The Success of My Yearly Most Anticipated Lists

Since 2014, I've been doing post series about my most-anticipated releases of the next year. I've steadily seen a decline in how much I've loved the books, though, so I decided to do a round-up post to chart this and talk about each year's picks.

2015

This was the only year I did one of my posts based on awesome covers, which I should know by now is a terrible indicator of a book's quality. I actually left these out of my average rating just because I didn't think they should count. Well, now I'm going to include them.

Out of the forty-five books featured, I removed six from my TBR list. That's less than 15%, so I'd say that isn't too bad.

Rating-wise...I had an average of 3.5. Before I included the books I picked just for their covers, my average rating was 3.7, so yeah, choosing books based on covers is a terrible idea, haha. Still, I found some of my favorite books in 2015, like...

The Start of Me and You by Emery Lord

My Heart and Other Black Holes by Jasmine Warga

Every Last Word by Tamara Ireland Stone

Written in the Stars by Aisha Saeed

2016

Lolololol, I did four posts this year, so get ready for a heck ton of books.

I removed eight from my TBR list this time, out of sixty-four books, which is about the same ratio from 2015. 

However, my average rating was MUCH lower - only 3.1 stars, which is mostly due to how much more willing I was to DNF books (seven just from my Sixteen 2016 Reads, if you're wondering).

I didn't hate everything I read, though. My favorites included:

The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson

Outrun the Moon by Stacey Lee

The Rose & the Dagger by Renee Ahdieh

The Geek's Guide to Unrequited Love by Sarvenaz Tash

I still love all of those books dearly, but 2016 was a sad year for books, in my opinion.

2017

I removed a grand total of ten titles from my TBR list from my fifty-one Seventeen 2017 Reads picks, and DNFed four. (I've gotten more comfortable with removing books from my list altogether if I don't like the first couple of chapters.)

My average rating held at 3.2 stars.

Another thing I noticed was that a bunch of my picks got pushed back to 2018 release dates, which is one of the perils of doing these lists so early in the year. Goodreads may say one thing, but publishers say another. I wish there were people at different houses who could at least make sure the pub years are kept accurate. I don't mind if we can't know the exact month and date for a while, but years are key.

Anyways, highlights of 2017 include...

Wild Beauty by Anna-Marie McLemore

The Names They Gave Us by Emery Lord

Tash Hearts Tolstoy by Kathryn Ormsbee

Piecing Me Together by Renee Watson

Always and Forever, Lara Jean by Jenny Han

Even the Darkest Stars by Heather Fawcett

2018

This year isn't quite over, but I've read most of my Eighteen 2018 Reads. Once again, though, a BUNCH got pushed back to 2019 pub dates, which was very frustrating.

I removed twelve of the fifty-four titles from my to-read list, which is consistent with last year at least.

So far, I've DNFed only one of the books, which is probably due to my willingness to remove them from my TBR instead.

A grand total of ten got pushed back to (at least) 2019, as opposed to eight of 2017's picks. I'm definitely terrified at this point what happens to my Nineteen 2019 Reads. With my luck, half of them will be published in 2020 instead.

My favorites, as of writing this post, have been...

The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevado

The Length of a String by Elissa Brent Weissman

Love, Hate & Other Filters by Samira Ahmed

The Light Between Worlds by Laura E. Weymouth

But interestingly, most of my actual favorites of 2018 haven't been my Eighteen 2018 Reads. Definitely surprising, since one of the main points of this post series is to identify the books I think will be my favorites.

I won't be giving an average rating for 2018, just because I still have some titles left to read, and I'd like it to be as accurate as possible.

I love doing most-anticipated lists, but they seem to be biting me in the butt most of the time. I can only do so many round-ups of my favorites, though, and talking about books I haven't read yet diversifies things. 

Do you have any tips for how I might make better choices for my lists? Should I maybe only do one post a year? I'm officially down to two a year (starting with my Nineteen 2019 Reads) since the individual posts are getting so long, but I feel like it's still hurting me. :/

Looking Back on My Seventeen 2017 Reads

I have to say, I feel like my Seventeen 2017 Reads were, for the most part, a let-down. Not only did I DNF/not like most of them, but several got pushed to 2018 (or even 2019) release dates. But let me break it down for y'all. (You can read this post for thoughts on the Seventeen 2017 Reads picks I read in the first half of 2017.)

