Category: Saturday Miscellany Page 2 of 33

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
Farewell, Pocket Books—I’ve linked to several things about this in the last few months (well, maybe a handful). I rather appreciated this short video.
Dorothy Parker: Sharp-Witted Writer, Bitter Professor—I didn’t know this about Parker.
Scammers’ Delight: Christopher Farnsworth on Living in the Golden Age of Grift—Yes, this is mostly an advertisement for Farnsworth’s new novel (see below), but even without that, it’s a good read. And you can see why people like Farnsworth, Spencer Quinn, and Jesse Q. Sutanto write about bringing these kind of crooks down.
It’s Time to Get Loud About the Books You Love—If you’re going to limit yourself to reading one thing I link to this week, this is the one.
Death Show Colossus: A Fantasy Cyberpunk Deluxe Edition Kickstarter—this looks like a great read, and you can get a very pretty copy of it on the cheaper side while helping some indie artists.
Books That Take Place in Bookstores or Libraries—a handy-dandy list.
Books with Relationships for People who Don’t Love Love: 2026 Edition—I’d forgot that Witty & Sarcastic Book Club did this every year. Shame on me. I enjoy seeing the picks (this year, I’m feeling clever: I’ve read one, own one, and have had another on my “to get” list for ages).
Similarly, Noelle Holten has a couple of Anti-Valentine’s Day Book Recs
If, however, you’re in the mood to celebrate the day, you might appreciate this collection of valentines to print for your special someone (or to at least forward the images to them)
The Manhattan Beach Library has a great game for bored librarians to play

My favorite sentence/passage/phrase (or two) that I read this week:
“Death may be the price of warriors, but grief is the price of the ones they leave behind.”—Banners of Wrath by Michael Michel

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago This Week?
The Batgirl of Burnside by Brenden Fletcher, Cameron Stewart & Babs Tarr
The Highly Capable by Jayme Beddingfield (I feel pretty bad that I forgot about this book entirely until I read this post today)
Guardians by Josi Russell
The Prince of Tides by Pat Conroy
And I mentioned the releases of: Morning Star by Pierce Brown; Dead Is Better by Jo Perry; Atlanta Burns: The Hunt by Chuck Wendig; As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust by Alan Bradley

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Banners of Wrath by Michael Michel—the third book in this saga is really pushing these cultures to the brink of destruction. I’m not so sure that there’s a way for this series to resolve in anything but chaos. I think I’m okay with that as long as the writing stays this compelling. (and if I’m wrong, all the better)
Strange Animals by Jarod K. Anderson—”An ordinary man discovers a hidden world of supernatural creatures—and an unexpected home—in this enchanting contemporary fantasy debut.” I tried to talk about what a cool read this is recently.
Robert B. Parker’s Big Shot by Christopher Farnsworth—”Police Chief Jesse Stone finds himself in the crosshairs of a rich hedge fund manager dead set on making Paradise Jesse’s personal hell.” I’m appreciating Farnsworth’s approach to Jesse, coupled with the piece linked above, I’m eager to dive in sometime next week.
Operation Bounce House by Matt Dinniman—”A man must fight for his planet against impossible odds when gamers from Earth attempt to remotely annihilate it in this epic, fast-paced novel.” This is not the jokey-Dinniman that others have described to me. This is like Suzanne Collins mixed with Scalzi’s more serious side. I’m almost half-way through this audiobook, and it’s captivating and gut-punching.

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
From Pages to Community: Inside Caldwell’s Shared Stories—a nice story about my favorite local store
Bookshop.org kicks-off February charitable drive #ReadItForward to support young readers in the National Year of Reading—just about everything I’ve read about the National Year of Reading happening on the other side of the Atlantic has been encouraging. This is just another example. I imagine it’s going to involve a hurdle or two for those of us on this side to contribute, but I’m looking into it.
Indie Blog Off Remnants—I really should’ve promoted this sooner, but you’d do well to keep an eye on this competition (now underway). I love the spirit behind this one, and the entrants look very promising. (well, two of them I know deliver on the promise)
Fanfiction’s Total Cultural Victory—”Total” might be overstating it. But it might be on its way.
Grimdark Magazine Issue #45 looks like a great issue, there was that Butcher interview I linked to recently and then Before We Go blog posted these two pieces this week from it, too. What does it mean to be human in a sci-fi world? and INTERVIEW: The Machinery of Control with Yudhanjaya Wijeratne and T.R. Napper—well worth your time.
A.J. Calvin’s The Indie Author Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Horror New Release List: February 2026—hold on to your wallets (but not too tightly)
An interview with IBOR entrant JCM Berne—Berne talks about his (too often overlooked) Partial Function.
We’ve all been here

