Mid-Year Book Freak Out 2019

Welcome to the Mid-Year Book Freak Out of 2019 everyone!  I've been taking part in this since 2015 - if you like you can check out my previous posts from 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018 - and I always enjoy seeing what everyone's been reading, so I'll try visit as many of these posts as I can to see what everybody's been up to.  Of course, I always end up adding a lot of books to my TBR thanks to this as well.  By the way, this tag was originally created by ReadLikeWildFire and Ely Jayne. Without further ado, let's get to it:

1. Best book you've read so far in 2019.

I'd say it's a three way tie between Trail of Lighting (The Sixth World #1) by Rebecca Roanhorse, Jade City (The Green Bone Saga #1) by Fonda Lee, and Titanshade by Dan Stout.

2. Best sequel you've read so far in 2019.

I can't decide between The Wicked King (The Folk of the Air #2) by Holly Black and The Kingdom of Copper (The Daevabad Trilogy #2) by S.A. Chakraborty - both were absolutely amazing!

3. New release you haven't read yet, but want to.

Storm of Locusts (The Sixth World #2) by Rebecca Roanhorse - I'm going to be reading this in August for the Disney-A-Thon and I couldn't be more excited!

4. Most anticipated release for the second half of the year.

Jade War (The Green Bone Saga #2) by Fonda Lee - It's going to be released on July 23rd and I'm counting down the days! 

5. Biggest disappointment.

A Simple Favor by Darcey Bell - I absolutely loved the neo-noir crime comedy movie adaptation with an awesome soundtrack, then I tried to read the book and ended up DNF'ing it at only 20% in.  

6. Biggest surprise.

Kill the Queen (Crown of Shards #1) by Jennifer Estep - I just happened to stumble across the e-audiobook of this fantasy series opener through my Libby via my library.  Luckily for me it became a favorite - I'm really looking forward to the sequel, Protect the Prince, which is due out on July 2nd.

7. Favorite new author (debut or new to you).

Darynda Jones - I've just recently finished up thirteenth and final book in the Charley Davidson series.  It's an incredibly addictive urban fantasy series that would be perfect for fans of Lucifer.  It took me about a year to listen to all thirteen books in the series (the final 7 of them in 2019), and I don't know what to do without looking forward to another adventure with Charley and the gang on the horizon.  By the way, the series is narrated by the incredibly talented Lorelei King.  I need to read more from Jones stat!

8. Newest fictional crush.

I don't have one.

9. Newest favorite character.

Maggie Hoskie from Trail of Lighting (The Sixth World #1) by Rebecca Roanhorse is hands down one of my favorite leads without question - I have to appreciate her honesty, smarts, and her special set of skills.

10. Book that made you cry.

Hey, Kiddo by Jarrett J. Krosoczka - This graphic memoir isn't an easy read, but it's well-worth your time.  Like me, your eyes might be feeling mighty sweaty.

11. Book that made you happy.

An Assassin's Guide to Love and Treason by Virginia Boecker - This was such a pleasant surprise!  This novel is like if Mackenzi Lee wrote A Knight's Tale, plus a healthy dash of Shakespeare.  If that doesn't sound awesome I don't know what does.  I totally need more YA historical fiction like this.  The English Lit geek in me was smiling all the way through!

12. Best book to film adaptation?

Good Omens is easily my favorite book adaptation - it's a tv miniseries on Amazon Prime Video - and I honestly couldn't have asked for a better adaptation of one of my all time favorite books by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman!  Michael Sheen and David Tennant do a marvelous job of bringing Aziraphale and Crowley to life.  If you haven't watched it or read it yet, what are you waiting for?

13. Favorite post you have done this year?

I'm going to be honest I love getting the chance to talk about movies, so putting together a Top Ten Tuesday post about Outrageous B-Movies I've Seen On Svengoolie was a lot of fun!

14. Most beautiful book you've bought so far this year (or received).

The Bird King by G. Willow Wilson - Look at it!  Isn't it beautiful?  Plus, this historical fantasy story is pretty great to boot.

15. What books do you need to read by the end of this year?

What I said last year is definitely still applicable!

And that's it for the Mid-Year Book Freak Out of 2019!  Have you read any of these books, or have a I piqued your interest in any of them?  Have you taken part in this tag yet this year?  As always, thanks for visiting my blog and perhaps even commenting down below!