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2023 Book List



This was a super-exciting year for me, as I became a grandmother(!), worked less, traveled quite a bit, and overall enjoyed life.


Best of all was the entire month I spent with my daughter, Meredith, and her baby, Rudy. It is quite relaxing when all you have to do is tend to an infant's needs! I was able to read quite a bit during that month, and I think I influenced Rudy—you can see that he has inherited my love for reading. Already he has a bookshelf with dozens of books just waiting to be read.


I am still enjoying all media in my reading—audiobooks, physical books, and ebooks. It is good to have several books in progress at any time so that I can pick up and read or plug in and listen. And sometimes an exciting point in an audiobook is enough to get me out on my daily walk!


Here's the summary for 2023.


Favorites



  • HORSE, Geraldine Brooks. What a fantastic book! It’s a historical novel set in mid-1800s Kentucky and Louisiana horse country, mid-1950s New York art scene, and present-day Washington DC. While wrenching in parts, it’s ultimately satisfying. I was rooting for all the characters and couldn’t wait to turn the page. I fell in love with the horse Lexington! I would love to return to Kentucky Horse Park (visited years ago when we lived in Cincinnati) to see his reconstructed skeleton, which was sent there from the Smithsonian in 2010.

  • YEAR OF WONDERS, Geraldine Brooks. I’m sorry I went this long without reading the work of this great author. I love good historical fiction—when done well, the place and time become real and the characters entirely believable. This is very, very good historical fiction. Topic is a “plague village” in northern England in 1666.

  • THE DETECTIVE UP LATE, Adrian McKinty. Like so many other readers, I was thrilled at the return of Northern Irish police detective Sean Duffy. As witty as ever, this 7th novel in the series (after a long break) was a joy to read from first page to last.

  • TOM LAKE, Ann Patchett. What a deeply satisfying read! A family story and coming-of-age tale starting at a summer theater and concluding on a cherry farm in Michigan. It was great to read about a family that is loving and not dysfunctional but also believable. A few plot twists! Several friends have recommended the audiobook, read by Meryl Streep. I may treat myself to a second dive into Tom Lake.

  • THE MAID, Nita Prose. Really enjoyable and gripping story of an unusual maid in a luxury hotel who finds a guest dead on his bed. Molly the maid is “different” and has many challenges and losses in her life, especially lately. A huge part of the enjoyment of this story is seeing her rise to the occasion, find new friends, and do sometimes difficult things to bring the culprit to justice. The characters are great, especially her dearly departed Gran whose words of advice continue to guide Molly at every turn. I’ve recently learned that there is now second book in this series … can’t wait!

  • LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY, Bonnie Garmus. An excellent follow-up to THE EXCEPTIONS (nonfiction listed below), this delightful novel tells the story of a brilliant research chemist in 1960s America who experiences extreme discrimination because of her sex, as well as tragic personal circumstances, but perseveres and triumphs. It’s funny and satisfying and entertaining on every page. I plan to watch the series.

  • EXILES, Jane Harper. Another really satisfying read from this favorite author, with returning character Aaron Falk as the main character. It’s a family/friends saga with roots back many years and a surprising ending.

  • THE LAST DEVIL TO DIE, Richard Osman. I can’t say enough positive things about the Thursday Murder Club series. Every book (this is the fourth) is just a delight from first page to last.

 

Nonfiction: History

  • THE EXCEPTIONS, Kate Zernike. An eye-opening look into the insidious discrimination against women in science at a top university (MIT) … and the women who did something about it. I learned a lot about the PhD/postdoc track and a very little bit about research biology!

  • THE REVOLUTIONARY: SAMUEL ADAMS, Stacy Schiff. Samuel Adams was one of my favorite characters in one of my all-time favorite novels, JOHNNY TREMAINE. So I was deeply interested in this well-reviewed biography by a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian. I found her writing a bit dense and confusing at times, but otherwise I really enjoyed the back story and immense contributions of an underappreciated hero of the American Revolution. P.S. Later in the year I made a visit to the Massachusetts Historical Society for an exhibit on the Boston Tea Party. Seeing the original correspondence and other documents, plus a bottle of the actual tea that was pulled from Dorchester Bay, was an amazing counterpoint to reading history and historical fiction.

  • VANDERBILT, Anderson Cooper and Katherine Howe. Subtitled “The Rise and Fall of an American Dynasty,” this was an interesting look at the Vanderbilt family starting with the famous “Commodore” who amassed a fortune, only to have his descendants waste it away over four or five generations.

 

Nonfiction: Memoirs

  • WE CAME, WE SAW, WE LEFT, Charles Wheelan. Fun read, especially for an avid traveler. It’s the story of a family (parents + 3 teenagers) who took a 9-month “gap year” and traveled literally around the world. I’m a bit jealous!

