Thanks to Jamie for hosting this fun feature again! I love the idea of doing this every year, as I think reflection is a great thing. Last year’s end of year book survey was not all that exciting, since my blog had only existed for a month by the time the year ended and the new one began. Plus, I didn’t read nearly as many books as I should have. Before I get into my answers for this year, I wanted to address a few of mine from last year!
- My goal was to read The Watchtower by Lee Carroll this year, because I was SO excited for it last year and never got around to it. Well guess what. This must be the most elusive book I own, because I didn’t get to it this year either! Man!
- I listed Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver as my most anticipated book of this year. Well, duh! And can you believe I didn’t read it until MAY? Why, oh why did it take me so long? At least I got to it, though. And I LOVED IT. Go read my review!
- I hoped to read over 50 or 60 books this year to surpass last year’s reading goal. I just passed my goal last month, and am still going strong! And to think that I now have a full time job, whereas last year I wasn’t working. Interesting the things that happen when you prioritize.
- I wanted to reach 100 followers. WHOA. I’m at 634 as of December 3rd, when I’m typing this up. Thanks so much to all of you for being such wonderful friends of mine, and supporting my blog in its first year. :)
I think it was a good year!
Best Books of 2012
1. Best book you read in 2012? (Broken down by genre)
Hands down, the book I loved more than any other book this year was Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone. It made me so amazingly happy and giddy that I can’t stop thinking about it even now! But I can’t stop with just that one!
Adult Fiction: On the Island by Tracey Garvis-Graves
Contemporary YA: Unbreak My Heart by Melissa Walker (OH MAN. This book spoke to my soul.), Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard (ditto)
Dystopian YA: Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi, Incarnate by Jodi Meadows.
Paranormal: Of Poseidon by Anna Banks (this is the year I fell in love with mermaids)
Fantasy: Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas
2. Book you were excited about & thought you were going to love more, but didn’t?
Black City by Elizabeth Richards. The summary sounded amazing, and there was so much promise! I could not wait to get it, and was thrilled when I received an ARC in the mail. It ended up being way too gory, though, plus my #1 toss-the-book-to-the-depths-of-the-Earth thing happened: animal abuse. A kitty, no less. I almost lost it. Don’t mess with my furry little babies, I tell you! Oh, and Flirting in Italian by Lauren Henderson was a major disappointment that broke my heart. I wanted this book to be SO amazing.
3. Most surprising (in a good way!) book of 2012?
Unbreak My Heart by Melissa Walker. Honestly, I thought this book would be about a whiny girl getting over some silly relationship. I’m so tired of those, especially because I rarely find teenage relationships that I believe could stand the test of time. To my surprise, her broken heart was over a lost friendship, though, which was amazingly real and tender. Clem was so relateable, and I could not help but remember my times as a fragile teenager.
4. Book you recommended to people most in 2012?
Everyone who has ever heard me talk about books knows how much shouting from the rooftops I did over Wanderlove. Honestly, you have got to read this one.
5. Best series you discovered in 2012?
The Frost Chronicles by Kate Avery Ellison. On a whim, I decided to participate in a blog tour for Frost, and I adored it. The writing is beautiful, the story unique, the characters amazing. I loved this book. And then when Kate wrote and asked if I’d like to read the next one, Thorns, I jumped at the chance. People, I have never loved the second book in a series more.
6. Favorite new authors you discovered in 2012?
Pretty much all the debut authors this year were amazing: Jodi Meadows, Veronica Rossi, Anna Banks, Marissa Meyer, etc. Amazing. Sophie Kinsella is hilarious. Oh my. Shannon Greenland. YES. This was a good author year! I made friends with so many of them!
7. Best book that was out of your comfort zone or was a new genre for you?
Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas was my first epic fantasy, and I loved it!
8. Most thrilling, un-put-down-able book in 2012?
On the Island by Tracey Garvis-Graves. OH MAN. Talk about up all night.
9. Book you read in 2012 that you are most likely to re-read next year?
I don’t typically re-read, but the darling little Christmas romance, Snowed Over by Angie Stanton, is definitely worth being made a yearly tradition. I adored it!
10. Favorite book cover of a book you read in 2012?
Rather glorious, wouldn’t you say? I love that typography, and use of minimal color.And I LOVED this book!
11. Most memorable character read about in 2012?
Elysa Morgan in Degrees of Wrong by Anna Scarlett (AKA Anna Banks). This character is seriously my best friend in another life. She is everyone I wish I was. And seriously. this book is amazing. I LOVED it.
12. Most beautifully written book read in 2012?
The Unlikely Romance of Kate Bjorkman by Louise Plummer. It’s not necessarily beautiful in subject matter, but beautiful in word choice. You can tell the author loves language, because she formed such amazing words. I was having to use a dictionary to define some of them. I loved it.
13. Book that had the greatest impact on you in 2012?
Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard. It inspired me to make all these goals to travel more and experience life more fully. To better my art, and to make more friends. To be spontaneous and more easy-going. I set this huge goal to go on a major trip so that I could have the same journey of self-discovery that Bria did. I never thought I’d actually do it, but I did just this past summer. And you know what? It worked. I spent 6 weeks traveling through Europe with my mom, and came away knowing myself so much better than I thought I ever would. I was extremely sick through most of the trip, but I pushed myself and found out what I’m capable of. I had an amazing time that I will never forget. I didn’t fall in love with some sexy guy on this trip, but I think I got something even better out of it. I fell in love with myself.
14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2012 to finally read?
