It’s been another great year filled with stories that have transported me to wonderful places. This is the time of the year I love because I get the chance to look back at the books I’ve read throughout 2023.
Setting A Goal For 2023
A few years ago I started setting myself reading challenges as a way to force myself to take the time to relax and enjoy reading again. In 2022 I set the goal of reading 50 books in 12 months and for 2023 I increased it to 52. It’s not a huge increase but there are 52 weeks in a year so this becomes the challenge of reading a book every week of the year.
The Books I Read in 2023
For the last couple of years I’ve tried to expand the style of books I read as I was noticing I had a tendency to read the same style of books. Not that that’s necessarily a bad thing, but I wanted to give more books a chance. As it turned out, I loved including these books into my reading list so I’m happy to see my 2023 books list has a mix of styles too.
Non-Fiction – Travel Memoirs
Being a travel blogger I can’t help but love the written stories of people’s travels. There are so many fun and crazy stories out there just waiting to be read and enjoyed.
Being Scottish in Italy by Fraser Lauchlan
This is the hilarious memoir of Fraser Lauchlan, a Scottish bloke moving to Italy for his Italian wife, trying to navigate a culture completely different to his own. After one too many cold winters in Scotland, his wife was seeking the comfort of her old life in warm Italy. In his hilarious memoir, Fraser recounts his tale of learning the language and customs so different from his own.
READ ALSO: Books Set in Italy
More Ketchup Than Salsa by Joe Crawley
Childhood sweethearts Joe and Joy are broke, bored and fed up with a day job that leaves them smelling of fish. When they are presented with an opportunity to leave England to run a bar in Tenerife, they jump at the opportunity before considering what it really entails along with brother David and his partner Faith. The foursomes fantasy quickly turns into a nightmare when they find themselves having to save a failing bar in a foreign land.
READ ALSO: Books Set in Spain
Slow Train to Switzerland by Diccon Bewes
In June 1863 Thomas Cook took his first conducted tour of Switzerland. During this trip one woman kept a diary of her experience and the route the group took. 50 years later and travel writer Diccon Brewes decided to use her diary and go where she went to see what she saw. He wanted to discover how much had changed and how much hadn’t.
Eat, Gay, Love by Calum McSwiggan
After his 6 year relationship comes to an end, Calum finds himself single, heartbroken and unsure what to do next. He ends up embarking on a trip around the world that sees him teaching in Italy, exploring the sex clubs in Berlin and raising tigers in a sanctuary in Thailand. A travel memoir with a difference, Eat, Gay, Love is a celebration of the extraordinary lives of the LGBTQ+ community he meets around the world.
The Further Adventures of An Idiot Abroad by Karl Pilkington
Known for his friendship with Ricky Gervais and a reluctance for travel, Karl Pilkington is back with a second book outlining his most recent adventures on the TV show An Idiot Abroad. In this almost anti travel memoir, Karl gives an amusing take on his highly opinionated views on what other people consider to be a must do bucket list ambition.
Non-Fiction – Biographies
Biographies might not be everyone’s cup of tea but I love them. It’s a great chance to find out more about a celebrity you love and discover more about their early life and how they got to where they did.
Dreams of My Father by Barack Obama
Long before Barack Obama was known for being the president of the United States he was just a normal young man asking big questions about his identity and belonging. The son of a black African father and white American mother, Barack recounts his emotional journey of self identity while struggling with a divided inheritance.
And Away… by Bob Mortimer
Comedian Bob Mortimer was happily leading his life until 2015 when he was diagnosed with a heart condition that required immediate surgery and forced him to cancel an upcoming tour. This caused him to look back on his life so far which is what brought us this hilarious biography with a difference. Maybe it was one too many appearances on the hit show Would I Like to You? But Mortimer decided to throw a few lies into the mix. Can you guess the lies hidden in the ridiculous truths?
Non-Fiction – Comedy
Who doesn’t love to laugh? Some people mistake non-fiction books for being serious, and of course some are on serious subjects, but there are some great comedy books too.
Me Vs Brain by Hayley Morris
Hayley Morris was one of the first creators on Tik Tok I fell in love with. Her skits about her overactive and quite demanding brain leave me in stitches. So when she announced she had a book coming out I was keen to pre-order it and I’m so glad I did. She’s just as funny in print as she is in her videos. If you love her Tik Tok’s, you’re going to love her book!
Sorry, I’m British by Ben Crystal
What’s one thing the British are really good at doing? That’s right, taking the piss out of ourselves. And this hilarious A-Z style guide of Britain and British behaviours will have with you smiling to yourself with its accuracy.
