One of my “year of 2022” goals is to read two books a month which is essentially 24 books in the year. I have recently hit 39 books which I’m really proud about! I technically read one book twice so does that count as 40?

And before you ask, no I didn’t include the nightly books my daughter and I read together, though if I did it would be Magic Treehouse 1-28, several Pokemon chapter book series, Judy Blume and so many more classics.

Anyway, back to the books of 2022. I purchased a lot of books this year. I have SO many in my “To Be Read” pile that I don’t know what to do with them. I always say I’m going to start one book and then I see another one and I just start reading that one. I also have a bad (or good) habit of reading more than one book at a time. I often use different outlets though, sometimes I’ll have a physical book, an audio book and a kindle book I’m in the middle of and just depending on where I am or what I’m doing, I’ll open up one or the other. It’s probably the only way I got to almost 40 books this year.

Anyway, I decided to categorize the books based on rating because I couldn’t quite pick a favorite to least favorite because I rated each book individually based on a variety of things like writing style, character depth, how easy it was for me to get into, what kept me reading on, things like that. In hindsight I have a lot of five star reads but I’ve always tried to be generous with my stars unless I just couldn’t finish it at all. So, let’s just jump into it!

5 Stars

• A Flicker in the Dark by Stacy Willingham**
• Homebody by Rupi Kaur
• The Final Empire (Mistborn #1) by Brandon Sanderson
• A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
• The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid**
• Book Lovers by Emily Henry**
• The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, #1)
• Circe by Madeline Miller**
• I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy
• Twilight (The Twilight Saga, #1) by Stephenine Myers
• A Court of Thorns and Roses (ACOTR, #1) by Sarah J. Maas**
• The Good Lie by A.R Torre**
• Manacled (twice, lol) by SenLinYu
• Love and Other Words by Christina Lauren**
• The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow
• It Starts With Us (It Ends With Us, #2) by Colleen Hoover
• Beyond The Wand: The Magic and Mayhem of Growing Up a Wizard by Tom Felton
• A Court of Mist and Fury (ACOTAR, #2) by Sarah J. Maas
• In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren**
• Lovelight Farms (Lovelight, #1) by B.K Borrison**

Almost 5 Stars

• The Invisible Life of Addie Larue by V.E Schwab (★★★★.5)**
• The Well of Asension (Mistborn, #2) by Brandon Sanderson (★★★★.5)\
• A Court of Wings and Ruin (ACOTAR, #3) (★★★★.5)
• The Summer I Turn Pretty Series (#1,#2,#3) ★★★★
• Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover (★★★★)
• The House Across the Lake by Riley Sager (★★★★)
• It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover (★★★★)**
• Long Live the Pumpkin Queen by Shea Ernshaw (★★★★)
• Accidental Saints: Finding God in All the Wrong People (★★★★)
• Impure Waters by James D. Huterson (★★★★)
• The Night Shift by Alex Finlay (★★★★)**
• One Day in December (★★★★)

Less than 4 Stars

• Verity by Colleen Hoover (★★★.5)**
• The Perfect Marriage by Jeneva Rose (★★★.5)
• The Wife Upstairs by Freida McFadden (★★★)
• Call Me By Your Name (Call Me By Your Name, #1) (★★★)
• The Last Housewife by Ashley Winstead (★★★)

**- would recommend

Top Five Reads:

This is a hard one to narrow down to. I have read so many good books this year. I read a lot of romance and fantasy I’ve noticed but I promise I like other books as well. Sometimes I pick a read because I feel like it’s easy. Intense romance and feelings pull me in for some reason. I also like fantasy because I feel like there are so much more details and the pictures are painted differently. But I also enjoy chaotic thrillers every now and then.

Circe by Madeline Miller

• Fantasy
• Greek Mythology
• Magic
• Character Development
• Love

Synopsis:

In the house of Helios, god of the sun and mightiest of the Titans, a daughter is born. But Circe is a strange child–neither powerful like her father nor viciously alluring like her mother. Turning to the world of mortals for companionship, she discovers that she does possess power: the power of witchcraft, which can transform rivals into monsters and menace the gods themselves.

Threatened, Zeus banishes her to a deserted island, where she hones her occult craft, tames wild beasts, and crosses paths with many of the most famous figures in all of mythology, including the Minotaur, Daedalus and his doomed son Icarus, the murderous Medea, and, of course, wily Odysseus.

But there is danger, too, for a woman who stands alone, and Circe unwittingly draws the wrath of both men and gods, ultimately finding herself pitted against one of the most terrifying and vengeful of the Olympians. To protect what she loves most, Circe must summon all her strength and choose, once and for all, whether she belongs with the gods she is born from or with the mortals she has come to love.

