They are two of the most popular genres in the book world right now: fantasy and romantasy. Whether you love or want to fall in love with the genres, we're talking about the best fantasy books to read this summer! We're joined by the owners of The Enchanted Quill. It's the first and only fantasy-specific mobile bookstore in the Phoenix area. Included on the list of books are the following: 

- Assistant to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer

- Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

- ACOTAR by Sarah J. Maas

- The Witch Collector by Charissa Weaks

- Quicksilver by Callie Hart

- The Knight and the Moth by Rachel Gillig

- The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow

- Dungeon Carl Crawler by Matt Dinniman

- When The Moon Hatched by Sarah A. Parker

- Spark of the Everflame by Penn Cole

- Rain of Shadows and Endings by Melissa K. Roerich

Artificial intelligence is nothing new, but it's growing and changing every day. That includes in the world of book publishing. From lawsuits with social media companies, to books being pulled from shelves because of suspected AI use, we're covering it all with our guest Jane Freidman. She's spent more than 20 years in publishing and now reports on the industry, appearing in many national publications like The New York Times and CBS News. 

From TikTok to Instagram and YouTube, influencers are everywhere. And so are their families and children. In her new book "Like, Follow, Subscribe: Influencer Kids and the Cost of a Childhood Online," journalist Fortesa Latifi is exploring what it means to live your childhood online. Fortesa found some content creators make millions of dollars a year, with some of their best-performing content featuring their children sick or hurt. As Fortesa discusses, there's a lot of nuance that gets into the book: parents are grappling with tough decisions. Her work has been in The New York Times and more. Fortesa is from Arizona and is a graduate of ASU's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

It's a love story...about female friendships! New York Times Bestselling author Jessica George is out with her sophomore novel "Love By the Book." She joins the podcast this week from London to talk about how we can show up for friends as we age, why she's starting sometimes taboo conversations about having kids and making friends as adults, and she shares her favorite restaurants and spots across the pond! 

Is the book better than the movie? In this week's episode, we're joined by USA Today's books reporter Clare Mulroy to answer that age-old question. From "Wuthering Heights," to "Heated Rivalry," "Hamnet" and more, Clare and our host Whitney Clark chat about their favorite, and least favorite, page-to-screen adaptions. Clare also talks about how she got her dream job, how she finds time to read and her thoughts on the new "Project Hail Mary" film based on Andy Weir's 2021 hit novel.

It's the Super Bowl for book lovers: the Tucson Festival of Books! It's the biggest book festival in Arizona, and it's happening at the University of Arizona on March 14 and 15 this year. There are hundreds of authors who will be there, including the headliners Salman Rushdie, Susan Lucci, and R.L. Stine. On this episode, we're joined by public librarian and Tucson-based author Sarah T. Dubb. She has advice if you're going for the first time, and she chats about her new romance book, "Honey Bee Mine." Dubb's first book, "Birding With Benefits," was made into a Hallmark movie!

If you're a fan of 90's rom-coms and cozy love stories, you're in luck! Romance favorite B.K. Borison is out with "And Now, Back to You." It's the second book in her "Heartstrings" series. B.K. joins the podcast to talk about her love of her hometown Baltimore, where the book is set, local news, and classics like "Sleepless in Seattle." 

Every year February is recognized as Black History Month, but there's an Arizona-based bookseller who has made it her mission to highlight Black authors all year long. On this episode we're joined by Petra Sherbin-Fox. She owns The Lit Twis't: the first Black-owned mobile bookstore in the Valley. Petra opened the shop after not being able to find books by authors she was looking for, particularly Black female authors. She joins our host, Whitney Clark, with a list of ten recommendations, including fiction and non-fiction.

That includes the following: 

"Hood Wellness: Tales of Communal Care from People Who Drowned on Dry Land" by Tamela J. Gordon

"A Renaissance of Our Own: A Memoir and Manifesto on Reimagining" by Rachel E. Cargle

"Ride Or Die: A Feminist Manifesto for the Well-Being of Black Women" by Shanita Hubbard

"A Long Song for Ricki Wilde" by Tia Williams

"Reel" by Kennedy Ryan

"Communion" by bell hooks

"Sula" by Toni Morrison

"The Girls Who Grew Big" by Leila Mottley

"Set Boundaries, Find Peace" by Nedra Glover Tawwab

"A Moth to a Flame" by Ashley Antoinette

Valentine's Day is just around the corner! If you're looking for a great romance book, we've got you covered. This week our host Whitney Clark is joined by two Arizona romance authors: Neely Tubati Alexander and Liana De la Rosa, who share their favorite picks. That includes "Honey Bee Mine" by Sarah T. Dubb and "The Magic of Untamed Hearts" by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland. They also talk about their own books, the magic of the Tucson Festival of Books and how the romance author community has grown in the Valley.

It's officially 2026 and we're in for another great year of reading! In this episode we're joined by Ali Jaksich, a book buyer for the Changing Hands Bookstore with locations in Phoenix and Tempe. She chats about how she picks books for the store, how she became a book buyer and how you can read more in 2026. 

From cookbooks, to horror and other fiction reads, here are Ali's most anticipated books of the year: "Operation Bounce House", by Matt Dinniman, "Ending Writes Itself" by Evelyn Clarke, "Crux" by Gabriel Tallent, "And Now Back to You" by B.K. Borison, "Fabulous Bodies" by Chuck Tingle, "Cooking con Claudia: Celebración!" by Claudia Regalado, "A Girl Like Her" by Talia Hibbert, "Chain of Ideas: The Origins of Our Authoritarian Age" by Ibram X. Kendi, "Seasons of Glass and Iron" by Amal El-Mohtar, and "Half His Age" by Jennette McCurdy.