Add these 2023 books to your TBR list for a year of great reading

2023 is just around the corner, and that means it’s time to get excited for another year of amazing books!

If you’ve already smashed your reading goals for 2022 and are eager to plan ahead, these 2023 books deserve a spot on your TBR list. Read on to learn about some of the most anticipated books and pre-order your copies now to secure an amazing reading list for the year ahead.

The most anticipated books of 2023

January

A Man and His Pride by Luke Rutledge

When a devastating break-up rocks Sean’s world, everything starts falling apart. His job as a troll moderator is taking a toll on his mental health and his mother seems to blame him for a family tragedy. Amid a destructive cycle of hook-ups, booze and an unrelenting gym routine, Sean meets William and everything changes. By helping William navigate the gay dating scene, Sean learns a few lessons of his own.

Follow the author: @lukeurtledge.writer

The Matchmaker by Saman Shad

Saima is great at matchmaking. . . but falling in love? Not so much.

As a single woman, she knows that her community is likely gossiping about her – and probably even questioning her credentials. When the rumour mill becomes too much, Saima almost considers packing up her business and moving in with her Ammy. When an eligible bachelor’s parents show up at her door, offering her the biggest payday she’s had in years, Saima decides to give it one last try. Will this matchmaker recognise a perfect match?

Follow the author: @muminprogress

March

Lenny Marks Gets Away With Murder by Kerryn Mayne

Lenny is good at not remembering. She’s spent the last twenty years not remembering the day when her mother left her as a child. Filling her days with teaching and playing Scrabble, Lenny is perfectly content sliding through life, with her unusual routines providing some form of order. When a letter appears in the mail, it reminds Lenny of everything she’s been trying to ignore. . . and then she starts to remember.

Follow the author: @kcmwrites

Pineapple Street by Jenny Jackson

When Sasha marries into the Stockton family, she’s suddenly thrust into a world of unmeasurable wealth and influence. But the more she gets to know the family, the harder it seems to break into their tightly-knit circle. Her husband Cord and his sisters have never had to worry about money, but that doesn’t stop them from dealing with their own dilemmas as they navigate their wealth, their lives and the insular nature of their Brooklyn Heights existence.

Follow the author: @jennyjacksonpineapple

Go as a River by Shelley Read

One cool morning, Torie Nash’s life changes forever. Walking down the main street of her small town, she crosses paths with a mysterious drifter whose eyes are as dark as a raven’s wing. When he stops her to ask for directions, she makes a choice that changes the course of events in her life: She talks to him. Soon, Torie is thrust into adulthood as her small extraordinary life breaks open, introducing her to desire, heartbreak and betrayal.

Follow the author: @shelleyread.author

April

Clytemnestra by Costanza Casati

Wife. Mother. Fighter. Conspirator. Queen. Clytemnestra tells the tale of the notorious Spartan queen of the same name. Condemned by Homer and the Greek poets as a faithless, murderous woman, Clytemnestra’s voice has been obscured by the spiteful judgement of history. Until now. This retelling not only uncovers the consequences of war on women but also sheds light on how women fight their own wars to take and claim the power they deserve.

Follow the author: @costanzacasati

Girl in a Pink Dress by Kylie Needham

With a single invitation, Frances’ quiet mountain town life is cast straight back to the glittering lights of Sydney’s art world. In this plunge back to the past, she confronts the world she once knew – where a single irrevocable act changed the course of her story forever. Told across two time periods, Frances’ story wrestles with power and privilege, womanhood and motherhood, asking whether two ambitious artists can thrive in one relationship. 

Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

Hearkening back to the time of the gladiators comes a new game. Though controversial, Chain-Gang All-Stars is a profitable program inside America’s private prison system. The dystopian competitions are watched by millions of live-stream subscribers as prisoners compete for the ultimate prize: their freedom. Loretta’s chance at freedom is coming up – but will the price of winning be too high? Perfect for fans of The Handmaid’s Tale and Squid Games, this electrifying near-future read is a definite page-turner.

Follow the author: @king_nk

May

The Collected Regrets of Clover by Mikki Brammer

Clover is a death doula, using her skills to usher people peacefully through their last days. Privately, she collects lessons from the dying, dividing their final words into three notebooks: ADVICE, CONFESSIONS and REGRETS. Thanks to her clients’ hard-won wisdom and the inspiring love story of a spirited new acquaintance, Clover sets out to achieve her happy ending.  

Follow the author: @mikkibrammer

Anam by André Dao

Attempting to understand his own story better, one grandson sets out to learn his family story. But what kind of story is it? A prison memoir of a grandfather wrongly imprisoned? An oral history of the grandmother left behind to care for the children? A love story? A detective story? Blending fiction and essay, the book imagines that which has been forgotten in an exploration of time, family, remembrance and – perhaps essentially – forgetting.

The Fall Between by Darcy Tindale

Detective Rebecca Giles has just solved a crime, yet as the hangover from her celebrations starts to kick in, the news breaks of another disturbing case. Convinced that there’s a link between the cases, Giles begins to examine the town’s tragic history – including her own mother’s mysterious drowning thirty years ago.

Follow the author: @darcyleetindale

Notes on Her Colour by Jennifer Neal

Gabrielle has inherited the ability to change the colour of her skin from her mother. They guard their power within the walls of their white-painted house, where her father, Robert, needs refuge after the daily struggles of being a man of colour in an executive-level career. However, the women have their secrets. As Gabrielle grows up, she finds joy in the piano – also learning that she can change her skin to find joy and acceptance without her mother nearby. Peering beyond her family’s carefully-coded existence she begins to see life for all it could be.

Follow the author: @chocolatejenn

And here are some titles to look out for for in June through August – more details coming soon!

June

• I Look Forward to Hearing From You by Nick Bhasin
• The Days Toppled Over by Vidya Madabushi
• The Secrets of the Huon Wren Claire van Ryn

July

• On a Bright Hillside in Paradise by Annette Higgs

August

• But the Girl by Jessica Yu
• Perfect-ish by Jessica Seaborn