Tag Archives: New Year

Top Ten Tuesday: 2015 Releases I Didn’t Get To

January 11, 2016Top Ten Tuesday2015, Book Tag, E.K. Johnston, Jenn Bennett, Jennifer Donnelly, New Year, Rachel Aaron, Rachel Caine, Richelle Mead, Sabaa Tahir, Sarah J. Maas, Top Ten Tuesday, Victoria Aveyard, William Rittermoung682

For those who don’t know, Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature created by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week, they post a new theme and everyone is invited to join in! (Note: all book cover images in this post link to that book’s Goodreads page.)

Today’s Theme: Ten 2015 Releases I Meant to Get to But Didn’t

There were so many great releases last year, and while I did get to some, there are a ton that haven’t made it off my TBR pile yet. Here are the ten I’m most excited about getting to THIS year…

Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas
Soundless by Richelle Mead
One Good Dragon Deserves Another by Rachel Aaron
Beastly Bones by William Ritter
These Shallow Graves by Jennifer Donnelly

A Thousand Nights by E.K. Johnston
The Anatomical Shape of a Heart by Jenn Bennett
Ink and Bone by Rachel Caine
An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir
Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

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Which books were you meaning to get to last year? Link your own Top Ten Tuesday in the comments!

Top Ten Tuesday: Resolutions for 2016

January 4, 2016Top Ten TuesdayBook Tag, Goodreads, Holidays, Library, New Year, Parasol Protectorate, Poison Study, PopSugar, Reading Challenge, Resolution, Throne of Glass, Top Ten Tuesdaymoung682

For those who don’t know, Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature created by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week, they post a new theme and everyone is invited to join in!

Today’s Theme: Ten Resolutions I have for 2016

I’ve already written a 2016 Goals & Challenges post, but here a few more bookish things to round out my Top Ten.

Challenges:

Complete my Goodreads Challenge of 100 books.
Work through the PopSugar reading challenge to see how many items I can check off (without beating myself up trying to finish it)!

Specific TBR goals:

Catch up on the Throne of Glass series because it’s about time!
Finish the Poison Study trilogy because Magic Study has been on my TBR for ages, and I know I’m going to love it.
Finish the Parasol Protectorate series because I can’t let my frustrations with one character get in the way of my enjoyment of the rest.

Other bookish resolutions:

Keep track of my re-reads – I’m meticulous about tracking new books on Goodreads, but I don’t have a good way to track my re-reads. I’d really like to do a better job of that this year, but I’m not sure of the best way to do it. I’d LOVE some suggestions!
Turn boring chore time into relaxing book time through my library’s digital audio book collection – There are tons of books on my TBR list that I want to read despite the fact that they never make it to the top of the list. I think audio books are the perfect solution because they’re a great backdrop for cooking or folding laundry.
Read some new male authors – The majority of authors I read are women, and I’d love to read more male authors to balance the scales a little bit. If you have some favorites to suggest, let me know in the comments!
Don’t buy unread books if they are available through the library – Since I’m reading so much, I need to cut back on some costs. One good way is to refrain from buying anything unless I already know I’m going to get a ton of re-read value out of it.
Don’t fret about reading slumps or needing to take a break from a book – I’m usually pretty good about this, and I’d like to keep it up this year, too. Reading slumps happen, and sometimes you just need to set a book down for a while. The last thing I want is for reading to become a burden!

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That’s pretty much it for my bookish resolutions this year. What are you resolving for the new year? Link your TTT in the comments!

2016 Goals & Challenges

January 3, 2016UpdatesBook Tag, Goodreads, New Year, Parasol Protectorate, Poison Study, PopSugar, Reading Challenge, Resolution, Throne of Glassmoung682

Now that I’ve looked back at 2015, it’s time to plan ahead for this year!

I don’t want to go too crazy with goals and challenges because I’d hate for reading to become a chore, but some have caught my eye. A couple are organized book challenges, and some are just personal goals I’d like to achieve.

Challenges:

Goodreads Challenge: 100 Books – If my 2016 is anything like my 2015, this number is going to go up. I’m starting out lower, though, to give myself a little more wiggle room. I track all of my new reads on Goodreads anyway, so this one’s a no-brainer for me.
PopSugar Challenge: I’ve seen a couple of other bloggers/vloggers who are doing this one, and it seems like a great, low key way to expand your reading horizons. My plan with this one is to keep track of which boxes I’m checking, and to use it as inspiration when I need helping choosing my next book. For more info, checkout my progress page.

Personal Goals: Finish (or catch up on) the following series:

Throne of Glass – I’ve only read book one so far, and it’s time to catch up!
Poison Study – Finish the original trilogy. I’ve had Magic Study on the top of my TBR list for months.
Parasol Protectorate – I own the entire series, but I stopped after book two because I was so grumpy at Lord Maccon. Time to pick up book three and get some resolution!

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That’s pretty much it for my 2016 reading goals. What are some of your hopes and plans for the new year?

