original tag created by readlikewildfire + earl grey books!
oh hello, friends! i hope you’re doing well! this is my eighth year doing this book tag, and that feels very wild to type (and to think about), but this is such a book community staple and i really love doing it each and every year! and i will also add some statistics to the end, that will encompass my reading for the first half of 2024! so far, i have read 44 books this year!
okay, let’s get into it! please click on any of the book titles down below for my full reviews with thoughts and feelings and in depth content and trigger warnings! 💗
♡ 1. best book you’ve read so far in 2024
☆ The Vanished Birds by Simon Jimenez + A Memory Called Empire (Teixcalaan, #1) by Arkady Martine
⤷ my two favorites being backlist space operas? very insane dot. both also focusing on colonization and the generational impact of the horrors that come from it. also both also celebrating queer love, while also having some morally questionable sapphic relationships? wow, the dots are really dotting on this day whew! but i truly loved both of these with my whole heart and highly recommend them!
♡ 2. best sequel you’ve read so far in 2024
☆ The Brides of High Hill (The Singing Hills Cycle, #5) by Nghi Vo
⤷ please, tor, give me cleric chih stories forever. but this fifth installment really resonated with me on a personal level and i just loved reading it so very much.
♡ 3. new release you haven’t read yet, but want to
☆ Just for the Summer (Part of Your World, #3) by Abby Jimenez
⤷ after Part of Your World becoming one of my favorite romance books of all time, and also completely adoring Yours Truly, i know i am going to love this one too. i just want to make sure i am in a good headspace for it, because even though everyone is loving this, they are also saying its her heaviest book yet. but i can’t wait to pick this up, hopefully soon!
♡ 4. most anticipated release for the second half of the year
☆ Wind and Truth (The Stormlight Archive, #5) by Brandon Sanderson (december 6th)
⤷ i feel like this fifth (and final for this era) stormlight book is going to be all the sff girlies answers, but here i am to make it mine, too! i cannot wait for this book and for this conclusion, and will be reading it immediately at midnight when it hits my kindle!
♡ 5. biggest disappointment
☆ Wild Love (Rose Hill, #1) by Elsie Silver
⤷ well, even cowgirls get the blues (this is a d20 joke, i am so sorry but i could not resist) !! this is the first one star i have given out in years, because this was truly a mess in almost every way. disappointment is an understatement, actually.
♡ 6. biggest surprise
☆ Heir of Fire (Throne of Glass, #3) by Sarah J. Maas
⤷ it had been almost ten years since i read this book for the first time! but over the last year, i have been rereading all of sjm’s books/universe with my friend penny, and loving tog more than i did a decade ago has for sure been the biggest surprise in my reading year, so far! (but i expect this surprise to keep getting stronger and stronger throughout this year and reread!)
♡ 7. favorite new author (debut or new to you)
☆ Jade Song
⤷ Chlorine was such an amazing debut, with some of the most beautiful writing. i immediately knew i wanted to follow and read everything this author will create in the future. but then i also found this article that they wrote on inspiration, and they are just so cool – On BTS, Writing, and What Makes an Artist.
♡ 8. newest fictional crush
☆ Funny Story by Emily Henry
⤷ miles kind of truly swept me completely off my feet. truly the best love interest i have read in years. (bonus michigan points too, wow)
♡ 9. newest favorite character
☆ The Crimson Moth (The Crimson Moth, #1) by Kristen Ciccarelli
⤷ rune completely won me over, even though i only gave this story three stars (a very high three stars) !! also, i just really enjoyed the magic system in this book and rune using the blood from her cycles was just really uniq...
