Hearts & Daggers

Summary: Join Holly and Devin as they explore the world of US and international politics on today's episode! While neither of them have read many political books in the past, they appreciated these books specifically for their accuracy, the tension built, and the clear demonstration of the impact politics can have on the lives of those working in those spaces.

Topics Discussed:

• The Heart (3:23): Devin discussed Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuinston, a novel that follows Alex (first son of the United States) and Henry (grandson to the King of England) in one of the most epic enemies to lovers romances out there. After bad press from an incident involving a destroyed wedding cake, Alex and Henry are thrust together for a PR campaign that slowly becomes much, much more. It has just been released on Amazon Prime as a movie - check it out! Devin's key takeaways were:

• More than anything, this novel is about and conveys LGBTQIA+ joy. Henry is gay but forced to remain in the closet by his family and the crown. Alex had never come to terms with his own sexuality and his journey into understanding his bisexuality is moving and important.

• Politics, shocker, are at the core of this novel and Alex's mother (the President) is working to be elected for a second term. The accuracy of a re-election campaign, the exploration of a new friendship out of political necessity, and the adrenaline rush of following our protagonists as they navigate their feelings and the potential global consequences would get any reader's heart beating faster.

• UK and American history is woven throughout the novel; the histories greatly inform the choices, pressures, and decisions Alex and Henry make. They must grapple with what history means for them, what history will see in them, and how they can impact the outcome of their futures by the decisions in their present.

• The Dagger (23:40): Holly discussed State of Terror by Hillary Rodham Clinton and Louise Penny, a political thriller following new Secretary of State Ellen Adams. A wide-ranging and global story, Clinton and Penny delve into the lives of Ellen Adam and a low-level State Department Employee named Anahita after news of a bomb exploding on a bus in London and Paris breaks. Holly's key takeaways were:

• Clinton and Penny collaborated together to write this novel during the pandemic. They got to the core of the story they wanted to tell when Louise asked Hillary what kept her up at night, what gave her nightmares when she herself was Secretary of State. Penny's writing is as strong as ever and Hillary's expertise shines through via plot and structure.

• This book explores the power of female friendship and being a woman in politics; a lot of the main characters are representatives from different countries like Iran, Pakistan, India, and Russia and Betsy, Ellen's number two is named after and an homage to Hillary and Louise's mutual friend who passed away.

• Yes, State of Terror is a thriller, but don't forget the politics. A lot of the drama happens at a conference room table and the driver behind all of the plot ultimately is the domestic and international political situations that Ellen must navigate.

• Hot On the Shelf (43:00):

• Devin: That Summer Feeling by Bridget Morrissey

• Holly: The Quiet Tenant by Clémence Michallon

• What's Making Our Hearts Race (46:57):

• Devin: Baking bagels for the first time!

• Holly: The film Theater Camp

Instagram: @heartsanddaggerspod

Website: www.heartsanddaggerspod.com

If you like what you hear, please tell your friends and rate and review us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify so that we can find our perfect audience.

Summary: ¡Bienvenido a Argentina! In our fifth and final stop of the Summer Jetset Series, Holly and Devin spend some time in South America enjoying books set in Argentina. They both agree that South America is underrepresented in books for both their wheelhouses and advocate for readers to seek out books from the continent purposefully, especially in translation. The use of magical elements across genres and the horrors of Argentine history are key for novels from the country and they both agree if available, Holly and Devin would literally and metaphorically travel to Argentina again.

Topics Discussed:

• The Dagger (3:34): Holly discussed Death Going Down by María Angélica Bosco, a 1950s whodunnit that begins with a young man stumbling home drunkenly in the wee hours of the morning to find a beautiful young woman in the elevator up to his apartment - dead. From there, detectives delve into the mystery of the victim and her death as well as the colorful lives of the building residents. Holly's key takeaways were:

• Bosco's style is reminiscent of Agatha Christie or the Nancy Drew series; there's a large cast of characters in the building that act as suspects and each has their own secrets and motives. Unlike Louise Penny, the novel focuses less on the detectives and much more on the residents of the building - all of whom Holly enjoyed greatly.

• This book brought a strong sense of history and its place in time. Written in 1954, "Death Going Down" includes the fallout from WWII and the European (and nazi) escaping to Argentina and other South American countries. There's a sense of suspicion around certain characters depending on where they're from originally.

