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top ten books of 2023, first half
Monday, 31 July 2023 10:09Read: 42
Honestly, I felt like it was a pretty bad reading year to date, but then looking through...not too shabby. Top 4 is very solid, loved all of them, and then 5-10 is a bit...wonky and are fine, but not near the favourite territory.
10. Chlorine by Jade Song
Weird book about a competitive swimmer who decides she's a mermaid and tries to become one. Gross but overall pretty interesting/compelling. Probably deserves a closer reading but I didn't like it enough to really dig deep.
9. Wild Geese by Soula Emmanuel
Definitely over-hyped this for myself. Short timeframe, where a trans woman's ex-girlfriend comes to visit her in Denmark, and they talk everything through. Writing was a bit too flowery for me at moments and it got pretty repetitive. This is one I'd want to re-read to see if I get more out of it, but the first time through it was difficult to get to the point.
8. The Winners by Frederik Backman
This man ruined my life. Could've definitely been shorter, but it was so, so emotional and I will never forgive him.
7. Desperada by Sofia Mostaghimi
I really loved this one even if it was incredibly depressing. Read it early in the year and do not remember much of the details, but the writing was strong and the story was really heartfelt.
6. The Adult by Bronwyn Fischer
Other went to the University of Guelph which is somehow hilarious to me. Freshman at University of Toronto (I assume) dates a 38 year old woman. I liked the writing but it was a bit much at points. I liked that the story just existed and it wasn't exactly a statement on anything except a personal journey.
5. Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld
I love a book with emails, sorry to say. I thought it was sweet. I probably would've enjoyed this more if I had more sympathy for men, but I don't. Felt like a lot of reviews were so unsympathetic to the main woman which isn't surprising, but still depressing to me. The SNL details were unnecessary to me, as someone annoyingly familiar with the show, but I get why they were included.
4. Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant
I loved this book so much I shocked myself. Creepy, weird, fun. I love "horror" when it's about the ocean. I loved the main character. The writing was incredible and I liked the pacing.
3. Shark Heart by Emily Habeck
A happily married couple finds out that the husband has a mutation that is going to turn him into a great white shark. No notes! I thought this was amazing. I loved the weird structure of the book, I loved the characters and how realized they felt, I loved the oddness of the universe Habeck built. My only complaint is the epilogue. But I am not an epilogue fan in general and it was a tad too sweet for me contrasted to the rest of the book.
2. The Happy Couple by Naoise Dolan
Yeah...she gets it. I loved it. I loved the mess of characters and all the dynamics. I love Dolan's prose. This was a lot better than Exciting Times imo, which I also liked. The structure of this one was interesting too. It worked because I did have an annoying bit of sympathy for Luke even though he sucked. All the women were fascinating and weird. Very excited for whatever Dolan writes next.
1. Boulder by Eva Baltasar
I check every week to see when the third book of this series is going to come out in English. It's so short but I loved it so much. I definitely prefer Boulder to Permafrost. I love mean weird lesbians who get to be mean weird lesbians. I love how the love story unfolded and went "wrong". Her writing is stunning and it was so easy to read, even if it was draped in pretty prose. It is pretty close to the ideal kind of lesbian book that I want more of: nothing is sugar coated, it isn't a straight forward romance, the characters feel like real people, and the emotions are so, so genuine.
Honestly, I felt like it was a pretty bad reading year to date, but then looking through...not too shabby. Top 4 is very solid, loved all of them, and then 5-10 is a bit...wonky and are fine, but not near the favourite territory.
10. Chlorine by Jade Song
Weird book about a competitive swimmer who decides she's a mermaid and tries to become one. Gross but overall pretty interesting/compelling. Probably deserves a closer reading but I didn't like it enough to really dig deep.
9. Wild Geese by Soula Emmanuel
Definitely over-hyped this for myself. Short timeframe, where a trans woman's ex-girlfriend comes to visit her in Denmark, and they talk everything through. Writing was a bit too flowery for me at moments and it got pretty repetitive. This is one I'd want to re-read to see if I get more out of it, but the first time through it was difficult to get to the point.
8. The Winners by Frederik Backman
This man ruined my life. Could've definitely been shorter, but it was so, so emotional and I will never forgive him.
7. Desperada by Sofia Mostaghimi
I really loved this one even if it was incredibly depressing. Read it early in the year and do not remember much of the details, but the writing was strong and the story was really heartfelt.
6. The Adult by Bronwyn Fischer
Other went to the University of Guelph which is somehow hilarious to me. Freshman at University of Toronto (I assume) dates a 38 year old woman. I liked the writing but it was a bit much at points. I liked that the story just existed and it wasn't exactly a statement on anything except a personal journey.
5. Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld
I love a book with emails, sorry to say. I thought it was sweet. I probably would've enjoyed this more if I had more sympathy for men, but I don't. Felt like a lot of reviews were so unsympathetic to the main woman which isn't surprising, but still depressing to me. The SNL details were unnecessary to me, as someone annoyingly familiar with the show, but I get why they were included.
4. Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant
I loved this book so much I shocked myself. Creepy, weird, fun. I love "horror" when it's about the ocean. I loved the main character. The writing was incredible and I liked the pacing.
3. Shark Heart by Emily Habeck
A happily married couple finds out that the husband has a mutation that is going to turn him into a great white shark. No notes! I thought this was amazing. I loved the weird structure of the book, I loved the characters and how realized they felt, I loved the oddness of the universe Habeck built. My only complaint is the epilogue. But I am not an epilogue fan in general and it was a tad too sweet for me contrasted to the rest of the book.
2. The Happy Couple by Naoise Dolan
Yeah...she gets it. I loved it. I loved the mess of characters and all the dynamics. I love Dolan's prose. This was a lot better than Exciting Times imo, which I also liked. The structure of this one was interesting too. It worked because I did have an annoying bit of sympathy for Luke even though he sucked. All the women were fascinating and weird. Very excited for whatever Dolan writes next.
1. Boulder by Eva Baltasar
I check every week to see when the third book of this series is going to come out in English. It's so short but I loved it so much. I definitely prefer Boulder to Permafrost. I love mean weird lesbians who get to be mean weird lesbians. I love how the love story unfolded and went "wrong". Her writing is stunning and it was so easy to read, even if it was draped in pretty prose. It is pretty close to the ideal kind of lesbian book that I want more of: nothing is sugar coated, it isn't a straight forward romance, the characters feel like real people, and the emotions are so, so genuine.
