I Read Something Bad

Today your matron saints of spice are breaking down Taylor Swift’s latest album The Life of a Showgirl. We’re unpacking the false binary of “literary Taylor” versus “fun Taylor,” defending intellectualism in giddy romance, and explaining why performative activism on social media isn’t the same as actually loving your neighbors.

Plus, we’re getting real about how knowing too much about Taylor’s life actually ruins some songs because we can’t separate her lore from our own experiences.

Topics Covered:

* First impressions of the album and how the stark tonal shift from TTPD to Showgirl hit different depending on which era of Taylor you entered the fandom through

* The problem with binary thinking in both theology and art criticism—moving past “I liked it/I didn’t like it” to actually engage critically with what the work is doing

* How people vilify women (and specifically female theologians) for processing pain through Taylor Swift’s music, which is really just policing grief in weird patriarchal ways

* The false binary of career woman versus domestic goddess, and how women (including Taylor) contain multitudes without having to choose one identity forever

* How the emphasis on performance over practice keeps us from doing actual neighborhood-level activism, because posting black squares isn’t the same as loving Black people

The cringe is intentional, the depth is real, and Happy Taylor deserves the same literary analysis as Sad Taylor. Also, dick jokes can be spiritual practices after hard hospital shifts—chaplains said so. 🎭✨💕

Timestamps:

02:00 First Impressions: Opposite Listening Trajectories

05:00 Community Theater Experience Making Art Hit Different

10:00 Moving Past Binary Thinking in Art and Theology

13:00 Policing Women’s Grief Through Celebrity Criticism

18:00 Defending Intellectual Depth in Surface-Level Work

23:00 The Cringe Factor and Permission to Be Fully Human

27:00 Folklore Fans and Projecting Pandemic Sadness

31:00 Taylor the Poet vs Taylor the Brand

34:00 Intellectualism in Giddy Romance and Fun Art

38:00 Reimagining Trauma Through Creative Storytelling

40:00 False Binary of Career vs Domestic Life for Women

46:00 Performative Activism vs Actual Community Practice

49:00 Stadium Security and Why Speaking Out Is Complicated

53:00 Performance Over Practice in Online Activism

57:00 Favorite Songs

Today your matron saints of spice are putting our literary lens on some biblical badasses who deserve way more airtime than they get—Jael and Deborah from the book of Judges.

We’re talking about a prophetess judge who sat under a palm tree settling disputes and leading military strategy, plus a married woman who lured an enemy general into her tent and drove a tent peg through his skull with #biblicalwomanhood.

If you’ve ever wondered why complementarian spaces conveniently skip these ladies in Sunday school, buckle up—because this story has sexual imagery, violence reversals, and women exercising authority without a single caveat about “lack of qualified men.”

Topics Covered:

* Historical context of the Judges period and why Deborah stands as the only legitimately good judge in a book full of increasingly terrible men doing what’s right in their own eyes

* How Deborah operates as prophetess, judge, military strategist, and worship leader simultaneously—with zero biblical explanation needed about why a woman has this authority (spoiler: she just does)

* The subversive power of Jael using domestic hospitality as her battlefield, complete with intentional sexual imagery in the Hebrew poetry that flips wartime rape culture on its head

* Why Barak asking Deborah to come with him instead of the woman needing male protection is a complete trope reversal, and how their friendship models men and women working together without Billy Graham rule nonsense

* The uncomfortable moment when the enemy general’s mother casually expects him to be dividing “a womb or two” as war plunder—and how women in complementarian spaces still rationalize male violence today

* How both these women are outsiders (Deborah leading when she “shouldn’t,” Jael as a non-Israelite) showing God consistently working through unexpected people to accomplish divine justice

* The grounded confidence both women display in just doing what needs doing without fanfare, wrestling, or asking “are you sure God?” seventeen times like Gideon

* Why Deborah elevating Jael in song is the ultimate women-supporting-women moment we need more of in ministry spaces that pit women against each other

Also, the Hebrew word play puts Barak’s name in the tent peg murder weapon, which is absolutely iconic literary trolling. Biblical womanhood: be prepared to drive stakes through enemy temples at any moment.

