2013 End of Year Book Survey

I initially wanted to join the annual Book Kaleidoscope again just like last year, but then I changed my mind and decided to join the fun on Jamie's annual end of year book survey :D

1. Best book you read in 2013?
Well I CANNOT mention just one!
Golden, Inferno, Me Before You, Eleanor & Park, Stolen, Tangled, These Broken Stars. I also reread Where She Went and On the Jellicoe Road, both my all-time favorites. For locals (Eventhough I hardly read them this year!) my vote goes to Pulang and Melbourne: Rewind.

2. Books you were excited about and thought you were going to love more but didn't?
Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell.

3. Most surprising (in a good way!) book you read in 2013?
Mara Dyer series! I honestly thought the books were pure contemporary with a little dash of horror (I know, silly me!), so I was surprised when the story got to the paranormal part, haha, but I loved it!

4. Books you read that you recommend to people most in 2013?
Me Before You and Eleanor & Park. You haven't read those? You're missing BIG THINGS!

5. Best series you discovered in 2013?
I don't think I read that many series this year (I stick to standalones & companions) and I'm kinda embarassed to admit this, but I enjoyed the Crossfire trilogy by Sylvia Day a lot more than I initially thought I would!

6. Favorite new authors you discovered in 2013?
Jessi Kirby! And perhaps Emma Chase, too.

7. Best book that was out of your comfort zone or a new genre for you?
I don't usually read horror, mystery, thriller and anything similar to it, and since goodreads categorized Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn as psychological thriller, I'd have to say that one. I love the book! Got it from my secret santa :)

8. Most thrilling, unputdownable book in 2013?
Inferno and Stolen! Also These Broken Stars. I stayed up until 4 am to read that book.

9. Book you read in 2013 that you are most likely to re-read next year?
Amy & Roger's Epic Detour is such a re-readable (?) material. Looove it!

10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2013?
Why BOOK, why not BOOKS? Ugh, this is hard. Though I think this one is the absolute answer.

11. Most memorable character you read in 2013
Beatrice Prior. Her utmost act of bravery & selflessness deserves a lifetime award.

12. Most beautifully written book in 2013
If you're going for the lovely prose, it's of course Unravel Me. Night of Cake and Puppets, too, though it's actually a novella.

13. Book that has the greatest impact on you in 2013?
Golden actually guided me when I had to make the most important decision in my life yet (which was, apparently, choosing college majors) and pushed me to believe that I should prioritize what makes me happy, not what I think will impress people of me :)

14. Books you can't believe you WAITED until 2013 to read?
The Help! It's such a good book but I was initially intimidated by it. After I saw the movie I decided to pick the book and didn't regret it at all!

15. Favorite passage/quote from a book you read in 2013
Gah, I think I have to pass this one. I love quotes and I live for quotes, but there are SOOO MANY good quotes that I've read this year so I don't think I can really thin it out to one!

16. Shortest & longest book you read in 2013?
The Transfer by Veronica Roth (it's a novella) with only 34 pages. The longest was Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte with 688 pages (yawn, yawn). But I think if you count Haruki Murakami's 1Q84 (I read the translated edition, which was splitted into three parts, but originally they were one book) it could be the longest with nearly 1000 pages.

17. Book that had a scene in it that had you REELING AND DYING to talk to somebody about it (a WTF moment, an epic revelation, a steamy kiss etc etc) Be careful of spoilers!
ALLEGIANT, OF COURSE!ALLLL DA FEELZ.

18. Favorite relationship from a book you read in 2013 (be it romantic, friendship, etc)
For friendship, I love Eva & Cary's from the Crossfire trilogy. Romance.... Hmmm this is hard so I have to say Mia & Adam's (I reread the book this year, afterall! *winks*) No family in the books I've read this year was fun enough to make me want to be a part of them as much as I wanted to be one of the Garretts from My Life Next Door, so, none.

19. Favorite book you read from an author you've read previously in 2013
Melbourne by Winna Efendi (I know I can always count on her books), Where She Went, Unravel Me.

20. Best book you read in 2013 that SOLELY based on a recommendation from somebody else:
Cheeky Romance by Kim Eun Jeong. There were some LOL moments in the book that had me in tears because I laughed so hard!

21. Genre that you read the most in 2013
Contemporary YA! All my resolutions of reading more genres like fantasy, historical fiction, and nonfiction were forgotten. Well, I read ONE non-fiction though, and some fantasy, so it wasn't a total failure!

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2013?
Mentioning just ONE is cruel!
Here is my list of 2013 new book boyfriends (Ha!): Tarver Merendsen from These Broken Stars, Park from Eleanor & Park, Levi from Fangirl, Maximilian Prasetya from Melbourne, Henry from Second Chance Summer, and Ryan from Dare You To (my baseball boy!). Warner from Unravel Me is also a new crush since I used to hate him on Shatter Me tee-hee.


