Night of the Living TrekkiesIf anyone is looking to beef up their TBR for the next GarbAugust Readathon, look no further. Night of the Living Trekkies by Kevin David Anderson and Sam Stall is the sort of adventure- and horror-laden fare that makes for an excellent palate cleanser and the perfect sort of book to pick up your mood.
Okay, let’s face, I’m not consistent with writing reviews but I am consistent with a few key things in my life. Drinking water, taking my allergy medicine and reading every day are all things I’m good at. Writing reviews? Not so much. Could I blame this on the fact that I work overtime pretty much every week? Yes. Should I work on being more consistent? Also yes.
So, here we are in April 2023, with me finally posting my list of favorite books from 2022. I read 138 books in 2022 and here are my top 10.
More …
The Decagon House MurdersAuthor Yukito Ayatsuji is known for supporting a return to classic detective fiction—the sort of fare produced by the likes of Christie and Doyle—and his novel The Decagon House Murders is no exception. In fact, this novel is credited with beginning the shinhonkaku movement, a literary movement in Japan to restore Golden Age mystery novel plotting and style, while at the same time, influencing anime as well.
All the Horses of IcelandSarah Tolmie—author, poet, and writer of sonnets—brings us a novella combining fantasy and historical fiction that captures all the feel of an old tale found in an ancient, labyrinthine library. As a medievalist, Tolmie’s knowledge of the time period and literature of the age are keenly apparent in All the Horses of Iceland.
We Lie HereRachel Howzell Hall is no stranger to mystery and thriller novels, in fact being a former member of the board of directors for the Mystery Writers of America. Her latest book isn’t another installment in the Detective Elouise Norton series but a standalone novel titled We Lie Here.
HideProlific author of young adult books Kiersten White turns her literary hand to adult fiction in Hide. Mystery, horror, and thriller elements are combined into an intriguing tale set in an inherently eerie location—an abandoned amusement park.
HourglassKeiran Goddard’s 2022 novel Hourglass straddles the line between prose and poetry, giving readers a lyrical insight into love in all of its aspects: yearning for love, finding love, and losing love. Goddard has previously published two volumes of poetry titled For the Chorus and Votive. His works have also been shortlisted for both the Melita Hulme and William Blake prizes. Hourglass is his first novel, however, and one that certainly succeeds in what it sets out to do.
LungfishMeghan Gilliss’s Lungfish is a literary fiction novel by a debut novelist. Our main character is known only as Tuck, and it is from her first-person point of view that the tale unfolds.
Our Wives Under the SeaSome books are hard to categorize. Instead of being immediately recognizable as high fantasy or romance or the sort of literary work beloved by university professors, they meld genres, slipping from one to the other as if donning new clothes. Julia Armfield takes an exploration of grief, a celebration of love and romance, and the unknown horrors that lurk deep within the ocean, melding them together into a book that lingers long after the final page.
The Missing WordOne of the best explorations of grief, possibly ever written, is Concita De Gregorio’s The Missing Word. Originally written in Italian and translated into English by the fantastic Clarissa Botsford, The Missing Word is the true story of a woman whose two young daughters disappear, never to be seen again. It is a story of desperation and grief, told with all the urgency of a psychological thriller. It is a story that will rip your whole soul right out of your chest, laying everything bare for all to see. And it is a story that I cannot recommend enough.
Welcome to Looking Glass Reads! We review speculative fiction novels as well as manga, light novels, and graphic novels.
Brittney's Posts Kate's Posts
Social Profiles