Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by the lovely Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl. Each week a new theme is suggested for bloggers to participate in. This week’s prompt is Favorite Books of 2022.

Hello Readers! Happy New Year! Ready or not, 2023 is here. Trying to narrow down my favorite books of 2022 is reminding me of how hard it was at the end of last year. My top three choices are basically interchangeable, but I let how well the book has stuck with me guide the placement of each of the books in my top ten. AND because it’s so hard, I’m including ten honorable mentions, as well. 🙂

Not too surprising, my top seven books are romances, but a young adult fantasy and a debut thriller (as well as three other debut books) also made it into my top ten. Four backlist books also made the cut, and among my twenty choices are a few books I rated highly while other readers did not, once again reminding me not to trust the Goodreads ratings. My most surprising discovery: Emily Henry and Christina Lauren did NOT make my top ten—even though I DID enjoy their books this year.

Let’s wander in!

(Link to add on Goodreads through the book title.)

10

The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune

Synopsis:

A magical island. A dangerous task. A burning secret.

Linus Baker leads a quiet, solitary life. At forty, he lives in a tiny house with a devious cat and his old records. As a Case Worker at the Department in Charge Of Magical Youth, he spends his days overseeing the well-being of children in government-sanctioned orphanages.

When Linus is unexpectedly summoned by Extremely Upper Management he’s given a curious and highly classified assignment: travel to Marsyas Island Orphanage, where six dangerous children reside: a gnome, a sprite, a wyvern, an unidentifiable green blob, a were-Pomeranian, and the Antichrist. Linus must set aside his fears and determine whether or not they’re likely to bring about the end of days.

But the children aren’t the only secret the island keeps. Their caretaker is the charming and enigmatic Arthur Parnassus, who will do anything to keep his wards safe. As Arthur and Linus grow closer, long-held secrets are exposed, and Linus must make a choice: destroy a home or watch the world burn.

An enchanting story, masterfully told, The House in the Cerulean Sea is about the profound experience of discovering an unlikely family in an unexpected place—and realizing that family is yours.

Goodreads

This one has appeared on so many of my tbr lists, and I’m happy I finally picked it up. And happy it lived up to all the hype. Just a precious, precious book.

9

Alias Emma (Alias Emma, #1) by Ava Glass

Synopsis:

Emma Makepeace is about to spend the longest night in her life. 

She’s on her first operation with a shadowy organisation known only as ‘The Agency’, assigned to track down and save an innocent man wanted by the Russian government.

All Emma has to do is bring him in to MI6 before sunrise, and before an assassination team gets to him first.

But the Russians have hacked the city’s CCTV cameras. There are spies all over London searching for the two of them. And her target, Michael Primalov, doesn’t want to be rescued.

As London sleeps, a battle is taking place on its streets as Emma fights to keep Michael alive.

But what sort of reception await them if and when they get to MI6?

Goodreads
My Review

This is one of those books where an invitation to read an advanced copy showed up in my inbox and it sounded like fun, so I accepted. And now it’s on my top ten books for the year! I had so much fun reading this thriller. It was a great reminder to branch out from my comfort zone.

8

Spells for Forgetting by Adrienne Young

Synopsis:

A deeply atmospheric story about ancestral magic, an unsolved murder, and a second chance at true love.

Emery Blackwood’s life changed forever the night her best friend was found dead and the love of her life, August Salt, was accused of murdering her. Years later, she is doing what her teenage self swore she never would: living a quiet existence on the misty, remote shores of Saoirse Island and running the family’s business, Blackwood’s Tea Shoppe Herbal Tonics & Tea Leaf Readings. 

But when the island, rooted in folklore and magic, begins to show signs of strange happenings, Emery knows that something is coming. The morning she wakes to find that every single tree on Saoirse has turned color in a single night, August returns for the first time in fourteen years and unearths the past that the town has tried desperately to forget.

August knows he is not welcome on Saiorse, not after the night everything changed. As a fire raged on at the Salt family orchard, Lily Morgan was found dead in the dark woods, shaking the bedrock of their tight-knit community and branding August a murderer. When he returns to bury his mother’s ashes, he must confront the people who turned their backs on him and face the one wound from his past that has never healed—Emery. 

The town has more than one reason to want August gone, and the emergence of deep betrayals and hidden promises spanning generations threaten to reveal the truth behind Lily’s mysterious death once and for all.

Goodreads
My Review

Believe it or not, I used to read more YA Fantasy than Romance, but I found myself outgrowing the genre… or maybe I was just reading the wrong books. This one reminded me of all the things I love about the genre. Mysterious, magical—I sunk into this one and didn’t want to surface.

