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2026 Bookish Books Reading Challenge (hosted by Yours Truly)

My Progress:


27 / 30 books. 90% done!

2026 Cover Lovers Reading Challenge (hosted by Yours Truly)

2026 Cover Lovers Reading Challenge (hosted by Yours Truly)

My Progress:


39 / 50 books. 78% done!

2026 Literary Escapes Challenge

- Alabama
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International:

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My Progress:


34 / 51 states. 67% done!

2026 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge

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24 / 25 books. 96% done!

2026 POPSUGAR Reading Challenge

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29 / 50 books. 58% done!

Booklist Queen's 2026 Reading Challenge

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38 / 52 books. 73% done!

2026 52 Club Reading Challenge

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34 / 52 books. 65% done!

2026 Build Your Library Reading Challenge

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22 / 40 books. 55% done!

2026 Craving for Cozies Reading Challenge

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24 / 51 books. 47% done!

2026 Medical Examiner Mystery Reading Challenge

2026 Mount TBR Reading Challenge

My Progress


19 / 25 books. 76% done!

2026 Around the Year in 52 Books Reading Challenge

My Progress


44 / 52 books. 85% done!

Shelf Reflection Candy Reading Challenge for Kids (and Adults)

My Progress:


54 / 65 books. 83% done!

2026 Countdown Reading Challenge

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55 / 55 books. 100% done!

2026 Series Reading Challenge


23 / 36 books. 64% done!

Dragon Rambles' Law of Fives Bingo

Dragon Rambles' Law of Fives Bingo

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70 / 125 books. 56% done!

2026 Southern Literary Reading Challenge

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9 / 9 books. 100% done!

2026 Reading Challenge (by Linz the Bookworm)

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36 / 60 books. 60% done!

2026 Pioneer Book Reading Challenge

2026 Pioneer Book Reading Challenge

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10 / 40 books. 25% done!

European Reading Challenge 2026

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7 / 50 books. 14% done!

2017 Pick Your Poison Reading Challenge (retired challenge - doing old boards for fun)

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67 / 125 books. 54% done!

2026 Reading Challenge Addict Reading Challenge

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4 / 5 challenges. 80% done!

The 100 Most Common Last Names in the U.S. Reading Challenge

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98 / 100 names. 98% done!

The Life Skills Reading Challenge

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76 / 80 skills. 95% done!
Showing posts with label Julia Durango. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Julia Durango. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Video Game Bounty Hunter Adventure a Fun, Imaginative Yarn

(Image from Barnes & Noble)

For people who crave intense, interactive gaming experiences, the MEEP represents the ultimate playground.  While players lie unconscious at home, they use their minds to enter the massive virtual world, where all kinds of simulated experiences await their eager avatars.  Although teens are only allowed to stay inside the MEEP for up to four hours, illegal hacks let them stretch their time and experience.  The result?  Frustrated, angry parents.  That's where Phoenix "Nixy" Bauer comes in.  Because her parents work for the company responsible for the MEEP, she has even better tricks, which allow her to sneak inside the virtual world and snatch errant avatars at a much lower price than the cost of an official retrieval.  Although working as a bounty hunter (aka, a Leveller) makes Nixy less than popular with her peers, it's a quick, easy way to pad her college fund.

Nixy gets a fair amount of business, but when she's contacted by Diego Salvador, the billionaire who developed the MEEP, she's shocked.  Also nervous, as her little levelling business isn't exactly kosher. Mr. Salvador isn't busting Nixy, but giving her an assignment.  His teenage son, Wyn, has gone missing inside the game.  Worse still, the boy left a suicide note in the real world—clearly, Wyn has no intention of returning to his home in the Florida Keys.  If anyone can bring him back, it's Nixy.  

The job won't be easy, Nixy knows that.  Still, she's confident she'll succeed.  Then, she discovers the truth—Wyn hasn't barricaded himself inside the game, he's being held against his will.  Together, they have to fight their way out of the MEEP, not knowing who or what is after them.  As the stakes rise higher and higher, Nixy realizes this is no game.  This time, she's playing for keeps.  This time, it's her life—and Wyn's—that is at stake.  Can she beat her unseen enemy at its own game?  Or will she be lost forever in a virtual world that grows more dangerous with every passing second?

