Around the Year in 52 Books discussion

It was wonderful to see all the participation in last week's question! This one won't test your memory anywhere near so much:

What is the first book you read/are reading in 2023? Why did you choose that one?

I read Razorblade Tears by S.A. Cosby for prompt 4 'book with an interracial relationship'.

I noticed it in the library to use for the Winter Challenge prompt ' a fast-paced book' and realised that it would work brilliantly for this prompt.

It would also work for prompt 20, as the cover in most editions includes a route of travel.

I read The Silkworm by Robert Galbraith for prompt 11. I had been wanting to read it for ages, and someone on here reminded me about his disability .

I read Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys for the prompt 'a title which includes a water body'. I picked it up as it is a fast read and based on WW2, alongside has some interesting characters.

I read Final Girls by Riley Sager - because I'd had the audio from the library for a while already ha

My first book completed in 2023 was The Spare Man. I picked it because I love the Lady Astronaut series by the same author. I did not use it for an ATY prompt.

The first book I read was Love & Gelato. It was a quick read and a sweet romance - while also touching on the aspect of family and grief. I plan on reading the other two books in the series sometime this month.

My first book for this challenge was also read this week. I read Stillhouse Lake by Rachel Caine and hot damn. That was such a fantastic read - much much better than I was expecting. It was the perfect combination of mystery, thriller, and kept me on the edge of my seat.

I started A Hard Day for a Hangover at the end of last year but had to finish it up for in the new year so the first book I finished this year. It was a solid finish to the series.

I read Fool Me Once for ATY Location prompt. When we completed the list making I had great plans to read a book with locations that fit all 3 letters but then failed to plan. I noticed this took place in Austin, Texas and I could get it from my library so it was an easy last minute choice. It was fine but don't think I will remember much about it in December.

My first book was The Price of Water in Finistère by Bodil Malmsten which is a fictionalised account of the ex pat author living and writing in Finistère. I started it largely because my son and family were away for Christmas and New Year visiting his mother-in-law who is an ex pat author living and writing in Finistère.

I used it for prompt 27 ‘A book by an author from continental Europe‘. The setting is France and the author is Swedish.

I read The Mysterious Affair at Styles because I was on vacation and wanted to read something fun. (I think mysteries are fun.)

I could make something up about starting the new year with a debut book.

I started the year with a magical realism book - a genre I don't read a lot of.

Midnight at the Blackbird Café by Heather Webber.

It was a pleasant read, nothing deeply thought provoking, but with a nice touch of magic and wonder, which is really what you need to open up a brand new year, I think.

I'm doing the prompts in order, and while I wanted to read Demon Copperhead FIRST, the waiting list at my library was very long - I'd been on it for about 5 months. I got it in my hands last Thursday, and by some miracle was able to finish it before the week rolled over, but I had to pull a late nighter!

And OMG. Worth the wait. Totally.

I read The Winners by Fredrik Bachman. I finally made it to the top of the hold list at the library. Fantastic book to start the new year with. The last in the trilogy and it gave me all the feelings.

My first books were 3-7 of Bofuri: I Don't Want to Get Hurt, so I'll Max Out My Defense. Light Novels, Vol. 1 because I wanted to be up to date with them and get them off my tbr.

I also started my NetGalley arc of The Poisoner's Ring, which I just finished today.

Bofuri fit with prompts in both Aty and Popsugar and on a mini challenge. Poisoners ring because I couldn’t wait until May to get the book, and it also fit both challenges.

Mine was my NetGalley of A Day of Fallen Night by Samantha Shannon which was the longest book on my TBR that I needed for Popsugar, so I got a head start on it. I also used it for four or more colours on the cover for ATY, since I'm letting myself double dip this year. Despite its length I flew through it, felt a lot more well paced than the first book.

I read This Is What It Sounds Like: What the Music You Love Says About You. It sounded interesting when I read a review. I am an ignoramus about music but I liked the author's approach. She says for each person there are preferences we have for familiarity vs novelty, music vs lyrics, rhythm vs. melody. None are "better" than the others. She said that when people listen to music, some see pictures of the story or mood (I do this), others see themselves playing or singing, others see abstract patterns.

I reserved three books for the first prompt - an A, T, or Y location, and went with the first one that came in at the library… Gods of Jade and Shadow .

I finished off Mad About You which I had started in December and needed to finish so it could go back to the library. It ended up being a major disappointment, because I normally love Mhairi McFarlane and this one just did not work for me. then I started my reread of the Innkeeper series with Clean Sweep and cheered myself up.

