Wow, it is that time of year once again. It is time to take a look back on my year in books. I love being able to do this on Goodreads, but I really love taking part in the End of Year Book Survery hosted over on the Perpetual Page Turner. I really can't wait to look back on all the wonderful, and not so wonderful, reads that I have had this year. It's also a chance to look back on my year of blogging which, if I'm honest, hasn't really been that busy as I have been on a break for most of it!
Number of books read:
136
I am really pleased with this, especially considering I was only hoping to manage 100. I even managed to read more than last year, which is probably due to blogging a lot less.
Number of re-reads:
14
I am quite happy that I actually got quit a few rereads in. I made a last minute decision a few days ago to start rereading HP, which I am currently doing. I also reread lots of books in series in order to read the next one. Also did a few rereads of Colleen Hoover books.
Genre you read the most from:
I'm not too sure but I'd probably say it would end up being fantasy or contemporary, I devoured a lot of books from both those genres.
1. Best book you read in 2015?
I am of course going to cheat and pick more than one favourite. For reference and reasons you can just go to my post on my top reads of the year here. I've left off some favourites, but the main ones are below.
2. Book you were excited about and thought you were going to love but didn't?
I was really looking forward to reading all three of these, but ended up being really disappointed with them all. I think A Thousand Nights is probably one that will divide opinion. I didn't hate it, I was just rather bored by the whole story. Red Queen was one I was expecting to love, especially considering all the glowing reviews and awards being thrown at it. I just read it and felt it was one of the most unoriginal books around, it read like so many other books in the genre and didn't excite me one bit. Paper Towns was one that I had high expectations of, especially how much it is raved about. I was bored and frustrated with that book, especially when it came to our main character Quinton, and his obsession with Margot - one of the most infuriating female characters in existence. Not a fan!
3. Most surprising (in a good or bad way) book you read?
Good way:
These were definitely three of the more surprising reads that I read this year. The Game of Love and Death offered personified versions of Love and Death, which just worked so well. I also ended up totally shipping those two together, even though they weren't even the main focus of the story. The DUFF really worked for me, even though I know some people really disliked that book. It is very different to the movie adaptation, but in a good way. This one surprised me in the way that it really honestly explored teenage sex, and didn't sugar coat it all the way that some YA novels have a habit of doing. The Martian was a surprise because I didn't know what to expect, but I really wasn't expecting a book as absolutely hilarious and unputdownable as that one was.
Bad way:
Unleashed was definitely a surprising read, but in the worst way possible. I was so disappointed with that book and really shocked by the direction the book went it. It basically got rid of every single secondary character we had met in book one, including the love interest. Then through in a whole new cast of characters and tried to force yet another romance. It did not work and I was so surprised that this was how the series ended.
4. Book you "pushed" the most people to read?
Top choice
I actually have yet to write my review for this. But it is coming. READ THIS BOOK. Even if you don't usually read adult fiction. Even if you don't think a book set on Mars would interest you. Even if you have zero interest in it. READ IT. You will not regret it. This is seriously one of the most amazing books I have ever read. It also contains one of the greatest male characters of all time. Mark Watney is so funny and I just adored his character.
Close second
I think it would have to be these two. I loved Night Owls so much that I felt compelled to get in touch with the author and beg for her to do a Q&A for me, which she did. I absolutely loved the book and really pushed it on others. Rebel of the Sands isn't out till next year, but I loved it so much that I held a pre-order giveaway on Twitter and told everyone they had to read it.
5. Best series you started in 2015? Best sequel of 2015? Best series ender of 2015?
Series starters
These were my favourite series that I have started in 2015, and I am so excited to continue them and find out how they all end. I was so happy that I ended up loving Magnus Chase and the Sword of Summer, especially when I struggled with the first couple of PJ books. I think it is because these read as much more YA than PJ did. I also really enjoyed Demon Road by Derek Landy and I am beyond excited to see what happens with the next book.
Sequels
These two were definitely the top sequels that I read in 2015. I would include Queen of Shadows, but I am still so torn over that book and how aspects of it turned out. Half Wild didn't disappoint me at all, although it left me desperate to get my hands on the final book - which has thankfully happened! Golden Son was also a really wonderful sequel, one that left me desperate for the third and final book, especially with the way that it ended.
6. Favourite new author you discovered in 2015?
I decided I was going to only count authors who I had discovered this year and read more than one book from. I don't feel like I can put them on a list of favourites if I have only read one book by them. So Emery Lord surprised me with Open Road Summer and The Start of Me and You, two super adorable contemporaries. Leah Raeder, who I can't seem to find a face picture of ANYWHERE, gave me Unteachable, Black Iris and Camgirl this year and I enjoyed them all, although Unteachable is definitely my favourite of the three. She gets a lot of points as she writes diverse characters, but also has bisexual charcters in her books which can be hard to come by. Sally Green just wowed me with her Half Wild series and was super lovely when I met her this year.
