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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 Reproduction

Vered Hazanchuk Why did I love this book?

Talk about a book that stays with you long after you’ve finished!

I got all the feels from this one – love, grief, joy, frustration, sadness.

Reproduction is a unique read, a novel capturing the different lives modern women are leading today when it comes to motherhood and conceiving, and I commend Hall for her bravery and beautiful words. 

By Louisa Hall,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

'Compelling, elegant and bitingly smart.' Nell Stevens, author of Briefly, A Delicious Life

A Frankenstein for the twenty-first century by the Dylan Thomas Prize-shortlisted author of Trinity and Speak

A woman begins work on a novel about Mary Shelley while pregnant for the first time. Recently married, she has just moved from New York to Montana.

As the woman writes, fragments of Shelley's story begin to detach themselves from the page. Moving through her reproductive years, Shelley endured a catalogue of losses painful beyond comprehension. Still, she wrote, conceiving Frankenstein in 1816.

The woman's experiences of pregnancy, miscarriage and labour…


My 2nd favorite read in 2023…

Book cover of Tom Lake

Vered Hazanchuk Why did I love this book?

A piece of advice I will always remember from writing school is this: not all characters have to be likable, but your reader should want to live with at least one of them long enough to finish the book.

Well, folks, I wanted to live with each and every one of these characters as they gathered on the family farm and told each other stories to pass the time during the 2020 quarantine.

In true Ann Patchett fashion, this one’s light on the drama, but I think her quiet understanding of what makes her characters tick is part of the appeal.   

By Ann Patchett,

Why should I read it?

14 authors picked Tom Lake as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER * THE NO. 1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * A REESE WITHERSPOON AND BBC RADIO 2 BOOK CLUB PICK 'A new Ann Patchett novel is always cause for celebration ... and Tom Lake is one of her best' i 'This comforting summer read has it all ... Young love, sibling rivalry and deep mother-daughter relationships' REESE WITHERSPOON 'Filled with the moments I live for in a story' BONNIE GARMUS, author of Lessons in Chemistry 'One of the most beloved authors of her generation' SUNDAY TIMES ----------------------------- This is a story about Peter Duke who went on…


My 3rd favorite read in 2023…

Book cover of The Spectacular

Vered Hazanchuk Why did I love this book?

I was a dancer for a long time and a sucker for historical fiction, so the Rockette during the 1950s Manhattan storyline is what first drew me in.

But no dance background is needed to enjoy this one; what made me really fall in love with The Spectacular is the independent, strong-willed leading lady. There’s also a great whodunnit storyline to get you flying through the pages (or listening non-stop to the excellent audiobook version, as I did). 

By Fiona Davis,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

From the New York Times Bestselling Author of The Magnolia Palace: A thrilling story about love, sacrifice, and the pursuit of dreams, set amidst the glamour and glitz of Radio City Music Hall in its mid-century heyday.

New York City, 1956: Nineteen-year-old Marion Brooks knows she should be happy. Her high school sweetheart is about to propose and sweep her off to the life everyone has always expected they’d have together: a quiet house in the suburbs, Marion staying home to raise their future children. But instead, Marion finds herself feeling trapped. So when she comes across an opportunity to…


Plus, check out my book…

Life As An Almost

By Vered Hazanchuk,

Book cover of Life As An Almost

What is my book about?

Evie Mission is a survivor. A fiery twenty-year-old woman who grew up in foster care, she is just trying to figure out what living a “normal” life even means.

When Evie finds out her cerebral palsy dates back to her biological mother’s back-alley abortion attempt, her orderly world is turned upside down, and she embarks on a journey to find answers. But finding answers means the one thing she is dreading: finding her mother.

An intimate and raw novel about mothers, daughters, and what we expect from the people we call family.