I know this post is like two months late, but better late than never, right? Plus, to be fair, this post was mostly ready to go up in January, but I got distracted with life and forgot about it. 😅
I was going through some of my old blog posts to see what I used to post to celebrate the new year when I found this survey. It turns out I filled it out in 2015 and 2016. I had such a fun time looking back, I figured I might as well complete it for 2020. The End of Year Survey was created by Jamie at The Perpetual Page-Turner.
2020 READING STATS
Number Of Books You Read: 64.2
This is pretty on par with the number I read in 2019 (61 books) but still more than my goal of 50 books. I thought last year was a bit of a fluke and that 2020 would be a busy year for me, but it turns out crazy is the better adjective.
Technically, I only finished 64 books in 2020. The extra 0.2 is for the 20% of Lore I managed to read before the year ended. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to find the time to finish it before the ball dropped in NYC.
Number of Re-Reads: 8
Like in 2016, I reread the Gallagher Girls series. I guess there’s just something about a presidential election that makes me miss this series. I didn’t count the first book as a reread, or even a read, because I kinda just skimmed through it without actually reading it, hence why a 6 book series only counted as 5 books. 😅
I also reread Nevernight with the intention of finishing the series. But like many things this year, that didn’t happen. I only got through the first few chapters of Godsgrave before the pandemic really hit the US and afterward, I just didn’t have the heart to continue. It was just too dark of a story at a time when I needed to read something lighter.
I did manage to finish one series on my tbr this year, though. I reread The Cruel Prince with the intention of finally finishing the trilogy. And unlike with Nevernight, I actually managed to stick the landing. Still, I haven’t read How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate so I haven’t exactly read the whole series. But in my defense, I didn’t even know it was coming out when I binged the Folk of the Air.
Genre You Read The Most From: Fantasy
I’m honestly kind of surprised by this even though fantasy has always been my favorite genre. It was my most read genre all the years I’ve been blogging part of the online bookish community, except for last year. Last year, I discovered rom coms and it was a game-changer. Romance, not fantasy, was my most read genre in 2019, and with the year we had, I thought there was a good chance it would repeat in 2020. But I guess my need to escape to anywhere but here outweighed my need to feel for the warm fuzzies. 🤷🏻♀️
Best in Books
Best Book You Read In 2020?
Adult (aka romance): Fumbled by Alexa Martin
Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t?
Assassin’s Heart. It sounded right up my alley (dark fantasy with romance) – it was even one of my Waiting on Wednesday picks in 2016 (yes, it spent four years on my tbr). But sadly it wasn’t what I thought it would be.
Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read?
Fumbled by Alexa Martin. I stumbled upon it randomly while browsing through my library’s ebook collection and figured “why not?” I didn’t really have any expectations for it (I wasn’t familiar with it), but the synopsis piqued my interest. So I borrowed it. And I’m so glad I did. It is by far one of my favorite books I read in 2020. I had such a hard time putting it down once I started it and I’ve reread it so many times since. There are probably some passages I could quote to you verbatim right now, just off the top of my head. That’s how much I loved that book.
I thought I’d just read it as a filler to help me get through my slump. It ended up being so much more than that.
Best series you started in 2020? Best Sequel of 2020? Best Series Ender of 2020?
Best series: The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi
Best sequel: The Princess and the Fangirl by Ashley Poston?
Best series ender: Across a Star-Swept Sea by Diana Peterfreund?
This question is so hard!
Favorite new author you discovered in 2020?
Jenn Bennett! In the spring, when everything was… going down, I got in the mood for contemporaries and Alex, Approximately just happened to be one of the ones I could get my greedy hands on. And that snowballed into Starry Eyes and eventually Chasing Lucky.
Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year?
One of the Lux books by Jennifer L. Armentrout, either Origin or Opposition (and Obsession gets an honorable mention). I finished reading Opal, the 3rd book, on May 28th and ended up reading and finishing both Origin and Opposition that same day.
But then again, I remember staying up way past my bedtime to finish The Princess and the Fangirl by Ashley Poston and Across a Star-Swept Sea by Diana Peterfreund. Reading Across a Star-Swept Sea was a particularly memorable late night/early morning reading session because it kept me up to experience a mini earthquake (it’s super rare to feel your house shake in New Jersey, especially when we aren’t being attacked by a hurricane). But it’s hard to top the speed I read the Lux books.
