 Hello friends! How are we doing today? We're going to be seeing how many of my 2023 TBR I have actually read. I know all very excited for this. You guys seem to love these videos where I react to past TBRs that I've made. God knows why. Don't stop, Marie. There. I've had it. Enough. You know what they- You guys keep making me make these videos reacting to what I've- have I read these books? When we could just- I could make the TBRs and then we could just exist in peacefulness and you know, just not knowing, you know. It could be oblivious, but um, you guys really like the videos where I react to seeing how much I've read. So I'm gonna do it. We're gonna be reacting to the 23 books I said I had to read in 2023. Listen, I always say at the beginning of these TBRs, oh I'm gonna read all these books. I'm sure I said that at the start of this video. I am making this list this year with like a determination that I'm going to read all these books. I promise. But to be honest, when I get to this point, like a year on from making the TBR, my goal is usually to have read at least half, right? If I've read at least half, you know, life happens, shit happens, new books come out. It is what it is. I am feeling pretty positive about this list actually. Sometimes I go into these feeling really not good, like I'm pretty sure my 24 books I got before I turned 24, which is at the end of January, um, I don't think that list has gone very well from what I can remember. But from what I can remember on this list, I feel like I've read a lot of the books on it. So should I just get into it, see how many of my 2023 TBR? I'm, I think I'll have read at least half this one. Watch me have read seven, because I can just remember seven I've read and none of the rest are on there. But we shall see. Okay. The first category is by far our biggest one. And that is 2023 releases. So I was thinking strategically. That's good. Because I, yeah, I want to read more 20. I think I'll keep that strategy this year. Read new releases in a year. That's something I really want to focus on. This is some of the new releases that I am most excited for. So two I already have my grabby little paws on. The first is the mysterious case of the Alpeton Angels by Janice Hallett. I am so honored. I read it. I read the mysterious case The Alpeton Angels by Janice Hallett. I, that was one of the first books I read this year. I read that in January. It was five stars Janice Hallett. My girly. Yeah, I love the mysterious case of Alpeton Angels. It's all mixed media. And it's about this baby who went missing from this cult where there was like a mass death in this cult. And I really enjoyed it. I think Janice Hallett's books are so much fun. So yeah, that was one I took that off early in the year. Megan, I think this, this strategy of having picked 2023 releases is really going to pay off. And then I also had to put on the list Hellbent by Luba Duga. I am so jealous of everyone who is reading this. Oh, well Megan, it took you a fucking long time to read it. I think I read that. Was that my 100th book of the year? Hellbent? It took you a while. God, I didn't realize I had that in the start of the year. I enjoyed Hellbent. I didn't love it as much as 9000. Hellbent was like a four star for me. But I did enjoy it. And I do like this series a lot. I'm sad it's only going to be a trilogy. Oh guys, 9000. The series was supposed to be like a seven book series. And then she changed it to a trilogy. And I've never, I've never gotten rid of that grudge. It's like there's a grudge that's lingering. I'm not one of those people that forgive and forget. I'm one of those people that fucking take score. My dad, it's like one of his favorite books of the year. He says it's like a five star plus to him. So whenever we talk about it, he gets really upset with me that I did not give it a five star. It's an ongoing grudge in our relationship. So he loves it. And he's a big fantasy reader. So that's how I pray is coming from him. How long can we go with me having read every book? So number three is Yellow Face by R.F. Kwong. I'm so excited. I'm a genius. Megan, you did well with this list. Oh my god. Yes, I've read Yellow Face. What if we got way favorite them all? I don't think I've read them all. But like, what if I read them all? I have read Yellow Face. I again, this was like a strong four star for me. I really, really enjoyed it. I have Kwong just has a way with writing and you know, this was obviously her first non fantasy. And it's just very interesting seeing how her writing style changes but also stays the same across different genres. And I think one of her next books is kind of a fantasy romance kind of deal. I'm not sure that's the next one. I don't know. I know she's got one coming out where it's like academic rivals who love each other who like it's a romance between go to hell to save their professor or something. R.F. Kwong, your mind. Also we've out of the three have two Goodreads winners. Yes, I'm still thinking about Goodreads winners. Don't talk to me. I knew what we're going to be the most hyped releases of 2023 from this moment. Number four is Lost in the Moment and Found by Sean McGuire. This is the next in the way we're children series. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I actually don't know how to react. I don't think this has ever happened. Oh my god. I have read Lost in the Moment and Found and I loved it. Another five star. Oh my god. Not only are these the books, my 2023 TBR, like these are always books I'm most excited to read. We've had two four stars and two five stars. It's almost like I actually know my reading taste when I like make myself sit down and think about it and some of the like three star average three stars I read are like what I think I should read. But when I sit down think like what are the books I'm most excited to read. If I could only read 10 books this year, I know it. I know it. I know it. I know it. I loved Lost in the Moment and Found by Sean McGuire. This is the next in the way we're children series as you guys know. This one it does come with some heavy warnings. There's a trigger warning on an author's note at the beginning to do with child abuse. But I thought the kind of world that we find ourselves in in this installment is very interesting because it kind of expands on the magic of the series and grows the series a bit. And I do love when a series, obviously this is like the ninth in the series or something, eight. I don't even know, seventh, tenth. I don't know how far in the series we are. But you know, we're quite far into the series. But I do love whenever a series grows and the magic grows and like everything becomes a bit bigger. And I don't like that to be rushed. But I like my favorite example is The Bear of the Nightingale series by Catherine Arden. Every edition in that series grows the world and the magic a little bit. Oh my God, guys, I fucking read it. I can't. I can't. We also have In the Lives of Puppets by TJ Klune. So can I just say another Goodreads winner? And I've read it. I am the mommy bitch. I am the mommy bitch. I'm always the mommy bitch. Now I gave this a three star. And for me with TJ Klune, that is like big disappointment, right? That's the same as me giving some authors a one or a two in terms of like how disappointed I am. Because like this one just didn't really do it for me. I just didn't connect to the story. Like TJ Klune's books, I think, because they're quite heavy on the like emotional messaging, right? If you just don't connect to it and you don't buy into that, I think it can be tricky. And I've just always put into that with him. But I did not. I did not for this one. I did. I thought it was kind of boring. Also, in my mind, this is a Wizard of Oz retelling. This is a Wizard of Oz retelling. Like it's very Wizard of Oz. And no one ever talks about that and on mentions it. But it's Wizard of Oz. It's so Wizard of Oz. It's actually painful. Like what are we doing here? It's a conspiracy theory that I'm actually interested in. No one else agreed with me. Anyways, but we've read them. What if I read all these books? You've already read five. How many do you need to read to get half? Like 12 and a half? That is not correct. We're gonna get there. We're only five read. I wonder what the first book is going to be that I haven't read. We also have Love Theoretically by Allie Hazelwood. Okay, I spoke too soon. I have not read Love Theoretically yet. Here she is. Let's get her out. Love Theoretically by Allie Hazelwood. I own it, but I have not read. And I don't really know why. I mean, I love Allie Hazelwood. We know this. She's my romance girlie. She's one of my few trusted romance girlies because to me, I just die the vibe with you. I don't when it comes to romance. And I give her literally always five stars. I don't know what this one's about. Don't ask me to pitch it. It's women in STEM falling in love and getting on with some tall guys. Some tiny women in STEM. Actually, no, I think this woman is described as aggressively medium. So Allie said, listen, the tiny woman critiques that over. Don't you see she's medium. But yes, I have been meaning to get around to this. I don't know when I will, but I definitely need to get around to it soon because Allie's pumping these books out. We got Check and Mate, The YA, which already has come out. We've got Bride coming out