Category: Bookish Question

What were the top ten books you read in 2023?

Bookish Question #309 | What were the top ten books you read in 2023?

We’re almost at the end of 2023, and I must be getting older because I am sure the years are going faster. Yet again, I’ve read a lot of books (and published one, which was a first!). Some were excellent, some were fun but forgettable, and some were unforgettable for all the wrong reasons.

But today it’s time to share the books I enjoyed most in 2023. Most are contemporary Christian fiction, because that’s the genre I read most. But one is Biblical fiction (Plagues and Papyrus), one is multi-timeline (In This Moment), and one is perhaps more women’s fiction than romance (The Words We Lost).

So here’s my list, most of which I have already reviewed or featured on the blog:

  1. With All my Heart by Emily Dana Botrous
  2. Now or Never by Emily Conrad
  3. The Words We Lost by Nicole Deese
  4. Plagues and Papyrus by Christine Dillon
  5. Where Our Hearts Lie by Jenny Glazebrook
  6. His Runaway Crush by Heather Gray
  7. The Billionaire’s Teacher by Elizabeth Maddrey
  8. In This Moment by Gabrielle Meyer
  9. In Spite of Ourselves by Jennifer Rodewald
  10. Dedicated to the One I Love by Beth K Vogt

What were the top five (or ten) books you read in 2023?

What's one book you've read in 2023 that has stayed with you?

Bookish Question #308 | What’s one book you’ve read in 2023 that has stayed with you?

As you all know, I read a lot of books. I forget far too many of them. I’ve round myself re-reading a few this year with no memory of having read them the first time. I hundreds of plots and characters running around inside my mind—my own, and those from the novels I’ve read.

But one book has stood head and shoulders above the rest for the combination of great writing, memorable characters, and a truly unique plot.

And that book is In This Moment Day Comes by Gabrielle Meyer (which I’ve already read twice, and may need to read again now I’ve reminded myself of it).

Here’s the Amazon book description:

Maggie inherited a gift from her time-crossing parents that allows her to live three separate lives in 1861, 1941, and 2001. Each night, she goes to sleep in one time period and wakes up in another. Until she turns twenty-one, when she will have to forfeit two of those lives–and everyone she knows in them–forever.

In 1861, Maggie is the daughter of a senator at the outbreak of the Civil War, navigating a capital full of Southern spies and wounded soldiers. In 1941, she is a navy nurse, grappling with her knowledge of the future when she joins a hospital ship going to Pearl Harbor. And in 2001, she’s a brilliant young medical student, fulfilling her dream of becoming a surgeon.

While Maggie has sworn off romance until she makes her final choice, an intriguing man tugs at her heart in each era, only complicating the impossible decision she must make, which looms ever closer. With so much on the line, how can Maggie choose just one life to keep and the rest to lose?

Find In This Moment online at:

Amazon | ChristianBook | Goodreads | Koorong

Click here to read my review.

It is the second in a series, so you may want to read When The Day Comes first. Click here to read my review.

What about you? What’s one book you’ve read in 2023 that has stayed with you?

What Christmas books or novel do you recommend?

Bookish Question #307 | What Christmas books or novels do you recommend?

The obvious nonfiction pick here is the Bible 🙂

Fiction is a little harder to pick, partly because there is so much fiction (especially Christian fiction) featuring Christmas. Some authors feature Christmas in all their stories because it’s popular all the time.

I can see the appeal, although I prefer summer stories. Lots of authors combine to produce Christmas collections. My favourite was the An Aussie Summer Christmas collection, where all the novellas were set in Australia. As a Kiwi, I loved the summer Christmas stories 🙂

I have read a couple of Christmas stories in recent months, although some are more “Christmas” than others (if that makes sense). My favourite was You Make It Feel Like Christmas by Toni Shiloh, which is an expanded and republished version of I’ll Be Home. Click here to read my review.

I’ve also recently read and enjoyed All Fair in Love and Christmas by Sarah Monzon. While it centers around Christmas, I read it during the New Zealand winter to get the seasonal feeling. But it’s still centered around Christmas, with a neurodivergent main character and a fun workplace rivalry. Click here to read my review.

What about you? What Christmas books or novels do you recommend?

What debut novels or authors have you discovered this year?

Bookish Question #306 | What debut novels or authors have you discovered this year?

There are two kinds of debut novels–the debut novels that just released (like mine, Always By My Side), and the debut novels from favourite authors that I read years after release.

