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 Artificial Wisdom

Martin Treanor Why did I love this book?

So, we’ve reached a future where the climate has finally broken down, and the world has decided a dictator is what’s needed to fix things. AI is the norm. As is neural/advanced VR communication. Yet, even in the midst of crisis, politicians are doing what they always do… trying to manipulate the situation for their own ends.

I loved this technothriller – it’s a fantastic read. The characters are relatable and nuanced. The story is a gem. I was gripped so quickly; if I didn’t need to do ‘life’ stuff, I would’ve finished it in one day.

By Thomas R. Weaver,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

SALVATION HAS A PRICE.An enthralling murder mystery with a vividly realised future world, forcing readers to grapple hard hitting questions about the climate crisis, our relationship with Artificial Intelligence and the price we would be willing to pay, as a species, to be saved. Perfect for fans of Blake Crouch, Neal Stephenson, Philip K Dick, Kim Stanley Robinson and RR Haywood.It's 2050, a decade after a heatwave that killed four hundred million across the Persian Gulf, including journalist Marcus Tully's wife. Now he must uncover the truth: was the disaster natural? Or is the weather now a weapon of genocide?A…


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My 2nd favorite read in 2023…

Book cover of So What Does It All Mean?

Martin Treanor Why did I love this book?

I read quite a few non-fiction books in any given year, and this book had me totally gripped (this is SS O’Connor’s fourth and final book in his Secrets of Life series).

Referencing back to the arching themes of the first three books: the gene’s challenges with the second law of thermodynamics, Game Theory, and many other theories of how we got to where we are all the way from the Big Bang, the author highlights how human behavior and the concepts of free will, trust, and cooperation are natural processes in the future evolution of humankind… and how things mightn’t be as black as they’re painted.

Yes, there is some pretty heady stuff in here. Still, the writing never gets stodgy, and O’Connor’s use of humor and well-placed anecdotes always makes for an entertaining and definitely interesting read.

I thoroughly enjoyed the collection and look forward to anything this author writes in the future. Everyone really should read the whole series.

By S. S. O'Connor,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked So What Does It All Mean? as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Why are humans neither 'good' nor 'bad'? How can so much chaos and confusion in the world actually lead to order? Why are we so often wrong when we're asked if the world's getting better?

In this, the last book in The Secrets of Life quartet, SS O'Connor pulls together the threads of genetic and cultural evolution, and then adds to these the conclusions of evolutionary game theory. As he does this, he ends with an intertwined narrative that explains why so many of the phenomena of our existence may not be the mysteries we think they are, but could…


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My 3rd favorite read in 2023…

Book cover of The Piper’s Children

Martin Treanor Why did I love this book?

I have read a few of this writer’s books before and, because I had finished them in a matter of days, was drawn to The Piper’s Children – his first novel in The Unsolvable Crimes series – and was in no way disappointed.

The guy is a superb wordsmith. He always knows how to pace a story and hooked me from the first sentence. The characters are, for want of a better word, cool. The story, leaning on an old folk tale, is intoxicating. And the crime/s and investigation/s are nicely constructed to keep you guessing.

There is nothing trite here. The book reads as it plays out. I loved it and immediately moved on to the second in the series. 

By Iain Henn,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Piper’s Children as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A baffling mystery sets an FBI agent on a dangerous path…

Park rangers are puzzled when a child is found wandering alone in the middle of a forest near Seattle.

Stranger still, he speaks a peculiar language that sounds a little like German, and is dressed in clothes people wore in the Middle Ages.

With no one having reported him missing, FBI Special Agent Will McCord assembles a dedicated unit to investigate the case, placing Detective Ilona Farris at its head.

Their relationship is edgy. They used to be an item. But McCord knows Farris is the best person for…


Don‘t forget about my book 😀

The Logos Prophecy

By Martin Treanor,

Book cover of The Logos Prophecy

What is my book about?

Ary Long is a conspiracy theorist, Jordan Burke is a science guy - and never the twain shall meet... until, through a chance encounter and a bizarre symbol, their lives take an extraordinary turn.

Thrown together by a mysterious group and hunted by their bitter enemies, the unlikely pair scour the globe, searching for the roots of the ancient symbol, uncovering the reality behind the existing world order and the arcane, metaphysical wisdom known as Logos.

13,000 years of exploitation-3 months, to put it right-history is not what you believe.