Katie McLain Horner and Kendra Winchester discuss their favorite books from 2024!

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At Tailored Book Recommendations, we’ve recommended over 150,000 books to readers of every type. And we’ve got good news— TBR makes a novel gift for the book lover on your list! All your gift recipient has to do is fill out a survey about their reading likes and dislikes, and our expert bibliologists will use their bookish knowledge to round up three personalized recommendations for reads we think they’ll love. Whether they’re a mystery maven, a historical fiction fanatic, or a contemporary connoisseur, we’ve got the chops to match the book lover in your life with their next favorite read. And it only takes a few clicks to gift TBR! Simply head to mytbr.co/gift to get started. You can even schedule the delivery of the welcome email, which means no more waiting on gifts to arrive last minute.

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Things Mentioned

• Goodreads Choice Awards: Mystery / Thriller 
• Crime Reads Best Books
• Washington Post’s Best Mystery Novels
• Washington Post’s Best Thrillers 
• The Guardian’s Best Mystery and Thrillers
• Kirkus’s Best Mystery and Thrillers
• NYTs Best Crime Novels

Books Discussed

• The Hunter - Tana French
• The Woods All Black - Lee Mandelo
• Mexican Gothic - Silvia Moreno-Garcia
• Guide Me Home - Attica Locke
• Model Home - Rivers Solomon
• Butter - Asako Yuzuki, translated by Polly Barton

If you want to send an email with feedback or show suggestions, you can reach us at [email protected].

Otherwise you can:

Find Katie on Twitter @kt_librarylady

Find Kendra on Instagram and BlueSky @kdwinchester and on TikTok @kendrawinchester

And we will talk to you all next time!

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Katie McLain Horner and Kendra Winchester discuss books for Indigenous Peoples' Month!

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Keep up to date with the world of books and reading with Today in Books, Book Riot's daily round-up of literary headlines at the intersection of politics, culture, media, and more. Our editors offer commentary, context, and the occasional clap-back to keep you informed and entertained. Visit bookriot.com/todayinbooks to subscribe for free, or become an All Access member starting at $6 per month or $60 per year and get unlimited access to members-only content in 20+ newsletters, community features, and the warm fuzzies knowing you are supporting independent media.

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Books Discussed 

• Exposure - Ramona Emerson
• Highway of Tears: A True Story of Racism, Indifference, and the Pursuit of Justice for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls - Jessica McDiarmid
• Bad Cree - Jessica Johns
• Mongrels - Stephen Graham Jones
• Darkly - Marisha Pessl
• The Rival - Jane Pek

If you want to send an email with feedback or show suggestions, you can reach us at [email protected].

Otherwise you can:

Find Katie on Twitter @kt_librarylady

Find Kendra on Instagram and BlueSky @kdwinchester and on TikTok @kendrawinchester

And we will talk to you all next time!

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Katie McLain Horner and Kendra Winchester discuss their 2024 holiday gift guide!

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To get even more mystery/thriller recs and news, sign up for our Unusual Suspects newsletter!

Keep up to date with the world of books and reading with Today in Books, Book Riot's daily round-up of literary headlines at the intersection of politics, culture, media, and more. Our editors offer commentary, context, and the occasional clap-back to keep you informed and entertained. Visit bookriot.com/todayinbooks to subscribe for free, or become an All Access member starting at $6 per month or $60 per year and get unlimited access to members-only content in 20+ newsletters, community features, and the warm fuzzies knowing you are supporting independent media.

This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

News

Goodreads Choice Awards 2024

Books Discussed

• They All Fall the Same by Wes Browne
• The Alienist by Caleb Carr
• Bunny by Mona Awad
• Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey
• Blue Monday by Nicci French
• Spirit Hunters by Ellen Oh
• Seven Fallen Feathers: Racism, Death, and Hard Truths in a Northern City by Tanya Talaga

If you want to send an email with feedback or show suggestions, you can reach us at [email protected].

Otherwise you can:

Find Katie on Twitter @kt_librarylady

Find Kendra on Instagram and Twitter @KDWinchester and on TikTok @KendraWinchester

And we will talk to you all next time!

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Katie McLain Horner and Kendra Winchester discuss books for a scary season send-off!

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Books Discussed

• The Spite House - Johnny Compton
• The Empusium: A Health Resort Horror Story - Olga Tokarczuk, Trans. Antonia Lloyd-Jones
• The Little Stranger - Sarah Waters
• The Hunger - Alma Katsu
• Model Home - Rivers Solomon
• This Girl’s a Killer - Emma C. Wells
• Pony Confidential - Christina Lynch

If you want to send an email with feedback or show suggestions, you can reach us at [email protected].

Otherwise you can:

Find Katie on Twitter @kt_librarylady

Find Kendra on Instagram and Twitter @kdwinchester and on TikTok @kendrawinchester

And we will talk to you all next time!

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Katie McLain Horner and Kendra Winchester discuss mysteries and thrillers from The New York Times’s Best Books of the 21st Century!