I read Because I Could Not Stop for Death by Amanda Flower. It was one of 6 library holds I picked up at the end of 2022 and it fit beautifully with prompt #1, as it is set in Amherst, Massachusetts.

The first book I read in 2023 was The History of Science Fiction: A Graphic Novel Adventure by Xavier Dollo. It was a random find at Barnes & Noble. I thought it might be interesting since I plan to read more classic SF this year. I really liked the graphic novel presentation and the way the author told the “story” via several SF authors like H. G. Wells.

The first book I read was Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg to fit the “set in a location that starts with A, T, or Y” prompt

My first book for the year is Dit du går, följer jag, a Swedish book. Title would translated be Where you go, I will follow. It is a historical novel set in the midnorth of Sweden. I read it because it being the book for my book club this month but I will use it for ATY as well. It will fit the prompt for an author's debut novel.

I started off easy with Rivers Of London: Deadly Ever After, because I like the series and they always come out late in the year.

The first serious book I read was Sworn To Silence, as I'd had it recommended to me a few months ago. A 4* procedural/thriller for me, with a good POV character and a decent supporting cast. I've used it for 43. A book that involves a murder (several actually), although I could probably also have used it for 28. A book that is dark!

Both Sworn to Silence and The Cold Heart of Capricorn, which I read for the last read-a-thon, surprised me. They're quite similiar thematically, and while I normally tend more towards Cozies than procedurals/thrillers, both were fast-paced and engaging, and ended up being 4* books.

I started the year with Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones (better known for An American Marriage) for prompt #1 as it's set in Atlanta. I enjoyed it and would recommend it to fans of contemporary, character-driven stories.

Silver Sparrow is about half-sisters who share a father, though one sister is unaware the other exists. Dana grows up in the shadow of her father's legitimate daughter, having to hide herself from her father's wife and having limited opportunities as a result. Halfway through, the POV changes to Chaurisse, the other sister, and reveals that her life isn't plain sailing either. I liked the dual POV and the way that, by the end of the story, you end up both liking and disliking both sisters.

As well as the location prompt, it would fit "a con, deception or fake" and my edition fits "a faceless person on the cover".
At a bit of a stretch, it would also fit "relating to birds, bees or bunnies" as Chaurisse's first name is actually Bunny, after her grandmother who is also a character in the story.

So many great books listed already! I've added a few more to TBR.

@Samantha - SO great to hear Hard Day is ends well. I was nervous it would be a let down like Charley Davidson.

I read & enjoyed The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry for prompt #1

I read Nettle and Bone because it was a Christmas present from my best friend. I'm using it for the "author with more than 7 books " prompt.

My first book was Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung. I got a copy of this a few months back and read the first story, but then realized that it wouldn't fit into any of my remaining prompts and I certainly didn't have time for any bonus books. So I wanted to get back to that one quickly and not have it hanging over me for too much longer. I thought this one was okay and I liked some of the stories, but didn't love any of them. I used it for the "ghost/spirit/specter/phantom" prompt.

However, I often like to read a novel at the same time that I'm reading a short story collection, so a couple stories in I started The Psychology of Time Travel by Kate Mascarenhas. I had a copy of this one already, too — I had gotten it to fulfill a prompt in another challenge that I do on Reddit, a sci fi/fantasy BINGO challenge. The prompt was for "Wibbly Wobbly Timey Wimey," that is, "any book that deals with time not behaving as it should." I'm really enjoying this book and it fits the prompt perfectly! I'm also going to use it for the ATY challenge, but I haven't decided where yet — it fits a ton of prompts!

Does anyone else have a minor superstition that the first book you read in a year is a sign for how the year's reading will be as a whole?

The first book I started reading in 2023 was ...And Ladies of the Club. I'm using it for another challenge & not sure what prompt it would fit in for ATY. The first book I finished for 2023 was The Grimkes: The Legacy of Slavery in an American Family. 5 stars. I used it for #41 A book from the NPR "Books We Love" list.

The first one I finished (but started in December) was House of Sky and Breath by Sarah J. Maas. The first two that will be official 2023 books are Lonesome Dove (a book connected to birds, bees, or bunnies) and Kindred.

My first finish was The Truth According to Us which I started in December, but had more than half to read in 2023.

My first start was Sarum: The Novel of England which I'm about 1/3 through.

My first start and finish was The Great Alone.

Lonesome Dove and Sarum: The Novel of England are both chunksters, but worth it.

