Best Books of 2022

What a year. 

I started out with a very modest goal of 20 books. I had no expectations other than "keep reading, don't stop reading". 

While I read a few great books in January and February, it wasn't until I had a newborn in March and I was feeding her 8-10 times a day that I really started reading again. I am one million percent a Kindle reader. In the last few months, I've become a Kindle-app-on-my-phone reader because then I don't need to keep track of a separate device that way. I prefer to do any non-fiction through audio so, as Sutton has gotten older (and distracted by the screen of a phone or Kindle), I tend just listen to a book or podcast while I feed her. 

Goodreads has all stats available if you've hit your goal for the year, so here is that, and then I'll show you the books and my most-recommended if you're working on those TBRs for 2023.

*I am entirely aware that I dropped the ball and stopped posting books on Instagram. I should do a catch-up there before the end of the year.*

Starting at the beginning of 2022...

The Paper Palace was fantastic.

So was The Lies I Tell.

Stay Awake was good.

The One was terrific.

His & Hers was a favorite of the year. 

The First Shot was an excellent prequel.

When You Disappeared was amazing.

Apparently I gave The Other Wife 5 stars but I couldn't even remember what it was about. I had to look it up. 

The Housemaid was SO good.

The Good Samaritan was mind-blowing.

Live Your Truth and More Than a Healer are Christian must-reads. 

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Favorite authors this year were Freida McFadden and John Marrs 

Favorite books were probably The Paper Palace, The Housemaid, His & Hers, The One, and The Good Samaritan.

Least favorite books: Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, Darling Girl, and All Good People Here.

I had multiple DNFs that I won't go into and didn't bother explaining why I didn't finish. But those three ^ are ones I could articulate an opinion on why I didn't like them and we could happily discuss and go back and forth. 

Looking ahead, I'm not sure what my reading goal for 2023 will be. I have majorly slowed down my reading in the last few months, so maybe I'll start with 40 and see where it takes me? 

What was your best book of 2022? 

What are your reading goals for 2023?

November books.

Live Your Truth and Other Lies by Alisa Childers.

If you like apologetics or need more apologetics in your life, this is your book. It doesn't deep-dive into deconstruction like her first book; it's much more accessible for the culture as an antidote to Girl, Wash Your Face. I found it particularly fitting because she talks a lot about post-partum expectations. I don't have it in front of me because I did the audio but there was something about how she did Whatever She Wanted for thirty-some years and now there was a baby and there was no more of that at all. The adjustment was startling for her and she relates that to the misnomer of "live your truth". 

All Good People Here by Ashley Flowers.

As far as readability, it's fine. The end was weird, though. 

I have Thoughts on Ashley Flowers. We can start with Crime Junkie. Yeah, it passes the time but I take issue with the fact that she has branded herself as the face of true crime when her show is surface level at best. For other true crime podcasts, I rarely even know what the hosts look like, unless I try to deep dive somewhere. Second, she has definitely plagiarized in the past (which I don't even think is THAT big of a deal, really, except she brands herself as an investigator/journalist or whatever and instead of saying anything about it or giving credit or apologizing, you just wiped the episodes from the backlog. Third, you will see hints of that in this story. It reads, as a blog friend said to me, just like Jonbenet fan fiction. It's just kind of odd and gross and gives an ending (the ending she thinks is what happened?) to the cause of Jonbenet's death. 

In addition, Crime Junkie did an episode on Scott Peterson in which they claimed he *could* be innocent. (I have a lot of issues with CJ and that's just one of them.)

More Than a Healer: Not the Jesus You Want, but the Jesus You Need by Costi Hinn.

I love Costi Hinn. In reality, we all need to be affirmed in the fact that Jesus does not do what we want Him to all of the time. It's hard to explain how relevant this book is to all Christians, but especially those who are going through trials. I don't know that I would've picked up a book like this (on audio) were it not for the fact that he wrote it, but I really just enjoy anything Costi has to say/write. 

Currently, I'm reading The House Across the Lake by Riley Sager. It's fine so far, at about 25% into it. Next up is a few things from BOTM and then some library holds whenever those come in 😑

I already doubled my (admittedly low) goal of 20 for the year so 40 books plus whatever I read in December is definitely more than enough for 2022. 

September books.

It was bound to happen that my reading would slow down. It always does in the fall, no matter what season of life I'm in. I read one book around Labor Day and I just finished one last weekend. 

