Ep 7 Brimstone Initial Thoughts & Reactions

Summary

Dear Fantasy Reader – Ep 7: Brimstone Initial Thoughts & Reactions (Fae & Alchemy Series)

Release Date: November 26, 2025
Hosts: Hannah, Kinsey, Carly
Book Discussed: Brimstone (Fae & Alchemy #2, by Callie Hart)

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Episode Overview

In this vibrant, laughter-filled episode, Hannah, Kinsey, and Carly reconvene to share their raw, spoiler-filled initial reactions to Brimstone, the much-anticipated second entry in Callie Hart’s Fae & Alchemy series. From raving about outstanding audiobook performances and immersive worldbuilding, to collectively freaking out over plot twists, animal companions, and relationship dynamics, the hosts dissect everything they loved (or didn’t) about Brimstone. The conversation ranges across beloved characters, memorable scenes, major reveals, and their biggest theories for the trilogy’s conclusion.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. General Impressions of Brimstone

• Pacing & Tone: All hosts loved the immediate continuity from book one, the faster pace, and the increased Kingfisher POV.
  • Carly: "I loved that we got so much Kingfisher point of view. I loved the pacing. I loved that we just jumped in right from where we left off." (02:53)
  • Kinsey: "This is a five star off vibes! ...I actually laughed out loud multiple times. I thought this book was so funny and I thought the romance was well done." (03:19)
  • Hannah (on fast pacing and reading habits): "I needed it to pick up fast and it delivered. There were some times...I feel like I fell off a little bit on that pace, but got hooked right back in by something else." (04:54)
• Audiobook Praise: All three hosts adored the narrators’ performances and the overall production.
  • Hannah: "I’ve never read a book via audio that was this good for Quicksilver and Brimstone because the narrators are just so incredible." (06:33)
  • Kinsey: "It almost felt like a graphic audio without it being an official graphic audio production." (07:00)
  • Carly: "The audiobook is just. It is so, so, so, so good." (07:33)

2. Brimstone vs. Quicksilver

• Strong consensus: Brimstone edged out Quicksilver for all three hosts, mainly due to pacing and increased action.
  • Carly: “The pacing was just a little bit tighter for Brimstone... more mix of action kind of sprinkled throughout.” (10:24)
  • Kinsey: "For me, I like it more than Quicksilver, and I thought it met expectations." (08:23)
  • All were excited about the higher stakes—gods, dragons, and larger conflicts on the horizon. (09:21)

3. The Rot/Zombie Horror Element

• Kinsey: Found the zombie-esque plotline highly stressful but narratively effective. (04:14, 25:42)
• Hannah: Had to "rewrite the scenes in my head" to avoid gross visuals. (26:24)
• Carly: Appreciated the unique dilemma—heroes fighting infected versions of their own people, heightening the stakes. (26:36)

4. Onyx the Fox – Emotional Centerpiece

• Onyx’s near-death and “fake-out” was deeply impactful for Hannah and Kinsey.
  • Hannah: "My body was angry...I was so distraught that one you wouldn't tell me that that happened." (13:10–14:27)
  • Kinsey: "I did not want to spoil it for you completely because I feel like you deserve to have those reactions." (15:06)
• Emotional animal plot devices were debated: Hannah dislikes reversals, wants sacrifices to have long-term meaning. (17:26)
• Hosts theorize that Onyx’s survival and loss of Seris’ ability will have important future consequences. (20:11–22:07)
• Fan-favorite scene: Kingfisher feeding Onyx trout using magic – "Thank you, little one." (23:52)

5. Archer & Fire Sprites – The Key to the Rot

• Archer’s near-death had the most emotional impact this book for Hannah: "I was heartbroken. I thought for sure he was done." (29:51)
• Kinsey: "I was ready to end it all for Archer." (32:07)
• Surprise and delight at how fire sprites and brimstone tie into the plot; community-based sprite magic and Archer’s role were highlights. (31:23–32:07)

6. Taladeus’ Unexpected Turn

• Taladeus’s mass-murder of the high vampires was a huge shock and "one of my favorite scenes," per Kinsey. (34:44, 35:48)
• Hannah: “He’s my favorite character. He’s like the rising star that comes out of that show, that’s him for Brimstone for me.” (34:53)
• Carly: "I was getting a little concerned that we were leaving too many problems for book three to solve...I was so glad [the vampire problem] was [resolved]." (36:20)

7. The True Name Reveal: Kingfisher → Kydan Greystar Finvarra

• The big reveal and power of names brought chills and was called “the best scene” of the novel.
  • Kinsey: “It was my favorite part of the entire... The quote just slapped so hard!” (38:24)
  • Hannah: “I got chills again, dude. My whole body. I stopped what I was doing.” (38:49)
• Name debate: Kinsey loved “Kydan,” Hannah struggled with the switch from Kingfisher. (39:55–41:28)

8. Dragons! — The Major Reveal

• Hosts called their earlier dragon theories vindicated (and were over the moon).
  • Hannah: “We felt so many DMs on Instagram being like, you guys were right about the dragons. It felt so good!” (44:09)
  • Kinsey: “When they finally crossed into Daxis, they were greeted by the dragon. I was like, I knew it!” (46:37)
  • Carly: “I was just so sure...it was like, YES, let’s go!” (47:25)
• Dragons are mean, mind-speaking, and crucial for addressing the rot.

9. Kydan’s Parentage – The Half-God Twist

• All three were thrilled by this twist.
  • Kinsey: “One of the best cliffhangers that I've read in a while. And it's not a cliffhanger where I'm super stressed or — oh no." (50:16)
  • Hannah: “It’s one of those that makes you go reread and pick up on things that make a lot more sense now.” (50:29)
  • Debated if the text is explicit about Kydan being half-god (hosts are certain). (51:05)

10. Carrion Moments — Comic Relief & Character Depth

• Numerous favorite Carrion lines, especially banter with Kingfisher and sardonic commentary.
  • Kinsey: "The entire Kingfisher Carrion interaction in Zolvarin was gold ...’Hate to be a bother, but if you’re not in a position to save me right now, then could you possibly kill me instead? This really sucks.’" (56:09)
  • Hannah: “I love their relationship development.” (57:04)
  • Carly: “His character was so much fun in this book. I had so much fun reading him. Loved him in Quicksilver. I didn’t think I could love him more, and then I did.” (60:20)

11. Top Kingfisher & Seris ROMANTIC MOMENTS

• Down bad for each other; NOT a romance full of misunderstanding and conflict, but “us against the world.”
  • Kinsey’s favorite quote: "Every part. I love all of you. I’d spend fortunes of the universe...But all I have is my life...I’d spend it and consider the price small if it meant keeping you safe." (62:00)
  • Hannah: "I absolutely adore his obsession with her dresses...He said, you’re right. I wouldn’t want to ruin the dress." (63:03)
  • All loved that the central relationship was a support system, not a source of melodrama. "Thank God. So refreshing.” (65:45)
  • Spicy moments appreciated: "Kill me. Sit on my face and ride my tongue until I fucking die..." (68:18)

12. Standout Scenes, Additional Predictions, and Character Notes

• Kinsey nailed several predictions: Silver City powering Madra, true name in Adina’s book, stargazers creating the magical book, true name hidden with the Kingfisher statue (69:54–73:16).
• Taladeus’s sword “Redemption” and his emotional arc received special love. (74:17)
• Scene shoutouts: Seris demolishing rivals, Kingfisher wrecking Madra’s guards, the coronation slaughter, Kingfisher’s mom’s test. (75:30–77:27)
• Seris’ “queenly” journey admired; all appreciated her practical, non-whiny strength in the face of unrelenting change. (77:41)
• Kingfisher’s POV was called a "game-changer" in enjoyment and immersion. (81:11)

13. New Characters – The Hazrax & Foley

• Divided opinions: Kinsey trusts them for now—Foley "is an honorable Fae" (88:11), Hazrax "just wants to observe. It’s just. Baby girl." (85:44).
• Carly is 50/50: "I think there’s something going on with Foley, though, that we don’t know about yet." (88:03)
• The Hazrax gives powerful “Briarax” or “Surael” from ACOTAR vibes. (86:20–86:54)

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Notable Quotes & Time Stamps

• "I was actually laughing out loud multiple times. I thought this book was so funny..." — Kinsey (03:19)
• "If Onyx died, I was dnfing. Like, I just can’t." — Hannah (13:10)
• "Do you think you'll be able to turn invisible at some point? If I could have access to magic, I would definitely opt for invisibility." — Carrion, recounted by Kinsey (59:30)
• "Every part. I love all of you. I’d spend the fortunes of the universe to protect you..." — Kingfisher (62:00)
• "Sweet fucking mercy… Kill me. Sit on my face and ride my tongue until I fucking die. I can’t take it anymore." — Kingfisher (68:18)
• "I love their relationship... I just love how down bad this man is for her." — Carly (66:00)
• "We don't torture people," and Kingfisher said, "Says, Carrion tortures me daily." — Kinsey (69:29)
• "How can I consign myself to another endless dark when I've been given back the light?" — Taladeus (74:17)
• "I'm so happy he's still alive. I'm really curious to see where his character arc went." — Kinsey on Taladeus (82:28)

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Flow of Discussion – Notable Moments with Timestamps

• [02:53] First reactions – loved Kingfisher’s POV, pacing, immediate plot continuation
• [04:14] Zombie/rot storyline – anxiety and immersion
• [06:33] / [07:00] Audiobook performance gushing
• [08:23] Comparing Brimstone and Quicksilver
• [13:10] – [15:06] Onyx “death” scene – raw emotional reactions
• [20:11] Theorizing why saving Onyx will be plot critical
• [29:51]/[32:07] Archer’s near-death. "Protect Archer at all costs."
• [34:44] Blood court vampire massacre – Taladeus’s twist
• [38:24] – [41:28] Kingfisher’s true name reveal & feelings about name switch
• [44:09] / [46:37] Dragons return – “I knew it!”
• [50:16]/[51:05] Half-god reveal, reaction and debate about clarity
• [56:09]/[58:17] Carrion's banter, role as comedic and emotional support
• [62:00]/[63:03] Top romantic quotes and favorite moments
• [68:18] "Sit on my face." — peak spice appreciation
• [69:54] Theories that came true (true name, Silver City, dragons)
• [74:17] / [75:30] / [77:27] Favorite emotional scenes, moments of catharsis
• [77:41] Seris as queen – strength in adversity
• [81:11] Kingfisher’s POV – a favorite for the hosts
• [85:44] On the Hazrax: childlike trust vs. wary skepticism

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Episode Tone & Takeaways

• Enthusiastic, informal, sisterly “book club” energy.
• High on banter, meme-ready quotes, and deep-dive analysis grounded in character love.
• Joy over healthy romance representation—“us against the world.”
• Appreciation for unpredictable plot twists, but no love for fake-out or meaningless animal deaths.
• Strong anticipation for dragons, more Carrion, Taladeus’s redemption, and the evolving magical world.

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For New Listeners: Why This Episode Rocks

If you’ve finished Brimstone, this episode is your new favorite post-read companion—balancing serious analysis, wild theories, and total fangirling, with enough clarity and context that even if you missed the book, you’ll know who, what, and why everyone cares. The hosts' chemistry makes for a dynamic, engaging listen, with enough spicy quotes and laugh-out-loud exchanges to keep you thoroughly entertained and well-caught up.

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Next Week: Brimstone Theories for Book 3 — hosts will dive into their top predictions and hopes for the series conclusion. Be there!

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Transcript

[Kinsey]

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[Hannah]

Oh hey.

