Mid-Year Book Freak-Out Tag!

*freaking out*
Oh my god, is it really the middle of the year already?!
Wow... 

It doesn't seem all that long ago when I wrote my Mid Year Book Freak Out Tag 2016 Edition.
And now it's already time to wrap up the middle of 2017.
Welp! Shall I? 

The second half of 2017... here we come. 

#1: Best book you've read so far in 2017

Lord of Shadows by Cassandra Clare
My rating: 3.5

My review

It's funny.
There were books I rated more than this and yet... Lord of Shadows is still my favorite as of this half of 2017.
What's also funny: Lady Midnight was in this exact same place last year.
What can I say... I'm a shadowhunters obsessed. *smirk*. 

The next shdowhunters book cannot possibly come soon enough.
Cannot possibly, I tell you. 

"The Lightwood family motto is 'We mean well'." 

"Very funny." 

Julian looked over at her. "No, really, it actually is." 

"Seriously? So what's the Herondale family motto? 'Chiseled but angsty'?"  

He shrugged. " 'If you don't know what your last name is, it's probably Herondale'?" 

Emma burst out laughing. "What about Carstairs?" She asked, tapping cortana. " ' We have a sword? ' ' Blunt instruments are for losers'?"  

"Morgenstern," offered Julian. " ' When in doubt, start a war'?"  

"How about 'Has even one of us ever been any good, like ever, seriously'?"

#2: Best sequel you've read so far in 2017

The End of Oz by Danielle Paige
My rating: 4 stars

I was going to review this book but... it never happened.
Why?
I don't know. I asked my brain many times but it does not reveal its inner workings.
If it had, I'm sure life would be much easier. 

Anyways!
I'm not sure if this counts as a sequel but this is the fourth and final book in the Dorothy Must Die series. 

A short synopsis about the series (for those of you who aren't familiar with it): We all know Dorothy Gale's story. The lion, the tin man, Toto, Yellow road, magic. It was all supposed to come to an end with 'there's no place like home!'
But what if Dorothy came back to Oz? What if magic corrupted her and she became... evil?
Enters Amy Gum, a modern Taxes girl swept into Oz to be its savior.
But can she do it? Does she have what it takes? Is she willing to fall into the dark side to achieve that? 

This spin-off/retelling story will sweep you off your feet.
It has magic, mayhem, good and evil, dubious morals, a lunatic Dorothy, romance, and so much more.
I highly recommend everyone to give this one a try. 

I had enough problems of my own back in Kansas. Why couldn't I have been swept away to an imaginary kingdom where nothing was wrong at all - where I could just kick my legs up and enjoy a nice, relaxing vacation? I racked my brain, trying to remember if there were any books or movies like that, and realized there weren't any. 

#3: New release you haven't read yet, but want to

                                 If Birds Fly Back          This is How it Happened by Paula Stokes
                           by Carlie Sorosiak  

I've already read a sample of each of those books and they both seem amazing.
I really can't wait to dive deeper into them.
They're complex, they deal with difficult subjects, the writing is great.
I think I'm going to start with If Birds Fly Back. Hope to love it (:

"We can't define people by their worst actions."  

-- Paula Stokes, This is How it Happened

"Sometimes there are no second chances to say how we feel." 

-- If Birds Fly Back, Carlie Sorosiak 

#4: Most anticipated release for the second half of the year

                      Godsgrave by Jay Kristoff        The Ship of the Dead by Rick Riordan

                Publication date: September 5th           Publication date: October 3rd

My level of excitement for Godsgrave: AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

My level of excitement for The Ship of the Dead: AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

See? I couldn't exactly choose between those two. I would feel way to guilty for not including the other. 

It's funny, those two fantasy books can't be more different from one another yet I love them with a passion that cannot be vanquished. 

Godsgrave would probably destroy my soul (as Jay Kristoff does best).
The Ship of the Dead would probably make me squeal in happiness and swoon at every single thing.  

Like I said, those two books can't be more different :O 

"Where's the gold?" I demanded. "Don't make me unleash my sword's playlist."  

-- The Ship of the Dead, Rick Riordan

"Conquer your fear. Conquer the world." 

-- Godsgrave, Jay Kristoff 

#5: Biggest disappointment

Flame in the Mist by Renee Ahdieh

My rating: 3 stars

My review

I literally started my review with these words: 'I'm disappointed.'

It pains me to say this but Flame in the Mist was so very disappointing for me. For various reasons. The main one being I found the book to lack a lot of development. I felt like I was seeing what was happening but not actually feeling it. 

For basically all of the story I just felt like some unwelcome passenger in the back seat of a car.
Stuff were happening, but no one bothered to explain the motives or feelings behind them.
I just... it's hard to explain, but this is as close as I can describe it.
I did my best to convey my emotions in the review. It was especially important because I received it as an e-ARC from NetGalley (which I'm still so very thankful for). 

"If I am marching to my death, then I will march to it as a girl. Without fear." 

#6: Biggest surprise

How to Fall in Love by Cecelia Ahren
My rating: 3.5 stars
My review

I definitely did not expect this wonderful little book. 

And it's all thanks to Amy from A Magical World of Words for making me want to read it.

Some of the best books are the ones that catch us by surprise. Especially if it's a book you never imagined you'd like.
I mean, How to Fall in Love is wonderful and it's heartfelt and it teaches you so much about life, love, death. But based on the genre, and considering this is considered an adult book, I would never have imagined to pick it up.
I'm so glad I did, though.
It was such a wonderful journey, and I really highly recommend it to everyone. 

