Category: Books Page 20 of 158

Saturday Miscellany—1/25/25

On January 25, 2025

In Books, News/Misc., Saturday Miscellany

Robert Burns was born on this date in 1759 and there are celebrations of this throughout the world tonight–I’v never been to one but have been wanting to since the 90s (social anxiety, the gift that keeps on giving). At the very least, find some time tonight yourself to read “A Red, Red Rose,”, “To a Mouse,” or one of his other poems in the closest approximation of a Scottish Brogue while drinking something appropriate. I’ll be entertaining (scarring for life?) my family with such this evening*—join in!

* And I know at least one of you is thinking of asking—no, I will not be putting this on my YouTube channel, I’d end up getting a lifetime ban from reading Ian Rankin or something equally horrible.

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:
bullet Jules Feiffer, award-winning political cartoonist and writer, dies at 95, Jules Feiffer—Author, Illustrator, Cartoonist, and More—Dies at 95 —there are few illustrations from books that I read as a child that I remember as vividly as I Feiffer’s The Phantom Tollbooth drawings. (wasn’t always crazy about his political cartoons, but I could appreciate them)
bullet Print Book Sales Saw a Small Sales Increase in 2024 —Publishers Weekly also breaks down the top sellers of the year, some interesting titles there. (but largely entirely predictable, too)
bullet Mystery Writers of America Announces 2025 Edgar Allan Poe Award Nominations—I recognize so few of these names/titles that I’m a little embarrassed.
bullet The truth about fiction: What distinguishes fiction from nonfiction? The answer to this perennial question relies on how we understand reality itself—if you want to get your metaphysics on today…
bullet How the world fell for ‘romantasy’: Dragon sex is hotter than ever—When I stumbled over this, I was sure that there’d be some snobbery about the sub-genre going on—and you could argue that there is—but it’s a good look at this growing area and an appreciation of it, too.
bullet Men Have Bigger Problems Than Not Reading Novels: For James Folta, What’s Wrong With Men is What’s Wrong With America—you might disagree with a lot of what Folta says here, but his reaction to the whole “Men Don’t Read Novels” idea running around lately is worth chewing on.
bullet Series Release Day for Ninja Heroine Lily Wong—Eldridge’s series gets a new publisher, a fresh look, and hopefully new readers. I was already annoyed with myself for not buying the fourth book yet, and now my covers will be mismatched. And now I have to think about getting the new set, just to appreciate them.
bullet Just Keep Swimming—Peter Hartog/David provides some “writing and author-y updates” and some general sagacity
bullet The Laws—Michael J. Ciaraldi looks at just how unworkable The Three Laws of Robotics really are (sob, sob, sob, I’m sooooo disillusioned)
bullet From The Hard Word, Scott’s Top 10 (Okay, 13) Thrillers and Crime Novels of 2024—some good choices here (and a couple of things I should probably add to my list)
bullet Host Mortem: Cover Reveal and Interview!—I’m going to have to keep my eyes out for this
bullet The Role of AI in Modern Storytelling—this is sure to provoke a thought or two. I’m not entirely convinced that I disagree, as much as I want to.
bullet Great Books With Bad Beginnings
bullet Disappointing Books By Favourite Authors
bullet Gorgeous (Hidden) Book Covers—I know that I have a couple of these on my shelves, but Booktails might have inspired me to go look under all my dustcovers just to be sure. If I don’t post anything for the next few days, you’ll know I succumbed.
bullet Fantasy Bookcase Decor for Your Home Library

A Book-ish Related Podcast episode (or two) you might want to give a listen to:
bullet As Told To Episode 80: Benjamin Dreyer—a nice chat with everyone’s favorite copy editor.

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
bullet Angel’s Tip by Alafair Burke
bullet Beautiful Redemption by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
bullet Breach Zone by Myke Cole
bullet Chasing the Prophecy by Brandon Mull
bullet Fiddlehead by Cherie Priest
bullet iZombie, Vol 1: Dead to the World by Chris Roberson, Mike Allred
bullet And I talked about the release of Mr. Kiss and Tell by Rob Thomas and Jennifer Graham—man, I wish these Veronica Mars novels had kept going

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
bullet The Drafter by Kim Harrison—Harrison’s least appreciated (as far as I can see), but my favorite, is out in a new edition.

