2018 End of Year Survey

Happy New Year!  This is my end of year review that includes my usual wrap up and then the annual survey created by The Perpetual Page-Turner.

Challenges in which I participated:

A to Z (finished 21/26)
What’s in a Name? (finished 6/6)
Full House (finished
Monthly Motif (finished 12/12)
R.I.P. XIII (finished 4/4)

# of books read:

81

Previous years:
61 in 2017
35 in 2016
52 in 2015
58 in 2014
60 in 2013
75 in 2012
39 in 2011
30 in 2010
28 in 2009
48 in 2008
81 in 2007

Favorites (in order read):

Saga Vols. 5 & 6  by: Brian K. Vaughan & Fiona Staples
Beacon 23  by: Hugh Howey
Sunbolt  by: Intisar Khanani
Turtles All the Way Down  by: John Green
Mosquitoland  by: David Arnold
Educated: A Memoir  by: Tara Westover
The Song of Achilles  by: Madeline Miller
Nine Perfect Strangers  by: Liane Moriarty
Circe  by: Madeline Miller
The Good Daughter  by: Karin Slaughter

Least favorite:

Lincoln in the Bardo  by: George Saunders

# of non-fiction:

7

Repeated authors:

Brian K. Vaughan (7) (Saga)
Hugh Howey (2)
Sylvain Neuvel (2) (Themis Files)
Laura Thalassa (2) (The Bargainer)
Michelle Bryan (3) (Strain of Resistance)
Intisar Khanani (2) (The Sunbolt Chronicles)
Ruth Ware (3)
N.K. Jemisin (3) (The Broken Earth)
Stephen King (4) (Bill Hodges Trilogy)
Madeline Miller (2)
Gena Showalter (2) (Everlife)

**2018 READING STATS** Survey by The Perpetual Page-Turner

 

Number Of Books You Read: 81
Number of Re-Reads: 1
Genre You Read The Most From: Fiction, Sci-Fi

 

1. Best Book You Read In 2018?

Circe  by: Madeline Miller

2. Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t?

That Inevitable Victorian Thing  by: E.K. Johnson

 3. Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read?  

Mosquitoland  by: David Arnold – surprising in a good way!  I thought it would be more of a shallow young adult story, but I was pleasantly surprised and it ended up being one of my favorites of the whole year.

 4. Book You “Pushed” The Most People To Read (And They Did)?

The Song of Achilles  by: Madeline Miller

 5. Best series you started in 2018? Best Sequel of 2018? Best Series Ender of 2018?

Started: The Sunbolt Chronicles  by: Intisar Khanani
Ender: Obsidio  by: Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff (#3 of The Illuminae Files)

 6. Favorite new author you discovered in 2018?

Intisar Khanani

7. Best book from a genre you don’t typically read/was out of your comfort zone?

Saga Vol. 5 and Saga Vol. 6  by: Brian K. Vaughan (graphic novels)

 8. Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year?

The Woman in the Window  by: A.J. Finn

 9. Book You Read In 2018 That You Would Be MOST Likely To Re-Read Next Year?

The Book of Strange New Things  by: Michel Faber – it was incredibly deep and odd and made me want to talk to someone about it while reading it and after I finished.

10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2018?

11. Most memorable character of 2018?

Circe from Circe  by: Madeline Miller
Bill Hodges from The Bill Hodges Trilogy  by: Stephen King

 12. Most beautifully written book read in 2018?

Salt to the Sea  by: Ruta Sepetys

13. Most Thought-Provoking/ Life-Changing Book of 2018?

Nine Perfect Strangers  by: Liane Moriarty – the discussion of depression/suicide really hit home.

 14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2018 to finally read? 

Interview with the Vampire  by: Anne Rice

 15. Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2018?

“I think there should be a rule that everyone in the world should get a standing ovation at least once in their lives.” –Wonder  by: R.J. Palacio

16.Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2018?

