Ep 462 - Giving an Author a Second Chance + Briarwick Candles!

Summary

Podcast Summary: Reading Glasses – Ep 462

“Giving an Author a Second Chance + Briarwick Candles!”
Hosts: Brea Grant & Mallory O'Meara
Date: May 14, 2026

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Episode Overview

In this episode, Brea and Mallory explore the value of “giving an author a second chance”—reading a different book by an author after an underwhelming first experience—as part of their annual Reading Glasses Challenge. They offer practical tips for approaching this challenge, share their personal picks, and discuss how this approach can enhance your reading life. The hosts also test and review a Briarwick bookish candle and answer a listener's question about staying focused during audiobooks when living with ADHD.

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What the Hosts Are Currently Reading

[00:33 - 04:00]

• Brea’s Pick: Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
  • A funny, video game-inspired post-apocalyptic adventure, featuring a man and his ex-girlfriend’s cat navigating an alien-run reality show dungeon.
  • “It’s really fun. It’s wildly entertaining, it’s super funny, and I’m really enjoying it so far.” – Brea [02:45]
  • Recommended to fans of video games and offbeat fantasy.
• Mallory’s Pick: The Perilous Deep by Carl Bell
  • An academic yet engaging exploration of Atlantic Ocean folklore, magic, and sailor superstitions.
  • “It’s a little bit dense... if you are someone who’s into ships, into the ocean, into sea monsters, this is definitely the book for you.” – Mallory [03:23]

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Listener Feedback and Bookish Tips

[04:07 - 07:29]

• Queer Romance with Cerebral Palsy Representation:
  • Recommendations:
    • Cloud 9 by Infern Hill
    • Halo and Love Him Desperate, both by EM Lindsay
  • “Hopefully you can pass these recs along to the person who asked about main characters with cerebral palsy. I love it. Thank you. The Glassers always come through.” — Mallory [04:40]
• Kindle Widget for iPhone:
  • Listener Beth highlights how the Kindle lock screen widget helps curb social media habits and boost reading.
  • “There’s a ring around the Kindle symbol which closes relative to how much of the book you’ve finished... Real hot book tip. Real game changer.” — Brea [05:28]
• Wheelhouses:
  • Listener Jane celebrates the show’s empowering stance on reading without guilt and shares a unique “wheelhouse”:
    • Aliens obsessed with human food
    • Space-faring cats
    • Whimsical/sassy human-machine banter
    • “God, we’re all gonna die someday. Read what you love.” — Mallory [06:04]

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Main Topic: Giving an Author a Second Chance

[08:23 - 16:13]

Why This Challenge?

• Sometimes, a single book isn’t representative of an author’s best work or writing style.
• “There are so many authors that I love... who have had a book that I wasn’t into. And if I had started with that book, I would have missed out on so many authors’ love.” — Mallory [09:19]
• Differentiating: Not a second chance for the book, but for the author, via another book.

Practical Tips and Strategies

• Choose an author who generally aligns with your reading tastes or "wheelhouse."
• Don’t pick an author whose basic writing style you actively dislike.
• Get title recommendations from fans who know the author’s bibliography well.
• Use your library rather than purchase, to minimize pressure and frustration.
  • “If you take that pressure off the book, you have an easier time enjoying it... just, like, a casual date with a book.” — Mallory [10:50]
• Fun analogy: “You never want to go to a really fancy restaurant on a first date.” — Mallory [11:04]

Personal Picks – Who Gets a Second Shot?

• Bria:
  • Considering Tana French or Kelly Link (with advice from Mallory).
  • “Maybe I’m gonna add [Get In Trouble by Kelly Link] to this.” — Bria [13:04]
• Mallory:
  • Jenny Fagan, whose Luckenbooth didn’t connect, but only due to structure, not style.
  • “I’m going to read her book, The Panopticon, which is a sci-fi thriller about a prison that is doing experiments on teen criminal offenders... it follows one character, this one young teen girl. I’m really excited.” — Mallory [15:44]

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Book Tech Segment: Briarwick Bookish Candles Review

[17:34 - 23:03]

About Briarwick:

• Popular for book/mood-themed candles and candles inspired by specific fictional characters.
• Around $22 for an 8oz candle.
• Briarwick’s “Ilya” candle (from Heated Rivalry series) is tested.

Scent Impressions:

• Supposed notes: bonfires, cologne, leather jackets.
• Actual scent: more cedar, tobacco, subtle musk; not overwhelmingly masculine.
• “It smells very autumny... appropriately masculine, slash gender-neutral.” — Brea [19:37, 20:38]
• Both hosts liked the strength and throw; not overpowering.
• “Five out of five pages for me.” — Mallory [20:22]
• Discussed reed diffusers vs. candles, pet safety, and other luxury candle brands.

Fan Engagement Value:

• Candles offer a fun, sensory engagement with books/characters fans love.
• “I think this is a fun thing because it’s Ilya... it’s like what Ilya would have in his house.” — Bria [23:18]
• “I don’t hate a hockey player musk... but this is not that.” — Mallory [19:51]

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Bookish Problem Solving: Focusing During Audiobooks with ADHD

[23:57 - 30:39]

Listener Hannah’s Issue:

• Loves podcasts but struggles with losing focus during audiobooks (especially due to ADHD); misses info, can’t flip back like with print, feels like only part of the story is retained.

