2014 end of year book survey

Like many other book bloggers, I'm jumping on the bandwagon and completing the end of year survey put out by the lovely Jamie over at The Perpetual Page Turner! (And I've pinched those category headers from her because they're just so preeeeeeeeetty)

I'm not really going to say a whole lot on this subject, because I'm going to be doing an entire post on this very subject in a couple of days. Because I tracked a bunch of different things over 2014, and I found it pretty interesting. So...yeah. Entire post. For now, I'll give you the absolute basics, as per Jamie's survey.

Number Of Books You Read: 275
Number of Re-Reads: 104
Genre You Read The Most From: Contemporary (69 books)

1. Best Book You Read In 2014?
Easily Heir of Fire. Easily.

2. Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn't?
Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy by Helen Fielding. WHY WAS THIS NECESSARY??? Literally nothing about this book was necessary... Also Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn. So many people raved about this, and I was just...on the struggle bus. Sigh.

3. Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read in 2014?
Dangerous Girls by Abigail Haas. Holy wow.

4. Book You "Pushed" The Most People To Read (And They Did) In 2014?
It's a tie between the Wilfair series by Alysia Gray Painter, and the Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas. Surprisingly, several people read both based on my recommendations. #librarianFTW

5. Best series you started in 2014? Best Sequel of 2014? Best Series Ender of 2014?
THRONE OF GLASS. HEIR OF FIRE. FAIRWIL. Too easy.

6. Favourite new author you discovered in 2014?
Sarah J. Maas. Seriously, this entirely survey is turning into a Sarah J. Maas worshipping session, but I just adored every single one of her books.

7. Best book from a genre you don’t typically read/was out of your comfort zone?
The Enemy by Charlie Higson. I can't deal with zombie books as a general rule - and this one was no exception as evidenced by the fact that I woke up at 3am on my birthday from zombie-themed nightmares - but this one was INCREDIBLE. You know, provided I read it during daylight hours...

8. Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year?
Heir of Fire was the most action-packed. Fairwil was the one that I couldn't put down and kept having to email Alysia asking her to send me more of it #betareaderproblems

9. Book You Read In 2014 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year?
Fairwil. Like I said, I beta read it, so I still haven't seen the finished version. But I'm waiting until the Kindle version comes out so that I can highlight my little heart out. If we're talking about books I haven't already mentioned, then it's probably Amy and Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson. Fabulousness.

10. Favourite cover of a book you read in 2014?

It's just so preeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeetty, you guys...

11. Most memorable character of 2014?
Celaena Sardothian. James Mycroft from Ellie Marney's Every Word. And Clariel from Garth Nix's Clariel.

12. Most beautifully written book read in 2014?
It's a tie between Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, and Brown Girl Dreaming, both of which were stunning.

13. Most Thought-Provoking/ Life-Changing Book of 2014?
This may sound a little trite, but it's Terry Pratchett's Monstrous Regiment. I'd read it before and had a very "yeah, yeah. Typical Pratchett" reaction to it. But upon reread, it's pretty much non-stop female empowerment. And once I'd started seeing it in that way, I couldn't stop.

14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2014 to finally read?
Morris Gleitzman's Once series. Absolutely amazing.

15. Favourite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2014?
"She was the heir of ash and fire, and she would bow to no one." - Heir of Fire, Sarah J. Maas
"If someone had taken
that book out of my hand
said, You're too old for this
maybe
I'd never have believed
that someone who looked like me
could be in the pages of the book
that someone who looked like me
had a story." - Brown Girl Dreaming, Jacqueline Woodson
"We all fight our own private wars" - Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, Benjamin Alire Saenz
"I was suddenly awash with the magical feeling adjacent to love. It’s the emotion you experience when two people you care about connect in their own way, outside of your sphere, and you no longer have to coax them because they've found the particular friendship road they’re going to walk together." - Fairwil, Alysia Gray Painter (the beta'ed version, anyway)

16.Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2014?
Just One Night (novella) - Gail Forman, 40 pages.
Our Mutual Friend - Charles Dickens, 900 pages.

