Your hosts discuss Dracula by Bram Stoker, and almost start talking about various Dracula adaptations as well before they manage to rein themselves in. They cover the mysteriously incorrect publication date in Lilly’s copy of the novel, how much they love Mina, and how much Stoker hated Lucy. This episode contains spoilers. Content Warning: brief mention of fictional suicide. Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the...
Feb 12, 2025•1 hr 16 min•Ep. 176
Your hosts speak with Jessica A. McMinn about The Ruptured Sky, the first novel in her debut fantasy quartet. They talk about worldbuilding, asshole mentors, duty, and consequences. Find more from Jessica: https://jessicaamcminn.com/ https://bsky.app/profile/jessicaamcminn.bsky.social Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the use of “Sérénade à Notre Dame de Paris” - Josh Woodward for the use of “Electric Sunrise” Li...
Feb 05, 2025•48 min•Ep. 175
Your hosts are joined by Dan Hanks to discuss his scifi, thriller, adventure, every-genre-really novel, The Way Up is Death. They talk about large casts in focused scenes, unlikeable vs irredeemable characters, and the meaning of life. Find more from Dan: https://www.danhanks.com/ https://bsky.app/profile/danhanks.bsky.social https://www.instagram.com/dan_hanks/ Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the use of “Sérén...
Jan 29, 2025•47 min•Ep. 174
This week, your hosts are covering The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison, which turns out to be a delightful intersection of both of their interests. They discuss emotional journeys in adjacent fantasy, political coups, and unique grammar conventions. They also evaluate what, exactly, makes a goblin. Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the use of “Sérénade à Notre Dame de Paris” - Josh Woodward for the use of “El...
Jan 22, 2025•55 min•Ep. 173
Excited for Mickey 17, the upcoming movie featuring Robert Pattinson, your hosts read Mickey7 by Edward Ashton. Despite their complaints about the narrative voice and Mickey’s POV, they really did enjoy the book, they promise. They also discuss the effect of cloning on the sense of self, the implications of space colonization, and neat aliens. Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the use of “Sérénade à Notre Dame de...
Jan 15, 2025•50 min•Ep. 172
Your hosts reflect upon 2024 and their podcasting experience, including some stats about the books they read in the last year. They also award some superlatives, such as "Best Supporting Character," "Best Re-read," and "World Most Likely to Kill Us Instantly." Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the use of “Sérénade à Notre Dame de Paris” Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License...
Jan 08, 2025•1 hr•Ep. 171
Your hosts finally reach the end of their Discworld reread with The Shepherd's Crown by Terry Pratchett, and they're feeling all sorts of ways about it. They talk about Tiffany Aching's arc over her mini-series as a whole, tying up (and leaving) loose threads, and everyone's favorite Kelda, Jeannie. Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the use of “Sérénade à Notre Dame de Paris” - Josh Woodward for the use of “Elect...
Dec 18, 2024•50 min•Ep. 170
Your hosts discuss The Escher Man by T. R. Napper. They consider what makes a story better fit for a movie format. They also talk about characters they're emotionally invested in, family dynamics, and cybernetic enhancements. Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the use of “Sérénade à Notre Dame de Paris” - Josh Woodward for the use of “Electric Sunrise” Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License...
Dec 11, 2024•43 min•Ep. 169
In this episode your hosts discuss the TV show Firefly, and Lilly fundamentally misunderstands "tie-in" novels. They also talk about colonialism vs. capitalism and what Wash's shirt actually looks like. Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the use of “Sérénade à Notre Dame de Paris” - Josh Woodward for the use of “Electric Sunrise” Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License...
Dec 04, 2024•48 min•Ep. 168
Your hosts are baffled by Raising Steam, the penultimate Discworld novel by Terry Pratchett. They debate which miniseries it ought to belong in, talk about how long it takes for the plot to take off, and actually enjoy all of the wife characters we see in the book. They rejoice in pro-goblin propaganda and have a brief Words are Weird discussion about smut. Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the use of “Sérénade à...
