A Very Belated 2013 End of Year Book Survey

The End of Year Book Survey is hosted by Jamie at The Perpetual Page-Turner

Previously, my 2012 End of Year Book Survey and my 2011 End of Year Book Survey.


1. Best book you read in 2013?
Five books really stand out in my mind from 2013 (way too hard to narrow down!): Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo (this book was my JAM!), The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey (absolutely gripping!), The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater (brilliant and memorable!), Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell (story of my LIFE!), and The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (beautiful and impactful - review to come!).

2. Book you were excited about and thought you were going to like more but didn't?
I was so excited for the finales of two of my favourite series (Delirium and Divergent), but was sad to find that Requiem by Lauren Oliver and Allegiant by Veronica Roth were two major let downs for me.

3. Most surprising (in a good way!) book of 2013?
Pantomime by Laura Lam! But I can't tell you why because that would ruin the surprise!

4. Book you read in 2013 that you recommended to people most in 2013?
The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey, The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater, and Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell.

5. Best series you discovered in 2013?
The Grisha Trilogy and the Lunar Chronicles.

6. Favourite new author you discovered in 2013?
SO MANY. Leigh Bardugo, Maggie Stiefvater, Rainbow Rowell, Marissa Meyer, Markus Zusak, Gail Carriger, Victoria Schwab, and Robert Galbraith.

7. Best book that was out of your comfort zone or was a new genre for you?
I don't normally "do" Adult Fiction or strict Whodunnit type books, but if there is anyone who can get me to take a step outside my comfort zone, it's Queen Rowling. So I'm definitely going to have to go with The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith.

8. Most thrilling, unputdownable book of 2013?
Shades of Earth by Beth Revis! Now THIS is how you do a thrillingly epic and climactic finale!

9. Book you read in 2013 that you are most likely to reread next year?
Days of Blood & Starlight by Laini Taylor is not a book I read in 2013, but it's one I most definitely want to reread in 2014 to prepare for Dreams of Gods & Monsters!


10. Favourite cover of a book you read in 2013?

11. Most memorable character in 2013?
Cormoran Strike from The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith, the Darkling from Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo, and Death from The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.

12. Most beautifully written book read in 2013?
A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness and The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.

13. Book that had the greatest impact on you in 2013?
Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell and The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.

14. Book you can't believe you waited until 2013 to finally read?
Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card! I finally caved and read this one around the time that the movie came out. Unfortunately, the experience wasn't a positive one (review to come...).

15. Favourite passage/quote from a book you read in 2013?
Can I just copy the entirety of The Book Thief by Markus Zusak here?

16. Shortest and longest book you read in 2013?
Shortest: A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness - 206 pages
Longest: Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare - 570 pages

17. Book that had a scene in it that had you reeling and dying to talk to somebody about it?
These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner! You KNOW the scene I'm talking about if you've read this book!

18. Favourite relationship from a book you read in 2013?
Liesl and Max from The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, Cath and Levi from Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell, and Puck, Dove, Sean, and Corr (yup, horses too) from The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater.

19. Favourite book you read in 2013 from an author you've read previously?
I can always count on Rick Yancey and Patrick Ness (two of my MOST favourite authors) to produce good content and The 5th Wave and A Monster Calls were no exception.

20. Best book you read in 2013 that you read based solely on a recommendation from someone else?
Seems like everyone in the book blogging community has read and loved The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. Finally in 2013, I was able to see what all the raves were about!


21. Genre you read the most from in 2013?
Fantasy, of course.

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2013?
Levi (and his eyebrows and great hair) from Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. True fact: at the Rainbow Rowell book signing that I attended in 2013, Rainbow described Fangirl as "eyebrow erotica" due to the detailed descriptions of Levi's eyebrows in almost every scene that he is in.

23. Best 2013 debut you read?
These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner!

24. Most vivid world/imagery in a book you read in 2013?
Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo and The Archived by Victoria Schwab.

25. Book that was the most fun to read in 2013?
Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carriger was simply a delightful read! Gail knows how to get whimsy just right.

26. Book that made you cry or nearly cry in 2013?
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (obvs), The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater (that ending), and Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell (happy tears!).

27. Book you read in 2013 that you think got overlooked this year or when it came out?
Pantomime by Laura Lam. Pantomime was a highly original and profound read.