My favorite sentence/passage/phrase (or two) that I read this week:
“Lekan was self-impressed, condescending, and the single best argument against making firstborns heir to anything.” ―The Rage of Dragons by Evan Winter

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago This Week?
The Intern by Dale Wiley
Staked by Kevin Hearne
Missing Mona by Joe Klingler
And I mentioned the releases of: Keep Calm by Mark Binder; The Custodian of Marvels by Rod Duncan; Blood in her Veins by Faith Hunter; Graft by Matt Hill; The Alchemy of Chaos by Marshall Ryan Maresca; A Criminal Magic by Lee Kelly; Harmony Black by Craig Schaefer; and The Deavys by Alan Dean Foster

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Boy, with Accidental Dinosaur by Ian McDonald—if the cover isn’t enough, how about: “How to Train Your Dragon meets Mad Max in this story of an orphan in a fractured Southwest who just wants to ride a dinosaur under the lights.”

Another late one, but I got to go spend some time with Grandcritter #2 to celebrate a birthday, so…yeah, this gets pushed off.

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
Words of Wisdom from Fantasy Books—I typically put posts from fellow bloggers at the end of these lists, but this seems like the right one to lead with this week.
Don Winslow has a new book this week, so he’s doing the rounds. These two interviews are worth your time: ‘We Have to Speak Out’: Don Winslow on Fighting Trump and Coming Out of Retirement and Crime writer Don Winslow is fresh out of retirement with renewed conviction
Tolkien: Immortality Is the Trap in Middle-earth—”Most fantasy treats immortality as the prize. Tolkien treats it as a sentence.”
Pros and Cons of Self Publishing—the next installment in this great series from Willow Wraith Press
Do You Like to Read Your Age/Eras?—I don’t know that I considered things from this point of view before. Been churning in my mind since, though.
Book Blogging Slumps—smart advice I’d do well to follow. I mean my forcing myself to do something (or fall asleep while trying) and then beating myself up for it before and after strategy has its charms (and I have years of experience with it). But maybe I could try this once or twice.
Eight Years of Reading, Writing, and Finding My Voice—I don’t remember not seeing Gina’s posts floating around. So 8 doesn’t seem long enough for her blog to have been around. Congrats on this landmark!
Captivating Character of January—Feels like kind of a cheat here where Carol picks two characters… 🙂 Check out Carol’s picks and the others in the linkparty.
Monthly Manga Mania Featuring Firsty Duelist: Go! Go! Loser Ranger! by Negi Haruba—It’s time for Firsty Duelist’s Manga Post–and this one looks fun. (what is this kid doing to me?)

My favorite sentence/passage/phrase (or two) that I read this week :
“Prisons are the saddest places in the world.

Prisons and children’s cancer wards.

The difference is that in the children’s wards there’s hope.”
—”Collision” from The Final Score by Don Winslow

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago This Week?
The Storms of Deliverance by Larry Higdon
Lessons from Tara by David Rosenfelt
Three Slices by Kevin Hearne, Delilah S. Dawson, Chuck Wendig
Winter by Marissa Meyer
Where It Hurts by Reed Farrel Coleman
And I mentioned the releases of: Staked by Kevin Hearne, Broken Hero by Jonathan Wood, All the Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders, Where it Hurts by Reed Farrel Coleman, and The Murder Quadrille by Fidelis Morgan

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
The Final Score by Don Winslow—Six “short novels” by the master. I might quibble with the label he attaches to the stories, but that’s probably the only complaint I have about this collection. More to come from me on this—possibly a lot.
Monster in the Moonlight by Annelise Ryan—Morgan Carter is on the hunt for a werewolf-ish creature. Or a human that might be worse.

