My Year in Books: 2014 End of Year Book Survey

I'm so excited to take part in The Perpetual Page-Turner's End of Year Book Survey for the second year in a row. Not only is it a great way to look back on my year of blogging and reading, it's also so much fun and a great way to discover new blogs and books! I definitely recommend taking part, linking up and visiting other blogs. You will find so many amazing books  and make your TBR even longer, not that us book bloggers need any help with that.

I will try to not list a million books for one answer, even though I know I'll be sorely tempted. I'd also attempt to make you believe that I'll make a valiant effort not to keep mentioning the same book over and over again, but I'd be lying. It's not my fault that some books are just majorly more awesome or terrible than others, it's a fact of bookish life!

Number of books you read: 122

Number of re-reads: 13

Genre you read the most from: Contemporary, Fantasy & Dystopian

1. Best book you read in 2014?

You want me to try and pick a best book, as in just one.

I did a post on my top ten reads of the year, and narrowing it down to ten was hard, and even then I cheated. You can find that list here. I've since read A Court of Thorns and Roses and that tops it really. I'll be good and pick a top five for you all, one that does't include my two favourites that are 2015 releases. 

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

Looking through my reads of 2014 it was quite obvious that a lot of books I was excited for ending up being really disappointing. These two being two of the main ones:

The Young Elites by Marie Lu and The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson

Both were books I was almost certain I was going to love and then was really disappointed with both, The Kiss of Deception being the one I disliked the most.

3. Most surprising (in a good or bad way) book you read in 2014?

The most surprising in a good way would be Red Rising by Pierce Brown, I don't know exactly what I was expecting but it wasn't what I got. It just went in a direction I never would have imagined but it worked amazingly. A brilliant book.

The most surprising in a bad way was probably Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell or The Maze Runner by James Dashner, two books that did not live up to the massive hypes surrounding them. 

4. Book you "pushed" the most people to read (and they did) in 2014?

Dangerous Girls and Dangerous Boys by Abigail Haas are two books I pushed a lot this year. Dangerous Girls completely blew me away and I had to keep begging people to read it, no idea if any of them listened though. Haas is definitely an author who deserves more recognition then she's getting, these are two of the best psychological thrillers I've ever read.

5. Best series you started in 2014? Best sequel of 2014? Best series ender of 2014?

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas is definitely the best series I've started this year, I've become completely obsessed with it. I find it hard classing something as 'best series' if I've only read book one, who knows where it's going. 

Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas was the favourite sequel I read this year, I absolutely loved it. I really did enjoy Heir of Fire, but Crown of Midnight won for me because of all the shipping feels it gave me. 

I didn't finish many series this year if I'm honest, so my favourite series ender goes to Into the Still Blue by Veronica Rossi. 

6. Favourite new author you discovered in 2014?

Sarah J. Maas... duh!

7. Best book from a genre you don't typically read/was out of your comfort zone?

I don't read much New Adult, I've not had very good luck with it in the past. Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover was just incredible though, but so is everything that woman seems to write. I absolutely loved it, especially since it came with it's own soundtrack, which added so much to the reading experience.

8. Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year?

Dangerous Girls by Abigail Haas

That books kept me up until 3am, even though I had work the next day, because I just had to finish this book and find out the truth. 

9. Book you read in 2014 that you are most likely to re-read next year?

I don't know, my TBR is so massive that I should probably avoid rereading all together. My memory is also so bad that I usually reread books in series when a new one comes out. 

10. Favourite cover of a book you read in 2014?

There were so many covers I loved this year, but I've been good and only picked 5!

11. Most memorable character of 2014?

Celaena Sardothian

12. Most beautifully written book read in 2014?

I'm awarding this to All the Bright Places because it deserves it! Everything about that book was beautiful.

13. Most thought-provoking/life-changing book of 2014?

Not a Drop to Drink by Mindy McGinnis had me thinking so much about water and how much I take for granted the fact I have such easy access to clean, drinkable water.

14. Book you can't believe you waited UNTIL 2014 to finally read?

Throne of Glass for definite, kicking myself over that one. Also The Distance Between Us by Kasie West which I absolutely loved and it finally got me to start reading West's books.

15. Favourite passage/quote from a book you read in 2014?

I don't write down favourite quotes very often sooooo... yeah! Although, I have just started rereading Red Rising by Pierce Brown and I love the opening lines:

I would have lived in peace. But my enemies brought me war.

16. Shortest and longest book you read in 2014?

Shortest book: The Sleeper and the Spindle by Neil Gaiman 68 pages
Longest book: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix 766 pages

17. Book that shocked you the most. (Because of a plot twist, character death, left you hanging with your mouth open wide, etc.)

 

Dangerous Girls and We Were Liars 

Dangerous Girls kept me up until the early hours of the morning because I had to finish it, I needed to know what had really happened. The ending definitely had my mouth wide open, it was sooooooo good. And We Were Liars just took me by complete surprise, some people guessed the end but I had no clue whatsoever. 

18. OTP OF THE YEAR

CHAOL AND CELAENA!
I ship it so hard that it hurts!

19. Favourite non-romantic relationship of the year.

Roar and Aria from the Under the Never Sky series by Veronica Rossi. It's nice to find female and male characters that have a brilliant friendship that is never anything more.

