00:16
What's up my fellow book nerds? My name is Courtney and welcome to What the Smut Are You Talking About? podcast. On this week's episode, we will deep dive into Haunting Adeline by H.D. Carlton. When reading this book, you can expect dual points of view,  a possessive MMC, enemies to lovers, a very dark romance.  And I wanted to go ahead and let you know that this book has some serious trigger warnings. A few  are stalking,

00:46
murder, sexual assault, child trafficking, child abduction, torture, and rape. For a full list of trigger warnings, please see the author's website or the front of the book. So this episode will mention very graphic topics and is not suitable for anyone under the age of 18. With all that being said, I am excited to introduce my co-host on today's episode. We have Megan joining us from Ohio.

01:14
Megan reached out to me on Instagram wanting to come on to talk about Haunting Adeline. I instantly said yes and was able to get a recording scheduled pretty quickly due to the fact that I recently read this book myself. When I started my bookstagram, I saw this book all over the place. I did not think I would like it knowing what little I did, but this book is just so well written. It hooked me very quickly. And afterwards I entered what I'm calling my dark romance era.

01:41
So I am excited to talk with Megan about the story. Hey Megan, I'm so excited to finally talk to you in person. Thank you for taking the time to come on and talk books with me. Yeah, I'm so happy to be here and talk about one of my favorite books I've read in a really long time. Awesome. Well, tell us a little bit about yourself. I am 31 years old. I'm from Ohio. I am a mom of two boys, four and 19 months. So.

02:12
young kids. um I am also  work in the special education field. So that's my  Monday through Friday job, which  I absolutely love.  I have three dogs. So I'm hoping that they also  don't just start randomly barking at some point while we're  recording this. Right now they're being fine. But when they go off, sounds like I have like a whole rescue.

02:41
upstairs. But I love animals. So we started off with one dog and then within, we adopted two within six months of each other. So now we have three crazy dogs.  And two small kiddos. And two small kiddos. It's a lot. My house is a circus. So reading is my um mental getaway.  I love to just be able to read and

03:10
escape for a little bit. I feel that. I feel that. My son, he is three and then my daughter is 18 months old. So I'm right there with you.  Yeah, you know exactly what I'm talking about then. It  is crazy. It's so crazy. And then I work with fifth and sixth graders. So I work with a little bit older,  but  it's a lot. I love it though.

03:39
I love my crazy life.  I bet. How's the weather up there in Ohio right now? It is absolutely freezing today. um With the wind chill, it's like negative nine.  Oh oh my We're not leaving the house at all today. um It's so cold. We got some snow, but nothing too crazy. Thankfully, I hate the cold and I hate the snow, so I don't know why I still live in Ohio.  I just can't leave.

04:07
I'm in the South, so we don't really know what snow is because it never comes. But we are actually supposed to get some snow showers tonight.  um, definitely going to the store after this to stock up because you never know.  Oh no. Yeah. I still do that too. I'm like always stocking up. I'm like, anytime I see any like crazy weather, I'm like, Oh, I have to get it. But then in Ohio either like happens or it doesn't.  And

04:36
Anytime I like actually prepare it doesn't happen.  that's same thing here. And that's why I want to be prepared because I don't want to deal with it. Trying to go to work tomorrow.  Yeah, no, do not. All right. So go ahead and tell us about this favorite book of yours. Yeah. So I love Haunting Adeline.  I  took a break from reading for a while just with having to

05:04
small kids, it can be hard.  And I, when I first read Haunting Adeline, I actually listened to it through Audible.  And I didn't know how I was going to like it because, you know, it is just muddy, the topics are dark. And I was like, how am going to like, like physically hearing someone else say this? But I loved it. It was almost like I got lost and I thought I was in a movie while  listening to it.

05:34
So, Haunting Adeline  is a dark, dark romance that follows  Adeline, Adeline Riley, who is an author  and her shadow,  Zade Meadows, who  becomes obsessed with her in a chance encounter  when he sees her at one of her  book signings.  And she lives in Seattle.

06:03
She had just moved in to her family home that she inherited after her grandma passed away.  she slowly starts realizing  some dark family secrets and they start intertwining with her life. And I think that's so interesting. So there's like a little short spoiler free  summary. Well, it's spoiler alert time.

06:31
Me and Megan are going to deep dive into this story. So this is your warning that if you haven't read this book and don't want it spoiled, I would recommend that you stop listening and come back afterwards. If not, you have been warned.

06:47
So this starts out introducing Adeline, who is also referred to as Addie in most of the books. So I'm going to be lazy and just call her Addie  moving forward.  against her  mother's wishes,  Addie is moving into Parsons Manor, which is a Gothic style Victorian home that was built by her great grandparents. During the construction of the house, we find out that there was a rumored fire

07:16
that killed five people and that the house is haunted. So let's talk a little bit about that because I feel like there could be more to that  with you being a fan. Can you touch base on that? do you? So I absolutely love, sorry. was like, oh,  I absolutely love that the house is haunted. I'm also like a paranormal and horror fan.

