A couple of quick announcements from Rach:

It’s come to our attention that some of you don’t realise that we still DO post a video but due to something to do with Apple and Spotify we post the audio at the top and the video at the bottom. So if you’d rather watch than listen, scroll to the end of this post.

Anthea writes the FUNNIEST timestamps for the show - honestly, we’re not even sure what these are for but the wonderful Virtually Annie told us to do these so we do and I really hope people read them, cos they make me laugh so much!

Also, there’s only FIVE MORE DAYS left to claim our deal to upgrade your subscription to PAID for 25% off the full price.

Do you get the appeal of Pumpkin Spice?

This episode’s pick: The Crash by Freida McFadden is one of her zillions of books. Her biggest hit is The Housemaid, which was recently made into a hit movie. This novel is about a hugely pregnant woman who crashes during a snow-storm is rescued by a scary yeti, but that’s only the BEGINNING of her nightmare.

In this episode, we cover:

The HUGENESS of Freida McFadden

Twists, wildly improbable plots and stupid main characters

The two main plots and how/if they related to each other

The need to move during pregnancy

Tuna!!

💋 And, of course, we rate it: Kiss, Kill, or Marry

⏰ Timestamps

00 – Welcome – Rach and Anthea have an Inner circle – and they are as surprised about it as anyone

1.19 – Rachael has NO aircon (Anthea decides to tread carefully for episode duration!)

2.08 – Rach reports an itchy nose. May be unrelated. This week’s book – The Crash by Freida McFadden.

4.50 Freida – what a show off. And The Crash blurb. Don’t drive in blizzards, people!

8.16 – Freida’s bio – another chance to show off – Anthea mostly impressed with her house by the ocean. Not the cat part.

10. 50 – Kiss, Kill, Marry!? Rachael’s vote possibly affected by heat stress..

12.24 – Rachael does NOT respect Tegan’s choices. (too dumb to live??)

14.23 – Tegan’s brother. Not awesome.

14.27 – Rach and Anthea discuss all the crazy in The Crash. It takes a while.

19.04 – Tax fraud and it’s role in modern relationships

20.29 – Why Sadie, the kid from next door will never unload the dishwasher

21.23 – Is Rach addicted to crack? The role of coincidence and contrivance..

25.31 – The Prologue DEALS IN LIES kind of. Who asked to hear from Hank, anyway?

28.09 – The importance of Point of View (and air-conditioning!)

29.50 – Anthea - pragmatist to the end. Would you TAKE THE MONEY?

31.05 – One Star reviews – always fun when it’s someone else!

32.32 – Freida – would RBD date her/read her again?

34.03 – Contrivance and character motivation, the TED talk.

37.36 – Stephen King – would have written the shit out of this! Oh, that’s right – he already did.

38.37 – What are we reading next? And will Rach get the air-con working? BYE!!

📖 Coming up next:

👉Next Ep we’re chatting to John Purcell about The Friend by Sigrid Nunez.

In April, we’re diving into Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy and guest author Mercedes Mercier will make us read The Only One Left by Riley Sager.

This episode's book: My Sister, the Serial Killer is the debut thriller novel (although Rach reckons it’s more a novella) by Oyinkan Braithwaite. It was originally published in Nigeria as Thicker Than Water. It received critical acclaim upon publication and was long listed for the 2019 Booker Prize.

This week’s guest is multi-genre author, Kayte Nunn, who has the most delightful accent, probably because she grew up between England and the United States, although she’s now lived in Australia for more than twenty-five years. Kate is a lifelong book lover (which is obvious in this wonderful chat) and believes stories find their writers. Her latest book is THE PALAZZO.

In this episode, we cover:

Titles - original vs translation

Dynamics between sisters

Nigerian culture and setting

Dumb guys

What exactly is literary fiction?

The ethics of serial killer fiction.

Thoughts on Booktok.

💋 And, of course, we rate My SISTER, THE SERIAL KILLER: Kiss, Kill, or Marry.