17. Book That Shocked You The Most
(Because of a plot twist, character death, left you hanging with your mouth wide open, etc.)
Definitely Dangerous Girls. That was one hell of a twist, and I definitely didn't see it coming.

18. OTP OF THE YEAR (you will go down with this ship!)
Fair Finley and Gomery Overbove, forever and always. Honourable mention to Rachel Watts and James Mycroft, holy hell.

19. Favourite Non-Romantic Relationship Of The Year
Fair Finley and Monty Overbove. BrOTP, yo. And the friendship between Beth and Jennifer in Rainbow Rowell's Attachments.

20. Favourite Book You Read in 2014 From An Author You've Read Previously
Waistcoats & Weaponry by Gail Carriger. I've loved all her books, but this one made me squee with excitement because my ship is finally sailing.

21. Best Book You Read In 2014 That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else/Peer Pressure:
Morris Gleitzman's Once series. My boss recommended them to me for months, and then basically snatched them out of the hands of a small child and thrust them at me with orders to read them immediately.

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2014?
James Mycroft from Ellie Marney's Every Breath. Totally and utterly messed up, but I just want to squish him. Also Henry Crosby from Morgan Matson's Second Chance Summer, because he's ridiculously sweet and also smells like cupcakes.

23. Best 2014 debut you read?
Solitaire by Alice Oseman. Pretty damned fabulous, especially if you spend too much of your life on the internet. Although also likely to cause feelings of inadequacy because the author is twenty and wrote the book when she was seventeen hahahahahaha ohgodkillmenow.

24. Best Worldbuilding/Most Vivid Setting You Read This Year?
Probably Sarah J. Maas' Throne of Glass books. Although Robin LaFever's His Fair Assassin trilogy is pretty close behind.

25. Book That Put A Smile On Your Face/Was The Most FUN To Read?
Fairwil by Alysia Gray Painter. Said smiles were shipping-induced. Other than that, anything by Terry Pratchett is always an absolute blast to read.

26. Book That Made You Cry Or Nearly Cry in 2014?
What, just one?? I think the one that caused the ugliest cry session was Morgan Matson's Second Chance Summer. I did NOT read the blurb before I started it, and that was a big mistake (although the book was excellent). Morris Gleitzman's After. And Katie McGarry's Pushing the Limits. They're probably the big three. Fairwil caused happy crying because I was thrilled about what happened but didn't want it to be over.

27. Hidden Gem Of The Year?
Brandy Colbert's Pointe. I don't think I know anyone who's read it, and it was absolutely phenomenal, in a "I might have to go and throw up now because this is so nerve-wracking" kind of a way.

28. Book That Crushed Your Soul?
I'm not sure that any books really crushed my soul in 2014. Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick was pretty close though (WHY ARE THEY MAKING A MOVIE OF THIS HORRIBLY DEPRESSING BOOK??????????).

Unless we're talking soul crushing as in "WHY DOES THIS BOOK NEVER END OH MY GOD MAKE IT END", in which case it's a tie between Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn, and Scott Lynch's The Lies of Locke Lamora, both of which nearly killed me (sorry, Ashlea and Angie...)

29. Most Unique Book You Read In 2014?
Fairwil. Always and forever.

30. Book That Made You The Most Mad (doesn't necessarily mean you didn't like it)?
Any of the books in the True Believers series by Erin McCarthy. Those books were just...the worst. Also The Selection by Kiera Cass, which made me rage so hard that I created a hashtag on Twitter (#stupidbookisstupid)

1. New favourite book blog you discovered in 2014?
Paper Fury, formerly Notebook Sisters. I'm FAIRLY sure that I discovered Cait in 2014, but if not, I'm counting the fact that she changed her blog name and address and stuff as it being a new blog. Therefore, it totally counts.

