End of the Year Survey 2014

Originally done by Jamie @ The Perpetual Page Turner

 

Number Of Books I Read:
Number of Re-Reads: 21! (Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry I re-read twice bringing my total amount of reads to 3!)
Genre I Read The Most From: Young Adult Contemporary I think?

 

1. Best Book You Read In 2014?

Favorite Anthology: My True Love Gave to Me by Various YA Authors.

Favorite Contemporary(s): Breaking the Rules by Katie McGarry, On the Fence by Kasie West, and Faking Normal by Courtney C Stevens.

Historical Fiction: Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys

 Fantasy: Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas

 

You can see my Top Ten reads of the year here.

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

 3. Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read in 2014? 

I wasn't crazy about Shatter Me or Unravel Me, so I was VERY surprised when I ended up really, really, really, enjoying Ignite Me.

 

 4. Book You “Pushed” The Most People To Read (And They Did) In 2014?

 I push Ally Carters books on everyone I meet.....Especially this one because it is suitable for pre-teen to adult.

 5. Best series you started in 2014? Best Sequel of 2014? Best Series Ender of 2014?

I unfortunately did not start many series in 2014, but Get Even (Don't Get Mad #1) (the first part in a duology by Gretchen McNeil) was sooooo good!

Best sequel goes to Breaking the Rules by Katie McGarry! More Noah + Echo = an amazing sequel!

I didn't end up reading many series enders of 2014, but Mortal Heart (His Fair Assasin #3) was a great ending to a great series.

 6. Favorite new author you discovered in 2014?

Sarah J Maas EASILY!

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

I don't tend to enjoy New Adult, so when I read I Want it That Way by Ann Aguirre and truly enjoyed it, I was pretty surprised.

 

 8. Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year?

 9. Book You Read In 2014 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year?

Next Christmas/Holiday time!

 

10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2014?

I stared at this cover for a long time trying to guess which couple was which.

 

11. Most memorable character of 2014?

Celaena Sardothien.

 

 12. Most beautifully written book read in 2014?

For completely different reasons, but these two!

13. Most Thought-Provoking/ Life-Changing Book of 2014?

Dear Bully by Various Authors.

 14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2014 to finally read? 

 I LOVE Historical Fiction but somehow I didn't read the AMAZING Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys until 2014.

 15. Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2014?

“He sighed. "Does it get tiring?"
"What?"
"Always thinking you're right."
I smiled. "No, not really. It's other people not realizing I'm right that gets tiring.”
― Kasie West, Split Second

 

16.Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2013?

 Tuck Everlasting at 144 pages and The Count of Monte Cristo (the unabridged version) at 1276 pages.

 17. Book That Shocked You The Most

I'm bad about remembering plot twists, so the most recent one that shocked me was in Captive (The Blackcoat Rebellion #2)

18. OTP OF THE YEAR (one true pairing)

Noah + Echo (Pushing the Limits and Breaking the Rules) I LOVE THEM!
Of course any of the other couples Katie McGarry has created I could just as easily put under this.

19. Favorite Non-Romantic Relationship Of The Year

Zoe and Olivia from Maybe One Day by Melissa Kantor

20. Favorite Book You Read in 2014 From An Author You’ve Read Previously

A tie between Breaking the Rules and Cress by the WONDERFUL authors Katie McGarry and Marissa Meyer.

21. Best Book I Read In 2014 That I Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else/Peer Pressure:

The pressure of WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU HAVEN'T READ VAMPIRE ACADEMY!

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2014?

 Braden from On the Fence by Kasie West.

23. Best 2014 debut you read?

I could not believe when I was reading this that it was Courtney C Stevens debut!

24. Best Worldbuilding/Most Vivid Setting You Read This Year?

Yes, the Throne of Glass series again.

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

52 Reasons to Hate My Father by the wondrous Jessica Brody,

26. Book That Made You Cry Or Nearly Cry in 2014?

Not counting the books I re-read in 2014, Maybe One Day by Melissa Kantor

27. Hidden Gem Of The Year?

 

28. Book That Crushed Your Soul?

I'm sorry, I have to wait HOW LONG for the next one?

 

29. Most Unique Book I Read In 2014?

I am currently reading Kalahari by Jessica Khoury and although I am only on page 60, I have NEVER read anything like it!

30. Book That Made Me The Most Mad

Going into the adult world, I was not a big fan of the ending of Gone Girl.

THE Authors

I believe everyone has a mental list of the authors that they automatically buy. These authors aren't just favorite authors, they are THE favorite authors.

I thought I would share mine!

