The Readirect Podcast
Shifting the conversation back to books. Hosted by Abigail Freshley and Emily Rojas.
The Readirect Podcast
Mid-Year Reading Check-In
We take stock of our reading lives at the halfway point of the year, discussing our progress toward reading 100 books, favorite and least favorite reads, and what's on our TBR lists.
Recent Reads:
- And They Were Roommates by Page Powers
- The Rose Code by Kate Quinn
- Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
- Hold Me Tight by Sue Johnson
If you like our candid conversations and unedited thoughts, go on to Spotify or Apple Podcasts, leave us a five-star review, and let us know that you love the show. You can also follow us on Instagram and BlueSky at @readirectpodcast.
Welcome to the Redirect Podcast. My name is Abigail Freshly and I'm Emily Rojas. The Redirect Podcast is the show where we shift the conversation back to books. We discuss themes from some of our favorite books and how those themes show up in our real lived experiences. On today's episode, we are talking books. We're checking in halfway through the year on our reading goals, looking behind us, looking ahead and just generally having a good yap. A good yap. You know we're never a shortage of words around here, so let's do it. We have more intro to do. You're right. What am I talking about? Keep it in. Oh my god, okay, uh, anyways.
Speaker 1:But first, before we get to that, we would love for you to support the show in a few simple ways. If you like our candid conversations, our unedited thoughts, our y yab sessions, go on to Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Leave us a five-star review and let us know that you love the show. You can also follow us on Instagram and Blue Sky at Redirect Podcast. And, by the way, congratulations to a friend of the show, listener of the show, jess, for winning our uh, $50 thrift books gift card for sharing our show with a friend. Sharing our show with a friend is by far the best way to help us grow our community of book loving nerds. But, um, great segue, yeah, we will just do it again. It was fun. It was fun, and just let us know what you end up buying with your gift card, because, man, what a treasure trove. So, congratulations and thanks to everyone else who did share.
Speaker 1:Um, that was fun, it was fun, it was a blast. Yeah, okay, um, okay. So now we're gonna talk about yeah, so we have like other ideas. I don't know, it's just so summer, yeah, it is. I'm just like the idea of doing one of our super planned episodes. I was just feeling a lot, I get it. So we're checking in today, yeah, and I feel like it's a good time. It is halfway through the year and so much is happening, you know, in the world so many books to read as well, so it's a good time to like look ahead, look back, think about what's happening and check in. So, yeah, yeah, great, great timing.
Speaker 1:Okay, well, let's just get right into it with our goals. So, if, if you guys remember way back, if you listen to our goals episode at the beginning of this year harp, sound effect, insert what do you? What were your goals? Um, yeah, and where are you on your pursuit of them? Well, first of all, I decided that I'm full send. I was gonna do, um, I was gonna do the 100 books this year, and so I am on my way to doing that. I was just pulling up what our goals were for this year, but I did not write any down in our notes, so God only knows what I said. But anyway, you did say you did say 100. Yeah, that was my story graph goal. So I set that and I am at 59 books, which puts me five books ahead of that goal. So I'm feeling really, really good about I at, uh, like a week or two ago and like almost 10 books on. So you can see how I haven't been doing much reading the past couple. But but the whole thing is it's cumulative. It's cumulative, yes, you ebb and you flow, um. And then also I set a summer reading challenge, which I'm about to have read five books of the 38 books that I set a goal for myself which feels good. I feel good about that. Yeah, what's next on your summer? Like physical book shelf? That's a good question. Tbr challenge, the Great Alone Look, I'll get into what I've been reading.
Speaker 1:Oh, my God, please, it's on there. It has been 84 years. I was thinking about that, to be honest. But the book I'm reading right now, which I can get into when we talk about it, or I can talk about it right now, we'll talk about it right now, let's save it. The book I'm reading right now, it's a historical fiction and it is really good, good, but it has taken me quite some time to get through, thus my lagging. So I was like what can I pick up? I have like a ya book that's really short. Um, that I might do next. I also have pretty little liars that's really short. I was thinking one of those I can just fly through and then I'll reset. And then let's say the great alone is the second one. Let's say I'll come back to that. Let's say that I'll believe it. I'll believe it when I see it. God, okay, so anyways, that is why, um, that's where I'm at.
Speaker 1:So I feel good about my goals. I honestly could have said something else was a goal that I don't remember saying, but, um, I I feel very confident in the 100 books. I know I'm pretty sure I'm gonna do it. So great, so great. I love that. Yeah, what about you? What were your goals and how are you doing?
