NaNoWriMo: Done!

Isn't Loki cute? I took this photo last week, after I set up my writing area and was about to add my laptop to the mix. Guess where that was supposed to go? Yep, exactly where he's sitting in this picture. LOL.

He cracks me up! He sat there and waited until I saw him. Such a cutie.

So, today is not only the last day of the month, but also the official last day of NaNoWriMo. Yay. Did you make it? I verified my novel--well, a scrambled 55k-word version of it which I saved at the time--early this week. This is the sixth time I've taken part and won. Awesome!

 

I also finished the first draft of Sierra Fox #4 on Wednesday. I'm so excited about it. The word count ended up being 83,573 words, but I know that'll change during the revision drafts. There are already things I want to add during the second draft, lol. Still, the exciting thing is that Book 4 is written. One more to go. :(

 

I'm now going to take next week off. I need a little time to recharge my battery, I think. So I'll just tackle the to-do list I've already started. Yeah, I might not be planning to write a first draft, revise, or edit next week, but there are still a lot of things I need to do.

 

It would also be nice to squeeze in a little reading, because I just haven't had the desire to read these last few days. I think I'm just mentally exhausted after finishing Sierra's novel. Probably needed a few days of no reading/writing.

 

Oh, and today I'm guest blogging over at Elise Hepner's blog.

 

Have a great weekend!

 

 

Check it out:

 

I officially verified my WIP over at the NaNoWriMo website.

 

My novel is longer than 55k, though. I'm still writing, but so close to the end...

 

Hopefully tomorrow! ;)

NOTORIOUS NINETEEN by Janet Evanovich

New Jersey bounty hunter Stephanie Plum is certain of three truths: People don't just vanish into thin air. Never anger old people. And don't do what Tiki tells you to do.

 

After a slow summer of chasing low level skips for her cousin Vinnie's bail bonds agency, Stephanie Plum finally lands an assignment that could put her bank balance back in the black. Geoffrey Cubbin, facing trial for embezzling millions from Trenton's premier assisted-living facility, has mysteriously vanished from the hospital after an emergency appendectomy. Now it's on Stephanie to track down the con man. The problem is, Cubbin has disappeared without a trace, a witness, or his money-hungry wife. Rumours are stirring that he must have had help with the daring escape... or that maybe he never made it out of his room alive. Since the hospital staff's lips seem to be tighter that the security, and it's hard for Stephanie to blend in to assisted living, Stephanie's Grandma Mazur goes in undercover. But when a second felon goes missing from the same hospital, Plum is forced into working side by side with Trenton's hottest cop, Joe Morelli, in order to crack the case.

 

 

I know I've said this before, but I'll say it again: this is one of my favourite series. So I always look forward to catching up with Steph and the gang. :)

 

Stephanie Plum leads a dangerous life. She's always looking for bad guys, although they usually find her first. The two men in her life both manage to tempt her in their own way, even though she's really trying out a relationship with Morelli. Her cars keep getting blown up. And she's finally ready to admit that the danger and uncertainty that brings so much chaos into her life actually excites her. Yet, none of these things are going to pay the rent.

 

So when she grabs her latest assignment, she's ready to make some cash. However, the guy who embezzled money from an assisted-living facility went missing from the hospital after surgery. And now, he's impossible to find so she grabs a few more cases--a homeless guy obsessed with a tiki and runs too fast to catch (the guy, not the tiki), and a lady caught for soliciting who turns out to be just as sneaky. Not to mention the bodyguard job she takes as Ranger's 'date', which ends up in the hospital and with her having to wear a hideous bridesmaid dress. Oh, and it also makes her a target for a madman from Ranger's past.
 

If only things were easy... well, if they were, then it wouldn't be Stephanie's life, right? lol.

 

Notorious Nineteen is another exciting Stephanie Plum roller-coaster ride filled with fun, danger, sexy men, and really bad people. Sprinkle a good dose of fumbling criminals, funny friends, and her hilarious family, and it made for an excellent read!

 

I love this series. Can't wait for the next one. 

 

Notorious Nineteen, December 2012, ISBN 9780755385010, Headline Fiction

NaNoWriMo: Day 23

Um... yeah, I've been a super bad blogger. :(

 

This month is just turning out to be insane. My head's filled with Sierra stuff, and every spare moment I have is spent typing away like a madwoman. I'm so into this story that I didn't even have time to blog over here last Friday, which I really wanted to do because...

 

I reached 50,000 words on the 16th of this month. Yay! So exciting.

 

It's awesome to have reached my NaNoWriMo goal once again, but my novel's not done yet. I'm still writing Sierra Fox #4. Actually, as of the end of today's session, my word count is now: 71,130.

 

I'm getting close to the end, but not quite. I reckon the first draft should be finished by this time next week. The great thing is that I know exactly what's left to write, as well as how the story ends. I think this one might end up  being a little on the cliffhangerish side. I don't think that's too bad, considering the book that follows will be the last in Sierra's series. Right? ;)

Oh, and on an awesome note... I just found out Split at the Seams is available for pre-order at The Book Depository. That's right! The print version. I can't wait to see both of these books in print. :)

Well, I'm looking forward to taking the weekend off.

Have a good one!

SECONDS AWAY by Harlan Coben

Following on from SHELTER comes the second novel in the fantastic, action-packed Mickey Bolitar series of young adult thrillers from the master of the hook-and-twist.

 

Having ended the Edgar Award-nominated SHELTER with a jaw-dropping cliffhanger, Coben picks up Mickey's story right where it left off in this suspenseful new adventure.

 

Mickey and his loyal new friends, sharp-witted Ema and adorably charming Spoon, once again find themselves in over their heads on the hunt for missing pieces to a puzzle they have yet to understand.

 

As the mystery surrounding Mickey's dad's death unfolds, he soon learns that they may be in more danger than they could have ever imagined.

After reading the first book in this series last year, I was looking forward to reading this one, especially after the cliffhanger ending in Shelter.

 

Mickey really wants to know what happened to his father, and is starting to wonder if he's really dead at all. The Bat Lady is the one who started him on this path in the first place, but now doesn't want to answer his questions and instead kicks him out of her house.

 

As much as he wants to know what really happened to his father and if a Nazi from WWII had anything to do with it, one of his friends is in trouble. Rachel was shot and her mother killed. So Mickey and his friends Ema and Spoon can't help themselves, they're determined to help figure out what really happened to Rachel.

 

As the plot thickens and Mickey continues to search for answers, he gets involved in a very serious situation that leads to some devastating conclusions...

 

Seconds Away is an interesting addition to this series. I enjoyed it, mostly. There were some high points--Ema's mystery is (kinda) solved and Rachel's case is wrapped up. As well as some low points--too many loose ends not being tied together and the mystery of his father is still not clear. I really wanted to, but I just didn't love this book as much as the first one.  It felt like it was missing something...

Seconds Away, October 2012, ISBN 9781409124498, Orion Fiction