[Sois Saldana]

Welcome to gift wrapping.

[Carly]

Whoa.

[Sois Saldana]

Soy saldana.

[T-Mobile Rep]

Hey, can you wrap these please?

[Kinsey]

Wow.

[Sois Saldana]

IPhone 17s. You splurged.

[T-Mobile Rep]

At T Mobile. You can get four iPhone 17s on them. The new center Stage front camera is amazing for group selfies. The perfect gift for everyone.

[Sois Saldana]

I'm the worst. I only got my mom a robe.

[T-Mobile Rep]

Well, it's better than socks.

[Sois Saldana]

So I have to trade in my old phone, right?

[T-Mobile Rep]

No AT T Mobile. There's no trade ins needed when you switch. Keep your old phone or give it as a gift.

[Sois Saldana]

Incredible.

[T-Mobile Rep]

In fact, wrap up my old phone too for my Aunt Rosa.

[Kinsey]

Forget that.

[T-Mobile Rep]

Aunt Liz will be jealous.

[Sois Saldana]

Sounds like my family drama.

[Hannah]

Oh, I got it.

[T-Mobile Rep]

I'll give it to my abuela. I'll take reindeer paper with.

[Carly]

Hey, where are you going?

[Sois Saldana]

To T Mobile. The holidays are better. AT T Mobile get four iPhone 17s on us. No trade in needed when you switch plus four lines for just 25 bucks a line. And now T mo T mobile is available in US cellular stores with 24 monthly bill credits and four eligible board ins on essentials for well qualified customers bought our pay plus taxes fees and $35 device connection charge credits and imbalance due if you pay off earlier. Cancel contact US Finance Agreement 256GB$830 required. Visit t mobile.com.

[Hannah]

Dearest Fantasy Readers, welcome to the Dear Fantasy Reader Podcast where we travel through the pages of our favorite Romantasy novels. I'm Hannah.

[Kinsey]

I'm Kinsey.

[Carly]

And I'm Carly.

[Hannah]

Join us as we enter the world of the Fae and Alchemy series now recovering from the highly anticipated release of Brimstone. Today we'll be sharing our initial thoughts and reactions for Brimstone, discussing our favorite characters, scenes and quotes.

[Carly]

With that content warning and spoiler alert, this episode is full of fate and alchemy spoilers. So if you haven't finished Brimstone in its entirety yet, go do that first and we will be here waiting for you when you are done.

[Kinsey]

Also, due to the nature of this book, this podcast is rated R in content and language. If you'd like to watch this episode ad free and full video or audio only if you prefer, it's available now on Patreon and we've dropped that link down in the show Notes for you as well.

[Hannah]

Now time to grab your relics and prepare to dive into the Quicksilver or Brimstone. Sanity is not guaranteed. It is also worth mentioning that we have not read any Brimstone bonus chapters, so this will not include spoilers for those.

[Kinsey]

Yes, I've read like half of the Carian one.

[Hannah]

Okay, keep the spoilers to yourself, Kenzie.

[Kinsey]

I will, I will.

[Hannah]

Starting off with our overall thoughts on Brimstone, what did we like and what heated our Forge?

[Carly]

My overall feeling on Brimstone was I personally loved it. I loved that we got so much Kingfisher point of view. I loved the pacing. I loved that we just jumped in right from where we left off. There wasn't some big time jump. I was worried about there being a time jump. But I had so much fun reading this book. It was just a good time. I was just along for the ride and enjoyed every second of it.

[Kinsey]

Totally agree. I really enjoyed it. I think I enjoyed it more than Quicksilver because the first time I read Quicksilver I was like, oh, it's like a four star for Vibes. And I really appreciated it on my reread. But with Brimstone, I was like, this is a five star off Vibes. I was actually laughing out loud multiple times. I thought this book was so funny and I thought the romance was well done. There was great character development. I really enjoyed the increased world building. Yeah, I just really enjoyed it. But I will say that with the pacing and how it did jump in right from the beginning, I started off feeling such an immense amount of doom. Just for record, I hate zombie movies and things like that. And to me, the rotation felt like a zombie esque type plotline.

[Carly]

Did love that.

[Kinsey]

And I already know if there's ever a zombie apocalypse. I'm like, just take me out. I'm not gonna even stress about it. I don't wanna be here. I'm not dealing with that anxiety. So at the beginning with the rat, I was like, they're doomed. Like eight of them. Eight of them took them out. That's crazy. And so I was just not feeling very good. And I was really concerned at the beginning about Taladeus and Saris having this maker bond. It was giving me the ick and I was like, please do not set us up for a love triangle. I will accept all I choose, but I will not accept a love triangle. So at the beginning I was really, really nervous, but I was blown away by the ending and to me that makes up for everything.

[Hannah]

I felt like this Book was a really good time. I had a good time with it. I passenger princessed it, which got very confusing at times where I was like, I've already forgotten who this is. But I really loved that it picked up so fast paced because I have been, as you guys know, but our listeners don't really in the biggest. I would say I've just never experienced a reading slump before if this is what this feels like, because I just have been in a huge one and so I needed it to pick up fast and it delivered. There were some times where I feel like I fell off a little bit on that pace, but got hooked right back in by something else that was happening. I feel like so much did keep happening. Loved the romance. You guys know I love a devotional mmc. And that was every single time I was in Kingfisher's head, I was getting reminded of how devotional he is. That's my favorite thing ever. I loved moments with Onyx and Karion. Every time they were on the page I was like, oh, I could keep them both on the page at all times and this would be a million stars book for me.

[Kinsey]

Yes.

[Hannah]

So cannot wait for the Carrion book. And I really liked a lot of the twists. I am not a vampire unless they sparkle girly. But I didn't feel like it went super deep into vampire gory stuff as much as I thought it might. And so that was really nice for me. But yeah, ditto on the zombie stuff. Take me out.

[Kinsey]

It was stressful. But yeah, the Kingfisher point of views were everything.

[Hannah]

Oh. Oh yeah. Also the audiobooks, to be clear, I listened. I read the whole book via audio and there is just. I've never read a book via audio that was this good for Quicksilver and Brimstone because the narrators are just so incredible and their delivery of everything is just like I could listen to you guys talk forever, which is really nice.

[Kinsey]

It almost felt like a graphic audio without it being an official graphic audio production. And for me personally, I don't prefer to audio a fantasy book the first time I'm reading it. I usually save that for a reread, but because I knew how good the Quicksilver audio was, I did an immersive read. So I had my Kindle in front of me. I was actually following along on the page. I set the audio to sync with my reading speed and it was phenomenal. Highly recommend doing an immersive read if you guys have not already.

[Carly]

Yeah, I did a mix. There were times when I was audiobooking only times when I was immersive reading and times when I was just reading my ebook. It was definitely a mix of all three, depending on what the situation called for, depending on whether or not my husband was asleep. And I didn't want him to have to listen to the audiobook. But, yeah, it was a good time. The audiobook is just. It is so, so, so, so good.

[Hannah]

I love it so much. No, they were performing. They weren't just, like, reading. They were like full out performing emotions. And just. Oh.

[Kinsey]

No matter how you felt about Brimstone, the audio production is five stars.

[Carly]

Yeah. Yes.

[Hannah]

Audio is. I would even. I would argue more. Yes.

[Carly]

How did Brimstone compare to Quicksilver? Like, for you guys? Like, did it meet your expectations?

[Kinsey]

Yeah, for me, I'd say it defied simply because of that ending. I'm so stoked with where the story is about to go. As you guys know, we love dragons, and so we're really excited. We talked about it a lot in our prep season building up. We're like, there's no way that Callie is giving us so much lore in the bonus chapters and talking about dragons without them actually coming back. So I'm really excited to see where it goes. But yeah, for me personally, I would say it defied. I was super hyped for it. I was also into reading Slump Hannah before the book came out, but I think it was because the only thing I wanted to read was Brimstone. So for three weeks before this book came out, I did not finish a single book, which is crazy. But when I finally got it, because I was so hyped for it, I ended up really enjoying it. I was laughing. The ending was crazy. I'm still thinking about it. So for me, I like it more than Quicksilver, and I thought it met expectations.

[Hannah]

So for those who didn't listen to our prep season of this, you would know it if you did. But just in case, my first read of Quicksilver, I thought it was a good time, but it wasn't, like, mind blowing to me. But then my reread, I had such an appreciation for it because I think I understood Kingfisher's perspective a lot more. I really think that's the key difference between it. So I would say that Brimstone kind of fell right in between those two things. For me, I really appreciated it. All the things that I just said that I really loved about it, but it's just not my style of my vibe. Typically it has a darker aesthetic, but I love that it ups the stakes and the scope. I love that we're funneling more open into gods and dragons and we have all sorts of creatures. But okay, yeah, she was going up into being queen and now they're going up into this bigger arena of sorts with the next book. And I really appreciate that. So I'm super excited for book three after that. Yeah.

[Carly]

Yeah.

[Hannah]

What about you, Harley?

[Carly]

Yeah, for me, I really liked it. I say I like it a little bit more than Quicksilver. I think the pacing was just a little bit tighter for Brimstone than it was for Quicksilver. I felt like we had a little bit more mix of action kind of sprinkled throughout the book where with Quicksilver, it kind of felt like a lot of the action was just kind of all near the end of the book. So I like that it was kind of sprinkled throughout instead of feeling like it was kind of all at once. And the fact that there's just so much Kingfisher pov. Like, I understood why she couldn't do it in the first book, but it just really upped the experience of being in his head. He's such an interesting character. So I liked it a little more than Quicksilver. It definitely exceeded my expectations. I always get nervous for a book too. In a three book series, the middle can get a little muddled. But I had so much fun reading it. So I. I didn't have that experience of being like, kind of like feeling like there was excessive world building going on in the middle of the book or things like that. Like, I didn't have any parts where I was just like, this is just dragging. So for me, I felt like it exceeded expectations, especially for middle book.

[Kinsey]

Yeah. What you said about the pacing and how the action, most of it tended to be towards the end. For Quicksilver, I'd say that's even the same for the Spice. I mean, like, we got Spice by chapter seven and so I felt like it was like it was spaced out pretty well throughout the book.

[Hannah]

It's so funny you say that because I feel like I remember my first reaction to Quicksilver being really jarred by how quick they got spicy.

[Kinsey]

They were horny for each other. But.

[Hannah]

Oh, yeah, But I don't know. I remember texting Carly and she was like, yeah, I kind of knew that you were gonna be not a fan of that because you're more of a slow Burn girl. And I was like, yeah, but I like it. I do. Really. It fits really well with them. And so I Can buy into it a lot more easier than I can other things. But it's so funny, Carly, that you say that about a book too, because I find that I'm typ a book two girl because we're past the world building foundational points, so now we can get into the action. But I also do have to agree that sometimes that can get very muddled. Yeah, I did feel like that started to happen a couple times for me for this book. But overarchingly how fast paced she was able to keep it overall balanced that for me.

[Carly]

Yeah.

[Kinsey]

And we also have the conflict that will continue on in the third book because that with the rot, it's not resolved. But we'll talk about the rot later. Anyways, much like Onyx, we've been dying to talk about our favorite moments in quotes. Hannah is personally offended because on FaceTime she said that she would need a warning if Onyx died. And I was like, you'll be fine.

[Hannah]

I tell you, I was like, my body was angry. So yes, for laughs, I FaceTime with Kinsey the other day and I told her that if Onyx died, I was dnfing. Like, I just can't. And that's just the case with most books. Like, I can't do. I can't. I'm too attached. And so I was like, I actually want you to tell me right now if that happens because I'm not reading the rest of the book if that happens. Like, I don't want to experience that. And I saw her look over to her friend and she like, had this look on her and she was like, you'll be fine. I think you'll be fine.

