We sit down with writer/dancer/communications pro Dinah Alobeid to demystify literary + upmarket fiction—what it is, why it’s not “elitist and boring,” and how to fall in love with it (even if you’re Team Dragons 🐉).

Dinah's Reccs :

• Gateway pick: Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow (Gabrielle Zevin) — friendship, creativity, and gorgeous prose.

• Advanced stack: My Year of Rest and Relaxation (Ottessa Moshfegh), Sweetbitter (Stephanie Danler), Fates and Furies (Lauren Groff), The Immortalists (Chloe Benjamin).

• Comfort zone vibes: slice-of-life, fish-out-of-water, multi-generational (think Tom Lake and Hello Beautiful).

• Rom-com hot takes: beyond Emily Henry—try Nicholas DiDomizio, Georgia Clark, and Hannah Orenstein.

• Music tangent we loved: Lauren Groff’s Florida and the “Florida!!!” era discourse.

Find Dinah:
• Play This at My Funeral — launching Nov 1st, on Spotify, Apple & YouTube

• IG: @playthisatmyfuneralpodcast 

• Site: dinahsusanalobeid.com 

• Substack: Write, Dance, Repeat

This week on Genre’d, we dive into Alchemised by SenLinYu — a sprawling, thousand-page dark fantasy that’s equal parts war chronicle, moral study, and emotional endurance test.

We unpack the dense alchemical magic system (vitality, resonance, necromancy—oh my), trauma-bonded romance, and why this book might’ve worked better as a trilogy.

Also: Elyse’s Top Chef obsession, Katy’s Dancing with the Stars lore, and a quick detour through Manacled fanfic land.

💥 Spoiler note: first ~30 minutes are spoiler-free; full-on spoilers after that (clearly flagged).
🚨 Content warnings: war violence, sexual violence, torture, memory loss, body horror.

In this episode we chat about:
Tropes & vibes: dark academia, morally black love interest, trauma bond, power imbalance
Characters to watch: Helena (the healer who breaks herself to save others), Kane (obsession personified), Lila (warrior & reformer)
Themes: memory, identity, power, and how women are erased from the stories they shape
Pop-culture detours: Mistborn, Top Chef, and Dancing with the Stars

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🎧 Listen now wherever you get your podcasts
📱 Follow @genredpodcast on Instagram & TikTok for more chaos between episodes

Welcome to Genre’d: Off Book — our new off-week mini-series where we dive into the genres that made us fall in love with reading.

In our first ever episode, Katy takes the hot seat to answer five big questions about her favorite genre: romantasy. From Twilight to A Court of Thorns and Roses to Rose in Chains, she shares how this once-nameless category turned her from an occasional reader into a “can’t-sleep-until-I-finish” one.

We unpack the YA roots of romantasy, the golden age of dystopian reads (Hunger Games, Divergent, The Darkest Minds), and what makes wings, banter, and morally gray men so addictive. Plus — the books she hands to skeptics who still think it’s just “fairies and smut.”

Books Mentioned:
📚 Twilight — Stephenie Meyer
📚 A Court of Thorns and Roses (ACOTAR) — Sarah J. Maas
📚 The Hunger Games — Suzanne Collins
📚 Divergent — Veronica Roth
📚 The Darkest Minds — Alexandra Bracken
📚 Throne of Glass — Sarah J. Maas
📚 Magicians of Venice — Amy Kuivalainen
📚 Rose in Chains — Julie Soto

Favorite Tropes Discussed:
💥 Enemies to Lovers
💍 Marriage of Convenience
🚫 No Love Triangles (sorry, not sorry)

Listen for:

• The exact book that flipped the reading switch

• Why dystopian YA walked so romantasy could fly

• A brief detour into Dancing with the Stars

• The real meaning behind “men with red flags and wings”

🎧 New Off Book episodes drop every other week between full-length Genre’d discussions!

This week on Genre’d, we’re talking about We Are All Guilty Here by Karin Slaughter — a small-town thriller of fireworks, vanishing girls, and a deputy who can’t outrun what she ignored (plus an FBI profiler who blows the case wide open).

We unpack dual timelines, dynasty drama, and why this one felt like watching prestige TV in print (hello, Will Trent / Sharp Objects / True Detective energy).

💥 Spoiler note: first ~15 minutes are spoiler-free; full-on spoilers after that (clearly flagged).
🚨 Content warnings: harm to minors, sexual violence, murder, addiction/recovery, dementia.

In this episode we chat about:

• Tropes & vibes: dual timelines, small-town secrets, morally gray leads, ticking-clock investigation

• Characters to watch: Emmy (reluctant engine), Gerald (loyalty vs. justice), Jude (pattern-reading profiler)

• Pop-culture detours: Will Trent, Sharp Objects, True Detective

• True-crime sidebar: the Austin “Yogurt Shop” case DNA development and why it fits today’s themes

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🎧 Listen now wherever you get your podcasts
📱 Follow @genredpodcast on Instagram & TikTok for more chaos between episodes

This week on Genre’d, we’re talking about The Knight and the Moth by Rachel Gillig — a gothic romantasy of cathedrals, omens, and a slow-burn pairing who’d rather quest than confess (plus one tiny gargoyle who steals every scene).