28. One book you didn't get to in 2013 but will be your number 1 priority in 2014?
Scarlet by Marissa Meyer (reading now!!), Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas, The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater, and Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell.

29. Book you are most anticipating for 2014 (non-debut)?
DREAMS OF GODS & MONSTERS by Laini Taylor. Without. A. Doubt.

30. 2013 debut you are most anticipating?
Midnight Thief by Livia Blackburne sounds right up my alley!

31. Series ending you are most anticipating in 2014?
Daughter of Smoke & Bone Trilogy by Laini Taylor and The Grisha Trilogy by Leigh Bardugo.

32. One thing you hope to accomplish or do in your reading/blogging in 2014?
Keep up this no pressure/stress blogging and reading thing I've got going on because it suits me and I'm loving it.

Review: The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

Publisher: Scholastic
Published: October 18, 2011
Pages: 404
Source: Bought
Rating: 5 Stars

It happens at the start of every November: the Scorpio Races. Riders attempt to keep hold of their water horses long enough to make it to the finish line. Some riders live. Others die.
At age nineteen, Sean Kendrick is the returning champion. He is a young man of few words, and if he has any fears, he keeps them buried deep, where no one else can see them.
Puck Connolly is different. She never meant to ride in the Scorpio Races. But fate hasn’t given her much of a chance. So she enters the competition — the first girl ever to do so. She is in no way prepared for what is going to happen.

In short: The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater is a brilliant and memorable story with fantastic characters and beautifully descriptive prose.

Maggie Stiefvater, where have you been all my life? Okay, I know, it's totally my fault for only clueing in now and finally caving to peer pressure after reading countless reviews that have raved about her books and her writing. You guys were SO right. I loved The Scorpio Races entirely. And I couldn't be more impressed with Maggie Stiefvater's writing and her mastery at utilizing imagery to craft the most beautiful sentences and scenes. Plus, growing up I was one of the horse-crazy girls who wanted nothing more than to spend her time frolicking with ponies (I still do, really). So naturally, I was pretty crazy about a storyline revolving completely around horses.

Maggie Stiefvater's genius wasn't immediately apparent to me, however. The Scorpio Races is a quiet book, one that kind of snuck up on me. At first the pacing seemed slow and it felt like nothing was happening. At some point though - not sure exactly when - it just hit me: this book is BRILLIANT. The Scorpio Races has a quiet grace to it. The story, the characters, the setting - they were all understated, yet completely impactful and memorable in retrospect.

I had a hard time wrapping my head around the water horses at first. As someone who has once witnessed a horse become spooked by a bit of floating plastic, it was hard to picture horses as predatory and vicious. It didn't help that these water horses apparently looked much the same as regular horses, with no predatory morphological characteristics whatsoever. Evolution be damned! But I digress... I'll just call it pure fantasy and be done with it.

And it wasn't long until I was lulled and convinced into believing in the concept of killer horses thanks to Maggie Stiefvater's descriptive prose. I don't know much about her or her interests, but it was immediately apparent to me that she knows what she's talking about when it comes to horses. Not only did she get the terminology right, but she completely captured the personality and quirks of horses that are so uniquely equine. As a horse-crazy and detail-oriented girl, this was SO important to me. If I had read a description that wasn't at all in line with how I know horses to act, it would have taken me completely out of the story. Thankfully, this never happens. Maggie Stiefvater NAILED it.

But horse personality isn't the only thing she got right. Nor is it hardly the most important aspect of the novel - The characters were fantastic. Puck is my favourite kind of protagonist: very flawed and not immediately likeable until you get to know them and you realize they have a heart of gold and a fierce spirit hidden behind their faults. I also loved Sean, the novel's other narrator, for his quiet, no nonsense demeanour. And I ESPECIALLY loved the bond between Puck and Sean and the bond between them and their horses. Just perfect. The antagonists are definitely note-worthy, as well. They were truly horrible and intriguing and memorable and did I mention HORRIBLE? There are very few thing that get me riled up quite as much as animal cruelty, so I was sufficiently repulsed and enraged by the novel's baddies.

Alright, I could go one and on about all that I loved about The Scorpio Races, but this review is getting quite long (for me anyway) so I'll stop here. I just loved it a lot, you know? I loved the understated yet powerful story, the moving characters, the gorgeous prose. AND THE HORSES!!

Other Reviews:
Alison Can Read
Courtney Reads A Lot
Poetry to Prose

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