8 Books I Absolutely Plan to Read in 2018

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I bought a lot of books in 2017. I mean, not as much as I could have, obviously, but compared to how many books I finished and read, it was more than could have possibly been approved if, like, I had an adultier adult telling what I should and shouldn't do with my money.

Last year (and the year before that and the year before that) I also took part in the Goodreads Book Challenge...and failed, miserably (all three years).  So, this year I am trimming things back and hopefully simplifying without cutting out the end goal of reading books.
Instead of saying "I will read 'x amount' of books" I am going to say "THESE are the books that I will have read by the end of the year." If I finish them and happen to read more? great! But if not, if I only finish these, I will still have completed something in its fullness and I can be proud of that.

So without further ado, here are the 8 books that I bought in 2017 that I absolutely, positively, must read in 2018:

• A Court of Mist and Fury // Sarah J. Maas: I bought both ACoTaR and ACoMaF at the same time, and absolutely blitzed through the first book. It...has taken me a bit longer to finish A Court of Mist and Fury and I can only chalk it up as to not wanting Tamlin to change (but, I love Rhys so....that should negate any bad feelings about Tamlin??). I started this book already, so I've already got, say, two chapters down? Honestly, I need to just commit some more time to finish it and I'm sure I'll get through it as fast as the first book.
• The Scarlet Letter // Nathaniel Hawthorne: Listen, not all of us had required reading in high school. For a large portion of my childhood, this was the classic we didn't mention. I'm fairly certain if I had picked it up, I would've been allowed to read it (with the exception of Harry Potter, my mom practically didn't vet what I read due to not being a reader herself) but the content always scared me away.  However, I am a big girl now, and I fully plan on delving into this weighty classic. 
• Wizard's First Rule // Terry Goodkind: When I was younger, I heard about Legend of the Seeker and honestly really wanted to watch the show. However, I could find it nowhere (legally and cheaply) and so I put it off.  Last year, I stumbled upon Wizard's First Rule and instantly went, "hey, isn't that...?" so, since I never got to watch the show (and tbh, I think I can safely say I outgrew the need to watch it), I'm instead opting to go with the book which inspired the show. Surely that can't be an awful trade-off.  This is another book that I have started, and frankly, I'm pretty impressed. Is it a fairly normal fantasy read? hecking yes. Do I like fairly normal fantasy reads? I'm trash for them. So, I think it'll be a good relationship. 
• Norse Mythology // Neil Gaiman: This one will probably be the first to be finished, simply because I'm already about halfway through it and, while I'm reading it, I'm also listening to it in audiobook.  I'm not a big audiobook fan, but I had a 9-hour car ride and, even though I had the book, decided to download the audiobook because it had Neil Gaiman reading it. That was a great idea. Gaiman's reading style is to die for, and he does the voices! Every voice is so pristine and perfect and look at me fangirling.  So, yes, with the combination of an audio-book I love and a collection of Norse Mythology stories that are funny, original and written as only Gaiman could write them, I'm sure it will be a quick finish. 
• The Great Gatsby // F. Scott Fitzgerald: I have a friend who spent the entirety of an almost hour-long car ride passionately discussing the greatness of this book, and frankly, I'd felt left out. The book had never before caught my attention, despite the roaring 20's being perfectly aesthetic. But the way she spoke about it made me feel like I might truly be missing something important. Besides, it's such a thin little book, I'm sure I could read it in no time. 
• A Flame in the Mist // Renee Ahdieh: I don't read much mainstream YA these days. Aside from Maas' series, I honestly didn't find my attention dramatically captured by very many YA books. A Flame in the Mist was one of those rare gems that did catch my eye.  While I've heard from other book bloggers that it cant, reliably, be called a Mulan retelling, the setting, and the storyline offers much to interest me.
• The Orphan's Tale // Pam Jenoff: This was a last minute buy towards the end of the year. It was majorly discounted at work and the synopsis sounded like a new twist on WWII stories. I'm a few chapters in and, honestly, it's remarkably charming.  A young childless mother saves a Jewish infant from a railway car ultimately headed toward's the baby's death, and then joins a circus. In the circus are remarkable people, and a woman who knows, better than most, the fear and terror that she's going through.  What's not to love? 
• Moon Called // Patricia Briggs: I place the full blame of this book on one of my dearest friends. When she got me hooked on this book dripping with fantasy and modern world realism, she opted not to tell me that there are 10 (11, if you count the extra...and even MORE if you count the spin-offs) books in this dang series. I don't know how she ever expects me to finish this series that is chock full of realistic and dang-pretty werewolves (honestly, this is the best, most honest and raw writing of werewolves that I have ever seen. The whole 'alpha male' thing isn't sexualized and they are written as real half-animals, half-men. It's very refreshing).  I guess I'm just going to have to start with finishing one book at a time and hoping to have them all done by the time I'm, I dunno, 40. 

What's on the top of your TBR list? 

Have you read any of the books on this list? 

If you made a similar post, I'd love to read it! Share the links in the comments and I'll be sure to stop by.