Non-Fiction – History
You learn some really fascinating things when you look back at stories and events from the past. It took me a few years to appreciate that history books can be interesting to read but now I love them.
Coronation Everest by Jan Morris
I’ve been obsessed with Everest and that first successful summit for a few years now so this has been a book I’ve wanted to read for a while. It was Morris who broke the news that a British led expedition had finally reached the summit of Everest the day before the Queen’s coronation in 1953. This is Jan’s (then James) intimate recollection of that expedition.
Murder: The Biography by Kate Morgan
If you’re a fan of true crime and have always wondered how our British laws around murder have changed and adapted over the years, this is a book for you! A fascinating look at the cases and situations that caused laws to be tweaked to reflect the times. It really is the biography of murder!
Non-Fiction – The Sciences
Like with history books, it took me a while to appreciate the joys of reading books about the sciences but now I’m happy to read them.
The Fabric of the Cosmos by Brian Greene
The Fabric of the Cosmos is a complex subject and this book took quite a while to get through. However, Greene has a unique ability to break down a complex subject and make it fairly easy to understand the theoretical physics of how space and time came to exist.
The Psychology of Dexter by Bella DePaulo
This one is a book for the fans of the TV show Dexter. If you’ve never seen it, Dexter is a serial killer but with a twist. He was brought up to kill criminals, keeping the streets of Miami safer with less murderers running around. A serial killer doing ‘good deeds’ certainly raises some psychological questions and that’s what this book focuses on. Just make sure you’ve seen the first 4 seasons of the show otherwise there will be some major spoilers!
Non-Fiction – Folk Tales
A style of books I’ve never really read before but recently I was on a job and my colleague bought a couple of folk tales books from the area and they looked too interesting to ignore so I actually read them before she did!
Under the Moonlight by Clyde Viechweg
Spending a month in Grenada I couldn’t resist stealing this from my colleague so I could learn a little bit more about the country through its folk tales. With over twenty stories discover the big headed little man who terrorised a village. Or the death cult that uses the supernatural to steal the souls of babies in order to enrich themselves. Or tales about the Lingaroo, a man who sucks the blood of his victims while they sleep.
Caribbean Folk Tales by Wendy Shearer
Professional storyteller Wendy Shearer has gathered stories from many of the Caribbean islands and countries to bring these folk tales to life. With tales of love and loss, spirits, shapeshifters and justice, you’ll discover things like the curse of Mama D’leau in Trinidad or the legend of the giant water lily in Guyana.
Non-Fiction – Other
Sometimes it’s hard to put all the books I read into neat categories so this is for the non-fiction books I read that don’t fit the other categories.
Notes on a Nervous Planet by Matt Haig
Rates of stress and anxiety are on the rise. In a world where we are more connected than ever, we have never felt so alone. After experiencing years of anxiety and panic attacks, Matt Haig began to look for a link between what he felt and the world around him. This is his personal look at how to feel happy and human in the twenty-first century.
Fiction – Crime / Thriller
Even though I’m trying hard to expand my reading habits, I’m always drawn back to my favourite type of books so this will always be my largest category.
Take Your Breath Away by Linwood Barclay
When a wife goes missing it’s always the husband who is suspected. So when Brie just vanished from her home and no-one was caught, people assumed that Andy, her husband, had got away with murder. Six years later and Andy is finally getting his life back on track. His old house has been demolished, he’s moved away and has a good relationship with a new girlfriend. Things were going well until one day a woman who looks like Brie shows up at their old address screaming “where’s my house?” before vanishing again. Does this mean Brie was never murdered? Can Andy discover the truth and finally clear his name?
The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen
A clever thriller with twists you don’t see coming. Nellie just wants to live her dream life with her dream man. Marrying a man with a past was always going to come with problems but she never imagined becoming the focus of another woman’s obsession. But when Vanessa hears that Richard is to remarry she becomes insanely jealous of this younger woman who has replaced her. Vanessa is determined to stop Richard’s marriage from happening and nothing will stop her.
READ ALSO: Books Set in New York
Blood on Snow by Jo Nesbo
Olav lives a lonely life. Well, it’s hard to get close to anyone when you ‘fix’ people for a living. But then he meets his dream woman and starts to picture a different life. Unfortunately for him, she is the wife of his boss. Oh and the woman he’s been hired to kill!
