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.
Cheryl H’s 2022 Favorites
Deceiver of Minds (SPECTR Series) by Jordan Hawk
Yet again the author manages to take the story and turn it on its head. Sometimes with a series as long as this, the story becomes stretched and thin with the overall arc becoming lost. That is certainly not the case here. The author always keeps their eye on where the story is going and it steams on straight ahead. This is a compelling, well written, dynamic and thrilling book which carries on the series while being complete in and of itself. I highly recommend to anyone who likes edge-of-the-seat books.
Emperor of Dragons (Black Veil Series) by Davidson King
On the whole, this is not as major a departure from the author’s usual works as it could have been, which is not a bad thing, but would no doubt be comforting to long-time fans. It is fantasy grounded in reality, which is my favourite kind. There is plenty of action, as well as space for emotional depth and I would definitely recommend as an easy, exciting read. The same can be said for the first book, so if you’re thinking of getting this one, then get them both.
The Forgotten Dead (Out Foxing the Paranormal Series) by Jordan Hawk
I’m not going to lie, this book spooked me. Even when nothing much is happening on the pages, the author is still raising hairs on the back of your neck with their descriptions and choice of words and focus. The temptation to flick to the end just to make sure was strong and there were times I was so tense I jumped at objectively mild events. This story is entirely engaging and thrilling. It’s different to the other series, but different only in content, not in quality. I can’t wait to continue with the stories of these characters and exploring
the world they build for themselves. Don’t read this book in the dark with the lights off, and don’t forget to check your attics and walls at the same time you check the doors are locked and the switches off.
In The Weeds (New Leaf Romance) by Andrew Grey
I very much enjoyed the dynamic between all the characters, and especially Casey, Vin and Brianna. There was as much depth as always and a good, strong story to carry us through. There is a good mix of emotional drama and real-life drama and a number of smaller story arcs that played out alongside the main one. Another solid, feel-good story that is perfect for coffee-time or to wind down at the end of the day.