It’s now been 2022 for a few days now, and I wanted to do a post on a few books I wanted to read, goals I have, and more for 2022! This post is basically just miscellaneous beginning-of-year things, but I figured I may as well write it. Let’s get into it!
The Goodreads Reading Challenge
I started doing the Goodreads reading challenge in 2020 for the first time, when I actually started using Goodreads more. Personally, I don’t actually pay much attention to this throughout the year; it’s just something for me to keep in the corner of my brain. I have, for the past two years, set my goal to 100 books, and though I surpassed that goal easily both times, I’m going to keep it at 100 this year, too. First of all 100 is just a nice round number and I like it, but second of all because we were in a pandemic and in quarantine for the last two years, and though the quarantine was not fun, it did allow me a lot more time for reading. Since in person school has started this year, I’ve had much less time for reading, so I actually think that 100 books is a very reasonable goal for me right now.
Books I want to read in 2022
Last year, I published a post where I named 21 books that I wanted to read in 2021. It was a pretty interesting post, with a lot of great books on there, but I’ve decided not to do that again for two reasons. First of all, I only actually ended up reading 10 of the books on that list. I am absolutely terrible at sticking to TBRs, and the fact that I had an entire 365 days to read 21 books (especially given that in all, I read 157 books in 2021) really proves that. The other reason that I didn’t want to do this list again is because I think that it mostly ended up being a lot of books that are popular and/or very hyped, and so it was more books that I felt like I SHOULD read, but not books that I necessarily wanted to read. Obviously, there are a lot of books that I do want to read, out there, but I’m just awful at thinking of them off the top of my head, and more often than not, the books that I want to read are ones that I see somewhere and then immediately go off to request from the library. So, instead of writing an entire post about the books I want to read, I just thought I’d share a few books that I’m really excited to pick up. Not any fixed number, just however many books there ends up being.
What We Devour by Linsey Miller. This one, I honestly just want to read because of the ace rep, which I’m super excited for! Unfortunately, I’ve seen some less than glowing reviews about this book, so we’ll see what I think.
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by VE Schwab. This is a book that it seems like everyone knows about by now, because it was all the hype last year. I finally got this one for Christmas this year, so I’m excited to read it!
Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo. Another one that people seem to love! And I’m really interested in this; I don’t read much historical fiction, but I find that I really enjoy it, so I hope this one’s great, too!
Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley. Honestly, that goodreads summary covers so much, I don’t really know where to start. But I’m excited for the indigenous rep, and it sounds like a great mystery as well!
Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao. I’ve seen this one EVERYWHERE, and I’m super excited for it, I can’t wait to pick it up!
Anticipated Releases
I do not pay as close attention to upcoming releases as a lot of other people do, so this is going to be another pretty short list, but there are several upcoming releases that I’m very excited for, so I thought I’d share them here, as well! (By the way, I’d highly suggest you go check out the post that May @Forever and Everly did on upcoming releases, it’s a much more comprehensive list than mine!)
Fire Becomes Her by Rosiee Thor. Rosiee Thor is an author that I’ve followed for a while now, and I’ve talked to her a bit as well, and I am SO excited for her second book! I mean, people say it has a 1920’s vibe, plus there’s magic (that you drink, if I remember correctly?) and overtaking the rich, so…what more could you need? (oh plus it’s queer, very very queer)
Ophelia After All by Racquel Marie. I’ve heard about this book so much that I’m honestly surprised it’s not already published? It’s a debut book about a girl who starts to question her sexuality and I’ve read many reviews already that say it’s wonderful, so I really cannot wait for this one.
Loveless by Alice Oseman. Technically Loveless is already published in some places, but it comes out in the US on March 1 (though the release date has been pushed back several times so who knows if this is true). And I am SO EXCITED to finally hold this wonderful book in my hands!!! (by the way – thoughts on the US cover? I’m really not sure what to think).
Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves, by Meg Long. I actually don’t know very much about this book, but it sounds really interesting and unique. Plus, dogsledding! We don’t see that in books very often!
