While I’m still riding that 2018 wrap-up high, I thought I’d attempt a tag for today’s post! This is the Characters of the Year Book Tag, which I found on Fadwa’s blog, Word Wonders. If you are looking for another bookish blog to follow I definitely recommend hers :)
For this tag, I will be going over my top characters in each category based on the books I read in 2018. Some will be from my Top 18 but others will be from other books as well. Let’s get started!
1. Favorite Male Character of 2018: August Flynn from the Monsters of Verity duology by Victoria Schwab
Sweet cinnamon roll, too good for this world. My pure son. I absolutely adored August from the first moment we met him. He’s a monster with his own demons, but more than anything he wants to be a normal boy. August is kind and good in a really grim world. He’d do anything for his family. In book two, we explore how he copes with the fallout of book one’s conclusion, and it only makes me love him more. He’s the sensitive guy that should be prevalent in more fantasy books, though I rarely see gems like him. If you read this duology for no other reason, do it because you are sure to fall in love with my sweet Sunai.
2. Favorite Female Character of 2018: Mia Corvere from Nevernight by Jay Kristoff
I was lucky enough to read a ton of awesome women this year which made this category hard to choose. But when I looked at the list I couldn’t help but pick my favorite assassin, Mia Corvere. The thing I loved about Mia is how genuinely badass she was without being overpowered, flawless, or un-feminine. She's not a 'strong female character' sterotype. She has a super cool ability to control the darkness around her to her benefit and she’s followed around by a hilarious shadow-cat named Mister Kindly. She is as anti-hero as they come, swearing revenge on her parent’s murderers and doing anything it takes to become an official assassin so she can exact vengeance. But besides all that...she’s a teenage girl. She explores self-consciousness, gets distracted by a boy, and doesn’t shy away from pretty dresses. Kristoff really created a fully rounded, compelling character in Mia which never ceased to amaze me. She’s not what one would call a "good person," but you bet your ass I was rooting for her.
3. Most Relateable Character of 2018: Darcy Patel from Afterworlds by Scott Westerfeld
I’ve mentioned this before, but I relate so much to Darcy it’s scary. After she writes a novel for NaNoWriMo, she receives a large book deal at the young age of 18 (though ha-ha I'm definitely not there yet). As all her friends go off to college she instead pursues her dream of writing full-time and moves into New York to navigate the adult world of work, budgeting, relationships, and one crazy city. I saw so many parallels between me and Darcy. Like Darcy, I moved from Philadelphia to New York when I was 18 and I struggled hardcore. Like Darcy, I am pursuing a career in writing YA speculative fiction, and I’m also shit at budgeting. Reading her story felt informative for me, as I hope to enter into the publishing industry soon, too. Besides all that, her thought processes just felt so real to me. She is naive in the same way I am and creative in a similar way too. I absolutely adored her story and I can’t recommend this book enough.
4. Couple of 2018: Tobias and Leila from The Savior’s Champion by Jenna Moreci
OTP of the year! I seriously could not get enough of Tobleila. Tobias is an artist-turned-laborer who enters the Sovereign’s Tournament, a deadly competition to win his queen’s hand in marriage. The catch? He falls in love with her sister Leila instead. The thing that makes their relationship so shippable is that these two characters are both fantastic in their own ways, but bring out the best in one another. They hit every point of my checklist! Their romance drove this story and made me swoon on so many occasions. Tobleila is now one of my all-time favorite ships.
5. Villain of 2018: AIDAN from Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
Let’s be real, the evil AI trope is starting to get a little overdone in sci-fi. That being said, AIDAN felt so different, fresh, and downright terrifying. But tell me why I was sympathetic to it too? AIDAN spends the first part of the book dormant, as the humans shut it down when it went rogue. When AIDAN came back I was on the edge of my seat. As this AI follows a flawed line of logic, it also starts to develop what seem to be feelings. AIDAN starts to care, and wrestles with these emotions like any human would. We experience AIDAN’s story through ‘readouts’ of the AI’s ‘thoughts’, and it was some of the most compelling reading I’ve experienced all year. AIDAN definitely takes the award for best villain of 2018 for being both terrifying and fascinating. H.A.L. who?
6. Most Disliked Character of 2018: Scythe Goddard from Scythe by Neal Shusterman
Another one of my favorite villains this year was Scythe Goddard. What sets him apart is that I hated his guts more than most characters. I truly hate this guy, but I loved to hate him. The scythes are meant to be a respected group of individuals who are considered wise and fair. Goddard is neither, and in fact, he wants to change the whole scythedom to become more ‘powerful’--in other words, vindictive. As scythes choose their victims’ deaths, they all have different methods. His method? Mass murder. Yeah, he’s like the quintessential school shooter. Unhinged, self-victimizing, weird clothes. He’s a bad dude for sure, but he’s also extremely clever. He’s like a frat boy who secretly hacks the school computers to give all of his brothers A’s. Except much more dastardly and waay too close to our beloved cinnamon roll MC, Rowan, for comfort. If he could step away from my son that’d be great. Thank u, next.
7. Royal of 2018: Nikolai Lantsov from The Grisha Trilogy by Leigh Bardugo
Think of your favorite cocky-but-charming, chivalrous-but-kind-of-a-dick, badboy softboy prince...and I promise you Nikolai is all that and more. He crashed into the scene (literally) in this trilogy during book two when he meets Alina and they form an unsteady alliance. He’s unbelievably charming, a clever inventor, ambitious as hell. During the two books he appears in, he doesn’t actually get a ton of page time compared to other characters, but when he is around he definitely steals the show. His arc is one of the most interesting of the series, and I am SO EXCITED to read King of Scars. #Nikolaideservedbetter
8. Sidekick/Side Character of 2018: Conrad Harrington III from The Girl Who Could Fly by Victoria Forrester
I adored Piper, our main character in Forrester’s middles grades sci-fi novel. She learns she can fly and then is sent to an institute for kids like her...and quickly butts heads with one of the meanest and smartest boys in the world. Conrad was a fantastic character in this book, the mastermind behind the schemes. He is a child-genius with a hard outer shell, but Piper manages to worm her way in to his heart and together they save their friends at the institute. He’s so great, the sequel focuses on his story! This book is definitely an underrated one, and I recommend it to anyone who wants to add more middle grades books to their TBRs.
9. Sibling of 2018: Frey from Impostors by Scott Westerfeld
I had to give it to my girl Frey. She would do literally anything for her sister Rafi, including kill. She spent her whole life as a body double for her twin sister, learning to kill while her sister learned politics. They are best friends, but only secretly--the rest of the world doesn’t know she exists. When their father plots against a foreign city, they demand a visit from Rafi which is sure to be a political hostage situation. Frey goes in her place in order to protect her sister, but is forced into the limelight for the first time in her life. Her story was fast-paced and riveting, but she wins this award for being so hell-bent on protecting her twin she’d stop at nothing.
10. Free Choice Award: Most heartwarming alien: Jomny from Everyone’s an Aliebn When You’re an Aliebn Too by Jomny Sun
If anyone deserves an award it’s Jomny! I loved following the author’s journey from Twitter personality to published author, and his alien character Jomny warmed my heart and cracked me up simultaneously. He’s a blend of sweet, comedic, and terribly deep in a way that truly hits you in your feels. This is a really unique book and Jomny is a unique character. He deserves all the praise!
Thanks for reading! Who would be your picks in these categories? I’m tagging anyone who wants to to go for it.
Peace out,
Grace K.