Have you ever hesitated to pick up a buzzy book because you weren’t sure it would live up to the hype? In Episode 296, Jen and Ashley kick off Season Nine with a chat about the books that absolutely do.

We start with our Bookish Check-in: Jen’s reading Suleika Jaouad’s The Book of Alchemy, and I share thoughts on Elana K. Arnold’s What Girls Are Made Of. Then we each bring a hyped pick that worked for us (hello, Susan Choi’s Flashlight and Allison Espach’s The Wedding People). We wrap with a card from Book Riot's Lit Chat Game about which fictional journey we’d tag along for.

Join us, and tell us on Instagram which hyped reads delivered for you!

Visit the Unabridged website for our full show notes and links to the books mentioned in the episode. Interested in what else we're reading? Check out our Featured Books page.