A Look Back: Deuce's Books in 2023

Well, 2023 certainly flew by. Here we are in 2024. Before time flies by any further, I better get my traditional list of 'Books Read' posted.

The list below is comprised of all the books I remember reading or rereading in 2023. There is certainly the possibility that I've forgotten some worthy books I read earlier in the year. Rest assured that all of the books listed are ones I actually liked—books I didn’t like simply became one with the dust of forgotten ages. If a book is listed, I consider it worth reading. Notable periodicals, such as Tales from the Magician's Skull, are also listed. However, I have not tried to list various short stories I’ve read singly here and there. As always, please try to support small and independent publishers/authors—especially the ones who don’t hate you.

As per tradition, I'm not listing the books in any particular order, alphabetical or otherwise. More like, “Here’s the first bookstack. This is the top book on the bookstack.” Some of you might notice a few reoccurring entries from previous years’ lists. That’s because some books are traditional yearly rereads for me and others just needed to be read yet another time. One new ‘yearly reread’ is Samhain Sorceries. It is now required Halloween reading beside Zelazny’s A Night in the Lonesome October.

The list is a bit shorter this year, despite me having a little more down-time due to extended periods of no internet. However, a fair amount of time was spent attempting to deal with those problems. Plus, more of my 2023 time was spent keeping up with real world events than in previous years, which events are more concerning and fascinating than any year I’ve witnessed in my entire life.

I hope this list sparks some interest in the books mentioned. I also hope DMR Blog readers enjoy the next four weeks of the 2024 DMR Guest Bloggerama. We have a lot of quality content lined up.

Roads by Seabury Quinn

Arena by John Jakes

A Night in the Lonesome October by Roger Zelazny

Samhain Sorceries edited by D.M. Ritzlin

The Venona Secrets by Herbert Romerstein and Eric Breidel

Swain’s Justice by Arthur D. Howden Smith

The Man from Cannae (aka The Traitor’s Legion) by John Jakes

Far Away and Never by Ramsey Campbell

Captain: Falchion’s Company Book Two by Ken Lizzi

The Moon Maid (Bison Books edition collecting the entire ‘Moon Trilogy’) by Edgar Rice Burroughs

A Feast of Ambrosia by Glenn Rahman

Conan: Blood of the Serpent by S.M. Stirling

Jamie the Red by Gordon R. Dickson

Robert E. Howard in the Pulps by Dennis McHaney with certain chapters written by Morgan Holmes and Rob Roehm

Necromancy in Nilztiria by D.M. Ritzlin

Writing Fantasy Heroes edited by Jason M. Waltz

Tales from the Magician’s Skull #8 edited by Howard Andrew Jones

Scaramouche by Rafael Sabatini

The Great Die Slow by Harry Piper

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

Barbarian Life: Volume Three by Roy Thomas

Pirates of Venus by Edgar Rice Burroughs

The Reaches by David Drake

Renegade Swords II edited by D.M. Ritzlin

The Fu Manchu Omnibus: Volume Two by Sax Rohmer

Hither Came Conan edited by Jason M. Waltz

The War State: The Cold War Origins Of The Military-Industrial Complex And The Power Elite, 1945-1963 by Michael Swanson

Lovecraft: The Great Tales by John D. Haefele

John Carter: Gods of the Forgotten by Geary Gravel

The Earth Is Flat by Tanith Lee

The Debatable Land: The Lost World Between Scotland and England by Graham Robb

Autobiographical Writings by Arthur Machen