The Readirect Podcast
Listener Book Recommendations | Discover Your Next Favorite Read!
Ever find yourself in a literary rut, wondering what book to pick up next? Fear not, we are here with a treasure trove of curated reads that promise to ignite your passion for books.
We asked our listeners to share their recent favorite and least favorite reads, and created a list of personalized recommendations for them!
Here's a list of our recommendations:
- Anything by Lucy Foley (The Paris Apartment, The Guest List, The Hunting Party)
- Unmissing by Minka Kent
- Force of Nature by Jane Harper
- The Villa by Rachel Hawkins
- A Flicker in the Dark by Stacy Willingham
- In the Waning Light by Loreth Ann White
- Tell Me Everything by Erika Krouse
- The House Across the Lake or The Only One Left by Riley Sager
- The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
- The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah
- The Secrets we Kept by Lara Prescott
- Lily and the Octopus by Steven Rowley
- The Princess Trap by Talia Hibbert
Ever find yourself in a literary rut, wondering what book to pick up next? Fear not, we are here with a treasure trove of curated reads that promise to ignite your passion for books.
We asked our listeners to share their recent favorite and least favorite reads, and created a list of personalized recommendations for them!
Here's a list of our recommendations:
- Anything by Lucy Foley (The Paris Apartment, The Guest List, The Hunting Party)
- Unmissing by Minka Kent
- Force of Nature by Jane Harper
- The Villa by Rachel Hawkins
- A Flicker in the Dark by Stacy Willingham
- In the Waning Light by Loreth Ann White
- Tell Me Everything by Erika Krouse
- The House Across the Lake or The Only One Left by Riley Sager
- The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
- The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah
- The Secrets we Kept by Lara Prescott
- Lily and the Octopus by Steven Rowley
- The Princess Trap by Talia Hibbert
Welcome to the redirect podcast. My name is Abigail Hewins and I'm Emily.
Speaker 2:Rohas. The redirect podcast is a show where we shift the conversation back to books. We discuss themes from some of our favorite fictional books and how those themes show up in real lived experiences.
Speaker 1:On today's episode, we are giving curated book recommendations to our listeners, based on their individual tastes.
Speaker 2:But first, before we get into that, if you enjoy the podcast, we would really humbly ask that you consider supporting us in a few really easy ways. The first, so easy go tap that five star button on Apple Podcast. It takes five seconds and let us know that you love the show.
Speaker 1:We'd also love for you to follow us on Instagram at redirect podcast. And finally, if you really really love the show, we really want you to share our show with a friend. It's really lovely when friends share podcasts that they love and when friends share the love of reading. This podcast is for both, so share our show with a friend.
Speaker 2:It is the best way to help grow our community of book loving nerds and Emily falls on Instagram, you might get a special bonus, like today, where we are taking listener comments from Instagram, so even more.
Speaker 1:I know I am so excited about today's episode. I'm really excited for these book recommendations. I was like wait, am I smart? Do I actually maybe have good ideas? I think it really helped to not to soil, but like.
Speaker 2:I do feel like, for the most part, the vibe of what our listeners were looking for is stuff that both of us have read a lot of for the most part. So that helped because it's like, okay, I got a couple for thrillers. I read thrillers more than anything else, you know, so I feel like that helps because you have like a large back catalog of books you've read that you can think about. But, yeah, I'm excited, I'm really excited. I didn't know how I was going to go, but yeah, me either.
Speaker 1:We were low key, like are we going to have to like text our friends on the side and be like comment on this but. I'm really happy with what we got, and me too, I'm ready to jump into it. You want to go first?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I am ready. So our first request came from at bookish with Taylor and they said loved the silent patient by Alex make, a ladies when I throw a shot in the dark on that one, and a flicker in the dark by dark by Stacy Willingham and wasn't a fan of the made by need of prose. So I have read the silent patient and the made. I have not read a flicker in the dark, although I read the. This is like this was a great exercise, because now I have more to add to my TBR, because this book sounded super interesting. It's like. For those of you guys who, like me, have not read it, it is like a mystery, I believe, where the daughter of a of a dad, as most of us are, she, her dad, was arrested and accused of basically being a serial killer, like when she was a child.
Speaker 2:But then years later she returns to this town or whatever, and murders start happening again. But obviously her dad's already in jail and it's she's like is this like? Why does this feel the same? You know so what's happening. So I love that, I love a time jump, I love a like a misdirect. So, anyways, that's at the top of my TBR now. But from here, thank you bookish with Taylor for the recommendation with Taylor. We'll really cook before you get into this. Yeah, go ahead, did you?
Speaker 1:like the maid. Bookish with Taylor did not like the maid.