07:44
So I think that's why I also like love the book so much. It's cause it has those like,  like nods to that.  And I really enjoy it. So the house is haunted. I believe um HD has said that there's about three or four ghosts that are haunting Parsons Manor.  And  one  is a darker entity.  And then the other ones aren't nearly as dark.

08:14
Um, which I think you can definitely pick up when certain entities in the book are around. Cause I think  you can know like when the mood is changing, the characters will say that like it feels darker, it feels heavy.  And I,  um, I really enjoyed that aspect of the book because I love haunted things.  So I, and I, I feel the same way. Um, so I'm hoping we.

08:44
more of that in book two because like I feel like there could have been more so I wish you would have gotten yeah like I feel like I mean HD might have done that just to like help with the plot but I feel like there was more of a reason why I definitely think so too um so I follow HD on Instagram and I'm also in her like Facebook group

09:14
Um, which if anyone is a fan  and has a Facebook, I don't know how many people still use Facebook.  I still do. I'm in my thirties. I still use Facebook.  Um, but if you want to her Facebook group is,  uh, HD Carlton stalkers.  And yeah, she's pretty active in there too. She, um, posts a lot of like what she's working  on.

09:41
Um, everyone in that group is so awesome. They're always like discussing the books  and,  um, she's gone into like detail about who  she believes when she was writing, like who the darker entity is, which,  um, if we're in the spoiler  section,  um, I guess I can go ahead and talk about that since we gave a warning. So she said that in her mind, the,  um, darker entity was Frank.

10:11
who  we find out is  Gigi's killer. Yes.  So I assumed that when reading it, there was nothing that blatantly said it in the book. But she has said that that's who, in her mind, when she was writing that darker entity, that's who it was in her mind. So I really enjoyed that,  finding that out. Because  as a reader, that's what I assumed.

10:39
Yes. Yeah. So I'm definitely going to have to go join that Facebook group. Yeah. It's so fun. You'll see me in it all the time. I'm always, and she talks about like her  projects that she has  coming up. She'll share a little like snippets from them, which  I love. I'm a really big, um, HD Carlton fan. That's what actually got me back into reading. Why the cat and mouse duet. And then  I

11:09
went on like  a spiral of running to read everything that she has written. And  then that happens. Right. I was like, I just have to read everything because I just really enjoy her style of writing.  And um that's actually why I got a Kindle. I asked for a Kindle for Christmas because I wanted to make sure I could um download and pre-order her new book that comes out in February.

11:36
The only reason I got a Kindle was because of HD Girl Time. I love it. Yeah. I got a Kindle, a new Kindle for Christmas. My old one crapped out on me. So it came with so many months of Kindle Unlimited for free. And so that's how I actually got this book is because it was on Kindle Unlimited. And I'm okay, I'll try it.

12:03
Yep, that's what I've been  using because  the same thing happened when I got my Kindle.  I'll just say it now, I got my Kindle on Christmas and I have read 17 books since having it.  Oh my gosh, I love that. I have just gone on a spiral and I am in my dark romance era,  I have been saying as well. I'm caught up in this dark romance era in this world. I love it.

12:33
I am a fan.  I'm currently reading  on my Kindle is Carnage. ah That's on my TBR. It's on my TBR. just read the ritual. I just finished that last night. And that's like in the same world, right? Yes. So, okay. Funny story. So  I started reading the ritual and it was

13:00
It was really good. Um, but I just have so much I have to read for this podcast.  And I kind of like started reading it and then I stopped and I was like, okay, I'm going to come back to it. Well, then I had someone say they wanted to  come on and do carnage and I was like, okay. But in my head, when I like read that I read caravel and so was like, Oh,

13:24
which is like completely not anywhere close to what carnage is. One's a dark romance, one's like a young adult.  And I was like, yeah, I've been wanting to read this Caravelle book.  And so was like, yeah, let's do it. That's something different that I haven't read in a while. yeah. And then, so when I looked back to go download carnage,  I was like, oh, that's not what I thought it was. But I was like, oh well, I'm here. Let's do this.

13:52
And so as I started reading it, I was like, this sounds a lot like ritual. So then I had to like look back and forth and saw that it was like part of that world. So,  um, there it's a lot.  So I'm definitely like,  it is a lot like it's  like, thought the ritual, which I'm only about halfway through ritual.  Um, it's like very, very more like graphic. oh

14:20
lot of messed up stuff in it. without spoiling anything. yeah, so definitely read it.  Yeah, it's on my TBR.  Yeah, I'm currently reading the  the book I currently started today is the only H.E. Carlton book that I haven't read yet. It's Shallow River.  And I was putting it off because  Shallow River the trigger warnings for that are it's domestic violence.

14:50
and I'm actually a domestic violence survivor. So  I was like putting it off for a while. So I was like, I don't know if I can like handle it with my triggers, but everything else, I was it was so dark that I was like, I think it's just, it's time. Let me just rip the bandaid off  and read it. And in that, in her Facebook group, a lot of other survivors said it was like very healing.

