Paperback Ponderings

For the first time ever, Sarah and Kyla are thrilled to welcome a special guest to the podcast! You can find Lesia on bookstagram at @litwithlesia where she shares great fantasy and queer book recommendations. Today, the three are sitting down to chat about Margaret Rogerson's Sorcery of Thorns, which follows an apprentice of the Great Library of Summershall, where grimoires turn into monsters whe...

Find your next book to read with this spoiler-free chat about all the books Sarah and Kyla read and loved in May! Books discussed: - Things We Left Behind by Lucy Score - The Unmaking of June Farrow by Adrienne Young - The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley - Bride by Ali Hazelwood - Funny Story by Emily Henry - The Prisoner's Throne by Holly Black - The Reading List by Sarah Nisha Adams - Sorcer...

Join Sarah and Kyla this week for an entertaining discussion on Ali Hazelwood's latest romance and first foray into the paranormal genre, Bride. The first part of the episode is spoiler-free for anyone still deciding if they want to read it, and then we'll move into the spoilers (with warning!). Tune in for more on Misery's hilarious internal monologue, whether Lowe is a flat character, and the wa...

Join Sarah and Kyla for a more-challenging-than-expected game where one reads out the first line of a book they've both read and the other has to guess which book it's from. This was a true test of their bookish knowledge and an interesting peek into the effectiveness and memorability of the way authors start their stories. Listen and see if you can guess any of these first lines better than they...

Aprils book club propels Sarah, Kyla, and you all into the works of Hafsah Faizal, New York Times Bestselling Author of "We Hunt the Flame," with her newest novel "A Tempest of Tea." First published February, 2024 we couldn't wait to dive into this work, as it was both of our first reads by this author. If you've not read it yet, the first half of this episode is completely spoiler free! So join u...

Join Sarah and Kyla for a completely spoiler-free chat about all the books they read in April. Books discussed: - Emily Wilde's Map of the Otherlands by Heather Fawcett - A Letter to the Luminous Deep by Sylvie Cathrall - The Prisoner's Throne by Holly Black - The Last Tale of the Flower Bride by Roshani Chokshi - Two Twisted Crowns by Rachel Gillig - A Tempest of Tea by Hafsah Faizal - The Foxglo...

This week, Sarah and Kyla are back with a list of recommendations based on popular, trending books. They'll each give a few names you may be familiar with, and then provide a recommendation for a different book that gives off similar vibes, whether it's from plot structure, ambience, or the characters themselves. So essentially: If you like this book, we think you should read that book!

This week, Sarah and Kyla are diving into the highly anticipated standalone historical fantasy from Leigh Bardugo—The Familiar. Starting with a spoiler-free synopsis and overall thoughts for those of you who are still trying to decide if you want to read it, they'll then move into spoiler territory with a full book breakdown (don't worry, there will be warnings!). Prose vs plot, the limits of magi...

If you've been wanting to see what all the Shadowhunter hype is about but feel overwhelmed by the seemingly thousands of books in this world, this is the episode for you! Even if you read The Mortal Instruments back in the day when it first came out but don't know where to start with the 3+ spinoff series, we're here to help. This episode will break down all of the main series in chronological ord...

Join Sarah and Kyla for an award ceremony-style episode where they judge the film adaptations of all your favourite books in categories like Best Female/Male Lead Casting, Best Ambience & Scene Setting, Best Overall Adaptation, and more! They have some pretty strong opinions and they do not hold back. If you love (or hate) seeing the books you love on the big screen, this is the episode for you!

Sarah and Kyla are back with another spoiler-free chat about all the books they read in March, followed by a book club discussion of Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson. The book club portion of the episode will contain spoilers, but don't worry, you'll be warned before they start! Other books discussed: - The Ex Hex by Erin Sterling - Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score - Things We H...

Get ready for spring with a list of upcoming fantasy book releases over the next few months! Sarah and Kyla are sharing all the major spring releases along with a spoiler-free description of each so you can prep your TBR in advance and stay on top of all the new seasonal releases of 2024.

