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 Empress of Forever

Ness Brown Why did I love this book?

I love reading about rag-tag teams of misfits and outcasts going up against the impossible, and this book fully delivers on that front.

It follows tech mogul Vivian Liao through a botched attempt to save the world that slings her clear across the cosmos and through rip-roaring shenanigans alongside a motley but lovable crew.

This swash-buckling space adventure weaves some of my favorite story elements, a found-family-esque ensemble; anti-heroes turned friends; and a dramatic identity reveal through vivid and cinematic settings throughout the vast universe (and in between its interdimensional nooks and crannies.)

This book’s fast pace, high stakes, and meaningful character dynamics had me speeding through it straight to the climactic end.

By Max Gladstone,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

A wildly successful innovator to rival Steve Jobs or Elon Musk, Vivian Liao is prone to radical thinking, quick decision-making, and reckless action. On the eve of her greatest achievement, she's trying to outrun those who are trying to steal her success.

In the chilly darkness of a Boston server farm, Viv sets her ultimate plan into motion. A terrifying instant later, Vivian Liao is catapulted through space and time to a far future where she confronts a destiny stranger and more deadly than she could ever imagine.

The end of time is ruled by an ancient, powerful Empress who…


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My 2nd favorite read in 2023

Book cover of Semiosis

Ness Brown Why did I love this book?

This book lingered on my mind long after I flipped the last page. This book is a multi-generational account of an ex-colony in a world that makes one question the definition of sentience.

I enjoyed the use of the wide cast to study the folly of overly optimistic galactic colonization and the cost of establishing a new and peaceful society, all in the shadow of an intelligence that the characters take decades to begin to understand. Some parts are disturbing but always in service of the theme.

I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys methodically paced narratives that make one question the nature of civilization and the unexpected ways in which an alien intellect could present.

By Sue Burke,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked Semiosis as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Colonists from Earth wanted the perfect home, but they'll have to survive on the one they found. They don't realize another life form watches...and waits.


My 3rd favorite read in 2023

Book cover of A Desolation Called Peace

Ness Brown Why did I love this book?

This book is just as gorgeously and intelligently written as the first installment in the Teixcalaanli space empire.

It picks up the series’ examination of colonialism, otherness, and language’s complicity in conquest while bringing in new, alien elements that force the protagonists to grapple with the concept of personhood.

We follow disillusioned Mahit Dzmare as she struggles to adjust to life after the events of the first book, her will-they-won’t-they relationship with her former imperial liaison, and an all-new threat to Teixcalaan that challenges loyalties and the social and personal mechanisms on which empire grinds.

Readers who know the sting of being othered, who enjoy smart drama and political machinations, or who like messy first-contact stories that demand the most from their characters will love this sequel too. 

By Arkady Martine,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked A Desolation Called Peace as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A Desolation Called Peace is the spectacular space opera sequel to A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine, winner of the 2020 Hugo Award for Best Novel.

An alien terror could spell our end.

An alien threat lurks on the edges of Teixcalaanli space. No one can communicate with it, no one can destroy it, and Fleet Captain Nine Hibiscus is supposed to win a war against it.

In a desperate attempt to find a diplomatic solution, the fleet captain has sent for an envoy to contact the mysterious invaders. Now Mahit Dzmare and Three Seagrass - both still reeling…


Don‘t forget about my book 😀

The Scourge Between Stars

By Ness Brown,

Book cover of The Scourge Between Stars

What is my book about?

As acting captain of the starship Calypso, Jacklyn Albright is responsible for keeping the last of humanity alive as they limp back to Earth from their forebears’ failed colony on a distant planet. Faced with constant threats of starvation and destruction in the treacherous minefield of interstellar space, Jacklyn’s crew has reached their breaking point.

As unrest begins to spread throughout the ship’s Wards, a new threat emerges, picking off crew members in a grim, bloody fashion.

Jacklyn and her team must hunt down the ship’s unknown intruder to have any hope of making it back to their solar system alive.

Book cover of Empress of Forever
Book cover of Semiosis
Book cover of A Desolation Called Peace

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