Ask any bookworm what they want for Christmas and the answer will probably be

 a) books

 b) a gift card to buy books 

 c) money to buy books

 d) more books

This year, I was fortunate enough to receive a Barnes and Noble gift card from my parents and money to buy books from my aunt and uncle.

I waited to do this post until all the books I ordered arrived, hence why I am posting this book haul so far from the holidays. So, without further ado, here are the books I got for Christmas!

1. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J. K. Rowling

2. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J. K. Rowling

3. Truthwitch by Susan Dennard

4. Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

5. The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon

6. Cinder by Marissa Meyer

7. The Princess Decoy by Dawn Cook

I bought some favorites and took some chances on books I've never read before. I think the fact that it's a new year means I'm more willing to try new things.

I am a massive Harry Potter fan. So, it's probably surprising to see that I've only now bought the 6th and 7th books. Let me explain before you revoke my Harry Potter Fan membership card. 

I started reading the first Harry Potter book when I was seven or eight. Once I read the first book, I was hooked and eagerly awaited books 2-5. They were the one series of books that I knew I would like even before I read them. Books 2-4 did not disappoint. 

I bought Order of the Phoenix, book 5, without reading it first. As many of you know, Harry turns into a whiny little teenager in this book. I know that's the way teens are sometimes, but I really wished Rowling could've skipped over the whole puberty thing. Because I was disappointed with the 5th book, I was hesitant to buy Half-Blood Prince without reading it first. So, when it came out, I didn't buy it and instead planned to wait until it was available at the library. My sister did purchase the 6th book, so I ended up borrowing it from her. The 6th book, thankfully, was back to the old Harry Potter I loved. I didn't buy my own copy because I was still in high school and living in the same house as my sister, so I could borrow it from her whenever I wanted. When the 7th book came out, my brother won a copy from our local library, so again I borrowed it from him whenever I felt like reading it.

Flash forward through high school and college. Now, I'm well into my second year of living on my own and felt the urge to re-read the entire Harry Potter series. As I was missing books 6 and 7, I decided to finally buy them (as I've read them and know I enjoy them unlike the 5th book).

I now have the complete set and am one happy bookworm!

In case you need further proof that I love Harry Potter.

Harry Potter World

Okay, I could gush about my love for Harry Potter for ages, but I'll spare you and move on to the other books I got for Christmas.

I debated for a long time before I pre-ordered Truthwitch. As I explained above, I am always nervous to buy a book without reading it first because it may be another Order of the Phoenix disappointment. Before I joined Twitter, I really only found out about new books by going to the bookstore or browsing Amazon. I didn't read all the hype about books before they were released. Now that I'm on Twitter, there is book hype all over the place!

I followed Susan Dennard on Twitter because I loved the writing advice on her blog. I've never read any of her books before, but people on Twitter who received ARCs of Truthwitch kept raving about it so I decided to take a chance on it. The book is supposed to be similar to the TV show Avatar: The Last Airbender. I'm hoping it lives up to all of the hype. 

The next two books I bought were also books that I bought without reading them first. I think I've finally put enough distance between myself and the whole Order of the Phoenix situation so that I can start fresh and give new books a chance. I've decided to jump on the Rainbow Rowell and Marissa Meyer train a little late, but I keep hearing about these books so it's high time I read them. 

Carry On is about a boy who goes to a magic school (and we all know how much I love Harry Potter).

Cinder is a retelling of the fairy tale Cinderella set in a futuristic Beijing with androids and and a cyborg Cinderella. So, I'm pretty much sold!

I picked up The Decoy Princess and The Bone Season at Half Priced Books. My dad, sister, and I were waiting for my brother and mother while they were clothes shopping so we decided to pop over to a book store while we waited. It just so happened that Half Priced Books was having a 20% off sale. I couldn't pass that up. When they're this inexpensive, I don't mind buying books I've never read before.

The Decoy Princess is about a girl who has been raised a princess her entire life until one day she finds out she's a peasant being used as a decoy to protect the real princess. I'm intrigued by this idea because it seems to be the reverse of typical YA fantasy books. Usually, the main character thinks he/she is nobody special only to find out that he/she is a prince/princess/witch/wizard/Chosen One.

The Bone Season is another book that has been receiving a lot of praise, so I decided to buy it and check it out. It's about a girl who is clairvoyant.

I am so excited to read all of these books! Have you read any of them? What books did you receive over the holidays? Share in the comments below!