2023 Ranked: Books

  Welcome to my 2023 Ranked list for Books! 

Rules for my rankings are simple, the page contains my ranking from worst to best of all the books I've read over the course of the past year. 

Please be aware these rankings are purely subjective and are based on my own personal opinion.

13. Bloodborne, Vol. 4: The Veil, Torn Asunder

The fourth volume entry in the Bloodborne comic book series is all kinds of disappointing. All of the issues I had with Volume 1 and 3's abstract storytelling appear here in an even worse fashion. With an attempt to dive into the concept of madness within the world of the game, there's just very little structure or momentum behind this setup to keep me engaged as a reader. Even the visuals of this entry don't feel all that impressive, especially when it's supposed to dive into madness on a conceptual level.

12. Bloodborne, Vol. 1: The Death of Sleep

Despite the world of Bloodborne being beautifully translated with the illustrative work of this comic, the writing of The Death of Sleep fails to sell itself in nearly as compelling a light. It's attempt to adapt all the same vague elements from the video game doesn't work here in light of the reader having no active control in the story beats which are being shared. When it focuses on it's own unique storyline though it does offer some glimmer of value. That along with the art and color behind this piece does give some reason to pick up and read this entry at the very least.

11. Bloodborne, Vol. 3: A Song of Crows

Despite presenting itself with a collection of beautifully expressive visuals, Volume 3 in the Titan Comics Bloodborne series can't help but underdeliver when it comes to story.  Centralized around one of Bloodborne's best characters, Eileen the Crow; this volume fails to fully deliver on the storytelling potential behind this character by falling back onto vague and abstract storytelling as it's primary foundation. The vague aspect offers little in the way of compelling engagement to keep you interested but it at least uses it's bizarre setup to present some really vivid imagery.

10. Doctor Who: Hunter's Moon

Hunter's Moon does a great job in taking the 11th Doctor and his companions and plopping them a mature narrative you wouldn't normally expect to see them take part in. What works fundamentally about Paul Finch's writing here, is his ability to craft a intriguing premise which puts each of the TARDIS team in unique scenarios and compels you to find out what happens next. A predominant flaw in this book however is Finch's tendency to portray the female characters of the story in a rather underwhelming and negative perspective. 

9. Red Seas Under Red Skies

Red Seas Under Red Skies is an ambitious sequel which gets a lot right for the most part. Scott Lynch's ability to craft an intricate world and layer it with a compelling narrative setup appears in full force once again within this entry. Seeing these interesting character take on a high-sea adventure filled with many dangers serves as an engaging premise too. The only issue with the story however is it's inability to stop introducing a number of different plot arc right up to the end. It made managing the pace and overall structure of the book quite a tiring ordeal by the final few chapters.

8. Doctor Who: Dead of Winter

Despite having a structure and pacing which never feels like it's ever fully realized, the overall quality behind James Goss' Dead of Winter does still tick a lot of boxes for me. It's inherent Gothic atmosphere gives the book a lot of thematic quality to go along with a premise which does offer a very intriguing mystery. It's unique storytelling structure serves as both a blessing and a curse in terms of pacing but I can come out of my time with the book appreciating the original story Goss set out to tell within it.

7. Doctor Who: The Way Through the Woods

I'm really digging Una McCormack as a writer for Doctor Who. Her 11th Doctor adventure which follows 11, Amy and Rory as they investigate a group of mysterious disappearances throughout time is filled with a lot of captivating concepts. The way she structures the narrative comes off as a bit slow pacing-wise at the beginning but it does even out and deliver a very strong story by the end. My fondest element of the story is how it splits off the TARDIS team and uses them to help explore different perspective with the books original characters 

6. Civil War: A Marvel Comics Event

Civil War does a fantastic job on delivering on it's core premise. The idea of Captain America and Iron Man, two close friends having to divide and face off against one another is not something many fans would expect to see. The way Mark Millar delivers this conflict through the use of real concepts and political undertones sets the weight of their indifferences all throughout the comic book story. The scale of their conflict is realized brilliantly and while it loses some points near the end for failing to deliver on it's grey promise, it still succeeds in setting a very lasting impression for any comic book reader to appreciate.

5. Bloodborne, Vol. 2: The Healing Thirst

The 2nd volume in the Titan Comics Bloodborne series does a fantastic job in telling a original tale while staying true to all the captivating aspects of the lore of the video game. Titled The Healing Thirst this story utilizes two individual characters to explore a more vague aspect of the lore tied behind the Ashen-Blood and the Healing Church's misguided usage of it. It's slower-pace may throw a few people off but I think it does a really good job in telling a far more interesting tale than that of its previous entry while also using portraying it all with some really detailed illustrations.

4. The Reading List

The Reading List is a wonderful dive into the influence books can have on our lives. Sarah Nisha Adams establishes a very smart, interwoven narrative to explore how our ordinary human lives can find far more to relate to in the books around us than we probably think. Her smart commentary on the books within this story is enough all on it's own to appreciate, but the way she uses these books to further define the two parallel narratives taking place between the characters of Aleisha and Murkesh is so creatively established. While the momentum of these character's own plots may not feel all that strong in comparison, it still detracts very little in the end from what was ultimately really insightful story.

3. Doctor Who: The Ruby's Curse

Alex Kingston is River Song! Not only on the television but also on paper. Her debut novel which follows the titular character is layered with all of the captivating elements which make her character so iconic for so many fans. It's narrative plays around with many different layers that it's so hard not to appreciate how much effort Kingston goes into establishing an adventure which is so akin to the timey-wimey identity of who River Song is. Despite a bit of a rough exposition dump near the end of the story it's clear as day that Kingston is a fantastic writer and I would happily pay to read another novel penned by her in the future.

2. Doctor Who: Night of the Humans

Night of the Humans is a fantastic Doctor Who adventure fit smartly within a 250 page novel. It's core setup reflects a very unique premise which feels inherently at home within this universe. The stakes and pacing feel tightly put together to help give the narrative structure of this book a lot of room to flesh itself out. It's cast of characters help support the dramatic tone of this book in a substantial way as well. My only gripe is the inclusion of a character mid-way through the story who feels more of a cliché than a relevant natural element alongside the rest of them. 

1. Press Reset: Ruin and Recovery in the Video Game Industry

Press Reset is a brilliant dive into an aspect of video game development that doesn't get the attention it rightfully deserves. The closing of video game studios can have a lot of tragic impacts on the people behind the games we love to play and Jason Schreier does an admirable job in reflecting those impacts in a lot of personal accounts. The flow of the book does lose a few points with being so tied together with some repetitive elements but that is only a minor flaw. The rest of the book does a brilliant job in giving a very thorough breakdown of the history of a number of studio closures and the positive and negative stories that they went on to produce.