It’s time for a TBR refresh! In our Season 1 finale, I’m sharing a few books currently on my to-be-read list.

Whether you’re looking to add to your own stack or just want to hear about what’s on my radar, tune in for a mix of anticipated reads and spontaneous picks. A huge thank you to all my listeners for joining me on this journey! Your support means the world!

📚 Featured Books

• Greenteeth by Molly O’Neill (cozy fantasy)
• The Queen’s Spade by Sarah Raughley (historical thriller)
• The Sirens by Emilia Hart (historical fiction, literary fiction)
• Remember You Will Die by Eden Robins (sci-fi, literary fiction)

Other books discussed: Weyward by Emilia Hart (historical fiction, literary fiction)

🎧 Listen to the Episode

Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

📲 On another platform? Find it here.

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Spoiler: I loved this magical adventure. ❤️

📚 Book Info

• Title: Water Moon
• Author: Samantha Sotto Yambao
• Publisher: Del Rey (Penguin Random House)
• Genre: Magical Realism / Contemporary Fiction / Fantasy
• Formats: Print / eBook / Audiobook

🎧 Listen to the Episode

Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

📲 On another platform? Find it here.

💬 Enjoyed the episode? Don’t forget to follow or subscribe on your favorite app — it helps more book lovers find The Book Up!

📖 Get the Book

• Bookshop.org — support indie bookstores
• Amazon

Disclosure: I’m an affiliate of Bookshop.org and Amazon. If you click through and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission-at no extra cost to you. Thanks for supporting my work!

In this episode of The Book Up, I’m diving into “Killers of a Certain Age” by Deanna Raybourn, a fast-paced thriller where retiring assassins become targets of their former employer and must fight back.

📚 Book Info

• Title: Killers of a Certain Age
• Author: Deanna Raybourn
• Publisher: Penguin Random House
• Genre: Thriller
• Formats: Print / eBook / Audiobook

🎧 Listen to the Episode

Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

📲 On another platform? Find it here.

💬 Enjoyed the episode? Don’t forget to follow or subscribe on your favorite app — it helps more book lovers find The Book Up!

📖 Get the Book

• Bookshop.org — support indie bookstores
• Amazon

Disclosure: I’m an affiliate of Bookshop.org and Amazon. If you click through and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission — at no extra cost to you. Thanks for supporting my work!

The Green Bone Saga is a gritty, cinematic epic blending family drama, magical jade, and brutal gang warfare. Think The Godfather meets Game of Thrones with a heavy dose of kung fu movie energy.

📖 Series Info

• Author: Fonda Lee
• Publisher: Orbit Books
• Genre: Epic Fantasy / Urban Fantasy / Crime Drama
• Formats: Print / eBook / Audiobook

📚Books in the Series:

• Jade City
• Jade War
• Jade Legacy
• The Jade Setter of Janloon (novella)
• Jade Shards (short story collection)

🎧 Listen to the Episode

Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

📲 On another platform? Find it here.

💬 Enjoyed the episode? Don’t forget to follow or subscribe on your favorite app — it helps more book lovers find The Book Up!

📖 Get the Books

🛍️ Jade City — Bookshop.org | Amazon
🛍️ Jade War — Bookshop.org | Amazon
🛍️ Jade Legacy — Bookshop.org | Amazon
🛍️ The Jade Setter of Janloon — Amazon
🛍️ Jade Shards — Amazon

Disclosure: I’m an affiliate of Bookshop.org and Amazon. If you click through and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission-at no extra cost to you. Thanks for supporting my work!

In this genre-bending sci-fi thriller, an unnamed civil servant and an Arctic explorer pulled from the past fall in love and face a time-jumping government conspiracy.

📚 Book Info

• Title: The Ministry of Time
• Author: Kaliane Bradley
• Publisher: Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster
• Genre: Sci-Fi / Time Travel / Literary Fiction / Romance [see what I mean?!]
• Formats: Print / eBook / Audiobook

🎧 Listen to the Episode

Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

📲 On another platform? Find it here.

💬 Enjoyed the episode? Don’t forget to follow or subscribe on your favorite app — it helps more book lovers find The Book Up!

📖 Get the Book

• Bookshop.org — support indie bookstores
• Amazon

Disclosure: I’m an affiliate of Bookshop.org and Amazon. If you click through and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission-at no extra cost to you.

It’s an academic fantasy where a young widow, navigating grief and ambition, taps into a mysterious, world-changing power. As she begins to uncover who she truly is, she must also decide what she’s willing to risk to claim her place in the world.

📚 Book Info

• Title: The Naturalist Society
• Author: Carrie Vaughn
• Publisher: 47 North
• Genre: Academic Fantasy / Speculative Fiction
• Formats: Print / eBook / Audiobook

🎧 Listen to the Episode

Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

📲 On another platform? Find it here.

💬 Enjoyed the episode? Don’t forget to follow or subscribe on your favorite app — it helps more book lovers find The Book Up!