15:14
for them to read it. I was like, okay, that's good. But and I was like, I had just gotten done with the ritual. And I was like, I don't think anything can really like, I was so much like dark stuff that like, I'll be fine. I'm like, I'm fine. And like, I, that's the thing. I'm like so much in my dark romance era that like, my friends are like, what are you reading or suggest a book to me? And I'm like, oh, I don't know why.

15:44
Uh, to say right now.  I love it. Yeah. definitely give me any  recommendations that you want because I read just about anything.  Um, I definitely,  uh, tell people, I just read the never after series, which they're like,  uh, I wouldn't really say they're dark, but they're like smutty and they have like some dark,  um, components to components.

16:10
in it and that's really good and they're pretty fast reads. They're kind of smaller books. So I've been telling everyone to read those because they're like reimagining like fairy tales and stories. Oh wait, is that like Hooked? Yes, Hooked and Cross and Twisted. I loved all of those. I just downloaded Hooked on Audible because it was free. Yes, it's so good. So I'll eventually get to that.

16:40
I have to have like little palette cleanser books in between to like break it up.  Yeah, I feel that those were my palette cleanser.  And I was like telling people, cause I'm like, Oh, don't you need a palette cleanser? And I'm like, yeah, like I just did the never after series. my like, those are still like have some dark components. I'm like, yeah, but they're nothing like what  I normally gravitate towards.

17:07
Yes,  it's tame compared.  It's tame compared. And that's my thing. like, never like, because like, when I really got into dark romance, I went like head first with Haunting Adeline and Haunting Adeline. So I feel like it kind of just blurred my lines, where I'm like, that's like the most and like, that's what I started with. So everything else kind of seems like tame.  But I would say like the ritual and stuff is up there with.

17:37
Haunting Adeline and  that.  So yes.  All right. So we have Addie, who is an author and is currently trying to work on her next book while trying to promote her newest release. She mentioned several times how she can have an overactive imagination, which can make for some scary situations in real life, but it's great for her career.

18:05
So we come to a scene where she is doing a signing at a local bookstore.  She does not like the attention, so she's trying to get through this as quick as possible. She is with a fan when she feels someone staring. She tries to ignore it, but the feeling intensifies.  And she's trying to rush through. She keeps glancing around, trying to find the source of this uneasy feeling. It's then when the crowd breaks a little,

18:33
that she sees a man standing at the very back of the store. The first thing she notices is his eyes.  One is so dark and the other is ice blue, it almost appears white. Then she notices the scar through the discolored eye. A throat clears and then she pays attention to the fan in front of her. When she looks back up to find the man, he is gone. Okay, and so she also has her best friend, Deya.

19:02
And um later  after the book signing, Daya is telling Addie that she needs to get laid. And so she steals her phone and she sends a dirty text to Addie's ex, Grayson. And he replies that he'll be over at eight. So  can we just go ahead and say that Grayson is a grade A douche canoe?  Oh gosh,  I could not stand him.  I know.

19:29
I couldn't stand him. He's so awful.  And it's like, you know, you meet Archie later, which is another like potential hookup for her. like, even though like Archie is like a terrible person, he's still, uh he's still better than Grayson.  I like, liked him more than Grayson. Yeah. And I'm like, that's sad.  You're like, oh gosh, even he beats out Grayson. Grayson is gross.

19:58
I couldn't understand him and I'm glad we didn't have to deal with him a lot in the book. I think I could have. So even though Addie thinks this is a bad idea, she decides to go along with it because she could blow off some steam.  So Grayson, the douche canoe shows up and they start making out.  They have a very heavy make out session in the hall, but Addie, she just isn't feeling it.

20:25
Grayson suggests they go to the bedroom, but before they move, Grayson freezes because there's a loud banging at the door. He asks Addie if she's expecting anyone and she says no. Then he says, well, why don't you go check? Like what an asshole. I would have been like, no, you can check when you leave because they're not gonna have me go open this scary loud banging noise.

20:54
Yes. happening. Nope. You can check as you leave. So she does go out and check.  And she goes to the porch and leans over the rail and she doesn't find anyone. But she has that feeling  that someone is watching her again. So back inside, Grayson starts stripping his clothes down the hallway following Addie. And to me, like, I don't think it says this, but I feel like she's like going upstairs to like look out the window or something.

21:25
I didn't really feel like she wanted to get like right back in it because she really didn't want to be there to begin with.  Yes. So  he's like naked at this point  and  so she ends up yelling at him like read the room buddy. uh I'm not in the mood.  And then he gets mad and punches the hole in the drywall and then he leaves with with only one sock on I believe.  Yeah, it was one sock.

21:53
because I thought that was hilarious. So yeah, so he punches the hole  and so when she goes to inspect the damage, you know, that's when she finds um the safe that's behind her Gigi's picture. So Gigi is the great grandmother. Yeah, so she removes this picture and finds a safe that she breaks into.  And  there's where she finds her Gigi's journals.

