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Brea Grant and Mallory O'Meara

Want to learn how to make the most of your reading life? Join Brea Grant and Mallory O’Meara every week as they discuss tips and tricks for reading better! Listeners will learn how to vanquish their To-Be-Read piles, get pointers on organizing their bookshelves and hear reviews on the newest reading gadgets. Brea and Mallory also offer advice on bookish problems. How do you climb out of a reading slump? How do you support authors while still getting books on the cheap? Where do you hide the bodies of the people who won’t stop talking while you’re trying to read? Mallory and Brea engage in a weekly discussion geared towards all kinds of book lovers -- no matter what you read or how you read it.

Reading Glasses

Brea and Mallory name their most anticipated books for November and December! Plus, they interview the filmmaker behind the new documentary The Librarians, Kim A. Snyder. Email us at readingglassespodcast at gmail dot com!

Reading Glasses Merch

Recommendations Store

The Reading Glasses Book!

Sponsors -

IngramSpark
www.ingramspark.com/learnmore

GreenChef
www.greenchef.com/50GLASSES
CODE: 50GLASSES

Links -

Reading Glasses Facebook Group

Reading Glasses Goodreads Group

Wish List

Newsletter

Libro.fm

To join our Discord channel, email us proof of your Reading-Glasses-supporting Maximum Fun membership!
www.maximumfun.org/join

The Librarians

 

Books Mentioned - 

Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab

Somebody is Walking on Your Grave by Mariana Enriquez, translated by Megan McDowell

November

Bitter Honey by Lolá Ákínmádé Åkerström
Literary fiction, mother-daughter relationship, Swedish pop star whose mother is trying to protect her from the past

Cursed Daughters by Oyinkan Braithwaite
Literary fiction, family curse, a woman whose family believes she is another family member reincarnated

Lucky Seed by Justinian Huang

Literary fiction, matriarch of a wealthy family is pushing her gay nephew to produce an heir for the family

Next Time Will Be Our Turn by Jesse Q. Sutanto
Literary fiction, woman learning the truth of her glamorous grandmother’s star crossed queer love story

That’s Not How It Happened by Craig Thomas
Literary fiction, family whose lives get adapted into a movie and chaos ensues, creator of HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER

The White Hot by Quiara Alegría Hudes
Literary fiction, bad-mom trope, generational trauma, Siddhartha reimagining

Queen Esther by John Irving
Return to the world of The Cider House Rules

 

The Amberglow Candy Store by Hiyoko Kurisu, translated by Matt Treyvaud
Magical realism, a fox spirit who sells magic healing treats to humans

Deeper than the Ocean by Mirta Ojito
Literary fiction, multigenerational, immigration, family ties

The Eleventh Hour by Salman Rushdie
Short stories, magical realism

Palaver by Bryan Washington
Literary fiction, family, healing

The Pelican Child by Joy Williams
Short stories, the struggle of living

Days at the Torunka Cafe by Satoshi Yagisawa, translated by Eric Ozawa
Literary fiction, set in Tokyo, three people find literal and emotional nourishment

The Botanist’s Assistant by Peggy Townsend

Mystery, cozy, research assistant to a botanist must solve a murder

The Mysterious Death of Junetta Plum
Historical mystery, Jazz Age Harlem, woman and her orphaned charge must solve a murder

The Perfect Hosts by Heather Gudenkauf
Thriller, someone dies at a “pistols and pearls” gender reveal party, secrets

Best Offer Wins by Marisa Kashino
Thriller, satire, competitive real estate market, woman who has lost out on 11 houses will do anything to get her dream home

With Friends Like These by Alissa Lee
Thriller, group of college friends who have been playing a killing game known as The Circus for 20 years

The Burning Library by Gilly Macmillan
Thriller, dark academia, Scotland, rivalling secret orders of women battling to find a medieval manuscript, murder

Turns of Fate by Anne Bishop
Fantasy, contemporary, paranormal detective, start of series

The Nameless Land by Kate Elliot
Fantasy, epic, sequel to The Witch Roads

The Merge by Grace Walker
Sci fi, dystopian, a world where the separate consciousnesses of two people can be put in one body

Brigands and Breadknives by Travis Baldree
Third book of Legends and Lattes

I, Media by Ayana Gray
Historical fiction, retelling, Greek mythology, villain origin story

Aphrodite by Phoenicia Rogerson
Historical fiction, retelling, Greek mythology

Beasts of the Sea by Iida Turpeinen, translated by David Hackston
Historical fiction, Finland, triple timeline, 1700s naturalist, 1850s Alaskan governor finds mysterious skeleton, 1950s museum curator

