Top 10: Favorite Books of 2022

2022 was the year I finally got out of my reading slump. For not having read for quite some time, I finally discovered what I really want to read, explored new genres and authors. I had a great reading year. My goal was 20 books, I ended up reading 33, which is a big deal for me. Here are my favorite books I read this year.

10. I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy
A book I would have never picked up if I hadn’t read so many great things about it on social media. It’s a memoir from Jennette McCurdy, who got fame because of her role as Sam Puckett on the Nickelodeon show “iCarly”. She tells the story of how she never wanted to become an actress, but was forced into it by her mother who wanted nothing more than for Jennette to be famous. It’s an honest, raw and heartbreaking story. Read my FULL REVIEW HERE.
 

9. The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman
I started this series this year and “The Man Who Died Twice” is the second book in the Thursday Murder Club series. We follow a group of septuagenarians who live in an elderly community and have a murder club, where they try to solve cold cases. When people actually get murdered around them, they try to solve it. The characters are so great, I would love to be part of this group. This is a highly enjoyable whodunit and a perfect sequel. Check out my FULL REVIEW HERE.
 

8. The Maidens by Alex Michaelides
This is the book that got me out of my reading slump. A book I received in a blind book box. Mariana Andros visits her niece Zoe after her friend Tara has gone missing. Zoe goes to Cambridge University and soon Mariane starts suspecting one of Zoe’s professors: Edward Fosca. He is a professor of Greek Tragedy and a very popular man. He even has a group of loyal female followers who themselves the Maidens. I loved the dark academia vibe and the constant tension between Mariana and Fosca. A rock solid mystery thriller. Read my FULL REVIEW HERE.
 

7. The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz
This was one of the surprises this year. I got this in a blind book box and I was so surprised in how good this book was and how much I ended up loving it. It’s about Jake Bonner, a teacher of creative writing and a failed writer. When one of his students shares a plot he’s been writing and Jake later learns he dies, Jake decides to use the plot himself and write a book. It turns out to be a best-selling novel, but someone has found out that the plot this book is based on, isn’t his. The book isn’t the most eventful one I read, but somehow it intrigued me. There is this constant oppressive feeling and Jake’s fear throughout the book kept me invested. There are also chapter where you actually read parts of Jake Bonner’s book. I found this really clever. I was super impressed by Jean Hanff Korelitz’ writing and can’t wait to read more of her work. Read my FULL REVIEW HERE.
 

6. Rock Paper Scissors by Alice Feeney
The second book by Alice Feeney that I read and I loved it. Adam and Amelia are taking a trip to Scotland, were they will be spending the weekend together. Adam is a workaholic screenwriter who suffers from face blindness. While on their vacation, Adam and Amelia realize something is not right. The story is told from three different perspectives: Adam, Amelia and a woman named Robin. There are also chapters that are letters written to Adam by his wife, commemorating several anniversaries of their marriage. This was such a good thriller, so well-crafted. The plot twists were amazing. Read my FULL REVIEW HERE.
 

5. Lock Every Door by Riley Sager
This was my introduction to Riley Sager. A book that kept me on the edge of my seat at all times. Life hasn’t been particularly kind to Jules Larsen. She was fired, dumped by her boyfriend, no place to live and broke. She stumbles upon an ad for a house sitter, in the Bartholomew building, where the rich and famous live. The amazing salary would solve all of Jules’ problems. And even though it all sounds to good to be true, Jules grabs the opportunity. But strange things are happening in the Bartholomew. The story alternates timelines and when the book started, I was immediately sucked in. And the ending had me speechless, so unexpected and original. Sager became a favorite auto-buy author for me this year. My FULL REVIEW IS HERE.
 

4. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
This book is an enchanting and heartwarming novel that shows that there are always other possibilities. An ode to life. In “Midnight Library” we meet Nora who is overwhelmed by the feeling that she has made wrong choices in her life, disappointing everyone. when she finds herself in the Midnight Library, a place between life and death she gets the chance to see the many ways her life could have turned out differently. Every book she opens takes her to another life. You can read my FULL REVIEW HERE.
 

3. His & Hers by Alice Feeney
This was the first Alice Feeney book I read and I was blown away by “His & Hers”. A woman is murdered in a parking lot. Journalist Anna Andrews is reluctant when she has to report on this police investigation. Detective Jack Harper suspects Anna’s involvement in the case, but eventually becomes a suspect himself. One of them is not telling the truth. Each chapter brought new information and I loved how the book was told from three different perspectives: his, hers and the murderer’s. And the end was so good, never saw it coming. Read my FULL REVIEW HERE.
 

