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- [00:00]
A
Hello everybody. Welcome back to I'll read what she's reading. I'm Reggie.
- [00:04]
B
I'm Mikaela. And I'm Kennedy.
- [00:06]
A
Today we're sharing with you guys our book recs that are under 350 pages. So if you are, you know, into the year already and you're behind your reading goal, we're here to help you out with some shorter books, some standalone, some that are probably part of a series maybe series that have a lot of short books. So hopefully you have your, your ears are perked up, your goodreads is out, ready to go because hopefully we have some good recs for you guys. But before we begin, we're going to share a little update on what we've been reading because I feel like it's been a while. So starting with Mikayla. Oh, starting put you on the spot.
- [00:53]
C
Okay. So I did. I feel like I'm in a teensy bit of a reading slump.
- [00:59]
B
Was a.
- [01:00]
C
Just a teensy bit.
- [01:01]
B
Same.
- [01:02]
C
So I did start this book. Made me think of you. I'm only like maybe an hour in maybe.
- [01:12]
B
And you're listening to it?
- [01:13]
C
Yeah, I'm listening to it. It's. It's good. I think I just, I needed to switch up from my other book that I was like feeling like a little wall in. I will continue it after I finish this other book. I'm reading, I'm reading the second A fate inked in blood and it's a curse carved in bone by Danielle L. Jensen. And I don't know how I quite feel about it. Yeah, I feel like I have a problem. I don't know if you guys feel this way, but I really like the first book and then I get to the second book and for some reason it doesn't feel as good to me.
- [01:52]
B
I don't know why.
- [01:52]
C
Is it supposed to be.
- [01:53]
B
Is it a duology?
- [01:54]
C
Yes.
- [01:56]
B
Okay.
- [01:56]
C
And I felt that with the past like few duologies that I've read and I don't know if it's like a me problem where like I'm reading a new like a new book and like that's exciting. And then I read the second one. I'm like not as excited. I don't know. But I just got to a part where I did. I didn't see it coming but I'm kind of like this is, this is kind of interesting. Like a little far fetched, you know, so. So I don't know how I quite feel about it right now, but that's what I'm reading right now.
- [02:28]
B
Two Very different books. But I love it. Yeah, I love it. I'm reading one book and it has put me into a large slump. I haven't read in like four days. So really I started this like four days ago while I was golfing with my husband. So I didn't have anything else to read. I made it like 15% and I'm at 17% today. So it's Jade City by Fonda Lee. And I know it's won a ton of awards, like a ton of fantasy book awards. I just don't think it was what I was expecting. Also, I'm only 17 in and it's a trilogy. So I need to be a little bit more patient because it's an urban fantasy book. I think I was just expecting maybe more fantasy. It's very much kind of 2 rival. I don't want to use the word gangs, but two rival, like families. And they are fighting with each other. Very much like mafia kind of vibes.
- [03:31]
C
Yeah.
- [03:32]
B
And they basically just have jade and Jade gives them powers very similar to Mistborn. Like they can do certain okay things depending on the jade they use, I think. But I'm just kind of bored because it's just kind of like.
- [03:46]
A
Yeah.
- [03:47]
C
The beginning phases.
- [03:48]
B
Yeah. And they're talking about the family dynamics and I just don't know. I don't care. I think it's going to be a very character driven story and I think I was wanting something that was a little bit more epic.
- [03:59]
C
Yeah.
- [04:00]
B
So are you just listening to.
- [04:02]
C
I mean, just reading it or are
- [04:03]
B
you listening to both?
- [04:04]
C
Both.
- [04:05]
A
Yeah.
- [04:05]
B
I have the audiobook on Everand and then the physical book and the Kindle book. Because it's on Kindle Unlimited.
- [04:15]
C
Yeah.
- [04:15]
A
That's the way to do it.
- [04:16]
B
The ultimate. So I. So I shouldn't be in a slump, but I am. I think I just need to get a little bit farther. I'm going to finish the first book and then decide if I want to continue. But I'm thinking about maybe starting into the blue. Have you guys seen. There's been a few different people that did a sponsorship with Olay and I don't know if they had to talk about that specific book with it, but there was two creators that I saw that did an ad with Olay and
- [04:41]
C
talked about that book. Yeah, I did see that. I just thought that was really interesting.
- [04:45]
B
So I don't know if it was like a.
- [04:47]
C
A collab between the book and Olay.
- [04:49]
B
I think it was just happenstance.
- [04:50]
C
Oh.
- [04:51]
B
But I also saw another creator sob while reading the book and say it's one of the best romance books she's ever read.
- [04:57]
C
Yeah.
- [04:58]
B
So I might start that. I might listen to it to help get me through a few books.
- [05:04]
A
Nice.
- [05:05]
B
Because I haven't finished a book in probably over a week, so that's setting my reading goal back. So I'm really excited for this episode so that I can put some short books into my tbr.
- [05:14]
C
Yeah.
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B
To get me back on track.
- [05:16]
A
Nice.
- [05:17]
C
Yeah.
- [05:19]
A
My current reads. I just barely. This morning started the dramatized version of Shield of Sparrows. I really wanted to start rights of the Starling. Like, I just having the itch. And I've seen people who had arcs of it who had already read it that were like, this is the best book ever. And I was getting really excited, but because I felt like I remembered so much from Sheild Sparrows that I was like, I don't feel like I need to read it again. But then I was, like, feeling some guilt for sake of book club. I was like, I should probably reread it. And then also I saw a TikTok that was like, everything you need to know before you start. Right to the start. And I was like, there are a few things that I was like, oh, yeah, definitely remember that. Definitely remember that. And then just random things within, just how the world works, I guess, that I completely forgot. So, I mean, it's hard to say where I'm at in the book because the dramatized versions are.
- [06:18]
B
They don't have chapters,
- [06:21]
A
but I'd say, like, in part one, I'm probably like 20 of the way through. I listened to it a lot this morning, however. Yeah. Anyways. Yeah. There's a lot of info dumping in the first bit that I had to like, skip a few parts back and be like, wait to make sure I was like remembering everything correctly. Loved. Loved it the first time I read it. I'm sure I'm gonna love it again the second time. So if you. It's. This is not a book that's under 350 pages, but it's. If you didn't know, our spring book club book is Shield of Sparrows and Rites of the Starling. The second book just came out yesterday. So as we're recording this, it's going to be. So, yeah, as we're recording this, it's going to be really fun to talk about the books with you guys. So you can join us on our fable and then we'll be doing our episode on that soon. But yeah, that's what I'm Reading. I'm also. I'm so close to being done with the third Emma M. Lyon book. And I'm not going to say too much about those because we haven't yet recorded our update on the books we picked for each other. So journal entries from a. What's the time period?