Last Call at the Savoy by Brisa Carleton
Historical fiction, historian investigating story of first female celebrity bartender

The Mad Wife by Meagan Church
Historical fiction, 1950s housewife, motherhood, identity

The Place Where They Buried Your Heart by Christina Henry
Horror, child disappearance, scary house, woman returning home to confront childhood mystery

The Villa, Once Beloved by Victor Manibo
Horror, gothic, Philippines, diaspora, intergenerational trauma, demons

Second Chance Romance by Olivia Dade
Contemporary romance, small town, plus size heroine, second chance, grumpy/grumpy

Blackthorn by J.T. Geissinger
Dark romance, gothic, paranormal, forbidden, grumpy/grumpy, enemies to lover, dark magic, touch her and die

The Marriage Narrative by Claire Kann
Contemporary romance, reality TV, marriage of convenience

Son of the Morning by Akwaeke Emezi
Romantasy, spicy, set in the Black South, queer, magic

Ember Eternal by Chlore Neill
Romantasy, thief with secret magic, court intrigue/imperial politics

Violet Thistlewaite Is Not a Villain Anymore by Emily Kremphotlz
Romantasy, plant witch and grumpy alchemist must save their small town from a magical plague

The Bookshop Below by Georgia Summers
Romantasy, disgraced bookseller restores a magical bookshop and enters dark underworld of dark ink magic and shady collectors

Book of Lives by Margaret Atwood
Memoir

Cher: The Memoir, Part Two

The First Eight: A Personal History of the Pioneering Black Congressmen Who Shaped a Nation by Jim Clyburn
Memoir

Queen Mother: Black Nationalism, Reparations, and the Untold Story of Audley Moore by Ashley D. Farmer
Biography of woman who helped found modern Black nationalism and who led the fight for reparations

We Did OK, Kid by Anthony Hopkins
Memoir

Star of the Show: My Life on Stage by Dolly Parton
Memoir

Bread of Angels by Patti Smith
Memoir

100 Rules for Living to 100: An Optimist’s Guide to a Happy Life by Dick Van Dyke
Autobiography

Black-Owned: The Revolutionary Life of the Black Bookstore by Char Adams
History, the role of Black-owned bookstores in Black political movements throughout U.S. history

Thirst Trap by Gráinne O'Hare
Literary fiction, queer, friendship, moving from late 20s to early 30s

Where There's Room for Us by Hayley Kiyoko
Queer YA romance in reimagined queernorm Victorian England

The Dramatic Life of Jonah Penrose by Robyn Green
Queer romance, Red White and Royal Blue but in the London theater scene

As Many Souls as Stars by Natasha Siegel
Queer romantasy, sapphic, witch and demon caught in game across multiple lifetimes

Petty Lies by Sulmi Bak, translated by Sarah Lyo
Horror, epistolary, four characters locked in a cycle of vengeance

December

The Snake-Eater by T Kingfisher
Fantasy, contemporary, horror, woman leaves the city to live in her late aunt’s house, an ancient god comes to collect on aunt’s unfulfilled promise

The Birdwater by Jacquelyn Mitchard
Literary fiction, journalist investigates a former classmate who is accused of murder

The Time Hop Coffee Shop by Phaedra Patrick
Magical realism, magical coffee which grants you a wish, protagonist wishes to revisit her past so she can change the present

House of Day, House of Night by Olga Tokarczuk, translated by Antonia Lloyd-Jones
Reprint of early novel - series of interconnected short stories

The Jaguar’s Roar by Micheliny Verunschk, translated by Juliana Barbassa
Historical fiction, parallel timelines - one is an Indigenous girl in the 1800s who is kidnapped, and another that is a modern woman’s search for her

Tailored Realities by Brandon Sanderson
Fantasy, short stories

Dawn of the Firebird by Sarah Mughal Rana
Fantasy, woman must secretly join enemy’s magical school after her clan is killed, djinn, vengeance

We Will Rise Again edited by Karen Lord, Annalee Newitz, and Malka Older
Spec fic, short stories, essays, protest, resistance, hope, interviews

The Mating Game by Lana Ferguson
Paranormal romance, wolf shifter, Christmas, contemporary

Tender Cruelty by Katee Robert
Dark romance, Hera/Zeus, Greek retelling, spicy

The Dark is Descending by Chloe C. Peñaranda
Third in romantasy trilogy

The Sea Captain’s Wife: A True Story of Mutiny, Love, and Adventure at the Bottom of the World by Tilar J. Mazzeo
History, Gold Rush–era, maritime adventure, Mary Ann Patten - first woman captain of a merchant ship

