Wednesday, December 30, 2015

End of the Year Survey!

Jamie at Perpetual Page Turner came up with this wonderful end of the year survey that looked like a lot of fun. I also added a few statistics of my own in this survey. I have been keeping track of all my books read this year with a handy little Excel spreadsheet. That information should be used for something, right? 


2015 Reading Stats



Number Of Books Read: I have read 239 books this year! This was an exceptional year for reading. I believe this is the most books I have read in a year in a very long time. 

Number of Re-Reads: 7
Genre You Read The Most From: Overwhelmingly, it was Contemporary
And it should come as no surprise that most of the books I read were Young Adult.
Number of DNF's: 15
Number of books rated five stars: 51
Number of books rated one or two stars: 42
Number of female authors read: 193
Number of male authors read: 43

Best in Books

1. Best Book You Read In 2015?

Yeah, this question isn't hard at all. I'm not even going to try to narrow this down because it's too cruel.

2. Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t?

A Whole New World by Liz Braswell
I had such high hopes for this one, but it was a major disappointment. 

3. Book You “Pushed” The Most People To Read?

Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan and Black Iris by Leah Raeder
4. Best series you started in 2015? Best Sequel of 2015? Best Series Ender of 2015?

I could probably answer every single question with one series: Lunar Chronicles. But let me try to spread some love to other series I loved this year.

Best series I started - A Court of Thorn and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
Best sequel - The Rose Society by Marie Lu
Best series ender - Winter by Marissa Meyer
5. Favorite new author you discovered in 2015?

Courtney Summers and Marissa Meyer, without a doubt. I discovered many, many wonderful authors this year, but I would devour anything written by these two women. I did make it a point to read every single book that Courtney Summers has ever written this year and I loved every one.

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

The entire Lunar Chronicles series!
7. Book You Read In 2015 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year?

I don't reread many books, but if I had to choose one, it would be The Princess Bride by William Goldman.
I can't believe I didn't read this one until this year. It is just as good as the movie!

8. Most beautifully written book read in 2015?

Made You Up by Francesca Zappia probably isn't the most beautiful book I read this year, but it is one of them. This is just my attempt to spread the love to a book I haven't mentioned yet in this post.
9. Most Thought-Provoking/ Life-Changing Book of 2015?

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

10. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2015 to finally read? 

There were several, but my favorite was Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. This one is now one of my favorite classics!
1. Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2015?
12. Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2015?

Longest: Winter by Marissa Meyer (824 pages)
Shortest: Bob's Burgers Comic Books (32 pages)

13. OTP OF THE YEAR (you will go down with this ship!)
(OTP = one true pairing if you aren’t familiar)

Every single romance in The Lunar Chronicles series was amazing, but my favorite OTP was Cress and Thorne.
14. Favorite Non-Romantic Relationship Of The Year

Ollie and Moritz from Because You'll Never Meet Me by Leah Thomas
The friendship between these two boys wasn't perfect, but it was adorable and charming and I loved these characters.

15. Favorite Book You Read in 2015 From An Author You’ve Read Previously

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
16. Best Book You Read In 2015 That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else/Peer Pressure:

First of all, I will read pretty much anything that Shannon @ It Starts At Midnight loves. It's eerie how we can have opinions that are so similar about so many books (both good and bad). If she loves it, I know I will. There have been many books that I added to my TBR based solely on her reviews.

I did read Alice and The Fly by James Rice solely because of a review written by Cait @ Paper Fury. I was supposed to be on a book buying ban, but I ended up buying this book immediately upon reading her review.
Worth it.

17. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2015?

Thorne from The Lunar Chronicles series . . . I freaking love him so much!

18. Book That Put A Smile On Your Face/Was The Most FUN To Read?

Simon vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
This book was crazy cute and adorable. I had a smile on my face the entire time I was reading it!

19. Book That Made You Cry Or Nearly Cry in 2015?

There were several books that made me cry this year. These are my favorites.
20. Hidden Gem Of The Year?

The one that I don't think received nearly enough love was Skyscraping by Cordelia Jensen.
This book was incredibly beautiful and very powerful.

21. Book That Crushed Your Soul?

All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven
I was devastated at the end of this one.