Speaker 2:I did like the maid. I didn't like love it as much as I thought I would. First of all, I think it's really unique but I really liked it. I do think probably like the maid to me is also in the same vibe as like the Thursday murder club, where I think it's less like about the plot and the twists, although those are part of it, but it's way more about like the characters and like what's going on with them. It's more character driven. So I think I see why you didn't like. If you liked those first two which are very twisty. Probably some like the sound patients got some unreliable narrator going on flicker in the dark, you like don't know what's going to happen.
Speaker 2:Probably fast paced versus like something that really is more just focused on the main character of the maid.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And like her experience versus necessarily the mystery is kind of secondary, so like a plot plot driven versus character study you know exactly. So my recommendations for you first of all, anything by Lucy Foley I think you're really going to like. Personally, I have read the Paris apartment and the guest list. I think you've read one of the books.
Speaker 1:I've read also the hunting party. Yes and yeah, just those three.
Speaker 2:And I think she's a great like. I feel like I don't know. She's famous, obviously, but I do feel like her books sometimes don't make the cuts of when people recommend thrillers that are really twisty, but she's really like they're all really fast paced, they're creepy, like you will really get that creepy scary kind of move super fast. They move really fast and they're kind of like always written in big font, like you read them.
Speaker 1:Also I. They're like, she's British. All of her books are set in England, ireland, scotland, and I think that's fun too, and maybe why she's less popular here, I don't know. That's true.
Speaker 2:I don't know. I mean she obviously is really popular. I see her books a lot. I just feel like you know the silent patient is so big on on like book talk. I feel like you see that recommended all the time.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:So this might be something you have it explored her yet. And I think the great thing, on a tangent, the great thing about thrillers and, honestly, romance I feel like they fall into the same category. Once you find an author that you really like how they write in that genre, I feel like you can just go through and read all of their books, because they tend to follow the same kind of formulas and you know, I think like there's so many authors that I just love and they're an auto. You know, read for me, especially with thrillers. I think if you like one of Lucy Foley's books, you can just go read the rest.
Speaker 1:Yeah, she has another one coming out this year. I don't know what it's called, but it's it's publishing in May, so I'm really looking forward to reading that it's like already going to be a read for me.
Speaker 2:Absolutely. Another one I would recommend is Unmissing by Minka Kent. Just reading the description of flickern the dark, the vibe kind of reminded me of this book. This book follows, and it's been a while since I read it, so forgive me if I'm forgetting some of the details, but essentially a woman goes missing years past. Her husband remarries or start dating someone else that I remember they fully get married, but like many years past, and then the woman returns and so it's like what happened to her? Who was responsible for disappearance? You know it's it's a little giving unreliable narrator, but it's kind of one of those things, much like the sound of patient, where you really don't know exactly what's the full story is till you get to the end. So I think you would like that. And then my last one is Force of Nature by Jane Harper. It follows a group of women who go on a little I think a camping trip against one while since I read this and they all come back, but one doesn't come back with them and there's like conflicting stories about what happened and so you don't really know like what exactly went wrong. But all you know is that they all come back once missing. So this is a great one. It's a part of a like.
Speaker 2:There's a detective in this book who is part of a series where that same detective kind of goes and solves different mysteries and there's some of his personal life in there. So this is the second book in that series. You don't have to. I didn't read this in order, actually ended up accidentally reading the first book like a year later and not even realizing it was connected, till I realized the detective was connected. So you can start with this one or you can start with book one, which I just didn't like the mystery as much. So I think if you just want a standalone mystery, you can just go straight into force of nature. So those are my recommendations for you, bookish with Taylor, and you have to let us know if any of them you know strike a chord.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's a. That was a feast of recommendations. I think of those there's got to be at least one that bookish Taylor is going to like. All right, our first.
Speaker 1:My first request comes from at the little bookshelf, which I did do a little background research and D little bookshelf a short for Diana's little bookshelf. So from here forth we are referring to D little bookshelf as Diana. Diana says Hi, I really loved the Nightingale by Kristen Hannah girl. Me too. I fell in love with the characters and I cried a lot with the ending and I had really high expectations for about credit. I had really high expectations about credence by Penelope Douglas because of book talk, but for me it was very disappointing story and the ending was kind of meh. So this is. I'm so glad Emily assigned these out to each of us and I got this one because, honestly, I've been on record saying many times that the Nightingale is one of my favorite books of all time and it really you are like Kristen Hannah is number one fan, probably me and a bunch of like 45 old women.
Speaker 1:Yeah, but yeah, I mean, it ruined books for me for a long time. It's so good. And so my first thought was, like, okay, obvious recommendation, here is another one of her books. But I was like she probably read them. So, Diana, using the link in your bio, I went to your Goodreads account and I did a quick little search of the books that you've logged. So, considering that, like, let's assume that you keep that updated, you have not read another title by Christina.
