This week’s Top Ten Tuesday prompt is all about picking your favourite books of 2023. I don’t often think about books in terms of favourites, especially since my reading is highly capricious and mood-based… so I’ll just be picking ten books that stand out when I think back on the year, without trying to say they’re the best or my favourites. I’ll omit any rereads, just to make things easier.

And these are the books I read in 2023, which probably didn’t come out in 2023, because I’m rarely that up to date on recently released books.

1. Nettle & Bone, by T. Kingfisher. It’s rare lately that I find it difficult to put a book down, with lots of other things grabbing my attention. Nettle & Bone is one that I found myself eagerly picking up again right away, ready for more.
2. The Governess Affair, by Courtney Milan. I haven’t posted my review for this one yet, but I really liked it: Milan handles a traumatic issue sensitively, creating a bond between two characters that felt solid and real.
3. An Immense World, by Ed Yong. I love non-fiction when it makes me want to tell everyone the facts I’m learning, and Ed Yong’s book fit the bill. I was actually texting my mum about stuff I’d learned from it while waiting to be discharged from the post-op ward after a minor surgery!
4. Legends & Lattes, by Travis Baldree. I actually read this twice in 2023, because it really hit the spot for me — cosy and full of people being good to one another, and forging bonds.
5. Death of an Author, by E.C.R. Lorac. I often really enjoy Lorac’s work, and this was no exception, though it wasn’t much like her other work. It felt less cosy somehow, but it was a heck of a brainteaser.
6. The Waking of Angantyr, by Marie Brennan. Marie Brennan’s an auto-buy author for me, and I ended up reading this side-by-side with my wife while we were on a weekend away. We raced through it!
7. Untethered Sky, by Fonda Lee. I found this story lingering with me after I was done. I loved how the obsession was built up, the special relation between the handler and the roc illustrated.
8. The Good Virus, by Tom Ireland. Totally fascinating stuff about bacteriophages, and I learned a fair amount I didn’t know about existing bacteriophage therapy.
9. Murder: The Biography, by Kate Morgan. A history of murder and trials for murder, showing how precedent has shaped law. Interesting for its own sake, but especially in light of my interest in crime fiction!
10. He Who Whispers, by John Dickson Carr. Finally, this is the only one on the list not rated 5/5 by me this year, but it deserves a mention because it’s the book that actually piqued my interest in John Dickson Carr. Previously I’d tried several books by him and just couldn’t get on with them… but here we are in a world where I enjoy his books now, at least some of them!

And before we go, I have to give an honorable mention to Juneau Black’s Shady Hollow books, which I discovered in the last couple months of the year and had me totally absorbed.

How about you? Can you pick a top ten? Fascinated to see what has stood out for people this year!

This week’s theme from Reading Reality’s Top Ten Tuesday is all about the books we’re hoping Santa brings!

I’m not really allowed to go look at my wishlist at this time of year, since it automatically removes things that have been purchased for me… so we’ll just have to go with the ones that jump to mind, stuff I’d like to read in the year ahead, or things that I’ve only recently added and probably won’t be receiving for Christmas. Here goes…