Timestamps:

02:00 Historical Context: Judges Period and Deborah’s Authority

06:00 Why This Story Never Makes It to Sunday School

09:00 Deborah Under the Palm Tree: Leadership Without Caveats

12:00 Barak and Deborah’s Friendship as Trope Reversal 15:00 Moving Past Suspicion Between Men and Women in Ministry

19:00 Barak Willing to Do Right Thing Without Getting Credit

22:00 When Women Normalize Male Violence for Other Women

25:00 Jael’s Subversive Hospitality and Sexual Imagery

28:00 One Tent in the Field: Reverse One Room Trope

30:00 Aspirational Traits: Grounded Confidence and Self-Assurance

33:00 Women Elevating Women: Deborah’s Song for Jael

36:00 Bible Reading Tips: Pay Attention When Women Speak

Today we're diving into book two of Stacia Stark's Kingdom of Lies series, where Prisca's relationship with time becomes a metaphor for everything we've been taught wrong about God's will, productivity culture, and why evangelical Christianity turned us into anxious overachievers who think every micro-decision could ruin our entire lives.

We're unpacking how chaotic theology around time keeps us fragmented, why God wants to be with us more than use us, and how Lorian teaching Prisca to kill her own demons is actually the healthiest relationship dynamic we've ever seen in fiction.

Topics Covered:

* How ancient philosophers viewed time as chaotic versus Gregory of Nyssa making eternity actually good, and why evangelical end-times theology creates urgency instead of rest—because apparently we were never trained to be future ancestors

* The theology of "gentle discipleship" that says God wants to be with us more than use us, which is absolutely earth-shattering for women raised to believe our worth comes from being useful helpers

* Why the "God's will as single straight line" theology creates decision fatigue and OCD spirals, versus understanding God's will as a symphony we participate in rather than a choose-your-own-adventure book where wrong choices end everything

* How medical caregivers make 300-700 extra decisions daily while being told other "big life choices" matter more, and why this reveals the absurdity of evangelical decision anxiety

* The difference between obedience-based faith (behavior modification) and becoming-based faith (virtue formation), plus why the Bible should be authoritative but not authoritarian

* How external validation systems in Christianity keep us from developing self-trust, and why Lorian deliberately separates Prisca from Telean so she learns to make her own decisions

* The revolutionary concept that women get to be complex characters who contain multitudes, and why the female gaze writes emotionally healthy men instead of just hot ones

* How biblical interpretation has been dominated by male perspectives (looking at you, medieval Bathsheba paintings), and why we need diverse voices telling these ancient stories

The standard isn't that high, folks—we're just asking for emotional health and the radical idea that women are full humans. Also, decision fatigue is real and God's probably not micromanaging your college choice.

Timestamps:

02:00 Ancient Philosophy of Time vs. Evangelical Urgency Culture

06:00 Why We Were Never Trained to Be Future Ancestors

08:00 Chaotic Time vs. God's Gentle Discipleship Theology

14:00 God Wants to Be With Us More Than Use Us

18:00 God's Will as Symphony vs. Single Straight Line Anxiety

24:00 Obedience Culture vs. Becoming-Based Faith Formation

30:00 Decision Fatigue for Medical Caregivers and the Absurd

35:00 Learning Self-Trust When External Validation Fails

38:00 Prisca's Growth Into Leadership and Healthy Relationships

42:00 Female Gaze vs. Male Gaze in Writing Relationships

44:00 How Biblical Art Objectified Women for Centuries

47:00 Why We Need Diverse Voices in Theological Interpretation

Today we're absolutely thrilled to have Stacia Stark, author of the Kingdom of Lies series we've been obsessing over.