I thought this was going to be a beefier list this week, but apparently I didn’t save all the things I meant to. Or I spent more time reading books than surfing than I thought I did (very likely). Quality over quantity, let’s say.

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
Libro.fm Reports Growth in 2025, Launches Annual Subscription—some promising news from my audiobook dealer of choice. While I’m thinking of it, feel free to use this referral link if you decide to subscribe or buy a book, would help me out a bit.
The world’s most powerful literary critic is on TikTok—I was actually tempted to use the app now just so I can watch this guy. Resisted, but was tempted.
The Best Book Covers of the Last Decade—You all know that I’m a sucker for “Best Cover”-type posts. This is no exception.
INTERVIEW: with author Jim Butcher—Beth Tabler and Jim Butcher, who can resist the combo? Who would want to?
How Psychological Thrillers Critique the American Dream
Your To-Be-Read Pile Might Be Lying to You—worth reading if only for the Deliah Dawson e-book TBR wisdom
Ranking Classic Children’s Picture Books—someone has the guts to say what we’re all thinking about Brown Bear, Brown Bear and Goodnight Moon (other helpful stuff here, too…)
Arty Picturebooks!—Another good Picture Book post, this one from The Orangutan Librarian

A Book-ish Related Podcast episode (or two) you might want to give a listen to:
SFF Addicts Ep. 186: Scott Lynch talks the Gentleman Bastard Sequence, Heists, Mental Health & More—I enjoyed this one so much I might listen again. (and not just to hyperfixate on the hints Lynch gives about future news)

My favorite sentence/passage/phrase (or two) that I read this week :
“There are moments in your life that are perfect. You know they won’t last long, you know they’re rare, you know that they might not ever come again. If you pay attention, you can feel those moments happening to you.”—Twelve Months by Jim Butcher

and…(this one got stuck in my head)
“All three of us twitch-jumped except for Molly and Lara.”—Twelve Months by Jim Butcher

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago This Week?
The Next to Last Word by Michael P.V. Barrett
Nightwing, Vol. 1: Traps and Trapezes by Kyle Higgins and Eddy Barrows
The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henríquez
I mentioned the releases of strong>Orphan X by Gregg Hurwitz (and I should really get around to books 2-11 someday) and The Rogue Retrieval by Dan Koboldt

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Twelve Months by Jim Butcher—because I don’t think I’ve mentioned it enough in the last three weeks, the new Dresden Files novel dropped this week. I’m in fanboy heaven. If you’re a Dresden-fan, you don’t need to be reminded (I assume) that it’s out. If you’re not, I don’t know that this is a book for you–but let me tell you, the 17 books you need to read first will knock your socks off. (might just be easier to read them barefoot)
There Be Dragons Here by S.L. Rowland—The latest Cozy Fantasy Adventure from Rowland looks very promising, a 182 year-old former adventurer is tasked with taking an old friend’s ashes to their final resting place.
Nine Goblins: A Tale of Low Fantasy and High Mischief by T. Kingfisher—Nine goblins find themselves behind enemy lines and have to face just about every fantasy race you can think of (humans worst of all) to get home.

(the cat is absolutely not necessary)

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
Best Sci-Fi First Contact Adventures—a nice little stack of goodies. I can speak for 2.4 of the 7, and agree with Peloquin’s choices–and the rest look just as good.
Willow Wraith Press is starting to host a promising series of articles about Self-Publishing, they kick it off (aptly) with What is Self Publishing?
Beauty With Teeth: What I Want From Fae Fantasy—this is a lot of what I wanted to say Monday, and didn’t quite manage to.

