Currently Reading

Season 8, Episode 13: Reading Too Much + Ranking Our #1 Reads In Years Past

October 27, 2025

Key Takeaways Copied to clipboard!

  • The hosts found the exercise of ranking their top reads from 2019 through 2024 extremely difficult, with Meredith nearly abandoning the task when forced to choose between *A Gentleman in Moscow* and *The Tainted Cup*. 
  • Katie's bookish moment involved her children 3D printing her a foldable book holder, while Meredith's moment was the realization that reading seven books simultaneously led to mixing up plot details in her mysteries. 
  • The hosts encourage listeners to start the practice of annually selecting and ranking their top reads (like a top 10) as a useful tool for understanding personal reading patterns and improving future book choices. 

Segments

Hosts’ Bookish Moments
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(00:01:58)
  • Key Takeaway: Katie’s children 3D printed her a functional, foldable book holder, while Meredith realized reading seven books simultaneously caused her to mix up mystery plots.
  • Summary: Katie shared a delightful bookish moment involving a 3D-printed book holder that folds flat for easy storage. Meredith confessed to reading seven books at once, leading to confusion between different mystery victims and crimes. The segment highlights the practical application of 3D printing for book accessories and the cognitive limits of juggling too many reads.
Current Read: How to Survive a Slasher
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(00:07:52)
  • Key Takeaway: How to Survive a Slasher by Justine Puchella Winans is a YA horror novel that leans into classic slasher tropes while featuring a strong mother figure and good representation.
  • Summary: The book is set in Slasherville, a town defined by two past massacres, where the protagonist CJ must navigate a new manuscript that predicts a third murder. It is described as YA horror with dead bodies being found rather than graphic on-page violence, though it contains some curse words. The premise involves CJ and friends moving from side characters to lead roles in a real-life horror narrative.
Current Read: Fifty Fifty
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(00:12:16)
  • Key Takeaway: Fifty Fifty by Steve Cavanagh is a fast-paced legal thriller in the Eddie Flynn series where two sisters accuse each other of murdering their father, forcing their respective attorneys to defend clients who cannot both be innocent.
  • Summary: The novel features Eddie Flynn, an ex-con artist turned defense attorney, representing one sister while Kate Brooks defends the other, creating a 50/50 chance of who the killer is. The book is noted for its short, plot-forward chapters and Kavanaugh’s ability to maintain suspense, though it starts with graphic violence. Listeners can jump into this book, which is book five, without having read the entire Eddie Flynn series.
Current Read: A Rebellion of Care
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(00:17:04)
  • Key Takeaway: A Rebellion of Care by David Gate is a debut poetry collection that balances kind empathy with necessary ‘spice,’ including calls for radical love over judgment.
  • Summary: The collection includes poems and essays that push back against evangelicalism by advocating for radical love and support for loved ones. Katie found the poems accessible and heartfelt, suggesting it is a great entry point for building a poetry reading habit, perhaps through a ‘micro-dosing’ approach like a poem-a-day calendar. One featured poem highlights that parenting requires immense creativity, comparing the daily effort to painting the Sistine Chapel.
Current Read: Death in the Clouds
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(00:20:43)
  • Key Takeaway: Agatha Christie’s Death in the Clouds is a rare miss for Meredith, feeling thin and rote, though it offers fascinating historical details about 1935 air travel.
  • Summary: Meredith rated the Hercule Poirot mystery three and a half stars, noting that Poirot’s character felt mechanical rather than engaging, contrasting with the brilliance found in The Murder of Roger Ackroyd or And Then There Were None. The most interesting element was the depiction of early commercial flight, where passengers could smoke and move about the cabin freely. Meredith suggests this premise could benefit from a modern rewrite by an author like Peter Swanson.
Current Read: Dictionary of Lost Words
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(00:25:45)
  • Key Takeaway: Pip Williams’ The Dictionary of Lost Words is a fiercely feminist historical fiction novel about Esme, who secretly collects words discarded by the male lexicographers compiling the first Oxford English Dictionary.
  • Summary: The novel follows Esme as she gathers language from marginalized communities to create her own dictionary, highlighting words excluded from the white male lexicon. Katie found the book far more inspiring and engaging than expected, becoming obsessed with Esme’s journey. This book was previously featured on The Novel Neighbor’s Indie Press List in August 2021.
Current Read: Frozen People
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(00:29:39)
  • Key Takeaway: Frozen People by Ellie Griffiths is a five-star read blending police procedural, historical fiction, and sci-fi, centered on Detective Sergeant Allie Dawson who time-travels to 1850s Victorian London.
  • Summary: Allie Dawson, a sharp, no-nonsense 50-something cold case detective, gets stuck in the past while her son faces murder accusations in the present day. The book excels in depicting the culture shock of Victorian London and beautifully portrays the nuanced, authentic relationship between Allie and her adult son Finn across time. This is the start of a new series with potential for exploring various cold cases and time periods.
Deep Dive: Ranking Past Favorites
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(00:35:16)
  • Key Takeaway: The hosts ranked their top book from each year between 2019 and 2024, an exercise that proved emotionally difficult, especially for Meredith when comparing A Gentleman in Moscow and The Tainted Cup.
  • Summary: The ranking exercise required selecting one book from each of the last six years, forcing the hosts to make difficult choices between beloved titles. Meredith’s final ranking placed The Tainted Cup (2024) at number one, while Kaytee placed All the Lonely People (2021) at number one, noting it is her most frequently recommended book. The hosts suggest this exercise is valuable for listeners to identify patterns in their own reading tastes.
Fountain Wishes
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(00:51:57)
  • Key Takeaway: Katie wished for better preparation to utilize planned downtime for reading instead of defaulting to other tasks, while Meredith wished for listeners to adopt the practice of annually selecting and ranking their top reads.
  • Summary: Katie struggles with letting urgent but unimportant tasks (like Duolingo or chatting) consume scheduled reading time during activities like waiting for her children’s sports practices. Meredith emphasized that tracking yearly favorites helps readers understand their patterns, which ultimately improves future reading choices, potentially for 2026. The hosts plan a giveaway to incentivize listeners to complete this difficult ranking exercise.