The Side Quest Book Club Podcast

Join us as we sit down with Mark Benson, author, entrepreneur, and founder of Writerly — the thriving community transforming writers into family. In this interview, Mark shares his unconventional journey from Chicago's South Side to Marquette University (where he discovered that medical school wasn't his calling) to becoming a passionate novelist and storyteller.  We dive into: ✍️ His writing proc...

🚨 Announcement 🚨 We are taking a break, but we also have author interviews. Subscribe, tune in, and join us on Discord. Link in bio or the comments. Or here:https://discord.gg/z3qYKnKC3 ABOUT THE SIDE QUEST BOOK CLUB PODCAST  Reading is the ultimate side quest. Side Quest is a casual book club podcast full of literary adventures. Join Slava and Jonathan as they discuss the books they are reading...

We finally finished Pride & Prejudice and have thoughts. In this season finale, Shiara, Jonathan, and Slava are joined by guest Lindsay to break down Volume 3: Darcy's secret intervention, the Lydia and Wickham disaster, the Pemberley awkward run-in, and whether Elizabeth Bennet deserves her happy ending (jury's still out). We also get into why gossip is the engine of the whole book, what make...

Volume 2 of Pride and Prejudice delivers the most talked-about proposal in English literature and Darcy somehow manages to insult the woman he's proposing to while doing it. In this episode of Side Quest Book Club, Shiara, Slava, and Jonathan break down Charlotte's calculated decision to marry Mr. Collins, Jane's disappointing trip to London, Darcy's awkward courtship strategy, and the moment Eliz...

In this episode, Shiara, Slava, and Jonathan dig into Volume 1 of Pride and Prejudice, and things get surprisingly heated. We break down why Jane Austen was basically living her own novel, why Mrs. Bennet is actually more tragic than she is crazy, and why Mr. Darcy is either the most misunderstood man in literary history — or just a really well-dressed snob. Also: Jonathan was not bamboozled by Wi...

Debbie Show joins the SideQuest crew to talk about all of it — what really happened, what she changed, and why she hired a developmental editor for two years instead of just writing the book she could have written the day her sister was arrested.  We get into bibliotherapy, writing as trauma processing, the Kirkus review, and why developmental editors might be better than therapists. Slava also dr...

We're back to wrap up Paper Roses by debut indie author Debbie Show, and she did not disappoint. In Part 2, we cover the second half of this semi-autobiographical slice-of-life novel: betrayal, financial fraud, ethical spirals, forgiveness, and one of the most satisfying endings we've seen from a first-time author. We also explore why writing is a powerful tool for processing trauma. Slava shares...

What happens when family secrets span generations? When loyalty and survival become entangled with trauma? In Part 1 of our deep dive into Paper Roses by Debby Show, we're introduced to 13-year-old Abigail in 1970s San Jose as her world spirals into chaos—all before breakfast. From her brilliant but troubled younger sister to a mother medicated into numbness and a father whose absence is deafening...

Raskolnikov finally confesses — but does he ever actually believe he did anything wrong? We're joined by special guest J.F. Ramos to close out Crime and Punishment with hot takes on guilt, redemption, nihilism, and what Dostoevsky was really trying to say in that epilogue. We also get into small talk as a gateway to real connection, why your friend count matters more than your therapist, and someh...

Jonathan and Slava are back, and again they've dragged Kris and Josh into the chaos. In Part 3, Porfiry plays mind games, Raskolnikov slowly unravels, a painter randomly confesses to a murder he didn't commit, and Katerina remains everyone's least favorite character. Nobody is okay. Not the characters. Not the hosts. Not the guests. Especially not Josh. ABOUT THE BOOK In the bleak heat of 19th-cen...

The gang continues its trek through St. Petersburg. No pawnbrokers were harmed during the filming of this episode. Join us as we examine the complex themes of Fyodor Dostoevsky's 'Crime and Punishment,' including Raskolnikov's psychology, the critique of the Great Man Theory, and the characters' moral dilemmas. This episode provides insights into morality, pride, and the metaphysical forces that s...

Kris joins us to discuss another serialized classic. This time it is Fyodor Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment. RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE Dostoevsky’s "Crime and Punishment": A Reader’s Guide (Cultural Syllabus): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09Q8RRZ7H?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_digi_asin_title_351 Cliff's Notes: https://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/c/crime-and-punishment/book-summary Super Sum...

In this mini-episode, Jonathan recounts how he came to hate Crime and Punishment. Not to worry, he eventually came around. ABOUT THE BOOK In the bleak heat of 19th-century St. Petersburg, Rodion Raskolnikov, a brilliant but destitute former student, wanders the streets nursing a dangerous theory. He believes that "extraordinary" men are above the moral law of the masses and have the right—even the...

