2023 Reading Goals

I am super glad that 2022 is over… It was a bit of a dumpster fire of a year, but I am taking a deep breath and moving on into 2023. I’m sending all my aspirations and hopes out into the universe that this year will be kinder. And filled with great books! 😉

~✨📚✨~

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2022 Check In

This was not the year of achieving goals… But they helped to push me and I am still happy with how my habits changed for a large portion of the year! Mental health struggles and too many amazing audiobooks threw a wrench in my plans with these goals.

❌ I missed the goal of reading 120 books for my Goodreads Reading Challenge by only one book with 119 read. So close! (More on those books in my 2022 recap.)

❌ I once again failed at reading books that I own and haven’t read yet. Zero again…! 😳 One of my new goals below should help achieve better results at thinning out my physical TBR pile in 2023. 🤞🏻

✔️/❌ I tried super hard to read my ARCs before their publication dates. I was largely successful with this, but a few slipped through the cracks and a couple took me longer to finish than expected. I will definitely continue on with this habit going forward!

✔️/❌ I really wanted to write my reviews soon after finishing each book so that I didn’t forget my thoughts and opinions. This goal was most affected by my mental health, and review-writing definitely came in waves – I was really good about it when my brain was doing better, so I am considering this one a mostly-win!

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🏆 Goodreads Reading Challenge: 100 books

With being more picky about which books I read and just reading less in general, I’m setting my goal lower compared to the past few years. I know that I have been enjoyed a lot of podcasts, YouTube videos, Webtoons, and TV the past couple years, so my time will be divided more than when I used to read in most of my free time. I’m hoping a more relaxed goal like this will help even more with my enjoyment of other activities! 😌

📚 Read 15 of the unread books I own

With all the failed attempts at this goal, you would think that I should give up… But I am persistent and will be trying again. I’m hoping the next goal with help me achieve this! 😬

📖 Read 1 chapter per day of a physical book

I have mostly been reading audiobooks the past few years and have hardly read any physical books. I miss curling up with a book on the couch or in bed! Due to my backlog of unread owned books, I am hoping this goal helps with that too. The rules for this one are that I can’t “read ahead” and check off future dates on the calendar & that I have to “catch up” if I miss a day – I currently have a lot of catching up to do…! 🛋

💻 Write reviews within a week after finishing a book

I’m sticking with this same goal from last year but revising it to have a timeline goal. My forgetful brain can definitely use the push to complete reviews within a week! I would also love to do some fun reviews again like I have in the past, like using lots of gifs! ✍🏻

~✨📚✨~

Most Anticipated 2023 Releases

I enjoyed so many amazing 2022 releases and look forward to continuing to pick up lots of new releases again this year! The library makes this so easy with better access to new books – and audiobooks in particular! Like I mentioned last year, there is still some catching up that I need to do with my TBR pile (looking at you Rule of Wolves 👀) – but the list keeps growing… I did well with my 2022 list, reading 4 out of 5 books – and loving them! It would have been a complete success but they haven’t released the audiobook for Brave in Canada yet. 😭 (I’m thinking I will have to break down and read the ebook while I continue to wait for the audio…)

I had a great list of books to pick from this year for the five I am most excited for. There are so many series that I have become hooked on that will continue on this year. I was lucky enough to get a couple of them as ARCs! 🙌🏻

~✨📚✨~

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1. If Only You
by Chloe Liese

I had such a wide grin on my face when I finally saw the cover and synopsis for Ziggy’s story. I am beyond excited to see how her romance with Sebastian plays out. And I can’t wait for more shenanigans featuring the Bergman family! I’m thinking a series re-read is in order so I can relive some of my favourite stories yet again. 😉

Publication date: April 11

~⚽️💘🏒~

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2. The Secret Service of Tea and Treason
by India Holton

This series is so much fun! It is magical, witty, charming, whimsical, and such a great escape from the world. Alice and Daniel sound like they are much more serious than the previous two couples, so it will be so interesting to see how they fit into the wild dynamics of the pirates & witches! *grabby hands*

Publication date: April 18

~☕️💍🔍~

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3. The Sun and the Star
by Rick Riordan

This book is going to make me cry, and I really hope it’s because I love it so much and not out of disappointment. Nico and Will are one of my fave pairings of all time, so there is a lot riding on this book for me.

Publication date: May 2

~✨💀☀️~

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4. The Problem with Second Chances
by Piper Rayne

I adored both series featuring the Baileys and the Greenes, and I have been wanting Rylan and Calista’s story since there were first tiny sparks between them. The little glimpses at their relationship throughout the two series have been so enticing, and I want the full details & to see how they get their HEA!

