karspeak's 2026 reading

Happy New Year! I'm Karen, and I live in the Florida panhandle. I’m a speech-language therapist working with elementary and middle school kids, which I find enjoyable and rewarding. I'm married with two sons--one in college, and one in the 10th grade who plays a lot of soccer. My reading usually includes spec fic, mystery, literary fiction, nonfiction, and general fiction (especially for book club). When life is particularly busy or stressful, I tend toward “popcorn” sci-fi and fantasy. This year I’m hoping to read more literary fiction (at least 10 from my TBR list). This will be my 8th year in Club Read, and I follow many threads religiously but rarely comment. I don’t update my LT Library, so that doesn’t reflect my reading, BTW. You all provide me with most of my reading list suggestions, for which I am very grateful!

Books from my TBR List (not spec fic)
1. The Correspondent
2. Persuasion
3. The Summer Book

Skimmed/DNF Jan to June
1. The Lost Bookshop
2. A Most Agreeable Murder
3. A Hat Full of Sky
4. Nine Goblins
5. A Fae in Finance

6. Seascraper
7. The Withdrawing Room
8. The Palace Guard
9. The Bilbao Looking Glass
10. The Convivial Codfish

11. The Windsor Knot
12. Psion
13. Guard in the Garden
14. This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me
15. Finlay Donovan Is Killing It

16. Yesteryear
17. Agnes Aubert's Mystical Cat Shelter
18. The Rook: A Novel
19. The Decagon House Murders
20. Little Thieves

21. Pachinko
22. Viridian Gate Online: The Jade Lord
23. Viridian Gate Online: Imperial Legion
24. Viridian Gate Online: The Lich Priest
25. Viridian Gate Online: Doom Forge

26. Wild Dark Shore

Welcome back to Club Read, Karen. We have been having a frigid winter in Maine so far. I'm starting to miss PCB and being able to walk to the beach every day without slipping on ice or strapping on snowshoes!

Happy New Year, and new thread, Karen!

>7 labfs39: Hi, Lisa! It sounds like you need a beach vacation;). The warmer winters are one nice thing about living here, I'll admit.

>8 dchaikin: Thanks, Dan! And thanks for all of your hard work getting the 2026 group set up.

1. The Correspondent (friend rec)
I really enjoyed this. I was drawn in by the writing and the epistolary format. It made me nostalgic for the days of writing letters, which ended during college for me. I agree with someone else who mentioned that it kind of had an Olive Kitteridge (except I liked this MC better) mixed with 84, Charing Cross Road vibe. But oh my goodness, finding out at the end that she had actually told him to jump (no judgment, but it hits way harder) was difficult. On one hand, it explained her behavior and personality throughout the book even better, which was brilliant. But on the other hand, oof, gut punch.
As an aside, apparently the author wrote most of this novel during COVID in a small closet with the door closed, from 4:30 am to 7:30 am every morning before her kids got up.

dropping a star.

Happy New Year, Karen. I look forward to following your reading this year. The Correspondent is on my WL.

>9 karspeak: The Correspondent is already on my wishlist and each positive review I read pushes it higher.

>9 karspeak: Yes, gut punch for sure. Especially as a mother.

Glad to see you back here again!

>10 RBeffa: >11 BLBera: >12 rhian_of_oz: >13 japaul22: *waves* Hi, Ron, Beth, Rhian, and Jennifer!

2. The Wee Free Men
A fun Pratchett audiobook to listen to while doing chores and running errands.

>9 karspeak: You've got me interested with The Correspondent. Our library has a long waitlist for print copies and they don't seem to have an ebook yet in the system. I still prefer paper books but I will keep checking now and then for an ebook.

3. Vainqueur the Dragon
Cute litRPG in which a man from Earth ends up in a world with magical beings, etc, and accidentally ends up the minion of a dragon. Hijinks and a LOT of sarcasm (which always goes over the dragon's head) ensue. Entertaining, especially for the contrast of a clever, pragmatic man working for a dragon who is not the sharpest but has boundless arrogance and desire for gold, but I probably won't continue with the series.