  • THE RIDICULOUS RACE, Steve Hely and Vali Chandrasekaran. Fun and funny read of two round-the-world journeys. As always, I loved reading about travel to different places and the people, food, and culture that make each one unique. These two authors (both TV comedy writers) embarked on a bet—who could circumnavigate the globe faster. Their adventures and misadventures were highly entertaining.

 

Nonfiction: Advice and Guidance

  • BRINGING UP BéBé, Pamela Druckerman. Fascinating account of how French children are brought up differently than American children. Some real advantages (and good parenting techniques) and a few disadvantages. Important reading for my impending grandmotherhood!

  • EXPECTING BETTER, Emily Oster. Data-based recommendations for a safe pregnancy and healthy delivery. (I was doing most things right, even without these detailed and factual recommendations!)

 

Detective Series



HOLMES/RUSSELL series, Laurie R. King: Sherlock Holmes has a worthy partner in a super-smart young woman, and this series follows their adventures as they make deductions, get into and out of trouble, and solve crimes around the globe. Really good. (I read the first in the series, THE BEEKEEPER'S APPRENTICE, at the end of last year.)

  • A MONSTROUS REGIMENT OF WOMEN

  • A LETTER OF MARY

  • THE MOOR

  • THE MARRIAGE OF MARY RUSSELL

  • O JERUSALEM

  • JUSTICE HALL

  • THE GAME

  • LOCKED ROOMS

  • THE LANGUAGE OF BEES

  • THE GOD OF THE HIVE

  • BEEKEEPING FOR BEGINNERS

  • PIRATE KING

  • GARMENT OF SHADOWS

  • DREAMING SPIES

  • THE MURDER OF MARY RUSSELL

  • ISLAND OF THE MAD

  • RIVIERA GOLD

  • CASTLE SHADE

  • MARY RUSSELL’S WAR

 

MIKE BOWDITCH Maine game warden series, Paul Doiron. Loved (still loving) this series. Early on I was exasperated by the poor choices repeatedly made by the protagonist. But he’s growing up and, while still somewhat impetuous and reckless, always gets his man (or woman) and has definitely matured. I love the Maine setting—its deep woods, coastal towns, islands, and interesting people.

  • TRESPASSER

  • BAD LITTLE FALLS

  • MASSACRE POND

  • THE BONE ORCHARD

  • THE PRECIPICE

  • WIDOWMAKER

  • KNIFE CREEK

  • STAY HIDDEN

  • ALMOST MIDNIGHT

  • ONE LAST LIE

  • DEAD BY DAWN

  • HATCHET ISLAND

 

SLOUGH HOUSE series, Mick Herron. Excellent spy thrillers, set primarily in London, about an outpost of the Security Service where people who have screwed up are sent to wither away … but somehow keep getting involved in various conspiracies and cases. Dark and complex stories that kept me coming back for more. I plan to watch the AppleTV+ series—it gets great reviews.

  • SLOW HORSES

  • DEAD LIONS

  • REAL TIGERS

  • SPOOK STREET

  • LONDON RULES

  • JOE COUNTRY

  • THE MARLEYBONE DROP (novella).

  • SLOUGH HOUSE

  • THE CATCH (novella)

  • BAD ACTORS

 

BILLY BOYLE series, James R. Benn. A very captivating series about a Boston cop, newly made US Army lieutenant, assigned to Eisenhower’s staff in England toward the beginning of WWII. Interesting moral dilemmas and a good mystery. Billy travels the world (Algeria, Sicily, Northern Ireland) as he investigates things that just aren’t right.

  • BILLY BOYLE

  • THE FIRST WAVE

  • BLOOD ALONE

  • EVIL FOR EVIL

 

DICK FRANCIS mysteries—not a series, but all with a English horseracing theme. I’ve loved these for decades and periodically re-read a bunch of them. This year:

  • ODDS AGAINST

  • FLYING FINISH

  • RAT RACE

  • FOR KICKS

  • RISK

  • ENQUIRY

  • HOT MONEY

  • BOLT

  • TO THE HILT

  • TWICE SHY

  • BANKER

  • TEN-POUND PENALTY

 

“DECLUTTERING” mysteries, Simon Brett. About a woman who’s a professional declutterer and the mysteries (usually murders) that arise.

  • THE CLUTTER CORPSE

  • AN UNTIDY CORPSE

  • WASTE OF A LIFE

 

Standalone mysteries or the latest in a series that I’ve already enjoyed.

  • THE RISING TIDE, Ann Cleeves. Vera is back! As always, I enjoyed the story, the characters, the settings, and the slow reveal of the mystery.

