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year in books 2023
happy very belated new year! i'm a little miffed at myself that i only remember dreamwidth exists when it's time for me to post my year end reading survey, or to make useless sad posts. perhaps that's something i'll work on in 2024. for now, i'm gonna talk about books! i try not to ramble as much as i usually do, but that's always difficult for me, haha. i read a lot, and i try to give multiple answers for each prompt, because i want to talk about a variety of books. also, i started writing this post on 31st december, and i was all over the place with it, so it probably reads very disjointedly. there will be typos.
here's my huge spreadsheet with all my 2023 reads. i love doing this, because i get to generate little charts for my stats. i love stats and i love charts lol. also, here's goodreads' year in review thing. (though because goodreads' stats aren't quite accurate with mine, especially with page number, i've incorporated most of the info from there into questions below.)
Number Of Books You Read: 450. i'll talk about this later, but i do need to start reading less. this doesn't feel like an accomplishment. it feels like i read so i don't have to think, and. it's getting out of hand, haha!
Number of Pages Read: 137,068 pages.
Average Book Length: 304.6 pages
Your Average Book Rating: 3.45
Number of Re-Reads: 16.
Genre You Read The Most From: as always, contemporary romance, with 114 books.
Best in Books
1. Best Book You Read In 2023?
my answers this year make me really happy and also somewhat surprised. these are books that i read pretty early in the year; one in january, one in february. and they've remained with me all through the year, and nothing had managed to dethrone them. i do kinda wanna reread them both to see which i love more, because i genuinely can't chose right now. i just love them so much in different ways. first is a taste of gold and iron. m/m fantasy bodyguard romance with a deep emphasis on loyalty. i want to scream about this. it's soooo much of what i want out of fiction. tropey and delicious in the best ways. i love these characters SO MUCH, evemer in particular. i'll never read a bodyguard trope as perfect as this. second is truth and measure. f/f contemporary boss/employee romance. this author wrote my favourite book of 2022, so i was expecting to like this, but since it's boss/employee (a trope i don't always love) and involves pregnancy (which i often get really uncomfortable reading) i wasn't sure i'd love it. but oh my GOD, this relationship. honestly i think it's harder for me to get feral about characters in contemporary settings as opposed to ones in sff settings, so the fact that i loved this so much is a little surprising to me? but it was perfect. i can pinpoint the exact moment i knew this was going to be a 5 star. (which makes me think i miiiiight like it a little more than ATOGAI, since for that one i was waffling between 4.5 and 5 even after i finished.) this is the first book in a duet, and i also gave the second book, above all things, a perfect 5 star. vivian and jules are my dream women. something that also makes me happy is the fact that both rowland and sinclair are/were pretty prolific fic authors. (the truth and measure duet is in fact DWP fic with the serial numbers filed off lol.) the fanfic bitches just have the right formula.
2. Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t?
last year i mentioned being excited to try out the first bright thing because it seemed so completely up my alley. i ended up sampling it and abandoning it, alas. i didn't even read enough that i would consider it an official DNF. the writing style just did not appeal to me. as for books i actually finished, darknesses had such a great premise, being a queer retelling (sorta) of dracula, and the first half absolutely sucked me in and really lived up to the promise of the blurb and the first chapters. but the plot became a bit incoherent, it took some paths i don't love, and incorporated some tropes i, alas, kinda hate. i'll also mention the honeymoon mix-up. i'd read and really enjoyed two novellas by this author before, and so i expected to really love her first full length book, an f/f fake engaged romance. but it sadly ended up being chockfull of my biggest nit-picks, and i ended up more annoyed by it than anything.
3. Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read?
i don't know that i wold classify this as good or bad, but as good as dead really surprised me, with the direction it decided to go. because of the genre of the book (mystery) and the target demographic (YA), my mind was directed in a waaaaay different direction. i ended up not loving the book as much as the first, but the more i sit with it, the more i like the twist. for surprising in a good way, we do what we do in the dark comes to mind. i had been anticipating it for a while (f/f lit fic about a student in love with a professor) but because of the relatively low average rating, i had tempered my expectations. but the book ended up being SO poignant and lovely, a masterclass in character writing and prose, and is one of my faves of the year. for surprising in a bad way, i'll say rand. i had also been looking forward to picking this up (f/f fantasy following an archaeologist) and it has pretty great reviews from a lot of my goodreads acquaintances, and so many 5 star reviews in general. i found it to be so badly written, and SO boring. and i felt similarly about aurora's angel, though thankfully it was at least better written. this is a fantasy romance that's almost universally beloved in f/f circles, and even though i didn't have huge expectations, and it wasn't terrible or anything, i was surprised that THIS was what the girlies had been gagging over.
4. Book You “Pushed” The Most People To Read (And They Did)?
unfortunately, i can't think of a single book that fits this! as much as i read, i don't actually talk about books with that friends that often, and i don't think i've recommended any recently. i know some of my GR friends take my recs based on reviews, if not direct recommendation, and if we're considering that, then i'll say just for show, which i know at least one person picked up after my review. f/f fake dating romance that made me unexpectedly really emotional.
5. Best series you started in 2023? Best Sequel of 2023? Best Series Ender of 2023?
best starter: pirates of aletheria. f/f high fantasy pirate romance that had the perfect amount of slow burn, action, and adventure. i wanted more of the found family, but the romance made up for my nit-picks tenfold. when the pivotal moment for this couple came, it made me gasp. this was a book that definitely lived up to the hype, and i can't wait to see where it goes. best sequel: the man who died twice. the fist book in this mystery series was quite good, but this second book improved upon everything, while still delivering the charm and whimsy and humour of the characters. the mystery elements were tighter and better plotted, and there was an element that made me put down my phone and sob into my hands. best ender: iris kelly doesn't date. i've liked all of the f/f romances in the bright falls rom com series, but this last one was my aaaaaabsolute favourite. like, bitches were BLUSHING. (i'm bitches.) it was a perfect swoony romance with fake dating and a shakespearean subplot. and like. can stevie FIGHT?? iris is so dreamy.
6. Favourite new author you discovered in 2023?
tal bauer. he writes m/m romance in a lot of different subgenres, and each of them have been sooo good. i'm so glad he has an extensive backlist; i'm going to be diving into it very soon! i was pretty apprehensive about whisper, the first book i read from him. i mean, a white western author writing about muslim characters? haha, i think my trepidation was warranted. but it ended up being soooo good (grain of salt; i'm not muslim) and so well-researched. i've had my little issues with some of his writing, but he's yet to get lower than a 3.5/4 from me. i also have to mention c.l. polk. i read the f/f novella they released this year, even though i knew the end loved it, and ended up reading their entire queer fantasy series, which was also amazing. their prose is so wonderful; it feels like a treat to get to read it. lianyu tan, while i only read a couple books from her, definitely left an impression, especially with the wicked and the willing. i've tried several dark romances, but hers have been the only ones i've really liked.
