JANUARY
Raising Dragons // Bryan Davis
Boy breathes fire // Arthurian legend // dragonslayers // felt like returning to old friends // 5 stars
Siren's Fury // Mary Weber
Steampunk meets fantasy // dramatic redemption // airships // darkness // cliffhanger // 5 stars
FEBRUARY
The Scorch Trials // James Dashner
Improved over The Maze Runner // Newt and Minho are my favs // Teresa is annoying as all get-out // sorry, the movie was better // 4 stars
The Candlestone // Bryan Davis
All my babies are growing up // vivid analogies // "truth is my sword" // singing in the midst of darkness // 5 stars
Hostage Run // Andrew Klavan
Super fast read // video game affects reality // angry son actually works to forgive his father // Molly is great // 4 stars
Orphan's Song // Gillian Bronte Adams
Cozy fantasy // griffins and orphans and swords // music is magic // Amos, the cranky peddler, sounds exactly like Hector Barbossa in my head // 4 stars
MARCH
Last Star Burning // Caitlin Sangster
Dystopian China = very cool // sleeping sickness // confusing action sequences // common sense could've prevented 90% of the problems // backstabby characters // 3 stars
Circles of Seven // Bryan Davis
So much symbolism // one of my favorites // Walter and Ashley snark // detestable villainess // Prof is the actual best // 5 stars
APRIL
The Returning // Rachelle Dekker
Powerful themes about identity // new generation of characters // I missed the old ones // some loose threads left unresolved // 4 stars
Tears of a Dragon // Bryan Davis
Great character growth // rescuing dragon souls // fighting the Watchers // solid ending // 5 stars
The Story Peddler // Lindsay A. Franklin
Cozy and full of wonder // exceeded my expectations // storytelling powers // headstrong heroine // ragtag band of misfits // I fell in love with the pirate! // 5 stars
MAY
Eye of the Oracle // Bryan Davis
History of millennia woven into overarching plot // underground slaves // portal jumping // Makaidos is my favorite dragon ever // 5 stars
The Sea of Monsters // Rick Riordan
Hilarious // a taxi of death // man-eating sheep // Tyson is sweet // epic bad guys plans // would've liked a bit more introspection // 5 stars
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone // J.K. Rowling
Utterly enchanting // lovable characters // my first foray into the Wizarding World // some unnecessary sneakery // I'm gonna go live at Hogwarts okay thanks // 5 stars
Gravestone // Travis Thrasher
Audiobook // dark and winding road // gloomy // creepy // a ray of light is coming // very lifelike emotions // 5 stars
JUNE
Capital Gaines: Smart Things I Learned Doing Stupid Stuff // Chip Gaines
Interesting anecdotes // family first // live fearlessly // felt a bit scattered // 4 stars
Steal Like an Artist // Austin Kleon
Inspiration for the creative process // celebrate imperfection // pithy and quotable // catapults your own thoughts // 5 stars
Enoch's Ghost // Bryan Davis
Sacrifice // Ashley is super relatable // creepy infinite staircase // so many awesome characters hurting so much, ow // 5 stars
Siren's Song // Mary Weber
Epic final battle // heart-wrenching ending // Nym has come so far // Myles gave me Loki vibes // thematically magnificent // 5 stars
Unblemished // Sara Ella
So fun and cute // fairy-tale-esque world connected to New York // twisty plot // love triangle // Team Ky all the way // 4.5 stars
The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap // Akira Himekawa
Graphic novel // cute drawing style // the Pikori are adorable // good conclusion // 4 stars
Paper and Fire // Rachel Caine
Left me breathless // good ol' rescue plot // creepy automatons // squad goals // stacks of dusty, old books // gearing up for an epic rebellion // 5 stars
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets // J.K. Rowling
The Weasely family is adorable // rollicking adventures // Mandrakes! // ugh, Lockhart // unexpected and satisfying ending // 5 stars
All the Crooked Saints // Maggie Stiefvater
Charming, lyrical writing // eclectic pilgrims // the desert is a character unto itself // Pete, my love // healing is found through opening up to others // 5 stars
JULY
Last of the Nephilim // Bryan Davis
War is coming // everyone's gathering in Second Eden (which is a really cool place) // lots of action // Elam! // 5 stars
AUGUST
Embers // Ronie Kendig
Love the premise // fire powers // a bit too many characters // set up for the beginnings of an epic "fellowship," though // 4 stars
The Bones of Makaidos // Bryan Davis
One of my favorite books // epic cast // climactic battles // best-ever satisfying ending // 5 stars
Fairest Son // H.S.J. Williams
Gender-bent Snow White // wild fey // unexpected twists // I fell in love with Prince Idris // beautiful story // 5 stars
Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking // Susan Cain
Fascinating // made me more aware of my temperament's strengths // 4 stars
Hacker // Ted Dekker
Took a surprising look at the unseen world // hacking the human consciousness // felt like an allegory // 4 stars
SEPTEMBER
The Magician's Nephew // C.S. Lewis
Focus on the Family audio // brought back memories // dawn of Narnia brings me to tears // 5 stars
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe // C.S. Lewis
Focus on the Family audio // classic // great voice cast // except Aslan's voice doesn't beat Liam Neeson in the movies // 5 stars
The Story of With // Allen Arnold