(no cover yet!)

Publication date: May 16

~💧💔⚽️~

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5. Love, Theoretically
by Ali Hazelwood

I really like the tropes that Ali uses in her books, so I will gladly keep coming back for more! The dynamic between Elsie and Jack sounds like it will be so interesting and I can’t wait for another romantic & nerdy book from this author.

Publication date: June 13

~📑💝🗂~

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2022 End of Year Books Recap

I read 119 books in 2022! My Goodreads Challenge was 120 – I was so close! I was able to read a few books on New Year’s Eve to get closer to my goal, but I didn’t quite make it. This is the first time I haven’t surpassed my reading goal, which definitely fits with the vibe of this year…! There were lots of periods where reading didn’t fit with where my mental health was at, but that’s okay! I filled those times with other media I enjoy – podcasts, YouTube videos, and keeping up with the new TV shows that brought me joy this year.

Despite not hitting my goal of reading 120 books, I am still proud of my reading habits this year. I was critical about which books I picked up, and I tried to focus on the new releases in my series-in-progress, uplifting and interesting nonfiction, and escapist fantasy novels.

My Year in Books has the full details (almost accurate), gorgeous covers, and list of books that helped in my efforts to feel more like myself again during this difficult year.

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🔢 By the numbers

Pages: 39231

Average length: 330 pages

Average rating: 3.7 of 5 stars

Highest rated on Goodreads: Jade Legacy at 4.67 of 5 stars

2022 releases: 74 – which means 64% of my reads were new releases, wow!

ARCs & NetGalley reads: 14

My ratings for the year were much improved compared to previous years thanks to my pickier habits, with about two-thirds being 4+ stars and only one-quarter being 3 stars & below. And my lowest rating was 2 stars this year!

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📚 By format

Audiobooks = 100
Ebooks = 18
Hardcover = 0
Paperback = 1

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DNFs 🙅🏼‍♀️

14 books were DNFs, but there were a few again this year that I barely started and instantly NOPED that didn’t make the official list. These 14 DNFs also mean that I am still DNFing 1 book for every 10 completed – this ratio seems to be sticking with me over the years!

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😍 Favourite cover:

💕 Favourite 2022 release:

I read this one twice (ebook and then audiobook) because I couldn’t get enough of it the first time!

🤩 Best ARC:

This one also applies to Best Debut and Favourite 2022 Release – it’s so good I read it twice!

🚀 Best debut:

🙌🏻 Best sequel:

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💝 Rereads

I failed at my goal of rereading some of my favourite series (I’ll try again this year!), but I did a few comfort rereads during times where I needed a certain ~vibe~ to get me through. The Scorpio Races made the list twice this year. 💕

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🎉 Best 10 books of 2022 🎉

This was the year of amazing historical fiction and romance novels. Even better when the two genres were combined! My top reads were only in 4 genres this time around.

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Historical Fiction

The Diamond Eye

The Last Checkmate

Looking For Jane

The Giver of Stars

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Fantasy

Jade Legacy

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Nonfiction

This Is Assisted Dying

The Light We Carry

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Romance

Icebreaker

The League of Gentlewomen Witches

A Proposal They Can’t Refuse

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With my low energy and the dips in my mental health this year, I am forever grateful for the healing power of books and how an amazing story is always there to welcome you in again like a warm hug when the idea of reading a new story just doesn’t vibe with your brain. Books are magic. ❤️

Happy New Year! 🎉

Fire & Blood review

Who else really enjoyed House of the Dragon? 🙋🏼‍♀️

In addition to interesting stories, I also really love worldbuilding and backstory, so this was a very good read – it just took a long time to get through it!

~🐲👑⚔️~

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Fire & Blood
by George R.R. Martin

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I got sucked into watching House of the Dragon after a couple weeks of seeing cool gifs on the trending page on Tumblr, and then I decided I needed to read this book after watching just a couple episodes of the show! This messed up family is so intriguing and I wanted the “how they got here” history of the generations before Rhaenyra’s time.

In addition to the time spent on the Greens and the Blacks, I also really enjoyed reading about the wars and politics during Aegon the Conqueror’s time & the long history of Jaehaerys’ reign. The time spent under control of the regents was not so interesting and I definitely zoned out multiple times during that part of the audiobook. Thankfully the book then ended on a more interesting note with the Lysene Spring! This book was definitely overall very compelling and very well-crafted.

