The Book Up with Verdell Walker | Book Reviews & Book Recs

It’s time for a TBR refresh! In this episode - the season 3 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. Always Be Reading! Episode Overview In this To-Be-Read...

Love books? Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? Whether you're a lifelong reader, crawling out of a reading slump, or just need a trusted voice to help you find a great story — you're in the right place. Today’s book is "The Everlasting" by Alix Harrow, a romantic fantasy about a legendary lady knight, a time-traveling historian who's obsessed with her story, and wha...

Love books? Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? Whether you're a lifelong reader, crawling out of a reading slump, or just need a trusted voice to help you find a great story — you're in the right place. Today’s book is "The Wishing Game" by Meg Shaffer. This charming, whimsical novel follows Lucy Hart, a 26-year-old teacher's aide who grew up feeling unloved and fou...

Love books? Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? Whether you're a lifelong reader, crawling out of a reading slump, or just need a trusted voice to help you find a great story — you're in the right place. Today’s book is "When the Cranes Fly South" by Lisa Ridzén, which tells the story of Bo, an elderly man who attempts to mend his relationship with his son before it'...

Some stories are too good to fit into just one book. In this Series Spotlight, I’m diving into the Between Earth and Sky Trilogy by Rebecca Roanhorse — giving an overview of the series, what makes it stand out, and why I think it’s worth the commitment. Rebecca won the 2025 Hugo Award for Best Series for this trilogy, and it was so well deserved. The trilogy is comprised of 3 books set in a fantas...

Love books? Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? Whether you're a lifelong reader, crawling out of a reading slump, or just need a trusted voice to help you find a great story — you're in the right place. Today’s book is "The Savage, Noble Death of Babs Dionne" by Ron Currie, a gritty crime thriller about Babs Dionne, a proud Franco-American grandmother and iron-fisted dr...

Love books? Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? Whether you're a lifelong reader, crawling out of a reading slump, or just need a trusted voice to help you find a great story — you're in the right place. Today’s book is "The Adventures of Mary Darling" by Pat Murphy. In this Victorian-era fantasy mash up of Peter Pan and Sherlock Holmes, the brave Mary Darling must find...

Love books? Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? Whether you're a lifelong reader, crawling out of a reading slump, or just need a trusted voice to help you find a great story — you're in the right place. Welcome to Season 3! Today’s book is "Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil" by VE Schwab. Set over five hundred years, the novel follows three female vampires, each bound...

Hey Bookworms! I'm creating ​t​he next season of The Book Up — and while you wait, I'm dusting off a recommendation worth revisiting. Thanks for being here! Today’s featured book is Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao. A woman inherits a pawnshop where you can sell your regrets, and then embarks on a magical quest to find her parents with the help of a young physicist who wanders into the...

Hey Bookworms! While I gear up for a brand new season of The Book Up, I'm revisiting one of my favorite episodes. If you're new here, welcome — this is a great place to start. If you've been with me a while, I hope this one feels like catching up with an old friend. Today’s featured book is Blood Over Bright Haven by M.L. Wang. In this dark academic fantasy, the first woman ever admitt...

Hey Bookworms! While I gear up for a brand new season of The Book Up, I'm revisiting one of my favorite episodes. If you're new here, welcome — this is a great place to start. If you've been with me a while, I hope this one feels like catching up with an old friend. Some stories are too good to fit into just one book. In this Series Spotlight, I’m diving into The Emily Wilde Series by...

Hey Bookworms! While I gear up for a brand new season of The Book Up, I'm revisiting one of my favorite episodes. If you're new here, welcome — this is a great place to start. If you've been with me a while, I hope this one feels like catching up with an old friend. Some stories are too good to fit into just one book. In this Series Spotlight, I’m diving into The Green Bone Saga by Fon...

Hey Bookworms! I'm creating ​t​he next season of The Book Up — and while you wait, I'm dusting off a recommendation worth revisiting. Thanks for being here! Today’s featured book is The God of the Woods by Liz Moore. In this literary thriller, the worlds of a privileged family and a blue collar town collide when a teenager vanishes from her Adirondack summer camp. If you’d like to read it,...

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,...

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. Always Be Reading! Here are the books I’ll be chatting...

Love books? Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? Whether you're a lifelong reader, crawling out of a reading slump, or just need a trusted voice to help you find a great story — you're in 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...

Love books? Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? Whether you're a lifelong reader, crawling out of a reading slump, or just need a trusted voice to help you find a great story — you're in 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 Indigeno...

Love books? Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? Whether you're a lifelong reader, crawling out of a reading slump, or just need a trusted voice to help you find a great story — you're in 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 o...

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 Otherl...

Love books? Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? Whether you're a lifelong reader, crawling out of a reading slump, or just need a trusted voice to help you find a great story — you're in 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 u...

Love books? Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? Whether you're a lifelong reader, crawling out of a reading slump, or just need a trusted voice to help you find a great story — you're in 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 n...

Love books? Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? Whether you're a lifelong reader, crawling out of a reading slump, or just need a trusted voice to help you find a great story — you're in the right place. 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 t...

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. Always Be Reading! Here are the books I’ll be chatting...

Love books? Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? Whether you're a lifelong reader, crawling out of a reading slump, or just need a trusted voice to help you find a great story — you're in the right place. Today’s featured book is Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao. A woman inherits a pawnshop where you can sell your regrets, and then embarks on a magical quest to find her parent...

Love books? Looking for honest book reviews and book recs? Whether you're a lifelong reader, crawling out of a reading slump, or just need a trusted voice to help you find a great story — you're in the right place. Today’s featured book is The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley. In this genre-bending sci-fi thriller, an unnamed civil servant and an Arctic explorer pulled from the past fal...