Year 2023 is special year. End of the year 2022 brought no new resolutions for me (as if I care about them) as all my upcoming resolutions were being drafted by arrival of new member of my family. She was cute little packet of joy and happiness. And lot more…….So was the rush of welcoming this new member that by the time I get myself acquainted to the tradition of putting my last year reading list as a blog, six months already passed. This blog is definitely untimely, but I have to log this to get some semblance of mental satisfaction. So here it is. Long list of what I loved, liked and hated about my previous year’s reading list.
If someone ask me “what could kill the beautiful as well the beast, the mundane as well the powerful, the ordinary as well the extraordinary?” – My answer would be expectation. Expectations could kill anything and everything. Once settled in, however extravagant the event would be, if it did not meet to the standard of one’s expectation, that extravagant event is nothing but a fizzle for that person. From critical point of view, it makes sense. No point in appreciating Nolan’s movies without expectation as on par all his movies are unparallel to match with other mediocre Hollywood stuff. So, you need the baseline of your expectations to review his next movie. My reading list is high and mighty, increasing each passing year. This time I have categorized the huge 2022 reading list as per what I expected out of them while I picked certain book for reading. Let’s see hit and misses of 2022 reading list.
As expected:
Percentage wise its huge. Books that have 3-star rating out of five. Total of 58 books, 26 books are “as expected”. Almost 45%. They didn’t alleviate my normal expected outcome from them. Some of them are more than 3 stars but not 4 and some of them are less than 3 stars but not as bad as 2. So, let’s start one by one….
New author Richard Osman failed to impress me. Murder mystery by octogenarians’ club is nice plot but not too impressive. 3 stars.
Crossed series is getting dry as carcass left out in the full sun after violence. Though more of collection of stories in Crossed universe, some are hit, some are miss. On average 3 stars.
Concept was unique and Scott Snyder is dependable comic writer. Due to the fact that this was just volume 1, it might get better later on. For now, 3 stars.
Best part of globalization is that more books get translated to English. This Danish novel is fast and engaging for sure. More of police procedural, Reveal of the mystery gets in the way at the end. 3.5 star.
Junji Ito is my favorite horror manga author. But his quite new Sensor and old Remina were mixed bag. Not too grotesque horror for which he is known for, nor story-wise engaging. 3 stars.
I hate to give 3 stars but as I said before, lot was expected from this literary classic by none other than my most favorite author Charles Dickens. And it was not as expected. What great expectations !!!
Another Japanese classic mystery author tumbled down from his 4-star reviews till now due to high expectations after his mind-bending Devotion of suspect X – Keigo Higashino. While Silent parade was regular mystery (3 stars), Malice had nice twists though (3.5 stars).
While concept was unique and also drawn and illustrated well, this new graphic novel could have been much more. Not for faint hearted. 3 stars.
Frankly speaking, looking back, pondering over this novel while writing this blog, I realized that The Tokyo zodiac murders is solid mystery having ingenious twist. No one could guess till the end. Almost 4 stars.
Popular screenplay writer of many Hollywood movies (most notably for Jurassic Park and lot other movie collaborated with Steven Spielberg), David Koepp’s foray into fiction novel had all sassy bits that made those movies unforgettable. High fiction comedy action thriller is what I could think of. 3.5 stars.
Reckless series was breezy read if you know what Ed Brubaker could do with crime thrillers. Its 5-book series out of which three lies here in 3 stars bucket. Art is really good, and writing is not bad as well.
It says collected stories about “extreme body horror” in style of David Cronenberg movies. Some stories are good but rest of them are tepid in the name of body horror (and not at all extreme). Some authors’ writing is too moody and pretentious. 2.5 stars.
I have been too impressed with these translated classic Japanese locked-room mysteries. They each presents impossible murder mystery with ingenuine logical conclusion. Though not like Tokyo Zodiac murder or Crooked room murders, both are delight to any murder mystery lover. 3.5 stars.
Another favorite genre is historical fiction and I picked this up just because it was revolved around Darwin. Fair read with good writing and characters. 3 stars.
Yuval Noah Harari is talented author, and his Sapiens is great read (for everyone). This non-fiction collection of essays is timely and erudite but just because they didn’t form the cohesive story like Sapiens, it fell short of what I expected. 3 stars.
Joe Hills’ Hill House Comics supports individual horror tales. This was less horror and more on-your-face feminine social commentary. Art was beautiful though too much of underlying social commentary had killed the true objective of the comic, entertainment. 3 stars.
Stray Bullets is David Lapham’s golden achievement. As this was just part 1 (and I have already read Part 2), I know that this goofy, darkly comic crime drama gets better. Characters are fantastic. Crime situations are, part humorous, part brutal and part darkly funny and brilliant mix of them all. 3.5 stars.
