Vilandra

Back in the day lol, when I started doing forums, I picked the name from a character that was on the original Roswell tv show. And it just sort of stuck. I normally use it because it’s not usually taken lol.

Thank you everyone I read a little of everything, but I’ve been reading classics, some kinds of historical fiction, mystery, and some non-fiction mostly lately.

I read the first couple and have been meaning to pick up more because I enjoyed them

Off the top of my head, I would say: The Return of the Native by Thomas Hardy The Pickwick Papers by Charles Dickens Mansfield Park by Jane Austen

One I’ve been meaning to rewatch: Dead Again.

Hello New member from Pennsylvania, USA. I’ve been looking for a book discussion forum for a while but haven’t been able to find one until now. Happy to see a group of nice people on here

For books I loved when I read them - where I wanted to start reading them again as soon as I’d finished.

I thought of that one also, unless it’s a children’s book series and then maybe the Magic Treehouse books?

It’s been a while since I was anticipating a book’s release, but I am looking forward to Every Time We Say Goodbye by Natalie Jenner coming out in May. It’s in the same “universe” as her other two novels, with this one about expats in 1950s Rome.

I generally listen to audiobooks that are “classes” not actual books, but I get anything narrated by Richard Armitage. He reads a lot of Agatha Christa, and his David Copperfield was also terrific. He wrote an original audio story called Geneva that he co-narrates with Nicola Walker that’s great, and his narration of The Jane Austen Society by Natalie Jenner made me go out and buy the actual book. Anytime I think I could have been an actor, all I have to do is listen to his narration to realize that no, I couldn’t have lol. He just does all the voices so well, it makes the story so easy to follow.

I tried Storygraph for a while, but other than the stats, which are interesting but you can only look at them so much, there wasn’t much I was interested in. I think I use an app more for cataloging what I have than finding new books (which I do not have a problem doing on my own), and I think Storygraph is more for the latter.

Thomas Hardy Charles Dickens Arturo Perez Reverte Sergei Lukyanenko James Ellroy Donna Tartt John Boyne Sarah Winman Natalie Jenner John Bellairs

My favorites tend to skew young - I just seemed to find books I really loved more when I was a young reader than I do now. I don’t think I could begin to rank them lol The Return of the Native by Thomas Hardy The Dark Is Rising by Susan Cooper Middle Passage by Charles Johnson The Curse of the Blue Figurine by John Bellairs Still Life by Sarah Winman The Jane Austen Society by Natalie Jenner The Hero and the Crown by Robin McKinley The Club Dumas by Arturo Perez Reverte The Nightwatch by Sergei Lukyanenko The Black Dahlia by James Ellroy

Your favourite book cover of 2023: Christmas by the Book by Anne Marie Ryan. It just feels like Christmas and like a comfy, sit down by the fire, book to read. Your favourite book shop/retailer of 2023: My local - Completely Booked (but I mostly do the library lol). I don’t have a lot of options where I live, but the people are nice. Your audiobook recommendation of 2023: The Jane Austen Society by Natalie Jenner read by Richard Armitage. This was a “relisten” but I actually found this book by listening to the audiobook first. Richard Armitage is a great narrator in everything I’ve heard from him ad his especially - he does all the voices really well and it draws you into the story. Your most read author of 2023: It’s a tie between James Herriot and Leigh Bardugo. I never read the James Herriot books when I was younger because I find animal books too sad, but these are not too bad and I actually found some of them in my house and made my way through them last year. Also found the Grishaverse books late and started reading them - a good light escape series. Your recommended re-read of 2023: The Return of the Native by Thomas Hardy. This is one of my favorite books and I think you read it differently at different times of your life. Your book that wasn't worth bothering with in 2023: Longbourn by Jo Baker. I don’t mind when authors want to reimagine Austen books, but this one seemed to hate all the characters in the original despite claiming to be a life long fan. The book you most wanted to read in 2023, but didn't get too award: Nemesis Games by James SA Corey. I think I put it off because even though they are really good books, they require a lot of time and emotional investment lol. Your biggest literary let-down of 2023: Babel by RF Kuang. There was so much hype…and yet so many problems. Your children's book recommendation of 2023: The Sweet Smell of Christmas by JP Miller. My favorite childhood Christmas book that I decided to read again at Christmas this year. Your recommended classic of 2023: The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte. It started a little slowly, but it really did pull me in and I wanted to know what would happen next. Your favourite short story (or collection of short stories) of 2023: A Christmas Pageant by Donna Tartt. It’s not what I expected! Your favourite literary character of 2023: Calla from Immortal Longings by Chloe Gong. She’s complex, with an interesting journey. So many female characters, even the ones purported to be “strong”, are whiney and annoying, so it was refreshing to have a character the author clearly put time into constructing. Your poetry recommendation of 2023: The only poetry I read in 2023 was in The Complete Works of Edgar Allen Poe. The Raven is a classic for a reason. Your favourite genre of 2023: I’m not doing a count, but I think something along the lines of gothic mystery? I read a lot of different stuff, so it’s hard to pick out an overall genre. I like books where there’s a supernatural element (real or not) to be figured out. The funniest book you read in 2023: I don’t read comedy books, but The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams made me laugh out loud. Your favourite biography/memoir of 2023: All Things Wise and Wonderful by James Herriot. There’s something really calming about reading the stories of his life. It just makes you smile. Your non-fiction recommendation of 2023: How to Ruin a Queen by Jonathan Beckman. This is about the diamond necklace affair. It was a very accessible and interesting read. Your fiction book of the year, 2023: Immortal Longings by Chloe Gong. This book really impressed me. It lacked the pretentiousness you see so much now. It just weaved a good story with well crafted characters. I wanted more. Your author of the year, 2023: Maggie O’Farrell. She really paints a picture with words and made me not want to put the book down. Your overall book of the year, 2023: I think I’m going to say The Jane Austen Society by Natalie Jenner since this is including audiobooks. If I could only recommend one this is the one I would. It’s not based on a true story - it’s fiction - but the characters are so wonderful and you really care about the outcome of the story even though it’s fiction. I could read it and then start over and read it again.