[Kinsey]

Yeah. And my friend was like, just keep reading.

[Hannah]

Just keep reading. Yeah, I didn't even hear that part. And so when I got to that last night, I typed out a message and I deleted it. I did not send it. I was so like, how dare. Not necessarily toward you, but just like, in general of like offended that this would happen. Which I have feelings we'll talk about later about like specifically it. But I was so distraught that one you wouldn't tell me that that happened and let. Because I was like, oh, she just wanted me to read the book.

[Kinsey]

I told you that he'd be fine.

[Carly]

And then.

[Hannah]

And then. But I didn't even cry. I was just angry. And then I messaged and you were like, I told you to keep reading. And I was like, okay. I kind of had a feeling that, like, the only other option is that somehow they bring them back and I didn't, like, have great feelings about that, but we can get into that a little bit longer later. But, like, yeah, I had an emotional experience with that.

[Carly]

Real roller coaster.

[Kinsey]

Yeah, it was a roller coaster because we started off with Onyx nearly dying at the beginning of the book when he was running away from feeders. And then we got his.

[Hannah]

And then I was like, oh, no. Like, this makes sense. This fits really well. I wasn't worried then.

[Kinsey]

Yeah, my reaction was I wasn't pissed. I was sobbing, as per my brand, because all I ever do is cry about books. And I was the first one of us to read it, so I didn't have anyone telling me, it'll be fine. Just keep reading. And I have a dog. And this specific quote where Kingfisher is talking about how animals are too pure for life and that sometimes the soul will come back to help us in our time of need. I was just like. I was losing my shit. I did record my reactions while reading Brimstone, and the entire time I'm just, like, crying and I'm trying to angle myself away from my friend because we were buddy reading together, and I was ahead of her in the book. And I was like, she can't know that I'm so distraught right now because she's gonna freak out. But I was very distraught, and I didn't want to spoil it for you completely because I feel like you deserve to have those reactions.

[Hannah]

I understand and totally respect why you said it the way you did, and I'm glad that you said, I think you'll be fine, because that was in the back of my head of, like, there's still a chance that she knows something happened. So I went into that. I didn't want the emotional experience of the heartbreak, though, because, like, I also have fur babies. And, like, I just can't. I just can't do. I've literally text Carly about an unknown, unnamed horse dying.

[Kinsey]

Yeah.

[Hannah]

Before to be like, can you tell me if this happens? Because I have to skip. Like, yeah, I don't play about. Which makes me absolutely terrified for Empyrean. But that is not the season we are on. We can move on from this. So what was your question?

[Kinsey]

Well, I think you've answered it. Just your reaction to Onyx nearly dying.

[Hannah]

Oh, that. Oh, we're rarity there. Okay. So in addition to that, though, I have to say I don't love it when animal deaths are used as the emotional pinch point or something. Whatever you want to call it, like a plot twist or something like that. Something just for the sake of making people emotional. But if you're going to do it, I feel personally it's a better experience for me if it's then finally seen through.

[Kinsey]

Yeah. No, I agree.

[Hannah]

If it's just reversed, it's like, what was the point of me being so emotionally traumatized? I don't love that. Yeah. But keep that in mind with the fact that I just gave you context to how I was already feeling about that scene. And then to have it. I'm glad that it was reversed because I just adore Onyx, but I just don't love that as a device, I suppose.

[Carly]

I had talked to Kinsey on Monday night, so my. For listeners who don't know, I have back issues. So Monday night I was mainly on the couch. And so I was reading that first chapter with Onyx. And it was one of those chapters I normally would have read. Pacing. Because I was stressed for him and I didn't actually think he was gonna die. But it still felt so stressful reading that first chapter that I wanted to pace. I couldn't. I was laying down the whole time. But it felt that way, even though I was like, I think it's gonna be fine. But it still felt so stressful reading that first chapter because he's like running and he's trying to get to Saris, and I'm just like, this poor baby. And then we get the fake out. Death. And I didn't cry because Elizabeth. I've watched so many Kelly Hart interviews at this point, I'm not sure which ones I heard this in, but one she had talked about how, like, Onyx is gonna be super important and that Onyx was based on her dog.

[Hannah]

I had heard that she was based on her dog too. Yeah.

[Carly]

And so I was like, if Onyx is super important, he can't just die. Right? Like, he hasn't done anything like. Anything like, super important yet. Dana, do you need to say something? I just.

[Hannah]

I spent the whole book thinking that Yalls theory about him being a familiar or like turning into a person was true. So, like, the whole book, I thought that that's what was going to be the twist.

[Kinsey]

Oh, familiars don't. I don't think familiars are shapeshifters.

[Carly]

No.

[Hannah]

That's why I said or that they turn in because in my head I was. I was expecting him to totally.

[Kinsey]

I highlighted this. But in the blood realm, like, failing me Sansaroth Amontreith. Totally mispronouncing these. But anyways, they do sell familiars and I highlighted this. So I was like, okay, so familiars do exist in this world. And I would bet anything that Carly is correct and Onyx is a familiar. But also, even just the quote that Kingfisher said, where there's a soul that will choose to help us when we need them. I'm like, yeah, that fits the vibe.

[Carly]

Yeah. I just don't feel like if she. Because, like, she has to, like, oh, he's gonna be, like, really important. And I'm like, well, if he's really. He hasn't, like, fulfilled. I mean, other than just being emotionally devastating, he hasn't, like, fulfilled, like, that purpose yet. And so when it happened at the end, I was like, I don't think this is real. And I do think it's gonna be important, though, to the story, the fact that it was faked out.

[Hannah]

I think I need it to be.

[Carly]

Yeah. Because, you know, she gave up that ability to, like, undo things by saving him.

[Kinsey]

That drove me nuts. I was like, that's such a useful gift and she should have saved. I literally, in my reaction, I said, girly pop, you should unbind Kingfisher's friends from Bellacon first and then help your fox.

[Carly]

I don't think there was time for that, though, because, like, the issue was the soul was gonna, like, leave. Yeah. But I do think it's gonna be really important because I think that there's gonna be a moment where giving up that ability was worth it, because he's going to have such an impact on the story.

[Hannah]

This. I wondered after. Cause I agree, I need it to be more meaningful for the plot later to really feel settled with this being a scene. I wonder if he's gonna have some sort of magical ability. I don't know how that would fit with the magic system, but there's something that makes him more significant than, like, yeah, he did save her, but I need it to be. Not him jumping and saving her in front of someone. I need it to be.

[Carly]

Yeah.

[Hannah]

Bigger.

[Carly]

I think it's going to be important for a couple of reasons, I think. One, we needed to remove that ability for her to undo that name oath thing, because I think that's going to be an important conflict within the next book that she needed to remain and that she couldn't just take that away from all the other characters for this overall plot, so she needed a way to remove that. And two, I think it's going to be worth it not having the ability to do that because of some other part. Onyx will play in the book. Like, I mean, I think it's already worth it because she loves him. But I think that there's gonna be a bigger reason of his part to play in this, that she's gonna look back on this moment and realize, oh, giving all of that up and all of that stuff. It was important because now we're here. All of these really were these dominoes in a line, and we had to get here.

[Kinsey]

Yeah. I also am curious because she didn't just get rid of the oath or the unbreak bond relic, whatever you want to call it, from the Hazrax, but she searched inside of herself for a specific drop of power. And I'm like, what was that? And she's like, I don't know the words for this spell or whatever, but my intentions should be good enough. And I'm like, girly pop, what are you doing? And for a moment, until it was confirmed, the next chapter or so, that she was still a half Fae, half vampire, I thought that maybe she reverted herself back to a human and gave him her immortality or something. I was really concerned. I had no clue what was going on. I was like, man, what are you doing?

[Hannah]

For whatever reason I thought, and this shows you how much I was passenger Princessing, but I thought she was reaching through their bond to take some of Kingfisher's power. That's where I thought that that was headed. And then I was like, oh, okay. No, I was jumping way ahead there. That's not what's happening.

[Kinsey]

Well, his healing magic was already depleted. I guess the small magics get a finite amount.

[Hannah]

Like, she was just burning out in general. So I was like, oh, is she using him as, like, a reserve for, like, her magic? But that's not what ended up happening. I will say, though, I don't feel the same way about the first scene with Onyx being chased. I actually loved that scene because. And I did not. I was not concerned, which is helpful. But I loved that it showed growth for Kingfisher to then, like, have this, like, start establishing what is essentially their child together. Like, love for Onyx. That was a great way for me to start off the book.

[Kinsey]

Personally, I was not stressed for him at all. I knew that Onyx would be fine. It was the prologue. But going off the Kingfisher part, he is a cinnamon roll at heart. And one of my favorite scenes with Kingfisher and Onyx was when he used his magic to. To summon trout for Onyx and then he gifted him the pine cone. And he's like, thank you, little one. Stop you can't tell me that man does not love that box.

[Hannah]

No, he totally does. And him advocating for her to use the magic to save Onyx, even knowing what she was giving up for that, and he was like, no, do it. I thought that he was gonna be the character. Role for him would be the voice of reason in this and really make her contemplate the choice and. But I love that he was just right there with her on, like, yes, this is the right thing to do. It's crazy in the circumstances that they're in, but it would be me. I would do that, and I would want a partner that would support that. I also love picturing him carrying the little fox in his arms around like angels.

[Carly]

So cute.

[Kinsey]

Oh, my God.

[Carly]

I need character art of him carrying Onyx.

[Hannah]

Yes.

[Kinsey]

Yes. If you are an artist and you are listening to our podcast, please, it's.

[Hannah]

Going to be everywhere. No, I don't even think we have to ask.

[Kinsey]

Please draw Kingfisher holding Onyx.

[Hannah]

That's what I need. Like, the special edition art to be him holding. Yeah, like the cute. Again, non zombie girls here. This even gives me the ick to say, what were your thoughts on the rot being the central problem our main characters faced in Brimstone in addition to.

[Carly]

The ick.

[Kinsey]

Doom, as I've said. But I do like that. Even though I guess you could argue we don't have a big bad. I mean, I have thoughts on that. It's nice that it's not something that can just be resolved right away and we know what the cure is. I'm curious to see how they do that, but I do think that Madra is causing it because all of the zombie rot people have come from Zilvarin.

[Carly]

Hmm.

[Kinsey]

We'll see. It stresses me out, and I just could not live in a world like that.

[Hannah]

I just don't like the visual in my head. I don't make it look like that. Like, I have to do some mental gymnastics to, like, rewrite the scene in my head so it's not, like, yucky, you know?

[Carly]

Yeah, Yeah. I actually find it super interesting. Like, I get that, like, I'm not also a zombie person really, either, but I find it really interesting as, like, a bad guy because they're fighting these things that don't seem to even realize what they're doing. So they're having to, like, because it, like, also will infect their own soldiers and they'll have to, like, turn on their own people and, like, take them out to, like, stop it from spreading more and it just feels kind of like this thing that's like, hard to grab onto, to even deal with. And I like that problem. Like, the problem of figuring it out. And I like the feeling of like, this world isn't being run right and now you're gonna have some problems to deal with. But I'm with you, Kenzie. I definitely think it's coming from Zavaren. Because when I was reading it, I just kept thinking about the fact that, like, how Serris kept talking about how people in her district were getting sick from dirty water. And I'm like, maybe that was part of this experiment to figure out how to make this or something. Or made it on accident. And now she's like, getting rid of these people to another round. I would like to be.