Nov 27, 2024•44 min•Ep. 167
Your hosts indulge in some serious escapism with Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros. They talk about how terribly Basgaith War Academy is run, ask themselves why anyone would want to attend it, and yet defend to the death their right to enjoy this book. Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the use of “Sérénade à Notre Dame de Paris” - Josh Woodward for the use of “Electric Sunrise” Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License...
Nov 20, 2024•46 min•Ep. 166
Your hosts read Sleeping Worlds Have No Memory by Yaroslav Barsukov (and get a little distracted argreeing [that's arguing and agreeing at the same time] over how it's different from Kushiel's Dart). They discuss political plotlines in SFF, both relatable and antagonistic characters, and assign an exact genre-percentage-breakout between Fantasy, SciFi, and Horror. Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the use of “Sér...
Nov 13, 2024•50 min•Ep. 165
Your hosts spend 17 minutes talking about some tropes they didn't love in Snuff by Terry Pratchett, and then roughly two hours (cut down to a reasonable time) gushing about the rest of the book in the spoiler section so we can't talk about it. Vimes kind of has magic powers, his wife Sybil actually does things in the plot, and there's a character named Stinky (that's really all you need to know). Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their so...
Nov 06, 2024•46 min•Ep. 164
Your hosts discuss witchcraft and religion in their conversation about The Year of the Witching by Alexis Henderson. They talk about familiar conflicts in fantasy settings, surprising (and not so surprising) character arcs, and whether rivers of blood or rivers of bones would be scarier. Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Scott Buckley for the use of “Twilight Echo” - Darkest Child by Kevin MacLeod Licensed under Creative Co...
Oct 30, 2024•58 min•Ep. 163
Your hosts were thoroughly unimpressed by the selection of works they read from Great Tales of Horror by H.P. Lovecraft. They talk about trying to avoid bias going into a work, and racist mthrfckrs. They also discuss cosmic horror, Cthulhu's tentacles, and Lovecraft's reputation. Did they read the wrong works? Maybe. In this episode, they discuss: The Call of Cthulhu The Color From Out of Space Pickman's Model The Shadow Over Innsmouth (kind of, like maybe a quarter of it) Find us on Discord / S...
Oct 23, 2024•46 min•Ep. 162
Your hosts talk about skeletons, mythology, and what makes a horror story in Lyndsie Mansusos’ debut novella, From These Dark Abodes. Yes, Lilly made them watch Spooky Scary Skeletons before they started recording. Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Darkest Child by Kevin MacLeod Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License...
Oct 16, 2024•44 min•Ep. 161
Your hosts are joined by Xueting Ni to talk about her experience translating and editing Sinophagia, a collection of Chinese horror short stories. They discuss both cultural and personal horror. At the end, Sara and Lilly go over their favorite stories in the collection. You can find Xueting on twitter here: https://twitter.com/xuetingni And more from her here: http://snowpavilion.co.uk/ Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Da...
Oct 09, 2024•55 min•Ep. 160
Lilly drags Sara into hell with their first Spooky Month book -- Books of Blood volume 1, by Clive Barker. They discuss the collection of short stories as a whole, and some of the appeal (and repulsion) of horror as a genre. They also talk about each story, going over the ones that freaked them out the most (Lilly's favorite, Sara's least favorite) and the ones that freaked them out the least (Lilly's least favorite, Sara's most bearable). Content Warnings: Death, Animal Death, Underage Relation...
Oct 02, 2024•48 min•Ep. 159
Your hosts take another step on their Journey to the Ends of the Discworld with "I Shall Wear Midnight," by Terry Pratchett, the YA novel to define all YA novels. They talk about quintessential genre examples, relatable teenage angst, and unfortunate Deus ex Machinas. They also discuss realistic romance arcs, unrealistic romantic interests, and what makes a villain scary. There's a brief visit to the Pet Peeve corner to talk about Cromwellian click bait. Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreo...
Sep 25, 2024•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 158
Your hosts are joined by Suzan Palumbo to talk about food, colonialism, and more in her new novella, Countess. They also talk about the unique experiences of queer characters and classic lit inspirations by way of The Count of Monte Cristo. Find more from Suzan: https://bsky.app/profile/sillysyntax.bsky.social https://x.com/sillysyntax https://www.instagram.com/gothicsyntax/ Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the ...
