Escape the epic battles and world-ending peril—this bonus episode is all about cozy fantasy, the warm-hug corner of the genre where magic meets everyday life. From quaint villages to found-family friendships, these low-stakes, high-comfort reads are perfect for when you want magic with more charm than chaos.

I’ll share what defines cozy fantasy, why it’s become such a comfort for so many readers, and some of my favorite books in the subgenre. Whether you’re new to cozy fantasy or already stocking your TBR, you’ll leave with plenty of magical, heartwarming recommendations.

This episode is a bit longer than my standard ones, but well worth the listen.

Find my fave cozy reads and those I want to read in my curated collection of book recs on Bookshop!

And here's the Emily Wilde series spotlight episode in case you missed it! >> Emily Wilde Series Spotlight

Further Reading

• Mashable. How 'cozy gaming' is taking mindfulness mainstream
• NY Times. In Tumultuous Times, Readers Turn to ‘Healing Fiction’

This episode is hosted, produced, and edited by Verdell Walker. Music by Jason Shaw on Audionautix.com, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. You can find more details and the full license information at Audionautix Creative Commons Music.

Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org and Amazon. I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase of any of my book recs.

Instagram: @thebookuppod

YouTube: @TheBookUpPodcast

Substack: https://thebookuppod.substack.com/

Shop: The Book Up Bookshop

It’s time for a TBR refresh! In this episode - the season 2 finale! - I’m sharing the books currently on my to-be-read list, along with a few upcoming releases that have caught my eye. Whether you're looking to add to your own stack or just want to hear about what’s on my radar, tune in for a mix of anticipated reads and spontaneous picks.

Here are the books I’ll be chatting about today: 

• Katabasis: Bookshop.org | Amazon 
• The Devil Three Times: Bookshop.org | Amazon 
• Joy Goddess: A'Lelia Walker and the Harlem Renaissance: Bookshop.org | Amazon 
• The Knight & The Moth: Bookshop.org | Amazon 

Other books discussed:

The Alex Stern series by Leigh Bardugo ✨ highly recommend!!! ✨

• Ninth House - Bookshop.org | Amazon
• Hell Bent - Bookshop.org | Amazon 

(Using Apple Podcasts on desktop and can’t click? Copy/paste this link into your browser: https://bookshop.org/lists/tbr-top-up-2)

This episode is hosted, produced, and edited by Verdell Walker. Music by Jason Shaw on Audionautix.com, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. You can find more details and the full license information at Audionautix Creative Commons Music.

Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org and Amazon. I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase of any of my book recs.

Instagram: @thebookuppod

YouTube: @TheBookUpPodcast

Substack: https://thebookuppod.substack.com/

Shop: The Book Up Bookshop

Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? You've come to the right place.

Today’s book is "The Buffalo Hunter Hunter" by Stephen Graham Jones.

A diary written in 1912 by a Lutheran pastor is discovered within a wall. What it unveils is a slow massacre, a chain of events that go back to 217 Blackfeet dead in the snow. Told via transcribed interviews of a Blackfeet named Good Stab, who shares the narrative of his peculiar life over a series of confessional visits. 

If you’d like to read it, you can purchase a copy: Bookshop.org | Amazon 

(Using Apple Podcasts on desktop and can’t click? Copy/paste this link into your browser: https://bookshop.org/lists/season-two-featured-books​)

Read more about the Marias Massacre, which inspired this book, on Wikipedia.

This episode is hosted, produced, and edited by Verdell Walker. Music by Jason Shaw on Audionautix.com, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. You can find more details and the full license information at Audionautix Creative Commons Music.

Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org and Amazon. I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase of any of my book recs.

Instagram: @thebookuppod

YouTube: @TheBookUpPodcast

Substack: https://thebookuppod.substack.com/

Shop: The Book Up Bookshop

Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? You've come to the right place.

Today’s book is "To Shape a Dragon's Breath" by Moniquill Blackgoose. After the first dragon to hatch in generations in her homeland bonds with her, a young Indigenous woman enters a colonizer-run dragon academy—and quickly finds herself at odds with the “approved” way of doing things.

