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The best books of 2023

This list is part of the best books of 2023.

We've asked 1,608 authors and super readers for their 3 favorite reads of the year.

Shepherd is reader supported. When you buy books, we may earn an affiliate commission.

My favorite read in 2023…

Book cover of Tress of the Emerald Sea

Jen Haeger Why did I love this book?

Set in a breathtaking world, Tress is the fairy tale with a science fiction backbone that I always wanted to read.

With a heroine caught between following her heart on a terrifying journey, doing what is right, and doing what is practical, and rich and complex characters that aren’t just background filler, I remembered why I love reading. Besides, who doesn’t enjoy a good pirate adventure?

My 2nd favorite read in 2023…

Book cover of Starship Repo

Jen Haeger Why did I love this book?

Sometimes, a pithy, thought-provoking novel with an ending I never saw coming is what I’m looking for, but other times I really just want a rollicking space comedy, and Starship Repo sure delivers.

Set in a universe where humans are a novelty and giant space crabs, sentient boulders, and creatures made up of a collective of autonomous organs are the norm, everything is alien yet it’s a shockingly familiar tale of a group of lovable, misfit, almost-criminals walking the fine line of the law. The humor is a little crude, but I laughed out loud more than once.

By Patrick S. Tomlinson,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

Starship Repo is a fast-paced romp through the galaxy from Patrick S. Tomlinson.

Firstname Lastname is a no one with nowhere to go. With a name that is the result of an unfortunate clerical error and destined to be one of the only humans on an alien space station. That is until she sneaks aboard a ship and joins up with a crew of repomen (they are definitely not pirates).

Now she's traveling the galaxy "recovering" ships. What could go wrong?


My 3rd favorite read in 2023…

Book cover of Sherlock Holmes and Count Dracula

Jen Haeger Why did I love this book?

I love Sherlock Holmes, I love Dracula, and I love mashups, so how could I not love this book? There are few books that I devour in mere days, but this was one of them.

It’s a beautiful marriage of well-researched Sherlock Holmes and Dracula lore, luring the supernatural into the logical and tipping the scales set by The Hound of the Baskervilles. Equal parts horror and mystery, this book’s lightning-fast pace kept the pages turning, and my interest piqued to the very end.

By Christian Klaver,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Sherlock Holmes and Count Dracula as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Told through four interlinked cases, this Gothic horror mystery sees Sherlock Holmes and Count Dracula join forces to banish a terrible enemy

1902. Sherlock Holmes's latest case begins with a severed finger. With no signs of decomposition and an adverse reaction to silver, it is the most perplexing mystery yet - one that relates to their next client - and the moment Sherlock's and Watson's lives are irrevocably changed.

A Transylvanian nobleman called Count Dracula arrives at Baker Street seeking Sherlock's help, for his beloved wife Mina has been kidnapped. But Dracula is a client like no other and Sherlock…


Plus, check out my book…

Whispers of a Killer

By Jen Haeger,

Book cover of Whispers of a Killer

What is my book about?

Sylvia Harbinger was one of NYPD’s finest detectives until she ran into serial killer Rachel Iris Chester. Sylvia had dealt with killers before but never one with a WHISP.

The creepy, gray shadows following NYC citizens remind her of the night her parents died. It’s just too much. To save her marriage and her sanity, Sylvia’s makes a deal with husband Ben to retire and move to Montana, though it leaves her WHISPer son Lincoln behind.

But now a Chester copycat killer is on the loose and Sylvia can’t let another killer pick up where Chester left off. Did she miss something with the original murders? Drawn back into her nightmares once again, can she solve the case before losing her husband or her mind?

My book recommendation list