Join your Matrons Saints of Spice, Jenai Auman, Kate Boyd, Liz Daye, and Sarah Lewan as we're diving deep into how fiction builds empathy while nonfiction can't, why religious hypocrisy hits different when you have ADHD and justice sensitivity, and how writing becomes free therapy for both authors and readers.

Plus, we're talking about the beautiful complexity of female characters who get to be angry, brave, and morally gray all at once—because apparently women containing multitudes is still revolutionary.

Topics Covered:

* How the romance and fantasy author community became the most supportive hype squad in publishing, and why authors spanning different genres create the best creative conversations

* The fascinating process of world-building from a single scene (Prisca getting pushed off a cliff by her mom) versus building from historical inspiration like female gladiators who were erased from history

* Why fiction reaches people that nonfiction never could—because nobody's reading your article titled "The Damage of Religion" if they're not already convinced, but they'll pick up a fantasy romance

* How religious hypocrisy and justice sensitivity fuel storytelling, plus the beautiful irony of people trying to co-opt your authorial intent to serve their own propaganda machine

* The psychology of why highly intelligent people get sucked into cults and conspiracy theories (spoiler: they think they're too smart to be fooled), and how cognitive dissonance makes people cling harder when presented with contradictory evidence

* Why writing complex female characters who choose bravery despite consequences feels revolutionary after centuries of women being portrayed as either pure victims or wicked temptresses

* How fiction gives permission for anger, complexity, and self-assuredness that many women never received elsewhere, plus the healing power of seeing grief around not knowing who you really are

* The community aspect of bravery—how characters lean on sisterhood and female friendship to do hard things, which mirrors what we need in real life right now

Reading fiction isn't escapism—it's empathy training, and sometimes asking "What would Madinia do?" is exactly the kind of feminine rage energy we need to channel. 🔥✨📚

Timestamps:

02:00 From Copywriter to Fantasy Author: Stacia's Writing Journey

05:00 The Romance Author Community as Ultimate Hype Squad

08:00 World-Building Process: Historical Inspiration vs. Single Scenes

14:00 Complex Character Development and Learning to Love Villains

20:00 Fiction as Empathy Builder vs. Nonfiction's Limitations

24:00 Religious Trauma, Hypocrisy, and Justice Sensitivity in Writing

31:00 When Readers Try to Co-opt Your Authorial Intent

37:00 Fiction's Unique Access to Different Worldviews

42:00 Losing Empathy and Patience in Current Political Climate

48:00 Why Smart People Fall for Cults and Conspiracy Theories

52:00 Permission to Be Brave, Angry, and Complex as Women

58:00 Self-Assuredness, Moral Clarity, and Feminine Rage as Resistance

Welcome back, matron saints of spice! Today we're diving into Stacia Stark's Kingdom of Lies series, starting with A Court This Cruel and Lovely.

We're unpacking how King Sabium weaponizes religion to hoard magical power while executing anyone who threatens his control, and honestly? It hits a little too close to home when you've navigated systems that uphold power while dehumanizing people.

Plus, we're swooning over Lorian's belief in Prisca and having all the feelings about grief, revolution, and why women need to stop keeping secrets from each other.

Topics Covered:

* How King Sabium's fake religious system mirrors real-world power structures that use faith as a smokescreen for oppression and control—because apparently tyrants have been using the "it's God's will" playbook for centuries

* The difference between contextual theology that liberates versus heretical theology that serves hierarchy, plus why one leads to liberation theology and the other leads to eternal subordination nonsense

* Breaking down the "greater good" mentality that justifies harm versus pursuing the common good that actually considers everyone's flourishing—spoiler: they're not the same thing

* How proximity changes everything, from Madinia's dad suddenly caring about magical persecution when it affects his daughter to why white evangelical Christianity loses its way when it stays in wealthy bubbles

* The capitalism-Christianity pipeline that turns pastors into marketers and church members into dollar signs, because apparently Robert Schuller pioneered the megachurch MLM model in Orange County