Speaker 1:Um, yeah, so my goal also was to read 100 books, and I am I've read 50. So I am five books behind. So you're five ahead. I'm five behind. I do have a two week summer vacation coming up for my job, and so I'm really hoping to close the gap there, but I texted you this the other day. So the last two years I have not had a trouble yeah, trouble reaching my goal. So I've never been behind. I've never experienced being behind. And, um, being behind is hard. It is hard, like I'm like, I feel like I'm perpetually. Actually, wait, hold on. No, I'm four books behind. Okay, not five, reasonable but I feel like I'm perpetually on this treadmill where I finish a book and then, oh great, that was just the book I was supposed to read. Yeah, like, oh great, then I do it. I I'm like why didn't the thingy change on story graph? Why didn't I get the serotonin hit from seeing that I'm one less book behind? Yeah, so, yeah, four books until I'm back on track. Um, so, hopefully I can accomplish that.
Speaker 1:And then one of my other goals, um, this year was to improve the ratio of uh white to bipoc authorship. True, I do remember a second about that. So let's, actually let's, let's find out. Right now I'm gonna using my handy new spreadsheet I'm going to create how do you create a pie chart inserts? I always forget that chart. Okay, yeah, don't make me do excel. Okay, all right, this is continue, actually good. Okay.
Speaker 1:So my goal was to improve my ratio. Uh, I think last year I only I read like something devast, I was like 75 white off, yes, tough. So my goal this year was to make it 60 40. Yeah, because I think I did some kind of preliminary googling that was not that scientific, that said that 40 of published authors are people of color. Sure, and I am at 60 40 right now. Great.
Speaker 1:So if I continue my habits yeah, if I continue, continue my, my trajectory I will maintain my goal. Yeah, I will reach my goal. Or, if I just up it a little bit, I can exceed my goal. That's great. So, yeah, I was tracking that as well. And, uh, I am definitely behind. I need to go re-tag some books, but at a certain point I was a prop. It looks like about 60 40 ish. So, yeah, yeah, um, that's great. That was another thing we did talk about mutually in our goals this year. So, yeah, of that mix of the um non-white authors I've read this year, um, I am at 20 black authors, 12.5 aapi, only two percent latino, latin and 4.2% Indigenous. So I could also improve that mix by adding in more Latinx authors. So any recommendations of books I might enjoy written by Latino authors, please send them my way. Listeners, yeah, love that.
Speaker 1:Great work. I mean that's not bad. Four books behind is not bad at all, especially when your goal is 100. You can get four books behind so quickly because you basically have to read like two books a week. So I mean it could be a lot worse. So, great work.
Speaker 1:How, like last year, you got pretty behind your goal and you exceeded it. You like caught up. I didn't get behind because I set my goal at 50, oh, and then I changed it, uh, eventually to 70, to 100, 5 or 70. No, I never got to 100. This will be my first time ever reading 100 books in a year ever.
Speaker 1:How many did you get to last year? 80, like 384 or something, okay, and that's. I read 25 books in december last year. So so you really were like, okay, let's go. But yeah, my original goal last year was 50 because I the year before I was behind and I just gave up on my goal. So I can't really offer any advice, because once I'm behind, I'm like, okay, no, I'm not gonna do this and I'll just, oh great, morale crushed, so I'll just change my goal. And then last year, yeah, I started lower and then ended up getting a lot higher. And then this year I was like you know what reach for the stars, why not?
Speaker 1:Yeah, my issue this year, um, is that I got too important at work. Yeah, so we're doing less reading on the clock, less audio books on the clock, and also, I will say this is actually another big factor yeah, I used to listen to audiobooks a lot when I was walking Pepper, my dead dog, rip, and I can't really listen to audiobooks when I'm walking the puppy because it's so much active training. Oh yeah, I'm like actively, like engaging her, whatever, and so I'm trying to make sure she can become a dog. So I have to be really focused. I can't really listen to audiobooks while walking her and that, I think, has really inhibited me. Yeah, that's four books right there, easily, easily.
Speaker 1:What's your longest streak on StoryGraph? Do you track on StoryGraph or just do your? What do you Like daily streak? Yeah, I don't track that. They don't have yours. Okay, my longest streak is 59 days. I just noticed that. I don't, I don't. How do you do that? How do you like, say, I read something today? It tracks it for. Oh, it's just like if you log on that day, so, oh, I don't log like I'm 25, okay, yeah, so I just like start and finish. Okay, yeah, that's too much for me. Yeah, I get it okay. Well, there you go. So that's where we're at. Congratulations, okay, yeah, if, uh, listeners like sound off in the comments, uh, how are you doing in your goals? Yeah, would love to hear that. Create a little community, um, of people supporting each other on our goals.
Speaker 1:Yeah, um, what's the longest book you've read this year? Oh, good question. Let me look at my stats. Probably used used to be it in, I would say, just off the top of my head. That was a chunker. I mean, if we're not counting fan fiction. That is because no published books the fourth in that series that looks like it's the longest book. It's 656 pages. Y'all need to chill. That book did not need to be 656 pages. That was the worst book in the series. It didn't even need to exist, um, so, yeah, not even it's 50 pages longer than east of eden I.