Calling all indie authors! Join us here on YouTube to chat about books, stories, and promote your book.  ABOUT THE SIDE QUEST BOOK CLUB PODCAST  Reading is the ultimate side quest. Side Quest is a casual book club podcast full of literary adventures. Join Slava and Jonathan as they discuss the books they are reading, life, history, belief systems, and much more. Explore world-building, characters,...

In this mini-episode, Slava sets the context for understanding Fyodor Dostoevsky's classic, Crime and Punishment. ABOUT THE BOOK In the bleak heat of 19th-century St. Petersburg, Rodion Raskolnikov, a brilliant but destitute former student, wanders the streets nursing a dangerous theory. He believes that "extraordinary" men are above the moral law of the masses and have the right—even the duty—to...

Jonathan, Slava, Spenser, and Josh watched the recent Project Hail Mary movie and had some thoughts... ABOUT THE MOVIE  The wait is finally over! Project Hail Mary, the long-awaited adaptation of Andy Weir's bestselling novel, is officially in theaters and IMAX. Directed by the visionary duo Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (Spider-Verse, The LEGO Movie), this sci-fi epic stars Ryan Gosling as Ryl...

We're still on Cradle, Side Questers. But this is our last episode covering this book. We are on the ninth book in Will Wight's Cradle series, Bloodline. And it gets a little spicy.  Frankly, it's embarrassing. But only for Jonathan. ABOUT THE BOOK In Bloodline (Cradle Book 9) by Will Wight, Lindon returns to Sacred Valley to evacuate his family and villagers before the Wandering Titan Dreadgod de...

We're still on Cradle, Side Questers. We are on the ninth book in Will Wight's Cradle series, Bloodline. And it gets a little spicy.  Frankly, it's embarrassing. But only for Jonathan. ABOUT THE BOOK In Bloodline (Cradle Book 9) by Will Wight, Lindon returns to Sacred Valley to evacuate his family and villagers before the Wandering Titan Dreadgod destroys the area. Although he possesses great powe...

This week, we go back to Cradle, Side Questers. We are on the ninth book in Will Wight's Cradle series, Bloodline. And it gets a little spicy.  Frankly, it's embarrassing. But only for Jonathan. ABOUT THE BOOK In Bloodline (Cradle Book 9) by Will Wight, Lindon returns to Sacred Valley to evacuate his family and villagers before the Wandering Titan Dreadgod destroys the area. Although he possesses...

This time, we sit down with author Debby Show. We talk generational trauma and her debut novel, Paper Novels. Author Debby Show is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and School Psychologist based in California. With years of experience with individuals and families, she brings a deep understanding of human behavior, relationships, and generational dynamics to her fiction. 00:00 Introduction...

Hey Side Questers! We are back with part 4 of our discussion of Nicholas Keating Casbarro's Vitalerium: Descent into the Void. Nick joins us for this final episode. We get a little taste of the next book in the series. ABOUT THE BOOK Nearly six centuries have passed since humanity discovered vitalerium, which ushered in a golden age of space exploration and colonization. Planet Deorum’s society is...

Hey Side Questers! We are back with part 3 of our discussion of Nicholas Keating Casbarro's Vitalerium: Descent into the Void. ABOUT THE BOOK Nearly six centuries have passed since humanity discovered vitalerium, which ushered in a golden age of space exploration and colonization. Planet Deorum’s society is centered around this illustrious, gravity-bending blue crystal. The year is 2701. Following...

Hey Side Questers! We are back with part 2 of our discussion of Nicholas Keating Casbarro's Vitalerium: Descent into the Void. ABOUT THE BOOK Nearly six centuries have passed since humanity discovered vitalerium, which ushered in a golden age of space exploration and colonization. Planet Deorum’s society is centered around this illustrious, gravity-bending blue crystal. The year is 2701. Following...

Hey Side Questers! Sorry about the late upload. Today, we dive into the first part of our discussion of Nicholas Keating Casbarro's Vitalerium: Descent into the Void. ABOUT THE BOOK Nearly six centuries have passed since humanity discovered vitalerium, which ushered in a golden age of space exploration and colonization. Planet Deorum’s society is centered around this illustrious, gravity-bending b...

We sat down with author and musician Callie Sioux Schiavone. Her book, She Had Glass Eyes, really drew us in. It explores how humanity and technology connect, blurring the line between reality and the narrator’s imagination. Callie Sioux is a creative alchemist who uses multimedia to turn real-life adventures into fiction and entertainment. She is an author, musician, entrepreneur, podcaster, and...