Fiction Fans

Your hosts let the spoilers fly in their discussion of “Feet of Clay” by Terry Pratchett (although they avoid the main mystery so it’s not actually that spoilery, overall). They consider Vimes’s character flaws and how he still manages to be a sympathetic character, debate some of the cruder points of werewolf dating, and manage to agree on how great Nobby Nobbs is. Sara gets to enjoy Vetinari at...

Your hosts are serious adults, which means that of course they have to celebrate episode 69 (lol) of Fiction Fans by having author Dani Finn on to talk about some good old fashioned monster fucking. What makes monsterfucking different from monsters fucking? What kinds of monsters count? Could Lilly be more wrong about cryptid origin stories? Your hosts aren’t any kind of expert, but along with Dan...

Your hosts fail at basic movie trivia in their discussion of “Maskerade” by Terry Pratchett. They discuss how the book’s heroine defies the expectations of those around her, manipulative witches, and the Opera House as a character. They also argue about which death is the saddest. Sara commandeers a Words are Weird segment to talk about Nanny Ogg’s cookbook, The Joy of Snacks. Thanks to the follow...

Your hosts are joined by Emily Edwards, host of Fuckbois of Lit and author of Viviana Valentine Gets Her Man, to talk about the first novel in her historical detective series. The conversation covers a discussion of her research process to what inspired the all of the outfit descriptions in the novel to a Words Are Weird segment focused on period-accurate slang. https://twitter.com/MsEmilyEdwards...

Your hosts dip their toes into poetry with an interview with T.L. Coty about her collection “Summer Lines: And the Leaves That Fall Behind Them.” They discuss the differences between poetry and fiction, how this collection was arranged on the page, and the intersection between literary and visual arts. Find more from T.L. Coty Here: https://twitter.com/revelryinread https://linktr.ee/TLCoty Thanks...

This episode contains discussion of child abuse and self harm. Your hosts are joined by Spencer and Gabe of The Fantasy Files to talk about the thriller Sole Survivor by Dean Koontz. The new readers share what they guessed happened while the re-readers gleefully picked up on new hints. This doesn’t come up in the episode but yes, Sara was kind of freaked out the first time she got on an airplane a...

Your hosts welcome Chris Panatier on to the podcast for his second episode, this time talking about his debut novel The Phlebotomist. There's a big twist about eighty pages into the book, which makes a non-spoiler discussion difficult. The conversation ranges from elderly protagonists to inanimate objects feeling like full-bodied characters to spoilers. They also spend a few minutes contempla...

Your hosts kill their demons in this discussion of “Ring Shout” by P. Djèlí Clark. They talk about the joys (and horror) of horror, how much Lilly loves the 20s (it’s relevant, we promise) and get a bit distracted by a conversation regarding body horror and ableism (not actually relevant to “Ring Shout” at all, but still interesting). This episode also includes a Words Are Weird and hilarious clot...

In the first Spooky Month episode of the year, your hosts discuss The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Harris. They are challenged by the genre conventions of this novel and the brutal experiences of people of color in the publishing industry. Sara remains Not A Horror Reader, and Lilly puts her foot in her mouth probably at least once. This episode also features a Pet Peeve Corner that could have been...

Your hosts were delighted to interview Patricia A. Jackson about her book “Forging a Nightmare” even if they got distracted praising Anaba, the titular Nightmare, constantly. They talk about diversity in fantasy and religion, the complexity of Christian Mythology, and how kickass Anaba is. Patricia brings us to a Pet Peeve Corner about book bannings, and how important representation is for a young...

Your hosts discuss a childhood classic, The Hobbit. Turns out, it’s pretty different from Lord of the Rings. They talk a lot about Tolkien and dwarves and how Bilbo is just like you and me (or, Sara and Lilly, at least). They also spend a lot of time defending the Hobbit movie trilogy. The new tv show “Rings of Power” comes up despite good intentions. “Worms” features in this episode’s segment of...

In this episode, your hosts try to find something nice to say about Interesting Times by Terry Pratchett. They struggle, because there’s a lot of racism. There are some fun octogenarian barbarian hijinks, at least? This episode also features a segment about how Words are Weird (and, shockingly, isn’t about pronunciation for once). Thanks to the following musicians for the use of their songs: - Ama...