Speaker 1:The longest book I've read this year is quicksilver by callie hart, and that's 670, unless you want to count the cadence of part-time poets, which, which is 4,400 pages, which case that would be the longest thing I read this year in one week. I can't, I can't believe you reread that. Oh my God, and it was so worth it. It was so worth it. It has left a scar upon my heart. You know what I mean. Anyways, that's the longest books I've read this year.
Speaker 1:What about the shortest let's I read this year? What about the shortest? Let's go? Let's go with that. Well, okay, I think, probably let's see. Uh, brook mac mountain. Oh, yeah, what's that? Like 40 something? Yeah, uh, no, let's see. Hold on, I counted it as a book because you should. No, you should. It was 64 pages. That's a book. If I counted all the novellas I read last Christmas as books, my shortest was Love After the End, which is a short story collection, it was 194 pages. You need to get some short stories in here.
Speaker 1:Yeah, diversify, yep, okay, next question, next question Okay, yeah, they were spy, yep, okay. Next question. Next question okay, what is? What are the top three books you've read so far this year? Okay, well, I guess I just did this on on tiktok, so I'll be consistent with what I said there. Number one is definitely east of eden. By the way, you can follow emily on tiktok at emily. Yes, um. Number two I said was what did I say was number two? I think the great. By the way, you can follow Emily on TikTok At EmilyRohasReads. Yes, number two I said was what did I say was number two? I think the Great Believers by Rebecca McKay, which I just talked about recently, was so good. And then I think number three was Deep Cuts is number three, which you DNF'd. Okay, that was one of your top books, okay. So, yeah, I mean, there's a lot in there. I would I would have put happy place in the top three, probably, but that's a reread, so I didn't feel like I should count. Yeah, you can't count that. Um. So, yeah, those are my top.
Speaker 1:I've had a lot of great books this year, a lot of five stars, so it was tough to to rank them. But yeah, I think I've talked about all of those three on here before so you can go back in time listen to them. But let me say east of eden. East of eden has really got me questioning, like, okay, I guess all the books that people say are great are actually great. Like, I've been thinking about reading some dove. Everyone says that's like a great book, and so I'm like, okay, I guess they're right, like they were right about this one. I'm gonna have to check out some of these other books.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so you being me last year what my goal was to read classic books and I didn't. Yeah, you are. Maybe you should just, like, halfway through, make that a goal, sure this year? Yeah, why not? Yeah, um, okay, I think my faves this year. Okay, I mean, here's the thing, and I think we've talked about this before. Yeah, like I pick books, I know I'm going to like yeah, exactly, so I don't have that many that I dislike greatly, but the ones that stand out as the best. I'm looking at my five stars Okay, I think Will Sunrise and the Reaping.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think it's one of my tops. I know, can you believe I didn't even make my top 10? That's how many good books I wrote this year. That's crazy, I know it was just. You know I'll think about it for a long time, absolutely, um, oh, pachinko, yeah, you went on and on about that in our last episode.
Speaker 1:So, yeah, life-changing book, yeah, by minjin lee. It's not a hot take. This has been a very popular book for by minjin lee, it's not a hot take. This has been a very popular book for a very long time. That's another one I was like, oh great, gotta read pachinko now. Yeah, I know you kind of have to. You would love it. It's on my list. And then I also coming in at five stars and this is hot off.
Speaker 1:The press is breaking news for you is changing all stars. Okay, I'm so glad you liked it because I I've been on such a by nana kwame with you lately. I was like, if she hates this, I'm giving up. I'm putting my job as a podcaster. It was a huge downer, okay, like big, yeah, big, big downer.
Speaker 1:If you're in a bad mental health space, please don't read this book, especially these days with, like the state of the world, or maybe like it's what you need, I don't know. Sometimes, look, but just like content warning, content warning. It is like it is very tough, it is, it is. Yeah, was it also a life changing book? Yeah, yeah, you've talked about it a lot on the show I mean, so I won't get that much into it. But the show I mean. So I won't get that much into it. But yeah, it's a dystopian book that comments on the prison industrial complex.
Speaker 1:But I don't know if you have emphasized so much in the past the importance of reading the footnotes. Yeah, um, there's amazing in like creative footnotes in this book and in the audiobook they actually read the footnotes out loud. That's how important they are. Because I did a little combo for this one. Um, and I actually saw someone on TikTok recently mention like Chain Gain All Stars. Like, if you have like a lib curious dad like Chain Gain All Stars and he likes fiction, that might be a good book. Only if the reader also reads the footnotes. Yeah, because it does exactly what a dystopian book is supposed to do, which is like exacerbates and like emphasizes an existing thing that we're experiencing right now and makes you feel grotesque about it in a way that you have become desensitized to.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it was really good. I'm so glad you liked it. I can't believe that's a debut novel. I know, I know it's upsetting, but really would love more. So, yeah, yeah, so good. I'm glad you liked it. Yeah, what a relief I know You're back. You're back in my good graces. I think I'm paying my debts, but yeah, yeah, I, yeah, yeah, I'm gonna keep trying.