[Hannah]

To like, have a bigger role. I mean, it definitely does in setting the scene and even Cerys character herself. But I like the idea of that tying into almost being foreshadowing for bigger plot twist.

[Kinsey]

Yeah, it's just interesting. Cause they obviously know that the Dianthus heir is back. So I wonder if Belacan's like, you know what? Screw this world. I'm outta here. Peace. And maybe they had a deal to work through it together. Granted, he was only on on page for like a scene, but he didn't seem too concerned about the rot. He. Yeah, I don't know. But I don't know why she would want Bellican to join her in Zilvarin if that's the case. If it's just to destroy Evalia and then leave, but it's also the rot that's destroying every realm. It was on the Quicksilver Tree of Life.

[Carly]

Yeah. I'm not sure if Belakan's just not worried about it because he thinks he is going to be immune to it, or thinks he has a solution to it, or thinks he can control it, or if it's just that he's just so egotistical to think that, like, this won't touch him. Because I think there could be some interesting analogies there of thinking like, this giant problem that I've helped create isn't gonna cause me problems.

[Kinsey]

The leopard ate my face analogy.

[Carly]

Yeah. But I do think it's like an interesting problem that you can draw a lot of analogies from. And I'll leave it at that.

[Hannah]

Yep.

[Carly]

I am so curious. How was everyone reacting to Archer nearly dying to save Seras, but then finding out he was the key to finding a solution to the rot? Because I don't know about you guys I did not have Archer being the key solution on my Brimstone Bingo card.

[Hannah]

High interest debt is one of the toughest opponents you'll face unless you power up with a Sofi personal loan.

[Carly]

A Sofi personal loan could repackage your.

[Hannah]

Bad debt into one low fixed rate monthly payment. It's even got super speed since you could get the funds as soon as the same day you sign. Visit sofi.compower to learn more. That's S-O-F I.com P-O-W-E r loans originated by Sofi bank and a member FDIC. Terms and conditions apply. NMLS 696891 I loved that he tied in the name, the title, Brimstone. I mean, we come to find out it develops more than that. But when. Okay, taking a step back for just a second, that's the emotional part for this book for me was the Archer scene. I was heartbroken. I thought for sure he was done. After the descriptions and stuff, I was like, no.

[Kinsey]

I started tearing up.

[Hannah]

I do think, unfortunately, somebody should have died. That was a little bit more heartfelt, this book. But I am glad that Archer and Onyx are safe. So there's two sides to that. What about this specifically? I was like, oh, wait, Brimstone. I just loved that it was the title. And then I was like, wait, this is a thing in the world? That's. I like how it was very similar to the concept of the quicksilver being a physical, liquid, ish thing. And so I love that he was the catalyst, I suppose, for bringing that into the world. And then the fire sprites in general. And I love that they don't have sex, that they reproduce from drops of each other or whatever. Which actually sounds really weird when I word it like that. But I think it's very communal and very cute.

[Carly]

And I think it's interesting because I feel like that they're made of brimstone in this thing. That's like a finite resource that you have to be careful with. And they have to work as a community. And we find out that they're dying.

[Hannah]

Out and then even to save each other. Like, they all came together to give him like a dropped gift.

[Carly]

Yeah. And they have to work together to save each other.

[Kinsey]

He grew three inches when he said that.

[Hannah]

I bust out laughing. I was like. He would say some shit like that. That's so cute.

[Carly]

That's so adorable. But yeah, I was just so surprised by that. I was like. I didn't like. I figured Brimstone was going to Be a part of it based on the title. But I was, like, not expecting Archer to be the key to figuring for them to figure it out.

[Kinsey]

Yeah, I was fully expecting dragons to come back simply because of Brimstone being what their fire is in the bonus chapters. So I was waiting for it, but I wasn't anticipating the fire sprites. And I was ready to end it all for Archer. I was posting live reactions on threads, marking things with spoiler warnings and hiding the text so people chose to click on it. But I literally, paragraphs before he was taken by the rot said, protect Archer at all costs. He's so cute. I love him. And then, like, two paragraphs later, he was taken, and I just immediately started tearing up. I was like, oh, my God, not Archer. He's such a sweetie pie. I love him so much. No, please, no, no, no. And then he was the cure. And I was like, yeah, awesome. I love this because I just think he's playing such a key role for Kingfisher. He's the connection to Kingfisher's parents, and he knows all of this history. For a moment, I started wondering, are we gonna get Kingfisher's true name from Archer? Like, what's going on here? But then when that bitch Danya is like, you know what? Mass genocide on all fire sprites? I was like, bitch, get the fuck out.

[Hannah]

I, like, have an appreciation for her character, but that point, I was like, I'm about to jump through this book. Nah.

[Kinsey]

I was like, girl, what is your problem? Don't do that to my guy.

[Hannah]

Archer, you're saying, like, protect him at all costs. Like, to paragraphs before this or whatnot. That was effective of Callie. I'm gonna make you guys double down on your love for him and then tear your arts out two seconds later.

[Kinsey]

I was glad he was okay.

[Carly]

She did that. Oh, God, he just. He was so scared, and, like, he's, like, calling for help. But then the second Serris was in danger, he's like, my lady. No. And he, like, jumps in front of her. I was like, oh, God. Even though he was so scared, I was like, oh, my little baby.

[Kinsey]

And he was like, le. And they were, like, getting burns, and they were like, no, we're gonna do this for you.

[Hannah]

And I love that they, like, had to have that physical sacrifice, too. Like, she kept the scars. Like, the injuries, they didn't just go away, weren't able to be healed very quickly. Like, I loved that it was. It made the sacrifice and, like, the stakes bigger for their sacrifice. I say it like they had to kill someone, but I mean, like, they. They hurt themselves because they cared this much about him. And I loved that. I love our little, like, complex found family.

[Carly]

I know. It's a good found family. Yeah.

[Hannah]

Yeah.

[Kinsey]

What was your reaction to Taladeus being a good guy and essentially wiping out all of the high vampires?

[Hannah]

I adore Talidaeus. I'm like, you can get it. I love him. I was not expecting that. But, yeah, he's my favorite character. He's like this. What do you call it when you watch a TV show? And it's like the rising star that comes out of that show, that's him for Brimstone. For me, I'm like, yeah, we knew Onyx and Karion were phenomenal, and, like, they'll always be the it stars. But Taladeus, I liked him, so I even called Carly and I'm like, wait, why are you even mad at him right now? What is he doing wrong? I don't see what he's doing wrong. She had to explain to me why Kingfisher was mad at him. And I got that serious, was put in danger. I just somewhere missed why it put her in danger. Like, I didn't realize that that broke their thing, but I was like, what is so wrong by this? I feel like this is great. Like, this is kind of hot, you know?

[Kinsey]

It was one of my favorite scenes. I was not expecting it at all, and I was so for it. It was really satisfying. I did not like most of the blood court. They can suck it. I'm trying to not think about how Owl and a couple other people survived, but it was a really good scene. And I'm glad that even though Talladeus tried to sacrifice himself, he's still okay.

[Hannah]

Mm.

[Carly]

I thought Tallades was a really interesting character. He did feel very untrustworthy pretty early on. Yeah. But that being said, it just kind of felt like a red herring where I was like, there's something. There's gonna be some sort of bigger twist. Betrayal at some point. And we didn't really get that in this book. So I'm assuming in next book we're gonna get some crazy betrayal. And not necessarily from Taladeus at this point, but I will say, as I was reading this book, I was getting a little concerned that we were leaving too many problems for book three to solve, because I do get concerned when authors kind of drag out too many plot through lines till the very end. And then the third book is just a checklist of solving problems to tie everything up. And I wasn't expecting it to be solved in this book, but I was so glad it was. Because I'm like, these people got enough to deal with in book three. They don't need this too. And that scene was so good. It came out of nowhere for me. I wasn't expecting it. He was acting suspicious in that scene, but I wasn't expecting it to be all of the vampires die. I was like, what is happening here? It was a great scene. I really enjoyed it.

[Kinsey]

I literally. I put the book on hold right before the ball started. I read the book in two days. So I decided to go to bed right before the ball. Cause I was just expecting shit to hit the fan. And I was so ready for him to betray Kingfisher and Serris. I was really, really not trusting him.

[Hannah]

I was prepared also for there to be a betrayal here. So when it wasn't that, I was like, wait, like, why are they obsessed?

[Kinsey]

I mean, it was still a betrayal. Just in our favor.

[Hannah]

Yes. I wasn't expecting it to be in our favor.

[Kinsey]

Yeah.

[Hannah]

Yeah.

[Kinsey]

It was very satisfying.

[Hannah]

Yeah.

[Carly]

Yeah, it was.

[Hannah]

I agree. Yeah, he is.

[Carly]

Okay. Okay.

[Hannah]

All right.

[Carly]

All right.

[Hannah]

What did you think of the moment when Kingfisher's true name, Kydan Greystar Finvarra, was finally revealed?

[Kinsey]

Oh, my God. It was my favorite part of the entire. The quote just slapped so hard. Kingfisher of the Ajin Gate, I hereby call you by your true name. I declare all oaths you have sworn null and void. Rise Kayden, Graystarf and Vara, in honor of the name you were given at birth. Rise up and fight.

[Hannah]

I got chilled again, dude. My whole body. I stopped what I was doing. Cause I was like, I have to be moving when I listen to an audiobook. Like, I have to be doing something. And I stopped. And full body chills. I was like, this is so powerful. It felt like. And then her also. She got both of the swords. Yes. And that was like, oh, this is like an Avengers endgame kind of moment where Cap gets Thor.

[Kinsey]

Thor's hammer.

[Hannah]

Let's fucking go. No, really. Because, like, those two moments. Oh.

[Kinsey]

Cause you're so concerned for Kingfisher, and.

[Hannah]

You'Re like, is this the end?

[Kinsey]

And then she's like, he's not the only one that can touch iron. Which now we know why he can touch iron. But, like, she's, like, grabbing his sword. She's stabbing bellacon. The fight was super epic. We get the reveal of his true name. I was waiting the whole goddamn book for anyone's name to be revealed, but I was really praying it would be Kingfisher's. And, yeah, this is apparently an unpopular opinion based off of what I've seen on threads. But I love Kayden. I love his new name.

[Hannah]

I can't connect to it. I'm like, no, that's Kingfisher. What are you talking about? Like, that's Kingfisher.

[Kinsey]

I like it so much more than Kingfisher. I really struggled with liking Kingfisher's name in the first one.

[Hannah]

I struggled too. I don't like the name Kingfisher, but I'm like, that is who he is. It fits him. I have established this image in my head. So when it switched to her calling him Kai and Kydan, I was like, who are we talking about? And they're like, oh, yeah, we just got that reveal, but why are we jumping to calling him this all of a sudden? This is confusing and I don't, like, love it. I don't. I would rather her just keep calling it Fisher.

[Kinsey]

I love that they made the switch right away, though, because I think if they waited to do the switch, then it would have been harder.

[Hannah]

It had to either be immediate or not at all.

[Kinsey]

Yeah, I loved it, though.

[Carly]

I really like both names, so I was really good with either. I'm surprised so many people don't, like. Maybe they're just attached to Kingfisher, so they don't like the name.

[Hannah]

It's gotta be that I'm looping myself in with all these people. I don't know what has been said, so maybe I shouldn't do that. But, like, personally, I just. It's a good name. I don't love Greystar. It's just hard to then translate. We're two books deep, Literally the end of this book. And I just fell in love with the concept of him, and I think it fits him so well, and I think calling him Fisher just works. So it's really hard for me personally to switch that.

