Can’t believe how fast this first half of the year went! It’s always going by fast, but this year I feel we should still be in April, even though it’s now already July. Time for the Mid-Year Book Freakout tag!
This tag was first created by Ely and Chami back in 2016 on BookTube but has been done by bloggers as well. So why not join in? I did combine some of the questions as my writing started to combine them and some are unanswered because they will be separated blog posts in the near future. 😉
How has your 2023 reading year gone so far?
How are your reading goals going? Do you want to change them?
I think it’s going pretty well. I read quite a few already from my backlog TBR, I also unhauled a fair bunch of books, and I’ve bought/got gifted a new stack of books. But the reading is going well. I was behind on my goals for a while, but during the last two months got back on track. The overall rating is pretty nice too!
As for changing my goals, I don’t do that. I make intentions or wishes at the begin of the year, but when I don’t make them there’s no love lost. Even though I do feel quite accomplished whenever I do meet my intentions!
Best book you’ve read so far this year?
This is a tie! But mood-wise both are fairly similar, so that might be the reason I loved them both so much. The first one was a sequel, so you’ll find that answer below, and the second was Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries.
Best sequel you’ve read so far this year?
This was definately The House of Many Ways, sequel to Howl’s Moving Castle. And actually feeling like one too, which the second of this trilogy wasn’t. Again there is a sort of magical house, a strange mystery, a curse to be lifted and a lot of adventure! Sophie, Calcifer and Howl also make their appearances, so if you want to know how they moved on after Howl’s Moving Castle this books gives you some glimpses into their new life.
New release you still want to read?
New release you are excited for in the second half of the year?
I don’t really follow any releases, because I am more of a backlog reader and I don’t want or need to get stressed about “having to read a book right after it’s published”. So I often don’t even know what is getting released!
I do look forward to the sequel to Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries, but that won’t be published until January so that doesn’t count for this tag.
Biggest disappointment?
I have DNF-ed a couple of books that were pretty disapointing. But a post on that will be published soon, so I’ll let you wait for a moment on this answer!
Biggest surprise?
Again, a tie! the Hero and the Hacktivist was a surprise, because I don’t enjoy romance, not even spicey ones like these AND audiobooks are also not my thing. This was both though, and I had a lot of fun with it.
Another surprise was Slade House. It’s quite short, and I didn’t expect the way it went at all. I read it in March, but I still think about it often.
Favorite new author?
This might be Tamara Berry from By the Book (Cozy) Mysteries. It’s a bit different from my usual mysteries, but it’s very funny, and I have already read two of the (currently) three published books in the series.
Book that made you cry?
This must be one of the Chief Inspector Armand Gamache series. I read three of them till now, and A Better Man made me cry the most. Yes they are mystery/crime detective stories, but there is found family, a lot of coziness and as I wrote about before, all of the books tap into the psychology of being human, that it’s hard NOT being moved by it at all. I love this series and am already dreading getting to the end.
Book that made you laugh?
Oh, so many of them! And I mean actually laughing out loud, hearable giggles, and snorts. Sometimes even so loud that my husband comes to ask what is so funny. Ofcourse, everytthing I’ve read this year from the DiscWorld series, but also both of the By the Book Mysteries books, Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries and the Hero and the Hacktivist. And don’t forget about the Twisted Ones, it’s a horror but it was also quite funny if you like dark humor.
What are the books you still need to read before the end of the year?
Since I have my 2023 backlog TBR and also quite a fair amount of new-to-me books, the list is still pretty long… But I’ll write up a new post about this soon, so this is also another answer you will have to wait on. 😉
What about you? How are you doing this first 6 months? Have you done the Mid Year Freakout Book Tag too? Tell me all about it or send me the link down below!