Kris and Mads

Going to therapy is a sign of strength, not weakness. Our sponsor BetterHelp makes therapy simple, with 10% off your first month to help you get started: https://betterhelp.com/krisandmadsIn this episode, we’re reflecting on the reading goals we set for 2025, and looking to change some things up for 2026! Maddie is focusing on WISDOM in the new year, and Kristen is focusing on being TRUE. From book series to rating systems to new TBR wheels, we’re breaking down how we plan to approach our reading, reviewing, buying, and sharing next year. Timestamps00:00 Intro01:58 Did we read the book series we committed to in 2025?08:05 What genres did we read in 2025?11:31 What series/genres are we prioritizing in 2026?23:09 Did Maddie keep her promise to read less than 100 books in 2025?27:35 Thoughts on reading less audiobooks in 2025 and 202633:22 Thoughts on rating books — will it change in 2026?48:49 Kristen’s values for 202652:04 Looking back on rereads in 202553:30 How we’re using TBR wheels in 2026!01:03:43 Our intentions for 2026Series Maddie Committed to Read in 2025:Of Blood and Bone by John GwynneThe Age of Madness by Joe AbercrombieLicanius by James IslingtonThe Dandelion Dynasty by Ken LiuSeries Maddie Actually Read in 2025:The Wheel of Time by Robert JordanLicanius by James IslingtonThe Fitz and the Fool by Robin HobbLiveship Traders by Robin HobbThe Dandelion Dynasty by Ken LiuThe Neapolitan Quartet by The Empire Trilogy by Raymond E. Fesit and Janny WurtsThe Devoured Worlds by Megan E. O'KeefePines by Blake CrouchThe Lost Queen by Signe PikeLord of the Rings by J.R.R. TolkienThe Series Kristen Actually Read in 2025:Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. TolkienPines by Blake CrouchBridgerton by Julia QuinnAn Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa TahirRavenhood by Kate StewartInfernal Devices by Cassandra ClareGreen Bone Saga by Fonda LeeFarseer by Robin HobbLiveship Traders by Robin HobbWhat the River Knows by Isabel IbañezSix of Crows by Leigh BardugoRuthless Boys of the Zodiac by Caroline Peckham and Susanne ValentiSeries Kristen DNFd in 2025:The Red Queen by Victoria AveyardPriority Series on Kristen’s TBR for 2026:Tawny Man by Robin HobbThe Rain Wild Chronicles by Robin HobbThe Fitz and the Fool by Robin HobbSeries Maddie DNFd in 2025:The Book That Wouldn’t Burn by Mark LawrenceThe Locked Tomb by Tamsyn Muir (??? TBD)Priority Series on Maddie’s TBR for 2026:A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. MartinThe Expanse by James S. A. CoreyMalazan (At Least Gardens of the Moon) by Steven EricksonFinish Sun Eater by Christopher RuocchioOf Blood and Bone by John GwynneThe Age of Madness By Joe AbercrombieClassics Mentioned:Sense and Sensibility by Jane AustenFrankenstein by Mary ShelleyEmma by Jane AustenLittle Women by Louisa May AlcottDune by Frank HerbertLord of the Rings by J.R.R. TolkienThe Outsiders by S. E. HintonRebecca by Daphne Du MaurierSherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan DoyleA Book That Could Become a Classic:Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne CollinsBooks Maddie Rated Low, But Still Found Valuable:A Short Stay in Hell by Steven L. PeckOnyx Storm by Rebecca YarrosThe Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick RothfussBooks Kristen Read to Connect:Chestnut Springs by Elsie SilverThis Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El Mohtar and Max GladstoneBooks We Reread (that haven’t already been mentioned):Ender’s Game by Orsen Scott CardThe Will of the Many by James IslingtonBooks We’re Excited About:Anything by Stephen King!!!The Everlasting by Alex E. HarrowLet’s connect!Join our Patreon read-and-watch club:   / krisandmadssisterhood  Have a business inquiry? Email our manager: [email protected]:   / kris.and.mads  Instagram:   / krisandmads  All our other links are here: https://linktr.ee/kris.and.madsTo check out our brother C.Ray's music, which we use in all our episodes, you can find him here:   / @seerayhardly  