Hosts’ Advice:

• Brea:
  • Audiobook nonfiction & memoirs are easier to follow—less lost if you zone out.
  • Try starting books in print/ebook to anchor names and world, then switch to audio halfway.
    • “If someone is reading a name to me, there's no way I'm remembering that name.” — Brea [28:14]
• Mallory:
  • Increase playback speed to match your brain’s pace; faster speed can boost focus.
  • Choose listening activities that demand less divided attention (e.g., walking or commuting, not cooking or multitasking).
  • If it’s continually unsatisfying and stressful, it’s fine to DNF audiobooks as a medium.

Empowering Takeaway:

“It’s okay to admit something doesn’t work... I love you giving this one last hurrah... let us know if you gave it up or if it worked!” — Mallory [30:39]

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

• “God, we're all gonna die someday. Read what you love.” — Mallory [06:04]
• “Don’t buy it [the second-chance book] because then you’ll be really grumpy.” — Mallory [10:43]
• “Just, like, a casual date with a book.” — Mallory [10:50]
• Mallory’s book pet peeve: books that jump from one character per chapter and never return [15:11]
• On candles: “My general take on candles is that you can just get candles from Marshalls and scents that match your book... but if you’re going to splurge... this is a really great company.” — Mallory [20:03]
• “You never want to go to a really fancy restaurant on a first date.” — Mallory [11:04]
• “Wash up private detectives who can't talk about their past. This is such a good one.” — Bria, reading a listener's wheelhouse [26:35]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Currently Reading: 00:33 – 04:00
• Listener Feedback & Tips: 04:07 – 07:29
• Second Chance Author Discussion: 08:23 – 16:13
• Book Tech – Briarwick Candle Review: 17:34 – 23:03
• Audiobook Focus Tips (Bookish Problem): 23:57 – 30:39

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Episode Tone

Conversational, witty, friendly, and supportive—encouraging self-acceptance and playful curiosity about all aspects of reading culture.

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Takeaways for Listeners

• Consider giving authors—not just books—a second chance; explore with lower commitment via your local library.
• Bookish candles can be a fun way to bring your fandom into your daily environment.
• If audiobooks don’t stick, try switching formats, adjust your approach, and always remember: it’s okay to drop what doesn’t serve your joy.

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[End of Summary]

Transcript

[Announcer]

Foreign.

[Mallory O'Meara]

You are listening to Reading Glasses, a show about book culture and literary life designed to help you read better. I'm author and book devourer Mallory o'.

[Bria Grant]

Mearo. And I'm Bria Grant, filmmaker and e reader. This episode, we're ticking off another box from the Reading Glasses Glasses Glasses challenge give an author a second chance. Plus, we test out Briarwick candles. I'm sitting here next to one. It smells like Ilya Rosenoff.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Smells like hot, sweaty hockey players in here.

[Bria Grant]

And we give tips for when you space out during audiobooks.

[Mallory O'Meara]

But first, Brian, what are you reading?

[Bria Grant]

I am reading the first of the Dungeon Crawler Carl books.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Oh, wow.

[Bria Grant]

Buzzy Buzzy by Matt Deniman. I mean, it's funny because someone, okay, this came out in 2020. This was like one of those, I believe, self published books that got really big. And someone around 2021, I was like, you should check these books out. It's taken me a while, obviously, and I just ran into one of my buddies when I was in Austin. He was like, I am not a reader. I don't read. And I found these books called Dungeon Crawler Carl. And I've read like six of them or eight of them or however many.

[Mallory O'Meara]

This is like the boy version of A Court of Thorn and Roses it actually is. My boyfriend's reading one of these books right now.

[Bria Grant]

Really?

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah.

[Bria Grant]

Has he read the first one? Is he like making his way through the series?

[Mallory O'Meara]

You can correct me if I'm wrong. I think he's reading. He jumped into like the third or the fourth one.

[Bria Grant]

Really?

[Mallory O'Meara]

Another teacher told him to read it. Oh.

[Bria Grant]

So the whole thing is basically there's this guy named Carl and he's crawling

[Mallory O'Meara]

around in a dungeon.

[Bria Grant]

He's done crawling around a dungeon. There's a heavily featured cat, by the way, which people love to hear. But basically he's, he's going through this breakup. He has his girlfriend's cat. And the cat goes outside during the middle of the night and he goes out to get the cat. And every man made building, everything around him collapses like into a pancake into the ground. Oh my God. So every person who was inside Diesel and he was outside. So he saved. And then this giant, like there's this voice that comes on and says, hey, you're part of an alien invasion. Everything man made is, is gone. And now you're going to be in this like intergalactic game and you, if you want to. Not what I thought of. And so you need to go into this, this like underground lair there's gonna be some doors opening up and if you go in there, you automatically enter the game and we televise it for the universe. And so he goes with this cat into this dungeon that's a reality TV show. And he has to start and it's very much set up like a video game. So it's like he goes in and

[Mallory O'Meara]

also like a side scroller fantasy.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. And he can. He goes in and he can see like in his mind's eye, like, oh, here's the loot you have. Here's like your health bar. Here's your whatever. So it's like literally Satman's like, oh, hey, you got an achievement. Oh, hey, you got a box. And this box is full of magic stuff. Here's a potion, here's a healing potion. So it's literally set up like a video game.