Shortest: Woman, These Are Yours  by: A.C. O’Dell (28 pages)
Longest:  The Good Daughter  by: Karin Slaughter (656 pages)

 17. Book That Shocked You The Most

Before We Were Yours  by: Lisa Wingate – The things that happened in this book were shocking enough, but then to find out it was based on a true story…

18. OTP OF THE YEAR (you will go down with this ship!)

Alanna & Marco in the Saga series ♥

 

19. Favorite Non-Romantic Relationship Of The Year

Melanie & Miss Justineau in The Girl with All the Gifts  by: M.R. Carey

20. Favorite Book You Read in 2018 From An Author You’ve Read Previously

Beacon 23  by: Hugh Howey

21. Best Book You Read In 2018 That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else/Peer Pressure/Bookstagram, Etc.:

Educated: A Memoir  by: Tara Westover – My mom told me a little about it so I checked it out from the library.

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2018?

Val from The Sunbolt Chronicles  by: Intisar Khanani

23. Best 2018 debut you read?

The Woman in the Window  by: A.J. Finn

24. Best Worldbuilding/Most Vivid Setting You Read This Year?

Obsidio  by: Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

25. Book That Put A Smile On Your Face/Was The Most FUN To Read?

Gracie: A Love Story  by: George Burns

26. Book That Made You Cry Or Nearly Cry in 2018?

Winter Garden  by: Kristen Hannah

27. Hidden Gem Of The Year?

Sunbolt  by: Intisar Khanani

28. Book That Crushed Your Soul?

Winter Garden  by: Kristen Hannah

29. Most Unique Book You Read In 2018?

The Girl Who Drank the Moon  by: Kelley Barnhill

30. Book That Made You The Most Mad (doesn’t necessarily mean you didn’t like it)?

Before We Were Yours  by: Lisa Wingate

The Girls Who Went Away  by: Ann Fessler

 

1. New favorite book blog/Bookstagram/Youtube channel you discovered in 2018?

I don’t follow any Bookstagrams or YouTube channels and I don’t keep track of when I started following certain blogs, so I’ll choose a blog at random that I think I started following in the last year: A Lovely Book Affair

2. Favorite post you wrote in 2018?

Top Ten Titles With the Word “Girl”

3. Favorite bookish related photo you took in 2018?

My oldest son reading in the lobby of the karate dojo while waiting for my younger son to finish his class.

A book tree at the Imaginon library in downtown Charlotte.

4. Best bookish event that you participated in (author signings, festivals, virtual events, etc.)?

All of the challenges, especially R.I.P. XIII!

5. Best moment of bookish/blogging life in 2018?

Finishing most of the challenges in which I participated, reading 81 books total, blogging more.

6. Most challenging thing about blogging or your reading life this year?

Homeschooling has made finding personal time a little more challenging, but at least I still read children’s and picture books to my sons and nephew.

7. Most Popular Post This Year On Your Blog (whether it be by comments or views)?

Top Ten Favorite Fictional Couples

8. Post You Wished Got A Little More Love?

The Girls Who Went Away – It didn’t receive many views and I understand that it’s a non-fiction that hasn’t received much recognition, but I really think that people would find the subject interesting and perhaps even relevant to their family history.

9. Best bookish discovery (book related sites, book stores, etc.)?

100 Books Bucket List Poster

10.  Did you complete any reading challenges or goals that you had set for yourself at the beginning of this year?

I completed 4/5 challenges and exceeded my Goodreads challenge goal of 70 books by reading 81.

 

1. One Book You Didn’t Get To In 2018 But Will Be Your Number 1 Priority in 2019?

Where the Crawdads Sing  by: Delia Owens

2. Book You Are Most Anticipating For 2019 (non-debut)?

Aurora Rising  by: Jay Kristoff & Amie Kaufman – May 2019

3. 2019 Debut You Are Most Anticipating?

I don’t keep up with debuts.

 4. Series Ending/A Sequel You Are Most Anticipating in 2019?

Darkdawn  by: Jay Kristoff (The Nevernight Chronicle #3) – September 2019

5. One Thing You Hope To Accomplish Or Do In Your Reading/Blogging Life In 2019?

I hope to blog consistently instead of slacking off halfway through the year and I hope to read at least 75 books throughout the entire year.