Tag: Book Tag

The Valentine’s Day Book Tag| 2019 Edition

Hello everybody! Today, given what day it is, I decidèed to do the Valentine’s Day Book Tag that Amy tagged me for last year, which was created by Taiwo at Stuffed Shelves. Onto the post!

1. What book(s) have you been given as a gift that you loved?

There’s been quite a few over the years, but one I especially rememeber is Stardust and the Daredevil Ponies. I got it for Christmas, and it sparked my love of the Pony Club Secrets series, which was my favourite as a child.

2. What book(s) would you like to give as a gift to someone else?

Ooh I’m not sure; it would really depend on the person! If it was just a random pass on a book thing, I think it’d probably be Boy in the Tower, because I can’t imagine anyone who wouldn’t enjoy at least one thing about it regardless of their taste. Some of my other favourites are more subjective and perfect for my tastes, but Boy in the Tower isn’t something in a genre I typically favour and I LOVED it.

3. If you could gift a random person any bookish item, what would it be?

I’d probably go for a Hogwarts house mug (depending on which they were in/I thought they’d be in!). There aren’t many people who don’t like Harry Potter!

4. If you could gift a random person any non-bookish item, what would it be?

DVDs are a go to gift for me! I base which one on the person’s taste, of course, but they’re fairly easy to get hold of and you can find something for just about anyone!

5. What do you say when a person gives you a gift you don’t like?

Thank you, I guess, and try and be grateful. Then I’d either donate it to charity or regift it to someone I think would like it.

6. Mention a book based around Valentine’s Day.

I don’t actually think I’ve ever read one? I do quite enjoy reading romance though, so please do recommend me one if you’ve heard of any!

7. Mention any two tips for blogging as a gift to other bloggers and to those who may want to start a blog.

Despite the fact I have been blogging for almost two years, I still feel very underqualified to answer this, but I’ll try!

-Don’t do things you don’t want to do, or feel pressure to write certain kinds of posts. Be selfish. Cater your content to yourself, and hopefully others will enjoy it too. For example, I used to despise writing book hauls, and so I stopped doing them. I used to feel really guilty for it but now I really don’t!

-Scheduling is your friend, and I highly recommend planning out all of your posts and trying to get them written and scheduled in before the day you want the post to go up. Even if you only hit schedule the night before you want the post to publish, it makes it much easier to have regular posts on your blog (which can be helpful for building a following)

But also, disregard these completely if they don’t fit with what you want to do! My absolute best advice is just to be yourself and do whatever you want, basically!

8. Link to some posts by other bloggers that you loved or were very helpful

I won’t link to any specific posts/people as I would be sure to forget someine and then feel like a crumb for doing So! I really enjoy reading all of the blogs I follow, but if you’d like to see some specific people who I have read books because of, you can have a look at this post. A type of post I particularly like is anticipated books posts for each month, as things often come onto my radar because of them!

What are your thoughts on these books? Are any on your TBR/wishlist? I’d love to hear in the comments!

Amy x

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The Totally Should Have Book Tag

Hello everybody! Today, I’m going to be doing the Totally Should Have tag, which I found on Charlotte’s blog. Onto the post!

1. Totally should have gotten a sequel

I would really like a sequel to the Eye of the North by Sinéad O’ Hart, and I really wish Brightstorm had been a series too! I’m very excited to read their respective authors’ new standalones though.

2. Totally should have had a spin-off series

Ooh this is hard. I’d quite like a spin off series about the Junior Pinkertons from Murder Most Unladylike, I think.

3. An author who totally should write more books

I desperately need more upper MG from Lari Don and Polly Ho-Yen!

4. A character who totally should have ended up with someone else

I honestly can’t think of anyone. I guess I’m pretty lucky with ships…

5. Totally should have ended differently

The only thing I can think of is How to Bee. I didn’t hate the ending, but I found it very confusing and it didn’t fit the book, in my opinion.

6. Totally should have had a movie franchise

I would love for Nevermoor/Wundersmith to be adapted! But only if they were done faithfully and fantastically, obvs.

7. Totally should have had a TV Show

The Murder Most Unladylike books would work really well as TV shows. You could have a mini series of 3 or 4 for each book!

8. Totally should have only had one point of view

I’d keep two viewpoints of this (Blanca and Roja’s), but it could have done without Yearling and Page’s to be honest. They were really confusing at the beginning!

9. Totally should have a cover change

The Summer of Telling Tales has a horrible cover that definitely doesn’t fit the tone of the book, and it really deserves a better cover design!