22:22
uh And this is, so she starts reading the journals to find out that Gigi had a stalker back in the day. Yeah.  I, I absolutely loved her finding ah Gigi's journals and learning about her stalker. Cause I felt like it added such like a suspenseful ah element to the story.

22:47
of being like, okay, is this like some family curse where they have stalkers? And like, I just thought it was really interesting. So we mentioned before that this was dual point of view, which I love.  But it does go back and forth sometimes and the story overlaps each viewpoint. So ah it switches to Zadie Zane point of view. He is torturing someone for information.

23:16
He gets  what little info from the man that he can and then he kills him. So we find out that the man he killed is a child rapist and that  he is part of a child sex trafficking ring.  I instantly get Dexter vibes from Zane, you know, a good-ish guy that takes care of the bad guys.  No, I definitely get that.

23:45
Definitely in my eyes, I think  Zayde is morally gray. I know some people want to argue that.  But to me, I think he's morally gray because yes, he's not doing good things, but he's  not doing it. It's bad people that he's going after.  So in my eyes, I'm like, okay, it's fine. It's fine.  So.

24:14
I um love that and I also think that like I know this book can be kind of controversial and you either I feel like people either love it or hate it and um I definitely think that some of the fun in reading  is especially like when you're reading fiction is

24:41
You know, you're putting your brain in some place that like you wouldn't normally be  and like stuff that you like reading about is not stuff necessarily that you would be okay with in real life.  And that's how I look at books. 100 % agree with you. Cause I mean, I read some really messed up stuff and I do too. I'm like, have to like, you have to.

25:09
take out the real world when you're reading these books. And I think that's like what I always say to people who are like, oh, those books are so messed up. Oh, I don't know how you could like them. I'm like, they're fiction. I'm not saying that if this was happening in real life, would I be okay with it?  No, but that's right. Part of the fun in reading is I'm like in a different world.  I'm in a different universe while reading stuff. like I always try to remind people of that, especially like

25:38
the online debate about these books can get pretty crazy. agree. And I'm like, it's, I'm like, it is not real. This is not real. It's a fiction book. It's a novel. Like you're supposed to like root for someone that like, if my best friend was dating, I would be like, oh, I think we need to go get you help. But in the book, I'm like, yes, Addie, get it Addie.

26:08
You know, it's different. you know, Addie, like she struggles with it. Like she definitely has a lot of inner monologue where she thinks she shouldn't be attracted to him. she, yeah, she surprises me a lot in this book. And I really liked that too. That was something I had in my notes was like, I really like the like her trying to figure out her own moral compass of like,

26:37
Is it okay? Like, can I morally accept this?  And I think that's really uh interesting. And  I  really liked reading her like, back and forth struggle, if you will, about her feelings. Yes, yes. ah So a little bit more about Zayd, you know, we also find out that he started his own

27:06
like almost like underground type business.  Um, and everyone refers to him as Z.  Um, and he hired people with specific quote unquote, talents,  um, and placed them all over the U S to help in child trafficking. Yeah, I love that. I love learning about some of the people that he has employed. Um, yes, I really liked that when we get introduced to those characters. uh

27:35
And I like how they tied Deya into it. Like, cause we find out later that Deya is a hacker and she actually works for Z. So that was a cool little twist. Yeah. I really, um, I really enjoyed that because it was like, I feel like Destin for Zayden Addy.

28:03
in a way because it was like, um,  if I get into it, like an invisible string.  So I, I really loved that. So,  uh, after the bookstore,  um, in the banging on the door thing with,  um, the douche canoe,

28:26
Some crazy stuff starts happening.  Um, Addie starts finding roses and empty whiskey glasses, letting her know, you know, someone's been there.  Um, she ends up getting, you know, locks replaced and cameras installed,  he is able to still bypass all that because it just so happens that it's products from his own company. Um.

28:50
And then he finally starts to communicate with her. At first it's by notes  and then text messages from an unknown number.  Then her mother attempts again to get her to move out, alluring that the house is haunted. So, you know, we've already talked about  the ghosts. So her mother tells her, know, the ghosts, there's ghosts there from the construction workers. And then she also let it slip  that

29:19
Addie's Gigi was actually murdered in the house and not only in the house she's murdered in the bedroom that is now Addie's.

29:31
Yeah, I thought that was like, I love it. It's creepy.  And it's suspenseful because you're like, okay, well, like, Addie starts wondering, like, am I gonna end up like my Gigi? Like, she had this stalker  and that she starts learning about in the journals. And then she finds out that she was murdered. it's so, I just thought it was like, so interesting of like a little twist to be like,

30:00
Okay, well, like, how is this gonna end for her?  And um I also just want to point out that I hate her mom so much.  Oh, yes, I'm right there with you.  could not stand her. And  I would have been just like, Addie and been like, no, I'm staying here. I don't really care what the fuck you have to say.  You can't make me leave.  So.