20. Favourite book you read in 2014 from an author you've read previously?

This definitely goes to To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han, absolutely adored that book and can't wait to get my hands on the sequel. 

21. Best book you read in 2014 that you read based SOLELY on a recommendation from somebody else/peer pressure?

Urgh! This is where it gets hard because I just want to say Throne of Glass again, but I've used that one so much. I'm going to go for Easy by Tammara Webber because it's a book I never would have read if it wasn't for all the recommendations and I ended up really enjoying it. 

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2014?

I'm going with Tamlin from A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas. I only just finished it so he would be considered my newest fictional crush for definite.

23. Best 2014 debut you read?

  

Red Rising by Pierce Brown, Far From You by Tess Sharpe and The Truth About Alice by Jennifer Mathieu

24. Best world-building/most vivid setting you read this year?

I have reread all seven Harry Potter books this December so.... fucking Hogwarts! Do I need to say more? This goes to Rowling.

25. Book that put a smile on your face/ was the most FUN to read?

Boomerang by Noelle August was a fun and enjoyable read.

26. Book that made you cry or nearly cry in 2014?

We Were Liars had me ugly crying at my work through sheer shock, did not see that coming. Not a Drop to Drink had an ending that just broke my heart. I absolutely adored that book, but that ending definitely crushed my soul quite a bit. Far from You You was so moving, I had't expected that from it. And I can't even get started on All the Bright Places, I cried so hard at that one - full on, ugly sobbing.

27. Hidden gem of the year?

Far from You by Tess Sharpe, it's a book that completely blew me away and I absolutely loved but I'm still not seeing it around a lot on other blogs.

28. Book that crushed your soul?

All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven definitely wins that award because just looking at her book now makes me want to cry.
And Crown of Midnight for the following reason...

29. Most unique book you read in 2014?

A Little Something Different by Sandy Hall because, even though I didn't like it very much, there's no denying that book is unique. It's told from about 20,000 perspectives, except for the two you really want.

30. Book that made you the most mad?

That award goes to The Maze Runner by James Dashner and Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers because I hated both books with an absolute passion. I can't think of one positive thing to say about either book. 

1. New favourite book blog you discovered in 2014?

I've only been blogging for just over a year so almost every blog I've discovered has been in 2014. I'll name a few:

1. Paper Fury || 2. Book Badger || 3. Little Birdie Books || 4. The Daily Prophecy ||
5. The Infinite To-Read Shelf || 6. Daring Damsels || 7. A Fantasy Writer's Blog ||
8. My Reading Dress || 9. Once Upon a Bookish Time || 10. The Loony Teen Writer || 11. This Is The Story of My Reading Life

And so many more!

2. Favourite review that you wrote in 2014?

Positive: All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven
Negative: The Maze Runner by James Dashner

3. Best discussion/non-review post you had on your blog?

There's a few I loved for different reasons:

Things That Disney Taught Me because it was silly and so much fun to do.

How to Conquer a Reading Slump because I gave terrible advise in the hopes you'd all give me good advice.

Why Do Books and Readers Glorify Abusive Relationships because it was me doing an actual serious discussion, which doesn't happen often.

The Gif Tag because it was an excuse to use gifs (like I needed one).

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

I went to YALC and it was incredible!

5. Best moment of bookish/blogging life in 2014?

There have been so many! Hitting milestones like 2,000 Bloglovin' followers, celebrating by first blogoversary and meeting so many awesome bloggers. But the greatest part was whenever someone told me that they loved my blog or a post or a review I did, which always surprises me and makes me so happy.

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

Well people keep googling non-Disney animated movies and finding my posts I did on that: My Top 20 Non-Disney Animated Movies Part 1 & Part 2, which have thousands and thousands of views.

My most popular reviews were Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover, which got the most comments, and Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas, which got the most views.

7. Post you wished got a little more love?

I'm kind of amazed that people take the time to read and comment on my blog. I guess my reviews get fewer comments than most other posts, but that's the same for most bloggers.

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

Etsy, which is just dangerous for my bank account. I WANT ALL THE THINGS!

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

I read over 100 books, which was my Goodreads goal, so I am pleased with that. I am sure I signed up for more, but I didn't do well with keeping track of them.

1. One book you didn't get to in 2014 but will be your number 1 priority in 2015?

There are so many that I can't even begin to try and determine which one should go to the top of the pile. 

2. Book you are most anticipating for 2015 (non-debut)?

  
I did a whole post on 2015 books I am looking forward to, which you can find here. Most of the ones I was excited for I now have as ARCs and can finally read.

3. 2015 debut you are most anticipating?

4. Series ending/a sequel you are most anticipating in 2015?

The next book in the Throne of Glass series.

5. One thing you hope to accomplish or do in your reading/blogging life in 2015?

Get a little more organised and the blog a little more scheduled. This will most likely NEVER happen, but a girl can dream.

6. A 2015 release you've already read and recommend to everyone: 

All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven and A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas, both are beyond incredible and 5/5 reads.

WOW! Okay, if you made it through that then CONGRATULATIONS! That took so much longer to complete than I thought it would. If you've taken part in the End of Year Book Survey then be sure to leave a link below, I'd love to come check it out!