Norm Konyu – Grab This Book

My Top Ten Favourite Reads of 2022

The end of another year of blogging and I look back on all the books I read this year so I can pick out ten of my favourites. It will be ten books, as I can’t keep adding more and more titles into the end of year wrap-up it becomes unweildy and a nightmare to tag everyone on Twitter.

Behind the scenes here at Grab This Book it has been a tricky 2022. There has been #Decades (which I thank everyone for) but far fewer reviews than I would like. I look forward to 2023 with a vow to do better and share more reviews – I did what I could to champion those unreviewed books on Twitter and Facebook but I would have preferred to caputre that enthusiasm here too.

But you’re here for the books and I want to get to them too. Ten of them. Not in any order for nine of the ten. But one title did stand out for me and I have recommended it to more people than any other book this year so that will be the last book I mention below and that book will be my favourite book of 2022. All the books I detail are the stories I enjoyed the most as I read them. They may not have won awards, you may disagree (we can’t all love the same books) but these ten books stuck with me as the months slipped by. If you read any of these then I hope you enjoy them as much as I did.

Dark Objects – Simon Toyne

Dark Objects, dark storytelling. The best feeling for a reader is to get drawn into the story and just want to keep those pages turning. This book stands out as one of the best thrillers I read this year and I remember reading it extremely late into the night, reluctant to leave the world which Simon Toyne had spun around me.

My review: https://grabthisbook.net/?p=6594

Demon – Matt Wesolowski

The Six Stories series is a firm favourite and if you’re ever looking for a terrific audiobook experience then Matt Wesolowski’s books should be your first port of call. All the stories are dark adventures but Demon got into my head more than the previous books – haunting.

My review: https://grabthisbook.net/?p=6280

The Undiscovered Deaths of Grace McGill – Craig Robertson

One of the first books I read in 2022 and, despite my goldfish memory, Grace’s story is not one I will forget in a hurry. I feel guilty for not shouting about this book as much as I should have done at the time but it has quite a few trigger issues which hit close to home. The fact I hold this book in such high regard, despite it putting me through emotional turmoil, is clear indication as to how good it is.

My review: https://grabthisbook.net/?p=6260

The Junction – Norm Konyu

A graphic novel? Absolutely! This book blew me away when I read it. Norm Konyu’s artwork is absolutely stunning and the story is a thing of beauty – I hadn’t cried at a comicbook since Amazing Spider-Man 400 (Aunt May died) but I came damned close to seeping tears at The Junction.

My Review: https://grabthisbook.net/?p=6609

Up Close and Fatal – Fergus McNeil

A serial killer road trip? Yes Please!

When I picked up this book I was intrigued by the prospect of a journalist receiving a list of murder victims then being drawn into a race against time to try to catch a killer. But once I started reading I was totally hooked. The words flowed past like miles under the wheels of a car as Fergus McNeil served up one of the most readable thrillers I have read for a long, long time. I had such fun with this book.

My Review: https://grabthisbook.net/?p=6685

Old Bones Lie – Marion Todd

As a reader with a terrible memory for remembering character names I like nothing more than getting stuck into a series of books where recurring characters return for multiple adventures – I feel I get to know these characters so well and I look forward to seeing what may lie in store for them in the next book. One of the best new series is the Clare Mackay books by Marion Todd – the stories are set in and around St Andrews and in Old Bones Lie there is a cracking opening scenario which grabbed me from the outset. I read this with a huge grin on my face.

My review: https://grabthisbook.net/?p=6739

The Blood Tide – Neil Lancaster

Keeping the recurring characters and police thriller theme going my next selection is this fabulous new adventure featuring DS Max Cragie. Neil Lancaster has his lead character on the hunt for corruption within Police Scotland and when you know you can’t trust any of the cops in a story how can you not be glued to every interaction? How can you not try to second guess every decision taken by the characters? The story takes the reader all around Scotland and that just makes it even better. Don’t miss these books.

My Review: https://grabthisbook.net/?p=6509

Truly, Darkly, Deeply – Victoria Selman

Every good list of books (and every list of good books) needs at least one title where you can’t reveal too much about the story as the revelations and discovery as the chapters fly by must be discovered for the first time only when the author deems it necessary. That book in 2022 was Truly, Darkly, Deeply. If you’re in the market for a cracking serial killer story then grab this book and don’t read too much into the plot before you start reading.

My Review: https://grabthisbook.net/?p=6763

Dead Rich – G W Shaw

Although most of my year finds me reading crime/detective stories, Dead Rich is a book I’d place into the Adventure category. But there’s loads of crime going on between the covers here and G W Shaw delivers an absolutely riproaring thriller which I described as a Hollywood Summer Blockbuster in a novel.

Terror on the high seas and a lead character you cannot help but root for – I read this early in the year and loved seeing other readers discovering how much fun was to be had from Dead Rich as the year unfolded.

My Review: https://grabthisbook.net/?p=6513

Vine Street – Dominic Nolan

I began 2022 listening to Vine Street on Audible. I was utterly captivated by this story and for the last twelve months I have suggested Vine Street to anyone who is looking for a new book to read. I tried to review it and I don’t think I did it justice. I saw Dominic Nolan at Aye Write and again at Bloody Scotland, each time he shared more detail about writing Vine Street which made me appreciate just how much detail was included in the story. I first described Vine Street as a serial killer story which spanned decades but at Aye Write Mr Nolan said he had wanted to write about the clubs of Soho in the 1920s – I felt had totally missed the purpose of the story but there’s just so much going on that I took in the Soho clubs as I looked for the killer among those dark streets.