The first book I read was something that happened to come in at the library just before New Year. I read way less nonfiction than fiction but the reviews intrigued me and it was interesting

This Is What It Sounds Like: What the Music You Love Says About You . I used it for the prompt on a cover with many colors on it! The book explains how music has various attributes - familiarity vs. novelty, lyrics vs. instrumental, rhythm vs. melody - and we all have preferences. None are inherently better or worse. The book has a list of songs that you can look up on youtube to see how you feel about them. I didn't take the time to do that, but it would be interesting. I was trying to explain to my family that I like "deedle-deedle music" but that only meant something to me. I guess I meant that I like "catchy", upbeat tunes, fairly simple. I don't generally appreciate classical or choral music or slow, sad songs.

The first book I read in 2023 was Never Name the Dead, by D.M. Rowell, and I started with it for the simple and boring reason that I had to get a review and some photos of it posted on my Bookstagram by the 15th of January, so I needed to get it read pretty quickly. Thanks for the free book box, Once Upon a Book Club Box, anyway! 😂 no but really, I did enjoy this one; it’s a debut and it feels it, with some slightly clunky writing in ways I’ve no doubt the author will improve over time and a few more books (I think this is intended to be the first in a series). But it was a decent mystery, and I enjoyed getting immersed in a culture I’m completely unfamiliar with. Also, the author managed to make Oklahoma sound beautiful. And no offense to Oklahomans, but…that takes some skill ;)

First book I used for the ATY challenge was The Summer Party, by Rebecca Heath, which is set in the Yorke Peninsula, Australia. (Couldn’t quite get the T in as well, unfortunately, lol) a very run-of-the-mill thriller, ultimately a bit forgettable, but fun to read while I was reading, you know?

The Stolen Heir by Holly Black because I've been a sucker for Holly Black since I was fifteen and picked up Tithe. I think she is the godmother of modern fae writing. I'll always cherish her characters and worlds, so I knew this would be an easy and lovely novel to fly through. Plus, it's just been released, so that excitement pushes the momentum forward. :)

I started the year off with Cat on the Edge by Shirley Rousseau Murphy. I started reading it on Dec 31 and finished it on Jan 1. It was okay, but also it was kind of dumb. I read it because of the winter challenge prompt about a book that includes a cat. The first book I completely read in 2023 was The Sentence by Louise Erdrich. It was my first #20BooksByIngenousAuthors book for the year, and it was really good. We are having a book discussion about it on Wednesday.

I'm reading Normal People - it fits a few categories, but I think I will use it for "set in 21st century" as part of the "set in three different centuries" trio.

Robin P wrote: "Lonesome Dove and Sarum: The Novel of England are both chunksters, but worth it.

The first book I read was something that happened to come in at the library just befor..."

I listened to this book on audio. I would stop the audio and go to Spotify to listen to the song. Not everyone has time to do that, but it made the experience of the book very enjoyable.

@Milena, did you like it? I am going to read her second book in the astronaut series for an author you read in 2022.

Anastasia wrote: "@Milena, did you like it? I am going to read her second book in the astronaut series for an author you read in 2022."

I loved it. The style definitely reminded me of the Lady Astronaut books.

The first book I read ended up being a holdover from 2022 (I try to avoid that usually, but as soon as I started this one, I realized I wanted to finish it in 2023 and use it for ATY).

The Rabbit Hutch by Tess Gunty for the birds, bees, and bunnies prompt.

It was excellent, though I wasn't as impressed with the ending as I hoped to be. That was a prompt I was nervous about, so I'm really glad I got it out of the way, and with a book I enjoyed.

My first three completed books were actually carry-overs from December, (Olga Dies Dreaming , Joan Is Okay and We Are All the Same in the Dark). But the ones I started in January are Dinosaurs (because I'm trying to read the Tournament of Books short list and it fits under setting starting with ATY) and How the Penguins Saved Veronica because it was a book I meant to read last year.

The Cat Who Had 60 Whiskers by Lilian Jackson Braun.

I'm in a group that has a monthly mission. This month's mission is to Color By Number so qualifying books have either a color or a number in the title. My second book was Little White Lies.

Next month's mission involves a cover element where an object/person is only partially depicted because the rest of it runs off the edge of the cover. Missions are quite varied and I can always find 5-7 in my TBR that fit.

Katherine, thank you for saying that Dinosaurs works for ATY setting! I'm not a huge fan of setting prompts and I'm also reading the TOB list, so I can slot that in!