Speaker 1:This is the lazy answer. So I'm going to do a lazy answer and a good answer. The lazy answer is you should really read Four Winds by Kristen Hannah. I don't feel like it got as much buzz as the Nightingale, but there's a lot of the same elements. It's also a historical fiction novel. There are strong female characters. You're really going to like the story and it's going to make you cry. If you're looking for a book that's going to make you cry, this you're not going to be okay with this one. I mean, you are going to be okay with it. You're going to be okay because you're not going to be okay. But it's a similar thing like just like really well developed, strong characters, a little sprinkle of romance. It's yeah, I think you'll like it. So that's my lazy answer because I'm just recommending a book by the same author. But really you should read that my not lazy answer based.
Speaker 1:So I'm looking at the two titles you mentioned. You love the Nightingale. You didn't like Credence. I haven't read Credence but I did a little research on it. So I think you're looking for a very dramatic, engaging story, maybe something that centers family, maybe something that has a romance element, because Credence promised some of those things. There was it kind of tease like there was going to be family, but the story like a dramatic family situation, but it didn't fulfill.
Speaker 1:So I'm thinking historical vibe, strong female character, speculative history, because both the Nightingale and For Windsor, with speculative history, I'm recommending to you the secrets we kept by Laura Prescott. I excellent, that's a good recommendation, right, I love it. Okay, so this is a Cold War spy novel but strong female characters, a little bit of romance. We have also speculative fiction because this is centered around real world events, particularly the book Doctors of Ago, and the whole thing is about they're trying to smuggle the book Doctors of Ago out of the USSR where no one's allowed to publish it and help them, like, get their message out to the world. It's. I think it's going to hit the right marks for you, based on the things that you've liked Strong characters, great story, speculative fiction. This is for you crying at the end crying at the end, like Diana.
Speaker 2:I think you're going to like this.
Speaker 1:It's good, good.
Speaker 2:Great recommendations. Honestly, I love that book, so 10 out of 10. All right, I'll go to my number two, another thriller mystery, semi-thriller mystery. So this is from Amanda Hedges, and Amanda said she loved what wild women do by karma brown and laid them to rest on the road with the cold case investigators who identify the nameless. So those are kind of really different. She didn't like Among the Bros, a fraternity crime story by Max Marshall. So I kind of took a shot in the dark because these go all over the place. So I'm trying to. You know, it's like, what did you like about these books? I don't know, but I'm just going to make some guesses. So what wild women do?
Speaker 2:I haven't read this one either, but it's kind of like a mystery from the past that ties into the present day, like someone in the present is learning about this mystery from the past and it has an impact on them. So, based on that element, I thought you might like the Villa by Rachel Hawkins. Abigail recommended that to me. I recently read it and it kind of follows these two women who are staying in this house that is very famous for a murder having taken place there, and one of the women ends up finding a journal from the past that kind of starts to tell the story about what happened there and of course it does impact the present day. So if that's the element you liked about that, I think you would like the Villa.
Speaker 2:I also think you would like A Flicker in the Dark, which I just talked about. I haven't read it, but Bookish with Taylor. Based on that, you know like it has that element of the past coming back to haunt you and so you know I would recommend that one if that sounded good to you. And then I also put one of my favorite books in the Waiting Light by Lorith Ann White. She's that one of those go-to authors for me. But this book is about a woman who, a family member of hers, was killed when she was very young. She becomes a true crime writer and then she returns to her hometown as an adult to kind of try to write the story of this crime that affected her. And of course it will impact her present day because it is still unsolved, so who knows what happened, and the person might still be out there and not want her investigating.
Speaker 2:So those are three that I think take that element of like a mystery from the past coming back to impact your future. So if that's what you're looking for, I feel like any of those would scratch that itch. And then kind of my shot in the dark, because you like this, lay them to Rest, which was a nonfiction book about investigators who kind of work with cold cases and help identify victims of crimes, which sounds really interesting. And then the among the bros is also, I believe, nonfiction. I think maybe now my question because it says crime story but I thought when I googled it it was nonfiction, so we're just gonna go with that.
Speaker 2:So I'm gonna think I think you ride among the bros because you were kind of interested in maybe that like fraternity, college crime hit the right cord. So I'm gonna recommend tell me everything by Erica Krause and I've recommended before. It's a nonfiction. Erica is this woman who, for whatever reason, people her whole life have told her their secrets and that kind of leads her to becoming a semi kind of private investigator investigating a crime that happened, you know, on a college campus, kind of a massive cover up kind of thing. So I think if that's what you're looking for in among the bros. I think this is a book you would really like because it has that nonfiction, it has that like horrific men in college.
