Easily Distracted by New Releases and How We Remember What We Read

Summary

Book Talk, Etc.

Episode: Easily Distracted by New Releases and How We Remember What We Read
Hosts: Tina (@tbretc) & Hannah (@hanpickedbooks)
Date: August 4, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode centers on two core themes:

1. Bookish Distractions from New Releases: Tina and Hannah, self-proclaimed “mood readers,” review several new and notable books, giving a taste of what’s currently filling their TBR piles.
2. How They Remember What They Read: Responding to ongoing social media conversations questioning whether book influencers truly read and recall all the books they promote, the hosts share honest, practical techniques for retaining reading memories and engaging deeply with books.

Alongside lively personal updates—including tornado drama and comforter recommendations—they deliver actionable advice and thoughtful reviews for listeners eager to deepen both their reading enjoyment and recall.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Reading Through Distraction:
  “I had the most fantastic week reading because I had no technology… I read a physical book. Imagine that.”
  —Tina (04:12)

• On Book Bingeing and TBR Tackling:
  “It was our tackling the TBR episode, and we happened to draw books that intimidate you. So it sounds like both of us went for chonkers, which I am excited about.”
  —Tina (05:03)

• On Book Memory Pressure:
  “Why do people feel as though it’s a moral failing if you don’t remember all the plot points… Did you enjoy it at the time? Did you get something out of it?”
  —Tina (25:47)

• On Annotating to Remember:
  “When I’m annotating books… I keep a character list. I write the setting, I write the time period… I then also write in where I was if it was something remarkable.”
  —Tina (26:22)

• On the Joy of Snail Mail:
  “You get something in the mail. There’s just something so dopamine inducing about, ‘Oh, I got mail and it’s for me.’”
  —Hannah (11:32)

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Episode Timeline & Key Segments

00:28 – 04:45 | Personal Updates & TBR Motivation

• Weather drama: Tina recounts surviving a tornado, losing internet, and surviving a bachelorette weekend.
• “I had the most fantastic week reading because I had no technology…” —Tina (04:12)
• Reading big books with focus while unplugged.

05:17 – 08:26 | Loving Lately

• Tina: Raves about the Mellow Marshmallow Comforter, including a plug for the two-comforter “Scandinavian sleep method.”
  • “It’s like the Swedish way.” —Hannah (06:56)
• Hannah: Promotes snail mail clubs—specifically, Paper Meadow Mail Club and Opal Bones Mail Club—as a way to support indie artists and add joy to your mailbox.
  • “There’s something so dopamine inducing about, ‘Oh, I got mail, and it’s for me.’” —Hannah (11:32)

13:47 – 21:54 | Latest Reads: New Releases Review

• Tina:
  • Die for Me by Shirlene Obuobi
    • Paranormal romance set in the medical world with elements of suspense and representation.
    • “This is the modern [Sookie Stackhouse] version, but much better written.” —Tina (16:51)
• Hannah:
  • Seatmate by Cara Bastone
    • Contemporary romantic comedy, began as an Audible Original.
    • Discussion around audiobook full-cast productions and preferences.
    • “It is just pure Hallmark cozy fun.” —Hannah (19:54)

24:02 – 34:35 | How We Remember What We Read

Prompted by a bookish internet debate, Tina and Hannah discuss strategies for remembering books:

Annotation & Note-taking [26:22]

• Tina annotates directly in the book: character list, setting, time period, reading context.
  • “I keep a character list… I write it literally in the book.” —Tina (26:22)
• Book club question jotting for deeper engagement.

Apps & Digital Tools [31:06]

• Both use the Bookmory app for digital journaling, progress tracking, and note-taking.

Real-Time Voice Memos [28:52]

• Hannah uses the Notes app and voice dictation to capture reactions and thoughts mid-read.
  • “There is something about narrating your experience, even if it’s just with yourself, that helps solidify remembering that book.” —Hannah (29:19)

Marginalia & Annotations [32:15]

• Both stress that annotation doesn't need to be aesthetic—just useful dialogue with the text.

Buddy Reads & Book Club Discussions [34:00]

• Discussing books with others helps cement details and emotional responses.

YouTube & Podcasting Impact [33:31]

• For Tina, creating content about books (vlogs, podcasts) is the ultimate memory enhancer—she recalls more when she must summarize on camera or audio.

34:50 – 48:05 | More New Release Book Reviews

Tina:

• The Lo Job by Grace Alexander
  • A reality-TV-family “drama,” pitched as “Pride and Prejudice for the modern age” (host disagrees).
  • “It’s that level of frothiness… Not in a bad way, but Gossip Girl is grittier for me. This is lighter.” —Tina (38:31)
  • Ultimately just “okay,” cites issues with misleading marketing.

Hannah:

• Teddy Bears Never Die by Yon Cho (trans. Sung Ryu)
  • Satirical, action-packed Korean horror—grieving teen teams with a sentient teddy bear for supernatural revenge.
  • “This book would be on a ‘hear me out’ cake for book recommendations… It blends levity and humor into a story in ways that makes you sometimes forget that you are reading this really bloody body horror crime heist.” —Hannah (41:40)
  • Critiques mis-marketing as horror romance; for her, it’s platonic and deeply imaginative.

Tina:

• The Open Era by Edward Schmidt
  • Queer tennis romance about the first openly gay Grand Slam competitor.
  • “He felt like a perfect 20 year old… There’s also a good amount of tennis. I liked it. Again, don’t know much about the sport, but I do know sports and I do know athletics…” —Tina (46:43)
  • Strong mental health and coming-of-age themes.

Hannah:

• The Children by Melissa Albert
  • Adult siblings confront the legacy of their neglectful, now-famous author mother; dark, literary, genre-blending.
  • “If you liked the vibes of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab, I think you would like the vibes here.” —Hannah (50:49)
  • Unlike the Albert’s YA work, this offers thoughtful metaphor, complex themes, and satisfying closure.

51:58 – 57:21 | Shelf Additions: New & Exciting Finds

Tina:

• In Cold Blood (Centennial Edition) by Truman Capote
  • Recommends the new Book of the Month release, comments on beautiful design, and revisiting it after years away.

Hannah:

• Something Followed Us Home (Anthology, ed. Cynthia Pelayo)
  • New anthology of Latin teen horror exploring immigration, folklore, and intergenerational fear.
  • “I just like the idea of being able to kind of read a snippet from each of these authors.” —Hannah (56:37)

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Practical Takeaways: How Tina & Hannah Remember What They Read

For Busy Readers:

• Annotate simply: character lists, settings, and your reading location/context.
• Use apps like Bookmory to log notes and quickly refresh your memory.
• Voice memo or jot instant reactions in your notes app while reading.
• Don’t worry about perfection—fun, personal annotations or even marginal “LOL”s count.
• Discuss! Buddy reads, book clubs, or even verbal recaps to friends/partners solidify memory.
• Creating book content (review vlogs/podcasts/journals) reinforces recall.