7

From Lukov With Love by Mariana Zapata

7Synopis:

If someone were to ask Jasmine Santos to describe the last few years of her life with a single word, it would definitely be a four-letter one.

After seventeen years—and countless broken bones and broken promises—she knows her window to compete in figure skating is coming to a close.

But when the offer of a lifetime comes in from an arrogant idiot she’s spent the last decade dreaming about pushing in the way of a moving bus, Jasmine might have to reconsider everything.

Including Ivan Lukov.

Goodreads

2022 is the year I discovered Mariana Zapata—thanks to Deanna’s recommendations! For the first half of the year I had a Kindle Unlimited subscription that came with my new Kindle, and I used it to read four of Zapata’s books. I knew one of them needed to make my list, and I had to go with my first. Zapata’s books aren’t perfect, but she really is the queen of the slow-burn.

6

The Key to My Heart by Lia Louis

Synopsis:

A heartwarming novel about hope after loss as a young widow receives mysterious messages of love from the author of Eight Perfect Hours.

Sparkly and charming Natalie Fincher has it all—a handsome new husband, a fixer-upper cottage of her dreams, and the opportunity to tour with the musical she’s spent years writing. But when her husband suddenly dies, all her hopes and dreams instantly disappear.

Two and a half years later, Natalie is still lost. She works, sleeps (well, as much as the sexually frustrated village foxes will allow), and sees friends just often enough to allay their worries, but her life is empty. And she can only bring herself to play music at a London train station’s public piano where she can be anonymous. She’s lost motivation, faith in love, in happiness…in everything.

But when someone begins to mysteriously leave the sheet music for her husband’s favorite songs at the station’s piano, Natalie begins to feel a sense of hope and excitement for the first time. As she investigates just who could be doing this, Natalie finds herself on an unexpected journey toward newfound love for herself, for life, and maybe, for a special someone.

Goodreads
My Review

Lia Louis’ books have made my top ten since I read my first one of hers, Dear Emmie Blue. She is consistently an author who delights and delivers.

5

The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood

Synopsis:

As a third-year Ph.D. candidate, Olive Smith doesn’t believe in lasting romantic relationships–but her best friend does, and that’s what got her into this situation. Convincing Anh that Olive is dating and well on her way to a happily ever after was always going to take more than hand-wavy Jedi mind tricks: Scientists require proof. So, like any self-respecting biologist, Olive panics and kisses the first man she sees.

That man is none other than Adam Carlsen, a young hotshot professor–and well-known ass. Which is why Olive is positively floored when Stanford’s reigning lab tyrant agrees to keep her charade a secret and be her fake boyfriend. But when a big science conference goes haywire, putting Olive’s career on the Bunsen burner, Adam surprises her again with his unyielding support and even more unyielding… six-pack abs.

Suddenly their little experiment feels dangerously close to combustion. And Olive discovers that the only thing more complicated than a hypothesis on love is putting her own heart under the microscope.

Goodreads

Another hyped book I finally picked up, I was happy to discover I loved this romance as much as the rest of you! Now I’m eager to read her next one.

4

The Hating Game by Sally Thorne

Synopsis:

Nemesis (n.)
1) An opponent or rival whom a person cannot best or overcome;
2) A person’s undoing;
3) Joshua Templeman.

Lucy Hutton and Joshua Templeman hate each other. Not dislike. Not begrudgingly tolerate. Hate. And they have no problem displaying their feelings through a series of ritualistic passive aggressive maneuvers as they sit across from each other, executive assistants to co-CEOs of a publishing company. Lucy can’t understand Joshua’s joyless, uptight, meticulous approach to his job. Joshua is clearly baffled by Lucy’s overly bright clothes, quirkiness, and Pollyanna attitude.

Now up for the same promotion, their battle of wills has come to a head and Lucy refuses to back down when their latest game could cost her her dream job…But the tension between Lucy and Joshua has also reached its boiling point, and Lucy is discovering that maybe she doesn’t hate Joshua. And maybe, he doesn’t hate her either. Or maybe this is just another game.

Goodreads

It’s not often that I pull a book off my shelf and start reading, but I did that with The Hating Game. And I was kicking myself for not reading it sooner. I adored this one. AND it’s movie adaptation.

3

Bend Toward the Sun by Jen Devon

Synopsis:

“Heart-warming, sensual, beautifully written.” –Ali Hazelwood, New York Timesbestselling author of The Love Hypothesis

Two imperfect people. One year under the sun. A love story you won’t ever forget.