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To get even more mystery/thriller recs and news, sign up for our Unusual Suspects newsletter!

This October, Tailored Book Recommendations is giving away a pair of Beats Fit Pro headphones! TBR is the perfect way to take the guesswork out of finding your next favorite read. To get started with TBR, just fill out a quick survey about your reading likes and dislikes, and we’ll pair you with a professional book nerd— aka bibliologist— who uses their bookish knowledge to match you with three books they think you’ll dig. You can sign up to receive your recommendations via email or have your bibliologist’s picks delivered right to your door as either hardcovers or paperbacks.

And if you sign up or gift TBR in the month of October, you’ll be automatically entered to win a pair of Beats Fit Pro headphones! Current TBR subscribers also have a chance to win by purchasing a drop-in round of recommendations in October. Sign up today at mytbr.co

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Things Mentioned

The New York Times’s Best Books of the 21st Century

Books Discussed

• The Guest List - Lucy Foley
• Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America - Erik Larson
• Just Mercy - Bryan Stevenson
• Drive Your Plow over the Bones of the Dead - Olga Tokarczuk, Trans. Antonia Lloyd-Jones
• The Reformatory - Tananarive Due, Chosen by Stephen Graham Jones NYTs
• It Will Only Hurt For a Moment - Delilah S. Dawson
• The Empusium: A Health Resort Horror Story - Olga Tokarczuk, Trans. Antonia Lloyd-Jones
• Curdle Creek - Yvonne Battle-Felton

If you want to send an email with feedback or show suggestions, you can reach us at [email protected].

Otherwise you can:

Find Katie on Twitter @kt_librarylady

Find Kendra on Instagram and Twitter @kdwinchester and on TikTok @kendrawinchester

And we will talk to you all next time!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Katie and Kendra have been affected by Hurricane Helene, so we are bringing you this episode from the Book Riot Podcast in which Jeff and Rebecca consider 10 books (including a couple of buzzy mysteries!) and crown one of them the It Book of the Month.

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For more industry news, sign up for our Today in Books daily newsletter!

Check out the Book Riot Podcast Book Page on Thriftbooks!

The Book Riot Podcast Patreon

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Discussed in this episode:

Operation Airdrop

The Message

The Mighty Red

Slaveroad

The Bog Wife

The Boyfriend

The Revenge of The Tipping Point

What I Ate in One Year

Sonny Boy

Meditations for Mortals

Absolution

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Katie McLain Horner and Kendra Winchester discuss books for Latine Heritage Month!

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Join Book Riot's editorial staff and expert guest writers at The Deep Dive, your destination for deep thoughts on all things reading, behind-the-scenes insights, informed takes, and so much more. Whether we're analyzing book deal trends, whittling down the best books of the century, or letting you in on the best book club book of the summer, you'll find something to nerd out over and enrich your reading life. With decades of experience in books and publishing between us, we have a wealth of knowledge, thoughts, and curated goodness we can't wait to share with you. Go ahead and take the plunge.

Visit bookriot.com/deepdive to subscribe for free, or become an All Access member starting at $6 per month or $60 per year and get unlimited access to members-only content in 20+ newsletters, community features, and the warm fuzzies knowing you are supporting independent media.

This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Books Discussed

The Guest List - Lucy Foley

Mexican Gothic - Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Burn Baby Burn - Meg Medina

House of Bone and Rain - Gabino Iglesias

A Sunny Place for Shady People: Stories - Mariana Enriquez, Trans. Megan McDowell

The Hitchcock Hotel - Stephanie Wrobel

Ruin Road - Lamar Giles

If you want to send an email with feedback or show suggestions, you can reach us at [email protected].

Otherwise you can:

Find Katie on Twitter @kt_librarylady

Find Kendra on Instagram and Twitter @kdwinchester and on TikTok @kendrawinchester

And we will talk to you all next time!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Katie McLain Horner and Kendra Winchester discuss must-read sequels!

Subscribe to the podcast via RSS, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify.

To get even more mystery/thriller recs and news, sign up for our Unusual Suspects newsletter!

Join Book Riot's editorial staff and expert guest writers at The Deep Dive, your destination for deep thoughts on all things reading, behind-the-scenes insights, informed takes, and so much more. Whether we're analyzing book deal trends, whittling down the best books of the century, or letting you in on the best book club book of the summer, you'll find something to nerd out over and enrich your reading life. With decades of experience in books and publishing between us, we have a wealth of knowledge, thoughts, and curated goodness we can't wait to share with you. Go ahead and take the plunge.

Visit bookriot.com/deepdive to subscribe for free, or become an All Access member starting at $6 per month or $60 per year and get unlimited access to members-only content in 20+ newsletters, community features, and the warm fuzzies knowing you are supporting independent media.

