Thread by @SpeasySpice

Just squeaking by under the wire here, but THUS BEGINS MY BEST BOOKS OF 2022 THREAD! Follow along for all the books I loved this year! ⬇️👇

Buy these fabulous books from your local indie bookstore, or the audio at @librofm, or check them out from @LibbyApp / your local library!

OLGA DIES DREAMING by Xochitl Gonzalez (@Flatironbooks)

I read this for the @ABAbook's #IndiesIntroduce list this past winter & it's still the best book I read all year. It's wise, warm & witty, touches on race and wealth to diaspora and family while keeping you turning the page

JOAN by Katherine J. Chen (@randomhouse)

A powerful, secular reimagining of the life of Joan of Arc, written in gorgeous prose, vivid detail, and visceral detail. I wanted to reread it as soon as I finished.

BABEL by @kuangrf (@HarperVoyagerUS)

**I am standing in solidarity with the @hcpunion, who has been on strike for two months for a fairer wage, workplace securities, and a safer and more inclusive workplace, by withholding my reviews of Harper titles.** #hcponstrike

ACCOMPLISHED by @quainiac (@WednesdayBooks)

Sometimes your bestie writes a book and it is so good you just have to SCREAM ABOUT IT A LOT. It's a fresh, sparkling debut with a heart the size of a marching band, and the brightest star in the constellation of Austen adaptations.

THE SONG THAT MOVES THE SUN by Anna Bright (@harperteen)

**I am standing in solidarity with the @hcpunion, who has been on strike for two months for a fairer wage, workplace securities, and a more inclusive workplace, by withholding my reviews of Harper titles.** #hcponstrike

NONA THE NINTH by @tazmuir (@TorDotComPub)

Another merry unhinged necromantic adventure that is gruesomely wacky, viscerally human, and unexpectedly tender. You're gonna be chomping at the bit for ALECTO, my babies.

WHAT SOULS ARE MADE OF by @tashadrinkstea (@FeiwelFriends )

An incredible remix of the Gothic Brontë classic that twists and turns and rages and heals and just absolutely rules. I loved it so much and I loved chatting with Tasha for @misshelvedpod a few episodes ago! CHECK IT

THE RED PALACE by @WriterJuneHur (@FeiwelFriends)

I love each June Hur book more than the last, and this one is a deliciously twisty YA historical mystery that thrills with every page. Instabuy, y'all, instabuy.

A PRAYER FOR THE CROWN-SHY by Becky Chambers (@TorDotComPub)

I thought it would be incredibly difficult to follow up the perfect breath of fresh air that was the first Monk and Robot book, but I should have known better. Book 2 is just as warm and kind and wise and revelatory.

FIGHT LIKE HELL:THE UNTOLD HISTORY OF AMERICAN LABOR by @GrimKim (@AtriaBooks)

What an exploitative business you have there..what a shame if something were to..HAPPEN...

This book is rad as hell y'all. Every one of us needs to know these stories. There is strength in the union

this is your periodic reminder to support the @hcpunion by liking/sharing their posts, withholding any reviews/blurbs of Harper titles until there is a resolution to the strike, and donating to their strike fund if you are able: tinyurl.com/4ecnhzyj

DUCKS by @beatonna (@DandQ)

What a stunning graphic novel. Full of gorgeous, melancholy art and powerful emotions just under the surface. It's an exceptional book about loneliness, labor, survival in a male-dominated world, and finding your way home.

WHEN WE WERE BIRDS by @AyaRoots (@doubledaybooks)

A lush, magical Trinidadian love story between Yejide and Darwin, two lost souls who face an unexpected reckoning with Death and Destiny withing their city’s oldest cemetery. A gorgeous, unexpected book, I adored it.

CATCH THE SPARROW: A SEARCH FOR A SISTER AND THE TRUTH OF HER MURDER by @RaeRear (@BloomsburyPub)

A poignant true crime memoir about fathers, sisters, and family ghosts. An emotional but powerful read, @OMPEileen and I loved it.

SIREN QUEEN by @NghiVoWriting (@TorDotComPub)

Rich, sinuous, eldritch magic and human and mythical monsters in Old Hollywood. This book is a sapphic sensory delight that you can just sink into and immerse yourself. Chef’s kiss, 10/10 Hollywood stars.

SQUIRE by @SaraAlfageeh & @Nadia_Shammas_ (@QuillTreeBooks)

A fabulous graphic novel set in a richly-drawn world that explores identity, prejudice, and honor with a fun, heartfelt, rollicking adventure. I loved every page.

BRAVELY by @mstiefvater (@DisneyBooks)

A perfect Christmas fairy tale that gives you just the right combination of magic and heart and adventure, and it is such a great time. A worthy sequel and a thrilling tale of its own. CUE UP THE PIPES.

A CARIBBEAN HEIRESS IN PARIS by Adriana Herrera (@HarlequinBooks)

*I am standing in solidarity with the @hcpunion, who has been on strike for two months for a fairer wage, workplace securities, & a more inclusive workplace, by withholding my reviews of Harper titles #hcponstrike

MANIFESTO: ON NEVER GIVING UP by @BernardineEvari (@groveatlantic)

Warm, witty wisdom gleaned from years of hard work and persistence. Evaristo is a smart, powerful writer who never takes herself too incredibly seriously, but whose great care and skill shines on every page.