- [07:41]
B
Bridgerton era. 18.
- [07:42]
A
18. No, it's 17.
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B
It's later than the Bridgerton era, huh?
- [07:48]
A
Yeah. Anyways, just some journals from our girl Emma in London.
- [07:56]
B
Yeah, love her.
- [07:57]
A
It's. It's a hoot. It's a hoot. More on that later. But yeah, I. I feel like that's not much of an update on what I'm currently reading since. Yeah, I did finish Abby Jimenez's book, new book, the other day. But I also don't want to say anything about that because these two haven't read it yet and I want them to just go in without knowing what I think about it.
- [08:19]
C
So.
- [08:20]
B
Seen very mixed things online. So guess we'll see.
- [08:24]
A
Anyways, let's get into our 350 pages or less book recs. Amazing.
- [08:31]
B
Amaze. Amazing. Amaze.
- [08:32]
C
Yes, amaze. Who's starting?
- [08:37]
A
I gotta go find my screenshot.
- [08:39]
B
Let's go in the same order. So you go Michaela.
- [08:42]
C
So me.
- [08:42]
B
Yeah.
- [08:45]
C
Okay. This technically is in the middle of books, but I think it could be read by itself. Six Scorched Roses by Carissa Broadman. Chrissa Broadman just blanked on her name, I think. Obviously. I think you guys should read the series that goes with it.
- [09:16]
B
Crowns of Nyxia. Oh, my gosh.
- [09:18]
A
Yeah.
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C
Crowns of Naixa. What's the first one?
- [09:21]
A
Serpents in the Wings of Night.
- [09:22]
C
Yeah, Serpents in the Wings of Night. So I think it technically is Serpents in the Wings of Night, Six Scorched Roses. And then the second one.
- [09:34]
B
Gosh, her titles are always so hard for me to remember.
- [09:36]
C
I don't know why.
- [09:37]
A
Ashes in the Star Curse King.
- [09:39]
B
Yes.
- [09:39]
C
Yes, thank you, Reggie. I know I should know this. I should know this. It's been a while since I've read it. It's just a really good novella. Probably the best novella I've ever read. And I just think she did a really good job at it. I don't want to, like, give away too much, but it has Beauty and the Beast esque vibes. Not the same, exactly, but just like,
- [10:09]
B
she drew inspiration from that.
- [10:10]
C
Yeah, obviously there's a rose in it. You know, two and two together. Beauty and the Beast. You know, so it's literally in the title. Six Roses. So take that with what you will. I just really enjoyed it and I would highly recommend. And it's so short and it's beautiful.
- [10:32]
A
Yeah.
- [10:32]
B
And it didn't we all read that.
- [10:34]
A
Five stars. Yeah. Yeah. And it definitely stands on its own. So like if you're thinking of starting wanting to start a new series but you get intimidated because you're like there's so many books or they're kind of long. You could definitely start with the novella first.
- [10:48]
C
Yeah.
- [10:50]
A
And it would kind of introduce you to a bit of the world of all that vampires.
- [10:57]
B
And if I'm remembering correctly, the characters in that book, they don't play a huge part in the complete main series, but they do make a cameo. Ish esque appearance. So it's not going to spoil anything for the main series. But yeah, I think it's a great introduction and it's one of my favorite novellas I've ever read.
- [11:19]
A
It's so good.
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C
It was amazing.
- [11:21]
A
So good. That's a great. That's a great wreck.
- [11:25]
C
So that was my first one.
- [11:28]
B
Okay, my turn. You can read any Blake Crouch book. They are all under 350 pages. Specifically, really quickly. I want to talk about two that I haven't talked a ton about. I've talked about them both on the podcast because I'm desperate for someone to read them. So the first book I'm going to talk about really quickly is Wayward Pines. So every single book I believe in the series is under 350 pages. Lately I've been hyper fixated on the TV show Paradise. I think if you like the TV show Paradise, you would probably enjoy Wayward Pines. They give off similar vibes to an extent. So the plot of Wayward Pines is you're following your main character. It's a little fuzzy. I believe he gets in a car
- [12:17]
C
accident
- [12:20]
B
and he wakes up in this town and they don't let him leave. He's not allowed to leave the town. And there you have it. There's three books. They're a little creepy, a little eerie. They're thrillers. Blake Crouch is always just a good solid read. I usually rate his books at least three stars or more. Three books in the series. Try it out, see if you like it. And then the other one I'm going to recommend by Blake Crouch is run because I don't see a lot of people talk about. It actually was republished I think last year and it's kind of like a post apocalyptic world and you're following a main character just basically trying to survive.
- [13:00]
A
It is
- [13:03]
B
pretty Crazy. Honestly, it made me feel really unsettled. And there were a few times reading the book that I actually got nauseous because the imagery was so vivid. And I'll just tell you guys one of the things. There's a scene where he drinks toilet water because he's so thirsty.
- [13:22]
A
Ooh, interesting.
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B
He runs it. It's literally just like a post apocalypse, post apocalyptic world. And these people are, I don't want to say infected. You don't really know what happened, but these people are trying to kill the main character. It's pretty crazy. So try either one of those out. They're all really short. And Blade Crouch is always a solid read.
- [13:49]
A
He's great. I've only ever read Dark Matter, but I know I need to get to his other ones because I know they'll be good.
- [13:57]
B
They're fun.
- [13:58]
A
So nice. Okay, I'm gonna start with a book. This is one of the first. One of the first books I remember talking about on the podcast, I believe. The Mind Def series by St. Abby.
- [14:14]
B
It's been picked up, you guys. It's being adapted by who? It's a really good director. I. Oh, Amazon.
- [14:21]
A
I want to say it's Amazon.
- [14:22]
C
Yeah, I don't know.
- [14:24]
B
I know who the director is.
