Book Reviews and Thoughts: A Year in Review

As I look back on the books I read in 2022, I am reminded of how much I have grown as a reader and writer. One book that still resonates with me deeply is Catherine, House by Elizabeth Thomas. The vibes were all there for this one, but unfortunately, there wasn't much else to say about it beyond that. It's a solid read, but not particularly memorable.

On the other hand, I have to give a shoutout to Babel by RF Quang. Easily one of my new favorite books of all time, it resonated with me so deeply and also a novel that I think is incredibly important for anyone to read. The themes explored in this book are crucial and will likely stay with me for a long time.

Another book that stands out in my mind is Ace of Spades by Farida Abike. This is literally just get out meets Gossip Girl, so if you like either of those two things you'll probably like this. However, I also think it's worth mentioning that the plot is very easy to guess. Despite this, I still enjoyed the book and would recommend it to fans of the genres.

On a more serious note, Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover has become my go-to fan fiction on Wattpad. It's the worst Life With Derek fan fiction you could possibly find. One out of five stars, I wouldn't recommend this one at all.

Unfortunately, November 9 by Colleen Hoover was another disappointment. Joe Goldberg tries his hand at arson, and it ends with us again - literally. This book is not a romance novel, and it should come with trigger warnings for several reasons, including the fact that the main character is a florist named Lily Blossom Bloom who writes letters to Ellen DeGeneres.

Reminders of Him are not something I ever want to be reminded of again. The only redeeming quality of this book was its unique premise, but even that failed to save it from its overall mediocrity.

Verity is another story altogether. This book needs to respect itself and readers by recommending a much better read, like Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier.

A Dowry of Blood by St Gibson is an interesting retelling of Dracula from the perspective of one of his wives. It intricately explores themes of power and abuse, making for a thought-provoking read.

Finally, I want to rave about Kiss Her Once. This book was dramatic, funny, heartwarming, and well-written. It's also definitely the best Sapphic romance book I read this year.

As I wrap up my year in review, I want to thank Jenny for the idea for this video. I'm not sure if she's the first person to come up with it, but she's just the first one I've seen to record a video like this.

Looking ahead to 2023, I plan to continue with my yearly reviews and also start some new ones. One of these series will be my favorite books of the year, and another will be my top 10 worst books read. I'll also be doing a popular book series video and possibly a yearly TBR video.

I'm excited for the content that's coming up in the new year and hope you guys are too. If you'd like to follow me on any of my social media, all of my links are in the description box as always.

