Embassytown is one of the most extraordinary linguistic thought-experiments in modern SFF. This episode explores how Miéville uses language—not just as a tool for communication, but as the very architecture of consciousness, politics, and power.

We look at how signs and symbols shape meaning, why the Hosts can't lie, Avice’s role as a living simile and the moment language evolves into something new.

If you love stories where words remake the world, this is for you.

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My book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DNN94R17

Watchmen: the greatest graphic novel ever written, a Rorschach test on morality where every character’s goodness is afflicted with greyness and nuance. Join me in a terrific group discussion with Jarrod (from The Fantasy Thinker), and Britton (from smectite).

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Get The Omens of War: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DNN94R17

Joe, like Plato's escaped prisoner, is forced to confront a possibility that his world is not the 'real' one at all. In this podcast, I analyse Ubik's layered realities.

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"The goal that led him on was not impossible, though it was clearly supernatural: he wanted to dream a man." This is the premise of another mind-blowing, reality-bending short-story by Jorge Luis Borges: The Circular Ruins.

Join me in a Guests Talk with a dream cast of guests: Jarrod (from The Fantasy Thinker), Kris (from A Fictional Escapist), P.L. Stuart (author of A Drowned Kingdom Saga), Jose (from José's Fantasy Worlds), and Dr Philip Chase (author of The Edan Trilogy).

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Books mentioned (in order):

• "Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid" by Douglas R. Hofstadter
• "Stop Doing That Sh*t: End Self-Sabotage" by Gary John Biship
• "A Drowned Kingdom" by P.L. Stuart
• "The Way of Edan" by Phillip Chase

Movies mentioned (in order):

• "Inception" by Christopher Nolan

We are slowly losing our ability to question ourselves—our likes, our preferences, our judgements on literature... and from there, we're one step away from no longer questioning why we hate something. After all, "What do you despise? By this are you truly known".

This episode is actually a response to fellow BookTuber Britton from SomeOkieDude. Back in April (2025) he spoke about political commentary in fiction and made quite a compelling call of action: "[...] if there is a book or show that rubbed you the wrong way, I want you to sit back and think about why it did that. What was it about this piece of media that offended you so much?"

Let's get this idea undone.

Transcript & newsletter: https://liviajelliot.substack.com

Join me as I chat with Amy Minton about the author-narrator-character relation, focal distance in framed narratives and multi-timeline stories, and how to ground your reader... and perhaps frustrate them, but in good measure. This is a spoiler-lite episode focused on the craft, and we'll mention plenty of examples.

Find Amy at: https://www.youtube.com/@Talking_Story

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BOOKS & SHORT STORIES MENTIONED:

• "Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley
• "Cloud Atlas" by David Mitchell
• "The Kingkiller Chronicles" by Patrick Rothfuss
• "Slaughterhouse Five" by Kurt Vonnegut
• "Maus" by Art Spiegelman
• "City of Thieves" by David Benioff
• "Heat" by Joyce Carol Oates
• "Friend of my Youth" by Alice Munro
• "Dolores Claiborne" by Stephen King
• "The Garden of Forking Paths" by Jorge Luis Borges
• "The Book of the New Sun" by Gene Wolfe
• "The Dregs" by Thomas J. Devens

Annihilation is a challenge to humanity's perennial navel-gazing. It confronts us with the terrifying idea that the universe is not hostile—it simply doesn't care about us. In this episode, I will discuss three way sin which it challenges the biologist's (and thus the reader's) reality.

You can find the full transcript, all citations, and get my free novella at: https://liviajelliot.substack.com

Snail on the Slope has a turbulent history, but the Strutgastkys themselves considered it as "the most perfect and the most valuable of [their] works". Let's get this book undone; we will review my proposed interpretation, and also the authors' intended one.

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"Take it back. I want ignorance again. What is the limit of human comprehension? How much can the abyss stare back at you before you flinch?" This is one of the many open questions explored in DISCOVERY, a cosmic horror debut by JAJ Minton.

In this interview, we first dive into the process of crafting a book as a team, and then we dive into some of the key themes, including a human-centric world, religions and cults (including a cult to AIs), the characters own personal discovery, and the permanence of conflict and struggle.

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Author Spotlights are back, and in this episode I'm in conversation with Bert-Oliver Boehmer, author of the Galacticide series--a modern-but-classical military sci-fi with a dash of first-contact, galactic politics, and fast-paced action.

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