4. Red Rising
It seems like teen fantasy is usually targeted toward teen girls these days. My sons, 16 and 19, have struggled to find books and series they like since outgrowing YA books (Ranger's Apprentice series, etc), with the Dungeon Crawler Carl series being a notable exception. But they both really liked Red Rising and already continued on with the series. I liked but didn't love it. Some of the characters, other than the main character, are so unlikeable, and some of the action and plot progression seem very haphazard. I won't continue with the series, but I'm glad my sons enjoyed it.

5. Persuasion (book club selection)
I talked one of my book clubs into reading this, since it was Austen's 250th birthday this past December. It was my first time reading it, but I had already seen the movie. So I'm not sure how much more I would have enjoyed reading it if I didn't already know what was going to happen. I'm sure it dissipated at least some, if not most, of the plot tension. So, I'm planning to read Mansfield Park to compare my enjoyment, since I have NOT seen that movie. I'm very curious to hear what my book club thought of it, including all the usual topics one thinks of with Jane Austen (the restrictions of gender, class, social rules, etc).

6. Snake-Eater
A light, enjoyable stand-alone contemporary fantasy set in a tiny desert town, featuring some southwest Native American spirits, quirky but caring town residents, and a young woman fleeing from an abusive relationship.

7. ADHD Is Awesome (professional development)
I've read several books on ADHD now, and I think this one is the most approachable and practical, without sacrificing medically/scientifically accurate info. The author (Penn Holderness) and his wife found internet fame during COVID with their humorous musical youtube skits. They also won the Amazing Race one year. Anyway, Penn has ADHD, and he and his wife both give their first-hand accounts of the challenges and strengths of ADHD or having a loved one with ADHD, and how they have dealt with them. It is positive and neuro-affirming while also being honest about difficulties that can arise and the emotions that can go along with that. They also include info and advice from experts in the field. The audiobook is particularly engaging. The book includes random digressions or factoid breaks to help keep the reader (who may or may not have ADHD) engaged. This is a book I would feel comfortable recommending to parents whose child has been diagnosed with ADHD. Penn has also written a children's book on ADHD, which I requested from the library to see if it might be something a few of my students might appreciate.

>17 karspeak: This looks like something I should read. Both my nieces have ADHD and sometimes it's like trying to corral rabid squirrels. I can't imagine what it would be like for them in a brick and mortar school.

>16 karspeak: when was/is your persuasion meeting. And, if it happens, how did it go?

8. Before They Are Hanged
#2 in the somewhat gritty The First Law fantasy trilogy. The way it ended was unexpected, so I'm curious to see how things are wrapped up in the third book.

9. Our Lady of Mysterious Ailments
#2 in the Edinburgh Nights series. Enjoyable entry in this urban fantasy series with a likable teen girl protagonist.

10. Operation Bounce House
This is a new sci-fi novel by Matt Dinniman, the author of the hugely popular Dungeon Crawler Carl series. This was an okay-not-great read for me. Also, the blurb on Amazon was misleading; I'd say this was more about AI than the main human character fighting the bad guys.

11. The Family Vault (LT rec)
This was a fun murder mystery set amongst upper crust Boston.

>18 labfs39: I recommend it, Lisa. I definitely feel badly for some of my students, since brick-and-mortar school can be such a slog, sometimes.

>19 dchaikin: We haven't met yet, Dan. We meet very intermittently, and I'm curious if they will follow through with reading it or not, since it's not our usual fare.

12. Titanium Noir (LT rec)
A well-written and enjoyable sci-fi noir. I was drawn into the mystery, and the sci-fi integrated well into the story. The main character was maybe more medium-boiled than hard-boiled--tough but likable and a good guy.

13. Crooked House (LT rec)
Liked didn't love this Agatha Christie.

14. The Summer Book (LT rec)
I really enjoyed this. From hearing previous talk about this book, I expected sweet, nostalgic memories with lovely nature descriptions of a girl's summers on a small Finnish island. Instead, it was a beautifully written, spare, funny, wise series of vignettes between a girl and her grandmother, and their time on their island. I laughed out loud numerous times and was sad when it ended.

