All Booked: 2022 Reading Plans in Santa Barbara

Reflecting on This Year’s Reads and Setting New Goals

Hello, book lovelies!

Believe it or not, 2021 is coming to an end, which means another year of reading is under our belts. At the end of the year, I like to reflect on the books I’ve read and set some reading goals for the upcoming year. In 2021, I set out to read more books in genres that I don’t typically read, and I think it’s safe to say that I accomplished that goal. I read some poetry collections, a few nonfiction titles, and even dipped my toe into the romance genre.

2022 is bringing some big personal changes, and I won’t have as much time to read as I have in past years. That being said, I want to make sure the books I do pick up are ones that I have an active interest in reading. It’s very easy for my to-be-read list to be filled with book-club selections, recommendations from friends, and other selections that I feel pressured to read in a timely manner. I usually don’t mind this, since it broadens my reading world and I tend to find new favorite reads that I wouldn’t have read otherwise. But in 2022, I need reading to be a source of entertainment, so I will be falling back on my comfort genres and indulging in some favorite authors.

I hope that whatever your reading goals or plans are for 2022 (if you have any) work for you. It’s so easy to get overwhelmed and feel pressured to read certain books or a certain number of books that the joy of reading can get lost. Reading should always be done for yourself.

Below are a couple of my comfort reads that I am hoping to pick up sometime in 2022. But if I don’t, that’s okay too!

I am a big believer in going into a book knowing as little as possible about it. I try not to read too much of the synopses or reviews, since most of them over-share. My pitches below are short and sweet just for that reason.

The original version of this newsletter was sent out on Tuesday, September 10.

Sign up for All Booked, our bi-monthly newsletter exclusively for book lovers.

If you read my first edition of All Booked, you will know that I have a very special place in my heart for Taylor Jenkins Reid. She is quite possibly my favorite author, and I’m savoring her backlist until a new novel is announced. One True Loves is the next one on my list. This read is a contemporary romance, which is not usually my genre of choice, but I will read anything TJR publishes.

Now, jumping into my favorite genre: thriller / mystery / suspense. I read two of Lucy Foley’s books over the past couple of months, and I could not be more excited for her to release a new one in February 2022. If you love a bunch of untrustworthy characters, strange circumstances, and a missing person, The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley may be right up your alley.

In July of 2021, Indy Book Club read Eight Perfect Murders by Peter Swanson. If you enjoyed that, you will most likely enjoy Swanson’s new release, Nine Lives, coming in January 2022. The plot seems lightly based on Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None. Nine strangers receive a list in the mail with nine names on it. And one by one, bad things start happening to each of them.

The final book on my list is Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel. St. John Mandel is the author of Station Eleven and The Glass Hotel, both of which I enjoyed. This new release coming out in April 2022 combines historical fiction and science fiction in a novel about humanity.

Let me know some of your most anticipated reads for 2022 and what your comfort genre is. I’m always curious about other readers’ reading tastes.

Your smitten bookworm, Emily

If you are a local author, host book events in the Santa Barbara area, or have any other fun bookish tips for us, please send your recommendations for consideration to allbooked@independent.com.

Support the Santa Barbara Independent through a long-term or a single contribution.