Mid-Year Book Freak Out Tag: 2019 Edition! (Exposing Myself for All the Rereading I’ve Done This Year)

I’m shocked we’re halfway through 2019 already??

I honestly can’t tell how I’m feeling about the year (depression has completely numbed my mind!!!) but I definitely will say that I was NOT prepared to be halfway done with it already.

Thank you so much to Marie @ Drizzle and Hurricane Books for tagging me to do this! I love doing this tag every year, because I will freak out about books any day of the year, even though this time around I’m just embarrassing myself with my ratio of rereads to non-rereads. (I didn’t allow this!! Why did I do this to myself!!!)

All covers link to their Goodreads page! Note that I chose not to do all the questions.

GENERAL

• Read books: 42
  • Reread books: 11
  • Webcomics: 7
• Average rating: 4.02
• Average rating without rereads: 3.87

(These average ratings are like, pretty high. I’ve been rating books lower recently, though, and I think that’s going to continue, so my average rating will go down—3.7 has been my average for 2017 and 2018. I love slumping!!!)

1. best book you’ve read so far this year

I’m sure this will be a VERY popular answer, but this has to go to Red, White & Royal Blue. This book was just… so perfectly written, in all the ways? The writing itself was amazing (especially the HUMOR), the story and plotline were so entertaining, the characters were phenomenal and literally my favorites, and the themes and messages were tactfully written as well.

And also!!! The romance!!!!! It’s super cute, but also just beautiful, and so meaningful in many different ways. Overall, the book just leaves you feeling so much happier and full of hope and I absolutely loved it.

2. new release you haven’t read yet, but want to

     

I meant to read IWYATB and Sunny St. James for Pride, but my library holds expired when I (or more correctly, my mom, since I can’t drive) didn’t pick them up on time, and I didn’t get to check them out. I own With the Fire on High and I have heard the most amazing things about it, and The Grief Keeper seems the exact type of book I would adore!!

3. most anticipated release for the second half of the year

Am I really expected to put just one answer for this?

     

These are all books I’m completely willing to pay money to buy if I don’t get an ARC of them, because I am just SO EXCITED FOR THEM. I actually got an ARC of GOSAS just yesterday (AND I AM STILL SCREAMING!!!), and my friend Julianna might be able to send me her copy of Wilder Girls, but I’m definitely going to have to preorder Ninth House and Gideon the Ninth (and honestly? I am OKAY WITH THAT).

As for other books I’m excited for but probably won’t actually buy because I’m broke:

     

I love Marie Lu and her books, and I absolutely adore the Legend trilogy. You have know idea how much I SCREAMED when I found out there would be a book 4!! Slay features Black characters in a video game world, which sounds amazing, and A River of Royal Blood features North African characters and magic and assassins and also a gorgeous cover!! And Crier’s War is f/f fantasy. I don’t have to say anything more.

4. biggest disappointment

We Contain Multitudes is 100% my biggest disappointment! I finished it very recently and was just… really sad about how much it let me down. I actually, FOR ONCE IN MY LIFE, wrote a review for it (so you can click on the title to hear my full thoughts!!) but basically, the romance was just full of a lot of yikes things and overall it was a very boring book. I rated it 1.5 stars!

5. biggest surprise

Oh, this one DEFINITELY goes to We Hunt the Flame. In the beginning of the book, I was bored out of my mind and had zero motivation to pick it up and keep reading (I literally fell asleep reading it multiple times), and I was convinced I was just going to hate the book by the end. Instead, I started really enjoying it and ended up having a lot of fun with it? (The shocking plot twists helped as well.) I’m super glad I actually enjoyed it, though, especially considering I was a part of the street team for it!

6. favorite new author

Oh, Casey McQuiston for sure! I’m super excited for her next book (which is f/f!!) and I can’t wait to read more of their work. I think their writing style/voice is super appealing to me, and I really do believe she’s going to grow to be an ultimate favorite of mine.

7. book that made you cry

Here are the three books I cried over (not including rereads, because then I would have to list another three books and this is embarrassing enough).

   

Fun fact: I completely forgot about King of Scars until I looked at my Goodreads shelves (even though I full on sobbed and made this hilarious Goodreads update).

   

And here are the ones that made me tear up!! I actually would have full on cried reading Ivy Aberdeen if I hadn’t been at school and therefore did not want to expose myself for having actual emotions.

8. book that made you happy

It’s truly a bad sign that I can’t really choose any of the books I read this year for this question, because all of them are just… full of pain to some degree?? But I CAN talk about some of my favorite webcomics, because webcomics just make me so happy, especially the ones I read!!

 

• Heir’s Game: I LOVED this author’s other webcomic, Shoot Around, and this one is just so much fun to read updates for because the characters are just absolute dumb gays and it’s hilarious.
• Castle Swimmer: This webcomic is literally so!! cute!!! There’s one character in particular (Kappa) that I’m in love with, because each time I see him, my heart just melts!!

9. favorite review you’ve written

We are… not going to talk about the abysmally low number of reviews I’ve written this year, okay? I have a limited selection to choose from, but I think my favorite review has to be one I already mentioned, for We Contain Multitudes. It’s the only non-ARC review I’ve written in like, forever, and I think it’s pretty well-written. (Not my MOST well-written but I think I discussed the issues really clearly!)

10. most beautiful book you’ve bought so far this year (or received)

     

Okay, I’m putting Spin the Dawn here for its absolutely GORGEOUS cover (I’m in love with it and also in love with Maia on the cover). Then there’s King of Scars, not for its great cover (I don’t despise it but it’s not my favorite) but for it’s beautiful naked hardcover! And finally, With the Fire On High for both its gorgeous cover AND gorgeous naked hardcover!!! (I’m actually working on a drawing over the girl on the cover and it’s very fun.)

11. what books do you need to read by the end of the year?

I definitely want to read all the anticipated releases I mentioned by the end of 2019, but here are also some other books I want to (re)read as well:

     

I need to reread the Legend series to prepare for Rebel (and prepare for the pain that inevitably comes with every Marie Lu book). I should have read Descendant LONG LONG AGO, considering I was on the street team and got an eARC, and I also should have read Astonishing LONG LONG AGO considering it was one of my most anticipated last year and I actually got an ARC!! And of course, my year wouldn’t be complete without yearly tradition of rereading of Six of Crows (with this rat).

12. favorite book community member

I’m not going to be answering this one, because I’ll be posting my nominations for the 2019 Book Blogger Awards in the coming weeks!! But I’m just taking this opportunity to remind you all that there are officially 3 weeks left for you to submit your nominations for it! Check out the post linked for more information.

I’ve also made an update to how you can nominate bloggers: If you’re anxious about excluding bloggers by having to nominate them publicly, you can submit nominations through this google form! If you are able to write your nominations post, I would truly prefer that, to boost and promote bloggers as much as possible, but I understand that anxiety can get the best of us and I wanted to accommodate for those people!

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have you done this tag yet?? (if you haven’t and want to, I officially tag you!!) what are your favorite books of the year so far? any least favorites? and how many books have you reread this year, if any??