I understood her issues and motivations, and was very near to liking her, but then she would make quick decisions without thinking them through, and she began to make me think she wasn't even a person worth caring about. She seemed spoiled and stubborn and generally seemed as if she didn't care about herself, so I didn't want to care about her either. I was intrigued by our love interest Luke, but I never felt I got to know him enough to be sure. Blake was the only character I was sure I liked, probably because he was meant to be so unlikable, and devious, and I knew what to expect from him. He was a perv, and a stalker, and a devious, dangerous man, and he had secrets that scared even me. I kind of loved it.

The Verdict: I give this story 3.5 stars. It was quite interesting, and I enjoyed seeing the cliffhanger. That being said, I couldn't really connect to the MC, and that made it difficult for me to connect with the story. Beyond that, it took too long in my opinion for me to reach the climax of the story, and once that happened, the story was over and I was left with said cliffhanger. Finally, bits of the story were pretty predictable, which made me unsurprised at the end. Still it was a great start to the series and something that definitely taught me a lesson. I would recommend this to those who would like a nice love story with a proportionate dose of sex and a danger hanging over everyone's heads.

Audiobook Review - Naughty Little Secret by Shayla Black

Book: Naughty Little Secret

By: Shayla Black (writing as Shelley Bradley)
Narrator: Cindy Harden
Length: 6 hours 5 min
Audio Published:
Published by: Listen Up Audiobooks
*this book was given to me in exchange for an honest review by the author*

My Thoughts: Naughty Little Secret was a book filled with secrets and heartache. It was a book that, once you suspended belief a bit, was quite interesting and ridiculously sexy.

The Story: This story follows Lauren Southall, a divorcee' who is broken hearted, afraid of love, and completely jaded. She's also inappropriately interested in her boss/ex-husband's friend, Noah Reeves. What she doesn't know is that Noah is inappropriately interested in her too. Two years passes after her divorce, and Noah has a plan to win her heart. Unfortunately, everything doesn't always work out as planned. What ensues is an intense story that's at times frustrating and other times exciting.

The Narration: Cindy Harden was a good narrator. At the beginning, her voice seemed a bit too breathless, but eventually I got used to it and settled in. She did a great job with the narration of the story and made sure we felt the correct emotions. I didn't quite like the male voices she made at times, but I could deal with them. I know from personal experience that I can really only make one male voice, so I felt okay with the few that she made.

The Verdict: I give this one 3 stars. While I thought the story was beyond hot, I just couldn't connect with the characters, and the story itself required a bit too much suspension of belief. I just can't put myself in her position no matter how hard I try. In the beginning, Lauren seems way too desperate for affection from anyone with a male appendage, and at the same time as the story progresses she's too guarded, and seems to make stupid decisions. Beyond that, she had no confidence in herself, no confidence in others, and just basically no confidence at all. Noah's plan to woo her was an idiotic one, and I could see the writing on the wall at first mention of it. In addition, once everything was revealed, it took too much (in my opinion) to wrap things all up. Still, Shayla Black knows how to write a sexy scene, and the story itself wasn't bad. I really enjoyed it despite my misgivings about the characters. I would recommend this one to those who like erotica that requires a significant amount of belief suspension, but that fully involves a taboo fantasy many would never admit to having.

Audiobook Review - Watch Me by Shayla Black

Book: Watch Me

By: Shayla Black (Writing as Shelley Bradley)
Narrated By: Sasha Dunbrooke
Length: 4 hours
Audio Published: August 4, 2015
Published By: Listen Up Audiobooks
*this book was given to me in exchange for an honest review by the author*

My Thoughts: Watch me was a short, intense little book filled with seduction, temptation, and pure hotness.

The Story: Watch me follows the life of Shanna York, a particularly obsessive professional ballroom dancer who has been proclaimed as the, "B***h of the ballroom." She goes through dance partners almost as fast as she goes through dance costumes and she believes winning is all that's important. Then, her dance partner gets videotaped in a couple compromising positions with a couple romantic partners of his, the whole scene is videotaped and was done in front of an audience, and the video-taper is trying to blackmail Shanna by threatening to show the video to the judges at the next competition. Shanna knows that such  an occurrence would ruin her chances of winning the competition with the conservative judges, and she can either pick a new partner yet again, setting her back with this year's competition, or she can find out exactly who is trying to blackmail her.

Enter Alejandro Diaz, the owner of the club where Shanna's partner performed for said audience. Alejandro is a sexy Latin man who has wanted Shanna since he first met her. He wants nothing more than to melt her icy exterior and find out exactly who she is. When Shanna comes to him to request he help her find out who is blackmailing her, he comes up with the perfect plan, one that's equally beneficial for both of them.

The Narration: From the first sentence, I loved the narrator. She really fits Shanna's icy personality and hidden softness. She also does a wonderful job portraying the hot and heavy moments so that the listener can really picture what's going on. Sasha even does a pretty good job with the male voices and the accents, and I thoroughly enjoyed listening to her.

The Verdict: This is a book filled with steam, exhibitionism and lust. Still, I had some misgivings, there was a portion near the end where things seemed to rushed and too HEA too soon. I don't believe the feelings were rushed between the two main characters, but I do believe the decisions as a result of those feelings were rushed. I give this book 4 stars. I would recommend it to anyone who likes erotica with sexy foreign men and ice queen women getting brought down to their secretly mushy selves.