- [14:25]
C
It's been picked up, but I can't remember.
- [14:27]
A
I will.
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C
The details of it.
- [14:29]
B
I'm a little scared to watch it.
- [14:31]
A
Produced by Sophia Stallone.
- [14:34]
B
Yeah, that's who it is.
- [14:35]
A
Productions.
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B
Sylvester Stallone's daughter.
- [14:38]
A
Yeah. So, yeah, I'm a little scared to watch the show too. But these are all on. I think there's seven. Hold on. Let me tell you how many books there are. I think that's right. I think there's seven books and they're all under like maybe 200 and something pages. Maybe even less than that.
- [15:02]
B
You used to be able to get all of the books together, bound. I don't know if you still can. But all the. All of them separately are on Kindle Unlimited, right?
- [15:14]
A
Yes, yes.
- [15:15]
B
I think I binged those in one weekend.
- [15:16]
A
Oh, same. I remember, like sitting at family dinner at a restaurant and I was like reading on my phone and my family was like, what are you reading? Like, I. I can't put this down. So essentially, like, this is the one line that sold me on this book, which is essentially, there is this female serial killer and she starts to catch feelings for an FBI agent. It's crazy. It's crazy. And it's so, so bingeable. Very exciting. There are some moments that made me a little Bit nauseous. So you can skip. There's things you can skip. So if you're like, ooh, get a little queasy around gore, so do I. But you can. You can just skip it. It's. Which makes it even faster read. But very, very thrilling. Does it switch point of views or is it just her point of view the whole time?
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B
There are flashbacks in her point of view.
- [16:32]
A
Point of view. But I don't. Maybe I won't include that because I don't know for sure. Because I want to say there's times that you're in his brain mind. I feel like that's correct, isn't it? Don't you get his point of view? Sorry, I'll cut this out. Don't you get his point of view when he's, like, in the closet?
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B
Yes, it is dual point of view.
- [16:47]
A
Yeah. Okay. It's also dual point of view. Yeah.
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B
I.
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A
When the TV show gets more announcement, like, more updates on that. I will definitely be reading this again because it is. It's just a wild time. A wild time. And there are a lot of twists that I didn't see coming. Some that I did. You just. You have no idea what you're in for.
- [17:16]
C
So.
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B
It's also pretty messed up. So.
- [17:21]
A
Yes.
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B
Maybe if you're triggered by anything, check the trigger warnings, because it's. It's pretty dark. Yeah. My sister read it and loved it. It's one of her favorite books she's ever read. So.
- [17:30]
A
Yeah. Yeah. It's dark and twisty, also hilarious, also funny, also romantic.
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B
So it's got a little bit of everything in there. Yeah.
- [17:41]
A
So I. I recommend it cautiously. So. I mean, everyone listening probably has a feel for, like, our reading tastes, if I can handle it. No, I'm not gonna say that, actually. I forget there's a lot of other triggering things in this book. Anyways, let us know if you decide to read it, because I feel like it's been a long time since I've seen anyone talk about it, but when we first started the podcast, I feel like that was one of the first book talk things I was seeing was about the Mind F series. I don't even know what the first one's called. I don't even know what any of the other sidetracked. No, no. The risk.
- [18:23]
C
Yes.
- [18:24]
A
And then there's. Yeah. So it's. The first book is 132 pages, but
- [18:29]
B
you can binge them so hard.
- [18:32]
A
So I listened to all of them. Oh, yeah, you listen to them. Where's the audiobook like, are they.
- [18:39]
C
I had them on Libby. Yeah, it was really. It was really nice. They're less than. The first few are less than like three hour lessons. And then put it on two times speed. 1.5 hours.
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A
Amazing.
- [18:53]
B
Great way to meet your reading goal.
- [18:55]
C
Yeah, I need that right now.
- [18:56]
B
Maybe I should do a little reread.
- [18:59]
A
You may consider it actually.
- [19:01]
B
Cool.
- [19:02]
C
Maybe when. As it gets closer to like the release of the show. Amazing. Okay. I mean, I feel like I had to include this. I know we've talked about it a lot, but Emma Lyon,
- [19:24]
B
I think it's inevitable for that to also be made into an adaptation.
- [19:27]
C
I think so too. I think it's just, you know, it's just gonna happen one of these days. You know, we've talked about this. If this is your first time listening to our podcast, it's gives off Vin Bridgeton vibes, but it's a little bit after Bridgeton with the time era. Like I want to say like 50ish years, maybe. Know they say dates, I can't remember. The dates get mumbled, jumbled in my brain. But it's a diary of a character called Emma M. Lyon and. Or her journals, I guess. And her life is just so interesting and so fun to be a part of. You would think that it would be very mundane, but. But I feel like there's just things that are so intriguing, especially about that time period because there are like a lot of society rules, like etiquette and you know, she has a hard time sometimes following those things.
- [20:38]
B
She's like Eloise, but better.
- [20:40]
C
Yeah, yeah. And so she. Yeah, it's just. There's eight out so far, right?
- [20:50]
A
Eight. That sounds right.
- [20:51]
C
And I think there might be a lot more to come. So I'm waiting with bated breath for the next one to come out. And I don't think there's any release date, but they are. So I want to say like the first. I want to say almost all of them are under 350 pages. Especially the first three are like really short.
- [21:16]
B
I think I read up to four and I think they all have been under eight hours, which I think equates to about like under 350 pages.
- [21:26]
C
So they're just so easy, really short books that I think, if you like. The thing is, is I feel like a lot of people are like, I don't know how I feel about like historical fiction, you know, like that time period. But like, think about the. And the fact that it's just like fun. Like it's almost like reality TV but in that time period, I don't know how else to describe it. No.
- [21:50]
B
100. That's exactly how I think it's enjoyable.
- [21:52]
C
And I, I feel if you feel like that's a little bit outside of your comfort zone, I think still give it a try at least like the first like three books. Because I feel like the first book is. Is a little bit like setting up the storyline, you know, the setting and everything. And I think it just gets more fun with every single book.
- [22:12]
B
So I think the writing style and how Emma talks, she's just kind of sassy and witty. I think that's what makes it so fun because like you said, it is kind of mundane because it's just going through her day to day life. But who she is as a person is what makes the books special. And so I agree. You have to at least I think make it through the first three books. They're so short. I think the first book is like a three hour. Listen, you can't get attached to a character. Get a fill for a book in three hours. So give the first three books a shot. A shot. And I think you'd probably end up really liking them. Yeah.
