BINGO!
One year ago, I started my (second) 2022 Book Bingo. Let’s see how I did!
2022 Book Bingo
 Hard Mode ✓ A Book from r/Fantasy’s Top LGBTQIA List Any book on this list, including sequels. Hard Mode: A book or series that received ten votes or less. |  by R.J. Barker Hard Mode ✓ Weird Ecology Story takes place in a world that is wildly different from our own and includes such things as unique environments, strange flora and fauna, unusual ecosystems, etc. The difference in environment, flora and fauna, and ecosystems cannot simply be “it’s a fantasy world,” but something that is fundamentally different about the world itself. Example: The Bone Ships by RJ Barker counts as this is a poisonous world without trees and the world had to evolve in significantly different ways to deal with that. Meanwhile The Liveship Traders by Robin Hobb would not count, as it is fairly close to our own world’s ecology just with the added presence of dragons. Hard Mode: Not written by Jeff VanderMeer or China Miéville. |  by Yoon Ha Lee, Becky Chambers, Rivers Solomon, S. L. Huang Hard Mode ✓ Two or More Authors Any book written by two or more authors such as This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone. Anthologies count! Hard Mode: Three or more authors. |  by H.G. Parry Hard Mode ✓ Historical SFF Any book within the historical fantasy subgenre. Hard Mode: Not based in Britain or Ireland. |  Hard Mode ✓ Set in Space A book that takes place primarily (at least 50%) off planet. IE: on a spaceship, space station, asteroid, space whale, free floating in space, etc. Hard Mode: Characters are not originally from Earth. It is acceptable for the characters to be descendants of Earthlings as long as they are not themselves from Earth. |
 Hard Mode ✓ Standalone A book that is not part of a series or a larger world. No connected novellas or short stories. Hard Mode: Not on r/Fantasy’s Favorite Standalones List. |  by Naomi Novik Hard Mode ✓ Anti-Hero Wikipedia describes an antihero as “a character in a story who lacks conventional heroic qualities and attributes, such as idealism, courage, and morality. Although antiheroes may sometimes perform actions that are morally correct, it is not always for the right reasons, often acting primarily out of self-interest or in ways that defy conventional ethical codes.” Examples: Locke Lamora in the Gentleman Bastard series or most grimdark books. Hard Mode: A YA book with an anti-hero. |  by Kieron Gillen, Jamie McKelvie, Matt Wilson, Clayton Cowles Hard Mode ✓ Book Club OR Readalong Book Any past or active r/Fantasy book clubs count as well as past or active r/Fantasy readalongs. See our full list of book clubs here. Hard Mode: Must read a current selection of either a book club or readalong and participate in the discussion. |  by Brian K. Vaughan, Adrian Alphona (Artist) Hard Mode ✓ Cool Weapon At least one main character uses a weapon with magical properties. Hard Mode: Weapon has a unique name. Examples: Excalibur from Arthurian legend, Dragnipur in Malazan, Sting in Lord of the Rings, etc. |  by John Milton Hard Mode ✓ Revolutions and Rebellions A book featuring a revolution. Any overthrowing of governments, monarchs, and systems will do. Hard Mode: Revolution/Rebellion is the main focus of the plot. |
 by Mike Carey, Bill Willingham, Peter Gross, Yuko Shimizu Hard Mode ✓ Name in the Title A character’s first or last name appears in the title. Example: Gideon the Ninth. Hard Mode: The title has the character’s first and last name. Example: The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August. |  Hard Mode ✓ Author Uses Initials Read a book by an author who goes by their initials like N. K. Jemisin or uses initials somewhere in their name like George R. R. Martin. Hard Mode: Initials are a pseudonym and not from the author’s actual name. Examples: T. Kingfisher or K. J. Parker. ADDENDUM: Please do not go snooping to see if a name fits. If it isn’t clear based on an author’s webpage or social media, assume that it is their real name. |  Hard Mode ✓ Published in 2022 A book published for the first time in 2022 (no reprints or new editions). Hard Mode: It’s also a debut novel–as in it’s the author’s first published novel. |  Hard Mode ✓ Urban Fantasy A subgenre of fantasy in which the narrative uses supernatural elements in a 19th-century to 21st-century urban society. Often overlaps with other subgenres like paranormal romance and superhero stories. Hard Mode: Book has an LGBTQ+ POV character. |  by Evan Winter Hard Mode ✓ Set in Africa Book must either be set in Africa like Rosewater by Tade Thompson or in an analogous setting that is based on a real-world African setting like Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko. Hard Mode: Author is of African heritage. |