30:26
One thing about Deya's and Adi's relationship  is they love to drink and day drink.  So at one point, um Deya ends up taking Adi to this club.  So they go and have a great time and you know, a guy ends up coming to dance with them. And I mentioned to him earlier Archie, he turns out to be a very bad guy.  He's like a cocaine dealer.

30:55
And,  um, but she didn't know this  like beforehand.  Um, but she starts dancing with him, hanging out with his friends. And this is actually, think when Zane first texts her, if I'm not mistaken.  Um, yes, it's one of the, I believe it's the first time because he  sends a message saying like something about like, any man puts his hands on you.

31:26
Um,  that he's going to take care of it.  Yeah. was something along the lines of, uh, any man touches you, I'll cut their hands off or something like that. Yeah. So our little dearest Addie thinks that he is bluffing. So  she decides to take Archie home,  um, to see if Zade will show his cards or not.  Um, so she has a sunroom, which is basically a room made out of windows.

31:56
Um, and so she's about to start like hooking up with Archie,  um, when banking on the door starts again. And so this is kind of where Archie shows his true colors. Cause he just immediately draws a gun. Um, and takes off out the door. That scene was crazy because the first time the banging happens, you're like, you know, the house is like.

32:24
Haunted and you're like when it's with douche canoe and you're like, okay, is this the spirits trying to stop it  is  Zade and then Definitely this time you're like, okay Zade's outside He's outside. Yep. This is what's happening  Yeah, so and then she gets a little present from him the following day I can't remember. Is it his head or his hands?

32:54
It's his hands.  It sure is his hands. He was not bluffing  at all. Nope. Nope.  Um,  it's so let's talk about their first,  um, I guess we could call it romantic encounter.  Um, you know, we mentioned earlier how Addie struggles with her morals and she doesn't want to want him, but she does get turned on by the fact that he stalks her.

33:24
They have a very intense scene on the  couch  that involves a knife and a gun.  Yeah, this scene can be pretty controversial,  again,  online, where people are like,  oh, yes, like, I love this scene. And then other people are like, no, it was definitely like non-consensual.

33:51
And that some people's like breaking point with the book or with Zade as a character in the middle about it. So  I,  the first time I've listened, like I said, the first time I listened, I listened to the books. And then when I got my Kindle, I reread Haunting on my Kindle to just see like,

34:15
if it was any different with me like physically reading it versus listening. with that scene, I'm just like still really like divisive on it. Like  I am just like in the middle. I'm like, I think it's really hot. But I can also see where people are like, no, that's so fucked up. Like she didn't want it at all.  And I don't know. I'm torn. ah Yeah, I think the scene is like,  just think Zayt's really hot.

34:44
Like the dominant aspect of it, do enjoy,  but um I can definitely see where people could be like, no, this is not okay. Yeah. I mean, I feel the same way. uh It's definitely unconsensual,  there's points even in that one scene where she's struggling with it because  you can tell she's interested.

35:13
But again, no means no, but I'm not, and by no means am I defending him at all because rape is awful.  um, but again, this is a very fictional story. This is not based on real events.  Um, but yeah, so it is  in any  book or movie that I watch any rape scene, it's just really hard for me to

35:43
like  not enjoy but like  I can't like watch it like I have to like if it's a movie I usually end up fast forwarding it where I'll go to another room  um  but  because it's it's just too much but it's the fact that Addy is still on that borderline so  um which I think is really important to like remember and I think it's like  um which is why like

36:12
as you said, like it is a fictional story. This is not based on true events. And I think you have to  remember that going into these books  is is dark. There is a long list of trigger warnings.  And  again, like something that I'm not defending what he did because it was messed up because she definitely said no. And she was definitely still like on the border of like, do I want him or do I not? uh

36:44
So that's the one scene in the book where I like the one I think part in the book where I'm really like torn. I feel like that's probably one of the scenes that like I don't like. Like it is like the smart aspect of it is. It's hot, but it would be hotter if she was consenting if that right. Yeah, yeah, no, I get it. So this book definitely has multiple things going on.

37:12
You have Zayde trying to stop this particular sex trafficking ring that performs a certain ritual on children. And then you have Addie who is trying to solve her great grandmother's murder. And, you know, we talked about Deya, how she works for Zayde. And I feel like there's more to Deya. Like, I'm really hoping we get more about her eventually. I would love that.

37:40
I really liked her as a character. Even if it's like a novella or something, I really enjoyed her as a character. Yes, I still definitely think there's more than meets the eye with her. I would definitely love to see more of her. And then Zade and Addy's world is about to collide even further because the main suspect that Zade is tied to

38:09
to gain access through these rituals that's going on is also the grandson to the cop that's investigating her Gigi's murder. And then she finds out that ah he was friends with her Nana, which is  Gigi's daughter.  So she gets tangled up in this mess with Zade  and they only find out later that  Addie and Dayo was actually

38:37
like targeted for trafficking. uh

38:43
So  Zayde almost,  you know, is relieved almost because he thought being obsessed with her was going to put her into further danger, but he's actually in a way saving her because  she  is targeted. Yeah.  And with the help of Zayde and Deya,  know, um Addie ends up solving or figuring out her Gigi's murder.

