Favorite books of 2023, stats and life update |I’m back from my accidental hiatus!

Hello lovelies and Happy new year!

I cannot believe this is my first post of 2024. I think I haven’t taken such a long break from blogging ever since I started. My life has been the most chaotic it has ever been. Who knew being a-soon-to-be 25 year old teenage girl was so hard?

I feel like I am a completely different person now than I was at this time last year. Since the last time I uploaded, I graduated from my dual master’s degrees did an internship for six months, got a job there, was sabotaged (it’s a longgg story) and ended up enrolling on a third master’s degree. Oh and did I also mention that I found out I am a victim of identity theft in January?

Anyways you can imagine how mentally and physically difficult the past year has been but I can confidently say that I am able to breathe a little easier now. Since I started my master’s, I have met tons of new people and started at a new job and things are going relatively smoothly. I also want to say about how difficult it has been seeing the genocide of Palestinians in real-time in the world’s indifference. Someone said the myth of the Western humanity has died in 2023 and it is very true for me, not that I really believed in it anyway.

Books have, of course, proven to be a very necessary source of joy and escapism for me this year. Let’s start with some stats:

My favourite thing about these stats is the fact that I read (almost equally) books in all of their formats and it makes me really happy. My average rating is very high, which I’m genuinely surprised by because I had a good reading year but I don’t think it’s a better one than previous years. I can’t wait to see what this new year brings.

I couldn’t make a post without talking about my favourite books of the year of 2023. You’ll find the list below with their covers and why each of them were my favorites this year.

Two Wrongs Make A Right by Chloe Liese

This was the first book I gave five stars to! Chloe Liese is one of my all-time favourite authors and when I saw that she was doing a romance series inspired by Shakespeare’s plays, I knew it would become one of the best books I would read last year and the book was even better than my expectations.

Nine Liars by Maureen Johnson

Nine liars is the fifth installment in the Truly Devious series which is the perfect YA mystery series. The series was initially a trilogy followed by two sequels and I honestly couldn’t be happier with these additional books because I can’t bring myself to say goodbye to these characters. This one was my favourite one in the series because the mystery was so intriguing and unique!

The Initiation series by Nikki Sloane

This series had me hooked! It was all I could think about. This is also initially a trilogy with two additional books. This is a taboo, age-gap, marriage of convenience series and I had the time of my life reading these books.

Cleopatra and Frankenstein by Coco Mellors.

This is one of the most beautifully written books I have ever been lucky enough to read. This book conveys in a perfect way what it means to be human with all of our contradictions and our flaws. This book tore my heart out and then mended it back. To think this is a debut!

If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio

As a huge Shakespeare nerd this book was a delight. It felt like it was written specifically for me. The prose, the atmosphere, the ending…words are truly not enough to convey how much this book means to me. I wish I could read it for the first time again.

Seven Days In June by Tia Williams

A lot of people told me how incredible this book is but I never would have expected to read such a poignant, phenomenal and emotional novel about unconditional love, pain and abuse, and life. This novel should be taught in schools because it has all the elements that could make it a classic.

Only For The Week by Natasha Bishop

Now this is a perfect holiday romance! From the comfort of my bedroom I felt like i was transported to Mexico with this wonderful friend group, enjoying the sound of the waves and the feel of the sand on my toes, sipping on a delicious fruity cocktails. This was a Black romance and it honestly healed my soul to read such an excellent and swoon-worthy romance with characters that looked like me. The issues tackled in this also went beyond a simple romance and it made me have a greater appreciation for my loved ones.

Their Vicious Games by Joelle Wellington

This is one of the best books I have EVER READ. This book is cruelly underrated. This is such a unique concept that mixes Squid Game with the Bachelor and I was hooked unti the very end. When I closed the book I was reeling and in awe.

Out On A Limb by Hannah Bonam-Young

Words are not precise and good enough to convey how this book made me feel. The best I can do is describe it as being on a hard, difficult journey and finally coming home to see all of your loved ones in the same place with your favorite food. That feeling of comfort and warmth is exactly what I felt.

Also among my despair a few cool bookish things have happened! First I was featured in the Instagram account of Goodreads to do a profile about me as a bookstagrammer! As an avid Goodreads user, I was so honored and thrilled to be noticed by them. Since we’re talking about social media, I have also learned to be more comfortable in front of a camera (exposure therapy!) and I’m very hopeful about the content I’m going to release in 2024.

I met Holly Black and went to a romance authors book convention (I’ll post an article about it soon!!) and met some of my all-time favourite authors!!

The Bear. It might be the best TV show I have seen this year (and I have watched a lot of shows. The plot, the character development , the atmosphere and the cinematography are unparalleled and honestly I can’t string together a coherent sentence to convey how wonderful I thought this was. Definitely pick it up if you have the time! Also the show has won 10 Emmy nominations including best actor and director.

Netflix reality tv show Drink Master. I don’t even drink alcohol but seeing these bartenders being so passionate about their craft and finding the perfect balance to provide the best sensory experience to their clients made me want to go to a cocktail bar and try all these (seemingly) delicious drinks.

My iPad and Notion. My MacBook died (and I cried) so I needed a new laptop and I decided to invest in an iPad instead (I mean my mom bought it for me, bless her). It’s now one of my most prized possessions and I love it so much. I have also finally mastered the Notion app and I’m officially an organized girly.

Formula one!!! My newest obsession? Of course i watched the Netflix show Drive To Survive and I started watching the new Formula One season that began in March. I have met so many incredible people who love this sport and were willing to introduce me to all the rules and the lore. I am completely obsessed with the sport and I’m even attending a race next year!

I’m so happy to be back! Blogging has always been a safe space for me and where I started connecting with fellow book lovers so thank you for being so patient with me and (hopefully) I’ll talk to you soon!

Resources on Palestine

• Resources on Prism
• Resources on Palestine Compaign
• Free books on Palestine
• Books and documentaries recs