2023 R&R Part 2: Recommendations
What I read and loved in 2023
Here are all the books I read in 2023 and heartily recommend!
Best Poetry - Brian Bilson’s You Took The Last Bus Home made me laugh out loud. If you grew up with Shel Silverstein’s Where The Sidewalk Ends like I did, this is the poetry your tired-from-adulting heart has been craving.
Best Niche Audience - A collection of Rennaisance Faire, Paranormal Cozy Mysteries was the most specific series I enjoyed binging. It is always a treat to have a series that feels like it was written for you, by your people. An impressively entertaining series from a solid group of cozy authors.
Best Fae Series - Modern Fae and Tales of The Fae by E. Menozzi are an example of how I get so many books read in a year. I BINGE. If an author I enjoy has a series, guess what? I WILL read them all. (BONUS! I met Ms. Menozzi on the Writing Excuses Cruise and she is *lovely.* So I also got to put some of my bookish budget toward my fellow writers.) These books are Romance and Fantasy, which I think is a wonderful combination if you are trying to escape from real life. Another bonus is how smart her characters are and how well-written the socio-political world is. Plus, Menozzi always sticks the landing. I need a GREAT ending if I’m going to enjoy a book. This series delivers.
Best “Bookshop” Book - I read two books this year where “bookshop” was in the title and central to the story. I enjoyed both of them, but How To Find Love In A Bookshop by Veronica Henry was the more enjoyable of the two. Henry’s book is a masterclass in the M.I.C.E. quotient theory of writing (though she probably doesn’t know it) and I will definitely be reading more of her work. I found The Last Bookshop in London depressing, but if you love historical, give that one a try. I found it a slog in the middle with a good ending, much like the actual history of WWII.
Best Audiobooks - Katherine Addison is blessed with the very best narrator for her The Cemeteries of Amalo series. My husband and I listened to Liam Gerrard read us The Witness for the Dead and The Grief of Stones on road trips this year and loved them both. I don’t know if I would enjoy these books as much in written form. In audio, I can let the foreign names, titles, and places wash over me and it doesn’t matter if I can’t keep them all straight; I trust the author and narrator to bring me back around. In text, books like this sometimes frustrate me. YMMV.
Best Book I Nearly Stopped Reading At The 1/3 Mark - Bonnie Garmus’ Lessons in Chemistry is honestly all that. I fell in love with the characters, I laughed and I cried, but I almost stopped before it got good. What the main character has to go through in the first third of the book nearly broke me. I did not want to hear anymore. I think only the fact that it was on audiobook and I could speed it up made it possible for me to get through the varieties of abuse the main character endures which set up the book. While the middle and the end were absolutely worth it, and some would say the horrible bits are what made the ending as cathartic and enjoyable as it was, I’m glad I don’t read very many “literary” books in a year. They have a consistently negative impact on my well-being while I’m reading them.
Best New (to me) Author - TJ Klune is writing fantastical books set in a world that looks a lot like ours but with extra-extra whimsy. Klune’s whimsy isn’t always light. These two novels explored topics like paranormal orphans and ferrymen who have to take care of newly dead ghosts (all of whom have issues). The subjects are dark, but the outcomes are light, and I highly recommend The House in the Cerulean Sea and Under The Whispering Door to anyone in search of grounded, sometimes hard-to-love, queer male characters, who evolve into happier humans with a lot of help.
Favorite Historical Novel - My favorite period book this year was The Benevolent Society of Ill-Mannered Ladies. The book is a collection of three stories which makes it an easy read with THREE excellent endings! The alt-history Regency world Alison Goodman has created is one where the “helpless” society girls take their money and do good things with it. I loved it despite the gritty and unseemly side of the Regency era the book exposes.
Favorite Novel - My very favorite fiction book this year was The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches. Recommended by my longtime pen pal, she was right when she said she thought I would love this book. Without giving too much away, this book has a lovable witchy heroine, an enjoyable mystery, and a believable B Plot romance to boot. All the characters are trying to Do The Right Thing, and sometimes it is just enjoyable to watch characters get in their own way without a true “bad guy.”
Best Series I Forgot I’d Read: I had to go back and read the synopsis for the Clandestine Magic trilogy because I finished it so early in the year. Goodreads describes it as “set in a warped 21st century that will appeal to fans of gaslamp fantasy.” After being reminded, I remembered how much I enjoyed the novelty of this world. The books had unique magic, great characters, and a ton of suspense.
Best Thing I published: I wouldn’t be doing my job as an author if I didn’t remind my readers that Douglas Adams’ London came out this year and it is AWESOME. If you want trivia about Adams or you’re planning a trip to London anytime in the future, please grab a copy or give one as a gift.
Next up, the books that disappointed me in 2023 and why!
Huge congrats on your book coming out! Must read! Must travel! Glad to find you on Substack! And I love these lists. Anything here that's an audiobook will go on my to-read list!
Hey! I love, love, love this part. Thanks for the subtle 😘 shout out. I want to discuss Under The Whispering Door with you. It's not my favorite book, but there was a lot to like.