Mid-Year Book Freak Out Tag

It’s a little past the middle of the year now, but I was recently tagged in the Mid-Year Book Freak Out Tag, and I thought it looked like a lot of fun (it also gives me the opportunity to rave about the books I’ve loved so far this year, which is also fab). I was tagged by Annike and Zoe over at Twin Tales (go and read there tag here!), so thank you very much!

1. Best book you’ve read so far in 2017?

This is a nightmare of a question – how can I be expected to pick one book, when I have a list of about ten? I think what I’ll have to do, is pick my most recently-read favourite, and that is 1984 by George Orwell. I read this last week, and was absolutely blown away. I also feel like this is a book I will be rereading a lot, as there is just so much to it, and the story is so complex.

2. Best Sequel You’ve Read So Far in 2017?

This is an easy answer: The Sleeping Prince by Melinda Salisbury. I read The Sin Eater’s Daughter in 2016, but really fell in love with this trilogy at the beginning of this year. The second and third books in this series are so stunning, and I could hardly bring myself to put them down!

3. New Release You Haven’t Read Yet, But Want To?

So many. Too many, in fact. Just a few are When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon, The State of Grace by Rachael Lucas, The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli – the list is endless. Above all, however, I am desperate to read Lord of Shadows by Cassandra Clare; I’m so annoyed with myself for not having read this yet, and I know that when I do, it’s going to leave me an emotional wreck.

4. Most Anticipated Release For Second Half of 2017?

I am not hugely up-to-date on upcoming releases, but one I have heard quite a lot about is They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera. This book comes out in September, and the plot just sounds really unique and intriguing (I have never read anything by Adam Silvera before, so that should also be interesting)!

5. Biggest Disappointment?

I’d say the biggest disappointment of this year is definitely Ink by Alice Broadway. I thought the plot of this book sounded really amazing (plus the cover is completely gorgeous), but when I finally read this book I was disappointed. I didn’t hate this book, or even dislike it, but I was expecting something mind-blowing, and it was just a bit average. In my opinion, anyway – I know lots of people did enjoy this book.

6. Biggest Surprise?

The biggest surprise for me has been a book that I am still currently reading – Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. Now, I knew that I most likely would enjoy this book, but I didn’t expect to love it so much in the way that I do. I love the writing, I love the story, I love the characters; I’ve been struggling to put this book down!

7. Favourite New Author (Debut or New To You)?

I have discovered so many amazing authors in 2017, but one that I have not mentioned yet it Oscar Wilde. I’ve read two of his works this year – An Ideal Husband and The Picture of Dorian Gray, and I loved both of them. I think his writing style is very distinctive, and I am looking forward to reading more of his works!

8. Newest Fictional Crush?

I think I have two new fictional crushes from this year – the first is Merek from the TSED trilogy, and the second is Julian from Caraval. These two characters are quite different (Julian’s character has that shrouded-in-mystery heartthrob kinda vibe, and Merek grew on me throughout the three books), but I love them both.

9. Newest Favourite Character?

Most definitely Starr from The Hate U Give. I don’t see how I could choose anyone else. Starr is such a strong, complex, and amazingly written character, and as the narrator of the story, I really think Starr has a huge part to play in making The Hate U Give the utterly mind-blowing book that it is.

10. Book That Made You Cry?

I have not cried at any book I’ve read so far this year – I know, I’m heartless. I think the last book that made me cry may have been Alegiant by Veronica Roth, and that was quite a few years ago. The book that made me the most emotional was definitely Flight of a Starling by Lisa Heathfield; I felt quite sad for a little while after I finished it.

11. Book That Made You Happy?

A book that has made me happy this year is definitely Truth or Dare by Non Pratt. This book really blew me away, and as well as there being a lot of suspense and angst in this book, it is also completely adorable. Every time I put this book down, I picked it up again almost straight away (maybe not such a great thing when studying for exams, but oh well); this is just a really lovely book!

12. Favourite Book To Movie Adaptation You Saw This Year?

I’ll be honest – I have found a lot of the book to movie adaptations I’ve watched this year to be a little disappointing (for example, 13 Reasons Why and Before I Fall). I have, however, been enjoying The Handmaid’s Tale on Channel 4. Although the TV show seems to be moving in a different direction to the book, I think it has been very well done, and I frequently recommend it to other people.

13. Favourite Review You’ve Written This Year?

I think I have two favourites out of the reviews I’ve written this year: Release by Patrick Ness, simply because it was a very detailed review, and I was quite proud of it. I also really like my review of The Winner’s Curse by Marie Rutkoski, because it is the only rant-review I have done on my blog (this book frustrated me a lot), and it was lots of fun to write!

14. Most Beautiful Book You Bought or Received So Far This Year?

I would have to choose Caraval by Stephanie Garber for this. The cover of this book was the first thing to catch my attention, and gave me a lot of motivation to buy it (fortunately, the contents of this book is just as stunning)!

15. What Books Do You Need To Read By The End of The Year?

Again: too many. Aside from the books I mentioned in question 3, there are a bunch of classics I want to read (which I will make a blog post about shortly), as well as books for YALC, books for my Beat the Backlist Challenge, and just generally all the books I keep buying because I have no self-restraint. So yeah. Lots and lots of books.

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There were quite a lot of questions to get through, so thank you for reading all the way to here – I would love to know your opinions on any of my answers! I hope my reading in the second half of 2017 is as successful as the first!

I tag:

• Grace from Almost Amazing Grace
• Jess from Bookends And Endings
• Bex from Books With Bex
• Emily from A Cup of Wittea
• Eve from Twist in the Taile
• Breeny from Breeny’s Books
• Kate from Reading Through Infinity
• Liv from Liv’s Wonderful Escape