170 episodes

Read or Dead is a bi-weekly show dedicated to the worlds of mystery and thriller literature.

Read or Dead Book Riot

    • Arts
    • 4.2 • 197 Ratings

Read or Dead is a bi-weekly show dedicated to the worlds of mystery and thriller literature.

    Indigenous Authors for Native American Heritage Month

    Indigenous Authors for Native American Heritage Month

    Katie McLain Horner and Kendra Winchester discuss books for Native American Heritage Month.
    Subscribe to the podcast via RSS, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify.
    To get even more mystery/thriller recs and news, sign up for our Unusual Suspects newsletter!
    It's happening, readers — we're bringing paperbacks! Whether you hate carrying around bulky hardcovers, you're on a budget, you want a wider range of recommendations, or all of the above, you can now get a paperback subscription from TBR, curated just for you by one of our Bibliologists. You can also gift it (and the holidays, they are coming). Get all the details at mytbr.co.
    This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

    Things Mentioned
    Goodreads Choice Awards
    The Indigenous Reading Circle Book Club

    BOOKS DISCUSSED
    Twilight Falls - Juneau Black
    And Then She Fell - Alicia Elliott
    This Town Sleeps - Dennis E. Staples
    The Berry Pickers - Amanda Peters
    Never Whistle at Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology - ed. Shane Hawk and Theodore C. Van Alst Jr.
    The Fiction Writer - Jillian Cantor
    The Folly - Gemma Amor

    Contact
    If you want to send an email with feedback or show suggestions, you can reach us at readordead@bookriot.com.
    Otherwise you can:
    Find Kendra on Instagram and Twitter @kdwinchester
    Find Katie on Twitter @kt_librarylady
    And we will talk to you all next time!
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    • 51 min
    Holiday Gift Guide 2023

    Holiday Gift Guide 2023

    Katie McLain Horner and Kendra Winchester discuss books perfect for holiday gifting!
    Subscribe to the podcast via RSS, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify.
    To get even more mystery/thriller recs and news, sign up for our Unusual Suspects newsletter!
    It's happening, readers—we're bringing paperbacks! Whether you hate carrying around bulky hardcovers, you're on a budget, you want a wider range of recommendations, or all of the above, you can now get a paperback subscription from TBR, curated just for you by one of our Bibliologists. You can also gift it (and the holidays, they are coming.) Get all the details at mytbr.co.
    This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

    Books Discussed
    All the Fighting Parts - Hannah V. Sawyerr
    Happiness Falls - Angie Kim
    General Mystery: The Woman in the Library - Sulari Gentill
    Psychological suspense/horror crossover: Help for the Haunted - John Searles
    True crime: American Fire: Love, Arson, and Life in a Vanishing Land - Monica Hesse
    Middle Grade: Spirit Hunters - Ellen Oh
    Literary Mystery: The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store - James McBride
    Cozy Mystery: Shady Hollow - Juneau Black

    If you want to send an email with feedback or show suggestions, you can reach us at readordead@bookriot.com.
    Otherwise you can:
    Find Kendra on Instagram and Twitter @kdwinchester
    Find Katie on Twitter @kt_librarylady
    And we will talk to you all next time!
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    • 53 min
    All About Those Fangs — A Vampire Story

    All About Those Fangs — A Vampire Story

    Katie McLain Horner and Kendra Winchester books about vampires!
    Subscribe to the podcast via RSS, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify.
    To get even more mystery/thriller recs and news, sign up for our Unusual Suspects newsletter!
    It's happening, readers — we're bringing paperbacks! Whether you hate carrying around bulky hardcovers, you're on a budget, you want a wider range of recommendations, or all of the above, you can now get a paperback subscription from TBR, curated just for you by one of our Bibliologists. You can also gift it (and the holidays, they are coming). Get all the details at mytbr.co.
    This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

    BOOKS DISCUSSED
    And Then She Fell - Alicia Elliot
    Dead Until Dark - Charlaine Harris (Sookie Stackhouse / Southern Vampire Mysteries)
    A People’s History of the Vampire Uprising - Raymond A. Villareal
    Vampires of El Norte - Isabel Cañas
    Fangs - Sarah Andersen
    The Reformatory - Tananarive Due
    Blackwater Falls - Ausma Zehanat Khan
    Blood Betrayal - Ausma Zehanat Khan

    If you want to send an email with feedback or show suggestions, you can reach us at readordead@bookriot.com.
    Otherwise you can:
    Find Kendra on Instagram and Twitter @kdwinchester
    Find Katie on Twitter @kt_librarylady
    And we will talk to you all next time!
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    • 43 min
    Fall Book Club Picks