Icebreaker by AL Graziadei. Queer sports will ALWAYS be something for me to be excited for, and I’m especially excited for this one because it’s about professional sports, and there are very few out people in professional sports (in men’s professional sports)
Aces Wild by Amanda DeWitt (no cover yet). This book has an entire cast of asexual characters. Plus, it’s a heist book, and the main character is described as ‘modern asexual Kaz Brekker.’ What more could I need?
Self-Made Boys: A Great Gatsby Remix by Anna-Marie McLemore (no cover yet). I am SO excited about this book, because I read Gatsby earlier this (school) year and have been trying to get my hands on Gatsby retellings now (of which there are very few). And this one has transgender Nick AND transgender Gatsby.
What’s your goodreads reading challenge goal? Have you read any of the books I want to read this year? What are some releases that you’re looking forwards to?
So, I have a problem and my problem is that I keep reading books whose sequels aren’t out yet. And my memory, when it comes to books, is practically nonexistent (I have a great memory from other things, most of which are extremely random). And in 2021 so many of those sequels or next books or final books (!!!) are coming out! I wanted to make a list of a lot of these great books that I’m REALLY excited for! I decided to make a list of five of the books that I’m most excited for, three of which are series finales!!! Maybe you’ve read some of these books or maybe you’ll find some new ones to add to your tbr today but no matter what, I hope you enjoy!!!
~A Vow so Bold and Deadly~ Book three in the Cursebreakers trilogy by Brigid Kemmerer To be released January 12, 2021
I cannot wait for the last book in this series to come out! The end of the second book…well let me just say that it makes me very sad. Remember when Grey was all that Rhen had? When he guarded him, stayed with him no matter what, even died for him a few times? And now….well I don’t want to spoil too much but…a lot has changed and I’m not happy. All my children (book characters but like…children) better be happy by the end of this book.
~All the Tides of Fate~ Book two in All the Stars and Teeth by Adalyn Grace To be released February 2, 2021
I absolutely adored All the Stars and Teeth. I know a lot of people think that it’s just another typical YA fantasy, maybe the writing isn’t the most amazing, but I still loved it! I mean, we’ve got pirates, a cool magic system, princesses, mermaids…what more could I want (actually, LGBTQ+ characters, but I read somewhere that there would be several in book two)? I absolutely cannot wait for these books…and this cover! Beautiful! Please let it be February already! I can’t wait for more Vataea because like…Amora and Bastian are great (don’t really care for Ferrick) but Vataea is amazing. Also, I know that Vataea and Ferrick were a thing at the end of the last book…please no.
~Witchshadow~ Book four in the Witchlands by Susan Dennard To be released June 22, 2021
I loved the idea of this series, the characters, the plot, having read the first book. It was just so interesting! And the magic, too…Iseult’s magic is nothing like I’ve ever read before. I feel like, however, as the series went on it just got worse. There were a lot of things to keep track of and it was sort of difficult to figure out what is what is what and who’s on what side, etc. The plot, too, just became meh for me. I liked when we just had the compac cast of Iseult, Safi, Aeduan and Merik. I don’t really care about the others. Okay, that’s a lie. Vivia is awesome and I love her and please I’d like to read a whole story about her plus she has to get together with what’s-her-face. Wow I’m bad at remembering names. (Wait, it was Styx, right? Maybe?) Also this title does not go with the rest of the titles (Truthwitch, Windwitch, Bloodwitch) so I’m sorta annoyed.
~Flash Fire~ Book two in The Extraordinaries by TJ Klune To be released July 13, 2021
HELLO HELLO HELLO I CANNOT WAIT FOR THIS BOOK. Okay but seriously. The Extraordinaries was SO GOOD. It was funny and it was VERY gay and I just–must read next book. In fact, book one was so good that I shirked my packing duties to finish this when we were going to go on a trip. I mean, obviously I’d always rather be reading but usually I can at least pull myself away from the book to do what I have to do. Not this time! But also…THAT COVER???? AMAZING. I cannot wait to see Nick and Seth and everyone else again!!! I’m learning that I kinda love superhero stories heh heh.