READ AND LOVED/LIKED

Dare Mighty Things by Heather Kaczynski (4 stars)
Dear Martin by Nic Stone (4 stars)

Even the Darkest Stars by Heather Fawcett (4 stars)

Little & Lion by Brandy Colbert (4 stars)

Someone Else's Summer by Rachel Bateman (4 stars)

Starfish by Akemi Dawn Bowman (4 stars)
That Inevitable Victorian Thing by E.K. Johnston (4 stars)
Wild Beauty by Anna-Marie McLemore (4 stars)

READ AND WAS NEUTRAL ABOUT

Between Two Skies by Joanne O'Sullivan (3 stars)

The Girl with the Red Balloon by Katherine Locke (3 stars)

I Believe in a Thing Called Love by Maurene Goo (3 stars)

Long May She Reign by Rhiannon Thomas (3 stars)
Prince in Disguise by Stephanie Kate Strohm (3 stars)

Wesley James Ruined My Life by Jennifer Honeybourn (3.5 stars)

Who's That Girl by Blair Thornburgh (3 stars)

READ AND DISLIKED

A Dangerous Year by Kes Trester (DNF)

The League of American Traitors by Matthew Landis (2 stars)

Meant to Be by Julie Halpern (DNF)

REMOVED FROM TBR LIST

Neighborhood Girls by Jessie Ann Foley

STILL NEED TO READ

Nutcracked by Susan Adrian

PUSHED TO A LATER RELEASE DATE

Amal Unbound by Aisha Saaed

Lost Causes by Jennifer Lynn Barnes


Thoughts? Eager to see what I think of my Eighteen 2018 Reads?

Seventeen 2017 Reads Check-In

Every year, I do two check-in posts to let y'all know how I'm enjoying the books I said were my top picks of that year. Well, it's time for the first 2017 one!

READ AND LOVED/LIKED

Alex, Approximately by Jenn Bennett (4 stars)
Always and Forever, Lara Jean by Jenny Han (5 stars)

The Heartbeats of Wing Jones by Katherine Webber (4 stars)

The Names They Gave Us by Emery Lord (5 stars)

Piecing Me Together by Renee Watson (5 stars)

The Ship Beyond Time by Heidi Heilig (4 stars)

Tash Hearts Tolstoy by Kathryn Ormsbee (4.5 stars)

Wait for Me by Caroline Leech (4 stars)

READ AND WAS NEUTRAL ABOUT

By Your Side by Kasie West (3 stars)
Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller (3 stars)
When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon (4 stars)

READ AND DISLIKED

Crazy Messy Beautiful by Carrie Arcos (2 stars)
Romeo & What's Her Name by Shani Petroff (2 stars)

Seven Days of You by Cecilia Vinesse (2 stars)

The Valiant by Lesley Livingston (2 stars)

Waking in Time by Angie Stanton (DNF)

REMOVED FROM TBR LIST

The Continent by Keira Drake (technically I marked it as DNF and gave it 1 star, because it is problematic as all-get-out)
Dreamland Burning by Jennifer Latham (didn't like the narrators' voices)
Rebels Like Us by Liz Reinhardt (lost interest)
Speak of Me as I Am by Sonia Belasco (due to slurs and descriptions of POC characters that compared them to food)

The Traitor's Kiss by Erin Beaty (due to reviews that revealed racism and girl hate)

You Don't Know My Name by Kristen Orlando (tried a few pages; really couldn't get into it)

STILL NEED TO READ

Between Two Skies by Joanne O'Sullivan

I Believe in a Thing Called Love by Maureen Goo

Long May She Reign by Rhiannon Thomas

Someone Else's Summer by Rachel Bateman

YET TO RELEASE IN 2017

A Dangerous Year by Kes Trester

Dare Mighty Things by Heather Kaczynski

Dear Martin by Nic Stone

Even the Darkest Stars by Heather Fawcett

The Girl with the Red Balloon by Katherine Locke

The League of American Traitors by Matthew Landis

Little & Lion by Brandy Colbert

Lost Causes by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Meant to Be by Julie Halpern

Neighborhood Girls by Jessie Ann Foley

Nutcracked by Susan Adrian

Prince in Disguise by Stephanie Kate Strohm

Starfish by Akemi Dawn Bowman

That Inevitable Victorian Thing by E.K. Johnston

This Promise I Will Keep by Aisha Saeed

Wesley James Ruined My Life by Jennifer Honeybourn

Who's That Girl by Blair Thornburgh

Wild Beauty by Anna-Marie McLemore

PUSHED TO A 2018 RELEASE DATE

Black Rose by Bree Barton

Game of Secrets by Kim Foster

The Perfect Ending by Nisha Sharma

The Queen's Rising by Rebecca Ross
Reign the Earth by A.C. Gaughen
This Tiny Perfect World by Lauren Gibaldi

2017 has apparently been a hit-or-miss year for me.