7. Best book from a genre you don’t typically read/was out of your comfort zone?
i've broadened my reading a lot in the past few years, so there isn't a lot that i would consider 'out of my comfort zone'. but i don't really read a lot of historical fiction, non fiction, or classics and thus i have three answers. roots is a book i still can't really bring myself to talk about, or really express the ways i loved it; it was SUCH a moving family saga. (i also want to fight 90% of its critics. like my dude, that's not the POINT of the book!!!) the ethnic cleansing of palestine is my favourite non fiction of the year. so moving, so comprehensive, so informative. a very tough read, but a necessary one. three men in a boat is a classic that reminded me that people have always been funny. it was so good. not all of the humour held up, but a surprising amount of it really did, and i was delighted. (i read this in preparation for reading to say nothing of the dog, which i sadly didn't like as much.)
8. Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year? Constance
i don't read a tonne of books that answer to this description, but i do have a couple answers. constance is a scifi thriller about clones that's pretty action packed. from the moment she wakes up, constance is pretty much perpetually in peril, and she has to keep moving, and it made for a pretty exciting read. s.a. cosby also writes a good action thriller, and blacktop wasteland was a good example of that. it's a heist book, with a tortured hero coming back to crime for one last job, and it put me in the mind of watching a fast and furious movie. the last word was a thriller with a great hook (a woman writes a one star review of a book, and the author gets... a little upset about it) and it all takes place in one night, and SO much happened. i didn't love it, but i liked it more than the first book i read from the author.
9. Book You Read In 2023 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year?
an island princess starts a scandal. this is one of those books that i rated 4.5 stars, rounded down to 4, but i keep thinking about it. i loved soooooo much about this historical f/f romance, and the rating only came down because of some nit-picks i had with the ending. so i really wanna reread it soon, to see if i change my mind. the dawnhounds was a pretty fascinating and weird queer fantasy, but it lost me in a couple places. the sequel is supposed to come out this year, so i'm hoping to reread this book (and hopefully like it more) before continuing the series. and of course, i reread the locked tomb every year.
10. Favourite cover of a book you read in 2023?
i always really love answering this, because i get to go through all my covers and remember the great ones. there are two stand outs to me: anyone but you and outdrawn
i'm not gonna lie, the first one is purely because of the model; that woman is so fucking hot i want to die. and having a kinda butch model on an f/f romance makes me heart sing. the romance itself was okay; a bit annoying. the second one is because the art is SO gorgeous, and i don't often get to see two black women on a romance book cover! i know lots of people have beef with illustrated covers, but idk man, i like them! and the book was really cute. here are some runners up: the fiancée farce; this poison heart; big swiss; romancing the gorgon; meeting millie; stars in your eyes; darknesses, women in gray, ander and santi were here.
11. Most memorable character of 2023?
i feel like this year there were a bunch of characters who i didn't necessarily like, but who left a big impression on me nonetheless. first, june from yellowface. this bitch is unhinged and i don't respect her, but my god. kuang knew what she was doing with that character. the titular big swiss wasn't a particularly likeable woman, but she was so fascinating, and it's very easy to see how greta becomes so wholly obsessed with her. also ash from bloom. /laughs nervously. kunta kinte from roots is in my heart forever.
12. Most beautifully written book read in 2023?
so many great candidates for this! i have to mention one of my favourite anthologies of the year, address book: hope lives here by neil bartlett. lots of explorations of queer desire and pain, the intimate lives of gay men, in present day and historical, and the author uses such gorgeous prose i was bowled over. it did the pretentious litfic gimmick of not using quotation marks for prose, which i hate so much, but luckily i also listened to the audiobook. yerba buena by nina la cour also comes to mind when i think of beautiful writing. there's perhaps nothing flowery or exactly pretty about the writing, but it's so exact, so incisive, does such a great job of peeling these characters apart. i loved it dearly. in the fae queen's captive, sierra simone uses the most lush and decadent language to describe this fucked up hungry sapphic romance, and i adored it. it's a writing style that won't work all the time, but she makes it work for her. and i can't talk about unhinged sapphics without mentioning sunburn, a queer coming of age set in ireland. the language here straddles a line between beautiful and weird, and so perfectly communicates the intensity of the relationship between the girls. like, yes, this IS how an angsty baby dyke teen would write love letters.
13. Most Thought-Provoking/ Life-Changing Book of 2023?
before october, i didn't really know much more than the surface level things about palestine. with everything that's happening, i've been trying to educate myself, learn from palestinians and anti-zionist jews, and i've read some really excellent and thought-provoking books. the ethnic cleansing of palestine, ten myths about israel, the hundred years' war on palestine, minor detail.
14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2023 to finally read?
the diary of a young girl. i think for a while i THOUGHT that i'd read it, or maybe an abridged version, but nope. it's terrible that it took me 34 years to read anne frank's diary, but it was excellent and heart rending and very much worth the wait. another classic you would have thought i'd gotten around to before is my man jeeves. it was delightful; i would have probably found it funnier at a younger age. but i've of course read and seen so many references to jeeves; i actually read an m/m romance last year that as pretty much wooster/jeeves fanfic. so it was nice to actually read the source.
15. Favourite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2023?
from a taste of gold and iron. there are two wolves inside me, and they both have a loyalty kink a mile high, and this book fed me so DAMN WELL. there were so many passages to chose from, but this stuck out.
god!!!! that moment of realisation for evemer... i wanna roll around in it. and i really want to shout out sunburn again. i LOVED this:
16. Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2023?
shortest: mother's group, at 13 pages. just a short story with thriller-esque elements. longest: roots, at 912 pages. it did start to drag, around the chicken george years, buy mostly, the book merited every one of those pages.
17. Book That Shocked You The Most
the sapphire altar. i'm really impressed by this series, really into the lore and worldbuilding and the gods and everything that this cast of characters is going through. this book shocked me in a not so good way, because certain characters reacted to a certain event in a way i absolutely could not understand, not if my reading of those characters was right. (and i do think it was!) but i still think of this series fondly, and i still think it's impressive, because the author got me so invested in these characters that i was legit SHOCKED at what they chose to do at that juncture. sister, maiden, monster was shocking in a gross, outlandish way. and i definitely don't hold the same amount of affection for it. it was just kind of upsetting, and by the end, unappealing. this is kind of an exaggeration, but deadly kiss shocked me with how much i really really liked it?? lol. i'm honestly kind of embarrassed. the book is NOT well written!! it's indie published but that doesn't excuse the amount of typos and mistakes and tense shifts that made it into the final draft. it included sooo many of my writing pet peeves. buuuuuut something about this lesbian vampire romance with an overprotective vampire who will kill for her woman and eats kitty like she's paying reparations just had me by the THROAT okay. i was kicking my lil feet. i'm sorry to every hetero vampire romance girlie i ever made fun of. i get it now.
