Last year, I did this tag in December. I thought it would be fun to do it again, since it’s Christmas season. 😉 If you’ve been around for a while, you’ll have noticed that I don’t do tags that often anymore, so it’s a special post today where I throw all my book recommendations at you and demand you read them! I’ll try to keep the books I mention limited to ones I actually read this year in particular.
Note: there are links to each book I mention, so if you want to check them out, you can! But this post is in no way sponsored and I am not getting paid for this.
On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: a partridge in a pear tree.
The partridge stood alone in the pear tree. What is your favourite stand alone?
Okay, I think I mentioned this book in last year’s post, but I loved the book The Rithmatist! I reread it this year, and I’ll be darned if I don’t mention it.
On the second day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: two turtle doves.
Love is in the air! Who is your one true pairing?
(Spoiler alert) I really liked Sam and Alex in the book Dear Mr. Knightly. (Spoiler end) (also, can I just gush about the book design for a minute? All those black lines you see on the cover are embossed, so it looks and feels amazing. It’s pretty minimal, but at the same time, so pretty! And it says a lot about the book without needing to show much. Seriously, I have the paperback version of this book, and it’s gorgeous.)
On the third day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: three French hens.
In the spirit of threes, what is the best trilogy you have read?
I read Half Upon a Time right at the beginning of the year. I enjoy reading that trilogy, because 1) it’s so funny 2) James Riley is super good at bringing everything together in his last book of the series in an awesome climax. And as anyone who knows me knows, I am a complete sucker for fairy tale retellings.
On the fourth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: four calling birds.
Since series usually consist of four or more books, what is your favourite series?
My family listened to the entire 5 Kingdoms series this year! It was the first time we’d heard the 5th book, so I’ve officially now finished the series. (…and this is the answer I also gave to this question last year, apparently. 😂)
On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: five golden rings.
One ring to rule them all! Who is your favourite villain/antagonist?
I really love the villain from Entwined. No matter how many times I read the book, he still is an excellent antagonist.
On the sixth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: six geese a laying.
Creation is a beautiful thing. What is your favourite world/world-building?
I reread the first book of The Unwanteds series this year, so this totally counts.
This series has a lot of world building in it, so this is my choice for this year! 😊
On the seventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: seven swans a swimming.
Who needs seven swans when all it takes is one good animal sidekick? Who’s your favourite animal sidekick?
The goats from Blackwell Pages. *snickers*
On the eighth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: eight maids a milking.
Milk is so 18th century. Which book or series takes beverages/food to a whole new level?
Nevermore: The Trials of Morrigan Crow talks a lot about food! It’s super fun – especially at Christmas time. 😉 Perfect for this post.
On the ninth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: nine ladies dancing.
Dancing is just one skill of a Lady! Who is your favourite epic female lead?
Here’s a different kind of book: one based on a real person. Suzanne is a French girl during WWII, a singer who is asked to become a spy.
On the tenth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: ten lords a leaping.
How about your favourite leading lad?
Guess who reread Fawkes this year??? 😛 I liked being able to read it again and watch for the way things were pulled off. Thomas was an interesting main character, so he wins as my “favourite leading lad” this year. 😜
On the eleventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: eleven pipers piping.
What is your favourite book or bookish thing with musical influence? (It can be about music, reference music a lot, etc.)
The book Princess Academy talks about songs a lot! I think I like the first book the best in the trilogy, but they all talk about music to some extent.
On the twelfth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: twelve drummers drumming.
Drum roll please… what is your favourite read this year?
Bet none of you expected this, but… Pride and Prejudice. 😆 I had to read it for school, and ended up enjoying it a lot more than I expected. The characters are just so witty, and I found myself cracking up. The story was fun to see unfold, and I loved watching Elizabeth change during the story.
It’s been quite a while since I’ve done any posts on just book recommendations alone! Probably since… *scrolls through posts* …when I did this tag last year. 😂
And since the next time I post, it will be December 28… Merry Christmas! 🤶
Have you read any of these books?
What were your favourite reads of the year?
