If you’ve joined the #23in23 challenge on Bookstagram, check out these reviews below for some recommendations! The goal of this challenge is to encourage readers to finish at least 23 books by and about BIPOC before the end of 2023. I always strive to read diverse books, but as a thriller lover, I often find myself picking up the most recent books by the most popular thriller writers..who are almost all white.
At the time of this post, I’ve read 14 books by BIPOC authors so far in 2023. I will certainly strive to read more than 9 more by the end of the year! This tag will live-update whenever I post a review that I’ve tagged as BIPOC rep. I’m not the best at keeping up with reviews, but I am being intentional with my reading!
Also check out my list of books that embrace Black joy.
Kristina Forest | The Love Lyric
The Plot (from Goodreads):Iris Greene used to be a woman with a plan. But all of that changed after she met the love of her life at twenty-four, got pregnant…
Alexa Martin | Better Than Fiction
The Plot (from Goodreads): As a self-proclaimed book hater and a firm believer that the movie is always better, Drew Young didn’t anticipate inheriting her grandma’s bookstore, the Book Nook….
Rachel Runya Katz | Whenever You’re Ready
The Plot (Goodreads): After reconnecting on a road trip, two friends must decide if love is the ultimate risk worth taking in this funny, emotional sapphic romance. Nia and Jade…
Karelia Stetz-Waters | Second Night Stand
The Plot (from Goodreads): A burlesque performer and a professional ballerina fall in love while competing on a reality TV talent show. Izzy Wells—aka burlesque superstar Blue Lenox—doesn’t have time…
Kellye Garrett | MISSING WHITE WOMAN Spoilers
The Plot (from Goodreads): It was supposed to be a romantic getaway weekend in New York City. Breanna’s new boyfriend, Ty, took care of everything—the train tickets, the dinner reservations,…
Myah Ariel | When I Think of You
The Plot (from Goodreads): Kaliya Wilson has paid her dues. But all the years behind the reception desk at a flashy film studio have only pushed her movie-making dreams further…
Denise Williams | Technically Yours
The Plot (from Goodreads): Pearl Harris has learned the hard way to be careful in work and in love. When she is appointed acting director of OurCode, a nonprofit aimed…
Kristina Forest | The Partner Plot
The Greene Sisters series in order: The Neighbor FavorThe Partner PlotThe Love Lyric The Plot (from Goodreads): Two former high school sweethearts get a second chance in this marriage of…
Kristina Forest | The Neighbor Favor
The Greene Sisters series in order: The Neighbor FavorThe Partner PlotThe Love Lyric The Plot (from Goodreads): Shy, bookish, and admittedly awkward, Lily Greene has always felt inadequate compared to…
Naina Kumar | Say You’ll Be Mine
The Plot (Goodreads): In this utterly charming debut romance, a teacher with big dreams joins forces with a no-nonsense engineer to survive an ex’s wedding and escape matchmaking pressure from…
Vanessa Lillie | Blood Sisters
The Plot (from Goodreads): A visceral and compelling mystery about a Cherokee archeologist for the Bureau of Indian Affairs who is summoned to rural Oklahoma to investigate the disappearance of…
Bolu Babalola | Honey & Spice
The Plot (Goodreads): Sharp-tongued (and secretly soft-hearted) Kiki Banjo has just made a huge mistake. As an expert in relationship-evasion and the host of the popular student radio show Brown Sugar,…
LS Stratton | Not So Perfect Strangers
The Book: Not So Perfect Strangers by LS StrattonPublished March 28, 2023 by Union Square & Co.Date read: May 1, 2023 The Characters: Tasha and Madison Buy it on Bookshop.org…
Farrah Rochon | The Hookup Plan (The Boyfriend Project #3)
The Plot (from Goodreads): Successful pediatric surgeon London Kelley just needs to find some balance and de-stress. According to her friends Samiah and Taylor, what London really needs is a…
Shirlene Obuobi | On Rotation
The Plot (from Goodreads): Angie Appiah is the epitome of the Perfect Immigrant Daughter. She’s got it all: medical school credentials, a handsome lawyer boyfriend, and ride-or-die friends. But what…
Kosoko Jackson | I’m So (Not) Over You
The Plot (from Goodreads): It’s been months since aspiring journalist Kian Andrews has heard from his ex-boyfriend, Hudson Rivers, but an urgent text has them meeting at a café. Maybe…
