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12 Amazing and Gripping Novels I read in Yr.2023

Yr. 2023 is almost coming to an end, and I am happy to share these 12 novels that I read this year and totally enjoyed. So, if you are a book lover and haven’t read these books, grab your copy now, and I’m sure you will love the experience of immersing yourself in these page-turners.

Silent Patient

The story revolves around two main characters – Alicia and Theo. Alicia is a famous painter, married to Gabriel – a fashion photographer, living in a grand house in seemingly marital bliss. Her life seems perfect until one evening after Gabriel returns from work, Alicia shoots him five times in his face. After this, Alicia becomes all silent. She is sent to psychiatric care, where she stays silent until Theo visits her. Read more….
Rock Paper Scissors

Adam and Amelia are almost at the end of their relationship. Amelia thinks spending a weekend together, away from the world, would be the best way to give their marriage one last chance. A coincidental win in a lottery that offers Amelia a free stay for two in the Scottish countryside leads the couple to an old chapel, where mysterious things start happening. Read more….
Keep it in the Family

Finn and Mia buy a house. The house is a ramshackle old one, and renovating it is an intimidating and uphill task. But Finn and Mia are ready to put all their time, effort and energy into building the home of their dreams. While renovating the house, an accidental discovery brings them face to face with the gory history of the house. They find out this house was the site of multiple crimes involving kidnapping and killing children. Read more….
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

Born Evelyn Elena Herrera in 1938, the daughter of Cuban immigrants, Evelyn Hugo grows up in the Hell’s Kitchen neighbourhood of New York City. She hates her life of poverty and desperation and wants to get out of it at any cost. She succeeds in doing so too. But Evelyn’s life is full of mystery. Years later, when Evelyn is old and retired, she reveals her true story to the world. Read more…
When the World was Ours/Als die Welt uns gehörte

This book requires a special mention. Although it is a children’s book, I, as an adult, absolutely loved it and found this book special and worth treasuring. Based on actual events, this book is a tragic story of three children, Max, Leo and Elsa, among the many unfortunate ones who get caught up in the Second World War. I read this book in German, but it’s also available in English. Read more….
The Shanghai Free Taxi

Langfitt works as a foreign correspondent in China and wants to understand the people and their stories. He figures out that the best way to make people open up is to offer them a free taxi ride in exchange for conversations. The idea becomes an instant success, and he gets many passengers willing to talk and open up about their lives. Through these conversations, Langfitt comes up close with the real life of the people in China. Read more….
The One

A company claims that a simple DNA test can help determine with absolute accuracy who you shall be most compatible with and who your right life partner should be. People could send a sample taken with a swab from the mouth to the company, which would then check its database and send them their match’s details against a payment. Many people take the test. Does the test help them find their soulmate? Read more….
The Maid

Molly Gray, a young woman who lives alone and works as a maid at the Regency Grand Hotel, is quite different from everyone else. She lacks social skills and is unable to gauge people’s intentions. She struggles to differentiate between opportunists and well-wishers. Molly is happy in her everyday routine, and one may not imagine anything exciting to happen in a monotonous and dull life like Molly’s. But one day, Molly’s life takes a turn. Molly finds a wealthy and infamous guest, Mr Black, dead in his suite. Read more…
What Lies Between Us

The relationship between Maggi and Nina is unlike any mother-daughter relationship. Nina has imprisoned Maggi in her own house, chained her ankles to restrict her movements and isolated her from the world. Maggi is an older woman but not old enough to count her last days. She wants to escape and somehow find a way to reach out to someone who could help her. Through alternating narrations by the mother and daughter, the reader comes closer to the past that connects to their present. Read more…
The Vacation

Set up in a backpacking hostel in Los Angeles, the story revolves around random strangers who land in the hostel. Each has a past that he/she wants to hide either because he/she is not very proud of it, is scared, or has some other hidden agenda. What is common between all the characters is that they want to keep the past behind and make a fresh start. But things are not as easy as imagined! Read more…
Sometimes I Lie

Amber Reynolds, a married woman in her mid-thirties, meets with an accident and goes into a coma. Amber is in bed. She can’t move or see but can hear everything that’s going on around her. Sometimes, she interprets the characters and situations correctly; other times, she is confused and perplexed. She remembers her past in bits and pieces and tries hard to remember what caused the accident and how she landed in this hospital in such a condition. Read more…
The Golden Couple

Mathew and Marissa are the Golden Couple. To an outside eye, their life is perfect. They are teenage sweethearts, good-looking, have a family, are rich, and seem to have everything one may wish and envy. But in reality, they and their lives are far from perfect. The approach Avery, the therapist/consultant, who is known for her unconventional but result-oriented methods, who, in the process of saving a marriage in trouble, gets tangled in the twisted tale of the golden couple. Read more…

Here is a summary of my 12 book recommendations for Yr. 2023 with the links to purchase them:

The Silent Patient
Rock Paper Scissors
Keep it in the Family
When the World was Ours/Als die Welt uns gehörte
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
The Shanghai Free Taxi
The One
The Maid
What lies between Us
The Vacation
Sometimes I lie
The Golden Couple

We all know that books require space. They are also heavy and difficult to take everywhere, so using a digital Book Reader is the best option. I use it and find it very useful. I travel with it; I can read it when the lights are switched off and also get books cheaper. If you like reading on digital book readers, check out your options here. I use Kindle Book Reader and have been a satisfied customer for years.

Read about other exciting books here.