PANDORA'S JAR: WOMEN IN THE GREEK MYTHS by @officialnhaynes

**I am standing in solidarity with the @hcpunion, who has been on strike for two months for a fairer wage, workplace securities, & a more inclusive workplace, by withholding my reviews of Harper titles** #hcponstrike

THE DAUGHTER OF DOCTOR MOREAU by @silviamg (@DelReyBooks)

A mad scientist, a melancholic foreman, indigenous Maya rebels, encroaching landowners, and a mysterious young woman at the center of it all... A fast and furious adventure, perfect for any science fiction-fantasy lover!

OUR WIVES UNDER THE SEA by @JuliaArmfield (@Flatironbooks)

This book is mysterious, eerie, and suspenseful, it made me feel like I was slowly being submerged into the ocean myself. Scratches that gorgeous but unnerving literary fiction itch perfectly.

PARTNERS IN CRIME by @AlishaRai (@avonbooks)

**I am standing in solidarity with the @hcpunion , who has been on strike for two months for a fairer wage, workplace securities, and a safer and more inclusive workplace, by withholding my reviews of Harper titles.**

#HCPOnStrike

SPOILER ALERT/ ALL THE FEELS/ SHIPWRECKED by @OliviaWrites (@avonbooks)

I'm standing in solidarity with the @hcpunion, who has been on strike for 2 months for a fairer wage, workplace securities & a more inclusive workplace by withholding my reviews of Harper titles #HCPOnStrike

BAD MEXICANS: RACE, EMPIRE, & REVOLUTION IN THE BORDERLANDS by @klytlehernandez (@wwnorton)

A fascinating and thrilling history of the magonistas, migrant rebels whose work sparked the Mexican Revolution, and how the histories of the US and Mexico are inextricably linked.

INDELIBLE CITY: DISPOSESSION & DEFIANCE IN HONG KONG by @limlouisa (@riverheadbooks)

Part history, part art critique, part memoir, part travel narrative, this book is a fascinating glimpse into the paradoxical island of Hong Kong as Mainland China's grip tightens on the city.

THE LAST GRADUATE / THE GOLDEN ENCLAVES by @naominovik (@DelReyBooks)

Book 2 and 3 of the Scholomance series do not disappoint, and if you haven't read this series yet, what are you even DOING. They're so fun and fresh and clever and surprising, pick them up ASAP.

A DREADFUL SPLENDOR by @br_myers (@Morrow_PB)

**I am standing in solidarity with the @hcpunion, who has been on strike for two months for a fairer wage, workplace securities, and a safer and more inclusive workplace, by withholding my reviews of Harper titles.**

#HCPOnStrike

SPEAR by @nicolaz (@TorDotComPub)

Misty magical queer Arthuriana that will sweep you off your feet and make you relish every word. Tordotcom is really killing the novella game, y'all, and this one is pretty stellar.

THE HACIENDA by @isabelcanas_ (@BerkleyPub)

A handsome widower brings his new young wife to his mysterious hacienda in the aftermath of the Mexican War of Independence and GOTHIC SUSPENSE AND SPOOKINESS OCCURS, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR

STAR CHILD: A BIOGRAPHICAL CONSTELLATION OF OCTAVIA ESTELLE BUTLER by Ibi Zoboi (@DuttonBooks for Young Readers)

A gorgeous mixture of biography & poetry, perfect for kids or adults. Ibi's esteem for Octavia E. Butler is present on every page, and it makes for a beautiful read.

A BALLAD OF LOVE & GLORY by @reynagrande (@AtriaBooks)

This book has everything: a sweeping historical epic, a seldom-explored slice of history (an Irish battalion fighting for Mexico), an exploration of the limits of patriotism, star-crossed lovers, YOU NAME IT.

THE WITCHES OF MOONSHYNE MANOR by @BiancaM_author (@HarlequinBooks)

*I'm standing in solidarity with the @hcpunion, who has been on strike for 2 months for a fairer wage, workplace securities & a more inclusive workplace, by withholding my reviews of Harper titles*

#HCPOnStrike

THE BODYGUARD by @katherinecenter (@StMartinsPress)

This book was such a fun, scrumptious read. It's snappy, it's snarky, it's just a bit romantic, and it's great big oodles of Texas-sized fun.

And that is it for the 2022 releases, but now it is time for all of the best backlist titles I read this year, let's goooooooo!!!!!!!!

THE JASMINE THRONE / THE OLEANDER SWORD by @tashadrinkstea (@orbitbooks)

I'm OBSESSED with these books, I must have the 3rd POSTHASTE. If you don't want a sapphic, Indian-inspired, multiple POV epic fantasy with gods and magic and intrigue, I don't know what's wrong with you.

ALL THAT SHE CARRIED: THE JOURNEY OF ASHLEY'S SACK, A BLACK FAMILY KEEPSAKE by @TiyaMilesTAM (@randomhouse)

This is a masterful book of American history and material culture, and if I could make it required reading in every US history class I would. Heartbreakingly exquisite.