• The novel lacks a strong sense of place and the reader shouldn't expect to get a very good feel of Argentina as a whole. The focus remains on the apartment building and its residents, similar to the TV show "Only Murders in the Building."

• The Heart (16:34): Devin discussed Hades, Argentina by Daniel Loedel, an Orpheus retelling set during the Dirty War of Argentina, specifically 1976. Tomás Orilla is a young medical student in Buenos Aires who has been in love with his childhood friend Isabella for years. As tensions increase between the Argentinian government and young insurgents fighting the oppressive regime, Tomás does all he can to prove his love to Isabella until he's forced to flee the country for New York City, living as Thomas Shore for a decade. But can he ever truly leave behind Isabelle and what he did in '76?

• As Orpheus descended into hell to retrieve Eurydice, so too Tomás entered the underworld to save Isabelle and make peace with his choices. A magical realism ghost story, Loedel blurs the lines between modern reality and ghosts interacting with our protagonist. Usually this is to good effect, but occasionally leaves the reader confused about which world we're in.

• Tomas and almost every character in the book are plagued by guilt and shame over what they did to survive during the Dirty War. There are also descriptions of what many of those acts were, including torture and sexual violence. Please use caution as there are *trigger warnings* for the novel.

• Loedel treats young love as simultaneously foolish and a force so powerful it brings back the dead. "Hades, Argentina" explores the extent to which someone will sacrifice their self-hood for love and how unrequited love can impact the trajectory of a person.

• Hot On the Shelf (37:52):

• Devin: Just As You Are by Camille Kellogg

• Holly: The Puzzle Master by Danielle Trussoni

• What's Making Our Hearts Race (42:31):

• Devin: FIFA Women's World Cup

• Holly: The Bear Season 2 on Hulu

Instagram: @heartsanddaggerspod

Website: www.heartsanddaggerspod.com

If you like what you hear, please tell your friends and rate and review us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify so that we can find our perfect audience.

Summary: Add some Seoul to your day and join Holly and Devin in South Korea for today's Summer Jetset Series episode! While neither of them have made it to Korea yet, they have both fallen in love with the country, the culture, the vibrancy and K-Pop. They appreciate the country for its massive pop-cultural influence in both music with KPop, KDramas and K-beauty trends and fashion - it's exciting to see South Korea stepping more and more onto the global stage. Until you can book your tickets, come armchair travel with us!

Topics Discussed:

• The Heart (2:51): Devin discussed XOXO by Axie Oh, a delightful YA novel that follows cellist Jenny as she travels from her home in LA to Seoul and the Seoul Arts Academy for a semester to help her mother care for her ailing grandmother. Once there, Jenny realizes that the mysterious hunk she connected with one random night in LA is actually Jaewoo, star of an up-and-coming K-Pop group. Devin's key takeaways were:

• Whether you're a huge K-Pop fan or new to the scene, this book provides a fantastic overview of the K-Pop experience, both for the fandom and for the group members themselves. Oh executes with wonderful accuracy on the excitement and struggles of Jaewoo and his groupmates.

• Unlike most Hallmark movies, XOXO doesn't involve Jenny giving up her own dreams and goals for the sake of Jaewoo; she continues to explore what her cello career and future studies mean to her and her growth is not exclusively driven by her romance; a refreshing and important perspective for all readers.

• The side characters of this novel are phenomenal, well-rounded, and provide a pop of color and texture to the main plotline of a forbidden love between Jenny and Jaewoo.

• The Dagger (16:47): Holly discussed The Plotters by Un-Su Kim, a contemporary novel that delves into the secretive world of assassins. The reader follows Reseng, a contract killer who was raised by the head of an underground organization, Old Racoon. The tensions between old guard leaders like Old Racoon and new blood portrayed by Hanja add layers of intrigue on top of an already compelling assassin story. Holly's key takeaways were:

• Don't judge a book by it's assassin plot! This novel is introspective and explores the theme of personal identity and the search for meaning in life. Reseng grapples with questions about his own identity as he begins to recognize that his life has been controlled by external forces who have been pulling the strings behind the scenes.

• The Plotters raises ethical questions about the nature of killing and the moral implications of assassination while weaving in some seriously intense action scenes. As is the case with 21st-century Korean crime films, this novel relies heavily on sharp and pointy objects that get deadly - principally, knives and hatchets.

• As we follow Renseng on his journey, Kim explores the complexities of loyalty and betrayal within his sphere of assassins and underground groups. It raises questions about trust, the nature of relationships, and the lengths to which individuals will go to protect their own interests.

