You can read the start-up post HERE. My original goal was to start 4 new series, which was the second level, the Gemini level. But I ended up going way past that, all the way to the top level of International Space Station with more than 20 new series! I'm only going to list 12 though. The first two are ones that I actually named as series I planned to start, the rest are ones that I might have started because of going to NOLA Storycon, or many other reasons.
- The Madman's Daughter by Megan Shepherd
- Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas
- On Dublin Street by Samantha Young - started and finished this whole series this year.
- Rule (Marked Men series) by Jay Crownover - also started and finished this whole series this year.
- Losing It by Cora Carmack - started and finished the trilogy this year.
- Calendar Girl by Audrey Carlan
- Poison Princess by Kresley Cole
- Forgiving Lies by Molly McAdams
- Nuts (Hudson Valley series) by Alice Clayton
- Lick (Stage Dive series) by Kylie Scott - started and finished this series this year
- Ink and Bone by Rachel Caine
- Six of Hearts by LH Conway
So, my goal for this you can see on my original sign-up post HERE. My goal was 11-20, I only got 5 from my list on the original post. I'll list those first. Several of my books for this challenge may have worked for other challenges as well, so you may see duplicates throughout this post.
- The Madman's Daughter by Megan Shepherd
- Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas
- The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh
- Half-Blood by Jennifer L. Armentrout
- Broken Trust by Michelle Sodaro
- The Dead House by Dawn Kurtagich
- Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
- Titans by Victoria Scott
So, I didn't quite get my feedback rating up to 80%, as I proposed back in my original sign-up post HERE. But I did keep my ratio above 70%, now at 71%, and control myself from requesting books, for the most part, until I knew I would read them. The other part of this goal was to do feedback on 5-10 books, old or new requests, and I definitely did that.
- Firstlife by Gena Showalter
- Stone Field by Christy Lenzi
- Tell the Wind and Fire by Sarah Rees Brennan
- The Prophecy o f Shadows (Elementals #1) by Michelle Madow
- The Blood of the Hydra (Elementals #2) by Michelle Madow
- Flawed by Cecelia Ahern
- Love, Lies, and Spies by Cindy Anstey
- True Born by LE Sterling
- Girl in the Shadows (Girl on a Wire #2) by Gwenda Bond
- The Killer in Me by Margot Harrison
- And I Darken by Kiersten White
- Wake the Hollow by Gaby Triana
- The Row by JR Johansson
- Glitter by Aprilynne Pike
- Backstage Pass: The Complete series #1-5
- Draw Play by Tia Lewis
- The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi
- DNF books: The Borden Murders by Sarah Miller, Sneak Peek: Soundless by Richelle Mead, Once Upon a Dream by Liz Braswell, Hot Pterodactyl Boyfriend by Alan Cumyn, Black River Falls by Jeff Hirsch, Gifted by HA Swain, Tankborn by Karen Sandler
- Feedback from books read before 2016: Broken by AE Rought, Chasers by James Phelan, Oddkins by Dean Koontz, Insomnia by JR Johansson, The Testing by Joelle Carbonneau, Unbroken: A Ruined Novel by Paula Morris, The Collector by Victoria Scott
You can see my original sign-up post HERE. I chose the very lowest level 1-12: Discussion Dabbler. I'd hoped to do about one a month, but come September, I ended up not getting anymore done for the rest of the year. :-( But since I was the lowest level, I still completed as many as I needed to. Here are the 5 discussions I posted.
- Fiction is Fiction - Or Why I Believe Teens are Smarter Than We Give Them Credit For
- It's in the Stars - Or Why I Don't Give Ratings on my Blog
- This Review Should Come with a Warning - Or is it Okay to Review New Adult, Adult, and Young Adult on the Same Blog?
- Copy, Paste, Repeat - Or How Many Places Do You Post Your Reviews?
- To DNF or Not to DNF, That is the Question - Or How Do You Decide If You Should Give Up On a Book?
- I'm Yes Then I'm No, I'm In Then I'm Out - Or the Beloved Books That I Just Couldn't Seem to Love
You can see my original sign-up post HERE. My goal was 10-15, and I made a list of 13, only 5 of those that I actually got to. Here is the list of the ones I got to, starting first with those from the original list.
- Will to Survive (The Rule of Three #3) by Eric Walters
- The Raven King (The Raven Cycle #4) by Maggie Stiefvater
- Lady Renegades (Rebel Belle #3) by Rachel Hawkins
- Illusion (The Heirs of Watson Island #3) by Martina Boone
- United (Alienated #3) by Melissa Landers (No review posted yet.)
- Before (After #5) by Anna Todd
- Opposition (Lux #5) by Jennifer L. Armentrout
- Death Before Daylight (Timely Death #3) by Shannon A. Thompson
- Finding It (Losing It #3) by Cora Carmack
- Asa (Marked Men #6) by Jay Crownover
- Moonlight on Nightingale Way (On Dublin Street #6) by Samantha Young
- Deep (Stage Dive #4) by Kylie Scott
- Twisted Palace (The Royals #3) by Erin Watt
- The Hands of Time (Elementals #5) by Michelle Madow
So, I saved the most complicated Challenge for last. You can read my original sign-up post HERE. I chose to do Blogging, Reading, and Personal Goals.
Blogging Goals:
- Subscribe to comments - Well, I didn't end up doing this. But I was a lot better with commenting this year. Making sure to go to comment after people commented on my blog, and I even signed up for a comment challenge this past summer, as well as this winter.
- Only download 2 e-galleys a week - Well, I did better, but not quite this way. Instead of necessarily downloading or requesting every egalley that sounded good, I just kept track of them in my planner and only downloaded the ones I really wanted to read or knew I'd have time to read.
- Not post every day of the week, not sign up for so many tours - Well, I did sign up for a ton of tours still, and I am pretty sure I posted almost every day, sometimes more than once a day. Not sure if that was a good or bad goal.
- Having an end of the month post every month - This is one that I started out really well with, but then about October I got behind. With NaNoWriMo in November I didn't get that month done, and then I guess this counts kind of for December.
- Having at least 2 reviews a week - I did this for the most part, until these last few weeks. But I hope to get back on track with that this week.
- I have no idea if I did any of the recommended books like I'd thought. So, oh well with that one.
- Read more classics. Nope.
- I guess the only one I reached was my Goodreads goal of 140 books. I actually totally surpassed that by over 100 more books by reaching 245 books for the year. I did a lot more of free ebooks, and even did a bit of reading while at work. I also listened to a lot more audiobooks, often spending more time at the gym on the treadmill just so I could keep listening to a really good story.
- So, I did really well with the walking, again until about October. Once I got back from NOLA Storycon, I didn't do that well. Although while I was in New Orleans I did a ton of walking!! They just built a Planet Fitness a little closer to my house than the one I went to before. I need to go see if I can transfer my membership to that one, then I'll have less of an excuse to not go walking.
- I got my A/C fixed. Saved some money, also borrowed from my mom and paid her back. Didn't end up with a whole new system, but it should work without me having to refill the freon now for a few more years.
- Yeah, my house is still a mess. I did pay to get the living room carpet cleaned, and it helped for a bit, but my male dog still is marking/peeing all over the house. I did get rid of the couch that he kept doing it on, and so far the new couch is mostly safe.
And while you're here, I'm participating in the Book of Your Choice Giveaway Hop that goes until January 15th.
