We’re gearing up to close out our year of reading with today’s podcast episode, featuring the Best Books of 2023 Superlatives with Susie (@NovelVisits). Our wrap-up is split into two episodes: today’s Superlatives and next week’s Genre Awards. Today, we’re diving into more than 25 Superlative categories, including Most Deserving of the Hype, Biggest Surprise, the Darkest Book of the Year, and many others!

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CLICK HERE for the full episode Show Notes on the blog.

Announcements

• My 2024 Reading Tracker is out! Once again, the Tracker will ONLY be available to $7/month Superstars patrons (i.e., no longer available as a separate purchase for $14.99 here on my website). Become a Superstars Patron here!

Highlights

• Our best books of the year from over 25 categories, including:
  • Most Deserving of the Hype
  • FOMO-Worthy Book
  • Third Time’s the Charm
  • Darkest Book of the Year
  • Top Underrated Gem
  • Biggest Surprise
  • The Book You Flew Through
  • Most Polarizing Favorite
  • Most Heartbreaking

2023 Superlatives [6:52]

Susie

• Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano | Amazon | Bookshop.org [7:03] & [24:25]
• I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai | Amazon | Bookshop.org[11:37]
• Age of Vice by Deepti Kapoor | Amazon | Bookshop.org [16:07]
• Juno Loves Legs by Karl Geary | Amazon | Bookshop.org [21:17]
• Western Lane by Chetna Maroo | Amazon | Bookshop.org [25:14]
• The Future by Naomi Alderman | Amazon | Bookshop.org [29:44]
• Pete and Alice in Maine by Caitlin Shetterly | Amazon | Bookshop.org [33:46]
• The Road to Dalton by Shannon Bowring | Amazon | Bookshop.org [37:31]
• Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah | Amazon | Bookshop.org[40:22]
• One Woman Show by Christine Coulson | Amazon | Bookshop.org [43:40]
• Small Mercies by Dennis Lehane | Amazon | Bookshop.org [46:41]
• Rootless by Krystle Zara Appiah | Amazon | Bookshop.org [49:20]
• The Postcard by Anne Berest | Amazon | Bookshop.org [52:19]
• Happiness Falls by Angie Kim | Amazon | Bookshop.org [58:01]
• Wandering Souls by Cecile Pin | Amazon | Bookshop.org [1:03:40]

Sarah

• The Rachel Incident by Caroline O’Donoghue | Amazon | Bookshop.org [8:42]
• The Quiet Tenant by Clémence Michallon | Amazon | Bookshop.org [13:10]
• Pineapple Street by Jenny Jackson | Amazon | Bookshop.org [15:03]
• All the Sinners Bleed by S. A. Cosby | Amazon | Bookshop.org [18:43]
• Strange Sally Diamond by Liz Nugent | Amazon | Bookshop.org [22:56]
• All That Is Mine I Carry With Me by William Landay | Amazon | Bookshop.org[26:55]
• Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll | Amazon | Bookshop.org [28:21]
• I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai | Amazon | Bookshop.org[32:26]
• I Could Live Here Forever by Hannah Halperin | Amazon | Bookshop.org [35:53]
• How to Stay Married by Harrison Scott Key | Amazon | Bookshop.org [38:44]
• Drowning by T. J. Newman | Amazon | Bookshop.org [42:11]
• Shark Heart by Emily Habeck | Amazon | Bookshop.org [45:09]
• Late Bloomers by Deepa Varadarajan | Amazon | Bookshop.org [48:01]
• Good for a Girl by Lauren Fleshman | Amazon | Bookshop.org [50:40]
• The Longest Race by Kara Goucher | Amazon | Bookshop.org [50:56]
• Tom Lake by Ann Patchett | Amazon | Bookshop.org [54:53]
• Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson | Amazon | Bookshop.org [1:01:01]
• We Were Once a Family by Roxanna Asgarian | Amazon | Bookshop.org[1:05:08]

Other Books Mentioned

• Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano [7:23]
• Blacktop Wasteland by S. A. Cosby [19:27]
• Razorblade Tears by S. A. Cosby [19:30]
• Unraveling Oliver by Liz Nugent [23:28]
• Talking at Night by Claire Daverley [24:30]
• Maame by Jessica George [24:32]
• The Power by Naomi Alderman [30:11]
• Wellness by Nathan Hill [31:30]
• Day by Michael Cunningham [31:32]
• Yellowface by R. F. Kuang [31:35]
• The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai [32:47]
• The Whispers by Ashley Audrain [37:03]
• The Push by Ashley Audrain [37:20]
• Our Town by Thornton Wilder [56:12]