To end off our 2023 wrap-up, let’s look at my ten favorite books I read in this past year! Again, these don’t have to have come out this year, they just have to be something I read for the first time this year, or otherwise experienced with a fresh new perspective this year. I’ll also slightly cheat and might include an entire series instead of individual entries. Hey, it’s more book diversity!
Let’s get into it!
(As a side note, this will be the last article for the year, as I’ll be taking a one-week break for Christmas stuff. I’ll be back on the 5th of January!)
10) Justice League Rebirth ~ Bryan Hitch
I’ve never been a huge DC fan, but it’s more because I just haven’t had the time/energy to devote to that side of the comics world. Every so often I’ll dip my toes into the world of Batman or some such, but earlier this year I decided to give Justice League Rebirth a shot because my local library had the entire run. It’s got the same small issues all comics have (pacing and whatnot), but all the up-sides too! Plus, it’s got a really compelling central story that all leads up to one big antagonist to take down at the end, so I got some good catharsis out of this read that isn’t too common in long-running comic series. The art throughout is also just stellar!
9) Five Survive ~ Holly Jackson
After absolutely adoring the Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series by this same author, I knew I had to try any and every other book she’s done. While it doesn’t compare to her previous work (genuinely one of the best YA series I’ve ever read), it’d be unfair to just dismiss it outright when it’s still a tense and very compelling thriller about a group of teens trapped in an RV thanks to a sniper outside with mysterious motives. The mystery came together in some truly surprising and satisfying ways that I wasn’t expecting (though I’m proud that my crackpot theory halfway through the book DID end up playing into the twist). A really solid read with a good ending!
8) Star Wars Fatal Alliance ~ Sean Williams
No surprise that, as a super huge Star Wars fan, I’d inevitably enjoy reading a Star Wars book. I actually read a whole slew of Star Wars books in this past year (most of them Legends material set during the Old Republic), and this is the one that stood out to me the most. Maybe it had something to do with the slow-burn mystery propelling our large cast towards one giant showdown and reveal? Maybe it was the ensemble cast themselves, an eclectic group of enjoyable POV characters that keep the pacing fast and fresh. Maybe it was just some well-written, good-old-fashioned sci-fi Star Wars fun! Probably all of the above!
7) Avatar The Last Airbender Comics ~ Gene Luen Yang
As mentioned in last week’s article, I’ve been on an absolutely huge Avatar kick lately, and it’s honestly all the fault of these comics. Thanks to a sale too good to pass up, I finally bit the bullet and bought the entire collection and gave them a read. They truly are the same amazing quality of the show distilled into illustrations on the page, and it’s so easy to slip back into this world and these characters like you never left! Each entry in the collection (The Promise, The Search, The Rift, Smoke and Shadow, North and South, and Imbalance) is a worthwhile read, and taken together they paint an incredible picture of world-building and respect for these characters, while also doing a great job in bridging the gap to Legend of Korra. Highly recommended for all fans!
6) Someone is Always Watching ~ Kelley Armstrong
Kelley Armstrong (who will be making another appearance on this list) is a fantastic author, and though she typically does Adult Fiction, she ventured into YA Suspense/Thriller for this book. What initially appealed to me about this book was the core conceit of a select group of characters realizing that something is horribly wrong in their small hometown when a fellow peer snaps and kills the school principal, only for the rest of the town to immediately try to sweep the incident under the rug and gaslight our core protagonists. It’s a very engaging mystery that kept me on my toes (especially in a few scary subterfuge scenes), and the cast at the heart of this story is easily it’s strongest selling point. I adore when characters aren’t afraid to be “ugly” (for lack of a better word), and there’s some great confrontations and emotional beats in the plot here. Super good stuff!