If you’d like to read it, you can purchase a copy: Bookshop.org | Amazon 

(Using Apple Podcasts on desktop and can’t click? Copy/paste this link into your browser: https://bookshop.org/lists/season-two-featured-books​)

Other books discussed in this episode:

• "To Ride a Rising Storm" by Moniquill Blackgoose: Bookshop.org | Amazon 

N.B.: While I didn’t cover this in the episode—gotta stick to my 15-minutes-or-less promise!—I did want to note that "To Shape a Dragon's Breath" includes LGBTQ characters and polyamorous relationships, which may interest some readers.

This episode is hosted, produced, and edited by Verdell Walker. Music by Jason Shaw on Audionautix.com, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. You can find more details and the full license information at Audionautix Creative Commons Music.

Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org and Amazon. I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase of any of my book recs.

Instagram: @thebookuppod

YouTube: @TheBookUpPodcast

Substack: https://thebookuppod.substack.com/

Shop: The Book Up Bookshop

Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? You've come to the right place.

Today’s book is "Isola" by Allegra Goodman. A French noblewoman, deserted on an island, must rely on her faith and love to survive nature's harsh challenges. Based on a true story!

If you’d like to read it, you can purchase a copy: Bookshop.org | Amazon 

(Using Apple Podcasts on desktop and can’t click? Copy/paste this link into your browser: https://bookshop.org/lists/season-two-featured-books​)

Other books featured in this episode:

• "The Vaster Wilds" by Lauren Groff: Bookshop.org | Amazon 

This episode is hosted, produced, and edited by Verdell Walker. Music by Jason Shaw on Audionautix.com, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. You can find more details and the full license information at Audionautix Creative Commons Music.

Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org and Amazon. I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase of any of my book recs.

Instagram: @thebookuppod

YouTube: @TheBookUpPodcast

Substack: https://thebookuppod.substack.com/

Shop: The Book Up Bookshop

Some stories are too good to fit into just one book. In this Series Spotlight, I’m diving into The Emily Wilde Series by Heather Fawcett — giving an overview of the series, what makes it stand out, and why I think it’s worth the commitment.

The magical, delightful series is comprised of 3 books: 

• Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries: Bookshop.org | Amazon 
• Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands: Bookshop.org | Amazon 
• Emily Wilde's Compendium of Lost Tales: Bookshop.org | Amazon 

(Using Apple Podcasts on desktop and can’t click? Copy/paste this link into your browser: https://bookshop.org/lists/series-spotlight-2-the-emily-wilde-series-by-heather-fawcett)

This episode is hosted, produced, and edited by Verdell Walker. Music by Jason Shaw on Audionautix.com, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. You can find more details and the full license information at Audionautix Creative Commons Music.

Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org and Amazon. I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase of any of my book recs.

Instagram: @thebookuppod

YouTube: @TheBookUpPodcast

Substack: https://thebookuppod.substack.com/

Shop: The Book Up Bookshop

Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? You've come to the right place.

Today’s book is "The Dream Hotel" by Laila Lalami. This dystopian literary novel is about one woman's fight for freedom, set in a near future where even dreams are under surveillance - and can be used against you. 

If you’d like to read it, you can purchase a copy: Bookshop.org | Amazon 

(Using Apple Podcasts on desktop and can’t click? Copy/paste this link into your browser: https://bookshop.org/lists/season-two-featured-books​)

Other books featured in this episode:

• "Chain Gang All Stars" by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah: Bookshop.org | Amazon 

This episode is hosted, produced, and edited by Verdell Walker. Music by Jason Shaw on Audionautix.com, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. You can find more details and the full license information at Audionautix Creative Commons Music.

Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org and Amazon. I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase of any of my book recs.

Instagram: @thebookuppod

YouTube: @TheBookUpPodcast

Substack: https://thebookuppod.substack.com/

Shop: The Book Up Bookshop

Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? You've come to the right place.

Today’s book is "The Last One" by Rachel Howzell Hall. This romantasy follows Kai, who awakens in a dangerous land plagued by sickness and supernatural creatures, with no memory of her past.

