2015 Book Awards

I did these last year and I thought they were pretty fun.

Best Female--Vin from Mistborn: The Final Empire. I have very few complaints on her character development. She's such a strong female lead, and it was really interesting seeing her make her journey through the writing of Brandon Sanderson, who is a middle aged man. Sometimes, male authors create female characters that fall flat, but Sanderson is definitely an exception.

Best Male--Lucian, Kelsier, Rowan, Mark Watney, Baz: all wonderful candidates. I'm not sure If I could pick a favorite. Rowan from Queen of Shadows is my favorite, but that's predictable and redundant. As for new characters, probably Kelsier (Mistborn: The Final Empire) or Baz (Carry On) because they were so funny (and I'm a slut for fantasies), but Mark Watney (The Martian) is a close third.

Best Plot Twist/Twist Ending--Though Carry On by Rainbow Rowell gave me a lot of feels, I'm gonna have to award the best twist ending to it. Rowell did a really good job wrapping things up (sort of) with a really emotionally charged last few scenes. I don't wanna spoil too much, you know...

Best Book the Movie Adaptation--There are only a couple options for this category, but I chose The Martian by Andy Weir. So good. SO GOOD. I watched this with my brother just a few days after reading the book. SO GOOD.

Best Antagonist--The interloper aliens from Eve: The Awakening by Jenna Moreci take the cake. I've never felt so repulsed by a "villain". They are disgusting, and I love them.

Best Supporting Character(s)--I love the whole cast of The Lunar Chronicles so much, so Winter by Marissa Meyer definitely has the best supporting characters. An exception: Jacin Clay. I hated that little shit. But I liked loved Winter, Cress, Scarlet, Thorne, Torin, and Iko.

Best Friendship--I read The Chosen by Chaim Potok in school last spring. The "friendship" between Danny and Reuben just warms my heart, if you know what I mean.

Best Couple--Rowan and Aelin from Queen of Shadows! No one is surprised. They are my babies. My literal favorites. I've been rooting for them since their existence. I just. I love them. A lot.

Best Setting--A strange choice, but the Siberian tundra in Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys intrigued me. Lina's journey through the labor camps following her deportation broke my heart, but the world Sepetys builds around her is rich with characters, description, and emotion.

Best Ending--Winter by Marissa Meyer really wrapped things up well for the whole series. We all knew Cinder didn't want to be queen, too. But Queen of Shadows was also incredible. And I loved The Martian--it made me feel warm inside. I don't know, I'm stumped.

Book I Threw Across the Room the Hardest--Close tie between The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger and Fanart by Sarah Tregay. I had so many issues with both these books. I also hated The 100 by Kass Morgan (disappointing because I love the TV show) and The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway. Agh. So many issues.

I look forward to my Book Awards next year! These are a nice way to reflect on the books from the year.