Team: Amber Gregg, James Moore, and Kate Ota.Episode Summary: In this Book Club Discussion, we will have an in-depth analysis of God of the Woods by Liz Moore.So, grab your favorite beverage, get comfy, and join us as we unpack the layers of The God of the Woods. Whether you're into literary thrillers, family sagas, or tales that delve into societal structures, this episode has something for you.Book Info: Genre: Mystery/Suspense | Number of Pages: 490 | Location: Adirondack Mountains, New YorkGod of the Woods summary from Goodreads.com:"Early morning, August 1975: a camp counselor discovers an empty bunk. Its occupant, Barbara Van Laar, has gone missing. Barbara isn’t just any thirteen-year-old: she’s the daughter of the family that owns the summer camp and employs most of the region’s residents. And this isn’t the first time a Van Laar child has disappeared. Barbara’s older brother similarly vanished fourteen years ago, never to be found.As a panicked search begins, a thrilling drama unfolds. Chasing down the layered secrets of the Van Laar family and the blue-collar community working in its shadow, Moore’s multi-threaded story invites readers into a rich and gripping dynasty of secrets and second chances. It is Liz Moore’s most ambitious and wide-reaching novel yet."***Each month, we discuss a different best selling novel with a strong female lead. *Spoiler alert for the conversation.*Join our lively book club discussion as we share our thoughts, insights, and favorite moments from these empowering tales. Whether you're a lifelong bookworm or just looking for your next compelling read, you won't want to miss this episode. The chat doesn't end here. Let us know your thoughts in the comment area or connect with us on social media. Enjoyed the show? Share the love. Give us a review, like, follow, and a share with your friends.***Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/judgingmorethanjustthecover/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/judgingmorethanjustthecover/***Tags: book talk, book club, books, virtual book club, podcast, audio book club, book chat, book discussion, book, fiction, novel, review, book review, book of the month, bookish, strong leading women, fiction, booktok***Keywords: The God of the Woods podcast, Liz Moore novel discussion, literary thriller book review, 1970s mystery novel podcast, Adirondacks summer camp mystery, missing person fiction analysis, family secrets in literature, class divide in novels, female detective character study, book club thriller pick, The God of the Woods by Liz Moore podcast episode, analysis of The God of the Woods novel, exploring themes in Liz Moore's The God of the Woods, podcast discussing literary thrillers set in the 1970s, deep dive into The God of the Woods characters and plot
Team: Amber Gregg, James Moore, and Kate Ota.Episode Summary: In this Book Club Discussion, we will have an in-depth analysis of Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera.Each month, we discuss a different best selling novel with a strong female lead. *Spoiler alert for the conversation.*Join our lively book club discussion as we share our thoughts, insights, and favorite moments from these empowering tales. Whether you're a lifelong bookworm or just looking for your next compelling read, you won't want to miss this episode.The chat doesn't end here. Let us know your thoughts in the comment area or connect with us on social media. Enjoyed the show? Share the love. Give us a review, like, follow, and a share with your friends.Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/judgingmorethanjustthecover/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/judgingmorethanjustthecover/Book Info: Genre: Mystery/Thriller | Number of Pages: 252 | Location: Texas and CaliforniaListen for the Lie summary from Goodreads.com:"What if you thought you murdered your best friend? And if everyone else thought so too? And what if the truth doesn't matter?Lucy and Savvy were the golden girls of their small Texas town: pretty, smart, and enviable. Lucy married a dream guy with a big ring and an even bigger new home. Savvy was the social butterfly loved by all and, if you believe the rumors, especially popular with the men in town. But after Lucy is found wandering the streets, covered in her best friend Savvy’s blood, everyone thinks she is a murderer. It’s been years since that horrible night, a night Lucy can’t remember anything about, and she has since moved to LA and started a new life. But now the phenomenally huge hit true crime podcast Listen for the Lie and its too-good looking host, Ben Owens, have decided to investigate Savvy’s murder for the show’s second season. Lucy is forced to return to the place she vowed never to set foot in again to solve her friend’s murder, even if she is the one who did it.The truth is out there, if we just listen."Tags: book talk, book club, books, virtual book club, podcast, audio book club, book chat, book discussion, book, fiction, novel, review, book review, book of the month, bookish, strong leading women, fiction, booktok
Team: Amber Gregg, James Moore, and Kate Ota.
Episode Summary: In this Book Club Discussion, we will have an in-depth analysis of Shark Heart by Emily Habeck.
Each month, we discuss a different best selling novel with a strong female lead. *Spoiler alert for the conversation.*
Join our lively book club discussion as we share our thoughts, insights, and favorite moments from these empowering tales. Whether you're a lifelong bookworm or just looking for your next compelling read, you won't want to miss this episode.