[Mallory O'Meara]

That actually sounds pretty sick.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. So I think anyone who likes video games, this is the book. This is. This is definitely the choice right here. And it is. It's really fun. It's wildly entertaining, it's super funny, and I'm really enjoying it so far. What are you reading?

[Mallory O'Meara]

All right, so I'm reading. Remember last year how during the fun drive, everyone was asking for books about ships?

[Bria Grant]

Oh, yeah. We had so many ships.

[Mallory O'Meara]

This is for you. There's a few glassers that love, like, stories about ships. Glasser. HMS Raindogs. This is for you. It's called the Perilous Deep by Carl Bell. And it's a supernatural history of the Atlantic. Oh, yeah, it's my audiobook right now. It's a little academic. It's put out by a university press. I think it's the University of Chicago. So it's like a little. It's not like a super pop. It's like a little bit academic, but it's literally just like a history of folklore and magic and rituals and sailors, stories of the Atlantic Ocean and how those, those like stories have shaped culture, how like what sailor storytelling culture was like, like superstitions that they had. It's really interesting. It is. It's a. Again, it's a little bit dense. It's one of those audiobooks that I really have to pay attention to. But it's really fun. If you are someone who's into ships, into the ocean, into sea monsters, this is definitely the book for you. So that's the Perilous Deep by Carl Bell.

[Bria Grant]

And mine is Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Deniman.

[Mallory O'Meara]

So we want to take a moment to share some listener feedback. Angela Wrote in to say hi, Mallory and Bria. I'm pretty late on this, but I'm in a Facebook group for queer romance writers and readers where I know a lot of folks care a lot about representation of different abilities and disabilities. I asked for some racks where one of the protagonists has cerebral palsy. Here are the three that I got.

[Bria Grant]

Oh, because we want. We needed that for the show for romances. Yeah. Wow. Great. Thanks, Angela.

[Mallory O'Meara]

So we have Cloud. I'm obviously putting all these in the show notes, but Cloud 9 by Infern Hill. Halo by Em Lindsay. Love Him Desperate by Em Lindsay. Love Him Desperate sounds.

[Bria Grant]

That does sound good.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Sexy. Hopefully you can pass these wrecks along to the person who asked about main characters with cerebral palsy. I love it. Thank you. The classes always come through.

[Bria Grant]

They always do. Beth wrote in and said, I discovered yesterday that I can add a Kindle widget to the lock screen of my iPhone. What? It's helping me to read my book instead of opening social media. There's a ring around the Kindle symbol which closes relative to how much of the book you finished. And it's activated the finish a task portion of my.

[Mallory O'Meara]

So it's like a little progress bar.

[Bria Grant]

You can add it to the lock screen. Hold on. I'm gonna do it right now. I'm gonna try to do it also.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I'm laughing because. So last episode we tested out the walking pad. My cat Lula is just sitting on it. Lulu, you gonna go for a walk? It's gonna go for an audiobook walk. She might like Dungeon crawler call.

[Bria Grant]

Okay, I'm going to. Because I just customized. You can make your. The lock screen, your numbers and stuff, any color you want. Kindle currently reading. Okay. It says, I'm reading Cold Sweat by Vera Valentine. Because that's the last one. Okay. I'm gonna add that to my. Wow. That's so funny. That's cool. This is such Beth. Wow. This is a real hot book tip. Real game changer. Wow. Fantastic. Thanks, Beth.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Damn. So Jane wrote in to say hi. Brian, Mallory, Long time listener, first time Max fun member. Oh, thank you, Jane. Love you gals and both your podcasts. Thank you for giving me a bright light to look forward to every week. Teaching me about wheelhouses and doorways and helping me let go of my guilt of loving smut. Be a smut lover.

[Bria Grant]

Oh, yeah.

[Mallory O'Meara]

God, we're all gonna die someday. Read what you love. Jane's wheelhouse is aliens obsessed with human food. I. I love that. I'm trying to think of a book that has that? I don't know, but I'm curious.

[Bria Grant]

Okay, yeah.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Space Faring Cats. Bonus points if there's no gravity. Whimsical and sassy banter between human and machine interface. This is. I. I know exactly the types of books that Jane loves. This is awesome.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah, absolutely. How? And also, yeah, send us in one of those aliens obsessed with human food.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I love that.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah.

[Mallory O'Meara]

So you can email us at reading glasses podcast gmail.com if you want a list of all the books we talk about on the show delivered to your inbox every month, you can sign up for our newsletter. There's a link in the show notes. So quick, bookmark. We just want to remind folks we have emailed out all the book recs from the drive. If you have emailed us and we never responded, please email again. It might have gotten lost in spam. Sometimes that happens. If you missed the window for recommendations, that's okay, but you can still get the Discord invite. So maybe you joined during the drive. You forgot to email us. The window for recommendations is closed, but you can email us. And that's how you get your Discord invite. If you join Maximum Fun and sign up to support reading glasses at any time, that's how you get the Discord. Because the Discord doesn't go through Max Font, it goes through us. So you have to email us your proof of membership and we'll send you an invite to join our Discord. So before we tick off another box on the 2026 Reading Glasses Challenge, we're going to take a quick break.

