It's a new year and a new episode. Join Kate and Laura as they consider reading intentions for the year ahead, and try to set some realistic goals. Will 2025 be the year Kate gets into poetry? Will it be the year Laura weans herself off romance novels? And as always, they're thinking of book club reads to come. Meanwhile Phil sets a goal for himself in 2025 that might surprise you.

Books mentioned

 4,000 Weeks and Meditations for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman

 Rejection by Tony Tulithamutte

Bliss Montage by Ling Ma

The George Smiley novels by John le Carre

Karla's Choice by Nick Harkaway

 My Struggle, Karl Ove Knausgard

The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan

Assembly and Universality by Natasha Brown

Also a Poet and Crush by Ada Calhoun

Our Country Friends and Vera, or Faith by Gary Shteyngart

Intimacies and Audition by Katie Kitamura

Robert Caro's Fifth Lyndon Johnson book

Polostan by Neal Stephenson

Finance for the People by Paca Leon

Essays of E. B. White

The Ladies of Grace Adieu by Susanna Clarke

The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna

The Husbands by Holly Gramazio

 All That Glitters by Orlando Whitfield

Glorious Exploits by Ferdia Lennon

Ink Blood Sister Scribe by Emma Törzs

Intermezzo by Sally Rooney

The Empusium by Olga Tokarczuk

My Friends by Hisham Matar

 The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion by Beth Brower

Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros

Deep Cuts by Holly Brickley

The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett

Eight Months on Ghazzah Street by Hilary Mantel

The Gifts of Reading, Robert Macfarlane (ed)

Untitled Memoir from Nicola Sturgeon

Katabasis by R. F. Kuang

Patrick Rothfuss (The Name of the Wind trilogy)

Book Lovers by Emily Henry

Living and Death and Intimations by Zadie Smith

Notes

If you’re looking for inspiration in your reading life over the coming year why not subscribe to The Book Club Review Patreon. In addition to the various special episodes you’ll find on there, you’ll get The Book Club Review Weekend, my weeky-ish bonus episode just for Patrons, featuring Laura’s reading updates and regular chats with friends of the pod. Laura and I have cooked up a new feature, called One Book Wonder, that allows us to talk about those books that slip through the cracks between regular episodes. Listen in for our thoughts on Good Material by Dolly Alderton. 

You get all that at the entry level, but at the higher tier you can also join the podcast book club and come and talk books with me in person at the end of every month over zoom, or listen back anytime if you can’t make the live session. In January we’re reading the novel that appeared on many a best-of-the-year list, Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar, In February we’re we’re reading All The Beauty in the World by Patrick Bringley, a museum guard's quest to find solace and meaning in art, and in March it’s short stories with Hateship, Friendship, Loveship, Courtship, Marriage by Alice Munroe. But will they make for good book club reads? Join me and the book clubbers over on Patreon and find out. Join our bookish community, get brilliant book recommendations and get the warm glow from knowing that you’re supporting me in making the show. Head to Patreon.com/thebookclubreview and sign up today.

Otherwise come and find me anytime on Instagram @bookclubreviewpodcast or check out our website, thebookclubreview.co.uk. But for now, thanks for listening and happy book clubbing.