My friend Jamie over at The Perpetual Page-Turner has been hosting an End of Year Book Survey the last three years and I've decided to participate in it. If you want to join in and answer all of her fun questions, hop on over to her blog, check out the questions and link yourself up! (Note: The survey is for books you read and is not limited to just books that came out in 2012!!)
BEST BOOKS IN 2012
1. Best book you read in 2012? (You can break it down by genre if you want.)
ADULT FICTION: On The Island by Tracey Garvis Graves
YOUNG ADULT: This Is Not A Test by Courtney Summers & Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
2. Book you were excited about & thought you were going to love but didn't?
I've Been Deader by Adam Sifre - it's a zombie book that sounded really funny, but in the end I didn't enjoy it as much as I had hoped. It was like when you see a movie trailer and all of the funny stuff is in the preview and there is nothing much to the rest of the movie - same thing happened here with the synopsis of the book.
3. Most surprising (in a good way) book of 2012?
White Horse by Alex Adams - This was a book I could not put down, yet it was disturbing at times and emotionally challenging. I ended up loving this book more than I had expected and hope to read more by Alex Adams.
4. Book you recommended most to people in 2012?
On The Island by Tracey Garvis Graves & God Save The Queen by Kate Locke. Both are books that I could not stop talking about having read them, yet they are books from completely different genres. I would recommend On The Island to anyone looking for an amazing roller coaster ride of emotion and God Save The Queen to anyone looking for a book to escape into that enjoys the paranormal genre.
5. Best series you discovered in 2012?
I just finished Touch of Power by Maria V. Snyder and fell in love with it. I cannot wait to read Scent of Magic! I haven't even written the review yet, because I can't figure out my thoughts yet.
6. Favourite new authors you discovered in 2012?
*Courtney Summers - I have only read This Is Not A Test, but I've heard so many great things about her other work and will be reading more in 2013.
*Laini Taylor - loved Daughter of Smoke and Bone, the writing was spectacular!
*Ada Adams - she is absolutely wonderful to chat with, her book ReVamped was wonderful and I am happy to call her a friend.
7. Best book that was out of your comfort zone or was a new genre for you?
Crank by Ellen Hopkins - not due to subject matter, but because I am not a big fan of prose, yet this book has made me think about picking up other prose written stories.
8. Most thrilling, unputdownable book in 2012?
The Milestone Tapes by Ashely Mackler-Paternostro - this book was an emotional roller coaster and absolutely worth every tear I shed while reading it.
9. Book you read in 2012 that you are most likely to re-read next year?
On The Island by Tracey Garvis-Graves - seriously it was THAT good. I even gushed about it to my hubby, who patiently listened and even asked questions that allowed me to chat about the book more.
10. Favourite cover of a book you read in 2012?
11. Most memorable character in 2012?
Main Character - Karou from Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
Supporting Character - Phin from the Abby Sinclair series by Allison Pang.
12. Most beautifully written book read in 2012?
Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor - I fell in love with the world, the characters and the plot - everything was spectacular.
13. Book that had the greatest impact on you in 2012?
The Milestone Tapes by Ashely Mackler-Paternostro - not only was this a very emotional read, it made me think about how I would approach a similar scenario - would I be strong enough to make those tapes like Jenna does for Mia?
14. Book you can't believe you waited UNTIL 2012 to finally read?
Anne of Green Gables by LM Montgomery - I am still not sure why I had never read this book before. Seriously, it's even Canadian. I loved it.
15. Favourite passage/quote from a book you read in 2012?
“Wishes are false. Hope is true. Hope makes its own magic.”
“He reels me in, cups my face with both hands, and becomes my whole
world. This is a kiss--maybe the last one we'll ever know, so we stay
there forever, warm and safe. When he pulls away, something is lost. I
think it's my heart.”
16. Shortest and longest book you read in 2012?
Shortest - I read an awful lot of novellas this year, but the shortest one being The Vampire Hunter's Daughter (Part 1) by Jennifer Malone-Wright at only 19 pages.
Longest - Crank by Ellen Hopkins - 537 pages - though it's written in prose and the words don't fill that pages like a normal novel, so not sure if this should count as longest or not.
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) Be careful of spoilers!
Honestly - nothing is jumping out at me right now. Might have to come back to this one.
18. Favourite relationship from a book you read in 2012? (be it romantic, friendship, etc).
The relationship that is standing out to me most is that of Avry and Kerrick from Touch of Power by Maria V. Snyder - possibly because it's a recent read for me or because theirs is a relationship that builds up over time. At first they dislike each other, then tolerate each other and then it slowly becomes more - it's one of those sweet romances.
19. Favourite book you read in 2012 from an author you read previously.
This year I only read two books by authors I'd previously read and neither really made the top of my lists, but here they are nonetheless - Undead and Undermined by MaryJanice Davidson (not my fave Queen Betsy book) and Loss by Jackie Morse Kessler (I loved the other books in the Riders of the Apocalypse Series more than this one). Oh and a short story by Carrie Ryan called Hare Moon (I think I enjoyed this one the most of the three).
