firewhiskeyreader

Is this too complicated a blog title? Maybe. But you see, I read 60ish 2022 releases last year and I was considering just doing one giant backlist tier ranking post, but I just don’t think I can handle the sheer number of books that would be so I’m carving out 2022 and tier ranking those for you here. As per usual, I’m going to be using Taylor Swift lyrics for each tier. Our bottom tier is “We are Never Ever Getting Back Together” for the books where I actually mostly wish I had never even picked them up. Then we have “Tolerate It” for the books that were fine, but I also kind of wish I hadn’t spent my time reading it. “Mr. Perfectly Fine” is a bop, so I use it for the books that are on the good side of fine/meh. “Bejeweled” is for the books that I would whole-heartedly recommend for anyone and “Dear Reader” is for the books that I love so, so very much that they’ve stuck with me and become favorites. So let’s dive in, shall we?

We are Never Ever Getting Back Together

I actually DNF’d Exalted by Anna Dorn, but if you’re more interested in literary fiction with unlikeable characters than I am, I wouldn’t discourage you from picking it up. But the characters were unlikeable in a way that was giving me anxiety for them and honestly, I don’t need any help feeling anxious so I decided to DNF.

Tolerate It

There’s an ARC review somewhere for Forbidden Kisses with Her Millionaire Boss, which if I remember correctly did several things I really liked, but overall was just a mediocre read. I think there’s also an ARC review of Don’t You Forget About Me, but overall that one just didn’t land for me either. And essentially that’s true of each of these books. I don’t think they’re bad, I just didn’t personally find them particularly enjoyable/memorable.

Mr. Perfectly Fine

I would not deter you from reading any of these books because I think in the right mood and for the right reader all of these books could be significant wins for you. But ultimately, though I enjoyed these books, these are the books that didn’t stick with me long term. They were fun in the moment and I’m okay to move on from them.

Bejeweled

Y’all, this is a great batch of reads and if you’ve been considering picking up any of these, I would highly recommend. I had a great time, but ultimately, these aren’t living rent free in my mind, which is not to say I don’t think about them sometimes.

Dear Reader

I can’t believe how many of these 2022 releases actually made it to my Top 14 books of the year, with the rest of them fighting for the spaces right below that. There are five that were in this years top favorites at least! Wild. 2022 was a good year for publishing apparently. Anyway, I highly recommend every single one of these books, obviously, though please check content warnings before you pick up Lessons in Chemistry in particular (sexual assault, namely). And if you’ve read any of these and also loved them, please feel free to gush with me in the comments.

Closing Thoughts

First of all, just let me know if you think this post was worth the effort of making. Lol. I know I usually just rank the 2023 releases, but I thought it would be fun to do all of the books I read in 2023. And honestly, 2022 had some truly fantastic books published! I was marveling to myself as I went through my list because there are so many good ones on this list! I hope y’all enjoyed this post. Please let me know any of the books on this list that you loved or books you think I would love based on my rankings.

xx