Galapagos by Fátima Vélez, translated by Hannah Kauders
Weird fiction, queer, group of artists who are dying of AIDS embark on a surreal final voyage through the Galapagos Islands

Song of Ancient Lovers by Laura Restrepo, translated by Caro de Robertis
Fantasy, retelling, mythical love story, Queen of Sheba and King Solomon

Cape Fever by Nadia Davids
Horror, gothic, psychological, historical, 1920s, maid finds herself entangled with the spirits of a decaying manor, secrets

An Anthology of Rural Stories by Writers of Color edited by Deesha Philyaw
Short stories

Winter Stories by Ingvild Rishøi
Short stories

Secrets of the First School by TL Huchu
Final Edinburgh Nights book

Better in Black: Ten Stories of Shadowhunter Romance by Cassandra Clare
Short stories

The Happiness Collector by Crystal King
Spec fic, a historian’s dream job in Italy takes a dark turn when she discovers her employers aren’t human

The Last Vampire by Romina Garber
YA dark fantasy, boarding school, Pride and Prejudice meets Crave

The Library of Fates by Margot Harrison
Romantasy, two former classmates race to find a rare book that can foretell your future if you confess a secret from your past

A Grim Reaper's Guide to Cheating Death by Maxie Dara
Cozy fantasy mystery, when a killer targets her brother, a grim reaper risks everything to save him

Romantasy Cocktails by Jassy Davis
Cooking

A Steep and Savage Path by JJA Harwood
Romantasy, vampires, dark romance, enemies to lovers, journey to the underworld

We Who Will Die by Stacia Stark
Romantasy, Ancient Rome, Rome-antasy, vampires, slow burn, magic creatures, gods

An Arcane Inheritance by Kamilah Cole
Fantasy, dark academia, magic university, secret society

Murder in Manhattan by Julie Mulhern
Mystery, historical, female reporter solving crimes in the glamorous world of the rich and famous in 1920s Manhattan

Her Time Traveling Duke by Bryn Donovan
Romantasy, time travel, grumpy-sunshine, love spells brings a Regency duke to modern times

Seeing Other People by Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka
Paranormal romance, two people literally haunted by their exes

Everyone in the Group Chat Dies by L.M. Chilton
Mystery, funny, 90s serial killer, TikTok true crime investigator

Twin Tides by Hien Nguyen
YA horror, long-lost twin sisters unravel the mystery behind their mother's disappearance

Ep 436 - Most Anticipated for November & December + THE LIBRARIANS!

Brea and Mallory recommend horror novels with human monsters for Halloween! Plus they interview Glasser favorite Alma Katsu about her new book FIEND. Email us at readingglassespodcast at gmail dot com!

Reading Glasses Merch

Recommendations Store

The Reading Glasses Book!

Sponsors -

GreenChef
www.greenchef.com/50GLASSES
CODE: 50GLASSES

IngramSpark
www.ingramspark.com/learnmore

Links -

Reading Glasses Facebook Group

Reading Glasses Goodreads Group

Wish List

Newsletter

Libro.fm

To join our Discord channel, email us proof of your Reading-Glasses-supporting Maximum Fun membership!
www.maximumfun.org/join

Alma Katsu
Fiend

Books Mentioned -

The Manor of Dreams by Christina Li

Strange Houses by Uketsu, translated by Jim Rion

The Eyes are the Best Part by Monika Kim

The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno Garcia

Lakewood by Megan Giddings

Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix

A Better World by Sarah Langan

The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward

Gather the Daughters by Jeannie Melamed

The Children on the Hill by Jennifer McMahon

Perfume: The Story of a Murderer by Patrick Suskind, translated by John E. Woods

I Was a Teenage Slasher by Stephen Graham Jones

You Weren’t Meant to Be Human by Andrew Joseph White

The Taker by Alma Katsu

When the Wolf Comes Home by Nat Cassidy

What Kind of Mother by Clay McLeod Chapman

Ep 435 - Human Monsters + Alma Katsu!

Brea and Mallory discuss how specific writing styles can make or break a book. Plus, they solve a reader problem about reading in public, and recommend novels about banned books. Email us at readingglassespodcast at gmail dot com!

Reading Glasses Merch

Recommendations Store

The Reading Glasses Book!

