In 2022 I read/wrote book reviews for 73 books (that’s one down from last year)! Of course there are always a few stand out authors/series/books so of all the books I read my top recommendations would be:

Books

A Dreadful Splendour by B.R. Myers
A Victorian spiritualist who made her way by swindling people ends up in jail. Her salvation is a stranger who asks her to help a grieving widow move on, except Mr. Pemberton doesn’t seem like the heartbroken man she was supposed to manipulate. He believes his fiancée had been murdered, and he wants her to help use her trickery to convince the murderer to confess. When odd happenings begin around the manor, they realize there may be more to the Somerset ghost than originally thought.

The Forgotten Book by Mechthild Gläser 
A forgotten book can hold such power! Emma finds a book that whatever she writes in comes true, but there are consequences. Unfortunately someone else has realized the power of the book, and she has to rely on the new boy with a sour face and rude disposition, Darcy de Winter, to help. A mixture of fairy tales meets Jane Austen, this story will suck you in and enrapture you.

The Raven Spell by Luanne G. Smith
Ian Cameron finds himself bludgeoned and almost killed, demanding answers from two witches, Edwina and Mary Blackwood with odd abilities. As their secrets are slowly unveiled, Edwina attempts to help Ian figure out his lost time and the investigative case he was on. As they search through London for a missing person, and a series of gruesome murders, they find clues that threaten the unshakeable bond of being a twin.

A Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson
Elisabeth, a librarian who had been orphaned and raised by the library staff, is implicated in the crime of releasing the most dangerous magical book. The only choice she has is to go to Nathanial Thorn, even though as a sorcerer he should be her mortal enemy. Once with Thorn and his demon servant, Silas, she finds herself caught up in a centuries-old conspiracy, racing to keep the great libraries, and the world, from going up in smoke.


Authors

Helen Harper
Amazon Page – Website
Originally recommended to me because of her Slouch Witch books, I found her writing style quite enjoyable, with mysteries that I often don’t quite figure out before the end. I quite enjoyed that series, so when I started reading The Firebrand series, I was surprised how much I absolutely adored her way of writing a quirky detective who doesn’t exactly listen to what she’s told, despite having been the best in class before being “demoted” to working with the supernatural squad. Very English, great descriptions of locations with The Firebrand taking place predominantly in London, England.

Tessonja Odette
Amazon Page – Website
Having just started another one of her books, I can say I was drawn in from the first sentence. The depth of her characters and politics within her novels is quite endearing. Her retellings of fairy tales I’d long known and loved were refreshing and while they did have a connection, the story doesn’t merely follow the same path we already know, and there are certainly times when it seems that there will not be a happy ending. I ended up reading all of the books in the Entangled in Fae series and found that none of the characters were as I expected them to be, and their depth and uniqueness made them all the more enthralling to read about.

LJ Andrews
Amazon Page – Website
Oh my goodness, she writes amazing fairy tale retellings mixed with Vikings. Once you start reading they are impossible to put down, and I binge read the entire series she’d done of The Broken Kingdoms (which starts with a Beauty and the Beast retelling) just to find the next one won’t be out until February 21st! Soon, I’ll get to continue! Her writing immediately draws you in and immerses you in the world, and her characters are both flawed but likeable. Her characters drastically change throughout the books and grow, making you feel as if you’re truly along for the experience.

K. M. Shea
Author Page – Website
She writes some amazing fantasy books. I first got hooked on The Fairy Tale Enchantress books, but there hasn’t been a book of hers I’ve read that I haven’t loved. Her writing is refreshing and her plotlines interesting and you’re never quite sure what you might be getting yourself into. Also absolutely loved her Court of Midnight and Deception book series, and of course Pack of Dawn and Destiny!