Speaker 1:Um, what about your least faves? Okay, well, look, you guys know about silver elite. You didn't even finish that one, though. No, that was a dnf of the ones I finished. Um, the rom-commers by katherine center, maybe one of the worst romance books I've ever read in my life, and spoiled me on ever wanting to pick up another one of her books. So, boo to you. Damn, that's, that's tough.
Speaker 1:Um, also, I would say there's a uh, there's a theme of this year of two books that were the fourth book in their series that I did not like at all. The ending one was the one I just mentioned, tale of the heart, queen's longest book I've read this year. That was like you made this trilogy into a four book series. That was unnecessary and you didn't need to. Yeah, and I felt like the other three were like, yeah, we're going, we're moving along. And then this was like I am so bored, I can't anyways. Bad. And then bad blood by jennifer lynn barnes, which is the natural series. That's a ya series, and that was another one where I was like wow, what a.
Speaker 1:It was such a disappointing ending for a book series that I thought was like so good and so well done and like really interesting. It's like about like, why did you keep going? Yes, and it was like the conclusion completely undid, so many things that the series had set up, and I hate that more than anything. So those were probably my least favorites of the year, other than the ones I dnf, which, of course, included silver elite, which I genuinely detested and couldn't get through. So, yeah, I, how do you, on storygraph, look at the ones that you dnf? Oh gosh, I just okay.
Speaker 1:So if you go to your stats, I think yes, and then you can go, for it says red books. At the very top there's a section that says DNF books. Okay, what is a question? This might not make the episode, but what is your average progress through a book before DNFing? 35%? What's yours? 58. That's pretty, that's decent. I'm kind of surprised. I'm surprised too Wow, you really get through them. I mean that's. I'm like you're giving me a yeah, okay, but where's the name of the books. Okay. So then, uh, clicked where it says 12 books, or mine says 12 books, yours says dnf books, and then there's a number underneath 18.
Speaker 1:Wow, I think this is all time, though I don't think so. It should just be this year. Okay, maybe it is all time, though I don't think so. It should just be this year. Okay, maybe it is all time. No, you're right, this is all time, because some of these go back. Okay, yeah, wow, I quit a few this year. Yeah, I quit.
Speaker 1:I don't want to say all of them, because I think some of these are indie authors. Yeah, I don't want to be the ones that I feel worth steering people away from. Uh, I quit the proposal by jasmine gillery. Um, this is kind of like, it's kind of popular and I don't get why um didn't enjoy it. That book is like, uh, yeah, if we ever did an episode which I think would be fun of couples who are definitely splitting up the second, the book is over. They are the couple I think of every time. I think of that prompt because I just thought they were like the worst possible to be together, actually. So I tried doing Cowboy Romance, but I did quit.
Speaker 1:Done and Dusted by Lila Sage, the Rebel Blue Ranch number one. I don't think it was the book. I think I was just wrong and that Cowboy Romances are actually not for me. That's fair. That is very fair, like I think I just learned that. So those are my DNFs, a few of my DNFs.
Speaker 1:And then my least rated I completed was you had me at ola by alexis daria. Didn't think that was a good book. What, honestly? What did what's your lowest rating? Was that a one star or how low do you go? That was 2.75. That's fair. I always felt low. Two stars feels low. But here's the Two stars to me feels low, even sometimes, like the book fours that I mentioned.
Speaker 1:I gave those three stars, but I'll give a book three stars if it's like also kind of good. Three stars is such a gray area. You know what I mean. I know Three stars I'll be like yeah, okay, yeah, like. Two is like. Oh, this offended me. One is like. I've never given a one star. I don't know what you would have to do. One is my fault. Yeah, that's my bad. I shouldn't have read this Exactly, excuse me. One should have been a DNF, like you should have known better, yeah, so, yeah, it's weird. I'm also looking here here, gosh, I have like I mean, most things are over three stars. So my other three star books would be curvy girl, summer by danielle allen and stars in your eyes by case and calendar.
Speaker 1:I think one of the common threads among these books is I actually don't think that I like just straight contemporary romance without any sort of like, except for emily, yeah, which feels different because it's so character driven. Yeah, I don't really like plot driven straight contemporary romances and all three of those are yeah, that's fair and there's no other extra like. I'm like, I don't like talking about iPhones. Yeah, that's true, we're talking about like we're talking about iPhones we're talking about. We're talking about iphones. We're talking about like oh, I'm listening to taylor swift. Like why are you doing that in a book? Yeah, stop doing that, stop, stop saving your book. You know what I mean. Like, unless you're gonna. Maybe that's why I love historical romance so much. That's fair or like, or romantic, or maybe there's those two.
