Which 2022 book releases might have bypassed your radar? No worries, I got you covered! In a vast sea of book lists where some titles are more “hyped up” than others (that’s just how marketing works!), there are always going to be a few gems that go relatively unnoticed.
Thus, I did a little digging around. With special attention towards 2022 book releases with less shelving on Goodreads. And the result? This list of 18 spectacular books that you need to know!
I personally haven’t seen these titles being heavily talked about, so I wanted to share them with you. While I can’t guarantee that you haven’t heard of these 2022 book releases before, I hope that you find a couple of new-to-you titles! ☺
(Last Updated: January 23, 2022)
2022 Adult Book Releases
A Match Made in Lipa by Carla de Guzman
[ 08 March 2022 from Carina Press ]
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: Childhood friends reconnect as grown-up rivals — and maybe something more — in this charming Filipino romance between a chocolate shop owner and an estranged hotel heir. Perfect for readers who prefer their romances with food and family messiness.
The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd
[ 15 March 2022 from William Morrow ]
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: What is the purpose of a map? This is a highly imaginative thriller about a young woman who discovers that a strange map in her deceased father’s belongings holds an incredible, deadly secret — one that will lead her on an extraordinary adventure and to the truth about her family’s dark history.
Disorientation by Elaine Hsieh Chou
[ 22 March 2022 from Penguin Press ]
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: Following a Taiwanese American woman’s coming of consciousness in college, this debut novel is a blistering send-up of white supremacy in academia.
Outrageously hilarious yet startingly tender, it asks who gets to tell our stories — and how the story changes when we finally tell it ourselves.
The Immortal King Rao by Vauhini Vara
[ 03 May 2022 from W. W. Norton & Company ]
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: With climate change raging, Athena believes saving the planet and its Shareholders will require a radical act of communion, so she sets out to tell the truth.
This daring debut novel blends literary and speculative fiction to confront how we arrived at the age of technological capitalism and where our actions might take us next.
The Spear Cuts Through Water by Simon Jimenez
[ 03 May 2022 from Del Ray Books ]
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: In the land of the Strangled Throat, the people suffer under the rule of a despotic Emperor. His sons, the Three Terrors, despoil the countryside and oppress its citizens. When Keema Daware — a fierce warrior who lost his left arm in battle — finds the mythic Empress, who has escaped from her royal imprisonment, at his sentry outpost, he must make a choice: turn her in and evade the wrath of the Three Terrors, or help her overthrow the government and free a nation.
The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill
[ 07 June 2022 from Sourcebooks ]
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: Following a murder at the Boston Public Library, four strangers, who’d happened to sit at the same table, pass the time in conversation. Each has his or her own reasons for being in the reading room that morning ― it just happens that one is a murderer.
2022 Young Adult Book Releases
No Filter and Other Lies by Crystal Maldonado
[ 08 February 2022 from Holiday House ]
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: 21-year-old Max Monroe has it all: beauty, friends, and a glittering life filled with adventure and tons of Instagram followers. Except it’s all fake. Behind this glamorous influencer is awkward, sarcastic 16-year-old Kat Sanchez.
When one of Max’s posts goes ultra-viral and gets back to the very person she’s been stealing photos from, her entire world — real and fake — comes crashing down around her.
Gold Mountain by Betty G. Yee
[ 05 April 2022 from Carolrhoda Lab ]
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: Set in 1860s China, Tam Ling Fan’s life is upended when her brother dies of influenza and their father is imprisoned under false accusations. Hoping to earn the money that will secure her father’s release, Ling Fan disguises herself as a boy and takes her brother’s contract to work for the Central Pacific Railroad Company in America.
Blood to Poison by Mary Watson
[ 14 April 2022 from Bloomsbury YA ]
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: Savannah is cursed to die young, thanks to a sinister family heirloom passed down through their bloodline. Each fit of rage is bringing her closer to the edge and now Savannah has to act to save herself. Or die trying.
Burn Down, Rise Up by Vincent Tirado
[ 03 May 2022 from Sourcebooks Fire ]
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: For over a year, the Bronx has been plagued by sudden disappearances that no one can explain. Raquel does her best to ignore it. After all, the police only look for the white kids.
But when her crush Charlize’s cousin goes missing, Raquel starts to pay attention — especially when her own mom comes down with a mysterious illness that seems linked to the disappearances.
Rebel Skies by Ann Sei Lin
[ 05 May 2022 from Walker Books ]
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: Inspired by Asian culture, this imaginative debut novel offers a fantasy adventure set in a world of flying ships and sky cities, where chosen ones have the ability to bring paper to life and work as Crafters — people who hunt wild paper spirits called shikigami.
This Place Is Still Beautiful by XiXi Tian
[ 07 June 2022 from Balzer + Bray ]
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: Despite having had near-identical upbringings, sisters Annalie and Margaret agree on only one thing: that they have nothing in common. However, after a shocking racist incident, the sisters reconnect and stumble across a crushing secret that threatens to tear them apart forever.