* Why Prisca's willingness to literally put her body between harm and vulnerable people is aspirational activism we can actually practice in grocery stores and neighborhoods

* The beautiful grief of mourning dreams you thought you wanted while stepping into who you're becoming—because growth isn't just empowering, it's also loss

* How secrecy isolates women from the support they desperately need, whether it's magical powers or marriage struggles, and why vulnerability has "right" and "wrong" ways in certain communities

* Lorian throwing rocks like a 5-year-old but also believing Prisca is already powerful—because we can appreciate fictional men who see our potential without putting them on relationship pedestals

Revolution is happening right under the king's nose, and sometimes the seamstresses are the real heroes. Also, that goodbye kiss? Chef's kiss 💋✨

Timestamps:

02:00 Religious Systems as Cover for Power Hoarding

06:00 Systemic Church Trauma vs. Individual Harm Stories

11:00 Weaponizing Scripture vs. Scripture as Invitation

18:00 Isolation, Heresy, and Christian-Identified Violence

25:00 Greater Good Mentality vs. Common Good Ethics

31:00 Capitalism Infiltrating Christianity Through Marketing

38:00 Aspirational Activism and Intervening for Others

43:00 Romance Appreciation: That Goodbye Kiss Scene

47:00 Grieving Dreams While Growing Into New Identity

52:00 Women's Secrecy and the Need for Safe Vulnerability

Today your Matron Saints of Spice are tackling the supernatural drama that has evangelicals clutching their pearls over fictional wizards while pouring grape juice around their property lines.

We're exposing how much of our "biblical" understanding of angels and demons actually comes from medieval poetry, why some magic gets a holy pass while other magic gets the pitchfork treatment, and what spiritual warfare looks like when you're not trying to weaponize God for your personal agenda.

Topics Covered:

* How Dante's Divine Comedy (not the Bible) gave us most of our angel and demon aesthetics, plus why tracing these ideas back to ancient Roman philosophy might make you side-eye some Sunday school lessons

* Deconstructing the wild inconsistency of calling Wicked "demonic" while giving Narnia a free pass — and why cultural bias determines what gets labeled as witchcraft versus "acceptable" spirituality

* Why your hedge-of-protection prayers might be closer to spell-casting than you think, and how proximity to real suffering completely transforms what prayer actually means

* The truth about spiritual warfare: it's less about binding demons and more about surrendering control, plus why God isn't a cosmic vending machine that dispenses blessings for the right prayer formula

* How hyper-spiritualizing every inconvenience as "spiritual warfare" conveniently lets us avoid addressing actual systemic evil like gun violence, oppression, and injustice

* Why your favorite morally gray fantasy characters might teach you more about authentic faith than sanitized Christian fiction ever could — and how missing the deeper themes because "magic bad" is its own form of spiritual poverty

* Breaking down why God isn't scary, doesn't want you paralyzed by phantom fears, and is actually safe for people navigating a legitimately frightening world

Spoiler alert: The devils in your spicy fantasy novels might just be the good guys, your imagination is not the enemy of your faith, and that grape juice isn't protecting anyone from anything. 🍇✨😈

Timestamps:

02:28 Cultural and Historical Perspectives

06:55 Modern Interpretations and Misconceptions

11:10 Spiritual Warfare and Real-World Implications

14:58 The Role of Prayer and Suffering

25:01 Navigating Faith and Fiction

36:28 Respecting Different Christian Denominations

37:07 World Building in Fiction

40:40 Critique of Christian Art and Literature

46:53 Spiritual Warfare and Mental Flexibility

53:44 The Role of Imagination in Faith

Kate, Sarah, and Liz are back with A Court of Silver Flames, where we discover that Nesta Archeron isn't just the "unlikable" sister—she's actually a mirror for anyone who's ever been told their anger, their darkness, or their refusal to fit in the "good Christian girl" box makes them fundamentally unlovable.

