Around the Year in 52 Books discussion

The second quarter of the year has come to a close now. Just like last time, lets hand out some awards for the books that we loved in the second quarter. If you didn't get to participate in the first quarter, you still can right over here.

It's time for some wrap-up of your reads. Let's give awards to them! Using your reads from April, May, and June, choose a winner for each category. If you don't have a book for every category, just do the ones you can/want to. It's all for fun.

Categories:
Breakout Read: A book that was surprisingly good or exceeded expectations.
Biggest Let Down: A book you thought would be brilliant but was a total disappointment.
Best Dressed: The book with the most attractive cover.
Best Characters: A book with characters you couldn't get enough of.
Best Place: A book that was set in an interesting place (fictionnal or not).
Best Story: A book with a great storyline.
Best Feelings: A book that made you really emotional.
Best Love: A book with a romance worth swooning for (does not have to be a romance book).
Best Shock: A book that made your jaw drop in surprise.
Best Author: An author whose writing you really clicked with.
Best Series: A book from a series you either can't get enough of or can't wait to indulge in more.
Best Read: The book you read in April, May or June that topped all the others.

Do feel free to use any books from any challenge or side read that you read in the months of April, May, and June.

Breakout Read: A book that was surprisingly good or exceeded expectations.
The Samurai's Garden. I picked it because I saw some good ratings and what a good surprise.

Biggest Let Down: A book you thought would be brilliant but was a total disappointment.
The Upside of Unrequited. I found it boring.

Best Dressed: The book with the most attractive cover.


Best Characters: A book with characters you couldn't get enough of.
Hello, Universe

Best Place: A book that was set in an interesting place (fictionnal or not).
La Mémoire de Babel

Best Story: A book with a great storyline.
A Man Called Ove. I also really enjoyed The Room. High fives for Scandinavia.

Best Feelings: A book that made you really emotional.
A Man Called Ove (also cried during half the movie)

Best Love: A book with a romance worth swooning for (does not have to be a romance book).
Nothing fits the bill this time, I read books with problematic or flat romances, or no romance.

Best Shock: A book that made your jaw drop in surprise.
Fairest: Levana’s Story

Best Author: An author whose writing you really clicked with.
Fredrik Backman

Best Series: A book from a series you either can't get enough of or can't wait to indulge in more.
A Closed and Common Orbit (Wayfarers #2). Can't wait to have another book by the author in the series!

Best Read: The book you read in April, May, or June that topped all the others.
Probably The Samurai's Garden, but there are others I liked as much.

Breakout Read:

A Case of Need by Michael Crichton - I read a lot of solid books this quarter, but I really wasn't expecting this one to be one of the best.

Biggest Let Down:

The Bands of Mourning by Brandon Sanderson - usually the third book in a series is a safe bet, but this was a huge let down and no where near the par set by its predecessors.

Best Dressed:

Ubik by Philip K. Dick - not much of a competition here.

Best Characters:

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers - and how!

Best Place:

Shadows of Self by Brandon Sanderson

Best Story:

The Code of the Woosters by P.G. Wodehouse

Best Feelings:

Blackout/All Clear by Connie Willis - because it ran the gamut.

Best Love:

I like the romance story in Blackout/All Clear but I've got to give this to The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet for Jenks and Lovey.

Best Author:

P.G. Wodehouse

Best Series:

Oxford Time Travel Series by Connie Willis

Best Read:

Solaris by Stanisław Lem

Breakout Read: It Ends with Us

Biggest Let Down: The Girls

Best Dressed: I have a tie with this one. Carve the Mark and The Sun Is Also a Star Carve the Mark was a nice dark glittery. The Sun is Also a Star I did as a side read.

Best Characters: Definitely To Kill a Mockingbird but then I loved Ove.........I guess another tie A Man Called Ove

Best Place: The Great Gatsby

Best Story: A Man Called Ove

Best Feelings: It Ends with Us - cried the whole way through

Best Love: It Ends with Us

Best Shock: Dark Matter

Best Author: Nicola Yoon I liked her writing so much that I snuck in The Sun is Also a Star on the side.