18. OTP OF THE YEAR (you will go down with this ship!)
obviously i have to say evemer/kadou from a taste of gold and iron and vivian/jules from truth and measure. both absolute fictional catnip to me, in different ways. honourable mentions: gideon/harrow from the locked tomb (i actually didn't reread the fist two books this year, but listen, they're always on my mind, and i did reread nona), iris/stevie from iris kelley doesn't date, charlotte/millie from meeting millie, david/kris from whisper.
19. Favourite Non-Romantic Relationship Of The Year
this was a reread, but it hit me SO hard this time around. palamedes and camilla from nona the ninth. if i think about them too long i'll go insane. yes, forever, yes. life is too short and love is too long. SHUT THE FUCK UP. i need to go lie down. T__T
20. Favourite Book You Read in 2023 From An Author You’ve Read Previously iris parker
i mean, alexandra rowland and roslyn sinclair technically qualify for this, but since i want to mention some other books, and not just my two top favourites... something spectacular by alexis hall. i can always count on him for a good historical romance, and god this was sooooo romantic. peggy the swooniest motherfucker on the planet, even when she's not trying. also, i've really liked everything i've read from adriana herrera, but an island princess starts a scandal quickly rocketed to the top of the list, right next to her other sapphic romance. i've enjoyed joanna's chambers historical romance series in the past, and i REALLY enjoyed her m/m historical werewolf romance series. gentleman wolf, the first book, left me kind of gutted.
21. Best Book You Read In 2023 That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else/Peer Pressure:
the decagon house murders. i'm fairly certain i'd never even heard of this book before. i saw it recommended on a booktube video about classic japanese mysteries, got intrigued, and now it's one of my favourite classic mysteries ever? like, it's up there with the best of christie for me, because it manages to deliver what i like to consider the perfect mystery experience. it's a mystery that i CAN figure out, and the book provides with the clues so i DO figure it out, but the book also cleverly misdirects me and puts in enough red herrings that i doubt myself, and convince myself that my original theory is wrong! i adore when that happens, and i'm so glad that i read this. definitely gonna read more from ayatsuji.
22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2023?
i can never narrow this down to one! firstly gemma from the fiancée farce. this woman did things to me. she manages to be one of the few rich people that i actually like (because she's not obnoxious about it, and gives away money all the time) and she's dominant in the perfect way. speaking of dominant in the perfect way, georgiana from mortal follies. taking all the archetypes of a stereotypical tortured duke and giving them to a sexy futch? yes, god, thanks. i was also crushing hard on ari from for her consideration. the way she would say nina's name... woof. and i can't not mention iris from iris kelley doesn't date. iris... just one chance... please...
23. Best 2023 debut you read?
forget me not technically isn't alyson derrick's debut, but it's her solo debut, as opposed to co-writing, so i'll count it. it's one of the few YA books i read this year, and it ended up in my faves. a heart wrenching f/f amnesia romance that broke my heart and put it back together. small joys by elvin mensah james was a debut that really lived up it its name; a quiet, soft, hurting but ultimately lovely story of black queerness and masculinity and depression and an absolutely wonderful friendship. i loved muddy soooooo much, i want him to be my best friend. chlorine by jade song perfectly delivered on all my queer weird girl needs, and straddles a lines between fantasy and horror and lit fic. really enjoyed this one.
24. Best Worldbuilding/Most Vivid Setting You Read This Year?
this was a reread, and i definitely didn't love the series as much as i did the first time, and i noticed a lot more things worthy of critique, but the world in his dark materials remains one of my favourite things ever. there's a reason there are so many daemon au fics; the lore and worldbuilding behind them is so fascinating, and it's such a lovely and unique way to do character building. that part of the series definitely held up, in every aspect. the setting in he who drowned the world was really vivid; i felt even more connected to the world, and i felt so much sorrow for the people affectrf by the machinations of the main characters. the world of siren queen was so so rich and the worldbuilding was so so intricate. this is another book that i definitely have to reread to appreciate even more, and i hope to do so soon.
25. Book That Put A Smile On Your Face/Was The Most FUN To Read?
everyone in my family has killed someone. this the the kind of mystery that i love!!! it's self referential and tongue in cheek and points out conventions and tropes about the mystery genre while still maintaining a pretty good mystery in and of itself. we literally know when every murder takes place; the main character spoils it in the beginning. and when the mc stops in the middle of the book to be like, 'okay, let's recap what we know about the mystery!' i knew i was in love. and again, it was FUNNY. also i continued to really love spy family. i'm so sad that i've finally caught up on all the volumes that my library has! it's such a sweet, big-hearted manga, and i cannot stress how much anya is my DAUGHTER. make you mine this christmas was a nice little surprise; i suspected i'd like it, but i didn't expect for it to literally make me laugh out loud. it's an f/f christmas romcom about a girl who fake dates a guy for christmas, and ends up falling for his sister. (i've actually read a lot of books with this exact premise lol)
26. Book That Made You Cry Or Nearly Cry in 2023?
OH MY GOD SO MANY. i mean, comparatively. i feel like so many books left me a weeping mess in 2023. roots had me blubbering by the end. the man who died twice was soooo good. really didn't expect that minor character to make me cry that much, but god. and i know that everyone says that fourth book makes them SOB so i'm nervous now oof. less was a poignant, really charming litfic about an older gay man taking a round-the-world trip after he gets the news that his younger ex is getting married. i loved so so much about this, and in particular there's a conversation less has with his older ex that touches on mortality and grief in a way that made me weep. wrong place, wrong time is a mystery/thriller about a woman stuck in a time loop, trying to figure out why her son committed a murder. i ultimately thought the book was pretty good, but not as great as advertised. HOWEVER there is a certain parent and child interaction in here that had me crying hysterically, and i lay on the couch for like 30 mins after just thinking about my father.