10. Totally should’ve kept the original covers

Ooh this is hard! It was never actually printed because it got changed pre-release, but I much preferred the original cover of Paper Avalanche. I’m still very much looking forward to reading it, but I don’t like the new one very much at all!

11. Totally should’ve stopped at book one

While I did like Lou Out of Luck, it wasn’t a patch on Girl Out of Water and so I kind of wish it had just been left as a standalone…

Do you have any thoughts on the books I’ve mentioned? Are any on your TBR, or do you want to read any now? I’d love to hear in the comments!

Amy x

The End of Year Reading Survey | 2018 Edition

Hello everybody! Today, I’m going to be doing the Perpetual Page Turner’s Annual End of the Year Reading Survey, even though we’re now almost a full month into the new year. This is mostly because I was more than a bit intimidated by the sheer length of this tag, and as such dithered about whether or not I was going to do it for a REALLY long time. Shout out to Charlotte for finally getting me to just do it! Onto the post!

2018 READING STATS

Number Of Books You Read: 159 (I initially thought this was 160, which is a nice, round number but alas I was wrong because I cannot do maths.)

Number of Re-Reads: 2

Genre You Read The Most From: I haven’t actually counted, but I’m pretty sure it’s fantasy.

BEST IN BOOKS

1. Best Book You Read In 2018?

It’s a tie between When the Mountains Roared and the Children of Castle Rock, and has been since April.

2. Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t?

I had very high hopes for the Lost Magician by Piers Torday, because I LOVE the Last Wild books but it was such a letdown for me. I don’t think I’m going to continue on in the series, but I’ll probably continue to give anything else he writes a try.

3. Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read?

I was so surprised by how much I loved Children of Castle Rock. I really like everything else I’ve read from the author, but I loved this book so much.

4. Book You “Pushed” The Most People To Read (And They Did)?

I got several people really into the Murder Most Unladylike books this year.

5. Best series you started in 2018? Best Sequel of 2018? Best Series Ender of 2018?

I read several amazing series starters, but I think my very favourite was Ellen Renner’s Storm Witch. Best sequel would be either Alex Sparrow and the Furry Fury or the Elsewhere Emporium. Best conclusion would definitely be Battle of the Beetles.

6. Favorite new author you discovered in 2018?

I’ve only read one of her books, but I think it’d be Matilda Woods if this means an author who’s had books out other years that I’ve never never read anything from.

7. Best book from a genre you don’t typically read/was out of your comfort zone?

I don’t read very many YA fantasies set totally in a fantasy world, but I really enjoyed State of Sorrow.

8. Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year?

The Elephant Thief was totally unputdownable. I was so worried about the characters.

9. Book You Read In 2018 That You Would Be MOST Likely To Re-Read Next Year?

Probably When the Mountains Roared.

10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2018?

Ooh this is so tricky! There are so many stunning covers out there. I think my very favourite belongs to Wild Folk.

11. Most memorable character of 2018?

I feel like I actually know Daisy and Hazel from the Murder Most Unladylike books personally, so them. But Cara from the Year After You if I’m picking a new to me character. Or Sami from the Eleventh Trade if I’m picking a new to me character that I’ve not mentioned elsewhere in this tag.

12. Most beautifully written book read in 2018?

Ooh there are so many I could say for this! Since I’ve mentioned most of them more than once already, I think I’ll go for When We Collided by Emery Lord.

13. Most Thought-Provoking/ Life-Changing Book of 2018?

I found Are We All Lemmings and Snowflakes really thought provoking- it discusses some really interesting ideas.

14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2018 to finally read

To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, or maybe Under Rose Tainted Skies!

15. Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2018?

The passage where you first meet Fergus properly in the Children of Castle Rock.

16.Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2018?

According to Goodreads, the Mystery of Me was the shortest and State of Sorrow was the longest. I really enjoyed both.

17. Book That Shocked You The Most

The twists in Beyond the Odyssey were mind-bending, and definitely shocked me.

18. OTP OF THE YEAR (you will go down with this ship!)

Up till December, it would have been Finch and Hector from Flying Tips for Flightless Birds, but Cara and Hector from the Year After You stole it at the last minute.

19. Favorite Non-Romantic Relationship Of The Year

I think this has to be the friendship between the main group in either the Children of Castle Rock or the one between the young explorers in Explorers on Witch Mountain.

20. Favorite Book You Read in 2018 From An Author You’ve Read Previously

Both my ultimate favourites of the year were by authors I’d read previously.

21. Best Book You Read In 2018 That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else/Peer Pressure/Bookstagram, Etc

I would never have picked the Elephant Thief up if Louise hadn’t told me it was brilliant.

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2018?