    Fall Book Club Picks

    Katie McLain Horner and Kendra Winchester discuss great picks for book clubs.
    Subscribe to the podcast via RSS, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify.
    To get even more mystery/thriller recs and news, sign up for our Unusual Suspects newsletter!
    Autumn is here, which means it's time to curl up with a great read and get cozy — whatever your version of cozy looks like. Whether it's romance, creepy reads, modern classics, or escapist reads you crave, TBR can help you find the perfect books for your fall reading, with options curated to your specific reading tastes. Visit mytbr.co to find out more and sign up — it only takes a few minutes!
    This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

    NEWS
    Time Magazine - 100 best mystery and thriller books of all time. 
    Jessica Knoll’s latest novel, Bright Young Women, is getting a TV adaptation.

    BOOKS DISCUSSED
    Blackwater Falls - Ausma Zehanat Khan
    While Justice Sleeps - Stacey Abrams
    Vampires of El Norte - Isabel Cañas
    Anywhere You Run - Wanda M. Morris
    Mrs. Poe - Lynn Cullen
    Anoka - Shane Hawk
    Indigenous Reading Circle
    Firekeeper’s Daughter - Angeline Boulley
    Reese’s Book Club
    A Haunting on the Hill: A Novel - Elizabeth Hand
    Lay Them to Rest: On the Road With the Cold Case Investigators Who Identify the Nameless - Laurah Norton

    If you want to send an email with feedback or show suggestions, you can reach us at readordead@bookriot.com.
    Otherwise you can:
    Find Kendra on Instagram and Twitter @kdwinchester
    Find Katie on Twitter @kt_librarylady
    And we will talk to you all next time!
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    • 50 min
    Guest Post: The Reading Life of James McBride

    Guest Post: The Reading Life of James McBride

    Katie and Kendra are out this week, so we're sharing this episode of First Edition, where Jeff interviews James McBride on the occasion of the publication of his new novel, The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store. This book has a murder mystery at its core, so we know you will love it!
    Check out First Edition on Twitter, on Substack, and on Instagram.
    Autumn is here, which means it's time to curl up with a great read and get cozy — whatever your version of cozy looks like. Whether it's romance, creepy reads, modern classics, or escapist reads you crave, TBR can help you find the perfect books for your fall reading, with options curated to your specific reading tastes. Visit mytbr.co to find out more and sign up — it only takes a few minutes!
    This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

    Discussed in this episode:
    The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride
    The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
    Beverly Cleary
    The Autobiography of Malcolm X
    The Power Broker by Robert A. Caro
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    • 36 min
    Book Picks for Hispanic Heritage Month

    Book Picks for Hispanic Heritage Month

    Katie McLain Horner and Kendra Winchester discuss book picks for Hispanic Heritage Month!
    Subscribe to the podcast via RSS, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify.
    To get even more mystery/thriller recs and news, sign up for our Unusual Suspects newsletter!
    Book Riot's editorial team is writing for casual and power readers alike over at The Deep Dive! During the month of September, all new free subscribers will be entered to win Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler, plus 5 mystery books from The Deep Dive. To enter, simply start a free subscription to The Deep Dive. No payment method required!
    This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

    NEWS
    2023 Anthony Awards

    BOOKS DISCUSSED
    Small Spaces - Katherine Arden
    The House in the Pines - Ana Reyes
    Untamed Shore - Silvia Moreno-Garcia
    Ghost Squad - Claribel A. Ortega
    Her Body and Other Parties - Carmen Maria Machado
    Never Whistle at Night edited by Shane Hawk and Theodore C. Van Alst Jr.
    Black Sheep - Rachel Harrison

    If you want to send an email with feedback or show suggestions, you can reach us at readordead@bookriot.com.
    Otherwise you can:
    Find Kendra on Instagram and Twitter @kdwinchester
    Find Katie on Twitter @kt_librarylady
    And we will talk to you all next time!
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    • 39 min

Customer Reviews

4.2 out of 5
197 Ratings

197 Ratings

Kittens Mittens ,

Almost 5 stars

This is a great podcast about mystery, thriller and scary books. It would get five stars from me except for this, I really enjoy Rinceys reviews but she throws the word “Like” in there so many times it’s distracting.

kathysarasota ,

Just discovered, and I love it!!

I just discovered this podcast maybe two weeks ago, and it is very binge worthy although my TBR list is growing exponentially! One of my fave book review podcasts now!

Jol303 ,

Too bad

Sorry, Katie Horner, not so great. This is a great premise but too many personal life stories.

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