The Best New Books to Look Out for in 2022
Image Courtesy: Florencia Viadana
You can never add too many books to your ever-growing (and possibly sentient) stack of TBR (to-be-read) novels, perched precariously in the corner of your bedroom as your bookshelf has long since run out of room. 2022 is chockful of exciting book releases in comparison to years past, and I’m here to help you navigate through the ones you should be keeping a keen eye on.
Foul Lady Fortune by Chloe Gong
If you haven’t read anything by Chloe Gong yet, you’re missing out. The 23-year-old author of the New York Times bestselling duology These Violent Delights and Our Violent Ends (a Romeo and Juliet retelling set in 1920s Shanghai) returns with her third book in three years, Foul Lady Fortune. Rosalind Lang is an assassin for the Chinese Nationalists, who finds herself investigating suspicious murders as the Japanese Imperial Army marches closer and Shanghai is on the brink of a siege. Gong promises enemies-to-lovers (Rosalind must pretend to be the wife of another Chinese Nationalist spy) and elements of magic in this much-anticipated historical fantasy.
Release Date: September 27, 2022
Chain of Thorns by Cassandra Clare
If you grew up in the early 2010s as I did, there’s a good chance you’ve heard of the Shadowhunters. This next recommendation is written by The Mortal Instruments author Cassandra Clare, creator of the Shadowhunters franchise. Chain of Thorns is the third and final book in a trilogy, so you may need to start reading the series in anticipation of the third installment. I can’t say much without giving away spoilers from the previous books, but this is another historical fantasy rife with demon hunters, fake marriage plots, and a Victorian England backdrop.
Release Date: November 1, 2022
Book of Night by Holly Black
Holly Black is another staple of the early 2010s childhood fantasy series who has made a comeback, known for The Spiderwick Chronicles and BookTok’s favorite faerie book, The Cruel Prince. Book of Night is Black’s foray into the new adult genre. The main character Charlie Hall is a con artist who lives in a world where your own shadow can be altered by magic, and she protects her own with her life. Shadows can be manipulated just for fun, for cosmetic changes, or even to disturb someone else’s feelings and memories.
Release Date: May 3, 2022
Image Courtesy: Hatice Yardim
A Magic Steeped in Poison by Judy I. Lin
If you prefer tea over coffee, this one’s for you. Branded as a mysterious young adult fantasy with hints of Chinese folklore woven through its threads, the book follows the main character Ning, who has accidentally brewed a poisonous tea that kills her mother and threatens to kill her sister, too. A competition is held to find the kingdom’s Shennong-shi, the best tea-maker; whoever wins will garner favor from the princess, and Ning hopes to win and ask the princess to save her sister’s life. The idea of a protagonist who accidentally kills her mother, in addition to a culture steeped (literally) in tea is too intriguing to not pick up.
Release Date: March 29, 2022
Lightlark by Alex Aster
If you’re on BookTok, you’ve likely seen videos from author Alex Aster—detailing her writing experiences or proffering book recs. Lightlark reminds me of a fantasy version of The Hunger Games: every 100 years, the Centennial is hosted, and rulers must compete to break their realms’ respective curses. For the curses to be broken, one of the rulers must die. The protagonist Isla Crown is the youngest queen who presides over a realm where every woman is cursed to kill whomever they fall in love with.
Release Date: August 23, 2022
I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuiston
I got to read an ARC (Advance Reader Copy) of Shara Wheeler last month thanks to a Goodreads giveaway. Casey McQuiston is known for their contemporary romances, and as someone who isn’t a fan of romance, I was hesitant to go in. But this isn’t your typical romance: John Green’s Paper Towns is given a twist with its queer representation and our titular high-stakes mystery girl, Shara Wheeler, whose sudden mysterious disappearance haunts Chloe Green more than she’d care to admit.
Release Date: May 3, 2022
All That’s Left in the World by Erik J. Brown
Dystopian, post-apocalyptic books used to be all the rage when I was in elementary and middle school, but they’ve seemed to peter out until their recent resurgence. All That’s Left in the World is reminiscent of The Walking Dead, or a postapocalyptic COVID reality akin to our own, had it not been contained in a timely manner (Brown was inspired to write this during the pandemic, after all). Brown spins a tale of queer romance, road trips and running away, and navigating the world in the spirit of another early 2010s YA classic, The Fifth Wave. All That’s Left in the World was released on March 8.
Strike Out,
Writer: Gillian Bennett
Editor: Noelle Knowlton
Graphic Designer:
Tallahassee