Nicole's 2014 End of Year Book Survey

Thanks to Jamie at The Perpetual Page-Turner!

2014 Reading Stats

Number Of Books You Read: 134 to date, including 51 audiobooks
Number of Re-Reads: 4 
Number of DNFs: 1
Genre You Read The Most From: Contemporary, closely followed by Fantasy!


Best in Books

1. Best Book You Read In 2014?
Cress by Marissa Meyer and Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas - these two books could fit in almost every single one of these categories - they brought ALL THE FEELS!
Endsinger by Jay Kristoff and Golden Son by Pierce Brown - pretty sure these two books are the most EPIC that I have ever read

2. Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t?
In a Handful of Dust by Mindy McGinnis - I liked it, but not as much as I had thought I would after LOVING Not a Drop to Drink

3. Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read in 2014?
Stolen Songbird by Danielle Jensen - I almost didn't read this one because of the trolls and I wound up loving it - and The Eternity Cure by Julie Kagawa - I thought The Immortal Rules was middle-of-the-road but this sequel BLEW ME AWAY.

4. Book You “Pushed” The Most People To Read (And They Did) In 2014?
Chaos by Sarah Fine - Well, this series really. I push the Guards of the Shadowlands series on everyone.

5. Best series you started in 2014? Best Sequel of 2014? Best Series Ender of 2014?
Best series started: The Winner's Curse by Marie Rutkoski, The Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen, and The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson - LOVED THESE
Best sequel: Golden Son by Pierce Brown, The Perilous Sea by Sherry Thomas, and Lady Thief by A. C. Gaughen
Best series conclusion: Mortal Heart by Robin LaFevers, Dreams of Gods & Monsters by Laini Taylor, and Endsinger by Jay Kristoff

6. Favorite new author you discovered in 2014?
Pierce Brown (Red Rising Trilogy) and Emery Lord (Open Road Summer, The Start of Me and You)

7. Best book from a genre you don’t typically read/was out of your comfort zone?
Hook's Revenge by Heidi Shulz - I rarely, if ever, read MG but when I saw a passage from it, I knew I had to and it was even better than I had hoped - and Boomerang by Noelle August - I rarely read NA but I loved how fun this one was!

8. Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year?
Blood of My Blood by Barry Lyga - this entire series has been one hell of a thrill ride but this conclusion was mind-blowing

9. Book You Read In 2014 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year?
Vicious by Victoria Schwab - because it was AWESOME

10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2014?
Blue Lily, Lily Blue (The Raven Cycle #3) by Maggie Stiefvater and Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge - I would frame both of these as art!

11. Most memorable character of 2014?
Manon Blackbeak from Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas, and Harper Price from Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins - and they couldn't be more different!

12. Most beautifully written book read in 2014?
Blue Lily, Lily Blue (The Raven Cycle #3) by Maggie Stiefvater - Stiefvater's books are ALWAYS the most beautiful

13. Most Thought-Provoking/ Life-Changing Book of 2014?
Hate List by Jennifer Brown and A Mad, Wicked Folly by Sharon Biggs Waller - a really important book about the women's rights.

14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2014 to finally read? 
On the Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta - LOVED this book. Marchetta's brilliance continues to amaze me.

15. Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2014?
“It is a blessing as well as a burden to love so much that you can hurt so badly when love is gone.”
 ― Deborah Harkness, A Discovery of Witches
Never has a quote resonated with me quite as much as this one.

16. Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2013?
Shortest: We Were Liars by E. Lockhart (227 pages)
Longest: The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss (994 pages)

17. Book That Shocked You The Most
Winger by Andrew Smith - that ending hit me right in the feels - and Dangerous Girls by Abigail Haas - because of how awesome twisted the ending was

18. OTP OF THE YEAR (you will go down with this ship!)
Niklaas and Aurora from Princess of Thorns by Stacey Jay - my favorite relationship ARC of the year! - and Isla and Josh from Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins - because STEPHANIE PERKINS

19. Favorite Non-Romantic Relationship Of The Year
Reagan and Dee from Open Road Summer by Emory Lord - best BFFs ever - and Charlie and her brothers from On The Fence by Kasie West - LOVED the family dynamic in this book

20. Favorite Book You Read in 2014 From An Author You’ve Read Previously
Of Metal and Wishes by Sarah Fine - I love everything Sarah Fine writes so it is no surprise that I loved this Phantom of the Opera retelling - and Ruin & Rising by Leigh Bardugo - wonderful conclusion and Nikolai is still my #1 book boyfriend!

21. Best Book You Read In 2014 That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else/Peer Pressure:
Red Rising by Pierce Brown - based on the recommendation of Goodreads users everywhere

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2014?
Matt Finch from Open Road Summer by Emory Lord, and Finn from Illusions of Fate by Kiersten White

23. Best 2014 debut you read?
Open Road Summer by Emory Lord - This book had it ALL

24. Best Worldbuilding/Most Vivid Setting You Read This Year?
Chaos by Sarah Fine and Exquisite Captive by Heather Demetrios - loved both of these worlds

25. Book That Put A Smile On Your Face/Was The Most FUN To Read?
Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins - I got such a kick out of Harper Price - and Going Rogue by Robin Benway - because SPIES and the best humor!