2. Favourite review that you wrote in 2014?
Totally not one that I published on the blog, but I think my favourite review of 2014 was the (fairly scathing) review I wrote about The Selection on Goodreads.

3. Best discussion/non-review post you had on your blog?
Oh God, that's a really hard question. I don't know that it was the BEST, but this one about female characters that I think are better off not in relationships was one of my favourites.

4. Best event that you participated in (author signings, festivals, virtual events, memes, etc.)?
I've loved doing Top Ten Tuesday, and I really enjoyed Bout of Books, although it did leave me feeling a little burnt out!

5. Best moment of bookish/blogging life in 2014?
When Alysia asked me if I wanted to read Fairwil. Because obviously.

7. Most Popular Post This Year On Your Blog (whether it be by comments or views)?
The post that got the most views is apparently my post about The Book Thief movie, which somehow has like 3000 views more than anything else.

8. Post You Wished Got A Little More Love?
Any of the posts I've written so far about my trip to Europe.

9. Best bookish discovery (book related sites, book stores, etc.)?
Probably the Australian YA Bloggers and Readers group on Goodreads. I've met some fabulous people through that group.

10.  Did you complete any reading challenges or goals that you had set for yourself at the beginning of this year?
I set myself a Goodreads goal of 175 books this year. I had to up that to 200 in the middle of the year. Then to 250. Then to 275. And I scraped in by the skin of my teeth with about an hour left of New Year's Eve. Phew!

1. One Book You Didn't Get To In 2014 But Will Be Your Number 1 Priority in 2015?
I've already crossed it off my list, and it was Claudia Gray's A Thousand Pieces of You. And it was as fabulous as I thought it would be.

2. Book You Are Most Anticipating For 2015 (non-debut)?
Probably Libba Bray's Lair of Dreams. Because that freaking book has been tormenting me with its constantly moving release date ever since I finished The Diviners. IN TWO THOUSAND AND TWELVE.

3. 2015 Debut You Are Most Anticipating?
I.W. Gregorio's None of the Above sounds really interesting, and I can't wait to see how it compares to Alyssa Brugman's Alex As Well, which I just finished. (IDK, you guys. I never seem to know if things are a debut or not...)

4. Series Ending/A Sequel You Are Most Anticipating in 2015?
THE NEW THRONE OF GLASS BOOK. WHICH STILL DOESN'T HAVE A TITLE. Also Marissa Meyer's Winter. And Gail Carriger's Manners & Mutiny. And Ellie Marney's Every Move.

5. One Thing You Hope To Accomplish Or Do In Your Reading/Blogging Life In 2015?
Okay, this is one that I'm actually going to go ahead and answer tomorrow, because I have an entire project that I want to complete this year, and I think it's pretty damned cool. So you'll just have to wait until tomorrow for details!

6. A 2015 Release You've Already Read & Recommend To Everyone:
FAIRWIL. Have I mentioned Fairwil enough times yet? Because seriously. Fairwil.

Just go read Fairwil, okay?

K xx

Best of 2014 - TV edition

I've already talked about books and movies, so now let's talk about the TV shows I discovered this year and promptly began binge-watching, because obviously nothing I started watching was a brand new, currently airing, wait-a-week-between-episodes sort of a thing.

Orange Is The New Black

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Holy hell, this show is solid gold awesome. Though Piper is ostensibly the main character, she's also possibly the least interesting (besides Larry. Go die in a fire, Larry). The multitude of supporting characters are all deep and nuanced and well developed and funny and generally fascinating, and it's just SO FREAKING GOOD WHY AREN'T YOU WATCHING IT YOU SHOULD GO WATCH IT. Literally my only gripe (besides the existence of Larry, who's the actual worst) is that the theme song - while fabulous - goes for far too long. Ain't nobody got time to sit through a theme song that goes for over a minute...