And above all:
“It’s okay if you don’t remember everything. Did you enjoy it at the time? Did you get something out of it?” —Tina (25:47)

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Books Reviewed/Discussed This Episode

| Title | Author | Segment | |-------------------------------------|------------------------|--------------| | Die for Me | Shirlene Obuobi | 17:47 | | Seatmate | Cara Bastone | 18:42 | | The Lo Job | Grace Alexander | 34:50 | | Teddy Bears Never Die | Yon Cho (tr. S. Ryu) | 39:03 | | The Open Era | Edward Schmidt | 44:12 | | The Children | Melissa Albert | 48:15 | | In Cold Blood (Centennial Ed.) | Truman Capote | 51:58 | | Something Followed Us Home (anth.) | ed. Cynthia Pelayo | 57:39 |

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Closing

Share your own book memory strategies by emailing the hosts, joining the community, or chatting on Instagram. And, as always:
“Everything’s better with books.”

Transcript

[Tina]

There's my. Which one do we like?

[Hannah]

Ghost.

[Tina]

This one?

[Hannah]

Yeah.

[Tina]

Creepy ghost. Oh, this one's ghost. You like this one best?

[Hannah]

Yeah, I think so.

[Tina]

Yeah.

[Hannah]

That's better than the other one.

[Tina]

Okay, perfect.

[Hannah]

We both have been turning lights on and off and been like, ooh, that's no good. The headlight is not good.

[Tina]

It's all right, we're fine.

[Hannah]

It's giving. Coffin.

[Tina]

It's giving. It's the middle of winter. It's giving. Victorian child.

[Hannah]

That's right.

[Tina]

Welcome to Book Talk Etc, A podcast bound to grow your tbr. I'm Tina from TBR Etc and and

[Hannah]

I'm Hannah from Hand Picked Books.

[Tina]

This is a conversational podcast about books and more from two Midwest Mood readers who are easily distracted by new releases. And today we read some new releases.

[Hannah]

If you enjoy listening, we'd love for you to follow us on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app. And if you have a quick minute, please consider leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or sharing us on social media. It truly helps us connect with other book lovers.

[Tina]

Hey everyone. It is the start of a brand new month so we wanted to take the time to invite you to join us on Patreon. Our Patreon is such a wonderful, supportive community of readers and if you've ever wanted your reading to be more of a social experience, or if you just want more bonus book talk etc content, this is a great way to get that. Becoming a patron is a great way to financially support our podcast as well to meet other readers and of course to get access to all of our Bonus content. For $5 a month, you'll get two bonus episodes a month and one live event as well as invites to our BTE Discord server, Facebook Group and monthly community read. You'll also have access to everything we've created since we've started, which is a ton, and we help keep our main show ad free. In August we are releasing a full length bonus episode of Niche Novels and a new episode of A Book Talk After Dark Bookish Tea where Hannah and I chat about some of the things that have been buzzing in the book world lately. Our community read is the Unknown by Riley Sager and we'll meet as a group for Mood Reader Happy Hour. If you're interested, we'd love to have you head to patreon.com booktalk etc for the link in our show notes. Thank you so much for your support. Hi Hannah, how are you?

[Hannah]

Hi Tina. I am doing great. How. How are you? Hanging in there.

[Tina]

I mean we Are fine. We are back in business. We, in case you don't follow me on Instagram, had a tornado come through our town, a real one, although John would argue that is that it's a straight line wind. But I digress. A tornado did come through our area earlier in this week and so we were without four and a half days, without Internet for six days. So we just got everything back and I'm very happy to be back in order. Obviously the bigger issue is everybody is safe. There was some damage to our street and some neighbors houses, but luckily we are fine here. But it's been a very weird week, very strange. And I had a bachelorette party this whole weekend. So I'm like, I'm really just in a very weird time right now. But it's okay. I'm glad to be back on the mic. I'm like, we've got Internet. Everything is cool. Like we're, we're happy again.

[Hannah]

I know. I'm so happy to have you back on the mic too. I've missed you. And we had, we tried to do a couple things via hotspot and we were like, you know what, we're just going to ask, what am I doing everybody?

[Tina]

Truly. Yeah, I was like, I'm trying to record via hotspot. Like truly, there is a limit to what we can do. So. Yeah, thanks to. Yeah, thanks to everyone who's checked in on us. We are good to go. And this weather's been crazy. We are hoping obviously that things slow down a little bit, but we got some more flooding yesterday and like, it's not the best. Yeah, it's not great. Not the best to say about it.

[Hannah]

Not the best.

[Tina]

Not awesome.

[John]

But.

[Hannah]

But you're hanging in there. We're here to talk books and that makes everything better as we say.

[Tina]

It really does. It really does. I had the most fantastic week reading because I had no technology whatever, you know, I read a physical book. Imagine that. And I will talk about that in our next episod one that I read for that. But it was a 600 page book and I just read it with my fingers and. Or you know, with my, in my hands.

[Hannah]

You read it with your little fingers.

[Tina]

I read it with my fingers. No. Yeah, I held it. It was awesome. But it was a nice way to remember, like. Oh, yeah, no, you really do. Like physically reading when, when the opportunity presents itself.

[Hannah]

Yeah. And when you have momentum and nothing to like, there's no reason to pick up your phone if you can't do anything on it. And so there's no. You know, you're literally just able to build that momentum and sit there with your book without distractions, which is is great. I will be bringing a 600 page chonker to next episode as well.

[Tina]

Yes. And it's ours. I know. Look at us go. It was our tackling the TBR episode and we happened to draw books that intimidate you. So it sounds like both of us went for chonkers, which I am excited about. I'm glad we had enough time to get to that.

[Hannah]

Me too.

[Tina]

But before all of that, I will go ahead and tell you about my loving lately. And my loving lately is my new comforter. And I have to shout out my husband. Thank you, Jonathan, for buying this. It's a big joke in our house that I had the world's worst blanket for years. Did I do anything about it? No, I just complained about it like randomly. I'd be like, God, I hate this blanket. It's so bad. It's not comfortable. Like it's got weird bumps on it, you know, when it gets worn out. But then I would promptly not do anything about it. And so finally the poor man got tired of hearing me talk about it. So he purchased this for me. And I love it. It is from the brand Mellow and it's their marshmallow. Comfor her.

[Hannah]

I've heard of these.

[Tina]

It is, I should have brought her downstairs. But it is the most lovely experience. It is full, it is soft and that's like sort of their thing is like a marshmallow. Right. It looks so pretty on the bed and they say it's heat adaptive, cozy in the winter, cool in the summer. And I sort of get what they're seeing with. I sort of get what they're saying with that. It is pretty heavy. Not like heavy like you're weighted down. But I'm like, it does make me pretty warm. So I kind of have to, you know, put half of it on me when I'm, when I'm too hot, when we have no power and no ac. But I love this thing, it's so soft. It's also machine washable, which I really like because obviously, you know, kids in the bed are always eating goldfish or doing God knows what. So it's helpful that you can toss it in the washing machine. They have a lot of different color options and we are a tube comforter family. We're a two blanket family. So Jonathan and I both have our own little separate comforter or little separate pods.

