2016 may have been an absolute garbage fire in pretty much all respects, but it was a good year for me reading- and blogging-wise. Looking back at what I've read and what I've done, I'm really happy with it all.
I'll be answering this survey with the books that I read in 2016, regardless of publication year. Honestly, I don't think I read enough 2016 books to really fill out this survey well just sticking to them!
Number of Re-Reads: 21 (I'm being optimistic that I finish my Harry Potter series reread before the end of the year!)
Genre You Read the Most From: Fantasy. I'm really not surprised - historical fiction is my favorite, but there's really not as much of it as there is fantasy.
THE MARVELS. I absolutely adored this. For more of my thoughts, and for my other 9 favorite books of the year, you can check out this post.
2) Book you were excited about & thought you were going to love more but didn't?
INFINITE IN BETWEEN. I was so prepared to love this, but I was just bored.
3) Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read?
A COURT OF MIST AND FURY. I thought I'd like this, but I really didn't expect to love it as much as I did.
4) Book you "pushed" the most people to read (and they did)?
Turns out I wasn't the last person to read THE WRATH & THE DAWN! I got a bunch of my friends to read it.
5) Best series you started in 2016? Best sequel of 2016? Best series ender of 2016?
Series starter: THE CROWN'S GAME
Sequel: TEN THOUSAND SKIES ABOVE YOU (Firebird trilogy)
Series ender: THE ROSE & THE DAGGER (The Wrath & the Dawn)
6) Favorite new author you discovered in 2016?
Leigh Bardugo. I knew about her books before, but I didn't get around to reading any of them until this year, and I loved them all!
7) Best book from a genre you don't typically read/was out of your comfort zone?
A TALE FOR THE TIME BEING is one that I definitely wouldn't have picked up if it hadn't been required, and it was really good!
8) Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year?
WOLF BY WOLF. Such an exciting, action-packed read!
9) Book you read in 2016 that you are most likely to reread next year?
THE UNEXPECTED EVERYTHING. I'll probably reread it next summer!
10) Favorite cover of a book you read in 2016?
TEN THOUSAND SKIES ABOVE YOU. This whole trilogy has gorgeous covers, but this is my favorite.
11) Most memorable character of 2016?
Kaz Brekker from SIX OF CROWS. He wasn't my favorite, even out of that book, but he was so beautifully crafted that he's going to be in my head for quite a while.
12) Most beautifully written book read in 2016?
THE WRATH & THE DAWN. Absolutely gorgeous writing!
13) Most thought-provoking/life-changing book of 2016?
THUD! - everything that Terry Pratchett writes is thought-provoking, especially in the City Guards miniseries.
14) Book you can't believe you waited until 2016 to finally read?
SHADOW AND BONE
15) Favorite passage/quote from a book you read in 2016?
Shortest: THE LITTLE GRUMPY CAT THAT WOULDN'T, 24 pages
Longest: EMPIRE OF STORMS, 693 pages
17) Book that shocked you the most?
A COURT OF MIST AND FURY - those last couple of hundred pages were mind-blowing!
18) OTP of the year (you will go down with this ship!)?
Nina and Matthias from the SIX OF CROWS duology. (Honorable mention to Mik and Zuzana from the DAUGHTER OF SMOKE & BONE trilogy for absolute adorableness.)
19) Favorite non-romantic relationship of the year?
Corinne and Ada from IRON CAST. I'll never stop being happy about positive female friendships as the focus of a book.
20) Favorite book you read in 2016 from an author you've read previously?
THE MARVELS again!
21) Best book you read in 2016 that you read based SOLELY on a recommendation from somebody else/peer pressure?
I don't usually read books like this, but THE KITE RUNNER. (Thanks, Sky.)
22) Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2016?
Gilbert Blythe from the ANNE OF GREEN GABLES series. (Once he's grown up a bit, obviously.)
23) Best 2016 debut you read?
THE CROWN'S GAME! I'll never stop talking about this book
24) Best worldbuilding/most vivid setting you read this year?
Everything from the Firebird trilogy.
25) Book that put a smile on your face/was the most FUN to read this year?
THE UNEXPECTED EVERYTHING made me so happy!
26) Book that made you cry or nearly cry in 2016?
So. Many. Books. I actually have a full Goodreads shelf for this, but one that made me sob was THE GAME OF LOVE AND DEATH.
27) Hidden gem of the year?
THE STEEP & THORNY WAY. I was so ready for this book to blow up, and it didn't!
28) Book that crushed your soul?
I know I keep repeating myself, but THE MARVELS. I tend to love books that crush my soul.
29) Most unique book you read in 2016?
ILLUMINAE. What a great way of telling a story!
30) Book that made you the most mad (doesn't necessarily mean you didn't like it)?
There was one part of CARRY ON that made me mad enough that I seriously considered rating it much lower than I did - if you want to know what it was, it's under the first spoiler tag in my Goodreads review.
I made an entire post of my favorite blogs yesterday, and I really can't narrow it down to just one, so I'm just going to direct you to that.
2) Favorite review that you wrote in 2016?
On the blog: The Case Against Tragic Queer Books (Discussion & Review of IT LOOKS LIKE THIS)
Not on the blog (because it's 0% professional): A COURT OF MIST AND FURY
3) Best discussion/non-review post you had on your blog?
Thoughts on Required Reading. (Look out for a part 2 of this in the new year!)
4) Best event that you participated in (author signings, festivals, virtual events, memes, etc.)?
Harry Christmas To You. This was my second time participating by rereading the whole series, and I really loved it!
