At the end of 2023, Goodreads published a list of the most-read books in the 2023 Goodreads Challenge.
Taking a look through the list of 39 books, I was pleasantly surprised to see that I’d actually read quite a few of them. So I thought I’d go through the list and make a blog post of reviews for the books that I have read.
Below, you can see the list of the full 39 most-read books and those that I have, and haven’t read:
- Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros ✅
- Happy Place by Emily Henry ✅
- The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid ✅
- It Starts With Us by Colleen Hoover ✅
- Lessons In Chemistry by Bonnie Gamus ✅
- Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin ✅
- Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid ✅
- A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas ❌
- The Housemaid by Freida McFadden ✅
- I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy ❌
- It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover ✅
- Verity by Colleen Hoover ✅
- A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas ❌
- Book Lovers by Emily Henry ✅
- Icebreaker by Hannah Grace ❌
- Twisted Love by Ana Huang ✅
- Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score ✅
- The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides ✅
- Spare by Prince Harry ✅
- A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson ✅
- Carrie Soto is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid ✅
- The Perfect Marriage by Jeneva Rose ❌
- Beach Read by Emily Henry ✅
- Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt ❌
- Things We Hide From the Light by Lucy Score ❌
- Twisted Games by Ana Huang ❌
- The Midnight Library by Matt Haig ✅
- Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood ❌
- The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood ✅
- Every Summer After by Carley Fortune ❌
- Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult ❌
- The Fine Print by Lauren Asher ❌
- Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid ✅
- Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas ❌
- The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes ❌
- The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han ❌
- Yellowface by R. F. Kuang ❌
- The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller ❌
- Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston ❌
You can keep up with my daily reading via my Goodreads account linked here.
Reviews of the 21 Goodreads Books I’ve Read From this List
1. Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
Twenty-year-old Violet Sorrengail was supposed to enter the Scribe Quadrant, living a quiet life among books and history. Now, the commanding general – also known as her tough-as-talons mother – has ordered Violet to join the hundreds of candidates striving to become the elite of Navarre: dragon riders. But when you’re smaller than everyone else and your body is brittle, death is only a heartbeat away… because dragons don’t bond to ‘fragile’ humans. They incinerate them. With fewer dragons willing to bond than cadets, most would kill Violet to better their own chances of success. The rest would kill her just for being her mother’s daughter – like Xaden Riorson, the most powerful and ruthless wingleader in the Riders Quadrant. She’ll need every edge her wits can give her just to see the next sunrise. Yet, with every day that passes, the war outside grows more deadly, the kingdom’s protective wards are failing, and the death toll continues to rise. Even worse, Violet begins to suspect leadership is hiding a terrible secret.
My rating: ★★★★★
I am not a fantasy reader and never really have been (aside from Harry Potter of course) but I just had to see what the fuss was about with this book and oh my word, it did not disappoint. I’m so glad there’s a second book in this series and that it’s already available because this will be one of the first things I read in 2024, that’s for sure. So, even if you’re not a fantasy reader like I thought I wasn’t, I think you’re going to love this.
2. Happy Place by Emily Henry
Harriet and Wyn have been the perfect couple since they met in college—they go together like salt and pepper, honey and tea, lobster and rolls. Except, now—for reasons they’re still not discussing—they don’t. They broke up six months ago. And still haven’t told their best friends. Which is how they find themselves sharing the largest bedroom at the Maine cottage that has been their friend group’s yearly getaway for the last decade. Only this year, Harriet and Wyn are lying through their teeth while trying not to notice how desperately they still want each other. Because the cottage is for sale and this is the last week they’ll all have together in this place. After years of being in love, how hard can it be to fake it for one week… in front of those who know you best?
My rating: ★★★★★
Happy Place has taken the top spot in my rankings of Emily Henry books. It seems that with each new book that Emily Henry publishes, the better they get. This one gripped my heart and had me fully invested from the outset. I’m not usually a fan of the switching of past and present storytelling, but it really worked in this novel and I would almost go back and read it again.
3. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Ageing and reclusive Hollywood movie icon Evelyn Hugo is finally ready to tell the truth about her glamorous and scandalous life. But when she chooses unknown magazine reporter Monique Grant for the job, no one is more astounded than Monique herself. Why her? Why now? Monique is not exactly on top of the world. Her husband has left her, and her professional life is going nowhere. Regardless of why Evelyn has selected her to write her biography, Monique is determined to use this opportunity to jumpstart her career.
My rating: ★★★★★
This may just be the best book I’ve ever read. Even though this book is a work of fiction, I really wish it wasn’t. I wish this powerhouse Evelyn Hugo really did exist and I could delve further into the news articles and stories as well as her acting career. This is the most beautiful love story between two people amidst seven marriages and a very famous life in Hollywood.
4. It Starts With Us by Colleen Hoover
Lily and her ex-husband, Ryle, have just settled into a civil co-parenting rhythm when she suddenly bumps into her first love, Atlas, again. After nearly two years separated, she is elated that for once, time is on their side, and she immediately says yes when Atlas asks her on a date. But her excitement is quickly hampered by the knowledge that, though they are no longer married, Ryle is still very much a part of her life – and Atlas Corrigan is the one man he will hate being in his ex-wife and daughter’s life. Switching between the perspectives of Lily and Atlas, It Starts with Us picks up right where the epilogue for the bestselling phenomenon It Ends with Us left off.
My rating: ★★★★★
When I saw this in Stansted Airport when flying to Copenhagen, I had to pick it up because having read It Ends With Us, I was as obsessed as everyone else in the world, so had to know what happened next. I will say that It Starts With Us is much more tame than the first book. We see what happens next for Lily and her love life and ultimately, this book is the closure that we were all looking for to see Lily live her happily ever after with Atlas.
5. Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
Chemist Elizabeth Zott is not your average woman. In fact, Elizabeth Zott would be the first to point out that there is no such thing. But it’s the early 1960s and her all-male team at Hastings Research Institute take a very unscientific view of equality. Except for one: Calvin Evans; the lonely, brilliant, Nobel-prize nominated grudge-holder who falls in love with – of all things – her mind. True chemistry results. But like science, life is unpredictable. Which is why a few years later, Elizabeth Zott finds herself not only a single mother, but the reluctant star of America’s most beloved cooking show Supper at Six. Meet the unconventional, uncompromising Elizabeth Zott.
My rating: ★★★★★
Obsessed. That is the one word that comes to mind when reviewing this book. It’s unlike any romance or fiction book I’ve ever read and that’s why I think I loved it so much. I never saw myself reading a book about chemistry and I’m sure you’re probably thinking you wouldn’t want to either, but believe me this is about so much more than chemistry. It’s funny, sassy, full of feminism and one of the best books I’ve read so far in 2023.
6. Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
On a bitter-cold day, in the December of his junior year at Harvard, Sam Masur exits a subway car and sees, amid the hordes of people waiting on the platform, Sadie Green. He calls her name. For a moment, she pretends she hasn’t heard him, but then, she turns, and a game begins: a legendary collaboration that will launch them to stardom. These friends, intimates since childhood, borrow money, beg favors, and, before even graduating college, they have created their first blockbuster, Ichigo. Overnight, the world is theirs. Not even twenty-five years old, Sam and Sadie are brilliant, successful, and rich, but these qualities won’t protect them from their own creative ambitions or the betrayals of their hearts.
My rating: ★★★★★
I had no idea what to expect from this book really, other than the rave reviews I saw all over the internet. The title and book cover weren’t giving me much to go on and the blurb was hinting towards themes of gaming – something I’m not into myself. However, even though this is a book about gaming, it’s also about love, relationships, grief, disability, communication, success and fame. A truly exceptional book that I would recommend to anyone, no matter if you’re into the world of gaming or not. The best book I read in 2022.
7. Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
For a while, Daisy Jones & The Six were everywhere. Their albums were on every turntable, they sold out arenas from coast to coast, their sound defined an era. And then, on 12 July 1979, they split. Nobody ever knew why. Until now. They were lovers and friends and brothers and rivals. They couldn’t believe their luck, until it ran out. This is their story of the early days and the wild nights, but everyone remembers the truth differently. The only thing they all know for sure is that from the moment Daisy Jones walked barefoot, on to the stage at the Whisky, the band were irrevocably changed.
My rating: ★★★★★
Like The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, Daisy Jones & The Six is apparently loosely based on celebrities (this time, Fleetwood Mac) and knowing this just makes you so much more invested in the story and wishing it really was a biography. I’ve seen this come to life in the Prime Video TV series and knew it would adapt very well given the style of writing. But even more recently, Stevie Nicks has given her seal of approval saying that the show reminded her a lot of the early years of Fleetwood Mac.
8. The Housemaid by Freida McFadden
Every day I clean the Winchesters’ beautiful house top to bottom. I collect their daughter from school. And I cook a delicious meal for the whole family before heading up to eat alone in my tiny room on the top floor. I try to ignore how Nina makes a mess just to watch me clean it up. How she tells strange lies about her own daughter. And how her husband Andrew seems more broken every day. But as I look into Andrew’s handsome brown eyes, so full of pain, it’s hard not to imagine what it would be like to live Nina’s life. The walk-in closet, the fancy car, the perfect husband. I only try on one of Nina’s pristine white dresses once. Just to see what it’s like. But she soon finds out… and by the time I realize my attic bedroom door only locks from the outside, it’s far too late.
My rating: ★★★★★
I read this book in 48 hours. I couldn’t put it down. If I wasn’t working, I probably would have read the whole thing in one sitting. I’ve seen this book everywhere recently and now I see why. I bought this for £2.50 in a This Works store and I’m going to run back to the store to see if they also have the second book in this series. Or anything else Freida McFadden has written. I haven’t read a psychological thriller like this since The Silent Patient. Obsessed.
9. It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover
Sometimes it is the one who loves you who hurts you the most. Lily hasn’t always had it easy, but that’s never stopped her from working hard for the life she wants. She’s come a long way from the small town in Maine where she grew up — she graduated from college, moved to Boston, and started her own business. So when she feels a spark with a gorgeous neurosurgeon named Ryle Kincaid, everything in Lily’s life suddenly seems almost too good to be true. As questions about her new relationship overwhelm her, so do thoughts of Atlas Corrigan — her first love and a link to the past she left behind. When Atlas suddenly reappears, everything Lily has built with Ryle is threatened.
My rating: ★★★★★
This was probably the book that broke the internet. It was the book that got the whole world reading again and delving into the world of Colleen Hoover. I really enjoyed It Ends With Us, but firstly, I think this is more young adult fiction than adult fiction and secondly, if you changed the characters in this to members of One Direction, it would just be like reading fanfiction back when I was 13, so I can see why it’s very hyped on TikTok. Definitely one to read if you’re in a slump or want to start reading again.
10. Verity by Colleen Hoover
Lowen Ashleigh is a struggling writer on the brink of financial ruin when she accepts the job offer of a lifetime. Jeremy Crawford, husband of bestselling author Verity Crawford, has hired Lowen to complete the remaining books in a successful series his injured wife is unable to finish. Lowen arrives at the Crawford home, ready to sort through years of Verity’s notes and outlines, hoping to find enough material to get her started. What Lowen doesn’t expect to uncover is an unfinished autobiography Verity never intended for anyone to read. Page after page of bone-chilling admissions, including Verity’s recollection of what really happened the day her daughter died. Lowen decides to keep the manuscript hidden from Jeremy, but as Lowen’s feelings for Jeremy begin to intensify, she recognizes all the ways she could benefit if he were to read his wife’s words. After all, a truth this horrifying would make it impossible for him to continue to love her.