Speaker 1:I'm trying to think if there's like another romance, subgenre or something just crazy. Yeah, like Allie Hazelwood, yeah, where you're like the premise here is actually insane. But yeah, even her. Like STEM books, like their niche within the STEM world. Yeah, there's got to be a specialized world.
Speaker 1:I don't like I get the ick, I think, from straight contemporary romances that don't have some sort of like very interesting other setting, yeah, or perspective, I agree, actually, and it's just like, oh, like I'm a girl dating for the summer. I'm just like, yeah, I will read anything she writes, yes, but why does she feel different? Why is she different? Because she's good. There's a lot of like mid. She has unique characters. Yeah, I think that's part of it. Like her characters are extremely unique and developed like they're. They're real people, they're not okay, no, this is the difference. I think talia hibbert is character driven.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think other romances I'm talking about are plot driven. That's fair, so heavy on, so plot driven, contemporary, street, contemporary romances. You know niche, that you can be plot driven. And fantasy, you can be plot driven, and that's fair. Historical, yeah, but you cannot, for me, be plot driven and contemporary. I get that, it's just not. It's an ick. It's not clocking to you that we're standing. It's just not clocking to me that I'm standing on business, yeah, no, I get that, it's just not. It's an ick. It's not clocking to you that we're standing. It's just not clocking to me that I'm standing on business. Yeah, no, I get that.
Speaker 1:I don't feel like I read a lot of those. Uh, in general, like, so I agree with you, like I'm good, I don't know. Yeah, I've lived my. I've lived my 20s. Maybe that's why I don't like abby jimenez, although some girl on tiktok told me to try her again. So should I listen to her? No, I probably won't.
Speaker 1:Okay, what next? Um, what else did we say we're going to talk about? Oh, what we're looking ahead to? Okay, so well, I guess, what's currently like on your holds list or your tbr? I kind of want to know that. So, because on my holds list right now, let's see, yeah, I got a lot I have totally and completely fine by a list assessment. Me too, although I've heard some things about that doesn't sound good. Oh, no, just saying it's an age gap romance. Did you know that? Okay, but you know, ali hazelwood's turned me around on those, so, okay, anyways, we'll see. Okay, what else? Okay, okay, okay, okay, hear me out for this next one. I'm scared. Yeah, like, maybe you should be Okay, but it's kind of one of those things like I kind of have to read it?
Speaker 1:Sure, and this book is Sky Daddy. Yes, I'm familiar, I'm familiar by kate folk. Yeah, okay, so this is about somebody who's in love with with planes. Like she's sexually attracted to planes and, um, like every week, like she takes, like a you know, a regional roundtrip flight to ride on a plane and basically in her mind, to like marry a plane, you would have to get in a plane crash, okay, so it's like weird, it's like subversive, it's not like a romance, it's not an inanimate object romance. I think it's like weird, yeah, but I kind of have to read it.
Speaker 1:I have heard really good things about this book and I'm thinking like, okay, two other books I love this year that were kind of weird and to read it. I have heard really good things about this book, thank you. And I'm thinking like, okay, two other books I love this year that were kind of weird and subversive and very metaphorical were Shark Heart and Our Wives Under the Sea. I'm like, maybe this is your niche, I know. And then also on my, okay, this seems like extremely my shit and also not a hot take, because it's like a famous book, but it's Never Let Me Go by. Kazuo Ishiguro have you ever heard of this? No, I don't think so. Well, let me see if I recognize the cover. Okay, let me read you the little synopsis.
Speaker 1:So, as a child, Kathy now 31 years old, lived at Hailsham, a private school in the scenic English countryside where the children were sheltered from the outside world, brought up to believe that they were special and that their well-being was crucial not only for themselves but for the society they would eventually enter. Kathy had long ago put this idyllic past behind her, but when two of her Hailsham friends come back into her life, she stops resisting the pull of memory. And so, as her friendship with Ruth is rekindled and the feelings that long ago fueled her adolescent crush on Tommy began to deepen into love, kathy recalls her years at Hailsham. She describes happy scenes of boys and girls growing up together unperturbed, even comforted by their isolation. But she describes other scenes as well of discord and misunderstanding that hint at a dark secret behind Hailsham's nurturing facade. With the dawning clarity of hindsight, the three friends are compelled to face the truth about their childhood and their lives now.
Speaker 1:Wow, that sounds really good. Okay, I want to read that. It sounds really good. It's like oh okay, you guys were really secluded. Were they indoctrinating you? Yeah, what were they teaching you out there? Ooh, ah, I know. And uh, the last thing that's on my tv, that's on my holds list, um is a recommendation from a good personal friend. It's called there are rivers in the sky by alif shafak, and this is kind of one of. This is like a pachinko, like in east of eden. It's like a generational drama. Um discussing like didn't? It's like a generational drama, sure? Um discussing like using water, water as a metaphor for the ways that the decisions that our ancestors make impact our lives. And she said like it profoundly impacted her. So I'm like, okay, wow, those all sound really good. Yeah, no pressure.