📚 Books Mentioned in this Ep

How to Kill a Guy in Ten Dates by Shailee Thompson

Jilly Cooper’s books

Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery

The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth

The Last Reunion by Kayte Nunn

Sandwich by Catherine Newman

Katherine Heiny books

Trespassers by Louise Kennedy

Small Pleasure by Clare Chambers

And TV/Movies:

The Perfect Couple by Elin Hilderbrand

Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty

Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell

Timestamps

0.42 - Intro our author mate Kayte Nunn - what’s a nice girl from Wiltshire doing on a pod like this?

3.13 - Rach’s earrings get stabby - accessories for the crazy author in your life...

5.38 - Bios - boring, useful, a great way to brag about

7.10 - Anthea gives the narrator a full tick of approval - and not just because she didn’t have to read the book herself!

9.15 - A very average Goodreads rating and is the original title, classy - but boring?

11.53 - Double Kiss! Anthea commits to reporting back to RBD about her deathbed experience, and what she’d like to read before she goes..

14.30 - Tade - a tall dark and handsome Dr - Rachael not a fan. WTF???!!!

17.15 - Anthea - pro-serial killer - not into anti little sister movement. Speaks passionately in defence of junior siblings everywhere..

19.25 - OMG Rach admits she’s WRONG (and Anthea is very classy about it!)

21.10 - Kates raves about the symbolism and language - Fancy.

23.0 - Rach wonders about literary serial killers - just because you’re stabbing some guy, doesn’t mean you’re basic.

27.47 - Are serial killers sexy now? Is that ok?

30.02 - How does Kate read? Is she a DNF’er? YES SHE IS!

33.5 - Rach disses Anne of Green Gables and Anthea talks about the olden days. Again. And appreciates charming bloody Anne because she isn’t a total heathen!

35.25 -Car rides with Kayte’s family - NEXT LEVEL! (Best mum award goes to Kayte’s mum!)

38.02 - The historical vs contemporary fiction debate. Again. (Rach just won’t let it go) (Anthea quietly realises she’s written both, so she wins!)

40.00 - In praise of the voice. Kayte loves snark! (Anthea thinks the word snark isn’t used nearly enough)

42. 23 - Fave book adaptations (Kind of including The Talented Mr Ripley, but we forgot the name at the time!)

44.00 - Reviews - Kayte loves wallowing about in reviews - the thought alone makes Anthea reach for a stiff cup of tea.

Next Ep, we’re diving into The Crash by Freida McFadden and March guest is John Purcell who will make us read The Friend by Sigrid Nunez.

April Books: 14th April - Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy28th April - The Only One Left by Riley Sager with guest Mercedes Mercier

Do you get the appeal of Pumpkin Spice?

This episode’s pick: The Pumpkin Spice Cafe by Laurie Gilmore exploded onto BookTok a few years ago (yes, we know we’re a little behind the times) with its cozy cover and title vibes. It’s a “grumpy-sunshine” romance set in a small town that people are saying is very like Stars Hollow, the fictional town where hit TV series, The Gilmore Girls is set.

In this episode, we cover:

Pretty covers, sprayed edges and other special editions.

The TikTok Bookshop Awards

Believable conflict and sex scenes

Ghost and serial killers (spoiler, there are none)

Cat behaviour

What actually is pumpkin spice?

💋 And, of course, we rate it: Kiss, Kill, or Marry

⏰ Timestamps

00.00 Amazing intro expertly put there by tech genius

1.51 – We marvel at how Rachael has her finger on the pulse. (Anthea keeps her

hands to herself)

4.09 – A brief rundown of The Pumpkin Spice Café..

5.25 – Laurie Gilmore bio. Too many awards we haven’t heard of (but would

probably like!)

8.26 – Who the hell is Melissa and why did she change her name?