That's it for now, folks! I'll see you in my next video.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enhello everyone welcome so it is finally the start of the new year and I'm really excited  because the end of the year slash the beginning of the year is my favorite time to make videos  because there are so many great end of the year reading videos to make wrap ups favorite books  least favorite books all those things and this year while I'll still be making my traditional  favorite and least favorite books of the Year video I also wanted to do something new because  I saw Jenny from the story ain't over do this on her Channel where she reviewed every book that she  read in 2022 in one sentence and I just thought it was such a great clever idea so full credit  to her I will leave her original video Linked In the description box if you want to go watch it I  just really like the idea so I really wanted to do it too so that's what we're going to be doing  today basically I'm just gonna go over kind of like my general reading stats from the year and  then I'm just gonna get into literally every book that I read in 2022 and we're going to talk about  all 87 of them because yes I actually read 87 books last year which is not compared to a lot  of people but it's a lot compared to others and it's a lot compared to me over the past couple of  years so I'm really happy and satisfied with how much I read last year I believe in 2020 I think I  only read like nine books I really didn't read a lot which was so weird for me last year I think I  read around like 20 something books like 25 29 maybe which for me is also a really low number  so to have read 87 books this year was a really big difference and it felt like I was getting  back to like my old self again I think on average I typically read about like 50 or so books a year  but I've read like up to 100 before so 87 was very solid um and I really loved the majority of what I  read this year I had some really bad times um there were a couple months there where I read  a lot of bad books although those were mostly intentional I did read some manga series this  year so I read like 10 or 8 volumes for example of certain Series so I'm not going to separate  those and give you a sentence review for each of those because I feel like I don't even know if  I can distinguish between the separate volumes at this point for some of them so I'll just give you  like a one sentence review of all the volumes that I read if that makes sense really quickly before  we get into every book that I read I want to both remind you and thank you all for your support of  the call Quick reader reading Journal over this past year I released my reading Journal last  December and so now it's been out for a year a little bit over a year at this point and it's so  exciting seeing you all use it at the beginning of the year seeing the filled up ones from last  year so if you're looking for a reading journal to track your reading for the new year if you want to  write reviews make little collages or just keep track of your favorite authors favorite upcoming  releases things like that you can use this reading Journal so yes again thank you all so much for  your support in the journal over the past year I deeply deeply appreciate it I'm so glad you guys  are loving it and I'm very excited for you all to see what might be coming in the future that's all  I'll say but now without any further Ado let's get into every book I read in 2022 summed up in  one sentence starting off I read volumes 1 through 10 of Yona of the dawn yone of the Dawn is perfect  for fans of Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood or avatar The Last Airbender who also love a slow  slow burn romance 5 out of 5 Stars next I read ain't burnt all the bright by Jason Reynolds this  is a three sentence poem on the effects of covid social movements and politics on our culture and  lives over the past few years told through these collage style photography and like images four out  of 5 Stars she and her cat this was a manga her cat loves her a little too much two out of five  stars five centimeters per second another manga everything I wanted normal people by Sally Rooney  to be and so much more 4.75 to 5 out of 5 Stars fluids by Maggie Nelson a series of vignettes  all related to the color blue and I liked it in concept a lot more than I liked the execution  because it felt a little bit too convoluted three out of five stars The Picture of Dorian  Gray by Oscar Wilde possibly my new all-time favorite classic because I loved everything  from the writing to the social commentary to The Vibes 5 out of 5 Stars convenience store  Woman by sayaka Morata I loved the critique of capitalist culture and the pressure to conform  to society's expectations and Norm forms 4 out of 5 Stars Bear Town by Frederick Bachmann this was  a really difficult book to read about sa and the influence of sports culture on who we choose to  believe and how we can raise these people up to be kind of like Heroes and how problematic that  can end up being and how harmful four out of 5 Stars the love hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood  reylo fan fiction isn't my thing and neither are romance books where the man is described as three  times her size and then we have to be reminded of it every five seconds two out of five stars  the Spanish love deception by Elena armas for this one I'll just quote my Goodreads review I  really suffered through this entire thing to get to the smut only to have him say I want  to feel you milking me baby while using a probably expired condom one star people we meet on