[Hannah]

It's like the Swedish way.

[Tina]

Is it?

[Hannah]

Yeah. Or Scandinavian scan. I think they. I mean, if I'm saying that wrong, forgive me, but I. Me and my friend were recently talking about this, how she was like, oh, yeah, we're. We kind of want to do it more like the Scandinavian style where each person has their own setup on one bed.

[Tina]

Oh, my God. It's amazing. Do you guys share a comforter? You have just one?

[Hannah]

We do, but we've been considering switching because I like my covers a different way than. Than Dustin.

[Tina]

Yes. It's the best thing ever. And like, we always joke, like, we are a two blanket household and we've just found that it works really well for us. But yeah, specifically, I don't really have much else to say with it. The price is also incredible for this. It is like, I. If you want to get a full or whatever, it's right now 94. I don't know. It seems to be on sale. But like, what a. What a steal. Trust me when I say it's so soft. Do you guys know those squishmallows that are so popular?

[Hannah]

My kids love.

[Tina]

I don't have any downs. Yeah, same. My kids love them too. I don't have any downstairs with me. This feels like the inside of a squishmallow. That's what I feel like. And it's also made to, like, hug so you can like, hug it when you're sleeping. This thing's a real deal.

[Hannah]

Great.

[Tina]

It's so right now.

[Hannah]

I look fabulous.

[Tina]

Mellow. Sponsor me. I see you have ambassadors. I like to read. What?

[Hannah]

I like to read on comforter.

[Tina]

I like to read in bed. Yeah. I like to be cozy. I like to be cozy. Comfy. Send me a pillow. But yeah, this, this brand. So far, so good. That's my new comforter. It's my loving lately.

[Hannah]

Love it. Yes. I did Google and it says using two separate comforters on a shared bed is a common practice known as the Scandinavian sleep method, originating in countries like Sweden, Denmark and Norway. So I was going somewhere with this Swedish. You're like, I had it again. I had it.

[Tina]

I had it. Yeah, you had it there. No, you're. You're absolutely right. But yeah, I love it.

[Hannah]

I love that too. Okay. My loving lately is two different things, but they're in the same, you know, subject matter. So we're going to allow it. But it's two different male clubs that I have recently subscribed to. Have you heard of this Tina of like a snail mail club?

[Tina]

No. I mean, I know pen pals Best from, from back in the day. But no, I don't know about this.

[Hannah]

So it's a way that independent artists can sell their work in a way that is affordable for people and a way where people can kind of like dabble and try different pieces of an artist's artwork. So there are two that I have been subscribing to recently that I really like. The first one is called the Paper Meadow Mail Club. And this one, a whimsical, magical, fairy tale styled letter. And it comes with a themed postcard print, a themed sticker or a sticker sheet, a little letter, which is almost kind of like a public journal entry for this artist talking about their art practice, things that they've done to help them get creative and inspired that week, etc. And yeah, okay, so those are all of the three things that come in that particular mail club. I love her art style. Again, it's very fairy tale esque. And like last month the theme was witch hats. And so the postcard print, the stickers and the little letter were all, you know, witch, witchy, witch hat themed, which was really cute. And it also came with a piece of like custom vellum or custom paper. So if you're a journaler, you like junk journaling. It comes with a bunch of different things that you can add to your journal spread. The second one is a little bit of a different style. I love it just as much. It is called the Opal Bones Mail Club. And this one is almost like punk pop art style, very colorful, but a little bit more of like a darker punk style. This one comes with a themed art print, two vinyl stickers, and a hand designed customed envelope and packaging. It also comes with that custom vellum that is so gorgeous and perfect for, again, junk journaling or scrapbooking and that kind of thing. I just love this as a way to celebrate these independent artists promote their work in a way that is affordable and fun. You get something in the mail. There's just something so dopamine inducing about, oh, I got mail and it's for me. And that has just been so fun. The opal bones is 10.50amonth and the paper meadows is $7. No, $9 a month. So I've seen, you know, some people that subscribe to like 10 of these a month. I probably won't do that many, but I love having a couple. And then maybe, I don't know, here in a few months, maybe I'll find a couple more that I like and I can support them for a Little bit. So if you're looking for maybe a more affordable way to be able to support independent artists, especially in this day and age when AI slop is so prevalent and you just want to celebrate and promote real people who are creating with their hands, I think this is a great way to do it. If you search just mail clubs on Instagram or TikTok, there are so many great recommendations. I think that's how I found these two. And I was like, I'm going to try, try these two. And I have absolutely loved them. So my loving lately is snail mail, particularly the Paper Meadow mail club and the Opal Bones mail club. I will link both of those mail clubs in our show notes.

[Tina]

So are you saying that you're loving lately? Kind of. Like I said, it's a comforter. You're saying yours is snail mail, or is it. This is like a thing that they. What do you call this idea?

[Hannah]

They're called mail clubs, but then some people call them snail mail clubs. It's got like a. You either or. You can call them either or, but yeah. So my loving lately as a broad term is male clubs. And then these are two particular artists who have a male club that you can subscribe to that I have been enjoying in particular lately.

[Tina]

How fun is that? I love it. I love the sound of it.

[Hannah]

Oh, one more thing before we go. I wanted to highlight Opal Bones is sewing a, like, package with a bunch of stickers and artwork of Jimothy the raccoon.

[Tina]

Yeah, yeah. Tina knows. Oh, I don't know if you've been online.

[Hannah]

If you've been online, you know who Jimothy is. And I. I just sent a link to my friend Alyssa. I was like, we need this, but it is so cute. I can. I can link that sticker pack in our show notes. Also, I cracked up. That's an artist hopping on a trend we love to see.

[Tina]

There you go. Oh, my gosh. All hail Jimothy.

[Hannah]

All hail Jimothy.

[Tina]