~Wings of Shadow~ Book three in Crown of Feathers by Nicki Pau Preto To be released July 13, 2021
Crown of Feathers is SUCH an interesting book. I mean it has one of the most scary villains I’ve ever read because not only are they power hungry, they’re SUPER smart. It’s very scary and I am TERRIFIED as to what is going to happen with all my characters. The end of book two had a lot of things happening and with that cliffhanger, plus the cover of this book, I am SCARED. I love Crown of Feathers because it has some of the best fantasy world history that I’ve ever read. The history is interwoven with the story so flawlessly and it’s just so fascinating. And this cover, too, is amazing. There’s so many awesome covers these days!
I’ve been meaning to tell you all this for a while but Katie @Whispering Pages and I created a goodreads group just for YA Book Blogs! I know a lot of bloggers that I’ve interacted with on here are already in the group, but if you aren’t, I’d love you to join! You can interact with other bloggers, get help with your own blog, organize buddy reads and do guest posts! If you want to join, you can find the group here.
Also: I had an idea. It’s kind of a crazy idea, it may make no sense and people may not want to do it. But. If you do want to participate in my crazy idea, please express interest ⬇️down below⬇️ in the comments. Here’s a short summary of the idea: It would be something like a mix of a large buddy read (4/5/6 people) and a blog tour. But not really a blog tour. Okay so basically, there would be a group of people and they’d all read one book. Then, when they’re done, they’d each write reviews on it. But you’d split up your review and different parts of your review would be featured on different blogs. For example, one blog of someone who buddy read would show what people thought of the characters, one about the plot, etc. However, I do know that a lot of people don’t write their reviews this way. That’s the problem. That’s why the idea may not take off. Obviously some people could make an exception for these reviews but people may not want to. If you look in your reviews, though, you might find specific paragraphs about the characters or the plot, etc? Maybe? I don’t know. That’s the problem. Aaaaanyways, that’s probably a horrible idea but I thought I should actually, you know, tell people about it first instead of just introducing it like I did with the last big idea I had (ha ha that didn’t work out, it was my ‘Beyond the Story‘ challenge.
Are you excited to read any of these books? Do you want to read any of these serieses? Tell me what you think in the comments! As always, thank you so much for taking the time to read this post! Stay safe and keep reading!
Welp, here we go with yet another tag. It seems like ever since I started with the tags, I’ve just been doing them constantly. I’m sorry about that guys, I’ll try to get a discussion post or review up soon, we’ll see!
Before you ask, yes. You read this right. A book tag about 2020, the year as a whole. Because what better year to do one on? 2020 has been the biggest roller coaster of a year that anyone could possibly imagine and there are just so many ideas for a book tag. I will separate the tag into a few different sections so that you all know what part of the year I’m talking about. (Please note: I live in the USA so depending on what country you live on, different things may have happened throughout the year, but this is just what’s up in the US. You can definitely still do the tag even if you live in a different country!)
At the bottom, talk about some other books you read in 2020! (this isn’t required, just suggested!)
Please note: Just because this is a book tag about 2020, the books you talk about do not have to have been read by you in 2020 ALSO: This tag is about 2020. However, it does not need to be done DURING 2020. The year is almost done but this tag doesn’t have to be! It’s only a tag about the year, there’s nothing in it that requires it being that year.
Okay! I really hope you all enjoy this tag and find a little light in this year that has been sub-par. I know that it’s a ‘2020 book tag’ but you can do it anytime, not just in 2020! This tag is not time sensitive like the monthly book tags that I have tried and failed to get popular, so don’t worry!
Here is a list of the questions and below I will post my answers:
Part one: Beginning of the year 1) A book that you were really excited for 2) A book that started out really well (to be fair, I’m not certain if it started well, but it was certainly better than the rest of the year)
Part two: The world goes on hold 3) A book that had an unexpected plot twist 4) A book where you felt like nothing happened 5) A book where two main characters were separated (quest, disease, forbidden, etc.)