[John Moe]

Sleep is important, but it's difficult sometimes. I'm John Mo on Sleeping With Celebrities. Famous people help conk you out by talking in soothing voices about unimportant things. Maria Bamford on parking.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I parked in a bus stop. That's just not right.

[Bria Grant]

I am not a bus.

[John Moe]

Roxane Gay on airports.

[Mallory O'Meara]

My favorite airport is Indianapolis.

[Bria Grant]

It has a really smart layout.

[John Moe]

Alan Tudyk on yardsticks. You hand somebody a yardstick, yardsticks become

[Mallory O'Meara]

part of the family.

[John Moe]

Granted, it's a weird idea, but it's lots of fun and it works. Listen, wherever you get podcasts.

[Mallory O'Meara]

This week we're ticking off another box on the 2026 reading glasses glasses Glasses Glasses Challenge. Give an author a second chance. Which authors are we choosing? Why did we put this on the challenge? And most importantly, how can this improve your reading life? Okay, first up, the rules. This challenge is about picking up another book from an author you've already tried. It doesn't matter if you finished the book that you tried or you dumped it, now you have to pick up a different book by that author. You don't have to finish it, but you have to try. This is not about giving a book a second chance. This is about giving an author a second chance. So you have to try a different book.

[Bria Grant]

So why do we put this on the challenge, Mallory? Like, how do you think it can improve people's reading lives?

[Mallory O'Meara]

Because sometimes an author you like puts out a book that is not for you.

[Bria Grant]

That is true. And if you pick up that book first, you don't. There's other books that are in that. Cuz there are authors. People are like, oh, I'm like, have you read this person? Like, ah, tried this? I'm like, oh, don't read that one.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Don't read that one.

[Bria Grant]

Not that book. There's other ones that are better.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yes. But you, you, you have no idea if you're just getting into them. There are so many authors that I love, as in like auto buy pre order immediately authors who have had a book that I wasn't into. And if I had started with that book, I would have missed out on so many authors love. So we are encouraging you to give someone a second chance. You might stumble onto a new favorite author. All right, Bria, what are some, what are some hot tips that we've got?

[Bria Grant]

So you should try an author you feel like you would be into, whose books fall into your wheelhouse. But so like, if there's one that you were like, oh, I love mysteries, but I've tried this author and it just didn't work for me. It may be that it's just you, the book you picked up. So like that is what we're trying to say.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah. Like don't pick an author that you had read a book by them and you're like, I hate everything about this author. Like if you didn't like their writing style.

[Bria Grant]

Style, yeah.

[Mallory O'Meara]

That's probably not going to work out for you. Pick an author whose writing style you're okay with. As in the book you tried and dumped wasn't for you, but because of like the subject matter. Whatever. You just like it was like a doghouse item in there for you or something. But try to focus on someone whose writing style you're okay with.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. And also ask people who are fans of that author. So if you are like, oh, I picked up, I mean, I don't want to pick on any authors, but you pick up a book from an author. You know, I like yeah. Say, like, did you. I tried this one. I didn't like it. Should I try a different one? And we can point you in the right direction. So find. If one of your friends loves an author and you tried it and you're like, ask that friend which book that you should start.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Also last. Hot tip. Get it from the library.

[Bria Grant]

Oh, yeah, for sure.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Don't buy it because then you'll be really grumpy.

[Bria Grant]

And also, you may not finish this one either. And allow last for yourself and I.

[Mallory O'Meara]

But I think that pressure, like, if you take that pressure off the book, you have an easier time of enjoying it if you're just like, well, I got it from the library. I didn't pay for this. Like, I can just dive in and there's no. Just, like, a casual date with a book.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Mallory O'Meara]

It's like, you never want to go to a really fancy restaurant on a first date.

[Bria Grant]

Do you not?

[Mallory O'Meara]

No.

[Bria Grant]

What if they're paying?

[Mallory O'Meara]

I still. Like, there's so much pressure. I don't like fancy restaurants.

[Bria Grant]

No.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I'm one of those people. When me and my boyfriend started dating, I was like, I'm a cheap date. Don't take me to a fancy restaurant. There's a. There's a cloth napkin. I don't want to go, oh, wow.

[Bria Grant]

I just think, like, when I look at a menu, I don't want to get the most expensive thing on. On there. I always get the most expensive. I can't order that.

[Mallory O'Meara]

You and I are never going to get the most expensive thing because we don't eat meat.

[Bria Grant]

Well, I eat fish, though. And sometimes the fish is expensive. Sometimes good price. It's an mp.

[Mallory O'Meara]

You're ordering a whole lobster.

[Bria Grant]

Actually.

[Mallory O'Meara]

That does sound great. Yeah, I guess.

[Bria Grant]

I don't know.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I always feel like it's like the most expensive things are always like a steak.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah, that's true. That's true. We're not having to get that. No, no.

[Mallory O'Meara]

But, yeah, I don't like a fancy restaurant.

[Bria Grant]

So go to the library. Not a fancy restaurant.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Go to. Go eat at the library. Please don't eat at the library. The poor librarians are dealing with enough. But, like, when I eat a fancy restaurant, I'm like, I just don't feel comfortable. So I feel like the same kind of thing. Like, if you spent. Because I went book shopping today and I just like, God, books are so expensive.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah, they are.