My favourite book of 2022 – I wish I could have the chance to read it for the first time all over again.

My Review: https://grabthisbook.net/?p=6479

And that’s a wrap on 2022. Ten books I loved. If you haven’t read all these stories then you may wish to seek them out. If you do (and you enjoy them) then please take a minute to let the author know. You don’t need a blog to share the booklove – leave a wee review on a website (Amazon, Goodreads, Waterstones, Kobo). Just saying “I enjoyed this book” will help the author, may encourage another reader to pick up the book too and it may even give the author the motivation they need to finish just one more chaper of a new novel.

Category: 5* Reviews, From The Bookshelf | Comments Off

May 2

The Junction – Norm Konyu

When a missing child, Lucas Jones, reappears on his Uncle’s doorstep in his hometown of Medford after an absence of 12 years, the brief moment of joy is clouded by mystery. Where has he been? Where is his father who disappeared at the same time? And how is it possible that Lucas is still 11 years old?

As Lucas is uncommunicative, it is left to Detective Sergeant David King and child psychologist Jean Symonds to attempt to find some answers from the few belongings Lucas returned with; little more than four Polaroids and a personal journal which speaks of his time in a place called ‘The Junction’.

The story unravels through interviews, medical and police reports, and ultimately, through visits to The Junction via the pages of Lucas’ diary, jumping back and forth in time, revealing pieces of the puzzle in a mystery that keeps the reader guessing right up until the end.

My thanks to Ricky Claydon at Titan Comics for my review copy of The Junction

This book is beautiful – in every sense. The physical copy had sensory overload for me: clean smooth pages which only a top quality graphic novel presents. The “swish” of a turning page was delightful and I was running my fingers over some of the pages as I read (practically caressing the book at times). Then there was that unmistakable new book smell which I wish we could bottle.

But the most pleasing aspect of The Junction was the visual stimulus. The colours chosen by Norm Konyu to tell Lucas’s story, blues, purples and autumnal oranges and reds make this utterly gorgeous on the eyes. Honestly I want to show you more of the internal artwork so you can appreciate it too. A bit of Google time and a timely tweet chat with the author himself and I have found the promotional trailer from Titan Comics and some (non-spoiler) pictures which have previously been shared online.

Oh, for the record – I did not taste my copy of The Junction which means only four of the five senses were deployed during the writing of this review.

In The Junction we meet Lucas, he is 11 years old and as we join the story he is being interviewed by the police. It’s late in the day and Lucas has his aunt and uncle with him he needs family supervision to chat with Detective Sergeant King. Det. Sgt. King is very keen to chat with Lucas because Lucas has been missing and people have been looking for him. Lucas has been missing for a long time – Det. Sgt. King has two photographs of Lucas, taken 12 years apart but in both pictures Lucas looks identical – he looks like the 11 year old child he is.

How can a child be missing for 12 years and return home still a child? There are mysteries to be solved in the town of Kirby Junction and the journey it took me on was enchanting, perplexing and packed a real emotional gut punch too. It’s no understatement to say this is one of the most beautiful stories I have reviewed in over eight years of Grab This Book.

Lucas has kept a journal which is a key resource in the telling of his story. He has recorded some of the events which led up to his disappearance but some of what he has recorded appears rather nonsensical to the police. A prime example being October 10th when he returned home from school to hear a garden gnome talking to him. Or did it? Because the gnome is swiftly removed as was the well he stood beside.

As we go through the story we see Lucas has many constants in his life – the comfort of childhood. The small town he lives in doesn’t change often but he always sees Mr Singh waiting for his train, he knows he must avoid the West woods and his new friends are fun but they have cartoons on their tv which Lucas doesn’t have on his yet. He is reading 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and has a recurring dream of falling through water, sometimes with a squid, sometimes a car is there and other times Lucas drifts downwards alone. He will always wake before he reaches the bottom.

When we aren’t with Lucas the reader will see the police discussing who this mystery child may be. Their investigations don’t seem to be making any progress on how an 11 year old can vanish for 12 years but not have aged a day when he returns. A therapist is brought in to meet with Lucas and this gives him an opportunity to explain to her in more detail what the events he has recorded in his journal actually relate to. I am not sure it answered many of those questions though!

Finally we do start to see some changes in Kirby Junction . While out on his bike, Lucan meets a stranger. The stranger asks about a town called Medway. It’s a a place which Lucas feels he knows but when he asks his parents about Medway they are not able to offer any clarification. So why does Lucas know the name? Then there are the new houses in town. Sudden new houses – with lovely new families within. Some of Lucas’s friends live in the new houses but finding out any information about Lucas’s friends is a real challenge for Detective Sergeant King.

Normally my graphic novel reads are packed with superheroes facing off against the worst villains. This gentle telling of a young child looking for answers to his unusual predicament could not be further from those high octane thrillers. Yet The Junction has the story which will undoubtably linger with me for a long time to come. The sympathetic narrative and the emotional landmines which are waiting to catch the reader unawares are exceptionally handled. Damn this is fine writing.

The pure talent of Norm Konyu’s art and his storytelling makes me want to shout about this book from the rooftops. I want everyone to read it – Lucas’s story should be heard. The Junction is a certainty to be included in my Top Ten Reads of 2022 – I want to read stories like this every single day.

The Junction is published by Titan Comics and is available in Hardback or can be read digitally through Kindle or Comixology. You can order a copy here: https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-junction/nom-konyu/9781787738300

Category: 5* Reviews, From The Bookshelf, Graphic Novels | Comments Off