Hold onto your tampons: we read Carrie by Stephen King. Our friend Nicole returned to the podcast to read this classic horror novel that’s even bloodier than Gerald’s Game. Listen to this episode while honing your telekinetic powers! Content … Continue reading →

It’s spooky season, and what could be scarier than heterosexual werewolf knotting erotica? The fact that we both might have…liked it? Eek! We read Bride by Ali Hazelwood and we still aren’t sure exactly how we felt about it. Listen … Continue reading →

Thanks to Porter Square Books for hosting our 250th Anniversary live show! And thanks to everyone who turned out in person or for the livestream! If you missed it, or just want to relive it without all that pesky visual … Continue reading →

  We’ve come so far from our first episode, and yet we’re still talking about teen vampires with Carrie. Unfortunately, we’re still out of Stephenie Meyer content so we had to read Crush by Tracy Wolff. If the cliffhanger ending of … Continue reading →

  Hot Evelyn Summer comes to a bewildering conclusion with The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton. We were joined by writer and standup comedian Laura Merli (@passiveabrasive) to discuss this time loop locked room mystery. Fun fact: … Continue reading →

Don’t cry because Flashback Summer is over; smile because Hot Evelyn Summer is beginning! Returning bisexual icon Margaret H. Willison (1/3 of Two Bossy Dames, don’t check the math) joined us to discuss The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by … Continue reading →

  Hold on to your sock wine, because we’re ending this year’s Flashback Summer with a real rager! We were joined by Courtney Summers, author of I’m The Girl and other rad books, to discuss Stacey and the Bad Girls … Continue reading →

By popular demand, we took Flashback Summer to the land of Tortall. Rebecca Kim Wells, author of Briar Girls and other great queer fantasy books, joined us to discuss Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce. Put on your purple … Continue reading →

We were digging through some boxes in our totally not-haunted attic and found Stonewords by Pam Conrad. It seemed like a chill Flashback Summer vibe, so we had our friend KL join us to discuss it. Be careful not to … Continue reading →

  Flashback summer, eh? Ann Foster of Vulgar History joined us to read No Coins, Please, an early work by the venerable Canadian author Gordon Korman. Listen to this episode while driving cross-country with a van full of chaotic tweens! … Continue reading →

It’s Morphin’ Time! We’re kicking off Flashback Summer Animal Style. We returned to the world of the Animorphs by reading the three books in the iconic David Saga–The Discovery (#20), The Threat (#21) and The Solution (#22), all by K.A. … Continue reading →

We continue Celebrity Memoir May with another wronged woman of the early 00s, Ms. Jessica Simpson. Annie Cardi, author of Red, joined us in righteous indignation on behalf of our favorite former Newlywed after reading her memoir Open Book. Listen … Continue reading →

  Unlike Scientology, Celebrity Memoir May is inescapable. Known Suppressive Person, librarian, and author Angie Manfredi (@MissKubelik) joined us to discuss Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology by Leah Remini. Join us as we swear oaths of fealty to the Queen … Continue reading →

  Horny dragons were fun, but we’ve moved on. Onto another planet, actually. Lily Sparks, author of The Merciless King of Moore High, joined us to discuss Ice Planet Barbarians by Ruby Dixon. Upload this episode directly to your alien … Continue reading →

Y’all horny for some dragons? We forged a soul bond with comedian, writer, and Scary Mommy Sarah Aswell by reading Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros together. Listen to this episode while pondering ways to legally murder your classmates! Content warning: Here … Continue reading →

  The devil made us read This Present Darkness by Frank Peretti. Fortunately, we were #blessed to be joined by Izzy Wasserstein, author of These Fragile Graces, This Fugitive Heart, who helped safely guide us through this Christian thriller. Listen … Continue reading →

Ice, ice, baby! Annie Cardi, author of Red, returned to the podcast to discuss the sexy skater Booktok sensation Icebreaker by Hannah Grace. Join us as we skate back to college and dirty talk our way into the Olympics! Content … Continue reading →

  Nora Roberts Month continues! Heidi and Emily from Romancing the Shelf podcast returned and took us back to the 90s with the vintage romantic thriller Sanctuary. Sadly, this book has zero plates of casual pasta but it does have … Continue reading →

Our Lady Nora Roberts has written a book about a handsome criminal who admires good architecture and casual pasta? We’re so back. Our friend and Nora Roberts expert Christine has returned to discuss Nightwork with us. Listen to this episode … Continue reading →

Once again, we’ve managed to sneak in a few good books this year! Here are our favorite books we read in 2023 (regardless of publication year. Long live backlist titles!) Footnotes: Boston Globe’s Best Books of 2023 (featuring Renata’s picks for … Continue reading →

We finished our adventures with the Time Traveler’s Wife but decided to linger in the 2000s for awhile longer. Friend of the Show (and the Internet’s Best Friend) Margaret H. Willison joined us to discuss Britney Spears’s memoir The Woman In … Continue reading →

We held our annual Patreon Choice poll and our Beloved Patrons chose to send us back in time to 2003 with The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger. Since the book is prominently set in Chicago, we were #blessed to be … Continue reading →

  A cautionary tale: too many people complained about this book online so we were dumped into an arena and forced to publicly defend it to the death. Mackenzi Lee, author of many Best Bestselling books including The Gentleman’s Guide … Continue reading →

Spooky season is here, so we were joined by Lily Sparks, author of the Teen Killers Club trilogy (including the latest book, Teen Killers at Large) and the upcoming The Merciless King of Moore High. We got witchy with the … Continue reading →

We just wrapped up Banned Books Week in the USA, a time to celebrate our freedom to read and also to speak up about book challenges! We were joined by Jen and Dan, the hosts of the Banned Camp podcast, … Continue reading →

It’s our 9th podiversary! We’ve run out of Stephenie Meyer books so we decided to have our OG guest Carrie return to check out a series whose marketing team would certainly love for us to think it was written by … Continue reading →

We’re topping off this year’s Flashback Summer with a pair of red–some would say auburn–braids. We were joined by Hannah and Marcelle, the cohosts of Witch, Please and Material Girls, to discuss Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery. … Continue reading →

For Flashback Summer we decided to get away from it all with a visit to an exclusive desert spa. Unfortunately, the spa was plagued with black widow spiders, blackmailers, and other concerns. Fortunately, Kristin, the host of the Kristin Sleuth … Continue reading →

  Breaking Flashback Summer News: in the title of the book Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison, “Angus” refers to the cat! Renata was almost as excited about this fact as she was about convincing JJ, aka S. … Continue reading →

For this Flashback Summer episode, the Bellwether Friends Anna & Alene joined Renata to discuss Anastasia Krupnik by Lois Lowry. Sadly, Kait had to miss this one because she was busy shopping for her new poetry outfit, which would make … Continue reading →

  Were you looking for sound medical advice to treat snakebites and rabies? Well, we do not recommend consulting Trixie Belden #1: The Secret of the Mansion by Julie Campbell for first aid training. However, we had a great time … Continue reading →

  Help! We’re trapped in the bodies of millennial podcasters! Andrew and Craig from the Overdue podcast joined us to discuss the classic switcheroo tale Help! I’m Trapped In My Teacher’s Body by Todd Strasser. Listen to this episode while … Continue reading →

  It’s–hey, calm down, no, put down your pitchforks, we’re not calling Judy Blume a “worst” bestseller! Absolutely not, just, please, let me finish this intro–it’s Flashback Summer! The time when we chill out and revisit childhood favorites, even when … Continue reading →