Part three: The world tries to reopen (and begins a second wave of the pandemic) 6) A book in which the characters made a bad decision 7) A book with an impatient/overly eager character
Part four: The world adjusts (not sure this ever actually happened but…I’ll bend this a little) 8) A book in which the character’s goals change midway.
Part five: The end and looking forwards 9) A book whose sequel you really anticipated/are anticipating 10) A book whose sequel was better than its original (we’re all hoping….) 11) A book that you read just to finish it (didn’t like it but wanted to finish it anyways)
And here are my answers to all of these questions!
1) A book that you were really excited for
A book that I was really really excited to read this year was ‘House of Dragons’ by Jessica Cluess. I thought it had a very interesting concept and I always love books that sort of have trials the characters have to complete. Plus, we get dragons. Unfortunately, House of Dragons did not live up to my expectations – there were some parts that were interesting but overall the writing style wasn’t very good and I knew almost nothing about the world. You can find my goodreads review of ‘House of Dragons’ here. Another posts by me featuring this book is my November Monthly wrap-up and book tag
2) A book that started out really well
A book that I thought had a good beginning was Scavange the Stars. The writing style was great for the whole book and we got to see this harsher, worn side of Amaya who’s really just trying to stay alive. It jumps right into the action, making you wonder why on earth Amaya is on the ship and that keeps you reading for the entire book. You can find my review of ‘Scavenge the Stars’ on my blog here as well as my goodreads review here Another post featuring this book on my blog is my November monthly wrap-up and book tag
3) A book that had an unexpected plot twist
Okay, this book I read a while ago. When I say a while, I mean like early 2020, sometime in January, but for me that is a while. I have a memory with as many holes as swiss cheese when it comes to books – I read so many of them and then immediately forget the plots. Still, this plot twist is so memorable that I remember it almost a year later. The book ‘Four Dead Queens’ is such an amazingly weaved book, told so skillfully and beautifully that you can’t put it down. I will not tell you the plot twist for spoiler-y reasons but let me just say that this book is very much worth reading and you need to pick it up immediately if you have not already. (proof that the plot twist was great: I mentioned it in my 3-sentence review of this which book I wrote at the beginning of the year before I really started using goodreads a lot) (And can we talk about that cover though? Beautiful)
4) A book where you felt like nothing happened
Ah! Ha ha ha ha (*laughs in disappointment*). Oh boy do I have the book for you. ‘The Future Was Now’ by JR Harbor. Let me say right now that I miiight be a little biased against this book. Because of other problems that I have with it (many, many problems. I recommend you check out my rant of this book here to see me roasting it farther) So, things did happen in this book. Here’s the thing: it ends basically exactly where it started. We get no character growth, no nothing. Asa could have just gone to the city, found a pretty girl and gone back home (more about the ‘pretty girl’ in my review rant)
5) A book where two characters were separated
I absolutely loved ‘I’ll Give You the Sun.’ Basically the main reason that, well, everything happened in this book, was because our main characters, Jude and Noah, were separated. Not physically, mind you. But the twins, who were practically inseparable for most of their lives, were in a giant fight and were barely talking to each other. Given how close they were before this, I’m saying that they were separated in this scenario. You can find my blog post about this book here. You can also find it mentioned in my (less than adequate) October wrap-up.
6) A book in which the characters made a bad decision
I’m going to call this book one giant bad decision. It’s not that the book itself was bad. In fact, it was a very interesting book. But the entire book was quite literally about making bad decisions. Here’s some background: The girls of the Danvers field hockey team are determined to win the state championships – in any way possible. Including dappling with some dark magic. But their dark magic needs recharging every now and then…by doing the worst things they can. Stealing the book copies from a classroom. Replacing chemicals in the science lab with water. And more. Like I said, all bad decisions.
7) A book with an impatient or overly eager character
Literally the second I looked at this prompt I thought of Spensa from ‘Skyward’ by Brandon Sanderson. Maybe I wouldn’t call Spensa overly eager but she certainly is extremely eager and definitely a little impatient. She wants to be up in the air, flying like her father was, no matter what it takes. And then, once she begins to get training, she just wants to actually fly, to actually be up there, in the first few days where she’s sort of just stuck on the ground learning the basics.