Matt from Open Road Summer. A singer-songwriter who’s caring and compassionate and romantic? Be still my beating heart.

23. Best 2018 debut you read?

I think this has to be Sophie Anderson’s the House with Chicken Legs. It’s such a unique and compelling book.

24. Best Worldbuilding/Most Vivid Setting You Read This Year?

Most vivid setting definitely goes to Jess Butterworth for When the Mountains Roared, though another great one was Katherine Woodfine’s Paris in Peril in Paris. I think my favourite fantasy worldbuilding was A Darkness of Dragons or Storm Witch, because those were both exceptionally well done.

25. Book That Put A Smile On Your Face/Was The Most FUN To Read?

The Children of Castle Rock was a joy to read.

26. Book That Made You Cry Or Nearly Cry in 2018?

I used to think I wasn’t a big crier at books but talking about what I read more since I started blogging has taught me that I cry at basically everything. I think When the Mountains Roared made me cry most though.

27. Hidden Gem Of The Year?

I really wish a Darkness of Dragons got a bit more love, because it’s so good and I only know of about two other people who’ve read it.

28. Book That Crushed Your Soul?

Fierce Fragile Hearts crushed my heart at numerous points, and then put it back together. So did the Year After You, but I’ve already made my love for that very clear, I think!

29. Most Unique Book You Read In 2018?

I know everyone has said Floored for this and I really did try to come up with something else, but Floored. You can’t get much more unique than a book written by seven of UKYA’s biggest stars, can you?

30. Book That Made You The Most Mad (doesn’t necessarily mean you didn’t like it)?

I remember being livid while reading the Buried Crown on behalf of both George, darling Spud the dog and Kitty because some of the people in their town were vile to them.

YOUR BOOKISH/BLOGGING LIFE

1. New favorite book blog/Bookstagram/Youtube channel you discovered in 2018?

Because I am indecisive, I have numerous answers to this. I don’t really follow many bookstagram accounts, so I’ll leave that out. My favourite new blogs I’ve started reading are Alyce’s and Rachael’s. I share a lot of opinions with both of them, and I’ve really enjoyed reading their content and interacting with them since I found their blogs. For booktube, I’ve absolutely been loving Books and Lala!

2. Favorite post you wrote in 2018?

I think it has to be my review of Staying at Tamara’s, because both George Ezra and this album mean a lot to me. My top 3 has completely changed bar one song, but I still stand by all the gushy things I said about it.

3. Favorite bookish related photo you took in 2018?

I love this one of Shimmy and Sami’s Silver Lining, and one I can’t find except on my Instagram of Saffy holding the Midnight Hour.

4. Best bookish event that you participated in (author signings, festivals, virtual events, etc.)?

I loved MG Chat, which Jess ran on Twitter last year. I really wish I’d managed to make it to more.

5. Best moment of bookish/blogging life in 2018?

Winning my UKYABA was a pretty special moment. I had been out at a birthday party and came home to discover I’d won Best Teen, and promptly burst into tears.

6. Most challenging thing about blogging or your reading life this year?

My health was pretty bad in 2018, and I’m so proud that I managed to keep blogging and reading through what was a pretty difficult year.

7. Most Popular Post This Year On Your Blog (whether it be by comments or views)?

My reviews post for November/December 2017, though I’m not quite sure why!

8. Post You Wished Got A Little More Love?

I wrote a post about how much I love Geek Girl, and I really wish it had done a little better because it was one of my favourite posts of the whole year.

9. Best bookish discovery (book related sites, book stores, etc.)?

I honestly don’t really know for this one? The only book related sites I read are blogs, and I’ve already covered those.

10. Did you complete any reading challenges or goals that you had set for yourself at the beginning of this year?

The short answer to this is kind of. I completed most of them, and I’m not too fussed about the ones I didn’t because I did other things that I’m happier about than I would have been meeting my original targets. If you’d like to hear more about my goals, you can read the whole post I did about it here.

LOOKING AHEAD

1. One Book You Didn’t Get To In 2018 But Will Be Your Number 1 Priority in 2019?

There are so many, but I especially need to stop putting off reading the Frozen Telescope. I’m not going to tie myself down to reading it this month or in any given month, but I really do need to pick it up.

2. Book You Are Most Anticipating For 2019 (non-debut)?

When We Were Warriors by Emma Carroll for MG and Happy Girl Lucky by Holly Smale for YA. Also Jemima Small Vs the Universe by Tamsin Winter.

3. 2019 Debut You Are Most Anticipating?