My favorite sentence/passage/phrase (or two) that I read this week :
“I’m not saying pain is what defines us as human beings. But it is, in many ways, what unites us.”―Battle Ground by Jim Butcher

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago This Week?
Sex & Violence in the Bible by Joseph W. Smith III
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams—to be fair, when am I NOT talking about this?
In Defense of the Moth or A Meaningless Dance in Blinding Heat and Light by Johnny Newport
Indexing: Reflections Episode Twelve: Never After by Seanan McGuire
Hidden by Karen E. Olson
The Odd Fellows Society by C. G. Barrett
I mentioned the releases of: Once a Crooked Man by David McCallum; Reflections by Seanan McGuire; and Level Up Your Life by Steve Kamb

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
First Do No Harm by S. J. Rozan—Somehow this slipped by me last week. “Lydia Chin and Bill Smith face a dangerous task: they must unlock a hospital’s many secrets in order to save an innocent man.” That sentence only needs the first five words to get me interested, but the rest works, too.
Forbidden Waters by Rob Parker—Cam Killick is back and this time he “has found is a murder weapon from a very recent crime – but how do you solve a murder without a body?”
Godfall by Van Jensen—”In this riveting small town thriller, Sheriff David Blunt is faced with a string of murders following the arrival of an alien life form”
The Luminous Fairies and Mothra by Takehiko Fukunaga, Yoshie Hotta and Shin’ichiro Nakamura, Translated by Jeffrey Angles—following up on his translation of the Godzilla novellas, Angles brings us the original Mothra story.

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
The Lost Art of Reading an Actual Book: What happens when people stop reading books? We’re starting to see what a postliterate society looks like—and it’s very lame.—worth the read just for the metaphor about eating your kids’ Halloween candy.
9 Classic Crime Stories That Have Just Entered the Public Domain in 2026—CrimeReads talks about some BIG titles that are now Public Domain.
Mort Walker, Beetle Bailey, and the decline and fall of newspaper comics
100 Years of ‘The Murder of Roger Ackroyd’: Adrian McKinty celebrates the centenary of Agatha Christie’s groundbreaking detective novel.
Is Fantasy Still Not Taken “Seriously” in Some Circles?—this week’s Fantasy with Friends had a lot of good input, (as I predicted). Go read the participants.
Let’s talk about “grimdark”—some good musings on Grimdark (which is being applied to broadly lately)
Letting Stories Linger—yes.
From Service to Storytelling: Local Vet Publishes Fantasy Novels—a nice little story about a local writer that I hope to make the acquaintance of soon. (at least in print)
26 Short Classics to Meet Your Goal of Reading More Classics in 2026—This could be a handy list
It’s all Your Fault: Book Reviewers who Influence My Reading—The gloves come off, and Jodie calls out book reviewers who deliberately destroy TBR pile progress. Vile folks that you should check out.
Speaking of destroying TBR progress, these Best of ’25 lists should set yours back a bit:
Sifa Elisabeth’s Best Books of 2025
Ganesh’s (Pippin Took) top reads of 2025 (his reasoning behind The Kaiju Preservation Society is very sound)
Jo Linsdell’sBest Reads of 2025
Celeste’s Favorite Books Published in 2025 and Favorite Backlist Books of 2025 show some great taste and burden me with some new titles
My Top 5: Books Read In 2025—For Books Sake pulls of the Herculean task of limiting it to 5!
TCL’s Best of the Best List for 2013-2025!—this is something I could never do…and props to Davida for pulling it off. And the madness is spreading, as Carol takes a stab at it: Best of the Best: 2015 to 2025

My favorite sentence/passage/phrase (or two) that I read this week :
“The Governor was obviously the kind of person who received as much spiritual contentment from berating others as a cold man does from a bowl of soup.”—She Who Became the Sun by SHelley Parker-Chan (so, so much is said in that one sentence)

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago This Week?
Somehow, these posts didn’t make the transfer to the new domain, so they look a little strange.
The Witch with No Name by Kim Harrison
The Absconded Ambassador by Michael R. Underwood
And I mentioned the releases of: The Last Dream Keeper by Amber Benson and Steal the Sky by Megan E. O’Keefe

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Through Gates of Garnet and Gold by Seanan McGuire—Nancy returns to Eleanor West’s school on a mission–the world behind her Door is in peril, and her friends may be their last hope. Like just about every book in this series, this one blew me away, as I noted recently.
Fairest Hunter by M.K. Felix—a retelling of Snow White and Robin Hood. Should be a fun mashup.
The Charmed Library by Jennifer Moorman—”A cozy, Hallmark-esque rom-com, The Charmed Library invites readers to escape to a world where words come alive and book boyfriends leap off the page.” Go read what the Witty & Sarcastic Book Club had to say about it.
Ms. Marvel: Remnants of the Past by Saadia Faruqi—Kamala Khan is off to Pakistan on a hunt for a magical artifact. ‘Nuff said.