The chat doesn't end here. Let us know your thoughts in the comment area or connect with us on social media. Enjoyed the show? Share the love. Give us a review, like, follow, and a share with your friends.
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Book Info:
Genre: Magical Realism | Number of Pages: 416 | Location: Oklahoma
Shark Heart summary from Goodreads.com:
"For Lewis and Wren, their first year of marriage is also their last. A few weeks after their wedding, Lewis receives a rare diagnosis: He will retain most of his consciousness, memories, and intellect, but his physical body will gradually turn into a great white shark. As Lewis develops the features and impulses of one of the most predatory creatures in the ocean, his complicated artist’s heart struggles to make peace with his unfulfilled dreams.At first, Wren internally resists her husband’s fate. Is there a way for them to be together after Lewis changes? Then, a glimpse of Lewis’s developing carnivorous nature activates long-repressed memories for Wren, whose story vacillates between her childhood living on a houseboat in Oklahoma, her time with her college ex-girlfriend, and her unusual friendship with a woman pregnant with twin birds."
Tags: book talk, book club, books, virtual book club, podcast, audio book club, book chat, book discussion, book, fiction, novel, review, book review, book of the month, bookish, strong leading women, fiction, booktok
Team: Amber Gregg, James Moore, and Kate Ota.
Episode Summary: In this Book Club Discussion, we will have an in-depth analysis of Yellowface by R.F. Huang. E
ach month, we discuss a different best selling novel with a strong female lead. *Spoiler alert for the conversation.*
Join our lively book club discussion as we share our thoughts, insights, and favorite moments from these empowering tales. Whether you're a lifelong bookworm or just looking for your next compelling read, you won't want to miss this episode.
The chat doesn't end here. Let us know your thoughts in the comment area or connect with us on social media. Enjoyed the show? Share the love. Give us a review, like, follow, and a share with your friends.
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Book Info:
Genre: Contemporary Fiction | Number of Pages: 336 | Location: Washington, D.C.
Yellowface summary from Goodreads.com:
"White lies. Dark humor. Deadly consequences… Bestselling sensation Juniper Song is not who she says she is, she didn’t write the book she claims she wrote, and she is most certainly not Asian American—in this chilling and hilariously cutting novel from R.F. Kuang, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Babel.Authors June Hayward and Athena Liu were supposed to be twin rising stars. But Athena’s a literary darling. June Hayward is literally nobody. Who wants stories about basic white girls, June thinks.So when June witnesses Athena’s death in a freak accident, she acts on impulse: she steals Athena’s just-finished masterpiece, an experimental novel about the unsung contributions of Chinese laborers during World War I.So what if June edits Athena’s novel and sends it to her agent as her own work? So what if she lets her new publisher rebrand her as Juniper Song—complete with an ambiguously ethnic author photo? Doesn’t this piece of history deserve to be told, whoever the teller? That’s what June claims, and the New York Times bestseller list seems to agree.But June can’t get away from Athena’s shadow, and emerging evidence threatens to bring June’s (stolen) success down around her. As June races to protect her secret, she discovers exactly how far she will go to keep what she thinks she deserves.With its totally immersive first-person voice, Yellowface grapples with questions of diversity, racism, and cultural appropriation, as well as the terrifying alienation of social media. R.F. Kuang’s novel is timely, razor-sharp, and eminently readable."
Tags: book talk, book club, books, virtual book club, podcast, audio book club, book chat, book discussion, book, fiction, novel, review, book review, book of the month, bookish, strong leading women, fiction, booktok
Team: Amber Gregg, James Moore, and Kate Ota.
Episode Summary: In this Book Club Discussion, we will have an in-depth analysis of Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett. Each month, we discuss a different best selling novel with a strong female lead. *Spoiler alert for the conversation.*
Join our lively book club discussion as we share our thoughts, insights, and favorite moments from these empowering tales. Whether you're a lifelong bookworm or just looking for your next compelling read, you won't want to miss this episode.
The chat doesn't end here. Let us know your thoughts in the comment area or connect with us on social media. Enjoyed the show? Share the love. Give us a review, like, follow, and a share with your friends.
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Book Info:
Genre: Fantasy | Number of Pages: 317 | Location: Hrafnsvik (Fantasy).
Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries summary from Goodreads.com:
"A curmudgeonly professor journeys to a small town in the far north to study faerie folklore and discovers dark fae magic, friendship, and love in the start of a heartwarming and enchanting new fantasy series.Cambridge professor Emily Wilde is good at many things: She is the foremost expert on the study of faeries. She is a genius scholar and a meticulous researcher who is writing the world's first encyclopaedia of faerie lore. But Emily Wilde is not good at people. She could never make small talk at a party--or even get invited to one. And she prefers the company of her books, her dog, and the Fair Folk.So when she arrives in the hardscrabble village of Hrafnsvik, Emily has no intention of befriending the gruff townsfolk. Nor does she care to spend time with another new arrival: her dashing and insufferably handsome academic rival Wendell Bambleby, who manages to charm the townsfolk, get in the middle of Emily's research, and utterly confound and frustrate her.But as Emily gets closer and closer to uncovering the secrets of the Hidden Ones--the most elusive of all faeries--lurking in the shadowy forest outside the town, she also finds herself on the trail of another mystery: Who is Wendell Bambleby, and what does he really want? To find the answer, she'll have to unlock the greatest mystery of all--her own heart."