12.02 – We Kiss, Kill, Marry… and cosy cups of tea are spat out, around the world

16.18 – Rach and Anthea search for meaning – and TENSION

23.36 – The humble house cat as a literary device

24.18 – Pumpkin spice – just smashed up pumpkin, or something a little bit fancy?

25.56 – The cover is retro - like Anthea - but cozier, and fonder of cats

28.36 – Rachael spills on her new idea for a rom-com in a rage filled diatribe

30.36 – Grumpy/sunshine trope – adorable in a novel, annoying in a husband

34.08 – Rach goes nuclear

37.02 – Chilli rating – Rach calms down – then gets frisky

41.25 – There’s a mystery in the book, but what is it? (That’s the mystery..)

42.30 – Anthea asks about other books in the series, and Rachael realises she owns

most of them.

44.00 – Substack – Reading Between Deadlines is one of the greatest substacks of

all time according to recent research

45.12 What we are reading next – Serial Killers!!

47.20 – Bad reviews – not as good as good reviews, but not that bad…?

📖 Coming up next:

👉Next Ep we’re chatting to Kayte Nunn about My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite.

In March, we’re diving into The Crash by Frieda McFadden and guest author John Purcell will make us read The Friend by Sigrid Nunez.

For what we’re up to after that, click here.

🛍️ Do you read between deadlines too? Grab the merch

💎 Did you know we have at least one bonus episode a month for paid subscribers? And every now and then we’ll drop and extra episode when the zeitgeist calls for it.In our regular bonus episode we share what we’ve been reading, watching, writing, listening to, eating, and any other recs or not-reds we see fit. For only $5 a month you can get SO much more out of your RBD subscription and help us with the costs of editing, hosting platforms etc.

Thanks for listening. We love ya!

Surprise!

We’re dropping a bonus episode to chat about HEATED RIVALRY… because we couldn’t not. If you haven’t heard about this book written by Rachel Reid’s and TV adaptation, where have you been hiding?

It’s a rivals-to-lovers hockey romance that’s taken over the world! It’s currently #1 on Booktopia and Amazon AU and so many other places, and when the TV series first landed, Australian publishers sold out almost immediately. Which tells you everything you need to know.

We recently read the book and then had a watch party, not just with each other but four seventeen year old girls, and in this episode we give you ALL our thoughts on both.

Enjoy.

Rach and Anthea.

In this episode, we cover:

The book vs the TV show - which is sexier? Which is more romantic?

How much sex is too much sex?

The term “rivalry” and the need for conflict

Scott from the first book, insta-love and episode 3

Does being a writer sometimes ruin reading?

Where are all the women?

That scene - building intimacy or a total cop out?

Original cover vs latest cover

We don’t pretend to know anything about ice hockey but…

Is the best part about the show the real estate?

Smoothie talk.

Does shock value build hype?

📖 Coming up next:

👉Next Ep we’re chatting to Virtually Annie about CIRCE by Madeleine Miller.

In February, we’re diving into The Pumpkin Spice Cafe by Laurie Gilmore and guest author Kayte Nunn will make us read My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite.

In March, we’re reading The Crash one of Freida McFadden’s ZILLION books and our guest author for the second episode will be John Purcell, who is making us read The Friend by Sigrid Nunez.

For what we’re up to after that, click here.

🎽 Do you read between deadlines too? Grab the merch

Thanks for following. We love ya!

Does CIRCE live up to the hype?

This episode's pick: Circe by Madeline Miller is a beautifully written retelling of Greek myth that puts the infamous witch from The Odyssey centre stage. Banished to a lonely island for angering the gods, Circe slowly discovers her own strange, dangerous powers and starts to shape a life on her own terms. Along the way, gods, heroes and mortals drift in and out of her world - including Odysseus - and along the way Circe learns the true extent of her power and strength.

This week’s guest is our friend and saviour, superstar virtual assistant, Annie Bucknall. As well as helping us get this pod off the ground, creating our gorgeous branding and rescuing Anthea from many a tech disaster, Annie is a historian/librarian by day and an aspiring writer by night.

