Boom! This is Books & Biceps #382

I want to thank each and every one of you Sophisticated Meatheads for being a loyal Books & Biceps reader! This is my 7th Annual “Most Memorable Books of the Year” list dating back to the first one I sent in 2018 to about 150 people.

Now, we’re sending this to almost 28,000 readers! If all of us wanted to meet in person, we could fill Madison Square Garden. Yes. MSG! That blows my mind. I’m humbled and grateful and simply want to say: Thank you for reading every Friday!

The number one way you can help us grow is by sharing/forwarding this newsletter to someone who you think would enjoy it, and this annual reading list is the perfect place to start! And as always, if an awesome B&B reader shared this with you, add your e-mail with the subscribe button below:

If you’re a new subscriber you’ll love this profile that the New Yorker ran on us.

First, the question most new readers ask me: Why “most memorable”?

Because “best” and “top” in my opinion aren’t helpful when it comes to book recommendations. Your best and my top will be completely different for different reasons: mood, taste, interests, etc… But memorable is more universal. ‘Memorable’ means a book made an impact on me and if you’re reading this, it will likely make an impact on you, too. One quick note:

As you’ll see, some of these books were not published this year. A few were holdovers from last year that I never got to and a bunch more were books that I’ve always wanted to read that I finally made time for.

And remember, I’m not a book critic. I’m a book champion. I know how hard it is to put books into the world so you won’t see me knocking other authors. If I love a book and it sticks with me, you’ll hear about it. That’s always been my rule of thumb for Books & Biceps.

But I will say, this year was special. Not only did we read amazing books, we got an elite list of authors to join me for exclusive Behind-the-Book Q&As, including mega bestsellers and legends like Jack Carr, Ace Atkins, Eli Cranor, Alex Hutchinson, Stayton Bonner, Nicholas Sansbury Smith, the Sledgendary Nick Horvath, Ed Latimore and a bunch more. I include links to all the interviews after each recommendation. That being said, the following books, as the title reads, are memorable.

If you’re interested in reading 2022’s list you can check it out here. And you can read 2023’s list right here. And here is 2024’s list.

Let’s begin:

The Republic of Pirates: Being the True and Surprising Story of the Caribbean Pirates and the Man Who Brought Them Down by Colin Woodard

This year I read a bunch of books about pirates. Yeah, pirates. Real ones.

Blackbeard. William Kidd. Calico Jack. All the big names from the 1600s and 1700s who were true blue pirates of the Caribbean. I’ve long been fascinated with how someone became a pirate, what life was like on a pirate ship, what battles were like, what pirates ate, how they lived, what they did on shore, how you become captain and on and on.

The one book all my research pointed me to for my first foray onto the high seas was this one, The Republic of Pirates. And it does not disappoint. It’s got all the details I was looking for. From the types of ships (Brigantines, Snows, Sloops, Schooners, Galleons) to how someone entered piracy (criminals, traitors, escaped slaves, men looking for adventure, captured enemies) to what they really wore to how filthy they were to what the captains were like and more. Yo ho, yo ho, it’s a pirate’s reading life for you!

Sledge vs. The Labrynth by Nick Horvath

Five days before I recommended this book, I’d never heard of the book or the author, Nick Horvath. Then the cover popped up in my Twitter feed and it intrigued me… Who is this giant dude? And is he holding a sledgehammer? And do people call him Sledge because he beats up guys with a sledgehammer? I was curious…

This book is part Conan the Barbarian, The Punisher, Die Hard and Jack Reacher. Yeah, ALL OF ‘EM! The dialogue is clever and quick. The fight scenes are fun and fast. And yes, Sledge, all 6’10” of unstoppable force, uses a sledgehammer as his signature weapon. And the plot… It’s cool. And unique. And scary. Reminds me of one of the Saw movies but with a formidable anti-hero on the good guys’ side. This is the ultimate book for dudes who love books that read like action movies. Basically, all of us B&B readers.

Check out his book here. You’ll enjoy it. And read my full interview with author Nick Horvath here!

Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World by Jack Weatherford

First, there truly is a “world before Genghis” and a “world after Genghis”. And it’s not hyperbole. Even crazier is that he wasn’t some prince born to a powerful king. He was, effectively, the longest of long shots of leaders. He should have died as a child. Or as a teen. Or should have spent his life in poverty. Or in slavery. We really should never have heard of him. And there certainly wasn’t any indication that he’d make any kind of dent in the world for the first portion of his life…

And then he did, amassing a territory through force, strategy and psychological warfare that would be covered by 3 billion people and over 30 modern countries today… and that contributed everything from military strategy, society’s built on merit, religious freedom and even the first versions of what we’d call a postal service. Most of the societies and cities he conquered (and yes, this was not peaceful by any means haha) were left more advanced and technologically speaking “better” for it. This is certainly more of a historical read and personal curiosity type book, but it was well worth it. Check it out here.

The Indifferent Stars Above by Daniel James Brown

This book focuses on the infamous Donner Party, but it’s much more than that. It’s a look at a time and place you wouldn’t recognize. Read about Sarah Graves’ life prior to her family’s tragic journey in covered wagons from Illinois to California and you’ll be beyond grateful that your biggest problem today was that you accidentally got logged out of your Netflix account and couldn’t get back in. Death, disease and discomfort were daily parts of people’s lives. So was starving. And stinking. And being sick.

And you learn all this about Graves’ life BEFORE you take that entire lifestyle and put it on-the-go into covered wagons and pull your family and life’s belongings a thousand miles across rough terrain with your cattle and oxen. You walk all day. Moms. Dads. Kids. Babies. Grandparents. You camp at night. You all cram into the wagons to sleep or rest. You hunt. You set up sentry around your campsite to protect from Indians. Sick? Too bad. Really sick? You probably won’t make it… Husband shot by Indians and you can’t pull your own weight with little kids? Sorry, lady. We’re leaving you on the prairie (again, happened). No mercy. What a read! Get it here.

The Finest Hours: The True Story of the U.S. Coast Guard’s Most Daring Sea Rescue by Michael J. Tougias and Casey Sherman

This book was tremendously researched and puts you IN the rescue boats with these heroes, who fought 60 foot waves for more than 24 hours at a clip, with no break, while getting doused with sleet, snow, frost, wind and the 34 degree ocean water constantly crashing over their heads. These men battled frostbite, hypothermia and the flu to spend nearly two days at sea rescuing not one, but two 500 foot tankers that, amazingly, SPLIT INTO TWO pieces from the crashing waves.

You’ll read about Bernie Webber, a man made of steel, who risked his life numerous times to save men freezing and dying on the stern of one of the tankers. Oh yeah, this also took place in the 1950s. No goretex. No neoprene equipment. No hi-tech cold gear from Under Armour or North Face. Just heavy clothes that got damp and wet and made you miserable. Next time you feel yourself in need of a dose of what courage really is, read this. You’ll love it.

The Rambo Report: Five Films, Three Books, One Legend by Nat Segaloff

It’s fitting that for our 350th issue this year, we had (to borrow one of my favorite Bob Ryan writing tropes) a capital B.O.O.K.S. & B.I.C.E.P.S. book - a book that speaks to our crew on multiple levels. You’ve got a foreword from B&B Legend David Morrell. You’ve got a blurb from recent B&B author rec Jack Carr. And then, of course, we have the book itself, which dives into Morrell’s mindset for writing the novels in the first place.

This is one of my favorite quotes early on: “Another factor that made the novel different was Morrell’s interest in trying to write action novels. “They’re often filled with cliches, such as ‘A shot rang out’. I wondered if there was a fresher way to do it, to eliminate all the familiar expressions and try to make the incidents seem as vivid and real as possible.” I’m 100% confident you’ll love this one. Grab it here.

The Explorer’s Gene: Why We Seek Big Challenges, New Flavors, and the Blank Spots on the Map by Alex Hutchinson

Alex Hutchinson is one of my favorite authors and dudes. He not only does super deep dives on topics that I find endlessly fascinating, from human performance to exploration to endurance and beyond, but he also goes on cool adventures with his family and he even has his own garage gym dubbed Flex Factory North. I interviewed Alex for his last book, Endure, here in Books & Biceps and it was one of our best received interviews because we got useful information and takeaways you can use right now. Endure became a runaway NY Times bestseller (as it should have) and now Hutchinson’s new book is out, which is the perfect complement to his previous work.

