What a year! This is the fifth year that I have written reviews on the books that I have read.
This was my fourth full year of reviewing ARCs receivedWhat a year! This is the fifth year that I have written reviews on the books that I have read.
This was my fourth full year of reviewing ARCs received via NetGalley and I managed to read 127. It was also my third full year of submitting some of my reviews for publication at Mystery and Suspense Magazine. 81 were published in 2023.
I read 187 books in 2023 with approximately 64,640 pages. My average days per book were 1.95 with an average of 177 pages per day and 15.58 books per month. I read books by 81 new-to-me authors in 2023.
My average rating was 4.0 with 24 five-star reads and only 1 two-star book. I feel I did a good job of selecting books that I enjoyed in 2023 and that is reflected in my ratings. This is my first full year of using a spreadsheet to help me better rate books. I use criteria such as characterization, world building, plot, and writing style (plus others) and rate each on a scale of 1-5 to the nearest quarter point. That is weighted at 75% of the overall rating. Then I rate my overall enjoyment and weight it at 25% of the overall rating. This helps a lot when I would have been waffling between two ratings. Anything x.5 or greater gets rounded up. Non-fiction books have slightly different criteria, but the process is the same.
I mainly read e-books in 2023 with only 15 paperbacks and 3 hardback books read. That means my physical TBR bookcase is still overflowing. But so is my kindle TBR. I somehow managed to add slightly more to my TBR than I read in the year. What a great problem to have! My total number of books read by month ranged from 13 to 20. I read 2 books that I received from authors, 4 books that I won in Goodreads Giveaways, and 11 books I received direct from a literary publicist or a publisher. I also read 3 books from BookSirens.
As I look at the books I read by genre/sub-genre, 57% were mysteries, thrillers, suspense, historical mysteries, or cozies with another 8% romantic suspense, and 13% were paranormal (suspense, romance, romantic suspense). I am disappointed that I only read 5% that were science fiction or fantasy and hope to improve on that in 2024. I only read 4 non-fiction books in 2023. Most of the books I read (60%) fell into the range of 301-400 pages.
Since 2020, I have been keeping track of the countries that the books I read are mainly set in. To date, I have read books set in 38 countries with 10 new countries added in 2023.
Thanks to the many friends that I have met on Goodreads. I enjoy your posts, reviews, recommendations, and all of our interactions. I’ve added many books to my TBR based on your recommendations. I am looking forward to what 2024 brings us in reading discoveries. Best wishes for a happy, healthy, and safe 2024 Happy Reading everyone!...more
What a year! This is the fourth year that I have written reviews on the books that I have read.
This was my third full year of reviewing ARCs receivedWhat a year! This is the fourth year that I have written reviews on the books that I have read.
This was my third full year of reviewing ARCs received via NetGalley and I managed to read 113. It was also my second full year of submitting some of my reviews for publication at Mystery and Suspense Magazine. 79 were published in 2022.
I only managed to read 152 books in 2022 with approximately 49,921 pages. (A few of the ARCs and indie ebooks didn't have page counts). My average days per book were 2.4 with an average of 137 pages per day and 12.67 books per month.
My average rating was 3.9 with 24 five-star reads and only 1 one-star book. I feel I did a good job of selecting books that I enjoyed in 2021 and that is reflected in my ratings. Mid-year, I created a spreadsheet to help me better rate books. I use criteria such as characterization, world building, plot, and writing style (plus others) and rate each on a scale of 1-5 to the nearest quarter point. That is weighted at 75% of the overall rating. Then I rate my overall enjoyment and weight it at 25% of the overall rating. This helps a lot when I would have been waffling between two ratings. Anything x.5 or greater gets rounded up. Non-fiction books have slightly different criteria, but the process is the same.
I mainly read e-books in 2022 with only 13 paperbacks and 4 hardback books read. That means my physical TBR bookcase is still overflowing. But so is my kindle TBR. I somehow managed to add more to my TBR than I can read in a year. What a great problem to have. My total number of books read by month ranged from 9 to 18. I read 2 books that I received from authors, 8 books that I won in Goodreads Giveaways, and 2 books I received direct from a literary publicist or a publisher.