Best Series: City of Glass but Cinder is a close second

Best Read: I had a lot of good ones this quarter as far as the ones I couldn't put down it's another tie Dark Matter and It Ends with Us

Sorry in advance, because this is going to be really repetitive. I so clearly have favorites this time, and I can't help picking them over and over. (I swear I picked from more than 20 books for these...)

Breakout Read: Angelfall

Biggest Let Down: The Abyss Surrounds Us and All the Birds in the Sky

Best Dressed:


Best Characters: Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom

Best Place: Six of Crows and Angelfall

Best Story: Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom

Best Feelings: Crooked Kingdom

Best Love: Crooked Kingdom and Angelfall

Best Shock: Crooked Kingdom

Best Author: Leigh Bardugo

Best Series: Six of Crows

Best Read: Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom (and Angelfall)

Breakout Read: Girl in Hyacinth Blue by Susan Vreeland
I love art books, but this one was even better than I imagined. I wish I'd read it ages ago.

Biggest Let Down: The Vegetarian by Han Kang
I read Human Acts by the same author earlier this year & loved it, so I thought this would be fantastic, especially since it's a Man Booker Prize winner, but I couldn't stand it.

Best Dressed: I didn't have any really gorgeous covers, but I do really like this one.


Best Characters: The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara
Shaara did an amazing job at bringing these historical figures to life & making each one of them, Union and Confederate alike, sympathetic, and presenting each of them in the best possible light.

Best Place: Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Tell You Everything You Need to Know About Global Politics by Tim Marshall
Probably an unconventional choice for this one, but since this book is all about place, it see and how geography shapes place, this seems a good pick.

Best Story: Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton
Such a moving story.

Best Feelings: Princess on the Brink by Meg Cabot
I had a look of books that gave me all the feels this quarter, but for some reason this one really sticks out to me. The feelings of pain in young love were just really poignant to me. I remember feeling that way.

Best Love: These Happy Golden Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder
The courtship of Almanzo Wilder & Laura Ingalls was totally adorable.

Best Shock: The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America by Erik Larson
Not shock as in surprise, but shock as in the behavior of the US's first serial killer, H.H. Holmes, was shockingly depraved.

Best Author: Nothing Gold Can Stay: Stories by Ron Rash
Gorgeous short stories. Rash gives you just enough to make a powerful story without giving anything extra, so you're left thinking. Plus he writes about the American South, which I love.

Best Series: Little House on the Prairie Series by Laura Ingalls Wilder
This series has been on my bookshelf for 20+ years & I finally read them all. What a treasure.

Best Read: The Killer Angels with Girl in Hyacinth Blue as a close second.

Breakout Read: Barra Creek
Biggest Let Down: Ape House
Best Dressed:

Best Characters: The Night Circus
Best Place: The Night Circus
Best Story: It Ends with Us
Best Feelings: It Ends with Us
Best Love: The Secret Garden
Best Shock: Luckiest Girl Alive
Best Author: Colleen Hoover
Best Series: Saga, Vol. 1
Best Read: The Night Circus

Overall, my second quarter was much stronger than my first. There were a lot more standout books!

Breakout Read: A book that was surprisingly good or exceeded expectations.
Red Queen. I went into this book expecting very little considering all the comments I'd seen about it being too similar to other dystopians, but I loved it!

Biggest Let Down: A book you thought would be brilliant but was a total disappointment.
In Real Life. I squeezed this one in on the very last day of this quarter, and it was nowhere near as good as I hoped it would be. Very disappointing.

Best Dressed: The book with the most attractive cover.


Best Characters: A book with characters you couldn't get enough of.
Fangirl. I related very strongly to Cath, and her relationship with Levi was very cute.

Best Place: A book that was set in an interesting place (fictional or not).
Actually, not too many of my books were set anywhere interesting this time. I think Strong Female Protagonist. Book One was set in a pretty interesting world, which reminded me a lot of The Incredibles. I would say Cress, but I used Scarlet for this category last quarter, so I thought I'd go for something different.

Best Story: A book with a great storyline.
Baba Yaga's Assistant. It was a fairly simple storyline, but I loved it.

Best Feelings: A book that made you really emotional.
Not very many overly emotional reads this time either, but I would probably have to pick Rosalie Lightning: A Graphic Memoir which is written by a father whose toddler suddenly and unexpectedly died. The other strongest contender would be Thirteen Reasons Why for its powerful story about the impact of bullying.