As you can probably tell, The Leveller by Julia Durango is a fun, fast-paced story.  Its setting—the exciting, imaginative MEEP—will appeal to gamers, reluctant readers, and anyone who enjoys a good action/adventure yarn.  Although the novel will probably make readers consider the perils of spending too much time in virtual reality vs. reality reality, its lessons are subtle.  Really, The Leveller is all about entertainment.  It's exciting, it's funny, it's upbeat, it's engrossing.  Does the whole MEEP thing seem a little far-fetched?  Yes.  Am I still confused by all its rules?  Sure thing.  Was I totally satisfied with the book's ending?  No.  And yet, I enjoyed this one immensely.  It's just fun, you know?  If you—or your favorite teen—is looking for a light, diverting read, give this one a go.  It won't disappoint.      

(Readalikes:  Hm, I can't think of anything.  Can you?)

Grade:


If this were a movie, it would be rated:


for brief, mild language (no F-bombs—at least not in English); violence/gore; and mild sexual innuendo

To the FTC, with love:  I received an e-ARC of The Leveller from the generous folks at HarperTeen via those at Edelweiss.  Thank you!
Tuesday, June 16, 2015

Top Ten Tuesday: Summer Readin'

Even though I live in a place where it's pretty much summer all year round, I'm not much for warm weather.  I grew up in the Pacific Northwest, on the shores of the Columbia River—my natural habitat involves cloudy skies, blustery winds, and a constant drizzle.  I'm a fish out of water in this hot, dry desert.  Needless to say, I don't look forward to Arizona summers.  The scorching temperatures keep me inside, air conditioning and ceiling fans on full blast.  I'm lucky to have a sparkling swimming pool in my backyard for quick dips, so I guess you don't have to feel too sorry for me :)

Anyway, while summer is not my favorite, it does inspire some fun reading material.  I'm not one of those people who only reads light, fluffy beach novels during these warmest of months, but I do think my summer reading choices tend to be a little frothier.  Maybe?  I'll let you be the judge, as this week's Top Ten Tuesday topic is the ten books on my summer TBR list.  I'd love to see your list as well, so why don't you join in the fun?  All you have to do is click on over to The Broke and the Bookish and follow the instructions.  Easy, peasy.

Alright, here we go with the Top Ten Books on my TBR Pile for Summer 2015:


1.  The Summer of Chasing Mermaids by Sarah Ockler—I've never read anything by Ockler, but this contemporary retelling of The Little Mermaid looks fun.  I especially love that its heroine is a young woman of color.


2.  Eeny Meeny by M.J. Arlidge—Forget light and fluffy, this thriller about a deadly game orchestrated by a sadistic fiend is described as dark and twisted.  Perfect summer reading?


3.  Remember Mia by Alexandra Burt—I'm in the middle of this thriller about a mother with severe post-partum depression who wakes up one morning to find her baby missing.  Suffering from traumatic memory loss, she has no idea what's happened to the infant; she can't help but wonder if the police are correct in naming her as the prime suspect ...


4.  The Tide Watchers by Lisa Chaplin—I just received an ARC of this historical adventure/espionage novel, which looks excellent.


5.  Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee—I know I'm not the only one looking forward to the July 14th release date of this novel about a grown-up Jean Louise Finch.


6.  The Water Knife by Paolo Bacigalupi—Although Ship Breaker is one of my favorite watery dystopian novels, I've yet to read anything else by Bacigalupi.  His newest, The Water Knife, looks promising.  Set in the American Southwest, it highlights a very real and timely threat to man's survival—severe drought.  


7.  The Book of Speculation by Erika Swyler—This quirky family saga about a mysterious book and a drowned circus mermaid looks intriguing.


8.  The Melody Lingers On by Mary Higgins Clark—I've loved Clark since I first read her as a teenager.  Although the quality of her writing has declined, I still enjoy her quick, clean mysteries.


9.  The Leveller by Julia Durango—I love the premise of this YA novel.  The MC is a bounty hunter who is hired by parents to go into the virtual reality gaming world and retrieve their missing children.  Sounds like a fun sci fi thriller.


10.  The Lost Daughter by Lucretia Grindle—This mystery about an American high school student who goes missing in Italy sounds like a good summer read.

So, what do you think?  Have you read any of these?  What great stories will you be digging into this summer?  I'd love to know.  Leave a comment/link to your list and I'll be sure to stop by.

Happy summer reading!
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