20. Best book you read that you read based SOLELY on a recommendation from somebody else:
*Illicit Magic by Camilla Chafer - recommended by my BFF Aislynn - Stitch Read Cook
*Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor - suggested by a secret matchmaker during the My Fair Book Date that I participated in.
BOOK BLOGGING/READING LIFE IN 2012
1. New favourite book blog you discovered in 2012?
Book Nerd Canada - I have no idea why I didn't know of this blog before now.
Xpresso Reads - This is an amazing blog that I stumbled upon randomly one day this summer.
Funny enough both of these bloggers are named Giselle and they are CANADIAN!
Giraffe Days is a great book log I found recently.
Xpresso Reads - This is an amazing blog that I stumbled upon randomly one day this summer.
Funny enough both of these bloggers are named Giselle and they are CANADIAN!
Giraffe Days is a great book log I found recently.
2. Favourite review that you wrote in 2012?
3. Best discussion you had on your blog?
4. Most thought-provoking review or discussion you read on somebody else's blog?
I don't have any one post to add to this, but I truly enjoy reading the discussion posts that Fiktshun puts up on her other blog Book Bloggers Corner. You should check them out.
5. Best event that you participated in (author signings, festivals, virtual events, memes, etc)?
In person: The Ontario Blogger Meetup
Online: Romance Week that I co-hosted for the second year with my BFF Aislynn
Online: Romance Week that I co-hosted for the second year with my BFF Aislynn
6. Best moment of book blogging in 2012?
7. Most popular post this year on your blog (whether it be by comments or views)?
Many of my Deserted Island posts are in the top ten as well as blog tour stops. But the ones that actually mean something to me that I've written are my recap of the Ontario Book Blogger Meetup and apparently people really like WITCHES, because my Top Ten post about witches in TV/Movies is getting a lot of traffic. Weird.
8. Post you wish got a little more love?
Actually I had hoped that my Ontario Library Week feature would have gotten more attention, but I wasn't totally here to promote it as much as I would have liked, because I was busy with last minute wedding plans/details. *sigh* But I really appreciate everyone who participated.
9. Best bookish discovery (book related sites, book stores, etc)?
Mail A Tale - a monthly parcel mailed to a child in your life - all books are hand picked for the age you request and they come in a cute little package. I'm thinking about doing this for my nephew when he gets a little older since he loves books so much.
10. Did you complete any reading challenges or goals that you had set for yourself at the beginning of this year?
Out of six challenges that I signed up for, I've only completed three. This saddens me, but I think I bit off more than I could chew given that I was getting married this year and I've had to deal with my own medical issues as well as a recent family emergency. *sigh* The ones that I completed were Zombie Reading Challenge, Canadian Reading Challenge and Review Copy Cleanup.
LOOKING AHEAD....
1. One book that you didn't get to read in 2012, but will be your number one priority in 2013?
2. Books you are most anticipating for 2013?
3. One thing you hope to accomplish or do in your reading/blogging in 2013?
Catch up on books that I want to read instead of spending so much time doing blog tours.
I agree, daughter of Smoke and Bone was SO good. I loved that book. The writing, the story, the characters. It was all so amazing. I loved seeing it on your list. There are a number of books that I haven't read or heard of. I will absolutely look into them.
ReplyDeleteSara @ Just Another Story
Oh I hope you find a few gems in my suggestions above. ;)
Deletelove, love, LOVE Daughter of Smoke and Bone. Definitely one of my favorite reads of this year, too.
ReplyDeleteI am really looking forward to reading the sequel. :)
DeleteThanks for stopping by my blog! It looks like we have very similar reading tastes, and both discovered Courtney Summers this year =) I've also read Some Girls Are, which was a fantastic mean-girls type story (and almost as good as Before I Fall, minus the beautiful Lauren-Oliver-esque writing style). I've got both of her other books on request at the library, and can't wait to read the rest of her work.
ReplyDeleteI noticed that too - we do have similar tastes in books. :) I picked up another Courtney Summers book while I was at a book signing of hers: Fall For Anything - it sounds really good and I hope to read this in 2013.
DeleteI have Laini Taylors debut book, feel I really should read that first before buying her new one.
ReplyDeleteI think you will enjoy all of Ellen Hopkins books. Verse novels are my simple pleasure but I actually would prefer EH in novel form.
I haven't read one good review of Casual Vacancy, just a note, not to put you off.
Oh you should totally read Dos&B by Laini Taylor! It's amazing! And I did enjoy Ellen Hopkins book, so I might pick up some more from the library. And I've been avoiding reading the reviews for Casual Vacancy as I've seen tweets about people being disappointed. :( Guess we will see in the new year once I get to it. Thanks for stopping by!
DeleteOn the Island was so good!! I just read it last month or so, and I really loved it.
ReplyDeleteI think it was one of my absolute favourites of the year. :)
DeleteI too chose Daughter of Smoke and Bone as my fav this year. Great choices this year. :)
ReplyDelete