• Hot On the Shelf (33:13):

• Devin: The Fiancé Farce by Alexandria Bellefleur

• Holly: The Whispers by Ashley Audrain

• What's Making Our Hearts Race (36:42):

• Devin: The Nowhere Bookshop in San Antonio, TX (owned by Jenny Lawson!)

• Holly: Past Lives, a film in theaters!

Instagram: @heartsanddaggerspod

Website: www.heartsanddaggerspod.com

If you like what you hear, please tell your friends and rate and review us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify so that we can find our perfect audience.

Summary: Bienvenue à Coeurs et Poignards, where today we'll be armchair traveling to France for the next episode in our Summer Jetset Series! Both Holly and Devin have spent quality time in the country already; Devin is francophone and has lived in both Paris and Bordeaux, and Holly visited the south of France on her honeymoon (on top of other visits!). They agree that French culture resonates with their lifestyles, values, and dreams - passion, great food, relaxed lifestyle, art and millions of dead bodies buried in the Catacombs.

Topics Discussed:

• The Dagger (5:21): Holly discussed Bruno, Chief of Police by Martin Walker, the first book in a delightful, 21-book murder mystery series following Benoît "Bruno" Courrèges as he dines, delves, and detects in the fictional southwestern French town of Saint Dénis. Holly's key takeaways were:

• While Bruno is typically peaceful (never wears his gun, never arrests anyone, lives in a restored shepherd's cottage), a murder has disrupted the tranquility of St. Dénis; a North African man is found dead with a swastika carved into his chest. Walker then explores the role of police in small, tight-knit communities and corruption that extends into an international community.

• While murder is a focal point of the book (obviously) so is the outstanding cuisine of France. Replete with descriptions of local dishes, ingredients, and cooking techniques, the novel becomes vivid by engaging all five senses and providing the reader an opportunity to explore the impact of gastronomy on the culture and local economy.

• Ultimately this novel and the subsequent series explores the charm and idyllic nature of rural communities in southern France. The identity, sense of belonging, and prejudices of folks in the tiny town unveil to the reader the tensions we may all encounter; tradition vs. modernity, diversity vs. homogeneity, globalization vs. local culture.

• The Heart (17:36): Devin discussed The Paris Connection by Lorraine Brown, a novel that follows protagonist Hannah as she is separated from her boyfriend, Simon, on an overnight train destined for Amsterdam but half of which splits off (with Hannah in the wrong section) to Paris. What follows is a day of hijinks, self-discovery, and the intrigue of new connections. Devin's key takeaways were:

• When Hannah finds herself in Paris with no luggage, phone charger, and very little money, she ends up relying on the generosity of a disgruntled (and attractive) parisian man named Léo. In spite of her hesitation and negative perception of Léo at the start, Hannah soon finds herself on the back of his moped experiencing Paris in a way she never has before.

• With a spice rating of "negative chili peppers," this novel strikes Devin more as a self-discovery, almost coming-of-age story than a true romance. Brown created an amazing premise with one real challenge; the timeframe in which Hannah and Léo need to figure it out and fall in love. Almost too reliant on the "love at first sight" (in French, coup de foudre i.e. lightning strike) trope, the reader misses out on the joy of a slower, more organic evolution of chemistry between the main pairing.

• Ultimately, it is the vivid and detailed tour around the key neighborhoods of Paris that keep the reader beside Hannah through this novel; Brown animates the city in all its glory, giving proper attention to the architecture, character, cuisine, and atmosphere of the iconic City of Lights.

• Hot On the Shelf (35:13):

• Holly: Sun Damage by Sabine Durrant

• Devin: The Assassin's Blade by Sarah J. Maas

• What's Making Our Hearts Race (38:03):

• Holly: Sex and the City

• Devin: Platonic on AppleTV

Instagram: @heartsanddaggerspod

Website: www.heartsanddaggerspod.com

If you like what you hear, please tell your friends and rate and review us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify so that we can find our perfect audience.

Summary: Welcome to the second stop of our Summer Jetset Episode Series! Today, Holly and Devin are lucky enough to armchair visit a country neither of them have been able to see in person yet - India! A country much larger than it is often portrayed on maps, they are both drawn to the geographic, cultural, and culinary variety of the country. While neither have read a ton of books set in India, they are both avid readers of Indian (and Indian Immigrant) authors. They've also committed to set a budget and start saving for a trip there!

