Fated Mates – S08:13

Book Deep Dive: KJ Charles’s The Magpie Lord (“We’re Gonna Get to the Tattoos”)

Main Theme & Episode Purpose

This episode of Fated Mates is a vibrant, in-depth discussion of KJ Charles’s beloved historical paranormal romance The Magpie Lord. Co-hosts Sarah MacLean and Jennifer Prokop break down the book’s themes, plot, craft, and emotional resonance—with trademark humor, critical insight, and a focus on what makes this queer romance a trailblazer of the genre. The episode covers not only the novel’s haunting magic and gothic suspense, but also how the story and its characters negotiate trauma, power, and joy, leaving listeners with a thorough understanding of the book whether they’ve read it or not.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Pre-Book Banter: Community, Reading, and Romance Culture

• Discussion of snow and biking in cities: Jen and Sarah chat about city biking, the dangers of black ice, and how winter impacts urban life and exercise.

  • Memorable Quote:
    • “If you are a hardcore asshole, please know that Jen said that and not Sarah.” – Sarah (05:09)

• Romance reader community online: They highlight the “watercooler” feel of their Discord, the pleasures of watching TV shows week to week (e.g., Heated Rivalry), and how passionate and engaged romance readers are as a group.

  • “This is because romance readers… want to talk about everything.” – Sarah (11:06)
  • Reference to using Discord stats: Realization that they're in the TOP percentiles of Discord users, reflecting how robust the community is. (10:27)

• Book Boxes & Gifting: The hosts spotlight their “Best of 2025” book box with Pocketbooks (18:04), encouraging sharing and holiday reading traditions.

2. KJ Charles and The Magpie Lord: Context & Impact

The Author’s Publishing History

• Is this KJ Charles's first book?

  • Jen confirms that while she had read much of Charles’s work, this was her first time reading The Magpie Lord, which was also Charles’s first full-length novel (22:35).
  • Explains the challenges of book discoverability in pre-social media days and how indie/small-press romance publishing (like Samhain) changed the game for a lot of marginalized voices and inventive romance subgenres (25:42–31:52).

• Trailblazer status:

  • Charles’s early and prominent place in mainstream queer romance—a game-changer in broadening what romance could be, both in subject and in craft (26:53).
  • “KJ was one of the first romance writers who was writing queer characters. And… the books broke into the mainstream.” – Sarah (26:53)

The Book’s Structure, Craft, and Publishing Legacy

• Pacing & Structure:
  • The book is lauded as a “masterclass in how to structure a story,” category-length, and “paced like a bullet from a gun” (27:12–28:17).
• Industry Shifts:
  • Explains the rise and fall of small presses like Samhain and how business and Amazon algorithms influenced what readers could find and authors could publish (34:16–36:21).

3. Deep Dive into The Magpie Lord

Plot Overview & Initial Impressions

• Opening Scene (36:28):

  • The novel opens shockingly: Lord Crane, in despair, is prevented from killing himself by his manservant, Merrick—an arresting, risky start for a romance.
  • “This book begins with a bang that I’m not sure would be found in 2025.” – Sarah (37:04)

• Setting & Characters:

  • Crane (Lucien) has returned to England after decades in China, carrying trauma and family baggage.
  • Merrick, his fiercely loyal servant, calls in Stephen Day, a magician, to investigate the supernatural danger targeting Crane.
  • Stephen is “pixie-sized, shabby, and hates Crane on sight,” which roots the story in deep, personal history—the Vaudrey family’s abuses ruined Stephen’s family (40:27–42:56).

• Dynamic Tension:

  • The contrast between the two heroes (tall, returned-exile lord and small, powerful magic-user) sets up both sexual tension and narrative conflict.
  • “In order for you to write a bad guy… you have to be willing to go there. And [KJ Charles] is.” – Sarah (41:47)

The Magical Mystery & Gothic Stakes

• Supernatural elements:

  • A cursed object (the “Judas Jack”) attempts to compel Crane into suicide, establishing high-stakes, gothic intrigue.
  • Stephen proves his magical power by saving Crane from the Jack, identifying it as the weapon that killed his father and brother—a mystery that sends the characters to the Vaudrey country estate (43:49).

• Country House Gothic:

  • The ancestral home is full of magpie motifs—creepy portraits, carvings, magpie-filled skies, and an uncanny absence of natural magic (52:27–57:01).

The Magpies & Tattoos

• Magpies as Symbol:
  • The magpie, family crest and curse alike, is everywhere. Crane, scandalously, has SEVEN magpie tattoos on his body.
  • Memorable, steamy moment:
    • “He takes off his shirt, and there are five [magpies] showing… The other two are lower down. Two for joy.” (54:00–55:06)
    • “This is the greatest scene in romance, everyone.” – Jen (53:30)

Romance & Consent: Power, Trauma, and Yearning

• Crafting Tension and Consent:

  • Consent is deeply interrogated—both sexual and magical—especially as Stephen, wounded by Crane’s family, must navigate both attraction and deep emotional wariness (72:42–74:12).
  • The dynamic shifts as Stephen subtly uses (and then is caught using) magical influence (“fluence”) on Crane, prompting fraught discussions of control, autonomy, and trust (64:37–68:18).
    • “Perfect example about how romance novelists use eyes better than anybody else in the whole business.” – Sarah (66:16)

• Social Context (England vs. China):

  • Crane’s time in China is contrasted with the English shame and legal danger around queer relationships—used to explore not only character psychology but colonial context and the safety of love (88:09–89:11).