Your hosts are joined by Patty Tavormina to discuss her novel Aerovoyant, which is science fiction that gets the facts spot-on for all of the terrifying parts (like climate change). They talk about merging storytelling with informative science and how her background in planetary and geological sciences was the foundation for this world. They also bring up heartbreaking families and triumphant char...

Your hosts are joined by Ciel Pierlot to talk about all things fandom. They discuss the joys of fanfiction, including Sansûkh by Determamfidd that Ciel attributes with getting her back into writing. They also bring up systemic issues with Fandoms and when things get “problematic.” They also spend a lot of time talking about Tolkien’s work, the works surrounding his work, and their adaptations far...

Your hosts discuss the first novella in the “Run with the Hunted” series by Jennifer Donohue (also called “Run with the Hunted”). They disagree vehemently on the POV character (surprising no one) but DO agree about fun heists, playing with tropes, and big ass diamonds. This episode features a Pet Peeve Corner about people who are obnoxious about word pronunciation. Thanks to the following musician...

Your hosts talk with author Chris Farnell about his darkly humorous science fiction novel "Fermi's Progress". The conversation ranges from planets that didn't make it into the book to how he managed to make the superman character sympathetic rather than obnoxious. They also talk about diverse alien cultures in a "planet of the week" format. You can find more from Chri...

Your hosts were thrilled to finally talk about “The Marauders, the Daughter, and the Dragon” by KRRLockhaven. They discuss emotional breadth, having cozy moments without being “cozy fantasy,” and the high stakes of personal loss. They also visit the pet peeve corner, where Sara complains about how no one but Lockhaven seems to have figured out an enjoyable way to include songs in books (yes, we’re...

Three poops ago, we read The Gunslinger with the Fantasy Files. Gabe was so annoyed by it that he refused to come to the recording (jk he was trapped in capitalism hell) so we chatted with Spencer about all the ways we want to see The Gunslinger cry.  Content Warning: This episode contains discussion of fictional sexual assault. You can find more Fantasy Files content on YouTube: https://www.youtu...

SPOILER WARNING: This entire episode contains spoilers for Wild Magic, the Immortals Series, The Song of the Lioness Series, and other Tortall books. Your hosts are joined by Hannah and Laura from On Wednesdays We Read for a Nostalgia Book Club episode (it’s a thing now). They talk about Wild Magic by Tamora Pierce, an extremely foundational Tween Girl Has Secret Magic Powers and Saves the World b...

Your hosts have finally reached the first Discworld novel to feature Susan (Death's granddaughter), and they are (understandably) thrilled. They spend a lot of time talking about how thrilled they are, in fact. They also discuss Pratchett's call out of all Saras who spell their name without an "h", music references, and how all of the Death books kind of repeat the same plot po...

Your hosts discuss Fireheart Tiger by Aliette de Bodard, as decided by a vote on the Fiction Fans Patreon (link below!?!). They talk about the importance of accurate book comps and how much of a difference it can make being in the right mood for a book. They also bring up relationship-centered storytelling and slow-revealed fantasy worlds. This episode features a Pet Peeve where Lilly spends a lot...

Your hosts are joined by Gabriela Houston to talk about her book The Wind Child. They discuss grief and how to write about serious concepts for younger children. They also talk about the many depictions of motherhood, best friends, and Slavic folklore. 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...

Your hosts indulge a little too much in “this is more of a comment than a question” as they are once again joined by Sherwood Smith, this time to talk about Inda (one of Sara’s favorite books ever). They discuss choreographing big battles, sex positivity in fiction, and Sherwood’s current projects. You can find more from Sherwood here: https://www.sherwoodsmith.net/ https://www.patreon.com/user/po...

Your hosts discuss the novel Ten Low by Stark Holborn. They praise this iteration of the Western sci-fi setting and how none of the conflict fabricated for the sake of the story. Since this novel is written in the first person, Lilly does complain a bit about that. But don’t worry, she stuck around long enough to get to the TRAIN HEIST (and it was totally worth it). This episode features a book-re...

In this episode of (non)Fiction Fans, your hosts talked with best-selling science author Mary Roach about her latest book Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law. They discuss in-the-field research, humor in non-fiction, and what surprised Mary most about her research. Oh, and they also unexpectedly talk a lot about tiger penises. You can find more from Mary Roach here: https://maryroach.net/ https://twi...