-Julia
I’m currently reading The Unwanteds series! (Can’t remember if I told you or Mary? My memory of emails is getting jumbled… XD) It definitely has a wonderful creation story! I LOVED watching(reading) Artime unfold before the Unwanteds eyes! ^_^ The worldbuilding IS great! ❤
I LOVE PRINCESS ACADEMY!!! I just learned of the third book earlier this year and finally finished the series. ❤ The first one is also my favourite of the three!
Pride and Prejudice is SO GOOD! (Though, I'm more partial to the Keira Knightley Pride and Prejudice movie. 😉 )
All the other books looks so interesting! If your goal was to increase my TBR list, then you have succeeded. 😉 I've been wanting to read Fawkes for a looong time but haven't gotten around to it, and Brandon Sanderson has also been on my list of authors to read. I think I have books planned long into… *checks list* …2080 XDDD Great post, Julia! I loved reading it! ^_^
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That’s so awesome! I’ve read the entire first series, but I didn’t finish what’s out of the second one yet. 🤔 That’s okay! 😊 I think it was super cool as well! I remember the first time I read the books, I only knew there was a book 1. I discovered there were more in the series because I was at the library, and saw a book that looked like that first one. I picked it up, opened it… and it turned out it was book 3, and I ended up completely spoiling something huge that happens in book 2 for myself. 😅😂 How many of the books have you read so far? 😃
No way!! No one I know has really read them, haha. I read book 1 again this year, and started book 2, but I have yet to finish it. (oops) Am I allowed to just blame school for that? 😂
Yesssss! I’ve only ever seen the BBC version, but watching that version is on my list of things to do. 🙂
Haha, I’m kind of glad! Quick heads up on Fawkes: the story is based around an actual event that happened in history, and I don’t personally agree with what those people were trying to do. But, as long as you understand what happened in history and how that was wrong, I think it’s okay to read the book, since it’s not the same. Brandon Sanderson is pretty good! I can’t speak for all his books, but I’ve enjoyed the ones I’ve read so far. Some of them do use some language, though, so that’s unfortunate. *glares at the books* Well, if you actually have stuff planned, then you’re ahead of ME at least. 🤣 Thanks for reading! I’m glad you liked it 😄
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I just finished the 7th book New Year’s Eve, final book of the year! 😉 Oh, no! I’m sorry you accidentally spoiled it for yourself. 😣 Was it the thing that happened to Mr. Today?
Yes way! 😃 They are some of my favourite books! 😊 Lol, you can totally blame school! 🤣
I LOVE the BBC version too!
Okay, thanks for the heads up on Fawkes and Brandon Sanderson! 😀 Lol, it’s more like a vague mental list that constantly fluctuates, I’m working on making a list for at least two months or so and going from there, but with the knowledge that it’s not set in stone and I can change it up if I wish. 😉
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That’s epic! Yeah, that was it 😂
That’s awesome! I definitely loved the musical aspect in them, so I’m glad they got that section of the tag 😊
I just finished listening to an audiobook version of Pride and Prejudice, because my English teacher wanted us to read it over break. Hopefully, I’ll also tackle watching those movies, too 😉😛
No problem! 😃 Yeah, I kind of have a vague mental list of books I want to read but am constantly forgetting to see if my library has them or not. 😂 That’s cool! Update for me since this comment: I went to Chapters, and seeing ALL THE BEAUTIFUL BOOKS that I couldn’t read (*faint sobbing in the background*) finally gave me the motivation I needed to put some stuff on hold. So now I’m waiting for 2 books at the library. 😂 Hopefully they’ll be good! I’ve never read them before, but here’s to hoping! 😃
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That was quite the spoiler. XD
Cool! I hope you enjoy the movies!
Same! I am always adding more books to Goodreads without checking if my library even has them! XD Oooh! I hope you enjoy your books!!! ^_^
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Hi, Julia! I have not read any of these except Pride and Prejudice. I think it’s awesome you enjoyed it because honestly, I was kind of bored with it. It didn’t have a whole lot of action. But I did really like the movie. I remember it even though I saw it when I was only about eight, lol. Have you seen it?
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The movie was pretty awesome! I’ve only seen the BBC version, but I’d love to also see the other one.
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