[Mallory O'Meara]

But if you just pick up this. If you're trying an author again and you just pick up something from the library and there's no pressure. And it's like a fun, easy, breezy, beautiful cover girl situation. I feel like it's a. It's going to work out easier. So what author are you picking?

[Bria Grant]

Okay. I don't know. I have to think about this. I was thinking about Tana French, who I know you love, and I have tried and never finished. I was thinking of Mallory authors because I thought you could point me in the right direction. I also never finished. You gave me a Kelly Link book, which I've never finished, but I could just return to that same book because I think I started and this was like, not in a place for it or did I finish it? I was trying to think of authors you love that I haven't read that much of.

[Mallory O'Meara]

You should definitely read Kelly Link's get in Trouble. There's a. There's a story, this short story collection in there that I think that would blow your socks off.

[Bria Grant]

Okay. Okay. Any other ones that you feel.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Do you remember the one that you tried?

[Bria Grant]

No.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Was it her novel? Maybe the novel is a tough place to start because that book is just so long.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. Okay. Okay. Okay.

[Mallory O'Meara]

But if I. You should read get in Trouble by Kelly. Okay.

[Bria Grant]

Maybe I'm gonna add that to this.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Or Black Cat, White Dog.

[Bria Grant]

Okay, okay, okay. Kelly Link.

[Mallory O'Meara]

What Tana French book did you read? And not like, can't remember.

[Bria Grant]

I feel like I started one and then it was like. It wasn't like. It was just like not in a place I wasn't in a place for. What do you think I should start

[Mallory O'Meara]

with in the Woods? The first one.

[Bria Grant]

Interesting. Definitely haven't started that.

[Mallory O'Meara]

It's funny because I. I was. I'm picking a sci fi book, but I should. What's. What's a book that I. That you think I should do or an author that I should give a second chance?

[Bria Grant]

I guess the problem is I don't know what you have tried. This is. Makes it harder.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Sorry, folks. If you can hear my cats, it's so cute. She's very. The thing about my cat Lula is that she is terrified of almost everybody Bria has known. Lula, she was born. Bri was there the day I found Lula in a hole. Yeah, Bria was there. So she's known Aunt Bria literally her entire life. So Lula is very comfortable right now. And when Lulu goes from either being so scared that she's hiding under the bed to extremely opinionated, extremely loud, she

[Bria Grant]

want me on the microphone.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Okay. Lula is very much a cat. She will never do anything you want her to do.

[Bria Grant]

Okay, that's. That's cool. That's fine.

[Mallory O'Meara]

She has a lot of opinions, but I'm trying to think. I think a lot of the authors that you want me to try, I need to start.

[Bria Grant]

You've never dumped a book by them,

[Mallory O'Meara]

so, yeah, I would need to. Need to start. So my. My original plan. My plan is, again, this feels so vulnerable because we never talk about books we don't like on the show.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah, it's true.

[Mallory O'Meara]

We're being real vulnerable lately for the classes.

[Bria Grant]

Wow. Look at us. We're in our vulnerable era, truly.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Well, we're all vulnerable because we're all sad and stressed out. I'm choosing Jenny Fagan. So I read her book Luckin BOOTH Back in 2021, I think 2022, and I was so excited for this book. I bought it from. I ordered it from the UK because it wasn't in the US Yet. Wow. And it wasn't for me.

[Bria Grant]

Oh.

[Mallory O'Meara]

And I wonder now I'm like, oh, was it all the pressure I put on ordering this book from the uk?

[Bria Grant]

Yeah, you imported it.

[Mallory O'Meara]

But because it wasn't her writing style. What it was is Luckin Booth is one. It's a book that takes place in, like, it's an Edinburgh book, and it takes place in this, like, one, like, house. And every single chapter is, like, 10 years in the future or 100 years in the future. But the thing is, I don't like books like that.

[Bria Grant]

No, you don't.

[Mallory O'Meara]

It's one of my doghouse things. Honestly, I should put it straight in my dog house, because I don't like books where you start. Stay with one character. It's not like multiple POVs, because that's switching back and forth constantly. I'm talking about books that you get like. Yeah, you hate that one chapter from a character, and then you. The next chapter is from a different character and you never go back. Yeah, I hate that I want to follow one character or a few characters through the whole thing. So. But again, it wasn't a writing style. It was just. I don't like that. So I'm going to read her book, the Panopticon, which is sci fi thriller about a prison that is doing experiments on teen criminal offenders.

[Bria Grant]

Oh.

[Mallory O'Meara]

And it's, like, very, very, very critically acclaimed. It follows one character, this one young teen girl. I'm really excited.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah.

[Mallory O'Meara]

But I will definitely take recommendations from you. So, folks, send your thoughts on this. Tell us which authors you're giving a second chance to. We want to hear it. Send them to reading glasses podcast gmail.com before we test out a very popular brand of bookish candle, we're going to take a quick break.

