#this blog is a work in progress so idk exactly what formatting i'll do but i want to use it more in 2023!

[cliffhanger-ending]

2022 Library Books

I moved to a new city this year and opened a library card, so I made this list of (most of) the books I checked out this year and my thoughts! Some are shorter than others because I started this list in about June so I was trying to remember how I felt about them a few months later haha

(Note I did not include books I DNF’d after like 30 pages because I didn’t see the point, I included a few I DNF’d further along)

That said, if anyone has any recs for 2023 reading, feel free to send me an ask!

List under the cut!

Red White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston - 3.5/5. Cute and cheesy, but felt a little too much at times

Mr. Penumbra’s 24 Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan - 3.5/5. Loved the concept and laughed out loud at parts but I'm not sure I liked the ending

The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern - 5/5. Honestly my favorite book I’ve ever read, the concept the writing the characters the world building the everything. Finished the entire 500 page book in 2 days, could have done it in 1 if I hadn’t started at 7 pm the first day

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern - 4/5. I think I read it too fast so there were a few parts I didn’t understand but overall very good, again loved the world building

Written in the Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur - 1/5. Just not my cup of tea, felt more like a poorly written fanfiction than a book. Grumpy/sunshine and fake dating but like… ok what else that’s literally the entire book

One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston - 4.5/5. This one wasn’t as hyped to me as RWRB was so I was pleasantly surprised that I liked it way better. Sapphic subway romance with a sci-fi twist, what more could you ask for? I love Jane. Docked half a point just because I personally did not enjoy the explicit scenes but that’s a me being sex repulsed thing and not anything against the author’s writing

The Passing Playbook by Isaac Fitzsimons - DNF. I’m definitely out of the intended age range for this book, and the writing was frankly bad. Felt like representation for the sake of checking off boxes on a diversity checklist

Anything But Fine by Tobias Madden - 2/5. I related to the main character as a former dancer forced to quit due to my body failing, but in terms of actual plot and characters it wasn’t super great

Beyond the Black Door by Adrianne Strickland - 2/5. Too many plot twists, felt really confusing. Ace/trans rep but in the weirdest most roundabout way possible so it didn’t feel like it. Don’t like her falling for the guy who literally invaded her mind and started living there

Sweet Sorrows by David Nichols - gonna be honest I don’t remember much of this one, it wasn’t what I was expecting out of it when I checked it out

Let’s Talk About Love by Claire Kann - DNF. Disappointed because I wanted the bi ace rep, but the writing wasn’t good and the representation felt wrong and frankly insulting

The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin - 3/5. The concept of this one is really intriguing and I loved the beginning where we found all the boroughs, but the ending wasn’t quite satisfying to me. Also felt like stereotyping in the bad way but maybe that was the point? I think it’s a series, maybe some of this is answered in the later books

The Sound of Stars by Alechia Dow - 2/5. Again disappointed by what should have been a really good book based on the concept. I wish it was more about the sci-fi than the romance and also that it wasn’t human/alien romance. Ending was not satisfying and I’ll admit I’m ace not demi so I don’t have firsthand experiences but the representation felt inaccurate

Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo - 4/5. Loved how much research clearly went into making it as accurate to 1950s San Francisco as possible. I related a lot to Lily in terms of her figuring out her sexuality and being perceived as naive and innocent by other queer people, and I really felt for her with all her internal (and let’s be honest external) conflict about her identities. There were just a few plot points I wish had been elaborated on more, like what happened to Kath after they got separated or what ever happened with Calvin

Pulp by Robin Talley - DNF. Abby’s character annoyed me to death, Janet’s story was slightly more interesting but not enough for me to want to keep reading. Disappointed because the premise was really good but it just was not executed well at all

Almost Like Being In Love by Steve Kluger - 4/5. Hilarious, loved all the characters and all the Red Sox references (being a big fan myself). Loved the formatting too but I get it’s not for everyone. Felt a bit over the top at parts (Travis that was definitely stalking bro) but it worked for the plot. First chapter when they were teens was definitely the best, epilogue felt a little anticlimactic but I guess it wrapped up nicely

Desire Lines by Christina Baker Kline - 1.5/5. Not what I was expecting when I checked it out, I thought it was going to be more of a mystery and it wasn’t (both in the sense that the first 70% of the book is basically an entirely different genre and that it was pretty easy to figure out the mystery). Did not like the main character at all, did not like the only gay character being a stereotype, did not like the justification of student/teacher relationships, did not like the romance. Bonus half star for small New England town setting but that’s probably the only thing I did like about it

Survive the Night by Riley Sager - 2/5. The premise was really interesting but the execution was not very good. I think it took me longer than most to figure out who did it but I was able to figure it out before the reveal, but the other big twist seemed like it came out of nowhere, especially after that character’s pov chapter. I didn’t like the whole “this is what happened, oh just kidding you made it up, nope you were right the first time” thing and that was pretty much the entire book. Especially didn’t like the very end when she married the guy who essentially kidnapped her

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab - 3/5. Absolutely loved it most of the way through and was ready to give it 4 stars, but the ending was bad enough to dock an entire star, it completely ruined it for me. It just fed into that trope of manipulation played off as “love” which I can’t stand. I did like Henry’s character and a lot of the side characters, and the writing itself, but for as much as I was loving it up until the last 70 pages or so I was left feeling extremely disappointed

Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor - DNF. I liked it enough for the first part with Lazlo, but as soon as it switched pov to Sarai it completely turned me off. Especially didn’t like the implication that Sparrow was in love with Feral when they were basically raised as siblings. The reviews on this one were overall really good so I was expecting more