Jungle fever or just fever dream?
This episode's pick: State of Wonder by Ann Patchett—a literary thriller set in the Amazon, complete with pharmaceutical intrigue, moral dilemmas, and one very unfortunate snake encounter. It’s lush, layered, and filled with anacondas, tarantulas, and questionable fertility science. But did it live up to the hype?
This week’s guest:
Pamela Cook —author, podcaster, and teacher. Pam writes contemporary women’s fiction that digs into relationships and psychology. She’s published six novels (traditionally and indie), hosts the Writes4Women podcast, and teaches through her business Wild Words. She also rides horses, wrangles dogs, and somehow finds time to keep her TBR stack alive.
In this episode, we cover:
Why State of Wonder felt both “plotty” and literary—and why that’s rare for Patchett.
The infamous anaconda boat scene (aka: the nightmare fuel we’ll never forget).
Fertility science, pharmaceutical greed, and the ethics of 73-year-olds having babies.
The big twist: Anders is alive (!), but was it too convenient?
The controversial ending—trauma sex, bark chewing, and possible surprise pregnancies.
The unanswered question: who’s the father of Dr. Svensson’s baby?
Desert Island picks, DNFs, hype regrets, and why Pam cries at Emily Henry.
📚 Books Mentioned on the Pod
Ann Patchett:
State of Wonder
Tom Lake
The Dutch House
Commonwealth
Bel Canto
Other fiction faves:
The Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley Heller
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart by Holly Ringland
Book Lovers by Emily Henry
Seven Skins of Esther Wilding by Holly Ringland
Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
Pam’s Auto-buy Authors:
Emily Henry
Hannah Richell
Ann Patchett
Taylor Jenkins Reid
💋 And, of course, we rate it: Kiss, Kill, or Marry?
Which way did the votes fall? You’ll have to listen in…
⏰ Timestamps
00:00 – Intro: meet Pamela Cook, our guest author04:00 – How State of Wonder came to be (and the Big Magic story)08:50 – Kiss, Kill, or Marry verdict13:00 – Fertility, pharma, and Patchett’s plot power18:00 – Anacondas, tarantulas, and nightmare fuel22:00 – The Anders twist—too neat or just right?25:00 – The controversial ending (trauma bonding or life affirmation?)28:00 – Who’s the father? Milton, Easter… frozen sperm??32:00 – Writing craft: seamless backstory, moral dilemmas, and jungle research37:00 – Pam’s DNF rules, hype regrets, and wish-I’d-written titles42:00 – Guilty pleasures, crying at Emily Henry, and auto-buy authors45:00 – What we’re reading next—and why no one’s going to the Amazon anytime soon
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