So many changes today…Man Flu has become bronchitis, 2025 has become 2026, my bullet images should look a little better in dark mode (still not perfect…but a good step), and a fourth, funny item should go here. Oh well…punchlines are for closers, I guess. And I haven’t made a sale in weeks.

Anyway, here’s the first Miscellany of 2026, thanks for reading!

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
I’m sure I need to tell very few of you this, but today is the 134th anniversary of J.R.R. Tolkein’s birth. Fans around the world will be participaing in Tolkien Birthday Toast 2026.
Public Domain Day 2026—Center for the Study of the Public Domain brings us (as per their custom) the lists and some thoughts on the works newly in Public Domain.
Is It Possible to Overconsume Books?—Krysta at Pages Unboud has some thoughts.
The Books That Keep Us Company: There is something special about the series we really, truly grow up with…—Molly Templeton’s latest has something we can all relate to (I imagine), even if her cited examples mean little to us
Novels About Old People—Mike Finn has a good list of books featuring elderly chatacters
Book Blogger Challenge (2026)—a challenge for book bloggers that focuses on the community and blogging itself
45 Book Bloggers to Follow in 2026—Pages Unbound has a list of 45 to keep an eye on (which may help with the challenge). I can vouch for a lot of these (not that it matters), and assume the few I haven’t encountered/interacted with are just as good
And now, it’s time to look at another batch of Best of ’25 lists:
Read Like Nobody’s Watching- Raven’s December Reads and Books Of The Year 2025. —Raven features a few great-looking ones in 2025
The damppebbles Top Ten(ish!) of 2025—Hard to go wrong with Emma (unless you’re looking for reliable numbers)
Spells & Spaceships’ The Best Books I Read in 2025
A Fictional Escapist’s Top Five of 2025!
Best of 2025 reads—from reader@work
Fantasy Book Nerd’s TOP BOOKS OF 2025
My Top Ten Books of 2025—I agree with a couple of The Orangutan Librarian’s picks and have added some to a TBR.
Top 10 Books Read in 2025—in what was a bad year of reading for him, Peat Long did find some gems.
The Hard Word wraps up their Top Twenty-Five for First Twenty-five Years series with 15-11, 10-6, and 5-1

My favorite sentence/passage/phrase (or two) that I read this week :
“Already, even with the great act still ahead, there was flowing in upon me, from the barren years beyond it, a dejection such as I had never conceived. It was not at all like the agonies I had endured before and have endured since. I did no weep nor wrong my hands. I was like water put into a bottle and left in a cellar: utterly motionless, never to be drunk, poured out, spilled, or shaken. The days were endless. The very shadows seemed nailed to the ground as if the sun no longer moved.”—Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago This Week?
The Pleasures of Reading in an Age of Distraction by Alan Jacobs

It’s the last Saturday Miscellany of 2025–as so many have lately. There are two contributing factors–1. It’s between Dec. 25 and Jan. 1 where time is vague. 2. I have a case of the Man Flu, making the vagueness of time even worse for me. As I typically do, I ask that you keep Mrs. Irresponsible Reader in your thoughts at this difficult time for her.

