End of Year Book Survey 2014

I stumbled across this survey over at The Perpetual Page Turner, and thought it would be a fun way of reflecting on the past year in terms of books and blogging. You can see my full list of books I read this year here!

Number Of Books You Read: 56
Number Of Re-Reads: 0
Genre You Read The Most From: Romance

BEST IN BOOKS

Best book you read in 2014?
It's a toss up between The Illusionists and The Night Circus (you can view my full top ten here). Both are amazing, but as The Illusionists was actually published this year I'll go with that one. It's brilliant.


Book you were excited about and thought you were going to love more but didn't?
Park Lane. The plot is right up my street, but something about the writing just didn't grab me like it ought to have done. It is still a good book though!


Book you “pushed” the most people to read (and they did) in 2014?
I don't tend to push people to read books, especially as my close friends and family have such different tastes to me when it comes to books. Although I did make my Mum read The Vintage Girl, who loved it so much that she passed it onto my Grandma!

Favorite new author you discovered in 2014?
Hester Browne. The Vintage Girl was just brilliant.


Best book from a genre you don’t typically read/was out of your comfort zone?
The Secret Place by Tana French. I won it in a Goodreads giveaway and it is something I would never have usually picked to read.

Most unputdownable book of the year?
The Secret Place. It's full of suspense from the very first page and I just couldn't put it down! 


Favourite cover of a book you read in 2014?
Once Upon a Masquerade by Tamara Hughes. The book itself is brilliant too, a twist on Cinderella! 


Most memorable character of 2014?
Rosie the Elephant. I love it when books have animals as actual characters, and she is one of the best.


Most beautifully written book read in 2014?
How to Build a Girl by Caitlin Moran. The subject matter might be tough but the way it is written is just wonderful. For a first novel I was very impressed!

Most thought-provoking/ life-changing book of 2014?
Again I have to say How to Build a Girl. The 'girl' may well have been six years younger than me, but I could really relate to her and her struggle to find her place in the world.


Book you can’t believe you waited until 2014 to finally read? 
The Time Traveler's Wife. I'd seen and loved the film but the size of the novel put me off a bit. It was even better than I had expected, and I was surprised at how quickly I got through it.


Shortest & longest book you read in 2014?
Longest is probably The Time Traveler's Wife, no idea on the shortest!

Favorite book you read in 2014 from an author you’ve read previously?
Oddly enough all bar one of the books I read this year were by new-to-me authors. Ice Cream at Carrington's by Alexandra Brown is a great summer read!


Best book you read in 2014 that you read based on a recommendation from somebody else?
I had heard great things about The Edge of Never, and I wasn't disappointed. Just stunning.


Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2014?
Too many to list! I'd marry Sean from The Oyster Catcher, but in terms of hotness Devil Wix from The Illusionists definitely wins. With a name like that he had to really!

Best 2014 debut you read?
The Oyster Catcher by Jo Thomas. It has been described as a 'runaway' Kindle bestseller, and it's easy to see why.

  
Best worldbuilding/most vivid setting you read this year?
The imagery and description in The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern is just incredible.


Book that put a smile on your face?
I've read a fair bit of historical romance this year - call it my guilty pleasure. Corny they may be, but they never fail to raise a smile, and I really loved The Twelfth Night Wager by Regan Walker. 




Book that made you cry or nearly cry in 2014?
None this year! It's not that I'm unemotional, I just don't read sad books!

Hidden gem of the year?
Season of Light by Katharine McMahon. Think Pride and Prejudice meets The French Revolution.


29. Most unique book you read in 2014?
The Night Circus. There's nothing else like it.

30. Book that made you the most mad?
Any and all the books I read that ended on cliffhangers!


YOUR BLOGGING/BOOKISH LIFE

New favorite book blog you discovered in 2014? 
All the blogs that I follow are my favourites. Cop out answer but it's true!

Favorite review that you wrote in 2014? 
The Illusionists. I loved the book so much that I put a lot of effort into the review, and I'm quite proud of it.

Best discussion/non-review post you had on your blog?
I don't do many of these kind of posts, but I enjoyed the Personality Test: Which Fictional Characters Are You Most Like? I found my results really interesting too!

Best event that you participated in (author signings, festivals, virtual events, memes, etc.)?
Volunteering at Cheltenham Literature Festival was one of my highlights of this year. Working at events and signings with authors and celebrities was so much fun! Very long hours but I enjoyed every second!


Best moment of bookish/blogging life in 2014?
Being accepted onto Bookbridgr. I was so excited when I got the acceptance email. 

Best bookish discover (book related sites, book stores, etc.)?
Definitely Bookbridgr. Great discovery for me, not so good for my tbr pile!

 
Did you complete any reading challenges or goals that you had set for yourself at the beginning of this year? 
I just fell short of my Goodreads Challenge of reading 60 books, although my initial target was 30 until I upped it so I technically completed it...

...So that's my year in books all wrapped up - here's to another year of reading! Please do leave links to your lists, I'm really interested to read them!

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