As I look at the books I read by genre/sub-genre, 51% were mysteries, thrillers, suspense, historical mysteries, or cozies with another 5% romantic suspense, and 16% were paranormal (suspense, romance, romantic suspense). I am disappointed that I only read 5% that were science fiction or fantasy and hope to improve on that in 2023. For non-fiction, I read 10 books in 2022. Most of the books I read (64%) fell into the range of 301-400 pages.
I had 24 5-star reads in 2022. My top five were:
The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle by Jennifer Ryan The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna The Winter Orphans by Kristin Beck Desperation in Death by J.D. Robb The Forever Witness: How Genetic Genealogy Solved a Cold Case by Edward Humes
Thanks to all of the friends that I have met on Goodreads. I enjoy your posts, reviews, recommendations, and all of our interactions. I am looking forward to what 2023 brings us in reading discoveries. Best wishes for a happy, healthy, and safe 2023. Happy Reading everyone! ...more
What a year! This is the third year that I have written reviews on the books that I have read. With the pandemic plus everything else going on in the What a year! This is the third year that I have written reviews on the books that I have read. With the pandemic plus everything else going on in the world, the year was unusual. We did manage to hike and birdwatch outdoors, but we stayed closer to home to avoid overnight trips. We also managed to watch a lot of movies; including many international ones.
This was my second full year of reviewing ARCs received via NetGalley and I managed to read 85. It was also my first full years of submitting some of my reviews for publication at Mystery and Suspense Magazine. 82 were published in 2021 and another 2 have been submitted and will be published in early 2022.
I only managed to read 174 books in 2021 with approximately 54,079 pages. (A few of the ARCs and indie ebooks didn't have page counts). My average days per book were 2.1 with an average of 148 pages per days and 14.5 books per month. My average rating for 2020 was 3.8 with 22 five-star reads and no one-star reads. I feel I did a good job of selecting books that I enjoyed in 2021 and that is reflected in my ratings.
I mainly read e-books in 2021 with only 20 paperbacks and 1 hardback book read. That means my physical TBR bookcase is still overflowing. But so is my kindle TBR. I somehow managed to add more to my TBR than I can read in a year. What a great problem to have. *smiles* My total number of books read by month ranged from 11 to 17. I read 19 books that I won in Goodreads Giveaways and 6 more that I won in Goodreads discussion group giveaways.
As I look at the books I read by genre/sub-genre, I continued to read lots of mysteries, suspense and thrillers of various types.
Fiction Genres/Sub-Genres:
Mystery/Suspense/Thriller/Cozies 93 Paranormal Romance 7 Paranormal Suspense 13 Romantic Suspense 12 SF/F 9 Historical Mystery 8 Other 27 Total 168
NonFiction Genres:
Genealogy 1 Memoir 2 History 2 Other NonF 1 Total 6
The Kaiser’s Web by Steve Berry Blood and Treasure by Bob Drury and Tom Clavin Relentless by Jonathan Maberry Magic Misled by Keri Arthur Faithless in Death by J.D. Robb Forgotten in Death by J.D. Robb Her Deadly Touch by Lisa Regan Cost of Care by Betsy Robinson City of Time and Magic by Paula Brackston Vanishing Edge by Claire Kells Untainted by Sarah Robinson Gated Prey by Lee Godberg Dark Night by Paige Shelton Dark Tarot by Christine Feehan Third Watch by Robert Dugoni Lethal Game by Charlie Gallagher You can Run by Rebecca Zanetti The Mark by Matt Brolly Damaged Intentions by Mike Omer
Thanks to all of the friends that I have met on Goodreads. I enjoy your posts, reviews, recommendations, and all of our interactions and am looking forward to what 2022 brings us in reading discoveries. Best wishes for a happy, healthy, and safe 2022. Happy Reading everyone! ...more
What a year! This is the second year that I have written reviews on the books that I have read. With the pandemic plus everything else going on in theWhat a year! This is the second year that I have written reviews on the books that I have read. With the pandemic plus everything else going on in the world, the year was unusual. We did manage to hike and birdwatch outdoors, but we stayed closer to home to avoid overnight trips. We also managed to watch a lot of movies; including many international ones.
This was my first full year of reviewing ARCs received via NetGalley and I managed to read 113. I also started submitting (in late October) some of my reviews for publication on Mystery and Suspense Magazine. 22 were published in 2020 and another 3 have been submitted and will be published in early 2021.
