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 The Weight of Ink

Martin Sternstein Why did I love this book?

The story is set in London and alternates between two time periods, the mid-seventeenth century and the early twenty-first century.

In the 1660s, the plague ravages London and Sephadic Jews who had fled the Spanish Inquisition found themselves again blamed and stigmatized. And women in particular were denied scholarship of any form. However, Ester learns to read, translates for a blind rabbi, and grapples with a search for truth in an incredibly hostile environment.

In 2001, an aged British professor and her young American research assistant unexpectedly came upon Ester’s writings. Tensions simmer in both centuries and the suspenseful writing is hard to put down.

By Rachel Kadish,

Why should I read it?

9 authors picked The Weight of Ink as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

WINNER OF A NATIONAL JEWISH BOOK AWARD A USA TODAY BESTSELLER "A gifted writer, astonishingly adept at nuance, narration, and the politics of passion."-Toni Morrison Set in London of the 1660s and of the early twenty-first century, The Weight of Ink is the interwoven tale of two women of remarkable intellect: Ester Velasquez, an emigrant from Amsterdam who is permitted to scribe for a blind rabbi, just before the plague hits the city; and Helen Watt, an ailing historian with a love of Jewish history. As the novel opens, Helen has been summoned by a former student to view a…


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My 2nd favorite read in 2023…

Book cover of Mistress of the Art of Death

Martin Sternstein Why did I love this book?

Set in medieval Cambridge, England, the story follows the horrific murder of four children which is blamed on the town’s Jewish community.

Unraveling the mystery and unmasking the serial killer falls an Italian doctor, Adelia. Being a woman in those superstitious times, she has to conceal her identity as a coroner and of Jewish background for fear of being accused of witchcraft. The novel is a chilling, forensic thriller with fascinating characters and even a little romance.

By Ariana Franklin,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked Mistress of the Art of Death as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 14.

What is this book about?

Winner of the CWA Best Historical Crime Novel of the Year

'Great fun! Franklin succeeds in vividly bringing the 12th century to life with this cracking good story' KATE MOSSE

Medieval England. A hideous murder. Enter the first female anatomist...

Adelia Aguilar is a rare thing in medieval Europe - a woman who has trained as a doctor. Her speciality is the study of corpses, a skill that must be concealed if she is to avoid accusations of witchcraft.

But in Cambridge a child has been murdered, others are disappearing, and King Henry has called upon a renowned Italian investigator…


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My 3rd favorite read in 2023…

Book cover of The Third Daughter

Martin Sternstein Why did I love this book?

This is a thoroughly researched story about the late 19th-century sex trafficking of young Jewish women from Russian shtetls to Argentina.

Kidnapped women violently raped and forced into prostitution are obviously disturbing topics, but Carner masterfully handles this with insight and empathy. The book follows the charismatic main character from age 14 through age 22 as she moves from powerlessness and hopelessness to strength and bravery.

By Talia Carner,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Third Daughter as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

“In The Third Daughter, Talia Carner ably illuminates a little-known piece of history: the sex trafficking of young women from Russia to South America in the late 19th century. Thoroughly researched and vividly rendered, this is an important and unforgettable story of exploitation and empowerment that will leave you both shaken and inspired.” —Pam Jenoff, New York Times bestselling author of The Lost Girls of Paris

The turn of the 20th century finds fourteen-year-old Batya in the Russian countryside, fleeing with her family endless pogroms. Desperate, her father leaps at the opportunity to marry Batya to a worldly, wealthy stranger…


Don‘t forget about my book 😀

Ten African-American Presidents

By Faith and Martin Sternstein,

Book cover of Ten African-American Presidents

What is my book about?

Barack Obama was not the first African-American president of a country. Ten men, born as slaves or to freed slave families in America, immigrated to Liberia and served as presidents of Liberia. Their stories are a fascinating chapter in the histories of Liberia and America. For all their faults, they led a fledgling country totaling 20,000 settlers; demonstrated to skeptics that blacks were capable of self-government; faced an inhospitable environment; nursed a “peculiar relationship” with America; confronted financial ruin; attempted rule over a million indigenous people; against all odds stood up to the most powerful European countries of the time; and established the only truly independent country in Africa. All this was accomplished under the constant scrutiny of supporters and critics of this “grand experiment.”