Yeah, these are really cute. All right, so I'm going to take you over to my latest read, which is Die for Me, Shirlene Obuobi. And I am so excited about this book. This is one I ordered from Aardvark last month. I read it in the month that I ordered it, so please clap for me. But I grabbed it kind of on a whim. I was like, you know what? I've read this author before. I really liked her debut novel. I know you read her second book and brought it to the show. Not that Long ago. And this one seemed like a bit of a departure because I'm like, is this a creature romance? Like, what are we getting here? And I would say yes, sort of, but not exactly. Because what you're following or who you're following is Sean. And Shawn is a cardiologist. She has a really, really cool job. She's busy. She's really not looking for love. She is a not only a cardiologist, she's the only female black cardiologist at her hospital. And it was really focused on her, her work. She's also got this great friend and she has a goddaughter, which is her friend's daughter. Like that is enough for her in her life. The book opens at a wedding, which I love that. And it's actually the wedding of her best friend's ex husband. But she's there to support her goddaughter. But I thought, what a great way to set this up. While she's at this wedding, she meets Julian. Julian is beautiful, brooding, and 11 years younger than her. Obviously this is a bad idea, but he pursues her and they hit it off. They've got really great chemistry, but more than just like physical chemistry, they really have this intellectual curiosity. He is again, more than 10 years younger than her. And she keeps thinking, this shouldn't work, this shouldn't make sense. And yet they seem to not be able to get enough of each other. But then every time they're away, she starts experiencing these really odd symptoms. Kind of like she has the flu, but it's a little deeper than that. And she sort of walks backward to try and figure out what's going on. I'll leave it there. This is a romance, but it's also a kind of a thriller in some ways. Like really not a thriller, but like it definitely had elements of suspense, definitely had elements of excitement, particularly toward the end. And if you are like me and you used to read the Sookie Stackhouse books, the True Blood books, I loved them. In fact, I'm looking at. In fact, I have one next to me that I stole from my parents house. This one's Dead Until Dark by Charlene Harris. This is the modern version of this, but much better written. No offense to Ms. Harris, but the. This is really well written and I am not necessarily somebody that loves fantasy books. But this felt very grounded, it felt very real. And I was like, what would you do? It's kind of this impossible situation, sort of a forbidden love story, but with a lot more elements. You really are in the hospital with Sean, you're visiting her goddaughter. I thought this story was so compelling. I also really liked Julian. He was a fascinating character. And I'm trying to be intentionally vague about what's going on with him because I don't want to spoil anything. But I think she did it in a very fresh, modern, exciting way. And the author had a lovely dedication. And the dedication said finally, to my black girls who squinted at the pages of the paranormal romances of the early aughts wishing to see themselves there. Die for Me is for everyone, but it's especially for you. If that was her aim, she certainly nailed it with this one. I highly recommend it. I had a very, very good time. Dare I say I could even do this again. Like, I want more from her in the same space. I would love to see these characters again, like in the head a blast.

[Hannah]

Like in the supernatural space.

[Tina]

Yeah, yeah, it's, it's. That's like very. Okay, you know how Rachel Harris is sort of horror, but it's also very grounded. It's not like it's kind of the. It's kind of that it feels similar to how Rachel. Sorry, is it Harris or Harrison?

[Hannah]

Harrison.

[Tina]

Thank you. It's Charlayne Harris. Rachel Harrison. I got a lot going on here, but yeah, it's sort of that similar writing style. Whatever it is, at the end of the day, highly recommend it. And I'm excited because this is now the second book I've really enjoyed by her. I have to go back and read Between Friends and Lovers and then I'll be a completionist. And also she is a physician herself and she's a Chicagoan, so always love to support fellow Chicagoans, but that one is Die for Me. Charlene Obuobi.

[Hannah]

That was really fun to hear you listen. Like to listen to you give that review. That was, that was really fun and I'm really glad that that one worked for you. I was so intrigued by the premise and the COVID when I saw the COVID promoted.

[Tina]

So good. So good.

[Hannah]

So, so good. Well, I am also bringing a romance for my latest read, although it is a contemporary romance, so in a completely different vein, but I am talking about Seatmate by Cara Bastone. And this is a romantic comedy and it's about Gwen, a woman with five hours and 10 minutes to travel from Boston to New York City for a life changing job opportunity. She ends up stranded and cramped on a discount bus.

[Tina]

And oh my God, I've ridden that bus. Fung Hua.

[Hannah]

She's like, I've ridden that one.

[Tina]

Been on that bus. It's an experience, let me tell you.

[Hannah]

Well, they definitely have an experience on this bus and nothing goes to plan. It is kind of a nightmare from start to finish, but thankfully she has some good company with her friendly seatmate, Sam, and they share a very chaotic journey filled with unexpected travel disasters throughout this romantic comedy. So this book, I am almost positive, started as an audible original. It's a part of a series called Lovelines, and there is a brief mention of the other characters in the series like in the previous books. But the main focus here really is Gwen and Sam, and I personally think that this can be read or listened to as a standalone. This is not a long book. It's not quite 300 pages. It's almost 300 pages and it is just pure Hallmark cozy fun. It is one of those stories that you definitely have to suspend your disbelief with as these characters run into disaster after disaster on this trip to New York City. But it was really sweet to see how Sam came in to save Gwen at every turn and in every and even in a short amount of time. It is really easy to fall for these characters because they were both just so lovely and lovable. The stakes were not super high here, aside from Gwen needing to make this job interview, but it doesn't feel too anxiety inducing even as, you know, the bus breaks down and things keep happening. This is absolutely the kind of book that I would recommend if someone just wanted a purely fun and entertaining book that was sweet and cozy and felt like a warm cup of tea. If you do decide to do the audiobook, just know that it is a full production audiobook where the two narrators talk as if they're actually in dialogue with each other. It's not one narrator narrating one chapter and then the other narrating the next chapter. It is like the two of them having a conversation and going back and forth with one another. There are also sound effects and things like that, if that's your thing. I found this a little bit jarring at first, but I do know that people love that, so I just thought that I would share if you do decide to do the audiobook format. I personally prefer higher stakes in my romance, but sometimes you just need a palette cleanser and this was that for me and it is one that I would recommend if you needed that as well. And that is Seatmate by Cara Bestone.

[Tina]

I love it. I love that idea of being with somebody on this bus. And again, I've been on the Fenghua. It's quite an experience. At the best of times. And it's. What a fun setup.

[Hannah]

Yeah, it was a fun setup.

[Tina]

Do you like audiobooks when they do that, when they go. When they have, like, dialogue?

[Hannah]

Yeah. So I.

[Tina]

With different narrators.

[Hannah]

Like I said, I felt like a little jarred by it at first. But I also was recently sent this trilogy in print form, and so I did end up choosing to read it in print. And I preferred that personally. But I know some people love this full audiobook production, so that's just why I wanted to mention it. I don't love it. Yeah, yeah, yeah. What about you?

[Tina]

I don't know how I feel. I love a full cast production. I love sound effects used judiciously back and forth, though. It can really trip me up unless I really like both of their. Their voices. I remember I did where the Wildflowers Grow and they had a male narrator. And it was so strange because by and large you have the female narrator. And all of a sudden they'd be like. And then the wildflowers. Where I was like, ah. Where did you come from? Like, you know, like, it gets your brain sort of to like, jump a little bit. And I always say some of my favorite audiobook narration experiences are when you don't notice it. So I think I. The dialogue is a pass for me. I like multiple narrators, but I don't need them in conversation.

[Hannah]

You know, Didn't Daisy Jones do that too?

[Tina]

I never did the audio for that.

[Hannah]

Honestly, I didn't either.

[Tina]

And I think that's why.

[Hannah]

I think that that's why, because I'm pretty sure, since it's interview format, I'm pretty sure each character, like, just spoke their line as they are.

[Tina]

Oh, okay, okay.

[Hannah]

And that's why everybody was like, this is such a fabulous audiobook.

[Tina]

Right.

