Lately, I’ve been creating seasonal TBR’s and reflecting on them at the end of said season. I’m having fun doing this every time, so I thought I would extend it a little and look back on the same season last year. Since summer 2024 is upon us and I will be creating my seasonal TBR in a short while, I thought it would be interesting to reflect on summer 2023. Did I read the TBR I’ve set for this season? And how did I do on my bookhauls of July, August and September of that year? Time to find out! If there’s a review of said book on my blog, the hyperlink in the title will direct you to it.

Did I read my summer 2023 TBR?

1. A Touch of Darkness by Scarlett St. Clair – Yes, I’ve red this one and I still need to pick up the sequel.
2. Hotel Magnifique by Emily J. Taylor – I also read this book and I was utterly disappointed. Maybe my expectations were way too high.
3. Cursed Crowns by Catherine Doyle and Katherine Webber – Another book I’ve read, but this also left me quite disappointed. It felt much more YA than the first book and I wasn’t expecting that.
4. Girl, Goddess, Queen by Bea Fitzgerald – Summer wasn’t the best season for me regarding anticipated books, because this one left me disappointed too.
5. Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score – This book positively surprised me, only to be let down by the others…
6. The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi by S.A. Chakraborty – I eventually read it, but not in the summer. I had to move this to my fall TBR because I mixed two release dates up. Both books are published by the same publisher though, so it’s not that strange.
7. The Court of Shadows by Victor Dixen – Yes, I’ve read it!
8. Lavinia by Ursula K Le Guin – No, I still haven’t picked this up.
9. Felix Ever After by Kacen Callender – This is going to be a never-ending story it seems, because this book also is still o my TBR. It has seen multiple seasonal TBR’s by now though.
10. Slammed by Colleen Hoover – Yes, another book I’ve read and found so-so.

Did I read my spring 2023 bookhauls?

1. Chain of Iron by Cassandra Clare – Yes, I read it and I finally loved a Shadowhunters book again.
2. Chain of Thorns by Cassandra Clare – Of course, i had to read the final book in this series.
3. Cursed Crowns by Catherine Doyle and Katherine Webber – See above.
4. Girl, Goddess,, Queen by Bea Fitzgerald – See above.
5. A Touch of Darkness by Scarlett St. Clair – See above.
6. De geheimen van Maxton Hall College by Mona Kasten – Yes, but it isn’t available in English so no review on this blog.
7. Fabricante di lacrime by Erin Doom (Dutch of course, I don’t speak Italian and there’s no English edition available) – No, still need to read it.
8. De villa by Ruth Kelly (it seems there’s no English edition available and that it’s originally a French book) – No, haven’t read it either.
9. Pageboy by Elliott Page – Unfortunately had to DNF because of the writing style.
10. A Soul of Ash and Blood by Jennifer L. Armentrout – yes, I read it, twice.
11. Twisted Games by Ana Huang – And yet another book I’ve read.
12. Twisted Hate by Ana Huang – And again, yes.
13. Twisted Lies by Ana Huang – No, I keep postponing this because I don’t like Stella from waht I’ve seen.
14. The Fine Print by Lauren Asher – Yes, I read this one as well.
15. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath – I didn’t understand this classic at all, so it was a DNF for me.
16. The Housemaid by Freida McFadden – I didn’t understand the hype honestly.
17. In the Lives of Puppets by T.J. Klune – Yet another DNF, but I will give this another try in my native language.
18. Immortal Longings by Chloe Gong – Summer indeed wasn’t my best season, because I had to DNF this book as well.
19. De nazaten by Saskia Noort – Yes, it’s an originally Dutch thriller.
20. Someone else by Laura Kneidl (Warning! This is an originally German book and not available in English!) – No, I hope to read it soon.
21. Daughter of Sparta by Claire Andrews – Nope, haven’t read it either.
22. Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume – Yes, I read this one and probably had very different expectations.
23. I Fell In Love With Hope by Lancadi – Ha! Yet another DNF…
24. Slammed by Colleen Hoover – See above.
25. Icebreaker by Hannah Grace – yes, this book was kind of two-faced for me.
26. Dracul by Dacre Stoker and J. D. Barker – No, haven’t read this one either.
27. Falling Hard for the Royal Guard by Megan Clawson – This was… horrible.
28. Kingdom of the Cursed by Kerri Maniscalco – Yes, I read it and I had the same troubles as before with this book.
29. The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi by S.A. Chakraborty – See above.
30. Hoe overleef ik alles wat ik niemand vertel? by Francine Oomen – yes, but again a Dutch book, so no review.
31. Thieves’ Gambit by Kayvion Lewis – I definitely had too high expectations for this one, this didn’t suit me at all.
32. Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow – Yes, I read this later in the year.
33. The Keeper of Hidden Books by Madeline Martin – And yet another one read.
34. Fall of Ruin and Wrath by Jennifer L. Armentrout – I read this book as well and liked the final part the best.
35. Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus – Quickest DNF of my life.
36. Flawless by Elsie Silver – Yes, I definitely read this one!
37. Things We Hide From the Light by Lucy Score – Yes, I read this book as well and didn’t like it as much as I hoped I did.
38. King of Wrath by Ana Huang – No, I still have to read this book.
39. Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune – yes, I read this when summer was still in full swing early September.

Verdict:

• Read 8 books from my summer 2023 TBR and had no DNFs, even though many books let me down.
• Read 32 books of my summer 2023 bookhuals, 1 was a soft DNF and 5 were a hard DNF.

Overall, I did a very good job on my summer 2023 TBR and Bookhaul! I hope to dive into the leftovers rather sooner than later.

Have you read anything of your summer 2023 TBR and bookhauls when looking back?