Is This Just Fantasy?

It's the first of two episodes in our annual Halloween boooook club. Geordie picked the Library at Mount Char completely by accident and what a triumph! The boys adored this book and they discuss: its humour, its intense metaphysical weirdness, its stubborn refusal to be compared with anything else, and the unbelievable fact that its the author's debut.

Sooooo due to Geordie trying to be a responsible book buyer, his copy of The Library at Mount Char hasn't arrived yet. Oh calamity, oh Bailey! But Geordie has a plan. He challenges Duncan to a first sentence challenge, where the fellas test the other to see if they can guess the fantasy novel from just the opening line. Duncan plays dirty, Geordie plays too nice, and it's a pretty embarrassing sho...

“It is important, when recording a podcast, to ensure that you choose a book of sufficient quality." Duncan and Geordie are back from their holidays, ready to recount all the books they read and discuss 'Red Sister' by Mark Lawrence. Duncan is a big fan of Lawrence's, whereas Geordie thinks 'Prince of Thorns' is the most repugnant book he ever gave up on. In addition to discussing the highs and lo...

Hoo-boy! More racist than you thought. Yup, Robert E. Howard is tragically offensive in this 1936 novella. The fellas are left gutted, and with complicated feelings about Howard using his amazing writing for evil. Duncan gives a crash-course in Conan history, and talks non-stop about pastiche novels, and Geordie doesn't have the heart to tell him that he doesn't know how to pronounce "pastiche."

The curse is ended, we've got a good book! A great book! The fellas get lost in Geordie's vast love of Greek mythology, the wonderful love story of Achilles and Patroclus, One of the best episodes yet! T/W: This episode contains discussions around the topic of rape, which is an important theme within the book.

It's a real monster of an episode! Whilst the fellas make their way through Song of Achilles, they take a break to discuss the dark and perilous side of fantasy: the monsters that must be slain. The topics discussion stray into Geordie being confidently wrong about Chinese mythology, Hogwarts plumbing, and fist fighting H.P. Lovecraft. How is it to say Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl f...

The title of this book doesn't even make sense! It's a good day for John Gwynn, but a bad one for Duncan and Geordie. The boys have found their new low-point in their quest to explore the fantasy genre. Even Duncan, try as he might, can't fully defend this book. They discuss: baffling writing choices, painfully cringey sex scenes, and all the books you should read instead of this one.

The boys blend ancient divine rites with alchemy in Gareth Hanrahan's debut: The Gutter Prayer. Duncan lauds the book's world building, whilst Geordie thinks it's not enough to support a weak story and characters. They discuss the use of tense, Duncan's new mistrust of professors since leaving academics, and Geordie keeps trying to talk about The Expanse and the Count of Monte Cristo instead

The fellas roadtrip across America, meeting a cavalcade of gods in the process. No, it's not Percy Jackson. In this episode Geordie and Duncan debate the pros and cons of Neil Gaiman's fantasy-novel-with-a-lot-of-hyphens. The episode highlights include: Geordie's horror when he realised Duncan didn't like it, Duncan not realising that Jesus appears in the novel, and a gust appearance by Geordie's...

Whoa! A bonus episode? That's right, Duncan and Geordie can't get enough of podcasting and have released their first bonus episode. In this episode the fellas discuss their early reading years and how they got into the fantasy genre. The discussion goes everywhere, from being read bedtime stories, the time Duncan read all of A Song of Ice and Fire in 19 days, Dragon Ball, and perhaps the most obsc...

Neither of the fellas knew this book existed until Duncan unwrapped it at Christmas, so they're surprised to find out how much they love it! In this episode the boys cover Kristen Britain's 1998 ya fantasy adventure debut, Green Rider. They discuss sword fights, the best horses in fantasy, and a shocking revelation makes Geordie laugh harder than he has in years.

To begin their journey into YA literature, the fellas settle in to read Twilight by Stephanie Meyer. They discuss the book's popularity, the blow-back against it, and misogyny in the fantasy landscape. They've a lot to cover in this episode, from discussing the highs and lows of Edward's qualities as a boyfriend, the surprising lack of Jacob, and Geordie's hatred of the word "chuckled."

For the first time in history, the fellas have no idea what the other thought of the book. Its a journey of discovery for all of us. Duncan and Geordie discuss 'Malice' John Gwynne's debut novel - best known as the author of those books with the real big monsters on the front. In this ep Geordie schools Duncan on Irish mythology and has a good rant about shieldwall logistics, whilst Duncan cannot...

Duncan and Geordie voyage across the deep seas in their first forray into Ursula K. Le Guin's fantasy continuum: A Wizard of Earthsea. The fellas discuss the power of names in fantasy, from Ra to Rumpelstiltskin to Rothfuss, feminism, Le Guin's revolutionary place in the canon of fantasy, as well as the novel's unique Taoist philosophy. In case that sounds too heavy, Duncan also takes Geordie as h...

It's the boys' most divisive episode yet. Duncan brings Matthew Stover's Star Wars novelisation to the table, triggering Geordie's existential breakdown. Duncan shares his passion for all things Star Wars, whilst Geordie tries to grapple with the shame of being a Star Wars nerd. Can Duncan get Geordie to admit he loves this book? Will Geordie learn to make peace with the Star Wars prequels? And ju...

The most ineffable episode yet. The team take their first look at one of their favourite fantasy novelists: Sir Terry Pratchett, and give their impression on his collaboration with Neil Gaimen. They have a laugh at the fantastic humour, and unpack Terry's breakdown of good and evil cosmology. And chalk it on the score board, it's the first mention of death of the author on the podcast, as Geordie...

After... uh-hum... absolutely nothing happened with the last recording... Duncan takes us into our first moray into the Moorcockiverse. Does Elric of Melniboné live up to Geordie's expectations? Will he be able to talk about anything but Dungeons and Dragons? Will Duncan be able to explain the reading order? But more importantly, can he figure out how to pronounce the name of the book?

It seems Duncan couldn't resist. Unable to cope with the wait, he chose to select the sequel to the last book: Laini Taylor's 'The Muse of Nightmares.' In the conclusion to the duology, Geordie and Duncan discuss how it compares to the first, the romance, and Geordie won't shut up about set-up and pay-off.

With his first chosen book of the podcast, Geordie brings us on a journey into mystery and romance with Laini Taylor's 'Strange the Dreamer.' Find out if, like Geordie, this is your favourite fantasy novel of all time, and see whether Duncan agrees with him. Content warning: Strange the Dreamer is a novel about trauma, and whilst the novel handles the topic with great delicacy, listeners and reade...

The premier episode! Meet Geordie and Duncan on the cusp of their first episode as their journey to 1932 and beyond to an Age Undreamed Of. If you've never read a Conan story, or whether you're a fellow dog-brother or sword-sister, listen as we discuss Robert E. Howard's classic Conan novella: The Tower of the Elephant.