2. A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson
This is the first in a series and a debut novel for Holly Jackson. I’m not very good at keeping up with series, but this one I will definitely continue reading. Because I absolutely loved reading this book. It follows the story of Pippa, a student who decided to write her final essay on a murder that happened in her hometown five years ago, where Andie bell was murdered and Sal Singh was arrested for it. Pip doesn’t believe that Sal did it and wants to find out what actually happened all those years ago. The format of this book was so unique and it really was a page-turner. You can read my FULL REVIEWHERE.
 

1.  The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune
I would have never picked up this book if it wasn’t recommended to me, because the synopsis didn’t appeal to me at first. Let alone thinking this would eventually become my favorite of the year and even a new all-time favorite. It follows Linus Baker, who is a social worker with the Department in Charge of Magical Youth. He is given the special assignment of investigating whether six magically gifted at-risk youngsters living in an orphanage on a small island may pose too great a danger to society. This book was such a warm hug, I loved every minute of it and all the characters were so loveable. And aren’t these the best books, when you don’t even expect to like it as much as you did? I am so glad I decided to pick it up. Read my FULL REVIEW HERE.  
 
Honorable mentions: Pop Goes the Weasel by M.J. Arlidge, The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware, Home Before Dark by Riley Sager, Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng, The One by John Marrs

Book Review - Lock Every Door by Riley Sager

Title: Lock Every Door
Series: -
Author: Riley Sager
 
Description: No visitors. No nights spent away from the apartment. No disturbing the other residents, all of whom are rich or famous or both. These are the only rules Jules Larsen’s new job as an apartment sitter at the Bartholomew, one of Manhattan’s most high-profile and mysterious buildings. Recently heartbroken and just plain broke, Jules is taken in by the splendor of her surroundings and accepts the terms, ready to leave her past life behind. As she gets to know the residents and staff of the Bartholomew, Jules finds herself drawn to fellow apartment sitter Ingrid, who comforting, disturbingly reminds her of the sister she lost eight years ago. When Ingrid confides that the Bartholomew is not what it seems and the dark history hidden beneath its gleaming façade is starting to frighten her, Jules brushes it off as a harmless ghost story. Until the next day, when Ingrid disappears. Searching for the truth about Ingrid’s disappearance, Jules digs deeper into the Bartholomew’s dark past and into the secrets within its walls.  
 
Review: Jules Larsen is a young woman for whom life has not been particularly kind, to say the least. Currently, she is at rock bottom. Fired, dumped by her boyfriend who cheated and as a result she is homeless and broke. Her best friend Chloe offers her shelter, but it can’t go on like this for long. desperate for new work, Jules responds to a small vague ad seeking a house sitter. Her sense of unreality rises when it turns out that the apartment is in the Bartholomew Building, an old iconic building from 1919, in the Gothic style, even lavishly outfitted with stone gargoyles. Only the rich and famous live in the Bartholomew, and they are very fond of their privacy. The striking thins is that Jules, in her youth, read the book “Heart of a Dreamer” by the mysterious writer Greta Manville, which was about a girl starting a new life in New York who ended up in the luxurious world of the Bartholomew and found her happiness there… just as Jules seems to be doing now. The offer is almost too good to be true. A fantastic luxury apartment for three months and $4,000.00 a month in salary. For Jules, the solution to all her problems. She ignores the vague feelings that something isn’t right and all Chloe’s objections, because Chloe doesn’t trust it at all. Jules, however, seizes the opportunity to reset her life with both hands.  

 
This is Riley Sager’s third book and my first of his to read. His writing style is so evocative that you are immediately in the middle of the story. It makes “Lock Every Door” definitely count as a literary thriller. The description of the building, of the rooms in the apartment, you just imagine yourself inside. It evokes a vague idea of the boardgame Clue, but only in the beginning. Soon it gets a lot more exciting and dark and you start to thing of a haunted house.
 
The atmosphere in “Lock Every Door” becomes increasingly mysterious and Sager manages to subtly introduce twists in the story and leave clues in a subcutaneous way. You begin to notice odd inconsistencies in the pieces set in the present, and Jules’ flashbacks to the recent past begin to become increasingly strange and menacing. The rules she has to abide by in the house, the other apartment sitters and residents who act separately, the people who have disappeared over the years.
“Lock Every Door” is writing from the first person perspective, from the perspective of Jules. The story flows smoothly with two timelines: the present and several days in the past. The evens in the present put the reader on edge right away, where the events in the past don’t really start exciting, but that contrast is very intriguing. You do get a vague idea right away, knowing something is off.
 
Once you start reading the book, you can’t put it down. And the climax is surprising and disturbing at the same time. I will definitely read more of Riley Sager’s work, because I really enjoyed “Lock Every Door”. Highly recommend it.
 
Rating: 5 / 5