My favorite books of 2023
It’s that time of year again… Spotify wrapped season.
Starting back in 2021, I decided to start doing “Goodreads wrapped,” my own version of a wrapped that feels equally (if not much more) telling to my mental state throughout the year.
As of publishing this blog, I’ve read a cool 67 books. I’d like to read 70 by the new year, but those will likely be comfort rereads from childhood (Dealing with Dragons— I’m looking at you). And speaking of rereads, I did a lot of that this year. I went through the Lunar Chronicles for the second time, as well as ACOTAR and ACOMAF. I also reread Normal People in a much healthier headspace than I was in the first time I read it, which definitely impacted my new review. And thanks to the flu and the new trilogy, I reread PJO for the umpteenth time (holding out for that Dec 20th premier!) Add in some Hunger Games and Ella Enchanted, and you can easily assume that my general mood over the months was “can I please go back to being a kid who doesn’t understand politics and the science of climate change? And if not can I just escape into worlds I know and love?”
Anywho, here are some of my favorite new reads from the year. Pretty much all of these are either middle grade or adult fantasy, and I only included books on my list that I gave 4+ stars. The YA I consumed this year did not impress me at all which makes me a little sad. I don’t generally talk about books I didn’t like, but I will include my greatest disappointment for the year at the end, just for the drama of it all.
MY FAVORITE READS OF 2023
Between - L.L. Starling
Frogkisser! - Garth Nix
The Herbwitch Princess - Ireen Chau
The River of Silver - Shannon Chakraborty
The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi - Shannon Chakraborty
The Girl Who Drank the Moon - Kelly Barnhill
Vicious - V.E. Schwab
Yellowface - R.F. Kuang
Nettle and Bone - T. Kingfisher
Queen of the Sea - Dylan Meconis
The Witch’s Boy - Kelly Barnhill
Half a Soul - Olivia Atwater
A Most Agreeable Murder - Julia Seales
Ten Thousand Stitches - Olivia Atwater
The Ogress and the Orphans - Kelly Barnhill
Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries - Heather Fawcett
The Last Mapmaker - Christina Soontornvat
The Chalice of the Gods - Rick Riordan
A Wish in the Dark - Christina Soontornvat
Prayer in the Night - Tish Harrison Warren
While there were quite a few competitors for this illustrious spot (a year of not-good sequels to some of my favorite new YA series!), my greatest disappointment of the year is none other than The Fourth Wing. Womp womp. I swear I’m not hating just to hate. Generally, I like a fun romantasy (hi Sarah J Maas), and I want to enjoy the same books that other people do. I said all I wanted to say on Goodreads, but I’ll add that I did go sell that book; which says a lot, as I am a hoarder of sorts. Congratulations to Rebecca Yarros for joining my one-star book club, which is incredibly exclusive.
Onto my big favs! I read a lot of wonderful kid-lit this year, which made this a hard choice. In the end, I’ll have to hand my best children’s vote to The Girl Who Drank the Moon, which is a stand-alone fairytale about a town of sorrow, a forest-dwelling found family, and a girl (the one who drinks the moon). Kelly Barnhill was a standout discovery in the middle grade genre this year, as was Christina Soontornvat. Queen of the Sea was also a fantastic graphic novel in the middle-grade genre
For the older crowd, my favorite read goes to Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries, which was an absolutely delightful fantasy read that follows a faerie academic, her fellow professor, and their research on the fair folk of a small nordic island (Iceland. It’s basically Iceland). The sequel comes out this January and I’m very excited. Half a Soul was a close runner up (such cozy regency fantasy!) and Prayer in the Night was another adult favorite, though that one is theology. Between (an indie-published cozy fantasy) was a standout as well, though she is THICC so be prepared.
(I should note that I’m aware this is not a particularly well written blog, but it’s December! Mentally I am sitting on the couch with a mug of hot cocoa at all times, so you cannot expect perfection. My cat is literally beside me right now, demanding pets, and you expect proper sentence structure? I am typing with one hand! Just because I read and write a lot doesn’t actually mean I know grammar!)
ANYWAYS- friend me on Goodreads! I promise to only be a little bit unhinged. Happy end of year reading and I hope your new year is filled with good books, good food, and good people!