E162: Historical Fantasy with Leslye Penelope

 

Today I welcome an author I’ve long adored to the show, Leslye Penelope. We discuss Historical Fantasy and define the basic parameters of the subgenre. We discuss her work within that context, and we give some great book recommendations, listed below. I hope you enjoy it!

• The Conductors by Nicole Glover
• Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse
• Ring Shout by P. Djeli Clare
• Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
• Dread Nation by Justina Ireland
• Vampires of El Norte by Isabel Canas
• When Women Were Dragons by Kelly Barnhill 
• The Fox Wife by Yangsze Choo
  
• The Sisters of the Winter Wood by Rena Rossner
• The Fervor by Alma Katsu

E161: A Cozy Mystery in Space! Olivia Waite and MURDER BY MEMORY

Today I welcome Olivia Waite to the show to discuss her new book, MURDER BY MEMORY, a cozy sci-fi mystery. Olivia is known for her sapphic historical romances, so this is a new fiction genre for her, but one that suits her voice well. We chat about knitting and how the fiber arts relate to science, her journey through genre, and what’s next in this series.

E160: Cozy Fantasy with Julie Leong

 

Today I welcome Julie Leong to the show to discuss the wildly popular subgenre, Cozy Fantasy. We chat about Julie’s book, THE TELLER OF SMALL FORTUNES, as well as the history of Cozy Fantasy, our earliest experience reading the subgenre, and we offer some wonderful book recommendations, listed below:

• Salt and Broom by Sharon Lynn Fisher
• Rewitched by Lucy Jane Wood
• The Honey Witch by Sydney J. Shields
• The Undermining of Twyla and Frank by Megan Bannen
• The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna
• Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree
• Small Miracles by Olivia Atwater 
• Can't Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne
• A Natural History of Dragons by Mary Brennan
• The Village Library Demon-Hunting Society by C. M. Waggoner
• The Enchanted Greenhouse by Sarah Beth Durst
• Redwall by Brian Jacques 

E159: The Gothic Novels of Emily Carpenter

Today I welcome Emily Carpenter to the show to discuss her new book GOTHICTOWN, as well all her previous gothic novels. We chat about her books in context with beloved gothic tropes, characters and settings, like isolation, creepy towns, and the American south.

GOTHICTOWN is on sale March 25th, so get your preorders in now!  

E158: True Crime and the Real Hester Prynne with Kate Winkler Dawson

 

Today I welcome journalist, professor and true crime podcaster, Kate Winkler Dawson, to the show to discuss her new historical true crime book, ALL THE SINNERS BOW: TWO AUTHORS, ONE MURDER, AND THE REAL HESTER PRYNNE. We discuss the 1832 murder of Sarah Maria Cornell and how that murder inspired Nathaniel Hawthorne to write The Scarlett Letter, as well as the research into both the murder and the writing of FALL RIVER, the first American true crime book written about this murder in 1833. 

Kate Winkler Dawson has three True Crime podcasts, one of which is retired and folded into the other. Here are the links to listen: 

E157: Emily Wilde and the Fairies of Heather Fawcett

Today I welcome Heather Fawcett to the show to talk about her Emily Wilde series. These beloved books are about a Cambridge professor who specializes in the study of fairies. This cozy fantasy trilogy has been at the forefront of this subgenre since the first novel, “Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries,” came out a few years ago. The third book, “Emily Wilde's Compendium of Lost Tales,” was released February 11th and has Emily studying the faery realm as their queen.

Books mentioned in our conversation include two books by Suzanna Clark, Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell and The Ladies of Grace Adieu. She also mentioned The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune.

E156: Cottagecore Movies with Liz Parker

 

Surprise! A NEW BONUS EPISODE! Today I welcome Liz Parker back to the show to talk about Cottagecore Movies. I really needed a break from the world, so I wanted to do an episode that felt like a warm hug. This also came just in time for Liz’s upcoming book, THE OTHER MARCH SISTERS, which she co-wrote with Linda Epstein and Ally Malinenko, from the point of view of the other March sisters in LITTLE WOMEN. It comes out February 25th, so get your preorders in while you enjoy the show!

Movies included in our discussion include:

• Practical Magic
• Cold Mountain
• Howl's Moving Castle
• The Secret Garden
• Chocolat
• Little Women
• Sense and Sensibility
• The Secret of Roan Inish
• My Neighbor Totoro
• Wicked Little Letters
• The Holiday
• Steel Magnolias