My rating: ★★★★★
Verity is in a completely different realm to the usual Colleen Hoover books I’ve read. I struggled to put this down, reading it in 48 hours. I have to give this book 5-stars as it was excellent. It was also very hard to read at times as the book featured some moments of child abuse, but the creativity of the plot line itself was something I’ve never read before. Chilling, haunting and at times a little scary, I can’t wait to read more thriller-type books from CH.
11. Book Lovers by Emily Henry
Nora Stephens’ life is books—she’s read them all—and she is not that type of heroine. Not the plucky one, not the laidback dream girl, and especially not the sweetheart. In fact, the only people Nora is a heroine for are her clients, for whom she lands enormous deals as a cutthroat literary agent, and her beloved little sister Libby. Which is why she agrees to go to Sunshine Falls, North Carolina for the month of August when Libby begs her for a sisters’ trip away—with visions of a small-town transformation for Nora, who she’s convinced needs to become the heroine in her own story. But instead of picnics in meadows, or run-ins with a handsome country doctor or bulging-forearmed bartender, Nora keeps bumping into Charlie Lastra, a bookish brooding editor from back in the city. It would be a meet-cute if not for the fact that they’ve met many times and it’s never been cute.
My rating: ★★★★★
Book Lovers was my final summer read in 2022 as I got over my Bali jetlag. I’ve now realised small town romance is my favourite trope and this is exactly what this was. A book editor and book agent who aren’t very fond of each other just so happen to be staying in the same small town and well, I’m sure you can guess what happens. Emily Henry basically makes fun of every cliche from every romance book in Book Lovers and I loved it. Incredibly predictable, but still so good.
12. Twisted Love by Ana Huang
Alex Volkov is a devil blessed with the face of an angel and cursed with a past he can’t escape. Driven by a tragedy that has haunted him for most of his life, his ruthless pursuits for success and vengeance leave little room for matters of the heart. But when he’s forced to look after his best friend’s sister, he starts to feel something in his chest. Ava Chen is a free spirit trapped by nightmares of a childhood she can’t remember. But despite her broken past, she’s never stopped seeing the beauty in the world… including the heart beneath the icy exterior of a man she shouldn’t want. Her brother’s best friend. Her neighbour. Her saviour and her downfall. Theirs is a love that was never supposed to happen—but when it does, it unleashes secrets that could destroy them both… and everything they hold dear.
My rating: ★★★
This is a series I’ve seen all over Booktok/Booktube and even though I’m not usually one for a book series, I had to see what all the fuss was about. It took me a while to get into it, but I think this could have been a really good story if it wasn’t so dramatised. The murder/revenge aspect just seemed a little out-there to me, plus the backstories of the main characters. I’m not rushing to pick up the next in the series, but I’ll probably get around to it eventually.
13. Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score
Bearded, bad-boy barber Knox prefers to live his life the way he takes his coffee: Alone. Unless you count his basset hound, Waylon. Knox doesn’t tolerate drama, even when it comes in the form of a stranded runaway bride. Naomi wasn’t just running away from her wedding. She was riding to the rescue of her estranged twin to Knockemout, Virginia, a rough-around-the-edges town where disputes are settled the old-fashioned way…with fists and beer. Too bad for Naomi her evil twin hasn’t changed at all. After helping herself to Naomi’s car and cash, Tina leaves her with something unexpected. The niece Naomi didn’t know she had. Now she’s stuck in town with no car, no job, no plan, and no home with an 11-year-old going on thirty to take care of. There’s a reason Knox doesn’t do complications or high-maintenance women, especially not the romantic ones. But since Naomi’s life imploded right in front of him, the least he can do is help her out of her jam. And just as soon as she stops getting into new trouble he can leave her alone and get back to his peaceful, solitary life.
My rating: ★★★★★
Obsessed. That is my review of this book. It may have took 100 pages before the two main characters finally kissed but oh my word I was hooked to this book. The ending had my smiling from ear to ear and wishing it didn’t have to end. You need to read this if you like romance novels!