[Hannah]

But I remember doing the same thing with that audiobook. I said, I'm going to read this one in print. And I did. I enjoyed that. So much more better.

[Tina]

Interesting. I don't know. I have to think more on it. But I think as it is, it's not something I seek out for. Sure.

[Hannah]

Well, there you got a mini book talk.

[Tina]

A mini book talk. And we'll just dive right into our bigger book talk. And this is great. This is a great idea by you. We were talking about. Well, let's just say it. There's been a resurgence, if you will, of people saying that book influencers don't really read a hundred books a year. Or if they do, they're either lying about it or if they actually read Them, they can't possibly remember everything about them. Of course, we both have a lot of feelings for that. About that conversation. I'm here to say I do indeed read all of my books, obviously, and

[Hannah]

I think clearly that I bring to the show.

[Tina]

Clearly you can. We couldn't have a book podcast without actually reading them. But anyway, we're not here to talk about that necessarily. We thought it would be a good opportunity to tell you the ways that we remember what we read. Now, I'm not saying that I remember every plot point. Please, that's unrealistic. But I do have some strategies, and I know that you do as well.

[Hannah]

Yes. And you and I also joke all the time. At least I know I do. Where I'm like, I don't know. I can't remember. It's been a long time before. However, it's something that we tease each other and joke about, but that is not true 100% of the time. Obviously. I think you and I carry a lot of bookish memories and plot memories and things like that, that even for books that we read a long time ago, because maybe we incorporated some of these methods that help us to remember what we have read. So, all jokes aside, I'm excited to hear about some of the things that you do to help you remember your reading.

[Tina]

Yeah, I'm happy to share always. But also, I want to say, like, it's okay if you don't remember it. Like, that's okay, too.

[Hannah]

Why do people even genres that I

[Tina]

don't remember as well? Do people feel as though it's a moral failing if you don't remember all the plot points of whatever. Did you enjoy it at the time? Did you get something out of it? Would you recommend it? Like, you know what I mean? Like, those are the. The big takeaways that I look for. But yes, let me grab some accessories so I can tell you specifically what it is I do.

[Hannah]

Yeah. Because there were a couple things when I was thinking about this episode as well, and the things that we could talk about that Tina, I know you've shared with me that you do that I love and I feel like are really unique as well.

[Tina]

Yeah. Well, thanks, man. I'm happy to talk about it. So one of the things that I do is a little. I have a. When I'm annotating books, I do find that what we're talking about, when I'm talking annotations, I keep a character list. I write the setting, I write the time period. I write. And I write it literally in the Book. You of course could write it in a journal or wherever you wanted to. I then also I kind of write it right here in the book. Now this one I didn't fully annotate because I did most of it on Author audio. But for me, I always find one of the first pages of the book and then at the top there I'll write where it's set the time period and then I will also type or type in, write in where I was if it was like something remarkable or if I picked it up for a specific reason. Yeah, because then you pick it up later, you're like, oh my God, I was on an airplane going to New York when I read that. Or I was on the Fung Hua bus headed to New York City. But yeah, then on the right, on the left hand side here, that's my character list. And you usually just put their name and fold, female, main character or best friend or whatever. Then on the side here I just jot down my notes and usually I'll put themes at the bottom and that's kind of it. But even just doing something as simple as that I find really grounds me. This book was, I'm holding is Die for me that I just spoke about. It was very easy to follow. Not a huge character list at all. But this is especially helpful for a book like Joy Luck Club where there's eight people that you're following. Like it would be really great to be like, okay, which one is Sophie? Oh yeah, she's the gu Goddaughter. I find it to be really, really helpful to have it just physically here in front of me. And then of course for you and I, sometimes you'll see me if you're watching on YouTube or what have you. I'll be like looking at my notes like, what did I say? You know about that? And I find that to be really, really helpful.

[Hannah]

Yeah, I've seen some of your lists before where you open up that front cover and it is filled to the brim with characters and notes. Some thrillers too. I mean it's not even just for like those really fancy, you know, maybe higher brow books. Some thrillers can have such a cast of characters which can at times even make them really good thriller books because you're trying to keep track of.

[Tina]

You're like, who are all these people? Yeah, I also really quick too, something else I like to include is book club questions. So if it's one we're doing for book club or just questions in general, like sometimes I'm like, why did X do this or why didn't she question him about that stuff that I just want to like. Either make sure to get answered as I'm after I'm done or talk about for a book club discussion.

[Hannah]

Yeah, I love that. I have started doing a couple of things that are new to me that also made me think about this topic because these are things that I have just been doing recently that have been really helpful. And one of them is just while I am reading or listening to a book, using my notes app and jotting down real time thoughts. And I oftentimes use voice dictation. People at the gym while I'm walking on the treadmill probably think that I am such a weirdo because I literally, I literally will sometimes like hold my phone up to my face and be, you know, I'll say something like, this character just did X, Y and Z. And that made me laugh so hard I might not even go back to that Note. Yes, for writing my review when I'm talking about the book on the podcast. But there is something about narrating your experience or talking about your experience, even if it's just with yourself, that really helps solidify remembering that book. Sometimes if I'm next to my husband, I will tell him something, but only if I want to really discuss a plot or a theme with him or maybe share a line. But oftentimes your partner or a friend, they won't understand the context of this character just did xyz and it was really.

[Tina]

Oh yeah.

[Hannah]

Because they're not reading the story with you. Right. So it's kind of a way that you can converse with someone about the book that you're reading to help you remember without, you know, boring everybody around you with all the little tiny details of your book.

[John]

Yeah.

[Tina]

I did that to John the other day. I was like, oh my gosh, she died. He was like, okay. Like, no, not like a mean way, but just like, is that a good or a bad thing? Like, how are you? You know, it's like, I feel good about it. No. Yeah. And specifically, I love what you said about maybe you won't even go back to it. It is the act though, of capturing it because you've now written it or you've said it another way that I do that I sometimes will use digitally to. If I'm not writing in my book, I sometimes will open my Book Mori app. Still one of my favorite ways. I always keep track of Book Mori.

[Hannah]

Yep.

[Tina]

And basically it gives you a little. I love bookmory because it gives you A little calendar right here in your app. It's a free version. And then also what you can do is they have a section for notes. I didn't put any notes in here lately. But it's another great way then to keep them organized because I'm like, okay, what did I think about? Keep them close. And you can sort of look right here in your book mori app. There's all your thoughts for it.

[Hannah]

Yeah, I love that. I think that another way that you can do this if you are a book annotator. So if you like to just have live conversations, you can write those in your book. I think a lot of times when we see people annotating their books, especially on social media, it can be romanticized and color coded. And I love that type of annotating as well. However, annotating can also just be holding your romance book in front of you and writing with a pink sparkly gel pen. Lol. This character is hilarious. Any way to like write in the margins, write in your notes on your phone, have a way of conversing and having that dialogue, even if it's just with yourself, I feel like is immensely helpful when it just comes to getting more out of your reading life and especially remembering what you are reading.