Read our Q&A HERE and then immediately buy the book. I promise there will be ten takeaways that will change how you think about what you want to do and how you want to explore for the rest of your life.

The Wide, Wide Sea: Imperial Ambition, First Contact and the Fateful Final Voyage of Captain James Cook by Hampton Sides

This book is about James Cook, the singular superstar explorer who made his way to Tahiti, Australia and New Zealand on his first global voyage, even running aground on the Great Barrier Reef. Cook, as you’ll read, was a genius at nearly every aspect of ocean navigation, from reading the stars, to mathematical equations to sextants and dead reckoning. He was also the most skilled cartographer of his age, drawing maps that overlay perfectly on satellite images of land masses today. Crazy.

This book answers just about everything you’d want: How he made his voyages with accounts and notes pulled directly from his journals. Why he made his voyages. What the first impressions were of the people they encountered in Polynesia and modern day Hawaii. What the interactions were like. The good. The horrible. The surprising. This book reads like a time machine in the best way possible. Check it out.

Dark Matter: A Novel by Blake Crouch

This is how the author himself describes the plot of this book in an interview: A brilliant physicist named Jason Dessen is living in Chicago with his wife, Daniela, and son, Charlie. He is a true genius, and while there was a point in his late twenties when his research could have made him a star in his field, he instead chose a family-focused life. One night, while walking home, he’s abducted by a mysterious masked man and injected with a drug. When he next awakes, his world has completely changed. He’s no longer married, doesn’t have a son, and has achieved professional success beyond his wildest dreams. This sets him on a thrilling, mysterious, and at times terrifying journey to learn what has happened to him, and to find his way home to the people and the life he loves.

Perfect, right? This is exactly the kind of science fiction I love… And let me tell you right now, this book starts fast and doesn’t stop. I read the first 30 pages in what felt like five seconds. Hands down one of the best, most compelling first chapters to a book I’ve ever read. And chapter two doesn’t stop…The fast-pacing, the “genius”-but-relatable-main character, the dorky-but-understandable science that piques your interest... The stakes. It’s all brilliant and, in true most memorable fashion, you will be thinking long and deep about the plot for months after you read it. Namely, what would you do if you were Jason? Check it out here.

Hard Lessons from the Hurt Business: Boxing and the Art of Life by Ed Latimore

First, a quick background:

I met Ed on Twitter about six years ago because he always posted super smart insights and also had one of the most bad ass, unique bios ever. Back then it was something like: 13-1 Heavyweight Boxer, Chess Master, Physics Student… Or something close to that. Either way, not a talent stack you see too often.

I’ve been lucky enough to follow the path of this book, from the original idea to the first draft, to the rewrites and now the final manuscript and book. Ed’s an exceptional storyteller and as much as this pun will be overused promoting this book, the dad in me can’t resist: he truly pulls no punches. He agreed to do an exclusive Books & Biceps Q&A for us and I know you’ll love it. I’m including the entire thing here. Enjoy the interview and then go buy Hard Lessons ASAP.

Mississippi Blue 42: A Novel by Eli Cranor

If you were making a Venn Diagram of authors Books & Biceps readers would love and you put “ex college QB” on one circle and “Edgar Award Winner” in the other circle, the entire B&B crew would be smack dab in the middle flexing and shouting, “give us the damn books!” I’m happy to tell you that this dude exists in the form of my buddy Eli Cranor. His book that came out this year, Mississippi Blue 42, was essentially written directly for us. Here is my official blurb that I was honored to write to promote the book:

“Cranor blends his lifetime in pigskin with his gift for prose into a book that is a rare treat: a clever work of crime fiction that longtime Elmore Leonard readers and diehard football fans will both love.” Enjoy our interview here and buy the book here!