Tags: book talk, book club, books, virtual book club, podcast, audio book club, book chat, book discussion, book, fiction, novel, review, book review, book of the month, bookish, strong leading women, fiction, booktok
Team: Amber Gregg, James Moore, and Kate Ota.
Episode Summary: In this Book Club Discussion, we will have an in-depth analysis of Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree. Each month, we discuss a different best selling novel with a strong female lead. *Spoiler alert for the conversation.*
Join our lively book club discussion as we share our thoughts, insights, and favorite moments from these empowering tales. Whether you're a lifelong bookworm or just looking for your next compelling read, you won't want to miss this episode.
The chat doesn't end here. Let us know your thoughts in the comment area or connect with us on social media. Enjoyed the show? Share the love. Give us a review, like, follow, and a share with your friends.
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Book Info:
Genre: Cozy Fantasy | Number of Pages: 296 | Location: Thune (Fantasy).
Legends and Lattes summary from Goodreads.com:
"After a lifetime of bounties and bloodshed, Viv is hanging up her sword for the last time.The battle-weary orc aims to start fresh, opening the first ever coffee shop in the city of Thune. But old and new rivals stand in the way of success — not to mention the fact that no one has the faintest idea what coffee actually is.If Viv wants to put the blade behind her and make her plans a reality, she won't be able to go it alone.But the true rewards of the uncharted path are the travelers you meet along the way. And whether drawn together by ancient magic, flaky pastry, or a freshly brewed cup, they may become partners, family, and something deeper than she ever could have dreamed."
Tags: book talk, book club, books, virtual book club, podcast, audio book club, book chat, book discussion, book, fiction, novel, review, book review, book of the month, bookish, strong leading women, fiction, booktok
Team: Amber Gregg, James Moore, and Kate Ota.
Episode Summary: In this Book Club Discussion, we will have an in-depth analysis of Cassandra in Reverse by Holly Smale. Each month, we discuss a different best selling novel with a strong female lead. *Spoiler alert for the conversation.*
Join our lively book club discussion as we share our thoughts, insights, and favorite moments from these empowering tales. Whether you're a lifelong bookworm or just looking for your next compelling read, you won't want to miss this episode.
The chat doesn't end here. Let us know your thoughts in the comment area or connect with us on social media. Enjoyed the show? Share the love. Give us a review, like, follow, and a share with your friends.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/judgingmorethanjustthecover/
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Book Info:
Genre: Contemporary Fiction / Magical Realism | Number of Pages: 362 | Location: London.
Cassandra in Reverse summary from Goodreads.com:
"If you had the power to change the past…where would you start?Cassandra Penelope Dankworth is a creature of habit. She likes what she likes (museums, jumpsuits, her boyfriend, Will) and strongly dislikes what she doesn't (mess, change, her boss drinking out of her mug). Her life runs in a pleasing, predictable order…until now.• She's just been dumped.• She's just been fired.• Her local café has run out of banana muffins.Then, something truly unexpected happens: Cassie discovers she can go back and change the past. One small rewind at a time, Cassie attempts to fix the life she accidentally obliterated, but soon she'll discover she's trying to fix all the wrong things."
Tags: book talk, book club, books, virtual book club, podcast, audio book club, book chat, book discussion, book, fiction, novel, review, book review, book of the month, bookish, strong leading women, fiction
Team: Amber Gregg, James Moore, and Kate Ota.
Episode Summary: In this Book Club Discussion, we will have an in-depth analysis of Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros. Each month, we discuss a different best selling novel with a strong female lead. *Spoiler alert for the conversation.*
Join our lively book club discussion as we share our thoughts, insights, and favorite moments from these empowering tales. Whether you're a lifelong bookworm or just looking for your next compelling read, you won't want to miss this episode.