  • A WORLD OF CURIOSITIES, Louise Penny. Wonderful episode in the Chief Inspector Gamache series, bringing together threads from prior novels and exploding into a tense finish.

  • ARCADIA, Peter Grainger. So happy to be back in Peter Grainger’s world! I’ve loved all 3 of his detective series. This is the newest, and only the third book so far in this series that features DC Smith as a private detective, so I hope for many more to come.

  • THE CAMERA MAN, Peter Grainger. DC Smith returns in this very satisfying novel about finding a man who disappeared 5 years ago and discovering the “why” as well as “what” happened. The audiobook reader, Gildart Jackson, is exceptional.

  • SEARCH THE DARK, Charles Todd. Book 3 in the Ian Kincaid series, which takes place in post-WWI England. Although I enjoyed the book, I thought a lot of the actions were improbable … too much (inappropriate) conversation, not enough detecting!

  • DEATH OF AN AVID READER, Frances Brody. So-so mystery set in 1920s Northern England. I did not enjoy it enough to continue the series.

  • A SUNLIT WEAPON, Jacqueline Winspear. I was glad to welcome Maisie Dobbs back, as her story progresses into World War II and a mystery involving American soldiers and British flyers.

 

Historical Fiction

  • THE ROSE CODE, Kate Quinn. Cracking good story about women working at the Bletchley code-breaking site during WWII and events that ensue during and after the war. The author’s note at the end was particularly interesting as she revealed the true history, and real characters, on which this story is based.

  • ACT OF OBLIVION, Robert Harris. Wow. What a great read. Harris is an amazing teller of historical fiction—grounded in extensive research yet with a storyteller’s gift for bringing people alive and fleshing out known facts with believable details to tell a compelling tale. In this case, it’s the story of the flight of 2 “regicides” (people responsible for the execution of King Charles I of England in 1649) and the relentless pursuit of them across Europe and a very young American colony.

  • THE LIBRARIAN OF BURNED BOOKS, Brianna Labuskes. I almost gave up on this one, but I’m glad I persisted. It’s a bit unnerving seeing the parallels between 1930s–1940s Nazi encroachments (on books, on liberties, on people in any way “different”) and our current political climate.

  • CODE NAME HELENE, Ariel Lawhon. Based-on-fact story of an Australian woman who was a spy for the British and a French Resistance fighter during WWII. I learned the origin of my favorite cocktail, the French 75!

  • THE SECRETS WE KEPT, Lara Prescott. My mother loved the movie “Dr. Zhivago,” although she claimed she was cold the entire 3+ hours. Although I never read the novel nor saw the film, I enjoyed this based-on-facts novel about author Pasternak and his lover, how the book (banned in Russia) saw print, and how the CIA used it as a propaganda tool. 

 

Other Fiction

  • FALLING GLASS, Adrian McKinty. Another enthralling tale—this one a standalone—by this Irish author who is one of my favorites. He writes great dialogue, brings diverse characters alive, and keeps the action moving. A great read.

  • DIRT CREEK, Hayley Scrivenor. This book was recommended to those who are fans of Jane Harper (which I definitely am), and it did not disappoint. Told from multiple viewpoints, it is a tale of a missing girl in a small Australian town. The setting and characters were vivid and the story engrossing.

  • MS. DEMEANOR, Elinor Lipman. Light, fast-moving story that captured my attention from the first page. Especially enjoyable because the author is the sister of a friend/former client of mine from more than 30 years ago!

  • THE TWIST OF A KNIFE, Anthony Horowitz. Hugely entertaining story, with the patented Horowitz trick of inserting himself into the story and transforming a few facts into an entirely fictional (yet entirely believable-sounding) tale. As usual Horowitz is somewhat hapless and Hawthorne brilliant.

  • THE MOTION PICTURE TELLER, Colin Cotterill. Fun, funny tale of a Thai postman with a love for cinema who discovers a never-released movie and falls for the leading lady. The characters were great.

  • THE MAKING OF ANOTHER MAJOR MOTION PICTURE, Tom Hanks. I’m not sure I would have loved this as much if I had read instead of listened to the audiobook—read by the author, Tom Hanks! But it was wonderful. Detailed story about the making of a movie and deeply realized characters.

  • THE TWYFORD CODE, Janice Hallett. This was a very complex story involving codes and clues—I enjoyed it for the most part, but decoding was far beyond my skills. It was a bit long, also, and after a while the story structure (told entirely as transcripts of recorded conversations) got tiresome.

  • CIRCLE OF FRIENDS, Maeve Binchy. I read this book probably 25 years ago, came upon it by chance recently, and enjoyed it every bit as much!

  • THIS YEAR IT WILL BE DIFFERENT, Maeve Binchy. I continued my dive into Irish authors with this cozy yet far from saccharine collection of Christmas-themed short stories.

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