2014 Annual End Of The Year Survey

This end of the year survey is hosted by The Perpetual Page Turner. Go check out Jamie’s survey and link up your survey with hers.

So check out my responses to the survey questions and see if you agree or disagree with any of my answers.

Number Of Books You Read:

127. Next year I need to hike up my Goodreads Challenge because I met my challenge back when it was still summer.

Number of Re-Reads:

I don’t think I had any re-reads this year.

Genre You Read The Most From:

 YA Contemporary

1. Best Book You Read In 2014?

Oh crap-cakes, this is going to be hard. 

Contemporary

-The Start of Me and You by Emery Lord
-Pointe by Brandy Colbert
-Positively Beautiful by Wendy Mills
-Stronger Than You Know by Jolene Perry
-Faking Normal by Courtney C. Stevens

Fantasy

-The Young Elites by Marie Lu
-The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson

Dystopian

-Captive (Pawn #2) by Aimee Carter

Historical
-Prisoner of Night and Fog by Anne Blankman

Paranormal
-(Don’t You) Forget About Me by Kate Karyus Quinn
-Beware the Wild by Natalie C. Parker

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

-The Murder Complex by Lindsay Cummings

-Don’t Touch by Rachel M. Wilson

 3. Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read in 2014? 

-Lies We Tell Ourselves by Robin Talley. This book surprised me in a wonderful way.

 4. Book You “Pushed” The Most People To Read (And They Did) In 2014?

-Pointe by Brandy Colbert

 5. Best series you started in 2014? Best Sequel of 2014? Best Series Ender of 2014?

-Ashes to Ashes (Burn for Burn #3) by Jenny Han & Siobhan Vivian
-Ignite Me (Shatter Me #3) by Tahereh Mafi

 6. Favorite new author you discovered in 2014?

-Anne Blankman

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

-Welcome to the Dark House by Laurie Faria Stolarz

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

-The Young Elites by Marie Lu

 9. Book You Read In 2014 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year?

-Open Road Summer by Emery Lord

-The Start of Me and You by Emery Lord

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

-The Start of Me and You by Emery Lord

-The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson

-Don’t Look Back by Jennifer Lynn Armentrout

-Captive (Pawn #2) by Aimee Carter

Pointe by Brandy Colbert

11. Most memorable character of 2014?

-Adelina from The Young Elites

 12. Most beautifully written book read in 2014?

-Falling Into Place by Amy Zhang

13. Most Thought-Provoking/ Life-Changing Book of 2014?

-Little Peach by Peggy Kern

 14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2014 to finally read? 

 -Burn For Burn by Jenny Han & Siobhan Vivian

 15. Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2014?

“Maybe there were a hundred different ways to fall in love.” The Kiss of Deception

16.Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2013?

  -Longest book: Take Me On (Pushing the Limits #4) by Katie McGarry (544 pages)
-Shortest book: Red At Night (e-novella) by Katie McGarry (84 pages)

 17. Book That Shocked You The Most

-The Jewel by Amy Ewing 

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

-Gretchen & Daniel from Prisoner of Night and Fog by Anne Blankman
-Paige & Max from The Start of Me and You by Emery Lord

19. Favorite Non-Romantic Relationship Of The Year

-Erin and her mom from Positively Beautiful by Wendy Mills.

20. Favorite Book You Read in 2014 From An Author You’ve Read Previously

-The Start of Me and You by Emery Lord

-Don’t Look Back by Jennifer Lynn Armentrout

21. Best Book You Read In 2014 That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else/Peer Pressure:

-17 First Kisses by Rachael Allen

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2014?

-Raffe from The Kiss of Deception

-Max from The Start of Me and You

-Daniel from Prisoner of Night and Fog

-Bodie from Faking Normal

23. Best 2014 debut you read?

 -Faking Normal by Courtney C. Stevens

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

 -The Young Elites by Marie Lu
-The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson

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

-Top Ten Clues You’re Clueless by Liz Czukas

26. Book That Made You Cry Or Nearly Cry in 2014?

-Positively Beautiful by Wendy Mills

-The Start of Me and You by Emery Lord

27. Hidden Gem Of The Year?

-Pointe by Brandy Colbert. So good and so under-appreciated.