Hey, we’ll be honest: we kind of phoned this one in. On a landline. You screened it? On your answering machine? Haha, a topical reference. See, we read Without You: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and The Musical Rent by … Continue reading →

Pamela Anderson: model, actress, activist…poet. Dame Karen Corday (of Two Bossy Dames and elsewhere on the internet!) joined us to read Love, Pamela, which…we kinda loved. Join us as we revisit the 90s with increased feminist rage! Content warning: Child abuse/child sexual … Continue reading →

  As Americans, it’s our right to not pay attention to the British royal family. However, we’re waiving that right in order to read Spare by Prince Harry. We were thrilled to be joined by Dame Sophie of Two Bossy … Continue reading →

Divorced, beheaded, subjected to an extremely long and boring work of historical fiction. Ann Foster from Vulgar History joined us to discuss The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory. We were glad for Ann’s expertise, because now we now that … Continue reading →

Did you read Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus and think, “This could really use more victim blaming?” If so: have we got a book for you! Kristen and Jolenta from How To Be Fine (and By the … Continue reading →

We got tired of waiting for Stephenie Meyer’s latest book, so we checked out a book that some book bloggers are saying Stephenie Meyer wrote. Corinne is written by Rebecca Morrow, whose author bio simply states, “Rebecca Morrow is a … Continue reading →

Dear Ellen, our friend Vanessa from the podcast Hot and Bothered flew in from Plethora, Maine to discuss Colleen Hoover’s It Ends With Us. Millions of BookTokkers can’t be wrong…can they? Listen to this episode in Boston, where everything is … Continue reading →

Although we had to check out of the real life Inn BoonsBoro, we were able to return there through the power of fiction. We read the second book in the Inn BoonsBoro trilogy, The Last Boyfriend by Nora Roberts, with … Continue reading →

  Thanks to our wonderful Patreon Patrons, we recently traveled to Nora Roberts’ bed and breakfast in Maryland, Inn BoonsBoro, along with our Resident Nora Roberts Expert, Christine, and Resident Robe Expert, Nicole! Please enjoy this bonus episode where the … Continue reading →

It’s our first episode of the year and we’re already longing to get away from it all. So we were joined by Heidi and Emily of the Romancing the Shelf podcast to discuss the book The Next Always by Nora … Continue reading →

Another year has come and gone, and yet we’re still here, talking about books! For a treat, here are some good ones. Footnotes: Boston Globe’s Best Books of 2022 (featuring Renata’s picks for middle grade and YA!) Coming up next: A January … Continue reading →

Democracy works: our Patreon patrons voted for us to read Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert, so we did. And we, along with our returning guest Meredith Goldstein, of the Boston Globe’s Love Letters, actually kinda…loved it? Sorry haters, we’ve been … Continue reading →

Duarte’s been asking us for more feline representation, so we were joined by Phillip Mottaz, author of the Psychic Barber Mystery series, to read the first Mrs. Murphy mystery, Wish You Were Here by Rita Mae Brown and Sneaky Pie Brown. … Continue reading →

  We reunited with Sydney and Delaney from Book Cult to discuss the cult-adjacent teachings of Sylvia Browne, as presented in her book Blessings From The Other Side: Wisdom and Comfort From the Afterlife For This Life. Play this one … Continue reading →

With Saturation Day (and spooky season!) upon us, Kait retreated to her queers-only bunker with returning guests Wren and Laura to discuss Chuck Tingle’s horror novella Straight. Listen to see what happens when three type-A planners read a book about the … Continue reading →

We got tired of reading reality TV memoirs, so instead we read a thinly-veiled reality television novel, L.A. Candy by Lauren Conrad. Some of us (Renata) enjoyed it more than others of us (Kait), but we were both thrilled to … Continue reading →

It’s our 8th anniversary, and Stephenie Meyer has rudely not written anything new for us to read, so instead we decided to take a page from Diana Gabaldon and time travel through our past. We recorded this supersized Origin Stories … Continue reading →

  We were so thrilled to be joined by Bobby Finger, cohost of the Who? Weekly podcast and author of the upcoming book The Old Place! We read How To Be A Boss Bitch by Christine Quinn, the star of Netflix’s … Continue reading →

We are once again returning to the rosy world of The Bachelor with our special guest Rebecca Kim Wells (@RebeccaWriting), Bachelor fan and the author of Shatter The Sky, Storm The Earth, and Briar Girls. This time we had the good sense to read … Continue reading →

  Our sweet Flashback Summer is finally over and we’ve reluctantly returned to the world of modern publishing. Dee Ernst, author of Lucy Checks In, joined us to discuss the certified #BookTok sensation, The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood. We’ll … Continue reading →

  It’s our 200th episode! Which means we have read approximately 200 books, and therefore we deserve a break. Walt, the professional DM from First Time at the Table (and husband to past podcast guest Annie Cardi), led a delightful … Continue reading →

When we asked Chris Collision (cohost of I Don’t Even Own A Television) for his Flashback Summer choice of childhood favorite book, he surprised us with a title we’d never heard of before. And then Diane Duane surprised us with … Continue reading →

  Happy Fourth of July! Buy Westing Paper Products! Flashback Summer continues with a book that’s such a stone-cold classic, we strongly advise that you not listen to this episode if you haven’t read The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin. … Continue reading →

  The day has arrived: Renata read her very first Goosebump novel. Courtney Summers, Best Bestselling author of books like The Project and the upcoming I’m The Girl, joined us to discuss Night of the Living Dummy by R. L. … Continue reading →

As the earth makes another journey around the sun (allegedly), we return to Flashback Summer. Writer Annie Cardi (@AnnieCardi) returned to the show to discuss A Ring of Endless Light by Madeleine L’Engle, a formative read for many 90s children … Continue reading →

  Sure, we at Worst Bestsellers have read several self-help books over the years, but you may be asking: what about the men? Oh, you weren’t asking? Well, Dave Hollis (ex-husband of Rachel) is concerned, and he wrote Get Out … Continue reading →

We asked a djinn to bring us a book that could be adapted into a video game, a Netflix series, and a podcast episode, and we got The Witcher: The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski. We were joined by Arielle to … Continue reading →

Every once in awhile it’s nice to read something that’s so bad it truly reminds us why we do what we do. We were joined by Rachel Andelman (of Union Comedy, Improv Boston, 2MB Studios, and Smiling Women Comix) to … Continue reading →

What’s new, pussycat? We were joined by Meredith Goldstein, the Boston Globe’s Love Letters columnist and podcaster (and author of Things That Grow), to discuss Catwoman: Soulstealer by Sarah J. Maas. It’s a book about DC’s horniest character written by … Continue reading →

Announcement: On Thursday, April 14th at 8PM Eastern, we’ll be doing a virtual live show presented by Porter Square Books! Our very special guest Margaret H. Willison will join us to discuss Get Out Of Your Own Way by Dave Hollis … Continue reading →

The Worst Best Friends have reconvened at the high school carnival! Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, the kissing booth is closed, but returning guests Anna and Alene (aka the Bellwether Friends) still joined us to discuss The Kissing Booth by … Continue reading →

  Kait and Renata were left unattended and their love tanks were running pretty low, so they turned to The Five Love Languages: The Secret to Love That Lasts by Gary Chapman. This one has been kicking around since 1992, … Continue reading →

Nora Roberts Month continues with a gracious Southern-style housecall from Heidi and Emily, the cohosts of the Nora Roberts podcast Romancing the Shelf. For this podcast crossover event, we discussed Nora’s 1991 thriller Carnal Innocence. It’s the story of a serial … Continue reading →

We’re once again starting the year with a visit from our Nora Roberts expert, Christine. This time we read Brazen Virtue, a murder mystery-romance novel from 1988 that has been mystifyingly adapted into a 2022 Netflix original movie. This episode … Continue reading →

Another year has come and gone, and Kait and Renata are here to make lemonade out of the lemons of 2021. We each picked our top 6 books of the year and discussed some other highlights of the year. Footnotes: The … Continue reading →

Our beloved patrons voted on a book for us to read, and they chose The President is Missing by James Patterson and Bill Clinton. We still love them, and we also love returning guest Carrie for reading this book even … Continue reading →

All we want for Christmas is…another celebrity memoir, and Mariah Claus delivered. We read The Meaning of Mariah Carey by Mariah Carey with Michaela Angela Davis and enjoyed our visit to Mariah’s realm. Listen to this episode on your way … Continue reading →

Hold on, Mariah, it’s still spooky season around here for a few more days. We read Yours Cruelly, Elvira by Cassandra Peterson and had a scary-good time getting to know the Mistress of the Dark (and her girlfriend)! Listen to … Continue reading →

After reading Go Ask Alice last year, we were still left with some lingering questions about issues facing teens. Like, drugs are bad, but what about doing occult rituals? Are they okay if you’re only using them to win high … Continue reading →

We were joined by our Caftan Club sisters, Grace and Ashley, to discuss a bestseller that was so bad it had to be removed from publication: Michelle Remembers by Michelle Smith and Lawrence Pazder. The book represents irresponsible therapeutic practices … Continue reading →

  This is our seventh anniversary episode! We’ve been podcasting for much longer than the titular character of The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner has been a vampire. We’d been putting off reading this Twilight novella because we suspected there wouldn’t … Continue reading →

We’ve read a lot of popular books over the years, but this episode might be the one most likely to make men on the internet yell at us. Oh well! We’ve already read The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller, … Continue reading →

Flashback Summer is over, and yet we’re still talking about a TV show that ended almost 20 years ago. We were joined by Buffy enthusiast Talia to discuss Slayer by Kiersten White, a YA book set in the world of a … Continue reading →

  Flashback Summer has moved past our time with the Baby-Sitters Club to revisit another enterprising teen girl, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. We read a vintage Buffy tie-in novel, Halloween Rain by Christopher Golden and Nancy Holder, with our guest … Continue reading →

  The Baby-Sitters Club’s worst nightmare was a dream come true for us, as Courtney Summers, best-bestselling author of books like The Project and Sadie, joined us to discuss The Baby-Sitters Club Super Mystery #2: Baby-Sitters Beware by Ann M. … Continue reading →

This Flashback Summer episode found Kait & Renata home alone, no cool teen baby-sitter nor responsible adult around to monitor their bedtime. Things got a little loopy. You’ve been warned. We read several books from the Baby-Sitters Little Sister series: … Continue reading →

We read Baby-Sitters Club #7, Claudia and Mean Janine and Baby-Sitters Club #40, Claudia and the Middle School Mystery, both by Ann M. Martin. We were thrilled to spend more time with the coolest kid in Stoneybrook, and especially thrilled … Continue reading →

We’re putting the “summer” in Flashback Summer by going to camp with our friends, the Baby-Sitters Club (and also our friend literary agent Amy Stern). We read Baby-Sitters Club Super Special #2: Baby-sitters’ Summer Vacation and Baby-Sitters Club Friends Forever … Continue reading →

We’re kicking off Flashback Summer by going to a galaxy far, far away and a long time ago. We read the non-canonical Star Wars Legends novel The Courtship of Princess Leia by Dave Wolverton with Star Wars Enthusiast Zayne. If you’re … Continue reading →

  We wanted to bring some girl power to Celebrity Memoir May, so returning guest Sophi joined us to read No Walls And The Recurring Dream by Ani DiFranco. If you”re thinking that that title is a little wordy and … Continue reading →

Alright, alright, alright! Even though time is a flat circle, we’re celebrating Celebrity Memoir May and we’re starting the party with Matthew McConaughey’s book Greenlights. The most surprising part about this book was how much we sincerely enjoyed it. The … Continue reading →

We learned so much from discussing Rachel Hollis’s book Girl, Wash Your Face with Margaret H. Willison (of Two Bossy Dames, Appointment Television, and NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour) that we simply had to reunite to discuss her latest book, … Continue reading →

It’s been a scary year, so we returned to the loving embrace of Our Lady Nora Roberts. Even though her 1992 novel Divine Evil is about a Satanic cult, we still felt safe in the small town of Emmitsboro, especially … Continue reading →

  We teamed up with Anna and Alene of the Bellwether Friends again! We reconvened the Worst Best Friends to discuss the important topic of Bridgerton. Not the Netflix series, but one of the books that inspired it–The Duke and … Continue reading →

Announcement: On Wednesday, March 31st at 8PM Eastern, we’ll be doing a virtual live show presented by Porter Square Books! Our very special guest Margaret H. Willison will join us to discuss Didn’t See That Coming by Rachel Hollis (aka … Continue reading →

  Remember the Left Behind series? Did you know it also had a middle grade spinoff series about what would happen to the ungodly children who were left behind when their parents were Raptured? Well: it did, and we read … Continue reading →

  You’re not dreaming–we did read a bestseller that’s widely considered to be “good,” The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler. We teamed up with Amanda and Geoffrey from the podcast Dirt Cheap to investigate: is it actually a good book? Who … Continue reading →

We’re back from our hiatus! We spent the off-season training hard so we’d be better at *checks notes* Exy, the cool co-ed sport favored by characters in The Foxhole Court by Nora Sakavic. We were joined by Rachel and Adrienne … Continue reading →

In more precedented years, we’ve picked our favorite and least favorite books that we read each year outside of the podcast. But in 2020, we were too busy just trying to get through the year to do much recreational reading. … Continue reading →

  Per the request of our wonderful Patreon patrons, our editor Becca joined us to discuss the anti-drug cautionary tale Go Ask Alice by Anonymous (aka Beatrice Sparks). Reading it in 2020, we’re not sure what’s harder to believe: that … Continue reading →

Like a newborn vampire, we’re always thirsty for more supernatural teen drama around here. We turned to a finely-aged vintage, The Awakening (Vampire Diaries #1) by L. J. Smith, and we were thrilled to be joined by Lily Sparks (@lilyroro), … Continue reading →

We read a semi-fictional, semi-self-published, completely bonkers book about the inner workings of the reality show Model Muse which is, of course, legally distinct from the long-running reality show America’s Next Top Model. Bestselling author and ANTM superfan Mackenzi Lee … Continue reading →

It’s spooky season, so we revisited a classic of our childhoods: Wait Till Helen Comes by Mary Downing Hahn. It was a nice change of pace to read a competently-written book, so we had to spend most of our time … Continue reading →

We read The First Time: Finding Myself and Looking For Love on Reality TV by Colton Underwood with our special guest Rebecca Kim Wells (@RebeccaWriting), Bachelor fan and the author of Shatter The Sky and Storm The Earth. If you … Continue reading →

There’s a lot that’s bad about 2020, but hey, we’ve made it to our 6th anniversary! We are feeling extremely #blessed that Stephenie Meyer saw fit to release Midnight Sun just in time for this momentous occasion. Even so, we … Continue reading →

Think of the saddest thing you can imagine. No, sadder. Make it fifty times sadder. Okay, you are in the vicinity of comprehending the levels of tragedy porn Wally Lamb has packed into his novel I Know This Much Is True. … Continue reading →

Did you ever wonder what Special Agent Dana Scully was like as a teenager? Did you assume she was probably really into taking classes at her small town’s extremely popular New Age shop? No? Well, she was, and meanwhile also … Continue reading →

Flashback Summer 2020 draws to an end with a return to the 90s, which contains within it a return to the 1940s. Our mysterious guest M joined us to read Ground Zero by Kevin J. Anderson, an X-Files tie-in novel. … Continue reading →

In an extremely exciting Flashback Summer, we were joined by S. Jae-Jones (aka JJ, aka the New York Times-bestselling author of Wintersong and Shadowsong) to read Redwall by Brian Jacques! Well, it was exciting to talk to JJ. The book … Continue reading →

Maybe it would be easier to practice social distancing if you knew that someone could literally freeze you solid with a single touch? It’s a theory worth exploring, as our pandemic edition of Flashback Summer continues with Freeze Tag, a … Continue reading →

Say hello to your friends! As Flashback Summer continues, we revisited the small, child-friendly town of Stoneybrook. We read Mallory and the Trouble With Twins by Ann M. Martin with returning guest Liz. Join us on a walk around the … Continue reading →

Flashback Summer is off to the races! Well, kind of. We eventually got to the races after a long slog through the wilderness. We read The Black Stallion Revolts by Walter Farley with returning guest Carrie. It’s the classic story … Continue reading →

It’s our 150th episode, and to kick off our 4th Flashback Summer, we asked to hear from you, our listeners. We loved hearing about everyone’s childhood favorite books and sharing a little bit about ours. Thanks: to Andrew and Craig … Continue reading →

Bad news: A Werewolf in Riverdale by Caleb Roehrig is not a tie-in to the CW show Riverdale, but rather to the town of Riverdale from the Archie comics. Well–from the Archie Horror comics. Good news: we once again teamed up … Continue reading →

We like X-Men. Our guest Anna (@lcarslibrarian) likes Star Trek. So we thought it would be fun to read the Star Trek: The Next Generation/X-Men crossover novel Planet X by Michael Jan Friedman. But it turns out that this exhausting … Continue reading →

When the going gets tough, the tough get to reading cozy cat mysteries. We read The Fast and the Furriest by Sofie Ryan, the story of a small coastal town plagued with murder and antiquers. Our opinions were split–Renata liked … Continue reading →

Katharine McGee’s novel American Royals dares to ask: what if the United States had a royal family? And what if the modern-day American royal children were a little bit horny? The Bellwether Friends, Anna and Alene, joined us to discuss … Continue reading →

We’ve been reading too much frivolous lady fiction around here, so we had to make time to read a Serious Book by an Important White Man. Our guest Amy used her human skills of persuasion to get us to read … Continue reading →

Hey girl, guess what? Your life could be way better than it is right now if you just believed in yourself and also married a high-up Disney executive! Definitely mostly the first thing though. We were joined by Margaret H. … Continue reading →

  We invited Rebecca Mahoney, co-writer of The Bridge podcast and author of the upcoming YA novel The Valley and the Flood, to be a guest on our new podcast, My Least Favorite Murder. We read novelist Patricia Cornwell’s ambitiously-titled … Continue reading →

  As a belated Valentine to ourselves, we invited our friend Angie Manfredi (@MissKubelik), editor of The Other F-Word, back on the show to read a Best Bestseller. We read Scythe by Neal Shusterman, a twisty YA utopia-ish where death … Continue reading →

  To ease ourselves back into reading garbage after our winter break, we had returning guest Christine join us for another book by Our Lady Nora Roberts. This time around, we read Midnight Bayou, a Louisiana love story for the … Continue reading →

Tune in to our Bests & Worsts of 2019 episodes to hear us discuss these titles and read excerpts from our favorites! Please note: We counted things that we read in 2019, regardless of publication year. We didn’t count anything that … Continue reading →

Tune in to our Bests & Worsts of 2019 episodes to hear us discuss these titles and read excerpts from our favorites! Please note: We counted things that we read in 2019, regardless of publication year. We didn’t count anything that … Continue reading →

How desperate is Kait for scraps? She pre-ordered the next Murder Games novel just for another dumb murder story about gay people, despite all her issues with the first one. And boy, there were issues. Join Kait and Wren as they … Continue reading →

  We knew we would need a lot of help to get through the frequently-requested book The Mister by E. L. James, so we tagged in Kitty and Piggy, the financial mavens behind the website and now podcast Bitches Get … Continue reading →

It must be the season of the witch, since we read The Initiation, the first book in L. J. Smith’s Secret Circle series. The new school year in New Salem marks the start of some beautiful friendships whose homoerotic subtext … Continue reading →

  We revisited the world of V. C. Andrews and read Dark Angel, the second book in the Casteel family saga with V. C. Andrews apologist Arielle. It’s a grim story of a girl who escapes her impoverished hometown but … Continue reading →

  As listeners to the podcast may know, we’re big fans of Dwayne Johnson, but slightly less knowledgable about his pro wrestling alter ego, The Rock. So we invited Tres Dean, author of For Your Consideration: Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, … Continue reading →

  Unlike vampires, we keep aging, so this is our 5th podcastversary! Tragically, we’ve completed our run on the Twilight saga, but the show must go on. We brought back returning guest Caroline to discuss Stephenie Meyer’s awkward alien follow-up … Continue reading →

Divergent by Veronica Roth, a dystopian society controlled by Buzzfeed quizzes, has been one of most frequently-requested episodes. In an effort to bring peace to the five factions, we invited Annie, author of The Chance You Won’t Return and cohost … Continue reading →

  Hola! We read the Dora and the Lost City of Gold movie novelization by Steve Behling so you don’t have to! We were joined by librarian extraordinaire and Dora the Explorer watcher Kristi, who helped us avoid getting stuck … Continue reading →

As Flashback Summer draws to a close for another year, our friend Kelsey joined us to return to a feminist favorite: Dealing With Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede. The three of us all loved this book as tweens and were … Continue reading →

For this installment of Flashback Summer, we flashed way back to ancient Rome. We read The Rotten Romans from the Horrible Histories series by Terry Deary & Martin Brown with returning guest, librarian Laura. It’s a whimsically British look at history … Continue reading →

Flashback Summer continues with a trip to the Polk Street School, where the kids aren’t alright. Becca joined us to read Pickle Puss by Patricia Reilly Giff, an early chapter book about how not to run a summer reading program or … Continue reading →

  The next stop on our Flashback Summer vacation is the 30th floor of an elementary school. Literary agent Amy joined us to read Sideways Stories from Wayside School by Louis Sachar. Everyone should listen to this episode, unless you’re … Continue reading →

It’s the return of Flashback Summer and the 40th anniversary of beloved children’s classic Bunnicula by James & Deborah Howe. We were joined by Laura to discuss the story of some irresponsible pet owners. Listen now to hear one weird … Continue reading →

  We ran out of Twilight books so we had to read about some less-sparkly vampires, ugh! Fortunately, we were #blessed with the company of not only Meredith Goldstein (author of the Boston Globe’s Love Letters column as well as … Continue reading →

If you like sitting around, listening to esoteric monologues that may or may not relate to your life from random people who refuse to answer any pertinent questions, do we have the vision of the afterlife for you! Chelsea joined … Continue reading →

We don’t have anybody’s HBO login, so instead of watching the show, we were forced to read the book Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty! Fortunately, we were joined by Melissa of the Truer Words podcast for this trip through … Continue reading →

When Gina joined us to read A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness, we were startled to discover that this book has way more than just witches! This book also has vampires, daemons, and plenty of #herbs. Join us for … Continue reading →

In a world…where a teen girl’s touch is deadly…to everyone except one hot guy…who she’s locked in a jail cell with…what will happen next? According to Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi, maybe she’ll overthrow the government? Bookseller Maggie joined us to … Continue reading →

Since James Patterson & Howard Roughan went to the trouble of giving their book two different titles, we decided that we needed the power of two book podcasts to discuss it. So we had our old friends J.W. and Chris … Continue reading →

We read After by Anna Todd, a fanfiction-turned-novel that’s bold enough to ask the question: would you like to date Harry Styles, if, rather than being a member of One Direction, he was just a college student, and also a … Continue reading →

As the talents of Our Lady Nora Roberts cannot be held by one pen name alone, we were joined by fellow Nora devotee Christine to investigate Naked in Death by J. D. Robb. It’s a romantic suspense novel set in … Continue reading →

It’s the end of the world as we know it, and we feel fine, since we’re spending it with Kathryn from the Truer Words podcast! Our Lady Nora Roberts has launched a post-apocalyptic series with Year One. Don’t worry–even though … Continue reading →

  Our lives have been changed by The Secret, as have those of Andrew and Craig from the Overdue podcast. So they joined us in reading How The Secret Changed My Life by Rhonda Byrne. We were delighted to combine our … Continue reading →

Tune in to our Bests & Worsts of 2018 episodes to hear us discuss these titles and read excerpts from our favorites! Please note: We counted things that we read in 2018, regardless of publication year. We didn’t count anything that we … Continue reading →

Tune in to our Bests & Worsts of 2018 episodes to hear us discuss these titles and read excerpts from our favorites! Please note: We counted things that we read in 2018, regardless of publication year. We didn’t count anything that we … Continue reading →

As the weather outside grows frightful, we decided to have our editor Becca join us for a trip Down Under. We read The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough, the 700-page epic saga of the Cleary family, who have almost as … Continue reading →

How do you get and keep a man? Hell if Kait knows, even after reading Having It All by Helen Gurley Brown. Once again, Kait has gathered some queer friends to see if Helen Gurley Brown’s worldview falls apart if … Continue reading →

Have you been wondering what Chris Colfer has been up to since Glee? Are you ready to read some self-insert celebrity real person fanfiction written by an actual celebrity? Honestly, you’re probably not, and we weren’t either, but we were … Continue reading →

  Did you ever read a science fiction book and think, “I wish I knew more about these characters’ bathroom usage?” If so, Red Rising by Pierce Brown is the book for you! Children’s librarian Anna (@opinionsbyanna) joined us for … Continue reading →

Happy Halloween! We faced the scariest thing imaginable for a bad books podcast: a video game tie-in novel that turned out to be actually like, really good? We know: we were shocked too. Almost as shocked as the teen protagonists … Continue reading →

Out of the attic and into the rocking chair, we were joined by Sophie of Two Bossy Dames to read My Sweet Audrina by V. C. Andrews. We were grudgingly impressed by how effectively Andrews gaslit us, the readers, because … Continue reading →

It’s our 4th anniversary! Traditionally, we’ve read a new book from the Twilight saga each year to celebrate our anniversary. But last year, we finished the saga, so this year we decided to create our own Twilight adventure. Danielle (of Hello … Continue reading →

We teamed up with Anna and Alene from Bellwether Friends, our BFP (best friend podcast), to read about our nation’s greatest BFFs, Joe Biden and Barack Obama. Unfortunately for us, Andrew Shaffer’s political RPF mystery Hope Never Dies turned out … Continue reading →

As the sun goes down on this year’s Flashback Summer, we pay a visit to Sunset Island by Cherie Bennet. We’re joined by Denise (@DezDono), editor of the Gailsone series and one of the few people who remembers this 90s … Continue reading →

If you’d like to continue with Flashback Summer, turn to page 2 for Kait, Renata, and Becca’s discussion of House of Danger by R.A. Montgomery. If you’re curious about the Choose Your Own Adventure franchise’s crossover into board game territory, … Continue reading →

Flashback Summer gathered around the campfire to read Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz & Stephen Gammell with our editor Becca. Put your hand in a bowl of peeled grapes and listen to hear how deeply upsetting … Continue reading →

Flashback Summer continues as we revisit everyone’s favorite little sister. Becca and Katelyn joined us to discuss Beverly Cleary’s classic Ramona and Her Mother. Relive the thrill of squeezing out an entire tube of toothpaste and the tragedy of a … Continue reading →

We’re launching our third Flashback Summer with one of Kait’s most formative childhood books. Author Becky Allen (@allreb) joined us to discuss The Ghost in the Third Row by Bruce Coville, a middle-grade mystery that’s aged surprisingly well, much like a … Continue reading →

It’s our 100th episode! Kait, Renata, and their editor Becca have been studying up on our bad book trivia for years to be able to process Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. This has been one of our most-requested books … Continue reading →

Y’all know TFW you’re an extremely powerful faerie who has an important role to play in a war to save all of magic-kind, but you’re also extremely DTF? Meredith Goldstein (@MeredithGoldste), author and advice columnist for The Boston Globe’s Love … Continue reading →

Kait and Renata decided that this podcast didn’t have enough musical theater references, so they invited their Jellicle friends Ashley and Stacey to read Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber’s memoir Unmasked. Join us to learn more than we ever wanted to know … Continue reading →

Renata, Kait, and their returning guest Angie decided to #ChooseKind and experience the wonder of Wonder by R. J. Palacio, a saccharine story of what some abled people could learn from spending time with a boy with craniofacial differences. It’s … Continue reading →

In honor of the upcoming royal wedding, we read Alyssa Cole’s first Reluctant Royals romance, A Princess in Theory, with the 2016 Romance Writers Association librarian of the year, Robin Bradford. Although this book has a slightly silly premise–namely, what … Continue reading →

Kait and Renata dug into some vintage life advice from former Cosmopolitan editor Helen Gurley Brown’s 1982 book Having It All. Who better to help them talk about compliance to gender and beauty norms than Bitch Planet writer Kelly Sue … Continue reading →

In Part 2 of our Big Podcast Crossover Event with I Don’t Even Own A Television, J.W. and Collision joined us to discuss James Patterson’s Suzanne’s Diary For Nicholas. It’s a beautiful example of the power of Telling, Not Showing. … Continue reading →

We’re taking a break from our regularly scheduled book podcast to release this bonus episode about the movies of the Twilight saga! As a Patreon goal, we watched all 5 films and recorded our reactions to them. (Renata’s dazzled reactions … Continue reading →

Our February observance of Nora Roberts Month continues, as we read Angels Fall with author and longtime Nora devotee Christine Ricketts. It’s a quirky small-town romance between a traumatized chef and a mystery writer who hates vegetables. What could go … Continue reading →

Happy Valentine’s Day! Kait and Renata decided to treat themselves to the gift of Nora Roberts. They read Whiskey Beach with special Galentine pal (and mother of Renata), Susan. Although Duarte didn’t like this one as much as our last … Continue reading →

Warrior cats, come out to play! Librarian Sam joined us Twolegs podcasters to discuss Into the Wild (Warriors #1) by Erin Hunter, the first volume of the long, complex, deeply upsetting Warriors series. We jumped into the jam-packed dramatis fursonae of … Continue reading →

If all Venusians communicate so easily, why is Kait so garbage at asking girls out? That’s just one of the questions John Gray’s Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus tire fire left unanswered from a queer perspective, so Kait … Continue reading →

We wanted to start the new year off with a self-help book, so we teamed up with Jolenta and Kristen from By the Book, a podcast where they try out living by self-help books, and read Men Are From Mars, … Continue reading →

Tune in to our Bests & Worsts of 2017 episodes to hear us discuss these titles and read excerpts from our favorites and least favorites! Please note: We counted things that we read in 2017, regardless of publication year. We didn’t count … Continue reading →

Tune in to our Bests & Worsts of 2017 episodes to hear us discuss these titles and read excerpts from our favorites and least favorites! Please note: We counted things that we read in 2017, regardless of publication year. We didn’t count … Continue reading →

‘Tis the season…for murder. Mystery enthusiast Kelsey joined us to discuss the Christmas Caramel Murder by Joanne Fluke, a cozy mystery starring amateur detective/baker Hannah Swensen. It’s a heartwarming story featuring one murder and a lot of recipes. Plus, the … Continue reading →

  Since Alex & Eliza left us unsatisfied, we decided to read some anonymously-written 19th century erotica. And who better to accompany us for The Amorous Intrigues and Adventures of Aaron Burr than Mackenzi Lee, author of The Gentleman’s Guide … Continue reading →

We’re helpless for the Schuyler Sisters (you know, Angelica, Eliza…and Peggy), so we read Alex & Eliza by Melissa de la Cruz with Andrea. Unfortunately, the author threw away her shot at writing something we didn’t want to burn. Make … Continue reading →

We heard you like true crime podcasts, so we read Lizzie Borden by Elizabeth Engstrom and hit the road for a visit to Fall River to investigate the shocking Borden murders, joined by our editor Becca and Renata’s roommate Lindsay. … Continue reading →

Kelly Jensen (Book Riot editor, co-host of Book Riot’s Hey YA podcast, & editor of Here We Are: Feminism for the Real World) joined us for the 23-hour bestseller, Handbook for Mortals by Lani Sarem. We’re so glad that CSI: … Continue reading →

  It’s been three years since our very first episode, when Carrie read Twilight by Stephenie Meyer with us! (And two years since we read New Moon and one year since we read Eclipse!) We’re back to play the Worst Bestsellers drinking game and drunkenly discuss the final … Continue reading →

Kait and Renata decided to take a break from sexy vampires and learn some more about our nation’s history, so they asked KL (@momebie, @LaraEckener) to read Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith with them. They learned that white people are bad … Continue reading →

  Out of the coffin and into the world of Bon Temps! Kristin May joined us to read Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris, the first of the Sookie Stackhouse novels that inspired the show True Blood. Despite the troubling … Continue reading →

In a crossover event worthy of the CW itself, the Bellwether Friends, Anna & Alene, joined us to discuss the Arrow tie-in graphic novel The Dark Archer, written by Kait’s nemesis John Barrowman (and Carole Barrowman) with art by Daniel Sampere … Continue reading →

  It’s Flashback Summer. Do you know where your daughter is? Have you looked on your beverage container? Jenny (definitely not Janie), Co-Founder of Grinnell College’s Caroline B. Cooney Book Club, joined us to discuss The Face on the Milk … Continue reading →

Flashback Summer goes all the way back to 1942 to read The Boxcar Children and The Mystery of the Purple Pool (Boxcar Children Mystery #38) by Gertrude Chandler Warner. Kait has returned from her Comet pilgrimage, and we were also … Continue reading →

As Flashback Summer continues and the 4th of July approaches, we asked our guest Rebecca the most fraught question you can ask an American child of the 90s: which American Girl doll did you have? After the nostalgic dust settled, we … Continue reading →

Hey, do you like horses? If so, great news: Flashback Summer continues as Jess (from Book Riot Comics) joined Renata and Becca to discuss Horse Shy from the Saddle Club series by Bonnie Bryant! If you don’t like horses: too bad, … Continue reading →

  Flashback Summer is back! With Kait camped outside of the Imperial Theater waiting to see Dave Malloy in Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812, Becca stepped in to join Renata and their guest Kristi to discuss Double … Continue reading →

  Kait, Renata, and their guest KL (@momebie, @LaraEckener) read Diary of an Oxygen Thief by Anonymous. They’re glad the author hasn’t revealed his identity, because otherwise it might be too hard for us to resist the urge to go … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guest Anna (of LCARS Librarian and Women Write About Comics) read Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard. It’s a confusing melange of everyone’s favorite YA dystopia tropes, like “love triangle,” “government-sponsored competition,” and “manic pixie blood girl.” Listen … Continue reading →

  Kait, Renata, and their guest Dolly (@loather, Withdrawn) read The Shack by William Paul Young. It’s about a man who meets God, but get this, God is a black woman who wants you to call her “Papa”! Did that … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guest Margaret H. Willison (Two Bossy Dames, Appointment Television) read The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks for a special live episode recorded at Trident Booksellers & Cafe in Boston! If you’re familiar with the movie, you might … Continue reading →

It’s our 69th episode, nice! Returning guest & hardcore lady buck Jennie read 2 Tinglers with us: Redacted in the Butt By Redacted Under the Tromp Administration and Taken By The Gay Unicorn Biker, both by the Hugo-nominated author Chuck … Continue reading →

Storytime Underground Joint Chief Cory joined us to discuss the fact that writing picture books is way harder than most celebrities think it is! We read Cookie Meets Peanut by Real Housewife/Adult Skinnygirl Bethenny Frankel, illustrated by Daniel Roode. Let … Continue reading →

Thanks to our Patreon sponsors, we recorded a bonus episode about Gossip Girl (the novel by Cecily von Ziegesar as well as the TV show) with special guest Renata’s mom, Susan. We have to say: we enjoyed this dive into … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and Jeanne (@FangirlJeanne) read Stephenie Meyer’s adult romantic thriller, The Chemist. It’s a love story that starts off with torture (but like the 24 kind, not the 50 Shades kind) and ends with a Food Network reality show. … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guest Ryan Sandoval (author of The D.A.D.D.Y. Complex) read Violets Are Blue, the 7th book in James Patterson’s Alex Cross series. Intrepid detective Alex Cross investigates vampire-themed murders, as well as the body of every female … Continue reading →

Tune in to our Bests & Worsts of 2016 episodes to hear us discuss these titles and read excerpts from our favorites and least favorites! Please note: We counted things that we read in 2016, regardless of publication year. We … Continue reading →

Tune in to our Bests & Worsts of 2016 episodes to hear us discuss these titles and read excerpts from our favorites and least favorites! Please note: We counted things that we read in 2016, regardless of publication year. We … Continue reading →

Thanks to our generous Patreon supporters, our editor Becca joined us to watch Christian Mingle The Movie for our first Patreon Goal bonus episode! Our longtime sponsor Christian Mingle inspired this romantic comedy; meanwhile, our Patreon patrons sponsored the Straw-Ber-Ritas … Continue reading →

The holidays are upon us, and that, unfortunately, means that Caitlin read The Immortal Nicholas by Glenn Beck with us. We have to admit–we liked it a lot better than we liked The Christmas Sweater by Glenn Beck (who has … Continue reading →

With American Thanksgiving approaching, we wanted to make sure we had enough #herbs on hand, so we had Lucky Peach cookbook reviewer Paula Forbes read Outlander Kitchen: The Official Outlander Companion Cookbook by Theresa Carle-Sanders with us! Based on a … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guest Lyette read the Fifty Shades of Grey of the 90s, The Bridges of Madison County by Robert James Waller. Like Fifty Shades, this book reminded us that women need men (or lizard people) to teach … Continue reading →

We’re not alone…we sense a presence…oh, it’s podcast editor Becca and supernatural aficionado Wren, who joined us to discuss Dark World: Into the Shadows With the Lead Investigator of the Ghost Adventures Crew by Zak Bagans and Kelly Crigger! Like … Continue reading →

Our friend Sarah came back to discuss A is for Alibi by Sue Grafton! A turns out to be for an Adequate mystery, an Awkward romance, and an Awful way to learn the alphabet, all wrapped up into one series. … Continue reading →

It’s been two years since our very first episode, when Caroline of Fantastic Fangirls read Twilight by Stephenie Meyer with us! (And one year since we read New Moon!) And now we’ve added Danielle to our crew to play the … Continue reading →

  Kait, Renata, and their guest Sophi received special hand-delivered invitations to discuss The Selection by Kiera Cass. Imagine a combination of The Bachelor and The Hunger Games, but then throw that combination in the trash and read a J. … Continue reading →

Out of the sadness cave and into the pediatric hospital, Renata has returned to join Kait and Eryn for the final book of Flashback Summer, Angels Watching Over Me by Lurlene McDaniel. We went back to a time before WebMD … Continue reading →

   Kait, Becca, and their guests Anna of Bellwether Friends and Holly of TopatoCo continue Flashback Summer by trying to solve the mystery of the missing entertainment after slogging through Nancy Drew and the Ghost of Craven Cove and The Hardy Boys and the … Continue reading →

 With Renata still in her Sadness Cave, Kait, Becca, and their guest Sarah took advantage of her absence to talk about Goosebumps and Fear Street. Join us on a trip back to Scholastic Book Fairs past, which is much more fun than taking a trip … Continue reading →

Flashback Summer continues! While Renata is off in the wilderness, settling into her Sadness Cave, Kait, our editor Becca, and our guest Jennifer said hello to their friends–the Baby-sitters Club! Kait, Becca, and Jen revisited the BSC franchise as a … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guest Priscilla (@Priscellie) read Animorphs #1: The Invasion by K. A. Applegate. As the first entry in our Flashback Summer, we revisited our favorite teens who can turn into animals, and also the one teen who … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guests Malia and Meagan read Lone Wolf by the mistress of twist endings, Jodi Picoult! This episode starts with the revelation that “Picoult” is pronounced like “pekoe” and only gets more shocking from there. Actually, a … Continue reading →

It’s our 50th episode! We celebrated with our favorite thing: talking about X-Men with Caroline from Fantastic Fangirls and Panels. Unfortunately, this means we had to read the novelization of our least favorite X-Men movie: X-Men: The Last Stand by … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guest Megan (of Academic Inquiry Into Popular Culture) read X-Men: X-Cutioner’s Song by Scott Lobdell, Peter David & Fabian Nicieza, with art by Brandon Peterson, Jae Lee, Andy Kubert, & Greg Capullo. It’s an X-citing Peak … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guest Patrick read a book a ghostwriter wrote based on a computer game created by Tom Clancy based on a nonexistent website. If that sounds confusing, it’s still not as confusing as this corporate espionage-y Orientalist … Continue reading →

Happy early Mother’s Day! Kait, Renata, and their guest Rachel read their moms’ favorite book, One For the Money by Janet Evanovich. It’s the origin story of Spandex-clad rookie bounty hunter Stephanie Plum. Fellow Jersey Girl Kait has a lot … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guest Caitlin read Killing Lincoln by Bill O’Reilly & Martin Dugard. And–because we care about the youth of America–we also read the young readers’ adaptation, Lincoln’s Last Days, by Bill O’Reilly and Dwight Jon Zimmerman. These … Continue reading →

  For part 2 of Nemesis Month, Kait, Renata, and returning guest Naomi read Hollow Earth by Kait’s nemesis John Barrowman (and Carole Barrowman, with whom Kait has no particular beef). It’s a confusing middle grade novel about twins with … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and Rob Lowe’s Other Nemesis Steve read Stories I Can’t Tell My Friends by Renata’s Nemesis, Rob Lowe. In addition to a lot of grade-A 80s celebrity gossip, we learned a lot about Rob Lowe, such as how … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guests Ally (of Join the Girl Gang) and Katelyn (of Women of Library History) read the classic evangelical Christian romance novel Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers. It’s AU Bible fanfiction based on the Book of Hosea, … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guest Margaret (of Two Bossy Dames and Appointment Television) read The Perfect Letter by Chris Harrison. It’s a somewhat competently written romance novel by the host of The Bachelor (and/or an uncredited, under-appreciated ghostwriter). Sadly for … Continue reading →

  Kait, Renata, and their returning guest Nicole (of OWL Reviews) read Gerald’s Game by Stephen King and concluded: there’s a good reason this isn’t one of King’s better-known works. What should have been a compelling psychological horror short story … Continue reading →

For this special episode, Kait, Renata, and their guests Amy (of Join the Girl Gang and Panels), Caroline (of Fantastic Fangirls and Panels), and Samuel (a dazzling youth) all read Twilight Life and Death, the 10th anniversary, gender-swapped edition of … Continue reading →

Tune in to our Bests & Worsts of 2015 episodes to hear us discuss these titles and read excerpts from our favorites and least favorites! Please note: We counted things that we read in 2015, regardless of publication year. We … Continue reading →

As you might have noticed, Kait, Renata, and their special guest, Bossy Dame Sophie, read Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow and have been listening to the Broadway cast recording of Hamilton the musical non-stop. We want you, too, to be in the room where it happens, so … Continue reading →

Tune in to our Bests & Worsts of 2015 episodes to hear us discuss these titles and read excerpts from our favorites and least favorites! Please note: We counted things that we read in 2015, regardless of publication year. We … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their returning guest Caitlin read The Mistletoe Promise by Richard Paul Evans and unanimously agreed: it’s not nearly as bad as The Christmas Sweater was! In fact we actually… kinda liked The Mistletoe Promise? We liked it … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guest Sophie (of Two Bossy Dames) read Purity by Jonathan Franzen, a length tome on technology, privacy, and mostly, how women are the worst. They are just the worst! Luckily, these women often have older men … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guests Abby (The Librarian) and Molly (author of The Princesses of Iowa) read Whisper of Death by Christopher Pike. It’s arguably even more bonkers than the last Christopher Pike book they read, even though it doesn’t … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guests Becca and Kristi read The President Did Me From Behind And I Liked It, I Got Freaky With Santa Claus And I Liked It, and Bigfoot Did Me From Behind And I Liked It by … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guests Ashley and Sam dipped their toes into the confusing and unsanitary waters of creature erotica with Dino Park After Dark by Christie Sims & Alara Branwen. We’re still not convinced it adds up physiologically, but … Continue reading →

It’s been one year since our very first episode, when Caroline of Fantastic Fangirls read Twilight by Stephenie Meyer with us! To celebrate, we decided to return to the scene of the crime and read New Moon, the next book … Continue reading →