The chat doesn't end here. Let us know your thoughts in the comment area or connect with us on social media. Enjoyed the show? Share the love. Give us a review, like, follow, and a share with your friends.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/judgingmorethanjustthecover/
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Book Info:
Genre: Fantasy | Number of Pages: 624 | Location: Navarre (Fictional)
Iron Flame summary from Goodreads.com:
"Everyone expected Violet Sorrengail to die during her first year at Basgiath War College—Violet included. But Threshing was only the first impossible test meant to weed out the weak-willed, the unworthy, and the unlucky.Now the real training begins, and Violet’s already wondering how she’ll get through. It’s not just that it’s grueling and maliciously brutal, or even that it’s designed to stretch the riders’ capacity for pain beyond endurance. It’s the new vice commandant, who’s made it his personal mission to teach Violet exactly how powerless she is–unless she betrays the man she loves.Although Violet’s body might be weaker and frailer than everyone else’s, she still has her wits—and a will of iron. And leadership is forgetting the most important lesson Basgiath has taught her: Dragon riders make their own rules.But a determination to survive won’t be enough this year.Because Violet knows the real secret hidden for centuries at Basgiath War College—and nothing, not even dragon fire, may be enough to save them in the end."
Tags: book talk, book club, books, virtual book club, podcast, audio book club, book chat, book discussion, book, fiction, novel, review, book review, book of the month, bookish, strong leading women, fiction
Team: Amber Gregg, James Moore, and Kate Ota.
Episode Summary: In this Book Club Discussion, we will have an in-depth analysis of Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros. Each month, we discuss a different best selling novel with a strong female lead. *Spoiler alert for the conversation.*
Join our lively book club discussion as we share our thoughts, insights, and favorite moments from these empowering tales. Whether you're a lifelong bookworm or just looking for your next compelling read, you won't want to miss this episode.
The chat doesn't end here. Let us know your thoughts in the comment area or connect with us on social media. Enjoyed the show? Share the love. Give us a review, like, follow, and a share with your friends.
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Book Info:
Genre: Fantasy | Number of Pages: 528 | Location: Navarre (Fictional)
Fourth Wing summary from Goodreads.com:
"Twenty-year-old Violet Sorrengail was supposed to enter the Scribe Quadrant, living a quiet life among books and history. Now, the commanding general—also known as her tough-as-talons mother—has ordered Violet to join the hundreds of candidates striving to become the elite of Navarre: dragon riders.But when you’re smaller than everyone else and your body is brittle, death is only a heartbeat away...because dragons don’t bond to “fragile” humans. They incinerate them.With fewer dragons willing to bond than cadets, most would kill Violet to better their own chances of success. The rest would kill her just for being her mother’s daughter—like Xaden Riorson, the most powerful and ruthless wingleader in the Riders Quadrant.She’ll need every edge her wits can give her just to see the next sunrise.Yet, with every day that passes, the war outside grows more deadly, the kingdom's protective wards are failing, and the death toll continues to rise. Even worse, Violet begins to suspect leadership is hiding a terrible secret.Friends, enemies, lovers. Everyone at Basgiath War College has an agenda—because once you enter, there are only two ways out: graduate or die"
Tags: book talk, book club, books, virtual book club, podcast, audio book club, book chat, book discussion, book, fiction, novel, review, book review, book of the month, bookish, strong leading women, fiction
Team: Amber Gregg, James Moore, and Kate Ota.
Episode Summary: In this Book Club Discussion, we will have an in-depth analysis of Murder Your Employer by Rupert Holmes. Each month, we discuss a different best selling novel with a strong female lead. *Spoiler alert for the conversation.*
Join our lively book club discussion as we share our thoughts, insights, and favorite moments from these empowering tales. Whether you're a lifelong bookworm or just looking for your next compelling read, you won't want to miss this episode.
The chat doesn't end here. Let us know your thoughts in the comment area or connect with us on social media. Enjoyed the show? Share the love. Give us a review, like, follow, and a share with your friends.
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Book Info: Genre: Comedy/Mystery | Number of Pages: 389 | Location: Exact location unknown.
Murder Your Employer summary from Goodreads.com:
"A devilish thriller with a killer concept: The McMasters Conservatory for the Applied Arts, a luxurious, clandestine college dedicated to the fine art of murder where earnest students study how best to 'delete' their most deserving victim.
Who hasn’t wondered for a split second what the world would be like if a person who is the object of your affliction ceased to exist? But then you’ve probably never heard of The McMasters Conservatory, dedicated to the consummate execution of the homicidal arts. To gain admission, a student must have an ethical reason for erasing someone who deeply deserves a fate no worse (nor better) than death. The campus of this 'Poison Ivy League' college—its location unknown to even those who study there—is where you might find yourself the practice target of a classmate…and where one’s mandatory graduation thesis is getting away with the perfect murder of someone whose death will make the world a much better place to live.
Prepare for an education you’ll never forget. A delightful mix of witty wordplay, breathtaking twists and genuine intrigue, Murder Your Employer will gain you admission into a wholly original world, cocooned within the most entertaining book about well-intentioned would-be murderers you’ll ever read."
Tags: book talk, book club, books, virtual book club, podcast, audio book club, book chat, book discussion, book, fiction, novel, review, book review, book of the month, bookish, strong leading women, fiction