WWW Wednesday—January 22, 2025

By HCNewton

On January 22, 2025

In Books, Currently Reading, News/Misc., WWW Wednesday

So, this is the Winteriest week we’ve had here this Winter, and all I want to do is huddle down with a book and a gallon of tea. How about you? Hopefully, it’s a bit more comforatble (although a quick glance at the news suggests that it isn’t).

Now let’s get on to the WWWing.

This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived on Taking on a World of Words—and shown to me by Aurore-Anne-Chehoke at Diary-of-a-black-city-girl.

The Three Ws are:
What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Seems easy enough, right? Let’s take a peek at this week’s answers:

What are you currently reading?


I Cheerfully Refuse by Leif Enger	Subculture Vulture: A Memoir in Six Scenes by Moshe Kasher

I don’t know that I fully grasp everything that Enger is up to in this book–but I don’t care because the prose is just great (although it would be nice if I could put it together before the end). This dystopian world feels all too real (even if there’s magical realism lurking around).

Kasher’s second memoir is much funnier than his previous one (shocking that a memoir that ends with a teenager finally getting sober wasn’t a hoot). This is provocative, thoughtful, and entertaining. For example, I never cared about “Rave culture” and am okay with that–but the approx. 90 minutes he spent talking about it was really engaging.

What did you recently finish reading?


Sword & Thistle by S.L. Rowland	The Accidental Joe: The Top-Secret Life of a Celebrity Chef by Tom Straw

Rowland’s cozy fantasy is less cozy than it’s predecessor–but it’s close enough that it shouldn’t bother those who want the coziness, but it should also appeal to those who prefer more “stabby stabby” (to quote someone).

Tom Straw’s first (I think) book under his own name (instead of Richard Castle’s) is a hoot. It’s going to be hard to express how fun this was.

What do you think you’ll read next?


Hit The Ground Running by Kate Ashwin	The Innocent Sleep by Seanan McGuire, read by: Raphael Corkhill

An “offbeat” or “humorous” cyperpunk? Is that allowed? Should be fun to find out.

It is going to be so weird hearing the voices Toby, Tybalt, et. al. in a voice that doesn’t belong to Mary Robinette Kowal. Still I’m looking forward to giving it a shot.

What’s keeping you company as you try to get warm?

I’m Reading Every Day in February for the American Cancer Society

By HCNewton

On January 22, 2025

In Books, Miscellany, News/Misc.

No one is a fan of cancer. I daresay there’s no one ambivalent toward it.* We’ve all had our lives, the lives of family, friends, acquaintances, coworkers, and even pets devastated by it in one form or another. Fighting cancer, researching better ways to fight it, preventing it–all are laudatory ends. So, I participated in this fundraiser last year on a lark—I’m pretty much going to read every day anyway–let’s see if I can earn some money for a good cause, right?

But this year, it’s personal. Last year, four people in my family dealt with cancer in some significant ways. Three of us seem to have dealt with it successfully—we’re not unscathed, but aside from follow-up tests, we’re pretty much done with it. One member of the family is undergoing treatment now, and we all have high hopes. So it’s not a lark this time, and I’m going to talk more about it than I did last year. (I probably should’ve taken it more seriously last year, but it’s too late to do something about that now).

So please, friends and readers, Donate. Every little bit helps. So, please, chip in. And watch this space as I fill in this calendar (and hopefully, the thermometer).

* As soon as I typed that, I could imagine someone objecting to that characterization. But I’m going to pretend to have faith in humanity and keep the sentence.

2025 Plans and Challenges

By HCNewton

On January 21, 2025

In Books, Calendar Items, Miscellany, News/Misc.

Finally it’s time to stop looking at 2024 (as fun as I hope that is’s been) and to start focusing on 2025.

Too many of my goals and the challenges I set for myself for 2024 were not accomplished. I’m okay with that, actually, because they served their purpose anyway, and/or weren’t that big of a deal. Still, I told myself I was going to scale back this year and only have 3 stated “goals” (you will soon see that this did not work out). Still…

I do have things I want to accomplish here over the next 12 months for a variety of reasons—and listing them like this helped last year (although, you’ll see a lot of echoes here from that post. But most of those echoes are of a “continue doing this” nature). So, here’s what I’m going to shoot for around here in the next 12 months.
Cut down on my Goodreads Want-to-Read list and the unread books that I own (a perennial project, but 2024 was not good for the size of that stack)—at least two of the Book Challenges this year should be a fun way to help.
I’m going to finish my Classic Spenser series and maybe find another Classic to do a project read-through. We’ll see about that. (This is a repeat from the last couple of years, but it’s nagging at me, we’ll put this one down in light pencil)
I’m going to continue to be picky in the Book Tours I participate in. I still like Tours, they expose me to things I wouldn’t normally read—and I’m going to keep doing them. But if I’m picky, it helps me focus on other things.
I was planning on cutting back on the Reading Challenges I was trying, but… Well, I already mentioned that. I’ll talk about those in a minute.
Try to interview more authors (maybe others, too?), and get better at that, too. The Literary Locals series is helping with that. Hopefully that also means more of the HC Chats, too.
I want to continue the Literary Locals, but I think I need to find a new phase of it, something different.
I plan on pressing forward with Grandpappy’s Corner, and hopefully do posts for it more frequently.

