It’s been no secret around these parts that I’m an avid reader. Physical book, e-book, audio-book–I read them all! (Also hundreds of kids books, but I don’t note and review each one. Maybe I should? I can at least do a round-up of our favorites if that’d be helpful!)

My goal on Goodreads was 50 for 2023, which is the same as last year. I didn’t have big plans of stretching my reading…but as you’ll see, reading is how I survived the summer! I’m listing all the books I read in 2023 by the month and crowning my favorite of them all. Choosing a favorite in June was HARD.

If you like modern romances that have sizzle, but aren’t super spicy, mixed with a sprinkle of literary fiction and motivational pick-me-ups… This might be the perfect list for you. You can shop my 4-5 star books by clicking this link.

January – Every Summer After by Carley Fortune ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Other books read in January:

• The Rewind by Allison Winn Scotch ⭐⭐⭐
• Hooked: How Crafting Saved My life by Sutton Foster ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• How to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy by Jenny Odell ⭐⭐⭐
• Bad Vibes Only by Nora McInerny ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Well Traveled (Well Met, #4) by Jen DeLuca ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

February – We Should All Be Millionares: A Woman’s Guide to Earning More, Building Wealth, and Gaining Economic Power by Rachel Rogers ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Other books read in February:

• Really Good, Actually by Monica Heisey ⭐⭐⭐
• Building Brand Communities: How Organizations Succeed by Creating Belonging by Carrie Melissa Jones ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• The Temporary Roomie (It Happened in Nashville, #2) by Sarah Adams ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• No Happy Endings by Nora McInerny Purmort ⭐⭐⭐⭐

March – The Off Limits Rule (It Happened in Nashville, #1) by Sarah Adams ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Other books read in March:

• Secretly Yours (A Vine Mess, #1) by Tessa Bailey ⭐⭐
• Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin ⭐⭐⭐
• Maybe in Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid ⭐⭐⭐⭐

April – The Midnight Library by Matt Haig ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Other books read in April:

• When in Rome (When in Rome, #1) by Sarah Adams ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute by Talia Hibbert ⭐
• How the Bible Actually Works: In Which I Explain How An Ancient, Ambiguous, and Diverse Book Leads Us to Wisdom Rather Than Answers–and Why That’s Great News by Peter Enns ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Give a Sh*t: Do Good. Live Better. save the Planet. by Ashlee Piper ⭐⭐⭐
• Love and Other Words by Christina Lauren ⭐⭐⭐
• Under One Roof (The STEMinist Novellas, #1) by Ali Hazelwood ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Stuck with You (The STEMinist Novellas, #2) by Ali Hazelwood ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Below Zero (The STEMinist Novellas, #3) by Ali Hazelwood ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• The Measure by Nikki Erlick ⭐⭐⭐⭐

May – Yours Truly (Part of Your World, #2) by Abby Jimenez ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Other books read in May:

• You Say It First by Katie Cotugno ⭐⭐⭐
• How to Keep House While Drowning: A Gentle Approach to Cleaning and Organizing ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• The Cheat Sheet by Sarah Adams ⭐⭐⭐
• Happy Place by Emily Henry ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Lizzie Blake’s Best Mistake (A Brush with Love, #2) by Mazey Eddings ⭐⭐⭐

June – Nora Goes Off Script by Annabel Monaghan ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Other books read in June:

• Maggie Moves On by Lucy Score ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• In Five Years by Rebecca Serle ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Things You Save in a Fire by Katherine Center ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Becoming Free Indeed: My Story of Disentangling Faith from Fear by Jinger Duggar Vuolo ⭐⭐
• How to raise kids who aren’t assholes by Melinda Wenner Moyer ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Practice Makes Perfect (When in Rome, #2) by Sarah Adams ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Happiness for Beginners by Katherine Center ⭐⭐⭐
• What You Wish For by Katherine Center ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Find Your People: Building Deep Community in a Lonely World by Jennie Allen ⭐
• How to Walk Away by Katherine Center ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
• The Plus One (A Brush with Love, #3) by Mazey Eddings
• A Brush with Love (A Brush with Love, #1) by Mazey Eddings ⭐⭐⭐
• Other People’s Clothes by Calla Henkel ⭐⭐⭐⭐

