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.)?
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.
Yes, Alana and Marco forever!!
Check out my End of Year Survey
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Congrats on a great reading year! I agree on Circe – loved it.
I saw that you volunteered to host the What’s in a Name and I just want to cheer you on for that. I am not able to commit but I will support you and help publicize if it works out. It’s one of my favorites!
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