39:09
Um, and at the end of the book, Zayde is working with his team to bust this ritual up and they're somewhat successful, but it definitely ends on a cliffhanger with Addy getting kidnapped. So I am like dying to read Hunting Adeline because I,  I just got to know what happened. So yeah, it definitely leaves off on a big,  uh, cliffhanger. Yeah. So  I, I'm, I'm going to get through these.

39:39
This book, you know, I told you I was reading Carnage. Yeah. Once I get through that, I'm going to make the time to at minimum listen to Hunting at a Line because I just got to know what happens next. It's really good. I definitely tell people I think hunting is a lot darker. So, um, that one was a little bit more. Yeah, that one was a little bit harder of a. Well, I've listened to that one. I haven't physically read that one.

40:09
Um, that was definitely a harder listen for me than,  um, haunting was. So I tell everyone like that I recommend these books to is that,  um, hunting is a lot darker, a lot darker.  Um, that's good to know. Yeah, I tell everyone I'm like, it's definitely darker. So just be prepared. But it's still really good.  And,  um,

40:38
Definitely has more  of,  we haven't talked about her yet, but I think one of my favorite characters  in the book  is Siby, or Sybil, that works at Satan's Affair.  And  we got a lot more  of Siby eventually, so I really love her.  The whole  Satan's Affair.

41:07
Chapters, think it's like two chapters that talk about Satan's affair or like probably my favorite in the whole book. So Yes. Yeah. So that's like the carnival, right? Yes Carnival that has like carnival and then they have the haunted houses. That's probably  yeah Man, I love that  that whole scene

41:34
I wrote like a whole like paragraph of novels about that. It's  like one of my favorites.  let's go ahead and talk about Satan's Affair.  Yeah, so I am and also just for anyone listening who doesn't know because I know we were talking about it. There is a novella called Satan's Affair that is a Siby story that's like a little like taste of her story.

42:04
that goes more into her background. And it's, it's really good. I tell everyone to read it. It's a fun little quick read. ah It's so good.  But Satan's Affair is a traveling, haunted carnival.  And  Dea and Adi go every year. They say that like they love it. Adi's mom is like, I don't know. I think she's like,

42:31
have an attitude that they go to it because they're like, you know, in their twenties and still going. She has an attitude about everything though. So yeah, that's, that's great point. She does have an attitude about everything.  Um, so  Dan Adigo  and  they run in to, um, the guy that Zaid  is,  uh, like currently like

43:00
tracking who he's after, who's a part of this child sex ring  and uh runs in  to them there. And they also see a girl who's dressed up like a broken doll. they say like, they see her and she's like sitting and eating like, I can't remember what she's eating. Is it like a turkey leg? It's something like, it's something like weird. they like, Addie's like, okay, that's like.

43:26
odd.  Like she's just like sitting there like totally enjoy it but she looks like a little broken doll.  And she works in the like, I think it's like Annie's playhouse. The bat house where it's like a little dollhouse  and she that's like where she works  and they go to go through and  shortly after you find out that the guys that

43:56
Zayde is  like tracking going after her, but then he goes in and Sippy thinks that Zayde is like the bad one that's like trying to do something bad to Daya and Addie and he like gets taken into this like verbal argument because she's like not letting him go and he's like, you're pissing me off and she's like, oh, I'm going to call my henchmen.  And he's like, you're fucking crazy. And she like gets really mad that he calls her crazy.

44:25
And  they end up saying they're going to work together to get the real bad people away.  I  just love Sibi's character. She's just so funny. She really is. She's crazy. She's  legit crazy.  She just says things and he calls her a demon slayer because they trap the three guys  and she holds them.

44:55
hostage in the playhouse, which she then says that like, this is something that she does that she can smell like evil on people. And they smell like rotten things, but like Addie smells like flowers. I can't remember what flowers she says and like,  say like, okay, you're fucking crazy.  And  so I loved like learning about her because I thought that like she was just like funny, crazy.

45:24
and like them working together. It like just reminded me of like a big brother and like a little sister, because of like how they were arguing. And she was like getting so mad at Zade and he was like so annoyed with her.  And  he was supposed to meet her at midnight, but he got a little held up at the house of mirrors.  And that is probably one of my favorite scenes, because I think

45:52
Addie even in that scene talks about dealing with her moral compass and she knows that she wants him, but she is still dealing, but then she ends up giving herself to him, because he's like, we'll play a game. If I catch you, then I get to fuck you. And she's like, oh, you won't. But they do.

46:18
And I think I really love that scene. And I actually, I'm trying to get it pulled up on my Kindle. One of my favorite like Zae quotes is in that little passage where like, I just like thought it was so good. Cause when they are looking at each other in the mirrors after he like has her, he says, what you're seeing now is what I see every day, no matter how far I run.