Best Love: A book with a romance worth swooning for (does not have to be a romance book).
The Upside of Unrequited. The relationship in this book is just so cute!

Best Shock: A book that made your jaw drop in surprise.
Definitely the ending of Red Queen. Somehow, I did not see it coming at all.

Best Author: An author whose writing you really clicked with.
Victoria Aveyard.

Best Series: A book from a series you either can't get enough of or can't wait to indulge in more.
I would have to go with either Red Queen again, with Cress in a close second.

Best Read: The book you read in April, May or June that topped all the others.
Strong Female Protagonist. Book One. I have to give this one a few bonus points since I'm not often a huge graphic novel fan. I absolutely adored this book!

Breakout Read: The Wreath by Sigrid Undset. I thought this historical fiction book written in 1920 would be a chore but I loved it.
Biggest Let Down: My Cousin Rachel was a let-down simply because I like du Maurier's book Rebecca so much and I didn't like this one as much. Still good writing, though.
Best Dressed: Ms. Marvel, Vol. 1: No Normalby G. Willow Wilson
Best Characters: A Piece of the World by Christina Baker Kline had the character of Christina Olson, the inspiration for Andrew Wyeth's painting, Christina's World. She is unforgettable.
Best Place: The Wreath by Sigrid Undset is set in medieval Norway. I really liked the prompt to read a book by an author from Scandinavia because I discovered this book.
Best Story: A Piece of the World
Best Feelings: A Piece of the World
Best Love:Longbourn - Sarah, the housemaid and James, the footman.
Best Shock: didn't really have one.
Best Author: Sigrid Undset, the author of the Kristin Lavransdatter series.
Best Series: The Wreath. I plan on reading the rest of the trilogy.
Best Read: Tie between The Wreath and A Piece of the World

Breakout Read: Daddy-Long-Legs - I had zero expectations of this books, and it was adorable!

Biggest Let Down: I hate to say it, but The Ruin of a Rake - it wasn't bad, but my expectations were just too high.

Best Dressed: Peter Darling - Look at how gorgeous this is!

Best Characters: Crucible of Gold - Really, any of the Temeraire novels would work here - I love following Temeraire and Capt. Laurence!

Best Place: A Taste of Honey - Amazing world-building here.

Best Story: I love stories where the world is almost exactly the same, except for one key element, and Exit West is a great example.

Best Feelings: It's a tie between Anything Is Possible and Exit West, both of which made me physically clutch the book to my chest.

Best Love: Kings Rising - I got much more invested in Damen and Laurent than I expected!

Best Shock: Fingersmith - I thought that I'd been thoroughly spoiled for this book, but it took several additional turns I wasn't expecting.

Best Author: Naomi Novik - Can't get enough of her work!

Best Series: The Captive Prince series - I totally get why it's a no-go for many people, but I think it proved worth the effort.

Best Read: Exit West - I'll be shocked if this doesn't end up being my #1 of the year.

Breakout Read: [book:In the Shadow of the Banyan
Biggest Let Down: The Invisible Library
Best Dressed: The Language of Flowers
Best Characters: This is How It Always Is
Best Place: The Girl with Seven Names: A North Korean Defector’s Story
Best Story: This is How It Always Is
Best Feelings: This is How It Always Is
Best Love: The Secret Wife
Best Shock: The Likeness
Best Author: Ann Patchett
Best Series: Echoes in Death
Best Read: Toss up between This is How It Always Is and In the Shadow of the Banyan

Happy to report this last quarter I read some amazing books much better luck than the first quarter!

Breakout Read: Commonwealth really enjoyable by an author I have never read before.

Biggest Let Down: Homegoing I heard so many people liked this book but it just wasn't for me.

Best Dressed: and I must say that only think I really liked about between and gone was the COVER! lol

Best Characters: Although I didn't love the book as a whole I really loved Alex from the book Everything Is Illuminated

Best Place: N/A this time.

Best Story: A Long Way Home Such an amazing story!!

Best Feelings: A Monster Calls cause it was heart wrenching.... A Long Way Home it was gut wrenching and heart warming, and Beartown cause it was powerful.