The Office

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I know, I know. I'm totally late to the party on this one. And yes, we're talking about the US version. I'd always meant to watch it, I was just...putting it off because I'd seen some of the UK version and hated Ricky Gervais so much that I had to turn it off after about 10 minutes. Plus, I'm not a fan of Steve Carrell, so I was hesitant to watch like a million episodes of a show starring him. But then I saw the CPR clip on Tumblr and was like "OH MY GOD I NEED TO WATCH THIS SHOW IMMEDIATELY".

And so I go hold of season 1. And the second Jim looked longingly at Pam, I was like "Well, shit..." because I was firmly on the shipper train. It only took me a few months to get through the entire show, and it was fabulous. Sure, some seasons were rougher than others, and in those seasons, it was basically only Pam and Jim that kept me watching. But the finale was literally everything I ever wanted from a finale.

Friday Night Lights

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I'm only up to season 2 of this, because EVERYONE wants to watch it and Quickflix only has a couple of sets of it on DVD for the whole of Australia (or at least that's what I suspect) so I haven't seen it in several months, but it's pretty damned great. I was on the "why the hell am I watching a show about American football??" train for the first half a dozen episodes, but once it became less about football and more about the town, I was sold.

Criminal Minds

I don't care that the quality is terrible, this scene was AMAZING.
Source.

This one is totally Ashlea's fault, and I take great delight in blaming her when I freak myself out. Considering it's essentially a show in which they hunt down murderers and rapists and psychopaths over and over again, you'd think it would feel formulaic and repetitive after a while. But I'm half way through season 3, and NOPE. Still great. The characters are all fabulous and have well developed backstories and specific reasons behind why they ended up in such a horrific line of work, and Garcia will always and forever be my favourite because she's amazing.

The 100

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I honestly can't decide where I stand on this show. On the one hand, it has AMAZING female characters and it's really compelling viewing, and I love the idea of what's basically teenage Lost. But on the other hand, I have SO MANY ISSUES WITH IT. I mean, for starters the population size makes literally zero sense. And how the hell did they get water to keep the Ark running all those years? And wow this is really colonialist and kind of icky and oh my God please stop torturing people for information and why does everyone ship Clarke and Bellamy they're both horrible people and CHARLOTTE OH MY GOD NO STOP.

So I love it. But it makes me ranty. But it's so stinking good, and I have to know what happens and did I mention Octavia Biggest BAMF On The Planet Blake? Yeah... Plus, I tweeted about not liking Bellamy, and the writers retweeted it and that's basically my 15 minutes of internet fame right there.

I also watched Bitten and Siberia this year, but they haven't stuck in my mind quite as much as these ones have, though they were definitely worth the watch!

What shows have you discovered this year?

K xx

Movie Monday - Veronica Mars

Okay, so the VMars movie has been out for just over a week now, which seems a sufficient length of time for us to talk about our thoughts, yes? Still, I'm going to stick things below a jump cut for the sake of anyone who still hasn't had a chance to see it. YOU'RE WELCOME, SLACKERS.

The Great J.K. Rowling Debacle

As you're probably already aware, over the weekend a new interview with J.K. Rowling hit the media. And as you're probably already aware, this interview included some rather...opinion dividing news...about how things ended up in Harry Potter.

Yes, they're fictional characters and we shouldn't be getting so worked up about them. But at the same time, these are the characters that shaped our childhoods, our teen years, our twenties. Characters that we grew up with. Characters that we love and relate to. So we can't help but take it personally when the creator of these characters announces - seven years after the fact - that she thinks she made a mistake with one of the major relationships.

Obviously, the fandom immediately erupted. With joy from those who sail with the good ship Pumpkin Pie, and with anger/disappointment/WTF DID YOU DO, ROWLING feels from those on Team Romione.

I've been thinking about it a lot following my initial outrage, and I think I've managed to finally sum up my feelings about why I find this so enormously disappointing.

