Happy New Year. I hope you had a relaxing and healthy festive season. One of my resolutions is to tackle some of the unread books on my shelves of which there are many. They include proofs I’m yet to read but I did have a push before Christmas to get a flavour of what’s coming in 2022. Here are my recommendations of books you’ll really want to read this year. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did.

When Ghosts Come Home by Wiley Cash
Cash is an excellent writer and this is an interesting tale on the impact of a crashed plane on an island community in North Carolina. Beautifully written, the characters stay with you long after the book’s finished. Out on 3rd Feb.

The Book of Sand by Theo Clare
Clare is pseudonym of the late Mo Hayder. Two storylines – a girl in modern day US and a group of friends in a dystopian future – come together in an engrossing tale. Possibly the longest book I’ve read in a long time, the pace was brilliantly maintained. Published on 6 January.

The Twyford Code by Janice Hallett
After the success of The Appeal. Hallett is back with a story written featuring audio transcripts. Equally innovative, it has an interesting plot featuring a possible code put in books by a Enid Blyton type author. As much fun as her last book. Out on 13 January.

The Marsh House by Zoe Somerville
In 1962, Malorie rents a house over Christmas with her daughter. She finds the notebooks of teenage Rosemary from 1931 and finds herself drawn into a story of family secrets which impacts on her own place in the world. I loved the sixties setting and the genuine creepiness of this novel. Published on 13 March.

Begars Abbey by V L Valentine
An American girl discovers her penniless mother was from a wealthy but dysfunctional English family. Once she arrives at Begar’s Abbey, she begins to peel away the layers of a family secret. A brilliant high gothic read with an compelling protagonist. Out on 28 April.