2013 Recap

I saw this posted on a Goodreads thread a little while back and though it offered a variety of questions to sum up your year in reading!

2013 Book Recap

 

Best Book of 2013: The White Queen by Philippa Gregory

I don’t think that I can say enough AMAZING things about this book and this author!  I absolutely LOVE Philippa Gregory and all of her historical fiction novels that revolve around the Tudor Court or The Cousin’s War, like this novel.  This novel focuses on King Edward IV and his wife Elizabeth’s rise to power and influence on Edward and those the surround him.  This is definitely one of my favorites by Gregory!

Worst Book of 2013: If I Lie by Corrine Jackson

I hate saying that a book is “the worst,” but this one just didn’t do it for me.  I felt, by reading the description that I would be really intrigued by the secret that was being kept.  I thought the suspense it would have created throughout the novel would have been great, considering the main character is receiving so much hate because no one in the town knows about the truth.  Unfortunately, the secret is revealed within the first few chapters of the novel.

Disappointing Book: 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson

This book ended up being disappointing for me, personally, because I was so excited to read about all the travel in this novel.  However, the main character was a little annoying, and many of the events in the plot seemed very unrealistic to me.  The unrealistic aspect really kept me from enjoying the novel.

Most Surprising Book: Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks

I have a love/hate relationship with Nicholas Sparks’s novels because I have to be in the right mood for them.  I can sometimes hate the predictability of the romance aspect, however, this novel had quite a bit of action in it that kept me very interested.  I also loved the suspense within the novel and couldn’t put it down!

Most Recommended Book: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (review coming soon!)

This book was recommended to me from a friend, and I knew that I have always wanted to get around to it because of the movie (which I love) but just haven’t.  This year I finally did and loved it and now recommend it to you!  I think this book is my most recommended book because it is a classic, but I also think that it is fun and interesting to read so you won’t have to force yourself to read it.

Best Series: The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins

I absolutely loved this series!  I believe I read these books back to back to back because I was obsessed with the storyline.  I know I read through the first book within 2 sittings.  I just couldn’t get enough!

Favorite Discovered Author: Jennifer Echols (Forget You & Going Too Far)

This year I discovered Jennifer Echols and fell in love!  The two books that I have read by her are Forget You and Going Too Far.  Both are contemporary romances, but they are such quick reads because you will get sucked into the story!  I know I read Going Too Far in one night!

Hilarious Book: Bossypants by Tina Fey

I absolutely love Tina Fey (and 30 Rock … and Mean Girls…)!  She is so amazing and hilarious that I knew I had to check this book out!  And I LOVED it!  Just as much as I love her!  I think the thing I loved the most is when you read this book, you can definitely hear her voice coming though.

Unable to put down book: Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

I was definitely unable to put this book down!  I remember I started reading it during a power outage (which absolutely drive me crazy!!), and surprisingly, this book got me through the outage in one piece!  LOL.  I found the book very suspenseful, interesting, and totally relatable!  I also love the character dialogue!  This is one of those books that I end up comparing a lot of young adult books to because it is young adult, yes, but I felt that it was done in a way to reach out to those who are a little older that the typical young adult age group.

 

Most Anticipated Book: The Dressmaker by Kate Alcott

I was most looking forward to this book because I love the movie Titanic and couldn’t wait to see something similar in book form!  This historical fiction novel was really good, but not exactly what I thought it was going to be.  I thought it would focus more on events leading up to the crash and then the crash itself; however, this novel focused more on the aftermath of the crash and the trials that followed, which was really interesting.

Favorite Book Cover: The Kingmaker’s Daughter by Philippa Gregory (review coming soon!)

By far, this is my favorite book cover.  I mean, I like a lot of book covers, but the crown on this one … just gorgeous!

Most memorable character: V For Vendetta by Alan Moore

This year I read my first graphic novel, V For Vendetta.  I had previously seen the movie several times, but I thought it would be fun to check out the graphic novel.  I loved it!  And the character V, who creates chaos and anarchy to teach others about freedom, is definitely a very memorable character!

Beautifully written book: My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult

There was no competition for this category.  My Sister’s Keeper was beautifully written from beginning to end.  The description was incredible, and the different perspectives from each character were well thought out, really rounding out the novel.  It was so interesting to read about this story from different points of view, and to have an author that could do it so perfectly was amazing!  I can’t wait to read more from her!

The book which had the greatest impact: Devil at My Heels by Louis Zamperini (review coming soon!)

This book was incredibly inspiring and impactful!  I randomly saw this book on a poster on campus and decided I needed to check it out.  Louis Zamperini spent his childhood getting into trouble and doing drugs.  However, when he discovered running, he changed his life around and began training for the Olympics.  Unfortunately, this was during the time WWII began, and the Olympics were cancelled.  Zamperini trained as a pilot, until one day his plane crashed, and after surviving several months on a raft, he was captured as a POW.  This story talks about his survival through some extremely tough encounters.

A book you can't believe you wait until 2013 to read it: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

So I originally didn’t read this book because I heard several comparisons to the Twilight series, and I wasn’t interested in something too similar.  However, quite a while after the first Hunger Games movie was released, I decided to give the book a read before watching the movie.  The main reason for this was because I love Jennifer Lawrence!  However, I also loved the book and the movie and immediately continued on with the story!  And I’m so glad I did!

What are your answers to these questions?

FTC Disclaimer:

All items mentioned were purchased by me.  This is not a sponsored post.  All opinions are my own.  No affiliate links were used.