15. Strangers: A Memoir of Marriage (intermittent book club choice--maybe we'll finally discuss Persuasion, too?)
This was also beautifully written. The author writes with honesty, shock, and heartache about her husband's sudden announcement that he is leaving her and their three children. She reviews their dating and marriage history, looking for clues she had missed. Then she takes us through her anxiety as she waits to find out what her husband will allow her to keep, since he holds the money/power in the divorce. The author is from a well-known and well-off family in Manhattan, with famous grandparents on both sides. And she and her husband were quite well off, too. But only once, when she was complaining about how hard it would be for her to disentangle and set up for herself such things as health insurance, separate finance accounts, etc, did I get annoyed with her--she went to Harvard for undergrad, NYU for law school, and she wasn't working--surely she could handle it? Overall, though, it was her honesty and writing skill that came through. And she seems to gain confidence and become a less anxious person as she goes through the divorce.

16. The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion Volume 1 (LT rec)
Enjoyable novella. I'm waiting for Volume 2 from my library.

>23 karspeak: I loved The Summer Book, too.

17. The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion: Vol 2
18. The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion: Vol 3
19. The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion: Vol 4
More of these enjoyable novellas.

20. The Last Argument of Kings
The final book in the First Law trilogy. Phew, this was long, but it was interesting what the author did across this trilogy: he took the traditional fantasy tropes and the expected plot arc and turned them on their heads, with a healthy dose of nihilism thrown in. I'm not sure I'm buying that Bayaz, who had been styled as a Gandalf-type, was really the evil villain all along, but maybe I missed lots of hints in the first two books. But I'm not prepared to go back and read the first two books just to assuage my curiosity. I appreciated that the author gave gritty, realistic depictions of characters and war, and I'm okay with challenging our happily-ever-after expectations from a fantasy series, which is so not how life really is. But I can't get on board with his nihilism, either, especially for Logen. I thought it would have been more consistent with his character to have just abdicated the throne and gone off into the woods, or something. In the end, I'm glad I read the series, and the author did something quite clever. But I'm not sure I'll seek out more of his work.

>19 dchaikin: Dan, my occasional book club finally met, but no one even mentioned Persuasion. We spent quite a bit of time discussing the subsequently selected book, Strangers: A Memoir of Marriage, which was a decent book but certainly won't become a classic. I'm not even sure how many of the 5 other women read it or DNF'd Persuasion. I meant to ask, of course, but didn't get the chance to bring it up in the midst of shifting topics and catching up on each other's personal lives.

>27 karspeak: that’s really funny - I mean unless your were really wanting to discuss it, then it might be annoying.

21. The Mysterious Affair at Styles
An enjoyable Agatha Christie. I'd rate it in the middle of the pack of those I have read.

22. Viridian Gate Online: Cataclysm
I picked this up because it was one of 4 or 5 LitRPG series recommended by Matt Dinniman. The writing isn't great, but the world building, plotting, and pacing are fun. It kept me entertained on a long roadtrip.

23. Viridian Gate Online: Crimson Alliance
2nd in the series. I skimmed bits, but the plot did keep me engaged.

24. Apocalypse Parenting
The first book in a different LitRPG series recommended by Matt Dinniman. I enjoyed it, especially the unusual/refreshing plot of a mom with young kids trying to parent through a LitRPG scenario while her husband is gone on a business trip. I might skip to the last book in the series, #5, once it is released in August, to find out how the series resolves.

25. Engineer's Odyssey
By the same author as #24 above, "Erin Ampersand", but telling the story of the husband, an aeronautical engineer, trying to get back to his family in Huntsville, Alabama, from the Denver airport, after the LitRPG scenario kicks in (no electronics, gas powered vehicles, etc).

>30 karspeak: what is LitRPG?pls

>31 cindydavid4: From Wikipedia: LitRPG, short for literary role-playing game, is a literary genre combining the conventions of computer RPGs with science-fiction and fantasy novels.

I don’t play video games at all, but I still enjoy this subgenre sometimes. The book Ready Player One loosely fits the definition (strictly speaking, it’s GameLit, not LitRPG). The Dungeon Crawler Carl books are the most popular LitRPG books that meet the strict definition.

>32 karspeak: ok thanks for that I read ready player one and it was so much funreading all the machines that i actually played in the 80s. i dont play them either unless someone happens to have some dice a play a real game of D&D