Another a year, another almost impossible task trying to each choose our Top 10 Reads of the year! Like past years I won’t be including re-reads, sometimes my opinion of a book could change and evolve after I had read it, so some surprises may be up near the top, as well as perhaps a book or two that didn’t make my reviews on here initially due to genre limitations. But here they are, ready for a countdown! And since it’s the end of the reading year, don’t forget to enter our “Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway”! Today I’m going to countdown my favorite reads, ten to six.
10. “One Girl in All the World” by Kendare Blake
“One Girl in All the World” Review
I’ve been having something of a “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” nostalgia trip the past couple of years, and part of that is due to Kendare Blake’s “In Every Generation” Series, which follows Willow Rosenberg’s daughter Frankie as she trains to become a slayer. “One Girl in All the World” is the second book in the series, and I thoroughly enjoyed continuing the adventure as Frankie and her friends (as well as Mom Willow and Watcher Spike) contend with a growing number of monsters, and a still missing in action Buffy and what that means for all of them. Blake still captures the tone and heart of the original series, and I am still quite enamored not only with her new characters, but her interpretations of the old ones as well (this Spike fan is still swooning). The final book comes out in 2024, and I’m both amped and very nervous.
9. “Lone Women” by Victor LaValle
It was a bit of time to wait for Victor LaValle’s next horror novel, but man, was it worth it. I will say that I was a bit nervous when I saw that “Lone Women” was going to not only be horror, but also a Western, as that isn’t a genre that I really connect with, but I should never have doubted LaValle’s prowess, because I ended up loving this book. I was completely enthralled by the story of Adelaide as she leaves her life behind (dead parents and a burning down homestead to be exact) with a mysterious trunk and hopes to make it on her own as a solo homesteader, and the community of other women, as well as other dangers, as she tries to start again. And once the question of what was in the trunk was addressed, well…. I loved it even more. This book is tense, hopeful, and beautifully written. Glad to have you back, Mr. LaValle!
8. “Don’t Fear the Reaper” by Stephen Graham Jones
“Don’t Fear the Reaper” Review
Given that I try not to have repeats of authors on my end of year list, I had to make some tough decisions in regards to whether I chose Stephen Graham Jones’s graphic novel “Earthdivers: Kill Columbus”, or “Don’t Fear the Reaper”, the sequel to his meta horror novel “My Heart is a Chainsaw”. But Jade eeked this one out, as I was once again tickled and moved by her story as she returns to Proofrock after a jail sentence, only to stumble in the night of a serial killer terrorizing the town. Jones is still showing off his knowledge and love for horror movies, all while giving an homage to the art form as well as bringing up social issues that Indigenous people have to face in a racist society, and he continues to do it was aplomb, flair, and genuine frights. The final entry in the trilogy comes out in 2024 and I’m excited but also not ready to say goodbye.
7. “Midnight is the Darkest Hour” by Ashley Winstead
“Midnight is the Darkest Hour” Review
This was a bit of a wild card for me, as I went into it with little knowledge and not really any expectations, and then I ended up absolutely adoring it! “Midnight is the Darkest Hour” is a thriller by way of “Thelma and Louise” if that story had religious trauma, a callout of small town bigotry, and a little bit if vampire lore with a heavy dose of “Twilight” adoration, and man oh man did it work for me. This was my first Ashley Winstead book and I am absolutely going to go back and read more of her work. I love the mysteries of Bottom Springs as two outcasts, Ruth and Everett, hold tight to each other and try to survive in a town that doesn’t understand and flat out hates them, and as they try to hide their own secrets, they discover more. It kept me guessing, it kept my heart racing, and it kept my romantic side just ACHING. What a combination!
6. “Graveyard of Lost Children” by Katrina Monroe
“Graveyard of Lost Children” Review
Stories that involve danger posed towards kids always send an extra chill up my spine, given that I am always anxious about the safety and wellbeing of my child, but in the case of “Graveyard of Lost Children” by Katrina Monroe, a horror tale about new motherhood, postpartum depression and perhaps psychosis, and maybe also a supernatural threat of a black haired woman spectre, I was so enthuse with the story I wasn’t as on edge. At least not in a negative way. I thought that this book about a new mother seeing visions of a malevolent woman perhaps threatening her and her baby’s safety was unnerving, poignant, deeply scary and also at times very emotional. It definitely got under my skin but never in a bad way, and I was hooked and horrified as I read. We’re seeing lots of pregnancy and postpartum horror these days, and “Graveyard of Lost Children” really stood out to me this year.
That’s 10 through 6! On Thursday I will reveal my Top 5 Books of 2023! What books were your favorites this year? Let us know in the comments!
The Library Ladies 