Ally Carter

I have been reading Ally Carter for years, and her books have been amazing the entire way through. So far I have read 9 books by her, and loved all of them. She is a definite auto-buy and auto-most anticipated books of the year author.

 

Katie McGarry

Katie McGarry is a newer find to me than Ally Carter. However, ever since Pushing the Limits Katie McGarry has made me fall in love with her characters. I have read everything Katie has published, from novellas to novels, and everything has been awesome. I look forward to every future book Katie McGarry has to offer.

 

 

Marissa Meyer

Marissa Meyer is again a new(er) find of mine. But Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress have all been literally amazing. Nothing is disappointing about these fairy tale retellings. I have faith that Marissa Meyers upcoming Fairest, Winter, and Heartless are all going to be equally amazing as her previous works.

 

 

So, what authors would make your list?

 

January Epic Recs

Check out more about Epic Recs Here

 

I am pairing up with Montana at The Book Belles

 

Montana choice is Falling Kingdoms:

 

And I am recommending The Girl of Fire and Thorns:

 

Between Shades of Gray (Book Review)

Between Shades of Gray
Ruta Sepetys
Published March 22nd 2011 by Philomel Books
Add to Goodreads
















"You stand for what is right, Lina, without the expectation of gratitude or reward."

In the middle of the night Lina, her brother Jonas, and her mother are pulled from their beds and given twenty minutes to collect their belongings and go with the Soviet secret police. Separated from Lina's father during the process.

They are given no reason.

Pushed around like animals, and thrown into a train car that is for animals, the group of people including Lina's partial family are taken on the long journey from Lithuania to Siberia.
Ruta Sepetys paints such a realistic picture. There was never any unrealistic points where you went "come on, I'm sure that didn't happen."

Lina is the 15 year old artist, who dreams of going to a special academy for artists. She is a protective big sister to her 10/11 year old little brother Jonas. She loves her mother and father.  Her narration was beautiful and saddening at the same time.

"Have you ever wondered what a human life is worth? That morning, my brother's was worth a pocket watch."

"I pictured a rug being lifted and a huge Soviet broom sweeping us under it."

"A tiny sliver of gold appeared between shades of gray on the horizon. I stared at the amber band of sunlight, smiling. The sun had returned."

I don't know a whole lot about this particular regions troubles in history, so, I am not sure how much of this book was fictionalized. However, this book will raise awareness. And I know personally, this book has made me want to look more into the subject.

Christmas Books

I LOVE Christmas books. And I mean LOVE THEM! Unfortunately there aren't enough of them for me, so if you have some to recommend to me....Recommendations are sincerely welcome!

Here are three of my all-time-favorites that will put you into the Christmas mood!

 

My True Love Gave to Me is an anthology which includes some AMAZING authors stories. Including Ally Carter and Gayle Forman1

Let it Snow:  Maureen Johnson's is my favorite, and the others are ok stories, but all three are great to get in a Christmas spirit!

Dash & Lily's Book of Dares is another great one. Cute and fun, it will put you in the Christmas mood!

Waiting On Wednesday - Gone Too Far

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at http://breakingthespine.blogspot.com/, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is-

Gone Too Far

Expected publication: January 6th 2015 by Sourcebooks Fire

 

Keeping secrets ruined her life. But the truth might just kill her.

Piper Woods can't wait for the purgatory of senior year to end. She skirts the fringes of high school like a pro until the morning she finds a notebook with mutilated photographs and a list of student sins. She's sure the book is too gruesome to be true, until pretty, popular Stella dies after a sex-tape goes viral. Everyone's sure it's suicide, but Piper remembers Stella's name from the book and begins to suspect something much worse.

Drowning in secrets she doesn't want to keep, Piper's fears are confirmed when she receives an anonymous text message daring her to make things right. All she needs to do is choose a name, the name of someone who deserves to be punished.

Top Ten Books I Read In 2014

Hosted by http://www.brokeandbookish.com/

 

Top Ten Books I Read In 2014

These are the books that stuck with me throughout the entire year. All of them are definite recommendations!

 

1. Faking Normal

Review

 

 

2. The DUFF

 

3. On the Fence

 

4. My True Love Gave to Me

 

5. Between Shades of Gray

 

6. Maybe One Day

Review

 

 

7. 52 Reasons to Hate My Father

 

8. Throne of Glass

 

9. I Want It That Way

I tend to not enjoy New Adult, and this one happened to stick with me. I Want It That Way is a different kind of New Adult book, it has depth. I really liked it, and it is one of the few New Adult books that I would say I would re-read.

 

10. Take Me On

Review