early next year, which is like the paranormal, which I need to read. And then we've got another adult romance coming out in the summer. Allie, pump the brakes a bit. Calm down. Calm down. I'm fashion. I'm style. And if they can't keep up, then that's the problem. Bye. Take care. But no, I have not read Love Theoretically yet. Okay. That's the first painful one of the video. We have The Last Word by Taylor Adams, which I am, you know, he shoot. Okay, I'm really excited for The Last Word, but I have not read it. This is one of the books in my defense. I was basically saving any books that I was really excited for that I thought might be nominated for Goodreads Choice Awards for that video. And this is one I didn't even get nominated, which is a freaking outrage. I get some of those books out of here. Get Frida McFadden. I just don't, Frida McFadden didn't need to. She didn't need to. I know she won, but like get out of here. Yeah. So I was hoping this would be nominated and it wasn't. So I was saving it for that. I'm so excited. I have heard mixed things. I know some people really love this and some people have not enjoyed it. I think I'm going to fall on the side of loving it because I love, I think a lot of the tropes and the fun of this. Taylor Adams. No exit. I stand by this. No exit is one of the greatest thrillers ever written. I think it is emblematic of the perfect runner. It should be taught in schools. It's great American literature. It is brilliant American literature. And I don't care what anybody, it is, it's lit. It should be taught in schools. Generally, I think like I'm right in courses. It should be like the example of like, this is a perfect genre thriller. Like fast paced, crazy. Like, oh my God, that book. Once you read it, you'll never recover. But we haven't read it. Oh no, we've had two I haven't read. It's okay. We're still doing well. We're still doing well. The same with my last 2023 release on the list, which is The Writing Retreat by Julia Bartz. This is a debut. Oh, she's only gone and read it. And all of you who hate it was so wrong. This is my Catherine House of this year. Listen, this is going to be in my best books of 2023 list. And I know that will upset some of you. And you can just live with it. Life's not fair. What's fair. Right. Life's not fair. Because The Writing Retreat, oh, I loved it. For those of you who don't know, it's about these women who go on this writing retreat with this like world famous author. And it's a little bit weird. A little bit. Everything's going wrong with Snowden. It's also like about female relationships. I loved it. I loved it. I think it's genius. And all of you don't see it's genius. Wow. I loved The Writing Retreat. I think it's absolutely incredible. It's a travesty that had too low an average rating to be nominated for the Goodreadies Mystery Seller because I just think everyone should read it. I just don't understand why you guys don't like it. It's amazing. It's so good. The Writing Retreat was so good. It was so fun. I always pitch it as Catherine House meets Bunny. I think if you enjoyed either of those books with their weirdness, with the kind of unsettlingness with female relationships, with the kind of cult-like atmosphere somewhat, I think that's the perfect pitch. I'm quite proud of myself for making that pitch because it's so right. Okay, we're done with the 2023 releases now. What's our next theme? That is the end of the 2023 releases on this list. Now let's get into the 2022 releases. There's a few that I really want to get around to that I didn't know I'd made a category for 2022 releases. I think actually 2022 is my most popular release year that I've read this year to be fair. I've been catching up. That's what I always seem to do. And then it's 2023. I've read quite a lot of 2023 releases, but I think 2022 just snuck over it. So our luck statistically should be here. The first of which is The Daughter of Dr. Moro by Silvia Morone-Garcia. I know I'm going to be reading this this year. I have a plan for a video. God, I didn't do that video until like October. Fucking hell, Megan. That took a while. No, I have read The Daughter of Dr. Moro and wasn't my favorite Silvia Morone-Garcia. I loved Mexican Gothic, right? I think I gave that a five or a 4.5. But then the other two Silvia Morone-Garcia as I've read, I haven't loved. They've both been about a three star. And that makes me nervous. I don't know where me and Silvia stand. I don't know what. I don't know how we're doing. I don't know how we're doing. Yeah, I didn't love this. I think it was okay. I was just a bit bored. And listen, it's themed off of the story that one of my favorite books ever is themed off of the