Sponsors -

Factor Meals
www.factormeals.com
CODE: GLASSES50OFF

IngramSpark
www.ingramspark.com/learnmore

 

Links -

Reading Glasses Facebook Group

Reading Glasses Goodreads Group

Wish List

Newsletter

Libro.fm

To join our Discord channel, email us proof of your Reading-Glasses-supporting Maximum Fun membership!
www.maximumfun.org/join

Books Mentioned -

Sister, Sinner by Claire Hoffman

Mockingbird Court by Juneau Black

Upright Women Wanted by Sarah Gailey

The Banned Bookshop of Maggie Banks by Shauna Robinson

Ep 434 - How to Find the Perfect Writing Style for Your Brain

Brea and Mallory tick off another box on the 2025 Reading Glasses Challenge: read an epistolary book! Plus, they discuss the change in Libby’s suspend hold system that has Glassers in a tizzy, and solve a reader problem about wrist pain. Email us at readingglassespodcast at gmail dot com!

Reading Glasses Merch

Recommendations Store

The Reading Glasses Book!

Sponsor -

GreenChef
www.greenchef.com/50GLASSES
CODE: 50GLASSES

Links -

Reading Glasses Facebook Group

Reading Glasses Goodreads Group

Wish List

Newsletter

Libro.fm

To join our Discord channel, email us proof of your Reading-Glasses-supporting Maximum Fun membership!
www.maximumfun.org/join

Books Mentioned - 

Play Nice by Rachel Harrison

Death of an Author by Nnedi Okorafor

The Strange Case of Jane O. by Karen Thompson Walker
 

A Letter from the Lonesome Shore by Sylvie Cathrall

Ep 433 - Epistolary Novels and Upsetting Libby Changes!

Brea and Mallory give out tips on improving your reading focus! Plus, they test out the new app Focus Friend, and interview long time friend of the show Adam Sockel about his new book. Email us at readingglassespodcast at gmail dot com!

Reading Glasses Merch

Recommendations Store

The Reading Glasses Book!

Sponsors -

ZocDoc
www.zocdoc.com/GLASSES
 

Links -

Reading Glasses Facebook Group

Reading Glasses Goodreads Group

Wish List

Newsletter

Libro.fm

To join our Discord channel, email us proof of your Reading-Glasses-supporting Maximum Fun membership!
www.maximumfun.org/join

Glasser Book Club - October 10 - 5pm PT
Email in for the link!

Sci Fi Rex for Dads and Husbands

Adam’s new book!

Follow Adam

Focus Friend

Books Mentioned -

The Brain at Rest by Dr. Joseph Jebelli

The Salvage by Anbara Salam

Antiracist Baby by Ibram X. Kendi

The Monster at the End of This Book by Jon Stone

Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab

My Friends by Fredrik Bachman

The Swimmers by Julie Otsuka

When the Cranes Fly South by Lisa Ridzen

Ep 432 - Hot Tips for Focusing on Reading + Adam Sockel!

Brea and Mallory discuss a new way to sort out your dumped books, give advice for reluctant book dumpers, and recommend sister books. Email us at readingglassespodcast at gmail dot com!

Reading Glasses Merch

Recommendations Store

The Reading Glasses Book!

Sponsors -

GreenChef
www.greenchef.com/50GLASSES
CODE: 50GLASSES

Links -

Reading Glasses Facebook Group

Reading Glasses Goodreads Group

Wish List

Newsletter

Libro.fm

To join our Discord channel, email us proof of your Reading-Glasses-supporting Maximum Fun membership!
www.maximumfun.org/join

Sci Fi Rex for Dads and Husbands

Books Mentioned -

Best of All Worlds by Kenneth Oppel

Fiend by Alma Katsu

Once There Were Wolves by Charlotte McConaghy

The Girls at the Kingfisher Club by Genevieve Valentine

Ep 431 - Did Not Finish Books Vs Not Right Now Books

Brea and Mallory tick off another box on the 2025 Reading Glasses Challenge: read a book with a two person book club! Plus, they solve a problem about putting damaged books in a Little Free Library, and recommend books set in Scotland but NOT Edinburgh. Email us at readingglassespodcast at gmail dot com!

Reading Glasses Merch

Recommendations Store

Sponsor -

Factor
www.factormeals.com/GLASSES50OFF
CODE: GLASSES50OFF

Links -

Reading Glasses Facebook Group

Reading Glasses Goodreads Group

Etsy Wish List

Newsletter

Libro.fm

Glasser Book Club - October 10, 5pm PT
To join, email us proof of your Reading-Glasses-supporting Maximum Fun membership!
www.maximumfun.org/join

Books Mentioned -

We’re Taking Everyone Down with Us by Matthew Rosenberg, Stefano Landini, and Jason Wordie

Actress of a Certain Age by Jeff Hiller

Last Hour Between Worlds by Melissa Caruso

Sister, Sinner by Claire Hoffman

Three Eight One by Aliya Whiteley

The Wild Hunt by Emma Seckel

The Bass Rock by Evie Wyld

Ep 430 - The Easiest Type of Book Club + Wet Books

Brea and Mallory talk about how to age up your reading tastes from YA to adult (and if you should bother!). Plus, they have Becky Spratford on to discuss her new book WHY I LOVE HORROR, and they recommend fantasy books with NO spice. Email us at readingglassespodcast at gmail dot com!