  Kait, Renata, and their pre-clear guest Sigrid (@SigridEllis) read Dianetics by L. Ron Hubbard, a man who is on record as not believing in second drafts. It’s definitely the worst thing we’ve ever read, and also now we’re afraid … Continue reading →

By popular demand, Kait, Renata, and returning guest Anna of Bellwether Friends read Grey by E. L. James. It’s Fifty Shades of Grey from the point of view of Christian Grey and his talkative cock. We went on record as… … Continue reading →

Welcome to Cougartown! Kait, Renata, and their guest Kathryn read Black Hills by Nora Roberts. Nora Roberts has written over 200 books, and this one is about a murder mystery on a big cat sanctuary. It’s a sexy page-turner with … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guest, actual scientist Sarah (@allthatihavemet, @sarahnbay) read Inferno by Dan Brown. It’s the fourth book about Robert Langdon, and probably the only one where he faces a problem that cannot be solved with symbology alone and … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guest Kelly read The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan. It’s the story of a teenage girl bravely fleeing her oppressive, zombie-infested village to start a new life where she can freely express herself. … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and the ghost who lives in Kait’s apartment read True Believer by Nicholas Sparks, the inventor of the “love tragedy” genre. It’s a ghost story without ghosts and a love story without any real romantic chemistry.  Listen now … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guest Molly read Live and Let Die by Ian Fleming. It’s the second James Bond novel and probably the most racist one. (We didn’t read the other ones to confirm, though.) Can 007 possibly win when … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guest Jennie (of Biblio File and Explaining Songs to My Toddler) read The Greek Tycoon’s Blackmailed Mistress by Lynne Graham. This Harlequin romance novel has more complicated sex paperwork than Fifty Shades of Grey, but less … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guest Nick (@polykinetic) read The Target by David Baldacci. It’s the story of CIA assassins and neo-Nazis and North Korean prison camps, but most of all, it’s the story of the power of maternal love. Actually, … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and Kait’s secret cousin Nicole read City of Bones by Cassandra Clare, because we read all the rest of the Harry Potter fanfiction the internet had to offer. This is a book with something for everyone: vampires, werewolves, … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and returning guest Caroline (of Fantastic Fangirls and Panels) read Disclosure by Michael Crichton. It’s the ultimate sci-fi horror story for white men: a woman sexually harasses a man and lies about it, and everyone believes the woman! … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and returning guest Margaret (one of Two Bossy Dames) read Modelland by America’s Top Author Tyra Banks! It’s a fashionable YA dystopia with 550 pages of text and easily 1000 nonsensical made-up concepts. This episode is plus-sized because … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guest Amy read Not Cool: The Hipster Elite and their War on You by Greg Gutfeld. It’s the idle musings of a Fox News correspondent who hates “cool” things, such as Sean Penn, the environment, and … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guests Sophi and Stacey read (or re-read) Flowers in the Attic by V. C. Andrews. Some of us reflected fondly about furtively reading this in our childhoods, while others of us struggled to understand the appeal … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guest Abby (The Librarian) read Middle School, The Worst Years of My Life by James Patterson and Chris Tebbetts. It’s an unexpectedly dark psychological thriller (of sorts) that made us reflect on our own middle school … Continue reading →

Renata was snowed in, so she had three lesbians–Kait, returning guest Anna of Bellwether Friends, and internet personality Laura–tell her all about the Fifty Shades of Grey movie. They all agreed: it needed more dick. We also addressed various weird … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guest Anna of Bellwether Friends read Fifty Shades of Grey by E. L. James! Their inner goddesses are all annoyed at how much they felt compelled to defend this book. Sure, it’s unconventional to have a … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their guest Becca put on their forbidden satin gowns and read The Shunning by Beverly Lewis. It’s the ferhoodling story of a mildly rebellious Amish girl whose worldly desires eventually lead to her getting shunned by the … Continue reading →

Kait, Renata, and their special guests Amanda and Christy read Need for Speed: The Movie Novelization by Brian Kelleher, a book based on a movie based on the video game based on the invention of the automobile. We originally read … Continue reading →

Ring in the new year–1743–with Kait, Renata, and their guest lassie Erica! We read Outlander by Diana Gabaldon and we learned so much about British history, medicinal herbs, corporal punishment, witchcraft, animal husbandry, the Loch Ness Monster, and many other … Continue reading →

Tune in to our Bests & Worsts of 2014 episodes to hear us discuss these titles and read excerpts from our favorites and least favorites! Please note: We counted things that we read in 2014, regardless of publication year. We … Continue reading →

Tune in to our Bests & Worsts of 2014 episodes to hear us discuss these titles and read excerpts from our favorites and least favorites! Please note: We counted things that we read in 2014, regardless of publication year. We … Continue reading →

This is it: Kait, Renata, and their guest Caitlin have found the very worst bestseller. It’s The Christmas Sweater by Glenn Beck and it is truly terrible on every level. Listen now to hear our spirits get fully crushed by … Continue reading →

God wanted to make sure you understood the true meaning of Christmas, so he sent you this podcast episode based on the movie, based on the novel, based on the song, The Christmas Shoes. In this bonus mini-sode, Kait and … Continue reading →

For this very special holiday episode, Kait and Renata are joined by librarian/Christmas enthusiast Ashley to discuss The Christmas Shoes by Donna VanLiere, the bestselling novel based on a #1 hit single. From this book we learned that Heaven has … Continue reading →

In this shocking episode, Kait and Renata have their first-ever white male guest, Renata’s brother Reid, to discuss Rush Revere and the Brave Pilgrims by noted white male Rush Limbaugh. In this book Rush Revere, an irresponsible substitute teacher/iced tea … Continue reading →

  Kait, Renata, and their guest, practicing misandrist Naomi, read Under the Radar by Fern Michaels and questioned the motives of the vigilante Sisterhood. You’d think a group of women dedicated to rescuing women from abuse would have sympathy for … Continue reading →

In this episode, Kait, Renata, and their guest Lisa struggle to piece together the clues of Christopher Pike’s Scavenger Hunt. As far as we can tell, it’s the story of a bunch of horny high school students on a scavenger … Continue reading →

Listeners, will you accept this bonus episode? Margaret of Two Bossy Dames joins Kait, Renata, and returning guest Stacey to explain The Bachelor to us in this follow-up to our episode about I Didn’t Come Here to Make Friends: Confessions of a Reality … Continue reading →

In this shocking rose ceremony–we mean podcast–three people who have never watched The Bachelor staunchly defend the show’s greatest villain! Kait and Renata are joined by Stacey to discuss I Didn’t Come Here to Make Friends: Confessions of a Reality … Continue reading →

For our third episode, Kait and Renata are joined by writer/activist Keane to discuss The Secret by Rhonda Byrne. This best-selling self-help book taught us that the Universe doesn’t understand the word “no.” Seriously, the Universe, no means no. Listen … Continue reading →

In our second episode of Worst Bestsellers, Kait, Renata, and their special guest Angie from Fat Girl Reading read Theodore Boone: Kid Lawyer, John Grisham’s weird attempt to tap the lucrative children’s book market. Listen to us wonder if John … Continue reading →

Welcome to the very first episode of Worst Bestsellers! Kait, Renata, and their special guest Caroline from Fantastic Fangirls, talk about Twilight by Stephenie Meyer. Listen now to hear about nutritive power of tofu, the untapped potential for a vampire … Continue reading →