Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that currently resides at The Artsy Reader Girl and features bloggers sharing lists on various book topics. The official topic for this week’s Top Ten Tuesday looked at books on ones Summer 2023-24 to-read list. However, due to wanting to get a start on my end of year best of lists, I actually covered this topic a couple of weeks ago. Instead, I will be moving forward the official topic from 30 January 2024 and looking at New-to-Me Authors I discovered in 2023. This is a list I have covered for the last couple of years (make sure to check out my 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022 versions), and it is one that I always have a lot of fun doing.
Each year I am lucky enough to read a great number of awesome novels and this often includes books written by authors whose work I was previously unfamiliar with. 2023 was a particularly good example of this as there were an incredible collection of amazing novels written by authors who were completely new to me. This included some debuting authors, as well as more established writers whose work I only got around to reading this year. Many of these new-to-me authors produced some truly exceptional novels, including one or two which I consider to be some of the best books released in 2023 (more on that later), and I really feel the need to highlight them here.
To appear on this list, the book had to be one I read this year and be written by an author who I was unfamiliar with before 2023. If I had not read anything from this author before last year, it was eligible to appear here, although I did exclude debut novels as I am going to cover those in another list. Even with debuting authors excluded, I still had a massive amount of potential inclusions, as I apparently got through 31 new authors in 2023. After some hard work, I was able to whittle this down to a manageable top ten list, with my usual generous honourable mentions section. I am really surprised at some of the impressive and enjoyable authors I had to exclude from this list, and I was honestly tempted to increase this to a top twenty list. I managed to resist and I think the below entry really highlights the best new-to-me authors I enjoyed in 2023. It does crossover a little bit with my top pre-2023 books list I published last week, but I am still pretty happy with it.
Honourable Mention:
Marsheila Rockwell – The Hunger
My first book from Rockwell was a zombie-filled book set in the Marvel Universe, need I say more?
Hinks wowed me with this dark and brutal Warhammer 40,000 read, that saw an entire world slowly digested by an advancing alien fleet.
I have been meaning to read one of Martha Wells’ books for years, especially her science fiction works, but this cool fantasy release proved to be an excellent introduction to an intriguing author.
Gav Thorpe – Grudge Bearer, 13th Legion and Kill Team
I read several great Gav Thorpe books for the first time this year, including novels from both the Warhammer 40,000 and Warhammer Fantasy ranges. My favourites were probably the Last Chancer novels, 13th Legion and Kill Team, although the standalone fantasy novel Grudge Bearer was also really fun.
Top Ten List:
James Islington – The Will of the Many
James Islington is a name that is going to be coming up a lot in my end of year lists the next few weeks, mainly because the first novel of his I checked out was so damn epic. That book is The Will of the Many, a complex and addictive fantasy novel that pits a fugitive prince against a conquering empire. Featuring a compelling and unique magical system, a great setting, fantastic characters and an elaborate narrative loaded with betrayal, secrets, plots, survival and an amazing magical school storyline, The Will of the Many had everything I could have asked for and more. One of the easiest five-star ratings I gave in 2023, I cannot wait to get my hands on the sequel next year.
John French – Cypher: Lord of the Fallen
There are going to be a few Warhammer 40,000 authors on this list, mainly because I dedicated a lot of 2023 to going back and reading some classic novels from this awesome franchise. One of the cleverest Warhammer 40,000 novels I read this year is John French’s Cypher: Lord of the Fallen, which saw the universe’s most notorious fugitive infiltrate the most secure place imaginable, the Imperial Palace on Holy Terra. Featuring a uniquely written story, loaded with sneaky misdirects, twists, and the most unreliable narrator imaginable, Cypher: Lord of the Fallen proved to be an outstanding introduction to author John French, and I had such a brilliant time with this amazing read.
Easily my favourite new-to-me historical fiction author in 2023 was Ian Ross. I have heard some amazing things about Ross’s Roman historical fiction novels before, and I eagerly grabbed a copy his latest novel, Battle Song, when it came out. An exciting and powerful read about a lesser-known English civil war, Battle Song followed two amazing protagonists during the height of the knightly age and the result was an action packed and historically rich novel. I have so much love for Ross after reading Battle Song and I am eagerly awaiting the upcoming sequel, War Cry.
