It is hard to believe 2022 has come and gone. As 2023 takes its place, now is a great time to look back at all the books I was able to read.
With 35 books read over the past year, I missed my goal of 60 books by a lot. Life happened and a reading drought followed as well as reading manga here and there. If only I had more time. But this is what I was able to achieve and there were some great books that I read this year. You can see the full list of books I read below!
Books I Read in 2022!
- Siege and Storm (The Shadow and Bone Trilogy #2) by Leigh Bardugo
- A Case of Exploding Mangoes by Mohammed Hanif
- Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
- Rise and Ruin (The Shadow and Bone Trilogy #3) by Leigh Bardugo
- Ready Player Two by Ernest Cline
- The Girl with All the Gifts by M.R. Carey
- Finnikin of the Rock by Melina Marchetta
- Cytonic (Skyward #3) by Brandon Sanderson
- City of Nightmares (City of Nightmares, #1) by Rebecca Schaeffer
- Dune (Dune, #1) by Frank Herbert
- Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
- The Murder on the Links by Agatha Christie
- The Man in the Brown Suit (Colonel Race, #1) by Agatha Christie
- Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead
- The Mysterious Affair at Styles (Hercule Poirot, #1) by Agatha Christie
- The Postman Always Rings Twice by James M. Cain
- In Cold Blood by Capote, Truman
- The Shadow of the Gods (The Bloodsworn Saga, #1) by John Gwynne
- The Hunger of the Gods (The Bloodsworn Saga, #2) by John Gwynne
- Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert A. Heinlein
- The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
- The Dragon Reborn (The Wheel of Time, #3) by Robert Jordan
- The Great Hunt (The Wheel of Time, #2) by Robert Jordan
- Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Harry Potter, #2) by J.K. Rowling
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Harry Potter, #3) by J.K. Rowling
- Harry Potter and the Gobet of Fire (Harry Potter, #4) by J.K. Rowling
- The Eye of the World (The Wheel of Time, #1) by Robert Jordan
- Oathbringer (The Stormlight Archive, #3) by Brandon Sanderson
- Words of Radiance (The Stormlight Archive, #2) by Brandon Sanderson
- Dracula by Bram Stoker
- The Forest of Hands and Teeth (The Forest of Hands and Teeth, #1) by Carrie Ryan
- Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (Harry Potter #1) by J.K Rowling
- Rule of Wolves by Leigh Bardugo
- King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo
- No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy
Project Hail Mary
One of my favorite book of the year was Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir. He wrote The Martian and I have been a fan ever since. Project Hail Mary is a page turner and another brilliant sci-fi novel by Weir.
The Bloodsworn Saga
While looking for new books, I came across The Bloodsworn Saga series by John Gwynne and fell in love. The gritty writing is unlike anything else and I am eagerly waiting for the third book in the series. I did give Gwynne’s other books a chance but they are very dark and I gave up reading it.
King of Scars Duology
King of Scars and Rule of Wolves by Leigh Bardugo were a two part series that I enjoyed a lot. Bardugo just keeps on getting better as she writes more books and I can’t wait to see what else she does in the Grishaverse.
The Wheel of Time
A series I gave up on this year was The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan. The first book was okay but I loved the second book and was happy with the progress of the protagonists. But the third book was a bore and I couldn’t deal with the series anymore. Something about fantasies and prophesies irks me because it all seems predestined and I prefer not knowing what will happen next.
My Least Favorite Book of 2022
The worst book I read this year (and finished) was Ready Player Two by Ernest Cline. The author constantly badgers you with pop references every other line and it gets old fast. The plot is not original and the stakes are raised higher so we would care but it feels forced.
I finally got around to reading Dune and I loved every second of it. The novel is refreshing and is well written by Frank Herbert. Having read a lot of science fiction books, I don’t know if it is the best science fiction book of all time but it is an important one. This novel paved the way for sci-fi books and helped them get coverage from popular publications like The New York Times.
Harlem Shuffle
Lastly, a book I want to mention is Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead. Ever since I read The Underground Railroad by Whitehead, I am always eager for his latest book to be released. In Harlem Shuffle, Whitehead takes us back to the late 1950’s to the early 1960’s and follows the life of Ray Carney as he gets caught up in the criminal world. It is a beautiful book that captures the essence of Harlem and New York City and the people that resided there.
Conclusion
These are the books I read in 2022. I expect to read a lot more and have already started my next book. Which were your favorite books of 2022? Let us know in the comments below!
I’d like to encourage you to count your Manga in your totals going forward.
I suspect I know why you don’t, but would you mind elucidating? I don’t want to assume too much after all 🙂
Hope 23 brings lots of good books your way….
I don’t consider them books (I am sure that western society has brainwashed me to think this way and I am continuing the cycle by mindlessly agreeing). I’ll try to include them going forward. I doubt I’ll ever review them as they are in volumes and it would be tedious without spoiling. It’s more of a guilty pleasure in my mind than actually reading but once again, that’s something that has been ingrained in me… It truly is a cycle as I repeat myself 😅