23. Best 2013 debut you read?
Nantucket Blue! These Broken Stars! The Beginning of Everything! How to Love! How can I choose only one?

24. Most vivid world/imagery in a book you read in 2013?
I know by now I sound like an owl for repeating the same books again and again, but well, These Broken Stars, Stolen, Origin, and Nantucket Blue.

25. Book that made you cry or nearly cry in 2013?
It shouldn't be a secret that I'm such a crybaby regarding books. Lots of books made my cry, but I think I cried really hard this year when I read Me Before You.

26. Book you read in 2013 that you think is overlooked this year or when it came out?
Audrey, Wait! is such a fun book and it's been 5 years since the book came out but it's still relevant to read now.

1. New favorite book blog you discovered in 2013?
I just discovered Jamie's Perpetual Page Turner earlier this year and I wish I've stumbled upon it sooner! There are lots of book blogs that I regularly visit but ones that I can think of right now are: Jen's Pop! Goes the Reader for its brilliantly cute design, Jasmine's Flip That Page for its extremely fun features, Ashley's Nose Graze for its honest review and design too! Also Leanna's Daisy Chain Book Reviews for its content. My favorites from Tumblr are Rebecca's The Booker and Nicole's Book Reviews. As for fellow Indonesian book bloggers, check out Kak Nana's Reading in the Morning, Hilda's Catch the Lune (I discovered their blogs last year but they're still awesome!), and Neysa's MNK Booklife! :)

2. Favorite review that you wrote in 2013?
Hmmm.... Beetween The Moon and More by Sarah Dessen or Golden by Jessi Kirby.

3. Best discussion you had on your blog?
I hardly ever write any discussion post on IPR! I know, what a shame. This post is the only one, I think, but it's not really my favorite, so...

4. Most thought-provoking review or discussion you read on somebody else's blog
I read and loved every discussion posted on the book blogging world eventhough I rarely participated (blah) so I can't say only one. My favorite places to look for discussion  posts are Jamie and Leanna's blogs, also the Let's Discuss meme that used to be posted weekly on Oh, Chrys! ... and Kak Ren's Little Corner, too.

5. Best event that you participated in (author signings, festivals, virtual events, memes, etc)?
Bleh, there was no chance at all for me because of the national exam preparation, college entrance tests, orientation, our department's theatre play etc etc. I missed a lot of book premieres and signings, authors-readers meet-and-greets, also Indonesian Reader's Festival this month (sad face)... but the annual Indonesia Book Fair I attended last November was fun! Secret Santa is still running at the moment but I had a great time too :)

6. Best moment of book blogging/your book life in 2013?
This might sounds really lame but... I was extremely happy when I found out that Wendy from The Midnight Garden left a comment on my How to Love review! I adore her and her awesome blog <3

7. Most popular post this year on your blog (whether it be by comments or views?)
My reviews of Cinderella dan Empat Ksatria #1, The Beginning of Everything and Autumn Once More got the most loves of all. Meanwhile, IPR's first giveaway ocassion is the one most looked at from the non-review category.

8. Post you wish got a little more love?
My reviews for BBI's #Posbar.

9. Best bookish discover (book related sites, bookstores, etc)?
All those places (online and offline) where they sell new or used english books with abnormal prices (means, waaay below the actual price) and minimum shipping fee are considered as my best discoveries because well, I'm a broke college girl who can't afford ALL of the books I wanted to own and I can't stand reading translated books sooooo

10. Did you complete any reading challenges that you had set for yourself at the beginning of this year?
To be honest, I'm not too proud of my reading accomplishments this year. Real life was brutal througout 2013 and I was kinda struggling to find time to read all the books I wanted to. I actually passed my goal in Read In English Books Reading Challenge, but I didn't always post reviews for the books (as you can see, I suck at posting reviews and updating this blog) and I rarely put links on the link-up page... Oh well, let's just hope that I can do better next year :)

1. One book you didn't get to in 2013 but will be your number one priority in 2014?
I change my mind a lot so it's unfixed but for 2014 I definitely want to read and finished Marissa Meyer's Lunar series and Veronica Rossi's Under the Never Sky series!

2. Book you are MOST anticipating in 2014 (non-debut)?
Huntley Fitzpatrick's What I Thought was True and Stephanie Perkins' Isla & The Happily Ever After :D

3. 2014 debut you are most anticipating?
I don't keep tracks on debut books but Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge seems promising.

4. Series ending you are most anticipating in 2014?
Hands down, Dreams of Gods and Monsters by Laini Taylor and Ignite Me by Tahereh Mafi!!!

5. One thing you hope to accomplish in your reading/book blogging life in 2014?
Basically all that I've said in this post. I'd also like to hold a giveaway again, it was so much fun to share books and getting opinions from fellow book bloggers/readers! :)

NOW, WHAT ABOUT YOU?
If you want to participate or read other entries for the 2013 End of Year Book Survey, simply go here!