2013 End of the Year Survey

Posted by Jessi (Geo) on December 31, 2013 | 8 Comments


endofyearsurvey
 
bestbooks
 

1. Best book you read in 2013? (You can break it down by genre if you want)

If I had to pick ONE favorite of 2013, it’d be Kinslayer by Jay Kristoff. That book seriously took a piece of my soul!
I already made an in-depth post breaking down my top ten as well as genre faves, you can check it out HERE!
 

2. Book you were excited about & thought you were going to love more but didn’t?

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea by April Genevieve Tucholke and Poison by Bridget Zinn.

3. Most surprising (in a good way!) book of 2013?

Allegiant by Veronica Roth. I thought I was going to hate it, but ended up liking it after all!

4. Book you read in 2013 that you recommended to people the most?

Kinslayer, hands down!

5. Best series you discovered in 2013?

Sadly I didn’t finish any newly discovered series this year. :( All of the sequels I read were books I’d read last year!

6. Favorite new author(s) you discovered in 2013?

Rick Yancey, Miriam Forster, John Green.

7. Best book that was out of your comfort zone or was a new genre for you?

The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey. It’s no secret that I despise Historical Fiction, so this one was definitely outside of my comfort zone. But, I was pleasantly surprised by how fantastically gory and monstrous it was!

8. Most thrilling, unputdownable book in 2013?

Deception by C.J. Redwine. That book was INTENSE!

9. Book you read this year that you are most likely to re-read next year?

Kinslayer :)

10. Favorite cover of a book you read?

between devil
 
(Too bad the book was awful…) It was EXTREMELY hard to pick just one. But you can visit my Top Ten of 2013 post to see my top 10 covers of the year (2013 releases only)!
 

11. Most memorable character?

Oh gosh, this is hard! There were quite a few of those…
Male: Buruu and Daken from Kinslayer –  Buruu is awesome incarnate and Daken is a cat; Warner from Unravel Me – one of the most complex characters I’ve ever read; Morpheus from Unhinged – my favorite moth, also a complex character; and Jerrit from City of a Thousand Dolls – he’s a cat! <3
Female: Hazel Grace from The Fault in Our Stars. She was so sarcastic and I just loved her!
 

12. Most beautifully written book?

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. While it wasn’t a favorite, he has a knack for making even the most mundane things seem interesting. The book was SO quotable!
 

13. Book that had the greatest impact on you?

Kinslayeragain. This is the most emotional book I’ve ever read, and I’m not kidding when I say that I feel like it owns a piece of my soul. I want to cry just thinking about it!
 

14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2012 to finally read?

*coughs* The Fault in Our StarsWhat can I say, hype scares me!

15. Favorite passage/quote from a book read in 2012?

On the darkest days you have to search for a spot of brightness, on the coldest days you have to seek out a spot of warmth; on the bleakest days you have to keep your own eyes onward and upward and on the saddest days you have to leave them open to let them cry. To then let them dry. To give them a chance to wash out the pain in order to see fresh and clear once again.

-from Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi
 

16. Shortest and longest books read?

Longest: Feed by Mira Grant (571 pages)
Shortest: If You Find Me by Emily Murdoch (256 pages)

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!

Um…Kinslayer? Lol!

18. Favorite relationship from a book read in 2013 (be it romantic, friendship, etc.)?

Umm. Probably still Buruu and Yukiko :)

19. Favorite book you read from an author you’ve read previously?

Kinslayer. :) 

20. Best book you read based SOLELY on a recommendation from somebody else?

Honestly, I’ve never read a book just because someone recommended it to me. I don’t get many recommendations that I didn’t already have on my TBR list. And if someone did recommend something to me, I’d probably only read it if it sounded interesting or I really trusted the person’s opinion.

 21. Genre you read the most from?

Probably sci-fi. I read a LOT of dystopian books this year!

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read?

Jerrit from City of a Thousand Dolls! <3

23. Best 2013 debut you read?

City of a Thousand Dolls . Lol

24. Most vivid world/imagery in a book you read?

Hmm. Probably Kinslayer! Jay Kristoff is great at imagery!

25. Book that was the most fun to read?

Night of Cake and Puppets by Laini Taylor. Zuzana is hilarious!

26. Book that made you cry, or nearly cry?

KinslayerAnd not just cry, but ugly cry. Like sobbing and snotting. No joke, it ripped my heart out :(

27. Book you read in 2013 that you think got overlooked this year, or when it came out?

 Code by Kathy Reichs. I feel like too few people know about the Virals series!
 
blogginglife
 

1. New favorite book blog you discovered in 2012?

Jeez, that’s hard! I’ve discovered a ton of amazing blogs and made some great new friends. I think one in particular would be A Bookish Heart, though! Asti is an awesome person and she has great discussions as well as creative and engaging posts. I also love her recaps every week because I can always find SO many other interesting blog posts to visit!

