Bossy Favorites of the Month I hope you've had a great reading month as we head into Cozy Reading Season. I present to you: my six Bossy favorite reads of October, which range from historical fiction centered around an Irish folk heroine; historical fiction based on a little-known medieval woman; a heartwarming story about an obituary writer; a haunting, thought-provoking novel told from an unsympathetic point of view; a darkly funny story about a man with dementia and his pl

Sleuths of a Certain Age I'm a fan of reading mysteries in the fall--I guess this is my version of spooky seasonal reads? Recently I've been enjoying mysteries featuring complex, delightfully seasoned characters. (We could also refer to these as the Black, White, Red, and Navy Blue Covers.) Many of these protagonists are underestimated and overlooked, and they're therefore able to dig into mysteries without attracting as much notice as in their younger years. I took the libe

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm listening to the first in Philippa Gregory's Plantaganet and Tudor series, Royal Witch; I'm listening to Beth Lewis's Gold Rush-era mystery, The Rush; and I'm reading Ben Lerner's short novel Transcription. What are you reading, bookworms? 01 Royal Witch (Plantaganet and Tudor #1) by Philippa Gregory It's 1420 and Eleanor Cobham arrives at the court of Henry V hoping to marry well despite her common upbringing and lack of dowry. But she soon lear

Great Backlist Mystery and Suspense Reads You know what I love about a backlist roundup of great reads? They're all likely to be available at the library. If you like cozying up with some fall mystery reading like I am, make sure to check out these titles, if you haven't read them. These six four-star mysteries are all so good and so different--they were my favorites of the year a couple of years ago, and they're so solid that I thought I'd repost again. I hope you'll check

Bossy Favorites of the Month I've had a great reading month, and I hope you have too. Here are my six Bossy favorite reads of September. We've got a dark fantasy sequel, the first in a science fiction series, the first in a historical fiction mystery series, a feminist mythological retelling, captivating and strange literary historical fiction, and edgy contemporary fiction. Have you read any of these titles? What were some of your favorite reads this month? 01 Dead Beat (Nin

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm listening to Rebecca Thorne's cozy sci-fi adventure Moss'd in Space; I'm listening to Laurie R. King's dry, lovely mystery featuring a retired Sherlock Holmes and a young Mary Russell, The Beekeeper's Apprentice; and I'm reading Sara Nović's memoir which explores her experiences in the deaf community, Mother Tongue. What are you reading, bookworms? 01 Moss'd in Space by Rebecca Thorne In Rebecca Thorne's cozy sci-fi adventure, it's sometime after

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading Jordy Rosenberg's offbeat novel about a yenta on her deathbed examining her many failures, Night Night Fawn; I'm reading Daniel Mason's upcoming novel about two academics and their family move to rural Vermont, Country People; and I'm listening to Amy Bloom's first foray into mystery writing, Blunt Instrument. What are you reading, bookworms? 01 Night Night Fawn by Jody Rosenberg Barbara Greenberg is terminally ill, medicated out of her m

My Favorite Bossy Reads I've read about 70 books so far this year, and these are my six favorites. They vary in genre, in tone, in plot, and in style, but they all delighted me, made me want to keep reading, took me inside another place and time, and made me feel invested in what happened to the characters and their situations. I love to look back and take stock of my reading, and I'm always curious about whether my year-end overall favorites will include the titles on my fav

Six Bossy Sci-Fi Favorites I'm still mining my reading for favorites from the past year, and this is my only science fiction roundup. If you've missed my prior lists, take a look on the blog! You can also explore the twelve titles on My Very Favorite Bossy 2025 Reads to find out about my overall favorite reads from the past year. If you've read any of these titles, I'd love to hear what you think! What are some of your favorite science fiction reads, whether from the past yea

Bossy Favorites of the Month Here are my six favorite reads of April: a contemporary novel about family and identity; a debut novel about characters with disabilities from a nonspeaking author; a creative fantasy novel that's a book within a book; a story about loss and a love of books; a darkly funny book about loss and grief; and the third and final mystery in a series from a favorite author. Have you read any of these titles? What were some of your favorite reads this mont

