Top Ten Tuesday used to be a weekly post hosted by The Broke and the Bookish, but was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl. “It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.” This is definitely something I can understand and want to participate in.
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Welcome back to another Top Ten Tuesday! Today’s prompt is books I meant to read in 2023 but didn’t get to, and I’m not going to struggle to reach ten at all. There were a lot of books that I planned to read last year, but just didn’t have the chance to get to at all. While 2023 was a hectic year I don’t mind leaving in the rearview, there are some standout books that I’m just not ready to leave behind. Here’s some that were on my 2023 TBR and have been carried over:
- The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon. This one has made this list for the past few years, and I think it’s just the time commitment involved since this one is a real chunk. | Goodreads | Amazon
- Anatomy by Dana Schwartz. This one was all over my social media when it came out, then a sequel came out, and I still hadn’t started the first one, so it carried over yet again. | Goodreads | Amazon
- Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands by Heather Fawcett. I got approved for this ARC in 2023 and fully planned to read it in 2023, but I was in kind of a slump and time got away from me, so it’s on my 2024 TBR. | Goodreads | Amazon
- Light Bringer by Pierce Brown. This came out over the summer and I preordered a copy, but it’s been sitting on my shelf ever since. It doesn’t help that I still have to reread all the previous books in the series before starting this one. | Goodreads | Amazon
- The Temple of Fortuna by Elodie Harper. This ending to the series got sent to me in 2023, and I was so eager to start it, but I also wanted to reread the 2 earlier books, which I did, but didn’t get to this one quite yet, maybe because I’m not ready to say goodbye to this series. | Goodreads | Amazon
- Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros. I wasn’t on the hype train at first, but it got to me and I ended up buying the book, but didn’t have the time to read it. Have no fear, I’ve got a buddy read (of course) set up for this one soon. | Goodreads | Amazon
- Kissing Kosher by Jean Meltzer. I’ve had my eye on this one for quite some time, and although I got a copy, once again didn’t have time to actually read it in 2023. | Goodreads | Amazon
- Spare by Prince Harry. Of course this was on my 2023 TBR, and naturally, it got carried over to my 2024 TBR since I spent the last half of 2023 reading mainly ARCs. | Goodreads | Amazon
- Fairy Tale by Stephen King. My bestie Kim gifted this to me, saying that she loved it so much she thought I also needed a copy and to read it, yet I just haven’t gotten to it yet. Probably because it’s another super-involved chunk. | Goodreads | Amazon
- Bone Weaver by Aden Polydoros. I love his writing, and bought a copy of this book when I got turned down for an ARC, but didn’t read it despite how desperate I was to get a copy. | Goodreads | Amazon
What are some of the books you meant to read in 2023 but didn’t get to? Have you read any from my list?
Categories: Top Ten Tuesday
Leah's Books 
So many people hyped and loved Shannon and Rebecca’s novels. Hope you enjoy all of these books once you have the chance to read them! 🙂
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Thank you so much! I’m kind of nervous about them because of all the hype, you know?
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Priory is and feels like a chunk, it’s so so slow! Fairy Tale on the other hand doesn’t feel like a chunk at all. I have the first Emily Wilde on my list 🙂 I listened to the audiobook for Spare and that worked really well for me. Happy reading!
My TTT: https://laurieisreading.com/2024/01/23/top-ten-tuesday-backlist-books-i-want-to-get-to-in-2024/
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Thanks for the tips! I might just have to do Spare on audio – that way I can squeeze it in while still working on ARCs and not feeling guilty. I’m sure you know what I’m talking about. PS The first Emily Wilde is so good, and the audio is just as good! I hope you enjoy Emily Wilde when you get to it!
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I’ve seen Samantha Shannon on a few lists today!
Hope you enjoy Fourth Wing when you do your buddy read.
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Thank you so much! It’s a huge book, so it’s tough to find the time to devote, but apparently it’s worth it.
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I hope you can read these books in 2024 and that they are all you hoped they would be.
Pam @ Read! Bake! Create!
https://readbakecreate.com/whoops-thirteen-books-i-meant-to-read-in-2023/
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Thank you! This is the best New Years wish I could ever ask for!
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I listened to ANATOMY on audio last year and loved it. I need to read the sequel now. I hope you love it and all these others when you get to them!
Happy TTT!
Susan
http://www.blogginboutbooks.com
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Wow, thank you so much for mentioning that the audio is good, because I tend to read a lot faster on audio, but can’t always do every book that way. I appreciate the tip, and thanks!
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My friends and I are doing a read-along of FAIRY TALE in March. You should join us. Here’s the link to the details: https://sueysbooks.blogspot.com/2024/01/fairy-tale-by-stephen-king-readalong.html.
I hope you’re able to get to these this year. 😀
https://jennielyse.com/top-ten-tuesday-44/
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Ooh, that’s such a cool plan! Thanks for the invite, I’m definitely going to check that out!
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I also have Fourth WIng on my list!! I have the first Emily Wilde book on my list as well. Hope you can get to some of these soon!
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I really hope that we love all of our books when we get to them!
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I read the first half of Fairy Tale and loved it, but then put it down for some reason. Now that I’ve returned it to the library and bought my own copy, I’ll probably start over (because it’s been a LONG time since I started it lol).
Here’s my Top Ten Tuesday post
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That’s another huge book – I feel like I’m going to have to just devote a significant portion of a month to reading Priory and Fairy Tale!
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I keep seeing The Priory of the Orange Tree and it’s a book I feel needs to be added to my TBR. I hope you are able to get to these this year.
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Just beware – it’s a doorstopper of a book!
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I thought Fourth Wing was fun. Was it my favorite thing I’ve read by Yarros? No, but it was worth it. I think my favorite is still her Flight & Glory series.
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Yarros is a completely new-to-me author, so there’s a lot of expectation due to the amount of hype, you know? I’m nervous, but have it set up as a buddy read.
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That’s a good way to do it.
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You can skip Spare–most tossed (dnf) book of the year!
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Oh no! Thanks for the heads up, though!
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There are always more books on my list than I can ever get to. I hope you enjoy these when you have time! Here is our Top Ten Tuesday. Thank you!
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Same! Only book people really understand. And thank you!
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Anatomy is on my TBR!! I would wait for book three of Fourth Wing before picking it up. Iron Flame was a hot mess and I didn’t love it.
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Oh no! I’ve stayed away from all reviews, posts, and reels/TikToks about the whole series to avoid spoilers, but I’m so sad to hear that you didn’t love it – I wonder what I’ll think!
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Yeah, I did the same.. like I’m doing now with CC3! I hope you enjoy it more than I did!!
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Hopefully!
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I can’t wait for our buddy read!!!! And I haven’t read Priory either, but I have the book. It’s definitely a commitment! lol
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Maybe this is a sign to buddy read Priory? That’s going to be a serious time commitment lol
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I hope you’re able to read some of these books this year. Cool list of books! 😀
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Thank you! I hope so too.
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Oooh the second Emily Wilde was so good! I think you’ll enjoy it Leah. I also loved Priory, though it’s been a good few years since I’ve read it 🙂
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I’m so excited to get to the second Emily Wilde – I really love her character and the stories! I’ve heard mixed things on Priory, so I’m curious to see where I end up.
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I was going to comment about you not reading, “Priory of the Orange Tree,” yet; but then I saw 4 books that I still need to read from your list! LOL!
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Hahahahaha it must be a sign! We’re going to have to hold each other accountable this year, I guess.
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