14. The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
Alicia Berenson’s life is seemingly perfect. A famous painter married to an in-demand fashion photographer, she lives in a grand house with big windows overlooking a park in one of London’s most desirable areas. One evening her husband Gabriel returns home late from a fashion shoot, and Alicia shoots him five times in the face, and then never speaks another word. Alicia’s refusal to talk, or give any kind of explanation, turns a domestic tragedy into something far grander, a mystery that captures the public imagination and casts Alicia into notoriety. The price of her art skyrockets, and she, the silent patient, is hidden away from the tabloids and spotlight at the Grove, a secure forensic unit in North London. Theo Faber is a criminal psychotherapist who has waited a long time for the opportunity to work with Alicia. His determination to get her to talk and unravel the mystery of why she shot her husband takes him down a twisting path into his own motivations—a search for the truth that threatens to consume him….
My rating: ★★★★★
Oh my word, what an ending. I was trying to figure out how the characters were connected the whole way through the book but I really did not see it coming. The Silent Patient is a gripping thriller, and may even have you shouting ‘WHAT?!’ when you realise the plot twist. And what a plot twist indeed. Definitely a book to add to your list if you’re into thrillers/crime novels!
15. Spare by Prince Harry
It was one of the most searing images of the twentieth century: two young boys, two princes, walking behind their mother’s coffin as the world watched in sorrow-and horror. As Princess Diana was laid to rest, billions wondered what Prince William and Prince Harry must be thinking and feeling-and how their lives would play out from that point on. For Harry, this is that story at last.
My rating: ★★★★
I hate to admit that I am one of those people that loves the gossip columns (do you follow Deuxmois on Instagram?) and royal scandal, so I just had to know what was within the pages of this scandalous book. I will say it’s worth a read if you want to know more about the royal family and their dynamic (for lovers of The Crown especially), and I was shocked at some of the stories within the book. However, it was very much centred around Harry’s hate of the press and how much he misses his mum. That’s basically what you get from reading this book, but I would love to be a fly on the wall in the royal household when they (their servants) read the book (for them).
16. A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson
The case is closed. Five years ago, schoolgirl Andie Bell was murdered by Sal Singh. The police know he did it. Everyone in town knows he did it. But having grown up in the same small town that was consumed by the crime, Pippa Fitz-Amobi isn’t so sure. When she chooses the case as the topic for her final project, she starts to uncover secrets that someone in town desperately wants to stay hidden. And if the real killer is still out there, how far will they go to keep Pip from the truth…?
My rating: ★★★★
I had first seen this book all over Instagram with rave reviews along with the sequel, Good Girl, Bad Blood. I can agree that A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder was worth all the hype and it was a nice escape into teen fiction for me again. I used to love this genre of books when I was younger and so it made for some light reading.
17. Carrie Soto is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Carrie Soto is fierce, and her determination to win at any cost has not made her popular. But by the time she retires from tennis, she is the best player the world has ever seen. She sacrificed nearly everything to become the best, with her father, Javier, as her coach. But six years after her retirement, Carrie finds herself sitting in the stands of the 1994 US Open, watching her record be taken from her by a brutal, stunning player named Nicki Chan. At thirty-seven years old, Carrie makes the monumental decision to come out of retirement and be coached by her father for one last year in an attempt to reclaim her record.
My rating: ★★★★
I had seen mixed reviews online for this one, and was a little apprehensive going into it. It was giving everything that Taylor Jenkins Reid is good at – celebrity lives, pre 1990s, gossip and scandal – and for that, I enjoyed it. I wouldn’t say it was TJR’s best book (will she ever write anything as good as The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo?) but it definitely wasn’t her worst. For me, Carrie Soto ranks below Evelyn Hugo, Malibu Rising and Daisy Jones.