Based on true event, this moody but killer-cult based graphic novel aspired by many such slasher movies and books. Black & white graphics are good, but story is not impactful. 3 stars.
More important for DC collector fans than actual full-length comic. It is collection of first issues of new 52 initiative for plethora of DC heroes. While I have already read Animal Man and Aqua man runs of new 52 that are great as single-story arc, this collection is not too much fun. 3 stars.
Another comic celebrating the feminine power. I was expecting some B-grade fun when I got serious story arc. Art was good. Cheezy B-grade vibe wrapped around serious story definitely helped alleviate the underlying social commentary. 3 stars.
Above expectation
Books that went above what I expected out of them. Usually 4 stars out of 5. It means that writing was good, characterization was nice, art was fantastic in case of comic or graphic novel and overall story was engaging. Just that small nagging somewhere stopped it achieving 5 star rating. 27.5% books fall in this category. Let’s see one by one.
Horror genre yields some special read in the year of 2022. And this is one of them. The only good Indians is heady mix of American Indian traditionalism and solid horror tale. Sometimes slow burning scene transforms rapidly into genuine horror in a gut-punching way. Its must read for all horror aficionados. 4 stars. Here’s my Goodreads review https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4438103332
Craig Russell is a find. Both of his published novels till now are triumph. More akin to written as historical fiction, at heart, both are genuine mysteries. Especially when both revealed their final card which would pull the rug out of reader’s firmly griped feet in fictional beautifully woven world of asylums and back-alleys of Edinburgh. 4.5 stars.
Though its not Alan Moore’s Killing Joke or Brian Azzarello’s Joker, its still decent take on psychic aspect of Joker’s mental institutionalization. Definitely art plays big role to put this here in 4 stars bucket.
Another entry from Joe Hill’s Hill House comic. But this one fare better than The Low, Low Woods. Basketful of Heads is homage to 80s slasher movies with gripping tale at the core. Art is fabulously appropriate to 80s and 90s comic world.
I don’t like anything that made by DC to encash Watchmen. Whether Doomsday Clock or Before Watchmen series, all such series are inferior attempts to latch onto popularity of Watchmen, till Rorschach. Single huge story arc on one of the complicated characters of Watchmen need some courage to pull it off. Liked the idea that this Graphic novel is different take and timeline than Watchmen. Its complex, political and read like a novel than graphic novel. Just what I liked to be served. 4 stars.
Mike Mignola is famous for Hellboy, but what a magnificent series and character Baltimore is. Art is top notch and monsters are brilliantly inventive. Must read for all comic lovers. 4 stars.
Based on true story of deranged serial killer Eddie Gein. This true-crime literature comic is in vein of From Hell, My Friend Dahmer, Green River Killer etc. And it delivers. 4 stars.
Most of the books in Reckless series are good. Friend of the Devil is more than good. Again, Ed Brubaker is really good with crime dramas and Friend of the Devil proves that. 4 stars.
I’m not too much into such emotional dramas like Migrations but Charlotte Mcconaghy weaves beautiful tale of the protagonist scientist following the migrations of Arctic turn. Its light read. And climax might get strings of your heart vibrated with more emotion than one expected. 4 stars.
Brian woods’ DMZ is great political war thriller. HBO also has series based on the same. Bombed out Newyork provides ample backdrop for great art and superb war journalism story rife with full of treacherous characters. Both of these books are Deluxe editions and there are more of it after this first two. 4 stars.
New genre I picked up in 2022. It’s like Saw series in movies, full of gore and violence. The Slob is one of them. Though I was not impressed lot other, this is really good (in a bad way). Its short read that one can finish in single sitting. Expected gore was in abundance but what I really impressed with is the writing and proper story backing the hyperviolence. 4 stars.
Below expectations
13.7% of books from my reading list were such that they didn’t justify the time I invested to read them. If not completely “Recycle bin” material to be discarded later then not much farther than the shelf that go to charity first thing once bookshelf is full. However, my expectations, high or low, these books failed to fulfill them.
Graphic novel based on D&D and great era of CRPG with full of quests and party formation should always be fun, right? Wrong. It’s not as much fun as playing bad CRPG or playing D&D alone. It’s that kind of bad. Also, I completely lost on unnecessary social commentary on real life. 2 stars.
Deep space exploration and mining vehicle Caliban collides with strange new space colony. How deeply enticing this blurb is. Garth Ennis botched this big time. No Aliens this is. Some weird stuff but nothing else. Seems like mashup between many space horror genres and never settling into its unique voice. 2 stars.
Another potent concept held back by jarring, obscure and moody storytelling. Elite bankers drive economy of whole world is common concept. Add in some occult and blood rituals. Sounds good but not in The Black Monday Murders. 2 stars.
I was not expecting much from this old Batman story. Picked it up for some fast read and thinking how bad Batman story could go wrong. I got the answer. It can go very wrong and boring as hell. 2 Stars.