- [22:48]
C
Sorry. It just had to be said. I know we've talked about it a lot in the past few episodes, but just it just fit this episode really well. So.
- [23:03]
A
I know what's going. I don't know why it stresses me out that it's not.
- [23:08]
C
There's God.
- [23:08]
B
Actually I don't know how to turn it off. I'm gonna switch it up from happy fun read to one that's depressing.
- [23:17]
A
So sorry.
- [23:18]
B
This is actually on Reggie's Spring tbr the Bright Years by Sarah Demoff. I've. This is was. I'm pretty sure this was her debut novel and it was so good. I cannot wait for her book, her next book to come out. So this is just strictly fiction. There is a couple who is married. The wife has a secret son and the dad has a secret addiction to alcohol. And so you're following. There's a lot of time jumps because you're following the couple, but then you're also following the couple's daughter that they have together. And kind of just how. The secret son and the alcoholism affect the. Their relationship, their family. When she's young and then also when she's an adult. It. The ending of the book had me absolutely sobbing. It's definitely a book when you're in the mood to cry. And I think if you like books that touch on like obviously alcoholism, drama not even drama, but it's just so emotional. And I think when I finished the book, I ended the book having a respect for a lot of different types of people, especially people, you know, who do struggle with alcoholism and, like, families who have to deal with that because it's a very big part of the book and just how hard it really can be on everyone around you. I rated it 4 stars. I think anything that makes me cry, honestly, is going to get four stars or higher. But the way that she packed a punch in such a small amount of pages was incredible. And so I just, once again, can't wait for her next book. And I think if you really like fiction, you're probably going to really like this book. If you like Kristin Hannah or Fredrik Backman, this is right up your alley. I think this author is going to be a force to be reckoned with in the future, so. And I think it's 288 pages.
- [25:33]
C
Oh, dang.
- [25:33]
B
I think I read it in a day and a half.
- [25:35]
A
Wow.
- [25:36]
C
That's impressive.
- [25:36]
B
Loved it. Try it out. Reggie's gonna try it out. Cause it's on a spring tbr.
- [25:41]
A
Yeah, I've got a lot of sad books on my TBR for. So I'm just in the mood to cry. Cry with the April showers. I don't know. Okay, Myreck. And I'm going to double check and make sure these are still on Kindle Unlimited. Because when I read them at the time, they were. And they also had a dual. Like you could listen to them also on Kindle Unlimited. I just want to say they're on there. If they're not. Yep, they are. And you can listen to them and read them the book. So I read two by this author. The one I'll talk about. One of them is they're kind of like these twisty mystery thrillers that she writes. Her name is AR Tor T O R R E. I don't know if that's how you say it, but anyhow, yeah, there's one that's about a murder of a bunch of teens in a town. And she's trying to figure out this case and if they have the right person behind bars. Very bingeable. Very bingeable. I wouldn't say it's the most epic thriller I've ever read, but keeps you guessing, keeps you on your toes. Very quick read. But I'm going to talk more about her other book. It's called Every Last Secret. And this one, I wouldn't really call it a thriller. It's Just one of those more like twisty family next door kind of books where there's a lot of secrets and you're trying to figure out who is in the right and who is in the wrong. I really enjoyed listening and reading to this one, just because it was a good change of pace, because it's not strictly just like, fiction is not strictly a thriller. It's just drama. Okay, so basically the blurb is, welcome to the neighborhood. Watch your husband, watch your friends, and watch your back. So there's. There's some drama. There's this girl, this first couple that lives in this house. They're very wealthy. They've worked really hard to get what they have. They have, like, a really good social standing. And then there's this couple that moves in to the estate next door, and there's just this weird infatuation. Like, this other girl starts to become really infatuated with this other wife and wants to be like her, and things just start to escalate. So, yeah, wealth and temptation, secrets, toxic jealousy. If that sounds like something you're in the mood for, I feel like it's a good book to start. If you're not sure what you want to read next. You know, if you need, like, a little a break from reading some romance, a break from reading some thrillers or fantasy or whatever, it's just kind of in its own little. I don't know, it's like, in a gray area and genre bends a little. Yeah, yeah. So I was just picturing it as, like, a soap opera in my head, but, like, in a good way.
- [29:09]
C
And.
- [29:10]
A
Yeah, and there's. She has a bunch of other books on Kindle Unlimited that you can also listen to and read, and pretty much all of them are under 350 pages, so that's a plus. Yeah, for sure. Yeah.
- [29:24]
C
I feel like when they're shorter, it definitely entices me to be like, okay, yeah, I'm gonna read that. I. Okay, this next one that I'm gonna talk about. I. We were lucky enough to get early release of it. And this was like, when we very first started the podcast, you guys. Her husband was the one that reached out to us.
- [29:52]
B
Oh, my gosh.
- [29:53]
C
Yeah, it's Rebecca Yarros. It was like when Fourth Wing, like, very first came out. And then this was her. A romance book that came out after it. Like, her husband reached out and was, like, her manager at the time. And so Reggie was the lucky one to get the signed copy of it. So she has a signed copy from Rebecca Yarros. It's in the likely event, and I think it's her only book that's under 350 pages.
- [30:22]
B
I think you're right.
- [30:25]
C
It's. If you haven't read, like, her contemporary romance yet, you need to.
- [30:33]
B
They're so good.
- [30:33]
C
And there's something about her writing that I just. I just love. I just love, and I will say a lot of her contemporary romance. I'm pretty sure almost all of them have some sort of aspect in the military. Hence the military school in Fourth Wing.
- [30:53]
B
If you guys didn't know, her husband was in the military. So I feel like she's got a very good insight into.
- [30:58]
C
Yeah.
- [30:58]
B
The military world.
- [31:00]
C
Yes. So I don't even know where to even start with this book. But she in inner.
- [31:11]
B
She's a ballerina.
- [31:12]
C
No, that's variation.
- [31:13]
B
Oh, which one?
- [31:14]
C
It is in the likely event.
- [31:15]
A
I don't remember. She works at a bar.