island of Dr. Moro. We've got, listen, I read it because it was like similar, book similar to Strange Case of the Alchemist Daughter, which I'm going to be re-reading hopefully the second and third books at the end of this year if I have it in me. I want to re-read those two and I want to re-read Myrtle on the Iron Express at the end of this year, but I don't know if that's going to happen. I don't know if I'm being realistic, but I did not love. I thought I just said the video was going to come out around March time. I didn't do it until October. Jesus. I just come up with other vlog ideas throughout the year that I'm more excited to do. And then so you've got some vlog plans just get pushed back and pushed back, you know? Also on the list is Nestle and Bone by T. King Fisher. Okay. Okay, that's interesting. I am going to mark that as read because I'm currently reading it and I've got 30 pages left, so I'm going to finish it in like an hour. I'm marking that as read. And by the time this video comes out, the video where I'm reading that will already be out. So I've read it. I've read Nestle and Bone. Can't give you my full thoughts on it yet, but I'm enjoying it. I think it's going to end up being a full star. You'll have seen the vlog maybe if you watch the vlog. I'm really enjoying it. It's just not, you know, me and T. King Fisher, I've given her like two by now, I'm assuming this is a full star, two falls on one 4.5 and I'm just waiting for a five. We've got it in us. I fill the pool. I fill the energy. We just need to like hit at the right moment. Which was Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield. I've read Our Wives Under the Sea. I enjoyed this. I've read it. Let me mark it down. God, we're doing so well, guys. I've read nine and haven't read two. What? What? Um, I think it's going to go wrong. I don't feel like this can continue. I just, I just appreciate this moment because I just think it's going to go wrong. Our Wives Under the Sea, I enjoyed. It's very weird. It's about these wives and one of them has returned from this deep sea mission and hasn't been the same ever since. And like this is the kind of book don't go into if you want a plot. Don't go into if you want explanations for things. Just go into for pure vibes and you'll be fine. But like go into it with the right expectations. But I'm interested in reading more Julia Armfield in the future. The first is The Last Housewife by Ashley Winsett. I've only gone and read The Last Housewife. We've read ten. We were all so happy that day. It's it's actually hard to even imagine how terrible things would soon become. The Last Housewife was another one that was a little bit disappointing for me. I think I gave it three but it's maybe more of like a 2.5, 2. I can't remember what isn't a spoiler and what isn't. So I'm not going to tell you the plot. But I'm just going to say I didn't feel, I think if you're handling the themes that this book is going to, is handling, I didn't feel like they were handled well. And I never felt like the discussions of those issues got passed the first sentence. Do you know what I mean? They got, they said the initial, it was like if you're writing an essay, it said the first, first line of the essay and never got passed that for me. But I am interested in reading what Ashley Winsett said. I've heard really good things about Midnight's Darkest Hour that's come out. I'm going to keep giving her a go because I gave it in my dreams a whole nine, five stars. But The Last Housewife wasn't it for me. But I've read it. So who cares? And it is The Woman in the Library by Solari Gentile. I'm really hoping that I unwrap this. I've read The Woman in the Library. What is happening? I have read The Woman in the Library. We've read eleven. The Woman in the Library I enjoyed by when and into it was such high expectations. It's like a murder mystery than a murder mystery. There's like an author who's writing a book and is getting letters from their friend about the book. But then you're reading the book through their writing as well. And it's locked room and I just didn't feel like it fully went there for me. I don't know. I think if I like a locked room, I like the mystery and the like low locations of the mystery to say a little bit constrained. Like I like it if it's a house for us to say at the house. Or like I don't know. I just think the synopsis made me think this book was going to be done in a different way than it was and it just didn't fully succeed for me. Next we have series to finish baby. We fuck off. I don't think I'm going to have done series to finish. First we have Rule of Wolves by Lee Bardugo. This would finish off the King of Skars Geology. I've