[Carly]

Yeah, I get you. I get attached to things, so then it's hard for me to switch. But I do like both names. I think both names fit him. Even if you don't like the name, I feel like there's like a certain gravitas to Kingfisher that kind of fits. It fits his aura. Yeah. Like his vibe.

[Hannah]

Whereas I don't know if Kaidan does. I feel like Kaidan's a little bit. I like how unique it is and it rolls off the tongue really well, but I feel like it's a little softer than the aura that Kingfisher gives, and maybe that's intentional, and I guess that does fit with the direction he's going to. At least it's our experience with him in his head. But I just. It just doesn't carry the same weight of, like, broody, badass, sophisticated. R is not the word for it.

[Carly]

But, yeah, I get what you're saying, though.

[Kinsey]

Yeah. I am glad they both start with a K, though. I feel like they're not too far away from each other.

[Hannah]

Yeah, but we're calling him Fisher all the time. So, like, this is a shout out.

[Kinsey]

I was calling him Kingfisher. I wasn't ever really referring to him as just Fisher. The characters were. But. But I like his new name. And I think. Don't quote me on this, but Callie Hart had apparently somewhere in some interview, I don't know where, but she said that she has been thinking of the last 10% of this book for years. And this was the scene that she's been waiting to write. And to me, that makes sense. So in her mind, this whole time, his name has been Kayden. She's just been waiting for everyone else to know, too.

[Hannah]

Maybe I imagine, when she was conceptualizing it. But at the same time, she could have at any point decided what his name was. I have. You could have placeholder names and be like, he's gonna reveal the name. But she gave herself two books to think of it, you know? But it would be interesting to hear that that's the case.

[Carly]

Yeah. But that scene was great, though.

[Hannah]

That scene felt bad. You can tell that she had thought about it for so long. The way that she so intentionally did the sequence of events and reveals and like.

[Kinsey]

Oh, I mean, yeah, just Serris going into their dreamscape to retrieve the paper that was missing from the book, to then teleporting over to the woods. Oh, my God. It was just all so good. It was the best scene.

[Carly]

It was really, really well done. It was such a good payoff, that scene. It did just kind of give you chills, like, the whole time.

[Hannah]

And we love those. Yeah, it's kind of a good payoff.

[Kinsey]

Obligatory fuck Belacan. Yeah, they should have dumped his head in a sack and dropped it into the bottom of a lake with a bunch of weights so that he couldn't control anybody. But that's just me.

[Hannah]

That's one solution.

[Kinsey]

I would have done that.

[Hannah]

Why has nobody tried that?

[Kinsey]

I don't know.

[Carly]

Maybe it won't work. Maybe it just goes back. Maybe.

[Hannah]

Be gross, though. God, that's so gross. Someone would be bound to. To find him and, like, take it anyway. I'm, like, answering my questions. Seriously, I'm like, yeah, that wouldn't work.

[Carly]

All right, well, we were right about Theories, but the biggest win of all was the dragons. How did you guys react to that reveal?

[Hannah]

We felt so many DMs on Instagram being like, you guys were right about the dragons. It felt good. Yeah, it felt so good we had that idea. I mean, it was an Easter egg, right? So it wasn't a stretch for us to be right about this, but it was. Before any of us had read the bonus chapters, we had our regular Theories episode, and we talked about how there were bound to be more dragons in this and that they would have to play a bigger role because you don't just, like, casually mention dragons unless you're going to commit to that for your readers, essentially. So, like, I was so, so excited. You guys saw my reaction, though. I literally filmed, like, the very, very, very end, and I was eating dinner and literally heard the last couple lines. And there's so much in those last, what, two lines of the entire book. And all I hear is Christopher Paolini being like, this has been an something, something audio production. And I was like. Like, I just. My brain was trying to understand because I wasn't reading physically with my eyes process so many reveals to the point where I had to watch Kinsey's reaction video before I realized he said our. I was like, dragons have God. And then I just didn't even think about the hour until I saw her as in her. That' her soul focused. And I'm like, yeah, we balance each other so well. Cause look at us, like, totally opposite aspects of that. But, oh, my God. Yeah, that was my reaction was just like, let's fucking go.

[Kinsey]

Yeah, Well, I mean, even before the last line, when they first go through to Daxis, they're greeted by the dragons. So it was just really good. And the whole book, I kept saying and saying, they really shouldn't have killed off all the dragons. They shouldn't have killed off the. Even before we found out that Archer was made of Brimstone and that Brimstone was secure, I just kept saying, oh, my God, they really shouldn't have.

[Hannah]

And considering that not everybody reads the bonus chapters. No, there's a lot of them. And they're not, like, it's not super straightforward where all these bonus chapters are. And so if I hadn't, like, just known specifically, I think I saw a reel of hers that said, like, you have to read the bonus chapters. Like, I'm so glad I did.

[Carly]

Yeah.

[Kinsey]

But, yeah, I was really satisfied. I was just. When they finally crossed into Daxis, they were greeted by the dragon. I was like, I knew it. It was waiting for it to happen.

[Hannah]

I love that that was his like, Om Nom Shakrai's mother. What? I don't know what you, like, parented. She just said like her heir, essentially like offspring. But it didn't mean direct. Like it could have been grandparent dragon. You know what I mean? Like, trying to get there. But yeah, I love that there was that connection because it also shows that, like, it's not like there's just a whole bunch of random dragons out there. There might be, but at the same time it's still this connected family or den or whatever they want to call this.

[Carly]

I'm just so glad we're going to get some dragons.

[Hannah]

Same.

[Kinsey]

How did you react, Carly? Were you super excited?

[Carly]

I was just so sure that there was.

[Hannah]

You weren't surprised dragons and it wasn't.

[Carly]

Like this big surprise. It was like, yes, let's go. It was more excitement to get to the dragons than it was excitement about.

[Hannah]

Being right about their being.

[Carly]

Because I was just like, there's no way. There's just so much lore drop about the dragons, especially in the bonus chapters, that I'm like, well, there's no way we're learning this much about a creature that's gone. There's just no way.

[Hannah]

I think that's why when you asked about the dragons, my instinct was to jump to the very end of it and not mention the dragon because the other part was expected and I was hoping that having the dragons would then lead to them being some direct involvement with. I don't think that bonds seem to be implied at all through this, but some sort of them, like whatever Kingfisher is implying there about, he came to claim a dragon. That's what I was hoping the payoff would be with having the dragons in the world. So that was the shock. Whereas it wasn't super shocking that there was just dragons. We knew that there were from the.

[Carly]

Yeah.

[Kinsey]

It was just waiting for them to make a reappearance.

[Carly]

Yeah.

[Hannah]

In like a significant way.

[Kinsey]

Yeah.

[Carly]

No, I'm excited because, like, I know these dragons are like, you know, they talk about them being a curse on land, which I find interesting because the brimstone seems to be the solution for the rot and they're calling them the curse and I'm like, I think the rot is the curse, but okay, yeah, but I like how mean these dragons are. Like, I. I like them being, like, really contentiously, potentially having to find a way to work together to, like, save the realm. But, yeah, I like how mean they are. I think it's gonna make it really, really interesting.

[Hannah]

I'm here for it.

[Kinsey]

And they can read their minds, so.

[Hannah]

That'S crazy to me. I'm like, that's like a whole can of worms.

[Carly]

Yeah.

[Kinsey]

That was some confirmation that we were curious about in the bonus chapter, because we were like, why is it speaking into their mind? But now we know. But anyways, Hannah, you sort of touched on this just a moment ago, but how did we all feel about the final twist of Kayden being half God?

[Hannah]

I love it.

[Carly]

Yeah.

[Kinsey]

It was so good, period.

[Hannah]

I just love it. That's what I mean by the scope opened up a lot more. And I really love that quote, unquote cliffhanger.

[Kinsey]

I was a lot less excited about the dragons than I was with the reveal of only half gods can wield shadows and our father. And I was just like, oh, my God. And I'm still reeling about it. I do think that's one of the best cliffhangers that I've read in a while. And it's not a cliffhanger where I'm super stressed or. Oh, no.

[Hannah]

Yeah. That's why I was like, quote unquote. Because I feel like I've had a negative connotation to cliffhangers.

[Kinsey]

No, like, this was just a good twist, and it's not necessarily one I was super expecting. So it was. I really enjoyed it.

[Hannah]

It's one of those that makes you go reread and pick up on the things that make a lot more sense now. I perused through TikTok last night, and I was shocked to find some people are considering that a theory. They're not convinced that he's a half God. And I think that this is where we get into, like, some people don't take. This is not a judgment statement. But the way that it was worded was, like, it implied it, but not directly. And I don't think that everybody, like, jumps to the idea that he's a half God. And I'm like, no, that was crystal clear to me. He wields the shadows, and you can't unless you're a God.

[Kinsey]

It was crystal fucking clear.

[Carly]

I don't consider it a theory, but I do see what people are saying.

[Hannah]

Because it's not directly, like, confirmed Kingfisher is a half God, which is fair, but it's the Context clue is.

[Kinsey]

But you have these.

[Hannah]

I just wanted to clarify that because our question was framed as like how'd you feel about this thing that we don't have confirmed.

[Kinsey]

You have these gods in front of Kingfisher with glowing red eyes like the.

[Hannah]

Dragon that he says our father in the dragon realm.

[Kinsey]

Our father, it's a half sibling. It's not his mom, the Oracle, it's not her children. And if he has the shadow magic.

[Carly]

It is interesting. Like I get what people are saying though I do understand, understand why people would say that because I can be kind of nitpicky at times about. Well it doesn't actually say that. What it says is this. And like you can assume this but maybe, maybe there's an additional shock.

[Hannah]

They just didn't consider that that would what that would mean for Kingfisher. So they were like, oh wait, I didn't even think about that.

[Carly]

I was expecting him to be something not just quite normal fae because he's never seemed like quite normal run of the mill fae because there's always been something different about him.

[Hannah]

He's always doing something I keep forgetting that he can do.

[Carly]

Yeah, well and he's always like, he's always been a threat to Bellakon. He's always been like had the interest of the gods like even as a child. So I'm like what's going on here? And like Zeras considers him like wanted to call him his champion, like kind of giving Hercules types vibes. But I don't know what I was like. I wasn't know that I was leading towards half God so much as I was something. But I kind of thought it was gonna be something we just hadn't seen yet.

[Kinsey]

I do think it's interesting that Serris is half Fae, half vampire and now we have Kingfisher who's half Fae, half God. And I don't know if this is a new development that's changed because Xerath said that in order for their fates to not be visible to them, the gods Sarris had to change. So maybe he changed because I'm just gonna say it in the bonus chapter, the fox, the boots, the dress. Kingfisher said in his mind that from his mother he got the Shadows and from his father he got the gift of illusion. That was totally flip flopped in this book. So I wonder.

[Hannah]

That could have been a continuity error.

[Kinsey]

It could have been a continuity error. It could have been.

[Carly]

It also seems like that the plot was very dependent on it though that it was being his dad. So it's like, I don't know.

[Kinsey]

I think it's very interesting that he is also half now. So I wonder, is this a new change? Is this something that he's always been a half God, or is it only so that now they can't view their future? I don't know, but I think it's really cool, and I like that they're both half.

[Hannah]

My understanding of that at the end of Quicksilver was that by her accepting the mating bond, Kingfisher then benefited in the way that the gods couldn't see them, the way that she would benefit from her being half.

[Kinsey]

I don't know if it was explicitly stated through the mating bond, but it's been a month or two since I've read Quicksilver, so I think it was the fact that she completely changed what she was.