Reading Glasses Merch

Recommendations Store

Sponsors -

ZocDoc
www.zocdoc.com/GLASSES

GreenChef
www.greenchef.com/50GLASSES
CODE: 50GLASSES

Links -

Reading Glasses Facebook Group

Reading Glasses Goodreads Group

Etsy Wish List

Newsletter

Libro.fm

To join our Discord channel, email us proof of your Reading-Glasses-supporting Maximum Fun membership!
www.maximumfun.org/join

RA for All

RA for All: Horror

Becky's Tour

Why I Love Horror

Books Mentioned -

Wearing the Lion by John Wiswell

A Resistance of Witches by Morgan Ryan

An Academy for Liars by Alexis Henderson

Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo

Killer VHS Series

Hailey Piper Books

The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones

Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein

The Country Under Heaven by Frederic D. Durbin

Cursed Daughters by Oyinkan Braithwaite

Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett

The Magician’s Daughter by H.G. Parry

Ep 429 - Aging Up Your Book Taste + Becky Spratford!

Brea and Mallory talk about reading signed books and debate how precious you need to be with them. Plus, they review Book Beau book covers and discuss how much protection books really need. Email us at readingglassespodcast at gmail dot com!

Reading Glasses Merch

Recommendations Store

Links -

Reading Glasses Facebook Group

Reading Glasses Goodreads Group

Amazon Wish List

Newsletter

Libro.fm

To join our Discord channel, email us proof of your Reading-Glasses-supporting Maximum Fun membership!
www.maximumfun.org/join

Forest of Reading

Book Beau

Readathon - 9/13

Glasser Book Club Pick - The Bewitching

Books Mentioned -

Esperance by Adam Oyebanji

Forest Euphoria by Patricia Ononiwu Kaishian

Ep 428 - Signed Copies and Protective Covers - How Precious Should You Be With Your Books?

Brea and Mallory talk about their most anticipated books for September and October! Email us at readingglassespodcast at gmail dot com!

Reading Glasses Merch

Recommendations Store

Links -

Reading Glasses Facebook Group

Reading Glasses Goodreads Group

Amazon Wish List

Newsletter

Libro.fm

To join our Discord channel, email us proof of your Reading-Glasses-supporting Maximum Fun membership!
www.maximumfun.org/join

Readathon - 9/13

Glasser Book Club Pick - The Bewitching

Books Mentioned -

The Good House by Tananarive Due

Another by Paul Tremblay

September

 

Mother Mary Comes to Me by Arundhati Roy
Nonfiction, memoir, mother/daughter relationship, India

Hot Desk by Laura Dickerman
Romance, book world, rival book editors

Wild Reverence by Rebecca Ross
Set in the Divine Rivals universe

All the Way to the River by Elizabeth Gilbert
Memoir, love, queer, addiction, codependency

The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown
New Robert Langdon book

History Matters by David McCullough
Essay collection

Awake by Jen Hatmaker
Memoir, grief, divorce, infidelity, marriage

What Can We Know by Ian McEwan
Sci fi, a hundred years in the future an academic searches for a mysterious poem read out loud in 2014

What a Time to Be Alive by Jade Chang
Grieving broke young woman accidentally become viral self help guru

It’s Me They Follow by Jeannine Cook
Magical realism, bookstore owner helps people find love through books but is lonely herself

Best Woman by Rose Dommu
Literary fiction, family dramedy, coming-of-age, trans protagonist, wedding drama

The Wilderness by Angela Flournoy
Literary fiction, female friendship across 25 years

Vianne by Joanne Harris
Sequel to Chocolat

Whatever Happened to Lori Lovely? by Sarah McCoy
Literary fiction, 1950s actress leaves to become a nun

Life and Death and Giants by Ron Rindo
Literary fiction, teenage boy who is almost eight feet tall and changes people who meet him

The Healing Hippo of Hinode Park by Michiko Aoyama, translated by Takami Nieda
Literary fiction, feel good, Japan, people get emotionally healed by a hippo ride at a playground