The Venetian Masquerade by Philip Gwynne Jones
Carnevale is in full swing and the streets of Venice are full of crowds of masked tourists. Nathan Sunderland, not a fan of the crowds Carnevale brings, choses to head to the opera to escape it all. However, the night is not what he expects when a fatal stabbing happens and police soon discover Nathan’s business card within the dead man’s wallet. It has him wondering how this stranger got ahold of his card and soon after Nathan finds himself on a hunt for a missing opera that someone is willing to kill for.
READ ALSO: Books Set in Italy
A Caribbean Mystery by Agatha Christie
The 10th book in the Miss Marple series and this time Miss Marple has decided to take a break away to a luxury Caribbean resort. Also there is Major Palgrave who enjoys an audience for his many stories. Miss Marple is too polite to walk away but her interest is soon aroused when he mentions a murderer he had known. But half way through telling his tale something or someone catches the Major’s eye and he suddenly stops his story. Then the next day the Major is found dead. Someone at the resort clearly wanted to silence him but can Miss Marple figure out who.
Breathless by Amy McCulloch
Cecily Wong is a journalist who gets offered the once in a lifetime chance to join an elite team who are climbing one of the world’s tallest mountains. But things are not going as smoothly as Cecily may have wanted them to. Suddenly the team have to deal with an unexplained theft, a horrible accident and a note that says there’s a murderer on the mountain. Six strangers set out on this epic trek but how many will return?
Girls Like Us by Cristina Alger
Following the death of her father, FBI agent Nell Flynn finds herself back in her hometown for the first time in a decade. But almost immediately she finds herself drawn into his last murder investigation. Worse still is Nell quickly realises the evidence is pointing towards one clear suspect, her father! With his colleagues and friends covering for him, Nell has no idea who she can trust or what’s being hidden from her.
Cleaning the Gold by Karin Slaughter & Lee Child
I have been a big fan of Karin Slaughter’s Will Trent series for a few years now and while less familiar with Lee Child’s Jack Reacher series, I have enjoyed any of Lee Child’s books I’ve read. So when I saw there was a book where these two main characters meet, I had to get it! But can these two strong minded characters play nice together when an undercover assignment sees them in the same place at the same time?
Fiction – Ice Hockey Mysteries
A while ago I came across the Ice Hockey Mystery series, and being a lover of mysteries and ice hockey, instantly took a liking to them. I was trying to space them out but each book ends on a cliffhanger. Once I realised the series had finished I decided to read them all at once to finally see how the series will end.
Ice Queen by Heather C. Myers
This is the third book in the Ice Hockey series and private Investigator Mika Chalmers is trying to piece together her memories of the night before. Detective Ian Beech is racked with guilt because a police station is where people should be safe, not drugged and attacked. Her kind-of-boyfriend, hockey player Eric Foresburg wants to take her away from everything but Mika just wants to solve this case. Her case.
Holiday on Ice by Heather C. Myers
With Christmas around the corner, Eric wants to whisk Mika away for the holidays to focus on the relationship they have recently rekindled. But when a client comes into Mika’s office desperate for help, she can’t help but ignore Eric’s plea for a holiday escape. Especially when she discovers the client is the father of Detective Ian Beech, who Ian wants nothing to do. Can Mika reunite this father and son in time for the holidays or will she ruin her relationship with Eric and Ian in the process?
Cold as Ice by Heather C. Myers
After everything that happened over the holidays, Mika is desperate for some space from her complicated relationships. With the upcoming 32nd anniversary of NFL team the Irvine Buccaneers, who her father happens to coach, Mika finally accepts an invitation to attend the alumni reunion. What she wasn’t expecting though was for a murder to happen at the reunion and the detective in charge is no other than Ian Beech.
Ice Star by Heather C. Myers
With no new clients and Detective Beech on an undercover assignment, Mika finds herself at a loose end. She decides to help her father prepare for the upcoming AllStar game. Everyone in Irvine is excited for the event. That is, until a shooting breaks out the day before the festivities begin. After a second shooting, Mika is forced to go undercover with the players as the fiance of her ex-boyfriend Eric Foresburg in order to figure out who is next.
Fire & Ice by Heather C. Myers
The finale in the Ice Hockey mystery series and the last person Mika expected to be knocking on her door is the ex-girlfriend of Detective Ian Beech asking for help. Ian’s father has gone missing and no-one knows where he is. At the same time, Mika’s father is getting blackmailed by an unknown person who wants his team, the Buccaneers, to miss the playoffs. Mika puts everything on the line to help the two most important people in her life. If she doesn’t succeed her father could end up with a tainted legacy and Beech could end up dead, so the pressure is on in this exciting conclusion.