5) The Blighted Stars ~ Megan E O’Keefe
I’m a sucker for anything Sci-Fi related (especially if published by the incredible Orbit publishing company), so when this book arrived on the shelves at my local library I absolutely had to give it a try. Well, it (and it’s nearly-as-good sequel) totally blew me away with their unique and finely crafted world and characters! I also wasn’t expecting it to be a Sci-Fi Romance when I first jumped into it, and was pleasantly surprised by an excellently paced slow-burn love between our two diametrically opposed POV characters. Throw in some good action beats, a healthy dose of mystery and intrigue, and an ending that toes the line between heart-wrenching and heart-warming and teases of things to come (which absolutely get good payoff, trust me), this one is well worth your time.
4) Nina Wilde and Eddie Chase (Books 12-16) ~ Andy McDermott
It’s not a secret on this blog that I’m a massive fan of the Nina Wilde and Eddie Chase series, and I read the five most recent installments in the series earlier this year. Out of all of them, Spear of Atlantis was definitely my favorite, but they all had their positives and I thoroughly enjoyed each one (even The Resurrection Key, which BY GOLLY jumped about a hundred sharks in a row). I’ve written essentially two entire articles about how much I love this series, but it is worth pointing out the almost impossible-to-believe fact that the series is still trucking along and maintaining to be so good. I truly do not understand how Andy McDermott is able to come up with unique action set pieces and engaging characters through one installment after the next, with the magic feeling never being lost along the way. I guess I hit the nail on the head, though: it’s magic!
3) Summertime Rendering ~ Yasuki Tanaka
Of course this had to be here, given that I wrote an entire article about how incredible it is just two months ago! It takes so many little things that I love to see (gorgeous illustrations, dark and violent but ultimately hopeful plot, time-travelling shenanigans, etc.) and distills it into one of the best sci-fi/horror series that I’ve ever read. It’s concisely written in a way that excellently uses every single character (giving them all a chance to shine), while not overstaying its welcome across six volumes that ties everything off with a succinct and satisfying bow at the end. Plus, the little touches sprinkled throughout the manga really elevate the art form (like a few chunks written in prose simulating the main character’s stream-of-consciousness journaling, to name an example). It’s equal parts peak Manga and peak Sci-Fi, and an incredibly memorable read.
2) The Poisoner’s Ring ~ Kelley Armstrong
Here’s Kelley Armstrong coming out swinging on this list yet again, this time with an Adult Historical-ish Mystery that is also the second installment in just an absolutely delightful series. And while I enjoyed the first one, I totally loved everything about this continuation (and also eagerly anticipate both the third installment and the bonus novella, both set to release next year).
Our main character, a detective stuck in the distant past inside the body of a maid, continues her journey to find a way home and also maintain a living in this new paradigm she’s found herself in. The characters, already a treat in the first installment, have even more room to expand their arcs and have some fun asides, thanks to a larger group being privy to her time-travelling origins. What follows is another exciting mystery with some shocking twists along the way, and one of the most despicably memorable villains I’ve encountered so far in a book of this genre. I highly recommend giving this entire series a read for Mystery or History fans (the authenticity and accuracy of the historical time period is a fun focus of this series).
1) These Burning Stars ~ Bethany Jacobs
Similar to The Blighted Stars from above (and they even have similar names), this is another unmissable Sci-Fi epic (ALSO published by Orbit, again) that has managed to become one of my favorite books, ever. I knew nothing save for the back-of-the-book synopsis when I picked this up, and I came away with adoring every facet of what I found within. If there was ever any doubt in your mind that an author’s debut novel can be amazing, this book is proof-positive that you need to change your outlook!
Sadly (and uniquely), I feel like I can’t get into this story too much with spoiling critical information about how this story is told and the ways in which the plot comes together. Suffice to say, it’s impeccably written from start-to-finish, with some unforgettable situations and brilliant action wrapped up in an intriguing and richly developed Sci-Fi universe. And where could I even start with describing how amazing the characters are? My favorite character, in particular, was a superb highlight in an already masterful work, and it’s not exaggerating for me to say that I haven’t been this emotionally invested in a book character in years.
Absolutely give this a read, if you can. I don’t feel that you’ll regret it!
But hey, that’s just my opinion!
And Happy Holidays!
The Contrarian Corner 