The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth I got this as an ARC through Netgalley. I love it when they just up and send me books instead of me requesting (begging for) a new release by one of my preferred authors. 

I really enjoyed the first chunk of this book. It was an interesting premise. I love books that take place in Australia, for some reason. I did feel like there was something "off" about many of the characters, though. Getting into the second half and finding out how the pieces were actually put together...meh, I wasn't overly-overly impressed. It wasn't bad, but I wasn't pulled in to the point where I couldn't stop reading. I read The Younger Wife this summer and I think I liked that one better. 

Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney This was a Book of the Month from August. It definitely took me over a month to read because I'm awful at hardcovers these days. I much prefer the kindle. 

I wasn't quite a fan of Rock, Paper, Scissors last year. I didn't get the hype, so it wasn't amazing. Alice Feeney's older books like Sometimes I Lie and His & Hers were so much better. 

Daisy Darker was a spooky and creepy locked room mystery, perfect for Halloween. I know many weren't fans of it and I can see why. It moved very slowly, had few redeeming qualities in terms of characters, and had constant time jumps. I also felt like you had to be willing to really visualize the setting (just like in Rock, Paper, Scissors). Those aren't my favorite kinds of books. It's too much work. 

I will say that the twist was one I expected and it actually kind of redeemed the book for me. The fact that it took me a month+ to read this story though...probably not a ringing endorsement. 

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Currently reading:

I skimmed Pete Hegseth's book The Battle for the American Mind.  I just really struggle to read non-fiction, especially on the kindle. He did a podcast interview that made me really interested in what he had to say but NF generally puts me to sleep these days. 

I'm reading, half-heartedly, The Last Housewife. Reviews for this one are all over the place. I find the writing to be a bit much. The main character definitely has a case of Main Character Syndrome. I may end up finishing it. 

I barely began I Must Betray You and I just couldn't do it. Historical fiction takes too much thought. It's easier to stay contemporary right now. 

And let's take a look at those library holds:

I literally think I'm getting farther from A Flicker in the Dark, not closer. 

August 2022 Books.

The Locked Door by Freida McFadden -- 4 stars -- If you like Dexter or true crime, you'll like this. Very hard to put down. 

One by One by Freida McFadden -- 3 stars -- This was slightly ridiculous and a bit over the top in a Lifetime movie kinda way. Didn't love all of it but McFadden has a way of making you turn the page. Passed the time just fine. I mentioned on IG that it was like a Liane Moriarity type of story. 

The Good Samaritan by John Marrs -- 5 stars -- This will be one of my favorites this year. It was a WILD ride. Seriously could not stop thinking about it. The end got a bit out of control, but he is SUCH a good writer. Highly recommend. All the trigger warnings but I feel like everything is a trigger warning these days so take that for what it's worth. 

Want to Know a Secret? by Freida McFadden -- 3 stars -- A page-turner. Switched POVs about halfway way through, so that was a nice surprise. I didn't like the end because it was a little far-fetched, but it was a good story. 

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin -- 2 stars -- I didn't hate all of it. I took issue with a lot though. I definitely skimmed the last 1/3 because it wasn't *that* great that I cared to finish. I said on Instagram that there was just nothing likable about it. Sadie was awful, Sam was hard to read about and also kind of awful. It was incredibly depressing and not in a good way. Like, some books can be depressing and still convey something meaningful. Not this one. The only redeeming factor was that I found the building of games to be pretty interesting. Clearly this took some research and it's a shame all of that was ruined with crapbag characters. 

The Night Shift by Alex Finlay -- 3 stars --This was an interesting story. I completely hated a book by the same author a year or so ago, so if I'd remembered that this was that same writer, I probably never would've picked it up. This absolutely reminded me of the Yogurt Shop Murders in Austin back in 1991. I really think the author grabbed a bit of that story and spun some fiction. Not a bad investment of my time though. 

The Ex by Freida McFadden -- 3 stars -- This was good but the timeline was quite confusing. As in, you know things are non-linear but you don't know how or why or when things are occurring. It doesn't start to come together until the end. It's very much like she followed a manual on How To Write Multiple Unreliable Narrators At The Same Time. 

The Perfect Son by Freida McFadden -- 3 stars -- The main character was quite dumb. The story was good enough. I actually didn't see the twist coming. There's definitely a twist. 