- [31:18]
B
No, she's, like, in the government.
- [31:20]
A
Yes.
- [31:20]
B
And he's a bodyguard.
- [31:23]
C
Okay.
- [31:23]
B
I think he's her bodyguard.
- [31:25]
C
I'm just trying to.
- [31:27]
A
Oh, in the flash forward. Yeah, yeah, yeah. He's her bodyguard. Yeah.
- [31:33]
B
She's a part of government somehow. I don't know what her government thing is. She goes there to. Is she a negotiator?
- [31:42]
A
Yeah.
- [31:42]
C
Well, it doesn't ever say in the
- [31:44]
B
synopsis she has some type of government job that requires a bodyguard.
- [31:48]
A
I thought she was a journalist, actually.
- [31:50]
C
Yeah. It doesn't say anything about, like, her, like, military.
- [31:56]
A
Like her career in a plane crash together.
- [31:59]
C
Oh, she's in politics.
- [32:02]
B
I can't remember this book I saw.
- [32:05]
A
She's. Okay.
- [32:06]
C
Pretty much the whole premise that will get you to read it is they are on a plane together. He's in some sort of military. She's in the politics area, and the plane goes down. That's all I'm gonna say.
- [32:24]
A
Yeah, yeah. There's some.
- [32:26]
C
And it's crazy. There's a lot that goes down.
- [32:28]
A
Flash forwards, some flashbacks.
- [32:30]
C
Yes.
- [32:31]
A
I love that. Man.
- [32:32]
B
I need to reread that.
- [32:33]
C
Yeah.
- [32:34]
B
It's been a long time since.
- [32:35]
C
I know. I need to reread it too, because it is a little fuzzy when it comes to what it's, like, actually about and the details of it. But I remember really liking it in my review was Nate has raised the bar for every man.
- [32:51]
A
She's, like, the only male main character of her books besides Zaden Ryerson that I can remember his name.
- [32:59]
B
Beckett.
- [33:00]
C
Beckett.
- [33:01]
B
You don't remember Beckett's name?
- [33:02]
A
Actually, that's true.
- [33:04]
B
She just writes really good men she really, honestly does. And maybe it's also something just about military men, because every single one of them, you know, if you're a military man, not to say you have to be this kind of, like, hard exterior, but I feel like military men tend to have this hard exterior.
- [33:20]
C
Yeah.
- [33:20]
B
They're always soft for that female main character.
- [33:24]
C
The one girl.
- [33:25]
B
The one girl. She writes men very well.
- [33:28]
C
Yeah.
- [33:29]
A
Yeah.
- [33:31]
C
Anyways, that. That's her shortest book.
- [33:34]
B
So if you haven't read any of her romance books, like Michaela said, let this be your first one because it's short.
- [33:39]
C
Yep. Yep.
- [33:40]
A
Amazing.
- [33:41]
C
We read that so long ago. It's been a long time.
- [33:43]
B
Like three years ago. Yeah. I think that was my first contemporary romance. I read by her.
- [33:46]
A
Has that one been picked up, too?
- [33:49]
B
I bet all of them have been in some capacity.
- [33:51]
C
I'm not sure.
- [33:52]
A
I know Variation has.
- [33:54]
C
Yes, it has. Do they have a cast?
- [33:57]
A
No, I don't think so.
- [33:59]
C
Or is it just a. I just
- [34:00]
A
think out of all of her romance books, the ones I would want to see made into a film, I feel like that's the only one I can think of of her, like, newer romance books that hasn't been picked up.
- [34:15]
B
Okay, Okay, okay, okay. Sorry. I was reading this article. So obviously we have Fourth Wing.
- [34:28]
C
Yeah.
- [34:29]
B
Michael B. Jordan in the Likely Event.
- [34:32]
C
Yeah.
- [34:33]
B
The Things We Leave Unfinished. Okay.
- [34:36]
A
The Last Letter.
- [34:37]
B
The Last letter.
- [34:37]
A
I hate the very.
- [34:38]
B
Into a Movie. I don't want to Variation. That's what this article says. Those are the five.
- [34:44]
C
Yeah.
- [34:44]
A
I'm surprised that in the Likely Event wouldn't be on there.
- [34:48]
B
No, it was. It was, it was.
- [34:50]
C
That was the first one she said after Fourth Wing.
- [34:53]
A
Oh. Okay, guys, I'm telling you, my brain isn't working. No, it's okay.
- [34:59]
B
So I feel like that was a. Yeah.
- [35:00]
C
A different order than what we were talking about.
- [35:02]
A
Yeah.
- [35:02]
B
Yeah.
- [35:03]
A
So pretty much all of her newer romance books.
- [35:06]
B
Yeah. The Things We Leave Unfinished I think is pretty old. Yeah.
- [35:10]
A
She does have a ton of other ones that I haven't even read.
- [35:13]
C
Yeah.
- [35:14]
A
They've just been from a long, long time ago, but.
- [35:18]
B
Oh, yeah, I love it.
- [35:20]
A
Get your bag, Rebecca.
- [35:21]
C
Yeah.
- [35:21]
A
Ah. Love it.
- [35:23]
C
Get your bag.
- [35:25]
B
Okay, I'm gonna switch gears just a tiny bit. And when I say this recommendation, I'm gonna preface it by saying I grew up on the Simple Life. So if you're around my age and you grew up watching Paris Hilton on tv, you absolutely need to read this memoir. And if you didn't grow up watching Paris Hilton, I still think it's a really interesting read or listen, because her life is crazy. So Paris A Memoir for Young Women in the Age of Influencers. You can listen to it or you can read it. I think both avenues would be really great. I listened to it because she does actually narrate it herself. If you don't know anything about Paris Hilton, you obviously know what she is, her Persona, but she's so much more than that. So a lot of this book takes place during the time period of her life when she was sent to Provo to this. There's an actual word for it, but it's like a house for troubled kids. And I'm putting air quotes around that. It's absolutely wild. They literally picked her. Her parents hired these people to literally pick her up out of her sleep, almost like kidnap her and ship her to a house in Provo.
- [36:46]
C
How. How old was she when this happened?