The Last Seventeen 2017 Reads

I can't believe this is the last of these posts; there's still five months until 2017. But it's time to reveal my final seventeen picks. There are a ton of other books on my TBR list that release in 2017, so don't think the ones featured in the series are going to be the only great ones. I've tried, for the most part, to avoid the super popular books everyone already knows about, but there is a bit of personal preference slipping through. After all, there are some authors whose stuff I'd read no matter what (except for if it was, like, horror or new adult). But you get my point. So...without further ado...the final seventeen 2017 reads list. *closes eyes and prays none of these books will get pushed back to 2018*

Black Rose by Bree Barton

Half of its pitch includes Pride and Prejudice. I am always down for YA P&P.

Dear Martin by Nic Stone

I mentioned this one a few weeks ago, in a post about YA books involving relevant political topics. I think it's definitely going to be one to keep your eyes on next year.

Rebels Like Us by Liz Reinhardt

I really hope Ms. Reinhardt brings the setting to life because this book sounds like a recipe for perfection.

My So-Called Bollywood Life by Nisha Sharma

This one sounds like so much fun and like my type of contemporary.

Terra by A.C. Gaughen

It has been too long since a new A.C. Gaughen book was in my life.

Somebody That I Used to Know by Jennifer Honeybourn

(That title was begging for that gif, ok.)

Anyways, I couldn't resist the mention of a Medieval Times-like restaurant in the synopsis. This oughta be good.

The Girl with the Red Balloon by Katherine Locke

Time travel and historical fiction. That combination is like catnip for me.

The Names They Gave Us by Emery Lord

It's Emery Lord; did you expect me to leave her 2017 title off this list?

This Tiny Perfect World by Lauren Gibaldi

I have two words for you: theater camp. This is something I know from experience (even if it was a weeklong day camp, and I was twelve). 

Always and Forever, Lara Jean by Jenny Han

As long as Jenny doesn't mess up my ship, it'll all be good. And we all know it's gonna get a great cover.

Someone Else's Summer by Rachel Bateman

Grief books can be iffy, but I have high hopes for this one. After all, the synopsis mentions a bucket list.

Wild Beauty by Anna-Marie McLemore

I tentatively read Anna-Marie's debut, just because magical realism isn't really my thing. But I definitely liked The Weight of Feathers, and this one sounds just as good.

Impassioned by Rebecca Ross

This one sounds really cool. I'll let y'all read the synopsis for yourselves, but it's YA fantasy, and I do like a good fantasy novel every now and then.

Collison by Kes Trester

This sounds perfect for fans of Embassy Row.

Crazy Messy Beautiful by Carrie Arcos

*starts skimming synopsis* *sees Neruda mentioned* *immediately adds it to TBR list*

Game of Secrets by Kim Foster

Alternate Victorian world, yo.

The Ship Beyond Time by Heidi Heilig

Feast your eyes on that gorgeous cover, my lovely readers.

No, but seriously, it's not often that I put a sequel on one of these lists (out of 51 Seventeen 2017 Reads, this is one of two), so know that I am fangirling and making grabby hands and wishing for a time machine (and also planning how best to get an ARC). And if you haven't read The Girl from Everywhere yet, I can't recommend it enough.

So what 2017 releases are you dying to read? Did any of these in this post catch your eye?

Seventeen More 2017 Reads

Y'all, I am so psyched that it's time for another Seventeen 2017 Reads post. Get ready for the seventeen recommendations coming your way. *crosses fingers that all of these will release in 2017* (I've been wrong about several of my Sixteen 2016 Reads.)

1. Little & Lion by Brandy Colbert

My first exposure to Brandy's writing was her short story in Summer Days & Summer Nights, and now I want more.

2. Nutcracked by Susan Adrian

Retellings and remixes have let me down before, but I am determined to find a Nutcracker retelling that I love.

3. Dimple & Rishi by Sandhya Menon

All the diverse contemporary YA romance!

4. Between Two Skies by Joanne O'Sullivan

This one is kind of at that border line between historical and contemporary since the event is in the past but was relatively recent. Either way, it sounds like it'll be poignant and wonderful.

5. Hit Single by Blair Thornburgh

Contemporary fiction is my jam (pun intended), and this is basically right up my alley.

6. Waking in Time by Angie Stanton

TIME TRAVEL.

7. Meant to Be by Julie Halpern

Do y'all know how much I've seen this concept (and similar ones) talked about on Tumblr? People have begged for it to become a book. I have high expectations.

(COULD NOT RESIST A P&P KEIRA KNIGHTLEY GIF)

8. The Continent by Keira Drake

The Goodreads synopsis for this one is confusing, but I'm SO INTRIGUED.