read Rule of Wolves. What is happening? I've read twelve. One more and I've read over half. I still have only read not read two. That's gonna it's gonna we're gonna deteriorate. I read one of rules. I'm glad. I'm just gonna say I'm glad I finished that geology off. It was an easy one to tick off. Hang on guys where's the chairs man? Listen I love you Lee but like the Grishaverse is getting a little bit big for its boots. I'm glad you're doing 9th house. I'm glad you've got this new standalone coming out next year because I think the Grishaverse, I know it's your money makeup but like it's getting a little bit. And this book in particular astrology mixes Shadow Bone and Six of Crows in a way that like hasn't been mixed before and I'm not not into it because I wanted Six of Crows 3 to just be Six of Crows. I don't like Shadow Bone. I don't like Shadow Bone Universe. I don't want the mixing. Get out of here. I just like the crows so moving on. And then another geology that I want to finish is um the start the song of race and ruin one with the one I have to read is The Sum of Storms and Silence. Oh I haven't read The Sum of Storms and Silence. I have not read that. I should have done because it's again a geology that I don't even need to read one more book to finish off but it's long. It's like very chunky. I enjoyed the first book but I can't remember much about it now so I do I believe I own the second book because I just gotta read it but yeah I should have finished that off this year because the longer with any series the longer you go without reading it the more you forget and I feel like I've forgotten a lot about the first book. Actually no now that I think about it it was the game there was they needed to kill each other but you know I and I remember it. I remember it but yeah I have not read A Sum of Storms and Silence. The what is this series called? The Themis Files series. I have to read Only Human by Sylvain Nevelle. I finished The Themis Files. I read Only Human guys I read 13. Oh my god I'm so proud of myself. Watch me not read any more. I love the first two The Themis Files and this third one for me it didn't need to happen. It didn't need to be a book. The first two could almost be like a self-contained series. I don't think that this third book added anything. I don't think it needed to happen and it would have been better as a novella. It was too long. It wasn't enough to bulk out the book. It was like he thought okay the series needs to end this way but then there wasn't enough happening in the book to justify it. Like if it was a novella I would have been fine but it was a novel. We have four series that I want to start this year. These are the series I really want to prioritize. See I actually think I'm gonna have less luck with this than series to finish because I really try not to start a series so we'll see how it goes. I feel like you guys are gonna yell at me that I still read this Finley Donovan. We're reading it this year. I promise you I have read Finley Donovan and I really enjoyed it. I loved Finley Donovan. It was so much fun. I really enjoyed Finley Donovan. I'm excited to continue on in the series um yeah it's definitely my kind of book. You guys know me by kind of book and you yelled at me for like years and I didn't read it so I'm glad yeah we love you Finley. Then we have the Veronica Speedwell series. This one is The Curious Beginning by Deanna Raybourne. I haven't started the Veronica Speedwell series guys. Oh no this has now gone downhill. I haven't started it and I know you're going to keep yelling at me but it's so long. It's like a seven, eight, nine, ten book series. Why? Why? Why is it this long? No I really want to. It's now wrapped up because now A Curious Beginning is one of the oldest books on my TBI. I've owned it for so long. I've owned it for so long and I haven't read it. I don't know what's wrong with me. I don't know what's wrong with me. You guys I know you all told me so many times to start it. I know I need to. I know. I know I need to but I have not started it. This is I I if I would I'm not going to put this on my 2024 TBR but I'm certain I'm going to read it in 2024. One that is wrapped up is Her Majesty's Royal Coven by Juno Dawson. This is witchy vibes. I start I've read that. Oh my god I've read 15. What is going on? What is going on? And I loved it. I loved Her Majesty's Royal Coven and I own the second one already. Oh my god. I could cry. I could cry. Why am I doing so well? I'm so happy. I think this might be the best I've ever done at one of these. What is going on? No I've read Her Majesty's Royal Coven and I loved it. I think it's so witchy. I love. If you're gonna say you're giving