2025 Book Challenges

Goodreads Challenge
I lowered this from the last couple of years, although I expect my year-end numbers will be the same. This is mostly an attempt to shift my attention away from the numbers–I honestly don’t care about them, I talk about them just as an indicator of how I spend my time (for myself), although it often comes across as something else. I’m also planning on tackling some more thought-provoking and slower reads this year, so this might help me not care about that. We’ll see how that works.

Read Every Day in February for the American Cancer Society
I talked about this earlier. It’s pretty self-explanatory, really. If you’d like to contribute, please click here.

Reading with Wrigs
I missed completing this one last year, but have done some pre-planning on it and feel better about this year’s.

The 2025 Booktempter’s TBR Challenge

I really appreciate the way this one is put together, and it’s pretty easy—just 1 book a month and my TBR should go down by at least 12, more if I can squeeze in some of the stretch goals. This has been pretty helpful the last three years, and I expect the same this year.

Further Up and Further In
Thanks in part to Ward’s Planet Narnia, but also because I keep finding myself in conversations about Lewis lately, I figured it was time to spend some more time with Jack. For sundry reasons (good and bad), outside of the Chronicles of Narnia, I haven’t really read Lewis this century. It’s time I rectify that by revisiting some old friends and reading things I’ve been meaning to get around to.

25 in ’25
I keep seeing people do this (or earlier versions). I’m tackling it essentially as a way to do more than Booktempter’s TBR Challenge (also to tackle a few I’ve said I’ll read before and haven’t). Gamifying my goals tends to work. It’s like a year-long version of the 20 Books of Summer Challenge (RIP). You will note that the books from Top 5 books I will definitely* read in 2025 show up here, I’m really trying to tackle those.

Auditing Challenges
I’m not sure that I want to committ to these, but I saw them on Bookforager’s page, and wanted to give them a shot–they look fun. So I’m going to track them, and if I happen to do well with them, great. If not…oh, well.

(yeah, that’s true with all of these, but I’m sort of calling my shot with the above)
Alphabet Reading Challenge

The idea is pretty easy, I don’t imagine I’ll find a book for them all (that said, come November, if I’m choosing between a MG novel called “The Quest for Clean Underwear” and a bestseller called “Murder Most Foul,” you know I’m going for the Q)

Picture Prompt Book Bingo Challenge for 2025

My brain doesn’t do well with things like this, I end up tying myself in knots interpreting the pictures (too literally, usually). But I’m trying to do things outside of my comfort zone–also, I really did the look. So, we’ll see how I do. (I probably will get my kids to help, their brains do better)

That’s everything I have planned, I can’t wait to see what unplanned things happen around here. Hope you’re around to join in the fun!

Top 5 Tuesday – Top 5 books I will definitely* read in 2025

By HCNewton

On January 21, 2025

In Books, News/Misc.

This week’s topic is, “Top 5 books I will definitely* read in 2025. An oldie, but a goodie! And one I can’t wait to see whether I will (or won’t) read these books in 2024… Same disclosure every year: you won’t be subjected to punishment (from me) if you don’t read these. But what are 5 books you really want to tick off your TBR this year?” For the second straight year, I was 4 for 5 from my 2024 list, let’s see how I do in 2025. I own all of these, so that should help–can’t use “no access” as an excuse, and there’s the guilt of these spines glaring at me from my TBR shelves while I’m at my desk.

