I love doing Jamie’s End of Year Book Survey every year! It helps me look back and remember all the wonderful (and terrible) books I’ve read throughout the year!

2017 Reading Stats

Number of books you read: 45
Number of re-reads: 0
Genre you read the most from: I read more adult books than young adult this year, which is crazy! Adult contemporary romance seems to be the genre I read the most from. I read 10 of them.

Best In Books

1. Best books you read in 2017:
Romantic suspense: Till Death by Jennifer Armentrout
Contemporary romance: The Hating Game by Sally Thorne
Fantasy: Caraval by Stephanie Garber

2. Book you were excited about & thought you were going to love more but didn’t:
The Crown’s Fate by Evelyn Skye.

3. Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read:
I had no idea I was going to love Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco as much as I did.

4. Book you “pushed” the most people to read (and they did):
Till Death by Jennifer Armentrout. I got a few people to read this.

5. Best series you started in 2017. Best sequel of 2017. Best series ender of 2017.
Started: Katie Ruggle’s Search and Rescue series.
Sequel: Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco
Ender: I didn’t finish any series this year.

6. Favorite new author you discovered in 2017:
Debut: Sally Thorne
Seasoned: Katie Ruggle

7. Best book from a genre you don’t typically read/was out of your comfort zone:
I didn’t venture out of my comfort zone this year, and I hope to do it next year.

8. Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year:
Till Death by Jennifer Armentrout

9. Book you read in 2017 that you are most likely to re-read next year?
The Hating Game by Sally Thorne

10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2017:
Caraval by Stephanie Garber.

11. Most memorable character of 2017:
Sean Kendrick from The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater.

12. Most beautifully written book read in 2017:
Hunted by Meagan Spooner.

13. Most thought-provoking/life-changing book of 2017:
Hmmm… This was a bad reading year for me. I didn’t really come across a book that changed my life or made me think a lot.

14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2017 to finally read:
The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater.

15. Favorite quote from a book you read in 2017:
“The world is vicious.”
Thomas brushed a lock of hair back from my face, his gaze thoughtful. “The world is neither kind nor is it cruel. It simply exists. We have the ability to view it however we choose.”
– Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco

16. Shortest and longest books you read in 2017:
Shortest: 34 pages, Beauty and the Beast by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont
Longest: 492 pages, The Witness by Nora Roberts

17. Book that shocked you the most:
I was pretty floored at who the murderer was in Till Death by Jennifer Armentrout.

18. OTP of the year (you will go down with this ship!):
YA: Audrey Rose Wadsworth and Thomas Cresswell from Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco.
Adult: Lucy Hutton and Joshua Templeman from The Hating Game by Sally Thorne.

19. Favorite non-romantic relationship of the year:
Sasha and her best friend, Miranda, from Till Death by Jennifer Armentrout.

20. Favorite book you read in 2017 from an author you’ve read previously:
Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco (I see a trend!!)

21. Best book you read in 2017 that you read based SOLELY on a recommendation from somebody else:
Public Relations by Katie Heaney and Arianna Rebolini

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2017:
Sean Kendrick from The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater.

23. Best 2017 debut you read:
YA: Caraval by Stephanie Garber
Adult: The Hating Game by Sally Thorne

24. Most vivid setting you read this year:
This is really hard!! I’d have to say Dracula’s castle in Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco, though. I still have a picture of it and the labyrinth of passages and secret rooms underneath it in my head.

25. Book that put a smile on your face/was the most FUN to read:
The Hating Game by Sally Thorne had me giddy.

26. Book that made you cry or nearly cry in 2017:
I do my best to avoid crying with books, and I succeeded this year!

27. Hidden gem of the year:
Hunted by Meagan Spooner.

28. Book that crushed your soul:
Well, just because I hated it… The Crown’s Fate by Evelyn Skye.

29. Most unique book you read in 2017:
The Tea Dragon Society by Katie O’Neill

30. Book that made you the maddest (doesn’t necessarily mean you didn’t like it):
Love Her Madly by M. Elizabeth Lee. I haaaaaaated it!!

Your Bookish/Blogging Life

1. New favorite book blog you discovered in 2017:
Bookmark Lit! I’d always known about Lauren’s blog, but when I found out she loves Christmas as much as I do that was exciting.