 Hard Mode ✓ Non-Human Protagonist Main character must not be human or partially human. Humanoid aliens or anthropomorphic animals do count. Hard Mode: Non-humanoid protagonist. No elves, angels, dwarves, hobbits, or humanoid aliens. |  by Claire North Hard Mode ✓ Wibbly Wobbly Timey Wimey Any book that deals with time not behaving as it should. Time travel, time slips, time loops, time stopping, multiple timelines, etc., all work for this square. Hard Mode: No time travel. Book involves something off about time that’s not necessarily time travel. Example: In The Chronicles of Narnia, time moves at a different speed in Narnia than in the real world. |  by Roald Dahl Hard Mode ✓ Five SFF Short Stories Any short story as long as there are five of them. Hard Mode: Read an entire SFF anthology or collection. |  by Ada Hoffmann Hard Mode ✓ Features Mental Health Story takes a strong interest in or explores themes like mental wellness and illness, self-care, and so on. Learn more about the basics of mental health here. Here is a list of SFF books that center mental health to get you started. Hard Mode: Not The Stormlight Archive or any books in the linked list. |  Hard Mode ✓ Self-Published OR Indie Publisher Self-published or published through a small, indie publisher. If the novel has been picked up by a publisher as long as you read it when it was self-pubbed it will still count. Hard Mode: Self-published and has fewer than 100 ratings on Goodreads, OR an indie publisher that has done an AMA with r/Fantasy. |
 Hard Mode ✓ |  Hard Mode ✓ BIPOC Author Author must be Black, Indigenous or a Person of Color. Hard Mode: A book written by an Indigenous author. Check out this list of Indigenous SFF books to get you started. |  by Jason June Hard Mode ✓ Shapeshifters At least one character has the ability to change their physical form. Hard Mode: Most prominent shifter is not a wolf/dog shifter. For instance, werewolves can exist but can’t be the most notable shifter characters/main characters. |  by Martha Wells Hard Mode ✓ No Ifs, Ands, or Buts Title does not include the following words: the, a/an, and, or, if, of, but. Hard Mode: Title is three words or more. |  Hard Mode ✓ Family Matters A book that features biological family ties. Sisters, brothers, mothers, fathers, grandparents, and children – as long as the relationship plays a part, it’s welcome for this square. Hard Mode: Features at least three generations in a single family. |
Full categories
A Book from r/Fantasy's Top LGBTQIA List
Any book on this list, including sequels.
Hard Mode: A book or series that received ten votes or less.
Weird Ecology
Story takes place in a world that is wildly different from our own and includes such things as unique environments, strange flora and fauna, unusual ecosystems, etc. The difference in environment, flora and fauna, and ecosystems cannot simply be “it’s a fantasy world,” but something that is fundamentally different about the world itself. Example: The Bone Ships by RJ Barker counts as this is a poisonous world without trees and the world had to evolve in significantly different ways to deal with that. Meanwhile The Liveship Traders by Robin Hobb would not count, as it is fairly close to our own world’s ecology just with the added presence of dragons.
Hard Mode: Not written by Jeff VanderMeer or China Miéville.
Two or More Authors
Any book written by two or more authors such as This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone. Anthologies count!
Hard Mode: Three or more authors.
Historical SFF
Any book within the historical fantasy subgenre.
Hard Mode: Not based in Britain or Ireland.
Set in Space
A book that takes place primarily (at least 50%) off planet. IE: on a spaceship, space station, asteroid, space whale, free floating in space, etc.