28. Book That Crushed Your Soul?

-Positively Beautiful by Wendy Mills
-The Start of Me and You by Emery Lord

29. Most Unique Book You Read In 2014?

-Beware the Wild by Natalie C. Parker
-Feral by Holly Schindler

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

-Things You Kiss Goodbye by Leslie Connor. This book absolutely infuriated me.

1. New favorite book blog you discovered in 2014? 

-Too numerous to count. I found some great ones though.

2. Favorite review that you wrote in 2014? 

–Don’t Look Back by Jennifer Lynn Armentrout.

3. Best discussion/non-review post you had on your blog?

–The Healing Process– Where I talked about life after the ending of an engagement and how I was doing since finding out I was being cheated on.

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

-The virtual event that Bloomsbury held for their reviewers. It allowed us to see what books Bloomsbury had coming out in the Spring of 2015. It was such a fun event.

5. Best moment of bookish/blogging life in 2014?

-Again, Bloomsbury’s getting a lot of love from me. My best moment would have to be when I started receiving the upcoming catalogs in my email. It may sound weird, but that was when I really started to feel significant.

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

–2014 Debut Authors Bash– 101 views

8. Post You Wished Got A Little More Love?

–If We Were Having Coffee #1– This was cathartic for me and I was excited to do it. 

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

-Book Outlet. I’ve placed two orders with them and have gotten so many awesome books at majorly discounted prices.

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

 -Aside from the Goodreads Challenge that I blew out of the water, I really didn’t reach any of the goals I had set for myself at the beginning of the year.

1. One Book You Didn’t Get To In 2014 But Will Be Your Number 1 Priority in 2015?

 -The Devil You Know by Trish Doller

2. Book You Are Most Anticipating For 2015 (non-debut)?

-What You Left Behind by Jessica Verdi

-Things We Know By Heart by Jessi Kirby

3. 2015 Debut You Are Most Anticipating?

An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

 4. Series Ending/A Sequel You Are Most Anticipating in 2015?

This is going to be yet another difficult category

-Ensnared (Splintered #3) by A.G. Howard

-The Heart of Betrayal (The Remnant Chronicles #2) by Mary E. Pearson

-Diamonds Are Forever ( The Secret Diamond Sisters #3) by Michelle Madow

5. One Thing You Hope To Accomplish Or Do In Your Reading/Blogging Life In 2015?

 -Go to YallWest in April since BEA is still a bit pricey for me.

6. A 2015 Release You’ve Already Read & Recommend To Everyone:

                                            -The Start of Me and You by Emery Lord

                                -Positively Beautiful by Wendy Mills

So, tell me some of your favorite books of 2014.

Blog Tour: Review & Giveaway for Destiny (New Avalon #1) by Andrea Buginsky

Book Title: Destiny ( New Avalon #1)
Author: Andrea Buginsky
Published: September 16th, 2013
Genre: YA/Fantasy
Series: Book 1 in New Avalon series
Book Link: Goodreads
Purchase Link: Amazon

Synopsis:

Constantly teased and taunted by the popular girls, Elena Baxter desperately wants to fit in. On her sweet sixteenth, she receives two shocking gifts: telekinesis and the surprising truth about her heritage. With high hopes that things will be different now, Elena returns to school to find that nothing has changed. Only this time her hurt feelings and frustration boil into something even she cannot understand. 

When her powers explode, chaos ensues and she learns that her new ability is greater than she ever desired. As she learns to control her powers, Elena discovers there’s so much more to her heritage than she ever imagined.

Disclaimer: I received an e-copy of this book in exchange for my participation on a blog tour.

Review:

As someone who felt lonely all through high school, though I tried to hide it, I was hoping to connect well with Elena. Like her I was bullied constantly, but unlike her it was the boys that tormented me. Not the popular girls. Anyway,despite those minute differences, I was excited to read this and was confident that I would love Elena. But it just didn’t happen.If I can connect well with a main character,then the chances are good that I’ll love the book.

The genre of Fantasy has always been a favorite of mine and I did love the authors descriptions of Avalon. It sounded so magical and peaceful. It clearly brought Elena into a situation where she was no longer and outcast. Clearly a situation that Elena had longed for. The dialogue seemed strange, I’m not sure if it was stilted or just seemed that way because the dialogue was so simplistic.