Topics Discussed:

• The Heart (3:04): Devin discussed Holly Jolly Diwali by Sonya Lalli, a novel that follows protagonist Niki Randhawa through Mumbai and Goa and, more importantly, her own journey of self-discovery. Niki works as a data analyst, has always stayed close to home and always taken the least risky path. When she's laid off just before her friend Diya's wedding, however, she realizes even the best laid plans can fall apart and heads for Mumbai. Devin's key takeaways were:

• At the Diwali celebration, Niki meets Sameer Mukherji, a London-based musician and mutual friend. Their "love at first sight" connection and witty banter draw the reader in, but the rest of the novel relies heavily on the lightning strike trope, which underserves the character development.

• Lalli positions this book not only as a romance but also as solid education for those uninitiated into Indian culture and stereotypes. At times the novel can turn a bit preachy and overt in the educational focus, but it does paint a vivid picture of Mumbai and especially Goa. Niki, though Indian herself, is positioned as the conduit for the reader to get educated.

• Ultimately this book is about Niki's evolution; after a restrained life of responsible choices, she doesn't have a grasp on who she is or what she wants. With the help of Sam, her sister Jasmine, and her friend group (focused on Diya), she finally breaks the mold and begins to live authentically.

• The Dagger (19:50): Holly discussed Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line by Deepa Anappara, an urban noir mystery following nine-year-old Jai and friends Pari and Faiz as they take justice into their own hands and investigate the disappearance of their classmate. Jai lives in a basti, a sprawling slum located in an unnamed city in India. His prized possession is the television they have because of his passion for reality police shows. Holly's key takeaways were:

• Anappara, who was a journalist reporting on children living in poverty across India, explores in this book the harsh realities faced by marginalized communities in the country. The novel prompts discussions on the causes and consequences of urban poverty, access to basic amenities, and the role of government in addressing those issues.

• Through the lens of Jai and his friends, this story captures the resilient spirit and enduring hope of children in the face of adversity. It portrays the strength of friendship and the power of imagination in coping with difficult circumstances (please note: no actual Djinns appear in the novel).

• While the exact city is left unnamed, the reader is left with an incredibly vivid sense of the basti itself, the marketplace, the many foods and smells (both good and bad), the noise and the chaos that convey and conceal the dangers and challenges faced by the poor who live there.

• Hot On the Shelf (34:41):

• Holly: Looking Glass Sound by Catriona Ward

• Devin: Happy Place by Emily Henry

• What's Making Our Hearts Race (40:12):

• Holly: Love and Death on Max

• Devin: The National Parks System

Instagram: @heartsanddaggerspod

Website: www.heartsanddaggerspod.com

If you like what you hear, please tell your friends and rate and review us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify so that we can find our perfect audience.

Summary: Ciao, bella! Welcome to the first stop on our Summer Jetset Series - Italy! Today Devin and Holly visit Venice and Positano together to understand the close relationship between love and death in Italy. Since the time of Shakespeare, the country has been a place of passion in literature (second only, perhaps, to France). They agree that regardless of your prior experience visiting the country, novels set in the country are always vivid, intriguing, and colorful.

Topics Discussed:

• The Dagger (4:19): Holly discussed Death at La Fenice by Donna Leon, a crime fiction novel set in Venice featuring the fictional hero Commissario Guido Brunetti. The book opens at the end of intermission at Teatro La Fenice; the conductor, Maestro Wallauer, has been poisoned and is dead on the floor of his dressing room. Holly's key takeaways were:

• The mystery of who killed the Maestro is a slow burn through the book. Brunetti's tactics are conversation focused, and the novel is the opposite of a templated popcorn thriller. That being said, it came together very effectively by the end.

• Leon has lived in Venice for years and brought her experiences to the page; we get great behind-the-scenes looks at the Venetian opera house, excursions by canal around the city, and a colorful cast of Italian characters (most of whom are constantly smoking and drinking coffee)

• This series is the Italian cousin to the Bruno Chief of Police series set in southern France; if you're a fan of Louise Penny you'll also likely enjoy these books!