22. Book That Made You The Most Mad (doesn’t necessarily mean you didn’t like it)?

All The Rage by Courtney Summers
This book was incredibly powerful and emotional and so raw. I was furious with so many of the characters and how they treated Romy after her rape. The title is very appropriate.

Your Blogging/Bookish Life

1. New favorite book blog you discovered in 2015?

I discovered so many wonderful blogs and bloggers this year! My favorites are Shannon @ It Starts At Midnight (I swear, we are book twinsies!!), Cait @ Paper Fury, Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction and Grace @ Rebel Mommy Book Blog.

2. Favorite review that you wrote in 2015?

My review of Black Iris by Leah Raeder, mainly because it's one of my favorite books that I read this year.

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

I wrote a great discussion post on letting certain hangups around blogging go.

4. Most Popular Post This Year On Your Blog (whether it be by comments or views)?

My book review of The Wild Oats Project by Robin Rinaldi (this one was a bit of a surprise)

5. Post You Wished Got A Little More Love?

Any of my discussion posts!


Looking Ahead

1. One Book You Didn’t Get To In 2015 But Will Be Your Number 1 Priority in 2016?

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
I have heard nothing but rave reviews about this one and I just purchased it! I will be starting it any day now.

2. Book You Are Most Anticipating For 2016 (non-debut)?

Front Lines by Michael Grant
This is a new series by the author of one of my favorite series ever (Gone). It is a historical fiction book that reimagines WWII where women are eligible for the draft. I am practically salivating over this one.

3. 2016 Debut You Are Most Anticipating?

The Love That Split The World by Emily Henry

I am already hearing great things about this one.

4. Series Ending/A Sequel You Are Most Anticipating in 2016?

There are so many, but the one I am most looking forward to is A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas. The release date for this one just happens to be my birthday. Great present, huh?
5. A 2016 Release You’ve Already Read & Recommend To Everyone

This Is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp
This was such a powerful book!

And don't forget about my one year blogaversary giveaway! It is international. You can win any book that I have reviewed since starting the blog, as well as a $25 Amazon gift card. You still have three more days to enter!



I hope you enjoyed my survey! Tell me something about your books read this year! What was your favorite book? How many books did you read? What was your most read genre? Or answer any of these questions in the comments section! And if you did a tag yourself, feel free to leave the link so I can pay a visit.




26 comments :

  1. Wow so happy to listed with those other amazing bloggers (who I also love). We have a couple of the same answers! Also glad to see books make you cry too. I am always a mess. I can't wait to read This is Where it Ends . I have heard nothing but great things. Fun survey!!

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    1. Grace, I was happy to include you because I really do love your blog. And I trust your reviews completely. I hope you love This is where it ends. It was such an emotional book. Emotional and very powerful.

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  2. I totally agree with so many of your choices for 2016! A Whole New World was exactly the same for me. I went in with such excitement and just had to close the book and walk away. Good luck with your reading 2016 goals! :)

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    1. Thanks so much Candid Cover! I think a lot of people were disappointed with A Whole New World. It's so sad because the premise had so much promise.

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  3. I am jealous of your reading skills :o I'd never be able to read that much in a year!

    I've never read The Princess Bride but I have it. I'll make it a priority in 2016 :D And I will never be over The Book Thief.

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    1. Amber, this was a very good year for me. The fact that I was able to read so much may be because I don't have a job right noes. :) Oh you should read The Princess Bride. It was as good as the movie and I love the movie!

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  4. Great survey! I may borrow it for a rainy (or rather, snowy) day!

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  5. I've heard great things about Illuminae too, so I'll be checking it out soon! And I just bought All the Bright Places, so I guess I'll get my tissues? And I have Cinder on my Kindle, so I will get to that as well. SO MANY BOOKS SO LITTLE TIME.

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    1. Vlora, I just finished Illuminae and it was SO AMAZING!!! I would highly recommend that one. And OMG, The Lunar Chronicles series is the best series ever. And yes, come with tissues while reading All the bright places. I know what you mean about there being so many books. There are still so many books from 2015 that I own, but haven't read yet. D'oh!

