So, you might be thinking, "Carissa. Update your stories. I don't care about what you read this year." And you have a point. But I care what I read this year, because all through college I suffered a major reading slump, which I believe directly impacted my ability to write.

The oldest proverb in every how-to-write bible an author or teacher will spew at you is that in order to write well, you have to read. A lot. I've even given this advice myself. It's the truth, and that's why you've probably heard it a million times before. If I'm not consuming another person's writing, world-building, sentence structure, character arcs, etc., I struggle doing all of that on my own.

Thankfully, in 2018 I decided that I was going to read 50 books. I want you all to know that I absolutely failed. I did not come close to reading 50 books. But! I got over halfway there, and considering the fact that I'd maybe read 15 books total in the past 4 years, that's pretty darn special.

I clocked in at 28 books this year. A few were re-reads, but hey, I read them. And I've decided to chat about them here, so if you don't care for this kind of content, that's cool. I'll see you later when I post something you want to read. Otherwise, hi.

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

I don't remember if the movie was already out or just about to come out, but I knew I wanted to read this book before I saw it. So I picked it up, and it ended up being the first book I read of the year. Bottom line: I loved it. If you don't already know what it's about (it's the Love, Simon movie), it follows teenager Simon, a closeted gay boy who is afraid to come out to his friends and well-meaning parents and takes comfort in emailing another closeted gay boy from his school, who goes by "Blue", though neither knows the other's real identity.

Autoboyography by Christina Lauren

You guys, I loved this book so much. More than I loved Simon. I can't even explain what it was exactly that I loved so much, especially since it's been a while since I've read it, but it's definitely something that I'm going to re-read. If there's anything you need to know about me, it's that I am a re-reader for sure. If I love a book enough, I'm going to re-read it. If you don't know what this story is about, it follows Tanner, who meets a boy in a writing class somewhere in Utah, and though his own family is very progressive (they recently moved there from somewhere else), most everybody else – including this guy in his class – is Mormon and not quite so progressive. Tanner is bisexual, so yay for that representation!

A Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee

After those first two books, I was really on a roll with the LGBTQ+ stories and I wanted to keep on with it, so I picked this up. I heard a lot of great things on Booktube, and every single one of them was right, because this book was so much fun. Monty was a flawed but ultimately super entertaining character, and I loved every second of reading about his adventure. Basically, it takes place in an earlier time period, and Monty is about to embark on a "grand tour of Europe" with his best friend and current crush Percy, as well as his younger sister Felicity, and a bunch of chaos and flirting ensues. It was wonderful.

A Darker Shade of Magic, A Gathering of Shadows, A Conjuring of Light by V. E. Schwab

Yes, I finally read this trilogy. The first time I ever encountered it, I was somewhere in South Carolina in a small bookstore. While perusing the shelves, I came across the first book in paperback, and I remember being intrigued by the cover and also by the different Londons, but I didn't end up purchasing it. That was in March of 2017. Then, after hearing about this series over and over again on Booktube and hearing loads of people sing its praises (as well as Victoria Schwab's praises), I finally picked them up. And no surprise, I loved them so much. They were fascinating and fun, and every character totally captured me (though none quite as much as Holland, who deserves the WORLD). The series follows Kell, who comes from Red London where magic exists, and cross-dressing Lila, who comes from Gray London, which is essentially our world (though a different time period). There is also a White London, and before magic destroyed it, there was a Black London. Cool, right?

A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J. Maas

Anyone who knows me knows I love Sarah J. Maas books with my whole heart. Actually, they're all included in the 15 books I read in the 4 years before 2018. While they're not without their faults, my mind truly never stops being blown by how pleasing my reading experience is every single time, and this little novella was no exception. Some people were disappointed in it, but if you look at it for what it truly is, you should be able to see that it's just a bridge between two different storylines: the first trilogy (A Court of Thorns and Roses, A Court of Mist and Fury, A Court of War and Ruin) and the new one, which will follow Cassian and Nesta. Was every plot point handled perfectly here? No. But I still enjoyed it and I'm still very excited for what comes next.

