I know I say this every year but I cannot believe we are halfway through the year already! So much has happened and changed in my life these past 6 months and it’s crazy when you look at the timespan of things.
I love doing this tag I think it’s so much fun and I enjoy looking at everyone else’s posts and videos so I just want to jump right in!
The Books I Have Read So Far!
So far this year I have read 31 books by the time this post comes out which is the exactly the same number as last year. So I am fully on track to complete my Goodreads goal. So, here is a list of the books just in case the images aren’t working and I will link my reviews if you are interested.
- The Art of Dying – Ambrose Parry
- The Plotters – Un-Su Kim
- Lore Olympus: Season 1 – Rachel Smythe
- The Steam Dragon Express – R. Merryweather
- The Fifth Season – N.K. Jemisin
- Fullmetal Alchemist Vol. 10-12 – Hiromu Arakawa
- The Strange Tales of Oscar Zahn – Trí Vuong
- Descendant of the Crane – Joan He
- Death Going Down – María Angélica Bosco
- Lord Edgware Dies – Agatha Christie
- Star Wars: From a Certain Point of View – Various
- The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time – Akira Himekawa
- The Poppy War – R.F. Kuang
- Bullet Train – Kotaro Isaka
- City of Secrets – Victoria Ying
- The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask and A Link to the Past – Akira Himekawa
- PigPen – Kim Carnby
- Red Seas Under Red Skies – Scott Lynch
- Shadow and Bone – Leigh Bardugo
- The Plague Letters – V.L. Valentine
- Ariadne – Jennifer Saint
- Orange: The Complete Collection Vol. 1 – Ichigo Takano
- Beasts Made of Night – Tochi Onyebuchi
- The Battle of the Labyrinth – Rick Riordan
- Breach of Peace – Daniel B. Greene
- The Decagon House Murders – Yukito Ayatsuji
- Orange: The Complete Collection Vol. 2 – Ichigo Takano
- The Mystery of Three Quarters – Sophie Hannah
- Delusion – Hongjacga
- The Last Olympian – Rick Riordan
- The Alloy of Law – Brandon Sanderson
Challenge Update!
I have 4 challenges this year.
- The Goodreads Reading Challenge
- ONTD Reading Challenge
- Sequels Challenge
- Not a Novel Challenge
For more detail into these challenges take a look at my 2021 Reading Plan from back in January, you can find it here.
Goodreads Reading Challenge!
So, I have read 31 books out of 60. My original plan was to read 58, I came up with this number as I looked at all the number of books I read last year (not including DNFs) and decided to add 2 more onto that original number. I always add one more book to my goal for each book I DNF so this is why the challenge has now changed to 60. I am confident I will beat this challenge for the 4th year running.
ONTD Reading Challenge!
Ok, I had mentioned this in a monthly wrap up and my Quarterly Check in but I have failed this challenge. This is the first time, since I started doing this challenge, that I have failed. To be honest, I just really wasn’t finding any books for each month that I was interested in and I had so many other exciting books on my shelf that I wanted to get to. I just decided in March to stop the challenge and focus on the books I already own. But these are the two I did read.
- January: Read a book by a South Korean author – The Plotters by Un-Su Kim
- February: Read a book by an Argentinian author – Death Going Down by Maria Angelica Bosco
Sequels Challenge!
I am doing a lot better with this challenge. I have read half of the books that I planned on reading. Some of the books coming up are quite big books so I hopefully I managed to read them before the end of the year. This is what I have read so far:
- January: Fullmetal Alchemist Vol. 10-12 – Hiromu Arakawa
- February: Lord Edgware Dies – Agatha Christie
- March: Red Seas Under Red Skies – Scott Lynch
- April: The Battle of the Labyrinth – Rick Riordan
- May: The Mystery of Three Quarters – Sophie Hannah
- June: The Alloy of Law – Brandon Sanderson
Not a Novel Challenge!
So, I didn’t give it a name in the original reading plan nor did I have any defining factors attached to the challenge. All I wanted to do was read more graphic novels and manga. Here are the books I read:
- Lore Olympus: Season 1 – Rachel Smythe
- The Steam Dragon Express – R. Merryweather
- The Strange Tales of Oscar Zahn – Trí Vuong
- Fullmetal Alchemist Vol. 10-12 – Hiromu Arakawa
- The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time – Akira Himekawa
- PigPen – Kim Carnby
- City of Secrets – Victoria Ying
- The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask and A Link to the Past – Akira Himekawa
- Orange: The Complete Collection Vol. 1 & 2 – Ichigo Tanaka
- Delusion – Hongjacga
Best Book You Have Read So Far!
So for this prompt I chose Orange Vol. 1 by Ichigo Takano. I really enjoyed volume 2 but I felt the ending was a bit too abrupt so I would say my favourite was this one. Also it helped restore a bit of faith in the romance and contemporary genres for me. I have mentioned before that I am not the biggest fan of those genres.
Best Sequel I Have Read So Far!
Another manga, but I chose Fullmetal Alchemist Vol. 10-12 by Hiromu Arakawa as I felt that the plot was really picking up and you can see the bigger picture finally forming. A lot of important characters and plot points occurred in this book that have me so excited for the rest of the series.
A New Release You Haven’t Read But Are Excited For!
Ok, so this technically doesn’t come out until November this year but I have pre-ordered it. So, I am saying The Fall of Babel by Josiah Bancroft! The cover has finally been released with a new blurb and I just cannot wait to read the final book in this incredible series.
Biggest Disappointment So Far!
It feels super sad to say it but Breach of Peace by Daniel B. Greene. I had such high expectations for the book and being a massive fan of the author meant not only was the book disappointing because it was not great but I also felt disappointed as I really wanted to love it due to the fact I really like the author as a person.
Biggest Surprise So Far!
Not only this book but also graphic novels, manga and comics as a whole! I was surprised by how much I enjoy this format of storytelling. Lore Olympus by Rachel Smythe was my first foray into web comics and it did not disappoint.
Favourite New Author!
I don’t really have a new found favourite author. While I did enjoy some great authors I don’t feel that any of them stood out to me as being a new favourite. I will have to read more of their backlist to confirm things.
Favourite New Characters!
- Eros – Lore Olympus
- Suwa – Orange
- Marasi, Wax and Wayne – The Alloy of Law
A Book That Made You Cry!
I just had to choose The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan for this one! The final book in one of my childhood favourite series! Some really emotional moments occur in this book and also what made me emotional was the fact that despite being an adult this book still means a lot to me and I still find it entertaining. I was worried I would be too old for it.
A Book That Made You Happy!
I chose The Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson for this prompt as I was super happy to be back in the Mistborn world again. I am super excited to see where the rest of this series goes!
The Most Beautiful Book You Have Received or Bought This Year
Both copies of Orange as I have 2 volumes which make up the whole series. The art both on the cover and in the book are amazing!
What Books Do You Need To Read By The End of This Year?
Well, there is a lot! I still have over 30 books in my physical tbr I want to try and get to, 6 sequels some of which I don’t own yet and I have to make sure I hit my goal of 60 books this year. I tend to just go with what ever I feel like reading in the moment so let’s see what happens.
IndiaReadsALot 