[Announcer]

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[Mallory O'Meara]

Time to test out some book tech. Advances in bookish technology. Today we are testing out a very popular brand of bookish candle, Briarwick. So they do, they have two types of candles. They do general bookish mood ones that are like dark academia, but they also do scents inspired by specific books and characters. There's a lot of Sarah J. Moss candles. They're about 22 each for an 8 ounce candle. A lot of book stores sell them in person. Actually we went to, when we went to the Robotus recently, they have a bunch of them. So you, you bought me this candle that I've been saving to test out for the show. You got me that. Briarwick has, I think four heated rivalry candles. There's, there's Shane and Ilya, Scott and Kip and you got me the Ilya one, obviously.

[Bria Grant]

Yes.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Based off of ovi. So this one's is supposed to smell like bonfires, cologne and leather jackets. I don't think that would be what I would pick for Ilya. I would pick like sweaty armpits, sweaty gold chain on a chest and tuna sandwiches and tuna melt which Would smell horrifying. As someone who lived with a who. Who dated a hockey player for five years, I can tell you stinky that hockey bag. Sometimes Jeremy would just leave it outside.

[Bria Grant]

No, I don't like that.

[Mallory O'Meara]

But this. What do you think?

[Bria Grant]

Well, I walked in your house and I said, it smells good in here, and it was the candle.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Because I'm a woman who lives alone.

[Bria Grant]

I'm whiffing it right now with getting mama whiffs in. I don't think it smells like bonfires, cologne or leather jackets. Hold on, I'm gonna get a little closer here.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I'm gonna read because they have.

[Bria Grant]

I do like it though.

[Mallory O'Meara]

It's a very nice candle.

[Bria Grant]

It's a nice candle. I remember buying this not knowing what was going to smell it because I bought it on the Internet. What is the. You know what the base note is?

[Mallory O'Meara]

I'm looking that up right now. You got two. You got two seasoned candle heads, right?

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. You got to listen. We're pro candle.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Wait, I'm. So I went. I bought candles today, actually. She went to Target. So the top is mandarin and BlackBerry. The middle is black pepper, cardamom, clove, frankincense, tobacco, amber, black tea, pepper, smok and whiskey. And the base is musk, teak wood, sandalwood, leather and cedar.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah, I can smell the cedar and I can smell the tobacco. The tobacco is always the thing that I love.

[Mallory O'Meara]

It smells very autumny.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. But with like a, like a. Like a little slightly musky, but not. But not in a way that like, I find gross. Because I don't like anything that smells.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah. It's not a hockey player. Musk.

[Bria Grant]

No, no, no.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Which I. I mean, I don't hate a hockey player.

[Bria Grant]

I. I wish it had a little more throw.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yes. It's. I mean, it's an eight ounce candle.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah, I guess that's true. It's an eight ounce cancel. I. I like it. I think it's pretty good. What do you think?

[Mallory O'Meara]

I. I really like it. So glassers know my general take on candles is that you can just get candles from Marshalls and scents that match your book.

[Bria Grant]

Yes.

[Mallory O'Meara]

But if you're going to splurge on specifically bookish candles, which I do do sometimes, I think this is a really great company. This smells really good for an 8 ounce candle. Not bad. Yeah, we're in my living room slash office, which is a. Not huge room, but not small.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah. This is a five out of five pages for me. Like cost, like, you know, it's candle every. The Problem is when you're like, oh, this costs a lot. Everything costs a lot right now. So all the, all the supplies for candle makers are costing a lot.

[Bria Grant]

That's true. It also, to me, this candle is, like, appropriately masculine.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yes.

[Bria Grant]

Like, it's, It's. It's masculine slash gender neutral. Which I hate to say that because of course, like, things that smell like flowers and cupcakes aren't feminine.

[Mallory O'Meara]

But that's like when you go on a. When you go on a perfume website, that's how they're organized.

[Bria Grant]

Right? Exactly. And this one, I feel like it's. It's. It's good for any occasion and no one's gonna come in and be like, why does it come.

[Mallory O'Meara]

There's a man in here?

[Bria Grant]

Or why does it smell like a sugar cookie? You know, like, this feels like an appropriate candle for, like, all situations.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah. It's very autumn. It's very I.

[Bria Grant]

It.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Because every once in a while you get a candle that's a little too strong. I got a candle from Target a few months ago, and it was so strong that I was like, I couldn't. Because it. Where I burn my candles is right next. I'm sitting in my reading chair right now, and I burn my candles, like, right next to my reading chair. So sometimes if a candle is really strong, I'm like, yeah, this is, this is. To me, this is perfect.

[Bria Grant]

I have one that is so strong that you don't have to light. Just you.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Are you sure it's a candle?

[Bria Grant]

It is a candle, but, like, you. John had it in his office the other day, and I walked in and I was like, it smells like my candle in here. And I noticed he was just over there, but he didn't have it lit.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Was it one of those boy smells candle?

[Bria Grant]

No, no, it's one. It's another expensive one. Like, I can't remember the name of it.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Those candles are like $70.

[Bria Grant]

Like a hundred dollars.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Oh, my God.

[Bria Grant]

But someone gave me a gift card. That's the reason I have it. But I reviewed on the show because it is wild.

[Mallory O'Meara]

But the thing is, it's worth 100 bucks because you don't even have to light it.

[Bria Grant]

I know, it's pretty wild.

[Mallory O'Meara]

That's so wild.

[Bria Grant]

I know.

[Mallory O'Meara]

When I was candle shopping today. Do you ever do, like, a reed diffuser?