vacation  by Emily Henry sweet and heartfelt but I just felt like there was a little something missing 3.5 out  of 5 Stars One Last Stop by Casey mcquiston extremely underwhelming and lacking in terms  of character development and also the subway scene was a choice 2.75 out of 5 stars get a  life Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert a fun steamier romance with well-written characters that also  includes fat and disability rep 3 out of 5 Stars Heart Stopper volumes one through four the most  wholesome heartwarming story about love friendship and identity that I wish I could have read as a  kid 5 out of 5 Stars you've reached Sam by Dustin Tau underwhelming and not as emotional as I was  expecting it to be for a story about grief 3 out of 5 Stars before the coffee gets cold a  collection of connected stories about people who visit a time traveling coffee shop that  discusses themes of grief loss loneliness love and family that simultaneously feels like a warm  hug and a hot cup of coffee 4.5 out of 5 Stars the girl from the other side this was another  manga spooky and Gothic Vibes mixed with themes of loneliness and isolation and an eerie art style  make for the perfect combination in a series I will definitely be continuing 4 out of 5 Stars  my year of rest and relaxation biotessa moshveg a unique concept but the story's message felt a  bit shallow to me and just didn't fully land and it's a book that I feel is a little bit overhyped  3 out of 5 Stars conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney the one and only Sally Rooney book  I actually like and will recommend 4.25 out of 5 Stars my dark Vanessa one of the most disturbing  yet empathetic books I've read about trauma and in my opinion it's the trauma plot Done Right 5  out of 5 Stars The Idiot by Iliff batumman I truly had no idea what was going on the entire time nor  did I have any desire to know what was going on but I can still understand why some people would  like this book two out of 5 Stars All About Love by Bell hooks I love Bell Hooks and while this  one wasn't my personal favorite I still enjoyed it and I'll definitely be reading anything I can  by her in the future 4 out of 5 Stars blue flag volumes one through eight a unique manga series  about youth identity and the complicated line between platonic love and romantic love that is  very similar to Heart Stopper just a little bit darker 4 out of 5 Stars beautiful world where are  you by Sally Rooney people often criticize Sally Rooney for using her characters as mouthpieces  for her ideologies and her books because it makes them feel less realistic and less like people so  in this book she decided to once again use her characters as mouthpieces to respond to that  criticism instead of just writing a blog post or an article 1.75 to 2 out of 5 Stars Chicken  with Plums by imagine satrapy a very short graphic novel about a man whose beloved instrument breaks  and he becomes so depressed that he decides to just sleep and never get up again which is  incredibly relatable and iconic 4 out of 5 Stars the atlas 6 by Olivia Blake an overall very fun  dark Academia fantasy series that I feel like needs a little bit of work on the World building  but was otherwise enjoyable 4 out of 5 Stars Red Queen by Victoria aveyard everything about this  screamed 2010 why a fantasy but unfortunately not in a good way two out of 5 Stars the selection  by Kira Cass the main character is named America singer and she is a singer finger  1.25 out of 5 stars from blood and Ash by Jennifer L armentrout quite literally the  worst written book I have ever read in my entire life one out of 5 Stars slammed by Colleen Hoover  ezria 2.0 teacher-student relationship where the teacher reads his really bad slam poetry  out loud to the class so really he deserves to be in jail for two reasons one out of five stars  a court of thorns and Roses by Sarah J Maas this is just bad Howl's Moving Castle fan fiction and  nobody will ever convince me otherwise 1.5 out of 5 Stars spy family volumes one through five found  family Shenanigans at its finest 5 out of 5 Stars the wolf in The Woodsman by Ava Reed a fantastic  dark Standalone fantasy novel with a mix of Jewish and Hungarian mythology and a bit of an enemies  to lovers romance 4 out of 5 Stars the traveling cat Chronicles if you've ever had a cat this will  very likely make you cry but unfortunately I just wanted a little something more out of it 3.75 to  4 out of 5 Stars sorcery of thorns by Margaret Rogerson Stu Studio Ghibli and more specifically  house Moving Castle Vibes in a cozy intriguing romantic Standalone fantasy novel is quite  literally all I could ever ask for 5 out of 5 Stars let us believe in the beginning of the cold  season by Fury the best poetry collection I have ever read and I would recommend it to absolutely  everyone 5 out of 5 Stars a far Wilder Magic by Alison Saft Roy and Riza fan fiction at its best 5  out of 5 stars seven days in June by Tia Williams one of the best romance books I've read in large  part due to the beautiful emotional writing 4 out of 5 Stars the charm offensive easily my favorite  romance book I've read so far 5 out of 5 Stars Book Lovers by Emily Henry thoroughly enjoyable  and perfect for any perfectionistic workaholic eldest sister 4.5 out of 5 Stars Delilah green  doesn't care by Ashley Herring Blake a bit too cheesy at times for me and also a bit rushed  which made it difficult for me to connect with the characters 3 out of 5 Stars a lady for a Duke by  Alexis Hall the perfect Regency romance for any Bridgerton fan just ignore the ugly cover and  just focus on the wonderful writing