Sunday, December 29, 2013

Jemie's End of the Year Survey 2013

This lovely end of the year survey is hosted by Jamie on her blog The Perpetual Page Turner.




1. 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)
That's an impossible question!
I'll break it down by genre, I don't see any other way around it, since I have three favorite books this year. 
Contemporary YA: "Fangirl" by Rainbow Rowell
Fantasy/Children's books: "The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman
Fantasy YA: "Clockwork Princess" by Cassandra Clare

2. Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t?
"Allegiant", by Veronica Roth. I couldn't wait to read this book, since it was the final book in a series I loved. I have been trying to get my friends to read it for years. Sadly, "Allegiant" wasn't nearly as well-written as the other two books in the series. 

3. Most surprising (in a good way!) book of 2013? 
"The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman.
I honestly had no idea how brilliant a writer Gaiman is before I read this novel. 

4. Book you read in 2013 that you recommended to people most in 2013?
 "The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman.
I'll never get tired of saying this: the writing is gorgeous and the story and characters are amazing, too.
If you haven't read it yet, read it. Read it right now.
READ IT!
You won't be disappointed, I swear. 

5. Best series you discovered in 2013?
I didn't start that many series this year, and I didn't like most of them.
One series I found out about in 2013 and I loved was William Joyce's "The Guardians" series. The writing and the art were gorgeous. 

6. Favorite new author you discovered in 2013?
Rainbow Rowell. I had never heard of her before this September. Since then I have read both her YA contemporary books and adored them.  

7. Best book that was out of your comfort zone or was a new genre for you?
"Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald" by Therese Anne Fowler is a novelized biography, which is not a genre I thought I would like, but I loved this novel.
I'm glad I decided to step outside my comfort zone this time around. 

8. Most thrilling, unputdownable book in 2013?
Judging by how long it took me to read it, I'll say "The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman.
I mean, it's more than 300 pages long and I read it in one afternoon, if that's not unputdownable I don't know what is.  

9. Book You Read In 2013 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year?
"The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman. Like I said before, the writing is gorgeous, I don't think I'll get tired of rereading this book anytime soon. 

10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2013?
"Fangirl" by Rainbow Rowell. It has such a pretty cover, behold!


11. Most memorable character in 2013? 
Wow, that's a really hard question. 
I'm going to say Silas, from "The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman, because he was a really cool and somewhat tragic character. 

12. Most beautifully written book read in 2013?
"The Graveyard Book", without a doubt. I'm sure you're all sick and tired of hearing me rant about the sheer beauty of the prose in this novel, but I just can't help it.

13. Book that had the greatest impact on you in 2013? 
"Fangirl" by Rainbow Rowell, because it is the book that reminded me why I love writing. 

14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2013 to finally read? 
"The Graveyard Book", again. I kept seeing it everywhere and was convinced I wouldn't like it.
I have never been more wrong in all my life. 

15. Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2013?
I have a lot of those, but if I had to choose, I think I'd take this quote "Fangirl" by Rainbow Rowell.
When I'm writing
 my own stuff, it's like swimming 
upstream.
Or… falling down a cliff and grabbing at branches,
trying to invent the branches as I
fall. 

Cath is actually talking about fanfiction writing versus writing original stories, but it's actually pretty spot on on how writing feels like, period. And it's one of the most exhilarating feelings in the world.

16.Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2013?
"The Red and the Black" by Stendhal wins with 607 pages, since it's nine pages longer than "House of Hades" by Rick Riordan, which came in as a close second.
"The Ocean at the End of the Lane" by Neil Gaiman is probably the shortest novel I've read, since it's just 108 pages long.

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. etc.) Be careful of spoilers!
"Clockwork Princess" by Cassandra Clare.
I couldn't wait to talk about about it with a friend of mine, who loves this books as much as I do.
Sadly, I had to wait, because she threatened me very creatively when I suggested spoiling her.  