2. Favorite review that you wrote in 2017:
I really don’t feel strongly about any of my reviews…

3. Best discussion/non-review post you had on your blog:
My 12 Favorites of Christmas was really fun to put together.

4. Best event that you participated in (author signings, festivals, virtual events, memes, etc.):
I guest posted on Sarah’s blog during her Home for the Holidays event, and I really loved that.

5. Best moment of bookish/blogging life in 2017:
I wrote to so many authors this year and got responses from many, which was wonderful. Other than that, I’m not sure anything huge has happened other than the fact that Top Ten Tuesday is moving here because we’re shutting down The Broke and the Bookish. And that’s super bittersweet for me.

6. Most challenging thing about blogging or your reading life this year:
I’ve been in a major reading slump for a long time, so finding books I love has been very hard. I’ve watched a lot more Netlfix because of it. lol.

7. Most popular post this year on your blog (whether it be by comments or views):
Comments: 37 comments on my Top Ten Books I Hope Santa Brings – 2017 Edition
Views:

8. Post you wished got a little more love:
All my reviews, pretty much. lol

9. Best bookish discovery (book related sites, book stores, etc.):
I’m in a rut, guys.

10. Did you complete any reading challenges or goals that you had set for yourself at the beginning of this year:
I completed my Goodreads goal of reading 45 books.
I posted more posts to my blog this year than last year.

Looking Ahead

1. One book you didn’t get to in 2017 but will be your number 1 priority in 2018:
Traitor to the Throne by Alwyn Hamilton.

2. Book you are most anticipating for 2018 (non-debut):
Escaping from Houdini by Kerri Maniscalco!

3. 2018 debut you are most anticipating:
By a Charm and a Curse by Jamie Questell

4. Sequel you are most anticipating in 2018:
Legendary by Stephanie Garber

5. One thing you hope to accomplish or do in your reading/blogging life in 2018?
Get out of this reading slump and really love everything I read. I need to DNF more!

I’m a huge fan of numbers, and I love participating in Andi and Brittany’s year-end statistics survey every year!

Number of…

Number of books read…
Under 250 pages: 14
Between 251-399 pages: 23
Between 400-449 pages: 7
Between 450-499 pages: 1
Over 500 pages: 0
Over 1000 pages: 0

Number of…
Audiobooks: 3
Re-reads: 0
DNFs (did not finish): 5ish?

Number of books rated…
Five Stars: 10
One/Two Stars: 18 (wow, that’s sad…)

Number of authors met in 2017:
None… Wow. That’s really, really sad!

Number of book events attended in 2017:
None… hence the number above.

Number of books you read in one day:
1.

Number of books that made you cry:
None.

Number of 2018 books you have on pre-order:
3.

By the Books

Book read furthest away from home (vacation reads?):
Read on my cruise to Hawaii: Full Steam Ahead by Valerie Chase, The Cinderella Murder by Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke, A Week to Be Wicked by Tessa Dare, The Thousand-Dollar Tan Line by Rob Thomas, and Mr. Kiss and Tell by Rob Thomas.

Book that took you the longest to read:
The Crown’s Fate by Evelyn Skye took me 41 days to read because I really didn’t like it.

Book that you personally connected with the most:
The Hating Game by Sally Thorne. I connected with Lucy, but I can’t remember why! Hehe.

Book that made you love the villain:
I’m super intrigued by Legend from Caraval by Stephanie Garber.

Book you said you’d come back to but still haven’t picked up again:
A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas. Ahhh! I know!!!

Book you read waaaay before it’s publication date:
I read The Crown’s Fate by Eveylen Skye. I started that almost 3 months before it was released because I was SO EXCITED!

Book you read on your birthday:
According to Goodreads I wasn’t reading anything on my birthday! Sad!

Book with a character who shares your name:
This has only happened once, and it was a few years ago. And that Jana was crucified within the first quarter of the book. So great.

Book you weren’t entirely truthful about when rating (Fluff up any ratings? Rated even though you didn’t finish?):
I fluffed up my rating of Public Relations by Katie Heaney and Arianna Rebolini because my friend loved it and sent it to me and I wanted to love it, too!

Book you read in 2017 but already want to re-read:
I didn’t even have to think about this: The Hating Game by Sally Thorne!

Book you borrowed from a friend a long time ago and still have:
I don’t have any friends who love to read and can actually lend me books. lol. They’re all far away.

