Welcome to the Love Bytes Reviewers’ Best of 2022
Another year has passed in which books have brought all of us a much needed escape and sense of comfort. Our Love Bytes team reviewed approximately 1,300 LGBTQ+ books in 2022, from contemporary romance to fantasy, paranormal, historical, adventure, mystery, comedy and everything in between. Each day for the next few weeks, we will feature one of our reviewers’ top picks from books and audiobooks published in 2022. These lists highlight how diverse our tastes in reading are, and offer something for everyone. With thousands of fantastic new books each year, written by hundreds of creative and talented authors, it’s so difficult to narrow our lists down. We all have many favorite authors not featured here and wish we could acknowledge them all.
Larissa’s 2022 Favorites
Looking back on 2022, a handful of eBooks stood out from the pack. However, what’s notable is how many exceptional audiobooks are on this list. A handful of immensely talented vocal performers took excellent books and made them into more. So experiencing the best of the best this year requires listening. Audio bliss is a thing, and whether you listen, read or do both simultaneously, these superb titles will deliver.
AUDIOBOOKS
Madison Square Murders (Memento Mori Book 1) by C.S. Poe (Author) and Kale Williams (Narrator)
Kale Williams is an exceptionally talented vocal performer with a mellifluous voice I could listen to all day and night. In this first installment of C.S. Poe’s riveting Memento Mori murder mystery series, Williams becomes Everett Larkin, one of the most unique and memorable protagonists I have encountered. Williams’ performance is technically precise while also emotionally invested. For Larkin in particular, Williams delivers magnificent, devastating feelings without inflecting any emotion at all. It’s an unassuming portrayal that makes you stand up and take notice. Paired with Poe’s mesmerizing source material, the Madison Square Murders audiobook easily lands at the top of my list this year.
Spring Strings by Lily Morton (Author) and Joel Leslie (Narrator)
It’s a pretty safe bet that a Lily Morton title will land on my best-of list each year, and it’s not even a stretch to expect two. Indeed, I could easily have singled out the long-awaited, well-deserved HEA for Dean Jacobs in Morton’s delightful The Sunny Side. But it’s Dean’s BFF, Malachi Booth, that ultimately takes the honors in Morton’s sleeper hit novella, Spring Strings. With all due respect to Dean, it’s really no contest thanks to Joel Leslie’s vocal performance of Mal – a captivating, fascinating “side” character that refused to remain where Morton originally put him, instead cropping up repeatedly all throughout Morton’s catalog until he finally lands front and center in Spring Strings. Mal’s a prickly pear, but a hot farmer in the gorgeous Cornish countryside gets through Mal’s tough and thorny exterior to the soft, sweet, vulnerable Mal inside. Mal and Caden are magic on so many levels, and Morton is at her best here with her hallmark snark, humor, crisp dialogue, and beautifully crafted narrative. I’ve read this story many, many times since the eBook was released in May 2020. I didn’t think it could get any better, but then Joel Leslie got his hands on it in December of 2022, and now I can’t remember what Spring Strings was like without Leslie as Mal. Morton and Leslie have gifted us with a gem.
The Doctor (Magic & Steam Book 3) by C.S. Poe (Author) and Declan Winters (Narrator)
The audiobook of C.S. Poe’s The Doctor, the third riveting entry in her Magic & Steam steampunk/paranormal romance series, is brought to life through the barnstorming vocal performance of Declan Winters. Winters paints a vivid picture of Poe’s imagined advanced Industrial Revolution-type late-1880s New York society full of innovation, magic, and exploration. He also gives an indelible portrayal of Gillian Hamilton and Gunner the Deadly, two dynamic, intriguing, powerful protagonists who are fascinating and absorbing in their own right, but are so much more together – much like Poe’s writing and Winters’ narration. I could have easily listed every audiobook in this series because they are just too good to miss. But since each entry improbably surpassed the one before, I’ve only listed the last one, The Doctor. Please admire my restraint.
Mr. Romance (Franklin U, Book 3) by Louisa Masters (Author) and Greg Boudreaux (Narrator)
The Franklin U multi-author, shared universe series is excellent from top to bottom. I could easily have included A.M. Johnson’s superb audiobook for The Glow Up (Franklin U, Book 5) narrated by the inimitable Teddy Hamilton and Michael Crouch, or Riley Hart’s Playing Games (Franklin U, Book 1), her best work to date. However, the series standout is Greg Boudreaux’s enthusiastic, wholly invested, intuitive, nuanced vocal performance of Louisa Masters’ delightful Mr. Romance. It was a no-brainer to add this delicious, sexy, sweet, and very funny audiobook to my best of 2022 list. This unassuming romance checks all the boxes, and Boudreaux could read the phone book and I’d be hanging on his every word. Trust me: Mr. Romance is much better than the phone book. It is a gem of a story and an absolute treat of a listen.