We Love You, Bunny by Mona Awad
Weird fiction, both prequel and sequel to Bunny

One of Us by Dan Chaon
Horror, historical, 1915, orphaned twins on the run join a carnival

Dinner at the Night Library by Hika Harada, translated by Philip Gabriel
Literary, Japan, food, Tokyo library/cafe that is only open at night and serves meals inspired by books by dead authors

A Different Kind of Tension by Jonathan Lethem
Short stories, literary, surreal, specific

Will There Ever Be Another You by Patricia Lockwood
Literary, woman with strange disease starts to lose grip on reality in pandemic

Little Movements by Lauren Morrow
Literary, race, class, art, small town, choreography

Sympathy Tower Tokyo by Rie Qudan, translated by Jesse Kirkwood
Sci fi, Japan, near future, architect designing a skyscraper for housing criminals becomes friends with chatbot

The Killer Question by Janice Hallett
Mystery, amateur sleuth must solve a murder set during pub trivia, clubs are revealed through trivia questions, texts, and emails

A Killer Wedding by Joan O’Leary
Mystery, matriarch of ultra-rich Irish family is found dead at expensive wedding

A Murderous Business by Cathy Pegau
Mystery, queer, historical, NYC

A Rather Peculiar Poisoning by Chrystal Schleyer
Historical cozy mystery, turn of the century, two brothers vie for the same woman, one gets poisoned

The Librarians by Sherry Thomas
Mystery, four librarians band together after two patrons show up dead

The Belles by Lacey N. Dunham
Thriller, dark academia, historical, 1950s, secluded college

Old Money by Kelsey Miller
Thriller, returning to a small town twenty years later to solve murder of family member

Hot Wax by M. L. Rio
Thriller, rock and roll, road trip

Witch You Would by Lia Amador
Contemporary romance, paranormal, low stakes, witches

Sweet Heat by Bolu Babalola
Contemporary romance, second chance, wedding drama

The Austen Affair by Madeline Bell
Paranormal romance, feuding stars of an Austen film adaptation accidentally travel back in time

It Seemed Like a Good Idea by Lauren Blakely
Contemporary romance, small town, rom com, grumpy/sunshine, bodyguard, mistaken identity, forbidden romance, only one bed

Every Step She Takes by Alison Cochrun
Queer contemporary romance, travel, Portugal, sapphic, “practice” relationship that turns real

It Had to be Him by Adib Khorram
Gay contemporary romance, spicy, second chance, former classmates reuniting in Italy

Lady Like by Mackenzi Lee
Historical queer romance, Regency, two women vying for the same duke fall in love with each other

The Most Unusual Haunting of Edgar Lovejoy by Roan Parrish
Gay contemporary romance, New Orleans, low stakes, ghosts, toasty, haunts

By the Horns by Ruby Dixon
Second book in Royal Artifactual Guild series

Witch of the Wolves by Kaylee Archer
Romantasy, witches, werewolves, Victorian, enemies to lovers

Spellcaster by Jaymin Eve
Romantasy, slow burn, dark academia, enemies to lovers, spicy, magic

What Fury Brings by Tricia Levenseller
Romantasy, spicy, princess in matriarchal fantasy world must kidnap a husband to become queen

The Shattering Peace by John Scalzi
Old Man’s War, book 7

A Ruin, Great and Free by Cadwell Turnbull
The Convergence Saga, book 3

The First Thousand Trees by Premee Mohamed
Annual Migration of Clouds, book 3

Sunward by William Alexander
Low stakes sci fi, found family, space, courier training androids

Extremity by Nicholas Binge
Sci fi horror, time travel, police procedural, end of the world, Philip K Dick meets True Detective

Thief of Night by Holly Black
Sequel to Book of Night

The Formidable Miss Cassidy by Meihan Boey
Fantasy, horror, supernatural creatures, historical, Singapore, governess

Fate’s Bane by C.L. Clark
Novella, sapphic romantasy, tragic, adventure, warring clans

A Land So Wide by Erin A. Craig
Historical romantasy, gothic, Scottish fairytale retelling, Canadian wilderness

The Macabre by Kosoko Jackson
Queer horror, art history, gay, fantasy, cursed paintings

Saltcrop by Yume Kitasei
Sci fi, cli fi, dystopian, two sisters on search for third

The Maiden and Her Monster by Maddie Martinez
Sapphic romantasy, Jewish folklore, gothic horror, golems

The Faerie Morgana by Louisa Morgan
Fantasy, Morgan le Fay reimagining

The Summer War by Naomi Novik
Fantasy novella, young witch trying to undo spell

Among the Burning Flowers by Samantha Shannon
Fantasy, prequel to Priory of the Orange Tree