46:48
how hard I try to escape you, you're everywhere I go. You're everything I see. Loving you is like being trapped in a house of mirrors, little mouse. And I never felt so at home while being so lost inside of you. And I just remember like listening to that and just being like, oh my gosh. It's like, oh, I love it so much. whole scene.

47:16
It's so good.  I  see one thing I absolutely love about Kendall is you can like highlight parts. So like, do that. ah But like in that whole scene, Adi talks about like, she even says, like, how do I toss away the moral compass that's been directing my entire life? Like, she's just like really grappling with it. But then  she ends up, you know, they end up having sex  and

47:45
I  felt like that was like  a turning point, obviously, for Addie. for  sure. Yeah, she still struggles with it throughout the book. But like, she definitely has like thrown that part away of like, yeah, it might be wrong. But she still wants him. Yeah. I agree. Yeah, she

48:10
She has a lot of growth in this book. So I love, I love to see that  because at first, you know, she's very kind of just like soft spoken, timid, but she's also like her worst enemy too, because, um, you know, she,  there's even a part where she like quotes how if she was in a horror movie, you know, she would be the first to die because she just,

48:38
is her own worst enemy. no, and I love that because I relate to Addy in that sense. We're like, if I was in a horror movie, I would not be the final girl. would be the one that dies first because I would be the person that's like, did you hear that noise? We should probably go over there and see what it is. I would just die. So fast. am quite the opposite in that aspect. I'm like, you go check that out and you let me know.

49:07
I like, just like, I love haunted stuff. Like I used to go and Ohio is pretty cool because we have a bunch of like haunted locations. So I've done and done like ghost hunts. I've done like overnight stays and like a haunted prison that's here in Ohio.  And I just like love that kind of stuff. But I probably would be like the one that like goes investigate something and just like dies. I'm done. ah

49:34
But I think that whole like scene  is just like  really good. And it's probably one of my favorite parts of the book. I absolutely love it.  one of my favorite scenes. All right. So let's play a little game of fuck, marry, kill. So first up we have  Zade,  Jay and Archie.  Okay. Well, obviously.

50:03
I'm gonna have to do what Zaddy Zade did  and kill Archie. He's gotta go. Gotta go.  And then I would...  My way of thinking about it is I would fuck Jay and I would marry Zade because if I'm married to him I also get to fuck him. Is that cheating?  Is that cheating? That's the way I No, that is not cheating.

50:33
I would say out of those. for me, I would fucks-aid Mary J and Killargie because J is like the lovable character. I really loved his character. Like when we got introduced to him, I was like, oh my gosh, he's adorable. Like I really enjoyed him.

50:56
Um, so you're also a fan of Star Wars  and Vampire Diaries. So I threw in some more. So we have Zade, Anakin Skywalker, or Daemon. Okay.  Um, this one is going to be so hard for me. I  always joke, I love Star Wars and last year, like the highlight of  maybe even one of my life, Don't Tell My Children.

51:25
I got to meet Hayden Christensen who plays Anakin Skywalker. met at Comic Con. It was my first time going to one. I actually drove to, well, I didn't drive. I convinced my dad to take me to Philadelphia so I could go to this because he was going to be there. I was like, I just have to go.

51:51
And so I got to meet him. ended up meeting him like three times, but I joked that my my love for like morally gray or like villains started with Star Wars because I little Annie  little Annie  I was like obsessed with Anakin Skywalker. He was like my first um like crush as a little girl. I like loved him. So I'm like everyone should have just been like

52:19
prepared for this is what I was going to be like as an adult. was like Anakin Skywalker and then like I was a huge fan of the opera fan. So like the Phantom. But with these ones it's so hard. So I think I don't even know how I'm going to pick. But I think that I would fuck Zayde. I would marry Anakin and I would have to kill Damon in this scenario.

52:49
But I love him and it's so hard. I'm like, this is like the hardest one, I think for me. I know it is really hard. I did not think about this. ah For me, I think I would fucks-aid Mary Damon because I just love him so much and then I would have to kill Anna again. sorry. On the flip side of that, like I was really big into comic cons before ah children.  So ah I got to meet Ian Salmahalder.

53:19
So that was, yeah, that was a big one. That's a dream. Yes, I also got to meet, I can't think of his real name, but the guy that plays Stefan. Oh yeah, Paul. I met him and then the guy that plays Enzo. So that was fun. that's so cool. I want to do, would die to meet some of the vampire gods.

53:47
would love it. The first time I did any type of like Comic-Con was last year. And we took just, it was my dad, me and my oldest, my four year old who was three at the time. And  that was an interesting experience. My dad and my three year old ended up going back and just hanging out at the hotel because  he was so overwhelmed by everything and little people love hotels.

54:12
His favorite thing of the trip he kept talking about was the  phone in the hotel room because it's like, know, a cordet phone. That was his favorite part of the whole trip. If you ask him, it was like the phone in the room. I'm like, oh, you mean we went to a whole different state. We did a bunch of fun things. But the one thing you can tell me like the trip is the cordet phone in the hotel room. OK.  So that was his favorite thing. So they had just like hung out in the hotel room.

