Top 10 Books of 2019

I don't know about you but I love this time of year for blogging and booktubing as I enjoy hearing and reading all about everyone's end of year wrap ups, what they loved, what they didn't and what they hope to achieve in the new year. 

Today I'm back with my top 10 favourite books of 2019. You'll see as we go through that I read some of my favourite series this year along with some wild cards thrown in there. These books aren't in any order of preference, only the order in which I read them throughout the year. 

The Wicked King by Holly Black

Review

Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Review

Obsidio by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Review

Nevernight by Jay Kristoff

Review

Music and Malice in Hurricane Town by Alex Bell

Review

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

Review

Tiger Queen by Annie Sullivan 

Review

Godsgrave by Jay Kristoff

No review for this one because I found that I struggled to talk about it without spoiling a lot of both this book and the first one. Just know it's one of the best sequels ever!

Turning Darkness into Light by Marie Brennan 

Review

The Toymakers by Robert Dinsdale 

I don't have a full review of this one as I read it towards the end of the year when I was taking a bit of a break from reviewing. This book really surprised me. It was magical and whimsical but explored some intense topics at the same time and I would highly recommend it. 

So that's it, my favourite books of 2019. As you can see I read a lot of Jay Kristoff this year, he's definitely a new favourite author. I finished up quite a few highly rated series this year too, including the Folk of the Air series by Holly Black, The Nevernight Chronicles by Jay Kristoff and The Illuminae Files by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff. 

I'd love to hear about your favourite reads of 2019, let me know in the comments. 

January TBR

In 2020 I'm hoping to go back to posting monthly TBRs so I can share with you my reading plans for the month and to try and keep me a bit more accountable for my reading. I don't plan on making really strict TBRs as I do find that can put me in a slump sometimes however, I will be sharing with you the challenges I plan on taking part in each month and any ideas for books I would like to read. 

I plan on splitting these TBRs into sections. I will talk about each of the following sections. 

• TBR and Beyond yearly challenge prompts (I will be choosing two of these a month)
• TBR and Beyond monthly challenge 
• Any readathons I'm planning on taking part in
• Review copies I have to read
• Any library books or books from my TBR I'm planning on reading

So without further ado lets dive into my January TBR. 

Yearly Challenge Prompts

My two challenge prompts for this month are

• A book with a ghost author or an indie author - Wolf Light by Yaba Badoe
• A book where people travel by train or by car - Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone (Illustrated Edition) by J.K. Rowling 

TBR and Beyonds Monthly Challenge 

My rolls were

• Free Space
• Next in Series - Collision by Victor Dixen 
• LGBTQ+
• Winter
• Free Space
• 2019 Book
• Magic - Wolf Light by Yaba Badoe

Review Copies 

• Wolf Light by Yaba Badoe
• Queen in Hiding by Sarah Kozloff
• Fate of the Fallen by Kel Kade

Other (Library/Exisiting TBR Books)

• Collision by Victor Dixen (Library Book)

I'll probably only manage to get to 4/5 of these ones but hopefully this will give me a bit of a choice which will stop me getting slumpy. 

What books do you have on your TBR of January? Let me know. 

2019 Recap and 2020 Reading Goals

Another Happy New Year to you all! It doesn't feel so long ago that we were here discussing my reading and blogging goals for 2019 and now we're looking forward to 2020. 

I had a really positive reading year in 2019, I read a lot and enjoyed a lot of what I read. I was also pretty good at keeping up with my challenges and with blogging, even if I have got a bit lax in the last few months. 

In today's post I will be recapping my 2019 goals and looking at how I did and sharing with you all my goals for this year. 

Goodreads Goal

In 2019 I set my Goodreads goal to 50 books, as I usually do, and I'm pleased to say I managed to exceed this and I actually read 69 books. 

In 2020 I will be setting my goal to 50 books again and hopefully I'll manage to exceed this once more. 

Reading Challenges

Last year I signed up to the AtoZ Reading Challenge hosted by Ginger Mom and Company. I didn't manage to complete the whole alphabet but I did manage to read 19 letters and I'm really pleased with this, you can see my final wrap up post here. This challenge is happening again this year for anyone wishing to take part however, I'm choosing a different challenge for 2020. 

This year I'm taking part in the TBR and Beyond Yearly Reading Challenge which is hosted over on the TBR and Beyond Facebook group. My plan is to pick a couple of prompts out of a bag every month in the hope of encouraging me to get through my backlist TBR. Along with the yearly reading challenge TBR and Beyond also host monthly challenges and I plan to take part in as many of these as I can. 