All the Sinners Bleed by S.A. Cosby

All the Sinners Bleed is brilliant and Cosby is one of my favorite writers. He has such a gift for character depth and dialogue and inner monologue thoughts and the little nuances that get you to really know his characters. His main character in this book, Titus Crown, is the first black sheriff in the history of his southern county. He was a high school football star and academic whiz who became an FBI agent before heading back to his hometown to serve. But there are layers upon layers to Titus. Physically imposing, yet can quote Yeats and the Bible. Measured and self-aware but simmering with fury. He’s a man trying to convince himself he can settle in his hometown and make a positive change but his ambition won’t let go.

And into this backdrop, we get a local serial killer that must be caught in a town that’s fooling itself about its southern charm, its handling of race, its entire way of life. It’s phenomenal. A master class in thriller writing, pacing, Southern noir and more. Read it.

The Million Dollar Car Detective: Inside the Worldwide Hunt for a Stolen $7 Million Car by Stayton Bonner

I love the logline for my buddy Stayton’s book: A stolen car worth $7 million. A broke private investigator. Best friends turned worst enemies. And the global manhunt neither saw coming.

This book is a thriller, a mystery, a detective story, a history of cars, a history of racing, a history of cars in movies and a profile of several fascinating, unique guys all rolled into one. And it’s told so well you’ll feel like you’re reading a sprawling novel. Stayton spent seven years researching this story and his thoroughness shows. I couldn’t be happier to share a book that I know you’ll enjoy from an author and friend who works his ass off to put out consistent, excellent work. Please enjoy our interview HERE and make sure you grab this book ASAP.

Into the Storms: A Hell Divers Prequel by Nicholas Sansbury Smith

This book is such an entertaining, action-packed and thoughtful read, with a fully-realized, apocalyptic future Earth that is well thought out down to the tiniest details. I love how simple and scary the plot teaser is: They dive so humanity survives. Where do they dive? From flying, rusting ships in the sky down to the hellscape that is future earth to scavenge for spare parts to keep these ships from crashing and ending humanity. So good.

And you want to know something cool? Blackstone Publishing put out this entire series and they’re also publishing my novel, Bear Brawl, next fall. With that in mind, I’m pumped to bring you an exclusive Behind-the-Book Q&A with my Blackstone teammate and NY Times bestselling author, Nick Sansbury. Read the interview and BUY THE BOOK ASAP (or the whole series).

CRY HAVOC: A Tom Reece Thriller by Jack Carr

Jack Carr is a first ballot Books & Biceps Hall of Famer. On both fronts, books and biceps, his resume is unassailable: he spent twenty years as a member of the Navy SEAL Teams and he’s written ten New York Times bestselling books. Carr’s newest book, CRY HAVOC, follows James Reece’s father, Tom, on his exploits in the Vietnam War. The storytelling, the pace and the action are terrific, but as someone who was born five years after the Vietnam War ended, I found the book to be entertaining and enlightening historically.

Carr puts you right there, in the mud, into Saigon, in the middle of the Tet Offensive. It’s a brilliant blend of fiction and non-fiction and after a few exchanges on X when I started reading an advanced copy, Carr was down to do one of our exclusive, behind-the-book B&B interviews. This is one of our best and I’m including the entire interview HERE. Read the interview and buy the book ASAP.

Everybody Wants to Rule the World: A Novel by Ace Atkins

Ace Atkins’ new book, Everybody Wants to Rule the World, is a ton of fun. It’s a thriller, a coming-of-age-story, a buddy cop-type adventure where neither guy is a cop, an espionage book and a phenomenal pop culture 80s nostalgia story all in one. And Atkins pulls it off brilliantly.

Also, if you’ve been reading this newsletter a long time, you know my fondness for Robert B. Parker’s Spenser series and how my grandfather introduced me to those books when I was a kid. When Robert B. Parker passed away in 2010, Ace was selected by the publisher to keep the series going and he did an awesome job, writing ten books in the series (Cheap Shot was my favorite). Go buy Everybody Wants to Rule the World and enjoy this interview with your NEW Books & Biceps Hall of Famer, author Ace Atkins here.