- [36:48]
B
I can't remember. It's crazy. It's. She's gone as far to. She's came. She's come to Utah quite a few times to the state capitol to do a lot of reform work so that these types of houses aren't legal anymore. I do believe that, like, a bill was passed. I don't know if it was so interesting to me because I live in Utah, but it was really interesting just to kind of hear her talk about her life and how she's so much more than what you see on her Instagram or on tv. She actually. Her baby voice she does is actually not how she talks. It's like a part of her Persona. So when she narrates the book, that's not how she talks. It's. It's a crazy, crazy memoir. And I think I rated it. Well, I don't rate memoirs, but if
- [37:34]
C
I had to rate it, I would
- [37:35]
B
have rated it five stars. It's really, really interesting. So if you have any type of interest in Paris Hilton or celebrities or pop culture, I think definitely pick this book up. Because, once again, if you're around my age, I feel like Paris Hilton was a huge part of, like, my tween years and my teen years. And so I grew up watching her, grew up seeing her in all the gossip magazines with, like, Lindsay Lohan. Anyways, Crazy. Try it. Pick it up. Have you read it, Reggie?
- [38:08]
A
No, but I want to.
- [38:09]
B
It's really, really interesting. It's actually quite sad. So try it if you're in the mood for a celebrity memoir.
- [38:17]
A
Nice.
- [38:17]
C
Actually, I know who Paris Hilton is, but I have no idea why she, like, is famous.
- [38:24]
B
Or, I mean, she's famous because her family is the Hilton family. Like, Hilton Hotels is her family.
- [38:31]
C
Okay. So.
- [38:32]
B
And then around. Just. I think because her. Her family was so wealthy, obviously, she was in the, like, papara. The magazines, like, the paparazzi magazines. I also want to say. And all the Bravo people are gonna come for me. I wanna say her mom was one of the OG Housewives on Real Housewives of, like, what is it? Beverly Hills? I don't watch in just Housewives. So that also got her famous also. She was. She hung out in the circles with all the famous people in that era. So you have, like, Lindsay Lohan. Do you know who Nicole Richie is? That was, like her best friend. And then her and Nicole Richie had a TV show called the Simple Life, where they would go and they would, like, literally live with these families and do, like, farm work. And it was crazy.
- [39:24]
C
It was actually so entertaining.
- [39:26]
B
I remember. Sorry, I'm going off on a tangent. I remember in high school, this is really aging me. High school, middle school, going to, like, Blockbuster and renting the seasons of A Simple Life to watch at home. Wow. So that's crazy.
- [39:41]
C
I don't think I've ever entered into a Blockbuster.
- [39:44]
A
Oh, there's such a vibe.
- [39:45]
B
Well, you probably do. You remember when Netflix would, like. You would have to go online to Netflix and you'd have to request DVDs to be mailed to you guys. The age difference between Michaela and us is literally only five years. Wait. Yeah, but it's crazy.
- [40:01]
A
Yeah, six.
- [40:01]
C
I remember the red boxes. Is that what they were called? Oh, yeah.
- [40:06]
A
You could go out.
- [40:06]
B
Red box, too.
- [40:07]
A
Yeah, Gas station.
- [40:08]
C
That's what we did.
- [40:09]
B
But Netflix used to be online. You had to request movies and they would ship them to you.
- [40:12]
C
Wait, I think I remember that.
- [40:14]
A
Yeah. I remember thinking that was the coolest thing.
- [40:17]
C
Wild, right?
- [40:18]
B
Our age difference is five years.
- [40:20]
C
Yes.
- [40:21]
B
That's crazy how five years difference, really?
- [40:24]
C
Four and a half.
- [40:25]
B
That's. That's wild.
- [40:27]
C
26.
- [40:27]
B
Yeah.
- [40:28]
C
This year.
- [40:30]
B
Oh, yeah.
- [40:30]
A
I remember the Blockbuster that used to be by Lee's.
- [40:33]
B
I don't know if it was a Blockbuster, but that's the only one that.
- [40:35]
A
And then I'd get, like, a boxed candy in the little bin. Yeah.
- [40:38]
C
Wow.
- [40:39]
B
We had a membership there. Because I would. Yeah, that's what I would do on the weekends. I would just go and I would rent all these.
- [40:44]
A
Yeah. Yeah.
- [40:45]
B
Anyway, try Paris Hilton's memoir.
- [40:49]
A
All right, guys, I haven't talked about this book in such a long time, and it popped up When I was, like, scrolling through, I was like, oh, every time I think about this book, it, like, brings a little tear to my eye. The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Steen. Stein Steen. It's a great book. And let me tell you before I say anything else. Well, okay, so this is a book, and I tell this to people and they're like, what? Keep in mind, okay, I'm not a dog person. I don't own a dog. I like dogs. But I just. When someone told me that this is a book told from the perspective of a dog, I was like, I'm gonna hate that. I'm not reading that. I don't. I don't read dog book books. Okay? I didn't like the because of Winn Dixie movies and books. Like, I was just like, no. And she was like, no, this is, like, the best book I've ever read. So I was like, okay, I'll give it a whirl. I read it in, like, an entire day. Could not stop crying. It is such a. It's like a heartwarming book. It's such an interesting premise, too, to be reading about a dog through, like, his eyes and just seeing everything that unfolds within his family, his owner and his family. It's so. It's so good. And I remember, like, reading the first paragraph, and I was like, oh, I'm in for a treat. I knew it was going to be good just from the first, like, page. So, yeah. So the owner of the dog is. Does he start off as a race car? He is a race car driver.
- [42:35]
B
Right.
- [42:36]
A
The owner of the dog is a race car driver. And the dog. Yeah. He's just telling the story of their life together. And that's all I'll really say about it. There is a movie that has come out a few years ago with. What's his name? Milo. Yeah. I don't know how to say Jesse. On
- [43:05]
B
it ends with us.
- [43:06]
A
He's on it ends with us. He's the dad, and it ends with us.
- [43:08]
B
Gilmore Girls.
- [43:09]
A
Gilmore Girls. Anyways. Love him to death. He was perfect. However, they did change some themes of the plot to make it pg.
- [43:18]
B
Also, isn't Amanda Seyfried the wife?
- [43:20]
A
Yeah, yeah. So, yeah, they changed some things to the movie to keep it more family friendly. I didn't like that they did that because I just didn't. I don't know, but I can see why they did. Anyways, very good book. It's 336 pages. So if you're a dog lover, and you haven't read this book, You. It's like, a must read, I would say.