Blogging Goals

In 2019 I set myself a blogging schedule where I planned to post regular content on a Monday, Wednesday, Friday and then one weekend day. I did really well with this schedule for most of the year and then I returned to work after maternity leave and my blogging time was severely limited. 

This year I'm not setting myself any super restrictive blogging goals as I know I'm not going to have a massive amount of time. I plan to regularly post a monthly TBR, reading wrap up and haul along with any reviews of books I received for review. If at any point I find myself with some extra time, such as the school holidays, then I'll schedule in some extra posts.  

Social Media Goals

I didn't have any of these last year but for 2020 I've decided to set myself the goal of being more active on social media. I actually spent quite a lot of time on Twitter and Facebook (too much probably) and I really want to become more active in the book communities on these platforms. 

So that's it. I'm really pleased with what I managed to achieve last year as it was definitely a busy year for me. Lets hope 2020 fairs just as well. 

What reading goals have you set yourself for this year? Did you manage to achieve everything you hoped to in 2019? I'd love to know. 

A to Z Reading Challenge Wrap Up

We made it to the end of 2019! The year was a good one for me both in a reading way and a general life way. As you may be aware I signed up to the A to Z reading challenge hosted by Ginger Mom and Company at the beginning of 2019 and I want to wrap this up and let you know how I did. 

Below is a list of all of the books I've read this year that count towards this challenge and any reviews I've posted for these. I managed to complete 19 letter which I'm really pleased about. 

A. A Blade So Black by L. L. McKinney - Review

B. The Beckoning Shadow by Katharyn Blair - Review 

C.

D. Damsel by Elana K. Arnold - Review

E. Enchantee by Gite Trelease - Review

F. Final Girls by Riley Sager - Review

G. Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff - Review

H. Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

I. In Fallen Woods by R N Merle - Review

J. James Clyde and the Diamonds of Orchestra by Colm McElwain - Review

K.

L. Lord of Secrets by Breanna Teintze - Review

M. Music and Malice in Hurricane Town by Alex Bell - Review

N. Nevernight by Jay Kristoff - Review

O. Origin by Dan Brown - Review 

P. Poppy Haviland and the Secret of the Lively Widow by Micheal Barra - Review

Q. The Queen of Nothing by Holly Black

R. The Ruin of Kings by Jenn Lyons - Review

S. Stepsister by Jennifer Donnelly - Review

T. Tangleweed and Brine by Deidre Sullivan - Review

U.

V.

W. The Wicked King by Holly Black - Review

X.

Y.

Z.

Did you take part in any challenges this year? I'd love to hear about how you did. 

Final Wrap Up of 2019

As with September and October, I didn't read a whole lot in November so I will be combining my November and December wrap up for what will be my final one of the year. 

December was a better reading month for me because of the Christmas holidays. I also decided to take part in the Winter Magical Readathon in December so I'll let you know which books I read for which prompts as I go along. 

Broken Homes By Ben Aaronovitch 

Published 25th July 2013 by Gollancz

Star Rating - **

Goodreads Challenge - 65/50

Winter Magical Readathon Prompt - Read an Urban Fantasy 

The Secret Runners of New York by Matthew Reilly

Published 26th March 2019 by Hot Key Books

Star Rating - ***

Goodreads Challenge - 62/50

Daughter of the Siren Queen by Tricia Levenseller 

Published 27th February 2018 by Feiwel and Friends

Star Rating - ****

Goodreads Challenge - 60/50

The Name of All Things by Jenn Lyons 

Published 31st October 2019 by Tor UK

Star Rating - ****

Goodreads Challenge - 62/50

Review - Blog Review

The Queen of Nothing by Holly Black 

Published 19th November 2019 by Hot Key Books

Star Rating - ****

Goodreads Challenge - 64/50

Wundersmith: The Calling of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend

Published 30th October 2018 by Orion Children's Books

Star Rating - ****

Goodreads Challenge - 66/50

Winter Magical Readathon Prompt - Buddy Read or Read a Book Club Pick


Spellhacker by M.K. England
Published 21st January 2020 by HarperCollins Children's Books
Star Rating - ****
Goodreads Challenge - 67/50
Winter Magical Readathon Prompt - Pink or Purple on the Cover


Thorn by Intisar Khanani 
Published 24th March 2020 by Hot Key Books
Star Rating - ****
Goodreads Challenge - 68/50
Winter Magical Readathon Prompt - Pick 5-7 books, place in a circle, spin and pick one at random.