5) Best moment of bookish/blogging life in 2016?
Starting to get ARCs on NetGalley! It's such an amazing feeling.
6) Most challenging thing about your blogging or reading life this year?
Balancing reading with life. With college, I don't have as much time for reading as I used to, but I'm starting to figure out what I can do.
7) Most popular post this year on your blog (whether it be by comments or views)?
By comments: Top Ten Books of 2016 (and it's only been up for 2 days - wow!)
By views: Book Math
8) Post you wished got a little more love?
Leaving Series Unfinished - I really want to know what other people think about this!
9) Best bookish discovery (book related sites, bookstores, etc.)?
Broadside Books. I love this place!
10) Did you complete any reading challenges or goals that you had set for yourself at the beginning of this year?
Goodreads challenge: Definitely completed! I set it for 100 and then 140, and I read 159 (or maybe 160) books.
Finishing series: My goal was to finish one series a month, and on average, I did that - I finished 14 series!
A DARKER SHADE OF MAGIC. It's been on my TBR for the past 4 months!
2) Book you are most anticipating for 2017 (non-debut)?
THE NAMES THEY GAVE US. I love Emery Lord!
3) 2017 debut you are most anticipating?
THE HATE U GIVE. I've heard nothing but great things about this, and it's such an important topic.
4) Series ending/a sequel you are most anticipating in 2017?
THE CROWN'S FATE. I need to know what happens to these characters!
5) One thing you hope to accomplish or do in your reading/blogging life in 2017?
I really want to schedule posts more in advance. I've started to get a lot better at planning, but I want to actually have things done in advance instead of just planned in advance. I'd also love to post more than 2 times a week, but I'm not sure how realistic that is. And I need to be more active on bookstagram!
6) A 2017 release you've already read and recommend to everyone?
I haven't actually read any yet! The first one on my TBR is THAT BURNING SUMMER.
I have finally added The Marvels to my TBR! And you definitely aren't the last person to read The Wrath and The Dawn - I still haven't gotten around to it, sadly. The Kite Runner would be the best book I read in 2016 solely based on someone else's recommendation too - my mum convinced me to read it. I'm hopping over to your Leaving Series Unfinished discussion after this, I don't think I've read it before! I'm hoping to get into the habit of scheduling posts in advance as well, and hopefully settle into a blogging schedule for next year. At the busiest points of the year, even twice a week would be an accomplishment for me!
ReplyDeleteYAY I'm so happy about The Marvels!! And you should definitely get around to The Wrath & the Dawn at some point. It's so beautifully written! The Kite Runner is definitely a book I wouldn't have normally picked up, since it's really different from what I usually read, but I'm glad I did. As for scheduling posts, it's taken me a while to find a schedule that works, but I've found two posts a week pretty manageable. There are definitely busy parts of the year when I don't have time to write posts at all, but hopefully I'll be able to know when those are so that I can write posts for that week well in advance.
DeleteHOW DO YOU DO IT? 159 BOOKS? Clara, please teach me your ways! Historical fiction is actually my favorite too, but I read so much fantasy, it's crazy. I swear, my shelf in 80% fantasy. Ugh, Leigh Bardugo is amazing! At this point, I basically worship her. Her books are my absolute favorite things ever, so I got all excited when I saw her on your list. XD The Crown's Game was so good, too! I actually gave it like 3.5 stars I think, but I really enjoyed it. I read 101 books (hopefully I'll squeeze one more in), so I'd call it a successful year! I still do not understand how you read that many books ;)
ReplyDeleteHonestly, I don't even know how I do it! I read some comics, which helps - I think I read about 20 this year, and they only take about half an hour each - but I know those aren't for everybody. I know a couple of years ago I was struggling to read 100 books in a year! And Leigh Bardugo is AMAZING! I think the only things of hers I haven't read are the stories that go along with the Grisha trilogy, and I'm saving those. I'm really looking forward to her Wonder Woman book! 101 books is a GREAT reading year, especially if you read a ton of great books!
DeleteWhat a great year you had!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on starting to get ARCs from NetGalley. That's a wonderful resource. I had to stop getting ARCs from them because I got WAY in over my head and it took me a year to read all the books! Ha ha.
Thanks! I'm definitely learning how to restrain myself from requesting ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING on NetGalley, which is really hard when everything looks so good!
DeleteNow I'm really curious about what you have to say about Carry On. I haven't read it yet so I don't want to read the spoiler. I'm trying to figure out how to remind myself to head over there once I've read it!
ReplyDeleteNicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction
It definitely involves a pretty big spoiler, which is why I don't talk about it directly. But it's also something I think should be discussed, so I've been trying to figure out how to talk about it without spoiling things. No luck so far.
DeleteI loved the Unexpected Everything too.
ReplyDeleteIt was such a great book! I'll definitely be rereading it this year.
DeleteGreat year for you! I have The Marvels waiting for me to read as well as Illuminae and can't wait to tackle even more books that I see on your post here. I tend to read more contemporary YA but am starting to really get into fantasy and loving the worlds.
ReplyDeleteThe Marvels is AMAZING! (As if I haven't said that enough in this post.) I really hope you like it!
DeletePeeps seem to be hating on 2016 a lot, but there are some good things that came out of it, like my son. I think Sarah J. Maas' series is going to be my next binge-read. I'm due!
ReplyDeleteI can think of a bunch of good things that happened in 2016, but overall, it was pretty awful. It just fels really weird to me to focus on the good things when they felt so few and far between.
Delete