Best Love: The Language of Flowers

Best Shock: The Martian

Best Author: Fredrik Backman I really love everything he writes!!

Best Series: The books I enjoy don't tend to be part of a series... tend to shy away from books in series not really sure why.

Best Read: Beartown I absolutely loved this book I could have put it down as Breakout, Best Story as well but figured I would choose others for variety. But I highly recommend this powerful and well written book!

Breakout Read: A Perfect Waiter by Alain Claude Sulzer. I read this book to fill a prompt for the Read Harder Challenge, but I didn't know anything about it. It's set in an old-fashioned Swiss hotel during WWII. I liked the story and its wistful atmosphere.

Biggest Let Down: Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. I don't like science-fiction, but I thought I would enjoy this one because it's one of my sister's all-time favorite books. Well I didn't, I found the characters and the plot overly simplistic. I liked the ending though - it was more poetic and unexpected than the rest of the book.

Best Dressed: Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Best Characters : The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith

Best Place: Dans les coulisses de la Comédie-Française by Laetitia Cénac and Damien Rondeau - set in one of the most ancient French theaters, near the Louvre.

Best Story: The Dry by Jane Harper and Marie Stuart by Stefan Zweig

Best Feelings: Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Best Love: Ifemelu and Obinze in Americanah

Best Shock: VIP: roman by Laurent Chalumeau - An anonymous French president ends up in a very awkward situation. Highly enjoyable!

Best Author: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Best Series: A Rule Against Murder by Louise Penny

Best Read: Americanah and Marie Stuart

Breakout Read: Saga, Vol. 1 (really wasn't sure I would enjoy this but it was great)
Biggest Let Down: The City of Mirrors
Best Dressed:

Best Characters: Rich People Problems
Best Place: Rich People Problems
Best Story: Hate List
Best Feelings: Every Heart a Doorway
Best Love: The Hypnotist's Love Story
Best Shock: The Roanoke Girls
Best Author: Rich People Problems
Best Series: Rich People Problems
Best Read: Rich People Problems

Breakout Read: The Yellow Wallpaper
Biggest Let Down: tie between The Bone Clocks and Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights
Best Dressed:
Best Characters: Beartown
Best Place: Boneshaker
Best Story: A Man Called Ove
Best Feelings: A Man Called Ove
Best Love: A Thousand Pieces of You
Best Shock: The Vegetarian
Best Author: Haruki Murakami
Best Series: A Thousand Pieces of You
Best Read: Beartown

Breakout Read: The Marriage Lie
Biggest Let Down: Alex and Eliza
Best Dressed: The Selection
Best Characters: All the Light We Cannot See
Best Place: The Woman in Cabin 10
Best Story: The Marriage Lie
Best Feelings: All the Bright Places
Best Love: Everything, Everything
Best Shock: The Marriage Lie
Best Author: Kimberly Belle
Best Series: The Selection
Best Read: The Marriage Lie

Breakout Read: A book that was surprisingly good or exceeded expectations.
Mystic River. I loved this way more than I ever expected to.

Biggest Let Down: A book you thought would be brilliant but was a total disappointment.
Everything, Everything. I was super interested and invested in this until it neared the end, and then everything just fell apart and I was incredibly disappointed.

Best Dressed: The book with the most attractive cover.
A Tyranny of Petticoats


Best Characters: A book with characters you couldn't get enough of.
Day After Night by Anita Diamant. Loved the main women and the bonds they shared.

Best Place: A book that was set in an interesting place (fictional or not).
Every Heart a Doorway. I loved the idea of a school for chosen ones, and Seanan McGuire definitely delivered on the setting. From the school itself, to the mythical worlds described, setting shined in this book.

Best Story: A book with a great storyline.
The Hate U Give; such a powerful and solid storyline.

Best Feelings: A book that made you really emotional.
We Are Okay; I really connected with the main character and Nina LaCour's writing drowned me in feelings.

Best Love: A book with a romance worth swooning for (does not have to be a romance book).
When Dimple Met Rishi. I loved the dynamic between Dimple and Rishi so much. They're definitely one of my favorite YA contemporary pairs. :)

Best Shock: A book that made your jaw drop in surprise.
Murder on the Orient Express. The murder mystery was done so well and I'm intrigued to reread so I can search for foreshadowing the second time around.