2015 Wrap Up

January 2, 2016Book Tags, UpdatesAmy Plum, Becky Albertalli, Book Tag, Dianne Duvall, Holidays, Marie Brennan, Marissa Meyer, Meljean Brook, Naomi Novik, New Year, Rainbow Rowell, Sarah J. Maas, The Perpetual Page Turner, Wrap Upmoung682

I was contemplating ways to write a 2015 Wrap Up post when I stumbled upon the 2015 End of Year Book Survey over at The Perpetual Page Turner. (Thanks to The Petite Book Blogger and The Worn Bookmark, whose posts led me there!) I didn’t quite answer all of the recommended questions, but this still seems like a great way to wrap up the year, so here goes! (All book covers link to the corresponding Goodreads pages.)

Number Of Books You Read: 144
Number of Re-Reads: 4
Genre You Read The Most From: Paranormal/Fantasy

My 2015 Top Five Books:

The Kraken King by Meljean Brook
Uprooted by Naomi Novik
Carry On by Rainbow Rowell
Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
After the End duology by Amy Plum

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

Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles, #1)

I was so excited about The Lunar Chronicles when I first picked up Cinder. As it turned out, though, I didn’t like it nearly as much as I hoped I would.

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

This book was a pleasant and very welcome surprise. Where I was expecting the stereotypical “immortal warrior” alpha male trope, I found a version that retained the power and prowess without the need to be a controlling jackass.

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

Because it’s just so fantastic 😀

Best series you started in 2015? Best Sequel of 2015? Best Series Ender of 2015?

I started so many great series this year, but for this one I’m going to go with a completed one that I started and finished in 2015. I adored Amy Plum’s After the End duology, and Until the Beginning was a perfect conclusion. Thank goodness I didn’t start the series until this year, or I might have died from cliffhanger suspense…

Favorite new author you discovered in 2015?

So, so many! Here are a bunch of them: Jeaniene Frost, Laura Kaye, Sarah J. Maas, Rainbow Rowell, Rachel Aaron, Meljean Brook, Georgette Heyer, Dianne Duvall, Marie Brennan, Stephanie Perkins, Naomi Novik, and probably a few more that are eluding me at the moment.

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

I have to admit, I only read this as a book club pick. I was expecting to hate it, and there were certainly aspects I didn’t enjoy, but it was amusing enough that I ended up laughing my way through. In the end, I enjoyed it for what it was, despite the fact that I probably won’t be revisiting the genre any time soon.

Book You Read In 2015 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year?

Because I just can’t get enough of these.

Favorite cover of a book you read in 2015?

One for beauty and badassery, and one for my inner biologist.

Most memorable character of 2015?

Too many – there’s no way I could just choose one, or even five!

Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2015 to finally read?

Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2015?

There are WAY too many to choose! Check out my Top Ten Tuesday post on the subject to see my top ten.

Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2015?

Shortest: 15 pages
Assassin Study by Maria V. Snyder (A companion short in the Poison Study series)

Longest: 550 pages
Cress by Marissa Meyer

Book That Shocked You The Most

Because of the scene that made my heart stop (no spoilers). I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised, it is a contemporary romance, after all – but I just didn’t see it coming!!

Favorite Non-Romantic Relationship Of The Year

Agnieszka and Kasia, hands down…

Favorite Book You Read in 2015 From An Author You’ve Read Previously

I’d already read Plum’s Revenants trilogy.

Best 2015 debut you read?

Best Worldbuilding/Most Vivid Setting You Read This Year?

I had to include a few because these were all so stunning:

Daughter of Smoke & Bone: Prague through the eyes of angels and demons
Uprooted: A magical fantasy land infused with a corrupted wood
Splintered: Beautiful and terrifying Wonderland

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

I’m STILL smiling about it 😀

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

I’ve loved participating in the Broke and Bookish Top Ten Tuesday posts. Participating is a ton of fun, and always leads to me growing my TBR list.

Best moment of bookish/blogging life in 2015?

My blog is still less than one year old, so getting my first comment and being nominated for my first peer blog award were big moments for me. It might not seem like much, but it was such a great feeling 🙂

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

My biggest challenge with blogging in 2015 was keeping up with reviews during the school term. The Minute Reviews help by providing a quick format for mini reviews, and hopefully they will continue to do so.

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

Top Ten Tuesday: Characters Who Are Fellow Book Nerds. Gotta love Top Ten Tuesday 🙂

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

This is the year I discovered the joys of both Netgalley and BookBub. So many books, so little time…

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

My only goals going into 2015 were to read as much as possible and to catch up on some of the authors/series that are often highly recommended. Happily, I feel great about my progress! I reached my Goodreads goal of 125 books, and I fell in love with a bunch of new books.

One Book You Didn’t Get To In 2015 But Will Be Your Number 1 Priority in 2016?

Not quite a Number 1 Priority, but I definitely want to catch up on this series. I read Throne of Glass this year and loved it, but have yet to read the rest of the released books.

Book You Are Most Anticipating For 2016 (non-debut)?

This will be the fourth book in Marie Brennan’s Memoir by Lady Trent series. (Release Date: 4/5/2015)

2016 Debut You Are Most Anticipating?

I’m super excited about Richelle Mead’s new series debut 😀 (Release Date: 4/5/2015)

A 2016 Release You’ve Already Read & Recommend To Everyone:

I haven’t read it yet, but I have the ARC in hand and will be reading it this week. This is the sequel to my favorite novella to date, Hearts in Darkness. (Release Date: 1/12/2016)

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And that’s it for my wrap up! What are some of your favorites from this year? If you have your own wrap up post, link it in the comments and help me grow my TBR 😉