Turns out Sarah J. Maas is serving up more truth about healing from shame and self-hatred than most church small groups ever will. The audacity! 💁‍♀️📚✨

Topics Covered:

* The Self-Loathing Olympics: Why Nesta's brutal inner monologue ("I am worthless, I'm nothing, I hate everything that I am") sounds suspiciously like evangelical prayer language, and how "worm theology" taught us that hating ourselves was somehow godly. Plot twist: God actually made you on purpose! 🪱➡️👑

* The "Good Girl" Box is a Trap: How Nesta's journey from people-pleasing future trophy wife to unapologetic Lady Death shows us that healing doesn't mean becoming palatable—it means learning to aim your fire at the right targets instead of yourself 🔥

* Libraries as Sacred Spaces: Why these quiet sanctuaries for story and learning might be doing more for community healing than some churches, and how access to books (yes, even the spicy ones!) has always been essential for women's liberation and spiritual formation 📚

* Power Corrupts, Even the "Good Guys": How Rhysand's controlling behavior toward Feyre in this book exposes the uncomfortable truth that patriarchy is patriarchy, even when it comes wrapped in "I'm protecting you" language. The bar was in hell and somehow he still tripped over it! 🚩

* Female Friendship as Revolutionary Act: Why Nesta, Gwyn, and Emerie supporting each other's strength challenges every toxic stereotype about women being each other's competition, and how community healing happens when we stop trying to fix each other and start empowering instead 💪

* The Healing Isn't Linear: How Nesta's messy, non-linear recovery journey mirrors real trauma healing—complete with backslides, breakthroughs, and the radical discovery that you don't have to become a different person to become a healthy one ✨

Remember: If this book is making you question whether you're allowed to love yourself, congratulations—you've just discovered that the real enemy was the shame we internalized along the way!

Join Kate, Sarah, Liz, and special guest Dr. Sandra Glahn (author of Nobody's Mother) as they explore the vital connection between fiction, biblical literacy, and women's representation in scripture. This thought-provoking conversation challenges common misconceptions about narrative, storytelling, and the often-overlooked women of the Bible.

Turns out understanding how to read fiction might be essential to understanding Scriptural narratives—who knew?

Topics Covered:

* How our Protestant tendency to avoid narratives and prioritize non-fiction has given us a truncated view of scripture

* Jesus was a storyteller, not a PowerPoint presenter—and how we should take notes on His narrative approach instead of making another three-point sermon

* "The culture is not inspired. It's just the setting." (This mic drop moment might send you spiraling in the best way)

* How the presence of some nameless biblical women is an indictment against patriarchy, not God's endorsement of it

* Dr. Glahn's surprising children's TV past and what it taught her about storytelling (spoiler: kids are smarter than we think!)

Whether you're struggling to reconcile your love of spicy fiction with your faith or wondering why women's stories seem absent from the pulpit, this episode offers fresh perspectives that might just transform how you read both novels and scripture.

P.S. For anyone who's been made to feel childish for enjoying fiction or questioning traditional interpretations of women in the Bible—you're not alone, and there's theological depth in your questions that deserves exploration.

Timestamps:

03:19 The Importance of Fiction in Spiritual Formation

04:34 Narrative and Biblical Literacy

10:00 Storytelling and Ethical Dilemmas

23:47 Exploring Women's Representation in Fiction

27:29 The Reformation and Its Extremes

28:05 Challenging Traditional Gender Roles

28:47 The Role of Women in Christian History

29:21 Personal Stories of Faith and Choices

32:35 The Importance of Diverse Perspectives

39:18 Women in Scripture: Misinterpretations and Insights

52:43 Reading with Intentionality and Pleasure

Kate, Sarah, and Liz are back, diving into "A Court of Wings and Ruin" where we discover that Sarah J. Maas isn't just giving us sexy faeries with wings—she's exposing the toxic patterns we've been taught are "godly leadership" in evangelical spaces.

