2018: A Year in Review

I enjoyed answering Jamie's (The Perpetual Page Turner) End of the Year Survey in past years and decided to join in again this year.  I did alter some of the questions and subtracted a few to make it my own.


**2018 READING STATS**

Some Fun Meaningless 2018 Reading Statistics:

Number Of Books Read: 60 (not including children's books I read with my daughter)

Genre Read The Most From:

(Some of what I read falls under more than one genre. Here, I count them under the genre I most identified with the book, Also of note, my categorization of each book by sub-genre using broad definitions).

Crime Fiction - 18

• 10 Cozies (6 paranormal, 2 comtemptorary, 2 historical)
• 7 Thrillers
• 1 Romance

Fantasy/Science Fiction - 18

• 6 Science Fiction/Fantasy Cross-Genre (1 children's)
• 4 Urban Fantasy
• 3 Fantasy Romance/YA
• 2 Children's
• 2 Romance
• 1 Dark Fantasy

Fiction - 10

• 6 Historical Fiction
• 2 Contemporary Fiction (Literary, Women's, General)
• 2 Classics

Romance - 8

• 5 Fantasy Romance
• 2 Historical
• 1 Contemporary

Nonfiction - 3

• 1 Science
• 1 Graphic Memoir (YA)
• 1 Memoir

Poetry - 2

Horror - 1

Of the book I read, 3 were audio books, 7 were print copies (hardcover or paperback), and 49 were e-books.

8 of the 60 books I read in 2018 were written by men.
48 of the 60 books I read were written by women.
4 of  the 60 were written by both male and female writers.

26 of the books I read in 2018 were written in 3rd person point of view.
33 of the books I read were written in 1st person.
1 of the books I read was a mixture of both 1st and 3rd person.

Months I Finished the Most Books: January & July (8 each)

Best In Books

1. Favorite Reads in 2018?

I did not give out many 5 paw ratings in 2018, although several books came close. I ended up with two in particular that did earn my highest rating. This means a book has a combination of good writing, well-developed characters, a memorable setting or world-building, an entertaining or thought provoking story, and one that brings out an array of my emotions.

Jane Steele by Lyndsay Faye

The Wretched (Original Title: Les Misérables)  by Victor Hugo

Close Runner Up:

The Impossible Girl by Lydia Kang

2. Second Chance Books Or Authors That Did Well In a Later Attempt?

War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy ~ I ended up enjoying quite a bit despite numerous attempts to start it before.

3. Best series I started in 2018? 

Ilona Andrews' Innkeeper Chronicles won me over with the first book, Clean Sweep, and I read the next two books in the series, Sweep in Peace and One Fell Sweep, right on its heels. It has become one of my favorites.

I cannot help but mention Seanan McGuire's Ghost Roads series, which also became a fast favorite. I read both Sparrow Hill Road and The Girl in the Green Silk Gown  in 2018 and enjoyed them immensely!


4. Best Sequel of 2018?

This is really the second in the series, but I cannot help but give mention to it given how much I loved it: Scandal Above Stairs by Jennifer Ashley. I adore Kat Holloway and cannot get enough of her.


5. Best Book You Read In 2018 That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else: 

Thanks to my Postal Mail Group (which is sadly no more), I got the chance to read The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henríquez, which, although written a couple years ago, remains timely still.

6. Favorite Authors I Discovered in 2018?

I read a number of new-to-me authors whose books I enjoyed, but these in particular stood out this past year for me.  

Lyndsay Faye
Beatriz Williams
Sabrina Jeffries
Lynn Messina
Lydia Kang
Seanan McGuire
Jennifer David Hesse
Grace Draven
Amanda Lovelace
Carol J. Perry


7. "Old" Favorite Authors Whose Books I Thoroughly Enjoyed in 2018: 

Ilona Andrews
Anne Bishop
Genevieve Cogman
Jennifer Ashley
Jill Shalvis
Susan Elia MacNeal
Karen E. Olson
Juliette Cross
Victoria Gilbert
Hazel Gaynor

8. Most Memorable Character?

This is a tough one to answer this year. Jane Steele immediately comes to mind. The tie  to Jane Eyre may help some, but she really is a character that stands on her own. As much as her life may mirror that of dear Jane Eyre, Jane Steele is very much her own character.

