2022 Reads
I read a lot in 2022.
Well, ‘a lot’ is an arbitrary amount when it comes to reading.
For me though it was a lot of reading, especially because it was almost exclusively fiction.
I also read every single book in 2022 on my Kobo E-reader, which is surprising given how much I love physical books! I guess it was just so easy to use and carry around, plus I could read in bed in the evenings without needing to turn a light now.
My desire to read fiction in 2022 was most certainly driven by the constant exposure to people’s experience of violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation during my time working in the Disability Royal Commission. Reading fiction was a great way for me to explore stories, worlds, characters and events that were far removed from the very real experiences people were sharing with the Commission through private Sessions on a daily basis. It was a cheap and easily accessible self-care strategy, and I’m pleased to say I’ve been keeping it up since leaving that role – and I plan to read even more in 2023!
I hope to expand back into some non-fiction this year actually. There’s a list of what I want to read here on my Good Reads page.
So here is the list of what I read last year, along with a little blurb on what I thought of each of them. I started a bunch more but didn’t finish them - so these are the books that really caught my attention and demanded that I read them through to the end.
I’ve also included the link to each book on Good Reads, just click on the book’s cover to be take there.
Wild Abandon - Emily Bitto
A fun read! The main character is and Australian bloke who find himself in the USA looking for something more than Australian culture has to offer him. I totally get that!
I found the main character a bit too pretentious in the first half of the book, but I am glad I stuck around for the second half - which certainly got wild and enjoyable. I really enjoyed the book’s narrative on what it is to be a tourist, and how we seek experiences that define who we are in those around us.
Autonomous - Annalee Newitz
Female pharmaceutical pirates anyone?
Autonomous was an interesting glimpse into the possible, perhaps even probable future role of pharmaceuticals in society, and a main character’s attempt to bring cheap drugs to everyone while fighting to make amends for their mistakes.
It was another fun read, and despite a few slower moments I found it quite enjoyable.
Elder Race - Adrian Tchaikovsky
A unique science fiction journey that blended magic, myth, legends, science, and space travel in one short yet well-structured journey.
This novella was a joy to read, I really recommend it!
Dead Man’s Grave - Neil Lancaster
I was drawn to this book when I saw it described as “Line of Duty on steroids”. That is a fully accurate description. This police-procedural novel was full of action, police corruption and satisfying moments of justice. It was also nice to read something based in Scotland.
I did find the language a bit too simple at times, with some over-explaining that felt a little too young-adult fiction. Still, it was a very easy to read and enjoyable ride.
Infected - Scott Sigler
Mysterious disease that turns people into murderers.
CIA.
Epidemiologists.
Bioengineering.
You get the drift…not a stunning piece of literary work, but fast, fun and a good distraction.
Metro 2034 - Omitry Glukhovsky
I really enjoyed Metro 2033, it was one of my favourite books that I read in 2021. I also played Metro Exodus this year, so I really found myself diving into the post WWIII world that feels so-very real given current world events.
Metro 2024 was just as enjoyable as it’s prequel, although I did find it a little more difficult to follow at times.
This was a fast-paced book. The action was blistering, and the underground metro world where people shelter from a surface ravaged by nuclear radiation is incredibly vivid and intriguing.
I highly recommend this series, and Metro Exodus (best videogame I played in 2022 for sure).
Project Hail Mary - Andy Weir
I think I loved this?
It was such a conversational, funny and light book exploring intergalactic space travel. Super easy to read and enjoyable.
On the other hand, I just felt that it was too simple. I guess that made it easy to keep reading, but at the same time I felt that I was missing out on any read depth to the characters and the story.
Regardless, it did make me laugh and I read it in no time at all.
I recommend reading some reviews before picking this one up though…
The Dry - Jane Harper
(Aaron Falk #1)
This was my favourite book I read in 2022. Even if you’ve seen the movie (also great), I recommend reading this book! In fact, the whole series is just fantastic.
Super atmospheric and oh so Australian, this is a very well written mystery that I could not put down.
The story starts with Federal Police investigator Aaron Falk returning to his home town, an outback Australian farming community, during a record drought season. It has everything you could want in a thriller/mystery novel, great characters, interesting plot lines and loads of suspense.
Do yourself a favour and read this one!