[Bria Grant]

Yeah, I like a reed diffuser. What is the difference? Well, you just have to. You. What is the difference? Well, you don't. There's no fire.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Like, does. Is there a difference in scent, quality, or Strength

[Bria Grant]

in. Yeah, for sure. You do the reed diffuser, like, you put, you know, you turn it over or whatever. You put the reed in there and then it runs out. You can't just leave it lit for a long time. It'll work for a little while. But like a candle, you can kind of control the when and the. Whereas the reed, it just starts at a place and then it's going to go down. Also, like, for some reason in my head, when I think about those, there's something that sit in people's bathrooms and get dusty.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah. And I don't like stuff that my cats could knock over.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. And that's a mess because it's like straight up, just oil inside.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yes. And as you've seen my cats. Some cats. Some people say, oh, I don't like cats. They're aloof. My cats, we would all be attached like a cenobite if we could be. My cats are always around. They love to commit crimes and knock things over. And I don't want, like, I don't want a bottle of open oil in my house.

[Bria Grant]

That would be a problem for cats, for sure.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Okay. Yeah. But Briarway candles, I'm. When we were in Rip Bottas, we smelled a few of them. They all smell good.

[Bria Grant]

Great. Yeah, it's good. We really liked him.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah, I like this. I mean, I don't. The problem with a bookish candle is you get one. Like, what am I gonna do, sit here and reread Heated rivalry?

[Bria Grant]

Yeah.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Which, I mean, a lot of us

[Bria Grant]

are doing, but this is more of a fan engagement. I feel like it's like, we get it because we like the idea of the book. And then you want to see, like, what creative things someone made based on the book. That's what's fun. It's like, I think this is a fun thing because it's Ilya. And I'm like, oh, is this what Ilya would have? It's like what Ilya would have in his house.

[Mallory O'Meara]

He does have a nice house.

[Bria Grant]

She does have a nice house. And I do think it would smell like this.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah, you're right.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. Well, it's not what he smells like. It's what his house would smell like.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Oh, Ilya's house. Well, no, his house is gonna smell like sex.

[Bria Grant]

Okay. And. And hockey butts.

[Mallory O'Meara]

And sex. Hockey butts. And ginger ale for his beautiful boyfriend.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah, that's true. I like it. Five out of five for me.

[Mallory O'Meara]

So you can send your book tech ideas to reading glasses podcast gmail.com. we'll also take candle brands that you would like us to test out. Now let's solve a bookish problem from one of our listeners. Hannah wrote in to say hi, Brian, Mallory, I have a question about audiobooks that I'm hoping you can help me with. But first let me say that I truly appreciate your show. I'm finally breaking through a bit of a reading slump, thanks in large part to discovering your show idnf books all the time, but usually with lots of wailing and gnashing of teeth. Hearing two prolific readers who are deeply embedded in the book loving community talk about dnfing books without guilt has really helped heal my inner child who apparently took the no leaving the table until you finish your plate rule into other areas of life. Wow, that's. I never thought to apply that to books, but I guess it's kind of the same thing.

[Bria Grant]

You don't have to finish your plate.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I'm really bad about that.

[Bria Grant]

You finish it.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I am so bad. It's a poor kid thing. My boyfriend has to tell me all the time. He's like, mallory, you don't have to finish that.

[Bria Grant]

You don't have to finish it.

[Mallory O'Meara]

But it's like, I grew up really poor, so, like, you know, finish it.

[Bria Grant]

I think people who made their children finish their play, I think that's child abuse. As a small child, as a person who was a very small child, it was so hard. You go to people's houses and they're like, you have to clean your plate. I'm like, l. I've been. I've never eaten like a full sandwich my whole life.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah.

[Bria Grant]

44. I hardly can eat a whole sandwich.

[John Moe]

Yeah.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Bria, we. Bria just asked for a snack and she ate three grapes.

[Bria Grant]

I'm small.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah.

[Bria Grant]

I'm a little person.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Hanging out with Bria is like, like hanging out with a little pixie. Like, I'm gonna give her this one grape and she's gonna stick a straw in it. That's how she's gonna. She's gonna eat it.

[Bria Grant]

Thank you so much for a meal.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Okay, Hannah says. Anyway, on to audiobooks. As an avid podcast listener and fan, I would love to use audiobooks to finally put a dent in my tbr. Unfortunately, I often find myself briefly losing focus, usually to focus on whatever I'm doing, since I frequently listen while I'm on my commute, doing dishes, etc, being completely lost by the time I lock back in for context. I am a big ADHD girly, so I often miss things on the first go round that become important later on. When I read physical books, I will frequently flip back to an earlier page to reread a paragraph or two if I'm a bit confused about something new that's happening. For whatever reason, I can almost always remember where something is written in a physical book. But that isn't the case with audiobooks, so I feel a bit unmoored. I. I always feel like only 70 or so of the book is actually caught by my little sieve brain when I listen to an audiobook. This is never a problem with me with the hours and hours of podcasts I regularly listen to. Although they aren't telling a narrative story, I feel like audiobooks could be a great way for me to read more. But is it time to DNF the whole medium? Are there tips I should try before calling it quits and sticking to physical books? Thanks for all the work you put into this podcast, Bria. You want to read Hannah's Wheelhouse?