me witches, you're gonna give me witches. There's so many witchy becs I get banned by. We've seen it time and time again but Her Majesty's Royal Coven did not ban me. And then the last one is a cozy mystery series that I'd really love to start and that is Murder Before Even Song by Richard Coles. That said I haven't started the Murder For Even Song series. I own the second run as well. You know here's the thing it would be easy for me to read these but I don't want to add to the series title. I gotta finish the fucking series fast. Yeah I need to start the series because I have the first two becs. I haven't had the best things about them. They are quite lonely rated on Goodreads. They're like within my five lowest rate becs. The first one is at least. But as long as I go into the Rack expectations, I'm not expecting it to be there as I'm at a club. You you will never be Richard Osmond but that's okay. But as long as I go into it just for fun cozy mystery, I think I can have a good time with it but we shall see. We have three more ladies and gentlemen. We have three more and these are all non-fiction. I would like to read. I do want to try and prioritize. Watch me read none of these. Fiction. Fitting non-fiction into vlogs. I want to read non-fiction. I want to fit non-fiction but I don't do it. I don't do it. Time and time again I don't do it. That's so upsetting. Oh okay I'm not going to have read any of these I don't think. I think I have read more non-fiction this year but I just don't I just don't feel like I'm going to have read them. It's In Defense of Witches why women are still on trial but I haven't read it. We can probably speedrun these but then we'll just talk about them in one go. Let's just find out what these three non-fiction books are. It is Know My Name by Chanel Miller. I oh you guys are gonna be so mad at me for that one. I haven't read Know My Name. Last one I won't have read it. I won't have read it. It is Harlots Horses and Hackabots by Kate Lister. A History of Sex for Sale. Oh I haven't read it! I just knew my bones. See as soon as that non-fiction category came up I knew. I knew. Okay so you had In Defense of Witches which I still really really want to read. It's one of the ones that I look at the most and then go I'd like to read you. Same I mean Know My Name I just don't know when I'm gonna be ready to read that but I am gonna have to read that at some point because I know everyone who's read that has given that a five stars and says how emotional and heavy hitting and impactful and incredibly written it is. So I still really want to read it. I think I've just been a bit intimidated by it and then Harlots Horses and Hackabots. When did I get that? I thought I got that last year for my birthday. I must have got that the year before for my birthday. I've owned that book nearly two years. When did I make this video? 17th January? No I got that the year before. I thought I got that this year for my birthday. I've owned that nearly two years. Wow. I thought that was like a new book on the TBR. Jesus. It's a big book right? It's like very it's more of like a textbook-y thing and I really want to read it because I think it's an important topic to learn about but I have not read it. So we read 15 books of my 2023 and did not read eight. I think that's pretty good guys. I am so proud of her I could cry. I'm happy with that. I read almost double the amount that I had not read that in my in my mind. It's a success. Let's all just applaud everyone. It's a success. I'm happy with that. Let me know how you think I did. Let me know which those eight that I haven't read you most think I should get to pretty soon. You're all going to say no my name. I know you are. I know you are. I know I need to read it. And also love theoretically in the last word. I just almost anticipated 2023 releases I have not got round to. So they're they're pretty high up for me as well. But um yeah let me know how you think I did. I think I did pretty fucking good guys. I think this is like this is the best I've ever done. When I react to my 24 books read before I turn 24 in January don't I don't know the numbers but don't expect anything close to this. Anyways guys oh wait no I did did I do my maths wrong? I did my maths wrong. Half of 23 is 11 and a half not 12 and a half. Sorry sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry it's 11 and a half. Okay I'm just gonna acknowledge that now. Should have been 11 and a half. Anyway it doesn't matter because I read 15. Um thank you guys so much for watching. Let me know any books that were on your 2023 TBR that you have or haven't read if you made one of those. And I'll see you very soon in another video. Bye!