Reading Year in Review: 2023 Stats & Superlatives

Welcome to my wrap-up for the entirety of my 2023 reading, which I’m posting well before the end of 2024. We’ve got lots of stats as well as lots of favorites, so let’s get into it.

Stats

Total books read: 111

Total pages read: 35,850

Longest book: Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros – 640p

Shortest book: The Lover by Silvia Moreno-Garcia – 43p

Average book length: 322p

Most popular (on Goodreads): The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood (re-read) – shelved 2,563,172 times

Least popular (on Goodreads): The Veil by Rachel Harrison (short story) – shelved 1,596 times

Average Goodreads rating: 4.0 stars

Highest rated book on Goodreads: Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros (4.60 stars on average)

 

Top 10 Favorite books of 2023:

Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries (Emily Wilde, #1)BabelOcean's EchoYellowface

Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett (historical fantasy); Babel by R. F. Kuang (historical fantasy); Ocean’s Echo by Everina Maxwell (science fiction romance); Yellowface by R. F. Kuang (satirical contemporary/literary fiction).

Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria RilkePoverty, by America by Matthew DesmondThe Atlas Paradox by Olivie BlakeSuch Sharp Teeth by Rachel Harrison

Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria Rilke (nonfiction); Poverty, by America by Matthew Desmond (nonfiction); The Atlas Paradox by Olivie Blake (fantasy); Such Sharp Teeth by Rachel Harrision (horror).

And I Do Not Forgive You by Amber SparksDelphi by Clare Pollard

And I Do Not Forgive You by Amber Sparks (fabulist short story collection); Delphi by Clare Pollard (contemporary literary fiction).

Runner-Up Favorites of 2023

A Strange and Stubborn Endurance by Foz MeadowsDivine Rivals by Rebecca RossLa Petite Mort by Olivie BlakeThe Last Tale of the Flower Bride by Roshani Chokshi

A Strange and Stubborn Endurance by Foz Meadows (fantasy romance); Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross (YA fantasy romance); La Petite Mort by Olivie Blake (contemporary fantasy); The Last Tale of the Flower Bride (fabulism).

Imogen, Obviously by Becky AlbertalliLove, Theoretically by Ali HazelwoodWreck the Halls by Tessa BaileyI Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai

Imogen, Obviously by Becky Albertalli (YA contemporary romance); Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood (contemporary romance); Wreck the Halls by Tessa Bailey (holiday romance); I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai (mystery).

Magic Tides by Ilona AndrewsBad Dolls by Rachel Harrison

Magic Tides by Ilona Andrews (urban fantasy/paranormal romance); Bad Dolls by Rachel Harrison (horror short story collection).

 

Longest books I read in 2023

A Strange and Stubborn Endurance by Foz Meadows – 544p

Babel by R. F. Kuang – 544p

Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros – 528p

Ocean’s Echo by Everina Maxwell – 480p

The Foxglove King by Hannah Whitten – 480p

The Undertaking of Hart & Mercy by Megan Bannen – 448p

I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai –  438p

 

Best sequels

If Only You by Chloe LieseBeast in Shining Armor by Cassandra Gannon

Favorite romance

Love, Theoretically by Ali HazelwoodWreck the Halls by Tessa BaileyTwo Wrongs Make a Right by Chloe LieseForget Me Not by Julie SotoThe Fiancée Farce by Alexandria Bellefleur

Favorite YA

Divine Rivals by Rebecca RossImogen, Obviously by Becky AlbertalliOut of Character by Jenna MillerMy Mechanical Romance by Alexene Farol Follmuth

Favorite nonfiction

Poverty, by America by Matthew DesmondLetters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria RilkeEasy Money by Ben McKenzieOpinions by Roxane Gay

Short stories read in 2023

And I Do Not Forgive You by Amber SparksBad Dolls by Rachel HarrisonFairytales of the Macabre by Olivie Blake

New-to-Me Authors Whose 2024 Releases I’m Excited For

Director's CutWe Got the BeatA Witch's Guide to Magical Innkeeping

Most disappointing

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie GarmusHappy Place by Emily Henry

Jane Austen retellings

Emma of 83rd Street by Audrey BellezzaJust as You Are by Camille KelloggThe Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet by Bernie Su

Fairytale retellings

Thornhedge by T. KingfisherBeast in Shining Armor by Cassandra Gannon

Leave a comment