18. Beach Read by Emily Henry
Augustus Everett is an acclaimed author of literary fiction. January Andrews writes bestselling romance. When she pens a happily ever after, he kills off his entire cast. They’re polar opposites. In fact, the only thing they have in common is that for the next three months, they’re living in neighboring beach houses, broke, and bogged down with writer’s block. Until, one hazy evening, one thing leads to another and they strike a deal designed to force them out of their creative ruts: Augustus will spend the summer writing something happy, and January will pen the next Great American Novel.
My rating: ★★★★
I saved this book for a long time purposely, so I could read it on the beach. With a title like Beach Read, where else could I simply read this book? So I took it on my holiday to Rhodes, Greece (you can watch my YouTube vlog of the trip here) and read it in the sunshine while lying on a sun lounger by the water. I will say that I enjoyed the book and it was just what I expected in a typical summer rom-com type trope, but the one thing that was missing for me was that it sounded like it was set in the woods in the Mid West of America, not anywhere sunny or near the beach. In fact, I’m failing to remember a beach even being mentioned in the book. It wasn’t giving me the summer-filled sunshine romance that I was hoping for, so that knocked a star off.
19. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
Between life and death there is a library.When Nora Seed finds herself in the Midnight Library, she has a chance to make things right. Up until now, her life has been full of misery and regret. She feels she has let everyone down, including herself. But things are about to change. The books in the Midnight Library enable Nora to live as if she had done things differently. With the help of an old friend, she can now undo every one of her regrets as she tries to work out her perfect life. But things aren’t always what she imagined they’d be, and soon her choices place the library and herself in extreme danger. Before time runs out, she must answer the ultimate question: what is the best way to live?
My rating: ★★★★★
I had seen this book everywhere on social media and had also heard quite a lot of mixed reviews (but mostly 5/5 ratings) and was very grateful to have been gifted a review copy by the team at Canongate. I loved this book. I read it over three days and fully related to the messages within the book and I think it’s a very important book for our time. Thinking of everything your life could be instead of making the most of the one you have is where most of us are going wrong. Realising that every small decision you make each day alters the course of your life completely is quite something to wrap your head around, but is so, so true.
20. The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood
As a third-year Ph.D. candidate, Olive Smith doesn’t believe in lasting romantic relationships–but her best friend does, and that’s what got her into this situation. Convincing Anh that Olive is dating and well on her way to a happily ever after was always going to take more than hand-wavy Jedi mind tricks: Scientists require proof. So, like any self-respecting biologist, Olive panics and kisses the first man she sees. That man is none other than Adam Carlsen, a young hotshot professor–and well-known ass. Which is why Olive is positively floored when Stanford’s reigning lab tyrant agrees to keep her charade a secret and be her fake boyfriend. But when a big science conference goes haywire, putting Olive’s career on the Bunsen burner, Adam surprises her again with his unyielding support and even more unyielding… six-pack abs. Suddenly their little experiment feels dangerously close to combustion. And Olive discovers that the only thing more complicated than a hypothesis on love is putting her own heart under the microscope.
My rating: ★★★
This was another one of my Booktok purchases and I think this will be the end of me buying books based on teen TikTokers and stick to my usual book guru of Jack Edwards on YouTube. Once again, it was like reading fanfiction on Wattpad and it reminded me of Grey’s Anatomy, were the characters still in Medical school. It was just too predictable and lovey-dovey for me, but if you like a cliche romance novel, look no further.
21. Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Four famous siblings throw an epic party to celebrate the end of the summer. But over the course of twenty-four hours, their lives will change forever. Malibu Rising is a story about one unforgettable night in the life of a family: the night they each have to choose what they will keep from the people who made them… and what they will leave behind.
My rating: ★★★★★
Malibu Rising is one of TJR’s more recent novels and I read this before Carrie Soto is Back as I heard the characters of Malibu Rising actually feature in Malibu Rising first. This was another epic novel by TJR and every bit the page turner as Evelyn Hugo and Daisy Jones and I can definitely see a movie being made for this in the near future.
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