Books I Meant to Read in 2023 but Didn’t Get To 😳 | Top Ten Tuesday

When I still blogged unter @flourishreader, I regularly participated in the Top Ten Tuesday’s hosted by Jana @thatartsyreadergirl. Now, having started blogging again I stumbled upon it again and really liked this week’s prompt which is “books I meant to read in 2023 but didn’t get to”. Personally, I have more than 10 books to show because my last reading year was a whole catastrophe but I managed to pick THE 10 books I really wanted to read in 2023, books I already own too, but unfortunately, just couldn’t read due to ✨ time management ✨. Naturally, these books are on my tbr pile for this year again and in 2024 I want to take this very seriously and approach this very strategically so that I can hopefully reduce my tbr pile. 🤞🏼🤞🏼 Have fun with this short post of mine!

• Lockwood & Co. series by Jonathan Stroud (book #2, #3, #4 and #5)

Having watched the phenomenal Netflix adaptation of this book series last year, I had to pick up the original works of Jonathan Stroud and see what happens after the events of the show since unfortunately, the show got cancelled after one season. I have already read the first book in the series The Screaming Staircase and am currently reading book 2. Finishing this book series is a long-term goal of mine I hope to accomplish in the first half of the year. So far it’s going well. I already wrote a blog post about the show and book #1, you can read and join the discussion:

Lockwood & Co. on Netflix Turns One Year Old: Discovering a Fantastic YA Mystery Book Series 10 Years (!) after its Release and Why You Need to Do The Same 💚

• The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern

Erin Morgenstern published The Starless Sea in 2019 and ever since it came out I have been wanting to read it. Her first book, The Night Circus, is an all-time-favourite of mine. So, hopefully, 2024 is the year! What I expect from the book is a slow-paced but beautifully written fantasy standalone that is oozing with lots of magic.

• The Secret History by Donna Tartt

My first read of last year was If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio. It made me want to read more books that have this “dark academica” atmosphere or vibe to it and I think that The Secret History really is the dark academia book of dark academia books. At least, that’s what I’ve heard so far. I don’t know much about the plot other than that it might be similar to Dead Poets Society.

• Demon in the Wood by Leigh Bardugo

Demon in the Wood is a graphic novel published in 2022 set in Leigh Bardugo’s Grishaverse. It follows the Darkling’s back story and while I am not the biggest fan of the Darkling (more so of Ben Barnes!) I have to read this for reasons of completeness. As for Leigh Bardugo’s books revolving around the Grishaverse I have read the original trilogy, the Six of Crows duology but have yet to read King of Scars. I will probably save Demon in the Wood for a time when I am in a reading slump since it’s a graphic novel and should be easy to get through.

• The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

I started this one in 2023 but never finished reading it. So, as of right now, I am still somewhere in the middle of it. I can’t really say why I haven’t continued reading it. Initially, I picked up because I was intrigued by the Old Hollywood glamour. The way the book is structured and switches from present to past is really refreshing. It was a summer read and I just completely lost track of it. Apologies! I will defunitely finish this one in 2024 especially since I know that it’s a favourite of many.

• A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

Khaled Hosseini is one of my favourite authors. I read The Kite Runner and And the Mountains Echoed a couple of years ago and loved both. The Kite Runner became one of my favourite books. A Thousand Splendid Suns is still on my list. Why haven’t I read that one last year? I guess I was waiting for the right time to pick it up. since I know that the author’s books can be emotional roller coasters. The art is not to wait too long.

• Normal People by Sally Rooney

I don’t read contemporary novels that much but one of my 2024 resolutions is to change genres up a bit more. I haven’t read any of Sally Rooney’s books yet but I know that they are quite popular right now nad have mixed reviews – depending on who you ask. In 2024 I want to see for myself and try them out too. Not knowing with which one to start I just picked Normal People.

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Which books have you meant to read in 2023 but didn’t get to? If you participated in this week’s TTT please let me know!

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