Circe by Madeline Miller

Okay, so if anyone here doesn't know this, The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller is my all-time favorite book. Ever. I'm going to talk about it later, so I won't get into why right now (I also believe I've made a separate post in this collection already about it?), but just know that because of it, I have been anticipating this book for so long. She'd been talking about it on her website for a couple years now, and I remember thinking that it was taking forever. But I get it, because this book is beautiful. The writing style is so elegant, just like in Achilles, and Circe proved to be a fascinating leading lady (as we all knew she would). Do yourselves a favor and read this book.

Heart of Iron by Ashley Poston

When I saw this book on Amazon and read the description, I knew I would be reading it as soon as I could get my hands on it. Was I deterred by the fact that it was sci-fi? No. Should I have been? Maybe a little. But it claimed to be loosely based on my favorite movie, Anastasia, so there was really no question that I would read this book. And here's the thing: it was fine. Nobody that I wanted to get together romantically were getting together, and I think this is because I never read sci-fi. Is it a common thing for humans and robots to, like, get into relationships together? I truly thought robots were off the table in that sense, so when it was starting to happen, I was so not expecting it, and just...yeah. It was well written and fun, but like I said, because I'm not used to this genre I think I wasn't prepared for some situations, and that prevented me from enjoying it as much as I wanted to.

The Cruel Prince by Holly Black

I was worried that I wouldn't like this one honestly, and for a hot minute I don't think I did. But eventually, it's almost like certain plot devices clicked into place for me, and I was definitely into it. It didn't really blow my mind or anything, and I'll have to reread the ending before the sequel comes out in February? January? But I did really like it. It's a fantasy story that kind of combines that world with the contemporary world, which is odd at first, but it ends up working.

Throne of Glass, Crown of Midnight, The Assassin's Blade by Sarah J. Maas

In preparation for Kingdom of Ash to come out, I had decided to re-read the Throne of Glass series. So much happens in the last two books before the finale that I truly didn't remember much of it, so I wanted to have it all refreshed in time. But as you'll see in the rest of this list, I don't get much farther than these three. I will! It'll just take a few months yet.

Ship It by Britta Lundin

I wanted to read this book for a few reasons: one, the cover is gorgeous; two, it's about fandom and I love fandom, so of course I was going to; three, Britta Lundin is not only a writer for Riverdale, she's also in a Slack group I'm in, and I wanted to support her. And I had so much fun reading this book. It's about Claire, who attends a con to see actors from her favorite show, Demon Heart. She ships the two male leads together, and when she asks them a question about them being gay at their panel, one of the actors makes a scene and it leads to a whole PR ordeal that sends Claire on tour with the cast to future cons until the world stops being angry about what happened.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

I bought this book a long time before I read it, and I bought it because not only was the cover beautiful, but it sounded interesting enough. I found out later that it was my roommate's favorite book (or one of her favorites). Still, it took me until this past year to read it, and I did it because almost every Booktuber I watch claim it's their favorite book of all time. I definitely understand – it's beautifully written and magical in a way that no other fantasy book has ever been before. I felt as though I was experiencing the mystery of the circus myself, though I was only reading about it, and like...it's hard to describe. It was a very interesting experience.

Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi

I'm so happy I read this book. It was such a refreshing YA fantasy, since the culture is hardly ever given center-stage in this genre (or any genre) of fiction. The cover is beautiful, and I'm so excited for the sequel (and the movie? I believe movie rights were purchased by Paramount before the book was even released).

Save the Date by Morgan Matson

I'm not sure what it was that compelled me to pick this up, as I've never read anything by this author before (and I'm also very picky with my contemporary YA), but it was a very nice summer read. I think the wedding plot point is what got me going, because the last Sarah Dessen book I read involved wedding planning, and some of my favorite rom-coms are about weddings (hello The Wedding Planner). While I enjoyed this book, I do wish there had been a little more in terms of romance for the main character. I remember feeling let down by that part of it in the end, but overall I loved a lot of things about this story and am glad I read it.