I only managed to read 192 books in 2020 with approximately 58,018 pages. (A few of the ARCs didn't have page counts). My average rating for 2020 was 3.9 with 34 five-star reads and no one-star reads. I feel I did a good job of selecting books that I enjoyed in 2020 and that is reflected in my ratings.
I mainly read e-books in 2020 with only 18 paperbacks and 1 hardback book read. That means my physical TBR bookcase is still overflowing. But so is my kindle TBR. I somehow manage to add more to my TBR than I can read in a year. What a great problem to have. *smiles* My total number of books read by month were relatively consistent ranging from 13 to 18. I read 25 books that I won in Goodreads Giveaways and have two more to read in January 2021.
My 5-star reads for 2020 were: Storm Cursed (Mercy Thompson, #11) Briggs, Patricia Bone Canyon Goldberg, Lee The Russian Cage Harris, Charlaine Ink Maberry, Jonathan Absence of Mercy (A Lightner and Law Mystery #1) Goodwin, S.M. Huntress Rising (Angel of Death Book 1) Roland, Lee Ancient Protector (Ancients Rising, #1) Reus, Katie Vendetta in Death (In Death, #49) Robb, J.D. A Book Signing To Die For Moore, Judy The Mountain Konkoly, Steven Hanging Falls (Timber Creek K-9 Mystery #6) Mizushima, Margaret Invisible Girl Jewell, Lisa No One Saw Long, Beverly Cold Wind (Alaska Wild Mysteries #2) Shelton, Paige Brass Carriages and Glass Hearts (Steampunk Proper Romance #4) Allen, Nancy Campbell A Solitude of Wolverines Henderson, Alice Garden Alchemy: 80 Recipes and concoctions for organic fertilizers, plant elixirs, potting mixes, pest deterrents, and more Rose, Stephanie Hope, Faith, and a Corpse (A Faith Chapel Mystery #1) Jensen Walker, Laura Wolf Under Fire (STAT #1) Tyler, Paige All the Colors of Night (Fogg Lake #2) Krentz, Jayne Ann Anomaly (The Blood Race, #0.5) Emmons, K.A. The Meat Hunter Allen, Megan Ten Days Gone (A.L. McKittridge, #1) Long, Beverly Knock Knock (Detectives Lockhart and Green, #1) Merritt, Chris The Finders (Mace Reid K-9 Mystery, #1) Burton, Jeffrey B. The Last High Kalla, Daniel You Had Me at Wolf Spear, Terry Flight Risk Putman, Cara C. Stop at Nothing Ledwidge, Michael Breathe Your Last (Detective Josie Quinn, #10) Regan, Lisa Golden in Death (In Death, #50) Robb, J.D. No Bad Deed Chavez, Heather
As I look at the books I read by genre/sub-genre, I continued to read lots of mysteries, suspense and thrillers of various types.
Gardening 1 Children's NF 1 Nature 2 Other NonF 1 Total 5
Thanks to all of the friends that I have met on Goodreads. I enjoy your posts, reviews, recommendations, and all of our interactions and am looking forward to what 2021 brings us in reading discoveries. Best wishes for a happy, healthy, and safe 2021. Happy Reading everyone!...more
**spoiler alert** What a year! This is the first year that I have written reviews of the books that I read. I also joined NetGalley on June 27, 2019 a**spoiler alert** What a year! This is the first year that I have written reviews of the books that I read. I also joined NetGalley on June 27, 2019 and read and reviewed 62 ARCs through them which are included in my totals for the year. I read 65,340 pages across 220 books and this is missing some pages for some of the ARCs that I reviewed. My average rating for 2019 was 3.8 stars. I feel I did a good job of selecting books that I enjoyed in 2019 and that is reflected in my ratings below. 5 stars: 36 4 stars: 119 3 stars: 51 2 stars: 12 1 star: 2
Book Format Totals: EB 154 HB 8 PB 58 Grand Total 220
Monthly Totals:
Jan 26 Feb 27 Mar 25 Apr 16 May 17 Jun 14 Jul 17 Aug 16 Sep 16 Oct 13 Nov 17 Dec 16 Grand Total 220
Books by Genre/SubGenre - Some books fit more than one category, but this is how I categorized them on my historical spreadsheet.