📖 Get the Book

• Bookshop.org — support indie bookstores
• Amazon

Disclosure: I’m an affiliate of Bookshop.org and Amazon. If you click through and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission — at no extra cost to you. Thanks for supporting my work!

📚 Book Info

• Title: The God of the Woods
• Author: Liz Moore
• Publisher: Riverhead Books / Penguin Random House
• Genre: Literary Fiction, Thriller, Mystery
• Formats: Print / Ebook / Audiobook

🎧 Listen to the Episode

Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

📲 On another platform? Find it here.

💬 Enjoyed the episode? Don’t forget to follow or subscribe on your favorite app — it helps more book lovers find The Book Up!

📖 Get the Book

• Bookshop.org — support indie bookstores
• Amazon

Disclosure: I’m an affiliate of Bookshop.org and Amazon. If you click through and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission — at no extra cost to you. Thanks for supporting my work!

I always look forward to sharing my annual list of favorite books (see 2024, 2023, and 2022). This year, I’m doing something a little different by sharing a midyear roundup. Here are some of the books I’ve read so far this year that have delighted me, inspired me, made me think hard about things, and stuck with me long after reading.

I was particularly struck by the “The Dream Hotel” by Laila Lalami. It’s an unflinching critique of corporate ownership of personal data, capitalism, tech surveillance and data mining, as well as for-profit prisons — all through a speculative fiction lens. The near future USA that Lalami created was all too plausible. It freaked me out in a good way.

And “ The River Has Roots “ was an unexpected delight — a fairy tale for adults! Why aren’t there more picture books for adults???

Don’t be surprised if it — and maybe a few of the others — pop up in future episodes of “ The Book Up “! 😉

Side note: who knew Jenna Bush had such good taste in books?! Besides “The Dream Hotel” and “ Remarkably Bright Creatures”, she’s picked a few books that I’ve really liked [ex. “ Chain Gang All Stars” and “ The Cloisters”] and some that are on my TBR [ex. “ Good Material”, “ The School for Good Mothers”, and “ Black Buck “].

If you’re interested in reading any of these excellent titles, I’ve rounded them up for you below:

1. “The Dream Hotel” by Laila Lalami
2. “Remarkably Bright Creatures” by Shelby Van Pelt
3. “The Ragpicker King” by Cassandra Clare
4. “The Hacienda” by Isabel Cañas
5. “The Buffalo Hunter Hunter” by Stephen Graham Jones (recommend reading this one if you loved the flick “Sinners”, which is the film of the year IMHO)
6. “The River Has Roots” by Amal El-Mohtar
7. “The Wishing Game” by Meg Shaffer (you’ll need tissues for this one but it’s so worth it)
8. “Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales” by Heather Fawcett (the third book in the outstanding, heartwarming Emily Wilde series)

Here are a few books I’m currently reading / on my TBR list that I’m excited about:

• “Isola” by Allegra Goodman
• “The Devil Three Times” by Rickey Fayne
• “The Serpent Called Mercy” by Roanne Lau

Here are some books yet to be released this year that I am eagerly anticipating:

• “Katabasis” by R. F. Kuang — out Aug 26, 2025
• “The Glass Slide World” by Carrie Vaughn — out October 7, 2025
• “Brigands & Breadknives” by Travis Baldree — out Nov 11, 2025
• “Hellrunner” by Sara Wolf — out March 17, 2026

What have you read and loved so far this year? Let me know in the comments!

Disclosure: I’m an affiliate of Bookshop.org. If you click through any of these links and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission-at no extra cost to you. Thanks for supporting my work, and independent bookstores!

📚 Book Info

• Title: Blood Over Bright Haven
• Author: M.L. Wang
• Publisher: Penguin Random House
• Genre: Fantasy / Dark Academia
• Formats: Print / Ebook / Audiobook

🎧 Listen to the Episode

Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

📲 On another platform? Find it here.

💬 Enjoyed the episode? Don’t forget to follow or subscribe on your favorite app — it helps more book lovers find The Book Up!

📖 Get the Book

• Bookshop.org — support indie bookstores
• Amazon

📚 Other Books Mentioned

Babel by R.F. Kuang

• Bookshop.org
• Amazon

Disclosure: I’m an affiliate of Bookshop.org and Amazon. If you click and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission — at no extra cost to you. Thanks for supporting my work!

I’m excited to share my new podcast with you, The Book Up!

Each week, I dive into a book I’ve read and share my honest thoughts — what I loved, what didn’t quite hit, and my final rating. All in 15 minutes or less.

I read widely across genres, with a soft spot for fantasy and speculative fiction. From page-turning fiction finds to enlightening nonfiction, there’s something here for every voracious reader.

👉 Check out all my links here — you’ll find the podcast on your favorite platform, my Instagram, YouTube channel, and my curated Bookshop.org storefront where you can support indie bookstores.

If you haven’t already, check out The Book Up wherever you get your podcasts — Season 1 is now available in full. Don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode!

Happy listening,
Verdell
Producer & Host of The Book Up Podcast