This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

News

Anthony Award winners

Books Discussed

Heaven My Home - Attica Locke

Dublin Murder Squad series - Tana French

Cult Following: the Extreme Sects That Capture Our Imaginations—And Take Over Our Lives - J.W. Ocker

Where They Last Saw Her - Marcie R. Rendon

Summers End - Juneau Black

The Restaurant of Lost Recipes - Hisashi Kashiwai, Trans. Jesse Kirkwood

If you want to send an email with feedback or show suggestions, you can reach us at [email protected].

Otherwise you can:

Find Katie on Twitter @kt_librarylady

Find Kendra on Instagram and Twitter @kdwinchester and on TikTok @kendrawinchester

And we will talk to you all next time!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kendra Winchester and special guest Trisha Brown discuss genre-bending romance and mystery books!

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Learn something new, sharpen your skills, and expand your horizons with our Better Living Through Books newsletter. Better Living Through Books is your resource for reading material that helps you live the life you want. From self-help to cookbooks to parenting to personal finance, relationships, and more, Better Living Through Books has got you covered. If it’s part of life, it can be part of your reading life. That's what Better Living Through Books is all about.

Visit bookriot.com/betterliving to subscribe for free, or become an All Access member starting at $6 per month or $60 per year and get unlimited access to members-only content in 20+ newsletters, community features, and the warm fuzzies knowing you are supporting independent media.

This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Things Mentioned

When in Romance

Books Discussed

The Vibrant Years by Sonali Dev

Summers End by Juneau Black

Rules of Engagement by Selena Montgomery

Whiteout by Adriana Anders

Think of England by KJ Charles

The Vampires of El Norte by Isabel Cañas

Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier

The Swifts: A Gallery of Rogues by Beth Lincoln

If you want to send an email with feedback or show suggestions, you can reach us at [email protected].

Otherwise you can:

Find Trisha on instagram and Blue sky @trishahaleybrown

Find Kendra on Instagram and Twitter @kdwinchester and on TikTok @kendrawinchester

And we will talk to you all next time!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Katie McLain Horner and Kendra Winchester discuss books for Women in Translation Month!

Subscribe to the podcast via RSS, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify.

To get even more mystery/thriller recs and news, sign up for our Unusual Suspects newsletter!

Learn something new, sharpen your skills, and expand your horizons with our Better Living Through Books newsletter. Better Living Through Books is your resource for reading material that helps you live the life you want. From self-help to cookbooks to parenting to personal finance, relationships, and more, Better Living Through Books has got you covered. If it’s part of life, it can be part of your reading life. That's what Better Living Through Books is all about.

Visit bookriot.com/betterliving to subscribe for free, or become an All Access member starting at $6 per month or $60 per year and get unlimited access to members-only content in 20+ newsletters, community features, and the warm fuzzies knowing you are supporting independent media.

This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

News

New S.A. Cosby Book with New Pine & Cedar Imprint

Things Mentioned

Women in Translation Month

Books Discussed 

Midnight Rooms - Danyae Coles

Butter - Asako Yuzuki, Translated from Japanese by Polly Barton

The Kamogawa Food Detectives - Hisashi Kashiwai, Translated from Japanese by Jesse Kirkwood

The Night Guest - Hildur Knútsdóttir, Translated from Icelandic by Mary Robinette Kowal - out September 3rd, 2024

The Only Child - Mi-Ae Seo, Translated from Korean by Yewon Jung

The Devil Behind the Badge: The Horrifying Twelve Days of the Border Patrol Serial Killer -  Rick Jervis

Death at Morning House - Maureen Johnson

If you want to send an email with feedback or show suggestions, you can reach us at [email protected].

Otherwise you can:

Find Katie on Twitter @kt_librarylady

Find Kendra on Instagram and Twitter @kdwinchester and on TikTok @kendrawinchester

And we will talk to you all next time!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Katie McLain Horner and guest host Liberty Hardy talk about reading recommendations for fans of Knives Out!

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To get even more mystery/thriller recs and news, sign up for our Unusual Suspects newsletter!

Make this your most bookish summer yet with personalized reading recommendations from Tailored Book Recommendations! Our bibliologists (aka professional book nerds) are standing by to help you find your next favorite read. Get your recommendations via email, or opt to receive hardcovers or paperbacks delivered right to your door. And with quarterly or annual plans available, TBR has something for every budget. Get started today from just $18!

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Books Discussed

A Copycat Conundrum - Lisa Yee; illustrated by Dan Santat

Saint of the Narrows Street - William Boyle

Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone - Benjamin Stevenson

The Curious Vanishing of Beatrice Willoughby - G. Z. Schmidt

The Woman in the Library - Sulari Gentil

The Last Equation of Isaac Severy: A Novel in Clues - Nova Jacobs

The Blonde Dies First - Joelle Wellington

Like Mother, Like Daughter - Kimberly McCreight

All the Sinners Bleed - S. A. Cosby

Otherwise you can:

Find Katie on Twitter @kt_librarylady

Find Liberty on Instagram @franzencomesalive

And we will talk to you all next time!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices