The End of the Year Book Tag

Hi everyone, I’ve seen quite a few people I follow do this tag and I really liked it, so I thought I could maybe do it myself, too! I know almost every single blog post or youtube video started this way but it’s true; I can’t believe the year is almost over! It somehow simultaneously went by incredibly fast, but it also definitely dragged on so long. Anyway, let’s not dwell on that too much because time is a social construct and it just stresses me out, and just get into the questions.

Are there any books you started this year that you need to finish?

Honestly? Not really. I don’t really want to put a time-related pressure on what I read because that makes reading a lot less fun for me, and it also doesn’t work with me being a huge mood reader. I mean, I’ve been reading The Downstairs Girl by Stacey Lee for months now and it’d definitely be nice to finish it before the end of the year, but I have to be in a very specific mood when reading historical fiction or I’ll enjoy it less, and I don’t want to do this to this book because it’s really great and I don’t want to ruin that for myself.

A few other books that I’m currently reading and I’d like to finish before the end of the year are Alex in Wonderland by Simon James Green, Not the Girl You Marry by Andie J. Christopher, and Blood Water Paint by Joy McCullough. But again, I won’t be mad if I don’t finish them in the next two months. Okay, maybe a little.

Do you have an autumnal book to transition into the end of the year?

Oh I have a lot! Whenever autumn rolls around I get in the mood for both historical and SFF books, so let me give you a few recommendations.

• Girls Made of Snow and Glass by Melissa Bashardoust – an incredible Snow White retelling set in a winter-y kingdom. Also, it’s sapphic.
• Under a Painted Sky by Stacey Lee – set in Missouri 1849, about two girls disguised as boys fleeing from their old lives on the Oregon Trail. Features the found family trope.
• Ink and Bone by Rachel Caine – an alternate history about what might’ve happened if the Library of Alexandria never burned down. (I’m actually planning on rereading this soon.)
• The Reader by Traci Chee – because yes, I can’t talk about SFF books without talking about Traci Chee. This is one of my favorite fantasy books ever, and that’s all you really need to know. It’s intricate and detailed and adventurous and magical.
• Timekeeper by Tara Sim – a steampunk about an alternate Victorian world controlled by clocks, where a broken clock can result in time stopping. Also, it’s gay.

I could go on for a while but let’s stop here before the list gets too long.

Is there a new release you’re still waiting for?

I paused when I read this question because I had no idea at all which books where still coming out these last 2 months of the year, and then I looked through Goodreads lists and there weren’t any books I’m super excited about, but I guess that’s a good thing. That way I can really focus on books that have already come out, because we all know that that list is big enough already.

Three books that are coming out these upcoming months that are on my radar but that I’m not I-need-to-read-this-right-now-excited about are When the Stars Lead to You by Ronni Davis, A Match Made in Mehendi by Nandini Bajpai and Color Outside the Lines, an anthology edited by Sangu Mandanna (I’ve already read this one and enjoyed it).

What are three books you want to read before the end of the year?

I have to admit that I haven’t been in the biggest reading mood lately, so there’s not a ton of book that I’m incredibly excited about currently. I already said I wanted to reread Ink and Bone so I guess that doesn’t count, hmmm…

I honestly haven’t heard the best things about it but I still want to read the Light at the Bottom of the World by London Shah, because it was one of my most anticipated releases of the year and I’m still very intrigued by the synopsis. I’d also like to get to one of my Jenn Bennett books because they’ve been on my TBR for a long time, and I get autumny vibes from both Starry Eyes and Serious Moonlight, so maybe one of those…

And then I also have a few ARCs I could go for. The one’s I’m currently most excited about are Mad Bad & Dangerous to Know by Samira Ahmed and Lucky Caller by Emma Mills. And while scrolling through my ARCs I saw that I also have the ebook of The Surprising Power of a Good Dumpling by Wai Chim that I also want to read… These are definitely more than three books, oops. Maybe I’m in a bit of a reading mood after all.

Is there a book you think could still shock you and become your favourite book of the year?

I don’t think so. I mean, it’d be great if I was proven wrong in this but I’ve already read so many amazing books this year that a book has to be absolutely spectacular to become my favorite. It has very high standards to meet. Plus, I haven’t been in a big reading mood lately (like I’ve already mentioned approximately 10 times), and that won’t help either. But you never know with me, I might suddenly be in a reading mood tomorrow, pick up 30 new books before the year ends and find 5 new favorites. Who knows.

Have you already started making reading plans for 2020?

YES. Nothing super concrete, but I know there’s quite a lot of 2020 releases that I’m super excited about, and books currently sitting on my shelf that I’d also like to get to. I do notice that I’m a little less aware of upcoming books than I was the previous few years, but I am incredibly excited about the books that I am aware of. I hope 2020 will be a great reading year. For all of us.

So, that’s it! I won’t tag anyone because… I never do and I feel very awkward about it. But if you want to do this tag, please consider yourself tagged. I’ll leave the questions here so you can answer them too.

Questions:

Are there any books you started this year that you need to finish?
Do you have an autumnal book to transition into the end of the year?
Is there a new release you’re still waiting for?
What are three books you want to read before the end of the year?
Is there a book you think could still shock you and become your favourite book of the year?
Have you already started making reading plans for 2020?

Twitter • Instagram • Goodreads