1. Final Fantasy XIV: Eorzea Academy, by Esora Amaichi. This silly manga about certain characters from Final Fantasy XIV at a high school has been out officially in English for a little bit, but I virtuously put it back without purchasing it because I thought it might be something people could get me for Christmas. I love FFXIV, and am a total nerd about it, so this is right up my street.
2. The Scum Villain’s Self-Saving System vol. 2, by Mò Xiāng Tóng Xiù. I thought this series might be too silly for me… and it is pretty silly. But I’m also really curious about it and kind of charmed by it, so I’m eager to read more.
3. More Object Lessons. Object Lessons is a series of short books covering a small topic in depth — like personal stereos, or blue jeans, or trench coats. I love learning about random things, and each book is bitesize enough that if it turns out an object isn’t that interesting… well, it’s fine.
4. More of the Edible series. Similar to Object Lessons, each book covers a very specific topic in detail, but in this case it’s always food. I’ve read books about cookies and candy and doughnuts, and these are all beautifully illustrated with photos, too. And I never knew before how much argument there is over the definition of a pancake.
5. Miraculous Mysteries, edited by Martin Edwards. This one’s a rarity: a British Library Crime Classic that I don’t already have my hands on. It seems to be out of print, too.
6. A Sinister Revenge, by Deanna Raybourn. Owing to the particular plot in the previous book, An Impossible Impostor, I’m struggling to finish it. But I’m told that the next book is a lot more fun, even if you disliked the plot of An Impossible Impostor, so I’d like to get hold of this and give it a shot before the ninth book in the series comes out in March.
7. The second Griffin & Sabine trilogy, by Nick Bantock. Sometimes the prices for these have been silly, and second-hand is a bit of a gamble given the nature of the books (they contain letters in pouches, for example), but I really do want to read these someday. The first trilogy was very charming, and there remains a childlike glee in an interactive book like this, even one intended for adults.
8. Some Desperate Glory, by Emily Tesh. I’ve been tempted by this one since I saw it available for review, but I didn’t request it because I knew I wouldn’t get round to it in time. I’ve been promised a found family story and vengeance for the destruction of Earth, and I am definitely intrigued — especially as I loved Tesh’s Green Man novellas.
9. The Warden, by Daniel M. Ford. I saw this mentioned on K.A. Doore’s list of 2023 Queer Adult Science Fiction & Fantasy, and it had me at “necromancy” and “investigate mysteries in a small town”. It sounds like combining two very specific interests of mine…
10. The Undetectables, by Courtney Smyth. “Be gay, solve crime, take naps.” Do I need to say anything else? I spotted this on the above list as well and I’m definitely intrigued…

If you fancy granting any of these wishes, uhhh… talk to my wife first. Or, actually, you can use my wishlist (they keep it up to date, ensuring stuff that’s bought gets taken off). These books might already be waiting under the tree. I don’t know, and I’m not going to ask!

For everyone else — what about you? Are you hoping Santa will bring you an epic haul? What are you most looking forward to? Some people are including links to their wishlists, so I’ll be a wish-granting fairy for a bit this afternoon; I love getting people books!

This week’s theme from That Artsy Reader Girl’s Top Ten Tuesday linkup is the books that are on your winter TBR. I don’t usually read stuff with a deliberate eye to seasonal appropriateness, but this year I did end up acquiring a bunch of seasonal mysteries all at once… so they play a big part in my upcoming choices.

1. Silent Nights: Christmas Mysteries, edited by Martin Edwards. This is in the British Library Crime Classics series, and is one of the older anthologies — I’ve already read this year’s, Who Killed Father Christmas?, and another from a previous year, The Christmas Card Crime. Some of them don’t feel very seasonal and obviously murder isn’t entirely cheery, but it’s fun all the same.
2. Christmas: A History, by Judith Flanders. I’ve enjoyed Flanders’ work before, so this seemed both something likely to interest me and something a bit seasonal, since I appear to be getting into the mood this year. I’ve read a bit of it already, but I’m not far in.
3. The White Priory Murders, by Carter Dickson (aka John Dickson Carr). I only recently found my way to enjoying John Dickson Carr’s work, so I’ve been working my way through a backlog of the British Library’s reprints. Not all of it is a hit even now, but I’m looking forward to giving this a shot. Very classic crime setup with only one set of footprints in the snow, etc (John Dickson Carr was famous for impossible mysteries, so there’s probably something especially ingenious here).
4. Who Killed the Curate? by Joan Coggin. This one’s also a Christmas-themed one, so I’d better get round to this before the end of December. Otherwise it feels like singing carols in September — only appropriate if you’re in a choir and practising for performances!
5. A Portrait in Shadow, by Nicole Jarvis. This is a historical fantasy novel featuring Artemisia Gentileschi, which is a choice that absolutely has my attention. I can’t remember who originally mentioned it such that I grabbed a copy — I thought it was imyril, but her review only went up recently… In any case, I’m intrigued.
6. Pockets: An Intimate History of How We Keep Things Close, by Hannah Carlson. This is a bit of change of pace from the others! In the last few years, perhaps due to the influence of the Great British Sewing Bee, I’ve developed a bit of an interest in the history of clothes. I’ve read a book about pockets before, so I’m not sure how much this one will add, but someone at Mr B’s Emporium of Reading Delights said he’s listening to the audiobook and finding it fascinating, so… that seems like a solid recommendation.
7. Unnatural Magic, by C.M. Waggoner. Over the course of the last six months or so, I’ve been meeting up with a friend to go to bookshops every so often. On our very first trip he got this book, and on our most recent one he recommended it to me very highly. He’s said some interesting things about it, so I’m definitely ready to give it a shot!
8. The Bone Chests, by Cat Jarman. This is another non-fiction book from a recent haul, but I’ve had my eye on it for a while. I think I enjoyed Jarman’s previous book, and I was just intrigued by the idea of understanding the context around the chests of royal bones in Winchester Cathedral. Here’s hoping it’s as interesting as it looks!
9. A Nobleman’s Guide to Seducing a Scoundrel, by KJ Charles. I know, I know, I’m late to read this — but I was late about the first book too, so I’m just running to my own clock here. I always read everything KJ Charles writes, so I’ll get there soon. In part, I needed to shake off the characters of the previous book to be ready to embrace a different pair of leads.
10. A River Enchanted, by Rebecca Ross. I started this a while ago and then sort of got distracted, but not for lack of interest. It was actually a random pick at the bookshop that I hadn’t heard anything about, where reading the first couple of pages intrigued me enough that I decided to give it a go. I think I’m still finding my footing with the book, but I do want to finish it. I’m a little annoyed, though; the cover copy did not make it obvious that it’s a duology and not complete in itself. Oh well!