TOO MUCH LIP by Melissa Lucashenko (@HarperViaBooks)

I am standing in solidarity with the @hcpunion, who has been on strike for two months for a fairer wage, workplace securities, and a safer and more inclusive workplace, by withholding my reviews of Harper titles.

#HCPOnStrike

THE CHOSEN & THE BEAUTIFUL by @NghiVoWriting (@TorDotComPub)

A dreamy, sensuous haze of a book that reimagines the glitz and glamor and tragedy of The Great Gatsby against a magical Jazz Age. This is the only Gatsby-inspired book you ever need to read. You can quote me on that.

wait okay followup to that last statement, it's not the only Gatsby-inspired book you need to read, Anna-Marie McLemore's SELF-MADE BOYS is also on that list (I still need to read it, but obviously it's perfect)

HERE FOR IT: OR, HOW TO SAVE YOUR SOUL IN AMERICA by @oureric (@penguinrandom)

These essays are hilarious, heartfelt, revelatory, and celebratory, and I would read approximately a million more. Highly highly recommend, y'all gotta pick it up yesterday.

ON JUNETEENTH by @agordonreed (@LiverightPub)

A powerful reflection by a masterful historian on the eve of Juneteenth, Texas, and how the Lone Star State and its enslaved population shaped all of American history. Slim but powerful.

CULTISH: THE LANGUAGE OF FANATICISM by Amanda Montell

I'm standing in solidarity with the @hcpunion, who has been on strike for two months for a fairer wage, workplace securities & a more inclusive workplace, by withholding my reviews of Harper titles.

#HCPOnStrike

GEARBREAKERS by @ZoeHanaMikuta (@FeiwelFriends)

I heard you wanted an electrically fastpaced dystopic YA sci-fi with murderous girls, pyromaniac teens, down-and-out-rebellions, Top Shelf Angst, and giant mass-murdering robots?? Have I got a book for y'all, it's this one, enjoy.

WE OWN THIS CITY: A TRUE STORY OF CRIME, COPS, & CORRUPTION by @justin_fenton (@randomhouse)

A meticulous true crime thriller that dives into the beating heart of a rogue Baltimore police squad, and a sobering warning about the unchecked power afforded American law enforcement.

TACKY by @RaxKingIsDead (@vintagebooks)

The subtitle says it all: These are poignant love letters to the worst most-maligned American culture--from Jersey Shore to Josie and the Pussycats--and also to any one of us who spent the 2000s covered in glitter gel from Limited Too.

A GHOST IN THE THROAT by Doireann Ní Gríofa (@biblioasis)

A book unlike anything I have ever read. It is many things at once: a literary biography of an 18th-century Irish noblewoman's lament; the author's personal memoir; a meditation on motherhood; and a collection of poetry.

THE ROGUE OF FIFTH AVENUE / THE PRINCE OF BROADWAY by @JoannaShupe (@avonbooks)

*I'm standing in solidarity with the @hcpunion, who has been on strike for 2 months for a fairer wage, workplace securities & a more inclusive workplace, by withholding my reviews of Harper titles*

THE LOVE CON by @seressia (@BerkleyPub)

Epic Nerdery + Black Girl Magic + Friends to Lovers + Fake Dating = an incredibly fun, charming romcom that is just the most delightful.

RED FAMINE: STALIN'S WAR ON UKRAINE by @anneapplebaum (@doubledaybooks)

A fascinating but harrowing history of Stalin's manufactured famine in Ukraine in the 1930s. It was one of the most powerful and affecting books I read all year.

THE LETTER FOR THE KING by Tonke Dragt (@PushkinPress)

A Dutch children's classic that reminded me of classic adventures like The Sword in the Stone and The Dark is Rising. It was a really wonderful surprise, and I want to read more of Tonke Dragt's translated work!

DARK RISE by @cspacat (@QuillTreeBooks)

What a deliciously twisty suspenseful dark YA fantasy. It's like A Darker Shade of Magic and The Dark is Rising had an thrillingly angsty middle sibling, and I enjoyed every single minute of it. I'm positively frothing for Book 2.

Aand to wrap us all up, here are some picture books that I read this year that are perfect for you and your little ones:

PERFECTLY PEGASUS by @JessieSima
BERRY SONG by @MichaelaGoade
THE MERMAID MOON by @BrionyMaySmith
THE CRAB BALLET by Renée LaTulippe/Cécile Metzger
(cont.)

And more picture books! (Not just for kids!!)

KNIGHT OWL by @cadenise
TIMID by @harryewoodgate
DONUT: THE UNICORN WHO WANTS TO FLY by @AuthorLauraGehl & @AndreaZuill

AND THAT'S IT!!!! Those are all of the books I loved in 2022!!!! Again, it feels weird to be doing this list while Twitter is slowly rotting from within, but it also feels right to close this year out with it before things change a whole lot in the new year... (cont.)

Happy new year, babies. May we all shop indie, support our libraries, drink lots of water, get a lot of sleep, and keep our blood on the insides. Love y'all, catch y'all on the other side.