Hard Mode: Characters are not originally from Earth. It is acceptable for the characters to be descendants of Earthlings as long as they are not themselves from Earth.
Standalone
A book that is not part of a series or a larger world. No connected novellas or short stories.
Hard Mode: Not on r/Fantasy’s Favorite Standalones List.
Anti-Hero
Wikipedia describes an antihero as “a character in a story who lacks conventional heroic qualities and attributes, such as idealism, courage, and morality. Although antiheroes may sometimes perform actions that are morally correct, it is not always for the right reasons, often acting primarily out of self-interest or in ways that defy conventional ethical codes.” Examples: Locke Lamora in the Gentleman Bastard series or most grimdark books.
Hard Mode: A YA book with an anti-hero.
Book Club OR Readalong Book
Any past or active r/Fantasy book clubs count as well as past or active r/Fantasy readalongs. See our full list of book clubs here.
Hard Mode: Must read a current selection of either a book club or readalong and participate in the discussion.
Cool Weapon
At least one main character uses a weapon with magical properties.
Hard Mode: Weapon has a unique name. Examples: Excalibur from Arthurian legend, Dragnipur in Malazan, Sting in Lord of the Rings, etc.
Revolutions and Rebellions
A book featuring a revolution. Any overthrowing of governments, monarchs, and systems will do.
Hard Mode: Revolution/Rebellion is the main focus of the plot.
Name in the Title
A character’s first or last name appears in the title. Example: Gideon the Ninth.
Hard Mode: The title has the character’s first and last name. Example: The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August.
Author Uses Initials
Read a book by an author who goes by their initials like N. K. Jemisin or uses initials somewhere in their name like George R. R. Martin.
Hard Mode: Initials are a pseudonym and not from the author’s actual name. Examples: T. Kingfisher or K. J. Parker. ADDENDUM: Please do not go snooping to see if a name fits. If it isn’t clear based on an author’s webpage or social media, assume that it is their real name.
Published in 2022
A book published for the first time in 2022 (no reprints or new editions).
Hard Mode: It’s also a debut novel–as in it’s the author’s first published novel.
Urban Fantasy
A subgenre of fantasy in which the narrative uses supernatural elements in a 19th-century to 21st-century urban society. Often overlaps with other subgenres like paranormal romance and superhero stories.
Hard Mode: Book has an LGBTQ+ POV character.
Set in Africa
Book must either be set in Africa like Rosewater by Tade Thompson or in an analogous setting that is based on a real-world African setting like Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko.
Hard Mode: Author is of African heritage.
Non-Human Protagonist
Main character must not be human or partially human. Humanoid aliens or anthropomorphic animals do count.
Hard Mode: Non-humanoid protagonist. No elves, angels, dwarves, hobbits, or humanoid aliens.
Wibbly Wobbly Timey Wimey
Any book that deals with time not behaving as it should. Time travel, time slips, time loops, time stopping, multiple timelines, etc., all work for this square.
Hard Mode: No time travel. Book involves something off about time that’s not necessarily time travel. Example: In The Chronicles of Narnia, time moves at a different speed in Narnia than in the real world.
Five SFF Short Stories
Any short story as long as there are five of them.
Hard Mode: Read an entire SFF anthology or collection.
Features Mental Health
Story takes a strong interest in or explores themes like mental wellness and illness, self-care, and so on. Learn more about the basics of mental health here. Here is a list of SFF books that center mental health to get you started.
Hard Mode: Not The Stormlight Archive or any books in the linked list.
Self-Published OR Indie Publisher
Self-published or published through a small, indie publisher. If the novel has been picked up by a publisher as long as you read it when it was self-pubbed it will still count.
Hard Mode: Self-published and has fewer than 100 ratings on Goodreads, OR an indie publisher that has done an AMA with r/Fantasy.
Award Finalist, But Not Won
Any book that was short-listed for an award (or multiple awards) but never received an award. You can check out this list of SFF awards at ISFDB for inspiration.