8) A book where a character’s goals changed midway
‘Tarnished are the Stars’ is the only book I can really think of in which this happens. At the beginning, Anna has a grudge on Nathaniel because he hurt a child from Anna’s village. Eventually, the child dies and Anna is so angry that she goes searching for Nathaniel to kill him. But then Eliza arrives on the scene and they suddenly have another goal – reveal what the tarnish that is affecting the hearts of everyone in the village is and stop it. Anna went from wanting to kill Nathaniel to working alongside him (and thankfully, it is NOT the enemies-to-lovers trope, they’re just friends!)
9) A book whose sequel you were/are anticipating
NEVER ask me this and expect me to list only 1 book. For your convenience, I managed to lower it to four anticipated releases, but let me tell you it was HARD. Also, images are from the book whose sequel I’m anticipating (because the third book of Children of Blood and Bone’s cover isn’t out yet). The books that I am anticipating are book 2 of All the Stars and Teeth, All the Tides of Fate, the third book in the Children of Blood and Bone series (untitled), A Vow so Bold and Deadly (ACSDAL 3) and book 3 in the Crown of Feathers book, Wings of Shadow. I love all four of these serieses and can’t wait to read the…woah, for all four, the final book! Especially with that cliffhanger at the end of both Heart of Flames and Children of Virtue and Vengeance.
10) A book whose sequel was better than the original
This so rarely happens to me but fortunately I have the perfect example here. The Shadow and Bone series DEFINITELY improved as it went on, the third being…still not amazing, but SO MUCH better than the first book. I think that, since this was Leigh Bardugo’s debut series, her writing improved a lot as the series went on (but Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom are still WAAAAY better)
11) A book that you read just to finish it.
I mean….almost every book I was assigned to read for school? But if we’re going reading for pleasure, I’ll have to say the Shadow and Bone series again. The main reason I picked up Shadow and Bone was to get through it so I could read King of Scars. Shadow and Bone was just…not very good. But I knew that there were characters in it that were in KoS so I just barrelled through it…. (I still haven’t picked up King of Scars, ha). But also…I’m one of those people who NEVER DNFs so I probably have a few others that I’m forgetting. (anyone think that goodreads should just have a ‘DNF’ button?)
Well, there’s my tag! I really hope you enjoyed this because I thought it would be a fun way to end the year and it’s just an all around original tag! (I hope) Here are the people that I will tag:
Weren’t tagged? I know a lot of people in the blogging community (most of whom I met in the last three days because I’ve actually been making an effort to talk to people) so I can’t tag everyone! But even if you weren’t tagged, please go ahead and do it! I would love to see your answers!
One more thing! Some of you may have noticed the ‘Monthly Wrap-Up Book Tag’ that I’ve been hosting. Yeah, it’s not going so well, probably because it’s sort of on a time crunch and I’m not posting it soon enough and people have already started their monthly wrap-ups, etc. etc. SO. I’m changing how this is going. I will put up a page for the three monthly questions each month. Questions will be put up at the BEGINNING OF THE MONTH. If you want to stick your monthly questions into your wrap-up, just for a fun little ‘learn more about the books’ thing, please do so! If you link your post back to my wrap up I will be sure to present it on my blog so that anyone can see it! For those of you who are interested in using the questions for this month, the questions are:
A book you read this month with a strong bond (friends, family, etc.)
A book you read this month in which the characters feasted
The book with characters that you would love to invite to your house for thanksgiving (pre-covid)(note: if you do not live in the USA you can talk about the characters you would invite to your house for a feast)
You can find the rest of my monthly wrap-up and check out my answers to these questions here.
Have you read any of these books? What do you think of my anticipated releases? Do you believer that goodreads should add a ‘DNF’ button? Please, tell me what you think in the comments! I always love to hear your opinion on my opinion as long as you’re respectful! As alwaus, thank you for stopping by to read this post and this blog. It means the world! Stay safe and keep reading,
Books with Wings 