Besties and the Books Podcast

Send us Fan Mail This week Ashley and Liz embark on a nearly impossible task!  We rate all eight Throne of Glass books from least liked, to most liked! When we said this was a doozy, we meant it! Especially since all 8 books are easily 4 or 5 star reads for us. Is Tower of Dawn (“Chaol’s book) deserving of all the hate it gets? Is Kingdom of Ash as epic as everyone says? What is the “Where is my w...

Send us Fan Mail This week Ashley and Liz kick off the episode with some serious Millennial nostalgia. We’re talking American Eagle jeans, Warped Tour, and books from the 90’s! We take you on a journey back to your youth through the books that made us who we are today. What stories molded our easily pliable elementary and middle school brains? The Hobbit, Anne of Green Gables, and DEAR AMERICA BOO...

Send us Fan Mail This week Ashley and Liz kick off the episode with some snow, a sword store, and a haunted Stanley Hotel (aka The Shining Hotel) fave and fail. In previous episodes we discussed our “icks” (our most disliked book tropes), picked books to read that we thought each other would be “Icked out” by, and today, we finally discuss those books!  There’s small town cowboy romance with a sid...

Send us Fan Mail This week Ashley and Liz start off with a life or 💀 fave and fail of the week before breaking down the logistics of our five star rating and spice systems. Are we rating books based on vibes and feelings? Or on objective characteristics and markers we look for in good storytelling? The answer: it’s complicated. We then delve into the ethics of rating books, and some potentially c...

Send us Fan Mail The moment you all have been waiting for is officially here! This week Ashley and Liz dive into the deep depths of Crescent City 3: House of Flame and Shadow, the third installment in the much anticipated Sarah J. Maas series. We discuss the hype, some conspiracy theories, why we were a bit disappointed by an otherwise excellent book, and the AUDACITY of certain SJM “boys” to keep...

Send us Fan Mail This week Ashley and Liz kick the podcast off with a faves and fails for the ages. If you want to laugh… hard… this might be the most hilarious episode yet.  We delve into our top 5 book tropes that give us the icks. What topics in books make us cringe? Is there a difference between a guy who’s clingy and a guy who watches you without your knowledge on 24/7 security footage? Would...

Send us Fan Mail This week Ashley and Liz relive House of Sky & Breathe, otherwise known as Crescent City 2, and the ending heard ‘round the world! Join us as we recount our most and least favorite reads of 2023, break down HOSAB with a (not) fine-toothed comb, and tie it together with some good old Sarah J. Maas universe conspiracy theories.  Oh, and if you stick around to the end find out wh...

Send us Fan Mail This week, explore the deep and awkward depths of our minds as Ashley and Liz cover ALL the book bases. We start with our faves and fails of the week, move on to a satisfyingly ridiculous barrage of answering unhinged book questions, and end with a smash or pass session us fantasy lovers can all relate to.  Is walking the 10,000 steps in the House of Wind worth it when there’s a b...

Send us Fan Mail Join Ashley and Liz this week as they haphazardly delve into the complexity that is Crescent City 1: House of Earth and Blood. We break it down into the parts we find interesting, emphasize the importance of vibes (we’re more “sparknotes” and less encyclopedia Britannia for our fellow millennials out there) and introduce you to our new segments: Weekly Faves & Fails, and the c...

Send us Fan Mail It's a tale as old as time... two real life besties who've both had a love of books since they first learned to read decide to make book podcast together! I would say the rest is history but in actuality, it's just the beginning. So come join us in the next chapter of our lives as we explore the world of books with a focus on Fantasy, Romantasy, and Dark Romance. Of...

Send us Fan Mail We’re Ashley and Liz, two real-life besties who’ve loved books since we first learned to read, so naturally, we started a podcast! We would say the rest is history but in actuality, it's just the beginning. So come join us in the next chapter of our lives as we introduce ourselves, and laugh our way through the world of books with a focus on Fantasy, Romantasy, and Dark Roman...