2023 was not the best reading year for me but I also didn’t do to terrible either. I read a lot of graphic novels and manga though and I really did enjoy most everything I read so overall I am pretty happy with my year. I think reading 55 books is my max goal for at least this year if not even for 2025 but I guess we shall see!
Fun Stats
My Goal: 57/55 Books Read
Moods
Lighthearted, Funny and Adventurous I guess are the three words that can describe my reading year for 2023. I think this is because I read a bit of cozy Fantasy and also a lot of Easy Manga and Graphic Novels which were all pretty lighthearted.
Main Genres
This list makes me think I have diverse reading tastes but that couldn’t be farther from the case. I did read a lot more fantasy than I would typically read, however I am still surprised that it tied with Manga! Thriller and Horror are also a lot lower than I expected, I plan on reading a lot more thrillers and horrors in 2024 for sure.
Format
I am really happy with my format ratios. I would like to read more audio and digital books but overall this looks better than previous years. 2024 is going to be my digital era, I am calling it now!
Most Read Authors
Tatsuya Endo is the author for the Spy Family Manga Series and I read 9 of those! For sure am not surprised by this list.
Page Number
This feels pretty typical to me as I try to stay away from books that have more than 500 pages. Maybe this should be a goal of mine in 2024.
Pace
Not surprised by this at all seeing how I mostly read short books this year that I flew through! I hardly read any books that were really drug out, thank heavens.
Fiction/Nonfiction
This is one of my biggest goals for 2024, I really want to start reading more nonfiction reads, whether this is memoirs, self-help or even just general nonfiction. I feel hungry for knowledge this year.
Ratings
This Average Rating blows my mind, 4.31 is really high! But again I read so many short and cozy books that it was hard to not give everything 5 stars. I honestly am trying to get tighter with my ratings so I don’t expect this many 5 stars in one year for awhile.
Book of the Year
This is probably the biggest surprise of 2023 for me. Before I read this book I couldn’t have ever guessed I was going to read it let alone LOVE it! I’m not a huge fantasy reader so I was scared to pick this one up along with the huge amount of hype surrounding it, I just had no desire to read it. But then came along @bees.book.buzz and she somehow convinced me to read this one before Iron Flame was released and I can’t thank her enough for introducing me to this world!
Make sure to read my Review for both Fourth Wing and Iron Flame
Top 5
These are my top 5 Books in no particular order and not including my Book of the Year
Top 5 Graphic Novels/Manga
Awards
Favorite Book Club Read
“Divine Rivals” By Rebecca Ross
This was a hard one to pick a winner for because my book club genuinely read quite a few fantastic books this year but this is the one that I had the most fun reading and doing the live show for.
Make sure to check out my book club @bais.reading.corner we have some amazing books planned for the new year!
Best Dressed (Prettiest Cover)
“Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow” By Gabrielle Zevin
This cover is honestly so gorgeous! I have the Book of the Month copy which is exactly what you see here but I am so jealous of the people who have the paperback, as from what I have seen, the cover is holographic! Just Gorgeous!
Least Favorite Book
“Penpal” By Dathan Auerbach
Oh man, I had some really high hopes for this book and it truly fell flat. I normally don’t rate books I haven’t finished but I made it like 80% of the way through before I decided I had had enough so I am going to rate this one star. If you liked this book I envy you cause I tried so hard!
Favorite Blog Post
“Iron Flame” By Rebecca Yarros
I devoured this book and really got sucked into the hype and all of the what if’s for the future of this series. This review took me literally 8 hours to write but I had so much fun and to this date is my best review view wise.
A Book That Surprised Me
“Babel” By R.F. Kuang
I rated this book 4 stars and honestly I didn’t have that high of hopes for it as this is not a genre I would typically go for along with the fact that it was so long and felt “Educational” . Overall very happy with this book! The audio was amazing for it as well.
Most Likely To Make You Swoon
“A Cat Cafe Christmas” By Codi Gary
This was the last romance I read this year and it was seriously so cute! The romance was a little bit of a slow burn but while you wait for them to click you get to fall in love with all the cute kitties! This is the perfect setting for a swoon worthy Book.
An Overhyped Book
“The Writing Retreat” By Julia Bartz
Before I picked up this book I was hearing so many great reviews from booktubers I truly love and typically have similar taste’s too so I was so excited to pick this one up. Guys…This book was a major flop and not worth your time! The twists weren’t even that good TBH. I suppose it wasn’t even worth a review because I never wrote one haha.
Spiciest Book
“Icebreaker” By Hannah Grace
I went into this book pretty much blind, I knew there was spice but I really thought I would get more time out on the ice but I got mostly bed scenes. I still liked this book but honestly I could have used more plot and less sex lol but to each their own.
A Book That I Wish I Read In 2023
“In The Lives Of Puppets” By TJ Klune
This book has been on my radar since it was announced. I have no clue why I haven’t picked this one up yet as it has been on my shelf since it came out. However, I have heard it isn’t his best work which I guess makes me push it off cause he is one of my favorite authors to date.
Overall I am very happy with my 2023 reading. I met all the goals I had set up for myself so that makes me even more excited for 2024. I can’t wait to see how well this next year goes. Thank you for all the support I have gotten this past year and all of the friendships I have made. Here’s to another fantastic year!
World of Bai 