Books I’m Excited for in 2022

Now that 2021 is behind us, it’s time to look ahead to the new year. There’s no telling what 2022 will bring us, and I’ve been struggling with feeling optimistic as we head into another year of the pandemic, but at least one good thing is certain: there will always be new books! In fact, there are so many exciting new releases coming, that I was able to compile this year’s list of books to read in record time. Here are just a few of the books I’m looking forward to:

1) Base Notes by Lara Elena Donnelly (set to be released February 1)

Ever since Lara wrapped up the Amberlough Dossier, I’ve been eager to see what she might write next. Well, her next novel is finally almost here! In this fragrance-themed thriller, a New York City perfumer makes immersive scents that are worth killing for. Knowing how well Lara builds worlds that blend grit and decadence, I can’t wait to inhale this one.

2) Ramses the Damned: The Reign of Osiris by Anne and Christopher Rice (set to be released by February 1)

This will be the first of Anne Rice’s books to be published after her death back in December. The Reign of Osiris is the third book in the Ramses the Damned series, and like The Passion of Cleopatra was co-written with Rice’s son Christopher. In The Reign of Osiris, the immortal Egyptians face violent plots and political turmoil in the lead-up to World War I and journey into the deep forests of northern Russia to confront an enemy with the power to bring statues to life.

3) Dead Collections by Isaac Fellman (set to be released February 22)

This fantasy novel features a queer romance between a vampire who works as an archivist and a widow who comes to donate her late wife’s papers. I’m always down for new, unique takes on the vampire genre!

4) The Bone Orchard by Sara A. Mueller (set to be released March 22)

If I knew nothing else about this book, the cover featuring a skeletal hand with mushrooms and flowers growing out of it would be enough to lure me in. The Bone Orchard is a Gothic fantasy novel starring a necromantic witch who is charged by the emperor on his deathbed with solving his murder and determining his successor. 

5) Book of Night by Holly Black (set to be released May 3)

I’ve been a fan of Holly Black’s YA and middle grade novels since my early teens, but now this talented and prolific author is finally coming out with her adult debut! Book of Night is a dark fantasy novel featuring shadow magic, thieves, and secret societies. 

6) Not Good for Maidens by Tori Bovalino (set to be released May 3)

“The Goblin Market” by Christina Rossetti is one of my favorite poems, so how could I possibly turn down a YA horror retelling? That this book is also compared to Salem’s Lot and The Darkest Part of the Forest only has me more intrigued. In Not Good for Maidens, Lou has three days to learn how to navigate the dangers of the market and outwit the goblins before she loses her teenage aunt Neela to them forever.

7) Juniper & Thorn by Ava Reid (set to be released June 7)

Speaking of retellings, this novel reimagines one of the most gruesome fairy tales out there, “The Juniper Tree.” I enjoyed Ava Reid’s debut fantasy novel The Wolf and the Woodsman, so I’m excited to read her next project set in the same world! Juniper & Thorn centers on a witch who chafes under the restrictions of her tyrannical father. 

8) Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey (set to be released July 19)

We love a good ominous floating house on the cover! This horror thriller is about the daughter of a serial killer who returns to her childhood home to find notes being left around the house in her father’s handwriting. Sarah Gailey made me terrified of hippos because of their alt-history Western American Hippo, so I can’t wait to see some straight-up horror from them.

9) A Haunted History of Invisible Women: True Stories of America’s Ghosts by Leanna Renee Hieber, Andrea James, and Elizabeth Kerri Mahon (set to be released August 30)

You’ve seen me write about Leanna Renee Hieber’s fictional ghosts since the inception of this blog, but in 2022 she’s making her first foray into nonfiction alongside professional ghost tour guide and Boroughs of the Dead founder Andrea James and fellow author Elizabeth Kerri Mahon. I can’t wait to see these three ladies explore the histories behind the legends of female ghosts across America!

10) Nona the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir (set to be released September 13)

The third book in the Locked Tomb series is finally coming! Gideon the Ninth and Harrow the Ninth were among my favorite books of 2020 and 2021 respectively, so I don’t doubt 2022 will continue that trend. And it looks like this book will introduce us to some new characters and settings in this Gothic sci-fi world, as well as reuniting us with some familiar faces.

What’s on your reading list for 2022? Are you planning on reading any of these? Did I miss any books you think I would be interested in? Let me know in the comments!