Unraveling the Mystery

• The Bad Family Legacy:

  • The misdeeds of Crane’s family—rape, financial devastation, violence—are neither minimized nor deflected; the community’s complicity is confronted head-on (75:18–78:46).
    • “You can’t just passively bear evil. You have to try and do something that is right.” – Jen (78:38)

• Ghosts & Haunted Past:

  • Crane and Stephen face the literal ghost of Crane’s monstrous brother, ramping up the gothic stakes and symbolism (69:08–70:44).

Romance, Magic, and HEA (Happily Ever After)

• Sexual and Magical Climax:

  • The book subverts romance conventions by withholding consummation until after the magical battle is won, giving the love scene explosive metaphorical significance:
    • “It’s so great that literally it wakes up the house, like Encanto-style… All the magpies start to… come to life in the paintings, on the walls, in the dishes—and on Crane’s body.” – Sarah (94:13)
  • The sex is transformative—joyous, magical, and healing—blending myth, tattoo symbolism, and fully-earned emotional catharsis.
    • “The two of them are so full of joy in this moment together that it feels like pure, distilled happily ever after.” – Sarah (95:00, 95:12)

• Notable Quotes:

  • “And Stephen’s hand is on Crane’s chest. And a magpie flies from Crane into Stephen’s skin… It is so hot. It’s like the hottest thing I’ve ever read.” – Sarah (94:26)
  • “Justice… these two big ideas just banging into each other for the whole book.” – Jen (90:52)

• Themes:

  • Evil vs. good; legacy, trauma, and found family; joy and liberation powerful enough to heal and restore.

• Series Hook:

  • Follow-up books continue the adventures of Crane and Stephen as a magical, crime-fighting pair, sustaining both the romance and the fantasy plotting.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (with Timestamps)

• “If you are a hardcore asshole, please know that Jen said that and not Sarah.”
  – Sarah MacLean [05:09]

• “KJ was one of the first romance writers who was writing queer characters… the books broke into mainstream.”
  – Sarah MacLean [26:53]

• “This book begins with a bang that I’m not sure would be found in 2025.”
  – Sarah MacLean [37:04]

• “There’s a fearlessness to this book that comes with, like—I’m going to leave it all on the table.”
  – Sarah MacLean [41:18]

• “In order for you to write a bad guy… you have to be willing to go there. And she is.”
  – Sarah MacLean [41:46]

• “[The] tattoos… he takes off his shirt, and there are five showing… the other two are lower down. Two for joy.”
  – [54:00–55:06]

• “This is the greatest scene in romance, everyone.”
  – Jen Prokop [53:30]

• “You can’t just passively bear evil. You have to try and do something that is right.”
  – Jen Prokop [78:38]

• “The two of them are so full of joy in this moment together that it feels like pure, distilled happily ever after.”
  – Sarah MacLean [95:00, 95:12]

Important Timestamps

• 21:16 – Book intro, why the hosts chose The Magpie Lord, context for KJ Charles.
• 26:53 – Charles’s trailblazer status, move into mainstream and writing queer leads.
• 36:28 – Book plot summary begins: Crane’s attempted suicide, introduction of Merrick and Stephen.
• 52:27 – Arrival at country house, magpie symbolism introduced in full.
• 54:00 – Tattoo reveal, “two for joy.”
• 64:37 – Magical “fluence,” issues of consent and autonomy.
• 69:08 – Ghost in the rose garden; stakes escalate.
• 78:38 – Jen’s reflection on real-world evil, complicity, justice.
• 84:59 – Shrinking distance between characters; the slow-burn, gothic build of romance.
• 94:13 – Magical, joyous consummation; magpies come to life.
• 95:12 – Joy as an unusual, precious quality in romance.
• 96:07+ – Series continuation, community feedback, and wrap-up.

Tone, Language, and Style

• Warm, candid, and irreverent: Sarah and Jen maintain an upbeat, intelligent, and often hilarious tone—balancing critical depth with fangirl exuberance.
• Candid acknowledgment of the book’s harrowing subject matter and content warnings (“there’s stuff happening in their past you might want to know about”).
• Deep respect for genre history, book craft, and KJ Charles's mastery—especially in plotting and emotional resonance.
• No kink shaming; sex-positivity, and celebration of diverse love stories.

Conclusions & Takeaways

The Magpie Lord is lauded for its brisk, precise plotting, its ferocious gothic mood, its fearless handling of trauma, and—most of all—its emotionally rich, searingly joyful queer romance. KJ Charles’s debut full-length novel marks a pivotal moment in the romance genre, opening new doors for queer love stories and raising the standard for crisp, character-driven storytelling.

Listeners are encouraged to seek out the rest of the series, join the Fated Mates Discord, and revisit the KJ Charles trailblazer episode for more behind-the-scenes insights.

Links:

• KJ Charles Trailblazer Episode
• Fated Mates Discord & Patreon
• Fated Mates Book Box Info

End of summary. Suitable for listeners (or readers) new to the episode or the novel, capturing the heart, humor, and critical analysis Fated Mates is known for.