diff --git a/ui/src/lib/server/pocketbase.ts b/ui/src/lib/server/pocketbase.ts
index d3594a9..1c26f63 100644
--- a/ui/src/lib/server/pocketbase.ts
+++ b/ui/src/lib/server/pocketbase.ts
@@ -211,6 +211,20 @@ async function listOne<T>(collection: string, filter: string, sort = ''): Promis
 const BOOKS_CACHE_KEY = 'books:all';
 const BOOKS_CACHE_TTL = 5 * 60; // 5 minutes
 
+const RATINGS_CACHE_KEY = 'book_ratings:all';
+const RATINGS_CACHE_TTL = 5 * 60; // 5 minutes
+
+const HOME_STATS_CACHE_KEY = 'home:stats';
+const HOME_STATS_CACHE_TTL = 10 * 60; // 10 minutes — counts don't need to be exact
+
+async function getAllRatings(): Promise<BookRating[]> {
+	const cached = await cache.get<BookRating[]>(RATINGS_CACHE_KEY);
+	if (cached) return cached;
+	const ratings = await listAll<BookRating>('book_ratings', '').catch(() => [] as BookRating[]);
+	await cache.set(RATINGS_CACHE_KEY, ratings, RATINGS_CACHE_TTL);
+	return ratings;
+}
+
 export async function listBooks(): Promise<Book[]> {
 	const cached = await cache.get<Book[]>(BOOKS_CACHE_KEY);
 	if (cached) {
@@ -282,7 +296,11 @@ export async function getBooksBySlugs(slugs: Iterable<string>): Promise<Book[]>
 
 /** Invalidate the books cache (call after a book is created/updated/deleted). */
 export async function invalidateBooksCache(): Promise<void> {
-	await cache.invalidate(BOOKS_CACHE_KEY);
+	await Promise.all([
+		cache.invalidate(BOOKS_CACHE_KEY),
+		cache.invalidate(HOME_STATS_CACHE_KEY),
+		cache.invalidatePattern('books:recent:*')
+	]);
 }
 
 export async function getBook(slug: string): Promise<Book | null> {
@@ -290,7 +308,12 @@ export async function getBook(slug: string): Promise<Book | null> {
 }
 
 export async function recentlyAddedBooks(limit = 6): Promise<Book[]> {
-	return listN<Book>('books', limit, '', '-meta_updated');
+	const key = `books:recent:${limit}`;
+	const cached = await cache.get<Book[]>(key);
+	if (cached) return cached;
+	const books = await listN<Book>('books', limit, '', '-meta_updated');
+	await cache.set(key, books, 5 * 60); // 5 minutes
+	return books;
 }
 
 export interface HomeStats {
@@ -299,11 +322,19 @@ export interface HomeStats {
 }
 
 export async function getHomeStats(): Promise<HomeStats> {
+	const cached = await cache.get<HomeStats>(HOME_STATS_CACHE_KEY);
+	if (cached) return cached;
 	const [totalBooks, totalChapters] = await Promise.all([
 		countCollection('books'),
 		countCollection('chapters_idx')
 	]);
-	return { totalBooks, totalChapters };
+	const stats = { totalBooks, totalChapters };
+	await cache.set(HOME_STATS_CACHE_KEY, stats, HOME_STATS_CACHE_TTL);
+	return stats;
+}
+
+export async function invalidateHomeStatsCache(): Promise<void> {
+	await cache.invalidate(HOME_STATS_CACHE_KEY);
 }
 
 // ─── Chapter index ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
@@ -1849,6 +1880,7 @@ export async function setBookRating(
 	} else {
 		await pbPost('/api/collections/book_ratings/records', payload);
 	}
+	await cache.invalidate(RATINGS_CACHE_KEY);
 }
 
 // ─── Shelves ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
@@ -1918,7 +1950,7 @@ export async function getBooksForDiscovery(
 	// Fetch avg ratings for candidates, weight top-rated books to surface earlier.
 	// Fetch in one shot for all candidate slugs. Low-rated / unrated books still
 	// appear — they're just pushed further back via a stable sort before shuffle.
-	const ratingRows = await listAll<BookRating>('book_ratings', '').catch(() => [] as BookRating[]);
+	const ratingRows = await getAllRatings();
 	const ratingMap = new Map<string, { sum: number; count: number }>();
 	for (const r of ratingRows) {
 		const cur = ratingMap.get(r.slug) ?? { sum: 0, count: 0 };
diff --git a/ui/src/routes/discover/+page.svelte b/ui/src/routes/discover/+page.svelte
index 7bc1e53..57d5847 100644
--- a/ui/src/routes/discover/+page.svelte
+++ b/ui/src/routes/discover/+page.svelte
@@ -130,7 +130,43 @@
 
 	let cardEl = $state<HTMLDivElement | null>(null);
 
+	// ── Card entry animation (prevents pop-to-full-size after swipe) ─────────────
+	let cardEntering = $state(false);
+	let entryTransition = $state(false);
+	let entryCleanup: ReturnType<typeof setTimeout> | null = null;
+
+	function startEntryAnimation() {
+		if (entryCleanup) clearTimeout(entryCleanup);
+		cardEntering = true;
+		entryTransition = true;
+		requestAnimationFrame(() => {
+			cardEntering = false;
+			entryCleanup = setTimeout(() => { entryTransition = false; }, 400);
+		});
+	}
+
+	function cancelEntryAnimation() {
+		if (entryCleanup) { clearTimeout(entryCleanup); entryCleanup = null; }
+		cardEntering = false;
+		entryTransition = false;
+	}
+
+	const activeTransform = $derived(
+		cardEntering
+			? 'scale(0.95) translateY(13px)'
+			: `translateX(${offsetX}px) translateY(${offsetY}px) rotate(${rotation}deg)`
+	);
+
+	const activeTransition = $derived(
+		isDragging
+			? 'none'
+			: (transitioning || entryTransition)
+				? 'transform 0.35s cubic-bezier(0.175, 0.885, 0.32, 1.275)'
+				: 'none'
+	);
+
 	function onPointerDown(e: PointerEvent) {
+		cancelEntryAnimation();
 		if (animating || !currentBook) return;
 		(e.currentTarget as HTMLElement).setPointerCapture(e.pointerId);
 		startX = e.clientX;
@@ -216,6 +252,8 @@
 
 		if (action === 'read_now') {
 			goto(`/books/${book.slug}`);
+		} else {
+			startEntryAnimation();
 		}
 	}
 
@@ -493,8 +531,8 @@
 				bind:this={cardEl}
 				class="absolute inset-0 rounded-2xl overflow-hidden shadow-2xl cursor-grab active:cursor-grabbing z-10"
 				style="
-					transform: translateX({offsetX}px) translateY({offsetY}px) rotate({rotation}deg);
-					transition: {(transitioning && !isDragging) ? 'transform 0.35s cubic-bezier(0.175, 0.885, 0.32, 1.275)' : 'none'};
+					transform: {activeTransform};
+					transition: {activeTransition};
 					touch-action: none;
 				"
 				onpointerdown={onPointerDown}