The Library Coven

Hello, magical friends! This fortnight we’re coming at you with a discussion of  Children of Virtue and Vengeance   by Tomi Adeyemi, the second book in the Legacy of Orïsha series. If you need a recap of the story or what we talked about in the first book, check out episode 2 (so long ago!!!) about Children of Blood and Bone . First up, let me say there is a bit of a sound issue on my part (...

Hey, magical folx! In this episode we discuss Gods of Jade and Shadow   by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, which is *NOT* YA. We gotta say this at the top because its some sexist bs that women/femme adult fantasy writers get miscategorized as YA ( read about how sexism impacts genre categorization ). *Call to action*  This fortnight, we’re urging our magical community to learn more about abolishing borders,...

Hello, magical ppl! In this episode we dive into We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal , which J & K both enjoyed immensely .  Join us for a conversation about how much we <3 enemies-to-lovers ships, badass protags like Zafira and Kifah, Faizal’s impressive world-building, and much more. Content Warning for discussions of child abuse. ChildHelp   – Call 1-800-422-4453 for assistance And...

Hello, magical folx! This week we’re discussing  A Dream so Dark by L.L. McKinney , the second book in the Nightmare-verse series! In this episode we’re making predictions about the future books in the series, talking about “urban” fantasy, and coming at you with some major Star Wars: Rise of the Skywalker spoilers   (you’ve been warned!). For a refresher for what hap...

Hey, magical folx! This fortnight we discuss  The Marrow Thieves   by Cherie Dimaline,  a prolific author who is a member of the Georgian Bay Metis Community. Hope you enjoy and learn something(s). BLACK LIVES MATTER. Content warning for discussions of sexual violence and addiction. RAINN – Anti-sex violence assistance. Call 800-856-4619 or visit their website for assistance.  Calls to Action Foll...

Hello, magical folx! This week we’re discussing  Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo , the second book in the Six of Crows series. Check out our  Six of Crows episode for a refresher on what happened in the last book! Side Note & Content Warning: We know we’ve been gone for a bit, and we appreciate you patience as we get back in the swing of things. We recorded this episode in Novembe...

Happy New Year! With 2020 upon us, we wanted to take a look back at 2019. In this very special episode, we’re looking back at some of our favorite books, TV shows, movies, and other things from 2019, and talking about what we’re looking forward to in 2020. We’d love to hear about your favs from the year and what you’re looking forward to in the upcoming year! Hit us up on t...

Hello, magical listeners! We’re coming at you this week with a discussion of Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Córdova , the first in the Brooklyn Brujas series. J & K discuss the failed system of incarceration and the implications of those systems on brown people, beautiful world building, and Latin American folklore. There may also be a few tangents along the way… And there are some spoi...

Oh hello again, magical listeners! J had the pleasure of reading an ARC of Rena Barron’ s Kingdom of Souls , and we’re finally bringing you our conversation about this expansive, thrilling novel. It has one of the the most complex magical systems of anything we’ve read for the podcast so far. Enjoy! Content warning: we briefly discuss sexual violence in this episode. Here is a re...

Hello, magical listeners, and welcome back! We are starting season 2 by reading The Infinite Noise by Lauren Shippen . We’re talking science fiction, mental health, and sexist school norms in this fortnight’s episode. *We received this book as an ARC form the author* We want to give a content warning for this episode as we discuss issues of depression and self harm . If you or someone...

Have you ever imagined what Downton Abbey would be like if it took place in the Iron Islands and was actually a supernatural murder mystery inspired by a Brothers Grimm story?? Well, House of Salt and Sorrows by Erin A. Craig is all that and much more! Tune in for K’s double entendres and puns and stay for J’s incisive comments about mental illness and ability, along with discussions o...

Hello, dear listeners! This fortnight we’re reading Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim , a new retelling of Mulan . We found some pretty problematic areas in the book, but found the story quite captivating overall. As a note, we did receive this book as an ARC, but our feelings and reactions to the story are honest. Content Warning: This book deals with some heavy violence issues. It comes up br...