27. Hidden Gem Of The Year?
assuming 'hidden gem' means 'i think more people should read this because it's excellent' i have a few. the companion is a gorgeous t4t4t poly historical romance that had me legit swooning. it's very uncomplicated while still having conflict, and the way the heroine gets swept up in the fullness of love and desire and community made me so happy. to the warn horizon was a really good korean science fiction/dystopia. very sad, very depressing, but the writing hit a nerve. karin mallmaker is pretty well know in the f/f romance community, but cowboys and kisses is one of her newer and less popular romances, and it's actually my favourite thing i've read from her so far. historical lesbian romance on the frontier, wonderful explorations of sapphic awakenings and desire and friendship.
28. Book That Crushed Your Soul?
i can't not mention whisper again. the angst was so real and so visceral, and even though i KNEW i was reading a romance and i KNEW i was guaranteed an HEA, bits of this had me in despair. babel shocked me in terms of the direction it went in the end, and also just made me really really really sad. like, i enjoyed soooo much about the book and the themes, but it brought me so low i felt physically ill, and i had to lower my rating a bit, because i always rate with my heart. this might be the first time that 'crushed my soul' actually applies. young mungo devastated me. a super well written but deeply upsetting gay coming of age set in scotland. i want to strangle mungo's mother for everything that she allowed, everything that happened because of her choices. it made me so sad.
29. Most Unique Book You Read In 2023?
what my bones know was unique because of the fact that it was the first time i'd every heard of complex PTSD. it was a really edifying read, and also just really well told as an autobiography. also the saint of bright doors has a very unique premise, with a city full of mysterious doors. the role that gods their their prophets play was so interesting. the book ultimately wasn't fully my thing, but i still liked the concept very much. there's also an elderly lady is up to no good. a murderous octogenarian is pretty unique, right? haha, this was so fun.
30. Book That Made You The Most Mad (doesn’t necessarily mean you didn’t like it)?
oh, there are actually several that kinda pissed me off lol. one is my worst book of the year and the others were... fine. okay, but they on thin ice. first, the worst: querelle of roberval. a retelling of querelle of brest that shoulda stayed in the drafts. the kind of book that i would have abandoned if it had shown me its true colours earlier. i liked it fine when it was about querelle trying to fuck every twink who breathed on him, but it soon devolved in a bunch of intentionally upsetting ways. perhaps i'm a plebe and i just don't see the author's vision!! but i don't want to. enthralled in her design is an f/f bdsm romance with such a shitty, piss-poor domme, i was honestly convinced for a while that the author secretly hated bdsm romances, and only wrote this book out of spite?? after finishing the book, i don't think that's the case, but god. @ beatriz DUMP HER ASS!!!! FINISH HER!!!!! YOU CAN FIND A BETTER DOMME THIS BITCH AIN'T SHIT!!!!!! i might have liked it more if the grovelling had been good, but it was mediocre. don't stop me was soooo frustrating. it's an f/f dark romance, and i expected that our heroines would be badass and competent but nope. apparently dark just means that a whole bunch of awful stuff happens TO them, and then they react to it, and then more awful stuff happens to them, and they react to it, with a side of bad decisions. in between they have lots of sex. it frustrated me so much, because they were the main characters, and it felt like some of the male side characters had more agency than them.
Looking Ahead
1. One Book You Didn’t Get To In 2023 But Will Be Your Number 1 Priority in 2024?
my answer for this was gonna be mammoths at the gate, but i took so long to finish writing this post that i've already read that lol. another one that i'm for sure gonna read in january is cobalt red, which i can then hopefully recommend and get more people to read.
2. Book You Are Most Anticipating For 2024 (non-debut)?
look i've tried to read from gianna darling before and swiftly gave up (writing style and plot weren't for me), but you can bet your ass i'll be showing UP for serpentine valentine. listen i love when popular m/f authors branch out into f/f. yes... yes...!! write those dykes and bring your readership with you... YES!!!!!! i don't read a lot of YA, but i'm really anticipating escaping mr. rochester, a sapphic jane eyre retelling. other than that, i'm pretty sure alexis hall and k.j. charles have releases this year, and i'll definitely be reading them.
3. 2024 Debut You Are Most Anticipating?
i mentioned this last year, but someone you can build a nest in finally comes out this year and i'm so excited about it!! i'm also currently reading don't want you like a best friend, which is a debut that came out a few days ago. super cute so far. the early reviews for we ate the dark aren't the best but i'm still excited for it!
4. Series Ending/A Sequel You Are Most Anticipating in 2024?
alecto the ninth. i mean, it's unclear whether it's actually coming out this year, but hope springs eternal! the slain divine also came out a day or so ago, and i'm hoping to read it in the coming weeks. it'll be the end of the vagrant gods fantasy series, and my fingers are crossed it'll be good.
5. One Thing You Hope To Accomplish Or Do In Your Reading/Blogging Life In 2024?
read less. on god, i need to read less, and i'm so serious. 450 books??? it's become really really obvious to me that i've started using reading as a was to escape from things i don't want to deal with in real life, and i mean that's normal and fine and good... up to a point. but i'm at a stage where if i even THINK about a problem in my life that i need to fix, or something that i need to do, i start scrambling to shut my brain up. and the easiest and best way for me to do that is to read, preferably with an audiobook. and obviously i should um, stop that? as of writing this part of the survey, it's the 12th of january, and i've finished 15 books already. and i don't feel good about it haha!!!! i have some time off in january, and i'm really going to try working on this from february. i'm thinking i'll set myself a limit (cut myself off at 350 books? 100,000k words?) and see if that works.
also, my reading was sooooo white last year. i'm not gonna set any strict goals, but i'm gonna keep it in mind that i got to get to more books by authors of colour, because there are so many good ones on my list.
and now... CHARTS!!!
oh jeez. to explain: i was on vacation for the entirety of january and the first week of february, so that's that. and in august/september, i spent most of my time playing baldur's gate 3, and that slowly petered out. i'm gonna start back playing soon though! READ LESS 2024!!!!!
one day... one day i'll read less contemporary romance. or maybe not, who knows!! it's what i love.
pretty good year, ratings-wise. 4 of those 5 stars were rereads, but most of the 4.5s were brand new, and there were a lot of them. i feel pretty good about that.
really the only reason i read so much is because i listen to a lot of audiobooks haha. :'D
usually when amazon sends me an email like 'hey do you want KU for a discounted price :D???' i usually snap it up, but that stops this year; it's gonna stay cancelled. hopefully kobo unlimited will become available outside of north america and the uk this year, and i can start using that. i still have a huge audible backlist that i've accumulated over the years, and anyplay remains my no. 1.
here's my huge spreadsheet with all my 2023 reads. i love doing this, because i get to generate little charts for my stats. i love stats and i love charts lol. also, here's goodreads' year in review thing. (though because goodreads' stats aren't quite accurate with mine, especially with page number, i've incorporated most of the info from there into questions below.)