Speaker 2:I mean men being horrible, but it's really really well written. I think it's one of those where I love it but some people don't love it, so I can't say 100% of you love it, but I thought it's just. You know I'm not a big nonfiction person I think you are, amanda a little more but this is one of those nonfiction that read like a fiction to me, like her life is just Very interesting. I think people didn't like so much as she talks. She does talk a lot about her own history with, like, sexual violence and her own kind of trauma and how that is coming back up in the story she's yeah so some people don't like that part.
Speaker 2:So that's something that like baby would be sensitive to baby. Avoid this. But if you're okay with that, I think you know any good Like. Some people just want her to tell the story of what she was investigating and leave her personal stuff out of it. Personally, I like it when the author is going to talk about their own life. I think that's.
Speaker 2:You know, that's their life so and it's impacting her and how she's processing this and like how she's investigating this case. So I think it's relevant, but again, that's not for everyone, so you know, kind of use your own judgment, but those are my recommendations for you my next one is out, logan Smith, who is also my personal friend.
Speaker 1:Logan loved shark heart. Honestly, was so underwhelmed by none of this is true by Lisa Jewel. Okay, this is a toughie because I have not read either of these books. However, I am very intrigued by shark heart. Let me allow me to read a brief blurb about it to you. Okay, for Lewis and ran, their first year of marriage is also their last. A few weeks after their wedding, lewis receives a rare diagnosis. He will retain most of his consciousness, memories and intellect, but his physical body will gradually turn into a great white shark. As Lewis develops the features and impulses of one of the most predatory creatures in the ocean, his complicated artist heart struggles to make peace with his unfulfilled dreams. So that is so unique, right, that is fascinating.
Speaker 2:I know rid of this.
Speaker 1:So I did some reading in the reviews. The description goes on longer. I won't read here, but here's what my impression of this is. This is a book that uses an absurd metaphor to tackle a big topic like grief, love, family, and it uses this absurdity and as a situation, as a vehicle for that. So the first book that immediately came to mind is Lily and the octopus by Steven Rowley.
Speaker 1:This book is also about grief, but it is not about grief and it uses an absurd, meant metaphor of an octopus that is living on his weiner dog named Lily, his, his doxin, and his fight against this octopus to save Lily's life.
Speaker 1:And it's like nobody else can see the octopus, but he can.
Speaker 1:And there are moments where like he's kind of in his own internal world, like fighting this octopus, but like the rest of the world has no idea what they're talking about.
Speaker 1:And so it's about grief, it's about being afraid of letting go, of starting over in your life, of what your big feeling could be holding you back from. It's obviously going to be a tearjerker, I mean, but it's also like just with so much heart, and really makes you think about your own self and your own big feelings and it's like it's almost like play therapy. It's like we're allowed to like work out some of these big, big things and big feelings, like through drawing or, like you know, like playing with dolls or something like we can't actually talk about them, so they come through in these other ways. That's the feeling and the vibe that I got from shark heart and you know it's it's a big love story, it's whimsical, it's lyrical, it's poetic, and I felt like you're going to get a really similar vibe from Lily and the octopus. So, logan, I hope that that works for you and I hope that you like it.
Speaker 2:I love that and I'm very intrigued by this shark book, so I'm gonna have to investigate that separately. But thank you, this is so fun too, because I feel like I got so many books I wanted to read out of this episode.
Speaker 2:Okay, my last one is at Ashley Elizabeth Smith. I loved All I Want by Darcy Bell. It was a mystery thriller, but I loved the imagery of the home. And then this is a spoiler for the House on the Water. So if you don't want to be spoiled, do 10 seconds at.
Speaker 2:The House on the Water is an audible original novella, but I didn't enjoy the ending because it gave absolutely no hints or leads that the narrator was the murderer. The ending was basically just written for shock value and the way she confessed was rushed and not well executed. So it's giving verity. It's giving verity. It's giving another one. I don't like, not that we're airing our grievances, but the perfect marriage, same vibe. So don't read that if you didn't like that. You're like okay, that's a great twist that the narrator is the murderer, but you have to like lead me there. You know you can't just make that up and then retroactively like well, that makes no sense now in the context of the story. So I feel your pain. So first, based on All I Want sorry, by Darcy Bell. You said you loved the imagery of the home and you loved a mystery thriller. So I'm gonna recommend to you, based on that, anything by Riley Sager, especially the two that I have read. I'm just gonna assume the rest of us are like this, but I have read the House on the Lake and the only one left by him and I liked real. I really liked both the only one left. It's a little more traditional of a murder not a murder but a mystery thriller.
Speaker 2:It follows I've talked about it before on the pod so I'll just do a quick recap but basically this woman is a caregiver. She takes care of elderly people. For her job, she lives with them and she is assigned. There's an incident that happened that you don't really know exactly what it was. Because of this incident she was at risk for losing her job or license, but she's given a second chance and she's basically told no one else wants this job. So if you really want to come back, we will let you you know on a probationary basis to go take care of this woman in this house up on this big cliff, and her entire family was murdered when she was young.
