We have been having fun with Top Ten Tuesday, so we decided we will do one every week. This bookish meme was hosted by The Broke and the Bookish, and has been going since June 2010! Since January 2018 Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

This week’s topic is New-to-Me Authors I Discovered in 2023, but I did that last week haha. So I’ll be doing next weeks topic; Top Ten Quick Reads/Books to Read When Time is Short. I love a good novella or short story so I have a couple I would love to talk about. Some of these might not necessarily be novella’s or short stories but the longest is 226 pages so I think they all count. Let’s take a look at my picks!

1. Untethered Sky – Fonda Lee

One of my favorite reads of 2023! I adored this story a lot but I also feel like I have talked about this one a lot recently haha. There aren’t any new things I have to say other than that I am amazed at the world Fonda Lee created is such little pages.

2. Even Though I Knew the End – C.L. Polk

One of my favorite reads of 2022 haha. Another novella I loved, another one by tordotcom (as are a lot on this list). This one had a historical setting with some magic and a really heartfelt story.

3. To Be Taught, If Fortunate – Becky Chambers

I still think about this one every now and then. The ending was something else! I loved this one a lot and this reminded me I need to read the rest of Becky Chambers books because everything I read so far has been great. This is one I would highly recommend.

4. This Is How You Lose the Time War – Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone

One of the longest ones on this list. While most have really clear worldbuilding, this one stayed a bit confusing. I decided to just go with the flow and focus on the other aspects of the story. And that helped because it was a beautiful story!

5. My Sister, the Serial Killer – Oyinkan Braithwaite

And another one I talked about often lately. Last year I finally got this one and really enjoyed it. It is the longest one on this list but still a short and quick read. I was expecting more action but ended up loving the psychological story.

6. A Dead Djinn in Cairo – P. Djeli Clark

I love all the stories in this series so much! There are 3 short stories/novella’s and one full length novel. All are great and I recommend them to everyone. I don’t hear anyone talking about these and it’s such a shame. There is amazing worldbuilding and great characters.

7. The Test – Sylvain Neuvel

Another one with an ending I still think about! This one really packs a punch and was so well done. I’ve said it before and I will say it again, a good novella can have such a powerful story in so little pages. These authors do something not everyone’s capable of.

8. Every Heart a Doorway – Seanan McGuire

The first book in the Wayward Children series, book 9 was released at the beginning of the month. I enjoy this series a lot although there are some books that are clear favorites and others I liked less. Overall this series is wonderful and I love that we get to explore so many different worlds throughout all these stories.

9. All Systems Red – Martha Wells

Murderbot is such a relatable character! I think they are great and really enjoyed all these stories about them. There are currently 6 novella’s and 1 full length novel out, I’ve only read the first 4 novella’s so I have something to look forward to.

10. Keturah and Lord Death – Martine Leavitt

I hardly ever hear someone talk about this beautifully written story. This reads like a fairytale. I loved the writing style and the simple yet beautiful plot. The story was published in 2006 but I would love it if more readers picked it up.

10 books with less than 230 pages! I loved all of these and would recommend all of them. It is truly amazing what authors can do with so little pages. Have you read any of these? And do you have any recommendations for me? I would love to hear from you!