It's that time of year again! (Well, almost … it's actually a bit early.) Collected here is a varied selection of 2025's 'What Are You Reading' book recommendations, nice and early so you can get your Christmas shopping started sooner rather than later!

Books and authors discussed in this episode:

From ep. 110

• Translations by Jumaana Abdu (Michelle See-Tho)
• The Profound Benefits of a Stint in Prison by Andrew Hamilton (Ashley)
• The Third Realm by Karl Ove Knausgård (James)

From ep. 111

• Everyone and Everything by Nadine Cohen (Ashley)
• My Dream Time by Ash Barty (James)

From ep. 112

• The Lady's Handbook to Her Mysterious Illness by Sarah Ramey (Ashley)

From ep. 113

• I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman (Pip Drysdale)

From ep. 114

• Girl in a Pink Dress by Kylie Needham (Lynne Ainsworth)
• Clare Keegan (Lynne Ainsworth)
• The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald (Lynne Ainsworth)
• We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer (James)
• Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra (James)
• Freedom by Lea Ypi (Ashley)

From ep. 115

• Anatomy of a Secret by Gerard McCann (Jay Martin)
• The Hollow Girl by Lyn Yeowart (Ashley)
• The Silent Listener by Lyn Yeowart (Ashley)
• Careless People by Sarah Wynn-Williams (Ashley)

From ep. 117

• The Accidental Tourist by Anne Tyler (Melenie Cheng)
• Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky, translated by Oliver Ready (James)
• Bat Eater (and other names for Cora Zheng) by Kylie Lee Baker (Ashley)

From ep. 119

• My First Book by Honor Levy (Nathan Dunne)
• The Age of Surveillance Capitalism by Shoshana Zuboff (James)
• Luminous by Silvia Park (Ashley)

From ep. 120

• Just Another Missing Person by Gillian McAllister (Michelle Prak)
• A Fortunate Life by AB Facey (Michelle Prak)
• Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt (Michelle Prak)
• Universality by Natasha Brown (James)
• The Last Victim by Tracy Hall and Summer Land (Ashley)

From ep. 122

• Falling TJ Newman (James & Ashley)
• Drowning by TJ Newman (James & Ashley)
• Worst Case Scenario by TJ Newman (James & Ashley)

From ep. 123

• She Rides Shotgun by Jordan Harper (Matt Rogers)
• Orbital by Samantha Harvey (James)
• Legend of a Suicide by David Vann (James)

From ep. 124

• Outback Cop by Neale McShane and Evan McHugh (Ashley)

This episode

• Moderation by Elaine Castillo
• The Eyes are the Best Part by Monica Kim
• Molka by Monica Kim
• 'Salem's Lot and Cujo by Stephen King

Upcoming events

• James is teaching Setting & Landscape for Writers at the Woolshed on Saturday 21 March, 2026

Learn more about Ashley's thrillers, Dark Mode and Cold Truth, and get your copies from your local bookshop or your library. Plus check out Like, Follow, Die from Audible.

Learn more about James's award-winning novel Denizen and get your copy from your local bookshop or your library.

Get in touch!

• ashleykalagianblunt.com
• jamesmckenziewatson.com
• Instagram: @akalagianblunt + @jamesmcwatson