the passion between these characters and the incredible trans  rep 4.5 out of 5 Stars Juniper and Thorne by Ava Reed this has slowly become one of my favorite  books I've ever read because I have not been able to stop thinking about it since I read it and if  you like Gothic horror and witches and discussions about abuse and power you'll also love this one 5  out of 5 Stars Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde I honestly don't have much to say about this other than it  was much shorter than I was anticipating and I mostly just read it because I wanted to understand  all of the references that are made to it 3 out of 5 Stars parable of the sower by Octavia E Butler  truly one of the greatest and most intelligent books I have ever read and I don't think I will  ever be able to stop thinking about it 5 out of 5 Stars the vi count Who Loved Me by Julia Quinn  you do not need to read about Anthony Bridgerton trying to suck the B venom out of her chest just  watch season two of the show instead two out of 5 Stars alone with you in The Ether by Olivia Blake  this book was trying to do way too much all at one time so it felt really convoluted and pretentious  and unfortunately not in the fun way 2.75 out of 5 Stars nettle and Bone by T Kingfisher a  slow-paced Gothic romance that I feel like I should have really loved but ultimately was a  bit underwhelming for Me 3 out of 5 Stars I'm glad my mom died by Jeanette McCurdy the best celebrity  Memoir and probably just one of the best Memoirs I've ever read despite how difficult it was to  get through she told her story beautifully and honestly 5 out of 5 Stars everyone in this room  will someday be dead another book that I feel like I really should have loved but I think  literary fiction is either a hit or miss for me and unfortunately this one was a Miss 3 out of  5 Stars before the coffee gets cold Tales from the cafe the first book in the series was much  better than this one and while I enjoyed some of the stories in this one too I don't think I'll  be continuing on with the series 3 out of 5 Stars down Comes the Night by Alison Saft another Gothic  fantasy romance that was very enjoyable but just not personally a favorite 4 out of 5 Stars if we  were villains by ml Rio this book feels like it has lived in me forever and it is also exactly  the secret history except actually gay and so so so much better 5 out of 5 Stars Catherine  house by Elizabeth Thomas The Vibes were all there for this one but unfortunately there  wasn't much else 2.5 to 2.75 out of 5 Stars these violent Delights by Mike and emmer ever imagine  Will Graham and Hannibal Lecter go to college together in the 1980s 3.75 out of 5 Stars Babel  by RF Quang easily one of my new favorite books of all time that resonated with me so deeply and  also a novel that I think is incredibly important for anyone to read 5 out of 5 Stars Ace of Spades  by farida abike amide this is literally just get out meets Gossip Girl so if you like either of  those two things you'll probably like this but you will also probably be able to very easily guess  the plot of the story 3 out of 5 Stars okay we enter my Colleen Hoover era ugly Love by Colleen  Hoover the worst Life With Derek fan fiction you could possibly find on all of Wattpad One out of  5 Stars November 9 by Colleen Hoover Joe Goldberg tries his hand at arson one out of 5 Stars it ends  with us again I'm gonna quote my Goodreads review this is not a romance book and it should come with  trigger warnings for a number of reasons including the fact that the main character is a florist  named Lily blossom bloom who writes letters to Ellen DeGeneres 1.5 out of 5 Stars reminders of  him I never want to be reminded of this book ever again 1.5 out of 5 Stars Verity please respect  yourself and go read Rebecca by Daphne du maurier instead one out of 5 Stars a dowry of Blood by St  Gibson a retelling of Dracula from the perspective of one of his wives that intricately explores  themes of power and abuse 4.25 out of 5 stars and finally the last book I read in 2022 kiss her once  for me dramatic funny heartwarming well-written and definitely the best Sapphic romance book I  read this year 4.25 out of 5 stars and there you all have it that is it for every book that I read  in 2022 reviewed in one sentence thank you again to Jenny for the idea for this video I'm not sure  if she's the first person to come up with it she's just the first one I've seen to this video so like  I said I'll leave her video linked down below if you want to go watch it but yeah this was a lot  of fun I will be back very soon with my reviews of like my favorite books of the year my top 10  favorites and then probably a top 10 worst books I read it might be longer I don't know I think  I'm gonna have to do a top 10 and then maybe soon after that I'll just do like another popular books  I hate video because it's been a while it's been like several years since I've done one of those  but yeah I also have my yearly TBR and my most anticipated reads videos coming as well so I hope  you look forward to those and all of the other content that I have planned for the year thank you  all so much for your support over this past year and supporting the new like series and stuff that  I started doing last year it was a lot of fun I definitely plan to continue those and I also plan  to start some new ones as well that I'm excited about and I hope you guys are too if you would  like to follow me on any of my social media all of my links are in the description box as always  but thank you all so much for watching I hope you enjoyed and I will see you in my next video bye\n"