18. Favorite Relationship From A Book You Read In 2013 (be it romantic, friendship, etc).
Romantic is probably the one between Levi and Cath in "Fangirl"
I actually have two favorite friendship relationship this year. Will and Jem from "Clockwork Princess" have a wonderful, epic bromance, which is probably my favorite relationship in the whole series.
Aziraphale and Crowley's friendship in "Good Omens" is very different than Will and Jem's, but I love it just as much, maybe even more. They ostensibly only hang out together because they are the only members of their species present on earth, but it's clear they care deeply for one other. 
The guardian-ward relationship Silas and Bod had going in "The Graveyard Book" was adorable, too. 

19. Favorite Book You Read in 2013 From An Author You’ve Read Previously
"Clockwork Princess" by Cassandra Clare and "The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman. 
I loved both this books to pieces.  

20. Best Book You Read In 2013 That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else:
My attempt to be spontaneous and read books based on recommendations alone didn't go over that well.
One book I've hated and the other was okay, so I'll go with the one I found okay, which is "Unearthly" by Cynthia Hand. 

21. Genre You Read The Most From in 2013?
YA
You weren't expecting that, were you? 

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2013?
Crowley from "Good Omens" by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, otherwise known as "an angel who didn't so much fall as saunter vaguely downward."
Yeah, I just had to quote "Good Omens" in this post. I could't help myself.

23. Best 2013 debut you read?
"The Reece Malcolm List" by Amy Spalding. I loved this book and it had me thinking for a very long time, which is always a plus.  

24. Most vivid world/imagery in a book you read in 2013?
"The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman. If I closed my eyes, I could see the graveyard perfectly in my mind, and I really loved the world-building in this book. For example  the way the society of the graveyard worked was very clever. 

25. Book That Was The Most Fun To Read in 2013?
"Fangirl" by Rainbow Rowell, reading it put me in such a good mood.

26. Book That Made You Cry Or Nearly Cry in 2013?
I usually don't cry about books. Get incredibly depressed, yes. Giggle like a maniac, yes. Cry, no. One book I did get emotional about this year was "Clockwork Princess" by Cassandra Clare. I have spent years obsessing about this series, I hardly can believe it's over. 

27. Book You Read in 2013 That You Think Got Overlooked This Year Or When It Came Out?
I have the impression that "The Reece Malcolm List" was overlooked by a lot of people.
It's a shame, because this novel actually was really good.  

1. One Book You Didn’t Get To In 2013 But Will Be Your Number 1 Priority in 2014?
"The Naturals" by Jennifer Lynn Barnes. 
Honestly, I have no excuses as to why I haven't read this book yet, I just keep getting distracted by other books I want to read.  

2. Book You Are Most Anticipating For 2014 (non-debut)?
"City of Heavenly Fire" by Cassandra Clare. I have been obsessing over this books for two years.
Two years, people.
Honestly it's about time this book was released.
And if Alec and Magnus don't get back together, so help me...
Um, sorry, I got a bit carried away.

3. 2014 Debut You Are Most Anticipating?
"Defy" by Sarah B. Larson, because it promises a badass female main character. 
And I need more of that in my life.

4. Series Ending You Are Most Anticipating in 2014?
"City of Heavenly Fire". 
I'm sure you don't want to got through the whole thing I did above once more.
So let's move on!

5. One Thing You Hope To Accomplish Or Do In Your Reading/Blogging In 2014?
I want to start reading the books that have been on my TBR list for ages, instead of being distracted by shiny new releases all the time.


So, what are your answers to this survey? Let me know in the comments!

2 comments:

  1. Considering you loved the Clockwork books, I will now pick up The Graveyard book. It must be good!

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  2. Wow you went all "Fangirl" about the Graveyard book.. LOL ;) I will put them on my wish list! Also need to start any book by Cassandra Clare! :( I just finished writing my survey.. Well part one.. I am going to do the other two too but later this week.. You can find it here: http://icequeensbookshelf.blogspot.nl

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