Rose Marshall of Sparrow Hill Road and The Girl in the Green Silk Gown by Seanan McGuire is not a character I will soon forget. A ghost who travels the roads of America, her reputation, however, distorted, proceeds her.


9. Author or Series I Binged On This Year?

A couple actually. I binged read Ilona Andrews' Innkeeper Chronicles as well as Jennifer David Hesse's Wiccan Wheel Mystery Series. 

10. Top Five Favorite Covers of Books I Read in 2018?

 

A Brazen Curiosity by Lynn Messina

The Diving Pool  by Yōko Ogawa

The Girl From the Savoy by Hazel Gaynor

The Storm King by Brendan Duffy

Pressed to Death  (Perfectly Proper Paranormal Museum #2) by Kirsten Weiss

11. Book I Can’t Believe I Waited Until 2018 to Finally Read?

The Prime Minister's Secret Agent by Susan Elia MacNeal. I have liked past books in the series, but let it get away from me. Spending time with Maggie Hope again was such a pleasure. I still have some catching up to do, and look forward to doing so. 

I finally read Marked in Flesh by Anne Bishop. It probably comes as a big surprise to those who know me that I am not caught up with the Others books. This is one of my all-time favorite series, and yet I keep putting off reading the more recent books. What is wrong with me?!

12. Shortest Book I Read in 2018? 

Tales of the Fae by L.J. Hamlin came in at 35 pages, the book being made up of three short stories.

13.  Longest Book I Read In 2018?

Les Misérables by Victor Hugo (1433 pages) beat out Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace (1298 pages), which I also read this year. 

14. Book That Put A Smile On My Face/Was The Most FUN To Read/Listen To?

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by Frank L. Baum was such a delight to listen to. I actually listened to it twice this year, the first time on my own, and the second on the drive to my in-laws with my family Thanksgiving Day.

15. Hidden Gem Of The Year?

A Brazen Curiosity by Lynn Messina is a short novel, but fully realized. It is the start of a series I am looking forward to following up on. Set in Regency England, bookish and mousy Bea is the last person you would expect to solve a murder, but she manages just that.

16. Book That Crushed Your Soul?

I am a known crier. I often take the books I read to heart, growing attached to the characters and feeling their pain and joys all too well. The book that shook me the most this year and had me crying that ugly cry was Victor Hugo's Les Misérables. And even though I knew the story so well before reading the book in its entirety. 

I would love to know what your favorite reads of 2018 were! Please share a link to your favorite's list below if you posted one--or just tell me in the comments. Did we read any of the same books? If so, what did you think?

My Blogging Bookish Life

I published 170 blog posts. January was my most prolific month with 25 posts, and July was my slowest with only 7 posts.

In 2018, I continued to take part in Michelle's My TBR List Meme at Because Reading, enlisting your help in choosing one book each month to read. I really enjoyed having you take an active part in selecting what I would read. It can be difficult to choose on my own with so many choices. You wouldn't believe the amount of time I can waste in deciding. Or maybe you can . . . I am grateful to Michelle for coming up with the idea. I plan to continue to participate in the meme in 2019, and hope you will join me! 

Books Read Because Of You (My TBR List Poll Winners of 2018):

• January: Wicked Lovely  by Melissa Marr
• February:Marked in Flesh by Anne Bishop
• March: The Storm King by Brendan Duffy
• April: The Girl From the Savoy by Hazel Gaynor
• May: A Murder for the Books (Blue Ridge Library Mysteries #1) by Victoria Gilbert
• June: Bring Me Their Hearts(#1) by Sara Wolf
• July: Did not participate
• August: The King Slayer (Witch Hunter, #2)  by Virginia Boecker
• September:  Jane Steele by Lyndsay Faye
• October: Magic Slays (Kate Daniels, #5) by Ilona Andrews
• November: Bells, Spells, and Murder by Carol J. Perry
• December: Christmas by Gaslight by Mimi Matthews & A Brazen Curiosity by Lynn Messina

My Reading Goals for 2018 Were:

1. Read more Classics ~ I read three classics this year. Not much in the way of progress, I am afraid.

2. Read Les Misérables by Victor Hugo ~ I did it! One of my favorite books of 2018.

3. Read War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy ~ I gave myself a big pat on the back the day I finished this one.