Who knew fantasy novels could be more spiritually formative than those "Biblical Womanhood" conferences you've been guilted into attending? 💁‍♀️📚✨

Topics Covered:

* Boundaries Are Not Blasphemy: Watch Feyre FINALLY stop absorbing Tamlin's rage-spirals and let him face the consequences of his actions! Turns out maintaining boundaries isn't "selfish"—it's how systems get healthy. Sorry not sorry to every pastor who told you to "absorb" your husband's "passion" (read: emotional volatility) for the good of your marriage! 🚩

* The Martyrdom Olympics: Why is everyone in this book (and evangelical culture) so determined to win gold in the Self-Sacrifice Games? The hosts unpack how that post-Columbine "would you die for Jesus?" trauma-bonding turned suffering into a weird status symbol. Pro tip: suffering will find you naturally—you don't need to go looking for it or make it your entire personality! 🏆

* When the Quiet Ones Speak Up: Azriel defending Feyre at the High Lord meeting has us asking—where are all the men stepping up when women are being verbally eviscerated in seminary classes, boardrooms, and church meetings? The bar is literally on the ground, fellas, and yet... 🦗🦗🦗

* The Tamlin Test™: How "Tamlin" became shorthand for toxic masculinity featuring traits eerily similar to what those "Future Husband" lists encouraged us to seek: powerful, possessive, volatile but passionate, and emotionally stunted but a leader. We were literally trained to romanticize red flags! Make it make sense! 🚩🚩🚩

* The Bare Minimum Redemption Arc: Why we're not giving Tamlin a cookie for doing ONE decent thing after books of emotional abuse. This mirrors the "weaponized forgiveness" that keeps putting harmful leaders back in pulpits faster than you can say "he's really sorry this time." The audacity! 😤

Turns out the church could learn something from Azriel's silent-but-deadly approach to allyship. Less performative "I respect women" sermons, more actual defending when we're not in the room, please and thank you!

Remember: If fantasy novels are making you examine the real world differently, the novels didn't create the problem—they just gave you eyes to see what was always there. 👀💅

Join Kate, Sarah, Liz, and special guest Rebecca Lindenbach (co-author of The Great Sex Rescue and She Deserves Better) as we dive into the wildly contradictory messages about sex in evangelical spaces and why fantasy romance novels might just be providing women with the vocabulary they've been denied their whole lives.

And it might just be one of the most important episodes we ever make for you.

Turns out women having standards is revolutionary—who knew?

Topics Covered:

* How research on 20,000 women revealed evangelical wives are having terrible, horrible, no good, very bad sex—and why the church's solution of "just do it more often" is spectacularly missing the point

* How women are taught sex is the worst thing you can do...until it's the worst thing you could NOT do—and how this whiplash-inducing messaging creates both physical and emotional disconnection in marriage

* Why romance novels like ACOTAR contain troubling consent dynamics we often overlook—and how this mirrors the ways women miss red flags in their own relationships (spoiler: Rhysand isn't always the consent king he's made out to be)

* Why people freak out when women read romance—it's not that they expect their husbands to grow wings, it's that they might start expecting mutual pleasure and emotional connection (the audacity!)

* How evangelical men's resources use pornographic language to "help" with temptation while simultaneously teaching women their bodies are dangerous weapons (make it make sense, please)

* Practical advice for women who've been taught to dissociate during physical intimacy—and why it takes an average of 20 minutes for women to reach orgasm (not the 3 minutes evangelical sex books suggest)

Watch out! This episode might leave you questioning everything you've been taught about sex, wondering if your romance novels are actually therapeutic, and ready to burn Every Man's Battle in a cleansing fire. Consider this your permission slip to have standards! 💁‍♀️🔥✨

P.S. For women experiencing pain, obligation sex, or confusing dynamics in their marriages—you're not alone, and it's not your imagination. The data says there's something deeply wrong with how we've been taught, not with you.