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Top 10 books I read in 2022

This year was less crazy than last year when it came to finding a job. I just stayed where I ended last year. It resulted in having enough money to buy a big house together with my hubby. We will be moving there at de beginning of 2023. I will finally have a room dedicated to my books which will be the library of course.

I also became a member of the Libelle review team this year. You will find those full reviews on the blog already. I was able to read 36 books this year.

So this was the short summary of my story this year. Here comes the top 10

10) Cinder 8/10

This was one of my summer reads. Since I grew up on the original fairy tales, I am always fascinated by fairy tale retellings. I have had the Lunar chronicles on my TBR for a while now and I finally started it. I loved that the usual cheesiness of a Cinderella story did overwhelm this story. Cinder is also not the typical damsel in distress, so I am looking forward to continuing this series.

9) The Lost Apothecary 8/10

This is one of my most recent reads that I finished while on holiday in Oxford and Watford. I loved having the British cities around me while this book took me back to London in 1791. The current-day Caroline made sure I was drawn in as a modern-day woman with an interest in history. It was so nice to follow along with how Caroline uncovered the mystery of the lost apothecary and also read what actually happened.

8) Unsinkable 8,5/10

The sinking of the Titanic is clouded in so much mystery that there are many theories on how it sank. Decades after the sinking I grew up with a dad who likes watching documentaries about it and so this book had to be read this year 110 years after the event. I loved how this book is a nice mix of what has been discovered already and has been documented and a fictional filling in of the details. This made sure that the book formed a nice complete story.

7) A Deadly education 8,5/10

I have had this book on my shelf and TBR since it came with the Illumicrate in 2020. I finally got to reading it in September, which is fitting for a Dark Academia book. This is really what this subgenre is all about. It has fantasy elements like magic and monsters. This is all in a school that wants to kill its students. I just love the darkness of it all and it makes me want to read more Dark Academia, just like the rest of this trilogy.

6) The hound of the Baskervilles 8,5/10

So I’ve decided to read the ‘complete collected works of Sherlock Holmes’ this year. Of all the stories this one is by far the best. It’s the first book since Sherlock supposedly died at Reinbach Falls but Sir Arthur Conan Doyle doesn’t address this because this is a story Watson tells before this event. The supernatural element of this story makes this book more intriguing and makes you want to what’s behind it all. This most certainly made this book worthy of a spot in this top 10. It is also the oldest story here.

5) Romanov 8,5/10

Much the same as with Unsinkable I am drawn to great tragedies from the past. This book is a spin on the theory that Anastasia survived the massacre of her family. This reads as a retelling of the real events until the supernatural elements, which are already there in de real Romanov’s story, are enhanced. It feels like a clever way of making this story more fun to read for fantasy lovers. What can I say, I love history and I love fantasy.

4) A Darker Shade of Magic 8,5/10

After how much I liked The invisible life of Addie Larue, I wanted to read more works from V.E.Schwab. I wanted to see how good this series was. It did not disappoint. In this book, we get to know London in different dimensions, as in Red London, Grey London, Black London, and White London. The way Magic is used is different in all Londons and most people can not travel between these. But we get to know a few characters who can. I think Lila Bard became my new favourite character.

3) Panic 9/10

This is a thriller by Flemish author Sandra J. Paul. It had me on the edge of my seat from start to finish and had the unique structure of telling this story chronologically from one character’s perspective and then telling it from the end to the beginning from another character’s perspective. I read this in one sitting and even recommended it to my aunt who loves thrillers. This is by far the best thriller I’ve read so far.

2) Three sisters 9/10

This was the first book I read for Libelle and also the first book of the year.  I also got the honour of meeting Heather Morris this year. This woman is such a lovely person who really knows how to tell these horrible stories without being disrespectful to the people whose stories these are. As a millennial, I never really knew war firsthand. Growing up in Belgium which was always in the middle of the World Wars, I heard a lot of hero stories and learned the numbers and how bad the circumstances were in the camps, but this book really brings a new level of realness to these horrors. It gives a face to the victims. I am happy that I got to thank her in person for writing these stories.

1) Gallant 9,5/10

I never thought that there would ever be a book that I would like more than Addie Larue, but it may come as no surprise that the same author dethroned the winner of last year. There is something about the darkness in this story that makes it even more alluring than Addie’s story. I bought this book when V.E. Schwab came to Ghent and when I met her I asked her to sign this book. This Dark fantasy takes me away from my reality to such a dark place that I can’t help to get drawn in. Thank you V.E. for this wonderful book.

That concludes my top 10 reads of 2022. What did you think of these books? Did you like them as well or maybe not? I will publish full reviews on them once I find more time to write. In the meantime, I recommend all of these, so if you haven’t read these go enjoy these wonderful stories.

Love BookDragon