Rowan McKinnon doesn’t believe in love. With a botany PhD, two best friends who embrace her social quirkiness, and some occasional no-strings sex, she has everything she needs. But she hides deep wounds from the past—from a negligent mother, and a fiancé who treated her like a pawn in a game. When an academic setback leads Rowan to take on the restoration of an abandoned vineyard, she relishes the opportunity to restore the grapes to their former glory.

She does not expect to meet a man like Harrison Brady.

An obstetrician profoundly struggling after losing a patient, Harry no longer believes he is capable of keeping people safe. Reeling, Harry leaves Los Angeles to emotionally recover at his parents’ new vineyard in Pennsylvania.

He does not expect to meet a woman like Rowan McKinnon.

As their combative banter gives way to a simmering tension, sunlight begins to crack through the darkness smothering Harry’s soul. He’s compelled to explore the undeniable pull between them. And after a lifetime of protecting herself from feeling anything, for anyone, Rowan tries to keep things casual.

But even she can’t ignore their explosive connection.

“A lushly drawn portrait of two people with a magnetic, soul-deep connection.” – Rachel Lynn Solomon, New York Times bestselling author

“A gorgeous love story full of lyrical writing and raw emotion.” – Jennifer Probst

“Soul satisfying, sensual, and unforgettable.” – Libby Hubscher

Goodreads
My Review

Another debut that made my top three, this one could easily sit at my number one spot. From my review: “Jen Devon’s debut Bend Toward the Sun razed my heart and nourished it back to life. Devastating in the best way, this romance set on a neglected and newly acquired vineyard in Pennsylvania had me longing for walks in wildflower-filled meadows, swims in mist-covered ponds, and games of hide-and-go-seek in old greenhouses.”

2

Every Summer After by Carley Fortune

Synopsis:

They say you can never go home again, and for Persephone Fraser, ever since she made the biggest mistake of her life a decade ago, that has felt too true. Instead of glittering summers on the lakeshore of her childhood, she spends them in a stylish apartment in the city, going out with friends, and keeping everyone a safe distance from her heart.

Until she receives the call that sends her racing back to Barry’s Bay and into the orbit of Sam Florek—the man she never thought she’d have to live without.

For six summers, through hazy afternoons on the water and warm summer nights working in his family’s restaurant and curling up together with books—medical textbooks for him and work-in-progress horror short stories for her—Percy and Sam had been inseparable. Eventually that friendship turned into something breathtakingly more, before it fell spectacularly apart.

When Percy returns to the lake for Sam’s mother’s funeral, their connection is as undeniable as it had always been. But until Percy can confront the decisions she made and the years she’s spent punishing herself for them, they’ll never know whether their love might be bigger than the biggest mistakes of their past.

Told over the course of six years and one weekend, Every Summer After is a big, sweeping nostalgic look at love and the people and choices that mark us forever.

Six summers to fall in love. One moment to fall apart. A weekend to get it right.

Goodreads
My Review

And ANOTHER debut that I fell hard for, I became fully immersed in this romance, not wanting to come up for air. I was blown away, and I can’t wait for her follow-up this year.

1

One Night on the Island by Josie Silver

Synopsis:

Spending her thirtieth birthday alone is the last thing that dating columnist Cleo wanted, but she is going on a self-coupling quasi-sabbatical–at the insistence of her boss–in the name of re-energizing herself and adding a new perspective to her column. The remote Irish island she’s booked is a far cry from London, but at least it’s a chance to hunker down in a luxury cabin and indulge in some quiet, solitary self-care while she figures out her next steps in her love life and her career.

Mac is also looking forward to some time to himself. With his life in Boston deteriorating in ways he can’t bring himself to acknowledge, his soul searching has brought him to the same Irish island in search of his roots and some clarity. Unfortunately, a mix-up with the bookings means both solitude seekers have reserved the same one-bedroom hideaway on exactly the same dates.

Instantly at odds with each other, Cleo and Mac don’t know how they’re going to manage until the next weekly ferry arrives. But as the days go by, they no longer seem to mind each other’s company quite as much as they thought they would…

Written with Josie Silver’s signature warmth, charm and insights into the human heart, One Night on the Island explores the meaning of home, the joys of escape and how the things we think we want are never the things we really need.

Goodreads
My Review

I read this romance at the start of February and it has stuck with me all year—which is why it’s getting the top spot. This may be a case of the right book at the right time, but I fell hard for Cleo and Mac. From my review: “A novel that slipped quietly into my soul, wrecking me in the best ways, One Night on the Island by Josie Silver is more than a romance. It’s a story about loving yourself, finding your place in the world, and being the best version of who you want to be.”

Honorable Mentions

(Cover links to my blog review or Goodreads)

Do we share any favorites? What was your favorite read of 2022? Let me know in the comments!

Happy Wandering!