In the order I read them, here are my top 10 reads of 2023 (of books released in 2023). Plus a bonus book just because.
This would be a quick visit. He wouldn’t think about her hair. He wouldn’t confess anything. Under no circumstances would he flirt.
…
Inside, in worn jeans and Chuck Taylors, stood Nicole. She had her back to him, and her hair fell loose around her shoulders, long and shiny with the slightest curl to it.
Right, he’d already failed to ignore her hair. This was going to be disastrous.
“How are you still single?” I ask, for the third time since we’ve met, making him smile.
“Because you’re not mine yet.”
The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen by KJ Charles
Joss’s smile. The way they’d kissed. Even that stupid argument, about which Gareth had given himself some serious talkings-to, because of how Joss had listened afterwards. The touch of his hands, the wonder in his eyes, the astonishing sense of familiarity, as though he and Gareth had somehow slipped past one another all their lives and their meeting was long overdue.
It had felt like that with Kent too, and he’d told himself it wasn’t real. Now he’d started wondering if it had been, say, true in outline. As if ‘London and Kent’ had been a pencil drawing, and now it was being filled in with colours.
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Unfortunately Yours by Tessa Bailey
They fought like they hated each other, but somehow, Lord, he’d been ready to drop to his knees in front of her on that sidewalk last night.
“I’m better elsewhere. I’m something. I’m someone when I’m not here.”After the shock of hearing that breathy confession had worn off, he’d just gotten mad.
Who the fuck made her feel like that?
How long had she been feeling like crap without his knowing about it?
Why didn’t I put a quote in my review??
The Summer Girl by Elle Kennedy
Our buddy Jordy and his reggae band play this venue most weekends, but they’re not here tonight. In their place is a metal outfit with a lead singer who’s scream-singing unintelligible lyrics as I sidle up to the boys.
Cooper, clad in a black T-shirt and ripped jeans, is sipping on a beer and wincing at the ungodly noises coming from the stage. His other half is nowhere to be found, and by that I mean Evan, his twin. Mackenzie would be his better half, the chick who got Cooper to smile more times in the last year than in all the years I’ve known him combined. Genuine smiles, too, and not the cocky smirks he’d flash right before we used to fuck shit up.
Chase is next to Coop, engrossed with his phone, while Danny listens to the band with a pained expression.
“These guys are awful,” I say, wondering who the hell decided to book them. The singer is now making strange breathing noises while the two guitarists whisper into their microphones. “Why are they whispering now?”
“Is he saying my skull is weeping?” Cooper demands, wrinkling his brow.
“No. It’s my soul is sleeping,” Danny tells him.
“It’s both,” Chase says without looking up from his phone. “My skull is weeping/my soul is sleeping. Those are the lyrics.”
A Nobleman’s Guide to Seducing a Scoundrel by KJ Charles
Rufus had many times heard the phrase ‘he came out swinging’. It generally referred to a boxer’s fists, but there was a lot to be said for an axe.
If Landon were built differently, maybe he and Casey would hook up one night. Maybe one thing would lead to another, and they’d both say, “Hey, why not do this? Might be fun.” Maybe it wouldn’t mean anything more than watching TV together did; just something to do before bed.
But even imagining that filled Landon with so much anxiety he wanted to tear his skin off. He didn’t want to hook up with Casey.
So what the fuck did he want?
He supposed it didn’t matter. He wasn’t going to get it. He needed to pull himself together, go back to his seat, and pretend to be a much more laidback person than he was.
At least he and Casey would be separated a bit on this trip. They were in different hotel rooms, and clearly Casey had his own plans for their free time. Maybe distance would clear Landon’s head.
But when he returned to his seat, and Casey smiled at him and randomly asked if he thought walruses were weird, Landon really doubted it.
System Collapse by Martha Wells
I had an actual gun, one of ART’s projectile weapons, but we knew from experience how many shots it took to down an enraged ag-bot, and getting up right on its processor for a point-blank impact was not something anybody wanted me to try to attempt, especially me.
The Fairytale Life of Dorothy Gale by Virginia Kantra
“Women who tell the truth have always been called witches.”
BONUS BOOK
The Graham Effect by Elle Kennedy – I didn’t do a formal review of this one but I loved it. It has all the vibes of The Deal and The Summer Girl, great banter and likeable characters with excellent chemistry. I had a couple of quibbles but overall, it was just wonderful. Grade A-
“Always. You fall, I pick you up. Always.”
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Kaetrin
Kaetrin started reading romance as a teen and then took a long break, detouring into fantasy and thrillers. She returned to romance in 2008 and has been blogging since 2010. She reads contemporary, historical, a little paranormal, urban fantasy and romantic suspense, as well as erotic romance and more recently, new adult. She loves angsty books, funny books, long books and short books. The only thing mandatory is the HEA. Favourite authors include Mary Balogh, Susanna Kearsley, Joanna Bourne, Tammara Webber, Kristen Ashley, Shannon Stacey, Sarah Mayberry, JD Robb/Nora Roberts, KA Mitchell, Marie Sexton, Patricia Briggs, Ilona Andrews, just to name a few. You can find her on Twitter: @kaetrin67.
