I’m super late writing and publishing this annual post. It’s February! Everyone has already announced their best books of 2022.

Last year was a busy year for me. There were months where I didn’t read a thing (books whether fiction or non-fiction). And then there were months where I consumed books like crazy! (Think the summer months :D)

I barely made it to my target of 24 books last year. That’s why I’m sticking with another 24-book target for 2023. Should I manage to read more–and it doesn’t look like I will, based on the first 2 months–I may increase my reading target to 28 or 30 books.

Reviewing the list of books I read and looking at my to-read list for 2023, I think it’s safe to say I’m addicted to cozy mysteries. No surprise, because I’d like to write a series myself…

But enough with the rant, let me share with you my best books of 2022.

Best fiction books of 2022

I read more fiction than non-fiction last year. Though I had planned to have a kind-of-balance. But overall, 2022 lacked everything you can call a balance.

The only good news was that I read all 24 books in my reading target.

Bound by Kirsten Weiss

Bound is the first book in The Doyle Witch Mystery Series by Kirsten Weiss. Kirsten had sent me the book for an honest review a while back.

I wanted to have the perfect setting when I started reading the book. So, it took a while to get there, and the setting was never perfect.

Suffice to say I finished it in a couple of days. I felt like I needed the rest of the series beside me to go through.

Bound by Kirsten Weiss got all 10 stars (out of my usual 5) :D

So, it’s a must-read and one of my best books for 2022!

Alchemy, Arsenic, and Alibis by Shea MacLeod

I had downloaded Alchemy, Arsenic, and Alibis via Shea Macleod’s newsletter (I think). It’s a novella and the fifth book in The Deepwood Witches Mystery series. I absolutely loved it and finished it in a day!

I immediately picked up the second book I had from MacLeod, which was the first book in the series. However, it didn’t match the excitement and fast-pace of Alchemy, Arsenic, and Alibis.

Overall rating for Alchemy, Arsenic, and Alibis by Shea MacLeod: 10 stars (compared to my usual 5).

Both Bound and Alchemy, Arsenic, and Alibis are paranormal cozy mysteries.

Ellery’s Magic Bicycle by Maria Monte

Ellery’s Magic Bicycle is a children’s picture book. Written by Maria Monte and illustrated by Zoe Saunders, the book is about friendship, memories, and bringing the two together.

I highly recommend it if you have little ones at home.

A Murder Spells Trouble by K.J. Emrick and S.J. Wells

A Murder Spells Trouble is the first book in The Kilorian Sisters: Witches of Shadow Lake Mystery Series by K.J. Emrick and S.J. Wells.

It’s a fun, magical, and fast-paced paranormal cozy mystery.

I gave it an overall rating if 4 stars but it makes it to my list of the best books of 2022.

I haven’t written the review yet. But once I do, I’ll update it here and add it to the Book Reviews page here on the blog.

Inheriting Her Ghosts by S.H. Cooper

I read Cooper’s Inheriting Her Ghosts as part of the finalists’ books for the Book Blogger Novel of the Year Award (BBNYA), in which I was a judge in 2022.

It’s a gothic, historical, horror novel that I thoroughly enjoyed.

It’s one of the last books I read in 2022 and obviously haven’t sat down to write the book review. But I plan to do so and to participate in the BBNYA blog tour for Inheriting Her Ghosts.

Overall rating for Inheriting Her Ghosts by S.H. Cooper: 5 stars

The Case of Sampson’s Leap by Alison Golden

By now, you should know that Alison Golden publishes at least 1 Detective Inspector Graham book each year and being on her ‘street team’ I’ll be reading and reviewing that book.

I’ve already started the new DI Graham book, published in late 2022. I’ll be writing my review of the new book, titled The Case of the Uncommon Witness sometime in February. So, stay tuned!

For 2022, the book I read was The Case of Sampson’s Leap and it offered a unique kind of mystery. It got a 5-star rating from me!

The Beast and the Bethany: Revenge of the Beast by Jack Meggitt-Phillips

I had almost forgotten about this one. The Beast and the Bethany: Revenge of the Beast is the second book in the children’s series The Beast and the Bethany by Jack Meggitt-Phillips.

Like the first book, this one was funny, fast-paced, and super enjoyable.

I highly recommend it for children and grownups alike.

Non-fiction books

I wanted to have a ‘best non-fiction books’ section but I honestly only read or rather finished 2 non-fiction books.

These were:

The One-Page Marketing Plan by Allan Dib
Uncommon Service: How to Win by Putting Customers at the Core of Your Business by Frances Frei and Anne Morriss

The books were different; one focused on marketing, while the other was about managing your core business and how to set yourself apart from the competition.

I must say that the examples used in Uncommon Service were rather outdated. The ideas left food-for-thought, but it’s impossible to apply one or more of their ideas or even case studies to a Middle Eastern company, specifically FinTech or software as a service (SaaS).

I’ve yet to finish writing reviews for both books. So, I’ll be updating this post and the Book Reviews page with links once I finish writing those reviews.

The One-Page Marketing Plan by Allan Dib offers lots of content marketing tips. I guess it’s a book that would have served me better had I read it a few years ago. Still, there’s lots of ideas and tips in there.

You can find some of the tips and quotes I’ve used on my professional Instagram account here.