#179: My Best Books of 2023

Deliberate Freelancer

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In today’s episode, I’m counting down my top 10 books of the year — 8 were published in 2023. I’ll start with a few of my reading statistics, share my top 10 and a few superlatives, and give you a heads-up about a few books coming out in 2024. Please enjoy, my fellow bookworms!

And join us in the Deliberate Freelancer Facebook group, where we’ll be talking about our best and worst books of 2023!

I don’t want to spoil where my top 10 books fell in the list, so the following books are ones I recommended during this episode, plus superlatives and upcoming releases.

Books mentioned in this episode:

Nonfiction:

What the Dead Know: Learning About Life as a New York City Death Investigator by Barbara Butcher

The Heat Will Kill You First: Life and Death on a Scorched Planet by Jeff Goodell

Fiction:

The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks-Dalton

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin

All the Sinners Bleed by S.A. Cosby

Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver

Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll

Strange Sally Diamond by Liz Nugent

Wandering Souls by Cecile Pin

Go as a River by Shelley Read

Beyond That, the Sea by Laura Spence-Ash

The Night Shift by Alex Finlay

Every Last Fear by Alex Finlay

Falling by T.J. Newman

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah

The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah

Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah

Never Saw Me Coming by Vera Kurian

The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James

The Book of Cold Cases by Simone St. James

Superlatives:

Most deserving of the hype: Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin

Least deserving of the hype: Happiness Falls by Angie Kim

Hyped books that didn’t work for me and that I DNFed: Wellness by Nathan Hill; Shark Heart by Emily Habeck; Upgrade by Blake Crouch; The Quiet Tenant by Clemence Michallon; and In Memoriam by Alice Winn

Most disappointing books: Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano and What Have We Done by Alex Finlay

WORST book: Silver Alert by Lee Smith

Most unputdownable and tense book: Drowning by T.J. Newman

Romances that made me like romances: Nora Goes Off Script by Annabelle Monaghan; The Last Love Note by Emma Grey; Three Holidays and a Wedding by Uzma Jalaluddin and Marissa Stapley

A 2023 book I still want to read: The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters

My anticipated 2024 books:

The Storm We Made by Vanessa Chan, publishes January 2

No One Can Know by Kate Alice Marshall, publishes January 23 (mystery/thriller)

Radiant Heat by Sarah-Jane Collins, publishes January 23 (for Jane Harper fans)

The Women by Kristin Hannah, publishes February 6 (about Vietnam war)

A Step Past Darkness by Vera Kurian, publishes February 20 (mystery/thriller)

Murder Road by Simone St. James, publishes March 5 (mystery/ghost story)

Still See You Everywhere by Lisa Gardner, publishes March 12 (Book 3 in Frankie Elkin mystery series)

The Husbands by Holly Gramazio, publishes April 2 (rom-com with magical realism )

Safe and Sound by Laura McHugh, publishes April 23 (mystery/thriller)

If Something Happens to Me by Alex Finlay, publishes May 28 (mystery/thriller)

Resources:

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Episode #151 of Deliberate Freelancer: My Best Books of 2022

Episode #122 of Deliberate Freelancer: My Best Books of 2021 (and Anticipated 2022 Releases)

Episode #87 of Deliberate Freelancer: My Most Anticipated 2021 Books (and Fave 2020 Books)

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