Today we're sharing Part 2 of our summer superlatives episode, featuring four more of our team members talking about the books they've loved most this season.

Our executive producer Will Bogel joins Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club Community Manager Ginger Horton to talk about their favorite summer reads. Then, you'll hear from Modern Mrs Darcy Editor and Social Media Manager Leigh Kramer and What Should I Read Next Media Production Specialist Holly Wielkoszewski.

Today's picks feature our team members and their wide-ranging preferences: romance to sci-fi, classics to outdoor adventure, literary fiction to narrative nonfiction, and beyond. No matter your reading tastes, we bet you'll hear a title that appeals.

Find the list of titles mentioned today on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/491.

While we're soaking up the rest of summer, fall is just around the corner, and we have the best new and timeless back-to-school book merch in our shop. Check out all these items and more at modernmrsdarcy.com/shop.

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Readers, we’re back today with an annual tradition we know so many of you look forward to, as our team joins Anne to talk about their favorite books of the summer and what’s happening in their reading lives right now.

As always, our team’s range of reading tastes ensures we share titles from a wide range of genres and styles that will appeal to all kinds of readers. You’ll hear titles that might especially appeal to readers looking for your next family drama, who are open to a unique blend of sci-fi/horror, are ready to be pleasantly surprised by memoir, or would love to add a witty read that Jane Austen fans might especially love to your TBR.

You will not be surprised to hear that when the team and Anne get together to talk books, they can talk. So this year, for the first time, we’ve split our best books of summer into two episodes. Today you’ll hear from What Should I Read Next Patreon Community Manager and Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club Co-Host Shannan Malone and our Resident Spreadsheet Queen Donna Hetchler and then you’ll hear the conversation between Anne and Community Coordinator Brigid Misselhorn. 

Find the list of titles discussed today and let us know any of today's titles are on your list of summer favorites—or your TBR—at our show notes page, which you'll find at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/490.

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Today's guest isn't only a reader with a specific readerly conundrum, she is also a beloved author. Anne has recommended Julie Berry's work to several past guests, and Julie also joined us over in the Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club back in 2020.

Today, she's here to talk with Anne about writing and discovering smart books with big heart. They also dive into conversation about Julie's independent bookstore and her unexpected path to becoming a bookstore owner. Plus, they discuss Julie's upcoming new release and how she finds books that shine through the clamor of blurbs and endorsements.

Anne shares a handful of recommendations with Julie while also inviting her to tell us more about some of her favorites.

You'll find the full list of titles mentioned over on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/489.

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Novels featuring an ensemble cast of characters and multiple points of view are a favorite for today's guest, and she'd love Anne's help in finding more of this particular type of reading experience.

Olivia Haber Greenwood is joining Anne from Barcelona, where she's lived for the past seven years working as a copywriter and freelance journalist. Olivia is a happy reader with an abundant reading life, but she's found herself stymied when it comes to novels featuring multiple points of view.  

Olivia loves the concept of these books, and sometimes she'll find one that really works for her. But since voice is such a strong component of what she loves in a book, too many of the multiple point of view novels she's read fall a bit flat. She's on the hunt for a story told from multiple points of view where every character's distinctive, unmistakable voice elicits a big wow. It's a tall order. Can they do it? Anne and Olivia sure have fun trying in today's conversation.

Find the list of titles discussed today and leave your suggestions for Olivia at our show notes page, which you'll find at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/488.

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Today's guest has joined Anne in conversation on the podcast before, but now our media production specialist Holly Wielkoszewski is in the spotlight as they explore her evolving reading tastes and her favorite genres of science fiction and fantasy.

Holly splits her time between New Mexico, where she and her husband are building an Earthship, and traveling internationally for several months each year. When Holly mentioned at a recent team meeting that she's shifting away from fantasy and more towards sci-fi in her reading life lately, Anne couldn't wait to explore that on the air.

Today's conversation delves into Holly's evolving journey as a sci-fi fantasy devotee, the trends she's seeing in recent books, and some of her very favorites in these genres. They also explore what appeals to Holly most about these types of books and how she sees the crossover from these genres to other stories she seeks out. This episode highlights a whole bunch of titles that readers who resonate with Holly might also enjoy reading, too.

Please let us know if you have ideas for Holly's next sci-fi read or other suggestions by leaving a comment on our show notes page, where we've also listed all of the titles mentioned today. That's at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/487.

