The author of The God of Small Things recounts her path from life with her volatile, emotionally and verbally abusive, strong mother to her own artistic expression, romantic partnerships, activism, and fierce guarding of her creative space. In Mother Mary Comes to Me , the author of The God of Small Things shares a memoir that in part explores her fierce, tough mother, her verbal and emotional abuse, her admirable causes and passion for them, and their complicated relationsh

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm listening to A Steeping of Blood , the second in Hafsah Faizal's supernatural fantasy Blood and Tea series; I'm reading Endling , Maria Reva's Ukraine-set darkly comic novel of an unlikely journey; and I'm reading Jo Harkin's Tudor-era historical fiction The Pretender . What are you reading, bookworms? 01 A Steeping of Blood (Blood and Tea #2) by Hafsah Faizal The first installment in Hafsah Faizal's Blood and Tea series offered intriguing secre

Bossy Book Gift Ideas Each year I offer lists of Bossy book gift ideas for the holidays, including a number of books I'll personally be giving as gifts (if you're on my gift list, please avert your eyes!). This is the only time I post about books I may not have read: promising reads for particular people in my family and circle of friends. As in my book list from last week, the books here were all published in 2025, so it's their first appearance on my site. I hope you find a

Book two of the series sees our septuagenarian characters each trekking their own paths while working cooperatively to solve a new mystery. They show vulnerability and strength, use their instincts and smarts to outsmart criminals, and grow. I laughed while listening to this one; Osman's series has me hooked. Elizabeth, Joyce, Ron and Ibrahim are septuagenarians feeling let down after the thrills, danger, and success of their first solved mystery (related in The Thursday Murd

Elston's first adult novel ticked all of my mystery-reading boxes: a con artist, fake identity, dangerous boss, complicated mark, trusty sidekick, clever maneuvering, and non-manipulative twists. I can't wait to read her next mystery. Evie Porter is embracing her current fake identity and getting closer to her mark Ryan--who she's lured into being her boyfriend. Now she awaits her mysterious boss Mr. Smith's instructions about the information he needs her to obtain to take do

Seth Haddon's slim science fiction debut offers action and a risky space quest, revenge, and love, but it's also a poignant, lovely story about being seen for your true self, being vulnerable, and thinking beyond traditional standards. Wylla's ship has seen better days, and she's desperate for a break. When she catches wind of a valuable, mysterious piece of technology on another planet, she banks on her wiliness and speed to beat other treasure hunters to it. Wylla's own mas

The Books I'm Reading Now Library audiobook alert: I'm listening to the twisty mystery First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston; I'm listening to The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman; and I'm listening to author Arundhati Roy's memoir about her mother, Mother Mary Comes to Me . What are you reading, bookworms? 01 First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston Evie Porter is embracing her current fake identity and getting closer to her mark Ryan--who she's lured into being her boyfriend. Now sh

Bossy Book Gift Ideas Each year I offer lists of Bossy book gift ideas for the holidays, including a number of books I'll personally be giving as gifts (if you're on my gift list, please avert your eyes!). This is the only time I post about books I may not have read: promising reads for particular people in my family and circle of friends. The books here were all published in 2025, so it's their first appearance on my site. I hope you find a book or two in these lists to deli

Culpability shapes questions around artificial intelligence--and societal and individual responsibility for it--around imperfect characters who have drifted apart and must now recognize each other's fallibility, whether through sacrificing or trying to protect each other. The Cassidy-Shaws are riding in their family's autonomous minivan when it crashes into another vehicle. Seventeen-year-old Charlie, the twins, their father Noah, and their mother Lorelei, an AI leader, are

Bunny begins with an outcast main protagonist in a MFA program who's infuriated by her twee fellow seminar students. It builds into an increasingly unhinged, intriguing phantasmagoria, equal parts dark nightmare and outrageously silly absurdity. I was intrigued by the sound of We Love You, Bunny , the sequel to Mona Awad's novel Bunny , so I went back to first read this book. Samantha is a scholarship MFA student at the progressive Warren University in New England. An outside

