2023 Reflections: Highs and lows of the year

I want to reflect on some reading highs and lows as we say goodbye to 2023.

Since creating Heroine Chic Reviews in April, I’ve had the pleasure of finding some captivating fiction worthy of more exposure. I also read some works that decidedly weren’t my proverbial cup of tea.

Let’s take a look at what I rated highly and what I didn’t.

Highest-Rated Book

“How Can I Help You” by Laura Sims received the highest rating of 2023 with 4.25/5 stars. 

Sims’ sophomore novel won me over with its character-driven drama set in the Carlyle Public Library. Characters Margot Finch and Patricia Delmarco feed off each others’ energies while creating alternative realities in their minds. 

“How Can I Help You” is a 237 pages of slow burning storytelling featuring two unlikable characters you’ll remember for some time to come. 

Read my full review of “How Can I Help You.”

Funniest Book

“How to Kill Your Family” by Bella Mackie made me laugh harder than any other book I reviewed in 2023.

Mackie’s fictional work centers on 28-year-old Grace Bernard’s efforts to kill off her father’s wealthy family and inherit the fortune. She’s driven by revenge for how shabbily the Artemis family treated her mother and her. 

The lengths Grace goes to in completing her goal and her acerbic narration make “How to Kill Your Family” a laugh-out-loud read, despite a disappointing and disjointed conclusion. 

Check out my full review where I discuss why I rated it 3.5/5 stars.

Best Debut

“The September House” by Carissa Orlando offered heart, humor, and one truly haunted house. 

Orlando, who’s a social worker by training, easily exceeded my expectations with her debut. With Margaret Hartmen, she created a frustrating but human heroine whom many readers can self-identify. Additionally, she addressed domestic violence, family dysfunction, various interpretations of hauntings, and the unending bond between women. 

“The September House” won me over and became my second-highest rated book of 2023 with a 4/5 stars. Read my full review.

Most Perplexing Book

“Rouge” by Mona Awad proved to be the most overwritten and confusing book I read in 2023.

The queen of magical realism swung for the fences with her third novel. Protagonist Mirabelle “Belle” Noir feels depressed and dissatisfied with her life, and her mother’s death only heightens it.

“Rouge” attempts, with some success, to address vanity, insecurity, mother-daughter relationships, and religion. Awad’s trademark fairytale style appears as red shoes, distorted and cracked mirrors, and a deity who takes the form of a movie star Tom Cruise. 

All the layered details within “Rouge” make it an intriguing if not truly confounding read. It’s a book for those who’ve endured great personal loss and have dealt with the cult of beauty. 

Despite its flaws, I rated “Rouge” a 3.75/5 stars.  Check out the full review for more details.

Lowest-Rated Book

Sadly, “Strange Sally Diamond” by Liz Nugent earned the lowest rating of any book I read in 2023. 

Nugent’s new novel follows the grown children produced from the kidnapping and raping on an Irish girl in the 1970s. It

It covers nearly 50 years, which results in many of Stephen’s chapters feeling passive and more akin to history summaries than fiction.

I adored Nugent’s “Lying in Wait,” but “Strange Sally Diamond” ended up being a major disappointment.

See my full review to understand why I rated “Strange Sally Diamond” 2.5/5 stars.

Conclusion

This year proved to be a wild ride when it came to revisiting favorite authors and discovering new ones. 

I hope you found a read to add to your To-Be-Read list from my recommendations.

Here’s to reading more books by women about women in 2024!