In this episode, we cover:

Greek Gods - our passion or lack thereof for them.

Necessity of universal of emotions in fiction.

The many loves of Circe.

Feminine rage and vengeance

Things Anthea doesn’t believe in

💋 And, of course, we rate CIRCE: Kiss, Kill, or Marry.

Which way did the votes fall? You’ll have to listen to find out.

📚 Books Mentioned in this Ep

The Time Traveller’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

The Housemaid by Freida McFadden

The Bronze Horseman by Paulina Simons

Road to Paradise by Paulina Simons

Tully by Paulina Simons

A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

Alchemised

Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason

What Happened to Nina by Dervla McTiernan

Cold Truth by Ashley Kaligian Blunt

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

Lady of Hay by Barbara Erskine

And podcasts - Creative Pep Talk and Haptic and Hue.

⏰ Timestamps

1.0 - Intro our fab guest

2.35 - The best eras of history (Anthea’s pretty historical because she can remember the 70’s..)

4.30 - Shout out to long suffering Annie our RBD Queen - who managed to teach Anthea about the computer machines

7.10 - Zeus, deserted Islands and multiple book blurbs - (Are Greek gods kind of arseholes?)

8.56 - Judging Madeline’s bio - Anthea thinks it needs a few chickens.

11.24 - Circe, Goddess of magic and sorcery - (probably got her edits in on time…)

13.02 - Kiss, Kill or turn some nymph into a sea monster

14.18 - Anthea finally finishes CIRCE and enjoys time in Greece with Hermes

17.25 - Rach enjoys every one of the 124000 words of Circe as much as Prometheus enjoyed feeding his liver to that eagle.

21.14 - Annie loves the language almost as much as Circe loves love (no judgement..)

24. - Men are pigs! (Hey, Homer said it in the Odyssey, not us!)

27.48 - Circe - kind of epic - congrats, Madeline Miller. (Rach has probably had enough now..!)

30. Question Time

33.46 - Annie’s hot tip - spending a weekend with a book, then dumping it and never calling again… harsh but fair.

36. The fear of re-reading.

38. Trigger warnings - yay or nay

44.40 Annie recommends a weird podcast. Bring it on!

46.10 Rachael has us reading about pumpkins and serial killers. In that order - Goodluck!

📖 Coming up next:

👉Next Ep, we’re diving into The Pumpkin Spice Cafe by Laurie Gilmore (Feb 14th)

On Feb 28th guest author Kayte Nunn will make us read My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite.

In March we’re reading The Crash by Freida McFadden and our guest John Purcell will make us read The Friend by Sigrid Nunez.

🎽 Do you read between deadlines too? Grab the merch

Dear RBD Listeners

January is a busy month for EVERYONE, so we decided instead of discussing a particular book this month, we’d ask each other the questions we usually ask our author guests instead.

Enjoy the list of recommendations and non-recommendations mentioned in this ep below.

Book that made you cry?

Anthea - doesn’t cry in books

Rach - Goodnight Beautiful by Dorothy Koomson; Pack Up the Moon by Kristin Higgins; Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White

Book that got you into reading?

Rach - The Baby-Sitters Club books by Ann M. Martin and late 90s chick-lit

Anthea - The Folk of the Faraway Tree by Enid Blyton

How do you read?

Anthea - has a Kindle, loved print best but listens mostly to audiobooks these days (currently listening to Secrets by Judi Morison and Circe by Madeleine Miller.

Rach - recently bought a Kobo as is loving it ALMOST as much as print. Audiobooks while cleaning (currently listening to Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan)

What is the book that you wish you’d written?

Rach wishes she’d written The Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley Heller.

Anthea wishes she’d written her bestselling novel The War Nurses earlier.

What is the book you recommend the most?

Rach - The Wedding People by Alison Espach, Sandwich by Catherine Newman, The Invisible Husband of Frick Island by Colleen Oakley (and bonus mention of The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty.