- [43:49]
B
Also, like, yes, it's told in the perspective of a dog, and I am a dog person. And I feel like over the last three years, I've read a few books that are books told in a dog's perspective. This one just does it a little bit differently. You almost at times kind of forget that it's told in a dog's perspective because it still feels mature. Like, some dog books that I've read, you can tell that they kind of play into this, like, happy, go, lucky, like, very naive dog Persona. But this, I think, is more mature. It just feels different than other Written very beautifully.
- [44:29]
C
So. Yeah, that's a good one.
- [44:32]
A
Enzo.
- [44:33]
B
Sweet Enzo. Still have not watched the movie. I turned it on, started sobbing within five minutes, and my husband said, we're not watching this, and turned it off.
- [44:45]
C
We're not watching this.
- [44:46]
B
Okay, you guys want to hear something sad? You'll have to cut this out. Still keeps peeing in the house. I don't think he controls bladder anymore.
- [44:55]
C
You're kidding.
- [44:56]
B
It's really sad.
- [44:57]
C
Oh, poor guy.
- [44:58]
B
He's fine.
- [44:59]
C
He doesn't want to.
- [45:01]
B
I know.
- [45:03]
A
That's so sad.
- [45:05]
C
No.
- [45:07]
A
Oh, that is really sad.
- [45:08]
B
Yeah, it's really sad.
- [45:10]
A
Okay, how many more are we doing?
- [45:12]
C
One more.
- [45:13]
A
Yeah, we can do one more.
- [45:14]
C
Or do we want to stop it now?
- [45:16]
B
No, let's do one more. I gotta pick my. One more.
- [45:19]
C
Okay. This is a book that I feel like is severely underrated. And I feel like we wouldn't have even known about this book unless we would have done the collaboration that we did. But the Other side of now by Paige Harberson. And she has a new book coming out in July, and I am giddy for it.
- [45:41]
A
Me too.
- [45:42]
C
So excited.
- [45:43]
B
But
- [45:45]
C
the Other side of Now, I was pleasantly surprised of, like, how much I enjoyed it. It's. I feel like this one also genre bends a little bit. And I was like, okay, like, I'm gonna read this, I guess. And I. I absolutely adored it. I think Paige has this. She's just a silly gal. I love the way she writes, and she has a lot of comedic and relief and, like, a lot of kind of serious, hard things that happen
- [46:20]
B
or.
- [46:20]
C
Okay, correct me if I'm wrong. How does. How does she get into.
- [46:27]
B
She walks through a door.
- [46:29]
C
Through a door.
- [46:30]
B
Okay.
- [46:31]
C
Pretty much the premise of the book is.
- [46:35]
B
Right. Or is she on a plane?
- [46:38]
C
No.
- [46:39]
A
Yeah. She goes. She's flying to Ireland.
- [46:42]
B
And I want to say she Walks through a door in a theater in Ireland. Maybe just leave that detail out. Somehow she gets to. I can't remember, but I swear she walks through a door.
- [46:49]
A
I thought she was like on an airplane because she like lands in Ireland. When she wakes up, she's like, how
- [46:55]
B
she gets home as she walks through a door in a theater.
- [46:59]
A
I don't know.
- [46:59]
C
I don't know. Anyways, she decides to go on an impromptu trip and to Ireland. And then she gets there and she sees her best friend, but her best friend died a decade ago. And so she's like navigating this trip, trying to figure out what is going on because her best friend is there. Like, and people know her. Like, it's like she has a life there. And so it's like this really weird kind of like trippy book. A little bit about like this life that she could have had or like.
- [47:42]
A
Yeah. Because it's like magical realism.
- [47:44]
C
Yeah.
- [47:45]
A
Yeah.
- [47:46]
C
And it's just kind of like her story of this life that could have happened if her friend wouldn't have died. It. I don't know, it was just. It's kind of hard to explain, but it done so well.
- [48:01]
A
Yeah. And she also narrates the book and yeah, she is just witty, funny, but like, there's so much heart within the book. I loved it. I loved it.
- [48:18]
B
She has like fun pop culture references. Just the way she wound humor into this really heartfelt, emotional book was really, really cool.
- [48:31]
C
Yeah. Yeah.
- [48:33]
B
I also think Paige Harbison is going to be a force to be reckoned with. I could see. I know I say this about a lot of movies. I could also see that being a really good movie as well.
- [48:41]
C
Yeah. It's a 320 page book. Highly suggest listening to it because the narration by her is just so good.
- [48:50]
B
Oh, yeah, she narrates her own book. Right.
- [48:52]
C
So good. Um, so highly suggest. It's really good. I mean, I only listened to it. I don't know if you guys.
- [49:00]
B
I just listened to it.
- [49:01]
C
Listened to it only too. But it was a good experience. Really enhanced that read for me. So.
- [49:12]
B
We love you, Paige.
- [49:13]
C
Yeah.
- [49:14]
B
All right, my final recommendation.
- [49:17]
C
I don't know if have either of
- [49:19]
B
you read Dial A for Aunties. Yeah, you read it. Okay. 299 pages. You are following your main character who accidentally kills her blind date. And if I'm remembering correctly, she stuffs the body in her car. I can't remember. And the main character is a wedding photographer and her whole family basically is just this family of wedding vendors. So There's a florist, there's a cake decorator or whatever. And so her blind date accidentally dies, but she has to go to a wedding. And it is the most outrageous fun. It's a rom com all of the aunties try to get involved in, like, trying to figure out how they're going to cover up this death.
- [50:14]
A
Yeah.
- [50:14]
B
At a wedding. When they're all wedding vendors. So partly it might have been really fun because, you know, I'm a wedding photographer, so I get the wedding industry, but it just was. So what's the word I'm looking for? Outrageous and fun. And you love these little aunties who are meddling in the main character's life. If you just want a light, fluffy read that you might get a few chuckles out of, this is the perfect read for that. It's a great palate cleanser. It's 299 pages. Like I said, I rated it three and a half stars. It's not anything to write home about, but it was fun.
- [50:57]
A
Yeah, sounds fun.
- [50:59]
B
It is fun. And there's three books in this little series. I've only read the first two, but I wanted to be a part of their family.
