What I read in 2022!

This was something fun I decided to do this year: keep track of EVERY book I read in 2022! I have always loved reading and I especially missed it while I was in graduate school, so since then I have been reading as voraciously as I can! In total, I got through 44 and a quarter books (see book #2). My favorites of the year are in purple.

Now the challenge for next year.... To keep enjoying reading! :) 

1. The Black Book- James Patterson (Good! typical Patterson twists and short chapters 4/5)
2. Cradle and All- James Patterson (didn't finish...too...weird?! 0/5)
3. The Family Lawyer- James Patterson
4. Honeymoon- James Patterson
5. Second Honeymoon- James Patterson
6. The Red Book- James Patterson

7. A Time for Mercy- John Grisham (A sequel of sorts to "A Time to Kill", which is Grisham's first book. I liked this one a lot. The ending was unexpected but it didn't leave me hanging 4.5/5)

8. Worst Case- James Patterson

9. The Testament- John Grisham (really liked this one 4.5/5) 

10. Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas- James Patterson (good but very sad! 5/5) 

11. Gray Mountain- John Grisham (Laid-off young lawyer doing pro bono work in rural Appalachian Virginia. Very realistic portrayals of the area unlike some other literature. A lot of heart in the story 5/5)
 
12. Firefly Lane- Kristin Hannah (Easily one of my new favorites!! Get a box of tissues 5/5) 

13. The Ship of Brides- Jojo Moyes (Not bad, but her others are better. Was a bit drawn-out 3/5)

14. The Inn- James Patterson

15. Sooley- John Grisham (A good story, but a very abrupt and out-of-character ending that didn't sit well with me 3/5) CW: drug use

16. Calico Joe- John Grisham (A short read. Very heartwarming story 5/5)

17. The Judge's List- John Grisham (His newest. So good!! 5/5)

18. Every Breath- Nicholas Sparks (This was a lovely story 5/5)

19. On Mystic Lake- Kristin Hannah (Very sweet 5/5) 

20. The Enemy- Lee Child (If you've seen the series "Reacher" on Amazon, this is what the series is based off, the character Jack Reacher. This is the "first" Reacher novel, basically how he becomes so. Good story albeit with some slow parts. And violent at times 4.5/5) CW: violence

21. The Horsewoman- James Patterson (A good story but not his best. Some of it seemed a bit "hokie" to me 3/5)

22. The Four Winds- Kristin Hannah (Meh. I REALLY wanted to like it since it's her newest and because the bar was set really high with "Firefly Lane", but...I just did not like it. At all. It was very depressing, and the end was just too abrupt and it felt like a cheap shot 1/5)

23. The Broker- John Grisham (This was good! Last-minute pardoned power broker lives a new life undercover while at the same time he's tracked down 4/5) 

24. Comfort and Joy- Kristin Hannah (Pure fluff, set at Christmastime. I ate it up! LOL 5/5)

25. In the Woods- Tana French (Heavy. If you have kids, read with caution 4.5/5) CW: death

26. Zoo- James Patterson (A lot of similarities to the book and real-life Covid and human culture specifically in dealing with pandemics/mass events, very interesting since this was published in 2012 4/5).

27. The Partner- John Grisham (Took a bit to get set up but once it did, I was hooked! 5/5)

28. Fly Away- Kristin Hannah (sequel to Firefly Lane. Good but sad 5/5) CW: death, grief, loss

29. Broken Harbor- Tana French (Good but sad, lots of twists 5/5) CW: death

30. Home Front- Kristin Hannah (Really good! One of her better ones. Deployment story and how it takes a toll on a marriage/family 5/5) CW: PTSD

31. Distant Shores- Kristin Hannah (Although some components of the main character bothered me, I really liked this one 4.5/5)

32. The Masterpiece- Francine Rivers (her newest. So good!! If you liked Redeeming Love, give this one a read 5/5) 

33. The Overlook- Michael Connolly (Short. Good twist! 5/5) 

34. City of Bones- Michael Connolly (Good but a bit longer than his others. Lots of twists 4.5/5)
 
35. Wish You Were Here- Jodi Picoult (A good story with a very unexpected plot twist. Found the main character to be unlikeable at times. The author did a really great job of capturing the sheer horror and uncertainty that was early Covid, right in the "hot zone" of New York 4.5/5) CW: Covid-19

36. Prodigal Summer- Barbara Kingsolver (I have read a few of hers and enjoyed those, especially The Poisonwood Bible, but this one missed the mark for me. 400+ pages....and nothing really happened plot-wise. I did like the character development, though 2/5)

37. The Searcher- Tana French (This was the third of hers I read this year. It was not my favorite out of the three but I did like it. The "thriller" component of the book was wrapped up kind of hastily but I really liked the characters and the descriptions of life in rural Ireland. There were a few little twists, too. Her books are usually pretty long and take at least a couple of weeks for me to get through, but I finished this one in just about a week. 3.5/5) 

38. Night Road- Kristin Hannah (I read this book in three days. I could not put it down! I fell in love with the family (controlling mother main character and all). It is a powerful story about the redemption- and healing- that comes from forgiveness. 25/5) CW: alcohol

39. The Great Alone- Kristin Hannah (I've read quite a few of hers this year. This is one of the better ones, next to Night Road and Firefly Lane. I loved it! A story about survival and family and the power and strength that can bind or tear apart. 10/5) CW: abuse

40. The Horse Dancer- Jojo Moyes (Not bad, but LONG. Just so, so long. The large print version was almost 650 pages with not much plot and a story that was, at times, pretty unrealistic. Nice ending, though, but not my favorite of hers at all 2.5/5) 

41. A Spark of Light- Jodi Picoult (She writes about a very difficult issue very well, examined both sides of it and offered multiple perspectives. It didn't feel "preachy" at all. Also very interesting in terms of plot set up but I will not give any spoilers. 5/5) CW: abortion

42. Winter Garden- Kristin Hannah (Between traveling for Thanksgiving and starting a new job and Justin's big bike ride, there was a lot going on in life while I was reading this, so it took me a couple of weeks to get through it. However...Great book. Very powerful, and an unexpected but satisfying ending. Pace at times was a bit slow. 4.5/5) 

43. Summer Island- Kristin Hannah (This was a great and moving story about the family ties that bind and how family can bring everyone together in unexpected circumstances. Good character development too! 4.5/5) 

44. The Whistler- John Grisham (Could not put this one down! 5/5) 

As a bonus, here are some MOVIES my sweetie and I enjoyed this year:

• Top Gun: Maverick
  
• Thor: Love and Thunder
• Spiderman No Way Home
• Uncharted
• Encanto
• 10 Items or Less
• The Gray Man
• Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
• Bullet Train
• Father Stu
• Hustle
• The Adam Project
• No Time to Die (yes, technically released last year, but we'd been waiting for it to stream)
• Free Guy (also released in 2021 but were waiting for streaming)
• Sonic the Hedgehog 2
  
• Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
  
• Avatar: The Way of Water