Number Of Books You Read: 450. i'll talk about this later, but i do need to start reading less. this doesn't feel like an accomplishment. it feels like i read so i don't have to think, and. it's getting out of hand, haha!
Number of Pages Read: 137,068 pages.
Average Book Length: 304.6 pages
Your Average Book Rating: 3.45
Number of Re-Reads: 16.
Genre You Read The Most From: as always, contemporary romance, with 114 books.
Best in Books
1. Best Book You Read In 2023?
my answers this year make me really happy and also somewhat surprised. these are books that i read pretty early in the year; one in january, one in february. and they've remained with me all through the year, and nothing had managed to dethrone them. i do kinda wanna reread them both to see which i love more, because i genuinely can't chose right now. i just love them so much in different ways. first is a taste of gold and iron. m/m fantasy bodyguard romance with a deep emphasis on loyalty. i want to scream about this. it's soooo much of what i want out of fiction. tropey and delicious in the best ways. i love these characters SO MUCH, evemer in particular. i'll never read a bodyguard trope as perfect as this. second is truth and measure. f/f contemporary boss/employee romance. this author wrote my favourite book of 2022, so i was expecting to like this, but since it's boss/employee (a trope i don't always love) and involves pregnancy (which i often get really uncomfortable reading) i wasn't sure i'd love it. but oh my GOD, this relationship. honestly i think it's harder for me to get feral about characters in contemporary settings as opposed to ones in sff settings, so the fact that i loved this so much is a little surprising to me? but it was perfect. i can pinpoint the exact moment i knew this was going to be a 5 star. (which makes me think i miiiiight like it a little more than ATOGAI, since for that one i was waffling between 4.5 and 5 even after i finished.) this is the first book in a duet, and i also gave the second book, above all things, a perfect 5 star. vivian and jules are my dream women. something that also makes me happy is the fact that both rowland and sinclair are/were pretty prolific fic authors. (the truth and measure duet is in fact DWP fic with the serial numbers filed off lol.) the fanfic bitches just have the right formula.
2. Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t?
last year i mentioned being excited to try out the first bright thing because it seemed so completely up my alley. i ended up sampling it and abandoning it, alas. i didn't even read enough that i would consider it an official DNF. the writing style just did not appeal to me. as for books i actually finished, darknesses had such a great premise, being a queer retelling (sorta) of dracula, and the first half absolutely sucked me in and really lived up to the promise of the blurb and the first chapters. but the plot became a bit incoherent, it took some paths i don't love, and incorporated some tropes i, alas, kinda hate. i'll also mention the honeymoon mix-up. i'd read and really enjoyed two novellas by this author before, and so i expected to really love her first full length book, an f/f fake engaged romance. but it sadly ended up being chockfull of my biggest nit-picks, and i ended up more annoyed by it than anything.
3. Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read?
i don't know that i wold classify this as good or bad, but as good as dead really surprised me, with the direction it decided to go. because of the genre of the book (mystery) and the target demographic (YA), my mind was directed in a waaaaay different direction. i ended up not loving the book as much as the first, but the more i sit with it, the more i like the twist. for surprising in a good way, we do what we do in the dark comes to mind. i had been anticipating it for a while (f/f lit fic about a student in love with a professor) but because of the relatively low average rating, i had tempered my expectations. but the book ended up being SO poignant and lovely, a masterclass in character writing and prose, and is one of my faves of the year. for surprising in a bad way, i'll say rand. i had also been looking forward to picking this up (f/f fantasy following an archaeologist) and it has pretty great reviews from a lot of my goodreads acquaintances, and so many 5 star reviews in general. i found it to be so badly written, and SO boring. and i felt similarly about aurora's angel, though thankfully it was at least better written. this is a fantasy romance that's almost universally beloved in f/f circles, and even though i didn't have huge expectations, and it wasn't terrible or anything, i was surprised that THIS was what the girlies had been gagging over.
4. Book You “Pushed” The Most People To Read (And They Did)?
unfortunately, i can't think of a single book that fits this! as much as i read, i don't actually talk about books with that friends that often, and i don't think i've recommended any recently. i know some of my GR friends take my recs based on reviews, if not direct recommendation, and if we're considering that, then i'll say just for show, which i know at least one person picked up after my review. f/f fake dating romance that made me unexpectedly really emotional.
5. Best series you started in 2023? Best Sequel of 2023? Best Series Ender of 2023?
best starter: pirates of aletheria. f/f high fantasy pirate romance that had the perfect amount of slow burn, action, and adventure. i wanted more of the found family, but the romance made up for my nit-picks tenfold. when the pivotal moment for this couple came, it made me gasp. this was a book that definitely lived up to the hype, and i can't wait to see where it goes. best sequel: the man who died twice. the fist book in this mystery series was quite good, but this second book improved upon everything, while still delivering the charm and whimsy and humour of the characters. the mystery elements were tighter and better plotted, and there was an element that made me put down my phone and sob into my hands. best ender: iris kelly doesn't date. i've liked all of the f/f romances in the bright falls rom com series, but this last one was my aaaaaabsolute favourite. like, bitches were BLUSHING. (i'm bitches.) it was a perfect swoony romance with fake dating and a shakespearean subplot. and like. can stevie FIGHT?? iris is so dreamy.
6. Favourite new author you discovered in 2023?
tal bauer. he writes m/m romance in a lot of different subgenres, and each of them have been sooo good. i'm so glad he has an extensive backlist; i'm going to be diving into it very soon! i was pretty apprehensive about whisper, the first book i read from him. i mean, a white western author writing about muslim characters? haha, i think my trepidation was warranted. but it ended up being soooo good (grain of salt; i'm not muslim) and so well-researched. i've had my little issues with some of his writing, but he's yet to get lower than a 3.5/4 from me. i also have to mention c.l. polk. i read the f/f novella they released this year, even though i knew the end loved it, and ended up reading their entire queer fantasy series, which was also amazing. their prose is so wonderful; it feels like a treat to get to read it. lianyu tan, while i only read a couple books from her, definitely left an impression, especially with the wicked and the willing. i've tried several dark romances, but hers have been the only ones i've really liked.