Anthea - somehow we skipped her!?!

Where do you like to read?

Anthea - reading in bed early in the morning with a cup of tea

Rach - bed too but also on an aeroplane and especially on holiday.

What’s your fave book-to-screen adaptation?

Rach - Bridget Jones’ Diary and Gone Girl

Anthea - BBS Pride & Prejudice (Hello, Colin - Rach agrees), North & South.

Do you have snacks and/or drinks while you read?

Anthea - nice cup of tea; no snacks

Rach - Diet Coke or wine; no snacks

What’s the last book you recommended?

Rach - Sandwich and The Wedding People - already mentioned above

Anthea - The Life Cycle of the Common Octopus by Emma Knight (listen to our ep about it here)And a shout out to Lara in Denver!! and The Far Flung Life by ML Stedman

Do you reread books?

Anthea - as a rule no, but sometimes she does accidentally as she’s getting old and forgetful, but she does mention MM Kaye and her lovely British murder mysteries.

Rach - wants to reread more, including Three Little Truths by Eithne Shortall, Anxious People by Fredrik Backman, The Last Anniversary by Liane Moriarty, The Invisible Husband of Frick Island and Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn.

Are you embarrassed about a book you read?

Anthea - The White Hotel by DM Thomas - but you’ll have to listen to find out WHY!

Rach - not at all embarrassed now but might have been embarrassed once to admit she’d read a lot of M&B novels

Do you have a fave go-to cookbook?

Rach - Nagi’s books and Everybody Loves Cake

Anthea - Jamie Oliver’s and Nagi’s books

Do you DNF books?

Anthea - yes; she really wants to read The Woman In White by Wilkie Collins but just can’t get into it.

Rach - yes (quick mentions of Heart the Lover and Writers and Lovers by Lily King - Rach HAS read them both though)

What book do you wish Booktok would know about?

Anthea - The Drifter by herself (fair)

Rach - The Sun Down Motel by Simone St James

What’s your fave book outside your genre?

Anthea - Lady of Hay and House of Echoes by Barbara Erskine

Rach - The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab

What’s your three desert island books?

Anthea - the Game of Thrones novels (um, Anthea, that’s FIVE)

Rach - The Paper Palace (AGAIN), Lenny’s Book of Everything by Karen Foxlee, Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld.

What’s a classic book you’ve never read?

Rach - Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier and Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell

Anthea - again, we seemed to skep this!

What are your three auto-buy authors?

Anthea - Rachael Treasure, Emily Henry, Beth O’Leary and Kim Wilkins (Anthea can’t count)

Rach - Marian Keyes, Fredrik Backman, Elin Hilderbrand and Liane Moriarty (yes, Rach can’t count either)

Do you read your own reviews?

Anthea - nope

Rach - yes, with caution

What book do you think is overhyped?

Rach - Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus, Heart the Lover by Lily King

Anthea - never knows what is hyped ;)

What book do you want to read but haven’t read yet?

Anthea - anything by Jodi Piccoult (Rach raves about Plain Truth and Wish You were Here and Tenderfoot by Toni Jordan.

Rach - My Friends by Fredrik Backman and Ghost Cities by Siang Lu

What is your favourite book of the year so far?

Anthea - The Far Flung Life (already mentioned above)

Rach - The Last Encore by Rebecca Heath

What is your fave book you’ve written and why?

Anthea - The War Nurses, with special mention to The Drifter

Rach - Man Drought (if rural), The Patterson Girls (if general fiction), but Just One Wish if she really has to pick just one! Special mention to How to Mend a Broken Heart.

What are you currently writing/editing?

Anthea - editing The Palace of Lost Virtue

Rach - writing Someone Else’s Fortune and also The Number One Insta Detectives Agency with Mercedes Mercier

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT

We’re launching a bonus episode a month for our paid subscribers!!

📖 Coming up next:

👉Next Ep we’re chatting to Virtually Annie about CIRCE by Madeleine Miller.

