Tomes & Tonics

It's finally here! We are so excited to cover all things Onyx Storm on this week's episode of Tomes & Tonics. Join us as we talk about all the twists, characters (old and new), and, of course, theories from this latest installment of the Empyrean Series! We also reflect on the fact that it is our one year anniversary of recording our first ever episode, which happened to cover the first two Em...

Hey, hey, hey! We have been in our happy place reading Onyx Storm and cannot wait to share our thoughts and theories on next week's episode. We took a week off to devour the latest Empyrean novel and are excited to be back chatting our current reads, books on the horizon, and Bingo Buddy's latest pick! Join us this week as we venture up to Maine for Emily Henry's emotional "Happy Place." Lauren ma...

We are without a chaperone, taking "aesthetic" beverage photos, yearning for the Atlantis symbol cereal from our childhood, and creating our own cocktails on this week's episode of Tomes & Tonics! Join us as we talk about how exciting it is that this time next week we will be reading "Onyx Storm," what makes a good cocktail, and, of course, our latest duology read - "What the River Knows" and...

Happy New Year! Our first episode of 2025 is off with all the hitches, including technical difficulties and a rogue bingo cage. We catch up on our holidays, discuss how long is too long for leftovers, and of course chat about our recent reads during the holiday season, including this week's book - "Mixed Signals" by B.K. Borison. Join us as we talk all things Layla and Caleb (not to be confused wi...

We cannot believe 2024 is already coming to an end, and we are thrilled to still be sharing our bookish thoughts, reviews, and, of course, having our tonics and reading our tomes. This week, we cover the absolute chaos that is Amazon's "Under the Mistletoe" holiday novellas and cover our honorable mentions, superlatives and of course our top five reads of 2024! We laughed, we cringed, and most imp...

Happy holidays (and belated Solstice) from Tomes & Tonics! While we take some time to spend with friends and family and to plan for the new year, we have an exciting vault episode for you! Dive into the past with us as we chat about Christina's temporary new space, Lauren's oversized glass, if Stanley's are over-hyped, Christina gives her thoughts on a book that won Goodreads' Best Fiction boo...

We may have recorded this on the unluckiest day of the year, but we aren't letting that dampen our holiday spirit! While we may still be running around to finish all the shopping, holiday baking and getting to the post office on time, we made time to slow down and chat about this week's holiday book pick, "The Kingdom of Sweets," with our special guest, Jacques the Nutcracker Prince. This "dark re...

Ho, ho, ho! Happy holidays from Tomes & Tonics! We are officially kicking off the holiday season by chatting about our book wishlist, our beverages for the week (Christina's made the naughty list), how Lauren now officially lives in a library, and the struggle of making it to the post office in time (iykyk). Of course, we also have a great book in store for you this week with BookTok and Books...

This week, we learn all about Britain's true unsung heroes, as well as some very valuable life lessons, as we cover the Bingo Buddy's latest pick - Maame! Tune in as Christina and Lauren chat all things bad first dates, important lessons learned from their twenties, and the important themes and topics covered in Jessica George's amazing novel. Also, stay tuned for the latest Bingo Buddy pick spoil...

Oh hi! We are back after a long break and are living our best #winemomlives by talking about the Bingo Buddy's first pick! Tune in this week as we talk about the smash sensation, "The Housemaid" by Frieda McFadden, including how you cannot trust any of the characters, the twists and turns the story took, and Christina introduces Lauren to Captain Save a Ho. Also, we select our next bingo pick and...

After taking some time this week to recover and reset, we are thrilled to be back with our (belated) conclusion to Hallowreads! Our "capstone project" covers all things "Haunting Adeline," from our thoughts on masked men to the sanctity of dairy products (iykyk). We dive into our thoughts on this very popular Booktok sensation and there are....a lot of opinions and trigger warnings behind this one...

We can't believe we're on episode 21 and the second to last installment of our Hallowreads series! This week, we chat about the books we're reading (any guesses as to next week's "Capstone Project" book???), including some teasers for the holiday season! Then we dive straight into a podception with this week's read - the mind bending, terrifying, and at times infuriating greatness that is Lisa Jew...

What's scarier than a haunted house? If you're Christina - it's a love story without reason. If you're Lauren - it's a house of snakes (because it would be their house now). This week we get into Riley Sager's "Home Before Dark," chatting about the parallels to Haunting of Hill House, Miss Pennyface, and of course - THAT ENDING! Also, we drop a teaser for the last two books of our Hallowreads chal...