So that’s a rather random grab bag of potential wintery reads for me. How about everyone else? Do you expect to read all of yours? I expect I’ll get to some of mine… eventually, maybe not this winter.

This week’s Top Ten Tuesday prompt is a US-centric one, in honour of Thanksgiving, but it’s never a bad idea to think about the stuff we’re grateful for. So the theme is “reasons why I’m thankful for books”.

1. They help me learn new things. I always like to be learning stuff. And sure, I’m studying for my MSc at the moment, and that’s a lot of stuff to learn… but even in my downtime, I like to learn, and informal learning from books is a lot of fun. I’ve been reading a lot of the Object Lessons and Edible books for bite-size non-fiction, for example.
2. They’ve often given me stuff to talk about. Sometimes that’s in an awkward moment, but I also mean the in-depth rambling conversations with like-minded people where books allow us to just… ramble around in each other’s minds for a while. Many, many conversations about books with my mother, for example.
3. They help my mental health. The more I’m reading, usually, the better I feel. It’s all about making time for myself, and also about taking my mind away from whatever I’m lingering on. Also, it’s just fun.
4. They’re exciting… in a way that doesn’t involve me having to do adrenaline-inducing things. Okay, sometimes even reading about it is a little much. But really, it’s fun to have adventures without much skin in the game, beyond my own emotional involvement.
5. Books are literally always there as an option. They’re never too busy, they don’t get tired or get headaches or have crises in their own lives. So if I need a break from reality, or to read something comforting and familiar, books always have the time.
6. They make any room look nice and lived in. First thing I move into a new place is at least some of my books…
7. Some of them smell really nice. Some glue smells are bad, and old books can get really musty. But books that are just right smell delicious somehow.
8. Books are an experience you can revisit. Sometimes it’s a whole new experience the second time (there are several books I didn’t like at first and tried again and loved them!), but still, books are there for you to come back to, to re-experience, or experience anew.
9. Books make a lovely gift that you can personalise to a high degree. I can choose books for most of my family that make meaningful, exciting gifts! (Spoiler: if it has dragons, my sister is thrilled.)
10. You can put a book aside and pick it up easily, at any moment. Reading can be as flexible an experience as you need it to be, whether you’re reading a page a day, a chapter, a whole book… you can pause, restart, etc.

And after I finished all ten, here’s a bonus thought: books make a lovely excuse to be an introvert. You’re not just going off on your own, you’re reading. People find that much more acceptable!

Okay, I struggled a bit with this and what to share, but I think that made a good start. Fascinated to see what other people have come up with!

This week’s Top Ten Tuesday is one I’m not totally sure how to answer, because I don’t really know what counts as “mainstream” for these purposes, and I have pretty eclectic taste. Let’s have a shot: the theme is “Mainstream Popular Authors that I Still Have Not Read”.