Speaker 1:What's on your? What's on your hopeless? Okay, on libby, I have mine are not that? You know deep. Um, it's a love story. I'm just like in a. You are like that's why you have four books behind reading.
Speaker 1:I know, um, it's a love story by annabelle monica and that came out a couple weeks ago, I think, or month, I don't know. May I think um, but I'm really a big fan of hers. She's. I think if you like emily henry, you would. You should check her out.
Speaker 1:Um, I have this book called love and other conspiracies which I heard really good things about and I thought it sounds like I would like it. Um, I think it's like a sheet. This girl falls in love with a guy who's like searching for bigfoot on an online web show. Honestly, green flag, yes, no, um. And then I'm really, if you're from the south at all, you know somebody who has some sort of storied relationship with bigfoot or yetis, and that is, that is real, yeah, that is real, yeah. So, uh, it's like I get it. Um.
Speaker 1:And then I'm really excited if I have a 25 week wait and I may end up buying this, but I'm really trying not to buy books right now. But I'm looking forward to reading the listeners by maggie steve otter, who is one of my favorite authors and this is her first adult book. Um, and how exciting. I really want to read it. I really like her and I like her writing and I may buy it. But again, I am on a ban right now, so we'll see if I it, what, who wins, you know.
Speaker 1:And then I have my giant stack sorry, my giant stack of tbr, which you guys know about, and I am getting through it slowly but surely. So I'm excited to read those books which are so far? They've all been great. I haven't had one that, so you were right shout out to past you for buying them exactly. Or are you for sending them to me? Yeah, either one. They've all been great. I haven't had one, so you were right. Shout out to Pasty for buying them Exactly, or you for sending them to me, either one.
Speaker 1:Will you continue you think, this quest when summer's over? Yeah, like I'm in this until I'm done. Every time I want to buy a book, I put it in my notes app and I don't buy it. And I'm going to just keep doing that until I finish this stack, because I do want to get through them and put their. They're sitting. I keep looking behind me because they're sitting behind me on my floor, so as I read them, I can put them away or get rid of them or like whatever. So I'm just going to stick to my list on here if I want to buy a book, and then I'll come back to it.
Speaker 1:And also, right now, though, I am on hoopla reading sunburn by chloe michelle holworth, which I've seen people recommend everywhere. Yeah, I've seen that. I've seen that, so I think it was promoted to me today. Oh yeah, I keep seeing this, so and they happen to be on hoopla instantly. So this is like my, my palate cleanser, although it's not really a palate cleanser, and also it's set in um ireland.
Speaker 1:So I'm back with, like the devs and like year six and I'm like I still don't know what you guys are talking about, but and I never will if we get merch, if we ever get merch, I'm putting that on a mug. It's like don't tell me what gses are. I don't know what the devs means. Okay, I'm not going to the Debs and I'm not going to find out what your level, your A levels are, but it feels familiar. I'm like, oh, okay, I know you guys. Oh, back to this bullshit. Yeah, a levels, yeah. And then I'm excited about Every Step she Takes, by Alison Cochran coming out yeah, very soon, september. And Mate by ali hazelwood also coming out in october. And, uh, the will of the money sequel. I'm really excited about all the three.
Speaker 1:I am not trying to like wish away the summer, because I'm actually having a great summer. I feel like I'm doing lots of fun things, I'm reading lots of great books and whatever. But when fall comes, we totally have to do a fall book preview, because so many good there are so many good things coming out. I truly cannot. I agree with you, let's not wish it away, but I'm really excited about those. So hopefully I can finish my stack, or at least most of my stack, before then so I can buy those books without a guilty conscience, because I will do it either way. Just to be clear yeah, but I'll be free. Yeah, um, okay, uh, anything else?
Speaker 1:Or do you want to dump into what we've read recently? Let's just jump into what we've read recently, because I do have a lot to talk about and I want to hear what you have to say about your books. Okay, recently as well. Do you want me to go first? You want to go first? You go first? Why not? Okay, change it up. What I already mentioned about chain gang all stars, yeah, yeah, so we won't get into that, into that again, but that's like fresh. And then, ok, I'm totally going to expose myself here. It's a safe space, yeah, so my our couples therapist recommended to us to read this book called Hold Me Tight by dr sue johnson, who's the founder of emotionally folk she's like the creator of emotionally focused therapy and, unironically, it was a really good book and it kind of reads narratively because she uses a.
