★★★★★ A thoroughly researched examination of the exploits of Stéphane Breitwieser, the most prolific art thief the world has ever known.

★★★★★ An honest autobiographical account of a showbiz life, infused with humor, self-deprecation and a joie de vivre oozing from every page.

★★★★★ A story of a four tight knit girls at a small college turns dark when it seems they might have been involved with a frat boy's death.

★★★★★ El-Arifi builds on her stellar debut The Final Strife (my #3 book of 2022), and does so both ambitiously and successfully.

★★★★★ An exploration of relationships and friendships in Henry's most mature offering yet, centered on a week-long vacation in Maine.

★★★★★ A mother sees her son commit a murder, and must find out why while stuck in a backwards time loop. Sounds weird, but it works well!

★★★★★ A 1961 coming-of-age story about a boy in rural Minnesota, who is forced to deal with tragedy as he navigates his path to manhood.

★★★★★ It's a love story and a legal thriller, but its authors' deft handling of many tough subjects is what elevates this novel even more.

★★★★★ Following up her excellent debut Group, Tate returns with another memoir, this time focusing on her struggles with female friendship.

★★★★★ The reunion of 2 siblings around a mysterious house is the backdrop for this lyrical beauty of a novel, my favorite of 2022.

★★★★★ An ode to Charles Dickens in the form of a modern retelling of David Copperfield, set in Appalachian Virginia over the last 30+ years.

★★★★★ A land where one’s blood color determines their race is the setting while a secret sect try to infiltrate to infiltrate the government

★★★★★ An exploration of the immigrant experience through the story of 2 high school students of Pakistani descent, growing up in rural CA.

★★★★★ A high school girl is thrust into an FBI investigation to try to uncover a drug ring that is terrorizing Native American tribes

★★★★★ The greatest assassin in the world, Seventeen, must take on his predecessor, against a backdrop of a threat against global security.

★★★★★ The story of Kiara, a young woman 3 months shy of her 18th birthday, living in East Oakland and trying to scrape by on her own.

★★★★★ Spanning 30 years of the main characters' lives, it's the story of 3 friends inspired to create something great in the world of gaming

★★★★★ A better version of the "city dweller finds love in a small town" trope, while also ranking as the funniest book I read in 2022.

★★★★★ A thought-provoking and heartbreaking coming of age story, mixed with a small town mystery. My clear favorite of 2021 by a wide margin

★★★★★ An ambitious, sprawling novel that intertwines 3 storylines across different places and times, but magically comes together in the end