[Hannah]

Well, right. It was that. And then after she changed, she accepted the mating bond with him, which then, like, applied the same rule of being hidden. Like, their fates being hidden because now they were mated.

[Kinsey]

Yeah, that makes sense. I love that he's a half God, and I'm excited to see what that means Same. And I'm like, finryn, where are you hiding? I got some things to say to you.

[Carly]

I know.

[Hannah]

I was totally expecting to get more context about him and have more involvement for his backstory for this, so I was shocked. But I guess I understand now why that would be the case. All right. Okay, switching gears a little bit. Carrion, who has obviously been a fan favorite. We. We are the fans since day one. And Kelly Hart absolutely delivered with Brimstone. What was your favorite Carrion moment? If you can name one. We don't have to be one. Just throw them all out.

[Kinsey]

I'll let someone else go first.

[Hannah]

Carly.

[Carly]

I had a couple. I love the moment where they have to go back to Zilvarin. And Carrion's, like, insisting that he has to be the one to go with him because he's, like, insinuating that Kingfisher might bring back the wrong person again. He says if that task left up to you again, you'll probably bring back some random. Hey, what was that guy called? He's like, you know that blonde guy who kissed you at Kala's that time? And Serris is just like, Carrion. Stop.

[Kinsey]

I love that everyone was teasing the newly mated couple. It was good.

[Carly]

Yeah.

[Kinsey]

The entire Kingfisher Carrion interaction in Zolvarin was gold when they first went through the Quicksilver pool. And Kingfisher has his shadows everywhere. And Karion's like, I can't see.

[Carly]

Where am I?

[Kinsey]

Ow something. And he's like, yeah, it was me. Shut the fuck up. That was hilarious. When they're in the scorpion den with this demon, he's Carrie and goes, hate to be a bother, but if you're not in a position to save me right now, then could you possibly kill me instead? This really sucks. That was hilarious. Even just him asking Kingfisher to give him a boost, and then he's just putting his ass in Kingfisher's face instead. They're all really, really funny. And I also like the sweeter moments in how we had a more serious Carrion and when his quote unquote grandmother had passed away. And then Kingfisher gave him a hug to comfort him. Oh, my God. So sweet.

[Hannah]

I love their relationship development. I think my favorite part was this is less about him and more about them together. But when they're meeting at, like, around the table and Carrion walks in and he's like, thinks that Kingfisher's gonna send him out. And he's like, no, I need you to sit down. And he was like, that whole interaction of him, even Kingfisher thinking his head. I know he expected me to send him out. He seems shocked. And that was so endearing to me. And I feel like Sylvarin set up this progression of their relationship, which is really, really nice. They contrast so well to where it's super entertaining, but then you're also getting. You're keeping that but developing a deeper friendship. They wouldn't call it that yet, but they are doing that. And I loved that.

[Kinsey]

I mean, it took that scene for Kingfisher to realize, oh, yeah, this is the future king of Evalia.

[Hannah]

Like, I have to start taking him seriously because, like, this is serious.

[Kinsey]

And if they don't give him the opportunity to grow, then they're all fucked. So I'm glad that they took him seriously. Other honorable mentions. Because I have a million Karion minding his business with Danya when they were.

[Hannah]

Like, I'm also minding my business. I really like that dynamic.

[Kinsey]

Yeah.

[Hannah]

I also love the idea of him with Taldeus. I was like, oh, my God. Except their interactions. Their interactions. They were like flirty, bantering back and forth and was like, I would eat up a whole book on this. Or three. Or three.

[Kinsey]

Taladeus is so sure that he won't turn for Carrion. I disagree.

[Hannah]

Yeah, doubt that. Doubt that.

[Kinsey]

Also, just towards the end, the interaction with the satyrs where they're all bowing to him. And Cirrus is thinking, oh, my God, he's gonna be fucking insufferable after this. And then Carrion says, my name is Karion. Nice to meet you all. I really like your horns.

[Carly]

Yeah.

[Hannah]

And then Fisher's like, yeah, People, like historians are gonna write this down. The first thing out of the future king's mouth is, I really like your horns. Oh, they are so good. It's so good. Like, we get a lot of serris with Carrion. She's kind of just over it, but hearing it through Kingfisher's perspective just enhances and refreshes the experience of Carrion. It was so good.

[Kinsey]

Okay, my final Carrion quote, and then I'll stop. He said, that's a whole lot of potential power. This is to saris. Do you think you'll be able to turn invisible at some point? If I could have access to magic, I would definitely opt for invisibility. And she says, I'd love to pretend I didn't know why you'd pick that carrion, but sadly, I know you too well.

[Hannah]

That one just gives me the creeps. I don't like that.

[Kinsey]

I thought it was funny. I mean, he doesn't have the power of invisibility, so you're fine.

[Hannah]

Yeah. But we all know what he would do with it.

[Carly]

Yeah.

[Kinsey]

No, he was so funny, though. I. Even though he's more serious, which I appreciate, I was still cackling at most of his scenes.

[Hannah]

I'm excited to see him keep that, but also step into being a more serious. How he navigates that. I'm excited.

[Carly]

Yeah. His character was so much fun in this book. I had so much fun reading him. I loved him in Quicksilver. I didn't think I could love him more, and then I did.

[Kinsey]

Yeah. Whether you're into unsolved Mysteries, solved mysteries, or creating your own mysteries, Amazon Music's got millions of podcast episodes waiting. Just download the Amazon Music app and start listening to your favorite podcasts ad free included with Prime.

[Carly]

Oh, hey.

[Sois Saldana]

Welcome to gift wrapping.

[Carly]

Whoa.

[Sois Saldana]

So is Saldana.

[T-Mobile Rep]

Hey, can you wrap these, please?

[Kinsey]

Wow.

[Sois Saldana]

IPhone 17s.

[T-Mobile Rep]

You splurged at T Mobile. You can get four iPhone 17s on them. The new Center Stage front camera is amazing for group selfies. It's the perfect gift for everyone.

[Sois Saldana]

I'm one the worst. I only got my mom a robe.

[T-Mobile Rep]

Well, it's better than socks.

[Sois Saldana]

So I have to trade in my old phone, right?

[T-Mobile Rep]

No @t mobile. There's no trade ins needed when you switch. Keep your old phone or Give it as a gift.

[Sois Saldana]

Incredible.

[T-Mobile Rep]

In fact, wrap up my old phone too for my Aunt Rosa.

[Kinsey]

Forget that.

[T-Mobile Rep]

Aunt Liz will be jealous.

[Sois Saldana]

Sounds like my family drama.

[Hannah]

Oh, I got it.

[T-Mobile Rep]

I'll give it to my abuela. I'll take reindeer paper with.

[Carly]

Hey, where are you going?

[Sois Saldana]

The holidays are better. At T Mobile get four iPhone 7 on us. No trade in needed when you switch plus four lines for just 25 bucks a line. And now T Mobile is available in US cellular stores with 24 monthly bill credits and 4 eligible board ins on essentials for well qualified customers. Auto pay + taxes, fees and $35 device connection charge credits and imbalance due if you pay off earlier. Cancel contact US Finance Agreement 256 gigabytes. $830 required visit t mobile.com okay, now.

[Hannah]

This is my favorite part.

[Carly]

Okay, do either of you, but probably not Hannah have any favorite King picture? And Sarah's moments are quotes.

[Hannah]

You Kinsey has them in there, so go for it.

[Kinsey]

Yeah, I'll start with the quote. Kingfisher says this every part. I love all of you. I'd spend the fortunes of the universe to protect you. I drained the seas dry, fell every tree. I would sacrifice the sun from the fucking sky and surrender the stars too, if I could. But those things aren't mine to give. All I have is my life. It isn't much, but I'd spend it and consider the price small if it meant keeping you safe.

[Carly]

Life.

[Hannah]

And to no one's surprise, that is my favorite quote of the entire book.

[Carly]

It's good.

[Kinsey]

So good. So good. I did not write this quote down. But also when Seras was saying, I don't want to wear these dresses. I don't want you to domesticate me. And he was like, no, I'm here to take care of you. And you can still be dangerous and lethal and be beautiful at the same time. So if you want to dress up, you can. And I'm here for you. And I was like, king, I low key. Felt like that was a slapback to Rhysand. But I'm not gonna go there before.

[Hannah]

You go on, because my favorite moment and quote next to this paragraph that you just read is about the dresses. I absolutely adore his obsession with her dresses. And there's this interaction here that I'm gonna read out because it just deserves it. So she's like, uncomfortable with how like a forward he's being in this crowded room right now, and he says, they're lucky I'm not tearing you out of that dress and bending you over that fucking throne right now, Saris. And she says, you wouldn't dare. And he said, you're right. I wouldn't want to ruin the dress.

[Carly]

So good.

[Hannah]

It's so good. I love that.

[Kinsey]

Honorable mention for the entirety of chapter seven. Holy crap.

[Hannah]

I was kind of floored the whole time.

[Kinsey]

I was like, the biting.

[Hannah]

My headphones are playing in my head, right? Not, like, out loud. I'm still alone in my own home, but this feels like it should still be just in my head.

[Kinsey]

The biting. Oh, my God, Yes.

[Hannah]

More.

[Kinsey]

I love it. Let's go. It was so good. So I loved it. I also really love their dream world. We didn't really get much of an explanation for it, but I thought they had a lot of really great moments within their.

[Hannah]

I agree. And I think that that was needed to set the stage for how she found him later. And so I get why that was in there, but it was never, like, Easter egged. I don't think that mates are known to be able to do that. And I kind of wish that had been there so it felt less like a out of left field thing happening. But I will take it because it was really nice.

[Kinsey]

It was a very good introduction to Dream6, if you know what I mean.

[Carly]

Yep.

[Hannah]

Just preparing us.

[Carly]

It's fine.

[Hannah]

It's fine. Yeah. Okay. I have one last quote that just sums up my favorites.

[Carly]

Of course.

[Hannah]

It's Fisher. I despise the gods, Seras. I'm oath. Bound by this land in the blood of kings. I swore I would never offer up a word of gratitude to them again. But you have made a liar of me. You're a gift that cannot be ignored. My heart. And also, he did a tiny shake of his head, which adds to the vibe here. Okay. I've killed more people than I can count. I lost the parts of myself that knew how to feel anything other than pain and sorrows centuries ago. But for better or worse, you have brought me back to life. So good. So good.

[Carly]

So good. All right.

[Kinsey]

I'm done.

[Hannah]

I'm done.

[Carly]

It was good. I think you guys got all the moments, but I just really loved their relationship across the book. I loved that their relationship was an essential conflict.

[Kinsey]

Thank God.

[Hannah]

I love that, too.

[Kinsey]

So refreshing.

[Carly]

I don't necessarily mind it in a book, but I feel like this book had enough conflicts. I was really glad the relationship wasn't one of them. And I just love how down bad this man is for her.

[Kinsey]

Down bad.

[Hannah]

I feel like I've been saying ever since we met, every time we talk About a book, and we're talking about the relationship. I'm like, yeah, I just wish that the conflict. I know you have to have it, but I wish the conflict was outside of the relationship. Like, why do they have to be separated all the time? Like, why can't they just be like. Like us against the world? And I found that in this, and I have to say that I realized that that's what was going. Like, that was the trajectory. When she makes him promise to, like, early on, they get separated, bad things happen, and then they get back together. And she's like, promise me you're not going to leave me again. Like, they say that to each other, and then I'm like, okay, thank God we're setting the stage for them to like it. Not to be them just constantly being pulled apart. And I know that not everybody likes that. I get why. But for me, I want to experience the us against the world and that this book delivered on that there's such.