Woodworking explores interconnected transgender characters' experiences, fears, challenges, and joys as they work toward living true, fulfilling lives. Emily St. James's debut novel is poignant, funny, heartbreaking, often surprising, and heartwarming. It's called woodworking. Someday they will wake up and you will be gone. To have a future, you cannot have a past. You will have to disappear into the woodwork to finally be seen. Emily St. James crafts a tender, funny story wi

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading I, Medusa , Ayana Gray's recently published story from the perspective of the fabled villainess; I'm reading The Sideways Life of Denny Voss by Holly Kennedy; and I'm listening to the bizarre novel Bunny by Mona Awad. What are you reading, bookworms? 01 I, Medusa by Ayana Gray I love an exploration of a villain's own version of events ( Wicked , anyone?). In Ayana Gray's I, Medusa , Meddy feels like an outcast in her own family. Her pa

Bossy Favorites of the Month Here are my six favorite reads of November. I hope if you're heading into a long weekend that you find time to cozy in and read something wonderful. What were some of your favorite reads this month? 01 A Guardian and a Thief by Megha Majumdar I can't stop thinking about this fascinating near-future climate-change story of desperation, loyalty, and determination in Kolkata, India, and how a tiny bit of empathy might have unraveled the increasingly

Thankful for Five-Star Bossy Favorites I'm always thankful for books and reading, so I wanted to reshare some of my five-star reads from the past in case you need a great long-weekend read or a book gift idea for the holidays. I always hope to love a book, but a five-star Bossy read is fairly rare. A book I rate five stars often makes me feel all the feelings, it's typically intriguing and makes me think, and it's usually tough for me to put down. You might also like the book

The uneven pacing and tangents into bizarre scenarios in Trip made me feel somewhat disconnected from the story, but the moments of dark humor and the promise of an unorthodox payoff kept me reading and consistently curious. Sandra is a documentary producer at a death conference in Nepal when she dies in an unlikely, mundane accident. The majority of the speakers milling around talking at each other and preparing for their presentations are insufferable hacks, but after Sand

Zentner's wonderful young adult story of two Appalachian-born teen best friends plunged into an elite Northeastern boarding school allows for missteps and struggles as well as a satisfying boatload of self-discovery, growth, soaring success, and a path to a fulfilling future. “You’ll never regret a decision more than the one you make out of fear. Fear tells you to make your life small. Fear tells you to think small. Fear tells you to be small-hearted. Fear seeks to preserve i

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm listening to Jeff Zentner's endearing young adult story of friendship, In the Wild Light ; I'm reading Amie Barrodale's bizarre, darkly funny novel Trip ; and I'm listening to Woodworking , a story of friendship between a spirited rural South Dakota high school transgender student and her closeted transgender teacher. What are you reading, bookworms? 01 In the Wild Light by Jeff Zentner I recently posted about some of my very favorite young adul

Powerful Books about the Experiences of Immigrants We've had violent Border Patrol activity in our city this week, with people snatched from places of work and off the street because of the color of their skin. Many are suffering and afraid in the face of this discriminatory kidnaping, and tens of thousands of children have been absent from public school, too frightened to attend. So it feels like an opportune time to highlight just a few powerful stories about or by immigran

Saunders's strange, fascinating novel involves griping, sniping characters in limbo between life and death near the start of the Civil War, often in denial about their circumstances, with Abraham Lincoln's young son Willie at the center of a struggle for control of his soul. “Only then (nearly out the door, so to speak) did I realize how unspeakably beautiful all of this was, how precisely engineered for our pleasure, and saw that I was on the brink of squandering a wondrous

Jen Hatmaker's memoir explores her shock, grief, then growth after the end of her marriage, which she tells in her signature bold, frank, lionhearted manner while always displaying her deep love for her family and friends. Jen Hatmaker, who was married before she could legally have a drink and who built her identity as a woman dedicated to her family, her religion, and her community, found her world turned upside down when she discovered in 2020 that her husband of over 25 ye