Love, lies, and revolution! All of that and more in this week’s featured title, We Set the Dark on Fire by Tehlor Kay Mejia, with guest Erin Callahan. (Transcript) In today’s episode… We Set the Dark on Fire provides a dark vision of the island world of Medio where a wall separates the prosperous inner region from the salted, barren earth of the outer island. Every young man of wealth and means negotiates for two wives – a Primera, who is to be his ambitious, intellectual equal, and a Segunda, who will be the lovely and beautiful opposite of everything he is. Daniela has trained as a Primera in Medio, and is set to marry an influential politician’s son. When a rebel organization discovers her biggest secret, she must agree to be a spy in

Teens, drag queens, heists, and hijinks? All of this and more in this week’s title, Death Prefers Blondes by Caleb Roehrig. (Transcript) In today’s episode… Our book this week is Death Prefers Blondes by Caleb Roehrig. By day Margo Manning appears to be your average vapid socialite heiress, but by night she is the leader of a highly skilled group of drag wearing thieves, pulling off notorious heists and making hundreds of thousands of dollars. It’s a perfect balance for Margo until a series of disasters causes her two lives to twine together in increasingly dangerous ways. Can Margo keep herself and her friends safe from the threats that her high crime lifestyle has brought into their world? We’ll see!     These Show Notes use Amazon Affiliate Links for your convenience. If you decide

This week it’s a #throwbackthursday as we chat about a book that came out in 2016. The Stonewall Book Award winning, If I Was Your Girl by Meredith Russo. (Transcript) In today’s episode… Today we’re discussing If I Was Your Girl by Meredith Russo. Amanda is a normal high school girl and for the first time she’s given the chance to live like one. She’s a transgender teen who moves back in with her estranged father after the bullying and attacks at her old school become too much. At her new school no one knows she used to look like a boy, she’s just the pretty new girl. And it isn’t long before she has a group of good friends, a boyfriend on the football team and something that looks like the life she’s always wanted.

Joining us today is friend and writer Samantha Leidig. You may remember her from our first season, and she’s back to discuss The Resolutions by Mia Garcia. (Transcript) In today’s episode… The Resolutions by Mia Garcia. This new year, Jess has a new plan to keep her four best friends together. The four of them will make New Year’s resolutions for each other. She, Nora, Ryan and Lee all have each other’s best interest at heart and give resolutions to help them embrace life or get over old relationships. But, those good intentions don’t always go as they planned.     These Show Notes use Amazon Affiliate Links for your convenience. If you decide to purchase this book, please consider doing so through our affiliate links. Your support makes this podcast possible.   Episode highlights…

Pulp by Robin Talley is a moving split perspective window into the lives of two women – 60 years apart – who both seek refuge in their writing. (Transcript) In today’s episode… In Robin Talley’s new book PULP, senior Abby Zimet becomes obsessed with 1950’s lesbian pulp fiction. Though her life is falling apart around her, Abby believes that meeting the mysterious author of a famous novel will help her figure things out. We also read the perspective of Janet Jones, a teenager in 1955 who begins to write her own pulp fiction novel. In her time, living openly as a lesbian is difficult and dangerous, much less writing lesbian fiction. Although living through very different times, Abby and Janet’s lives are connected by the sweetness and struggles of first love. These Show Notes use

Anna-Marie McLemore’s Blanca & Roja is a twist on an old tale: two sisters challenge the story they’ve been told, and the roles they’ve been given. (Transcript) In today’s episode… Blanca & Roja is a twist on the classic fairytale, Snow White and Rose Red, and shares the tale of a family under a curse. Unto each generation will be born two sisters, and at their coming of age, one of them will be turned into a swan. Blanca is the older, gentler, sweet sister, and Roja is a bit rougher around the edges. The girls must work through a curse that tries to pit them against one another, reaching through the thorns to hold on to their love for each other. We have discussed McLemore’s work on the show before – her story Glamor

  Join us as we chat with bookstagrammer Melissa Robles about Toil & Trouble, a new YA anthology of stories about witchy women, written by 15 diverse authors.     In today’s episode… Toil & Trouble: 15 Tales of Women & Witchcraft  is an anthology of short stories featuring witchy girls. Like Spotswood’s other anthologies, the fifteen tales span the ages, geography, and culture, and feature a wide range of diverse protagonists.     These Show Notes use Amazon Affiliate Links for your convenience. If you decide to purchase this book, please consider doing so through our affiliate links. Your support makes this podcast possible.   Episode highlights…   Spoiler-Free   *0:58 Behind the scenes @thereaderandthechef *3:45 Melissa and Danielle chat about their favorite pop-culture witches … *7:50 … and about the authors they were

This week we feature the Fresh Ink anthology, a collection of diverse short stories for a YA audience. Joining us is editor and YA author Lamar Giles. (transcript) In today’s episode…   Fresh Ink: An Anthology is a collection of short stories, a graphic novella, and a never before published play by the legendary Walter Dean Meyers. Thirteen voices, some brand new and some you already know and love (including YA authors Nicola Yoon, Jason Reynolds, and Malinda Lo) come together to share their perspectives. This incredible anthology was edited by Lamar Giles, YA author and co-founder of We Need Diverse Books.   These Show Notes use Amazon Affiliate Links for your convenience. If you decide to purchase this book, please consider doing so through our affiliate links. Your support makes this podcast possible.   Episode