To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han

Yes, when this was being turned into a Netflix movie, I decided to finally read this book. I loved it so much that I promptly ordered the other two books in the trilogy, although I haven't read those yet. You probably know about this plot by now, but if you don't, it follows Lara Jean, who wrote love letters to 5(ish) boys in her lifetime – addressed and all – but never sent them. She used this as a tool to get over them. But when the letters get sent out, she has to deal with the repercussions of one of the boys she crushed on being her older sister's boyfriend.

Shadow and Bone, Siege and Storm, Rise and Ruin by Leigh Bardugo

The year Crooked Kingdom came out, I finally bought Six of Crows and tried to read it. The entire world seemed to love it, and I wanted to understand. I could not understand anything past the first couple chapters and gave up. Eventually I learned that there was a trilogy that came before it, set in the same world, so I picked those up and then forgot about them until this year. I loved this trilogy overall, and Leigh Bardugo's writing style is probably the best I've ever come across, but her character Mal? Find me a love interest I've hated more than Mal.

Six of Crows, Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo

These are possibly the best fantasy books I've ever read. I'm struggling to think of competition. I am not joking when I say that if you haven't read these books already, you need to. They are stunning. Her first trilogy was great, but this duology is excellent in a way the trilogy isn't. You can clearly see her growth as an author and a world-builder. Seriously, it's been months and I'm still in awe. Just...read them.

The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert

So, this was my most disappointing read of 2018. I think I knew from the beginning that I wouldn't like it, but the description sounded very interesting, and the cover was beautiful, so I trudged past those early chapters that spelled signs of weak characters and a loose plot. I ended up being right. Halfway through, the plot turned completely on its head and took a totally different direction than what I expected it would, and not in a good unexpected way, you know? It was like...how did we get from point A to point B? Some Booktubers enjoyed it, some didn't, so I would recommend trying it for yourself and seeing.

Seafire by Natalie C. Parker

Especially compared to The Hazel Wood, I loved this book a lot. It follows an all-female pirate ship where there's basically only one rule: no boys allowed. It ended on such a cliffhanger, so I'm already dying for the sequel, and I don't know when it comes out. Anyway, highly recommend this one.

Grim Lovelies by Megan Shepherd

I had been very excited about this book for a while before it came out. I don't exactly know why, because the concept wasn't necessarily anything extraordinary, but I did end up really enjoying it. Somewhere I heard or read that Megan Shepherd was always very interested in the mice in Cinderella, how they turn into the coachmen with magic but have to eventually turn back into mice at midnight. She took that concept, of animals being turned into humans through magic, for this book. It's a fresh fantasy, in my opinion, so if you're tired of the same old same old, I recommend this.

Check, Please! #Hockey by Ngozi Ukazu

I've actually heard of this online comic before but never got the chance to read it. When I saw it in printed form at Barnes & Noble one day, I was completely drawn and purchased it. It's only the main character Bitty's first two years at college, so after I flew through it in one sitting, I promptly sat myself at my laptop and read what else was posted online currently. I am seriously so in love with this story and these characters. It's so entertaining, and I laughed so much. I promise you'll love this, even if you couldn't care less about sports.

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

At the end of every year, I always re-read The Song of Achilles. It's my favorite book, and I like to end the year on a good note: lying in a puddle of my own tears. It makes me weep every single time, but it's like a palate cleanser, so I like for it to be the last thing I read before I start a whole new TBR in January. It's such a beautiful read, so like...if you haven't already, do yourself a favor and read it. Even though you know how it ends going into it, because the story of Achilles and the Trojan War is nothing new, Madeline Miller's fictional account of it is unlike anything you've ever read before. I promise.

If you made it this far, congratulations. This was a lot to read.

I suppose this is where I should state my goal for 2019. Clearly 50 is too much, but I didn't hit 30 this year, so maybe my goal should be 30. Alright, it's in stone. 30 books in 2019. Wish me luck.

What have you read this year? What were your favorite reads/least favorite reads? What books are you looking forward to in 2019?

Thanks for reading. x