[Tina]

No, I agree. And it doesn't have to be, like you said earlier, a highbrow piece of fiction or what have you to annotate. You can annotate whatever it is that you want. And I really think, like, I'll do that too, is like I'll underline quotes or whatever that I want to make sure to sort of keep and remember. Just the act of doing that helps me remember, helps me engage with it more. Sometimes we call this deep reading the other way. The other method that I have been using is this. Here I'm holding my hobbynichi. Could use any sort of planner or notebook. And really I just start. It's. It's actually days of the month in here. So I just. As I'm reading these books, boom. I'm writing down my notes as I go. Now it's nonsense. Half the time I'm like, what on earth were you talking about? But sometimes it's really helpful. I'm like, oh yeah, I did forget about that. And you mentioned talking and sometimes talking to yourself. I also have a YouTube page and so when I'm finishing or talking and reading a book, especially if I'm reading for a reading vlog, it's really fun to go back and edit it and like, watch me react to it in Real time. Because I'm like, oh, yeah, I was feeling that way. And it sort of helps me with the final product here. I always consider the podcast reviews kind of my final thoughts on that particular book.

[Hannah]

But yeah, I think that YouTube in general has helped you, like, remember what you're reading more.

[Tina]

I think so. It's those vlogs. When I'm editing it back, I'm like, oh, yeah, I, I. And it's great because I don't even then have to make notes for prepping for the show because I've edited it on the vlog and I've like heard myself talk about it recently. Like, it's a weird, it's very meta. It all feeds into each other.

[Hannah]

I love it.

[Tina]

Any other ways that you try and remember what you've read?

[Hannah]

I think just some basic ones too, that we don't have to deep dive into. But having a book club to discuss whatever you're reading. I think buddy reading with friends, especially if you are texting, you know, me and my friend Emma, we buddy read something every month and I always really remember our buddy reads because we send each other voice notes while we're reading them and after we're done, I think those are great ways to remember what you're reading. Maybe in a more community experience, if that's more your thing. So those are definitely some things that you can do as well. But other than that, I think that's kind of everything that I like to do.

[Tina]

Yeah, same here. And even with all of these methods, there still are sometimes books that I'm like, what the heck book was this? I don't remember. That's not good. It doesn't stick. I'm like, yeah, maybe it's not my top recommendation for the year.

[Hannah]

There we go.

[Tina]

But anyway, if you have any strategies that you use to help you remember what you're reading, what books you've read, all of those things. We're always happy to, to get other strategies and tell you about a book that I've read recently that's new release, it's the Low Job by Grace Alexander. And I swear that they just added this. They added this later they said Pride and Prejudice for modern and Fresh for the modern age, basically. And I'm like, that is a very big stretch. This is not, not that I'm like, yeah, I think there's sisters in both books. But I'm like, that's a, that's a stretch here. They also comped this for fans of Blue Sisters and good material. The comps, I think Sometimes are getting a little bit out of. Out of whack, but that's okay. This one starts off with Lily Lo, who gets caught having an affair with her married boss, who is an admired local politician. And she is in the beginning of this book, in the middle of this scandal, and it could dismantle her entire life as she knows it. But she goes to her mom, Lydia, who is not the kind of mom to be like, oh, it'll be okay. She sort of drives into action and develop. Develops a strategy that actively exploits the fallout. And basically, Lily goes from making coffee to making headlines and booking talk shows. And because of that, the rest of the family gets famous. If this sounds a little familiar, yes, I would comp this to. To the Kardashians, because Lily does have three sisters, Stevie, Iris, and Kate. And they go from having been exposed of doing something sexually to sort of now being in the spotlight. And they have a reality TV show. And I always saw this. The mom in this, Lydia, she's my Kris Jenner in my head. And I think those comps are pretty accurate. And basically, you follow this family as they become famous, and they discover that sometimes fame comes with a price. How did I think of this? I thought it was fine. This was not my favorite, unfortunately. I had it on my Summer Bonanza list. It was my number two, I think. And, like, it is not. I gave it three stars. It does have some depth to it that I liked. I though, thought we would be following this family as if they. I thought it would be more of a will they get famous, what's going to happen type story. This one, they're already famous. And like. Like the 10th, when you're 10% in the book, it really moves pretty quickly. And then there's just these little dramas that the family circles around. It did have some good commentary about being a woman in the workforce, being exploited for that. And heaven forbid you have to take time away from working and coming back, finding yourself again at the bottom of the career ladder. So there was some sharp social commentary in this, but I don't think anything that I was like, wow, this really blew me away. I just made fun of publishers for having too many comps. But I'm going to offer some comps of my own, which is Magnolia Parks by Jessa Hastings, if you like that level. It's that level of frothiness and sort of, like, witty banter. This one's also pretty raunchy, but it's British, so it kind of landed a little bit softer for me. But, yes, Think Jessa Hastings, Magnolia Parks. And that sort of, like, drama and that sort of level of silliness. Not in a bad way, like, not in a, you know, negative way necessarily, but Gossip Girl kind of like a Gossip Girl is grittier for me.

[Hannah]

Oh, okay.

[Tina]

Yeah, this is pretty much light.

[John]

Light.

[Tina]

Yeah, pretty, pretty light. Again, there's some, obviously there's some elements here that are, you know, there's. There's some. Some themes that are a little bit dark. The overall tone is kind of escape. Escape escapism. And I think for a lot of people, this will land. For me, this one was just. Okay. That is the Low Job by Grace Alexander.

[Hannah]

Well, what a bummer that something on your summer bonanza didn't hit quite right. But yeah, it happens.

[Tina]

It happens. Yes.

[Hannah]

Well, speaking of buddy reads, this was me and Emma's buddy read for the month of July. And get ready because this is such a bonkers book and even the synopsis is just. It's so bonkers. It was good, though. I actually really enjoyed this. It's Teddy Bears Never Die by Cho Yeon. And this is a really dark, action packed, very action packed Korean satirical horror novel. It's translated by Sung Ryu and it's. It follows a grieving teenage girl named Hwa Young and a sentient teddy bear housing the soul of a boy named Do Ha. And these two team up together for a supernatural revenge plot after a mass poisoning has happened. And this mass poisoning happened via tainted rice cakes at a luxury high rise. And this poisoning ends up killing Hwa Young's mother. So Hwayang suspects that there has been foul play here, and she refuses to accept the official story that has been given by the News and others. And she is working odd jobs in order to fund her search for justice. I'm going to leave it there. This story was wildly imaginative, as you can tell by the synopsis. When I was sending my friend a voice note, I said, you know how people do those hear me out cakes where they do people that they find attractive, but they're actually, you know, like Scar from the Lion King.

[Tina]

Okay, okay.