Book you which you could go back and read for the first time again:
Till Death by Jennifer Armentrout. Now that I know how it turns out, re-reading just won’t be as exciting!

Most books read by one author this year:
It’s a 3-way tie between Mary Higgins Clark, Rob Thomas, and Jill Shalvis. I read two books by each of them.

This and That

Happiest & saddest:
Happiest: The Hating Game by Sally Thorne
Saddest: I don’t read sad books… So maybe I’m the saddest about hating The Crown’s Fate.

Longest & shortest…
• By page number:
Longest: The Witness by Nora Roberts  (492 grueling pages)
Shortest: Beauty and the Beast by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont (34 pages)
• By title:
Longest: Kiss Me On This Cold December Night by Charlotte Phillips
Shortest: Hunted by Meagan Spooner
• From buying to reading:
Longest: The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater (I waited 8 years to read this!!)
Shortest: The Hating Game by Sally Thorne (I waited 3 days. lol)

Best & worst…
Average rating on Goodreads: 3.69 stars
Series enders: I didn’t read any series enders this year.

First & last…
• Reads of 2017:
First: Caraval by Stephanie Garber
Last: Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller
• Books on your bookcase (1st book on the top left and last book on the bottom right):
First: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Last: To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo

Most disappointing & biggest pleasant surprise:
Most disappointing: The Crown’s Fate by Evelyn Skye
Biggest pleasant surprise: Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco (I had no idea just HOW MUCH I would love it!)

Fandom you joined & one you abandoned:
I didn’t do either, actually!

Series you picked up & series you quit:
Picked up: Katie Ruggle’s Search and Rescue series
I didn’t quit any this year.

Most lenient & harshest ratings:
Lenient: Public Relations by Katie Heaney and Arianna Rebolini
Harshest: I wasn’t too harsh, I don’t think! I really think everything I rated harshly deserved it. lol

Most hyped & furthest under the radar that you read:
Most hyped: The Hating Game by Sally Thorne
Furthest under the radar: Of Monsters & Madness by Jessica Verday

Grab Bag

Book you read that is red:
A Study In Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle

Starts with X, Y, or Z:
None.

Book you hugged when you finished it:
The Hating Game by Sally Thorne… lol. See a trend?

Book you wanted to throw across a room:
The Crown’s Fate by Evelyn Sky… See another trend? I’m seriously heartbroken about this!

Food you craved while/after reading a certain book:
I don’t feel like I had any craving of note!

Book that became an instant go-to recommendation:
Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco!

Furthest out of your comfort zone:
I didn’t really branch out of my comfort zone this year.

Read on a recommendation (that you may not have picked up yourself):
Public Relations by Katie Heaney and Arianna Rebolini

Forced yourself to finish:
Ugh. SO MANY. This was a really bad year for me, book-wise. lol. Lost Girls by Merrie Destefano, The Crown’s Fate by Evelyn Skye, The Witness by Nora Roberts, Best Day Ever by Kaira Rouda, Public Relations by Katie Heaney and Arianna Rebolini, Never Apart by Romily Bernard, and The Shivering Sands by Victoria Holt.

Series or author’s works you binged (whether all at once or throughout the year):
I binged the Veronica Mars books, but there were only two… so does it count? lol

Blogging Life

First…
Post of 2017: The first link-up for the Debut Author Challenge. but that’s boring. So let’s go with: Top Ten 2017 Debut Books I’m Excited About
Review of 2017: Beauty & the Beast by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont

Last…
Post of 2017: I will be: My 2017 In Books
Review of 2017: Chasing Christmas Eve by Jill Shalvis

Number of posts in 2017:
141

Number of reviews posted this year:
42.

Least coherent review:
Nothing stands out this year!

Post with the most comments (posted in 2017):
Top Ten Books I Hope Santa Brings – 2017 Edition (37 comments)

Post you wish you could re-write:
I love all my posts!

Celebrate the Christmas season with That Artsy Reader Girl and her bookish friends! 

Celebrate #ChristmasWithJana: Instagram ✦ Twitter ✦ Event Schedule

Today I’m sharing you with you my 12 favorites of Christmas! I love to read, watch, listen to, bake, and DO Christmas, so I thought it would be fun to share all my favorites with you!

 

Ok, this is not cheating. I picked two. And honestly, that was hard enough. But in my defense, I had to pick one from when I was an actual child and then one that I’ve fallen in love with in adulthood. So… that’s some sound logic there.