1. It implies that the only two people Hermione could ever be with are two guys she hung out with in high school.
Yes, the Golden Trio went through a lot together, so it's understandable that they'd be friends forever. What DOESN'T automatically follow is that Hermione - the one who goes back to Hogwarts to finish her education, the one who ends up with a career that needs further education, the one who dated a world class quidditch player - will never find anyone more suited to her than her two best friends from high school. Furthermore, why does she have to end up with ANYONE?! She saved their arses a million times, and influenced millions of girls all over the world. Why did her entire story have to be turned into this?

2. It doesn't just damage the contents of the epilogue. It damages the entire series. 
The epilogue was, let's be honest, pretty bad. Rowling started to drop hints about the future relationship between Ron and Hermione at the same time that she started to drop hints about the future relationship between Harry and Ginny - in Chamber of Secrets. So by saying that Hermione should end up with Harry after we sat through FIVE BOOKS building up completely different relationships? Not. Okay.

3. Ron's "not smart enough" for Hermione.
For all that he's the Chosen One, Harry's not much smarter than Ron. By saying that Ron's not smart enough, Rowling is effectively forgetting everything she wrote about the character. Sure, Ron's not the most academic of characters. Not don't forget that he destroyed a Horcrux. He was Gryffindor's keeper for two years. He became an Auror. HE BEAT MINERVA MCGONAGALL'S CHESS SET WHEN HE WAS TWELVE. Intelligence isn't limited to exam results, Rowling.

4. It once again makes Ron the forgotten Weasley.
Ron's at the bottom of the pile as far as Weasley children go. Bill and Charlie are the cool, popular successful ones. Percy's a pretentious arsehole, but he's still brainy as hell. Fred and George are the jokers, the ones who are always getting into trouble but who everyone loves just the same. Ginny's the long awaited girl. And Ron's the Other One. The sidekick. The one who, in the movies, is reduced to a punchline. By saying that she wishes that once again the hero had gotten the girl, Ron's back at the bottom as nothing more than an afterthought.

5. It turns the entire series into a love triangle. 
Okay, so the actual books don't really feature typical love triangle content. But knowing the the author has gone from being on board with the canon she created to shipping? You can't avoid the feeling that the two best friends are locked in a battle over a girl. You inevitably read into every conversation, every touch between Harry and Hermione. Joanne, dude. Go write pseudonymous fan fiction to deal with your feels and leave canon alone.

6. What does this mean for Ginny? And for Ron?
It's one thing to say that you wish Harry and Hermione had ended up together. But by saying that, you leave fans wondering about the others. Does Ron spend the rest of his life in a tragic bachelor apartment? Does Ginny - the famous quidditch player - end up married or does she have a string of boyfriends and never settle down? Providing a single line statement like that does more damage than good.

7. It impacts future enjoyment of the series.
Sure, you can ignore the interview all you want. It's true - the interview doesn't change what happens in the books. But you're still going to have that niggling doubt in the back of your mind whenever you read or watch the series that the creator wishes she could retcon the entire thing. It damages our entire history with the series to know that she regrets what she wrote.

8. Of all the things she could possibly regret, it's THAT?!
Not making Neville and Luna canon. Killing Fred. Killing Tonks AND Lupin. Snape being an enormous bully. Not giving us more Marauder's Era stories. ALBUS SEVERUS. These are things that should be regretted. Romione is nothing compared to these things.

9. Leave us alone, Mel Brooks! 
Sure, Joanne, regret your decisions all you want. That's your prerogative, it really is. You created the characters, you can absolutely regret the way things panned out. Just stop telling people about them. Because that rips the fun out of things for everyone. Even the Pumpkin Pie shippers, because now they're all going to be disappointed that you DIDN'T write the story you wish you had every time they read it.

Do you agree? Disagree? Or are you just jumping with joy because the good ship Pumpkin Pie sails again??

K xx