[Hannah]

So it's like, oh, hear me out. This, this thing, this person, this character is attractive. So this book is a hear me out book recommendation. Like, if I were to make a cake of like, hear me out on this book synopsis, just trust me, it's really good. This book would be on that cake. And I know that's a really odd comparison, but I. This book is on a hear me out cake for book recommendations. For me, it blends levity and humor into a story in ways that makes you sometimes forget that you are reading this really bloody body horror crime heist. But I thought that the deliberate blend of satire with its darker themes made for a really compelling and smart story. This book is only 300 pages and it has so many great things to say about favoritism capitalism. I loved the sections where it was really calling out capitalism. It talks about revenge, and honestly. More There are a lot of themes packed into this book, but it's in a way that I genuinely felt like it was thoughtfully done given the short amount of time that it had, which is really hard to do sometimes. It just feels like a slop of themes thrown into a book, and this did not feel like that to me at all. One thing I'm seeing everywhere in the reviews that I have read and watched on YouTube and TikTok is that people are saying this book is horror romance. I deeply disagree with this. I will stand on that hill and shout it from the rooftops. I found the relationship between these two characters, Doha and Hwa Young, to be very strong and emotionally resonant, but purely platonic in my opinion. So I have been a little bit confused by it being pitched as a horror romance, so that is just me. That said, I still really enjoyed this one. When I finished it. I gave it a 4 initially, but I'm almost wanting to give it a 4.5. It's really sitting with me, especially after discussing it with my friend and I just thought that it was so creative while still being able to really discuss its themes in a really deeply resonant way. So I really enjoyed this and I'm glad to have read a translated book as well and that is Teddy Bears Never Die by Yan Cho.

[Tina]

Real quick, the characters that they ask that they think are in love, is it one of them? The teddy bear?

[Hannah]

Yeah. Yes, that's correct.

[Tina]

Okay, cool. I mean he is sentient after all,

[Hannah]

for all I care.

[Tina]

But yes, no, I was that can be on the mic. It was so funny. I was putting together our newsletter. Every Sunday we have a newsletter that comes out for our patrons and one of the things that we do is our current read so we share what Hannah and I are at the time and you were reading this teddy bear book, Up Against My east of Eden by John Stevenson. I think we've done it. I think we've officially reached both ends of whatever spectrum it is that we reach it. We could not have been more different, but I'm really glad to hear you talk about that I was very intrigued by the COVID It's awesome.

[Hannah]

The COVID is great. The COVID does portray a giant teddy bear, though, which is.

[Tina]

Is. Wait, is he not giant?

[Hannah]

So bright. No, he's the size of a teddy bear.

[Tina]

Oh, I thought it was like a King Kong sized.

[Hannah]

No, no, no. This is like he like, rides on her backpack. It's very cute. That's the thing. When it's. It's cute, but then they're, you know, murdering people.

[Tina]

Killing people. Very murdery. Murdery teddy bears. All right, I will tell you about my book. It is a romance too, which, I mean, look at us go. Look at me go. It is the Open Era by Edward Schmidt. This is another one that was on my summer bonanza. Happily, this one worked out much better. This is a tennis romance and you're following a recently turned pro tennis player named Austin. Austin's been out since high school. It's never really big a. Been a big deal to him. That is, until he gets really, really good at tennis and becomes the first openly gay man to compete in a Grand Slam. And suddenly being gay is a huge deal. And he's got the headlines to prov. He also is a person with anxiety disorder. And him being thrust into the spotlight like this has really caused his disorder to hit a breaking point. And so he has this incident at one of his practices and ends up falling in front of the number two ranked world tennis player. I know nothing about tennis, but. I know nothing about tennis. But yeah, this guy's number two and he is very hot. His name's Diego. Diego turns out to be really nice. Is like, hey, buddy, you okay? Whatever. Like, I've been excited to play against you, etc, and they start a little friendship together, but it gets a little flirty and there's mixed signals. All of this tied into the fact that they're rivals. And it basically is following Austin as he is battling for the trophy during the two weeks at the US Open.

[John]

Been.

[Tina]

And Diego's there as well. I thought this was so good. I thought it was so good. I will say a couple things which would help you decide if this is for you. I don't need a ton of steam on the page and that sort of thing. You don't get a ton. There are some definite romantic elements and there's some steam, but it's really a story about Austin, him coming into his own, him dealing with his anxiety disorder and him being this athlete and sort of trying to figure everything out. There's also a good amount of tennis. I liked it. Again, don't know much about the sport, but I do know sports and I do know athletics and I get competition and I was like, so excited. He has like a sports psychologist he works with. I was really, really into those scenes. The other thing though, I want to mention is that he's 20, so he's a young man and you get that. He felt like a perfect 20 year old, actually. Not in a bad way, but just, just know that he's younger and I think it would have read weird if he was acting as though he were my age. Right. He definitely feels like a young man coming into his own. There are some really great elements. Yeah. Figuring things out. He's not figuring out his sexuality though, which was really refreshing. He's more so just trying to figure out like, how do I, like take all of this on? Because he's like, you know, thrust into the spotlight. Really good mental health representation and there's also some good, like I said, sports elements. There's that adrenaline. The relationship is good. Do I have too many caveats with this? Who knows? But I will also say I think that folks who really do read a lot of romance would find this to be more of a contemporary fiction novel versus a proper romance. For me, I'll call it a romance. This definitely got some of that to it. There's also a lot of Austin just coming into his own as well. Whatever it is, I really, really liked it. I think I ended up giving it 4.25 stars. So. So definitely one I would highly recommend. Definitely one that I would love to see more people read. I did not read Heated Rivalry or watch it. But if you like those books, give this a shot, give it a whirl because I think it definitely deserves the press. This is a debut. So this book is the Open Era by Edward Schmidt.

[Hannah]

Well, we are just going to keep on sharing Summer Bonanza books because how

[Tina]

fun is also on my Summer Bonanza.

[Hannah]

Yes, I am Bringing the Children by Melissa Albert and I'm happy to say that this one worked for me also. I really liked this one. And this is a story that follows adult siblings Guinevere and Ennis Sharp as they confront a dark family legacy and the harsh reality behind their late mother's famous fantasy book series to the public. Edith Sharpe's world famous Ninth City books depicted her children as these magical heroes that lived this really enchanted life. And in reality, Guinevere and Ennis grew up near, feral and neglected and unwashed in this very isolated Vermont farmhouse while their mother's fame just exploded. This very Strange traumatic childhood ended very abruptly when a devastating house fire killed their mother and left the book series unfinished and these two traumatized children as the sole survivors. Then 20 years later, we're following them as an adult. Guinevere is coasting on her family name by promoting a ghost written memoir when her estranged artist brother Ennis resurfaces with a disturbing new art installation that he is naming Mother. As dark rumors swirl and long buried memories begin to crack open, Guinevere is forced to face the sinister history of her mother's creative genius and uncover the truth about what actually happened the night of the fire. This is one of those books where you're wondering how you can talk about it without spoiling it, because the end revealed so much and it was very exciting and I just loved how everything turned out. So I will say that much. I thought that this was an incredibly done story similar to this author's young adult fiction. She takes these really dark fairy tale metaphors to build up and hold up her characters and the overall theme of her story. And in this case, the story revolves around not just familial trauma, but also family cycles cycles. And the children in those family cycles decision to continue them or break free from them. And the whole time you as the reader are trying to decide what is going on when we are getting these snippets of backstory from the children's childhood. You know, was Edith just a troubled mother trying to deal with this newfound fame? Was she dealing with depression? Or maybe a different mental health issue? Is the house that they lived in haunted? These were all questions that I had while reading, and honestly, to me, I was ready for several different endings and resolutions that I'd considered. And I was going to be fine with any of the directions that it went because the story was just so compelling. Like I said, how the story ended up concluding I thought was beautifully done. You do get answers, and here I'm glad that we got that. I'm good with an open ending, but here I think we really needed some answers and we did get them. I could not have asked for a better way to tell the story and conclude everything. While the plot was not similar, it had some similarities, but just go with me on this one. If you liked the Vibes of Addie Larue by V E Schwab, I think that you would like the vibes here. There was something about this book that kept reminding me of that story, even though the plots really only have a few similarities that I could pick out. I personally liked this one a Lot, lot more, though. I'm glad to have checked another book off of my summer Bonanza. This really worked for me, and that is the Children by Melissa Albert.