Merry Christmas, Amelia Bedelia by Peggy Parish was seriously the book I looked for every year when we pulled out our box of Christmas books from storage. I loved reading about crazy Amelia Bedelia and her silly shenanigans. It’s such a funny book!

I just discovered The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey by Susan Wojciechowski a few years ago, and it’s such a sweet story of a grumpy woodcarver who is hired to carve a nativity for a widow and her young son. This little family wiggles their way into his heart and reminds him to live and love his life.

 

There’s not a lot of great Christmas YA out there, which is super sad, but Let It Snow by John Green, Maureen Johnson, and Lauren Myracle is amazing. And no, it’s not my favorite because it’s the best of the trash or because the pickings are slim. It’s just wonderful. I don’t love Lauren’s story that much, but I can excuse it because it’s accompanied by John Green’s and Maureen Johnson’s wonderful stories. Read my review for more of my thoughts.

 

Snowed Over by Angie Stanton was the beginning of my love affair with romances that occur because two people are snowed in together. I LOVE THIS BOOK. College studnet, Katie, needs to get home for Christmas and ends up having to hitch a ride with a friend of a friend, Alex. But then a blizzard forces them into an abandoned cabin. What ensues is a super romantic, super clean (no sexy-times, I promise!), night curled up together by the fire to keep warm. Read my review and then go buy a copy. You’ll thank me later.

Starry Night by Debbie Macomber is my favorite Christmas book of all time. It takes place in the Alaskan Bush, under the glow of the Northern Lights. There’s a sweet dog and a swoony guy and a heartwarming message. It’s romantic, yet squeaky clean. Just what I love in a Christmas romance. Read my review!

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year is super under-rated, in my opinion. I’ve got so much love for Henry Winkler, and he is the BEST in this movie. It’s so totally Hallmark, and it’s so totally perfect. Jenn’s Uncle Ralph comes home for Christmas and brings jack-of-all-trades nomad, Morgan, because he doesn’t want him sleeping on the airport floor until he can fly to Denver after the snow has cleared. But it seems as though Uncle Ralph is a bit of a matchmaker… WATCH IT, GUYS. You will love it!

Maybe it’s because I’ve been to New York City at Christmas and seen the tree in person, but I just love watching Christmas In Rockefeller Center each year with my mom and little sister. Most of the performers are not so great and we fast-forward through those parts, but we love seeing the tree lit and the excitement.

I love The Big Bang Theory so much, and their Christmas episode: The Bath Item Gift Hypothesis is my absolute favorite Christmas episode ever! Sheldon has no idea what to give Penny for Christmas (he wants to give her a gift that is equal in money to what she gives him), but the gift she gives him renders him speechless. We see Sheldon hug Penny for the first time ever and I LOVE it! Watch the moment here.

Ok, so here’s why I’m not cheating again: Neil Diamond made a Christmas Album and a Christmas Album Volume II. There’s two volumes, guys. And my family and I listen to them both while decorating the tree and opening presents every single year. I love these albums so much!

9. Traditional Hymn:
I love the haunting melody of O Come, O Come Emmanuel. This song uses all the beautiful notes. Listen to a beautiful instrumental version done by The Piano Guys here. And Nathan Pacheco’s performance is beautiful.

10. Christmas Song
Everyone who knows me knows that It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year is my happy song, but only if sung by Andy Williams. It brings and instant smile to my face and makes me so happy!

11. Christmas Cookie
These Whipped Shortbread Cookies from Taste of Home are to die for. They melt in your mouth and are just faintly sweet, so you can pretty much eat as many of them as you want. Which will probably be a lot.

 

I love looking at Christmas lights. Every year my mom, sister, and I drive around to find all the cool houses that are lit up around town. We also go to Temple Square to see the beautiful lights, the Tree of Life, and we go to two really amazing drive-through displays as well. This is hands down my favorite Christmassy thing to do.

What are some of your favorites of Christmas? Pick a category (or 2 or 5 or 12) and tell me your favorite! I’m always looking for new recommendations!

The wreath and small embellishments by the numbers were designed by Freepik.

Today I’m participating in Home for the Holidays at What Sarah Read! Sarah wrote up a top ten post for my blog earlier this month, and now it’s my turn to take over over her blog and share what I love about this holiday season! Click on the picture below to be taken to my post!