On this episode, we discuss our February 2026 book club pick, Behind Frenemy Lines by Zen Cho, a romantic comedy about two Asian lawyers in London who share an (kinda?) adversarial relationship who end up sharing an office and perhaps become something more as they find themselves in a pseudo fake relationship to help with each other’s personal troubles. We read Zen Cho’s Regency era fantasy romance Sorcerer to the Crown almost a decade ago and were very excited to see what a contemporary Zen Cho romance looks like.
Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authors
Happy New Year! On our first mid-month book news check-in episode for the year of the horse, we go over a hefty list of latest Asian American publishing news as the publishing industry revs back into gear after the holidays.
Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news:
Blur the Lines by Kanitha P.
Paper Ghosts by Samantha Chong
Cold Blood by Aashna Avachat
Untitled Contemporary YA By Jesmeen Kaur Deo
The Strange Sketches of Luna Li by Gloria L. Huang
She Comes Out at Night by Michelle Jing Chan
If We Could Be Everywhere by Sarah Suk
The Sisterhood of Southern Peaches by Katrina Moore
Footprints in Snow by Keiko Hayner
Something Inside Me Knows by Malinda Lo
The Luckies by Sarah Mlynowski and Christina Soontornvat; illust. by Madi Wong
The Monster Inside by Cherry Mo
Jitty and the Machine by Mitali Banerjee Ruths; illust.by Iacopo Bruno
Wipe Out by Saadia Faruqi; illust. by Karen De la Vega
The Erhu Sings by Sally Deng
Blooming Behind Barbed Wire by Traci Huahn; illust. by Mayumi Sasage
House of Forgotten Souls by Kat Cho
Hello, DELA, by Kiku Hughes
Tae Lim Decks It Out by Angela Ahn
Izzy and Wolfi by Dane Liu; illust. by Maya Tatsukawa
The Light Garden by Joanna Ho; illust. by Minako Tomigahara
Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authors
Happy New Year! We ring in the Year of the Horse with an exciting author chat with Lillian Li (author of past book club pick #1 Chinese Restaurant), who joins us to chat about her newest novel Bad Asians, a coming of age story following four childhood friends who all move home after graduating college in 2008 after their well laid plans were derailed by the great recession. They inadvertently become part of a viral Youtube documentary that will continue to haunt them throughout their adult lives as they drift apart and come back together again and again.
On this episode, we sit down with Yosha Gunasekera to chat about her debut novel, The Midnight Taxi. A murder mystery following a true crime loving Sri Lankan American cab driver who ends up accused of murder when a passenger ends up mysteriously murdered in her cab. Yosha shares with us her personal journey to writing her novel as well as how she drew from her experience as an attorney for The Innocence Project to construct her mystery.
On this episode, we discuss our January 2026 (and patron’s choice) pick, Reef by Romesh Gunesekera, a historical fiction novel about a boy who grows up as the personal cook and housekeeper for a wealthy marine biology enthusiast in Sri Lanka, blissfully and willingly unaware that the world outside the walls of his residence is slowly descending into chaos in the years leading up to Sri Lanka’s civil war.
Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authors
On our first mid-month book news check-in episode for 2026, we go over the latest Asian American publishing news from the holiday season, as well as check out some of January’s new releases from Asian and Asian American authors.
Upcoming books mentioned in our publishing news:
Death Wish by Lilly Lu
What Hungers in the Dark by Monika Kim
How to Crash a Kite by Ellie Peterson
Tokki’s Tricks by Aram Kim
Girl Gods by K-Ming Chang
Cerulean by Sajni Patel
Hanging Out with Nani by Vikram Madan
January New Releases mentioned in our book news:
The Swan’s Daughter by Roshani Chokshi (Jan 6)
Fly, Wild Swans: My Mother, Myself and China by Jung Chang (Jan 13)
A Year Without Home by V.T. Bidania (Jan 13)
This Is Where the Serpent Lives by Daniyal Mueenuddin (Jan 13)
City of Others by Jared Poon (Jan 13)
The Moon Without Stars by Chanel Miller (Jan 13)
A Midnight Pastry Shop Called Hwawoldang by Lee Onhwa (Jan 13)
How to Commit a Postcolonial Murder by Nina McConigley (Jan 20)
The Elsewhere Express by Samantha Sotto Yambao (Jan 20)
The Poet Empress by Shen Tao (Jan 20)
Two Women Living Together by Kim Hana, Hwang Sunwoo; Gene Png (Translator) (Jan 20)
Early Mornings at the Laksa Cafe by Janet Tay (Jan 27)
A Beast Slinks Towards Beijing by Alice Evelyn Yang (Jan 27)
Books & Boba is a podcast dedicated to reading and featuring books by Asian and Asian American authors
Books & Boba 