2023 in Fiction

Each Year after Christmas I attempt to give a recap of what I read during the calendar year, usually with a top 5 list. But if I do only my top 5 there are books I’ve read that get left out and usually they are the fiction titles. So I am breaking out the fiction and giving a short review of each book and putting them in reverse order from what I enjoyed the least to most.

Comes the Dragon By Rachel Starr Thompson

I read the first two entries in Thompson’s “Prophet Trilogy” this year, and while I enjoy some of her fiction I do not know I will finish this set. She is a popcorn Christian writer who has a heavy influence from a Pentecostal theology which can make her fantasy worlds fun. The plot it is a thinly veiled description of Old Testament Israel threatened with destruction because they have forgotten their God, the only hope of survival is the young shepherd boy turned prophet. I simply found it too on the nose and did not relate to the characters. But perhaps you give it a try if you want an overt Christian message wrapped into an easy to read format.

The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

I only read this book because one of my kids wanted to read it. Overall, the nods to mythology are fun, but there are a number of ways it could be improved and unless you are a teen who is into Greek myth there are much better books available. I know Disney is bringing out a series version of this but there will not be any reason to read these before watching that.

Ark by Veronica Roth

This is a short story about a woman who is part of a team tasked with collecting and identifying plants to take on the Ark leaving Earth before an impending disaster. The story is well done and you capture a sense of a woman pondering beauty and life prior to a major potential extinction event. I think it is worth an afternoon especially if you are able to pick it up like I did, free on Kindle.

An Excellent Mystery by Ellis Peters

This book was recommended to me by my friend Quincy and it is a fun mystery set in an early Medieval monastery. The story revolves around two mysterious brothers who turns up at a the monastery in desperate need. One of which clearly has a secret which involves a noble woman who disappeared upon entering a convent. This is a cleverly told book with a good level of historical setting built in, I definitely recommend it if you are into this genre.

Zafiil Volume 1: FireBorn UnPainted M.C.A. Hogarth

This sci-fi series is a little out there for some readers. The story follows Zafiil who pilots a star-ship that encounters trouble. After she is rescued by an alien civilization she is forced to confront the drastic differences in this new society. She must also navigate the reality of what this discovery will mean for her own people. The novel is well done if a little strange and if you are looking for new sci-fi give it a try.

Pachinko Min Jin Lee

This book is the reason I say this list is in order of how well I liked the books, because this book might be the best I read this year. The story follows a Korean family who immigrates to Japan shortly before the outbreak of World War II and their lives through the 1980’s. There are some adult themes including some strong sexual content so it is not for children, but the story is well told and helped to consider the difficulties involved in immigration. One element to the story that is both interesting and challenging is that it deals with Korean and Japanese society and so some elements are very foreign to an American audience. But definitely consider reading.

Dragon Teeth Michael Crichton

I liked this book because it is about dinosaur hunting, not because it is particularly good. Everyone knows Crichton from Jurassic Park, but unlike that story this is historical fiction. The story revolves around the very real bone wars of the mid-late 1800’s with the main character William Johnson participating in the search for new dinosaur bones. The story is certainly a dramatization but there are enough elements that are historically accurate that you begin to believe you are with Johnson as he risks his life for a few old bones. A very fun read if you are a fan of historical fiction or dinosaurs.

Hawaii James A. Michener

Again this book is certainly not for everyone, Michener tells epic stories and this one covers Hawaii’s story from it’s birth as a land mass to the 1950’s. Each chapter could be its own book and there is little continuity between any of them, because as with many of Michener’s books the land is the main focus, he loves to show how people come and go but the land remains. This is not to say the human characters are poorly done, his depiction of many of the people and cultures makes you think they are real. Thoroughly researched and amazingly well written this book is certainly worth your time in my opinion, but if you are not one for sweeping epics or historical fiction you may not enjoy it as much as I did.

I hope you find one of these books appealing, please drop me a note of what you read in 2023 that you think I should pick up.