Fiction – Supernatural
A category I never used to read but last year I started to get a new appreciation for supernatural stories and found some good ones to read.
The Year of the Witching by Alexis Henderson
Bethel is a religious village and everyone is keen to obey the church. It was here that the first Prophet pursued and killed four powerful witches that cleansed the land. Immanuelle does her best to follow Holy Protocol but then one day she is lured into the forbidden Darkwood that surrounds Bethel. She tries to resist but the witches whose spirit inhabit the Darkwood have a gift she can’t refuse; her dead mothers old diary. And maybe the Prophets and the church have a history they wouldn’t want revealed.
Broken Homes by Ben Aaronovitch
The fourth book in the Rivers of London series and this time we see PC Peter Grant on the case of a mutilated body. The prime suspect is Robert Weil but is he an associate of the sought after Faceless Man or just your common serial killer? But before Peter can focus too much on that case, he gets another case and then another case. Could there be a connection between them all?
READ ALSO: Books Set in London
The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery
This classic children’s book has been on my to-read list for a long time. First published in 1943, it is still much loved by children and adults alike. It might seem like the story of a small prince from another planet and his tales of intergalactic travel but it’s also a thought provoking allegory of the human condition.
Fiction – Movies That Were Books
So many great movies came from books and once I’ve watched a movie and find out there’s a book, I want to read it straight away!
Madame Doubtfire by Anne Fine
This much known and beloved film starring Robin Williams started out as a book. When Miranda and Daniel’s marriage reaches the final blow the pair see no choice but to divorce. Unfortunately that leaves Lydia, Christopher and Natalie in need of someone to watch them for a few hours after school. Daniel wants to take the kids but Miranda is set on hiring someone. So out-of-work actor Daniel creates Madame Doubtfire and gets the job.
Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
Lou Clark is an ordinary girl living an ordinary life in a small village. Then when her job at the local cafe disappears she needs a job badly. Although she has no qualifications or experience, she gets a job looking after Will Trent; a former action loving, city boy who’s been forced back to the village after a motorcycle accident left him wheelchair bound. He thinks life is over now but Lou is determined to show him that life is still worth living. The two could not have had less in common but they grow to respect one another and provide the support they both need.
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
Despite the medicines best attempts, Hazel has been terminal since her first diagnosis at 13 years old. The now 16 year old hates going to the Cancer Kid Support Group that her mum pushes her to go to. She just wants to wallow at home with books and trashy TV. But everything changes when Augustus joins the group. Unlike Hazel, he is desperate to leave a lasting impression on the world. Their story is one that will have you in tears by the end of the book.
Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith
Guy Haines and Charles Anthony Bruno are two strangers who happen to be passengers on the same train at the same time. Guy is a successful architect who is going through a divorce who meets the smooth talking Bruno who has a sadistic proposal. He’ll murder Guy’s wife if Guy will murder Bruno’s father. Each would get an alibi and who would suspect a stranger they just met on a train journey?
The Amazing Mr. Blunden by Antonia Barber
Lucy and her brother Jamie find themselves in a new home after an amazing opportunity comes up. Their father has just died and if it wasn’t for Mr Blunden offering their mother the caretaker position, the family don’t know what they would have done. While wandering through the garden one day they meet another brother and sister. All seems normal except they actually died 100 years ago. Could Lucy and Jamie help those troubled ghosts from another age?
The Dogs of Riga by Henning Mankell
The second book in the Kurt Wallander mystery series and a life raft is washed up on a beach with two men in suits who have been shot dead. The dead men were criminals and it looks like just your typical gangland hit. However, the case soon takes on a more sinister aspect and Wallander soon finds himself travelling from Sweden to Riga in Latvia where he is plunged into a world of police surveillance, scarcely veiled threats and lies. Only Wallander’s desire for justice can bring the truth to light.
Fiction – TV Shows That Were Books
I love that so many books are getting TV shows made based on them. With a series you get the chance to really delve into characters in a way you can’t with movies.
All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
Before it became a Netflix sensation starring Hugh Laurie, All The Light We Cannot See was an award winning bestseller. Marie-Laure is blind and living in Paris with her father who built her a miniature version of the city to help her navigate with no sight. But once the Nazi’s invade, the pair must flee the city. They head to family in a walled city by the sea but it’s not long before German soldiers are trying to track them down as it would appear they left the city with something one soldier will stop at nothing to get his hands on. At the same time, Werner, a German orphan who has a knack for engineering has been discovered by the Nazi’s and quickly enrolled in a brutal military academy.
Fiction – Travel Fiction
This probably won’t surprise you to know that I love stories about travel. Travel fiction has always been my favourite way to travel virtually.