Hard Mode: Neither Hugo-nominated nor Nebula-nominated (check this list for ineligible novels and novellas).
BIPOC Author
Author must be Black, Indigenous or a Person of Color.
Hard Mode: A book written by an Indigenous author. Check out this list of Indigenous SFF books to get you started.
Shapeshifters
At least one character has the ability to change their physical form.
Hard Mode: Most prominent shifter is not a wolf/dog shifter. For instance, werewolves can exist but can’t be the most notable shifter characters/main characters.
No Ifs, Ands, or Buts
Title does not include the following words: the, a/an, and, or, if, of, but.
Hard Mode: Title is three words or more.
Family Matters
A book that features biological family ties. Sisters, brothers, mothers, fathers, grandparents, and children – as long as the relationship plays a part, it’s welcome for this square.
Hard Mode: Features at least three generations in a single family.
So far as I believe, I actually hit hardmode for all of the squares this time, although I did replace one of the squares again this year (for row 2, column 3 instead of book club, I pulled in found family again and did hard mode).
Stats wise, I had 3 graphic novels again. But once again, I’m counting the entire run as a book, so I think timewise it’s aligned with if not more than a single book.
Mini-reviews for each book
Or click through / click any of the covers above for full reviews.
My favorites are marked with [!].
Yes, I have a lot of favorites. It was a good year.
Graphic novels are marked with [g]. In each case, I read the entire series of ~10+, which all together is well more than a single novel (IMO). It’s a great format for storytelling.
[!] Foundryside by Robert Jackson Bennett
A book on r/Fantasy’s Top LGBTQIA List (Hard: A book/series with ten votes or less)
Excellent world/magic building; I love stories where magic is basically re-programming reality. On top of that, I love the characters. A ‘damn good thief’ with some magical tricks, a cop obsessed with justice to a fault, the grumpy mentor, and his even more brilliant assistant. It’s all there.
The Bone Ships by R.J. Barker
Weird Ecology (Hard: Not written by Jeff VanderMeer or China Miéville)
A primarily nautical setting with ships that are built out of the bones of giant sea monsters. If you like sea-themed stories, you’ll love this, there’s a ton of it.
The Vela by Yoon Ha Lee, Becky Chambers, Rivers Solomon, S.L. Huang
Two or More Authors (Hard: Three or More)
One of the modern serial stories written for Realm.fm (originally Serial Box), it’s from 4 authors that I’ve either previously loved or are high on my to read list. It’s set against a solar system where mining the sun is freezing out the outer worlds. Climate refuges, writ large. On top of that, you have the contrast between the main characters (a mercenary/sniper from one of the outer worlds and the child of the current president with hacking skills) is a shining jewel of the series. It’s fascinating to see how the different authors handle it.
A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians by H.G. Parry
Historical SFF (Hard: Not based in Britain or Ireland)
- Stretching the ’not in Britain’ a bit, in that a good chunk of the book does take place in Britain, but I would argue that especially in this book a large part of the plot is focused on the French Revolution with another plotline in the Americas.
Historical fantasy. Take the French revolution, add class based magic (fire, water, weather, mind control) and vampires (really ‘blood magic’) and see what happens. It has the same problems most historical fantasy has, if you take a topic like slavery or broad classism and justify it as ‘because magic/vampires’ it somewhat removes the blames from those who really caused the issues. Still an interesting book.
[!] Consider Phlebas by Iain M. Banks
Set in Space (Hard: Characters not originally from Earth)
I’m not sure how I’ve not read the Culture before. Take “a utopian, post-scarcity space society of humanoid aliens, and advanced superintelligent artificial intelligences living in artificial habitats spread across the Milky Way galaxy” and then realize that even in a ‘utopia’ people are still people (even non-Human people) and you end with an action-filled romp across a bunch of exotic settings, mixing far future technology and timeless problems.
The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern
Standalone (Hard: not on r/Fantasy’s Favorite Standalones List)
It’s got absolutely beautiful prose and visuals. The sights and smells of books and libraries and doors. And then… I still don’t even know what was actually going on. I love a good slice of life / cozy fantasy (see later), but this didn’t really have even that.
