Secret Book Swap | No. 5 - Davidson's Mains October 2025
Books We Swapped:
The Four Agreements – Don Miguel Ruiz
A spiritual classic drawing on Toltec wisdom, Ruiz lays out four guiding principles—Be impeccable with your word; Don’t take anything personally; Don’t make assumptions; Always do your best. Through practical stories and insights, he argues these agreements can free you from self-limiting beliefs and lead to greater peace, integrity, and personal transformation.The Wrong Sister – Claire Douglas
Tash and Aaron agree to swap roles with Tash’s glamorous sister Alice for a weekend in Venice—only for Alice’s partner to die and a child to vanish. As Tash scrambles to restore order amid threats and revelations, she must question who was meant to be the victim and who the perpetrator. A twisty domestic noir exploring jealousy, identity, and the lengths we go to protect our own.The Final Detail – Harlan Coben
In the sixth Myron Bolitar novel, Myron returns from a Caribbean escape to find his colleague, Esperanza, arrested for murder. As he digs into intertwined secrets, betrayals, and hidden agendas, Myron confronts loyalty, love, and the dark corners of his past. Coben delivers his signature fast-paced narrative and emotional stakes.The Fellowship of Puzzlemakers – Samuel Burr
After the sudden death of his adoptive mother, Clayton Stumper embarks on a quest guided by cryptic puzzle clues she left behind. As he traces her origin, he uncovers the founding of an enigmatic Fellowship devoted to puzzles, mystery, and found family. Burr’s novel balances heart, intrigue, and cerebral charm in a story of identity, legacy, and connection.Conversations with Friends – Sally Rooney
Frances, a 21-year-old aspiring writer, and her best friend Bobbi—once romantically involved—navigate life, love, jealousy, and power when they befriend a married couple in Dublin. Rooney’s sharp prose dissects boundaries between friendship and romance, the politics of intimacy, and what we ask of one another.
Mamie Philp
Guest, Author - Mamie Philp
I first met Mamie when she came along to our Currie Secret Book Swap and very kindly gifted me a copy of her debut novel, Mr Murdoch is Dead.
This might have been Mamie’s first novel but it was by no means her first book. With 3 memoirs written for clients and two non-fiction books following a career in the civil service and as a teacher, we had plenty to talk about on Friday at our Davidson’s Mains group. We even got an insight into Mamie’s experience in self publishing and setting up her own publishing company.
Mr Murdoch is Dead is a crime fiction novel Ayrshire and introduces Mamie’s lead character, DI Kim Berry and begins with the immortal words fit for all Scottish murder mysteries, “there’s been a murder”. Mamie is currently writing a follow up and treated us to a sneak peek of the cover that will adorn DI Kim Berry’s second adventure.
Thank you for joining us Mamie and look forward to following along with Kim’s investigations!
Banned Book Reading
Misery, Stephen King
This month we talked about Rory Gilmore from Gilmore Girls, one of TV’s most famous book lovers. Over seven seasons she’s rarely seen without a book in hand, and fans have tracked every single title she reads or mentions. That list includes more than 400 books, and it’s become a kind of reading challenge for fans around the world.
When we compared Rory’s list to PEN America’s latest Index of School Book Bans, we found that 38 of her books — almost one in ten were impacted by the bans in U.S. schools.
We talked about how this fits into a much wider pattern. Since 2021, U.S. schools have recorded over 22,000 book bans, with nearly 7,000 in the past school year alone. The bans now cover 23 states, and in some districts, even a single parent complaint can see a title removed.
Looking at the lists, many of the banned titles are the same ones that shaped readers like Rory: 1984, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Kite Runner, Beloved, Slaughterhouse-Five, and the author who now tops the list, Stephen King, with more than 200 bans across 87 of his titles.
The one that stood out to me was Misery, (not least because it’s an all time favourite of mine) which became our banned book reading for the night. It’s one of King’s most intense and unsettling novels, the story of Paul Sheldon, a novelist held captive by his “number one fan,” Annie Wilkes.
For our reading, we shared a tense scene where Paul begins to realise the danger he’s in and how completely he depends on Annie for his life and pain relief. It’s disturbing, but also a powerful reminder of how fear and power can twist even acts of care.
Join us at future secret book swaps: