Book and Bottle

In this episode, we aimed to do something a little different to celebrate 2023 and take a look ahead to 2024. Nick Girard, author of In The Beginning, and Marina Mellifera, a friend and avid reader, join us in discussing our top reads and honorable mentions in 2023, our TBR for 2024, and exciting new plans! WARNING: SPOILERS AND EXPLICIT CONTENT. Please research specific book trigger warnings befo...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly dive deep into some controversial topics with Nick Girard. We would like to point out that there is discussion around religion, gender inequality, and violence. For the sake of a shorter conversation, some generalizations have been made and we want to acknowledge that there are always exceptions and rarely anything is ever black and white. Written by Nick Girard,...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly take December to feature self-published authors. Covering In The Beginning, Holly fails at mad libs, Callie brings up cottage cheese for no reason, and they phone God to schedule a meeting. Written by Nick Girard, In The Beginning is a throught-provoking take on good, evil, and the meaning of life. The books follows God through the creation of angels, Earth, heav...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly sit down and chat with their first ever author guest: Allie Maddox. Together, they dive into how fast gryphons can fly, writing smut, and how to best support indie authors! Her first book, A Tale of Love and Bones is the start of a series with magic, love, and a prophecy of death to save the world! The story follows Bria, learning how to use her dark magic to ful...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly take December to feature self-published authors. Covering A Tale of Love and Bones, Callie chokes on her candy cane beverage, Holly things dungeons smell like rum, and they discuss cinnamon roll men. Written by Allie Maddox, A Tale of Love and Bones is the first of a series with magic, love, and a prophecy of death to save the world! The story follows Bria, learn...

In this episode, roles are switched as Holly gives Callie a break from the nonstop reading. Holly speeds through the remainder of the book and we uncover two things: Callie technically did predict the end in a way and also we all need "a list". This is part 2 of the story! The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent follows Oriya, a human adopted by a vampire king, who enters...

In this episode, roles are switched as Holly gives Callie a break from the nonstop reading. Holly covers The Serpent and the Wings of Night maybe a little too thoroughly BUT gives us all the juicy details of Oraya's trials in the Kejari. This is part one, so be sure to subscribe so you don't miss part two! The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent follows Oriya, a human adopt...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly give their thoughts on Kingdom of Ash, including what main characters they'd be willing to off. But, they also take some time to zoom out and look at the whole Maas Universe game board. Written by Sarah J Maas, the series follows Celeana Sardothian, a former assassin looking to win back her kingdom. WARNING: SPOILERS AND EXPLICIT CONTENT. Please research spec...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly finish out the Throne of Glass series. In a 2-hour special, they cover all 1,000 pages as quickly as humanly possible. It was rough. Written by Sarah J Maas, the series follows Celeana Sardothian, a former assassin looking to win back her kingdom. WARNING: SPOILERS AND EXPLICIT CONTENT. Please research specific book trigger warnings before listening.   Help suppo...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly continue on in the wild world of dark romance by covering the sequel to Haunting Adeline: Hunting Adeline. They review their thoughts and feelings, pairing sobering moments of trauma with wild moments like being belted to a tree... Written by H.D. Carlton, Haunting Adeline follows Adeline Reilly, an author, who is targeted by a stalker who is madly obsessed with...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly continue on in the wild world of dark romance by covering the sequel to Haunting Adeline: Hunting Adeline. The girls sober up to cover some serious topics, Holly thinks Zade goes too far, and Sibby saves the day with comedic relief. Written by H.D. Carlton, Haunting Adeline follows Adeline Reilly, an author, who is targeted by a stalker who is madly obsessed with...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly are joined by Marina Mellifera, their favorite drag friend, to share their thoughts on Haunting Adeline. They talk about dubious consent, Callie's experiment with face slaps, and Marina cheers so hard, she loses a nail! Written by H.D. Carlton, Haunting Adeline follows Adeline Reilly, an author, who is targeted by a stalker who is madly obsessed with her. WAR...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly jump into the wild world of dark romance. They create a safe word, add a heavy content disclaimer, and get into the world of dubious consent and graphic material. Spoiler: They like it. Written by H.D. Carlton, Haunting Adeline follows Adeline Reilly, an author, who is targeted by a stalker who is madly obsessed with her. WARNING: SPOILERS AND EXPLICIT CONTENT. P...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly take a sober moment to randomly jump from thought to thought on the tandem read. Organized? No. Informational? Somewhat. A wild ride? Always. They discuss forgetting your name, the spice, and some random trains of thought. Written by Sarah J Maas (who we all know and love from ACOTAR and Crescent City), Throne of Glass is a series featuring a deadly assassin name...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly drink probably a bit too much in an effort to get through the second half of the tandem read. Holly shows off her finger lattices, demands more Chaol and Yrene, and somehow turns a sad scene into a sex scene. Written by Sarah J Maas (who we all know and love from ACOTAR and Crescent City), Throne of Glass is a series featuring a deadly assassin named Celaena Sard...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly continue through the Throne of Glass series. Opting for the tandem read, they discuss iron fingies, Into the Woods and Cinderella, and how interesting Chaol's story actually gets! Written by Sarah J Maas (who we all know and love from ACOTAR and Crescent City), Throne of Glass is a series featuring a deadly assassin named Celaena Sardothien. A mere teenage ki...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly slow down and discuss their thoughts on Queen of Shadows by Sarah J Maas. While it's clear Sarah is setting up the chess board to move the plot forward, it wasn't a favorite. They also discuss upcoming events and potential content! Written by Sarah J Maas (who we all know and love from ACOTAR and Crescent City), Throne of Glass is a series featuring a dea...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly revisit the Throne of Glass series. In Queen of Shadows, they egg on Rowan and Aelin's romance, question Stevan with an A, and get a little too off track. Sorry for the two-hour long episode! Written by Sarah J Maas (who we all know and love from ACOTAR and Crescent City), Throne of Glass is a series featuring a deadly assassin named Celaena Sardothien. A mer...

