A big thank you to fellow book blogger and proliffic reader, Babus from Ajoobacats Blog for tagging me in this fun tag reflecting on the books I’ve read so far this year!
Let’s get started.
#Best Book You’ve Read Yet in 2016
That’s a toughie. There have been so many! I’m going to go with All Things Cease to Appear (Riverrun, 2016) by Elizabeth Brundage. I loved it for its sinister, Gothic tone and immersive story. It reminded me of Patricia Highsmith and Shirley Jackson’s novels. I also made a little post featuring a few of my other standout reads for the first half of the year.
#Best Sequel You’ve Read So Far in 2016
Full confession: I’m a reluctant series reader. Always have been. I reckon Harry Potter is one of the few series I’ve ever made it through. So, uh, I haven’t read any sequels this year. However, I picked up Sylvain Neuvel’s Sleeping Giants (Penguin UK, 2016) not realising it was the first in the Themis Files series, and really enjoyed it, so I’ll definitely check out book two when it’s available. I’m also really looking forward to Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff’s Gemina (The Illuminae Files #2).
#New Release You Haven’t Read Yet But Want To
It’s not super new, but I’m really keen to read The Glorious Heresies (Hodder & Stoughton, 2015) by Lisa McInerney, which won the 2016 Baileys Prize.
#Most Anticipated Release for the Second Half of the Year
Oh, there are so many!! Top of the list is Hannah Kent’s second novel The Good People (Oct. 2016), followed closely by Clementine Ford’s Fight Like a Girl (Allen & Unwin, Oct. 2016). Seriously, hurry up, October!! (There are no covers out for these two yet, or I’d show ’em!)
Also, John Ajvide Lindqvist’s latest novel I Am Behind You (Text, 2016) has *just* been released in Australia and I’m excited/terrified to see what he has in store this time. His earlier novel, Let the Right One In (Quercus, 2004), is one of my all-time favourite horror reads.
I’m also excited for Marcus Sedgwick’s Mister Memory (Hachette, Jul. 2016). My ARC arrived today and it’s taking all my willpower to resist diving straight in.
#Biggest Disappointment
Another tricky one. I’ve been lucky so far this year in picking books I’ve really enjoyed. I think my biggest disappointment has been Brigid Kemmerer’s Thicker Than Water (Allen & Unwin, Jan. 2016). It starts out as this really fun YA paranormal romance thriller (yup, that’s a thing) and the writing is excellent, but then the two protagonists end up in this icky Twilight-esque relatonship and there are some big questions around consent and free will that made for uncomfortable reading.
#Biggest Surprise
This one’s easy. The Bricks That Built the Houses (Bloomsbury, 2016) by Kate Tempest. I had no expectations going in and this book completely blew my hair back. I hadn’t heard of Tempest before I read TBTBtH, but she’s the most incredible spoken word poet and I’m now completely obsessed with her.
#Favourite New Author
Emma Cline. Oh. My God. Her debut novel The Girls (Random House, Jun. 2016) is scary-brilliant. Review coming soon!
#Newest Fictional Crush
Hmmm… I don’t think I have one right now!
#Newest Favorite Character
Judith Rashleigh from L. S. Hilton’s Maestra (Allen & Unwin 2016). She’s so much fun: manipulative, calculating and out for revenge.
#Book That Made You Cry
Hanya Yanagihara’s A Little Life (Picador, 2015). This book hurt my soul.
#Book That Made You Happy
Kirsty Eagar’s Summer Skin (Allen & Unwin, 2016). This book put a HUGE smile on my face! I mean, finally, a feminist love story that’s smart, steamy and damn good fun.
#Favorite Book to Film Adaptation
I think The Revenant (2002) by Michale Punke is the only book to film adaptation I’ve read so far this year. I loved the film, but the book is waaaay more historically accurate.
#Favorite Post You Have Done This Year
My Book Blogging Basics series! Lectito turned one last month and I celebrated with four posts sharing some of the tips and tricks I picked up in my first year of book blogging:
- Part 1: Building a solid base
- Part 2: Nailing your content
- Part 3: Getting social
- Part 4: Innovating and Expanding
#Most Beautiful Book You’ve Bought This Year
Aesthetically? Robert Dessaix’s memoir What Days Are For (Vintage, 2014). The cover is just stunning and Robert was kind enough to sign my copy at Adelaide Writers’ Week earlier this year. But I haven’t read it yet! I’m saving this one for Christmas when I can take my time reading it with no distractions.
#What Books Do You Need to Read by the End of the Year
*Need* is probably too strong a word, but the list is growing daily! I’d love to stop time for a good decade or so and just catch up on the hundreds and hundreds of books I want to read.
Well, that was fun! I tag the following bloggers to do the same:
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