Speaker 2:Now she's a very elderly woman and she's the only survivor and it was presumed that she did it, but they were never able to convict her. So she may be a murderer, but now she has. She can't move, she can't talk, she can't walk. So it's giving a better version of Verity, because this character is like kind of locked in. But is she really?
Speaker 2:So that's a really good one and it has great like this house is really a character in the story because it's on this cliff. Eventually the house is gonna fall off the cliff according to you know, the experts who are architectural because it's slowly sinking off the side of the cliff. It's, but it's this big mansion, but it's creepy, like you know, no one goes in or out. Really. So I think if you like a good setting but you also like a mystery, that's gonna make sense and I love Riley Saker now that I've read his other books he will give you like a big twist. But then he'll also give you like maybe two or three other small twists where you're like, okay, I thought that was a big twist and then I wasn't even expecting another twist is coming, but it all does make sense in the end. We're like, okay.
Speaker 2:I see the foreshadowing. You know it all ties together. House on the lake is a little weirder, so I just want to give a warning. I wouldn't read anything about either of these books because I read some reviews and it kind of spoiled a little for me, so I would just go into it. The house on the lake, though it is a little weirder, so just no, you're gonna have some weirder elements in this one, but it's kind of giving like woman in the window, like this woman. She is in her family's lake house. She's a former actress who's kind of like fallen from grace after her husband passed away. She's basically become an alcoholic and her mom sends her to this, their family cabin, to kind of like detox her, but of course she's still, you know, illicitly getting alcohol to continue to numb the pain of her husband's death. And across the lake, this supermodel and her like tech bro husband have purchased this house with these big windows and she kind of begins to watch. You know what's going on over there.
Speaker 2:So this is yeah, it's dangerous game, a dangerous game I've learned from these mystery books is don't ever do that. You will get involved in something you do not want to be involved this is like a lesson for me.
Speaker 1:It's a good lesson for me because I'm so nosy and I oh, if I hear a conversation from my neighbors, like in the hallway or like out on the street, like I'm gonna be listening and I'm I'm meeting the TV.
Speaker 2:I want to know your business, but maybe I don't because I could be implicated in a crime.
Speaker 1:You know what I'm saying?
Speaker 2:yeah, it's like look out for your neighbors but don't watch them obsessively look out but don't look for yes so, anyways, this is a really good one again, like this. How this cabin she's in is kind of like a really strong setting. The lake itself. There's a couple other characters who live on this lake, this big house. So I think if you're looking for a really good imagery, really good setting, riley Sager is gonna be good for you and then, if you like a good twist, that makes sense, I assume. I think this goes for all these people who are looking for thrillers. These are things I assume you have checked out, but if you haven't, if you haven't read Gone Girl by Jillian Flynn and, for that matter, all of her books, they're really dark though they're very dark okay gone girl is probably like the least dark, but the other ones yeah that's you prepared, it's
Speaker 2:gonna be kind of dark yes, prepared for the darkness, but I think, especially gone girl, like if you haven't read that, start there also. I think, if you haven't read, like these are so basic, you know for a reason. But like the woman in the window, the girl on the train, that whole genre of books, you know, they're all, they're the, the backbone of the genre, one of like, the, the formula of like, the descriptor of human being on a yeah, piece of architecture or transportation.
Speaker 1:Woman in the window the girl on the train the man and whatever the biggest trope.
Speaker 2:That I love, I have to admit, and I know it's the biggest trope, but it's the alcoholic woman who realizes something. That's true, but no one will believe her because she's like blacked out every day and she has to, like, take matters into her own hands. I love that, but I think those are all great. And then one last like out of left field recommendation for you is the seven and a half deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle. This one, I think, fell victim to the what is it?
Speaker 2:seven has been seven yeah, okay, it's not seven and a half, yeah, but the seven husbands of Evelyn Hugo. People get confused because it's an Evelyn, it's a seven, it's written very similarly. But anyways, this one basically, is a little weird again, it's very weird but the main character, aiden, he is informed that Evelyn Hardcastle is going to be murdered at 11 pm this day and he has eight days to figure out what happened. He's gonna live the same day over eight times in eight different bodies of eight different witnesses at this big party that is happening at this big house, like this big estate, and he just keeps living the day over and over again until he could find out what happened to Evelyn Hardcastle. So it's definitely it's a long book. So settle in if you want to do this one.