7. Best book from a genre you don't typically read/was out of your comfort zone?
I don't read a lot of new adult fiction, unless it has Colleen Hoovers name written on it. But this book had been recommended so much on her group page on Facebook that I decided to give it a go. I am so glad that I did because I was completely unable to put this beauty down. I wanted to devour anything else she had written and was so sad to discover that she has written nothing else since.
8. Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year?
These were definitely the four books that I found the hardest to put down this year. The Martian being the one that definitely took me on a rollercoaster ride. It shocked me; making me laugh and cry, sometimes at the same time. I will recommend that book to everyone and anyone. READ IT! I also adored Magnus Chase and Six of Crows. I couldn't put down Queen of Shadows because I just had to know how that book was going to end. And I also had to make doubly sure that my ship was going to sink like the Titanic - and it did!
9. Book you read in 2015 that you are most likely to re-read next year?
Anything that has a sequel out next year, as I always feel the need to reread otherwise I forget everything. I AM BASICALLY DORY! And Colleen Hoover books are my go to when I want to get out of a slump, so I expect I will reread a good few of those too.
10. Favourite cover of a book you read in 2015?
These is a lovely mix of covers and I love them all for different reasons. I absolutely adore the two covers in the Snow Like Ashes series, they are just unbelievably gorgeous. I love the November 9 cover, despite how simplistic it is, which I think is the same reason I love The Game of Love and Death cover. There's just something about the Under the Influence cover that I just really love.
11. Most memorable character of 2015?
Mark Watney from The Martian
FUNNIEST MALE PROTAGONIST.... EVER!
12. Most beautifully written book read in 2015?
I actually don't know what book I want to pick for this. I read a lot of books that I felt were very beautifully written.
13. Most thought-provoking/life-changing book of 2015?
I think I would pick these three. Fans of the Impossible Life looked at depression, mental health, sexuality and lots more. George was a middle grade book about a girl called George, who knows she's a girl but has to fight to be able to make others see it. I think it dealt so well with the subject and think it should be something children should read in schools. One just made me sob far too much and was just beautiful.
14. Book you can't believe you waited UNTIL 2015 to finally read?
I have read every single book Colleen Hoover has published since I read my first Hoover book, Slammed, way back in 2012 or possibly earlier. But, even though I owned them, it took me till almost the end of this year to finally read these three. I am glad I finally did as they were all really good. I love me some Colleen Hoover.
15. Favourite passage/ quote from a book you read in 2015?
I think Leah Raeder perfectly captured how it feels to lose someone, especially when you lose someone far too young.
16. Shortest and longest book you read in 2015?
17. Book that shocked you the most?
This one shocked me A LOT, for various different reasons. I still can't decide whether I loved this book or not. There was so much I wasn't happy with, but so much that I enjoyed too. I hated what happened to the characters in this, they didn't seem like the same characters I had seen in the previous books. I was also shocked at where the romance went in this book. It seemed to 1. come out of nowhere and 2. not make much sense at all.
18. OTP of the year?
I actually have quite a few pairings that I loved this year, but I finally went with these two as I can actually get pictures of them thanks to http://thegrishaverse.wikia.com. I really adored these two together. Six of Crows was awesome and I totally shipped these two. Inej and Kaz care so much for each other, but Kaz likes to pretend he's all tough and evil and has 0 feelings for anyone. But he's so transparent and that's why I adore him. I'm hoping book two gives me all the shipper feels.
19. Favourite non-romantic relationship of the year?
I am definitely going to pick Darrow and Sevro from Golden Son. I love these two!
20. Favourite book you read in 2015 from an author you've read previously?
I've already spoke of my love for Colleen Hoover and I absolutely loved November 9 by her. She released two books this year and she has two more coming out next year. I can't wait!
21. Best book you read in 2015 that you read solely on a recommendation from somebody else/peer pressure?
Thank you to all the fellow CoHort's that recommended this to me over and over again! I found a new favourite novel.
22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2015?
There is no way I could just pick one, I'm a fictional crush slut in that regard,
Ben from November 9.
Kaz from Six of Crows, because he is utterly adorable in all his attempts to seem a heartless bastard.
Gabriel from Half Bad, even though he is gay, that doesn't mean I can't have a crush on him. And also ship him with Nathan because those two are toooooo frigging cute!
Henry from The Game of Love and Death!