7. Best book from a genre you don’t typically read/was out of your comfort zone?
i've broadened my reading a lot in the past few years, so there isn't a lot that i would consider 'out of my comfort zone'. but i don't really read a lot of historical fiction, non fiction, or classics and thus i have three answers. roots is a book i still can't really bring myself to talk about, or really express the ways i loved it; it was SUCH a moving family saga. (i also want to fight 90% of its critics. like my dude, that's not the POINT of the book!!!) the ethnic cleansing of palestine is my favourite non fiction of the year. so moving, so comprehensive, so informative. a very tough read, but a necessary one. three men in a boat is a classic that reminded me that people have always been funny. it was so good. not all of the humour held up, but a surprising amount of it really did, and i was delighted. (i read this in preparation for reading to say nothing of the dog, which i sadly didn't like as much.)
8. Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year? Constance
i don't read a tonne of books that answer to this description, but i do have a couple answers. constance is a scifi thriller about clones that's pretty action packed. from the moment she wakes up, constance is pretty much perpetually in peril, and she has to keep moving, and it made for a pretty exciting read. s.a. cosby also writes a good action thriller, and blacktop wasteland was a good example of that. it's a heist book, with a tortured hero coming back to crime for one last job, and it put me in the mind of watching a fast and furious movie. the last word was a thriller with a great hook (a woman writes a one star review of a book, and the author gets... a little upset about it) and it all takes place in one night, and SO much happened. i didn't love it, but i liked it more than the first book i read from the author.
9. Book You Read In 2023 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year?
an island princess starts a scandal. this is one of those books that i rated 4.5 stars, rounded down to 4, but i keep thinking about it. i loved soooooo much about this historical f/f romance, and the rating only came down because of some nit-picks i had with the ending. so i really wanna reread it soon, to see if i change my mind. the dawnhounds was a pretty fascinating and weird queer fantasy, but it lost me in a couple places. the sequel is supposed to come out this year, so i'm hoping to reread this book (and hopefully like it more) before continuing the series. and of course, i reread the locked tomb every year.
10. Favourite cover of a book you read in 2023?
i always really love answering this, because i get to go through all my covers and remember the great ones. there are two stand outs to me: anyone but you and outdrawn
i'm not gonna lie, the first one is purely because of the model; that woman is so fucking hot i want to die. and having a kinda butch model on an f/f romance makes me heart sing. the romance itself was okay; a bit annoying. the second one is because the art is SO gorgeous, and i don't often get to see two black women on a romance book cover! i know lots of people have beef with illustrated covers, but idk man, i like them! and the book was really cute. here are some runners up: the fiancée farce; this poison heart; big swiss; romancing the gorgon; meeting millie; stars in your eyes; darknesses, women in gray, ander and santi were here.
11. Most memorable character of 2023?
i feel like this year there were a bunch of characters who i didn't necessarily like, but who left a big impression on me nonetheless. first, june from yellowface. this bitch is unhinged and i don't respect her, but my god. kuang knew what she was doing with that character. the titular big swiss wasn't a particularly likeable woman, but she was so fascinating, and it's very easy to see how greta becomes so wholly obsessed with her. also ash from bloom. /laughs nervously. kunta kinte from roots is in my heart forever.
12. Most beautifully written book read in 2023?
so many great candidates for this! i have to mention one of my favourite anthologies of the year, address book: hope lives here by neil bartlett. lots of explorations of queer desire and pain, the intimate lives of gay men, in present day and historical, and the author uses such gorgeous prose i was bowled over. it did the pretentious litfic gimmick of not using quotation marks for prose, which i hate so much, but luckily i also listened to the audiobook. yerba buena by nina la cour also comes to mind when i think of beautiful writing. there's perhaps nothing flowery or exactly pretty about the writing, but it's so exact, so incisive, does such a great job of peeling these characters apart. i loved it dearly. in the fae queen's captive, sierra simone uses the most lush and decadent language to describe this fucked up hungry sapphic romance, and i adored it. it's a writing style that won't work all the time, but she makes it work for her. and i can't talk about unhinged sapphics without mentioning sunburn, a queer coming of age set in ireland. the language here straddles a line between beautiful and weird, and so perfectly communicates the intensity of the relationship between the girls. like, yes, this IS how an angsty baby dyke teen would write love letters.
13. Most Thought-Provoking/ Life-Changing Book of 2023?
before october, i didn't really know much more than the surface level things about palestine. with everything that's happening, i've been trying to educate myself, learn from palestinians and anti-zionist jews, and i've read some really excellent and thought-provoking books. the ethnic cleansing of palestine, ten myths about israel, the hundred years' war on palestine, minor detail.
14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2023 to finally read?
the diary of a young girl. i think for a while i THOUGHT that i'd read it, or maybe an abridged version, but nope. it's terrible that it took me 34 years to read anne frank's diary, but it was excellent and heart rending and very much worth the wait. another classic you would have thought i'd gotten around to before is my man jeeves. it was delightful; i would have probably found it funnier at a younger age. but i've of course read and seen so many references to jeeves; i actually read an m/m romance last year that as pretty much wooster/jeeves fanfic. so it was nice to actually read the source.
15. Favourite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2023?
from a taste of gold and iron. there are two wolves inside me, and they both have a loyalty kink a mile high, and this book fed me so DAMN WELL. there were so many passages to chose from, but this stuck out.
There he was, familiar and comfortable. That’s what it felt like. Like his heart, or whatever part of him it was that yearned for someone worthy to serve, had recognized the person he was meant to follow. The person he was meant to die for. There he was.
Evemer stared harder at Kadou, still shivering a little in sleep.
There he was.
Well. All right, then.
god!!!! that moment of realisation for evemer... i wanna roll around in it. and i really want to shout out sunburn again. i LOVED this:
Susannah gives me what I want, and more than what I want, and I can’t imagine not coming back. I’d come back on my hands and knees. She bites the fat on my hip, leaving the signature of her teeth on me, and when its red bruise fades away, she does it again. There won’t ever be a time when I have had enough. I will always come back.
16. Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2023?
shortest: mother's group, at 13 pages. just a short story with thriller-esque elements. longest: roots, at 912 pages. it did start to drag, around the chicken george years, buy mostly, the book merited every one of those pages.
17. Book That Shocked You The Most
the sapphire altar. i'm really impressed by this series, really into the lore and worldbuilding and the gods and everything that this cast of characters is going through. this book shocked me in a not so good way, because certain characters reacted to a certain event in a way i absolutely could not understand, not if my reading of those characters was right. (and i do think it was!) but i still think of this series fondly, and i still think it's impressive, because the author got me so invested in these characters that i was legit SHOCKED at what they chose to do at that juncture. sister, maiden, monster was shocking in a gross, outlandish way. and i definitely don't hold the same amount of affection for it. it was just kind of upsetting, and by the end, unappealing. this is kind of an exaggeration, but deadly kiss shocked me with how much i really really liked it?? lol. i'm honestly kind of embarrassed. the book is NOT well written!! it's indie published but that doesn't excuse the amount of typos and mistakes and tense shifts that made it into the final draft. it included sooo many of my writing pet peeves. buuuuuut something about this lesbian vampire romance with an overprotective vampire who will kill for her woman and eats kitty like she's paying reparations just had me by the THROAT okay. i was kicking my lil feet. i'm sorry to every hetero vampire romance girlie i ever made fun of. i get it now.