Best Author: An author whose writing you really clicked with.
Dennis Lehane.

Best Series: A book from a series you either can't get enough of or can't wait to indulge in more. Lumberjanes, Vol. 2: Friendship to the Max.

Best Read: The book you read in April, May or June that topped all the others.
This is really tough, because I read some really great books in the past three months, but I think I'll have to go with Lumberjanes, Vol. 1: Beware the Kitten Holy. I've read it twice already and I love it to pieces.

Did not start well ( very disappointed with my first read of the quarter ) but on the whole quite pleased with this three months.
Read total : 27 Books

Breakout Read: A book that was surprisingly good or exceeded expectations.


Biggest Let Down: A book you thought would be brilliant but was a total disappointment
.

Best Dressed: The book with the most attractive cover.



Best Characters: A book with characters you couldn't get enough of.


Best Place: A book that was set in an interesting place (fictionnal or not)
.
( beautiful description of several locations PLUS some great libraries too!)

Best Story: A book with a great storyline.
Several but these standout


Best Feelings: A book that made you really emotional
Made me very angry
.

Best Love: A book with a romance worth swooning for (does not have to be a romance book).
Perhaps ironically


Best Shock: A book that made your jaw drop in surprise

Being a Vegetarian myself, I was shocked at the treatment of the title character. This is another attractive cover

Best Author: An author whose writing you really clicked with.
I have clicked with Val McDermid for some time, new authors (to me) in April - June Ruth Dugdall

Best Series: A book from a series you either can't get enough of or can't wait to indulge in more
The Tony Hill & Carol Jordan Series
. The Mermaids Singing

Best Read: The book you read in April, May or June that topped all the others.
5*

I did not do the first quarter and I just feel that I should do the year so far, so this will be picks from January to June.

The Walking Dead will come up here a lot - I have read the entire series, but in different formats, so I will be using the link to the first compendium to denote the full series.The Walking Dead, Compendium 1

Breakout Read:
Born a Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood - This book blew me away. Get the audio, Noah's delivery is fantastic. Touching, educational, funny, and completely original.

Biggest Let Down:
Casino Royale - The movie was excellent, with a layered, complex romance. The book has the spy story, but Bond is mysoginistic to the degree of stupidity, Vesper is flat, and the romance is boring and dumb.

Best Dressed:


Best Characters:
The Walking Dead, Compendium 1 - the full series. The character development in this series is off the charts. That is the whole point.

Best Place:
Home (Binti) - a space ship that gives birth - 'nuf said.

Best Story:
The Walking Dead, Compendium 1 - never lets up.

Best Feelings:
Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic - what a personal, soul- bearing, painful, cathartic work - in a graphic format. Read it twice.

Best Love:
The Blind Assassin - sordid, passionate, creative, aching, incredible.

Best Shock:
Tie between The Blind Assassin, with its slowly building what-what-what???, and The Walking Dead, Compendium 1 constantly delivering "holy sh*t"

Best Author:
Margaret Atwood. Her writing just gets inside my head.

Best Series:
The Walking Dead, Compendium 1 - full series

Best Read:
The Blind Assassin - blew me away. Genius.

April, May ad June have been a HUGE reading slump for me so I will do my best for these, so these are the best I can come up with :(

Breakout Read: Scythe (I was introduced to this on Booktube so I was concerned, but it turned out to be great!)
Biggest Let Down: Every Heart a Doorway (Just hated it. I do not get the hype)
Best Dressed:
Best Characters: A Closed and Common Orbit
Best Place: Sand
Best Story: A Closed and Common Orbit
Best Feelings: A book that made you really emotional.
Best Love:
Best Shock:
Best Author: A Closed and Common Orbit
Best Series: A Closed and Common Orbit
Best Read: A Closed and Common Orbit or Scythe ( they were great!)