Today, Callisa and Holly are joined by Hannah and Laura from On Wednesdays We Read Podcast! Together, they review all three books of The Inheritance Games series, including The Inheritance Games, The Hawthorne Legacy, and The Final Gambit. They debate the crazy family tree and the odd game of strip bowling being played with family members. Written by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, The Inheritance Games ser...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly move onto the third book of the Inheritance Games series, The Final Gambit. Callisa and Holly manage to puzzle together the insane family tree and have very mixed feelings about the end. Written by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, The Inheritance Games series follows teenage Avery as she mysteriously inherits billions of dollars. Sucked into a world of riddles and puzzles,...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly move onto the second book of the Inheritance Games series, The Hawthorne Legacy. Callisa absolutely speeds through all the riddles, barely able to decipher her own notes. Holly is caught up on the fact that she had to read "... like the hot tub is on fire..." when things get steamy. Written by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, The Inheritance Games series follows t...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly cover the first book of the series, The Inheritance Games. They cover is Tobias Hawthorn a GILF, what happened to dead Emily, and ultimately why does Avery get billions of dollars? Written by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, The Inheritance Games series follows teenage Avery as she mysteriously inherits billions of dollars. Sucked into a world of riddles and puzzles, everyo...

Today, Callisa and Holly are joined by Emma and Zoey from Roommates Who Read Podcast! Together, they discuss all three books of the Serpent & Dove series, including Blood & Honey and Gods & Monsters. They discuss the challenge of French, how Ansel is the best, the level of spice, and somehow all finished with different ideas of the ending... Written by Shelby Mahurin, the Serpent &...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly cover the final book of the Serpent & Dove series, Gods & Monsters. They sing songs, get attacked by a spider, shed some tears, and blast through this action-packed finale! Written by Shelby Mahurin, the Serpent & Dove series follows Louise, a witch, who ends up having to be close to Reid Diggory, a witch hunter. In a true "We fear what we don&#3...

In this episode, Callisa and Holly cover the second book of the Serpent & Dove series, Blood & Honey. They enjoy more French names, discuss misogyny, and think through logistically how bad it would be to taste blood and honey. Written by Shelby Mahurin, the Serpent & Dove series follows Louise, a witch, who ends up having to be close to Reid Diggory, a witch hunter. In a true "We...