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  6. Great survey! I had no idea there was a Bobs Burgers comic book!!! I need to find it immediately. All the Bright Places tore me apart too, I was sobbing like a baby by the end of it. Enjoy all these books in the coming year :)

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    1. Thanks Courtney Ann! I don't usually read comics, but I absolutely love the Bob's Burgers tv show. The comics are crazy funny, so I think you will love them.

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  7. All The Lunar Chronicles! Forever & ever! :)
    I hope you enjoy Illuminae! It really is amazing. Such an immersive reading experience and so creative.

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    1. Sarah, I just finished Illuminae and it was CRAZY AMAZING!!! It was a roller coaster of emotion and I just adored it. I cannot wait for the sequel!

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  8. WOW 239 books?!!! That is amazing! And even though you say you read an overwhelming amount of YA books, you still read a really good amount of adult books in my opinion. The Lunar Chronicles is my favourite series of all time now and I read them all in 2015 as well. I cannot stop recommending that series and I'm so happy that you loved it too. I also really, really loved Two Boys Kissing! It's just such an important book and I hope you continue to push that one :)
    Jenna @ Happy Indulgence

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    1. Thanks Jenna! YA is still my favorite, but I have been trying to branch out and read outside my comfort zone. I read more adult books than I thought I did. I will NEVER stop pushing Two Boys Kissing. It is now on my list of favorite books ever and I may need to reread it in 2016.

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  9. -sigh- I think I lost my comment. I'm lazy, so just know I enjoyed the post. lol

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  10. I loved Two Boys Kissing and Black Iris. Some of your books made my top ten's for 2015. What a fantastic reading year you had Cynthia! I hope 2016 rocks and Illuminae was so friggin fantastic!

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    1. Thanks so much Kimba! Yes, I just finished Illuminae it was CRAZY AMAZING!!! I am so freaking in love with that book!

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  11. Wow you read an incredible amount! I think I'd have to stay home for a year and do nothing but read to hit that mark! I've only read Cinder from the Lunar Chronicles, but since they're all out now I'll probably binge read the rest sometime this year haha.

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    1. Bahahaha Patty. I have always been a very fast reader. Also, I am unemployed so that helps! I really hope you read all of The Lunar Chronicles soon. It such an amazing series!!

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  12. I started a comment on this post about 10 times, and damn it, I am going to finish it! My computer restarted once, then Chrome froze, then I had run out of time and it ate my comment... the struggle is real. ANYWAY, we are twinsies. Like, 99% of the time. Because otherwise, if we say always, we will be jinxed or something awful. And YAY for Alice and the Fly! I have that one, completely because of your and Cait's love for it! And the thing I love the most is that all the books on here that I haven't read and you loved I WANT to read, so there's a pretty solid chance it'll work out well! YES to TLTSTW. I recommend, of course :D

    And the quote from Two Boys Kissing is so, so beautiful, I adore it! But holy crap, 239 books?! HOW?! I just... jaw on floor, is the situation. Also, I need to make you a blog button so I can add you to my blogroll. It makes me so sad that you are not there. That was just a random sidenote and has nothing to do with anything that happened in your year.

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    1. Shannon, yes I have no doubt that you will love all the books on this list!! I am waiting for the day when we don't agree on a book. It's bound to happen, right? Your survey was the same way. The books you loved were ones I had either read and loved too or ones that I wanted to read. Any book that you mentioned in your survey automatically got moved up in my TBR . . . except for the ones you were disappointed in. I'll just skip those. :) And yeah, 239 books is a record for sure. I have always been a super fast reader, but I think that being unemployed has allowed me to read even more than I normally do. Also, no kids, so that helps. I would be so honored to be added to your blogroll. Your blog is my favorite!!

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  13. Arg! I bought Skyscraping but I never read it! I suck! I do wish that book had gotten a little more coverage.

    I am so happy you loved Minnow Bly. That was a wonderful book. I can't even express how much I adored that novel.

    And you used charts for your survey! I love it! I am publishing my stats next week and I am so excited, I can't even stand it!! <3

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    1. Lyn, oh I hope you read Skyscraping soon. It was so emotional and so powerful. I think you will love it. And I can't wait to see some of your answers for the survey as well!

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