This week, we're switching it up with a ghost story that's definitely not another episode of Scooby Doo. Grab your fave spooky season beverage and listen as we chat all things Maddy Clare, Simone St. James, and our favorite horror movies and shows! We are having a blast with the Hallowreads series, especially as we get closer to a very special, spine-chilling episode planned for Halloween week. Al...

Happy spooky season! This week, we are kicking off our month of Halloween-adjacent reads with the perfect book to get you in the autumn spirit with Adrienne Young's "Spells for Forgetting!" The small, coastal town "everyone has a secret" vibes are perfect for a rainy, cold autumn day. Grab your fave autumn beverage and tune in as we discuss what a coastal town would be like, if produced by Ryan Mu...

We finally found the will to live in the 1700s! This week, we are coming full circle with this throwback episode which we thought had been lost and talking all things "The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue!" Christina chats all things Luc, our thoughts on the bargain, and Christina might have FINALLY converted Lauren to a fan of Addie LaRue - a feat previously thought impossible. Grab your favorite be...

We don't cry on Tomes & Tonics unless it's T.J. Klune. Spoiler alert - we both cry. Lauren is back from vacation and we are getting right back to it with a very emotional new episode. This week, we're covering a very special book, "Under the Whispering Door" by Lauren's fave author, T.J. Klune. Make sure you have tissues for and your favorite blend of tea and join us as we talk all things Wall...

Lauren is still gallivanting around Europe, so we've got a special episode banked for you! This week we welcome Mary back for a very special BookTok Booktalk episode where we FINALLY cover the book Christina has been dying to talk about. That's right - this week we're talking all things "Butcher and Blackbird!" From the content warnings to how Lauren can't eat orzo pasta and, of course, the cookie...

This week, Lauren is off to Italy, and what better way to celebrate her one Italian summer than to read, well - One Italian Summer! This week, Christina and Lauren bring a special combo episode where we chat about "One Italian Summer" and "In Five Years" by Rebecca Serle! While we had some things to say, especially about a certain plot point in "In Five Years," we had a great time covering these b...

On this week's episode of "Tomes & Tonics" we have to celebrate Christina hitting her Goodreads reading goal HALFWAY THROUGH THE YEAR! While this is technically releasing in August, we recorded this back in July and are subsequently already missing the long holiday weekend. Also, we chat all things Divine Rivals and Ruthless Vows, grateful we didn't lose this episode because we had such a blas...

Hey, hey, hey! We are back! Christina is another year older, Lauren is unlocking new hobbies, and we even have our own mascot, who may or may not make their debut on this week's episode. Since it's officially August, aka salt air season for the Swifties like Lauren, we figured what better way to kick off the month than a book about, well, magical salt air? This week, join Christina and Lauren as t...

Is Tomes & Tonics haunted? Or does our equipment just not stand for any Nesta blasphemy? In this week's episode, we dive into the final (for now) installment of ACOTAR, "A Court of Silver Flames." Join Lauren and Christina as they talk all things Nesta, Cassian, the Inner Circle, and, of course, our fave character - the House of Wind. We also chat through our predictions for the next book and...

On our tenth episode (seriously, already 10???), Mary joins us again as we highlight another indie author who happens to be our very own Lauren M. Tracey! Join us as we discuss her debut, "The Space Between," her latest release, "The Greater Good," and her secret, literally mysterious next release slated to come out this fall! We talk all things writing, characters, and find out what happens to ou...

What better way to kick off June than by talking about one of our favorite reads of 2024 - The Unmaking of June Farrow! We dive into this masterpiece, our love of Eamon, the unrelated magic that was Elephant Bar, and all things nostalgia. Christina cracks into the holiday liquor and Lauren re-makes the Irish Maid cocktail as we navigate the beautifully complex plot woven throughout this book and g...

Grab some peanut butter, your fave beverage, and tune in for this week's episode of Tomes & Tonics, where we talk all things Bride! From swoon-worthy Lowe to the cliffhanger ending and all of the things between - we dive into Ali Hazelwood's masterpiece of the Omegaverse, and yes- we talk all things...knotty. Lauren takes one for the team for some research (always #forthepod), and we are joine...