Uncharmed by Lucy Jane Wood
Romantasy, low stakes, witches, found family

Acquired Taste by Clay McLeod Chapman
Horror, short stories

The Autumn Springs Retirement Home Massacre by Philip Fracassi
Horror, funny, final girl, slasher

Spread Me by Sarah Gailey
Horror, erotic, novella, sci fi, mysterious specimen in remote lab breaks free

Play Nice by Rachel Harrison
Horror, haunted house

Fiend by Alma Katsu
Horror, powerful family with evil secrets

We Are Always Tender with Our Dead by Eric LaRocca
Horror, queer, small town, New England, violence, gore

Galloway’s Gospel by Sam Rebelein
Horror, cult, small town

Why I Love Horror by Becky Spratford
Nonfiction anthology with essays about horror

The October Film Haunt by Michael Wehunt
Horror, cult horror movie, filmmaking

You Weren’t Meant to be Human by Andrew Joseph White
Queer horror, Alien meets Midsommar

What Stalks the Deep by T. Kingfisher
Sworn Soldier, book 3

I Want to Be Where the Song Is by Mary J. Blige
Memoir

Still Bobbi by Bobbi Brown
Memoir, makeup industry

The Improbable Victoria Woodhull: Suffrage, Free Love, and the First Woman To Run for President by Eden Collinsworth
Women’s history

Articulate: A Deaf Memoir of Voice by Rachel Renee Kolb
Memoir

Lin-Manuel Miranda: The Education of an Artist by Daniel Pollack-Pelzner
Biography

Truly by Lionel Richie
Memoir

Night People: How To Be a DJ in ’90s New York City by Mark Ronson
Memoir

Super Natural: How Life Thrives in Impossible Places by Alex Riley
Science, creatures who live in extreme environments

Replaceable You: Adventures in Human Anatomy by Mary Roach
Science, human body

October

The Irish Goodbye by Heather Aimee O’Neill
Literary fiction, sisters returning home, Long Island, family secrets

Overdue by Stephanie Perkins
Literary fiction, librarian protagonist, couple agrees to a month of dating other people before they get married

Tom’s Crossing by Mark Z. Danielewski
Epic Western, 1980s, Utah, two friends determined to rescue a pair of horses

The Devil is a Southpaw
Literary fiction, story within a story, teen escaping from a detention center

We’ll Prescribe You Another Cat by Syou Ishida, translated by E. Madison Shimoda
Sequel

Bad Bad Girl by Gish Jen
Auto-fiction, mother-daughter relationship, China, moving to US

Soyangri Book Kitchen by Jee-hye Kim, translated by Shanna Tan
Literary fiction, woman opens bookstore/cafe and transforms community

Heart the Lover by Lily King
Prequel/sequel to Writers and Lovers

The Lucky Ride by Yasushi Kitagawa, translated by Takami Nieda
Magical realism, a depressed man takes a magical taxi that changes his life

The Land of Sweet Forever by Harper Lee
Short stories, essay collection

Bog Queen by Anna North
Literary fiction, forensic anthropologist investigates strange ancient body found in bog

Minor Black Figures by Brandon Taylor
Literary fiction, NYC, queer, Blackness, art world

Menu of Happiness by Hisashi Kashiwai, translated by Jesse Kirkwood
Kamogawa Food Detectives, book 3

We Had a Hunch by Tom Ryan
Mystery, 3 former famous teen detectives return home to solve a new murder

Mockingbird Court by Juneau Black
Shady Hollow, book 6

Mirage City by Lev AC Rosen
Evander Mills, book 4

The Wayfinder by Adam Johnson
Historical fiction, Polynesian Islands, young girl on quest to save her people

Christmas at the Women’s Hotel by Daniel M. Lavery
Sequel to Women’s Hotel

The Women of Artemis by Hannah Lynn
Greek retelling, Amazon warriors building an army to fight abusive men

I am Cleopatra by Natasha Solomons
Cleopatra reimagining

The Haunting of Paynes Hollow by Kelley Armstrong
Horror, strange inheritance, lakefront cottage, secrets, something in lake

The Unveiling by Quan Barry
Horror, survival horror, film scout on cruise to Antarctic, gets stuck

Girl Dinner by Olivie Blake
Horror, dark academia, exclusive sorority with secrets

Herculine by Grace Byron
Horror, woman stalked by malevolent force flees to commune of trans women in Indiana

The Last Witch by C.J. Cooke
Historical horror, 1400s Austria, witchcraft, witch hunts

If the Dead Belong Here by Carson Faust
Horror, Indigenous Southern gothic, family ghosts, search for missing kid

King Sorrow by Joe Hill
Horror, dark academia, rare book thief, dragon who wants blood

Crafting for Sinners by Jenny Kiefer
Horror, queer, religious cult, crafting

The Hong Kong Widow by Kristen Loesch
Historical horror, 1950s Hong Kong, competition between mediums in a haunted house

Futility by Nuzo Onoh
Horror, Nigeria, women summoning spirit to get revenge on bad men

Her Wicked Roots by Tanya Pell
Horror, queer reimagining of Rappaccini’s Daughter

The Graceview Patient by Caitling Starling
Horror, autoimmune disease, experimental medical trial at weird hospital

Nowhere Burning by Catriona Ward
Horror, abandoned ranch of infamous movie star becomes refuge for teen runaways…but with a price

The Salvage by Anbara Salam
Horror, historical, gothic, Scotland, haunted shipwreck

The Devil She Knows by Alexandria Bellefleur
Sapphic paranormal romance, deal with a sexy demon

Mate by Ali Hazelwood
Sequel to Bride

When I Picture You by Sasha Laurens
Queer contemporary romance, sapphic, music, forced proximity, workplace romance

Julia Song is Undateable by Susan Lee
Contemporary romance, high powered CEO hires dating coach

Thirsty by Lucy Lehane
Gay vampire romance, rom-com, screwball comedy, enemies to lovers

Cover Story by Mhairi McFarlane
Contemporary romance, fake dating, office culture

Dealing with a Desperate Demon by Charlotte Stein
Paranormal romance, bookstore owner, demon, magic

And Then There Was the One by Martha Waters
Historical romance, 1930s England, murder mystery

Our Vicious Oaths by N.E. Davenport
Romantasy, magic, political intrigue, enemies to lovers

The Ordeals by Rachel Greenlaw
Romantasy, elite magical college, deadly trials, dark academia, supernatural creatures

Cinder House by Freya Marske
Romantasy, queer, Gothic romance, sapphic, Cinderella retelling

The Isle in the Silver Sea by Tasha Suri
Romantasy, historical, sapphic, medieval folklore, Britain, knight and witch

Alchemy of Secrets by Stephanie Garber
Fantasy, romantasy, dark academia, historical, Los Angeles, magic

The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow
Fantasy, romance, genre-bendy, reluctant lady knight and historian travel through time to rewrite their fates

When They Burned the Butterfly by Wen-yi Lee
Fantasy, sapphic, reimagining of the secret societies of postcolonial Singapore

All That We See or Seem by Ken Lie
Sci fi thriller, hacking, technology, virtual reality mystery

Red City by Marie Lu
Fantasy, romance, alternative Los Angeles, magic warfare, dystopia

Witches of Dubious Origin by Jenn McKinlay
Low stakes fantasy, books, witches, magic, New England

The Women of Wild Hill by Kirsten Miller
Fantasy, modern day witches waging war on the patriarchy

Psychopomp and Circumstance by Eden Royce
Fantasy, Southern gothic, historical, post Reconstruction, family funeral drama

Kill the Beast by Serra Swift
Fantasy, The Witcher meets Howl’s Moving Castle

Queen Demon by Martha Wells
Rising World, book 2

A Mouthful of Dust by Nghi Vo
Singing Hills, book 6

The Uncool by Cameron Crowe
Memoir

Vagabond by Tim Curry

Memoir

Future Boy: Back to the Future and My Journey through the Space-Time Continuum by Michael J. Fox and Nelle Fortenberry
Memoir

Joyride by Susan Orlean

Memoir, creativity

Pride and Pleasure: The Schuyler Sisters in an Age of Revolution by Amanda Vaill
History

The Man of Many Fathers by Roy Wood Jr.
Memoir

Queer Enlightenments: A Hidden History of Lovers, Lawbreakers, and Homemakers by Anthony Delaney
History

The Zorg: A Tale of Greed and Murder That Inspired the Abolition of Slavery Siddharth Kara

Letter from Japan by Marie Kondo and Marie Iida
Nonfiction, Japanese customs that inspired Kondo’s philosophy

Ep 427 - Most Anticipated Books for September and October!

A sneak peak at this year's bonus episode -- reading shows from the 80s and 90s!

Reading Rainbow, Wishbone, Between the Lions, Arthur, and more!!

To hear this episode in its entirety, you must be a Maximum Fun member! Go to maximumfun.org/join to join for as little as $5/month! Join today to get all of our bonus content, a link to our member slack, and much more!

BONUS TEASER - Reading Shows from the 80s and 90s

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