Force of Nature - Jane Harper
(Aaron Falk #2)
Another great mystery/suspense novel from Jane Harper, continuing the Aaron Falk series. Love this one as well. Here we learn more about Aaron’s past as he investigates the disappearance of a hiker from a group in the Giralang Ranges.
It was kind of like the Dry, but more atmospheric, and a little more creepy and violent.
It’s another great book!
Exiles - Jane Harper
(Aaron Falk #3)
This final of the Aaron Falk series was another great mystery read, and wrapped up this Australian Noir series perfectly.
This time Aaron find himself buried in suspense in South Australian wine country, which is vividly described by Jane’s approachable and vibrant writing style.
It was great to see Aaron and his support cast grow as characters in this final installment.
This might be the only 2022 published book I read last year also!
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet - Becky Chambers
(Wayfarers #1)
This was a close second for my favourite read of the year, and the whole series was definitely my favourite series that I read this year (and for a very long time).
This book introduces Becky Chambers’ feel-good brand of science fiction that is set in a huge intergalactic environment.
Actually, here’s the key points from a review by Anna on Good Reads which outline why this book is so great:
1. Feel-good science fiction.
2. It’s a great big world.
3. Great characters.
4. Great female characters.
5. It’s anti-prejudice.
6. Everyone isn’t white and straight.
7. Aliens who upset the gender binary.
8. The aliens are strange, but so are the humans.
9. The clerk who kicks ass.
10. The author is very nice.
A Closed and Common Orbit - Becky Chambers
(Wayfarers #2)
This stand-alone sequel to The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet is just as good, if not better, than Becky Chamber’s debut novel.
My favourite character in this novel was Lovelace, the AI program whose story of survival and identify is woven throughout this wonderful space-faring adventure.
I’m re-reading this one in 2023.
Record of a Spaceborn Few - Becky Chambers
(Wayfarers #3)
I must admit this wasn’t the follow on from A Closed and Common Orbit that I was hoping for, and at time I did find this novel a little confusing and hard to follow. It was still wonderful to explore more of Chambers’ beautiful world created in the Wayfarers series. If you’re reading all four books, then this is a must … but if you’re looking for a one off science fiction read with a social/humanist twist then this is the least accessible of the Wayfarers four.
The Galaxy, and the Ground Within - Becky Chambers
(Wayfarers #4)
I loved this final chapter of what was a thoroughly enjoyable series that left me wanting to start right back at the beginning straight away!
The Galaxy, and the Ground With is heartwarming, if a little slow, and highlights the importance of relationship and connection (hey, even Aliens need friends!).
Great book, but make sure you read the first three so that you really enjoy the experience.
The Boy in the Suitcase - Lene Kaaberol and Agnete Friis
This gritty mystery-thriller is set in Denmark, and yes, involves a three-year old boy being found inside a suitcase, asleep and drugged.
The main character Nina is a Red Cross nurse working in a welfare clinic, which is pleasant change from it being a detective or police officer-sort.
This ended up being a little darker than I hoped, although the title should have given it away I suppose!
If you like a dark and gritty thriller, this one is for you!
Below - Ryan Lockwood
“They’re here…and they’re very hungry”.
Yeah that should have been a hint…I found that this was a bit of a sloppy book. It was all action, mixed with a bit of horror, and a main character who in the end I found to be racist and obnoxious.
Sure, the murderous sea-creatures were fun - but if I had my time over, I’d have not read this one.
Oh well! Live and learn (unlike a few characters in this novel!)
Treasure and Dirt - Chris Hammer
Really loved this. It was outback Australian noir of the highest degree, and it really hit the spot. Such an accurate portrayal of an outback opal mining town (I’ve been in a few, and trust me it’s spot on), and a really complicated and intriguing mystery.
The Hobbit - J.R.R. Tolkien
Re-reading this classic was fantastic. I hadn’t read this again since the movies came out years ago, and reading it just reminded me how much better the book is than the films!
Beyond the Hallowed Sky - Ken Macleod
(Lightspeed Trilogy #1)
This was enjoyable, slightly nerdy and a little unique in that it explored the discovery of ‘faster than light travel’. While that is a ‘technology’ often present in science-fiction novels, this was the first I had read where the science/mechanics of such travel was explored in such detail.
Looking forward to the next book in the series, which is being released this year sometime!
Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury
Disturbing.
Important.
Timely.
Enthralling.
This is one of those books that everyone should read, every few years.
I alternate yearly between this, 1984 and Animal Farm.
Read this book.