Life-changing // awakens the heart // fiction and nonfiction fused together // 5 stars
The Horse and His Boy // C.S. Lewis
Focus on the Family audio // I loved this one more than the first few times I read it // Bree is my fav // 5 stars
Prince Caspian // C.S. Lewis
Focus on the Family audio // really fun // Trumpkin's voice is amusing // the Pevensies are back // 5 stars
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader // C.S. Lewis
Focus on the Family audio // so many adventures // one of my favorite Narnia books // 5 stars
The Silver Chair // C.S. Lewis
Focus on the Family audio // darker than I remembered // Puddleglum's the best // 5 stars
The Last Battle // C.S. Lewis
Focus on the Family audio // I want to throttle that ape // Susan, why? // happy reunions // further up and further in // 5 stars
Song of the Ovulum // Bryan Davis
Tale of mercy // new generation of characters // also a throwback to the Biblical Flood // 5 stars
OCTOBER
Crazy Love // Francis Chan
Audiobook // some good parts about the bigness of God // bit of a guilt trip in other parts // 4 stars
From the Mouth of Elijah // Bryan Davis
Fiery volcanoes // madcap portal dashes // sacrificial love // Lauren's journey is particularly poignant // 5 stars
If We Survive // Andrew Klavan
Audiobook // so intense // Will is such a good kid // I love all the characters, though // everything goes wrong, ack // 5 stars
Fawkes // Nadine Brandes
Lived up to the hype // historical fantasy with color magic // Thomas! Emma! // twisty plot // 5 stars
Haven // Mary Lindsey
Paranormal romance // clichéd plot, decently cool backstory // alpha male protagonist, overly aggressive // the romance was blegh, blegh, blegh // I got rid of the book // 1 star
NOVEMBER
The Seventh Door // Bryan Davis
Awesome parallels to Circles of Seven // Tamiel is one crafty villain // deeply sad scenes // Matt grows a lot // 5 stars
DECEMBER
The Scorpio Races // Maggie Stiefvater
So good that it hurts // atmospheric // the capall uisce horses are SCARY // slow burn romance // Puck and I understand each other // love Sean Kendrick // 5 stars
Omega Dragon // Bryan Davis
Apocalyptic conclusion // so many brave heroes // tied up the twelve books in a smashing finale // 5 stars
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban // J.K. Rowling
My favorite HP book yet // Lupin is the best // Harry is growing up // all the plot twists // I want to visit Hogwarts // 5 stars
Horseman // Kyle Robert Schultz
The Wild West of Neverica // magic and mayhem // spot-on humor // Julio the dragon is hilarious // 4 stars
The Sacred Enneagram // Christopher L. Heuertz
Enlightening // resonated with my inner journey // lots to chew on // Christian perspective on how to use the Enneagram for personal and spiritual growth // 5 stars
Reading Stats
Total Books Read: 50 (10 more than 2017!)
Pages Read: 17,656 (which is over 4,000 more pages than 2017!)
Also, let us take a moment to cast an appreciative glance at a two-foot stack made of eleven college textbooks read during the year. I'm not sure how many hundreds of pages that pile would add . . . and I'm not sure I want to think about it.
Genres of 2018
This was the year of fantasy! But . . . I mean . . . that's not new. I did average a nonfiction book every other month, which is up from last year.
Some other stats of interest . . .
I "read" a lot more audiobooks than normal (since normal used to be zero). And, as you'll see below, this was also the Year of Rereads!
Star Ratings
Pretty typical! I read a lot of books I enjoyed and very, very few that I didn't.
Most Read Authors
- Bryan Davis (12)
- C.S. Lewis (7)
- J.K. Rowling (3)
- Mary Weber (2)
- Andrew Klavan (2)
- Maggie Steifvater (2)
Favorite Authors Discovered in 2018
Without a doubt, my favorite new-to-me authors this year were:
- Lindsay A. Franklin (because The Story Peddler was awesome, Lindsay is awesome, and I can't wait for her next book releasing April 2019!)
- J.K. Rowling (because I finally joined the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, and I'm rather delighted to be here)
- H.S.J. Williams (because her Snow White novella was just so beautiful)
Least Favorite Book
Haven by Mary Lindsey. I've already complained about it, so if you're curious about the details behind why I so disliked this novel, I'll just drop a link to my Goodreads review HERE.
Favorite Books
IT'S SO HARD TO PICK. Because almost half of this year's books were rereads, I'm going to cheat and give you two lists--one of my favorite new books and one of my favorite rereads.
Favorite New Books
- The Story Peddler
- Paper and Fire
- All the Crooked Saints
- Fairest Son
- Fawkes
- The Scorpio Races
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Favorite Rereads
- Circles of Seven
- Eye of the Oracle
- The Bones of Makaidos
- The Horse and His Boy
- If We Survive
Happy Reading, Bookdragons!
I'm pleasantly surprised to see what a great reading year this was! It was pretty different than my usual, what with rereads (which used to be rare), more nonfiction, and more audiobooks (which saved my Goodreads reading challenge while in college).
Looking forward to another great set of books in 2019! My TBR pile is as staggering as ever, threatening to hold me hostage; and new releases like To Best the Boys by Mary Weber, The Story Raider by Lindsay Franklin, Romanov by Nadine Brandes, and probably a lot more are just going to add height to the TBR . . . but that's a fun problem to have.
