Read:
The Marriage Portrait – Maggie O’Farrell (Alfred A. Knopf Canada, 2022)
The End of the Affair – Graham Greene (Heinemann, 1966)
The Pull of the Stars – Emma Donoghue (Harper Avenue, 2020)
Where the Crawdads Sing – Delia Owen (G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 2018)
Classic Crime Short Stories (Canongate Books, 2007)
The Three Lives of Alix St. Pierre – Natasha Lester (Hachette Book Group, 2022)
Sea of Tranquility – Emily St. John Mandel (Harper Collins Publishers, 2022)
Forgive – Timothy Keller (Viking, 2022)
The Final Solution – Michael Chabon (Harper Audio, 2004)
Haven – Emma Donoghue (Harper Avenue, 2022)
River Sing Me Home – Eleanor Sheaver (Berkley, 2023)
Reading with Pearl & Rose:
Roverandom – J.R.R. Tolkien
The Magician’s Nephew – C.S. Lewis
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe – C.S. Lewis
Currently Reading:
Brutes – Dizz Tate
A Woman is No Man – Etaf Rum
2023 Goals:
Books Read: 11/100
Translated Works: 0/15
Books I Already Own: 2/30 (The Pull of the Stars (thrifted) and Forgive (purchased new))
Books from the TBR pre-2020: 1/20 (The End of the Affair (2016))
Current TBR: 211 (previously 215)
Thoughts:
2023 is off to a great start, as far as my reading goes. Both in quantity and quality, I’m very pleased. The books I read in January were, overall, very good. The Three Lives of Alix St. Pierre was mostly fluff but enjoyable as what it was. The Final Solution was a bit overwrought but short enough with an interesting enough mystery that I was happen to listen to it. And everything else I really enjoyed. I returned to Emily St. John Mandel’s work shortly after finishing The Glass Hotel last month and I liked Emma Donoghue so much that I read two. And both of those repeat performances by authors entirely lived up to my expectation. (Review of Haven will be up on Monday.) Forgive was my one non-fiction of the month but was every bit as helpful and thoughtful as I’ve come to expect from Timothy Keller. I’ll have a review of that too but need to mull it over a bit more.
What’s Next:
I am trying to set myself clear end-dates for reading books. Rather than weekly reading goals (which was semi-successful for me last year), I am making note of when I want to finish a book. So far (in January) this has worked well for me. I’ve set a few dates for February already and the books I plan to read are: Brutes (which I will likely finish this week), Abyss, and Porcelain Moon. These are all ARCs that I have with pubdates in February. Aside from that, I have Small Things Like These out from the library and just purchased a new release, Orphan Believers by Sara Billups. I will definitely need to add to this reading if I’m going to do better at reaching my goals but I have a few holds at the library that I expect will come in soon.
How has your reading year begun? Do you set monthly or weekly goals or plan your reading in advance? What was the best book you read in January?
Karissa Reads Books 
I’ve listened to audiobooks for the most part in 2023 because I’m still trying to adjust to my new life as an undergrad, and I’ve been exercising, which is good audiobook time. I have to say, you read a LOT in January! I am surprised!
Exercise is good audio time! I’ve mentioned that most of my audio book time is while I’m walking and it’s nice to feel like I’m being active but also reading!
I didn’t think January was going to turn out to be such a good reading month either! Especially because I’m working a lot more right now (and more than I originally planned). But sometimes having less free time actually makes me more organized.
Oh yeah, free time can turn into a weird, sloppy, never-get-out-of-my-pajamas blob of time for me.
Glad I’m not alone in that!
I’m always impressed by how much you read! I don’t set monthly or weekly goals – except during 20 Books of Summer, but that feels a long way away right now – and just read as the mood takes me. Looking forward to your review of Forgive! I haven’t read it yet but I love Keller’s work so I’m sure I will.
I left it too long after reading to write a review, but I read Philip Yancey’s Where The Light Fell at your recommendation over the Christmas holiday and I absolutely loved it. Thanks so much for reviewing at as I had somehow missed it before! Such an incredible book.
Forgive was excellent! I’m sure you will get a lot from it when you read it. I’m so glad you read and loved Where the Light Fell. I keep recommending it to people, it’s such a good one!