25 of the Best Books I Read in 2023 (Out of 130+!)

Plus: My Reading Goals & Tips for Reading More in 2024 📖

Dec 27, 2023

I’ve been super excited to share this list, but I have to be honest: this was SO MUCH HARDER than I thought it’d be! Narrowing this down to just 25 titles had me considering pushing the number up to 30, 40, maybe even 50 — but I challenged myself to really try and pick my absolute favorites so you’d know exactly how much I loved these.

This year I managed to read over 130 books (132 to be exact!), which is one of my higher year end numbers for a reading wrap-up. My original goal for the year was 52 - just a book a week, which for me is very doable. I know that setting a goal of a specific number of books to hit isn’t for everyone, so absolutely no pressure or shade if you’re one of the folks that prefers to just read as you go, no goals in mind. I personally love setting a little goal for myself each year, and I’ve managed to not only hit them but actually exceed them for nearly a decade, which is cool to look back on!

Next to making art, reading is my biggest hobby. A lot of people seem surprised or are in disbelief when they find out how many books I read, but keep in mind that there are lots of other things I don’t do because I would rather spend my time reading. Like, for example, I don’t really have a social life, haha. That said, I do have a couple tips for things that help me read more in particular (or prioritize reading), so I’ll include those after the list below! Maybe it’ll help someone trying to find ways to read more in the new year.

So, without any more rambling about numbers or goals, let’s get into the list! I split this into two sections: my absolute top 5 favorite books of the year, and then 20 others I superloved and would highly recommend! I’ll include some short thoughts with each. ♡

My Top 5 Favorites of the Year

I had so many top tier reads in 2023, but these are 5 of the ones that stand out to me the most in terms of how much I loved them.

Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield

Literary Horror | Dream-like, Sapphic, Underwater Creepiness

I’ve seen a lot of people either really love or really dislike this book, so I think it’s important to go into it with appropriate expectations: it’s pretty light on the horror, the story permeated with an atmosphere of unease moreso than full-on terror. Despite most of it being more horror-adjacent, I found the chapters from Leah’s perspective about her time underwater extremely unsettling - I’m super freaked out by underwater stuff to the point where I can’t even play those sorts of levels in video games, so this was particularly creepy for me!

You’d Love This If… you love introspective, emotional, dream-like horror that’s a little bit ambiguous and open-ended.

The Villa by Rachel Hawkins

Mystery/Thriller | Blood-in-the-Sun, Dual Timelines, Toxic Friendships

Although not my first book by the author, this one definitely shot up to my favorite of the ones I’ve read so far. I have such a deep love for stories about toxic friendships and best friendships-gone-wrong, which is a theme she’s used in a couple of her books - this one included. I also really love thrillers or horror set in bright, beautiful places — the juxtaposition of dark and light always adds an extra layer for me, and this one pulled that off so well with its Italian villa setting. The overall mystery of what happened in the ‘70s timeline, being told simultaneously to the present day characters discovering it with the reader, made this a very fast-paced read.

You’d Love This If… you loved DAISY JONES & THE SIX or ALMOST FAMOUS, but think they’d have been better with more murder!

A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers

Sci-Fi/Fantasy | Comforting, Reassuring, Warm Hug in a Book

I have such good memories of reading this one because it came at an important time: right before my little family became homeless in March of this year. The main character in this story feeling unfulfilled and lost really hit home for me with my situation, and I cried multiple times while reading it despite how short it is - just barely over 150 pages. This was also my very first 5 star read of 2023, and it remains one of my most favorites for a reason. I’ll probably do a reread of this one in the coming months — I’d highly recommend reading this one while snuggled up with a soft blanket & hot cup of tea!

You’d Love This If… you’re feeling lost in life, or lacking in direction - especially if cozy sci-fi is your cup of tea.

The Writing Retreat by Julia Bartz

Suspense | Books-Within-Books, Isolated & Snowy, Toxic Friendships

When Alex is invited to a retreat sponsored by her writing idol, she’s excited at the thought of learning from the woman she considers a “master of storytelling”. But the retreat doesn’t go as planned, and everything spirals out of control into total chaos tbh - and I loved it. Of all the books I read this year, this one kept me guessing the most - and I think it’s the one that surprised me the most, too! This has so many layers and I loved going along for the ride.

You’d Love This If… you like stories about writing contests, or plots that are kind of all over the place.

Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney

Gothic Mystery / Thriller | Family Drama, Reunions Gone Wrong, Dark & Stormy

I’m going to be honest here about this one: I spent the first 200 pages nearly DNFing it because I didn’t know what was going on, but holy heck did the ending pay off for me! This one involves a family reunion in a crumbling old mansion on a tiny island for the family matriarch’s 80th birthday. I don’t want to give too much away, but when I tell you the end of this one took me by complete and total surprise (and I read A LOT, so that’s difficult to happen sometimes), please just take my word for it and read it if you like twisty twists!

You’d Love This If… you’re a fan of AND THEN THERE WERE NONE type whodunnit murder mysteries, and big ol’ plot twists!

20 More I Loved & Highly Recommend

A House with Good Bones by T. Kingfisher

Horror | Witchy, Summer Gothic Vibes, Family Drama

You’d Love This If… you liked M. Night Shyamalan’s THE VISIT, or have liked T. Kingfisher’s other books -I find their writing and characters to be so engaging and relatable, especially with this one!

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

Fantasy | Beauty & the Beast Retelling, Spicy, Romantasy

You’d Love This If… you don’t mind a little smut with your reading (and like stories about different fae courts!). This is also the first in a series, and my first time reading it!

Highly Suspicious & Unfairly Cute by Talia Hibbert

Romance | Mental Health Rep, Grumpy/Sunshine, Best Friends to Cutiepies

You’d Love This If… you have low expectations for YA romance as a genre — I did, and this one surprised me with how cute it was! I also recommend it for people who like their romances to come with sarcasm & witty banter, ‘cause the two MCs in this were so cute & funny!

Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree

Fantasy | Cozy, Food-Related, Fun Characters

You’d Love This If… you ever thought that opening a little coffee & pastry shop would be fun (especially if you also love fantasy!).

The Only One Left by Riley Sager

Thriller | Family Drama, Creepy Old Houses, Gothic

You’d Love This If… you’ve ever been interested in the Lizzie Borden murders, or like decades-long mysteries in weird families.

None of This Is True by Lisa Jewell

Thriller | Unreliable Narrators, Toxic Friendships, Podcast-Related

You’d Love This If… you love books that keep you guessing, and also love having a podcast element in the story.

Ring Shout by P. Djeli Clark

Horror | Historical Setting (1920s), Social Commentary, Monster Hunting

You’d Love This If… you appreciate books that have something to say, and use creative storytelling to say it.

Juniper & Thorn by Ava Reid

Fantasy | Witchy, Gothic, Made Me Hungry

You’d Love This If… you enjoy world-building and food mentions: the set-up of sorcerers and how their importance to a city changes over time with the introduction of things like modern medicine & theater was super interesting, and I genuinely found myself craving so many foods I'd never heard of because of how often they were mentioned here!

Out There by Kate Folk

Sci-Fi | Short Stories, Super Weird, Fantasy & Horror Elements

You’d Love This If… you’re a fan of BLACK MIRROR, or anything that’s just absolutely out there in terms of weirdness (without going full into bizarro territory, at least in most cases).

Lost in the Moment and Found by Seanan McGuire

Fantasy | Grief, Magic, Series

You’d Love This If… you’ve loved the other books in Seanan McGuire’s WAYWARD CHILDREN series; this is the 8th book, so I wouldn’t recommend starting here if you aren’t already familiar, but it’s my MOST RECOMMENDED series! This installment was so sad, and I really enjoyed it.

The Deep by Nick Cutter

Horror | Deep Sea Creepiness, Sci-Fi Vibes, Body Horror

You’d Love This If… you love stories set on space stations (because this is underwater but could’ve easily been in space), or stories involving things going TERRIBLY WRONG in a very gruesome way.

Unfamiliar by Haley Newsome

Fantasy | Cutesy Horror, Graphic Novel, Sugary Art

You’d Love This If… you’d like reading something with very cute art about moving to a new place, finding purpose in life, friendship, & ghosts!

Dead Eleven by Jimmy Juliano

Horror | Super Weird, 90s Vibes, Mystery

You’d Love This If… you love horror that references the 90s, or would be into a much creepier version of GROUNDHOG DAY.

The Woman in Me by Britney Spears

Memoir | Celebrity Nonfiction, Pop Culture, Emotional

You’d Love This If… you’ve been a Britney fan since the beginning of her career (or just want to know more about her). I cried while reading this multiple times!

The Weight of Blood by Tiffany D. Jackson

Horror | Social Commentary, CARRIE Retelling, Small Town

You’d Love This If… you’re a fan of the original CARRIE!