• The Heart (17:35): Devin discussed One Italian Summer by Rebecca Searle, a novel set in Positano that follows Katy Silver on a vacation that was intended as a mother-daughter trip. When Katy's mother dies before they can make it to the Amalfi Coast, Katy's entire sense of reality and herself is turned upside down. She is unsure if she wants to stay in her marriage, and uses the vacation to get some space. Devin's key takeaways were:

• This is essentially a time travel story; once Katy arrives, she meets her own mother (Carol) at 30 years old in the summer she had spent in Positano before meeting her husband and settling down. The time travel element isn't fully explained and the reader is left unsure of how Katy travels back and forth across decades (best not to think too hard on this and just enjoy the story).

• Searle explores this mother-daughter relationship in-depth through the novel. Katy has a romantic fling as well, but ultimately the book posits that Carol is her soulmate. Katy must learn how to reframe herself as an individual, instead of as a bonded pair with her mother.

• Regardless of the plot holes, this novel had such vivid descriptions of Positano, the hotels, the hills, the restaurants, even Katy's outfits, that the reader is fully drawn into the Italian adventure. The sense of place could not be stronger.

• Hot On the Shelf (38:34):

• Holly: Decent People by De'Shawn Charles Winslow

• Devin: In the Lives of Puppets by TJ Klune

• What's Making Our Hearts Race (41:15):

• Holly: Libro.fm

• Devin: Ted Lasso Season 3

Instagram: @heartsanddaggerspod

Website: www.heartsanddaggerspod.com

If you like what you hear, please tell your friends and rate and review us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify so that we can find our perfect audience.

We're coming to you today with a quick announcement - our minisodes will be going on hiatus for the summer! We'll be giving ourselves a little extra free time this season and plan to bring our minisodes back bigger and better than ever soon.

In the meantime, our main episodes will continue on their usual bi-weekly cadence to make sure that you all have what you need about genre fiction books and are sufficiently inspired for your summer beach reads.

As always, if you have ideas for themes or other ways we can help you all explore the wide world of books through this podcast, you can submit them to us via our online form at heartsanddaggerspod.com

Summary: Welcome to Tinseltown, folks! This week, Holly(wood) and Devin dive into the glitz, the glam, the seedy underbelly of the symbol of the entertainment business. Holly recently moved closer to the epicenter of celebrity, while Devin has always been terrified to visit - intimidated by all of the people who figured out how to get famous. They find that across genres Hollywood has always held a wide appeal, and in almost no other theme is the difference between romance and murder so thin.

Topics Discussed:

• The Heart (4:42): Devin discussed The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid, a novel that traces through the long life of famous actress Evelyn Hugo as she shares a tell-all with up-and-coming reporter Monique Grant. Please be aware that below is a *spoiler* but also a key plot point that Devin couldn't avoid touching on:

• Through the interview process and early-ish in the book, Evelyn reveals to Monique that the great love of her life was actually a woman - fellow actress Celia St. James - and that she is bisexual. Devin finally understood why *everyone* was trying to push her to read a book about a celebrity with 7 male husbands.

• Reid explores the challenges of Hollywood and conformity in society writ large through the life of Evelyn Hugo - she is a woman in a patriarchal society, she is a cuban woman passing as a white woman, and she's bisexual in an era when deviance from the norm and wlw was demonized.

• Evelyn's grit, drive to succeed, and nimbleness to use societal expectations to craft the life she wanted is admirable and exciting to read. There is a final twist at the end of the book, though, that Devin felt was unnecessary and pushed the book from engaging to dramatic.

• The Dagger (20:13): Holly discussed The Black Dahlia by James Ellroy, a crime fiction novel from 1987 that is loosely based on the infamous (real) unsolved case of Elizabeth Short, who was found brutally murdered and dismembered in Los Angeles in 1947. The fictionalized version follows two LAPD detectives - Bucky and Lee - who become obsessed with the victim and her case. Holly's key takeaways were:

• Ellroy is a very gritty noir writer, and the novel not only exposes the corruption, violence, and depravity that lies just beneath the glittered surface of Hollywood, but toxic masculinity and themes of violence as well.

• Bucky and Lee are friends but also rivals in love with the same woman - Kay Lake (Lee's live-in girlfriend). There is a black-and-white film version of the novel and Kay is played by Scarlett Johansen. Their rivalry and their methods of beating suspects, use of violence to solve cases, etc. allow Ellroy and the reader to explore the moral question of if the ends justify the means.

• The victim, Elizabeth, had many aliases and was obsessed with becoming a Hollywood star; women in this novel are portrayed largely as victims or objects of desire for the male characters. The fact that this was a real crime adds a layer of gravity and reality to the themes explored in The Black Dahlia.