The Perfect Marriage by Jeneva Rose -- 3 stars -- I hated the first chapter. I started to get into it when it switched to the husband's POV. The end kinda lost me. It was decent writing so I may seek out another of her books. Totally worth the read if you have Kindle Unlimited. 

The Night She Disappeared by Lisa Jewell -- 4 stars -- There were moments I felt like giving this 5 stars. The end really started to lose me though. I couldn't figure out how I felt about Sophie either. There were a few too many oddball characters for me to happily keep track of, but I really liked Kim's POV. What I do appreciate about Lisa Jewell's books is that she practically turns the setting into its own character, so I spend a lot of time lost in visualization when I read her books. She's great at showing and not just telling. 

Nine Lives by Peter Swanson -- Not for me -- I'm not going to give this a star rating but I read enough to count it toward my yearly book goal. Quite disappointing. Apparently, it's a take on And Then There Were None but I don't like Agatha Christie, so I don't care about that. Actually the one character that, to me, had an interesting story was killed off pretty quickly. Basically, there's nine people and they're killed off one at a time. As many mentioned on Goodreads, the best part of someone dying is you no longer had to follow their POV. It began with nine POVs plus POVs of FBI agents/investigators. It gave me a headache. Peter Swanson's older books are so much better. 

Books I started a but didn't finish: 

Book Lovers by Emily Henry -- I couldn't do it. I'm sorry. The sister bothered me. She was superfluous and annoying. I really, really liked the prologue and thought I might be able to keep going but then it turned into the pregnant-sister-show.

An Honest Lie by Tarryn Fisher -- I read like 10% and felt nothing for these characters. I didn't care at all. The Wives was a favorite of mine so this was a disappointment.

The Love of my Life by Rosie Walsh -- I wanted to like this but I really didn't like Ghosted and by the time this came in from the library holds, I had lost interest in wanting to read it. The premise initially interested me, but then I read like two sentences and that was it. 

Currently reading The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth. 

If you have to pick ONE book from the list above, read The Good Samaritan. It's on Kindle Unlimited! 

July Books.

I have been tearing through books. I'm not complaining because it makes me feel super productive. It's the complete opposite of life with baby Wells; I think I read 3 books in his first 6 months. Maybe less. 

As always, you can follow reviews in real time on Instagram. 

I set a very modest goal of 20 books for 2022 and I surpassed that this month and am at 23 books for the year so far. 

We Were Never Here -- this was good enough but kind of super weird and went a few levels deep. Meaning, there's a lot to the story and you kept learning more about the characters as you went along. 

When You Disappeared -- This was a great story. Bordered literary fiction, to be honest. It was definitely more mystery than thriller. Highly recommend. 

Things We Do in the Dark -- I wasn't impressed with this. It was kind of lazy and filled with tropes. I liked the beginning more than the end. It just kind of ended with all the cliches coming together at once. Her other books are much, much more enthralling than this one was. Sorry. That's probably an unpopular opinion. Maybe she was in a hurry to get it to BOTM? 

What Lies Between Us -- This was insane. Seriously. Read it if you like a mystery. *all the mindblown emojis* I really like that John Marrs isn't afraid to just go for it. 

The Housemaid --- This was also insane. Could not put it down. 

Do Not Disturb --- This was good enough. It was a little bit "Lifetime movie". I wouldn't say it's a must-read, but it passed the time just fine. The reviews are good on Goodreads, but I'd say it's a low 3-star read. 

Insomnia -- This was good enough. Sarah Pinborough books are hit or miss. It wasn't was WTF as Behind Her Eyes, but it wasn't bad. I didn't really find Emma to be all that likable as a character, so I didn't really feel bad for her? The end ties into Behind Her Eyes, so watch for that. 

Currently reading: Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin, I'm trying Book Lovers by Emily Henry but I already dislike it, and I have some other thriller in the queue on my Kindle. 

June Books

Well, since I've kept up with my reading at a pretty steady pace, I figured I'd share the books I read in June now. I did Quarter 1 books and Quarter 2 books but I'm reading, reading, reading these days much more than I was at the beginning of the year, so that's good news. You can follow me on Instagram for updates in real time. 

The First Shot (a prequel to The Last Mrs. Parrish) by Liv Constantine

Eve in Exile by Rebecca Merkle --this gives a really thorough overview of the timeline of feminism. I appreciated the historical component.