Although, pay attention that this book deal with Suicide, so if it's something that's a trigger warning for you than you shouldn't be reading How to Fall in Love.  

Life is a series of moments and moments are always changing, just like thoughts, negative and positive. And though it may be human nature to dwell, like many natural things it's senseless, senseless to allow a single thought to inhabit a mind because thoughts are like guests or fairweather friends. As soon as they arrive, they can leave, and even the ones that take a long time to emerge fully can disappear in an instant. Moments are precious; sometimes they linger and other times they're fleeting, and yet so much could be done in them; you could change a mind, you could save a life and you could even fall in love.  

#7: Favorite new author (debut or just new to you)

Veronica Rossi, author of Under the Never Sky & Riders

Okay, so... I - ashamedly so - have not discovered any new (debut or new to me) authors this half year.
Yep.
But! My love for a certain's author books did grow considerably this year with the release of her newest book Seeker. 

For those of you who don't know, Riders has been one of my most favorite books of last year. It's an original and intense story about the four-horsemen of apocalypse (who are actually 4 messed up teenagers) and the girl who guides them on their journey to save the world.
Really cool stuff. Please read. 

Evil is its own undoing. 

#8: Newest fictional crush

My favorite question is here!
Okay, so... 

Kit from The Dark Artifices.

I am actually aware that he's (currently) way too young for me.
I shall wait. I shall wait as long as I must!
Then again... I'm pretty sure someone already stole Kit away (: 

It wasn't that he had any particular desire to learn how to use a dagger - nothing beyond the general interest he figured most teenagers had in deadly weapons. 

#9: Newest favorite character

Hmmmm.... 

This is a hard one.
I have many not-new ones, but the question is newest - which I'm assuming means someone who became my favorite this past half year.
Then it that case I would say...
Daryn from Seeker. 

We got to know her so much better in this book. I appreciated how strong minded and tough she was. She never gave up, and it's not something that is ever easy to do. 

Daryn is fiercely independent and she would do anything to save her friends. 

Sometimes you hurt people even if it's the last thing you want to do.

#10: Book that made you cry

I would say that there are three book that made me emotional this half-year. Not to the verge of tears, but... to the verge of sadness. Each in their own way. 

And those are: 

How to Fall in love, naturally made me emotional because of its difficult subject. More especially so because something like this happened to someone that I knew and it was very important for me to read this book because of it. 

Lord of Shadows was filled from beginning to end with ominous signs. There were quite a few scenes when I didn't think I could deal with it if it actually happened. I know Cassandra Clare, and while she's not ruthless... she doesn't spare us from tragedy and sadness. I feel like something terrible is going to happen, and it's probably going to crush us. 

When people die, our dreams of what they could be die with them.

The Dark Prophecy's main character is a thousands years old god. You can't have that without darkness. It's not a teenage boy like Percy or Magnus. They had it rough, they had it terrible, but Apollo is old. So old. And when you start learning about all the things in his past... it's also so sad. 

Was there anyone I hadn't betrayed and disappointed? Any relationship I hadn't destroyed? 

#11: Book that made you happy

The Shadowhunter's Codex by Cassandra Clare

My rating: 4 stars

Reading The Shadowhunter's Codex (finally!) was great.
I found it lying there in one of those rare bookstores that actually have some selection of English books, and I took it and made it mine (*evil laugh*).

It was fun, it was funny, it was insighting.
I simply had a great time reading it, and it was great. 

After my somewhat disappointment in Lord of Shadows, I was reminded with this one why I love this world and characters so much.
I loved it.
Highly recommended for all of you Shadowhunters out there that have yet to read it.
I also recommend reading it in its physical edition (because of the side notes), but it can be read on kindle as well. 

"Sometimes the newly marked go into shock. The good news it, if this happens to you, you are unlikely to notice, because you'll be in shock." 

#12: Most beautiful book you've bought so far this year

Carve the Mark by Veronica Roth

Publication date: January 17, 2017

I have yet to read it (as I tend to do), but there is no denying this cover is absolutely beautiful in the flesh (yep, I have this book in physical copy! One of those rare moments). 

You know what it reminds me of? The crack in the wall from Doctor Who. 

It's simple and it's beautiful. Definitely one of the best looking covers out there. 

I also love the cover of The Shadowhunters Codex and Seeker. They're both beautiful. 

"You want to see people as extremes. Bad or good, trustworthy or not. I understand. It's easier that way. But that isn't how people work."

#13: What books do you need to read before the end of the year?

Need? 

Well... no one is exactly sitting on me and threatening me to read books here :'D
Reading is not something I need to do, it's something I desperately want to do.
Need is just... it sounds too forceful.
I can never force myself to read something. It has to come from the heart. 

But anyways!
I really-really want to get to Six of Crows & Rebel of the Sands.
I also want to re-read Fangirl, Maybe Someday, and The Mortal Instruments - they're always my go-to comfort books, and I feel like I need to re-read them again (:

And this conclude my Mid-Year Book Freak-Out tag of 2017!
How was it? Hope I did well ;)
What about you? Have you done this already? If not, consider yourselves tagged.
This is a really fun tag to wrap up this half a year.
I guess I'll see you with another wrap up like this at the end of the year, huh? ;)

Until then there should be lots of book reviews and other posts!
*saying is believing*
See you soon!
Until then...

Smile Smile Smile - Jeon Su Yeon Piano Music

"Once you have read a book you care about, some part of it is always with you."  

-- Louis L'Amor