One Summer in Paris by Sarah Morgan
Grace is in complete shock when her husband of twenty five years suddenly announces he wants a divorce. Worse still, he’s been having an affair with a woman young enough to be his daughter! Reeling from the shock, Grace decides to take their anniversary trip to Paris by herself. Here she meets Audrey, a young girl also running away to Paris for the summer and the two form an unlikely friendship. They both came to Paris to find themselves but it might be finding each other was the best thing for them.
READ ALSO: Books Set in France
The Beach Cafe by Lucy Diamond
Evie Flynn has always been the black sheep of the family. She’s a dreamer and a drifter, unlike her over-achieving elder sister. Known for being the screw up who can’t do anything right, the only thing her family agrees she’s done right is her relationship with her sensible, pension-planning boyfriend. But when her aunt dies suddenly, everyone is surprised Evie has been left her cafe in Cornwall. Is this her shot to finally do something right for the first time in her life?
Escape To The Little French Cafe by Karen Clarke
When Natalie’s boyfriend suddenly dumped her and then immediately got engaged to his ex-girlfriend, she wanted to escape her heartbreak and moved to a charming village in Ile de Re. Natalie is determined to build a new life for herself, writing about her new life for a local magazine. She’s sworn off men and just concentrates on her writing and spending time with her best friend who works in the local cafe. That is, until her teenage crush comes to town, now a big named movie star. Can she use her connection to him to get the interview of a lifetime?
Summer at the Little French Cafe by Karen Clarke
When thirty year old Elle decides it’s finally time to find the mother who gave her up as a baby, she heads to Ile de Re with just a faded postcard from the Cafe Belle Vie to begin her search. With only the postcard and the ivory shawl she was wrapped in as clues, Elle’s search for her mother is like trying to find a needle in a haystack. But after a while Elle starts to feel at home on the beautiful island with welcoming locals, especially with the friendly and gorgeous cafe owner Charlie. Could Elle discover not just where she came from but where she belongs?
Swallowtail Summer by Erica James
Life has been good for this close circle of friends but one summer everything changes. The beautiful thatched house at Linston End has always been the summer holiday home for the families for many years. This beautiful Norfolk home with river access at the end of the garden has brought many happy memories to the group. But when the friends receive some unexpected news it seems like Linston End will never be the same again.
The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George
Jean Perdu runs a bookshop on a beautifully restored barge on the Seine. He possesses a gift for sensing which books will soothe the troubled souls of his customers. Sadly for Jean though the only person he is unable to cure is his own heart ache. But can the arrival of an eccentric neighbour change that?
Fiction – Other
Last but not lease, here are the fiction books that don’t fit into any of the above categories.
Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
Eleanor Oliphant has learned how to survive, just not how to live. She leads a simple but happy life. She wears the same clothes to work, eats the same meal deal for lunch and buys the same two bottles of vodka to drink every weekend. But then one simple act of kindness shatters the walls Eleanor has built around herself and now she must learn to navigate the world that everyone else takes for granted.
The Bell Jar by Slyvia Plath
It’s the 1950s and Esther Greenwood is a talented and ambitious young woman who dreams about being a poet. She is thrilled when she gets a prestigious internship at a magazine in New York. The girls are thrilled to be wined and dined and showered with presents but Esther struggles with the glitz and glam the others seem to seek out. The time in New York did not go as Esther had planned and her mental health slowly started to deteriorate as she became disconnected with society’s expectations of her.
READ ALSO: Books Set in New York
Lord of the Flies by William Golding
A classic story that I couldn’t help rereading after seeing a live performance at the local theatre. A plane crashes on a deserted island and the only survivors are a group of young school boys. At first they thrive with their new freedom but after a while the civilisation they created in paradise starts to crumble. The boys begin to struggle with this new life and their innocent child-like games soon turn into savage, murderous hunts.
Setting My Goal For 2024
As I mentioned before, I’m worried I’m making reading a chore rather than the pleasure it actually is. I’ve been trying to increase my yearly targets to help increase my overall books read number on Good Reads but I think this is making me focus on the wrong thing. For a girl who doesn’t count countries I sure have been focusing on counting books!
So for 2024 I’ll take away this feeling that reading should be a chore or a number to brag about (even if the brag is internal) so my 2024 goal will be much smaller. It doesn’t mean I’ll get to that number and stop, it just stops me getting myself in a panic in December.
There you have it, the books I read in 2023. Do you have any recommendations for good books to read in 2020? Let me know in the comments below!
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