	The Art of Destiny by Wesley Chu Given how much I loved The Art of Prophecy, I don’t understand why I didn’t pounce on this immediately. Well, no more of that. I’m addressing this one soon. I was hoping in January, but I don’t have enough time. Hopefully February.
	What’s Next: A Backstage Pass to the West Wing, Its Cast and Crew, and Its Enduring Legacy of Service by Melissa Fitzgerald and Mary McCormack The West Wing has (I’m talking acutal public service, not conventions, etc.). This book is a combination of reflections on the show and what those associated with it have done in the real world. Whatever the show’s political shortcomings may be, you gotta admire that and want to bask a little in the celebration of it. Hopefully I get to it this year.
	The Bright Sword: A Novel of King Arthur by Lev Grossman
	Futuristic Violence and Fancy Suits by Jason Pargin
	How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying by Django Wexler This just seemed like a lot of fun–and was a book my kids gave me last year. I don’t like to leave gifts unread, so I need to clean that up. Like the Pargin book above, I’ve set out to read this “next week” so many times that it’s ridiculous. The next time that I set that goal, I’m sticking to it.

Do you have any particular books you’re set on getting to this year?

Saturday Miscellany—1/18/25

By HCNewton

On January 18, 2025

In Books, News/Misc., Saturday Miscellany

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:
bullet Please Don’t Idolize Me (or Anyone, Really)—Sadly, this post from last August by John Scalzi is freshly relevant this week. And, no, I will not be talking more about it. I hope.
bullet The Russian Roots of American Crime Fiction—and the O.G.—Joesph Finder’s piece is a great push to read some classic Russian lit.
bullet Audiobooks Have Taken Over My Life, and I Love It
bullet 8 Thought-Provoking Quotes from To Kill a Mockingbird—Sticking with my tradition (which I haven’t had to invoke in too long), if I see something about TKaM, I share it here. Also, a good reminder about some of these lines.
bullet Jam’s Top Reads of second half of 2024—I hope to read one of these this month–and should probablay look more at some of the others.
bullet The Bard’s Tale Retold: Shakespeare Retellings Done Differently—a fun listicle from Witty & Sarcastic Book Club

A Book-ish Related Podcast episode (or two) you might want to give a listen to:
bullet Crime Time FM ROB PARKER In Person With Paul—nice to hear Parker as the subject of an interview for a change. I really want to read this book now (compared to my general “oooh, a new Rob Parker, I should read that” response)
bullet Speaking of Mysteries Episode 265: Robert Crais—this was entirely too brief. But good to hear from the man himself about his fantastic new book

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
bullet Low Midnight by Carrie Vaughn
bullet Foxglove Summer by Ben Aaronovitch—which is such a good one, that I didn’t fully appreciate at the time (and I really liked it at the time)
bullet I also noted the releases of: Near Enemy by Adam Sternbergh and The Way Into Magic by Harry Connolly. Two works that I should try to find time to re-read.

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
bullet The Big Empty by Robert Crais—If you take nothing else away from this post, know that this book is out now, and you should be reading it. As I described here.
bullet A Serial Killer’s Guide to Marriage by Asia Mackay—a fun book about a marriage on the rocks as the vigilante couple struggles to not go vigilante-ing. I enjoyed it, you’ll likely enjoy it more.
bullet The Troubled Deep by Rob Parker—I will jump on this book as soon as I find an easy way to get it on this side of the Atlantic. “An ex-marine and ex-SBS officer, Cam Killick’s PTSD has made the return to civilian life a living nightmare. The only place he can find peace is underwater, where the world is muffled to white noise. As a cold case diver it is his job to scour the waterways of the country for the lost, the submerged, the drowned, laying their stories to rest alongside them.

Except when Cam throws open the doors to the Brindley car, all four bodies are missing. “
bullet Karma Doll by Jonathan Ames—Happy Doll is framed for a murder in Mexico and has to sneak across the border to find the real killer.
bullet Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao—”A woman inherits a pawnshop where you can sell your regrets, and then embarks on a magical quest when a charming young physicist wanders into the shop, in this dreamlike fantasy novel.” Sign me up.

In 2024…My Life in Books

By HCNewton

On January 16, 2025

In Book Tag, Books, News/Misc.

In 2024...My Life in Books
When I saw this over on Book’d Out, I remember my daughter Carleigh and I having a lot of fun doing the 2023 version. So I tried it, and it turns out that it was fun because my daughter is good at thinking like this. So, I sent her the categories and a list of titles. She did most of this–and the ones I handled, I had her approve before I posted.

She gets full credit for any of this that you enjoy. If you don’t like a response, that was probably my contribution.