We unpack the inventive magic system, “too questy?” discourse, and why he falls first + banter had us grinning.

💥 Spoiler note: first ~20 minutes are spoiler-free; spoilers (incl. artifact/magic details) after 20:00.

In this episode we chat about:

• Tropes & vibes: enemies→lovers, slow burn, he-falls-first,

• Bartholomew appreciation: comic-relief and plot engine (’90s Gargoyles & Hunchback nods)

• Pop-culture detours: Taylor Swift “Mirrorball”, Minority Report echoes, Men in Tights chaos

• Spice check: 1.5/5 (PG-13) — romance is a strong B-plot

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🎧 Listen now wherever you get your podcasts
📱 Follow @genredpodcast on Instagram & TikTok for more chaos between episodes.

This week on Genre’d, we’re talking about Rose in Chains by Julie Soto — a dark romantasy where the war is lost and the princess is sold to her enemy… who also happens to be her longtime crush.

We unpack the fanfic-to-trad-pub pipeline (hi, Dramione), Handmaid’s Tale vibes, and why one kiss + mutual pining had us feral.

💥 Spoiler warning: full spoilers, including magic system reveals and the late-book twist.

In this episode we chat about:

• • Indie bookstore haul + studio décor: The Ripped Bodice, Browser Books, West Side Books, and The Strand (plus that Edward & Bella art 🤩).
  • The Wuthering Heights teaser detour (Margot Robbie, Jacob Elordi, and a Charlie XCX soundtrack mood)
  • Fanfic → trad-pub: Manacled/Alchemized chatter, what gets changed, what stays
  • Goodreads vs. Fable: quarter-star ratings and spicy-meter chats.

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  🎧 Listen now wherever you get your podcasts

  📱 Follow @genredpodcast on Instagram & TikTok for more chaos between episodes.

This week on Genre’d, we’re in Fiasco, Kentucky with Bourbon and Lies by Victoria Wilder. 

Elyse schools Katy with a full-on Romance 101 slide deck, we debate whether cowboys are really cowboys if they’re just making bourbon, and we break down one-line plots that set barns (and beds) on fire.

In this episode:

• Taylor Swift’s engagement announcement derails us immediately

• Romance novel beats explained (yes, Fabio covers included)

• Our “Sexy Hallmark” verdict on Bourbon and Lies

• Cocktail pairings for Grant, Lainey, Fiasco, and Grizz 🍸

💥 Spoiler warning: we get into all the twists, smut, and small-town drama.

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🎧 Listen now wherever you get your podcasts

📱 Follow @genredpodcast on Instagram & TikTok for more chaos between episodes.

This week on Genre’d, we dive into In the Veins of the Drowning by Kallie Cassidy — and we’re not doing it alone…

We’re joined by our younger sister, who brings unfiltered opinions, unplanned tangents, and the perfect amount of sibling chaos.

💥 Spoiler warning: We get into all the details, from deadly siren politics to our huh? moments.

In this episode we chat about:

• Taylor Swift’s upcoming 12th album and our theories

• Whether Katy would actually say yes to a marriage of convenience

• And how terrifying the original Little Mermaid story is

📚 In the Veins of the Drowning by Kallie Cassidy
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🎧 Listen now wherever you get your podcasts.
📲 Follow @genredpodcast on Instagram & TikTok for more chaos between episodes.

This week on Genre’d, we dive into The Compound by Aisling Rawle— and we’re not doing it alone…

We’re joined by Stephanie, author of Evitchka: A True Story of Survival, Hope & Love, who brings her hot takes, reality tv show knowledge, and a killer one-line plot.

💥 Spoiler warning: We get into all the details, from major plot twists to our wtf moments.

In this episode we chat about:

• ​What reality show we would want to be on
• ​K-pop demon hunters and our love for Maggie Q
• ​And we revisit the thumbs up vs. 5 star book rating system (spoiler alert: Katy wins)

📖 Stephanie’s book: Evitchka: A True Story of Survival, Hope & Love – available now!

📚 The Compound by Aisling Rawle

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🎧 Listen now wherever you get your podcasts.

📲 Follow @genredpodcast on Instagram & TikTok for more chaos between episodes.

In our second episode, we discuss Elyse’s pick, Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry — a swoony, introspective romance about ambition, grief, and finding your person when you least expect it.

💥 Spoiler warning: We get into all the details, from major plot twists to our wtf moments.

In this episode:

• ​We attempt to fan-cast the main characters (with mixed results).
• ​Everyone shares their ultimate book boyfriends.
• ​Katy reveals her book rating scale
• ​Bryanna discusses thoughts on beach make outs

Mentions:

• ​“The perfect man exists. He’s called a ‘book boyfriend’,” Jenny Singer, Washington Post, June 21, 2025. https://www.washingtonpost.com/books/2025/06/21/book-boyfriend-romance-novels/

✨ New episodes every other week, covering everything from romantasy to literary fiction (and whatever TikTok makes us read next).

📚 Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry – https://www.target.com/p/great-big-beautiful-life-target-exclusive-edition-by-emily-henry-hardcover/-/A-94051610

📱 Follow us on Instagram & TikTok: @genredpodcast

📩 Email us: [email protected]

🎧 If you enjoyed the episode, subscribe, leave us a rating, and share with a fellow book lover.