Speaker 2:The name I'm looking at it right now the, the audiobook is 17 hours, so it's a really long one. So maybe if you have like a really long road trip. But it's a great, a good place, like a good setting and it's very weird. So there's a lot of weird twists. Obviously got some like supernatural elements, because how else is he living the same day over and over? But yeah, it's kind of like twisty, mysterious and a great setting. So that's my, that's my out of left field recommendation for you, ashley. You may not like it, but definitely start with Riley Sager, because I think he's got a really good formula great settings and the twist. I just read the house across it's the house across the lake, sorry, not on the lake, the house across the lake. And the twists were crazy, but they, when I looked back on the book, they made a lot of sense. So you're not gonna be left feeling like that came out of nowhere. But anyways, that's my rec another great job.
Speaker 1:Thank you, ashley, be blessed. Okay, my last one is at dollhouse books, famous for her appearance on the red podcast and also my real life friend and part of my book club.
Speaker 1:Okay, so dollhouse book says how about a super spicy, dark, twisted romance with like a medium to fast-pacing, but written by an indie author very specific? I've been mostly wanting to read only smutty romance these days and have been getting worn out of all the fluffy rainbows and cheesy cliches of contemporary romance, so wanting that change of pace and for books I've loved, like this haunting out of line in the addicted series books, I haven't liked a touch of ruin. First of all, I also didn't like a touch of ruin. I DNF did, I think, because expectations versus reality. So a touch of ruin is the Hades and Persephone's book. Hmm, I thought it was going to be like song of Achilles, like it. You know it's like set in modern day, which is not it for me. Yeah. So I'm with you, hannah. I didn't really like it, okay. Second of all, hannah, you are the person I would go to for a super spicy, dark, twisted romance.
Speaker 1:I know fast-pacing, but written by an indie author, so I am going to try my best, but also know that this is doing your best.
Speaker 2:Yeah, this is really your lane, ok.
Speaker 1:That being said, over Christmas or like over Decemberish, I read the Princess Trap by Talia Hibbert and I know you're thinking Princess Trap. That sounds pretty fluffy and rainbows and cheesy. It has word princess in it. It is not and actually honestly that's why I picked it up was I was like, oh, like this will be fun. Yeah, it is, it's actually not. There are just like some warnings here. There are some themes of abuse and like flashbacks and things. The male main character in this story is a prince. He is super clean cut on the surface but below things are complex and that comes out in ways Dot dot dot Wink for you, I think that you'll like the Say no more.
Speaker 1:I think that you'll like the spice in this book. It's very much a departure from the mainstream. The tropes here are fake dating, celebrity, normal person, forced proximity, and I think you'll enjoy the. You know it's Pre, it's like what? Not as one of her more popular titles. I don't think that you should have to hold for it if you get it on Libby, but also OK. So warning that there is an audiobook version of it that I did a little bit of while I was reading. It is available on Spotify for free with your premium subscription. However, the prince in this book, the male main character, is not like English, he's like Swedish or something I don't I forget. So the accent work in the audiobook. It's really hard to Stuff, get on the level with this man being attractive when you hear the accent, so I would probably just go straight for reading it and that way you don't have to have that in your mind Good advice.
Speaker 1:But anyways, all that being said, that is my best shot for you, hannah, and I don't know if that's going to work, but I really hope that you give it a chance and that it does work for you, I think that was great.
Speaker 2:You know what I also thought when I read this comment. Harry or no, draco and Hermione fan fiction. I actually I almost thought that I was like you just need it.
Speaker 1:I was like actually At the house, you just want to read fan fiction, and I think that's okay too. Like I think that you want something very specific and guess what? Everyone on fan fiction is an indie author, that's what I was going to say.
Speaker 2:Indie authors, there's a lot of you don't even have. Obviously, manacal does a lot, but I've been exploring and there's a lot of like, also dark, that aren't even quite that dark, or you know like there's. That pairing lends itself to a lot of dark fan fiction, so that could be a great you know expert. Well, you know what.
Speaker 1:So with with our, our dear friend, all house books in mind yesterday, I was like I need to read, like I just know like an audio book for when I'm walking my dog. I got a hoopla. I was like what's available right now? I don't have to wait, whatever. Yeah, and it was one of the books that she recommended to us or she didn't recommend to us, but she said it was one of her favorite books of the year when she was joined.
Speaker 1:And it was um twisted love, and so, as I got it, I got the vibe of it. I don't know if it's necessarily for me All the way, which is totally fine, but based on that, I'm thinking like, if you like this, then there are certainly like elements of the princess trap I think you're going to like. So yeah, go with God, hannah. Go with God, amen.
Speaker 2:That was great, I think Good job yeah.
Speaker 1:So, with that, so fun to talk about books that we've read recently. So anything you'd like to touch me up on, I do.
Speaker 2:I do because I specifically wanted to recommend this to you. Um, maybe you saw my Instagram post about it, but it's. I don't want you like a best friend. By Emma Alban Albonne.