- [51:09]
C
The aunties are crazy.
- [51:11]
B
I haven't watched. What is it? What's the movie? The eight.
- [51:20]
C
The one Crazy Rich Asians.
- [51:22]
B
Is it kind of like that? I've never seen Crazy Rich Asians.
- [51:24]
C
You've never seen Crazy Rich Asians?
- [51:26]
B
I know, I know, I know. It's a book. Does it give similar vibes?
- [51:33]
C
No.
- [51:34]
B
Okay.
- [51:35]
C
I wouldn't say, but, you know, I feel like it has that theme of, like, family being a little. Maybe a little too involved.
- [51:46]
B
Overbearing.
- [51:46]
C
Yeah. Yeah.
- [51:47]
B
Okay.
- [51:48]
C
Yeah.
- [51:48]
B
Okay. So is Crazy Rich Asians at a wedding as well?
- [51:53]
A
Yeah.
- [51:53]
C
Yeah. Okay. Yeah.
- [51:55]
B
I've never seen it.
- [51:56]
C
So, anyways, I think you'd really like it. It's really good. It's.
- [52:00]
B
I've seen a tick tock about that
- [52:01]
C
being, like the ultimate plane watch, and I've watched that on the plane many times. I didn't know that. That was like, almost like universal experience to watch that on a plane.
- [52:11]
B
All right, I'll watch it the next time. I'll watch the next time on the plane.
- [52:14]
A
Yeah. Yeah.
- [52:15]
B
All right, cool. Or maybe you could read Dial A for Aunties on the Plane.
- [52:19]
A
Yeah.
- [52:19]
B
Yeah,
- [52:22]
A
I guess I'll end us with a bang. I'm gonna try to not sound like a broken record, but you guys are just gonna have to get used to me yapping about my boy Steve Kavanaugh.
- [52:33]
B
Steve.
- [52:34]
A
But I just discovered him and he's just like, I'm obsessed with him. Okay, so his very first books is 308 pages. I just finished it the other day. Most of his books are under like 350 pages. Some of them are not. But what's great about his books is that you don't it. It's in a series, but you don't have to. You're not gonna like end one book and being like dying to pick up the next one because of like a cliffhanger or anything like that, as far as I know. But if you like courtroom dramas, if you like Criminal Minds, you would really like Law and Order, you would really enjoy his books. I started with book five. I'll talk more about that when we do our next TBR episode. And I decided I'm like, I loved it so much. I'm like, I'm. Start from the beginning. Start with book number one. I probably would have rated this a lot higher had I not read book five first. But it's so, it's so good. So it's called. The first book's called the Defense. It's. The series is called Eddie Flynn. He is the lawyer. And I just have to, I feel like the book description is just so good that I just have to read part of it. So Eddie Flynn is this lawyer. He used to be a con artist.
- [54:01]
C
And
- [54:04]
A
so it says. It's been a year since Eddie vowed to never set foot in the courtroom again. But now he doesn't have a choice. Oleg Volchek, the infamous head of the Russian mob, is in New York and he has strapped a bomb to Eddie's back and has kidnapped his 10 year old daughter Amy. And he only has 48 hours to defend the leader of the Russian mafia and make him win the trial. And if he doesn't win the trial, then he basically, if he doesn't win, if he loses the case, he loses everything. And it is like starts off with a bang. And I like was sweating. It's very intense and there's, it's crazy. It's. There's so much that happens and just very fast paced. The courtroom scenes are the best part of these books. Like there's so much action that happens outside of the courtroom, but when the courtroom scenes begin, I'm sad. I'm like, I am, I'm, I'm sit. I feel like I am on the jury. It is, it's a great time. So if you're looking for a fun, kind of twisty, fast paced. Yeah. Courtroom Drama Betty Flynn series by Steve Kavanaugh.
- [55:26]
B
Every time we talk about the series, I can only picture Saul Goodman. So if I read the series, that's exactly who I'm gonna picture.
- [55:32]
A
I don't know, I picture Eddie Flynn's.
- [55:34]
B
I mean, I don't know what his. I don't know what his description is, but like, what.
- [55:38]
C
What would you say like his age is?
- [55:39]
A
I mean, first book, he's got like a 10 year old daughter.
- [55:43]
C
Okay.
- [55:44]
A
I'd guess he's like 30s, late 30s.
- [55:48]
C
Yeah.
- [55:48]
A
I picture him to be. I don't know, I mean, in my mind because I'm picturing him the whole time. I imagine he's really hot. I don't know.
- [55:57]
B
So not solid.
- [55:58]
A
I don't know. That's all good, man. I don't actually really know what he looks like, but in my mind he's easy on the eyes.
- [56:07]
C
I mean, he's gotta.
- [56:09]
A
Yeah, he's gotta. He's a charmer. I mean, he's. Yeah. So very fun. I would love to see this as these books as a series so badly.
- [56:20]
B
Yeah.
- [56:20]
C
So I really wanna. I really do wanna read them.
- [56:23]
B
Yeah, me too.
- [56:25]
C
I think it will. It sounds like a good fun time.
- [56:27]
B
Like it's like a fall. It's a fall October vibe, you know?
- [56:31]
A
Yeah. Anywho, we hope you enjoyed these recs. Hopefully. I feel like we gave recommendations from all across the spectrum. Yeah, all over the place with genres. So hopefully you're able to find something that you can add to your tbr. Hopefully. Enjoy. We love recommending books for you guys. You can always slide into our DMs with more specific requests. We love your book recommendations for us as well. And thanks so much for listening. You can find us on TikTok and Instagram what she's Reading podcast. Uh, and we have a Patreon where you can subscribe for extra bonus content. When does this come out? I don't know. I'll just say new merch coming soon.
- [57:16]
B
May I? Sure. Hope by the time this comes out
- [57:19]
A
our merch is live because only have two episodes recorded. I don't know. I don't have to say anything about merch, but maybe just say.
- [57:29]
B
I'll just say we have merch.
- [57:30]
A
Yeah, if you like cute bookish merch, Kindle cases, all that jazz, you can head to our website. I'll read what she's reading.com for some bookish goodies for you or the reader in your life. Thanks so much for tuning in. We will see you next Wednesday by.