Highly Anticipated Reads of 2022
A new year can mean many things, but among the pressure to feel ready to tackle new challenges, begin new habits and adopt a positive outlook on life and the state of the planet, one thing that is always guaranteed to bring me joy is getting excited about all the new books that are due to be published over the coming twelve months. We’ll ignore the mountain of unread books next to me, for the time being. The following five novels are my highly anticipated reads of 2022, all of which will no doubt break my self-imposed book-buying ban.
To Paradise by Hanya Yanagihara
Ask any group of avid readers about books that have had the biggest emotional impact, and chances are you will hear Hanya Yanagihara’s 2015 novel A Little Life mentioned more than once. Shortlisted for the Booker Prize, it’s an unforgettably devastating novel, which ought to be handed out with a page or more of trigger warnings.
Whereas A Little Life closely follows a group of four friends in New York City over the course of several decades, plunging in and out of the protagonist’s traumatic past, Yanagihara’s next novel, To Paradise, which will be published on 11 January, spans three centuries and three ‘different versions of the American experiment’. Despite this more expansive setting, it sounds likely to contain Yanagihara’s trademark anguish, with mentions of fragile characters, the AIDS epidemic and totalitarian rule.
Love Marriage by Monica Ali
Love Marriage: A Novel is the fourth novel by Monica Ali, perhaps best known for Booker-shortlisted Brick Lane, and will be her first novel published in over 10 years. Due to hit bookshops in February, Love Marriage is centred around Yasmin Ghorami, a doctor approaching her wedding day, whose family and family-to-be are harvesting secrets and betrayals. It’s described as a story about who we are and how we love in today’s Britain, both a social comedy and a heart-breaking story.
Young Mungo by Douglas Stuart
Douglas Stuart’s debut novel Shuggie Bain was one of my favourite books of 2020. It was a year in which we really didn’t need another depressing story, but I just couldn’t stop turning the pages of this harrowing tale about a hopeful son and his alcoholic mother. Also set in working-class Glasgow, Young Mungo is due to be published in April, and portrays the dangerous first love of two young men from conflicting Christian backgrounds.
Shuggie Bain won the Booker Prize as well as being not only shortlisted but also a finalist for countless more awards – deservedly so – and I can’t wait to read more of Douglas Stuart’s work.
Time is a Mother by Ocean Vuong
Fresh from reading On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous, Ocean Vuong’s 2019 novel, I’m already eager for more. I wasn’t instantly absorbed by On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous, but by the time I reached the last third of the novel, I was re-reading every page, making sure I had squeezed all possible meaning out of the placement of each word.
Time is a Mother is Ocean Vuong’s second poetry collection, and if his poetry is anywhere near as striking and lyrical as his prose, it is bound to be a new favourite. The collection will be released in April.
The Year of the Locust by Terry Hayes
I add this final book to the list with much scepticism. Terry Hayes’ second novel has become something of an enigma as the release date has been continually set and pushed back for years. It’s currently showing as May 2022… In the meantime, if you’re a fan of thrillers or spy fiction and haven’t yet read I Am Pilgrim, it’s one to pick up this year. As someone who doesn’t generally read or enjoy thrillers or spy fiction, I found it completely enthralling and fascinating.
There is little to no information available on what The Year of the Locust will cover, but if it ever does make an appearance, it will be an instant purchase for me.
Written by Laura Elizabeth Colledge
www.illogicallines.co.uk | @illogicallines
Alongside working in marketing for a theatre publication, Laura writes book and theatre reviews, poetry and fiction. Her writing has been featured in Dear Damsels, Lunate, No Price Limit and a poetry anthology for charity. Laura is currently writing her first novel.
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