One major Warhammer 40,000 author I had an amazing time getting to know this year was Guy Haley, who has a range of great books under his belt. I mainly got to know Haley thanks to his impressive Warhammer Crime novel Flesh and Steel. One of the most unique buddy cop novels you are ever likely to read, Flesh and Steel was an outstanding book and it definitely made me want to check out more of Haley’s works. I have several Haley’s audiobooks currently loaded onto my phone and I am hoping to enjoy them all next year.
Sebastien De Castell – The Malevolent Seven
One of the most relentlessly entertaining new authors I checked out for the first time in 2023 was acclaimed fantasy writer Sebastien De Castell. Known for his dark and elaborate fantasy worlds, I had my first introduction to De Castell when I read his hilarious and bloody novel The Malevolent Seven. Setting seven unusual and maligned battle wizards on a path to becoming unlikely heroes, The Malevolent Seven was an incredible read that I absolutely powered through. I really hope that De Castell releases a sequel to The Malevolent Seven soon and I must make an effort to read some of his other amazing fantasy novels/series.
One of the main new-to-me authors who encouraged me to check out more Warhammer Crime novels in 2023 was the very talented Marc Collins who wowed me with the gritty novel, Grim Repast. Following a damaged detective as he attempts to stop an influential and murderous cult in a downtrodden mega-city, Grim Repast was an impressive novel and one that really showcased just how good an author Collins is.
An exceptional crime fiction author I read for the first time this year was bestselling writer M. W. Craven. While Craven is probably best known for his Washington Poe series, my first experience of his works was the outrageous 2023 novel Fearless. The start of a compelling new series that follows an arrogant, and literally fearless, drifter with a price on his head, Fearless was a blast from start to finish and Craven clearly had a great time coming up with this action-packed read. I had a ton of fun with Fearless and Craven has a sequel set for next year that I am very excited for.
Sandy Mitchell – For The Emperor and Caves of Ice
Well before 2023, I had heard some amazing things about Sandy Mitchell’s Ciaphas Cain series, which was apparently made up of the funniest Warhammer 40,000 novels out there. Naturally I had to check this series out whilst I was on my 2023 Warhammer reading spree and I ended up enjoying the first two entries, For The Emperor and Caves of Ice. Well, the rumours about how funny these books are proved to be very true as For The Emperor and Caves of Ice were both hilarious and clever novels that made full use of their grim background setting. Following a cowardly officer who somehow gained a reputation as a legendary hero, these books see the titular Cain attempt all manner of schemes to survive and stay out of the fighting, only to be thrust into the most dangerous situations imaginable. Very entertaining and featuring a particularly clever wit, the Ciaphas Cain books really showcased Mitchell’s exceptional writing skills and I cannot recommend this series enough, especially in its audiobook format.
I had to mention screenwriter and author Anthony McCarten on this list, as I was lucky enough to read a copy of his 2023 release Going Zero, which was so much fun. Following a unique competition that sees multiple people attempt to hide from a new nationwide surveillance system, Going Zero went in some very interesting directions and ended up being a particularly entertaining and unique thriller. An amazing read that served as a great introduction to McCarten.
The final entry on this list is Chris Wraight, who gave me one of my favourite Warhammer Crime novels in Bloodlines. A gripping and memorable novel that makes excellent use of a both its classic police procedural storyline and the unique Warhammer 40,000 setting, Bloodlines was such a brilliant read and one that really deserves an immediate sequel. Wraight really impressed me with this great novel and I need to go back and check out the rest of his contributions to the Warhammer 40,000 universe.
Well, that’s the end of this latest Top Ten list. I think it turned out rather well and it encapsulates some of the best new authors I checked out in 2023. I look forward to reading more books from these authors in the future and I have no doubt they will produce more epic and incredible reads. Make sure to let me know which new authors you enjoyed in 2023 in the comments below and make sure to check back next week for another exciting end of 2023 list.
The Unseen Library 