18. OTP OF THE YEAR (you will go down with this ship!)
obviously i have to say evemer/kadou from a taste of gold and iron and vivian/jules from truth and measure. both absolute fictional catnip to me, in different ways. honourable mentions: gideon/harrow from the locked tomb (i actually didn't reread the fist two books this year, but listen, they're always on my mind, and i did reread nona), iris/stevie from iris kelley doesn't date, charlotte/millie from meeting millie, david/kris from whisper.
19. Favourite Non-Romantic Relationship Of The Year
this was a reread, but it hit me SO hard this time around. palamedes and camilla from nona the ninth. if i think about them too long i'll go insane. yes, forever, yes. life is too short and love is too long. SHUT THE FUCK UP. i need to go lie down. T__T
20. Favourite Book You Read in 2023 From An Author You’ve Read Previously iris parker
i mean, alexandra rowland and roslyn sinclair technically qualify for this, but since i want to mention some other books, and not just my two top favourites... something spectacular by alexis hall. i can always count on him for a good historical romance, and god this was sooooo romantic. peggy the swooniest motherfucker on the planet, even when she's not trying. also, i've really liked everything i've read from adriana herrera, but an island princess starts a scandal quickly rocketed to the top of the list, right next to her other sapphic romance. i've enjoyed joanna's chambers historical romance series in the past, and i REALLY enjoyed her m/m historical werewolf romance series. gentleman wolf, the first book, left me kind of gutted.
21. Best Book You Read In 2023 That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else/Peer Pressure:
the decagon house murders. i'm fairly certain i'd never even heard of this book before. i saw it recommended on a booktube video about classic japanese mysteries, got intrigued, and now it's one of my favourite classic mysteries ever? like, it's up there with the best of christie for me, because it manages to deliver what i like to consider the perfect mystery experience. it's a mystery that i CAN figure out, and the book provides with the clues so i DO figure it out, but the book also cleverly misdirects me and puts in enough red herrings that i doubt myself, and convince myself that my original theory is wrong! i adore when that happens, and i'm so glad that i read this. definitely gonna read more from ayatsuji.
22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2023?
i can never narrow this down to one! firstly gemma from the fiancée farce. this woman did things to me. she manages to be one of the few rich people that i actually like (because she's not obnoxious about it, and gives away money all the time) and she's dominant in the perfect way. speaking of dominant in the perfect way, georgiana from mortal follies. taking all the archetypes of a stereotypical tortured duke and giving them to a sexy futch? yes, god, thanks. i was also crushing hard on ari from for her consideration. the way she would say nina's name... woof. and i can't not mention iris from iris kelley doesn't date. iris... just one chance... please...
23. Best 2023 debut you read?
forget me not technically isn't alyson derrick's debut, but it's her solo debut, as opposed to co-writing, so i'll count it. it's one of the few YA books i read this year, and it ended up in my faves. a heart wrenching f/f amnesia romance that broke my heart and put it back together. small joys by elvin mensah james was a debut that really lived up it its name; a quiet, soft, hurting but ultimately lovely story of black queerness and masculinity and depression and an absolutely wonderful friendship. i loved muddy soooooo much, i want him to be my best friend. chlorine by jade song perfectly delivered on all my queer weird girl needs, and straddles a lines between fantasy and horror and lit fic. really enjoyed this one.
24. Best Worldbuilding/Most Vivid Setting You Read This Year?
this was a reread, and i definitely didn't love the series as much as i did the first time, and i noticed a lot more things worthy of critique, but the world in his dark materials remains one of my favourite things ever. there's a reason there are so many daemon au fics; the lore and worldbuilding behind them is so fascinating, and it's such a lovely and unique way to do character building. that part of the series definitely held up, in every aspect. the setting in he who drowned the world was really vivid; i felt even more connected to the world, and i felt so much sorrow for the people affectrf by the machinations of the main characters. the world of siren queen was so so rich and the worldbuilding was so so intricate. this is another book that i definitely have to reread to appreciate even more, and i hope to do so soon.
25. Book That Put A Smile On Your Face/Was The Most FUN To Read?
everyone in my family has killed someone. this the the kind of mystery that i love!!! it's self referential and tongue in cheek and points out conventions and tropes about the mystery genre while still maintaining a pretty good mystery in and of itself. we literally know when every murder takes place; the main character spoils it in the beginning. and when the mc stops in the middle of the book to be like, 'okay, let's recap what we know about the mystery!' i knew i was in love. and again, it was FUNNY. also i continued to really love spy family. i'm so sad that i've finally caught up on all the volumes that my library has! it's such a sweet, big-hearted manga, and i cannot stress how much anya is my DAUGHTER. make you mine this christmas was a nice little surprise; i suspected i'd like it, but i didn't expect for it to literally make me laugh out loud. it's an f/f christmas romcom about a girl who fake dates a guy for christmas, and ends up falling for his sister. (i've actually read a lot of books with this exact premise lol)
26. Book That Made You Cry Or Nearly Cry in 2023?
OH MY GOD SO MANY. i mean, comparatively. i feel like so many books left me a weeping mess in 2023. roots had me blubbering by the end. the man who died twice was soooo good. really didn't expect that minor character to make me cry that much, but god. and i know that everyone says that fourth book makes them SOB so i'm nervous now oof. less was a poignant, really charming litfic about an older gay man taking a round-the-world trip after he gets the news that his younger ex is getting married. i loved so so much about this, and in particular there's a conversation less has with his older ex that touches on mortality and grief in a way that made me weep. wrong place, wrong time is a mystery/thriller about a woman stuck in a time loop, trying to figure out why her son committed a murder. i ultimately thought the book was pretty good, but not as great as advertised. HOWEVER there is a certain parent and child interaction in here that had me crying hysterically, and i lay on the couch for like 30 mins after just thinking about my father.