Lost Boy the Christina Henry 
Published 4th July 2017 by Titan Books
Star Rating - ****
Goodreads Challenge 69/50
Winter Magical Readathon Prompt - Friends Favourite Book

The Toymakers by Robert Dinsdale 

Published 8th February 2018 by Del Rey

Star Rating - ****.5

Goodreads Challenge - 61/50

How did you do in December? Did you manage to reach your Goodreads goal? I'd love to hear about your favourite of the month. 

Final Quarterly Wrap Up of 2019

So here I am with my final quarterly wrap up of 2019 which covers the months October, November and December. 

This quarter I read 14 books which is my worst reading quarter to date. I'm not sure why that is, I just seem to have been really busy however I hope next year will start off better. Here are my stats for this quarter.

Age Demographic

Middle Grade: 1

Young Adult: 6

Adult: 7

Genre

Fantasy: 9

Sci-Fi: 1

Magical Realism: 1 

Mystery/Thriller: 2
Fairytale Retelling: 1

Source

Physical ARC/Finished Copy from Publisher: 5

Bought in 2019: 4

Owned Prior to 2019: 3 

Library Book: 1
Library Audio Book: 1

Star Rating

1 Star: 0

2 Star: 1

3 Star: 2

4 Star: 10

5 Star: 1

Top 3 Books of this Quarter

The Toy Makers by Robert Dinsdale

Darkdawn by Jay Kristoff

The Queen of Nothing by Holly Black

So not my best for quantity but fairly good for quality, most of the books I read this quarter were at least 4 stars.

I'm hoping 2020 will be just as good as 2019 for reading, if not better!

Review - The Name of All Things by Jenn Lyons

The Name of All Things by Jenn Lyons

Published 31st October 2019 by Tor UK

Star Rating - ***.5

Goodreads Challenge - 63/50

I was gifted a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. 

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

You can have everything you want if you sacrifice everything you believe.

Kihrin D'Mon is a wanted man.

Since he destroyed the Stone of Shackles and set demons free across Quur, he has been on the run from the wrath of an entire empire. His attempt to escape brings him into the path of Janel Theranon, a mysterious Joratese woman who claims to know Kihrin.

Janel's plea for help pits Kihrin against all manner of dangers: a secret rebellion, a dragon capable of destroying an entire city, and Kihrin's old enemy, the wizard Relos Var.

Janel believes that Relos Var possesses one of the most powerful artifacts in the world―the Cornerstone called the Name of All Things. And if Janel is right, then there may be nothing in the world that can stop Relos Var from getting what he wants.

And what he wants is Kihrin D'Mon.

Jenn Lyons continues the Chorus of Dragons series with The Name of All Things, the epic sequel to The Ruin of Kings.

My Thoughts

I read the first book in this series earlier on in the year and I was really excited to dive into this one. I didn't love it as much as the first but it was definitely a solid sequel.

One of the things I really enjoyed about the first book was the unique writing style and this one followed suit in that respect. As with the first book, we follow one story told by two different perspectives however, I found this one a bit easier to follow as we follow the story in a linear fashion unlike the first book. The other thing I really like about these books is the world and the story development. It's very detailed and I think the author did a great job at creating a really well thought out story.

My favourite part of the first book through was the characters, I particularly loved Kihrin however, he isn't very prominent in this instalment and I think that's why I didn't love this one as much as the first. In this book we follow Janel and Brother Qown's story that led to them to be where they are at the beginning of the book. Kihrin is here in the background and you do get his witty remarks between each section of storytelling but I just didn't find Janel's story as compelling as Kihrin's. I also felt that at times the story became a little bit long winded and it could have been shortened in places, with less repetition between perspectives. That being said I liked the references to Janel's appearances in the first book and how all of this tied together and I liked the final section of the book when we jump back to present time and the action with Kihrin again at the forefront of the story.

Overall, as I said before, I think this was a very solid sequel that expanded upon the story that was set up in the first one. There were a few interesting twists and turns, especially in the final part that kept me wanting more. I think the author has created some really clever storytelling full of interweaving plots and narratives and I'm really excited to pick up the third and final book in this series to see how everything ends.

Overall Rating (3.5*)