Going to therapy is a sign of strength, not weakness. Our sponsor BetterHelp makes therapy simple, with 10% off your first month to help you get started: https://betterhelp.com/krisandmadsIn this video, we’re going through our entire 2025 reading year month by month, sharing our very favorite 5-star books and a few that totally missed the mark. Between the two of us, we read 200 books, and these are truly the best of the best that we couldn’t stop thinking about.Timestamps 00:00 Intro01:43 December 202403:58 January 09:09 February 12:18 March17:07 April 22:15 May27:18 June32:16 July 38:01 August 43:44 September47:25 October51:03 NovemberBooks Mentioned Zodiac AcademyCaroline Peckham and Suzanne Valenti Man’s Search for Meaning By Victor E. Frankl Wind and Truth By Brandon Sanderson The Fellowship of the Ring The Two Towers By J. R. R. Tolkien This is How you Loose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max GladstoneThe Wheel of Time By Robert Jordan Dinner for Vampires By Bethany Joy Lenz What the River KnowsWhere the Library Hidesby Isabel IbañezSix of CrowsCrooked Kingdom By Leigh Bardugo PinesBy Blake CrouchThe Shadow of What was Lost By James Islington Little Womenby Louisa May AlcottFirst Time CallerB.K. Borison Our Infinite Fates By Laura Steven The Wise Man’s Fearby Patrick RothfussBest Served Coldby Joe AbercrombieIntermezzo Sally Rooney Sunrise on the ReapingBy Suzanna Collins The Outsiders By S.E. Heaton Sense and Sensibility By Jane Austen Enders GameBy Orson Scott Card Fires of Vengeance Even WinterOf Empire of Dust By Ryan Cahill Dungeon Crawler CarlBy Matt DinnimanMorning Glory Milking Farmby C.M. NascostaOnyx StormBy Rebecca Yarros The Realm of the ElderlingsBy Robin HobbGifted and TalentedBy Olivia Blake 11/22/63 and FairytaleStephen KingDuneFrank Herber The Knight and the Moth By Rachel Gillig Death of the Author by Nnedi OkoraforPerks of Being a WallflowerBy Stephen ChboskyThe Gathering StormBy Robert Jordan and Brandon SandersonEmma By Jane AustenAn Ember in the AshesBy Sabaa Tahir Murderbot By Martha WellsSummer in the City By Alex Aster The Ravenhood SeriesBy Kate Stewart Prophet SongBy Paul Lynch Death of the NileBy Agatha Christie Writers and LoversBy Lilly KingAtmosphere By Taylor Jenkins ReidFinding GraceBy Loretta Rothschild The dispossessedby Ursula K. Le GuinPachinko By Min Jin LeeFrom Blood and AshBy by Jennifer L. ArmentroutThe Dead RomanticsBy Ashley Poston Bury Our Bones in the Midnight SoilBy V. E. Schwab Thursday Murder Club By Richard OsmanSilvercloak By L.K. Steven WellnessBy Nathan Hill The Hunting Party By Lucy Foley The Spellshop by Sarah Beth DurstChestnut SpringsElsie SilverKatabasis By R.F. KuangThe Dutch HouseBy Ann Patchet The Blighted StarsMegan E. O Keif Rebecca by Daphne du MaurierMy Brilliant Friendby Elena FerranteDaughter of the Empire by Janny Wurts and Raymond E. FeistNot in Love By Ali Hazelwood The Compound by Aisling RawleThe Greenbone SagaBy Fonda Lee Stay TrueBy by Hua HsuThe Dandelion Dynasty By Ken Liu The Will of the Many and The Strength of the Few By James Islington Frankenstein  By Mary Shelley  Great Big Beautiful LifeBy Emily Henry The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo By Taylor Jenkins Reid Station Elevenby Emily St. John MandelDeath at the Sign of the Rookby Kate AtkinsonNevernightby Jay KristoffHamnet By by Maggie O'FarrellThe Lost QueenBy Signe PikeThe Unselected Journals of Emma M. LionBy Beth BrowerPiranesi by Susanna ClarkeBreaking the Habit of Being YourselfBy Dr. Joe Dispenza 

