Bad Books for Bad People

Ian Fleming’s 1954 novel Live and Let Die places household-name super-spy James Bond on the trail of Harlem kingpin (and likely Soviet spy) Mr. Big. Jack and Kate follow Bond from smoky jazz nightclu…

In this month’s episode, Jack and Kate set their literary dragon boat to sea with The Raven’s Table, author Christine Morgan’s 2017 collection of Viking stories. Spanning subgenres from grindhouse g…

Robert Bloch is one of the best-known names in American horror fiction: a protege of HP Lovecraft and the author Psycho, which would be famously adapted for the screen by Alfred Hitchcock. He was als…

Guy Boothby’s 1899 novel Pharos the Egyptian is a gothic horror tale that finds a hapless British artist crossing paths with a sinister elderly man who seems to have some connection to ancient Egypt…

Jack and Kate look at what they've read and watched in the year that was 2022 and make some recommendations in the world of books and beyond. The rules of engagement are simple: the hosts each choose…

Agatha Christie’s clever and charming mystery novels have been loved by generations of readers, spawning PBS Mystery icons like Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. Jack and Kate discuss Christie’s 1935 n…

Peter Straub’s 1979 novel Ghost Story is widely regarded as one of the finest examples of American horror writing, boasting Stephen King as one of the book’s biggest fans. Jack and Kate dig into this…

It’s no secret that 14th Century Europe was not a very fun place to be. Christopher Buehlman’s 2012 novel Between Two Fires leans all the way into the hideousness of plague, war, and famine while ad…

Whitley Strieber may be best known for documenting his harrowing encounters with extraterrestrials, but before Communion, he wrote modern takes on classic monsters. In his debut novel Wolfen, he tel…

George McDonald Fraser’s long-running Flashman series follows the adventures of Sir Harry Paget Flashman, a self-confessed scoundrel, as he navigates the landscape of the mid-nineteenth century. Jac…

Welcome to the Valley of Plenty! In these green and gentle pastures, Jack explains the plots of stories from the Witcher series to Kate, who feels like she already completed her tour of duty in this…

Gretchen Felker-Martin’s debut novel Manhunt drops the reader into a post-apocalyptic future where a hideous disease has turned men into cannibal rapists while pitting transwomen against radical fem…

F. Paul Wilson’s 1981 novel The Keep has one of the great pulp story setups: Nazis versus vampires … but it turns into something a little different. When Nazis occupy a castle in Romania, they unwit…

Tim Powers’ 1987 novel On Stranger Tides weaves a swashbuckling adventure combining buccaneers, voodoo, and romance set in the golden age of piracy. But fear not, because reading the words “avast ma…

Welcome to the Valley of Plenty! In these green and gentle pastures, Jack explains the plots of stories from the Witcher series to Kate, who feels like she already completed her tour of duty in this…

Jack and Kate venture into the world of romance novels with Victoria Holt's 1988 novel The India Fan. When the daughter of a reverend in the English countryside is drawn under the influence of a wea…

Welcome to the Valley of Plenty! In these green and gentle pastures, Jack explains the plots of stories from the Witcher series to Kate, who feels like she already completed her tour of duty in this…

Jack and Kate look at what they've read and watched in the year that was 2021 and make some recommendations in the world of books and beyond. The rules of engagement are simple: the hosts each choos…

Welcome to the Valley of Plenty! In these green and gentle pastures, Jack explains the plots of stories from the Witcher series to Kate, who feels like she already completed her tour of duty in this…

Jack and Kate venture into the grimdark future of Warhammer 40K with this exploration of Requiem Infernal by author Peter Fehervari. Put aside your preconceptions around Space Marines and Orks and f…