54:40
Like they went over, my dad was a little jealous because he's what got me started in Star Wars when I was little. So he was a little sad that he missed out on meeting Hayden because I was only supposed to meet him  once.  And I met him and I was like, oh my gosh, this is crazy. Went back to the hotel room, changed, went back because I was like in a cosplay and I was like, I am just uncomfortable. So I went back, changed. Then I went, was going to go back to the hotel to check on.

55:09
my son and just see what he was doing. He was playing with phone. But on my way back, Hayden was standing outside smoking a cigarette. And I thought I was like hallucinating because he was like, barely ate today. I'm running on like three Red Bulls. And he like, waved at me and he was like, hi again. And I was like, wait, what? I was like in a different outfit. And then I was supposed to me.

55:38
Oh my gosh, I can't remember who I was supposed to meet later on that evening, but they ended up having like getting sick and having to like cancel the rest of their appearances. So then I just ended up like exchanging it to me for a third time that day. So it was so funny. And when I wound up the third time, he was like, hi again, again. And I was like, oh my God, I'm dying. I love that. I love when famous people remember you.

56:06
And I was like, this is definitely was so fun, but I would love to do one of the like vampire diary uh conventions that they do.  Um, but definitely not take a child. Cause that was a lot.  I could not imagine. Yeah, too much. So  next month HD does have a, another like novella coming out that is called Where's Molly. It takes place  in  this, uh, cat and mouse.

56:36
uh world  um I don't want to mention anything too much about it since you haven't read book two  okay  um but I'm really excited about that I cannot wait like I need to read book two before next month  yes you do like  I cannot wait I was so excited  um when I found out that this book was coming out

57:01
And like I said, it's the whole reason why I wanted a Kindle to make sure that I could like have it pre-ordered and download it so I could read it like the day it comes out because it sounds really good.  It's,  uh,  it won't give anything away. It takes place,  um, you, it's about a character that we meet in book two pretty briefly.

57:23
And I am really excited to learn about this story.  And then I know at some point, I don't know when it's going to come out, but Siby is getting her own duet. So  she's working on editing  book one right now that I've been seeing in her Facebook group. So I'm very excited to get more Siby because I just love her so much. think I'm a Siby fan girl.  yeah,  that will be exciting.

57:51
Yeah, I cannot wait to learn more about her. So yeah, because she's crazy as fuck. She's crazy. I fucking love it because she's just like, she's so cute and so funny. And really how I learned about these books was from TikTok, a creator that I follow, whose name is Hawk, was always posting about these. And she has become friends with HD and HD says like,

58:21
Hawk is  like who she envisions as Siby now. Hawk does a lot of uh Siby videos where she's dressed up like Siby and I just think it's just the cutest thing. I love oh it so much.  I adore that. So I'm very excited for Where's Molly coming out next month um and to see what is coming with Siby's story later on whenever that  comes out.

58:50
I will be  reading it as soon as it comes out.  Well, Megan, this has been so great. And I just want to say big thank you for coming on to talk about this book with me. And it's so nice to virtually meet you after messaging back and forth. But before we go, please tell my listeners where they can find you at. Yeah. So you can find me on Instagram. My handle is RenAfterDark999.

59:20
some fun like little Star Wars reference in my head. And then I have a TikTok that's the same handle. So, but I post a lot on Instagram when I'm currently reading and talking about books and I love talking about books to anyone. So seriously, if you want, if I'm to talk about books and dark romance, hit me up because I love to talk about it.

59:45
If you read book two, I would love to come back and talk about book two too because that is a Fusy it is  Rough, but it's good. Yes. I'll need to have you back on for book two and then once I read the novellas Maybe we can add on a little for that too because this yeah, it's just opening up So  opening up and I think you'll really enjoy like if you loved to be you will really love Satan's Affair

01:00:15
People say like you should read it before you go into reading any like Haunting Adeline, but I personally read Haunting and Hunting and then I read Satan's Affair. So I don't really think it matters. But which the order you read it in, but Satan's Affair is really good. It's short, it's cute, it's just, I love to learning about Zibi and her henchmen. You get to learn more about them. And the Nobala. can't wait.

01:00:44
It's good. It's a crazy little roller coaster that you go on from the moment it starts till it ends. You're like, okay,  well, weird.  Well, as always, you can find me on Instagram at what the smut podcast. If you are interested in being a cohost, please DM me your name, location, and a few book titles that you want to talk about and why. Or if you're not on Insta, you can email me at  WTSmutt.

01:01:13
you talking about at gmail.com. Please subscribe or follow this podcast and give us a rate and a review. The higher the rating we get and the more reviews helps us get viewed by other readers that may not know about this podcast. So tell your friends, tell your book friends, just tell everyone, maybe not your grandma.  All right. Thank you so much and we'll see you guys soon. m