Sep 18, 2024•1 hr 16 min•Ep. 157
Your hosts discuss Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler. They talk about how eerie it is to read a dystopian future set in… pretty much indistinguishable modern day (although with a little extra cannibalism sprinkled in). They also talk about religious themes, relatable characters, and the importance of kindness. Lilly sneaks in an unplanned Pet Peeve corner. Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the use of “Séréna...
Sep 11, 2024•52 min•Ep. 156
Your hosts pretend to know things about football in their discussion about Unseen Academicals by Terry Pratchett. They talk about character arcs, well developed (and well developed ) female characters, and sweet little precious baby goblins. Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the use of “Sérénade à Notre Dame de Paris” - Josh Woodward for the use of “Electric Sunrise” Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attributio...
Sep 04, 2024•1 hr 26 min•Ep. 155
Your hosts discuss City of Spores by Austin Shirey. They talk about detective/noir tropes and avoiding common pitfalls, as well as subtle worldbuilding in novellas. Mushrooms do come up once or twice. Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the use of “Sérénade à Notre Dame de Paris” - Josh Woodward for the use of “Electric Sunrise” Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License...
Aug 28, 2024•45 min•Ep. 154
Your hosts discuss Orconomics by J. Zachary Pike. They talk about fantasy maps, RPG tropes, and the genre that is “adventuring but make it a bureaucratic capitalist hellscape.” There’s also charming goblins, less charming halflings, and a new take on elves. Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the use of “Sérénade à Notre Dame de Paris” - Josh Woodward for the use of “Electric Sunrise” Licensed under Creative Common...
Aug 21, 2024•39 min•Ep. 153
Your hosts read “Making Money” by Terry Pratchett. They discuss consistent love interests and disappointing villains. Sara tries not to be too down on the book. Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the use of “Sérénade à Notre Dame de Paris” - Josh Woodward for the use of “Electric Sunrise” Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License...
Aug 14, 2024•47 min•Ep. 152
Your hosts read Ninth Life by Stark Holborn, the third book in what may or may not be a trilogy, they actually have no idea. They talk about the difficulties of year-long gaps before reading a sequel, debate what an epistolary novel is, and look up the definition for 2nd person POV. Lilly also spills the tea about a gossip-themed Pet Peeve. Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the use of “Sérénade à Notre Dame de Pa...
Aug 07, 2024•46 min•Ep. 151
Your hosts are joined by Krystle Matar and Adrian M. Gibson for a spoiler-filled follow-up conversation about his debut novel, Mushroom Blues. They talk about dark themes, cultural influences on the Hopponese, and the character development of Koji and Henrietta. This whole episode contains spoilers for Mushroom Blues. Find more from Adrian: https://x.com/adrianmgibson Find more from Krystle: https://x.com/KrystleMatar Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians f...
Jul 31, 2024•1 hr 51 min
Your hosts are joined by Krystle Matar to talk about Cassiel's Servant by Jacqueline Carey, a book that covers the same events as Kushiel's Dart but from another character's perspective. Lilly can't even bring herself to describe it as "the love interest's perspective" due to how there is neither love nor interest in Kushiel's Dart (although Sara disagrees), but Cassiel's Servant was pretty fun. They discuss the huge shift in genre, different characters' priorities, and some retconning. Content ...
Jul 24, 2024•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 150
After our interview with Bryan about his Shattered Gates universe, we reconvened to talk about his short story Gods of Dust, and also bring up some of our thoughts that were, as they say, "more of a comment than a question." Check out our Patreon for the rest of the conversation. Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the use of “Sérénade à Notre Dame de Paris” - Josh Woodward for the use of “Electric Sunrise” Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4....
Jul 22, 2024•26 min
Your hosts bring some cousin related chaos to their conversation about Learn to Howl by Jennifer R. Donohue. They talk about cousin main characters, werewolf origin stories, dog mannerisms, and more cousin stuff. They also bring up religious metaphors and oh, also the fact that they are cousins. Content Warning: discussion of fictional sexual assault Find us on Discord / Support us on Patreon Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Amarià for the use of “Sérénade à Notre ...
Jul 19, 2024•56 min•Ep. 149