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
The American Dream in the Winter Solstice: Reflections on the Linked Legacies of Fitzgerald, Steinbeck, and West—It’s hard to describe briefly but I wish I could write stuff like this
Last week, we looked at the New York Public Library’s most checked out, along with an aggregate of the US. Now, let’s look closer to my home with: These are the top books checked out from the Boise Public Library in 2025
INTERVIEW: with author Michael Michel—over at at GrimdarkMAGAZINE
Senior Sleuths: The Art and Appeal of Mysteries Starring Older Detectives—”Michelle L. Cullen on tropes, elderly invisibility, and what makes aged crime-solvers so arresting”
18 New Cross-Genre Book Trends from 2025 (and Going Strong into 2026!)—from Goodreads
Discussion: Should bloggers do research before posting book reviews?—oh, good grief, no. Read a book and respond to it–if you want to verify a thing or two, go for it (and yes, I do this–and sometimes keep going and end up not posting anything). If it’s not on the page, that’s not for you to worry about. If you’re writing for a publication (especially if someone pays for it), then yeah–best get your house in order.
Quotables: Words that Stuck with Me in 2025—One of my favorite annual posts from Witty and Sarcastic Book Club
The Orangutan Librarian had a good pair of posts this week: Books I Successfully DNF’d in 2025 (I think whoever sold them on Snow Crash set them up for failure, but, whatever) and Books I’m Glad I Didn’t Quit
It’s time for another batch of the best of 2025 to lighten your wallets and build up your TBRs:
Alta Journal’s Best Books of 2025
FanFiAddict’s Will’s Favorites of 2025
The 10 Best Books I Read in 2025—by Briana at Pages Unbound
FanFiAddict’s DB Rook’s Best Reads of 2025 looks exactly like what the author of Callus & Crow should pick
The best fantasy, horror, and sci-fi books of 2025—according to GrimarkMAGAZINE
LordTBR’s Top Reads of 2025
And then we’ve got The Hard Word’s Top 25 of 2025: 15-11
A Jam’s list to 2026 releases – Part 2

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago This Week?
It’s Our Right to Fight by Scott Lobdell and Brett Booth
Do More Better by Tim Challies

The sheer number of basic html errors this week that I’ve made (and thankfully caught) is enough to make my head spin. Including in this largely copy-and-paste post. I figured by this point, I’d have come up with a punch-line or something to follow up that opening observation, but inspiration seems to be striking someone else. So, I’ll just leave this here as another sign that the ol’ gray matter isn’t quite 100% this week. Thankfully, here are a handful of examples of people that should be publicly posting:
Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
“Reading is a subversive act”: Shenandoah interviews Virginia’s Lieutenant Governor–Elect Ghazala Hashmi—Shared for the ideas nothing else. Politics aside (I know nothing about hers), this is what I want in an office holder. As Sam Seaborn says, “I look for anything. I look for a mind at work.”
Reintroduction of Federal Right to Read Act Aims to Bolster Literacy, School Libraries
The New York Public Library’s Most Checked Out Books in 2025
Why stay so narrowly focused, though? LibraryThing (and others) have a cool graphic showing The Most Popular Books in US Public Libraries for 2025.
How Translation Works, Book Title Edition
The Art of Buying Books for Other People
Ways You Can Help Your Fellow Book Bloggers This Holiday Season—it would be classless of me to suggest that you can take care of #4 on Jo’s list by using the Bookshop.org button to the right. So I won’t.
Where Do You Promote Your Book Blog in 2026?—This is something I’ve never worked that hard on (and it shows). Some of the comments to the post have inspired a thought or two. Will I take advantage of that? Who knows…but I should. (or, better, I should hire one of my underemployed kids to do it for me)
Curating a Library for a Young One—good stuff here.
Books that made a bigger impression over time—oooh, I like this idea. And a couple of these books have been on my “eh, maybe” list for a bit. Given their impact, I’m a little more inclined to get them.
It’s time for a few more Best Of ’25 lists, so hold on to your wallets.
CrimeReads gave us: The Best Books of 2025: Traditional Mysteries and The Best Books of 2025: Noir Fiction
Public Books’ Public Picks 2025
Tom Bookbeard’s Top Reads of 2025
Favorite Books Read in 2025—from Pages Unbound’s Krysta
C. J. Daley’s Top Reads of 2025
746 Books has three lists (it’s not just me that has to break them down!) My Favourite Books of the Year: Part One – The 746!. Part Two – The Irish!, and Part Three – New!
and this only sorta fits here, like last week, The Hard Word’s Top Twenty-Five for First Twenty-Five Years (20-16)
And then we have people looking ahead to 2026 (good grief, I’m barely planning the next 11 days! (yes, I’m jealous of their level of organization))
Wolfmantula’s The Unofficial 2026 TBR—the amount of effort behind this post’s graphics alone…
A Jam’s list to 2026 releases – Part 1
Get Ready! Readers’ Most Anticipated Books of 2026—

A Book-ish Related Podcast episode (or two) you might want to give a listen to:
Book Berne-ing #22 Breaking Into Booktube!

