The Mid-Year Book Freakout Tag: 2022 Edition

July is almost here, which means there are only six months left in 2022. This year has gone by so fast, but I need this summer heat wave to disappear. So autumn, here we come! But anyway, the year being halfway over also means it’s time for the Mid-Year Book Freak Out Tag.

This tag was created years ago by someone in the book community to basically wrap up the first half of a person's reading year. I’ve had a pretty great reading year so far. I've read over 50 books, which is insane considering how unmotivated I've felt at random points throughout 2022.

As of June 21, 2022, I’ve read 55 books and completed my Goodreads Challenge. I’m not going to change my Goodreads goal from 30 books, but I would love to reach 100 by the end of the year. I think I can do it as long as my momentum stays consistent. And, like I said this time last year, I'm also hoping to read more books on my TBR shelves in the coming months. I've been reading a ton of ebooks to get ready for ApollyCon, so it'd be nice to mark more physical books off my list after July is over.

BEST BOOK YOU’VE READ SO FAR IN 2022

Thankfully, this question was super easy to answer. I've had one book that just blew my mind and made me giddy and obsessed for days afterwards, and that book was...

The War of Two Queens! I totally did not expect JLA to take this book where she did. I had hopes, but I thought it would never happen. I'm still sad about all the backlash she received for this installment, but I try not to let it rain on my parade because HOLY HE11 it was fantastic! And Kieran, the love of my life, played such a shining role. He's the best. I can't wait to see what happens to Poppy, Cas,and Kieran in book five!

BEST SEQUEL YOU’VE READ SO FAR IN 2022

Now this question was definitely not easy to answer. I've had a few great sequels, including The War of Two Queens, that could win this title. However, I have to go with the books that forced me to do nothing but lay in bed and read for days upon days upon days...

Yeah, I cheated and chose three of the Zodiac Academy books. These are books four, five, and seven in the series. Six wasn't my favorite because of spoilery reasons, but the rest were plain awesomeness! I devoured each book, even book six. It's been a long time since I've binged a series longer than three books before. It was madness on my exercise routine, my diet, and my ability to focus at work. But, I made it through, and my life will never be the same. Haha.

NEW RELEASE YOU HAVEN’T READ YET, BUT WANT TO

There are a couple of these, but surprisingly, most of the books on my TBR are ones that have been out for longer than six months. I guess I'm catching up on all the indie published romantasy I never paid attention to before. But, my New Release winner would be...

The Atlas Six by Olivia Blake. I've been hearing good things about this one, and I even have the FairyLoot edition. So, I need to hop on this bandwagon.

MOST ANTICIPATED RELEASE FOR

THE SECOND HALF OF THE YEAR

While I've gotten pretty good at being patient for books, there are two releasing this year that I reeeeeally want. One just comes out sooner than the other, so I'm bumping it down a bit on the list since it's only a month away from its release. So, all that being said, the winner is...

This is kind of an unexpected Most Anticipated winner, as I only binged the Zodiac Academy books back in February. Normally, my winning book is something I've had on my radar for longer. Sadly, the last book, book eight, has no title or cover yet, and it doesn't release until December. Maybe. If it gets pushed back, I don't know what I'll do. Cry, probably. The unpictured runner-up is Husband Material by Alexis Hall. It releases at the beginning of August, so not too long to wait.

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT

I might be in the minority here, but I did not like this book.

House of Sky and Breath by Sarah J. Maas was not great. Or good. It was just boring and pointless and blah. I have specific spoilery reasons for not liking it, but one of my major non-spoilery criticisms has to do with how there is only one female POV and all of the female characters, POV characters or not, are all basically abused or taken advantage of by a male character at some point or another.

BIGGEST SURPRISE

This question is hard, because really, there are two books that surprised me this year. However, I'm choosing one over the other for one reason.

I was having a very hard time with the first 10-20% of The City of Dusk. I thought it was going to be a waste of my energy to both read and review. However, I stuck with it, and I'm glad I did. Because it was amazing! I loved it and can't wait to read book two. The other book, Legendborn by Tracy Deonn, is one I was easily able to enjoy from the start, but I was still very surprised by how much I liked the ending, even though I was wary about the twist I could see coming. It ended up playing out in a manner I didn't expect.

