My Best Reads of 2023

At the end of every year I like to go back and look over the books I read, and pick a few that stood out to me. I try to pick at least one in each genre that I read, and of course the books don't have to be published this year. They do have to be first time reads for me though. Here are the books I enjoyed the most in 2023.

Note- there is no sci-fi or space opera winner this year. I just didn't read anything in those genres that I absolutely loved and thought was amazing.  Also, there were two romances that I really loved so I have two of those.

Best Fantasy- 

The Will of the Many by James Islington

  

5 of 5 stars

I went into this book thinking it was a gamble on whether I would like it or not, and I was pleasantly surprised by it. This was by far the best fantasy book I read this year. See my review here. 

 

Best Urban Fantasy-

Super Powereds Year 4 by Drew Hayes

 

5 of 5 stars

I thoroughly enjoyed this whole series, but this last book was the best. Even though the books are really long, and probably could have been edited down, I didn't mind it because it was so entertaining. I'm going to miss these characters.

 

 

Best Romance- 

The Surprise by B. E. Baker

 

5 of 5 stars. 

I've loved every book in this series, but this unexpected addition to the series felt extra special to me. The themes the books tackled and the way we got to go back and see certain events that have happened in the series through different eyes really spoke to me. See my review here. 

 

 

Running Barefoot by Amy Harmon

4.5 of 5 stars

This was a sweet, beautiful love story that had me feeling all the emotions. Review to come.

 

 

Best Mystery/Suspense- 

Cards on the Table by Agatha Christie

 

5 of 5 stars

I loved this one! It was so fun to have all the detectives together trying to solve the murder. This was brilliantly done.

 

And this year I'm added something I've never added before, a cookbook-

Meals That Heal by Carolyn Williams, PhD, RD

I had to add this cook book because it was the start of something life changing for me. I've been dealing with chronic pain for a few years now and after lots of tests nothing was found. I was put on anti-inflammatory medicine, which I stopped using after it made my blood pressure go up. I started looking for alternative methods of dealing with what was happening. I started taking turmeric first and noticed that it helped a lot. I finally decided that maybe changing my diet would help even more. I had nothing to lose, so I gave it a try. The first thing I did was buy this cookbook. After being on an anti-inflammatory diet for months, I've noticed a big change in the way I feel. Changing the way I eat hasn't been easy, and I went into it knowing I would have off days and not expecting perfection, but it was the best thing I've done for my health in a long time.