Speaker 1:She's done like decades of research, like directly with couples that she has done counseling with. So she tells it's kind of like tea, because she like reenacts a lot of their conversations and I'm like, oh, tea, like this fight is like good, you know, um, but actually I do think it was great and it's like a book that, if you are in a long-term romantic relationship, even if it's like totally great, I feel like this is a useful book, like I genuinely enjoyed it, um. So, yeah, that's something I read recently. It was good. I like how you're acting, surprised that a professional who has studied this for many, many years recommended a book that is actually good and helpful. I kind of just meant like I kind of thought it was going to be like oh God or not, like cheesy, but like, oh, I have to read a book Like this is going to suck, you know, like homework. Oh, yeah, exactly Like. Oh, I'm going to just think about, like you know, one of the things I mean there are some cheesy things in there. So one of the things I mean there are some cheesy things in there, so one of the things that she talks about like demon dialogues and it's like the same repetitive conversations that you always get in with your spouse that you have over and over again, and so the term is a little cheesy, but, like the truth of it was good. I was like, oh, I see. So, yeah, I figured that it would be a good instructive book but, yeah, you also enjoyed the experience of reading it. Yeah, I did great and then I also read. So this was actually a book I paused earlier this year because I just wasn't in the mood for it, and I actually picked it back up and finished it and I gave it 4.25 stars.
Speaker 1:Wow, and that book is Joan, by Catherine J Chen. It is a historical retelling of the story of Joan of Arc. Quick, like non-serious note about this book. Why do you think like Joan of Arc? Obviously French. Yeah, everyone in the book is French. Sure, every single character. Guess what kind of accent they had in the audiobook, like cockney, do you know what I'm saying? And they're in a war, yeah, they're in a war against the English. Yeah, and they're in using English accents. That's tough's interesting.
Speaker 1:It was still really good and I actually like, really did not know that much about Joan of Arc. I had very surface level knowledge about her, but it is ultimately a book about how women cannot make any mistakes and if they ever make any mistakes, they will be burned at the stake, yeah, so Wow, anyway, okay, that sounds good. It was really good. I learned a lot about her. It seemed really really well researched and a lot of the information and the plot points of the book were taken from like transcripts of like and like historical records of her trials or like firsthand accounts of Joan of Arc. So, yeah, it was really good. I really enjoyed it.
Speaker 1:But you kind of have to like I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone. You kind of have to be into that sort of thing. I get that, like me, if you find your, if you find your taste aligning more with me than with Emily, then you would read this book. But it but like it's not for everyone Fair, but I liked it. Wow, such a great record. I need to lighten it up. You do really. You do really need to chill the big one. That's why you're behind, as we said. Yeah, I don't know, it's just been hard for me recently to read trash. I guess I get that. No, I get that sometimes you're just getting totally get that.
Speaker 1:Anyways, tell me about your books. Okay, number one that I have finished it's and they Were Roommates, by Paige Powers. I don't know if you guys have seen this. I've seen this around a lot, okay, so I've seen this book around on like TikTok and stuff, because Paige has done an excellent job marketing. This is an indie published book. I'm pretty sure. I don't think it's traditionally published. I think he's done all the marketing himself.
Speaker 1:Anyways, um, I did not know it was a ya book. I thought it was about college roommates, uh, because obviously I wasn't paying attention. But it is ya, so just know that. But you know what? It was really cute.
Speaker 1:So, um, this book, the main character is charlie, uh-huh, charlie is trans, a trans boy, and he his dream his whole life has been to go to this like elite boarding school called valentine academy for boys and he like never thought he would be able to because he was born female. But then he is not and so he gets to go. He gets accepted and he's on a scholarship which is like very intense at the school. You have to be ranked in the top five in your class in order to keep your scholarship and stay at the school. And also they like take your phone away, you can't have any contact with outside world. There's no, like everything's by hand. It's very intense.
Speaker 1:Okay, and Charlie requested and paid for a single room in order to help because he doesn't want to be outed. And when he gets there, he is immediately assigned to have a roommate. He just like there's a bit of mix up. And not only does he have a roommate, but roommate is jasper grimes, who was actually charlie's first kiss and broke charlie's heart before he transitioned, before he was known as trans. And jasper does not recognize him. So he is like, oh great. And so they are forced into the situation together. Wait. So does he? Does he tell him the truth? No, no, charlie's like. Charlie is like I don't want any. The school doesn't know that he's trans. Like nobody knows. Also, jasper's aunt is like the principal. So he's even more paranoid. And so charlie's like freaking out, like I have to get out of the situation. And jasper's like okay, I will tell my aunt, I'll use my connections to get my aunt to give me a private room so you could have this room to yourself.
Speaker 1:If you help me with this task that I have undertaken, which is to write and smuggle love letters from the boys' school into the girls' school Because they're not allowed to communicate, they don't have any like crossover. What a classic heist. A classic heist, a classic trope of like Just good old shenanigans, yes, and so jasper's like I will teach you how the ways of romance, if you help, yeah. And then good old misbehaving they fall in love. So I thought it's really cute. Um, they were roommates and they were roommates, so it was just cute and like. I'm not a big ya person, but I did think this was really fun and like just cute and I really hope page powers. Maybe your dream is to write ya, and that's fine, but I would love to read an adult romance by him because it was so like just cute, good banter, like really good relationship building and I I really liked it. So would love more from page powers love, cute, okay.