1. George R.R. Martin. Okay, he’s a fantasy writer, but pretty much a household name by now, right? Anyway, I don’t think I’ve ever read anything by him — and I definitely haven’t read the Game of Thrones series.
2. James Patterson. I do have one of his books on my to-read list because it involves postcards (and I review books about postcards for Postcrossing’s blog), but I haven’t read any yet.
3. Zadie Smith. I think I audited a course that had one of her books on the list, back in university, but I wasn’t actually sitting the course so I didn’t do all the reading.
4. Elena Ferrante. I try most stuff, but her books don’t really appeal to me, so I doubt I’ll give them a shot any time soon.
5. Hilary Mantel. I’ve got a couple of her books to read, but I’ve not touched them yet. Oops?
6. Jonathan Franzen. Something about his work just super does not appeal.
7. Michael Chabon. I own a couple of his books, I’ve even intended to read them very strongly at times… but I’ve never actually got round to it.
8. Sally Rooney. I don’t actually know much about her books? They’re not squarely in my wheelhouse, or I’d know more about them from others at the very least, but it’s not like I’ve made a firm decision not to try them. Rather, what I’ve seen/heard is fairly limited, and I’ve made no decision, but nothing’s drawn me in either.
9. Amy Tan. I have a copy of The Joy Luck Club somewhere, or I used to, but I never touched it. Oops.
10. Steig Larsson. His books never really called to me from all I heard about them, though they were such a thing for a while that I had my eye on them.

Do I have surprising gaps here? Is there something you’re curious about whether I’ve read it or not?

Just… don’t try to argue with me whether these are mainstream or not. I just found a list or two of mainstream authors and cherry-picked from that!

It’s been a while since I participated in Top Ten Tuesday, but I’ve been kind of a hermit for a bit and I’d love to get back in touch with the wider blog-o-sphere, so let’s give this a go! This week’s list theme is “titles that could be headlines”. Hmmm…

Well, first up, a lot of mystery novels are perfect for this task. I’ll stick to only a few of those, and see if I can find some other neat ones as well, but to get us started…

1. Requiem for a Mezzo, by Carola Dunn. One of the early Daisy Dalrymple novels. I could actually use the titles of this series for quite a few answers — Murder on the Flying Scotsman, Fall of a Philanderer, Death at Wentwater Court, anyone?
2. Murder in the Dark, by Kerry Greenwood. I do love the Phryne Fisher series, but I think I’ve only ever read this one once. I should carry on with my reread of this series!
3. Post After Post-Mortem, by E.C.R. Lorac. You can just picture a headline with that kind of snappy alliteration and mystery-causing, right? Also, this is a really good book, though personally I found it a bit harrowing due to the themes.
4. A Very English Murder, by Verity Bright. I haven’t read this one, but I can still picture it on the front page of some newspaper or other.
5. The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club, by Dorothy L. Sayers. I can see a particular sort of “respectable” newspaper choosing something kind of… restrained to refer to a murder.

Now let’s see if we can get a bit more adventurous and grub up some other headlines…

6. Black Ops and Beaver Bombing, by Fiona Mathews and Tim Kendall. It sounds kinda weird, definitely like one of those headlines they use to pique your interest. As it happens, it’s about British wildlife. I haven’t read it, so I can’t honestly answer you about what the beaver bombing is about.
7. Unmasked by the Marquess, by Cat Sebastian. Okay, this probably isn’t a modern headline… but nobody specified that, right? And the book is fun, too.
8. How Long Till Black Future Month? by N.K. Jemisin. A pertinent question, after all.
9. Europe at Midnight, by Dave Hutchinson. I haven’t read this one yet, but I can envision this being the big blocky headline of the Daily Mail or whatever.
10. The Dos and Donuts of Love, by Adiba Jaigirdar. What headline can resist a pun? Cute book, too.

There, whew, I did it.

Have any of the titles piqued your interest? I’ve reviewed a bunch of these, so let me know if you’re interested in my take and I’ll grub up the links!

This week’s theme from That Artsy Reader Girl is “book covers with fall colours”. I’m not a great noticer of anything design related, I must admit… but let’s see what I can find.

There we go! Lots of oranges. Pretty random selection, mostly just for reds and oranges rather an autumnal mood! It’s a nicely weird combination, too.

I’m gonna bet other people did way better with this than me, ahaha.