Shauna Robinson | Must Love Books
The Plot (from Goodreads): Meet Nora Hughes—the overworked, underpaid, last bookish assistant standing. At least for now. When Nora landed an editorial assistant position at Parsons Press, it was her…
Preslaysa Williams | A Lowcountry Bride
The Plot (from Goodreads): Maya Jackson has worked for Laura Whitcomb, Inc, a renowned New York City bridal gown brand, for years and dreams of becoming Head Designer. She has…
Peace Adzo Medie | His Only Wife
The Plot (from Goodreads): “Elikem married me in absentia; he did not come to our wedding.” Afi Tekple is a young seamstress whose life is narrowing rapidly. She lives in…
Kirthana Ramisetti | Dava Shastri’s Last Day
The Plot (from Goodreads): Dava Shastri, one of the world’s wealthiest women, has always lived with her sterling reputation in mind. A brain cancer diagnosis at the age of seventy,…
Wanda M. Morris | All Her Little Secrets
The Plot (from Goodreads): Ellice Littlejohn seemingly has it all: an Ivy League law degree, a well-paying job as a corporate attorney in midtown Atlanta, great friends, and a “for…
Sonya Lalli | A Holly Jolly Diwali
The Plot (from Goodreads): Twenty-nine-year-old Niki Randhawa has always made practical decisions. Despite her love for music and art, she became an analyst for the stability. She’s always stuck close…
Tif Marcelo | The Holiday Switch
The Plot (from Goodreads): Lila Castro is ready to take on her last winter break of high school. The snow is plentiful, the mood is full of holiday cheer, and…
Shanora Williams | The Perfect Ruin
The Plot (from Goodreads): A brutal tragedy ended Ivy Hill’s happy family and childhood. Now in her twenties and severely troubled, she barely has a life—or much to live for….
Priscilla Oliveras | Island Affair
The Plot (from Goodreads): Sought-after social media influencer Sara Vance, in recovery from an eating disorder, is coming into her own, with a potential career expansion on the horizon. Despite…
Farrah Rochon | The Dating Playbook (The Boyfriend Project #2)
The Plot (from Goodreads): When a personal trainer agrees to fake date her client, all rules are out the window in this delightful romantic comedy from the USA Today bestselling…
Tahmima Anam | The Startup Wife
The Plot (from Goodreads): Newlyweds Asha and Cyrus build an app that replaces religious rituals and soon find themselves running one of the most popular social media platforms in the…
Jenny Lee | Anna K Away
The Plot (from Goodreads): How the mighty have fallen. Anna K, once the golden girl of Greenwich, CT, and New York City, has been brought low by a scandalous sex…
Rachel Howzell Hall | And Now She’s Gone
The Plot (from Goodreads): Isabel Lincoln is gone. But is she missing? It’s up to Grayson Sykes to find her. Although she is reluctant to track down a woman who…
Thien-Kim Lam | Happy Endings
The Book: Happy Endings by Thien-Kim LamPublished May 18th 2021 by AvonDate read: May 17, 2021 The Characters: TrixieAndre Buy it on Bookshop.org | Amazon The Plot (from Goodreads): Trixie…
Jenny Lee | Anna K
The Plot (from Goodreads): Meet Anna K. At seventeen, she is at the top of Manhattan and Greenwich society (even if she prefers the company of her horses and Newfoundland…
Farrah Rochon | The Boyfriend Project (#1)
The Plot (from Goodreads): Samiah Brooks never thought she would be “that” girl. But a live tweet of a horrific date just revealed the painful truth: she’s been catfished by…
Louise Erdrich | The Night Watchman
The Plot (from Goodreads): Thomas Wazhashk is the night watchman at the jewel bearing plant, the first factory located near the Turtle Mountain Reservation in rural North Dakota. He is…
Brit Bennett | The Vanishing Half
The Plot (from Goodreads): The Vignes twin sisters will always be identical. But after growing up together in a small, southern black community and running away at age sixteen, it’s…
Alyssa Cole | When No One Is Watching
The Plot (from Goodreads): Sydney Green is Brooklyn born and raised, but her beloved neighborhood seems to change every time she blinks. Condos are sprouting like weeds, FOR SALE signs…
Sara Desai | The Dating Plan
The Book: The Dating Plan by Sara Desai, 2021 The Characters: DaisyLiam Get it on Amazon. The Plot (from Goodreads): Daisy Patel is a software engineer who understands lists and…
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