[Kinsey]

A green flag relationship. Even just Saris passing his mother's test, where she's like, you know what? Your mom told me to not share this book with you, but it's your mother's last words, so I really want you to see it. He read the letter from his mom and then said, now pass the book back to her.

[Hannah]

Golden. I loved that. And her reading that and being like, oh, I passed. Didn't even know that was a test. Thank God I gave it to him.

[Kinsey]

Yeah. How awkward would it have been to have read it and not known well.

[Carly]

And how much trust they have in each other. So much trust.

[Kinsey]

They have such a great bond. They truly, truly love each other.

[Hannah]

Not to mention he literally says, do you trust me? And turns around at the very end. And it's like. I was like, oh, shit, something's about to go down. Like, this is about to not. And then we got all those reveals. And I get why he asked her. That probably could mean more than this. But at the same time, it's like, there's things she. He hasn't even shared with her.

[Carly]

Yeah.

[Kinsey]

I'm just glad it's not all physical. And there's mutual respect, mutual love and trust. And I just think out of many fictional book character relationships, theirs is one of the best.

[Hannah]

So I love it. And it can't just be, like, written off as, like, oh, it's because they're mates. Like, they establish it outside of that. And if you're gonna do a fated ma for me, it has to be like that for it to be like, fulfilling.

[Kinsey]

Now I do have a spicy quote real quick. Sweet fucking mercy. He panted, kill me. Sit on my face and ride my tongue until I fucking die. I can't take it anymore.

[Hannah]

I feel you're like, I need to.

[Kinsey]

Tell a trusted adult that shit was good. That's up there with him being like, I'm at the altar of my God.

[Carly]

Yeah, that was good.

[Kinsey]

That was good.

[Hannah]

I do have to say, the whole half God thing really puts the I'm gonna introduce you to all seven gods into perspective.

[Kinsey]

I'm like, so is it your, like, second cousin? Once you're a move. How does this family tree work?

[Hannah]

This is getting creepy.

[Carly]

Yeah. Someone asked me if this book was as spicy as the first book, and I was like, they're definitely just as feral for each other. That hasn't gone away.

[Kinsey]

They're so feral. And I love that they're saying, this is gonna continue forever. We'll never feel satisfied. I'm like, yeah, slay. Go for it. Yeah.

[Hannah]

Love that for you.

[Kinsey]

No honeymoon phase, or will they never get out of the honeymoon phase? Like, just keep going. Yes.

[Carly]

Yeah. It's not a phase.

[Kinsey]

I have one funny quote between them. Sarah said, we don't torture people, and Kingfisher said, says, carrion tortures me daily. So I just thought that was funny.

[Hannah]

I feel like we could just keep going forever on our favorite moments in quotes.

[Carly]

We could.

[Kinsey]

We could.

[Hannah]

Well, let's switch gears a little bit. While reading Brimstone, did you have any theories that came to pass? Huh? Did you?

[Kinsey]

I had a few. So the first one was, I had a feeling that the Silver City in Zilvarin was a rune that's powering Madra, and that's why she lives forever. And I was correct. Yay. I also had a feeling that the stargazer birds in the library were going to end up making Idina's book. And I was convinced that Kingfisher's true name was also going to be in the book. So I was right on both counts there.

[Hannah]

I feel like that's a pretty great track record. Not even gonna lie. All right, Carly, you're up.

[Carly]

I touched on this a little bit earlier, but because I read Quicksilver, and I was like, I feel like he's not quite just Fae. Like, I feel like we're gonna find out there's some sort of other thing going on here. But then throughout the book, there was all these moments where he would be surprised when his magic would work as well as it would, because he'd be like, I don't have access to magic here. And then his magic would work better than he thought it would in some places. And there was a couple moments where he seemed really surprised. And that's when I became convinced that the magic that he was specifically using was not just Fae magic. And I started to wonder. I'm like, is this vampire magic? Does he have some sort of family lineage dating back to Malcolm or something like that?

[Kinsey]

It was funny because he'd literally say, my magic doesn't work here. And then he'd proceed to use an insane amount of magic right after that.

[Carly]

But it almost seemed like he was surprised by it sometimes when it would work better than he thought it would. So I think he doesn't even maybe fully understand, like, when he has access to it and when he doesn't. Because, like, he would explain it that, like, he doesn't have access. Like, at times he'd, like, explain, like, you know, I just don't. Like, there. It's just a drop. I don't have all of it. Like, it's muddled and things like that. And so I'd be like, okay. But then he would. And I'm like, what's going on here? And then I just became convinced that the magic wasn't Fae magic. So I ended up being right about that. But I think that was the only thing I really came up with with while actively reading the first time through.

[Kinsey]

Oh, I have another one. When Idina's book gave an instruction, but then the instructions were missing. And then it gave instructions like, read this after the trade. And it was gone. I was like, oh, my God. Is that the page from when the bird went outside the library and she took it away.

[Hannah]

She got it wilder.

[Kinsey]

And it never got bound into the book. I was. That was my first thought. And I was so stressed. I was like, oh, my God. That's. Like, I didn't accept that. It was just like, wait until this point. And, oh, that's the message. Just go to the cliffs and then we'll be fine. And that was the instruction. I was like, no, she's missing something, and it's gotta be from that page. And it stuck with me, that Archer said that Kingfisher, statue, trinket, whatever, was Idina's favorite. And I was like, oh, my God, is it with the statue? Like, where did she put it? And I was trying to remember where she put it. And so when she went to the dreamscape and got it, I was like, yes. And it was the most important page of all. Could you Imagine if she just threw that away in the palace and a vampire found his true name Wouldn't have gone. Well, that would have been horrible. So, yeah, that was my other thing that I thought of while reading Brimstone.

[Carly]

That was good.

[Hannah]

I, for Passenger Princess, feel like I did pretty well. I thought that Serris and Fisher would fuck a lot, and I thought that Carrion would be hilarious, and both were true, so I'm pretty proud.

[Kinsey]

And you thought the dragons would come back, so there you go.

[Hannah]

I actually did think that there was gonna. That he was gonna. I was being kind of, like, funny just now, or trying to be, but I actually did kind of think that if dragons were involved, that they would. Again, I'm not, like, not bond, but, like, be sidekicks in a way, and maybe not in, like, a super consensual way. We'll see. But, yeah, that's the only inkling. But it wasn't super well developed and it was like a. Mostly a want. Yeah, that's fine.

[Kinsey]

You can want dragons to come back. I did.

[Hannah]

At this point, circling back just a little bit, we've discussed most of our favorite Brimstone scenes. Are there any others that we haven't mentioned yet? And yes, Kenzie specifically put this question in there so that she could name even more. So please, Kenzie, take a look.

[Kinsey]

Yeah, so there was this quote from Taladeus that I really, really loved. He said, how can I consign myself to another endless dark when I've been given back the light?

[Hannah]

Oh, that was great.

[Kinsey]

I just think it's.

[Hannah]

I really love him. Like, I genuinely do.

[Kinsey]

I just thought it was such a tender moment, because as someone who was struggling in that moment, Taladeus was about to, like, end it all. He's like, wait, no, that's. There's good in life and I want to keep living. And then he proceeded to get the God sword. And the sword was named Redemption. I ate that up. I thought the scene was really, really well done. And I really resonated with that quote. I thought the quote was really beautiful. There was another quote that I enjoyed where Kingfisher was thinking this about. About Belacan. He said he knew that to control his people, he had to control the information they had access to hide the truth from people. And you kept them in the dark, burned the books, and you got to rewrite history and the future. Very relevant.

[Hannah]

We tend to really love themes like that, don't we?

[Kinsey]

Yeah, it was good.

[Carly]

Did you have any others or was that it?

[Kinsey]

Those were the only two other quotes. I wanted to mention Carly was actually.

[Hannah]

Genuinely surprised just now.

[Carly]

Yeah. I honestly felt like you were going to have a couple more that you were like, oh, wait, this one too. Which is fine. Mine were not as serious. I love the scenes where Saris just fucking laid out Zavina and Danya. I was like, finally, this needed to happen and I was here for it. I loved those scenes so much. And I also love the scene where Kingfisher just decimated Madra's guards during Cleansing Day. I was like, yes, let's go.

[Kinsey]

That scene was so good.

[Hannah]

Yeah.

[Kinsey]

So good. One of the top scenes. One of the top.

[Carly]

It was excellent. I actually. I read the part where, like, Karen or Hayden had told him, like, oh, it must be Cleansing Day. And at that moment, my husband had come home with dinner and we had to, like, put dinner together, and I had to stop reading. I was like, he's about to go insane. And I had to, like, go back and start pick up that scene again. But having to wait to finish that scene. Oh, God, it was so good, though.

[Kinsey]

So good. The only thing that could have made that scene better was if he took out Madra.

[Carly]

Yeah. Yeah. I can't wait for that moment. I need that to happen.

[Kinsey]

Oh, yeah. Her coronation scene was also pretty good.

[Carly]

Yeah.

[Kinsey]

Just in general, it was pretty funny how she didn't know about the bite and then Kingfisher splitting homeboy in half.

[Hannah]

Oh, yeah. I really did love that moment where you find out that, like. Like, he specifically was a messenger for the gods. Well, not that part. I'm talking about the ball, the coronation, where he's like, he expected me to be out of it, knowing that she was also. But, like, little does he know, and he just fucking throttles him and murders him right there. And I'm like, oh, yeah, yeah, let's go.

[Kinsey]

Let's fucking go. That was pretty good.

[Carly]

Did you have any more?

[Hannah]

I still go back to the dress. The dress concept is probably my favorite thing.

[Carly]

It was good. All right. Diving into the characters that melted our quicksilver, starting with our fmc, Sarah Spain. How did you guys feel about how she dealt with becoming Queen, half Fae, half vampire, all at once?

[Hannah]

Dude, she was just taking one hit after the next so much. I don't know if grace is the right word for her, but something tied to that, like, she just kept rolling with punches, and I find that very admirable because as much as I'd like to be like her, I am not. Could not hold up the way she does. I like how she found solace in intimacy with Kingfisher and it not being like a. Let me just put my head in the sand. She was like, in order for me to get through this, I have to have these moments with you. And I felt like that was really self reflective.

[Kinsey]

I think she handled it really well. She was very. No nonsense. She was displaying. I am strong. You're not gonna boss me around. I'm gonna boss you around. I'm gonna humiliate you. Don't fuck with me. So I really liked that she didn't seem to really have an issue transitioning like physically into half Fae, half vampire. She just accepted that, thankfully. Yeah. But I do wish we saw her in her realm a little bit more. I felt like she kept fleeing and would go off to Kalish or wherever and she'd just leave Taladeus in charge. So it would have been interesting to see her actually acting more as a ruler instead of just demanding respect. But I think she did a good job as queen and it doesn't really matter anymore because now she has like two subjects.

[Carly]

Yeah.

[Kinsey]

So the hasbrax and Foley and that's it.

[Carly]

I mean, yeah, I think I would have wanted more of that if we wouldn't have had this like deconstruction of that court essentially happen.

[Kinsey]

Yeah.

[Carly]

Because otherwise I feel like it would have felt like a waste of time of her like figuring all this out and then her being like, oh, nevermind, don't need to do this anymore anymore. But I really just did enjoy her rolling with the punches, handling things as they came. I just. I thought she was just very enjoyable with the way she handled it. It didn't feel. I was worried it was gonna feel whiny and it didn't feel whiny at all. Like, I really just enjoyed that. She was just like, well, I guess I gotta figure this out kind of attitude. And it's just, you know, one thing after another and just really dealing with what was in front of her. I probably would have just curled up in a ball and cried and had a panic attack for three weeks. But you know, teach our own.