FAVORITE NEW AUTHOR

I have a complicated answer to this question. How very typical of me.

So yes, my favorite new author is actually two authors, Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti. I've read their Zodiac Academy and Ruthless Boys of the Zodiac series. While sometimes their books can frustrate me to no end, they are super addicting. I can't put them down! I'm hoping to try their contemporary books soon, though I'm scared I won't enjoy them as much as the fantasy series, since reverse harems in the real world don't sound nearly as appealing to me.

NEWEST FICTIONAL CRUSH

Even though I've read a lot of books, my fictional crushes aren't as abundant. Or maybe it's because I enjoy them all so much that one doesn't really stand out.

Because I had a hard time choosing just one, I went with four. The Heirs in Zodiac Academy. They're a package set, so I'm pretty sure I'm not cheating too much. Right? Max, Darius, Caleb, and Seth are a$$holes at first, but they grow on you as the series progresses. (Art by Jemlin & Prettygalpins.)

NEWEST FAVORITE CHARACTER

I can't choose Kieran Contou again this year, since he's not technically a "new" character. So I guess I'll choose another one. Sigh.

 

Sorry for all the shirtless dude pics, but it's very uncommon for artists to draw any of the Zodiac boys with clothes on I've noticed. Lol. This is Leon Night from the Ruthless Boys of the Zodiac series. He's absolutely hilarious and my favorite of the four boys in that series. (Art by Gonzalo M.)

BOOK THAT MADE YOU CRY

Another easy answer, thank goodness.

Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune had me sobbing. But of course that would be the case for any book that's about death and introspection. And that's also the reason that, after reading it, I immediately got rid of it at my local used bookstore. I just can't handle thinking about books like this, and I knew I would never read it again. I can second-guess and regret every decision of my life after reading stories with these types of themes, so yeah, it had to go. Life is too short for such thoughts.

BOOK THAT MADE YOU HAPPY

I wasn't sure what to put for this question, but then I realized I read this book.

So This is Every After by F.T. Lukens is just a cute upper YA romance fantasy book. It honestly reminded me a lot of Gail Carson Levine's books mixed with some D&D elements!

FAVORITE BOOK-TO-FILM ADAPTATION

YOU SAW THIS YEAR

So I'm cheating a bit. Don't judge me.

Despite some issues with the last episode, I really enjoyed Amazon Prime's adaptation of The Wheel of Time, which finished back at the end of December. I never read the books, so I wasn't as critical as a lot of other watchers were. Honestly, I thought it was a really fun, addicting fantasy world. Maybe I'll read the books some day, but for now, I'm enjoying the show. Season two better get here soon! I'll also say that The Expanse season six was good, not great, though I'm still upset it's over. I haven't read past book three in the series, so I can't judge the last season based on its adaptation status quite yet.

FAVORITE REVIEW YOU’VE WRITTEN THIS YEAR

Normally, I just link my review here and that's it. But this year, I have a visual aid! A quote from my  review was used by the publisher to help spread the word about The City of Dusk! That's the first time that's ever happened to me!

MOST BEAUTIFUL BOOK YOU’VE

RECEIVED SO FAR THIS YEAR

I haven't received a ton of pretty books yet this year. I've preordered quite a few, but I haven't received them yet. FairyLoot, in all honesty, has been slacking on the special editions lately, so most of my purchases are pretty standard. However, there is one that stands out.

 FairyLoot's May book, Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan is very pretty. You can't see it here, but it has some awesome stenciled/sprayed edges. I haven't read the book yet, but I plan to soon.

WHAT BOOKS DO YOU NEED TO READ

BY THE END OF THE YEAR

All of them! Here are some major milestone ones though:

The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake

The Dragon Republic by R.F. Kuang

An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

A Storm of Swords by George R.R. Martin

The Last Namsara by Kristen Cicarelli

These are just the ones I think I'll get to soon. I also would like to read more of my FairyLoot editions from the past few years. That way, I can try to sell the ones I don't want anymore or properly display the ones I do want to keep and get them off of my TBR shelves.

***

Alright, there you have it. My Mid-Year Book Freak Out answers for 2022. What would your answers to these questions be? Let me know in the comments below!