Hello again dear reader or listener, remember the week between Xmas and NY doesn’t count for Santa’s list, so I hope you’ve been having fun these last few days of 2023!
If I’m being honest 2023 was a bit of a mixed bag and life stuff plus the undertaking of an MRes meant much less leisure reading for me this year. If I hadn’t signed up for so many ARCs in fact, I doubt I’d have read as much as I did in the end. But I am also pleased to say I had some great reads regardless and now I’m gonna do my best to give you a top five. This was the year I leaned a bit more into the thriller/horror/Gothic ambiances even though in this list you’ll also find various subgenres of fantasy such as steampunk, epic, and historical fantasy, as well as some romance.
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Review: Death of a Christmas Tree Salesman (Sam Shovel #1) by Patricia Meredith
Synopsis Sam Shovel only comes to life for twelve days a year at Christmastime, and this year, he’s in time to solve a murder mystery at the North Pole. O. Tannenbaum—the world’s largest supplier of Christmas trees—has been murdered, and although Nick and Nora Claus are too busy to solve the mystery, Sam has enough […]
Review: An Inheritance Of Ash And Blood (Heirs Of War Trilogy #1) by Jamie Edmundson
Synopsis Sorcery is dying out No one misses it. Feared and despised in equal measure, Sanc is only tolerated because he’s the son of the powerful Duke of Morbaine. But Sanc is more important than he knows. When his life is threatened, he is forced to confront his true inheritance. For a new god has […]
Review: Truth of Crowns (The Ash Eternal #1) by Carl D. Albert
Synopsis: “Secrets, secrets are so fun. Secrets, secrets – cut my tongue.” In a land where magick is heresy and ancient forces manipulate human whims, secrets will tear a fragile peace asunder. Four people stand at the heart of this burgeoning war. An unproven prince who married a woman forbidden to him. A sickly boy […]
Ganesh’s (Pippin Took) top reads of 2023
Doing a top reads post sounded very exciting until I actually had to do it. Good thing is I don’t have to do one for another whole year. I will say straight up that following Indie authors on Bookstagram/Twitter is destructive to one’s TBR. They keep bigging up one another’s books and have nice covers […]
Review: Dust and Deliverance by Benjamin DeHaan
Synopsis Paulo, a father, high school counselor and recent widower, searches for his lost daughter Adriana who has become bound to the cocaine drug cartel. Adriana, daughter of Paulo, runs away from higher education and seeks fortunes and a life of paradise. Sam, gaming addict and divorced Denver Police officer, blames his failed marriage on his wife’s […]
Book Review: A Path of Blades by R.E.Sanders
Synopsis Ingvar Darelle, a sworn soldier for his country, wants to live a quiet and peaceful life with his family and the woman that he loves. Circumstances, however, seem to stand in the way of his dream. Faced by the schemes of those with power, fractured relationships, and problems with his family’s estate, Ingvar must […]
Ashley’s Top Reads of 2023
Ashley’s Top Reads of 2023. I have completed 79 books for 2023 that were largely adventurous, dark, emotional, and mysterious. My top reads this year ended up being an eclectic bunch.
Review: A King’s Radiance (Bonds of Kin #1) by L. R. Schulz
Synopsis Three siblings… a rebel, a prince, a prisoner The sun’s light shines bright over the land of Zapour, and only a select few can harness its power. But all power comes with a cost, and the world is not kind to those who refuse to pay it. Raiz Glaive, a strong shine wielder, was […]
Review: Vampires of El Norte by Isabel Cañas
Synopsis As the daughter of a rancher in 1840s Mexico, Nena knows a thing or two about monsters—her home has long been threatened by tensions with Anglo settlers from the north. But something more sinister lurks near the ranch at night, something that drains men of their blood and leaves them for dead. Something that […]
My Favorite SFF Reads of 2023
2023 was an exceptional year in reading for me. First because I read more books this year than I had read in previous years. Second because of all the connections that I’ve made in the book community through BookTube as well as FanFiAddict. I read so many wonderful books this year. This list is by […]
Review: No Safe Haven (Malitu #2) by James Lloyd Dulin
Synopsis Anger will not be quenched by blood alone. The Missing, a rebel army that is little more than a rumor, may be Kaylo’s only path to exact his vengeance against the empire that claimed his home and killed his family. If it means a chance to balance the blood he owes, he will steal […]