2. Favorite review that you wrote in 2012?

Rant review: probably Between the Devil & the Deep Blue Sea by April Genevieve Tucholke
Gush review: Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi. I poured my heart and soul into that review!

3. Best discussion you had on your blog?

Hmm, either Bad Reactions to Negative Reviews -or- What Makes Me Follow a Blog

4. Most thought-provoking review or discussion that you read on somebody else’s blog?

Inaccurately determining blog success @ Oh, Chrys!

5. Best event that you participated in (author signings, festivals, virtual events, memes, etc)?

YALLfest! It was insane, but totally awesome! 

6. Best moment of blogging?

When I met Julie Kagawa and she told me she knew who I was :)

7. Most popular post on your blog this year (whether it be by comments or views)?

Blogiversary Week: Name Change & Giveaway with 65 comments 

8. Post you wished got a little more love?

Hmm…maybe Life of a Blogger: Favorite Bands :)

9. Best bookish discovery (book related sites, book stores, etc)?

Joseph-Beth in Cincinatti! They have tons of awesome events and it’s only an hour away from me.

10. Did you complete any reading challenges or goals that you had set for yourself at the beginning of the year?

I did!
As for blogging, I wanted to have more discussion posts, keep to a regular schedule, and do more networking/commenting. I did the first two, and I did much better on the latter than last year!
As for reading, I wanted to ideally get to 150 books, but I only managed to read 100. I did awful on my challenges – I think I just took on too many! I only completed 4 out of my 7 challenges, you can see my overview post HERE.

 
 
lookingahead
 

1. One book you didn’t get to read in 2012 but will be #1 priority in 2013?

Angelfall!  

2. Book you are most anticipating for 2014?

If I had to pick just ONE book, it would be Talon by Julie Kagawa. 1) It’s Julie. Of course I’m going to want it. 2) It’s about DRAGONS! Julie Kagawa and dragons? Yes please!!

You can see my top 10 most anticipated releases in my Top Ten of 2012 post!

3. 2014 debut you are most anticipating?
The Winner’s Curse. After seeing practically everyone else but me get the pretty ARC package, I’m DYING to get my hands on it! 
 
4. Series ending you are most anticipating in 2014?
Ignite Me! WARNERWARNERWARNER.
 

5. One thing you hope to do or accomplish or do in your reading/blogging in 2013?

Reading: Since I couldn’t make it to 150 books this year, I’m hoping I can at least exceed myself a little bit and make it to 125 books. If I have the time =/
Blogging: I want to keep up with my discussion posts and continue to stick to a regular schedule. I still want to do more networking and commenting, and I also want to stress less about having daily content.

Jessi (Geo)

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8 responses to “2013 End of the Year Survey

  1. Okay, I’m really glad you liked Allegiant. I’m nervous to read it because of all the mixed feelings. I still need to read Insurgent though. I’ve been putting it off on purpose because I want to read it close to when the movie comes out (which is like 2015 -____-). Haha Kinslayer must be really good. I’ll check that one out! Wishing you a fantastic New Year’s!

  2. SO MUCH KINSLAYER ;P

    AND OMG ANGELFALL. READ IT. I’m starting World After!

    ALSO YES WINNER’S CURSEEEEE. CAN NOT WAIT TO READ THAT. AND TALON. ANYTHING BY JKAGAWA

  3. Kinslayer was the answer to like every second question haha :D But I agree though, it was such a brilliant read and Buruu made it so bloody amazeballs. An TFiOS! *sobs* I hope they get the movie right.

    Fabulous post, Jessi! <33

  4. Aww thanks for mentioning my blog! You’re too kind <3 I love the changes you've made to your blog this year. I actually think I'll be joining your Life of a Blogger feature soon :D

  5. Melissa Robles

    What a fun survey! I think I got the hint that I have to check out Kinslayer, you mentioned it there somewhere I’m sure, lol. ;)
    I want to read The fault in out stars really soon, this year will be it, I want to love it.
    I’m also anticipating Julie Kagawa’s new book, she is a GENIUS! Will read for dragons <3

  6. Fantastic post. What a great year you had.

    I haven’t read any of your books, but will check them out. You have great answers.

    Happy New Year!!

    Elizabeth
    Silver’s Reviews

    Do you make New Year’s Resolutions? Stop by to see what some authors do about New Year’s Resolutions.

    Author Resolutions

  7. Trayche

    I wish you a Happy Happy new year Jessi!
    Okay, you’ve convinced me to try and read Stormdancer. And The Fault in our Stars is a book that i NEED to read this year.

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