2024 was the year of: Zero Stars, Do Not Recommend by MJ Wassmer
In 2024 I wanted to be: Running and Jumping by Steven Kedie
In 2024 I was: Spelunking Through Hell by Seanan McGuire

In 2024 I gained: Another Girl by Peter Grainger (it was technically a couple of days before the New Year, but our new dog really jelled into our pack in 2024)
In 2024 I lost: The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett
In 2024 I loved: #CrimeTime byJeneva Rose, Drew Pyne

In 2024 I hated: Takeout Sushi by Christopher Green
In 2024 I learned: >What’s Eating Jackie Oh? by Patricia Park
In 2024 I was surprised by: Dinosaurs in Trucks Because Hey, Why Not? by Sandra Boynton (who wouldn’t be?)

In 2024 I went to: The Other Family Doctor by Karen Fine
In 2024 I missed out on: A Midnight Puzzle by Gigi Pandian
In 2024 my family were: Supercommunicators by Charles Duhigg

In 2025 I hope it will be: After the Storm by Linda Castillo

As usual, I’m not tagging anyone in this—but I’d like to see what you all have to come up with.

WWW Wednesday—January 15, 2025

By HCNewton

On January 15, 2025

In Books, Currently Reading, News/Misc., WWW Wednesday

It’s the middle of the week, pretty much the middle of the month, and I’m feeling fair-to-middling. Which all works out nicely. Let’s commemorate this synchronicity by going through this week’s WWW Wednesday, shall we?

This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived on Taking on a World of Words—and shown to me by Aurore-Anne-Chehoke at Diary-of-a-black-city-girl.

The Three Ws are:
What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Seems easy enough, right? Let’s take a peek at this week’s answers:

What are you currently reading?

Pushing Ice
by Alastair Reynolds Sleep No More
by Seanan McGuire, read by Mary Robinette Kowal

Words are failing me to try to describe Pushing Ice. I’m a shade past halfway through this and am so impressed. It’s my first Alastair Reynolds novel, and unless the second half falls off the rails, it won’t be my last.

It’s been too long since I spent time with Toby Daye, and I’m enjoying this revisit. As one expects, as I know what’s going to happen, I’m able to enjoy some of the details more. The details are really nicely added. McGuire gave her fans a treat with this one.

What did you recently finish reading?

The Pleasures of Reading in an Age of Distraction
by Alan Jacobs The Boys of Riverside: A Deaf Football Team and a Quest for Glory
by Thomas Fuller

I’ve said somewhere (or maybe a few places), that this Alan Jacobs book is as close to a Mission Statement that The Irresponsible Reader has. This re-read was a good reminder why I say that, as well as a challenge to make an adjustment or three to my approach.

Fuller provides an engaging and interesting book about a football team that can appeal to even those of us who really don’t care that much about SportsBall.

What do you think you’ll read next?

The Accidental Joe: The Top-Secret Life of a Celebrity Chef
by Tom Straw

I have no idea what my next print book will be, it really depends on my frame of mind when I finish Pushing Ice; and how much energy it leaves me with. I have a few options, but I’m not going to commit.

Meanwhile, I’ve been wanting to try The Accidental Joe for some months now, and a local library finally added it to their collection–celebrity chef turned CIA asset? Should be fun.

How’s this week treating you?

HC Chats with Witty & Sarcastic Book Club about 2024/2025

By HCNewton

On January 15, 2025

In Blog Series, Books, HC Chats, Miscellany, News/Misc.

I’m very pleased to welcome Jodie from Witty & Sarcastic Book Club to talk about what happened on our blogs last year, the books that stood out to us, as well as some hopes and goals for 2025–and very vague reading plans. We ramble a bit about some other things, too.

I hope you enjoy this.

The audio on my end is a wonky (and maybe hard to listen to) at the beginning, but it settles down after a little bit (but is still too loud compared to Jodie’s). Will go back to my old microphone next time.

Show Notes

Blogs/Websites we mentioned:
Peat Long’s Blog: https://peatlong.wordpress.com/
The Orangutan Librarian: https://theorangutanlibrarian.wordpress.com/
Pages Unbound: https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/
Read Christie 2025: https://www.agathachristie.com/news/2025/read-christie-2025

Bookshop Pages, we’d appreciate you using one or all of these:
Behind the Pages Bookshop Page: https://bookshop.org/shop/BehindthePages
Witty and Sarcastic Book Picks: https://bookshop.org/shop/WittyandSarcasticBookPicks
HC’s Bookshop Page: https://bookshop.org/shop/irresponsiblereader

Particular Books We Mentioned:

The Root of Hope by Ricardo Victoria
God Ascended: An Archives of Evelium Tale by Jeffrey Speight
Dragons of Fate by Margaret Weis & Tracy Hickman
A Short Walk Through a Wide World by Douglas Westerbeke
Buddy the Knight and The Queen of Sorrow by Peter David
The Half Killed by Quenby Olson
Camelot Shadow by Sean Gibson
The Part about the Dragon Was (Mostly) True by Sean Gibson
The Lotus Empire by Tasha Suri
The Last Murder at the End of the World by Stuart Turton
The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton

The Star and the Strange Moon by Constance Sayers

Tales of Mystery: Dead for a Spell
Play of Shadows by Sebastien de Castell
The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett
A Drop of Corruption by Robert Jackson Bennett
The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson
The Last Shield by Cameron Johnston
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
The Martian by Andy Weir
No Two Persons by Erica Bauermeister
The Mercy Chair by M.W. Craven
Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C. S. Lewis by Michael Ward
Whisper in the Wind by Luke Arnold
The Last Soul Among Wolves by Melissa Caruso
The Final Vow by M.W. Craven
The Legendary Mo Seto by A. Y. Chan
The Pleasures of Reading in an Age of Distraction by Alan Jacobs
Dragonlance Chronicles by Margaret Weis & Tracy Hickman

Saturday Miscellany—1/11/25

By HCNewton

On January 11, 2025

In Books, News/Misc., Saturday Miscellany

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:
Can You Guess the Book Titles from These Emojis? Test your knowledge of classic novels and contemporary bestsellers —Let’s start off the week with something silly. It’s also proof that I cannot communicate in emojis. I got none of these.
Why reading out loud is important—something more for the “do audiobooks count?” nonsense (hat tip: booklistfordays)
Craig Johnson’s Next Novel Drops May 27, Was Inspired By Cowboy State Daily Story
There’s a New Version of Hamlet Staged in Grand Theft Auto—I initially rolled my eyes at this (but was going to include it only for the excuse to post the headline), but on third or fourth thought…I’m a little intrigued.
Why I’m making 2025 my year of dead-tree books
Raven’s 2025- The Year of ‘Read Like Nobody’s Watching’… —This is the approach we should all approximate
Bookish Goals in 2025—good, SMART goals
My 2025 Bookish Ins and Outs—wise plans
Presenting the Picture Prompt Book Bingo Challenge for 2025 —After telling myself to cut back on challenges this year, I see this one–which looks like it coule be fun to try.
Five Fantasy Bookstores and Libraries I’d Love to Explore—yeah, I would spend time in these
Plot Pet Peeves—I cannot imagine anyone (other than authors/publishers, apparently) arguing aginst any of Krysta’s points.
The 12 Best Sci-Fi Novels of the Last 10 Years—According to Collider and Reddit, anyway. Although, having read 5 of these, I’m inclined to believe them.
Trying and Failing to Figure Out “Escapism” in Books—some good thoughts from Molly Templeton (as one expects) and others.

It’s the Time of Year for Best of Lists like these to embiggen your 2025 TBRs (or to give you fodder to think about).
Celeste at A Literary Escape listed Favorite Books Published in 2024 and Favorite Backlist Reads of 2024
My Top 10 Ten Books of 2024 and My Top Ten 10 Books for Children 2024—from Left on the Shelf (the latter defintely added to my TBR)
From Worlds Unknown’s 2024 Wrap Up – A Year in Books + What’s Coming in 2025

A Book-ish Related Podcast episode (or two) you might want to give a listen to:
Fiction Fans 2024: Year in Review—a fun look back at their year that was
The Conversation with Nadine Matheson M.W. Craven: Luck, Crime Writing and Life Lessons—I would’ve gladly listened to a few more hours of them talking shop.

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week? (a mostly great week for reviewish posts and new releases)
The Gods of Guilt by Michael Connelly
Us by David Nicholls
Food: A Love Story by Jim Gaffigan
And I noted the releases of Golden Son by Pierce Brown, Firefight by Brandon Sanderson, Foxglove Summer by Ben Aaronovitch, The Witches of Echo Park by Amber Benson, 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:
Adrift in Currents Clean and Clear by Seanan McGuire by Seanan McGuire—The latest Wayward Children book is everything you want, as I tried to say recently.

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Pushing Ice by Alastair Reynolds	Sleep No More by Seanan McGuire, read by Mary Robinette Kowal


The Pleasures of Reading in an Age of Distraction by Alan Jacobs	The Boys of Riverside: A Deaf Football Team and a Quest for Glory by Thomas Fuller