Your Bookstore Besties

Becky and Rachele interview Maggi, a Silent Book Club leader in Marietta & Kennesaw, GA who tells us all about this international effort (and best darn idea these introverts have ever heard of!), and about the importance of community and reading!

All the books we mentioned:

Nancy Drew by Carolyn Keene

Amelia Bedelia by Peggy Parish

American Girl books by Various Authors

The Royal Diaries by Various Authors

Diane Mott Davidson

Tami Hoag

In Death series by J.D. Robb

Llewellyn’s Sabbat Almanac by Various Authors

The 1619 Project by Nikole Hannah-Jones

The Hollow and the Haunted by Camilla Raines

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas

Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo

Murder in the Dressing Room by Holly Stars

Go Luck Yourself by Sara Raasch

The Nightmare Before Kissmas by Sara Raasch

Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl

Alice & Freda Forever by Alexis Coe

Just for the Cameras by Meghan Quinn

Bunny by Mona Awad

Watership Down by Richard Adams

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Rachele: Littlelovedbooks

Becky: Bexmex

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Rachele & Becky live their best life and discuss Project Hail Mary - the book, the movie, how the adaptation holds up, and why everyone should read it.

All the books we mentioned:

Project Hail Mary - Andy Weir

The Martian - Andy Weir

(yes , that's it)

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Rachele: Littlelovedbooks

Becky: Bexmex

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Becky and Rachele read recommendations from friends, family, and loyal listeners of the podcast! (you guys aren't just "fans" to us but it was alliterative, sorry!)

All the books we mentioned:

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Rachele: Littlelovedbooks

Becky: Bexmex

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Rachele talks about her recent trip to Pittsburgh for the Winter Institute, and Becky and Rachele share reading updates!

All the books we mentioned:A Court of Thorns and Roses - Sarah J. Maas

One Dark Window - Rachel Gillig

Project Hail Mary - Andy Weir

Semi-Well-Adjusted Despite Everything - Alyson Stoner

The Housemaid - Frieda McFadden

Everything is Tuberculosis - John Green.

Wuthering Heights - Emily Brontë

Summit Lake - Charlie Donlea

We Who Will Die - Stacia Stark

Dire Bound - Sable Sorensen

Frankenstein - Mary Shelley

Take My Word For It - LeVar Burton

Beautiful Things - Emily Rath

Bad Boy Era - Amy Daws

Pachinko - Min Jin Lee

Brief History of Seven Killings - Marlon James

Black Leopard, Red Wolf - Marlon James

Olga Dies Dreaming - Xochitl Gonzalez

Anita De Monte Laughs Last - Xochitl Gonzalez

Underground Railroad - Colson Whitehead

Harlem Shuffle - Colson Whitehead

The Nickel Boys - Colson Whitehead

Tempest - Victoria Aveyard

Change of Plans - Sarah Dessen

A Fate Worse Than Drowning - Sarah L. Hawthorn

The Rainshadow Orphans - Naomi Ishiguro

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Rachele: Littlelovedbooks

Becky: Bexmex

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Becky and Rachele share their most exciting 2026 releases and catch up on recent reads!

All the books we mentioned:

My Husband's Wife by Alice Feeney

Beautiful ugly by Alice Feeney

Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney

One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig

The Knight and the Moth by Rachel Gillig

Caretaker by Marcus Kliewer

Sad Eyes by Christina Applegate

This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by Ilona Andrews

Phases by Brandy

Seasons of Glass and Iron by Amal El-Mohtar

Fame Sick by Lena Dunham

Death's Daughter by S.A. Barne

The Tapestry of Fate by Shannon Chakraborty

The Unknown by Riley Sager

Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke

The Ending Writes Itself by Evelyn Clarke

Detour by Jeff Rake and Rob Hart

Once Upon a Demon's Heart by K. M. Moronova

Stay for a Spell by Amy Coombe

Enchanted Spell Shop by Sarah Beth Durst

Sea of Charms by Sarah Beth Durst

Captive Traitor King by Brigid Kemmerer

Unrivaled by Rachel Reid

Rites of the Starling by Devney Perry

A Forsaken Prophecy by Stacey McEwan

The Knave and The Moon by Rachel Gillig

Alchemised by SenLinYu

Too Blessed to Stress by Ali Hoff Kosik

Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman

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Rachele: Littlelovedbooks

Becky: Bexmex

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Becky and Rachele discuss their January and beginning of February reading and what their current reads as well!

All the books we mentioned:

If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio

Famous Last Words by Gillian McAllister

One Perfect Couple by Ruth Ware

The Last Flight by Julie Clark

First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston

The Lie As I Tell by Julie Clark

Warrior Princess Assassin by Brigid Kemmerer

The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson

None of This is True by Lisa Jewell

The Night She Disappeared by Lisa Jewell

Curse Carved in Bone by Danielle L. Jensen

The Bridge Kingdom by Danielle L. Jensen

Wildflower by Drew Barrymore

The Office BFFs by Jenna Fischer & Angela Kinsey

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

The Testaments by Margaret Atwood

I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman

Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera

Finding My Way by Malala Yousafzai

The Foxhole Court by Nora Sakavic

Bringing up Bébé by Pamela Druckerman

Everything is Tuberculosis by John Green

The Anthropocene Reviewed by John Green

His and Hers by Alice Feeney

My Husband's Wife by Alice Feeney

One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig

Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

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Rachele: Littlelovedbooks

Becky: Bexmex

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A special guest episode where Rachele and Becky invite Reilly and Athena on for a fun episode all about their 2025 Book Challenge Wrap Up and all their exciting plans for 2026 Book Challenges, Goals, and more!

