The best books of 2023

This list is part of the best books of 2023.

Join 1,707 readers and share your 3 favorite reads of the year.

My favorite read in 2023

Book cover of Troubled Blood

Gloria Oliver Why did I love this book?

Troubled Blood has layers and layers. As with the other Cormoran Strike novels, Troubled Blood is infused with the grittiness and craziness of real life and how it impacts the main characters as they keep plugging onwards.

Cormoran and Robin are pulled in multiple directions by family, friends, and coworkers, their own traumas bleeding over and exposing their own all while trying to solve a thirty-plus-year-old missing person's case. The juggling act, especially when having to deal with Cormoran's aunt's approaching death, is heart-wrenching.

Some of the uncovered crimes and how society dealt with the mental issues back at that time are also eye-opening. Loved how the author used the concept of how we make assumptions about certain roles and how they can blind us to so much to what would otherwise be obvious. Tons of food for thought!

By Robert Galbraith,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Troubled Blood as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Winner of the Crime and Thriller British Book of the Year Award 2021

'One of crime's most engaging duos' Guardian

'Magnificent' Sunday Times

'Finely honed, superbly constructed' Daily Mail

'Terrific' Daily Express

Private Detective Cormoran Strike is visiting his family in Cornwall when he is approached by a woman asking for help finding her mother, Margot Bamborough - who went missing in mysterious circumstances in 1974.

Strike has never tackled a cold case before, let alone one forty years old. But despite the slim chance of success, he is intrigued and takes it on; adding to the long list of…


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My 2nd favorite read in 2023

Book cover of The Memoirs of Jacques Casanova de Seingalt Vol. 1 the Venetian Years

Gloria Oliver Why did I love this book?

I ran into The Memoirs of Jacques Casanova by accident while doing some research for my historical cozy mystery series.

While we've all heard the name 'Casanova' and that he's famous for his amorous dalliances, I had no idea he'd written a twelve-volume autobiography! I've only read the first volume so far, but I found it completely fascinating! (Make sure you do not end up with the butchered version of his memoirs—back at the time the books were thought quite scandalous, and some got 'doctored.' The originals would be considered tame nowadays. :P)

A great slice of life back in the 18th century. Most shocking was all the chocolate they ate and drank!

By Giacomo Casanova, Arthur Machen (translator),

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Memoirs of Jacques Casanova de Seingalt Vol. 1 the Venetian Years as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Casanova was an Italian adventurer and author from the Republic of Venice. His autobiography, is regarded as one of the most authentic sources of the customs and norms of European social life during the 18th century. He has become so famous for his often complicated and elaborate affairs with women that his name is now synonymous with "womanizer". He associated with European royalty, popes and cardinals, along with luminaries such as Voltaire, Goethe and Mozart. He spent his last years in Bohemia as a librarian in Count Waldstein's household, where he also wrote the story of his life. Set of…


My 3rd favorite read in 2023

Book cover of Crystal Blade

Gloria Oliver Why did I love this book?

Reverse Harems are not typically a genre I read, but since I know the author well, I made the exception.

I thoroughly enjoyed book 1, especially since she came up with an actual reason reverse harems were necessary to the otherworld cultures involved. In book 2, we get to learn more about the paladins and Crystal. Her true birthright revealed, Crystal is going to fight for the throne—not for the power or prestige, but because she loves the paladins and wants to save them from their current fate.

Realistic world problems, realistic politics, and other problems abound that will take effort rather than sugar-coated easy fixes. A fantasy that works and has consequences. Loads of surprises, which just adds to the fun. 

By Nicola M. Cameron,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Crystal Blade as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.


Don‘t forget about my book 😀

The Secret Humankind

By Gloria Oliver,

Book cover of The Secret Humankind

What is my book about?

Julia Xero is stuck in survival mode. After losing the only person she loved, the introverted orphan longs to escape her toxic employment for the zen of crime and trauma scene decontamination. But when she lands her dream job and is called to a bloody rooftop with a decapitated corpse, she’s horrified to come face to face with an otherworldly shark-toothed assassin.

Furious to learn she’s been enlisted by a clandestine race of beings against her will, Julia’s dismay fountains when she finds out they implanted her with a neck bomb to ensure her lips stay tightly sealed. With her thunderous confrontation with her boss hitting a dead-end, the stubborn young woman begins plotting ways to leave the energy-powered entities.

Can she outwit an ancient civilization before her carotid goes boom?