[Tina]

I'm so happy to hear you talk about this one. I have that book because I just. It was not even close to being on my radar. I know you had it on the Bonanza, but I was like, oh, yeah, this doesn't sound like anything I would like. But then I noticed it was so. What's the word? Not ambiguous genre blending, I will say. Like I kept seeing. I was like, is it horror? Is it fantasy? Is it. What are we getting here? What am I getting? So I'm very curious still. So I do have a copy. Maybe at some point I'll grab it. I have a very exciting shelf edition. Fresh. Fresh off the. Fresh off the press. My. My Book of the Month box came in the mail. I am holding In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. I'm sure you guys have never heard of this under the radar gem, but. No, seriously, I wanted to bring it because this is one of Book of the Month's centennial editions. I think we talked about this during our Book of the Month episode where we happened to pick that as our theme for that month. They do such a good job with these. I mean, way better than their regular titles. The COVID the jacket is still flimsy, but this, you probably can't tell, is elevated. So the title of the book is like. Like bumpy, which I think is nice. I haven't opened it yet.

[Hannah]

Textured. Oh, it's beautiful.

[Tina]

Look at this end page. It's like a God. What do I say? This is like a swirl. It looks like paint swirls. Black, orange, pink, white, all sorts of stuff. I mean, it's beautiful. They really did an awesome job with this. Look at that. H. I just love books. Yeah, that's really nicely. This is a really nice one.

[Hannah]

I love them.

[Tina]

I just. Breaking news. I love a fiction book. Well, this is actually non fiction, but I love books in general. All right, so this book is enclosed Blood. I'll tell you a little bit about it. Even though I'm sure you all already know the subtitle of this I did not know is a true account of a multiple murder and its consequences. I love that. I didn't realize that that was the subtitle for this. And it gives you a little bit of description in the beginning about who the author was. Was. But the book itself is supposed to be the most famous true crime novel of all time. And one of the first non fiction novels ever written. It Takes place on November 15, 1959 in Holcomb, Kansas. Four members of the Clutter family were savagely murdered by blasts from a shotgun held a few inches from their faces. There was no apparent motive for the crime and there were almost no clues. So basically, Truman Capote for this is reconstructing the murder investigation that led to the capture and kind of what happened from there. I did read this. I remember reading it. Unfortunately, I can't remember when it was, but I gave it five stars, allegedly. So at the time I must have really liked it. I'm very excited to try this again and just sort of revisit it because as we were talking about in book talk, I did not annotate it. So I don't remember everything. But I'm excited to give it another shot. This is In Cold Blood by Truman Capote.

[Hannah]

Fun fact. My mother knew this family. She went to primary school with the kids.

[Tina]

Sorry. So.

[Hannah]

Yep.

[Tina]

Correct.

[Hannah]

Yes.

[Tina]

Wait, is she from Kansas? Girl, I know. Does she know this?

[Hannah]

Get her on the pod story.

[Tina]

I know, yes.

[Hannah]

My mom's been. I'm so sorry, Mom. She's been trying to get me to read that book. She was like, this is like a part of my. My history.

[Tina]

You should read it. Oh, my gosh. I know.

[Hannah]

I should. I should. Maybe we can. I was gonna say do it for book club, but we can't because we'd only do new releases.

[Tina]

But anyway, you know, buddy read perhaps. Buddy read perhaps.

[Hannah]

Yeah. Yeah, that'd be fun. Depending on your definition of fun. My. My shelf edition is one that I am really excited about about too. This comes out in September and it is called Something Followed Us Home. And this is an anthology, so there are a bunch of different authors here. We've got Isabel Canyes, we've got Mariana Enriquez, we've got Augustina Bazterica. We've got a lot of great Latin authors here in this anthology. And the back of the book says, dive into the chilling depths of Latin teen horror. A groundbreaking anthology edited by Bram Stoker Award winner Cynthia Belleo, where each story reimagines immigration, colonization, faith and folklore as the fears that we inherit and carry across borders and generations. That sounds fabulous to me. I haven't read a ton of anthologies and I have a feeling that this would be such a great way to also discover new authors. And I just like the idea of being able to kind of read a snippet from each of these authors. Some of these, I've read entire books from before some of these authors I've never tried, so I'm excited to dive into some familiar voices and also maybe try some new ones out. This one comes out September 29, 2026, so we don't have to wait that long to get our own copy. Copies. That is something followed us home. It is edited by Cynthia Pelayo.

[Tina]

Yes, I think I got a copy of that as well. And I was like, this sounds like a great way to find new horror authors. So I'm glad you brought that. All right, folks, well, that is it for today. We thank you for spending a part of your day with us. Links to all the books mentioned can be found in the show notes. And if you enjoyed today's episode, you can help us by following wherever you listen and leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps us get our show out to new listeners and grows our audience. And don't forget, if you'd like access to exclusive bonus content and community, you can join us for $5 a month on patreon.com booktalk Etc.

[Hannah]

If you'd like to connect with us, you can email us@booktalk etcmail.com you can also connect with us both at Booktok Etc. On Instagram and YouTube. You can find Tinabra Etc and Hannah at HandpickedBooks. Talk to you next week.

[Tina]

And in the meantime, remember, everything's better with books.

[John]

When it came, I didn't think it was real. I was sitting in my crane on my phone and it started raining real hard. And I still didn't believe it because this never happens in an area like this that's populated. It's mainly in rural areas. And the sky got real dark. And I started taking a little bit more serious. And by the time I was getting ready to get out the crane, the storm stopped. The wind came through. I work in the back with the ISO containers. Once that one container fell over, I climbed out the crane and I ran into the building. The problem was the tornado was already here, so I had to fight against the wind to open the door. Debris falling and everything like that. And once we got into the building, it went dark. We were standing there, there, and the whole roof just came off. It was like somebody just took their hand, went to the gutter and just peeled it back.