Well 2013 has really zoomed by. I swear every year seems to go quicker than the previous one. I remember being told that when I was a youngster and I never really believed it but it is totally true!
2013 – This Past Year in Review
This year has been quite a strange one for me. I have alluded to some of the troubles I have been having in previous posts but have never really explained what they were (I am not the most open person out there – I tend to keep everything under a lid and very rarely do I let people in or expose them to any of my problems).
Although I haven’t been as active as I would have liked, I have really enjoyed blogging (though I am still something of a newbie). It has helped me get through some of the things this year has thrown at me. I was off sick from work for several months and it has taken me a long time to finally feel as though I have my confidence back. I also received some bad news about my mum this year – she was diagnosed with lung and spinal cancer in October. So things have been pretty tough recently for me and my family. I did have some good experiences this year though. I got engaged (yay!!). Every day I am thankful for my partner who has been my rock through all of this. Plus my family have all been really supportive and I have reconnected with several family members with whom relations were previously very strained.
Plus, I have also had lots and lots of books to keep me going! I have always loved to read (my one great passion in life lol!) and getting lost in fiction has always been a great escape for me. Blogging has also been a way for me to forget my troubles for awhile and I am really glad I decided to finally go for it. I feel as though blogging has given me something of an outlet for my inner frustrations (if that makes any sense!).
I took part in various reading challenges (some more successfully than others!). I finally completed my goal of reading 250 books just this week which I was pretty chuffed about. I also successfully completed my challenge of reading 50 Paranormal/Fantasy books and also 20 Contemporary and Chick Lit books (both via The Young Adult Book Club on Goodreads). I failed dismally at getting through the TBR Challenge (I only managed 13 of 20). I was also disappointed that I did not reach my goal for reading 20 books for the Dystopian Challenge (especially considering that is perhaps my most favourite genre!!). Oh well, there is always next year!
I have already written a blog entry about my Top 10 Reads of 2013: HERE so no need to rehash these and bore everyone senseless lol.
I also discovered some really great new (well to me anyway!!) authors:
Karina Halle
Lisa Henry
Amy Lane
Sara Alva
Mia Kerick
Kelley York
Brigid Kemmerer
Rainbow Rowell
Josh Lanyon
…and so many others!!
I have, for the most part, had a very successful year of reading. I have discovered new authors and re-discovered some old favourites as well. Hopefully 2014 will yield even more great reads.
Happy blogging and reading to all. Looking forward to getting to know you all a bit better in 2014!!
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