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago This Week?
My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry by Fredrik Backman
An Unwelcome Quest by Scott Meyer
Indexing: Reflections, Episode Ten: Untold Truths by Seanan McGuire
Santa 365 by Spencer Quinn
Winter and Night by S. J. Rozan
And I mentioned the release of Bryant & May and the Burning Man by Christopher Fowler

This Week’s New Release that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Dogged by Michael R. Fletcher—”In the final days of the Demon Empire a lone wardog goes in search of the answer to the only question she cares about: Who murdered her mate? Utterly unqualified to solve a mystery, Dogged Determination has but one advantage: She never, ever gives up.” The cover alone grabs my attention (it’s almost like that’s the point), the premise sounds cool, and the hype from early reviews around this is palpable. It’s the next novel I’m tackling.

Yeah, this is late. Was busy grandparenting, so I don’t feel too bad. Priorities for the day: Grandcritter #1. Several steps down: You, dear reader. One step lower: Reading something. (well…maybe a half-step, maybe a quarter-step…possibly the same step…somewhere in the general vicinity anyway). A few steps lower: everything else (Hi, wife and kids!)

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
Sophie Kinsella, ‘Confessions of a Shopaholic’ Author, Dies at 55
PW’s 2025 Person of the Year: Nihar Malaviya—for his efforts countering book-banning, censorship, etc., PW named Penguin Random House CEO, Nihar Malaviya, their Person of the Year.
New Kindle Feature Uses AI to Answer Questions About Books—And Authors Can’t Opt Out—this is ridiculous (and more than a little maddening)
The Empty Lab, in Science and in Fiction
To New Beginnings: Growing Past Percy Jackson: On aging past our childhood heroes, and leaving room for the next generation of fans—(this can apply to other fandoms, too, not just Percy)
FFA’s Most Anticipated Titles of 2026 (so far)—oh, 2026 is going to be a busy year for my TBR.
746 Books is 12 today!—heckuva landmark.
Over on Bluesky, Adam Holcombe posted his 2025 Wrapped: Author Edition—a fun way to look at his year. By the way, if you haven’t checked out his Bounty, Inc., you really should.
And now, it’s time for some more Best Of ’25s:
The Best Debut Crime Novels of 2025—according to Crime Reads
Reviewers’ Choice: The Best Books of 2025—Reactor’s Reviewers have a veritable cornucopia of books to tempt you with
20 Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Horror Authors Pick Their Favorite Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Horror Books of 2025—io9 got a bunch of authors to do the same
The Hard Word is going for something a bit more ambitious, but I’ll lump them in with this anyway: Top Twenty-Five Crime Novels of the Last Twenty-Five Years (20-25)
A.J.’s Completely Random Book Awards: 2025—I love these categories (and agree with several of the choices)
Book’d Out brings us Five Books Best Nonfiction Books of 2025
Best Books of 2025 TFF To-Read Festivus Guide—from The Forgotten Fiction
Jo Linsdell compiled Book Bloggers’ Picks: One Must-Read Book We Loved This Year
And with a few shopping days left before Giftmas/Santaween/whatever you call December 25th (or your gift-giving holiday of your choice), here’s a couple of more gift guides
The 2025 CrimeReads Holiday Gift Guide
Gifts for Readers: 50+ Ideas Book Lovers Actually Want —another great compilation from Jo Linsdell

A Book-ish Related Podcast episode (or two) you might want to give a listen to:
The Four Beardsmen’s Big Fat Bookish Quiz of the year!—this looks like a blast.

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago This Week?
Dry Bones by Craig Johnson
The Case of the Missing Servant by Tarquin Hall—I’m kicking myself for not continuing with this series (didn’t realize it’d been this long since I’d dabbled)
The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes—another series that I should’ve stuck with…
Stepdog by Nicole Galland
And I mentioned the release of The Relic Master by Christopher Buckley

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon (and one from last week that I forgot about):
Lit by Tim Sandlin—a twisted-looking cozy mystery
The Wizard’s Cat by Nathan Lowell—I had a lot of fun with the first in the series, looking forward to dive in.