[!] A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik
Anti-Hero (Hard: YA)
What Harry Potter / other magic school books wish they were. It’s got a more or less typical teenage protagonist doing typical teenage protagonist things… all the while trying to learn from a school that is doing it’s level best to kill her. Wonderful worldbuilding. Magic, mad science, and downright Cthulhian besties.
[!] [g] The Wicked + The Divine, Vol. 1: The Faust Act by Kieron Gillen
Book Club / Readalong (Hard: With participation)
- I don’t really do large book clubs / readalongs. Maybe next year. Replaced with (2021) Found Family (Hard: Featuring an LGBTQ+ character), still hard mode.
What if every 90 years a selection of 12(ish) young adults suddenly gained the powers and to some extent the personalities of various gods–knowing that in two years they would die. It’s quite literally “better to burn out than to fade away” writ large. And it gets even crazier from there.
[!] [g] Runaways, Vol. 1: Pride and Joy by Brian K. Vaughan
Cool Weapon (Hard: Weapon has a unique name)
Imagine being a teenager in the Marvel Universe (so superheroes are a thing). Now imagine finding out (forcefully) that your parents are actually the bad guys (tm). It’s a neat premise and they manage to get a lot of interesting story out of it.
Paradise Lost by John Milton
Revolutions and Rebellions (Hard: Main focus of the plot)
That’s a weird one. It’s basically the story of the Fall of Satan + the book of Genesis, wrapped up in a bunch of nice flowery poetry, writ long. It’s really interesting but I hesitate to say it’s actually particularly good. It’s also so long.
[g] The Unwritten, Vol. 1: Tommy Taylor and the Bogus Identity by Mike Carey, Bill Willingham
Character’s Name in the Title (Hard: Includes first and last name)
What if the author of Harry Potter had a son. Who they named Harry Potter. And modeled the story as closely as possible on real* Harry Potter’s life. And then add in a neat book based magic, hopping to parallel worlds, and all sorts of meta implications about how the (in-story) universe works.
[!] Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher
Author Uses Initials (Hard: Initials are a pseudonym and not the author’s actual name)
A dark sort of fairy tale, which is great even by itself. On top of that, you have interesting magic (using wire to put together the skeleton of a dog to raise yourself a familiar) and an interesting, rag tag bunch of characters off to save the kingdom / princess.
[!] Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree
Published in 2022 (Hard: Debut)
A retired orc barbarian and a succubus with artistic flair open a coffee shop. And it’s not even a joke. It’s cozy fantasy in a nutshell. No one dies, the world isn’t ending, the main character just wants to open a coffee shop. It’s like a hug in book form.
[!] Succulents and Spells by Andi C. Buchanan
Urban Fantasy (Hard: LGBTQ+ POV character)
Another cozy fantasy, this time urban fantasy in a world mostly like ours, but with (semi-?)hidden witches and the possibility of getting a PhD in the monster hiding under your bed. It’s cute and a quick, fun read.
[!] The Rage of Dragons by Evan Winter
Set in Africa (Hard: Author is of African heritage)
African-inspired Bronze-age fantasy with caste-based tension, crazy swords, demons, dragons, and the feeling that the good guys might not be so good after all. You have the super talented main character, doing things otherwise thought impossible. He’s a bit hard to read at times, but still fun.
[!] The Galaxy, and the Ground Within by Becky Chambers
Non-Human Protagonist (Hard: Non-humanoid)
The 4th ‘cozy / slice of life sci-fi’ of the Wayfarers series (I read the first just at the end of last year’s bingo). Each one has almost a completely different cast, albeit with some overlap. This is no different following a bunch of aliens stranded at the sci-fi equivalent of a truck stop as the sky rains down on them. It’s all about how people are people, no matter how literally alien they are.
