My 2020 Mid-year Freak-out Tag

It’s coming close to the end of June and that means we are half way through 2020! That means its time to do the mid-year book freak out tag!

2020 has been a year hasn’t it. I think a lot of people have seen a slow down or have been struggling to read with the lock down and I have to say I have been mixed. I have still been working full time as my job can 100% be done from home ( with so many Microsoft teams meetings – sorry to my poor students) and that ha actually reduced my reading time. I am finding I am working longer hours and without my commute I don’t have my daily dedicated reading time.

However when I look at my reading stats so far this year I am really please. I have read a lot of awesome books, found a couple of new favourite authors and taken part in some really fun events.

THE STATS

Number of Books so far: 68

No of pages: 21,894

Best reading Month so far: January, February and April (I read 14 books all three months)

THE RATINGS:

5 Stars: 22
4.5 Stars: 11
4 Stars: 16
3.5 Stars: 8
3 Stars: 7
2.5 Stars: 2
2 Stars: 2
1 Star: 0

THE QUESTIONS

WHAT IS THE BEST BOOK THAT YOU’VE READ SO FAR IN 2019?

The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep
H.G Parry

I read this very early on in January and have been gushing about it ever since. There has yet to be a contender for the top spot (Update: while writing this I am reading H.G Parry’s A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians and it is looking like it is going to kick this of its top perch- spots one and two for best reads of 2020 look like they might be going to H.G Parry). I have a full review for this one HERE. It really is the book I have been talking about all year and I do think I will probably re-read it before the year is out.

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR FAVOURITE SEQUEL OF THE FIRST HALF OF THE YEAR?

The Last Emperox
John Scalzi

The interdependency #3

Scalzi just piped Aaronovich to the post on this one but based on my E.S.C.A.P.E reviewing system this one got the higher score. And it deserved it. It was one of those perfect endings to a fun series. Filled with Scalzi’s usual humour. You can check out my full spoiler free review HERE

IS THERE A NEW RELEASE THAT YOU HAVEN’T READ YET BUT YOU’RE REALLY EXCITED TO?

The City We Became
N.K. Jemisin

This has been on my TBR cart and a couple of Monthly TBRs since it came out. Almost every Wednesday since it was released I have put it as the book I am going to read next and I still haven’t! I just need to pick it up and start! it really does seem like something I would really love, and the physical copy itself is gorgeous. I just want to give it the due attention it deserves and a lot has been vying for my time lately. Maybe when I move jobs at the end of this month I will have some more time.

The House in the Cerulean Sea
TJ Klune

I have heard people rant and rave about this one but it didn’t appear to have a UK release despite scowering all local and internet book suppliers and even appeared sold out on amazon! However, a gorgeous hardback edition landed on my doorstep as a birthday gift and it has been sitting staring at me ever since. Everyone has mentioned how feel good and happy it made them so I just have to read it!

WHAT IS YOUR MOST ANTICIPATED RELEASE FOR THE SECOND HALF OF THE YEAR?

Oh so many but here are top 3 I can quite decide between.

The Once and Future Witches
Alix E. Harrow

15th October 2020

I adored The Ten Thousand Doors of January! Harrow’s writing was gorgeous so I have been excitedly waiting to see what she would come out with next. This sound like it is going to be just as beautiful and I can’t wait to get my hands on it (UPDATE: I now have an eARC copy!!! I am so excited)

A Deadly Education
Naomi Novik

29th September

Again I am a big fan of Novik’s work. I still have to finish working my way through the Temeraire series! So when it was announced that she was writing a Magical school series it went straight on the to buy list!!!
I am sure it will be as darkly gorgeous as her previous works.

The Invisible Life of Addie La Rue
V. E. Schwab

6th October

I think half of the book community is waiting on this book. Schwab has been teasing it for some time. It really seems to be a bit of a passion project for her so I am excited to see what it will be like. Advanced reviews are looking promising, but Schwab can be hit or miss for me so we will have to see.

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT SO FAR?

Harrow Lake
Kat Ellis

Release date: 9th July

I read this as part of A The Write Reads Ultimate blog tour but declined to post my review. My review will be going live closer to release date. But in one short sentence – This was the worst mental health representation I have ever read to the point that I believe this could actually be damaging and I despair that it is marketed to a teenage audience. This is not just disappointing it is just anger inducing.

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SURPRISE SO FAR?

Due to recent discussions on the behavior towards women of the author i had originally choose to feature for this question I have decided to remove my promotion of his work. Once i think of a new entry I will post it

WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE NEW TO YOU OR DEBUT AUTHOR?

I think we know that H.G Parry is a given for me as a new favourite author! I will happily read anything she wished to publish. But I also really enjoyed the work of a lot of other new to me/debut authors. I have mentioned Myke Cole before and I really liked Sixteenth watch but I also really enjoyed these:

The Last Smile in Sunder City
Luke Arnold

I am not usually one for celebrity novels. Usually they are kinda gimmicky but Luke Arnold’s was fantastic. With Noir PI vibes in an awesome fantasy setting this is probably going to be one of my top reads of the year. I have an ARC review of this book HERE. This was definitely a great debut and I am looking forward to the next in the series.

Woman in Cabin 10
Ruth Ware

I picked this up randomly in a kindle sale and then it was chosen for my TBR as part of a Twitter pole and I adore it. I had not read any Ruth Ware before and I am so so glad I picked it up. I am definitely going to read more I do own The death of Mrs Waterway. You can read my full review of The Woman in Cabin 10 HERE

WHAT IS YOUR NEW FAVOURITE CHARACTER?

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I have to admit i love these characters for all different reasons. I would love to spend more time with Charlie from The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep, he was such an interesting character and I loved his ability to pull characters out of books. Similarly Tilly from the Pages and Co series (my mini review) also has the same power but she is a little more sassier than Charlie and I really loved her adventures. Lastly I am a sucker for a sassy AI and Murderbot is just a dream character in that respect (my Review)

A BOOK THAT MADE YOU CRY?

Northern Lights
Philip Pullman

This was a re-read for me and such a nostalgia trip for me! I adored this when I was younger and it was still so readable as an adult. I have a mini review for this HERE.

A BOOK THAT MADE YOU HAPPY?

City of Bones
Cassandra Clare

This is an out of the box one as it is less to do with the book that the context in which I read it. The book itself did get three stars which is still a good rating but I read it as a buddy read! and we had so much fun Check out my post HERE. I am really looking forward to continuing on with the rest of the series!

WHAT BOOKS DO YOU WANT TO READ BY THE END OF THE YEAR?

Here are just a few:

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Well that is my mid year freak out. There is still a lot of time to read the rest of the year.

How has your 2020 reading year going so far? What has been your favourite read so far?

I would love to chat all things bookish with you! You can comment down below or find me on Twitter or Goodreads!

Happy Reading!