In February, we’re diving into The Pumpkin Spice Cafe by Laurie Gilmore and guest author Kayte Nunn will make us read My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite.

In March, we’re reading The Crash one of Freida McFadden’s ZILLION books and our guest author for the second episode will be John Purcell, who is making us read The Friend by Sigrid Nunez.

For what we’re up to after that, click here.

🎽 Do you read between deadlines too? Grab the merch

Thanks for following. We love ya!

Does A MAN CALLED OVE live up to the hype?

This episode's pick: A Man Called Ove follows Ove, a rigid and irritable man whose carefully ordered life is disrupted when new neighbours move in next door. As the story moves between present-day encounters and moments from Ove’s past, we begin to understand the experiences that shaped him, including his sad childhood and one great love. It’s a character-driven story about grief, love, and finding community.

This week’s guest - is our friend Sally Hepworth (It’s true - Rach even has her phone number). We met Sally in the early days of her writing career and have watched her soar from height to height. Sally has now written TEN novels, including her latest Mad Mabel, hit The New York Times Bestseller list multiple times, and had her novel The Family Next Door adapted for TV, with more projects in the works. She’s based in Melbourne with her family and, despite all her success, is still the same warm, down-to-earth, utterly lovely human we first met all those years ago.

In this episode, we cover:

How perimenopause wreaks havoc with writing.

Is this a quiet novel?

How specificity elevates a story.

How to write humour that isn’t cruel.

Is the setting important?

Differences between American and Australian readers

Sally’s reading loves and hates.

💋 And, of course, we rate A MAN CALLED OVE: Kiss, Kill, or Marry?

Which way did the votes fall? You’ll have to listen in…

📚 Books Mentioned in this Ep

The Hiding Place – Kate Mildenhall

Babysitters Club - Ann M. Martin

Anything by Enid Blyton

Tully – Paullina Simons

Anything by Marian Keyes

The Gambler – JP Pomare

The Names – Florence Knapp

Where the Crawdads Sing – Delia Owens

Red Belly Crossing - Candace Fox

⏰ Timestamps

1.0 Welcome to Sweden!

2.21 Intro Sally Hepworth and her mate, Mad Mabel!

4.00 Sally’s bio and her divorce dog.

5.58 Fredrik Backman – way funnier than his bio would suggest.

8.25 A Man Called Ove – a blurb put together with an Allen key and a

bit of swearing.

9.57 Good Reads – almost 1.2 million people can’t be wrong…

10.49 Kiss, Kill, Marry – (just make sure you have consent).

12.08 We suspect Sally has a crush on Ove.

16.52 Anthea makes a sporting analogy, (because she knows a tonne

about sport and is keen to share).

19.12 Hands off, Sally! Rachael loves Ove, too, and shares a beautiful

quote for all the handymen out there.

25.41 Sally talks about being funny, without actually being funny. Alanis

Morrisette would regard that as irony.

27.50 Sally recommends…

35.40 Reviews – the most fun you can have with your clothes on.

37.38 Backman scores a Did Not Finish review. Ikea closes its doors in

solidarity.

38.00 Sally confirms that Australian audiences are just BETTER. (Not

really, but we knew what she meant)

40.36 Rachael tricks Sally into giving us free writing advice. #masterclass

42.43 HOMEWORK.. Don’t pack up – the bell hasn’t gone yet…

📖 Coming up next:

👉Next Ep (14th Jan) Rach And Anthea grill each other in the way they normally grill their guests.

Our first guest for the year is Virtually Annie (Jan 28th) - she’s making us reading Circe by Madeleine Miller and we hope you’ll read it to.

In February, we’re diving into The Pumpkin Spice Cafe by Laurie Gilmore (Feb 14th) and guest author Kayte Nunn will make us read My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite (Feb 28th).

And here’s our list for the first half of 2026.