Speaker 1:Oh, I did see your Instagram post, but tell me about it. Okay, okay. So you guys know I'm not always into the historical fiction, but this is I was so shocked when they use, and I saw that you read a Regency era book Like on purpose I was.
Speaker 2:here's how I found this.
Speaker 1:I was delighted and happy for you.
Speaker 2:Yes, I've been looking for I was tricked by book talk, that's all I say. But I've been looking for um, like good, I really wanted to read more. Like I feel like so many romance I keep picking up and it's like they instantly get together or there's like instant attraction, and I just don't like that. I want a good plot. You know what I mean. So that's not for me. That's for some people, but not for me. I want a good plot. I want them to be friends first, like I love a good friend's lovers.
Speaker 2:Um, you're slow, just like a slow burn, yeah, and so I've been looking for that.
Speaker 1:That's why you love Draco Malfoy and the more defying ordeal with me. We'll talk about that Slowest possible brain, but we'll talk about it.
Speaker 2:Um, so I've been. I put a bunch on hold that I got recommended this one. I don't even know how it just was released. Um, so someone I guess out there recommended it, so I uh put like a notification on my library didn't even have it yet. So I said notify me if you get this. And then they did, and I think I must run the first person to get it, because then there was a huge weight after me. But I got it and I read it and it is so fun. It's so fun.
Speaker 2:So this is a Regent Sierra, it's um London and it follows um Beth and Gwen Beth is they're both debitons and so they're coming into China. By the way, just sounds horrible Trying to find a husband. Beth, her father died um semi recently, like a little over a year ago I believe, and her mom, basically because in this era women can't have things. So her father's estate went to her uncle and her uncle is going to give it all to her cousin once he becomes of age, which is the next year. Um, unless Beth can marry and have someone, a descendant, to pass it on to, which is insane.
Speaker 1:Wait. So she has to get married and have a son in a year? No, no, she just has to get married. Sorry.
Speaker 2:And then her husband would be able to inherit the money. But Beth.
Speaker 1:I hate it here.
Speaker 2:I hate it in this era. I hate it here. Additionally, her mom like doesn't have enough money, like she has some, I guess. Uh, I guess she's been given part of this estate, whatever, to live on for a little bit, but she doesn't have enough treats. Yeah, she doesn't have enough to fund more than one season, which they have to fund themselves. That's always the thing for husband. No, no, no, yeah, that's always this is always the.
Speaker 1:this is the crux of like every British and book. It's like okay, you know, there's usually like a poor person. It's like I got this is my one season.
Speaker 2:Yes, yeah, so I'm learning a lot about the region Sierra. But Then Gwen is another debutant. This is our fourth season.
Speaker 1:Her dad is crazy rich starting to get washed up though.
Speaker 2:Yes, why having you on? And she's only 21. She's only 21 an old, an old spinster and she is like has a really bad reputation among the moms and she like gets drunk and Like she doesn't have any interest in back then.
Speaker 1:Yet girls were not supposed to drink any alcohol back. No, it was like you could have one. You could have like a lemonade at the yeah, I eliminate at the the ball but she was getting hammered.
Speaker 2:So Then these two become friends. Gwen, kind of like, takes Beth under her wing and is like I'm gonna help you not get with these gross Like. There's so many gross guys, you know, trying to just be gross. So she's like I'm gonna help you. But Quinn's dad is also widowed. Many years ago his wife died in childbirth and he and Beth's mom Seemed to have a history. There's some tension, there's blushing, there's anger, there's heartbrokenness, and so Beth and Gwen decide as friends that Instead of trying to get Beth married, why don't they try to get their parents married? Because Beth or Gwen's dad.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it'll solve their problems. And Gwen's dad is like crazy rich, like insane levels rich. So that's like you have nothing to worry about. If your mom would marry my dad, what's the problem? So that's their scheme. It's like the parent trap. And Then, of course, gwen and Beth have to fall in love, and that's even better, because then they have even more stakes to make this work out.
Speaker 1:Yeah, but then I really like step sisters who are in love.
Speaker 2:Look, how else can you solve this problem in the 1800s?
Speaker 1:Look back then. This is your in love.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's fine, it's, it's okay so it's so good, it's like it's, it's like nice, because they really this really is a friend's lover is. I would say, if you're just looking for a really fun book, that's gonna have you like giggling and kicking your feet and like there's really good dialogue between them and I just like their friendship is very genuinely built up and then them falling in love is very genuinely built up. And I think it's probably difficult to write a Regency era like queer novel because it just like either you have to make things happen that wouldn't have really happened, like you have to make it unbelievable, or you have to make it depressing. But I think this is a really good, like Well done version that's not sad and it's not unbelievable. It's like it kind of works and Obviously you know people have of all kinds, have always existed. So it's just a nice little read and it sets up a great sequel which is actually coming out later this year. So this author's, she's on it, she's on it?