Book You Read In 2020 That You Would Be MOST Likely To Re-Read Next Year?
The Gilded Wolves & The Silvered Serpents, Fable, Where Dreams Descend, Rage & Ruin? I don’t know, take your pick. I’ll probably be reading any of the books with sequels coming out in 2021.
Or maybe I’ll reread Fumbled again.
Most memorable character of 2020?
Someone from The Gilded Wolves crew. Enrique, maybe? The fact that I remember all their names is a testament to how much I loved the first two books. Seriously. I can barely name the main characters from a book I read last week. But I can not only tell you the names of the main characters from The Gilded Wolves, but also some fun facts about them even though I read those books in September.
Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2020 to finally read?
For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund. I won it in a giveaway at the beginning of 2013 and it’s been on my tbr ever since. I can’t believe it took me 7 years to actually pick it up and read it, especially when it has all of my favorite story elements.
Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2020?
Shortest: The Lost Sisters by Holly Black (50 pages)
Longest: Rage & Ruin by Jennifer L. Armentrout (576 pages)
Book That Shocked You The Most
The Silvered Serpents. Totally left me with the OMG WTF JUST HAPPENED!!! but in the best way. I think I spent a solid 10 minutes just gaping at the wall after I finished reading it. That cliffhanger is 100% why I prefer to binge read series nowadays.
Favorite Book You Read in 2020 From An Author You’ve Read Previously
Chasing Truth by Julie Cross. I read Whatever Life Throws At You a while back and really enjoyed it. Chasing Truth (and its sequel Hiding Lies) did not disappoint. I’m definitely planning on reading her other books in 2021.
Best Worldbuilding/Most Vivid Setting You Read This Year?
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. It wasn’t my favorite (the last quarter was… not good imo) but there is no denying how spellbinding the world-building in this book is.
Book That Made You Cry Or Nearly Cry in 2020?
Okay, so I know there were a few books that made me cry, or at the very least, get misty-eyed. But I cannot, for the life of me, remember which ones. Maybe The Book of Broken Hearts by Sarah Ockler?
Your Blogging / Bookish Life
Favorite bookish related photo you took in 2020?
I sacrificed (an already water damaged) book to take this photo and I have no regrets. It’s one of my favorite bookish photos I’ve taken, ever. The book is fine, by the way. It’s still readable, just a little worse for wear.
To be totally transparent, I did use some Photoshop magic on this photo – the cover is photoshopped because I don’t actually own a copy of Rage & Ruin. But the snow is 100% natural and courtesy of Mother Nature, arranged by my frozen fingers.
Best bookish event that you participated in (author signings, festivals, virtual events, etc.)?
L. O. L.
Most challenging thing about blogging or your reading life this year?
Two words – HUGE SLUMP. For both my blogging and reading life.
Best bookish discovery (book related sites, book stores, etc.)?
Bookhype. It’s a Goodreads alternative created by Ashley at Nose Graze and has so many features that I wish Goodreads had.
Did you complete any reading challenges or goals that you had set for yourself at the beginning of this year?
I managed to reach my Goodreads challenge of 50 books or more, bought less books, and also read more from my shelves.
Looking Ahead
One Book You Didn’t Get To In 2020 But Will Be Your Number 1 Priority in 2021?
Lore by Alexandra Bracken, Rent a Boyfriend by Gloria Chao, Heiress Apparently by Diana Ma, or Crown of Bones by A.K. Wilder. Basically all the books I was supposed to read and review but didn’t get to.
Book You Are Most Anticipating For 2021?
The Bronzed Beasts by Roshani Chokshi aka The Gilded Wolves #3.
One Thing You Hope To Accomplish Or Do In Your Reading/Blogging Life In 2021?
Be more consistent. Obviously, that’s not going so well since you’re currently reading this post in March when it was mostly ready to go up in January.
How was your 2020? What are you looking forward to in 2021?
You’ve had such a great year! Also, I love this reading survey idea and might post my own after reading this! Thanks for the great post!