🎽 Do you read between deadlines too? Grab the merch

☕ If you’re loving the show, we’d be so grateful if you’d buy us a coffee (or a prosecco). It helps keep the pod fun, frequent, and free.

Does Persuasion stand the test of 208 years?

This episode’s pick: Persuasion by none other than Jane Austen, the patron saint of slow-burn and witty banter. We don’t know how many copies it’s sold but if people are still reading our books in a couple of centuries time, we’ll consider that a resounding success. Persuasion - the last novel our dear Jane ever finished - is a quiet story about love that refuses to die despite a whole cast of characters believing they know better!

In this episode, we cover:

Which authors will still be being read in 250 years.

How Jane should be ‘loving herself sick’ - term borrowed from friend of the pod Sophie Green.

A little constructive criticism for Jane.

How modern writing may have ruined us all.

One of the most romantic letters ever written!

💋 And, of course, we rate it: Kiss, Kill, or Marry.

⏰ Timestamps

00.0 Intro – Jane Austen – Happy Birthday - and thanks for Colin Firth!

2.49 Jane Austen - 250 years old and she’s still got it. (Kind of)

4.40 Long Careers, like Jane, Emily Henry, Trent Dalton and Tim Winton

5.48 Jane Austen – rom com queen

8.25 Persuasion blurb – like a regular blurb, only classier

9.07 Jane Austen’s bio – look, she’s dead, so she’s not been up to much recently.

12.24 Goodreads Ratings – more than an elegant sufficiency

14.28 Rach and Anthea rate Persuasion – Three, two, one – and curtsey to your partner

15.17 Rachael craps on Jane Austen’s grave (Anthea is all astonishment.)

20.00 Rachael teaches Jane Austen a thing or two about writing… (cheeky..)

22.51 Anthea defends Jane, offers constructive criticism (and considers asking for Colin Firth’s number..)

27.01 Rachael’s favourite line from Persuasion, other than THE END

28.18 Mary, kind of a dick – but also a feminist icon

30.27 Persuasion adaptation, with that chick who was dating Chris Martin

32.00 Jane Austen - a light, whimsical read

34.30 Frederick – Hot, or Not? (Rach says not!)

36.43 How to eat a pair of jeans, and other reviews

37.30 Persuading Rachael..

40.48 What’s next for RBD??

📖 Coming up next:

👉Next Ep we’re chatting to Sally Hepworth about A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman.

In January we will answer our own regular reading questions for the first episode and the second episode we’ll discus Circe by Madeline Miller with Virtually Annie - can’t wait!

In February, we’re diving into The Pumpkin Spice Cafe by Laurie Gilmore and guest author Kayte Nunn will make us read My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite.

Thanks for following.

Do all crime novel mysteries need to be resolved?

This episode's pick: In the Woods by Tana French, the award-winning, Celtic-mist-soaked psychological mystery that launched the Dublin Murder Squad. When a young girl is found murdered at an archaeological dig, detective Rob Ryan is forced back into the very woods where he once vanished as a child, an incident he has no memory of, except for his blood-soaked shoes. As Rob and his partner Cassie Maddox investigate, the line between past and present blurs. It’s atmospheric, character-driven, and the kind of book that makes you glance over your shoulder at every little noise.

This week’s guest - Dervla McTiernan is an internationally bestselling Irish-Australian crime writer and a great friend of ours. She’s the powerhouse behind the Cormac Reilly series, as well as the gripping standalones The Murder Rule and What Happened to Nina?. Her novels have topped bestseller lists around the world and earned shelves of awards, and we’re thrilled to have her with us.

In this episode, we cover:

Dervla being a superstar.

What Dervla loves about Tana French’s writing.

The expectations of a crime novel.

Unreliable narrators.

What makes a great villain.

Authors reading their own reviews

📚 Books Mentioned on the Pod

Tanya French – The Likeness

Tanya French – Secret Place

Tanya French – The Witch Elm

Stephen King – The Outsider

Stephen King – Lisey’s Story

Marian Keyes – This Charming Man

Rhys Bowen – The Royal Spyness Series

💋 And, of course, we rate it: Kiss, Kill, or Marry?

