Mid-Year Book Freak Out Tag: 2017

And it’s another edition of the Mid-Year Book Freak Out Tag! I’ve decided to do this every year around this time.

I don’t think I was tagged by anyone (totally apologize if I’ve forgotten I was), but this tag was created by ReadLikeWildFire (a booktuber) and Ely Jayne (a blogger).

Best book you’ve read so far in 2017

Of course, that would be The Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold. I’m so happy to have finally tried a book by her and I’m glad it was this one, which (for me) puts a spin on fantasy novels by giving me an older protagonist. I also like how it’s written and how things wrap up at the end. It was a great reading experience.

Best sequel you’ve read so far in 2017

Definitely The Wicked + The Divine, Vol. 4: Rising Action by Kieron Gillen, illus. by Jamie McKelvie and Matt Wilson. This one is certainly the story’s rising action. So much crazy shit happen that now I wonder how it all will be resolved. By this volume, I like most of the characters and am so hooked that I can’t wait to start volume 5. I need to stop procrastinating on it.

New release you haven’t read yet but want to

I’ve wanted to read The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden before it was published but have yet to do so because….I don’t know why. I guess I’m procrastinating (it’s one of the few things I’m great at). But this will be read and reviewed before the end of the year. I believe I’ll like it a lot.

Most anticipated release for the second half of the year

Well, it was Monstress, Vol. 2: The Blood by Marjorie Liu, illus. by Sana Takeda, but it came out last week and I bought it on Friday so I guess I don’t really have an answer for this one. Anyway, I can’t wait to read this!

Biggest disappointment

That would be Archie, Vol. 1: The New Riverdale by Mark Waid, illus. by Fiona Staples, Annie Wu, and Veronica Fish. I thought I’d enjoy it, but maaann… It was SO boring! I liked the illustrations, especially those done by Fiona Staples, but otherwise this was huge dissappointment. The TV show is good though.

Biggest surprise

That’s definitely Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn. I didn’t expect that I’d like it. I watched part of the movie and was so intrigued that I decided to read the book. Now I want to try more of Flynn’s work.

Favorite new author (debut or new to you)

That would be Flynn and Bujold. I enjoyed reading both their books and I know for sure that I’ll try others by them.

Newest fictional crush

Brashen Trell from Robin Hobb’s Liveship Traders series. I totally ship him and Althea.

Newest favorite character

Well, I have two: Deathstroke, a villain from the comic book Identity Crisis by Brad Meltzer, illus. by Rags Morales; and Cazaril, the protagonist in Lois McMaster Bujold’s The Curse of Chalion, a fantasy novel. Deathstroke is a total badass and I liked that he almost single-handedly defeat the Justice team (the big three — Wonder, Supes, and the Bat — weren’t in the fight). I NEED to know more about him and his badassery. And Caz is just so humble yet brave and courteous. I like him most at the beginning of the book and toward the end.

Book that made you cry

Well, Madness: A Bipolar Life by Marya Hornbacher didn’t make me cry, but it made me feel a little uncomfortable because of how descriptive it is and sad and sympathetic because of all Hornbacher has been through. The book is Hornbacher’s memoir about her struggle with bipolar disorder. In it, she also discusses her fight with an eating disorder and alcoholism. She is very descriptive when recounting what happened — suicide attempts, controlling what she eats, how she perceived things when she’s manic or depressive, — so I wouldn’t recommend this to everyone. However, it is a really good read.

Book that made you happy

Lol! Jenny Lawson’s Furiously Happy: A Funny Book About Horrible Things didn’t make me happy, but it got me to laugh. Lawson also suffers from mental illness, anxiety and depression, which she discusses in this memoir, where she shares a bunch of funny stories about her life. I enjoyed it but half the time I kept wondering if it’s all true. Like, did she really dress up as a koala to go hug koala bears? I saw the photos, but I still found it hard to believe. I also love the raccoons and all the made-up words.

Favorite book to film adaptation you saw this year

This was a surprise. I was so hooked on the Riverdale TV show (season 1 is on Netflix) that I binged on it. It’s not an adaptation of the Archie comics, but is inspired by them, or rather the inspiration for the cast is from the comics. Season 1 was more of a mystery and figuring out the killer kept me hooked.

Favorite review you’ve written this year

This was a hard decision so I chose three:

The Wicked + The Divine, Vols. 1-4 by Kieron Gillen, illus. by Jamie McKelvie and Matt Wilson — a comic book about gods that are incarnated as humans every 90 years but die after just 2 years. They are drawn to look like pop stars.

The River by Alessandro Sanna (illus.), trans. by Michael Reynolds — an illustrated children’s book about how seasonal changes affect a river and the town along its banks

The Strain by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan — a horror novel about a vampire-zombie apocalypse that starts in New York City

Most beautiful book you’ve bought so far this year (or received)

I’ve got two! And both are recent purchases.

The 20th-anniversary Hufflepuff edition of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by J.K. Rowling. It’s pretty and yellow, my favorite color. 😀

Ramayana: Divine Loophole by Sanjay Patel (illus.), a beautifully illustrated children’s book that tells one of “the most enduring tales” in Hindu mythology.

What books do you need to read by the end of the year?

Oh boy.

Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames

Paladin of Souls by Lois McMaster Bujold

The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden

The Wicked + The Divine, Vol. 5: Imperial Phase by Kieron Gillen, illus. by Jamie McKelvie and Matt Wilson

Monstress, Vol. 2: The Blood by Marjorie Liu, illus. by Sana Takeda

Boom BAM! I’m done.

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