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Lazy book reviews: chapter 35

It’s been a while since I posted my last review… I have been listening to more podcasts and watching TV & YouTube lately. I also have not been writing as long of reviews – and there have been a few books I didn’t write a review for at all (lots of non-fiction lately!). These reviews are just in time for Halloween! 🎃

~✨📚✨~

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A Taste for Poison: Eleven Deadly Molecules and the Killers Who Used Them
by Neil Bradbury

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book is great for science nerds like me. I really enjoyed how each chapter was broken into similar sections on historical use and origins, scientific properties and how each molecule poisons a body, and stories about killers who have used each poison. Some chapters were far more interesting than others, but I definitely enjoyed reading about all 11 poisons. The balance between ~spooky murder stories~ and the interesting scientific explanations about each poison was very well done! *sips a gin & tonic*

~💊💀💉~

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A Killer by Design: Murderers, Mindhunters, and My Quest to Decipher the Criminal Mind
by Ann Wolbert Burgess

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I’m a big fan of Criminal Minds, so I was very intrigued when I saw this audiobook on my library app. I had such a good time listening to Ann’s story, about the origins of the BSU, and the elements of the cases that were featured in this book.

I am always in awe of the “right person, right time” phenomenon in history. Ann’s unique set of skills and experiences shaped the BSU and how it profiled murderers. She put in the time, hard work, and deep emotion that was necessary to change the way the killers are prevented from doing further harm. I greatly appreciated how central the victims were to her work and this book, which showed so much respect for them all.

~📑🧠🕵🏻‍♂️~

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Coven
by Jennifer Dugan

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The art was really good and the magic very interesting, but it took a long time for the plot to get going (like well over half the book). I wasn’t expecting the ending to play out the way it did.

~☠️🔥🦋~

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Lazy book reviews: chapter 34

Fall is here! I’m going to do some comfort re-reads and get to some longer books I have been waiting to start.

~✨📚✨~

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My Scorned Best Friend
by Piper Rayne

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

After they got over the mistakes of the past, I really liked Clara and Xavier together. It was the getting there that was a bit of a struggle… Second chance romances are so hit-or-miss due to the circumstances of the “first try” – and the reasons for these two not talking after being the best of friends for so long were pretty immature and unnecessary in my opinion.

I’m glad that their loved ones (aside from Presley) were pushing them together because their feelings were so obvious. They worked out their issues & hurts and committed to being there for each other. They found a way to make their life plans fit together. The grandmas didn’t feel as present in this one, but their meddling was just as funny as always. I also really enjoyed the little previews of Mandi and Noah’s story!

~🏈💔📚~

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Off With Her Head: Three Thousand Years of Demonizing Women in Power
by Eleanor Herman

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

We are not interested in hearing their stories because nothing is more alarming to the patriarchy than a fed up woman speaking the truth about misogyny.

I really enjoyed how this book was organized into different topics that explored how the patriarchy aims to keep women below men, both in history and right now. Three of my favourite chapters were “The Dangers of Female Hormones,” “She’s a Witch and Other Monsters,” and “She’s a Bitch and Other Animals.” The maddening amount of misogynistic ideas that have persisted throughout the centuries of history (and are still around today) were examined, and then suggestions were presented on how to begin dismantling this system in the final chapter.

~👸🏼🗣🧙🏼‍♀️~

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Do You Take This Man
by Denise Williams

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I liked RJ and Lear’s story well enough, but I didn’t love it. The romance tropes were overplayed at times. It was pretty formulaic and basic, which made the progress of their romance very predictable and not overly interesting. It was nice to see them work through things together and grow closer over time. I would have enjoyed it more if they had started showing a softening towards each other sooner, as the “enemies” mean-spirited vibe went on for a bit too long despite how well they were working together at the weddings.

~👰🏾💐💍~

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The White Rose Network review

Not all books I find on NetGalley can be winners, and I’m glad I didn’t spend more than a couple dollars on this ebook. And I’m glad that I committed to reading it after forgetting to download it – gotten keep my review percentage up!

~📄✊🏻📻~

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The White Rose Network
by Ellie Midwood

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Thanks to Bookouture for sending me an electronic copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for a review! I did not download it in time before it was archived, so I actually bought the ebook and I am reviewing the published novel.

I unfortunately didn’t enjoy this book much and it took a long time to get through it. The pacing was the biggest issue for me. A lot of things were explained in three sentences when one would have been enough, or things were described extensively but not in a captivating way. I found myself skimming at times to get to the important points. More focus on the White Rose’s secret activities instead of Sophie’s internal thoughts would have been more intriguing.

The chapters focusing on Sophie’s interrogation were definitely more interesting. The perspective was quite unique among the many WWII novels I have read. Knowing how this story would end from the events of history it is based on did not make the end any less impactful.

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