Which way did the votes fall? You’ll have to listen in…

⏰ Timestamps

1.0 Welcome to Only Fans for Middle Aged Ladies in Glasses Cum-unity.

2.03 – Meet Dervla McTiernan – Just how many awards is it legal to win??

4.35 – Meet Tanya French – Into the Woods (not as many awards as Dervla..!)

6.45 – Anthea bans Dervla for all time – serves her right.

9.39 – Time to Kiss, Kill, Marry!

12.13 – Dervla’s favourite backhanded compliment (looking at you Lit-fic!)

13.44 – Rach tries to sort out Rob Ryan’s love life.

14.36 – What do you MEAN they don’t solve the crime??

18.43 – Just because people have been murdered, doesn’t mean we can’t have fun.

20.40 – Is Rob Ryan a bit immature?

21.41 – Rosalyn – DO NOT DATE.

24.20 – Rob – unreliable narrator? Liar? MURDERERERER??

24.40 – Dervla sensationally admits to ripping off Steven King and Marian Keyes.

(we’ll never tell…)

29.43 – The joy of reading to your (disinterested) partner.

35.12 – Dervla recommends reading the back of the Cornflake box.

39.24 – Demon Copperhead. What a pile of crap!

40.34 – Brutal honesty – is the best policy. Sometimes.

41.34 – Reading reviews – fun for ALL the family!

42.20 – Dervla’s favourites.

45.02 – Dust off Persuasion – and drag out your piano forte! Jane Austen rides again.

Did ALL THE COLOURS OF THE DARK live up to the hype?

This episode’s pick: ALL THE COLOURS OF THE DARK - a million-copy bestseller, this sweeping novel follows childhood best friends Patch and Saint, torn apart when Patch is abducted. Trapped in darkness, Patch forms an intense connection with a girl he never sees, and when they escape, she vanishes. As Patch spends years searching for her, Saint is determined to uncover the truth of what happened. A powerful story of love, obsession, and the cost of finding answers.

In this episode, we cover:

Weird twists and character decisions

Themes of friendship, love, women’s rights

Stories that take place across decades

Sexual love vs friendship

Chris’s intricate plotting

💋 And, of course, we rate it: Kiss, Kill, or Marry?

⏰ Timestamps

. 00 – Welcome to Episode 21!!

1.00– Rach goes on tour and Anthea hits the bottle.

4.50 – Blurb time, so you can pretend you’ve read it at parties.

6.40 – Chris Whitaker – Here’s his bio – he sounds hot.

9.22 – Do we Kiss, Kill or Marry?

10.45 – Jimmy – What a dick. (note to self – do not marry).

12.10 – Plot timeline – long, but in a good way.

13.11 – What a great cast of characters.

16.11 – Does Patch throw his life away? Discuss.

16.54 – Patch and Grace 4 EVA.

18.05 – A secret love story.

20.00 – Just how did Chris write this thing?

20.43 – Did Patch care too much? The search for Grace.

21.43 – Facing execution is pretty noble…I guess?

25.16 – Rachael starts blubbing..!

27.39 – What are we reading next? Ohhh… really!? WOW! I’ll defo listen in to the next episode!

📖 Coming up next:

👉Next Ep we’re chatting to Dervla McTiernan about In The Woods by Tana French. Then comes Persuasian by Queen Jane Austen, followed by A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman with author Sally Hepworth

In January we will answer our own regular reading questions for the first episode and the second episode we’ll discus Circe by Madeline Miller with Virtually Annie - can’t wait!

🎽 Do you read between deadlines too? Grab the merch

☕ We try to keep the podcast free and fun for everyone - but it does take time (and a lot of editing). If you’re loving the show, we’d be so grateful if you’d buy us a coffee (or a prosecco).