E. G. Bella

Hello and happy Wednesday!

As anyone who knows me well can tell, I make a lot of plans. I’m the type of person to enjoy schedules, lists, and goals – mostly because I’m too scatterbrained to remember what I want to work toward otherwise. I enjoy seeing my productivity on a page, where I can look back and see how far I’ve come when I’m discouraged or unmotivated.

So of course, I had a lot of goals for 2021 – one of which being to read at least 50 books within the year. And as I shared in my post last month, What I Read in 2021, I managed to succeed at that goal, with 54 books!

After getting out of the reading habit for a bit while I focused on my own fiction, one of my aims for 2021 was to get back into the reading rhythm. I started last year with a list of books I hoped to read, and although I hardly read anything on that list (I filled it with books I wanted to read, but rarely any that were actually had available to me), I’ve definitely gotten back into the reading habit now.

Last year, I also joined Goodreads, as a way of keeping track of those books I read, and leaving reviews for them. It’s been so useful! I plan to continue using it this year, and have already set my 2022 reading goal for 55 books. We’ll see how it goes!

As I compiled my list of books to hopefully read this year, I tried to be a lot more realistic than I was in 2021. Most of these books are ones that I already own, and the few that aren’t are stories I’d already planned to purchase soon. And of course, I know there will be many books I end up reading that aren’t on this list. But it doesn’t make sense for me to make a long list of books I don’t have, when there are still some on my shelves that I haven’t read.

So today, I’d like to share that list with you, as well as hear about the books you’re hoping to read this year! Let’s jump to it!

This year I’d like to read . . .

Fiction

~ All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
(I’ve heard good and bad things about this book, but I found a copy at my local thrift shop, and the historical premise sounds interesting, so I want to give it a try!)

~ A Time To Die by Nadine Brandes
(I recently discovered Brandes’ writing, and her stories are some of my very favorites. I’m so excited to read through this intriguing trilogy!)

~ Eragon by Christopher Paolini
(Admittedly, I tried to read this once last year and just couldn’t get into it. But I don’t like to leave books unfinished, so I’m going to finish it this year and see what the entire story is like.)

~ Harry Potter by J. K. Rowling
(Yet another series I didn’t get to reread last year, but I’ve been trying to work through some ‘successfully published’ books to study from a writer’s perspective. These definitely fall into that category, and I’ve always enjoyed them)

~ Held Captive by Grace A. Johnson
(I have a copy of this book now and it’s one of the first ones I hope to finish this year! The author is a very talented friend, and I can’t resist a good pirate story, haha.)

~ Legends of Tira-Nor by Daniel Schwabauer
(I wanted to get to these three books last year, and ended up forgetting about them in the midst of a house renovation. I’m determined to read them this year though, haha. I hear they’re excellent!)

~ Maxine Justice: Galactic Attorney by Daniel Schwabauer
(I’ve been blessed to receive an ARC copy of this sci-fi – set to release in March of this year – and all I can say so far is wow. I’m so excited for it to launch!)

~ Operation Grendel by Daniel Schwabauer
(Yes, I’m bingeing a bunch of Mr. Schwabauer’s books, haha. This one came out last year, but I didn’t purchase it right away. Now I’ve heard so many great reviews that I’m looking forward to reading it even more!)

~ Operation Lionhearted by Maribeth Barber
(I’ve heard so many excellent things about this book, and now having gotten to know the sweet author a little bit, I’m happily anticipating getting to read it soon!)

~ The Giver by Lois Lowry
(No, I didn’t get to this book last year either…but I actually have a copy of it now, so I’ll be reading it soon!)

~ The Maze Runner by James Dashner
(I have five books in this series, but it’s been quite a while since I’ve read them, so I’d like to go through them again. Though I remember disliking the sometimes graphic descriptions, the stories always kept my interest.)

~ The Power Within by Kate Sinclair
(I’ve heard a lot of good things about this book from friends, and I know the author a bit too. The setting and plot sound super interesting, so I’m looking forward to it.)

~ The Time Travel Team: The Great Historic Mystery by Jordyn Hadden
(Another book written by a friend! I’ve read and enjoyed many of her works at this point, just not this first published story. The worldbuilding, themes, and characters sound very intriguing.)

~ Unblemished by Sara Ella
(I haven’t heard much about this book or the series, but it’s written by a Christian author, I have a copy, and I’ve read a lot of good reviews for it. So it goes on my list for this year!)

Nonfiction

~ Adorning the Dark by Andrew Peterson
(This book on creativity, calling, and community has been recommended to me too many times to count now, so I’d really like to finally read it this year.)

~ Having a Mary Spirit by Joanna Weaver
(I read Weaver’s previous book, Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World, years ago and it’s been one of my very favorites. So I’m greatly looking forward to learning from this one.)

~ Life Management for Busy Women by Elizabeth George
(I can rightfully consider myself a busy woman now, haha, so this sounds like a very helpful book. I’ve always enjoyed and appreciated George’s works.)

~ My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers
(I read most of this book – which is formatted as daily readings – last year, and it’s incredible! I definitely want to finish it this year. There’s so much wisdom found in it.)

~ The Sacred Search by Gary Thomas
(I’ve read Thomas’ previous book, Sacred Marriage, before and found it extremely enlightening, so this one – focused on the dating process – sounds great as well.)

~ The Pursuit of God by A. W. Tozer
(Yet another classic that I began last year and am looking forward to finishing in the next few months. So far, I’ve found it to contain a lot of helpful insights and encouragements.)

~ Twelve Extraordinary Women by John MacArthur
(I always enjoy learning more about the Bible and the people it features, and this looks like a very interesting book about some of them.)

~ Uninvited by Lysa Terkeurst
(I’ve read several books by Terkeurst now, and each of them have offered relatable and helpful insights. This one looks promising as well.)

Last year’s reading didn’t exactly go as planned, but those are many of the books that I’m hoping to get to this year! Have you read any of them? If so, what did you think? And if not, are there any that intrigue you? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

What books are on YOUR reading list for 2022? Do you have a goal for how many books you hope to read this year? Chat with me in the comments and let me know! I look forward to hearing from you!

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