Slightly behind schedule, but finally, here is my annual end-of-year reading post, where I analyze last year’s reading stats and look ahead to some books I’m looking forward to in the coming months. 2015 saw a severe decline in my reading time (56 books down from 100 in 2014!), but that happens with babies, so I actually feel pretty great for having read even that many. Seriously, thank heavens for audiobooks!! And also long flights during book tours…
Besides, if I was including picture books, this list would be much longer. By the way: Love Monster. So. Stinking. Cute!
All right, let’s get started with some numbers…
MY 2015 READING STATS
Total books read: 56
Breakdown by Genre:
Nonfiction: 6
Graphic Novels: 10
Middle Grade: 4
Fiction, not YA: 8
Further broken down into…
Classics: 3
Romance: 2
Fantasy: 1
Historical: 1
Thriller: 1 (evidently The Martian is classified as a thriller… I would have said space adventure, but whatever)
Young Adult: 28
Further broken down into…
Fantasy: 13
Science-Fiction: 5 (but to be fair, 4 of them were mine…)
Contemporary Romance: 4
Contemporary Fiction: 3
Thriller: 2
Historical: 1
The Never-Easy-to-Choose Top 10 Favorite Books of 2015
Alpha by author
1. Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
2. White Cat (and the Curse Workers Trilogy) by Holly Black
3. A Week of Mondays by Jessica Brody
4. Immaculate by Katelyn Detweiler
5. Mortal Heart by Robin LaFevers
6. These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner
7. The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing by Marie Kondo
8. The Shadow Queen by C.J. Redwine
9. The Martian by Andy Weir
10. The Shadow Hero by Gene Luen Yang and Sonny Liew (graphic novel)
And the Top 10 Books I’m Determined to Read in 2016
Alpha by author
1. Pride & Prejudice & Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith
2. Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard
3. The Rise of Renegade X by Chelsea Campbell
4. The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima*
5. Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens
6. Little Brother by Cory Doctorow*
7. Screenplay by Syd Field
8. The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson
9. The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick
10. An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir
* These two were actually on my “determined to read in 2015” list, but they were both trapped in storage until last week! This year, they’re at the top of the list.
And finally…
MY COMPLETE 2015 READING LIST
1. Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand
2. We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
3. We Can Work It Out by Elizabeth Eulberg
4. Mortal Heart by Robin LaFevers
5. After the Golden Age by Carrie Vaughn
6. Better Off Friends by Elizabeth Eulberg
7. Kill Me Softly by Sarah Cross
8. Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James
9. The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black (audiobook)
10. The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing by Marie Kondo
11. Cinder by Me!
12. Scarlet by Me!
13. Cress by Me!
14. Fairest by Me!
15. These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner (audiobook)
16. The DC Comics Guide to Writing Comics by Dennis O’Neil
17. Batman: Hush by Jeph Loeb, Jim Lee, and Scott Williams (graphic novel)
18. The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting (audiobook)
19. White Cat by Holly Black (audiobook)
20. Red Glove by Holly Black (audiobook)
21. Black Heart by Holly Black (audiobook)
22. The Shadow Hero by Gene Luen Yang and Sonny Liew (graphic novel)
23. Dave Ramsey’s Guide to Money by Dave Ramsey
24. Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
25. Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy
26. Wonder Woman: Blood by Brian Azzarello, Cliff Chiang, and Tony Akins (graphic novel)
27. Justice League: Origin by Geoff Johns, Jim Lee, and Scott Williams (graphic novel)
28. Alanna by Tamora Pierce
29. The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey
30. The Game of Love and Death by Martha Brockenbrough
31. Immaculate by Katelyn Detweiler
32. Becoming Jinn by Lori Goldstein
33. Adapted for Film by Stacey Rourke
34. Siren’s Fury by Mary Weber
35. Manga Classics: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, adapted by Stacy King, illustrated by Po-Tse (graphic novel)
36. Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy
37. Serena by Ron Rash
38. Rat Queens, Vol. 1: Sass and Sorcery by Kurtis J. Wiebe and Roc Upchurch (graphic novel)
39. Saga, Vol. 1 by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples (graphic novel)
40. City of a Thousand Dolls by Miriam Forster (audiobook)
41. The Fill-In Boyfriend by Kasie West
42. Lintang and the Pirate Queen by Tamara Felsinger (beta-read)
43. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie (audiobook)
44. Tiger’s Curse by Colleen Houck (audiobook)
45. One Simple Idea by Stephen Key
46. The Shadow Queen by C.J. Redwine
47. The Martian by Andy Weir (audiobook)
48. Morning Glories: Volume One by Nick Spender and Joe Eisma (graphic novel)
49. Morning Glories: Volume Two by Nick Spender and Joe Eisma (graphic novel)
50. Avalon High: Volume One by Meg Cabot (graphic novel)
51. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain (audiobook)
52. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley (audiobook)
53. The Forbidden Wish by Jessica Khoury
54. Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson
55. A Week of Mondays by Jessica Brody
56. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling (audiobook)
What books did you love last year?
Happy reading in the New Year, everyone!