Going to therapy is a sign of strength, not weakness. Our sponsor BetterHelp makes therapy simple, with 10% off your first month to help you get started: https://betterhelp.com/krisandmadsWelcome back, friends! 📚🤍Today we’re breaking down all 20 books we read in November — yes, TWENTY! We covered a huge mix of genres this month: fantasy, romance, self-help, contemporary fiction, and more. There was one book that seriously disappointed us (hello, 1-star 👎), but also multiple new favorites that earned glowing 5-stars… which we saved for the end because they deserve the spotlight. ✨With the year almost over, we’re in full “finish every series we’ve started” mode so we can hit our 2025 reading goals. We’re excited, motivated, and ready to enter December with the best reading energy possible!Timestamps00:00 Intro 04:03 Fallen Stars by Imani Erriu06:39 Death at the Sign of the Rook by Kate Atkinson11:48 Today’s sponsor Better Help 13:57 Holly by Adalyn Grace 17:26 Nevernight by Jay Kristoff23:25 To Sir Phillip, With Love by Julia Quinn 29:12 Fallen City Adriene Young34:45 Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel42:30 The Unselected Journals of Emma M Lion by Beth Brower47:03 Gideon The Ninth by Tamsyn Muir53:33 This is How you Loose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone49:43 The Lost Queen by Signe Pike01:04:30 The Wall of Storms by Kin Liu01:11:33 Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy01:14:49 Breaking the Habit of being Yourself by Dr. Joe Dispenza 01:18:20 Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell01:29:54 Piranesi by Susanna Clarke 01:33:32 The Strength of the Few by James Islington Let’s connect!Join our Patreon read-and-watch club: patreon.com/KrisandMadsSisterhoodHave a business inquiry? Email our manager: [email protected]:   / kris.and.mads  Instagram:   / krisandmads  All our other links are here: https://linktr.ee/kris.and.madsTo check out our brother C.Ray's music which we use in all our episodes, you can find him here:   / @seerayhardly  #BookTube #FantasyBooks #BookClub #Reading #Books

Finding Grace is one of our favorite stand-alone novels of the year, as well as one of our favorite love stories we've read in such a long time! We HAD to interview the debut author, Loretta Rothschild, all about it. Plus, after a little social media lurking, we became obsessed with Loretta's style, personality, and original approach to marketing the novel! If we could describe her in a word, it would be ICONIC. So, we couldn't wait to learn all about her hyperfixations, obsessions, her writing process, the adventure of getting published and picked up by her dream agent, and her spoiler-free insights on writing the book itself.Loretta is such a kindred spirit. We hope you enjoy this conversation as much as we did, and that you pick up Finding Grace! https://amzlink.to/az0Eo1yLDw4zaGo in blind, read the first chapter, and then message us with your reaction. This is definitely a book to put on your TBR.If you'd like to watch the video Loretta mentions in the conversation about the house tour that inspired her setting, you can watch it here:    • In Residence: Rose Uniacke - inside the in...  If you'd like the check out the red socks, you can find them here:https://freightstore.co.uk/products/r...If you'd like to learn more about the John Truby writing method, check out his book here:https://amzlink.to/az045Y0Aly8tuThe pots (ceramics) Loretta likes are here: https://jwanderson.com/en-us/collections/wedgwood-x-jw-andersonThe books Loretta recommends are:The Picture of Dorian Gray https://amzlink.to/az0xwl2INBEM9Rebecca https://amzlink.to/az0KlGXaEZjsLReunion https://amzlink.to/az0bPzQxxe2b0Connect with Loretta by following her on socials, or check out her website!https://www.lorettarothschild.com/  Instagram: / lorettarothschild    TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lorettarothschildTo check out a favorite part of