This one was a doozy - and not in a good way.

If you’d like to read it, you can purchase a copy: Bookshop.org | Amazon 

(Using Apple Podcasts on desktop and can’t click? Copy/paste this link into your browser: https://bookshop.org/lists/season-two-featured-books​)

Other book recs featured in this episode:

• "A Court of Thorns & Roses" by Sarah J Maas (Book 1 of ACOTAR Series): Bookshop.org | Amazon 
• "Fourth Wing" by Rebecca Yarros (The Empyrean #1): Bookshop.org | Amazon 
• "The Serpent and the Wings of Night" by Carissa Broadbent (Crowns of Nyaxia #1): Bookshop.org | Amazon 
• "The Hurricane Wars" by Thea Guanzon (The Hurricane Wars #1): Bookshop.org | Amazon 
• "Divine Rivals" by Rebecca Ross (Letters of Enchantment #1): Bookshop.org | Amazon 

This episode is hosted, produced, and edited by Verdell Walker. Music by Jason Shaw on Audionautix.com, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. You can find more details and the full license information at Audionautix Creative Commons Music.

Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org and Amazon. I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase of any of my book recs.

Instagram: @thebookuppod

YouTube: @TheBookUpPodcast

Substack: https://thebookuppod.substack.com/

Shop: The Book Up Bookshop

Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? You've come to the right place. And we're back with Season 2!

Today’s featured book is "The Hacienda" by Isabel Cañas. In this atmospheric horror-thriller, the daughter of a disgraced general and a priest with supernatural powers team up against a murderous haunted house.

I also share my ratings for the books featured in last season's TBR Top-Up - find out what I loved and what I didn't!

If you’d like to read "The Hacienda", you can purchase a copy: Bookshop.org | Amazon 

(Using Apple Podcasts on desktop and can’t click? Copy/paste this link into your browser: https://bookshop.org/lists/season-two-featured-books)

Other book recs (and films) featured in this episode:

• "Vampires of el Norte" by Isabel Cañas: Bookshop.org | Amazon 
• "The Possession of Alba Díaz" by Isabel Cañas: Bookshop.org | Amazon 
• "Mexican Gothic" by Silvia Moreno-Garcia: Bookshop.org | Amazon 
• "The Daughter of Dr. Moreau" by Silvia Moreno-Garcia: Bookshop.org | Amazon 
• "Sinners" - film; rent or buy on Amazon Prime; also available on HBO Max

This episode is hosted, produced, and edited by Verdell Walker. Music by Jason Shaw on Audionautix.com, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. You can find more details and the full license information at Audionautix Creative Commons Music.

Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org and Amazon. I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase of any of my book recs.

Instagram: @thebookuppod

YouTube: @TheBookUpPodcast

Substack: https://thebookuppod.substack.com/

Shop: The Book Up Bookshop

It’s time for a TBR refresh! In this episode - the season 1 finale! - I’m sharing the books currently on my to-be-read list, along with a few upcoming releases that have caught my eye. Whether you're looking to add to your own stack or just want to hear about what’s on my radar, tune in for a mix of anticipated reads and spontaneous picks.

Here are the books I’ll be chatting about today: 

• Greenteeth: Bookshop.org | Amazon 
• The Queen’s Spade: Bookshop.org | Amazon 
• The Sirens: Bookshop.org | Amazon 
• Remember You Will Die: Bookshop.org | Amazon 

(Using Apple Podcasts on desktop and can’t click? Copy/paste this link into your browser: https://bookshop.org/lists/tbr-top-up-1)

Other featured book recs:

• Weyward: Bookshop.org | Amazon 

This episode is hosted, produced, and edited by Verdell Walker. Music by Jason Shaw on Audionautix.com, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. You can find more details and the full license information at Audionautix Creative Commons Music.

Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org and Amazon. I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase of any of my book recs.

Instagram: @thebookuppod

YouTube: @TheBookUpPodcast

Substack: https://thebookuppod.substack.com/

Shop: The Book Up Bookshop