The whisper man is that kind of novel where all credit goes to jacket design and blurb writer. Both were so eye-catching that you had to read this novel. In the end, story itself was very slow. Twists were few to non-existent and mostly un-explained. One major twist came at half of the novel and then it just sluggishly drag itself towards conclusion. 2 stars.
Why I stick to Crossed volumes when three of them are mediocre and one here (Vol. 11) is poor? Crossed series started off well with unique and gore injected violent take on zombie-verse. I’m still trying to finish entire Crossed run before Alan Moore’s take on Crossed +100. There will be more Crossed volumes for sure. I have yet not left my hope of getting good story arc again. 2 stars.
Kotaro Isaka got fame after Hollywood’s movie adaptation of his novel Bullet train. Not sure about novel Bullet train, I selected Three Assassins as my first novel of Kotaro Isaka. And it was disappointing. Surely there are unique characters that could only fit in Japanese movies, but it lacks the finesse or sharpness of Japanese samurais. 2 stars.
I was never impressed with The Boys. It’s wet dream of those who like Superhero soap operas. Even though Garth Ennis believed he made some darkly comic take on superhero fanatism, The Boys series became worst version of what it tried to ridicule. Vol 2 fared bit better than Vol 1, but still not up to the mark from my perspective. 2 Stars. My Goodreads review.
Beyond Expectations
Gems of my reading list 2022. Like unblemished pearls, you need to dive deeper and wade through sludge of average and bad books to get these gems. When turning of each page itself is celebration. It’s this kind of books that keep me increasing my reading list year by year. Books that everyone should savor, be book worm or not.
Emily Carroll’s Through the Woods couldn’t be read but be experienced. One of the finest arts in the graphic novel and fantastical story is also not that bad. Perfect amalgamation of how writing corroborates the art. Some stories are only possible in graphic format and when such thing happen it’s no lesser than 5 stars.
If Through the Woods’s minimalist color pallete is not dazzling enough for you than here’s another graphic novel that could only be savored and not just read. Each panel is rich, lush drawing on display. Anthropomorphic animals are drawn with aplomb and noir story is too good to miss. Its absolute triumph of graphic medium. 5 stars
I was well aware before reading “The Selfish Gene” that its going to be enlightening read. And fun as well. My expectations were high and still the book managed to amaze me with its pedantic level of discussion on gene. This is truly the book that should have been taught in schools and universities. I have read very few non-fiction authors who are so to-the -point and clear about the ideas they are presenting. Kudos.
By the time, I breezed through my fifth volume of this amazing series, I knew I had to give 5 stars to one volume. Each volume in this series had upped the game furiously. Full credit to Mike Mignola and Chirstopher Golden for imagination and monster design. Art is inspiring and loved the page-by-page action. Baltimore is must read series if you’re done with Hellboy.
Adam Nevill’s Last Days is genuine horror novel, not a cheap take on horror genre. Gorilla documentary director and his small crew accepts to research and prepare movie on old cult that was involved in mass suicide and unethical rituals. From then on, this huge novel sets the tone for 500 pages of fear-induced location hunting and some great suspense. With excellent grip on the writing, Nevill peels layer and layer of terror and suspense. Here’s my full GoodReads review. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4974311755
There is no hope
Gems of different kind. If found, curse the founder for his invested time and wit. And hence this “fool’s treasure” must be buried deep from where it originated so as not to be found by others as well. Books that weigh so heavy on your heart for reading but you would, as every true reader most of the time do, as once started, subconscious of the reader compelled them to finish, however the book. For such readers, these books are devised as torture and pain to drag through each page, every sentence.
Don’t believe anything that was said on the front and back covers of this book. All reviews are paid and fake. The Sanatorium by Sarah Pearse is out-and out torture device. It has good locked-room-mystery premise that is the only good part of this 400+ page novel. Investigation was amateur. Story was lull. And characters are cardboard cut-outs and flat as well, just like cardboard. Mystery revealed itself after 400+ pages is as cliche as it could be. Here’s my Goodreads review. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4838530058
As I noted before, Crossed series is getting its sheen off by the time of Vol 10. Just like the rotting meat picked clean off and now showing ugliness of the bone – if I say in Crossed universe. Stories bound to hit and miss. This particular volume has all misses.
If I believe the hype in reader’s world, Pual Tremblay is one of the most popular horror writer nowadays. I have not read any of his novel but “The pallbearers club”. I won’t read any of his novel now onwards. Its utterly bad and so bland and boring that reader’s mind will be infected with self-harm and mutilation by the time it gets finished. Story resembles nothing to horror or mystery or any kind of genre. It’s just moody and self-indulgent thoughts of two teens growing in 80’s, influenced by music of that era. Just watch out and stay very much clear of this book like avoiding COVID-19. More insult here in Goodreads review. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5045111696
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