Misty wrote: "I started the year off with Cat on the Edge by Shirley Rousseau Murphy. I started reading it on Dec 31 and finished it on Jan 1. It was okay, but also it was kind of dumb. I read it..."

I started Cat on the Edge and found the sudden abilities of the cat just too ridiculous. I just finished The Sentence yesterday and I loved it. I lived in Minneapolis 25 years and my son still lives there so I recognized the streets and businesses Erdrich mentions, including her own. I love how she even put herself in as a lesser character. It was a weird feeling to read an account of the recent past sort of like a historical novel.

The first book I have read is Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan which had been recommended to me by a friend. I am using it for the birds, bees and bunnies prompt.

Robin P wrote: "Misty wrote: "I started Cat on the Edge and found the sudden abilities of the cat just too ridiculous. I just finished The Sentence yesterday and I loved it. I lived in Minneapolis 25 years and my son still lives there so I recognized the streets and businesses Erdrich mentions, including her own. "

Ridiculous is the exact word. I stuck it out, but I won't be reading any of the other books. I didn't realize that Birch Books was her store. That's cool. I was looking up Indigenous owned bookstores to order some of the books for our book club, and I found that one, but I didn't realize it was owned by Erdrich until I looked up which business you were talking about that was mentioned in The Sentence.

The first book I finished was The Defining Decade: Why Your Twenties Matter—And How to Make the Most of Them Now by Meg Jay.

But I started I think more than half of this in 2022. So I didn't purposefully choose this to be the first book I finish in 2023. It just so happened that I didn't finish it in 2022. It's a non-fiction self-help book aimed at people in their early twenties. I read it even though I'm in my thirties because maybe I can give sound advice to younger people because of that book. I put it in the prompt ✓ 7. A book with ONE of the five "W" question words in the title.

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The first book that I started and finished in 2023 is Sunreach by Brandon Sanderson. I chose this because it's a novella in the Skyward series, which I'm currently reading. I find that getting into addicting series is a great way to reach my reading challenge goals! This one's for the prompt ✓ 45. A book whose author has published more than 7 books.

Robin P wrote: "Lonesome Dove and Sarum: The Novel of England are both chunksters, but worth it."

Lonesome Dove is on my "one day" list. My curiosity was piqued as Craig Johnson's Walt Longmire mentions it as his favourite book.

My first (re)read of the year was Slippery Creatures by Kj Creatures. Starting off on a nice, familiar one! I liked it slightly less than the last few times I've read it, but it's still a cracking romance and a great thriller to boot. I read it for prompt 6. A book where books are important, because it's largely set in a bookshop and involves information being hidden in books. Which is great, because I was worried about filling that one!

My first book this year was Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire, which I used for 37. About returning home. In the beginning of the year at least, I tend to pick books more or less randomly and just see where they fit, so I didn't have a specific reason to start with this. But because my personal life is a bit frustrating right now, I'm mostly seeking out uplifting/cozy fantasy books this month. This book fit that, and I liked it a lot (though it was also more creepy than I expected!)

My first book this year is The Illuminatus! Trilogy by Robert Shea and Robert Anton Wilson, which I will be using for #47 (geometric shape). It’s been on my TBR for over 30 years now and this seemed like a good year to tackle it, as the number 23 is sacred to the goddess, Eris, in the Discordian religion(?). I was first exposed to Discordianism when I picked up a copy of Principia Discordia ● Or ● How I Found Goddess and What I Did to Her When I Found Her: The Magnum Opiate of Malaclypse the Youngerat a comic book store as a teenager and found it to be a wonderfully bizarre combination of amusing and thought-provoking. The Illuminatus! Trilogy is rough going, as it is very long and very weird, which is why I’m not quite done with it yet, but I’m enjoying the ride.

Hannah wrote: "My first book was Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung.

Does anyone else have a minor superstition that the first book you read in a year is a sign for how the year's reading will be as a whole?

Yes! I sometimes felt that the first book set a tone for the year. But this year I forgot to plan for it. I started an impulse read for a “food” tag, A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking, which wouldn’t work. I’m also in a game where our books are randomly selected from a list of 100 books we submitted. My first book was Why We Get Sick: The Hidden Epidemic at the Root of Most Chronic Disease―and How to Fight It. I decided to let it stand as my first because health will be salient this year whether I like it or not. Plus the book is empowering, and covers topics relevant to my siblings too. I want to spend more time with them this year, even though we live far away from one another.

It works for science, W question, and some rejected prompts. I also read the Wizard book, but I can’t think of where it fits other than Title begins with W, a rejected prompt, or child protagonist.