I’ll share a couple of favourites from both categories: I’ve read and enjoyed all of Janet W Ferguson’s Coastal Hearts novels. I love the location, and I love the way Janet writes about broken people coming to faith in a natural and organic way. But I’d never read her first series, Southern Sweethearts. I just finished Leaving Oxford, and it was brilliant (possibly even more brilliant because I accidentally read the second book in the series first, Going Up South).

I also discovered Emily Botrous, and read my way through her Scripted Love series, starting with With Love, Melody. This was a fun series with a unique twist: couple found love through the written word.

The best debut novel I read this year was The Upwelling by Australian author Lystra Rose was brilliant. It was difficult to read at times (it’s a real good-vs-evil story, so parts of the story are had to read). The Upwelling has been shortlisted for and/or won several prestigious Australian book awards, and each nomination is well deserved.

Heart in the Clouds is by another Australian author, Jennifer Mistmorgan. It’s an excellent World War II story that reminded me of the challenges our grandparents faced during the war years, and helps explain some of their issues and idiosyncrasies.

I also enjoyed Julia Monroe Begins Again by Rebekah Millet is an excellent second-chance romance featuring an older couple.

I don’t know if I can claim to have “discovered” my own debut, Always By My Side, but I certainly discovered that yes, I can write and publish a novel.

What about you? What debut novels or authors have you discovered this year?

Do you read ebooks as soon as you buy them?

Bookish Question #305 | Do you read ebooks as soon as you buy them?

Historically, no. But I’m trying to change.

When I got my first e-reader, I downloaded a lot of free and cheap ebooks just because I could. After a lifetime of paying NZ$25 plus for a paperback, I found it difficult to resist the never-ending supply of free and cheap ebooks.

I discovered online book reviewing at the same time.

This meant many of the books I bought never got read, because I was prioritising review copies. As a result, I have I don’t know how many unread ebooks in my Kobo and Amazon accounts. (Yes, my first e-reader was a Kobo, because Amazon didn’t initially ship the Kindle to New Zealand.)

I will say that I’ve (mostly) stopped downloading free ebooks, simply because I never get around to reading them. I’m much more likely to read a book I’ve paid for, even if I only paid 99 cents.

But that doesn’t and hasn’t fix the huge to-read pile.

Over the last year, I have been making a concerted effort to read ebooks as soon as I buy them rather than letting them languish in my virtual to-read pile for eons.

This has led to me enjoying many of the books I’ve bought more, simply because I’ve read them when I was in the mood to read them, rather than buying them because theywere on sale and never quite getting around to them.

I do still keep an eye on the BookBub email to see if there are any sale books I like the look of (not so many as there used to be … partly because I often click through and Amazon tells me I bought the book several years ago).

I find I’m buying more books based on recommendations in author newsletters. I have to say that’s a very hit-or-miss activity, as many of the authors say they haven’t read the books they’re promoting, and some of the books have turned out to be awful (as in, dialogue so stilted I can’t believe the book was written by a human). But at least I’m starting them quickly, and getting them off my Kindle if they don’t suit me.

What about you? Do you read books as soon as you buy them?

Have you ever contacted an author after reading a book?

Bookish Question #304 | Have you ever contacted an author after reading a book?

Yes, but perhaps not in the way the question implies.

I review books, and a lot of the books I review are sent to me directly by the author. In these cases, I always contact the author after reviewing the book to share my view. (Not least because showing I reviewed their book will hopefully ensure I get the opportunity to review their next book as well.)

Sometimes I don’t enjoy a book enough to recommend to my readers.

In these cases, I’ll send the author my review and ask if they want me to post it. Most say yes (which is the professional response), and some ask that I don’t post my review as soon as the book releases. I don’t have a problem with that: while reviews need to be honest and it’s okay to honestly not enjoy a book, there’s no need to advertise the fact by being the first Amazon or Goodreads review.

I have had authors contact me to thank me after I’ve posted a review for their book, and that’s always nice. But that’s the author contacting me and me responding. Not me initiating the contact.

I have signed up for more than a few author newsletters, and authors will often ask a question in their newsletters. I will sometimes reply to author newsletters, but that’s not really a result of reading their book.

Apart from that, have I ever contacted an author after reading their book?

I don’t think so, although I know authors appreciate hearing from their readers. I prefer to review or talk about a book I’ve enjoyed.

What about you? Have you ever contacted an author after reading a book?

How much is too much to pay for an ebook?

Bookish Question #303 | How much is too much to pay for an ebook?