26. Book That Made You Cry Or Nearly Cry in 2014?
Maybe One Day by Melissa Kantor - this book killed me because I don't know what I would do if I lost my best friend!

27. Hidden Gem Of The Year?
Maid of Deception by Jennifer McGowan - more people need to read this series! It is SO good!

28. Book That Crushed Your Soul?
Endsinger by Jay Kristoff - If I even had a soul left after reading the first two books in this series.

29. Most Unique Book You Read In 2014?
A Little Something Different by Sandy Hall - a love story told from the perspective of everyone BUT the couple - and Let's Get Lost by Adi Alsaid - 4 different stories with one story connecting them all together.

30. Book That Made You The Most Mad (doesn’t necessarily mean you didn’t like it)?
Rites of Passage by Joy N. Hensley - I wanted to punch almost everyone in this book (but I liked this book!) - and We Were Liars by E. Lockhart - what happened in the story was just stupid and pointless and beyond frustrating.

31.* Best book that didn't fit into any of the above categories? 
Uninvited by Sophie Jordan and Split Second by Kasie West - both of these were SO GOOD and must be mentioned among the best of 2014!

Blogging/Bookish Life

1. New favorite book blog you discovered in 2014?
Love at First Page and the lovely Danielle ♥

2. Favorite review that you wrote in 2014?
Hmmm, I am not sure I have a favorite per say but I do like the way I wrote my reviews for The Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen and and Dark Triumph by Robin LaFevers and I like my reviews of The Daughter of Smoke and Bone Series by Laini Taylor and Hate List by Jennifer Brown 

3. Best discussion/non-review post you had on your blog?
I really loved launching our new feature Battle of the Books with the post Battle of the Captains where I pit Carswell Thorne (The Lunar Chronicles) against Sturmhond (The Grisha)!

4. Best event that you participated in (author signings, festivals, virtual events, memes, etc.)?
I was so blessed to participate in so many bookish events this year - ALA MW, BEA, YALLFest, Thirteen Days of Ash and Fire Blog Tour and many many signings - they were all the best.

5. Best moment of bookish/blogging life in 2014?
Ashley and I got our first physical ARCs this year which was beyond exciting. I also met some of my favorite authors ever - like Elizabeth Wein - at the above events.

6. Most Popular Post This Year On Your Blog (whether it be by comments or views)?
Thirteen Days of Ash and Fire Blog Tour! #MaasThirteen

7. Post You Wished Got A Little More Love?
Umm I don't know. The fact that anyone visits our blog to read what I have to say still kind of amazes me, hah.

8. Best bookish discovery (book related sites, book stores, etc.)?
This year I really started to use Edelweiss, Netgalley, and YA Book Exchange in earnest and all of these sites have been great tools for my reading/blogging life.

9. Did you complete any reading challenges or goals that you had set for yourself at the beginning of this year?
Just my Goodreads challenge - which was to read 104 books this year. And I am happy to say that even with work and school and life shenanigans I was able to read that many books and then some :)

Looking ahead

1. One Book You Didn’t Get To In 2014 But Will Be Your Number 1 Priority in 2015?
The Cure for Dreaming by Cat Winters, Magnolia by Kristin Cook, Midnight Thief by Livia Blackburn, and Dissonance by Erica O'Rourke are all at the top of my TBR!

2. Book You Are Most Anticipating For 2015 (non-debut)?
Lair of Dreams by Libba Bray - JUST RELEASE ALREADY WILL YOU, I AM DYING - and Otherwhen by Kelly Moore - although there is no information about this book yet *sadness*

3. 2015 Debut You Are Most Anticipating?
Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard - I already pre-ordered this baby so can it just be February 10th already?

4. Series Ending/A Sequel You Are Most Anticipating in 2015?
Throne of Glass #4 by Sarah J. Maas and Winter by Marissa Meyer (Duh) but also The Heart of Betrayal by Mary E. Pearson and The Invasion of the Tearling #2 by Erika Johansen - I need all of these NOW

5. One Thing You Hope To Accomplish Or Do In Your Reading/Blogging Life In 2015?
Well, maybe in 2015 I will actually manage to make some progress against my resolutions, unlike I did this year. But more than anything else, I really just want to keep meeting new people, grow the friendships that I've already made and take advantage of all that this wonderful community has to offer!

6. A 2015 Release You’ve Already Read & Recommend To Everyone:
Golden Son by Pierce Brown which releases soon so get to reading Red Rising if you haven't already! And I am currently reading The Winner's Crime by Marie Rutkoski and already loving it so read this series too while you are at it ;)

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