9. You Don't Know My Name by Kristen Orlando

I am Ally Carter trash and therefore will read any book that sounds vaguely like I'd Tell You I Love You But Then I'd Have to Kill You.

10. Fever Dreams by Maureen Goo

I feel like this is a book a ton of book bloggers have been asking for and, while I don't watch K-dramas, I am all in.

11. Speak of Me as I Am by Sonia Belasco

Not gonna lie, I'm mainly interested in this one because the synopsis mentions Othello and I am also Shakespeare trash. But it's contemporary YA, which we've already established I love.

12. Tash Hearts Tolstoy by Kathryn Ormsbee

There's a couple YA novels cropping up in 2017 about web-series, which sounds like a phenomenal idea to me. This one in particular has sparked my interest.

13. The Matchmaker's Apprentice by Erin Beaty

Jane Eyre meets Mulan. MULAN. I don't talk about it as much as Beauty and the Beast, but Mulan is definitely in my top ten favorite Disney movies.

14. Lost Causes by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

It's Jennifer Lynn Barnes. Need I say more? (Although what I wouldn't do for more The Fixer novels...)

15. Dare Mighty Things by Heather Kaczynski

This is basically a level-up for The Selection with diversity.

16. Neighborhood Girls by Jessie Ann Foley

Something about that synopsis appeals to me (and it's not just the mention of Chicago).

17. Starfish by Akemi Dawn Bowman

I just found out about this book a few weeks ago, and it is something I want so very much so I'm glad I could include it in this post.

Well, that's all seventeen! Watch for the final one of these posts in July or August!

Seventeen 2017 Reads

2016 has started, which means it's time for my first list of 2017 releases that I think will be stand-outs. I plan to do only three of these posts instead of four like last year, so I'll be choosing very carefully. Watch in April or May for the next one! I tried to be very careful picking these, so I hope all of them are still due to release next year. Anyways, without further ado, I present seventeen of my most anticipated 2017 releases.

HISTORICAL FIC/FANTASY/MYSTERY-THRILLER

Wait for Me by Caroline Leech
World War II is still popular for YA historical fiction, but I'm always willing to read it.

That Inevitable Victorian Thing by E.K. Johnston
It sounds comparable to The Ring & the Crown, but I'm very much looking forward to the sort-of futuristic setting. Plus, I'm always up for alternate history.

Wing Jones by Katherine Webber
It's hard to consider 1996 history since that's when I was born, but I guess it technically is. I'm always up for books about the Olympics and the protagonist is diverse!

The Valiant by Lesley Livingston
Goodreads classifies this as fantasy, but it sounds like historical fiction to me, so I'm classifying it as historical fantasy. I'm excited for a setting a bit different than the usual ones we see in YA historical fiction.

Even the Darkest Stars by Heather Fawcett
I especially love the sound of that setting.

The Freemason's Daughter by Shelley Sackier
I can't properly put it into words, but the sound of this one has me very excited.

Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller
2016 is the year of the pirate ship, and I'm so glad this trend is continuing into 2017.

Dreamland Burning by Jennifer Latham
Hurrah for a mystery and an interesting topic for historical fiction!

The Judas Society by Matthew Landis
Benedict Arnold, Revolutionary War... My parents, especially my mom, love the American Revolution time period and I've grown up around it to some extent, so I'm bouncing in my seat.

Long May She Reign by Rhiannon Thomas
Holy wow, does this one sound cool and very fun. Yay for STEM girls and royalty! (Also shout-out to Rhiannon for making my Fifteen 2015 Reads and Seventeen 2017 Reads lists.)


CONTEMPORARY

Piecing Me Together by Renee Watson
I really liked This Side of Home, and this sounds like the type of contemporary YA I enjoy.

This Promise I Will Keep by Aisha Saeed
As hard as it will be to wait until 2017 for Aisha's sophomore novel, I'm sure it will be well worth it.

Prince in Disguise by Stephanie Kate Strohm
This sounds deliciously fun.

By Your Side by Kasie West
Kasie West is an auto-buy author at this point. I love all of her contemporary romance novels.


Alex, Approximately by Jenn Bennett
It's a YA You've Got Mail. IT'S A YA YOU'VE GOT MAIL.

Seven Days of You by Cecilia Vinesse
Tokyo! We don't see that too often in YA.

Romeo and What's Her Name by Shani Petroff
One of the Swoon Reads choices that sounds fun and cute.

I love how half the list is contemporary - clearly my bias is showing. I do hope there will be a lot of historical fiction, too. As more book deals are announced, I'll plan Seventeen More 2017 Reads!