The Younger Wife by Sally Hepworth

Currently reading: Things We Do in the Dark by Jennifer Hillier

I'm really enjoying it but, for real, hardcovers are difficult to read in this season because most of my reading is when I'm sitting in the rocker with the baby and only have one hand available. 

My library is awful and my TBR is long. Kindle Unlimited has definitely become my friend during this season. 

Quarter 2 Books

Thanks to a comfortable rocker-glider, a kindle, and a baby who eats every 3 hours, I've been getting a lot of reading done. I'm 5 books ahead of my goal for 2022, so I will take it. 

You can follow my reviews in real time on Instagram. Who knows? Maybe I'll be back for a book report in July instead of waiting until September if I can keep up this pace :) 

Stay Awake

The One

Darling Girl

The Wife Stalker

His & Hers

Sometimes I Lie

I Know You

The Other Wife

Did not finish: 

The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley

It was just odd. I didn't care about the characters. I find, honestly, this happens with any book that takes place in France. I just don't have an interest. 

At the Quiet Edge by Victoria Helen Stone

I loved Jane Doe and the sequel wasn't bad either. She even had another one or two stand-alones that I enjoyed. This was just not great. At 20% it hadn't pulled me in at all. It's kind of a weird premise too. And I don't like the title. If you were here years ago, you may remember that I ranted about how I really hated the title "Go Set a Watchman" (and the book was terrible too). > same thing

The Club by Ellery Lloyd

I may come back to this. It just isn't appealing to me? Seems like there's a lot going on. I liked this author's first book well enough. 

Linking up for Show Us Your Books!

Quarterly Books 2022 #1

Since my reading has been...I want to say slow but it's been something different in the last several months, I'm going to do quarterly posts instead of monthly. Essentially, my goal is to pop in every three months in 2022 with an update on what I read and what I quit. (I quit a lot of books.) I set a quite modest goal of 20 books in 2022 and I'm ahead of schedule so...yay?

The Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley Heller

The Happiest Baby Guide to Sleep by Harvey Karp

We Are the Brennans by Tracey Lange

See here: 

Nope. Wasn't corrected in the final copy. 

The Lies I Tell by Julie Clark

The Golden Couple by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen

And then the books I quit...I'm not linking them all, but I'll tell you why I quit them, I suppose. 

This Time Next Year by Sophie Cousens I wanted this to be so much better than it was. I wasn't shocked that I didn't like it, but I thought it'd be more interesting. The name thing was non-believable as a plot point, first of all. Minnie was super depressing to me, as a character. She did not ever seem able to do anything the way an adult might and she was just hapless. 30 is not 20. She acted like she was stunted at 20. I have no feelings on Quinn either way. All the side characters were stereotypically annoying. Minnie's mom was not great. And the idea that her parents just hoarded clocks kind of bothered me. 

The Third Wife by Lisa Jewell I can see why I'd never heard of this before. There was something weird about it. It wasn't nearly as interesting as any other book she'd ever written. 

Playing Nice by J.P. Delaney This is one I quit about 15% in. I found it to be a bit triggering to read while pregnant. It wasn't terrible though. 

The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley I liked The Guest List. I want to read The Paris Apartment. Everything about The Hunting Party kind of bothered me though. Way too many characters. Narcissists, mostly. That wasn't hugely appealing. I quit about a quarter of the way through. 

People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry I quit this about 15% in too. It wasn't awful. I just found it boring and I don't do rom-com well. The predictability factor bothers me. I don't love her writing. I think I've tried all of her books at this point and have quit them all. Call me the dissenting vote, I suppose. 

Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica I tried it? Kubica's books are usually interesting enough. I don't remember much about it aside from I didn't like it that much. Don't remember where I quit. 

You Will Remember Me by Hannah McKinnon I remember reading the first two chapters and then quitting. 

Dark Circles by Caite Dolan-Leach This was sent to me by Netgalley and I didn't hate it at first. It was interesting enough. Then it started to drag and I felt like they were never getting anywhere. I quit at about 40%. 

I've written about my library woes before (there is no availability on anything, ever), so I'm back to really just scouring Netgalley once in awhile and then getting a Book of the Month so this is how I'm reading new books and crossing them off of my recently-downsized TBR. 

Currently, I'm reading Once Upon A Wardrobe by Patti Callahan and waiting for The Paris Apartment to show up from Book of the Month.