Rachael Conrad-Contributor

Rachael Conrad

October, 2022
  • 29
    articles
  • 2
    News
  • 8
    Features
  • 17
    Lists
  • 2
    Guides

About Rachael Conrad

Rachael Conrad is an award winning bookseller with over a decade of experience in the industry. Her career began at Wellesley Books where she was the store’s School Liaison, and she has since worked as the Event Coordinator for Print: A Bookstore and Belmont Books. She currently works for Maine Writers & Publishers Alliance.

What did you play or watch that changed your life?

The Burbs and Aliens both helped to foster a deep love for all things spooky. 

What's your origin story?

Rachael's obsession with reading first began when she was given a stack of books by the Boston Globe's Childrens Book reviewer and asked to give her opinion on them. 

What's a recent obsession?

The Blacktongue Thief. Everyone who loves a hefty fantasy novel should read it. 

Latest

A banner featuring three book covers
4 books that offer a twist on Dungeon Crawler Carl and the LitRPG craze

LitRPG is all the rage, but these books take a slightly different approach to the tabletop experience

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A banner that shows the cover of Descender and a screen shot from Pragmata
5 sci-fi books to read after Pragmata

Time to go back to the moon

2
A woman wearing an FBI ID lanyard stands in what seems to be a dim, blood-splattered room in Longlegs.
A Longlegs star could save this super-polarizing gothic horror novel's movie version

Ever find yourself wondering what Patrick Bateman would be like if he was a governess at a gothic manor house?

1
whalefall book cover with a whale eating a diver
This 'The Martian but inside a whale' book will devour your attention from the first page

Whalefall is a gripping book you should read before the movie

Sixth Faction book cover
Divergent creator will reimagine series with new book, 15 years later

Veronica Roth is revisiting her YA dystopian series in Sliding Doors fashion

2
Aragorn wearing the crown of Gondor’s kings in The Return of the King.
Can anyone really replace Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn?

Lord of the Rings fans are divided over the Hunt for Gollum's casting choice

4
A banner depicting a screen shot from Elden Ring and the book cover for The Blacktongue Thief
4 fantasy novels to read before the Elden Ring movie

However many times you've been beaten to a pulp by a boss, there's a book for you

4
Detail from the cover of Japanese Gothic. An image depicting a traditional Japanese house in black, white, and red. Blood is leaking from the roof. The text reads
Kylie Lee Baker unpacks her samurai ghost story Japanese Gothic, and provides a sample

Polygon spoke to Baker about what inspired her to write Japanese Gothic and what kind of horror she'd like to write about next

The Hunger Games, Haymitch young and old
The new Hunger Games trailer looks like a rare adaptation that gets Haymitch right

Set 24 years before the events of the first movie, Sunrise on the Reaping tells the story of Katniss' mentor

horrorlistapril
3 new horror books to read in April

This month features a terrifying house, a serial killer who could give Hannibal a run for his money, and an unsettling work of historical fiction

April 2026 books
3 new sci-fi and fantasy books to read this April

With the change in season comes a bevy of new books to keep you busy

An older woman presses her hand against a tank in an aquarium. Inside is a giant pacific octopus.
Netflix's new talking octopus movie might wreck you if it's anything like the book

Remarkably Bright Creatures enchanted fans of talking animals back in 2022

A detail from the book cover of Project Hail Mary, showing a spacesuited astronaut in freefall in space, against the backdrop of a yellow and black striped planet
3 thrilling sci-fi books to read after Project Hail Mary

If you enjoyed the movie or Andy Weir's book, these science fiction novels are for you

6
The cover of Fantagraphics Books' The Complete Peanuts: Volume 15, featuring Charlie Brown with a huge smile on his face
Every Peanuts strip ever is available for $25 via Humble Bundle

In the full bundle, you’ll find full collections of Peanuts Every Sunday strips

Detail from the book cover for The Mighty Nein — Children of Empire, showing Beauregard Lionett and Caleb Widogast from Critical Role Campaign 2 in an action pose
Critical Role’s Mighty Nein sequel novel sends Beau and Caleb off on a new adventure

Critical Role returns to Wildemount in Nibedita Sen’s The Mighty Nein — Children of Empire

Several book characters sit on the side of a snowy mountain
The 44 most exciting science fiction and fantasy books for your 2025 reading list

2025 is already looking like a busy reading year

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A collage image of book covers featured in this piece, set against a purple background.
The best sci-fi and fantasy books of 2024

Distant worlds, nearby horrors, and everything in between

A collage of six book covers featured in this post
The 26 must-read books of fall 2024

We have some great additions to your reading list

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A collection of book covers featured in this preview
The 25 must-read books of summer 2024

Get your reading lists ready

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The must-read books of spring 2024

Thorns, skulls, souls, vampires, and the Z word