27. Hidden Gem Of The Year?
assuming 'hidden gem' means 'i think more people should read this because it's excellent' i have a few. the companion is a gorgeous t4t4t poly historical romance that had me legit swooning. it's very uncomplicated while still having conflict, and the way the heroine gets swept up in the fullness of love and desire and community made me so happy. to the warn horizon was a really good korean science fiction/dystopia. very sad, very depressing, but the writing hit a nerve. karin mallmaker is pretty well know in the f/f romance community, but cowboys and kisses is one of her newer and less popular romances, and it's actually my favourite thing i've read from her so far. historical lesbian romance on the frontier, wonderful explorations of sapphic awakenings and desire and friendship.
28. Book That Crushed Your Soul?
i can't not mention whisper again. the angst was so real and so visceral, and even though i KNEW i was reading a romance and i KNEW i was guaranteed an HEA, bits of this had me in despair. babel shocked me in terms of the direction it went in the end, and also just made me really really really sad. like, i enjoyed soooo much about the book and the themes, but it brought me so low i felt physically ill, and i had to lower my rating a bit, because i always rate with my heart. this might be the first time that 'crushed my soul' actually applies. young mungo devastated me. a super well written but deeply upsetting gay coming of age set in scotland. i want to strangle mungo's mother for everything that she allowed, everything that happened because of her choices. it made me so sad.
29. Most Unique Book You Read In 2023?
what my bones know was unique because of the fact that it was the first time i'd every heard of complex PTSD. it was a really edifying read, and also just really well told as an autobiography. also the saint of bright doors has a very unique premise, with a city full of mysterious doors. the role that gods their their prophets play was so interesting. the book ultimately wasn't fully my thing, but i still liked the concept very much. there's also an elderly lady is up to no good. a murderous octogenarian is pretty unique, right? haha, this was so fun.
30. Book That Made You The Most Mad (doesn’t necessarily mean you didn’t like it)?
oh, there are actually several that kinda pissed me off lol. one is my worst book of the year and the others were... fine. okay, but they on thin ice. first, the worst: querelle of roberval. a retelling of querelle of brest that shoulda stayed in the drafts. the kind of book that i would have abandoned if it had shown me its true colours earlier. i liked it fine when it was about querelle trying to fuck every twink who breathed on him, but it soon devolved in a bunch of intentionally upsetting ways. perhaps i'm a plebe and i just don't see the author's vision!! but i don't want to. enthralled in her design is an f/f bdsm romance with such a shitty, piss-poor domme, i was honestly convinced for a while that the author secretly hated bdsm romances, and only wrote this book out of spite?? after finishing the book, i don't think that's the case, but god. @ beatriz DUMP HER ASS!!!! FINISH HER!!!!! YOU CAN FIND A BETTER DOMME THIS BITCH AIN'T SHIT!!!!!! i might have liked it more if the grovelling had been good, but it was mediocre. don't stop me was soooo frustrating. it's an f/f dark romance, and i expected that our heroines would be badass and competent but nope. apparently dark just means that a whole bunch of awful stuff happens TO them, and then they react to it, and then more awful stuff happens to them, and they react to it, with a side of bad decisions. in between they have lots of sex. it frustrated me so much, because they were the main characters, and it felt like some of the male side characters had more agency than them.
Looking Ahead
1. One Book You Didn’t Get To In 2023 But Will Be Your Number 1 Priority in 2024?
my answer for this was gonna be mammoths at the gate, but i took so long to finish writing this post that i've already read that lol. another one that i'm for sure gonna read in january is cobalt red, which i can then hopefully recommend and get more people to read.
2. Book You Are Most Anticipating For 2024 (non-debut)?
look i've tried to read from gianna darling before and swiftly gave up (writing style and plot weren't for me), but you can bet your ass i'll be showing UP for serpentine valentine. listen i love when popular m/f authors branch out into f/f. yes... yes...!! write those dykes and bring your readership with you... YES!!!!!! i don't read a lot of YA, but i'm really anticipating escaping mr. rochester, a sapphic jane eyre retelling. other than that, i'm pretty sure alexis hall and k.j. charles have releases this year, and i'll definitely be reading them.
3. 2024 Debut You Are Most Anticipating?
i mentioned this last year, but someone you can build a nest in finally comes out this year and i'm so excited about it!! i'm also currently reading don't want you like a best friend, which is a debut that came out a few days ago. super cute so far. the early reviews for we ate the dark aren't the best but i'm still excited for it!
4. Series Ending/A Sequel You Are Most Anticipating in 2024?
alecto the ninth. i mean, it's unclear whether it's actually coming out this year, but hope springs eternal! the slain divine also came out a day or so ago, and i'm hoping to read it in the coming weeks. it'll be the end of the vagrant gods fantasy series, and my fingers are crossed it'll be good.
5. One Thing You Hope To Accomplish Or Do In Your Reading/Blogging Life In 2024?
read less. on god, i need to read less, and i'm so serious. 450 books??? it's become really really obvious to me that i've started using reading as a was to escape from things i don't want to deal with in real life, and i mean that's normal and fine and good... up to a point. but i'm at a stage where if i even THINK about a problem in my life that i need to fix, or something that i need to do, i start scrambling to shut my brain up. and the easiest and best way for me to do that is to read, preferably with an audiobook. and obviously i should um, stop that? as of writing this part of the survey, it's the 12th of january, and i've finished 15 books already. and i don't feel good about it haha!!!! i have some time off in january, and i'm really going to try working on this from february. i'm thinking i'll set myself a limit (cut myself off at 350 books? 100,000k words?) and see if that works.
also, my reading was sooooo white last year. i'm not gonna set any strict goals, but i'm gonna keep it in mind that i got to get to more books by authors of colour, because there are so many good ones on my list.
and now... CHARTS!!!
oh jeez. to explain: i was on vacation for the entirety of january and the first week of february, so that's that. and in august/september, i spent most of my time playing baldur's gate 3, and that slowly petered out. i'm gonna start back playing soon though! READ LESS 2024!!!!!
one day... one day i'll read less contemporary romance. or maybe not, who knows!! it's what i love.
pretty good year, ratings-wise. 4 of those 5 stars were rereads, but most of the 4.5s were brand new, and there were a lot of them. i feel pretty good about that.
really the only reason i read so much is because i listen to a lot of audiobooks haha. :'D
usually when amazon sends me an email like 'hey do you want KU for a discounted price :D???' i usually snap it up, but that stops this year; it's gonna stay cancelled. hopefully kobo unlimited will become available outside of north america and the uk this year, and i can start using that. i still have a huge audible backlist that i've accumulated over the years, and anyplay remains my no. 1.
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also! hi friend!!! i miss you when one of us isn't active on our few shared sites for a while and it's lovely to see youuuuu (well, see your posts). <3333
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yaaaay, i'm glad my chatty voluminous book post does some good.