If you're bad at keeping track of new book releases, this episode is for you! This week, Sarah and Kyla give a recap of all the major new fantasy book releases between January and March of 2024. This list is not exhaustive, but they cover the major, buzz-worthy titles so you can stay up to date with what's trending and be prepared to vote in the 2024 Goodreads Choice Awards (a personal goal of the...

Set sail with us this week for a deep dive (pun intended) into The World of the Narrows series by Adrienne Young. The first half of the episode will be spoiler-free, providing descriptions of what each book is about and how we felt about it for anyone thinking of starting the series or debating whether they want to continue it. Next, we'll move on to a full-spoilers discussion on everything from F...

Join Sarah and Kyla for a spoiler-free discussion of all the books they read in February, followed by a very spoilery chat about our February book club pick, One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig. Grab a warm beverage and get ready to find your next favourite read! Other books discussed: - House of Flame and Shadow by Sarah J Maas - Saint by Adrienne Young - The Black Kids by Christina Hammonds Reed -...

Continue the conversation surrounding one of 2024's most highly anticipated releases, Crescent City 3: House of Flame and Shadow. Sarah and Kyla had so much to say, they needed a part deux. This episode digs deep into plot lines, plot holes, and what's next for Midgard, our favorite Frat Pack, and the future of the Maasverse in general. Buckle up because we absolutely put HOFAS back in the hot sea...

Part one of our House of Flame and Shadow deep dive will focus mainly on the relationships and character arcs in the book, with plot discussions and theories coming next week! Join us this week as we talk about our favourite new character (shoutout Lidia!), some hot messes (you know who you are, Ithan and Tharion), and why Bryce no longer feels like the heroine we came to love in previous books. W...

We're celebrating Valentine's Day with a little foray into all things romance, starting with our favourite romantasy reads and top romance tropes to read about! From enemies to lovers (to enemies again) and forced proximity, to a few other less popular tropes, we're getting down and dirty in this episode (literally). Finally, stick around for a fun game of Bang, Marry, Kill, where we put our book...

The first month of the year is already over, but between the two of us, we were able to sneak in quite a few reads this month. Join us as we chat about everything we read in January, letting you know what we liked and didn't like, and hopefully convincing you to read some of them as well! Next, we'll move into our book club portion of the episode, sharing our thoughts on our January book club pick...

We're back with another episode in our series of guessing books based on their funny one-star Goodreads reviews, but this time with a special Sarah J Maas twist! All the reviews we're guessing from are pulled from Maas books across all 3 series, so please note that this episode contains many spoilers. Follow along and see if you can guess the book before we do!

Sarah J Maas fans are exploding with theories on what's to come in the third Crescent City instalment, House of Flame and Shadow, after the major plot twist ending of book two. In this episode, we share a few of our favourite fan theories about the world crossover and character origins, as well as some of our own theories on which relationships we think are endgame and whose POVs we expect to see...

Part 2 of our Crescent City recap episodes focuses on House of Sky and Breath. We're going over all the major plot points, characters, and relationship updates that you'll need a refresher on before diving into book 3, House of Flame and Shadow! We all know the little details matter in a Sarah J Maas book, and will likely surprise us later by being connected to something big, so we're here to make...

Gearing up for the release of House of Flame and Shadow but don't have time to reread the first two books in the series? Don't worry, we've got you. This is the first of two recap episodes for each of the first two books. Focusing on House of Earth and Blood this time, we're giving you a summary of what went down, and all the major plot points you'll need to remember going forward!

Beware of spoilers in this full breakdown of the highly anticipated sequel to Divine Rivals: Ruthless Vows! We're getting into everything, from the shift to a more plot-focused rather than character-driven story in this one to the characterization of the divines we only barely got a glimpse of in the first book. Join us as we discuss what makes an epic ending and whether some of our beloved charac...

The third and final episode of our 2023 Goodreads Choice Awards mini-series concludes with the YA Fantasy category! Tune in to see what's new, exciting, and on top of the genre, with book summaries and key info for each title. Get your TBR ready because there are some amazing books in this category, well deserving of their places in the top 5 of the year, and we're here to convince you to read the...