2022 Mid-Year Freak-Out Book Tag

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It’s time for another book tag I wasn’t tagged in! I saw this the last couple of years but never did it and this time, I knew I had to, so here we are with the mid-year freak-out book tag, 2022 edition.

This was first created by Ely and Chami back in 2016 on BookTube but has been done by bloggers as well. This looks like a fun one and I’m super excited to finally do this and share it!

I would love to see your answers to this, whether it’s your own post (commented below) or just answering in the comments if you don’t have your own blog.

I am going to try to keep this to books I’m not re-reading which I have done a few times this year already but these are all new to me reads. With all of that out of the way, let’s get going on my first ever mid-year freakout book tag!

If you want to listen to some of these, consider trying Audible! You can get your first month free (one free book) plus tons of others they have for free. Get that Audible deal here.
If you’re on more of a budget, try Scribd! You can get your first month free there. You can read books and listen to audiobooks. It is unlimited (especially the reading) but if you listen to tons of new audiobooks you may be restricted after a few. I don’t listen to enough to confirm this, but I do use Scribd myself and like it a lot. Sign up for Scribd here!
Shop my collection of bookish goodies on Etsy! These aren’t my shop items, but other shops I’ve curated into a book-themed collection. Shop my Etsy bookish goodies here!
If you want to read more on your Kindle but don’t want to buy books, Kindle Unlimited is a wonderful option. It’s $9.99 a month but if you read a lot and like to read more than just new releases, it could be worth it. Get Kindle Unlimited here!
Get $5 off of $25 from BookOutlet! This is a great place to find new books for pretty cheap. They also have sales quite a bit, so keep an eye out for those. I tend to check here for books I want if they’re more expensive other places. They don’t have everything but they do have a lot. Shop BookOutlet here!
Thrift Books has become my go-to when I’m looking for a book and want it cheap. It’s great if you like buying used books. With this you can get a free book after spending $30!
Shop my book lists here! You can find every book list I have on Bookshop.org (except my monthly round-ups) and I add everything I can but they occasionally won’t have some. I do occasionally add extras though. If any lists are empty, they’ll be filled in shortly! Shop my bookshop.org book lists here.

1. Best book you’ve read so far

Sadie or No Exit. Definitely. I couldn’t pick just one for this because I loved them both. I did have other 5/5 reads but these two were my favorites.

I read Sadie in one night and was on the edge of my seat the whole time I was reading No Exit. Sadie even got me out of a physical book reading slump!

2. Best sequel you’ve read so far

I haven’t read many series this year, the other new to me book series went downhill with each book but I liked Fire with Fire more than the first book, Burn for Burn.

I also liked it more than the third book in the series. I’m rereading the Illuminae series right now and would say that but I said no rereads can count on this tag.

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

Hidden Pictures, Aurora, and Chloe Cates is Missing. I’m sure there are plenty of others but these three are at the top of the list at the moment.

I’m getting back into a thriller/spooky mood so these are the ones that stood out to me. And for this question, I picked ones that were already published in 2022.

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

Spells for Lost Things, Spells for Forgetting, and I’m Glad My Mom Died, for sure! I’ll probably read anything Jenna Evans Welch writes and Spells for Lost Things sounds so good!

I haven’t been in a huge fantasy mood for like, a year but Spells for Forgetting sounds like the perfect blend of thriller and magic, plus the cover is BEAUTIFUL.

Finally, a memoir which I really don’t read very often at all. I’m Glad My Mom Died is Jennette McCurdy’s memoir (from iCarly and Sam & Cat) and I’ve always liked her. It sounds really good, so I would like to read this one.

5. Biggest disappointment

The Woods Are Always Watching and The Shade of the Moon. I liked There’s Someone Inside Your House enough, but this one sounded really good!

I was definitely freaked out in the first half of it but the second half, once we met the bad guys basically, is when it went downhill fast. Which is a bummer because these covers are 10/10 and I LOVE the idea of this.

The Shade of the Moon is the last book in the Life As We Knew It series and wow. It. Was. Rough. I pushed through and it got a little better towards the end but I did not like this one at all.

6. Biggest surprise

Life As We Knew It is a post-apocalyptic story and I don’t really like those. Or I thought I didn’t but I really just don’t like zombies.

I absolutely LOVED this book though! It was different than the usual post-apocalyptic story because the main characters are at home, not roaming to other places. This one definitely surprised me.

7. Favorite new author

None? Can that be an answer? I haven’t found anyone this year yet that I just NEED to read everything they have. I have a few already (Adrienne Young, Jenna Evans Welch, Megan Miranda, Rily Sager, Ruth Ware, Sara Shepard) but haven’t added anyone new to the list this year.

8. Newest fictional crush

I’m cheating on this one since it’s a re-read but it’s the only answer: Nik Malikov. I haven’t read anything that is very romance-y but I’m re-reading Illuminae right now and I just really like Nik. So I’m counting it. (He’s in books two and three.)

9. Newest favorite character

Pip Fitz-Amobi. She’s not new to me but I read the third book in the series so I’m counting it. I love Pip. I love her name. She’s just the best.

10. Book that made you cry

They Both Die at the End. I was so sad. Books where a significant other dies really get to me. They make me sad and even if I’m not sobbing, I will probably cry.

11. Book that made you happy

The Mall. This wasn’t a literary masterpiece but I’m very nostalgic for that era. I really enjoyed this one, seeing Cassie’s growth and evolution over the story was really fun.

Also, if you have suggestions of anything similar to this or a fun 90s nostalgia book, I would love to hear them! I need more of this in my life!

12. Most beautiful book that you’ve bought

The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls and Map from Here to There, I think. I haven’t had any cover buys yet this year which is surprising! But I do love the covers of both of these that I got.

13. Books you need to read by the end of the year

Well, there are a lot but here are some of them. Most of these have been on my TBR for at least a year (or since they were announced) but Seven Days of You is a recent addition.

Love and Olives
The whole Aurora Cycle series (I’ve read the first two but want to re-read before the last one because I don’t remember what happened.)
These Silent Woods
For the Wolf (I haven’t been in a fantasy mood so this one will depend on that changing.)
Kisses and Croissants
The Night Swim
The Girl from Widow Hills
Seven Days of You
The Darkness

Mid-year freak-out book tag questions

One of my big pet peeves about book tags is having to retype all of the prompts. Sometimes I’m just lazy and want to copy and paste them, so here are the mid-year freak-out book tag prompts for you to conveniently copy and paste.