July – Everyone is Beautiful by Katherine Center ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Other books read in July:

• The Tailgate by Elin Hilderbrand ⭐⭐⭐
• Endless Summer by Elin Hilderbrand ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Summer of ’79: A Summer of ’69 Story by Elin Hilderbrand ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Here’s to Us by Elin Hilderbrand ⭐⭐⭐
• The Rumor by Elin Hilderbrand ⭐⭐⭐
• The Castaways (Nantucket, #2) by Elin Hilderbrand ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• The Perfect Couple (Nantucket, #3) by Elin Hilderbrand ⭐⭐⭐
• The Bride Test (The Kiss Quotient, #2) by Helen Hoang ⭐⭐⭐
• The Heart Principle (The Kiss Quotient, #3) by Helen Hoang ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• The Blue Bistro by Elin Hilderbrand ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Today Tonight Tomorrow (Rowan & Neil, #1) by Rachel Lynn Solomon ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Business or Pleasure by Rachel Lynn Solomon ⭐⭐
• The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary ⭐⭐⭐
• Unfortunately Yours (A Vine Mess, #2) by Tessa Bailey ⭐⭐
• Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Starfish by Lisa Fipps ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• See You Yesterday by Rachel Lynn Solomon ⭐⭐⭐⭐

August – Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Other books read in August:

• The Nanny by Lana Ferguson ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• A Very Typical Family by Sierra Godfrey ⭐⭐⭐
• Life Without Children: Stories by Roddy Doyle ⭐⭐
• We Can’t Keep Meeting Like This by Rachel Lynn Solomon ⭐⭐
• These Impossible Things by Salma El-Wardany ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• The Five-Star Weekend by Elin Hilderbrand ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Swipe Up for More!: Inside the Unfoltered Lives of Influencers ⭐⭐⭐
• The Three of Us by Ore Agbaje-Williams ⭐⭐⭐
• Tell Me the Dream Again: Reflections on Family, Ethnicity, and the Sacred Work of Belonging by Tasha Jun ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Hello Stranger by Katherine Center ⭐⭐⭐⭐

September – Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Other books read in September:

• Happy Place by Emily Henry ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Re-read)
• Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Re-read)
• The Island by Elin Hilderbrand ⭐⭐⭐
• The Boyfriend Candidate by Ashley Winstead ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Same Time Next Summer by Annabel Monaghan ⭐⭐⭐
• For Her Consideration by Amy Spalding ⭐⭐⭐
• The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han ⭐⭐⭐
• The Connellys of County Down by Tracey Lange ⭐⭐⭐
• Tilly in Technicolor by Mazey Eddings ⭐⭐
• The Worst Best Man by Mia Sosa ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice from Dear Sugar ⭐⭐⭐
• It’s Not Summer Without You by Jenny Han ⭐⭐⭐

October – I Could Live Here Forever by Hanna Halperin ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Other books read in October:

• XOXO by Axie Oh ⭐⭐⭐
• The Art of Memoir by Mary Karr ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• The Fixer Upper by Lauren Forsythe ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• The Grace Year by Kim Liggett ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
• The Bright Side of Disaster by Katherine Center ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

November – Wellness by Nathan Hill ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Other books read in November:

• The Summer Girl (Avalon Bay, #3) by Elle Kennedy ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White (Read with Clara)
• The Children’s Bible by Lydia Millet ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• You, Again by Kate Goldbeck ⭐⭐⭐
• The Do-Over by Lynn Painter ⭐⭐⭐
• You Had Me at Hola (Primas of Power, #1) by Alexis Daria ⭐⭐⭐
• Counting the Cost by Jill Duggar ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Ander & Santi Were Here ⭐⭐⭐

December – The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Other books read in December:

• Back in the Burbs (Back in the Burbs, #1) by Tracy Wolff ⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Check & Mate by Ali Hazelwood ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
• The Make-Up Test by Jenny L. Howe ⭐⭐
• Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
• Happiness Falls by Angie Kim ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Which books did you love in 2023? Any suggestions for me? I’d love to hear them.