I'm ending this year with a yearly summary (including a top 10, bottom 5, and plans for 2022) on the blog that died when the summer started and I began to float in doing nothingness. So, I do admit that I have not thought about this blog for a very long time but at the end of the year I wanted to share my thoughts and it reemerged in importance.
I seem to have a habit when it comes to blogs. I post a lot, then I slow down in regularity, and in the end I don't post at all because I have so much going on and no energy to support such a large endeavor. I completely tip off my hat to people who can maintain their blogs and their lives at the same time. I can barely consistently read other people's blogs, let alone write and edit and take photos for my own. Another part of my life that died with my effort was my royal fantasy. I haven't even opened that document in more than 8 months and it is actually quite a shame that it has been neglected for so long.
When these types of things get to this point I always ask myself the same question. Should I delete it all and start over? I have already done this with an entire blog and ditched many stories. For 2022 I have reflected and decided that restarting all the time is a reason why I don't continue things to completion. Keeping something running for so long is a huge responsibility but it takes even more energy when you are constantly reinventing yourself (Taylor Swift would get me).
When you have things representing effort in the past they do not show failure to continue, they show success at starting.
Now, after I have showed my journey to accepting obstacles in life, I will get to the fun part of this blog post: the actual book summary for this year.
Oh! And one more thing. I will likely not continue this blog. I enjoy it, did enjoy it, but despite my childhood dream of having a personal blog, I am so busy with school that I wouldn't have the chance to retry until the summer. I will always have the personal pull towards this type of thing, and truly do love it, but I am starting a bullet journal to satisfy the notation of my bookish goals and my completion of them. You might see the occasional post though, as I never like to shut off any opportunities for myself.
Top 10 books of 2021:
Yikes. Now that I have started this post I realize that I have no idea what my top 10 is... Let me consult my list of my read books of 2021 (125 if you are interested). If you want to check out my favorites of 2020 there is a tab on this blog dedicated to it. I might make one for 2021 but we shall see.
Okay here we go. I will be explaining #1-5. You will see that the more I love a book, the less I can explain why.
10 - The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
9 - One of the Good Ones by Maika and Maritza Moulite
8- Red Sister by Mark Lawrence
7- Bookish and the Beast by Ashley Poston
6- Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas
5- The Grace Years by Kim Liggett
There isn't one reason why I loved this book. I got it recommended by a friend and their raving review made me so intrigued that I went and immediately bought and read it. The plot was interesting, unexpected, and overall so engaging that I just couldn't put it down. All the characters were memorable, the romance present was fantastic, and this will be a staple of my bookshelves forever.
4- Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson
The first time I read Truly Devious I DNFed it. Whoops. Honestly the mystery was intriguing and interesting but I mostly loved this book because of the main character. I related so deeply to her and the anxiety that she also experiences, that I have 10+ photos of quotes in my camera roll. Representation is really important and so life changing. This book is really personal to me in that way.
3- Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim
SO MANY THINGS WERE SO GOOD. The characters were fantastic, the plot was amazing, the world building was really well done, and I cannot wait for the sequel. I cannot explain how much I love this book without getting the urge to scream in absolute happiness. So let's move on.
2- Last Night At The Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo
I have never loved a historical fiction the way I love this one. In this case you can't even pick and choose parts that you liked and parts that you didn't. This story is such a package that are likely to love it or like it in a placid way. Honestly a perfectly done story.
1- Darius The Great Is Not Okay / Darius The Great Deserves Better by Adib Khorram
I sobbed.
Bottom 5 books of 2021: (That I finished)
5- The Queen's Assassin by Melissa de la Cruz
4- Royally Crushed by Melanie Summers
3- Everyday Magic by Emily Albright
2- Ash Princess by Laura Sebastian
1- Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson
This proves that royal books are my favorite thing ever but I despise a lot of the royal books that I read...
Some Plans for 2022:
Do what I love without forcing it
Continue reading
Start and maintain my bullet journal
Solely use Storygraph (over Goodreads)
Anyways, thank you to everyone for adding to my year, and here's to the hope that we continue to interact in 2022!
My final review on Goodreads that has the titles of all of my read books this year:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3757178542