[!] The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August by Claire North
Wibbly Wobbly Timey Wimey; time doesn’t behave as it should (Hard: No time travel)
Take the timeloop premise of Groundhog Day (et al), apply it to lifetimes, add a few neat worldbuilding twists, break things up with a cataclysm coming back through time… and you have The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August. I love all of those things, so of course I love this book as well. :D One of the best parts is the idea that in a world with a number of these ‘immortals’ time can be flexible. Pass a message to an immortal about to die… and they’ll remember it decades earlier when next their born.
Skin and Other Stories by Roald Dahl
Five SFF Short Stories (Hard: Entire collection)
- They’re probably arguably more horror / thriller, but there are certainly some fantastical elements.
So… the author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and James and the Giant Peach wrote some more adult horror. Which in hindsight makes sense. Those books have some seriously creepy bits if you think about them enough.
[!] The Outside by Ada Hoffman
Features Mental Health (Hard: Not the Stormlight Archive or on this list)
Well that’s certainly an interesting book. It’s one part autism as ‘different, but that’s okay and sometimes it’s a superpower and sometimes it sucks’, one part cosmic horror, and one part fascinating worldbuilding with technoreligion writ large. I enjoyed it, even if it felt rough at times.
[!] Letters from a Shipwreck in the Sea of Suns and Moons by Raymond St. Elmo
Self-Published OR Indie Publisher (Hard: Fewer than 100 ratings or with an AMA)
That… is a truly delightfully weird book. It jumps around in structure and time between letters from a sailor to the girl he left back home–to said sailor being interviewed by … someone–to stories about a most mysterious shipwreck and the island he came to inhabit thereafter. Structurally, it’s very strange and at times hard to figure out what in the world is going on–but that’s all intentional. It’s really quite worth it in the end.
Last Argument of Kings by Joe Abercrombie
Award Finalist, But Not Won (Hard: Neither Hugo- nor Nebula-nominated)
Another ‘how haven’t you read him’ author: Joe Abercrombie. It’s dark, gritty fantasy. throughout the series, it’s fascinating he can do with characters. Glokta is a terrible person–and he makes us root for him. Logen is a berserker in the truest sense–and he makes us feel sorry for him. Jezal is excellent at failing upward–and he makes us feel sorry for him. It’s all around amazing and the real strength of the series.
A Snake Falls to Earth by Darcie Little Badger
BIPOC Author (Hard: Indigenous author)
I do love stories that take mythology I don’t know as well and expands on it. In this case, the Lipan (Apache) people of what became the southwestern US down into Mexico. The idea of a world inhabited by animal people–those that can shape shift between an animal and a human form–that was once connected to Earth… and now is not. I don’t think I’ve ever otherwise seen a cottonmouth shifter, especially not the equivalent of a teenage one. It’s a lot of fun. And seeing how her and Nina (our human/our world protagonist) eventually interact is just great.
Out of the Blue by Jason June
Shapeshifters (Hard: Most prominent shifter is not a were/dog shifter)
Take part gay teenage lifeguard lover of rom-coms, just broken up with the Love Of His Life(tm), add a non-binary (because they all are) mermaid, sent on a month long Rumspringa to the surface, make it into a love story (of course) with all the (teenage) relationship twists and turns that entails … and you have Out of the Blue. It’s not my usual sort of book, but I did enjoy it.
[!] All Systems Red by Martha Wells
No Ifs, Ands, or Buts; Title doesn’t contain the, a/an, and, or, if, of, but (Hard: Title is three words or more)
Okay, I get what all the hype is about. Take a heavily armed cyborg/clone, designed entirely as muscle to defend the more squishy ’traditional’ humans, have it turn off the software constraining it from killing everyone, add in a wonderfully snarky sense of humor… and see what happens. Murderbot is a wonderful protagonist.
Shaman by Kim Stanley Robinson
Family Matters (Hard: At least three generations)
Take a survival story (a la Gary Paulsen’s Hatchet), re-tune it for a world where survival is life rather than a temporary situation (ten thousand or so years ago), sprinkle in an oddly modern feeling narrator, and make it super horny… voila. Shaman.