I'm really excited today to participate in the End of Year Survey put together by the fabulous Jamie at The Perpetual Page Turner. I always have so much fun reading friends and fellow bloggers' favorite book lists around this time of year, so I thought I would hop aboard this Train of Win and give the survey a try.
It's a shockingly hard survey to fill out. I've read innumerable amazing books this year, so it was crazy difficult to call out only a handful. Also, my memory is more sieve than steel trap, so it may or may not have taken me several hours to go back through my review list and figure out what books would fit into which category. Well done me ;-)
This is a fairly lengthy survey, so I decided to split it into two parts with the second one posting tomorrow along with the list of books that got a 4.5 or 5 from me in 2013. Without further ado, I give you some of my favorite books of the year!
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Best Book You Read In 2013? (If you have to cheat — you can break it down by genre if you want or 2013 release vs. backlist)
Contemporary YA: Crash Into You by Katie McGarry
Contemporary NA: True by Erin McCarthy
Dystopian: The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon. All Our Yesterdays by Cristin Terrill is a close second. (Both of these books span genres, but I'm tucking them into this one for the purposes of this survey.)
Historical Fiction: The Madman’s Daughter (yes, this is a bit of a stretch for this genre ;)
Paranormal: Iced by Karen Marie Moning
Science Fiction: Unbreakable by Elizabeth Norris and These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner.
Fantasy: The Burning Sky by Sherry Thomas and Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo
Romance: Kinked by Thea Harrison
Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t?
Taken by Erin Bowman. I’m a sucker for a stunning cover (as so many book lovers are), so I had very high hopes for this one after seeing its gorgeous cover. Unfortunately, it didn’t work quite as well for me as I’d hoped.
Most surprising (in a good way!) book of 2013?
Impostor by Susanne Winnacker and Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen
Book you read in 2013 that you recommended to people most?
The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon and Iced by Karen Marie Moning
Best series you discovered in 2013?
The Guards of the Shadowlands by Sarah Fine
Favorite new author you discovered in 2013?
So many! Sarah Fine, Samantha Shannon, Kasie West, Cristin Terrill, Erin McCarthy, A.C. Gaughen, Mindee Arnett, and Cora Carmack.
Best book that was out of your comfort zone or was a new genre for you?
The Burning Sky by Sherry Thomas. For a while now I’ve told myself that fantasy is not the genre for me, but multiple times this year I’ve proven myself wrong and I couldn’t be happier about it!
Most thrilling, unputdownable book in 2013?
Iced by Karen Marie Moning. If I didn’t need my hands to work, I would have Ryodan in a death grip 24/7.
Book You Read In 2013 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year?
The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon or Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor. Both have sequels that should be releasing in 2014 (hopefully on The Bone Season anyway, I know it's book one of seven), and I will gladly re-read both of these to make sure I remember everything I need to before tackling the newest installment!
Favorite cover of a book you read in 2013?
Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea by April Genevieve Tucholke. I also absolutely ADORED this book.
Most memorable character in 2013?
Ryodan from Iced
Warden from The Bone Season
Sturmhond from Siege and Storm
Most beautifully written book read in 2013?
Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea. This book was just so beautifully atmospheric, it had a dark hypnotic quality that left me completely mesmerized.
Book that had the greatest impact on you in 2013?
This answer is a bit of a surprise for me, but I’m going to go with Endless by Jessica Shirvington. The Violet Eden Chapters and I got along very poorly in the beginning, but with each book my love for the series has grown, and Endless absolutely ripped my heart out and stomped on it. It makes me a bit of a masochist, but I loved every second of it.
Days of Blood and Starlight and Sanctum/Fractured would be on this list as well.
Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2013 to finally read?
I’m going to change this question a little bit to be “Books I still can’t believe I haven’t read given it’s 2013”
Anything by Gayle Forman (I KNOW!)
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
Graceling by Kristin Cashore
Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2013?
I fail this question. I never highlight or mark quotes or passages, so I honestly don’t have one.
Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2013?
Shortest (not counting novellas): Neptune’s Tears by Susan Waggoner
(218 pages)
Longest: Lover at Last by J.R. Ward (597 pages)
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!
Pretty much the entirety of Iced. It’s a conversation starter for sure. Also, the ending of Fractured *falls down dead*
Part two will be up tomorrow!