Speaker 1:Next, a book I haven't. I literally was trying to finish before we recorded today, but I am now like 97 of the way through. So I feel very confident in my ability to recommend this and I know it's gonna be five star read and I specifically think you should read it, abigail. It is, bro. I have it on from the library right now. It is the Rose Code by Kate Quinn.
Speaker 1:This book it's not a hot take. It has a 4.41 average rating on StoryGraph and my friend, allie shout out to Allie, made me read this. Shout out, allie. It is 624 pages so it's taken me quite a bit of time to get through. It's also very dense.
Speaker 1:But it follows three women and I talked a little bit about this last episode, um, when I had first started it. But it's follows these three women, osla how would you say osla? Because I've been saying osla, but osla, osla, osla is probably right, okay, osla, beth and or Mabel, and they are all individually recruited to go work at this place called Bletchley Park. And here is like the greatest minds in England trying to basically break the codes from the Nazis, trying to break their like secret codes. And it's super top secret. They can't tell anyone what they're doing and they all three have different stations so they're not even supposed to like tell each other what they're doing in their different stations within this organization, um, and nobody even knows that they're like fighting the war effort. It is just that top secret.
Speaker 1:Um, that's in the past, but you start the book in the future, in 1947, several years after the end of the war, and you know that, um, basically, like, one of them is in an insane asylum. They're no, they're no longer friends, they've betrayed each other. Like this is within the first, like three pages. You know that they betray each other, you know that one of them is in the same asylum and the others hate each other, like don't speak anymore. And you know also that, like um, one of them is married, but you don't know to who. One of them is in the asylum, obviously, and then the other one is engaged, but you don't know to who, but you know it's not to who. They start out being with in the beginning of the past time period. So you're like, okay, how do we get from them being really good friends, working together, to, only a few years later, being having betrayed each other, being with these different people, um, and hating each other? And this book takes you on a journey.
Speaker 1:It took me a while to read, like it's just, it's like one of those where you have to like kind of stop and like process a little bit. But the last, like third, I couldn't, I have not been able to put down. I've been like turning my pages. I audibly gasped earlier today and I was texting Allie she's like I don't even remember this because I read this like two years ago, but I audibly gasped, covered my face like this oh my god. There's also like really lovely and heart-wrenching like love stories within this book, which I need because I'm not a historical fiction girl and those, for me, are like the heart of the book. And there's like one scene this is like the highest compliment I can give a book and I don't want to spoil anything. But there's like one scene this is like the highest compliment I can give a book and I don't want to spoil anything. But there's just one scene in particular that I went back and refound it so I could reread it again because it was just that like memorable in my mind and like just touched me that much and I just like loved, I loved the story arc. I have cried like three times reading this book.
Speaker 1:It is very sad at some parts. I mean it's a war and the thing is like you know, like you know from the beginning, bad stuff is about to happen, like yeah, when things are like when if someone's falling in love with someone hypothetically, but you know that that's not who they're with in the future. Like you know, something bad is coming, but it doesn't make it any less impactful. If anything, it's like it makes it worse. It's like shifting the conversation back to Wolfstar. It's like you know the whole time it's a doomed love. Yes, exactly, because it's like reading summer 1977 and you know that they only have a few years left, that they only have a few years left and it makes the happy times so much more like painful and like aching, because you know what's coming and that's what this does, because the literal first, like three pages, everything I've said about their future you know within two or three pages of starting it and then you have to go back and see how it all happens and it just hurts so bad.
Speaker 1:I think this is so well written. Um, I've really loved it and I genuinely was. When we got on this call had tears in my eyes still from crying over it. It is not good. You have to read it. I know you specifically would love it. So this is definitely for Abigail, but anyone else. If you like World War II, if you like women, you know empowered women, complicated female relationships, love stories, it's all here.
Speaker 1:I just started another historical book that I know I'm really gonna like. So sure, as soon as I'm done with that, please let me know, and please prefer to text me as I've been texting ally as things have been revealed, because I just think, too, like Kate Quinn I've never read anything by her before, but she's like a master, in my opinion. From reading this book, she like she sets these things up, these like narrative threads that pay off so well and you like, almost don't even notice they're happening. That's why I had to go back and reread this other scene because I'm like, oh my god, oh my god, it was right there. And then it pays off in a way. That's like, oh, it hurts and I don't want to spoil it, but please read it, uh, because it's really good. So, okay, I will.
Speaker 1:That's basically what I read recently. Um, those are my two. And then I'm reading sunburn, which I really liked so far, but I'm not far enough in to really comment on that one. But except for the dubs, except for the dubs, irish stuff, yeah, okay, cool. Well, that was a good catch up. That was a great catch up, and we'll be back, and halfway through the year, I think, good stuff coming up. So yeah, stay tuned, stay tuned, all right, guys Talk to you later, bye, bye.