All the books/authors we mentioned:

The Listeners - Maggie Stiefvater

Gillian Flynn

Unworthy - Agustina Baztterica

Dandadan - Yukinobu Tatsu

Beautiful Ugly - Alice Feeney

C.S. Pacat

The Number One Ladies' Detective Agency - Alexander McCall Smith

Wild Dark Shore - Charlotte McConaghy

Wuthering Heights - Emily Brontë

Franny and Zoe - J.D. Salinger

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn - Betty Smith

Naomi and Ely's No Kiss List - Rachel Cohn & David Levithan

Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist - Rachel Cohn & David Levithan

Dash and Lily's Book of Dares - Rachel Cohn & David Levithan

The Great Library series - Rachel Caine

Blood Gift duology - N. E. Davenport

The Heroes of Olympus series - Rick Riordan

The Farseer trilogy - Robin Hobb

This Is How You Lose the Time War - Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone

Maximum Ride series - James Patterson

Frankenstein - Mary Shelley

The Wager - David Grann

Throne of Glass - Sarah J. Maas

Crescent City - Sarah J. Maas

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Rachele: Littlelovedbooks

Becky: Bexmex

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Rachele and Becky catch-up and talk about their Christmas holiday, what they did on break, what their life goals are for the new year, share some stats for their 2025 reading year, AND discuss the 7th annual Besties Reading Challenge!

All the books we mentioned:

Atomic Habits - James Clear

Project Hail Mary - Andy Weir

The Wager - David Grann

If We Were Villains - M.L. Rio

This Is How You Lose the Time War - Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone

Ninth House - Leigh Bardugo

Babel - R.F. Kuang

It Girl - Ruth Ware

The Secret History - Donna Tartt

The Maidens - Alex Michaelides

The Silent Patient - Alex Michaelides

The Fury - Alex Michaelides

The Will of the Many - James Islington

The Bible

The Last Flight - Julie Clark

The Hunger Games books - Suzanne Collins

The Knight in the Moth - Rachel Gillig

Sunrise on the Reaping - Suzanne Collins

Rose in Chains - Julie Soto

The Raven King (and the Raven Cycle) - Maggie Stiefvater

Beautiful Ugly - Alice Feeney

The Love of My Afterlife - Kristy Greenwood

The Trap - Catherine Ryan Howard

Sharp Objects - Gillian Flynn

We Used to Live Here - Marcus Kliewer

Heated Rivalry - Rachel Reid

The Long Game - Rachel Reid

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Rachele: Littlelovedbooks

Becky: Bexmex

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Rachele and Becky end the year with choosing the books for the seventh rendition of the Besties Reading Challenge, and discussing their plans for the rest of December!

All the books we mentioned:
Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett

Two Can Play by Ali Hazelwood

Bride by Ali Hazelwood

The Knight and the Moth by Rachel Gillig

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

Sociopath by Patric Gagne

The Wager by David Grann

Murder at the Lobstah Shack by Maddie Day

If We Were Villains by M. L. Rio

This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

Jane Austen’s Bookshelf by Rebecca Romney

The Games Gods Play by Abigail Owen

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum

A Room of One’s Own by Virginia Woolf

The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux

Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie

The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy

The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins

House of Sky and Breath by Sarah J. Maas

Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler

Everyone on This Train Is a Suspect by Benjamin Stevenson

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

Atonement by Ian McEwan

The Lost Village by Camilla Sten

Half a Soul by Olivia Atwater

A Fate Inked in Blood by Danielle L. Jensen

Mate by Ali Hazelwood

Alchemised by SenLinYu

Semi-Well Adjusted Despite Literally Everything by Alison Stoner

Finding My Way by Malala Yousafzai

Second Chance Romance by Olivia Dade

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Rachele: Littlelovedbooks

Becky: Bexmex

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Rachele and Becky catch up on all they've been reading the past month and discuss the schedule for the last episode of the year!

All the books we mentioned:

The Thursday Murder Club by Richard OsmanKillers of a Certain Age by Deanna RaybournProject Hail Mary by Andy WeirThe September House by Carissa OrlandoForbidden Alchemy by Stacey McEwanThe Love of My Afterlife by Kirsty GreenwoodRemarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van PeltTold You So by Mayci NeeleyA Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky ChambersA Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky ChambersThe Deep by Nick CutterI Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline HarpmanForged in Blood by Sadie KincaidThe Hurting Kind by Ada LimónEmily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Fairies by Heather FawcettAgnes Albert’s Mystical Cat Shelter by Heather FawcettThe Lost Village by Camilla StenThe Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret AtwoodStation Eleven by Emily St. John MandelThe Only One Left by Riley SagerAtonement by Ian McEwanMidnight at Eberly Manor by K. P. GillespieWild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghyAlchemised by SenLinYuFive Prickly Porcupines

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Follow us on Goodreads too!

Rachele: Littlelovedbooks

Becky: Bexmex

Follow us on instagram @yourbookstorebesties and join the conversation