The Dust Jacket

Our friend Caleb joins us to talk about the fantasy/mystery crossover, The Tainted Cup, which is basically Sherlock Holmes with kaiju. 
We talk about what kaiju are, why more fantasies (and mysteries) should be funnier, and how the second book in this series let us down. 
Spoilers, including for the sequel, starting from 29 minutes

This week we're arguing about Lady Tan's Circle of Women, by Lisa See. We disagree about everything from the controversies surrounding the author to the objective of historical fiction. And especially whether Lady Tan herself is a good character or not.

This week we have a special guest, Bailey, on the show to talk about one of her favorite books, The Death of Vivek Oji. 
We talk about the incestuous sex scenes, the divisive ending, and a whole lot more. 
Spoilers from 20 mins

We discuss the 2025 runaway hit, Broken Country, by Clare Leslie Hall. It features both cheating and a wedding, so we have plenty to discuss. 
Light spoilers at 8 minutes, full spoilers at 24 minutes

This week we discuss the seminal sci-fi novel-in-stories The Martian Chronicles, with special guest Sam, who brought his father's original edition to the discussion. 
No spoilers since this book doesn't really have a plot, but we do spoil individual stories. 

We discuss Thao Thai's Banyan Moon and other multi-generational sagas 
 
Spoilers from 11 minutes in

We discuss whether this 2012 still holds up or if the controversies are too much for it. We also talk about the wide range of philosophical questions it asks. 
TW: assisted suicide
Spoilers at 5 minutes in

We discuss the Fourth Wing-esque, possibly AI-written, new romantasy Silver Elite, with a special guest from our book group, Kate the librarian! 
We get into some of the rumors swirling around this book, why it was only disappointingly bad, not amusingly bad, and more. 
Spoilers start at 27 minutes

We discuss The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. For some of us, it was an iconic formative book. For others, a dumb thing boys liked. 
Spoilers start at 19 mins

We have a special guest star--our niece and TJR superfan Kayla--on the pod to talk about TJR's previous book, Carrie Soto Is Back, and also Taylor Jenkins Reid in general. 
Spoilers start at 27 mins