• Hot On the Shelf (38:29):

• Holly: Rana Joon and the One and Only Now by Shideh Etaat

• Devin: Bi: The Hidden Culture, History, and Science of Bisexuality by Julia Shaw

• What's Making Our Hearts Race (42:40):

• Holly: Book signing event at Zibby's with Sally Hepworth

• Devin: Season 10 of Last Week Tonight with John Oliver

Instagram: @heartsanddaggerspod

Website: www.heartsanddaggerspod.com

If you like what you hear, please tell your friends and rate and review us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify so that we can find our perfect audience.

Summary: "In this episode, we explore the capabilities of ChatGPT, a large language model trained by OpenAI, to come up with romance and mystery synopses. Our hosts, Holly and Devin, will be using ChatGPT to generate plots and storylines for their very own romance and mystery novels." And that was ChatGPT, too! Continuing these show notes using our boring human brains…

• Holly is fascinated and intrigued by ChatGPT and AI in general; Devin has been scarred since Smart House, the 1999 Disney Channel Original movie came out and prophetically underlined the dangers of letting Alexa into your home.

• To better understand the AI trend sweeping the nation, Holly and Devin each prepared two synopses for either a romance or mystery, read them aloud, and then their co-host would guess the prompt before the final reveal of what we plugged into ChatGPT to get each synopsis.

• Overall, both hosts agree that they'd read the books that ChatGPT created and had an absolute blast using AI for some very nerdy, hilarious use cases.

Instagram: @heartsanddaggerspod

Website: www.heartsanddaggerspod.com

If you like what you hear, please tell your friends and rate and review us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify so that we can find our perfect audience.

Summary: Pack your carry-on and get the heck outta town - this week, Holly and Devin break down books centered around a weekend getaway. They agree that putting protagonists in a brand new environment acts as a fantastic plot and character development catalyst - but of course the outcome of lighting that fuse could be murder or makin' out, depending on genre. Get ready for some armchair travel on today's episode.

Topics Discussed:

• The Dagger (3:39): Holly discussed Rock Paper Scissors by Alice Feeney, a psychological thriller centered around Adam and Amelia Wright as they head on a weekend to Scotland in a last-ditch effort to save their marriage. Holly's key takeaways were:

• After winning a trip to stay in an old, remote chapel in Scotland, Adam and Amelia jump on the opportunity to try and reignite their marriage at the advice of their marriage counselor. It quickly becomes evident, though, that they have their own plans and motives up their sleeves.

• Trust is a central theme of the book; the protagonists are constantly questioning each other's motives and actions - there's no surprise at all why they ended up in counseling. There's also a healthy dose of revenge as Adam and Amelia seek revenge for past wrongs.

• The perspective alternates in chapters between Adam's and Amelia's voice and both are unreliable narrators. This allows Feeney to explore not only the nature of truth and reality, but also the complexities of marriage and maintaining relationships.

• The Heart (18:41): Devin discussed Just Haven't Met You Yet by Sophie Cousens, a delightful romp through the Channel Isles (specifically Jersey) following Laura La Quesne, a journalist for the magazine 'Love Life' who decides to return to her roots near England for a piece on her parent's tragic but profound love story and finds much more along the way. Devin's key takeaways were:

• Laura is a fun protagonist to root for, even if some of her hijinks throughout the book are cringeworthy. After accidentally taking the bag of a stranger, she roots through the contents and decides that the love of her life is the owner of said bag. Things escalate quickly from there.

• There is a clear love triangle in this novel between Ted, the grumpy taxi driver who shows Laura the island and helps her hunt down her mystery man and the man himself, Jasper, who oddly enough is *not* the villain of this story.

• Ultimately this book is about selfhood, searching for identity, the power of story, and the choices we make that define who we are and what love means to us. Laura seeks to understand her family history and find love, but uncovers more about herself than anything else on this whirlwind long-weekend adventure.

• Hot On the Shelf (37:47):

• Holly: Lucy by the Sea by Elizabeth Strout

• Devin: Ana María and the Fox by Liana de la Rosa

• What's Making Our Hearts Race (41:25):

• Holly: Succession Season 4 on HBO Max

• Devin: The Meg with Jason Statham

Instagram: @heartsanddaggerspod

Website: www.heartsanddaggerspod.com

If you like what you hear, please tell your friends and rate and review us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify so that we can find our perfect audience.