I LIKE BIG BOOKS AND I CANNOT LIE: 2022 Reading Plan
I love to read. For me, it’s a great coping mechanism for stress and anxiety. I get lost in someone else’s story or trying to solve a clever mystery. Because I use reading as a stress reliever, I tend to avoid “self-help” type books…which only stress me out because they feel like studying! I don’t typically enjoy historical fiction (unless the setting is really unique) and I can’t do horror (pass on creepy things that will keep me up at night).
Last year I shared my reading plan for the year so you could all read with me. I added one or two bonus books each month via my social media. It was a great experience to connect with some of you about books you liked and those you did not enjoy. I also loved getting your suggestions! I started using a book journal to track my reads and it was super helpful for processing books once I was finished. Definitely grab one if you want to keep track of everything you read.
In 2021, I read new books from my FAVORITE genre (suspense), plus I re-read classics from my adolescence. I also tried to add books that were relevant for certain special months. For this year, most of my picks are mystery/suspense. Check below (and in my feed on the 1st of each month) to read with me this year!
January
A Slow Fire Burning (Paula Hawkins)
Rock Paper Scissors (Alice Feeney)
February
The Bluest Eye (Toni Morrison)
The Stranger in the Mirror (Liv Constantine)
March
Local Woman Missing (Mary Kubica)
Untamed (Glennon Doyle)
April
We Are All the Same in the Dark (Julia Heaberlin)
When She Was Good (Michael Robotham)
May
The Keepers (Jeffrey B. Burton)
The Girls Weekend (Jody Gehrman)
June
The Woman Outside My Door (Rachel Ryan)
Less (Andrew Sean Greer)
July
Crying in H Mart (Michelle Zauner)
The Life We Bury (Allen Eskens)
August
Do I Know You? (Sarah Strohmeyer)
The Midnight Lock (Jeffery Deaver)
September
No One Will Miss Her (Kat Rosenfield)
Hairpin Bridge (Taylor Adams)
October
The Summoning (J.P. Smith)
Dark Places (Gillian Flynn)
November
Did I Say You Could Go (Melanie Gideon)
What Happened to the Bennetts (Lisa Scottoline)
December
The Plight Before Christmas (Kate Stewart)
A Very Grumpy Christmas (Jerica MacMillian)
What is your favorite genre of books?
Katie G.
Here are my 2020 reads:
- Perfect Little Children (Sophie Hannah)
- Keep Her Safe (Sophie Hannah)
- To Kill a Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
- The Wives (Tarryn Fisher)
- The Woman in Cabin 10 (Chris Bohjalian) *An unexpected ending!
- Exonerated (Jessica Blank and Erik Jensen)
- The Dead Girl in 2A (Carter Wilson) *Such a unique plot!
- Beach Read (Emily Henry) *A little bit of love!
- The Survivors (Jane Harper)
- The Flight Attendant (Chris Bohjalian)
- The Great Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald)
- You Are Not Alone (Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen)
- The Book of Two Ways (Jodi Picoult)
- Educated (Tara Westover)
- Confess (Colleen Hoover)
- The Better Sister (Alafair Burke)
- The Last to See Her (Courtney Evan Tate) *This was really good!
- Ugly Love (Colleen Hoover)
- Little Women (Louisa May Alcott)
- Under the Rainbow (Celia Laskey)
- The Wife (Alafair Burke) *A good plot twist!
- One by One (Ruth Ware)
- The Last Thing He Told Me (Laura Dave) *whoa! What do you think about the ending?
- The Power Couple (Alex Berenson)
- City of Girls (Elizabeth Gilbert)
- Dear Girls (Ali Wong)
- Without Merit (Colleen Hoover)
- Invisible Girl (Lisa Jewell)
- Not a Happy Family (Shari Lapena) *This one kept me on my toes. My husband read it too!
- The Wrong Family (Tarryn Fisher)
- The Count of Monte Cristo (Alexandre Dumas)
- The Last to See Her (Courtney Evan Tate)
- If You Were Here (Alafair Burke)
- Survive the Night (Riley Sager) *I’ve read all his books!
- Pretty Girls (Karin Slaughter)
- The Darkest Evening (Ann Cleeves)
- American Dirt (Jeanine Cummins) *so thought provoking!
- Long Bright River (Liz Moore)
- People We Meet on Vacation (Emily Henry) *lighthearted read!
- The Book Thief (Markus Zusak)
- Before She Disappeared (Lisa Gardner)
- The Final Girl Support Group (Grady Hendrix)
- It Ends With Us (Colleen Hoover)
- Murder on the Orient Express (Agatha Christie)
- The Night She Disappeared (Lisa Jewell) *I love Lisa Jewell!
- In a Holidaze (Christina Lauren)
- The Dilemma (B.A. Pair) *What would you do?
- Redeeming Love (Francine Rivers)
- November 9 (Colleen Hoover) *This author is definitely popular on my lists! Loved this book!
- The Joy Luck Club (Amy Tan)