Breakout Read: Flowers for Algernon, I didn't think I would love it as much, but it touched me like crazy

Biggest Let Down: Seveneves, I really wanted to love it, but got bored so much. It is actually the first time ever I think an abridged version could be a good idea ;)

Best Dressed: Le souffle du jasmin, this door just invites me to some Middle Eastern mysteries

Best Characters: The Plot to Kill the Pope, I love this band of crazy badass crazy characters! (and yes they deserve 2 crazy)

Best Place: A Darker Shade of Magic, London is my favourite city, I would love to visit the different shades of it ;)

Best Story: Murder on the Orient Express, Agatha Christie's mysteries are incredible!

Best Feelings: A Man Called Ove, Ove made me laugh and cry so much, so many emotions!

Best Love: Dragon Haven, I really like the relationship between Alise and Captain Leftrin

Best Shock: The Bone People, I couldn't believe what happened to Simon and was so heart broken over it

Best Author: Fredrik Backman, I want to read all his books without exception!

Best Series: I can't wait to read the sequels to A Darker Shade of Magic and Dragon Haven

Best Read: A Man Called Ove without hesitation!

Breakout Read:
The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski

Biggest Let Down:
Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands by Jorge Amado

Best Dressed:


Best Characters:
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (Wayfarers #1) by Becky Chambers
Crooked Kingdom (Six of Crows #2) by Leigh Bardugo.

Best Place:
Crooked Kingdom (Six of Crows #2) by Leigh Bardugo

Best Story:
Crooked Kingdom (Six of Crows #2) by Leigh Bardugo

Best Feelings:
Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson

Best Love:
White Hot (Hidden Legacy #2) by Ilona Andrews

Best Shock:
Daughter of Smoke & Bone (Daughter of Smoke & Bone, #1) by Laini Taylor

Best Author:
Becky Chambers

Best Series:
Tie between the Rock Chick series by Kristen Ashley and In Death series by J.D. Robb

Best Read:
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (Wayfarers #1) by Becky Chambers

Breakout Read: All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque. I've read a number of fiction books set in war time, but none even came close to this. It is absolutely brilliant.

Biggest Let Down: Oh God, Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones. What a hot mess of a book.

Best Dressed:
by J.K. Rowling.
Read this with the Spider - the illustrations (including the cover) are exquisite, and the cover even feels beautiful.

Best Characters: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone again. The characters are what I love best about the books - they are the reason I keep re-reading them!

Best Place: The Martian by Andy Weir, because Mars!

Best Story: Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami had a really interesting, interlinked and weird storyline.

Best Feelings: Again, All Quiet on the Western Front. I felt very emotional throughout the book, but two scenes in particular broke me.

Best Love: Nateley's devotion to his whore in Catch-22 was oddly endearing and moving.

Best Shock: Escape from Camp 14: One Man's Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West by Blaine Harden. I was completely stunned by what life in North Korea is actually like - it's horrific.

Best Author: Erich Maria Remarque - I definitely want to read more from him.

Best Series: Harry Potter ... same goes for the Spider. As soon as we finished the first book, she ran to her bookcase to grab the second. That's my girl!

Best Read: Without a doubt it was All Quiet on the Western Front. So poetic, visceral, moving, it's a masterpiece. I think every high school child (and adult) should read it. The best book on war that I've ever read, and will ever likely read.

Jody wrote: "Breakout Read: All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque. I've read a number of fiction books set in war time, but none even came close to this. It is absol..."
I absolutely agree, All Quiet is all the feels. It blew me away, too. Remarque is the most emphatetic writer I have ever read.

His most known in Europe is Arch of Triumph: A Novel of a Man Without a Country. I have read Three Comrades many years ago, don't remember it well, just that it was similarly compassionate to All Quiet, and it was excellent.

Anna wrote: "Breakout Read:
The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski."
I loved The Last Wish as well! It was one of my five star reads. I was just lucky enough to read so many good ones that it was edged out by others. I am going to read Blood of Elves soon - planning to go through the series.

J wrote: "Best Read: Solaris"
I love Lem. Solaris is a gem, albeit rather trippy. My favorite from him is The Cyberiad.