Love and Other Words by Christina Lauren

• Childhood best friends to lovers
• Second chance romance
• Love and loss
• Humbly beautiful

Synopsis:

Macy Sorensen is settling into an ambitious if emotionally tepid routine: work hard as a new pediatrics resident, plan her wedding to an older, financially secure man, keep her head down and heart tucked away.

But when she runs into Elliot Petropoulos—the first and only love of her life—the careful bubble she’s constructed begins to dissolve. Once upon a time, Elliot was Macy’s entire world—growing from her gangly bookish friend into the man who coaxed her heart open again after the loss of her mother…only to break it on the very night he declared his love for her.

Told in alternating timelines between Then and Now, teenage Elliot and Macy grow from friends to much more—spending weekends and lazy summers together in a house outside of San Francisco devouring books, sharing favorite words, and talking through their growing pains and triumphs. As adults, they have become strangers to one another until their chance reunion. Although their memories are obscured by the agony of what happened that night so many years ago, Elliot will come to understand the truth behind Macy’s decade-long silence, and will have to overcome the past and himself to revive her faith in the possibility of an all-consuming love.

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

• Historical Fiction
• LGBT
• Forbidden Love
• Surprise Ending
• 1950s era

Synopsis:

Aging and reclusive Hollywood movie icon Evelyn Hugo is finally ready to tell the truth about her glamorous and scandalous life. But when she chooses unknown magazine reporter Monique Grant for the job, no one is more astounded than Monique herself. Why her? Why now?

Monique is not exactly on top of the world. Her husband has left her, and her professional life is going nowhere. Regardless of why Evelyn has selected her to write her biography, Monique is determined to use this opportunity to jumpstart her career.

Summoned to Evelyn’s luxurious apartment, Monique listens in fascination as the actress tells her story. From making her way to Los Angeles in the 1950s to her decision to leave show business in the ‘80s, and, of course, the seven husbands along the way, Evelyn unspools a tale of ruthless ambition, unexpected friendship, and a great forbidden love. Monique begins to feel a very real connection to the legendary star, but as Evelyn’s story near its conclusion, it becomes clear that her life intersects with Monique’s own in tragic and irreversible ways.

A Court of Mist and Fury (ACOTAR, #2) By Sarah J. Maas

• Fantasy/Fae
• Strong female lead/character development
• Enemies to lovers
• Spicy
• Adventure

Synopsis:

Feyre has undergone more trials than one human woman can carry in her heart. Though she’s now been granted the powers and lifespan of the High Fae, she is haunted by her time Under the Mountain and the terrible deeds she performed to save the lives of Tamlin and his people.

As her marriage to Tamlin approaches, Feyre’s hollowness and nightmares consume her. She finds herself split into two different people: one who upholds her bargain with Rhysand, High Lord of the feared Night Court, and one who lives out her life in the Spring Court with Tamlin. While Feyre navigates a dark web of politics, passion, and dazzling power, a greater evil looms. She might just be the key to stopping it, but only if she can harness her harrowing gifts, heal her fractured soul, and decide how she wishes to shape her future—and the future of a world in turmoil.

Bestselling author Sarah J. Maas’s masterful storytelling brings this second book in her dazzling, sexy, action-packed series to new heights.

The Good Lie by A.R Torre

• Thriller
• Mystery
• Psychological
• Suspense
• Murder

Synopsis:

Six teens murdered. A suspect behind bars. A desperate father. In a case this shadowy, the truth is easy to hide.

Six teenagers dead. Finally, the killer behind bars. But are the games just beginning?

Psychiatrist Dr. Gwen Moore is an expert on killers. She’s spent a decade treating California’s most depraved predators and unlocking their motives—predators much like the notorious Bloody Heart serial killer, whose latest teenage victim escaped and then identified local high school teacher Randall Thompson as his captor. The case against Thompson as the Bloody Heart Killer is damning—and closed, as far as Gwen and the media are concerned. If not for one new development…

Defense attorney Robert Kavin is a still-traumatized father whose own son fell prey to the BH Killer. Convinced of Thompson’s innocence, he steps in to represent him. Now Robert wants Gwen to interview the accused, create a psych profile of the killer and his victims, and help clear his client’s name.

As Gwen and Robert grow closer and she dives deeper into the investigation, grave questions arise. So does Gwen’s suspicion that Robert is hiding something—and that he might not be the only one with a secret.

Bookish Links:

Goodreads | https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/88408524-caysey-petty

Bookstagram | http://instagram.com/cays.cozycorner

see you next year!

with love,

c.p