[Bria Grant]

I do. I am taking the Kindle off my thing because it looks like I'm reading Cold Sweat for every day, and I just. I can't have it. I can't.

[Mallory O'Meara]

You want to think about the Kool Aid? Man's glass?

[Bria Grant]

Started panicking looking at it. Yes. Wash up private detectives who can't talk about their past. This is such a good one. Fantasy or horror based on IRL folklore or mythology. Resilient kids terrorized by the supernatural. Isolated small towns with big secrets. Bonus points if it's hella snowy or hella swampy. Am I losing my grip on reality, or is this totally fucked that's in quotations? Competent protagonist who can't catch a break, and anything Southern gothic.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Wow. All right, Bria, what do you think? Should Hannah give up on audiobooks completely?

[Bria Grant]

First of all, I love the phrase sib brain because I use the same thing. Because there's, like, so much that passes through my brain that does not retain. Like, I know stuff is passing through and it's going through those holes, and I just can't watch it. I use that. I use that phrase a lot, too. I'm like, brain like a sieve. I don't know. Okay, Mallory's about to say all this, but I'm going to say it first because I talk first. Non fiction and memoirs. I. They're great for my civ brain because the way they're structured, they usually repeat themselves. And also, like, if you miss a part, it's like, yeah, you just.

[Mallory O'Meara]

You're not missing a narrative.

[Bria Grant]

That's right. Although it's not in this wheelhouse. So I would say like maybe there's although a non fiction detective book, a true crime.

[Mallory O'Meara]

The true crime is such a great idea because it's kind of.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah, it's because it's going to have the detective stuff, it's going to have

[Mallory O'Meara]

the mystery all the same flavor.

[Bria Grant]

Get through there. Yeah, I do. So the pace of a nonfiction book is usually a little bit slower. You can figure out what's happening. The other thing I do with my civ brain is I start a book physically or an e book or whatever and then I switch to audio about halfway through. I do that actually quite a bit.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Interesting. So you like, you like onboard yourself?

[Bria Grant]

Yes, because my brain needs to understand who the characters are and like the world and like I need to. I can. If someone is reading a name to me there's no way I'm remembering that name.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Especially if it's like a fantasy or a sci fi.

[Bria Grant]

Oh my God, get out of here. You want me to remember Rhysand. I haven't read it and like I just, I'm not going to remember and so I need. My brain can like absorb more of the world and understand what's going on and then I can listen to the second half of the book and I usually get through it pretty fast actually because I know everything I can. I have like a good basis for what is happening. So that might help your S brain because it does really help me to kind of like just you get more of the noodles. They don't fall through when you're rinsing off the pasta. That's my sieve analogy. What about you?

[Mallory O'Meara]

Well first off I. I want to say I love a self aware reader. Someone who really just like it's tough to admit when something isn't working. But I also do have some tips. I know first a lot of ADHD readers and readers in general like I don't have adhd but I focus better when I increase the speed. I'm just. I. I don't have a civ brain. I have the opposite. I have a keeps everything that has ever been in an ever anxiety brain. But I'm so impatient. Yeah, we talked about that recently. About was it the taste in books or. No, it was the why we read episode. I. My brain is just going so fast all the time that if an audiobook is going at its normal speed my. I'm thinking about things in between words. Like my brain is going so fast. So if I've got it on 1. 1.3 1.25, 1.5. Anywhere between 1.25 and 1.7 then I can focus on it better because it's demanding my attention and it's going at the speed of my brain. I also I reserve audiobooks for certain things we've talked about. I don't the certain activities that I don't like doing audiobooks during because I don't hear super well. I have sieve ears. Some sounds just go right through those holes and I don't know, it's really frustrating. I know any activities that like I don't do audiobooks when I'm cooking because I'm kind of focusing but also I'm clanking dishes around.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Like I'm gonna miss things. I what I would do before you give up on audiobooks entirely, pay attention to the activities that you focus best during. Like driving. Driving, walking. Save audiobooks for those activities. Not while you're because sometimes if I'm cleaning a lot and I'm cleaning in multiple rooms and I'm not like holding like I don't have like my phone in my pocket if it's like in one room I'll miss stuff because I'm just. I can't hear super well.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah.

[Mallory O'Meara]

So. But again I agree non fiction books that won't have key information are good. I think a true crime book would be so perfect.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah, totally.

[Mallory O'Meara]

And if that all doesn't work and it's frustrating you, you can give it up. It's okay to admit something doesn't work. Yeah, totally. But I love you giving this one last hurrah and let right back in. Let us know if what works or if you gave it up entirely. If you want us to solve your reader problem, you can send it to reading glasses podcast gmail.com as always, want to thank the wonderful mods who run our Discord server and our Facebook group. If you want to buy some cool ass merch that shows off your love of reading and supports the show, go to the Void March store. There's a link in our show notes. There's totes and shirts and stickers and all kinds of fun stuff. And if you like the show, you love us, you want to show us some of that love for free. Please rate and review us on the podcast listening app of your choice. It's so great for us and really helps us reach more readers. You can email us reading glasses podcastmail.com find us on Instagram at Reading Glasses Podcast. Thanks for listening and thanks for reading. Maximum Fun. A worker owned network of artist owned shows supported directly by you.