I started 39 titles in 2022, one more than last year. It seems like I read a bit less speculative fiction, a bit more Dutch, a bit more non-fiction. That trend might continue, it might not, we’ll see, but I think it’s safe to say Egan, Robinson, Harrison and Flemish authors L.P. Boon & J.M.H. Berckmans will remain regulars on this blog.
Before I’ll get to this year’s favorites, a bit of blog stats for those of you who are interested in such a thing. Traffic has more or less stabilized, there’s hasn’t been a spectacular jump as in each of the previous years, only a slight increase. 43,529 views and 23,946 21,108 visitors – about 5000 and 3000 more than in 2022. Lots of the traffic is still driven by my writings on Frank Herbert. The most successful posts I wrote in 2022 were Chapterhouse: Dune, Too Like The Lightning and Seven Surrenders.
As for all-time stats, my most read reviews so far are those for Dune Messiah (4334 views since published), Children of Dune (3589) and Piranesi (3201). There’s 8 posts with over 2000 views, an additional 14 posts with over 1000 views now, and an additional 45 with over 500 views in total. I’ve been blogging for 7 years, and so far I’ve published 297 posts.
As always, a big thank you to everyone who has read what I wrote, and an extra special thanks to those that have commented, linked or pressed the like button: much appreciated, it doesn’t go unnoticed. My best wishes to you and yours for 2023 and beyond.
FAVORITE READS
As for the actual favorite book list: below are the titles I’ve given a 5-star rating on Goodreads in 2022, six books in total. If I had to pick one, I’d go for Lapvona, an absolute joy in its daft & honest brutality, or maybe Too Like the Lightning – a singular, marvelous book that easily outclasses about everything published in speculative fiction these days. Both non-fiction titles deserve an additional highlight here too: monuments to both human intellect and the wonder & incredible complexity of reality.
Honorable mentions for Haushofer’s The Wall (1963), Kay’s The Lions of Al-Rassan (1995), McKillip’s The Changeling Sea (1988), Roger van de Velde’s Recht op Antwoord (1968), Ada Palmer’s Seven Surrenders & The Will to Battle (both 2017), Felix Timmermans’ Boerenpsalm (1935) and KSR’s Pacific Edge (1990), The Years of Rice and Salt (2002) and The High Sierra: A Love Story (2022). All more than excellent reads, well worth your time.
Weighing a pig doesn't fatten it. 