December 2023 Reads

It's my last book post of the year! This has been my biggest year of reading ever but not my best. Full yearend stats to come in the next few weeks, so let's breakdown how I finished 2023.

I read 9 books this month bringing my total to 131 for the year - a new high for me! Reading audiobooks has definitely helped with my numbers, and I love having access to audiobooks through my library - there are too many great books out there to not be using audiobooks when you can!

I had a pretty solid mix of books - nonfiction, fiction, several by BIPOC authors, some I loved and some I didn't - overall a good month.
 

Icebreaker by Hannah Grace - This was cute and SUPER steamy! It's about a figure skater and a hockey player who end up having to practice on the same rink and sparks fly. I will say the back 1/3 felt uneven and the ending kind of annoyed me, but overall it was a fun one! And the beginning of a series!

Maame by Jessica George [audiobook] - I saw numerous people recommend this one, and I'm so glad I picked it up! It follows a first generation British-born woman {her parents are from Ghana} as she navigates life dealing with a tragedy, racism, loneliness, grief, depression, and all the things. It is also a story of friendship, finding yourself, found family, branching out, and love. It was fantastic! I also thought the audiobook narrator did a FANTASTIC job. This one was a winner!

November 9 by Colleen Hoover - This is likely to be my last CoHo book. This was not good. It follows a girl and boy {I'm too lazy to remember/lookup their names} who meet on November 9, basically fall instantly in love and decide to meet every year only on November 9 so they can achieve their goals. It was SO overwrought and over-the-top. I found myself rolling my eyes and skimming A LOT.

When I Was Your Age by Kenan Thompson [audiobook] - This was GREAT! My second SNL cast member memoir this year {and I read Romantic Comedy which is a fictionalized story of an SNL writer}. This was laugh out loud funny and also just full of entertaining stories. Kenan seems like a great guy, and I truly enjoyed this one.

Check & Mate by Ali Hazelwood - This was Ali Hazelwood's first YA novel and it follows kids in competitive chess. This was so adorable. Ali Hazelwood can seriously do no wrong. The characters were just so cute {although the FMC did get on my nerves a smidge with blaming herself for things that weren't her fault and a bit of a martyr complex}, the chess was fun, and the love story was great!

The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks-Dalton - This was another book people RAVED about this year! It follows Wanda who was born during a hurricane {and named after said hurricane} and jumps through some big pivotal moments of her life navigating major climate change. The book starts with her birth and ends with her as an old woman and the climate change is SCARY for what happens to Florida. I was equal parts entertained and terrified, ha. I will say I didn't LOVE this like others did {I wanted to care a smidge more about the characters than I did}, but overall it was a great read.

Things We Never Get Over by Lucy Score - This was absolute utter cheese, and I can't wait to keep reading the rest of the trilogy ha. This is such a typical grumpy-sunshine love story with a neat little cheesy bow at the end. It wasn't my favorite and the grumpy MMC was over-the-top grumpy and manhandled the FMC a little too often for my taste, yet I'm ready for more! Ha!

Yellowface by R.F. Kuang [audiobook] - Well, this is the exact opposite of the type of book I normally love, but I loved this! 2 authors are semi-friends, and 1 is successful and 1 isn't. The successful friend dies {not a spoiler} and the unsuccessful author steals her unpublished manuscript. The main character is NOT a good person, yet I found myself feeling sympathetic to her - it was wild and shows how well-written this was! It tackled some really interesting topics {the author who died is Asian and the author who stole her book is white and the published story is Asian historical fiction} like racism and who has the right to tell stories - it was thought-provoking and just plain naughty fun!

A Winter in New York by Josie Silver - Man, I usually really like Josie Silver's books but this one was just okay for me. The plot felt a little silly {a British woman who has just moved to NYC after a bad breakup realizes she has the gelato recipe for a local cafe who is missing the recipe - only 2 family members have the recipe at any time} and I struggled to engage with the story because of that. I ended up liking it, but it took way too long to get there and felt too contrived throughout most of it.

I'll be posting my 2023 stats in the coming weeks - I will say I had a lot less 5-star reads than I normally do, and I struggled to name a favorite in some months. Am I getting more critical or did I just not have as many good reads? I guess it doesn't matter because I still LOOOOOOVE to read!