The Books I'm Reading Now This week I'm reading a book in which a modern-day, luxury tradwife influencer wakes up in the gritty, unforgiving 1800s, Caro Claire Burke's Yesteryear; I'm listening to Mai Nguyen's darkly funny and moving book about deep grief and finding a way forward, Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead; and I'm listening to Ilona Andrews's novel about a superfan who wakes up in the world of her favorite fantasy series--danger, wonder, and all, This Kingdom Will Not

Six More Favorite Fantasy Reads This is the second of three fantasy-favorite lists I'll have for you as I mine my reading for the Bossy best of the best from the past year. You can find my first list of favorites from the past year here . You can explore the twelve titles on My Very Favorite Bossy 2025 Reads to find out about my overall favorite reads from last year, or you can read about past Bossy fantasy favorites here . If you've read any of these titles, I'd love to hea

Bossy Favorites of the Month Please enjoy this roundup of my six favorite reads of February--three medieval-set fantasy stories I loved; a messy family story of feuding and forgiveness; historical fiction about strong women and the power of books; and the first in an FBI procedural mystery series. I hope you've read some great books during this shortest month of the year. Have you read any of these titles? What were some of your favorite reads this month? 01 The Once and Futu

Six Favorite Fantasy Reads This is the first of three fantasy-favorite lists I'll have for you as I mine my reading for the best of the best from the past year. You can explore the twelve titles on My Very Favorite Bossy 2025 Reads to find out about my overall favorite reads from last year, or you can read about past Bossy fantasy favorites here . If you've read any of these titles, I'd love to hear what you think! What are some of your favorite fantasy reads, whether from t

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading Allegra Goodman's newest novel, which follows members of an extended Jewish-American family through life dramas large and small, This Is Not About Us ; I'm listening to Paula Lafferty's first novel in a series about a modern-day young woman told she is actually Queen Guinevere and asked to return to Camelot to save magic, The Once and Future Queen ; and I'm reading Yume Kitasei's climate fiction featuring two sisters determined to save th

Six More Favorite Contemporary Fiction Reads This is the third of three contemporary fiction lists I've put together as I've mined my recent-past reading for my favorite reads of the past year--you can find my first list of contemporary fiction favorite reads from last year here and my second list here . And you can explore the twelve titles on My Very Favorite Bossy 2025 Reads to find out about my overall favorite reads from last year, or you can read about past Bossy cont

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm listening to V. L. Bovalino's non-swooning romantasy novel (featuring a female knight, one of my current-favorite elements), The Second Death of Locke ; I'm listening to the first in Ariel Sullivan's futuristic sci-fi romance series, Conform ; and I'm reading both an electronic advance copy (oops--this one was published January 20) and a gorgeous hardcover edition of Linda Wilgus's intriguing debut novel The Sea Child . What are you reading, boo

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading George Saunders's upcoming novel Vigil , I'm listening to Madeline Martin's Victorian-London-set historical fiction novel The Secret Book Society , and I'm listening to the first in John McMahon's FBI-focused mystery series, Head Cases . What are you reading, bookworms? 01 Vigil by George Saunders I'm so excited to read this book--one of my most-anticipated reads of 2026. In Lincoln in the Bardo , Saunders explored characters existing in

Six More Favorite Bossy Mystery Reads I love looking over my favorite reads from the past twelve months in every genre. Something about the post-holiday cold gray of January lends itself to stories that chug along and keep me guessing. I've been in a mystery-reading mood lately, and I thought you might be too, so I'm sharing more mystery reads I've enjoyed for you to check out. You can explore the twelve titles on My Very Favorite Bossy 2025 Reads to find out about my overal

Six Four-Star Bossy Mystery Reads We've reached the point in the year--the very beginning--when I obsess over my favorite reads from the past twelve months in every genre and share them with you each Friday. Because I've been in a mystery-reading mood lately, I thought you might be too, so we're starting with six four-star mystery reads for you to check out. You can explore the twelve titles on My Very Favorite Bossy 2025 Reads to find out about my overall favorite reads fro