Jack from Night Owls
Josh Bennett from The Sea of Tranquility
Jin from Rebel of the Sands
23. Best 2015 debut you read?
I thought these were all very promising debuts and made me sure that I want to read whatever the authors do next.
24. Best worldbuilding/most vivid setting you read this year?
I was so happy to go back to the Grisha world in Six of Crows, I definitely think it's one of the greatest worlds I have seen. There is so much to explore there, it's not wonder that Bardugo decided to set another book in this world. I really hope she continues to do so in the future, as there is still so much that she could explore. I LOVED Rebel of the Sands setting, it was like Aladdin meets a Western, with magic and myth as well. LOVED IT!
25. Book that put a smile on your face/was the most fun to read?
I laughed a lot and had a ton of fun reading all three of these books.
26. Book that made you cry in 2015?
I really love that The Martian made it into both of these. It definitely made me laugh out loud, but it also made me cry. It made me cry and laugh at the same time. But sometimes I was crying because I was so tense and frightened, and really nervous about where this story was going to go. One just broke me a little bit and had me properly ugly crying.
27. Hidden gem of the year?
28. Book that crushed your soul?
I think I would probably say that Queen of Shadows managed to do that quite a lot. It not only killed my ship, but it also treated a lot of my favourite characters like shit.
29. Most unique book you read in 2015?
I would have to say that Shade Me definitely felt unique to me. That was because it had a character who synaesthesia. This is where her senses overlap. So numbers and words have colours, as do emotions. It was a very unique thing and not something I had seen before in a book. I admit that I didn't enjoy the book itself very much.
30. Book that made you the most mad?
These all made me mad for different reasons. The One and Only made me mad because the characters were gross and the story unrealistic. Girl falls for and dates best friends father, after his recent wife's death. This is after she grew up as a child around him. He used to change her nappy and babysit her. THIS IS SICK! Nope.
Talon made me feel awful just because it was just terribly written and didn't offer all the cool dragon action that it promised. It was just filled with an awful romance aspect and someone talking about their inner dragon as if it was Anastasia Steele's inner goddess. RIDICULOUS!
Unleashed was so bad. It got rid of all the old secondary characters and love interest and tried to introduce all new ones... in the final book of a series. NOPE! Queen of Shadows still makes me raging mad if I think about it for too long. Some of it frustrated me beyond all belief.
1. New favourite book blog you discovered in 2015?
I've been really absent from blogging for most of this year and so I don't really know when I discovered blogs. So how about I just list a bunch that I have visited a lot or loved reading this year:
Cait @ Paper Fury | Amanda @ Nellie and Co. | Brittany @ This is the Story of My Reading Life | Rachel @ Confessions of a Book Geek | Mikayla @ Mikayla's Bookshelf | Ella @ Once Upon a Bookish Time | Ebony @ Daring Damsels | Mel @ The Daily Prophecy | Allie @ Little Birdie Books | Zoe @ Stories on Stage | Rachel @ A Perfection Called Books | Anna @ Herding Cats & Burning Soup | Anne @ Lovely Literature | Pam @ YA Escape From Reality | Eileen @ BookCatPin | Patty @ Patty's Book Corner | Chuckles @ Churckles Book Cave | Jess @ My Reading Dress | Rachel @ Confessions of a Book Geek | Kindlemom @ My Guilty Obsession | Kay @ It's A Book Life | Jess @ Jess Watkins | Alma @ Journey Through Fiction | Mara @ The Reading Hedgehog | Jeann @ Happy Indulgence | Breathes Books | Ashana @ Ashana Lian | Finley @ Finley Jayne | Emily @ Follow the Yellow Book Road | Natalie @ The Written Adventure | Aly @ My Heart Hearts Books | Kelly @ Diva Booknerd | Shannon @ It Starts At Midnight | Kara @ Diary of Teen Writer | Olivia @ Olivia's Catastrophe | Rachel @ Beauty and the Bookshelf | Mishma @ Chasing Faerytales | Lizzie @ Big Books and Grande Lattes | Alexandra @ Milky Way of Books | Emma @ Awkwardly Emma | Sophie @ Sophie Reads YA | Kitty @ My Little Corner of Books | Alexandria @ The Book's Buzz | Eugenia @ Genie in a Book | Zareena @ The Slanted Bookshelf | Zaira @ Addicted Readers | Michelle @ Pink Polka Dot Books | Rachel @ Obsessed with Fairy Tales | Zoey @ Uncreatively Zoey | Lauren @ Bookmark Lit | Jess @ A Book Addict's Bookshelf | Grace @ Rebel Mommy Book Blog | Cassie @ Cassie the Weird | P.E Mari @ The Sirenic Codex | Kate @ Sporadic Reads | Tanya @ Girl Plus Books
2. Favourite review that you wrote in 2015?
Queen of Shadows was one of my favourites to write because it was challenging. It was very hard to put my feelings down in writing. But I had fun doing it and my gif game was strong with this one.
Paper Towns by John Green because it was probably the review that caused the most discussion. I didn't enjoy the book and I loved being able to explain why. I also loved the discussions in the comments and being able to talk to others about it.
Night Owls because I managed to get the author to take part in a Q&A for it. Plus I gushed so much and just filled this with gifs and gushing.
The Game of Love and Death was another one where I got the author to take part in a Q&A. Plus I got to just share so many wonderful quotes from this beautiful book.
Demon Road was fun to review, especially as it was an excuse to use an abundance of Supernatural gifs.
The Duff is another one I enjoyed writing because I adored that book so much and it gave me lots to talk about. Plus I included my thoughts on the movie and compared the too.
A Court of Thorns and Roses because I just love reviewing any book by Maas.
Unleashed was so much fun because I just got to rant and rant and rant.
Talon was a book I HATED with a passion that was hard to explain. I tried to express it the best way I could... THROUGH GIFS!
Red Queen is another one I really didn't like and just wanted to rant about. I do love me a good rant review.
3. Best discussion/non-review post you had on your blog?
Throne of Glass series recap: I am so proud of this post, as I actually managed to recap the whole of the series leading up to Queen of Shadows. Next year I will do the same for Queen of Shadows before I get to the next book.
I also loved my discussion on why I loved Celaena Sardothien, and why I wished people would stop hating on confident women.
And I also loved doing the Find Me tag because it meant doing lots of bookish photography.
4. Best event that you participated in?
I got to attend YALC for the second time and it was sooooo good. It was much bigger than last year and had so many great events and author signings. I got to meet so many amazing authors and get so many books signed. I met Derek Landy, who loved my name A LOT. He took my post it note with my name on as he thought he might use it in an upcoming book... if that happened I would freak out!
I also got to attend so many wonderful events. I went to the Hot Key blogger brunch and the Scholastic blogger brunch. I went to events at Bloomsbury publishing house, as well as a different Hot Key author event. I went to amazing events at Waterstones Piccadilly. I got to meet Sarah J. Maas and got all my hardback and paperback books signed. I also got to meet Jennifer Niven, Sally Green, David Levithan, Leigh Bardugo and so many more.
5. Best moment of bookish/blogging life in 2015?
I failed at most of my blogging life in 2015! I am happy that I completed my reading goal. I'm pleased I went to so many bookish events, I suffer from severe anxiety and so that is a huge deal for me.
I've been Marlin this year. I hope to be more Dory in 2016!
6. Most challenging thing about blogging or your reading life this year?
Actually managing to find time to blog was probably the hardest. I have come down with many an illness. I have also really struggled with anxiety and depression this year, which took me out of commission for a long time. I changed jobs, which is a lot of pressure for someone who has big anxiety. That has involved a lot more travel and much longer hours, so my free time is very limited. I have struggled a lot to find time for the time or energy to fully commit to the blog. I really hope to change that in 2016.
7. Most popular post this year on your blog?
The Throne of Glass recap was actually really popular. As was my Team Chaol discussion post. Also so was my post about my new design and return to the blog.
8. Post you wish you got a little more love?
I really wish more people had taken part in the 1989 tag that I created because it took a lot of time.
9. Best bookish discovery?
Etsy was the best and worst thing I discovered this year. It stole all my money.
10. Did you complete any reading challenges or goals that you had set for yourself at the beginning of this year?
This is better than the last two years. 2013 I managed 101, 2014 I managed 112. I guess that's what happens when you stop blogging and actually have time to read.
1. Books you didn't get to in 2015 but will be your number one priority in 2016?
2. Books you are most anticipating for 2016? (non-debut)
And this is just the ones that actually had covers up. I am also desperate for the next Throne of Glass book, as well as all of Colleen Hoovers releases next year.
3. 2016 debut you are most anticipating?
4. One thing you hope to accomplish or do in your reading/blogging life in 2016?
Read at least 100 books. And actually take the time to blog. I would like to average 3 posts a week for the whole year! Fingers crossed that I can do it.
5. A 2016 release you've already read and recommend to everyone?
Reaching the end of this survey kind of feels like this:
Thank you to everyone who has made it to the end of this post! Now feel free to link up to your own survey in the comments. Or discuss your own bookish 2015 below. I'd love to hear what your favourite book/books of the year were.