Even the Worm Will Turn by Hailey Piper

Horror | Sci-Fi, Cosmic Horror, Sequel

You’d Love This If… you loved the first book, THE WORM AND HIS KINGS! One of my favorite novellas, and I really loved this follow up to the story.

Blood Sugar by Sascha Rothchild

Thriller | Serial Killers, Story via Interrogation, Mystery

You’d Love This If… you’ve ever binged Law & Order: SVU, or if you’ve ever sought books with characters that have diabetes.

Luster by Raven Leilani

Contemporary | Relationship Drama, Power Dynamics, Social Commentary

You’d Love This If… you like reading about sexually relationships & how things like professional power dynamics and race can impact them.

Nineteen Claws and a Black Bird by Agustina Bazterrica

Horror | Short Stories, Translated, Super Weird

You’d Love This If… you like darker themes in your reading, especially if you enjoyed Bazterrica’s debut TENDER IS THE FLESH - this one has a lot of stories that echo that same sort of dread and depravity.

Salvation Day by Kali Wallace

Sci-Fi | Horror, Conspiracies & Mysteries in Space, Cults

You’d Love This If… you like reading stories about cults or government cover-ups. This was my second book by the author, and I liked this one a lot more than I liked DEAD SPACE — although I could recommend either if you’re looking for more space horror.

A Few Honorable Mentions

SERIES: I made it a goal to read more series in 2023, and I did really well! But I didn’t want to include too many sequels or series books above, so we have this section.

Of the series I read multiple books in this year, the ones that stood out the most for me were:

The Resident Evil book series by S.D. Perry (3 books read in 2023) - these have been among my favorite video game adaptations since I was a teenager, and the series also includes a few that Perry wrote herself, that aren’t based on any of the games. One of those is my favorite - the Caliban Cove book!
The Anita Blake series by Laurell K. Hamilton (13 books read in 2023) - I’ve loved this series since I was 14 or 15, and this was my first time revisiting them as an adult. It has been SUCH A WILD, FUN RIDE! I can’t wait to read more, haha.
The Chainsaw Man manga series by Tatsuki Fujimoto (12 books read in 2023) - this is my current favorite manga and anime, I am obsessed, I love it so much. I recommend it to everyone & it’s the only thing I’m ever currently caught up on.
The A Deal with a Demon series by Katee Robert (4 books read in 2023) - I started this series in a vlog on Youtube that’s still my most popular video to date, lol. It’s a lot of fun and honestly very inclusive!
The Wayward Children series by Seanan McGuire (8 books read in 2023) - the new book in this series usually comes out in January of each year, so I always do a big re-read of the books up to that point. I love it so much!
The Sweat & Soap manga series by Kintetsu Yamada (3 books read in 2023) - another one of my favorites, and I read the most recent 3 volumes of this to catch up at the start of the year. It’s very cute & the MCs have such a communicative, sweet relationship!

I also want to include a couple rereads in this section, because I didn’t feel like adding them to the above lists (those were all first time reads for me), but did love them a lot!

Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid: I read this via audiobook the first time, and then in hardcover format this year — I honestly preferred the audio, it made me bawl like a baby! I started watching the show adaptation but didn’t make it very far (although I hope to get back to it eventually).
The Butterfly Garden by Dot Hutchison: this is the first book a series, but I’ve only read this one so far! (Twice, lol). I didn’t remember it super well, and it was horrifying & a lot came back as I was revisiting it.

Reading Goals for Next Year

Read more books in a series (a continuation of my 2023 goal)
Be less intimidated by loooong books (I love a good novella, but want to branch out!)
Read more nonfiction (I always dabble every year, but this time I want there to be a more consistent “nonfiction footprint” on my reading log)

A Few Tips for Reading More

Make a list of the books you want to read so you don’t have to fuss over what to choose next (which can take time away from reading). Give yourself a little book stack to make your way through, and then go for it!
Try other formats for reading. If you normally read with your eyes, try an audiobook - and the other way around!
Audiobooks in general are a great way to get more reading in, because you can listen to these on your commute, while cooking or cleaning, etc.
Use any time you can to get a few pages in. Bring a book with you everywhere, and then try reading a little bit instead of scrolling through your phone - every page adds up! From my experience, the more you read, the faster you read - so read often & you’ll get better at it!

Whew, okay, that’s it for now! What a list, right? Again, narrowing things down to just 25 books out of over 130 wasn’t an easy task - but I think I managed to get the ones I’d like to recommend the most out of ‘em all, and I hope that you might’ve found something new to read here.