I am looking forward to lots, but A Pocketful of Stars by Aisha Bushby is one I’m especially excited for, and a few others I’m particularly excited about are High Rise Mystery

4. Series Ending/A Sequel You Are Most Anticipating in 2019?

Ooh there are lots. I think it would have to be Against All Gods for series ending, but another I’m very highly anticipating is James Nicol’s A Witch Comes True. For sequel, I think it has to be Unleashed by Amy Alward because the ending of Jinxed was exceptional! And A Girl Called Shameless, because I have been waiting on it for SO long.

5. One Thing You Hope To Accomplish Or Do In Your Reading/Blogging Life In 2019?

I have mentioned this before I think, but my main goal for 2019 generally is to enjoy it as much as possible and as such I don’t really have any concrete reading or blogging goals for this year except for my Goodreads. Basically, I hope to read a lot of really excellent books and have a lot of fun talking about them!!

6. A 2019 Release You’ve Already Read & Recommend To Everyone (if applicable)

I’ve read and really enjoyed several, but I think the one I’ve recommended to most people is the Year After You by Nina de Pass. It’s phenomenal and I fully intend to continue mentioning it all the time in 2019.

What do you think of the books I’ve mentioned here? What are your bookish plans for 2019? I’d love to hear in the comments!
Amy x

The New Year’s Resolutions Book Tag

Hello everybody! Today, I’m going to be doing the New Year’s Resolutions Book Tag, which I’ve had saved since last year when I got tagged by Jenn. Onto the post!

1. An Author You’d Like To Read That You’ve Never Read

Ooh I’m not sure for this one! I’m sure I’ll be picking up quite a few debuts throughout the year. A few I’ll be reading pretty soon (or may have read already, by the time this goes up!) are The Secret Starling and Asha and the Spirit Bird.

2. A Book You’d Like To Read

Well, I’m hoping to read quite a lot of books, but I take it this means a 2019 release? If so, my most anticipated in the next few months is probably When We Were Warriors by Emma Carroll or Happy Girl Lucky by Holly Smale.

3. A Classic You’d Like To Read

I definitely need to go for Charlotte, Sometimes here! I got it for Christmas, and it sounds great. Im especially excited about it since one friend has been recommending it for ages, and it’s very like the blog name of another, which always makes me smile.

4. A Book You’d Like To Re-Read

I don’t have anything specific planned, but I’ll hopefully get the chance to reread a few favourites over the course of the year!

5. A Book You’ve Had For Ages and Want To Read

I’ve owned lots of books for ages that I want to get to. Maybe For the Record by Ellie Irving? I’ve owned it for quite a few years, and given how much I’ve enjoyed Most of her other books I really should pick it up.

6. A Big Book You’d Like To Read

The Astonishing Colour of After is pretty chunky, and is on my TBR.

7. An Author You’ve Previously Read and Would Like To Read More Of

I’d quite like to read more of Kasie West’s books. I finally read On the Fence in November, after having wanted to read her books for ages, and really enjoyed it.

8. A Book You Got For Christmas and Would Like To Read

I only got two other than Charlotte, Sometimes: Magical Masquerade and By Your Side. Hopefully I’ll manage to read both during the year!

9. A Series You Want To Read From Start to Finish

I might try and get to Stephanie Burgis’s Kat Stephenson trilogy, I think.

10. A Series You Want To Finish That You’ve Already Started

I really want to read the final books of the Lundinor and Cogheart Adventure trilogies, from 2018. I’m very excited for Against All Gods too, even though I’m very sad the Who Let the Gods Out books are ending.

11. Do You Set Reading Goals? If So, How Many Books Do You Want To Read in 2018?

Yes, I did last year and I’m going to do so again in 2019. I haven’t quite decided whether I’m going to go for 100 or 150 next year, though I’m currently leaning towards being ambitious and then lowering it if I’m struggling to meet it, rather than upping it if I succeed.

12. Any Other Reading Goals?

I don’t have anything specific that I want to do that I can think of!

Do you have any bookish resolutions for 2019? I’d love to hear about them in the comments!

Amy x

The Harry Potter Spells Tag

Hello everybody! Today, since it is the 27th December- that weird day when it is officially no longer Christmas but festive stuff is still sort of happening- I’m going to do something sort of festive (because there’s just something Christmassy about Harry Potter) and sort of not, the Harry Potter Spells Tag, which I found ages ago on Charlotte Somewhere and have been planning to do ever since! Onto the post!

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The New Taylor Swift Book Tag

Hello everybody! Today, to celebrate her birthday, I’ve decided to do the updated version of the Taylor Swift Book Tag, which was created by Books and Cleverness. Onto the post!

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