[Hannah]

I think how she handled Hayden, her brother, how she handled him, kind of thinking that maybe she was capable of working for Madra as a spy. I hated. I like, really did not like him.

[Kinsey]

He pissed me off.

[Hannah]

But the way that she snapped out of it and like, didn't like try and like beg or explain in a way that was like, Like, I don't know, she just took no shit at that point. And I loved that scene because it was like you get to find out how much, like, reiterate how much she'd been through, what she did for him, that she sheltered him. And like, I just really loved how she just laid it on him.

[Kinsey]

Yeah. I posted on Threads for that scene. I said I would send that ungrateful brat back to Zilvaren. Like, I did not fuck with him in that moment. Not one bit.

[Carly]

Yeah.

[Kinsey]

I also liked how she was learning to utilize her alchemist powers more and having to seal her runes. I thought that was really cool. She did a good job. Good job, Serris, you did great.

[Carly]

She was very enjoyable.

[Hannah]

We've actually touched on quite a few of the next questions, so I think we can go through these pretty quickly. But just to reiterate, how did we think about Kingfisher? Pov?

[Kinsey]

Loved.

[Carly]

Loved.

[Kinsey]

As I've already said, he's a cinnamon roll.

[Carly]

Yeah, like 5 stars just for the dual POV alone. Loved it.

[Kinsey]

I almost wonder if my favorite POV from him was. I think it was chapter 51 where the only words were, well, the chapter title was obvious or obviously. And it was just I fucking hate dragons.

[Hannah]

Yeah. Oh, I liked that. I was like, did I just. Like I almost rewound. So like, is that it? But then I was like, no, that was it.

[Kinsey]

Yeah, that was it. I mean I was doing the immers read, so like I saw it on the page, I was like, oh yeah, hahaha.

[Carly]

Funny.

[Kinsey]

I highlighted it, but yeah. Kayden, let's go.

[Hannah]

I felt like his POVs enhanced the story so much.

[Kinsey]

Yeah, he increased from like mid of my book boyfriends list to number two. The number one spot will always and forever be held by a male character. I won't say who because Hannah's about to start the Throne of Glass series. But that is my book husband and Kingfisher is my number one book boyfriend. But he's technically the number two spot. Technically.

[Hannah]

Interesting.

[Kinsey]

Love you, Kaiden. Good job.

[Carly]

Yeah. All right, Hannah, we already know how you feel about Taladeus, but Kenzie, how were you feeling about him by the end?

[Kinsey]

Well, I'm not gonna say how I felt by the end. I wanna actually backtrack before we even started Brimstone. I believe this was probably in our bonus chapters breakdown episode for the prep. I had said I really can see Taladeus becoming a favorite character of mine and I was fully convinced that I would love him. But I spent majority of the book not trusting him whatsoever. I was like, I don't fuck with you. I don't trust you. I don't believe you. I had the ick with the whole Maker business and him running. I know I just complained about oh, Sarah should have ran the palace more or whatever, but like him taking some actions without her consent. I was like, I don't know, he seems pretty power hungry to me. So I went from thinking that I would love him and he would be an absolute favorite to not trusting him whatsoever, to at the very end, really enjoying him. I am so glad he sacrificed himself. I'm glad he's a Fae again. I'm so happy he's still alive. I'm really curious to see where his character arc went. I did mention another one of my additional favorite scenes was just him getting the God Sword and it being redemption. So I look forward to seeing where he goes. And I do hope that truly in book three, he does become one of my favorite characters. Now that I know I can trust him. I just have severe trust issues and I was struggling to get around that for quite some time. Time.

[Carly]

He definitely wasn't what I expected him to be based on the end of Quicksilver. Like I felt like I was expecting something a little bit different with Telidase. But I did really enjoy him. He was a very interesting, complex character and that made him.

[Hannah]

I think that's what fascinates me about him.

[Carly]

Yeah, it just made him interesting to read. Every time I read him on page, I was like, what's really going on here? What does he really want? What are his motivations? Like, I. I find him like he's kind of reserved in a way. Like you kind of. You can tell there's a lot of calculating going on. And I think that's what makes you kind of naturally not tend to want to trust him a little bit. But it's what makes him interesting.

[Kinsey]

And Seras kept feeling a sadness radiating off of him and I was just like, why is he so sad?

[Carly]

Yeah, sadness.

[Hannah]

I just find that more endearing at all. Yeah.

[Kinsey]

I think it was just the guilt of what he had done. I was expecting Taladeus to spill a bit more tea since he was the Master or Lord of Secrets for Malcolm.

[Hannah]

I also thought that would be the case. I was waiting.

[Carly]

But yeah, maybe in the next book.

[Kinsey]

Maybe. Yeah. No, but I like him. For the record, I do like him. I just was really untrusting of him for the first 2/3 of the book.

[Hannah]

That was fair. I was definitely apprehensive or a little suspicious, I would say is maybe the more accurate word for it. But I enjoyed the process of Suspicion and also like his personality.

[Kinsey]

I don't know.

[Hannah]

I really liked him.

[Kinsey]

Yeah.

[Hannah]

Well, last question. We got some new characters or quote, unquote, some new. Whether they were, like, briefly mentioned before or just. And just more developed now or entirely new. We've talked about a couple of them, but specifically, what are your opinions on Folly and the Hasra?

[Kinsey]

I trust them. I trust them both. I want to see a lot more from both of them. I'm so curious to see what the Hazrax really is. I'm going to discuss it a little bit more in our Theories episode that's coming up. But I don't really think they have bad intentions. I think it genuinely wants to help Saris and Kingfisher, otherwise it wouldn't have given Saris the rune that it did. Good. It just wants to observe. It's just. Baby girl. It didn't. It didn't swear allegiance to Malcolm.

[Hannah]

It's giving me. It's giving the Briaxis.

[Carly]

No, no, no, no.

[Kinsey]

It was given Briaxis from Acotar to me. Some monster that most people don't trust. But Feyre's like, I'll befriend you.

[Hannah]

No, it's also from Acotar.

[Carly]

It's my.

[Hannah]

Why can't I think of the name?

[Kinsey]

The bone carver?

[Hannah]

No.

[Kinsey]

The weaver?

[Hannah]

No.

[Kinsey]

The adder. It's not the Adder.

[Carly]

Can you explain what it is?

[Kinsey]

I think you're thinking of Reaxis.

[Carly]

The cereal.

[Hannah]

No, the tea.

[Carly]

The cereal.

[Hannah]

It gives me the cereal vibes. Why? I'm like, why can't I think of the word. Yes. The cereal, which. I love the cereal.

[Kinsey]

Me too.

[Hannah]

That's the vibe. I. I'm getting a little bit. A little bit more, like, not trustworthy. A little bit more.

[Kinsey]

And the fact that it has, like, a.

[Hannah]

Of.

[Kinsey]

Well, it doesn't really have a vow of silence, but it goes centuries without talking to anyone. And he said. Or it said specifically. You're like the fourth or fifth person I've broken my silence to. I'm like, oh, serious is important. This is important. I like this.

[Carly]

But I. I don't really trust either of them.

[Kinsey]

No.

[Carly]

But I enjoy them as characters. I think they're really interesting for the plot. I don't think. I think the Hazarax definitely has its own motivations, and I think right now they're lining up with Saris, and I don't think that necessarily will always be true. Yeah. But there's something for Foley that's just not quite lining up for me. This whole, like, self Imposed library solitude for the last however many years. Decades. However long it's been.

[Kinsey]

Centuries.

[Carly]

Whatever it is. Like, I. Something about this just isn't quite right to me.

[Kinsey]

See, and to me, I feel like that made sense because he didn't want to be in the town. He didn't want to drink Fae blood.

[Carly]

Yeah, like that's what he's saying.

[Kinsey]

He only has algot for company, which is not great. But the Shadow Cat hates her and trusts him. So if the Shadow Cat trusts him, I'mma trust him. Plus, Edina said that she needed him in Serris's court. He was a wolf. He. He swore the oath. He's. He's an honorable Fae.

[Carly]

Yeah, I don't know. I think there's something going on with Foley, though, that we don't know about yet. I'm not. I'm not there with Foley, totally. Like, I just. That's a lot of time to be away and to have no contact with the people who keep you grounded in who you are insane and like. And to be surrounded by people you don't like and don't trust and like, especially that is Owlgot, the witch that, like, became a vampire they're all like super afraid of. She's like in the wind. I don't know. I'm. I'm a little. I'm 50. 50 on Foley.

[Kinsey]

I. I don't know. I. I think it makes sense. Even Lorath said wolves never become a leech. And so that's just like, really instilled in him. They have have different oaths, I'm assuming, than just regular Fae soldiers. They have their own ideals. And it was really hard for him to do it. I mean, he turned down Malcolm. He was shamed as a vampire. He had his fangs torn out. I trust him. But I will say I was sad when in Adina's book, she said, don't let him turn back to a Fae. And I'm like, he just wants to be a Fae. He doesn't want to be a vampire. Just, like, let him. Let him be a Fae again. Just take it.

[Carly]

Like, what.

[Kinsey]

What could they possibly need from him as a vampire that they can't have as a Fae? Cause if they need anyone who's still a vampire, Serris has her vampire abilities.

[Hannah]

We'll see in book three.

[Carly]

I'm 50. 50 on Foley next year.

[Kinsey]

I liked him, though. I'm glad that he's on the up and up and he has his friends to guide him again.

[Hannah]

And that wraps up our episode on Brimstone. Initial thoughts and reactions covering our favorite character scenes and quotes. Thank you so much for listening. Join us for our next episode where we are discussing our Brimstone First Read theories for Fae and Alchemy Book three as we continue the Recovery portion of our Brimstone season.

[Carly]

If you are looking for even more Romanasy content, we also have three completed seasons of Empyrean chapter by chapter, Deep Dive coverage, author interviews and more. More.

[Kinsey]

You can find more info about our previous and upcoming prep seasons, our episodes and events calendar, author interviews, our contact form and more on our website dearfantasyreader.com also linked down in the Show Notes.

[Carly]

You can join us over on Patreon where you can access all of our regular episodes ad free a day early and in full video plus extras like PDF annotations, shout outs, bonus resources and more. You'll find our Patreon link in the Show Notes along with all the ways you can support the Show Show. Whether that's joining a tier, subscribing, leaving a review, or just sharing us with your fellow Romanasy readers, we'd love to hear from you.

[Kinsey]

Send us your thoughts, tag us on Instagram, or come fangirl with us over your favorite fantasy books in our free Discord Chat. And don't forget to follow us on social media where we release book guides, author updates, our current reads, clips from episodes, pod updates, and more.

[Hannah]

Until next time, dearest fantasy readers, prepare for Book three Theories and as we continue our journey through the Fae and Alchemy series.

[Carly]

Yay.

[Libsyn Ads Host]

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[Carly]

We did it. I'm excited for our Theories episode. That's going to be fun. I have that Sabrina Carpenter song Stuck in my Head. Which one had it stuck in my head for like two days?

[Kinsey]

Her songs get stuck in my head a lot.

[Carly]

Yeah, it's the one with the whip. That's by design.

[Kinsey]

That boy is corrupt. Ptsd. He sure me up.

[Hannah]

All right, Peter, you want to use that verbally First.

[Kinsey]

Karaoke with Dear Fantasy Reader Podcast we're just girls.

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