The Unlikely Romance of Kate Bjorkman. Haha. I think it was the only book I read this year that did not come out this year or last year. I did love it so much, though, and wished I had read it earlier.
15. Favorite passage/quote from a book you read in 2012?
Bah! I rarely keep track of passages I loved, even though I have been over the moon about some of them! That’s a goal for next year: to write down my favorite book quotes. I just raided my Instagram account, though, and found this one from Frost by Kate Avery Ellison:
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16. Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2012?
Longest: Grave Mercy by R.L. LaFevers at 560 pages. I wish I had loved it more. :( That’s a lot of reading for not a lot of love.
Shortest: Bah, Humbug! by Heather Horrocks at 96 pages. It was a quick little Christmas romance that was cute enough, but forgettable.
17. Book That Had A Scene In It That Had You Reeling And Dying To Talk To Somebody About It? (a WTF moment, an epic revelation, a steamy kiss, etc. etc.) Be careful of spoilers!
The end of Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver had me freaking out, flipping out, and murmuring quietly to myself. I need to make sure I don’t read Requiem on a cruise this year. Both Delirium and Pandemonium were read on cruise ships. You know why this is bad? There is not a single person aboard who you can talk to about things like these! Not one. And there’s no internet either. It’s pure torture. I need the support of my bookish pals if Lauren is going to do this again!
18. Favorite relationship from a book you read in 2012?
If we’re thinking Romance, then it has to be Anna and Bennett from Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone.
My favorite friendships were Will and Kylie in From What I Remember by Kramer and Thomas, and Ella, Frankie, and Sadie in The fine Art of Truth or Dare by Melissa Jensen. My favorite family was the one in The Summer My Life Began by Shannon Greenland.
19. Favorite book you read in 2012 from an author you read previously?
Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver. Amazingly enough, this book is the only book this year that I read by an author I’d already read before. Well, except for I’ll Walk Alone by Mary Higgins-Clark, which was really not very good at all.
20. Best book you read that you read based SOLELY on a recommendation from somebody else?
Had it not been for the person who recommended The Unlikely Romance of Kate Bjorkman by Louise Plummer, I never would have found one of my new favorite books! I wish I could remember who told me I should read this!
Blogging and Reading
1. New favorite book blog you discovered in 2012?
I came across quite a few book blogs this year, many of which I really enjoy including The Book Addict’s Guide, Books, Biscuits, and Tea, Novel Sounds, Brooke Reports, and Katie’s Book Blog.
2. Favorite review that you wrote in 2012?
I really enjoyed writing my review for Wanderlove, because I got to put a lot of myself in it. I always try to get personal with my reviews, but I can’t always find a way to do that. I connected with it a lot, and ended up pouring a lot of myself into my review.
3. Best discussion you had on your blog?
I love it when discussions happen on my blog! I’ve done a couple posts on books with the same covers, and asked my readers what they thought of books with identical covers. I loved reading everyone’s opinion. I also asked my readers how they review memoirs, after I was publicly attacked by an author for writing a 1-star review of her memoir. Finally, my discussion on book blogging safety also got a lot of thoughts.
4. Most thought-provoking review or discussion you read on somebody else’s blog?
Jamie’s book blogger confessions post made me feel like I wasn’t alone!
5. Best event that you participated in?
ALA Anaheim 2012! That was such an amazing experience, and I met so many cool people!
Espe, Me, Georgia, Jen, and Magan.
I also went to quite a few book signings, which was fun. I went to Fierce Reads, and Dark Days over the summer.
Kimberly (a fellow Broke and Bookish writer) and me at the Dark Days signing!
6. Best moment of book blogging in 2012?
This is a hard question! I loved meeting everyone at ALA, and I love all the book signings. The people are the best part of the bookish community. However… I was jumping all over my house, giddy and excited and going pretty nuts when my first ARC request was granted. The day I received Of Poseidon in the mail was one of the best ever!
7. Most popular post this year on your blog? By views: My post on quotes for book lovers received over 2,280 views!
In comments: My Leap into Books Giveaway received 163 comments.
8. Post you wished got a little more love?
As a whole, I wish people would have paid a little more attention to my Bookish Little Christmas event. :) It’s a busy time of year, though, so it makes sense!
9. Best bookish discovery?
Edelweiss! I finally figure out how to use it!
10. Did you complete any reading challenges or goals that you had set for yourself at the beginning of this year?
I surpassed my Goodreads reading challenge goal by over 10 books! I’d only hoped for 50! I also surpassed my goal in the 2012 Netgalley Reading challenge, hosted by Red House Books. My goal was 11-20, and I read 24. I want to participate in more challenges next year!
What Lies Ahead…
1. One book you didn’t get to in 2012 but will be your number 1 priority in 2013?
Audrey, Wait! by Robin Benway. I’ve been so excited for this!
2. Book you are most anticipating for 2013?
Requiem by Lauren Oliver
Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi
Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins
Triangles by Kimberly Ann Miller<
3. Things you hope to accomplish or do in your reading/blogging in 2013?
– Read at least 52 books this year. (I’m working full time now, so I’m hoping for a book a week. Maybe more!)
– More discussions on the blog!
– Read Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen.
– Read the Chronicles of Narnia.
– I want to be able to make time to go an comment on other blogs, and make friends.
– Get to even more events and signings. I’m hoping to get at least 5 books signed this year!
– I want to foster stronger relationships with some of my favorite publishers, in order to learn more about the book world, and how I can get a job in it in the future.
Decked with Holly by