Magical listeners! We’re taking a break from YA this fortnight to bring you an episode about the incredible fantasy novel The City of Brass by S.A. Chakraborty . The show notes happen to be long this time — why not research-it-up and check out the links to learn some stuff? About magic, fiction, history, religion, language: The author has curated a reading list of narrative sources, primary...

This fortnight we’re discussing Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo . The first book in the Six of Crows duology and the fourth book in the Grishaverse series . We discussed a wide range of topics including slavery, sex work, and stereotypes of different cultures. Content warning: In this episode we discuss sexual harassment, sex slavery, and childhood trauma/violence We promised resources for tho...

Finally, the ACOMAF episode is here! J & K both adore ACOMAF , and in the spirit of that affection, we don’t shy away from dredging up the novel’s problematic aspects. Generous and loving critique is, after all, what our podcast is all about. If you need a refresher, catch up on our discussion of A Court of Thorns and Roses And now, copious show notes and links: “O I forbid y...

Hey listeners, welcome to the second (and final) installment of our interview mini-sodes! In this episode, Kelly fields questions from Jessie about a plethora of extremely important topics including superpowers, fur babies, astrology, and books (#obvi). Like Jessie did for the last episode, I (Kelly) am updating the show notes with information I forgot to share in the interview. Feast your ears! M...

Hey, everyone! We’ve decided to do something different and interview each other for the next two episodes so you can get to know us better! In this first interview, Kelly is interviewing Jessie. Is there anything you were surprised to learn? Jessie is writing the show notes to include anything else she forgot to say in her interview! I am huge supporter of #adoptdontshop , because adopting a...

This fortnight we’re discussing Dread Nation by Justina Ireland , one of the most intersectional books we’ve read yet! We talked about the intersectionality of race, class, gender, and colonialism. We chatted about shipping, impostor syndrome, and many many other things. We adored this book, and we can’t wait to see what Justina Ireland has in store for us next! As always, we had...

This week we’re discussing Descendant of the Crane by Joan He . We received this book for free from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review (which we promise to always provide). We discussed monarchies, constitutions, colorism, and magic this week, as well as many other topics. Below are links to all the resources and things we had to look up, some of which included looking things up whil...

Happy Spring, listeners! In Episode 16 we discuss The Wicked King by Holly Black , the much-awaited sequel to The Cruel Prince . Content warning: emotional and physical child abuse. ChildHelp – Child Abuse Assistance – Call 1-800-422-4453 if you or someone you know is the victim of child abuse Below you can find links to all of the topics and references that came up in our conversation. And 10 poi...

This fortnight J & K are discussing The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang . We’re diverting a bit from our usual YA Fantasy books. This book is definitely for adults, and not for the faint of heart! The characters are complicated, the story is complex and violent, and there is a ton of action. Content Warning: In this episode we discuss drug use, rape, genocide, and other instances of extreme viol...

Listeners, the time has finally come to talk about A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas , the first book in one of our favorite series. We saved the rest of the series spoilers for a special end segment that begins around 1:11:45. If you haven’t read the rest of the books and/or don’t want spoilers, be sure to skip that! You’ll notice that the show notes are short this ti...

This fortnight we’re discussing A Blade So Black by L.L. McKinney , and there were a ton of Alice in Wonderland puns from K, as this is a modern retelling of the story. Don’t expect to get any hints about this story because you read the original. This is a whole new take! As always, there were a ton of outside sources mentioned, and hopefully we caught them all to add to the show notes...

Hello esteemed listeners! We adored A Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue   by Mackenzi Lee *!! What a delightful romp of a book*. Below you’ll find plenty of links and resources to complement our discussion. **We want to recognize that Mackenzi Lee has been pretty problematic as a person and author, and we while we did enjoy this book at the time, we will not be reading or podcasting...

Happy New Year, Listeners! We are excited to read and discuss new (and old) book with this year. Any suggestions for books you’d like to read with us? This fortnight we’re discussing Girls of Paper and Fire  by  Natasha Ngan  . J & K have some mixed feeling about this book. We loved the elaborate back story and well fleshed out setting, but had some difficulty with the pacing. And...