I love ebooks. They’re always my first choice for reading, partly because they are cheaper (usually), but also because they are easier to store and easier to read than a paperback. (To those of you who can still read paperbacks without glasses: good for you.)

But just because ebooks are cheaper doesn’t mean I’ll pay whatever the publisher is asking. I recently saw a blog post where the writer pointed out that the US has experienced close to 20% inflation since 2019, which means the authors who were charging $4.99 for an ebook in 2019 should be charging $5.99 now in order to make the same amount of money. While I see his point, my salary hasn’t gone up 20% since 2019, and I’m sure I’m not alone. If anything, I’m less willing to spend money on ebooks than I was in 2019, because while I can survive without buying more books, I do need to eat and have you seen the price of food lately?

So, how much do I think is too much to pay for an ebook?

First, if the ebook and the paperback are the same price, I won’t buy the ebook and I probably won’t buy the paperback either .

Also, I never pay full price for an ebook from a traditional publisher. I know they justify the $9.99 price by saying they still have to design the cover, edit and format the book, and distribute it to retailers. I understand that publishers have to make a profit if they are to continue to sell books and pay authors. But $9.99 for an ebook when the paperback is only a few dollars more feels like too much. If I’m going to spend that much, I want a paperback I can display on my bookshelf and loan to friends, not a licence to use an electronic file that costs only a few cents to send me.

I tend to buy ebooks from self-published authors, or when they are on sale. I will spend up to $5.99 on an ebook, but only when it’s a full-length novel from a favourite author.

My cap is around $3.99 for shorter novels (e.g. the length of a Love Inspired novel).

If it’s a new-to-me author, I look to pay 99 cents or maybe $2.99 if the Kindle sample blew me away (and there have been a few of those in 2023). If that 99 cent ebook is the first in a three or four-book series, I may even binge my way through the series at full price 😉

Of course, that 99 cent ebook then gets tax added on and converted to New Zealand dollars, so I end up paying a couple of dollars for it, depending on the exchange rate and the bank fees. And that’s the other reason I hesitate to buy more expensive books: because I always end up paying more than the US dollar price I’m quoted on Amazon.

What about you? How much do you think is too much to pay for an ebook?

Would you consider buying books directly from an author's website?

Bookish Question #302 | Would you buy books directly from an author’s website?

I’d consider it.

I haven’t bought directly from an author’s website yet, but it’s not something I’m opposed to. It’s more that I tend to find new books either from author newsletters or through Amazon, which means I tend to click through from the newsletter and buy from Amazon.

Many of the authors I read have their books enrolled in Kindle Unlimited, which means the authors aren’t permitted to offer their ebooks for sale anywhere except on Amazon … which means their books aren’t available on their websites.

So while I’d consider buying a book from an author’s website, I haven’t. At least, not yet.

What about you? Do you (or would you) buy books directly from an author’s website?

Do you pay attention to sponsored bookish posts on Facebook?

Bookish Question #301 | Do you pay attention to sponsored bookish posts on Facebook?

Do I pay attention to sponsored bookish posts on Facebook?

Honestly, no.

There are two reasons for this.

One is because I don’t get a lot of bookish sponsored posts. I don’t know how authors target their Facebook ads, but I simply don’t see many.

The other reason I don’t pay attention is that when I do see bookish posts, they tend to be in genres I’m not actually interested in. Again, I’m not sure how authors target their Facebook ads, but I rarely see sponsored posts for books I’m interested in reading.

What about you? Do you pay attention to sponsored bookish posts on Facebook?

Do you prefer to wait until a full series is out, or read the novels as they release?

Bookish Question #300 | Do you prefer to wait until a full series is released?

Do you prefer to wait until a full series is released, or read the individual novels as they release?

I mostly read related series i.e. a romance trilogy where each book is about a different couple, and the characters are related in some way e.g. siblings or friends or co-workers.

In these cases, I tend to read the books as they release.

The beauty of these kinds of series is that they don’t have to be read in order … although I do prefer to read in order.

Some series are related, in that each book in the series follows on from the previous book with the same characters and a linked plot. These series need to be read in order … and we need to read the whole series to get the full plot arc.

This has come back to bite me a couple of times, where a publisher has published the first two books in a related series, but not the third.

In these cases, I wish I’d waited until the full series had been published.

But that’s a bit chicken and egg, because if no one buys the first book in a series, a publisher (or author) might decide not to publish the rest of the series …

Which means I end up buying books as they interest me, even if they’re part of an incomplete series.

So what’s your view? Do you read individual books in a series as they release, or wait until the full series is out?