Breakout Read: Postcards from the Edge
Biggest Let Down: The Princess Bride
Best Dressed: The Chocolate Bunny Brouhaha
Best Characters: A Gentleman in Moscow
Best Place: It's All Fun and Games & A Gentleman in Moscow
Best Story: A Gentleman in Moscow
Best Feelings: Gilead
Best Love: Gilead & The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream
Best Shock: Pond
Best Author: Amor Towles A Gentleman in Moscow & Penelope Lively The Purple Swamp Hen and Other Stories
Best Series: Gilead
Best Read: A Gentleman in Moscow - hands down, will likely be my #1 Book of the Year!

Breakout Read: Norse Mythology
(I got in on audiobook for a vacation because I thought my boyfriend would enjoy it even though I had no interest in it whatsoever. He did enjoy it, but I did too!)

Biggest Let Down: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
It wasn't bad, but I don't think it lived up to the hype. Also, In the Woods didn't really resolve the story to my satisfaction.

Best Dressed:


Best Characters:
Coraline


Best Place:
Norse Mythology

Best Story:
Half of a Yellow Sun

Best Feelings:
Too Loud a Solitude

Best Love:
Across a Star-Swept Sea

Best Shock:
Poirot Investigates In this series of short stories, Agatha Christie shocked me again and again.

Best Author: I read Dear Ijeawele, or a Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions and Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Coraline and Norse Mythology
by Neil Gaiman. I found all four of these books outstanding and both authors to be really good in different ways.


Best Series: While The Color of Magic wasn't my favorite book, I really look forward to reading more books in the Discworld series.

Best Read: Homegoing was really unique and one of the best books I've read in quite a while.

Breakout Read: Disgrace by JM Coetzee
Biggest Let Down: The Girls by Emma Cline
Best Dressed:

Best Characters: A lot of people just hate these characters, but I thought they were highly entertaining: The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen
Best Place: Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. This was probably the most unique location.
Best Story: American Pastoral by Philip Roth
Best Feelings: A Man Called Ove by Frederick Backman
Best Love: Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin.
Best Shock: The Third Policeman by Flann O'Brien
Best Author: - We Have Always Lived in the Castle
Best Series: No Series Read this quarter.
Best Read: I read too many heavy hitters this month. Hard to pick just one. Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace is the one that I worked the hardest on and thought the longest about.

Breakout Read: Disgrace by JM Coetzee

Biggest Let Down: The Girls by Emma Cline

Best Dressed:
Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace

Best Characters: A lot of people just hate these characters, but I thought they were highly entertaining: The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen

Best Place: Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. This was probably the most unique location.

Best Story: American Pastoral by Philip Roth

Best Feelings: A Man Called Ove by Frederick Backman

Best Love: Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin.

Best Shock: The Third Policeman by Flann O'Brien

Best Author: Shirley Jackson - We Have Always Lived in the Castle
Shirley Jackson
Best Series: No Series Read this quarter.
Best Read: I read too many heavy hitters this month. Hard to pick just one. Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace is the one that I worked the hardest on and thought the longest about. It was really a tremendous quarter of reading.

Breakout Read: A book that was surprisingly good or exceeded expectations. Fantômas

Biggest Let Down: A book you thought would be brilliant but was a total disappointment. Girl in Snow( such a big disappointment that I DNF it 100% even though it was an ARC from NetGalley)

Best Dressed: The book with the most attractive cover. Ninth City Burning( even though I DNF it 100% I still like the cover )

Best Characters: A book with characters you couldn't get enough of. Mr. Mercedes

Best Place: A book that was set in an interesting place (fictionnal or not). The Shining( even though it took me forever to read this Stephen King book the place the story took place was interesting )

Best Story: A book with a great storyline. Hollow Scream

Best Feelings: A book that made you really emotional. Wolf Nation: The Life, Death, and Return of Wild American Wolves( this made me cry, because wolves are my all-time favorite animals ,and it's hard to imagine a world with out these beautiful animals)

Best Love: A book with a romance worth swooning for (does not have to be a romance book). Indestructible: One Man's Rescue Mission That Changed the Course of WWII

Best Shock: A book that made your jaw drop in surprise. 99 Red Balloons

Best Author: An author whose writing you really clicked with.B.A. Paris
( Read an ARC of her new book The Breakdown and loved it)
Best Series: A book from a series you either can't get enough of or can't wait to indulge in more.
The Oregon Files by Clive Cussler

Best Read: The book you read in April, May or June that topped all the others.