The book itself seemed so short and I think that the book could have been improved upon if the book was longer. Certain parts seemed rushed and that really bugged me. I did love that Elena’s family was present in her life. Too often in YA books, parents are mentioned once or twice but never actually seen. That was not the case with this book.

Editing-wise it was perfect. Not a single editing issue in the entire e-book. That made me SO excited as often times debut books are poorly edited which leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

I didn’t hate this book, but I didn’t love it either. This really bums me out as the synopsis was so promising. I went into the book with high hopes,but those hopes were not met. So for that reason and many other reasons that I have mentioned, I have to give the book 3 stars.

Hopefully many others will enjoy this book. It just wasn’t for me.

Connect With The Author:

Fbook:  https://www.facebook.com/#!/Andrea.Buginsky.Author

Twitter: @andreabuginsky

Google+ https://plus.google.com/#117234398007434496419/posts

Pinterest: https://pinterest.com/andipandi10/

Website/Blog: http://www.andreabuginsky.com/

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Review: Gated by Amy Christine Parker

Book Title: Gated

Author: Amy Christine Parker

Published Date: August 6th, 2013

Published By: Random House Books for Young Readers

Genre: YA/Mystery

Standalone

Book Link: Goodreads

Purchase Link: Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Do the gates keep the unchosen out or the chosen in?

In Mandrodage Meadows, life seems perfect. The members of this isolated suburban community have thrived under Pioneer, the charismatic leader who saved them from their sad, damaged lives. Lyla Hamilton and her parents are original members of the flock. They moved here following the 9/11 terrorist attacks, looking to escape the evil in the world. Now seventeen, Lyla knows certain facts are not to be questioned:

Pioneer is her leader.

Will is her Intended.

The end of the world is near.

Like Noah before him, Pioneer has been told of the imminent destruction of humanity. He says his chosen must arm themselves to fight off the unchosen people, who will surely seek refuge in the compound’s underground fortress–the Silo.

Lyla loves her family and friends, but given the choice, she prefers painting to target practice. And lately she’d rather think about a certain boy outside the compound than plan for married life in the Silo with Will. But with the end of days drawing near, she will have to pick up a gun, take a side, and let everyone know where she stands.

Disclaimer: This book was a personal purchase.

Review:

I have always had such a fascination with cults. The idea that one person is a leader and he has followers,in this case called his flock,is so interesting to me. The idea that these people so blindly follow him without even questioning him at all is simply mind boggling to me. These people in these cults are essentially brainwashed much like the followers of major cult leader Warren Jeffs, were. 

These cults seem to recruit certain types of people. People who have experienced significant heartache,like the death of a child or the death of a parent.Or even people who are poor or unmarried. Those types of people are the ones least likely to question the leader, in this case his name was Pioneer. The cults tend to stray away from recruiting people who are more confident and strong minded.

Lyla’s family experienced a nightmare when her sister Karen disappeared ten years earlier when Lyla was only 5. 2 years later Pioneer recruited Lyla and her parents to be the beginnings of his flock that would reside in the Community.Ten years later Lyla remembers little of her old life as she has assimilated into her life in the Community.Will is her future husband, no one questions that. They have been intended for each other since Lyla was fourteen years old.

Yet this isn’t your typical cult as it is not driven by religion.It is what is known as a doomsday cult. Pioneer believes that the end of the world is near and he is making sure that once it does end, the entire Community can live in the Silo where they will be safe. But a chance meeting between Lyla and an Outsider by the name of Cody, threatens to unearth everything that Lyla has held dear to her. Suddenly the quiet Lyla is questioning everything about the Community and about Pioneer. That way of thinking could cost her, her life as well as the lives of those she loves.

The last third of the book is so heartbreaking and I had tissues in my hands during the ending of it. By the end of the book, my tissues were in shreds and my eyes were red and puffy. Amy Christine Parker did an amazing job with this book.I will definitely buy anything else she writes as this was a spectacular debut. 5 stars to this compelling, riveting and heartbreaking book that broke the formula of books about cults.