Hello, everyone! I cannot believe the year is already a quarter of the way over. Dini @ dinipandareads tagged me in this fun book tag that wraps up how things have gone during the first three months of this year. Overall, I think I’ve done pretty well this quarter, at least on the reading front. The original tag was created by Roisin @Roisin’s Reading over on BookTube.
How many books have you read so far?
I’ve read 70 books so far this year!!!! How is that even possible?! My 2023 goal is 100, and it looks like I’ll be hitting that pretty early, probably this month or next, since I’m 45 books ahead of schedule. I’ve read so much great stuff this quarter, and it has been a serious whirlwind. I’m hoping I can stay out a slump and keep up my pace because there are SO MANY great books coming out in April and May, and I want to read them all. lol.
Have you already found a book you think might be a 2023 favourite? If not, what was your favourite book you read that wasn’t quite five stars?
How the hell am I supposed to choose from 70 books?! To narrow it down a bit, I’m only going to pick from 2023 releases… Two books really stand out to me from this first quarter as likely to end up on my best of 2023 lists, The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi and Rubicon.
Any 1-star books / least favourite book of the year?
I don’t have any 1-star books because I typically DNF anything that would receive that rating before finishing it. So, I’ve chosen to pick one of my DNFs, Prince of the Sorrows, for the honor of least favorite book of the quarter. I could not stand the writing in this book, and I honestly don’t get all the hype it has received. I read approximately 25% of it before I couldn’t take anymore.
Most read genre so far?
Surprising no one, my most reads genres were fantasy and queer fiction. I’ve also read quite a bit of YA and romance this quarter. Despite leaning heavily into those four genres, I do think I’ve had quite a good mix of stuff so far this year.
A book that surprised you?
I didn’t know a lot about Into the Light going into it, and I was surprised by how much it moved me. It was incredibly raw, with visceral prose and a compelling main character. I also didn’t see the twist coming at all.
A book that’s come out in 2023 already that you want to read but haven’t yet?
There are quite a few I’m hoping to get to read soon. Here’s a look at some of them…
Bitter Medicine by Mia Tsai, Godkiller by Hannah Kaner, Chaos & Flame by Tessa Gratton & Justina Ireland, Infinity Gate by M.R. Carey, Revelle by Lyssa Mia Smith
One goal you made that you’re succeeding at
I’m doing really well with my 12 months, 12 friends, 12 books challenge. I’ve read one of the recommendations each month. So, I’m currently on track with the goal. The three recommendations I’ve read this quarter are below:
The Rules and Regulations for Mediating Myths & Magic by F.T. Lukens, Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett, Spear by Nicola Griffith
One goal you made that you need to focus on
I need to focus more on reading my owned backlist. I’m hoping to have 25% of my reads this year be from my shelves. I did pretty well in January and February, but so many of my March reads were ARCs or library books. I’ll definitely need to go back to reading more of my books in April if I want to get back on track…
New to you Bloggers/Booktubers/ Bookstagrammers/Booktokers for 2023 you recommend?
I’m tagging…
Well. That’s it. How has the first quarter gone for all of you? Let me know down in the comments or complete the tag and link back so I can see your answers. The more, the merrier! 🙂
Biblio Nerd Reflections 
Ahh thank you for tagging me!!! And I cannot believe that you’ve read SEVENTY BOOKS so far this year. And here’s me being proud of my 40. SEVENTY. Sheesh!!! I’m so so so so impressed.
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40 is a huge number too! That’s still more than I used to read in a year. My insomnia and getting a ton of audiobooks from the library are the main reasons for the huge numbers, along with a few of them being manga and novellas. I was also super motivated by Trope-ical Readathon last month.
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Have… have you stopped sleeping or something? Damn. 70. That’s brute squad numbers.
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Honestly… yeah. My insomnia has been horrible recently. So, I’ll often read until 3 or 4 in the morning. A few of them were manga and novellas, and listening to audiobooks helped me get through some too. I’ve just been on a roll recently. Trope-ical Readathon last month helped motivate me too.
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Ah, now I feel bad about putting it that way! I hope your sleep gets better without losing the reading. I’m just deeply jealous of that number.
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Thanks! I’ve struggled with insomnia forever, but it’s been worse recently for whatever reason. I’ve given up trying to figure it out. Now I just roll with it the best I can, and at least I get some reading time out of it. 🤷♂️
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Holy granola! 70 books already?! That is super amazing and wow, Chris!! 😍 I’m definitely keen to pick up Rubicon after reading your review and I’m super excited to continue reading Lukens’ book, especially cos I picked it up immediately after reading your review and how much you loved it. 😃 I hope you continue having an amazing reading year and discover lots more amazing new reads!
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Thanks! I honestly don’t even know how I’ve made it to 70 already. A few were manga and novellas. So, I’m sure that helped along with listening to audiobooks. Rubicon was really, really good. I hope you enjoy it if you pick it up!
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70 books is impressive! You have me beat by one. lol
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Thanks! lol.
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