Best Books of 2023 || Reviews & Recommendations

Hey Booktube, time to share my best books of 2023! Here are the reviews and my recommendations out of all the books I've read this year.

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[BookswithEmilyFox]

What are the best books you've read in 2023? :D

[mariareadsssf]

My best books of 2023🥇"Speaking Bones" - Ken Liu
🥈"Blood Over Bright Haven" - M. L. Wang
🥉"The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi" - Shannon Chakraborty
"The Book That Wouldn't Burn" - Mark Lawrence
"Spinning Silver" - Naomi Novik
"Perdido Street Station" - China Mieville
"Bloodchild and Other Stories" - Octavia E. Butler
"Lone Women" - Victor LaValle
"Talonsister" - Jen Williams
"Godkiller" - Hannah Kaner

[lew_]

i also finished the Green Bone Saga this year and it was so good!!! i can’t wait to read more from Fonda Lee!!

[isirlasplace]

I followed your recommendation and read Kindred as my first Octavia Butler and I loved it!! One of the best books I read this year!!!

[MartuzMitica]

Embarrassingly, I only got to reading Jane Austen’s novels this year, and of course I loved them so so much, and they go straight to my favourite books of 2023 and of all time. I also really enjoyed North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell, which I read after you talked about it. But by far the biggest surprise was The Kingdoms by Natasha Pulley. I think you and I, Emily, have somewhat different tastes, but this book is where I think they would overlap, and I really wanted to tell you about it because I think you might enjoy it. The plot was really appealing to me to begin with - haunted lighthouses, memory loss, time travel, battleships? Yes please! But also, the writing is just enthralling, and past about a quarter of the book, I couldn’t put it down, which is rare for me after reading tons of fantasy when I was younger. When you add morally grey (at the very least) characters to the mix you get a little gem. It’s not perfect, but it made me want to read everything by author, and I recommend it to anyone, even people who don’t like fantasy!

[crimebrulee]

Thank you for hyping up Blood Over Bright Haven. It became my favorite of the year 😭 I'm hoping Wraithmarked does a special edition for it like they did Sword of Kaigen.

[himaeverafterr]

I read Blood Over Bright Haven because of you and because I loved Sword of Kaigen a couple years ago! It was incredible!!! So different from Sword of Kaigen, but wow I now trust this author with anything. love love love your reviews ❤ i might start Jade City in 2024...

[charlottemossy]

I read I Who Have Never Known Men based on your recommendation and I loved it so much! Thank you for bringing that story into my life, it's a story I'll be thinking about for a long time, amazing. <3

[katieamarsh]

I loved I Who Have Never Known Men so much, I read it twice in under two weeks. I will, doubtlessly, read it more throughout my life.

[maureendeming]

I read What Doesn't Kill You based on your review and it was so impactful. I'm a chronic illness girlie, and I have never felt so seen. Thank you for putting it on my radar! ❤

[fidato_]

My favorites of this year
1. Blood over bright haven
2. Sword of kaigen
3. Upgrade by Blake crouch
4. The toll by Neil shusterman
5. Atomic habits

[hayleym]

I love that you stack the books up behind you. Reminds me of older Emily videos. These simple things please me 😂

[lifenotes]

Thank you so much for recommending “I who have never known men” and “Blood Over Bright Haven” I loved reading them!

[JillPlusBooks]

I loved the Queen of the Tearling series!! I also understand why people didn't like the ending, but I loved it. Haha :)
Loved this video! I can't wait to read all of these!! I think the only one I'm hesitant to read is The Wall, but I did buy it on ebook to give it a try anyway!
I think I'm most looking forward to Jade City and I Who Have Never Known Men. Thank you!! :)

[jasmin_mine]

best books i read this year: if we were villains and yellowface, none of them are perfect but they made me feel lots of things yeah

[_ashleylh]

I read I Who Have Never Known Men this year because of you and that's not usually what I read. Thank you for getting me out of my comfort zone and introducing me to something different. It was amazing. I hope to read Kindred this coming year.

My favorite read this year was either Babel or Tomorrow Tomorrow and Tomorrow. I think I can say both because one is fantasy and one is lit fic lol. Most surprising was In the Company of Witches or Carrie Soto is Back. Stay clear of American Mermaid - it was definitely my worst read of the year. So promising and yet it put me in a slump. Oh I read Priory and Day of Fallen Night this year and I wish I had read the prequel first! I really enjoyed both of them, though. I'm hoping for 2024 to be my fantasy year - soooo much I want to read! Hoping to try some Brandon Sanderson and NK Jemisen for the first time!

[kui-is-ghost]

My faves of this year, in the order that I read them:
- Project Haily Mary by Andy Weir (my favorite book now, I even named my cat after one of the characters)
- N.P. by Banana Yoshimoto (it's quietly intense and I loved that)
- Chess Story by Stefan Zweig (I never thought I'd like a book placed during WWII but it was so good)
- The Long Way To A Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers (that was such fun and cozy sci-fi, very feel-good yet deep)
- They Both Die At The End by Adam Silvera (emotionally so intense, but I loved it to pieces)
- Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (why did I wait 8 years to read this omg)
- Stepping Off The Relationship Escalator: Uncommon Love And Life by Amy Gahran (great to explore some other forms of relationships that are out there other than monogamous romantic relationships, delightfully non-preachy and very informative, does not read like a self-help book at all even though it is marketed as such)
- Ace: What Asexuality Reveals About Desire, Society, and the Meaning of S*x by Angela Chen (amazing book to find out more about asexuality, and is useful to reflect on assumptions about relationships, does not read as self-help either. This one I literally finished yesterday.) (and sorry for censoring, I don't know how the algorithm acts around certain words)

[louisathellama]

I've added so many of these to my TBR because of you, if only there was more time for reading!

[bicho]

Thank you for recommending Blood Over Bright Haven its my favourite book of the year!

[monigonzalez-hernandez]

Finally put away my laundry or watch Emily's new video uninterrupted for the first time in a long time? The laundry can wait. 😅