4. Catch up with my NetGalley/Edelweiss reading ~ SI don’t want to talk about it.

5. Read more of my older TBR books ~ This will forever be a goal, I think.

6. Catch up on at least two favorite series ~ I did not manage this one, but I did start and got caught up in a new one or two this past year.

7. Increase the number of audio books I listen to ~ I ended up going in the opposite direction and only listened to two. I also canceled my Audible subscription. I have quite a few in my "library" that I should focus on, I think. And there's always the library.

8. Read more chapter books with my daughter ~ We did do this, although I was not the best at keeping track. My daughter still prefers picture books, but she’s also really likes the idea of tackling those chapter books.

9. Read more poetry ~ Toward the end of the year, I did make time to feature a couple of poetry books in my new feature Poetry Corner. I hope to continue this in the New Year.

10. Reading Challenges ~ I want to complete the reading challenges I signed up for to my satisfaction.

• #COYER Winter Switch Challenge ~ I did fairly well with this challenge, I thought. It was a lot of fun as COYER always is!
• What's In a Name Challenge ~ I made the decision about mid-way through the year to drop the challenges I had signed up for at the beginning of the year. It was not meant to be.
• The Grand World of Books' Book Bingo 2018 ~ See above.
• Unruly Reader Book Bingo ~ Same as above.
• 2018 Discussion Post Challenge ~ Yeah, I let this one go too.
• 2018 Blog All About It Challenge ~ And this one.
• Witches and Witchcraft Reading Challenge ~ I read 20 books that qualify for this challenge, although I forgot to label all of them as such and did not link them to the challenge. I am really bad about following through with that.

What a year two thousand eighteen was! It may not have been my most stellar reading year in terms of numbers (60 books total; 90 if you go by Goodreads in which I added in a few of the books my daughter and I read together—when I remembered). I had a lot of big reading and blogging plans going into this past year. I started a bullet journal, which fizzled out after about 4 months. I gave up on most of my reading challenges, deciding they were too constricting at this time in my life. And yet I stuck with my two year-long read-alongs, finishing both Les Misérables and War and Peace.

On the personal front, I threw myself into the life of a dance/theater mom (I’m a work in progress) and work was, well work. I do like my job, but it takes a lot out of me most days. There was also Girl Scouts. I gave up my co-leadership role when our original troop broke up last spring, but Mouse and I still remain active in our new troop. There were health issues, both our own and within our extended families. My house needs a good dusting, but my cats are happy and well fed. My daughter seems to be too.

The country, and even the world, is still a mess. Thank goodness for books. Whether to help us maneuver through each day, guiding and teaching us, helping us understand, or giving us the tools and resources we need to make change. Or even if to help us completely escape into another person’s life or world for just a little while.

Given this past year’s reading challenge progress (or lack thereof), I am forgoing any reading challenges this year. Who knows though. Maybe down the road one will pique my interest.


2019 Reading Goals (many of which are the same as this past year):

1. Read more Classics.

2. Catch up with my NetGalley/Edelweiss reading.

3. Read more of my older TBR books.

4. Be better about recording in Goodreads the Children’s books I read with my daughter.

5. Read more poetry (and feature more on my blog)

6. Make more time for reading in general.

How did your past year shape up? Did you accomplish your reading and blogging goals? Have you set any for the new year?


Thank you to all of you for your visits and comments this past year. It means so much to me. As my blog turns 13 this coming year, I cannot be more proud to be a part of this wonderful community of book bloggers. I have enjoyed visiting with you and look forward to seeing what this year will bring us, both in books and in life. I hope you all have a very Happy New Year! 

First book of 2019: This Side of Murder by Anna Lee Huber

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