Speaker 2:I'm assuming she kind of wrote them, you know, in tandem, because you know it very clearly segues into a next Book. So I'm excited to read that sequel. I feel like this is right up my alley. Yes, I was reading it in God, you would really like this and it's. I learned a lot again. They did not know very much at all about the Regency, you know era.
Speaker 1:Maybe this is your, maybe maybe this is your gateway drug. I'm really looking forward to May, when season Three of Bridgerton comes out and I have to make you read the Bridgerton four and yeah, we have to talk about it because I Think you're gonna like it and I think I'm gonna give you All right, Love it Um All right. What have I been reading?
Speaker 2:Let's see.
Speaker 1:I've read. Okay. So to kind of pick up on a conversation we had in our last it's a last time you had just read Jacob Malfoy in the mortifying ordeal of being in love. I have read that now, Internal screaming. You were so right that it's like the. The. It is a great cleanser after reading man's cold.
Speaker 1:It is the. The seriousness is low. Like things work out. Yeah, like, yes, it's just like oh, thank God, it's fun. Yeah, it is fun it's. And also one thing I liked about it is that they're like in their 30s, which I Really liked that. I really liked that. I like that. That they kind of just had their things like yeah you know, whatever anyway they're established is their own people.
Speaker 2:They're not like figuring things out together. It's like, okay, I have, you know, they're very independent people, and then they, you know yes, totally, for me it was the slowest.
Speaker 1:We're like I'm, this is a long, ah fanfic. Okay, this is long, and halfway through I texted Emily and I texted you and I was like Hello, they have grazed fingertips, the yearning, and also, because it's from Draco's POV, like you don't know if she even reciprocates anything at all or if she's having any feelings whatsoever at all until, like, really close to the end. Yeah, so it was, it was really sweet and it was, it was good. It's delightful. But, like be warned, like this is a Hello burn and when, like, like in that dad does make the payoff, like when the, when the main characters finally get together, it makes it, yeah, very satisfying. But also, you're like y'all come on Please.
Speaker 2:Yeah, years, I Think it does take over the course of a year.
Speaker 1:So it does. It takes over the course of year, but I honestly realistic, like if you have kind of always been enemies, yeah.
Speaker 2:Exactly that's why I don't like these enemies. To lovers where they're like. Oh, suddenly, one day later, I love you. No, that's not real right. I mean that's that's for some people, but I did binge read this, so I think that's the way to do it. Like, if you can devote a whole weekend reading this, I think that's the way to go. Don't drag it out, because it is quite long there is also etl.
Speaker 1:Echo did up another. They did the an audiobook of this on Spotify.
Speaker 2:Love that.
Speaker 1:so for for society, I will say I will say, like God bless the people who did this. The Hermione voice is giving Hermione. It's very like Mmm. What is it From?
Speaker 2:you know, yes, you know, I love when I love when voice actors do voices and not like I don't like as much when they're just like I am going to the store and yeah, you know, like when they have no, they just are reading it, you know, in that narrative voice. I mean, I understand why people do that, but I like it when there's more, you know, artisticness.
Speaker 1:So me too great, excellent Okay.
Speaker 1:On top of that, I'm taking a more serious turn. I read cast by Isabelle Wilkerson. It's called cast subtitle the origins of our discontent, and it compares cast systems across the world over time and to the cast system in the United States. And so her argument is that like Not only is like a America, like structurally and systematically like a racist country, but it's also a cast system and comparing it to the, the Nazi cast cast system and the Indian cast system. And so she uses a lot of great stories to discuss that and how, advocacy, like how Germany has like made true reparations for and like healing from the, from their cast system and the negative effects of the Nazi regime and the ways actually like some really like Interesting comparisons that really put things in perspective in America, like the way that our country has been built. So, but it's also I'm kind of used about how it's gonna be a movie Because it's being made into like it's being fictionalized in some way or like made into a story, a movie coming out called origin or origins. So it's gonna be That'll be interesting, I think. Probably it's using like a narrative form, like this researcher who's researching about the cast system. Sure, but it was really really good.
Speaker 1:I've. I've read quite a few books Around this topic over the last few years and this one really stood out. So I recommend if I mostly did the audio book on this one it's the audio book is included in your premium subscription of Spotify, although I did run out of listening hours because it's quite long. So then I was like, okay, what am I gonna do? And I I ended up getting the regular copy from the library and finishing it that way. But I recommend, and at the very least, maybe seeing a movie would be really interesting for people who are interested.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it sounds really good, You're welcome.
Speaker 1:You're welcome. All right, that's all we have. This is a good episode, well done.
Speaker 2:This is great, very fun. See you guys next time. Catch you guys next time you.