2022 Middle Grade Book Releases
Solimar: The Sword of the Monarchs by Pam Muñoz Ryan
[ 01 February 2022 from Disney-Hyperion ]
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: On the brink of her Quinceañera, young Solimar is given a gift and a burden: she can predict the near future! She has also become a protector of the young and weak butterflies. This alone would be a huge responsibility, but tragedy strikes when a neighboring king invades.
Can this princess-to-be save her family, the kingdom, and the future of the monarch butterflies from a greedy and dangerous king?
Pilar Ramirez and the Escape from Zafa by Julian Randall
[ 01 March 2022 from Henry Holt and Co. ]
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: Young Pilar Violeta “Purp” Ramirez is tired of Abuela and Mami’s code of silence around her cousin Natasha — who vanished in the Dominican Republic fifty years ago during the Trujillo dictatorship. In her quest to find her cousin, Pilar unexpectedly lands on Zafa, an island swarming with coconut-shaped demons, butterfly shapeshifters, and a sinister magical prison.
Freddie vs. The Family Curse by Tracy Badua
[ 03 May 2022 from Clarion Press ]
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: In this thrilling and hilarious middle-grade adventure, a young Filipino-American boy must team up with his ancestor to break the curse that’s haunted their family for generations. . . or be trapped in an amulet forever.
Theo Tan and the Fox Spirit by Jesse Q. Sutanto
[ 31 May 2022 from Feiwel & Friends ]
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: Theo Tan doesn’t want a spirit companion. He just wants to be a normal American kid, playing video games, going to conventions, and using cirth pendants to cast his spells like everyone else. But, when his older brother dies, Theo ends up inheriting Jamie’s fox spirit, Kai.
Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun by Tolá Okogwu
[ 14 June 2022 from Margaret K. McElderry ]
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: Onyeka has a lot of hair – the kind that makes strangers stop in the street. She’s always felt uncomfortable with her flamboyant curls, until she makes an important discovery: she can control her hair with her mind!
Her mother quickly whisks her off to the Academy of the Sun, a school in Nigeria where Solari – children with special powers – are trained.
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I’d love to hear from you!
🌻 What do you think of this list?
🌻 Moreover, did any of these 2022 book releases catch your attention?
🌻 As hinted in the post title, this list is just part one, covering January to June 2022 releases. I definitely intend to make another list for the second half of the year. Stay tuned! 🥰
Wow I haven’t heard about The Immortal King Rao yet. Sounds exactly like the type of thing I’d read (and maybe write)
Thanks for this list!!! <3
I had not heard of disorientation but I am definitely adding it to my list because it looks so good!!!
YO!! A Match Made in Lipa!!! *cue heavy breathing* 😤
I liked Sulari Gentill’s After She Wrote Him so I’m def excited for The Woman in the Library!!!
Yes! I already have A Match Made in Lipa preordered. Can’t wait for it to arrive on my Kindle! 😭💛
This list is amazing, thank you for all these new titles that I haven’t heard of! Time to add a bunch to my list so I can hopefully grab a copy when they come out!
It’s definitely a challenge to keep track of new releases because there are just SO MANY to look forward to! I’m glad that this list helped you find some new titles. 💛
just added the cartographers, disorientation, and the woman in the library! amazing list, thank you!
Yay! I’m particularly excited about Disorientation. I need more stories about Asian college students in my life.
What a great list, I hadn’t heard of any of these before and looking forward to adding them to my list now!
Hi, Sam! I’m so happy that you found some new-to-you titles from this post. Mission complete? 😂
OMG the MG titles in this post are all so intriguing! This is probably a sign for me to return to this genre. 😅😂
Yes, middle grade has really been thriving lately! 🥰
OMG I added 3 of the MG titles to my tbr aahhh exciting!!
Middle grade is really doing The Most. So many amazing releases! 🥰
I had heard of none of these books before! Cartographers and This Place is Still Beautiful sound especially great. I’ll be looking out for them.
AHHH, glad to know that my post is successful in highlighting lesser-known releases. All these books are v interesting to me, but the cover of This Place Is Still Beautiful totally took my breath away.
Omg Shealea! These books sound amazing! Thanks for introducing them to me.
Btw, the Goodreads links to Solimar, This Place is Still Beautiful and The Spear Cuts Through Water, are wrong.
Thanks for the heads up, Taiwo! I’ve edited the post. 😊
so many great new releases that I hadn’t heard about but am now so excited to get to!! especially in middle grade; all those books look so sweet 🙂
Middle grade has really been thriving!!! Glad you found some titles that sparked interest. 💛
What a great list! There were several books on your list that I hadn’t heard of yet, and sound absolutely irresistible. Definitely adding these books to my reading list!
Ahh, I’m so glad that you found new books from this list. Thank you! 💛
Thank you for listing these down! I added The Cartographers in my TBR. 😊
The Cartographers sounds so intriguing!!!
THANK YOU FOR INTRODUCING ME TO REBEL SKIES AAAAHHH
✨ Manifesting ARCs for us ✨
The Cartographers sounds really interesting; I’ll definitely be adding that to my TBR! I’ve also been very excited for No Filter and Other Lies; I love books for teens that deal with social media. This is a great list!
Thank you! I’m glad you found a few titles to add to your TBR. 💛