the episode, jump to any chapter from the timestamps below!TIMESTAMPS00:00 Intro02:15 Loretta Rothschild tells us two truths and a lie07:47 How Loretta came up with the idea for Finding Grace11:20 Connecting with the perfect agent and publisher 18:05 There aren’t any comps for Finding Grace21:03 The themes of Finding Grace26:40 Loretta Rothschild’s writing process 35:27 Loretta’s background and becoming a writer41:30 How Loretta utilizes social media as an author44:09 The iconic red socks, and other niche hyper fixations54:30 What makes the perfect book for Loretta 59:11 Loretta’s top three book recommendationsLet’s connect!Join our Patreon read-and-watch club:   / krisandmadssisterhood  Have a business inquiry? Email our manager: [email protected]:   / kris.and.mads  Instagram:   / krisandmads  All our other links are here: https://linktr.ee/kris.and.madsTo check out our brother C.Ray's music, which we use in all our episodes, you can find him here:   / @seerayhardly  #BookTube #FantasyBooks #BookClub #Reading #Books #lovestory #romancenovel #findinggrace #lorettarothschild #debutauthor #bookrecommendations #authorinterview

Going to therapy is a sign of strength, not weakness. Our sponsor BetterHelp makes therapy simple, with 10% off your first month to help you get started: https://betterhelp.com/krisandmadsFor the past 6 months we’ve been doing something wild: committing to read every single book on our physical TBRs using our TBR Wheel. Today we’re breaking down the entire experience — the highs, the lows, the surprises, and whether we’d ever do this again. 👀📚Grab a drink, settle in, and let’s talk about the chaotic journey of sticking to a wheel that does not care about our moods.Shout out to @dylanjosephwrites for inspiring this journey! Timestamps 00:00 intro 01:28 Where did the Wheel come from03:34 The rules 05:05 Biggest disappointments 15:07 What we learned 20:41 tbr wheel disrupters 26:01 biggest challenges 29:49 Wins40:16 books that were the biggest surprises 01:01:15 Would we do a wheel againBooks mentioned Onyx StormRebecca Yarros Prophet Songby Paul LynchHer Majesties Royal Coven by Juno DawsonThe Bombshell By Darrow Far A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor TowlesKatabasis By R. F. Kuag A Short Stay in Hell by Steven L. PeckThe Library at Mount Char  by Scott HawkinsThe Book that Wouldn’t Burn by Mark LawrenceOf Blood and Ash by Jennifer L. ArmentroutThe Spellshop by Sarah Beth DurstNot in Love By Ali HazelwoodAtmosphere By Taylor Jenkins Reid Finding GraceBy Loretta Rothschild Wild Dark Shoreby Charlotte McConaghySIlvercloak By L. K. StevenBurry our Bones in the Midnight SoilV. E. Schwab Fallen City By Adrien Young The Strength of the FewBy James Islington Gifted and Talented By Olivia Blake This is How You Loose the Tme Warby Amal El-Mohtar and Max GladstoneUnreasonable hHospitality by Will GuidaraThe Knight and the Moth Rachel GilligBreaking the Habit of Being Yourself By Joe Dispenza WellnessBy Nathan Hill Fairytale By Stephen KingPachinkoby Min Jin LeeAn Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa TahirDeath of the Author Nnedi OkoraforThe Unselected Journals of Emma M LionBy Beth BrowerGideon the Ninthby Tamsyn MuirThe Lost QueenBy Signe PikeThe Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le GuinThe Dead Romantics By Ashley Poston Let’s connect!Join our Patreon read-and-watch club: patreon.com/KrisandMadsSisterhoodHave a business inquiry? Email our manager: [email protected]: https://www.tiktok.com/@kris.and.madsInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/krisandmadsAll our other links are here: https://linktr.ee/kris.and.madsTo check out our brother C.Ray's music which we use in all our episodes, you can find him here:https://www.youtube.com/@SeeRayHardly#BookTube #FantasyBooks #BookClub #Reading #Books