If you love hearing from team members like today's conversation with Holly, you will love our Patreon community, where our team members regularly pop up for bonus episodes. Thank you to everyone who's already signed up, and if you're curious, find all the details at patreon.com/whatshouldireadnext.

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Ellen Heath, a reader from the Atlanta area, shares Anne's passion for urban planning, but that's not all they talk about today.

Ellen is looking for immersive settings, characters she can connect with, and books that might even teach her something, and Anne has ideas!

Ellen and Anne also talk about her Ellen's interesting and unique method for choosing her next read on her eReader, and her desire to DNF—that's do not finish—more books in 2025.

Please share your ideas for Ellen by leaving a comment on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/486, where you'll also find the list of titles mentioned today.

Check out all of our summer merch, like our popular Well Read hat, our To Be Read tote, stickers, t-shirts, and more at modernmrsdarcy.com/shop.

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A midyear reading check-in has become a small tradition around here, and today Anne is welcoming team member Shannan Malone back to the podcast.

Today, you'll hear Anne and Shannan dive into the history of this practice before exploring how this year’s been going so far, what they're each excited about, and what’s working (and not working) in each of their reading lives. 

With so many books to choose from, and so much going on in all of our busy lives, a midyear check-in is a useful tool to make any adjustments or recalibrations to ensure you’re getting exactly what you want from your reading life, whether that’s escape, education, pure enjoyment, or all of the above.

Find the links and resources mentioned today along with the list of titles discussed at our show notes page, whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/485.

If you haven’t yet ordered your Summer Reading Guide—either the digital version (plus the replay of our Unboxing party)—or the printed version—there’s still plenty of summer reading season ahead. Grab your copy at modernmrsdarcy.com/srg.

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Today's guest is looking for ways to slow down and sink into what she loves most as she plans her summer of reading.

Chelsea Siler is an early childhood special education teacher in Tacoma, Washington. She's often found reading to be a source of joy, escape, and growth, and she'd like these positive experiences to be reflected in her reading selections this summer.

Chelsea's always searching for immersive, character-driven stories she will not want to put down. Anne can't wait to share ideas and hear more about Chelsea's plans for a summer of slowly savoring what she reads next. 

Find the list of titles discussed in today's episode on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/484.

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We often discuss auto-buy authors and completist authors around here, and today's guest is a completist on a mission to discover her new favorite summer author. 

Stephanie Edwards-Gass is a seventh-grade English teacher and an Elin Hilderbrand completist. For years, she's turned to Hilderbrand's novels for summer reading satisfaction. She's read (and reread) every book in Hilderbrand's catalog, but now that there aren't any new Nantucket books to look forward to, Stephanie's on the hunt for a new go-to summer author that scratches the same itch. She's looking for stories with complex characters, a strong sense of place, lots of juicy details, and often salacious scandals. 

Stephanie's already done a lot of legwork here and has a really good idea of what has and hasn't worked for her so far. Today she and Anne talk about which author (or authors) might fill this gap in Stephanie's summer reading plan.

See the long list of titles mentioned today and leave your suggestions for Stephanie at our show notes page, at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/483.

Thanks to all of you who have joined us lately in our Patreon community: we could not make this show without you. If you haven't joined us yet, it's an easy way to show your support for our show and financially support the work we're doing. When you sign up, you get immediate access to the 2025 Summer Reading Guide, our unboxing video, and bonus episodes like the books Anne read and really loved but didn't include in the Guide, and of course all of our archives and the new bonus episodes we're creating this summer. To sign up and get started, go to patreon.com/whatshouldireadnext.

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We always love reading on a theme, and today's guest would love to see her real-life love of the ocean mirrored in the pages of her books. 

Noelle Leong is a science and medicine-focused librarian at a small liberal arts college. She especially loves her work for the opportunities it provides her to join the students on trails and visiting tidepools.

So it’s perhaps unsurprising she’d love Anne's help finding books about the ocean, whether that means pop science, books where the ocean is the setting, or even a character—she’s up for anything. While this isn’t an exclusively summery theme, so many readers associate the ocean with summer vacations and family trips, so it feels like just the right time to dive in and find titles that will appeal to Noelle’s reading wishes right now.

Find the list of titles mentioned today and share your ocean reading recommendations by leaving a comment on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/482

For more summer reading fun, join us in the Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club. We had a blast at our Summer Reading Guide Unboxing party, and next week, we’re hosting Summer Reading Guide author Kevin Wilson for our June live author talk. Book Club is a great place to gather with fellow readers and talk all about this summer’s most discussable books. Join the fun at modernmrsdarcy.com/club

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