2023 Book Goals
Each year, I make a ton of goals, but this year is a little bit different. This year, I decided to make book specific goals, and I’m SO excited about them. Naturally, I want to share them with you. Without further ado, here they are (and if you prefer, you can check out the video I posted on my YouTube channel)
Read 75 books
I’ve been making number based goals for reading for years, and I plan on continuing indefinitely. Last year, I tried to read 104 books, and missed the mark by just one book. I decided to take it easy in 2023, but in January, I ended up reading 11 books which reinvigorated me to try and take on 104 again. I will see how February goes and then make my decision.
All of my other goals are under the umbrella of reading 75 books, but under this goal, I made a few sub goals to help me expand the breadth of my reading.
I want to:
- Read 6 classics
- Complete a reading challenge. I’ve already written about the ones I’ve chosen.
- Read new genres including: a poetry book, a fantasy book, and a mystery
Write reviews for every 4/5 star book
This goal kind of ties in with other goals such as writing more often and keeping up with my website. I’m still trying to discover my voice as a reviewer. I don’t know if I want to critique, share my thoughts, or do some combination. I feel like my reviews thus far have felt a little stiff, and I want to figure out how to communicate my thoughts and keep the voice of Briana.
Make an audio book
This is an idea I had in 2022, and it’s something I’ve been wanting to try. My plan is to find a book in the public domain (which will inevitably double as a classic), record it and post on my channel. I keep going back and forth between rereading Pride and Prejudice or Jane Eyre, reading Little Women, or reading a Jane Austen novel I haven’t read before. Let me know what you think I should do.
Finish recommendations from friends.
Last year, I saw a cool template circulating that encouraged people to read 12 books recommended by 12 friends. Me, being myself, decided to get 15 recs because I got so many good ones. So far, I’ve read two. I’ve got some work to do.
Read the “classic” romance authors
This is one that I am super excited for! Y’all know I LOVE romance, but I haven’t read a ton of the prolific authors. Can you believe that? This year, I will be changing that. I looked through a lot of lists and ended up with this extremely long list, but I’m not mad about it. If you have any suggestions for books I should read by any of these authors, please let me know! I’ve already started with Beverly Jenkins, and…I’ve been missing out!!
- Beverly Jenkins
- Nora Roberts
- Danielle Steel
- Alyssa Cole
- Julia Quinn
- Brenda Jackson
- Sarah McClean
- Robyn Carr
- Courtney Milan
- Nalini Singh
- Tessa Dare (what an amazing romance name!)
- Debbie Macomber
- Susan Elizabeth Phillips
- Jude Deveraux
- Julie Garwood
- Judith McNaught
- Carolyn Brown
- Pippa Grant
- Lorraine Heath
- Alisha Rai*
- Jane Austen*
- Francine Rivers*
- Zane (I’m scared to read tbh. I’ve…heard things.)
I’ve got a lot to look forward to this year in the world of books, and I can’t wait to dive in! What are you reading in 2023? If you have any recommendations or if you want to buddy read something, I’m your gal!
*I’ve read these authors before, but either 1. a long time ago (Jane Austen/Francine Rivers) or 2. Read some of their newer (aka cartoon cover) stuff but none of their older works. I used to be turned off by “typical” romance covers (bare chested men, sultry poses etc), but I’m becoming more open to them because that’s the genre. It probably helped that I wanted to read more Talia Hibbert.