Top Ten Books of 2023

I read 137 books in 2023!  It is always hard to determine what my best ten books are for any year.  This year is a little different in that I knew off the top of my head what the top ten seven books were going to be and in what order.  Please note, I am choosing books from among different genres for this list.  The list includes mysteries, historical fiction and graphic novels. Among the genres, I read 51 mysteries, 46 historical fiction/historical mysteries, 27 graphic novels, and 7 nonfiction books. There were 6 additional books where I did not classify a genre.  They were Amish fiction novels. In addition, 64 of the books that I read were new releases and 33 were written by new (to me) authors.  Below are my top ten:

10.  White Faced Lies by Eric Flanagan (graphic novel)

9.  Sunburn by Andi Watson (graphic novel)

8.  Night at the Belfry by Xavier Saxon (graphic novel)

7.  The Shallows by Holly Craig (mystery)

6.  Red Queen by Juan Gomez Jurado (mystery)

5.  The Last Russian Doll by Kristen Loetsch (historical fiction)

4.  Banyan Moon by Thao Thai (historical fiction)

3.  Blood Oranges by J. M. Cannon (mystery)

2.  Weyward by Emilia Hart (historical mystery)

and my best book of the year is: 

1.  The Armor of Light by Ken Follett (historical fiction)

Top Ten Historical Fiction Novels of 2023

Historical fiction is one of my favorite genres. Between them and mysteries I read at least 100 books every year. Note that my top ten books were not necessarily published in 2023 but come from any of the books that I read this year.  The top five books, though, were published in 2023. Below is my list.  Drum roll please.

10)   Keeper of the Queen's Jewels by Adrienne Dillard

9)    The Godmother's Secret by Elizabeth St. John

8)    Cor Rotto by Adrienne Dillard

7)    Murder Under a Red Moon by Harini Nagendra

6)    The Importance of Pawns by Keira Morgan

5)    The Porcelain Moon by Janie Chang

4)    Terror in Topaz by A. M. Stuart

3)    Banyan Moon by Thao Thai

2)    Weyward by Emilia Hart

1)    The Armor of Light by Ken Follett

Top Ten Mystery Books of 2023

I have been reading mysteries ever since I learned to read.  They are my favorite genre and this year I read 61 of them. Note that my top ten books were not necessarily published in 2023 but come from any of the books that I read this year.  Eight of the books, though, were published in 2023. Here is my list:

10)    Murder at the Christmas Cookie Bake-Off by Darci Hannah

9)    Someone Else's Life by Lyn Liao Butler

8)    Hide by Tracy Clark

7)    The Blue Bar by Damyanti Biswas

6)    Date Night by Samantha Hayes

5)    Final Call by Alex Lake

4)    Honey Drop Dead by Laura Childs

3)    Red Queen by Juan Gomez Jurado

2)    The Shallows by Holly Craig

1)    Blood Oranges by J. M. Cannon

Top Ten New Authors of 2023

This past year I read books from 35 new (to me) authors. From these 35 authors, 17 wrote and published their debut novels in 2023. My best new author list contains 5 of these debut authors. Check out my list below:

10    Lyn Liao Butler - Someone Else's Life

9)    Damyanti Biswas - The Blue Bar

8)    Tracy Clark - Hide

7)    Thao Thai - Banyan Moon

6)    Erin Jameson - Sky of Ashes Land of Dreams

5)    Kristin Loetsch - The Last Russian Doll

4)    Heather Atkinson - Evil at Alardyce House

3)    Holly Craig - The Shallows

2)    Emilia Hart - Weyward

1)    J. M. Cannon - Blood Oranges

Top Ten Book Covers of 2023

Below are my favorite book covers of the year. I have posted them in order beginning with the best, ie, Weyward is my favorite book cover of the year.

Top Ten Books I Want in 2024

Each of these books is part of a series. Some are from a new (to me) series while others are series that I have been reading for years.

Top Ten Books of 2022

I read 141 books in 2022 from several genres. I read mysteries, historical fiction, historical mysteries, cozies, religion, non-fiction, science and graphic novels. Most of my reading was equally split between mysteries, historical fiction and graphic novels. My top ten list has been chosen from among all of these genres. Let the countdown begin!

10.  The Fugitive Colours by Nancy Bilyeau (historical fiction)

9.  19 Yellow Moon Road by Fern Michaels (mystery)

8.  The Butcher and the Wren by Alaina Urquhart (mystery)

7.  Putin's Russia by Darryl Cunningham (graphic novel)

6.  Beasts of a Little Land by Juhea Kim (historical fiction)

5.  The Good Wife of Bath by Karen Brooks (historical fiction)

4.  Kaikeyi by Vaishneva Patel (historical fiction)

3.  Take Your Breath Away by Linwood Barclay (suspense)

2.  Nine Lives by Peter Swanson (suspense)

And the number 1 book for 2022 is:  

1.  Peach Blossom Spring by Melissa Fu (historical fiction)

Top Ten Books I Want in 2023

I haven't heard much about books that will be published in 2023. I checked my post from last year and noticed that I read nine of my top ten wanted books for 2022. John Grisham's The Judge's List was the book I neglected to read. I struggled with my research but below are new books coming soon from my favorite authors.

• The Last Masterpiece by Laura Morelli, June 6, 2023 publication date
• Honey Drop Dead by Laura Childs, August 8, 2023 publication date
• The Mistress of Bhatia House by Sujata Massey, July 11, 2023 publication date
• Terror in Topaz by A. M Stuart, publication date not set (final installment of the Harriet Gordon Mysteries)
• The Secrets We Keep by S. D. Sykes, publication date not set 
• Lady Tan's Circle of Women by Lisa See, June 6, 2023 publication date
• Lion by Conn Iggulden, February 2, 2023 publication date
• The Porcelain Moon by Janie Chang, February 21, 2023 publication date 
• The Perfumist of Paris by Alka Joshi, March 28, 2023 publication date
• The Kind Worth Saving by Peter Swanson, March 7, 2023 publication date

Top Ten Book Covers of 2022

I started a regular monthly post this year on the best book covers of the month. In the middle of the year I decided it would be fun to highlight the artist who created the cover, when the artist can be found online.  It is one of my favorite posts to write. Below are my favorite book covers from first to last.

book design artist is Lisa Marie Pompilio

Illustrators Pius Bak and Roman Titov

book design artist is Will Staehle

Top Ten New Authors of 2022

Last year I read 99 new authors. In 2022 I only read 78 new (to me) authors. Below are my favorite new authors whose future books I am looking forward to reading.

10) Erica Ferencik (suspense thriller)

9)  Katie Tallo (psychological thriller)

8)  Peng Shepherd (magical realism)

7)  Alaina Urquhart (historical mystery)

6)  Karen Brooks (historical fiction)

5)  Juhea Kim (historical fiction)

4)  Vaishneva Patel (historical fiction)

3)  Linwood Barclay (suspense)

2)  Peter Swanson (psychological suspense)

1)  Melissa Fu (historical fiction)

Top Ten Books I Want in 2022

Several of my favorite authors will be publishing their latest novels in 2022.  We readers wait all year for new books from our favorite authors and then they are read in a day or two. The waiting begins again.  It's an awful affliction to have.