Here we are, halfway through 2023 already … well, more than halfway, as this post is a tad late! I have read SO MANY great books this year, but we’ll start with the two not pictured above, as they’ve been loaned out to friends, and then work through the stack.
The Drowning Woman by Robyn Harding. After attending Robyn’s book launch party, I immediately dove into this book. I’d been craving something unputdownable, and this book DELIVERED. I couldn’t stop flipping the pages until I’d finished it – ignoring all household responsibilities for the weekend, and I loved it.
The True Love Experiment by Christina Lauren. The Soulmate Equation made my top ten list for 2021, so I had high hopes going into this one, and it met those expectations. I felt like this book was a love letter to romance novels and reality TV and I loved it.
Reckless by Elsie Silver. The entire trilogy made my top books of Q1, so no one is surprised to see the fourth book on this stack! I’m still amazed by how each of Elsie’s books is better than the one that came before it — if the series keeps going as it has, be prepared to see Hopeless make the Q4 stack, and probably her other trilogy too!
Yours Truly by Abby Jimenez. Abby never disappoints, and this book was just as good as all of her prior ones. I usually don’t enjoy the miscommunication trope, which was the basis for this book, but it worked so well in this one that it was completely believable instead of something that made me yell at the characters to just TALK TO EACH OTHER ALREADY. Highly recommend, but read Part of Your World first, as this one is a companion novel.
The Music of Bees by Eileen Garvin. I hosted an all-staff meeting at work and wanted to make it a bookish theme, so I asked my colleagues to recommend the best book(s) they’d ever read, or a book that had a lasting impression. One of my favourite colleagues (who is also a dear friend) recommended this one, and I immediately had to go out and buy it — it’s now a lifetime favourite for me too.
Off the Map by Trish Doller. I liked, but didn’t love, Float Plan. If you felt the same, please don’t give up on this series, as each book gets better than the one before — and Off the Map I listened to in a single day and found myself choking back tears (while driving – yikes) because the storyline between Carla and her dad was so well done.
Mile High by Liz Tomforde. This was a pick for the It’s (Most Likely) Spicy Book Club and I did not expect to love it as much as I did! It’s a romance between a hockey player and a flight attendant, but it has so many great themes in it, especially mental health and healing from past (unhealthy) relationships. After I finished it, I immediately dove into the second book (spoiler alert: expect to see it on the Q3 stack) and I am counting down the days ’til the release of book three.
Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune. I don’t think I loved this one quite as much as Every Summer After, but it was still a solidly good read. Plus, I got to meet Carley in person at a local bookstore and get my books signed, which added to the reading experience – she is lovely, and I will definitely continue to buy and read her books!
King of Wrath by Ana Huang. I liked Twisted Love last summer, and bought the rest of the series (even though I haven’t yet read them), so I knew I’d probably like this one, but I didn’t expect to love it as much as I did. It was an arranged marriage, which I don’t think is a trope I’d read before, but I absolutely adored it and I have King of Pride preordered already.
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros. The hype for this book was UNREAL so I went into it with sky high expectations — and the hype is fully deserved. The writing was a bit YA, but the world is so amazing (a DRAGON SCHOOL) and the relationship was so well done too. And did I mention the DRAGONS?! I already have Iron Flame preordered to make sure that I get the pretty sprayed edges version.
With so many great books in 2023 so far, it makes me SO EXCITED for all of the great reading yet to come for the rest of the year!
Writer Grrl Reads 