The Shutout by Dianna Roman (Author) and Alexander Cendese and Iggy Toma (Narrators)
When it comes to reading, my favorite thing is discovering a new author. It’s like opening the door of the wardrobe and landing in Narnia. When the first book from said new author is phenomenal, that’s reading nirvana. Dianna Roman’s first MM romance foray is indeed phenomenal, and she makes an astute choice in calling on the tried and true narrating duo of Alexander Cendese and Iggy Toma for the audiobook. There are indelible scenes from this book that I can still see and hear vividly in my mind. Jack Spears repeatedly broke my heart throughout this story, and nothing made me happier than when Roman gave him the HEA he so richly deserved. The Shutout audiobook is a behemoth, clocking in at over thirteen hours of listening time. Yet, I was left wanting more when it ended. My attention never wavered as the narrative flowed from chapter to chapter and thirteen hours moved by effortlessly and all too quickly. Do yourself a favor and listen to this audiobook. Then prepare for the book hangover.
eBOOKS
Rebels Kings MC series (Devil’s Dance, Saint’s Song, Forgive Me Father) by Garrett Leigh
Garrett Leigh’s riveting Rebels Kings MC series took my breath away. The first two books, Devil’s Dance and Saint’s Song, read like a duet, both told from the POVs of Cam, Alexei and Saint – the most complex, intriguing, hot AF throuple I’ve ever encountered in my romance reading to date. I have difficulty picking a favorite of these three mesmerizing men, although the gorgeous Saint Malone edges the other two out, if only because of his vulnerability, loyalty, and beautiful, scarred heart. (Did I mention he’s gorgeous? Look at that drool-worthy cover for Saint’s Song.) The action-packed, engrossing plot will keep you up ‘til dawn. These are unputdownable reads, and if you think you’ll be able to take a break between books one and two, you’re kidding yourself. If you can only read one series this year, Leigh makes the decision easy.
Valor and Doyle series (Temporary Partner, Elusive Relations, Unstable Connections) by Nicky James
I’m not sure how it happened given the number of books I read, but Nicky James’ powerful, engrossing stories somehow escaped my notice. Luckily, that omission has been rectified through James’ Valor and Doyle series. This series has put James squarely on my “must-read” authors list. James’ evident writing prowess is spotlighted here in the antagonists-to-lovers story of Detectives Quaid Valor and Aslan Doyle, with a romance within a murder/missing person plot that sinks its teeth in and doesn’t let go. These guys live rent-free in my head and I’m happy to lease the space. Their dynamic is magnetic, their sexual chemistry is off the charts, and the storyline is devastating and redeeming in equal measure. This is a must-read series.
The Long Game (Game Changers Book 6) by Rachel Reid
The Long Game is the long-awaited sequel to Rachel Reid’s Heated Rivalry, books six and two respectively in her Game Changers series featuring NHL superstar rivals Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov. These books should be thought of and read as a duology. They depict Shane and Ilya trying to balance their hockey careers with their growing attraction and ultimately deep and abiding love for each other. The Long Game focuses on how Ilya and Shane deal with the repercussions of a decade of secret-keeping about their relationship. The story predominantly focuses on Ilya’s battle with loneliness and depression, and you won’t be able to look away. Reid forces us to take an often painful look at how love isn’t always enough and how even well-meaning actions can have harmful consequences. What I loved most about The Long Game is Reid’s unflinching examination of the character flaws in these two men we have grown to adore, and she executes it masterfully.
Fire Season (Unwritten Rules Book 2) by KD Casey
KD Casey incinerated all my preconceptions about sports romance in Fire Season. This deftly written story is based in sports, but is balanced so well with a nuanced romance that Casey keeps the focus where it’s meant to be – on MLB superstars Charlie Braxton and Reid Giordano, two broken men finding kindred spirits in each other. This unlikely pair burn up the rule book and find their own way. You’ll burn through the pages like a conflagration, and you’ll finish with your heart alight with the solid “it will all work out” feeling that only a well-written HEA can deliver.
Secret Service by Tal Bauer
Tal Bauer writes big emotions, big feelings, big conflicts, and big suspense. You can always count on an emotional journey (if not a cathartic cry) when you read his MM romances. Secret Service, his best romance title to date, commands your attention from word one with a twisty political thriller laced with deliciously forbidden love. Brennan and Reese exude palpable energy, a connection we feel as strongly as lightning striking. Bauer’s analogies are vibrant, relevant, and dead-on accurate for the feelings he evokes in the reader. This book will make you a “read-the-last-page-first” reader because Bauer’s taut narrative keeps you on the edge of your seat as you curse him and praise him in equal measure for the rollercoaster of events and emotions. Buckle up, buttercup. You’re in for a bumpy ride.
BONUS: TOP HOLIDAY BOOK
His Last Christmas in London by Con Riley
I will leave you with Con Riley’s holiday gift to her readers: His Last Christmas in London. And what a gift it is. This lush Christmas story is breathtaking, cover to cover. Guy and Ian are complex, endearing, expertly drawn characters, and their journey from pseudo-enemies to lovers is seamless, understandable, and relatable. The parallel artistic journey of the story through food and photographs makes it sumptuous fare. Add in Ian’s stalwart flatmates/friends Patrick and Seb, and you have a well-rounded holiday masterpiece. His Last Christmas in London is one of those stories that stays with you and calls for a reread at every available opportunity, not just at Christmas-time. Riley has written some absolutely terrific stories and I daresay, this may be my favorite.