Red Wine Reads

What happens when you mix a cult of young women who worship a college professor, a grieving widow who is trying to solve a murder case, and a young woman with daddy issues? You make a believer out of Ella. 

The Maidens by Alex Michaelides 

The Maidens is a spellbinding tale of psychological suspense, weaving together Greek mythology, murder, and obsession. When Mariana Andros, a brilliant but troubled group therapist, becomes fixated on The Maidens when one member, a friend of Mariana’s niece Zoe, is found murdered in Cambridge, she must find who did it…and why they did it. 

Our Cambridge expert, Ella Kopeikin, joins me today to talk about all things cults, murder, and Harry Potter. 

In this episode we cover: 

• Why we wish there were 300 more pages of this book


• How Alex Michaelides threw so much shade at the one American character in the novel


• Why college-aged girls with daddy issues might be more dangerous that we originally thought. 

Open your book and press play on a podcast episode that will leave you wanting to visit Cambridge and experience being stuck in the 1940s because…why not?

Mentioned in the Pairings section of the podcast:

• Sherlock (TV Show)


• Election (Movie)


• Broadchurch (TV Show)


• Mare of Easttown (TV Show)


• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Book)


• The Secret History (Book)


• Sharp Objects (Book)


• A Simple Favor (Movie)

Wine Pairings: dry white wine (try Rombauer Chardonnay), The Prisoner red blend

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Once you're done listening, hop onto our Instagram and TikTok @rwreadspodcast to give us your thoughts on the discussion and the book. We look forward to hearing from you! 

This week, we’re reading one of Ella’s favorite books, which is filled with diary entries, sex with rockstars, and lots of drugs and alcohol…just quintessential L.A. in the ’70s. 

I’m With the Band by Pamela Des Barres

I'm With the Band is a stylish, exuberant, and remarkably sweet confession of one of the most famous groupies of the 1960s and 70s: Pamela Des Barres. She had affairs with Mick Jagger, Jimmy Page, Keith Moon, Waylon Jennings, Chris Hillman, Noel Redding, and Jim Morrison, among others.

Our LA Rock Culture expert, Ella Kopeikin, joins me today to talk about all things groupie culture and the movie we keep coming back to, Almost Famous. 

In this episode we cover: 

• How groupie culture has been given a bad rap lately


• Where the inspiration for Penny Lane really came from


• Why we miss the old school answering machines 

Open your book and press play on a podcast episode that will leave you wanting to journal every aspect of your life because it may make its way into a best-selling memoir one day. 

Mentioned in the Pairings section of the podcast:

• We Are Lady Parts (TV Show)


• Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (Movie)


• Shampoo (Movie)


• Gimme Shelter (1970) (Movie)


• Just Kids (Book)


• Twenty Thousand Roads (Book)


• LOL (Movie)


• Daisy Jones & The Six (Book)

Wine Pairings: any scotch, because I feel like that’s what all the rockstars were drinking in this book. 

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Once you're done listening, hop onto our Instagram and TikTok @rwreadspodcast to give us your thoughts on the discussion and the book. We look forward to hearing from you!

This book was not what we expected at all.  

When Women Were Dragons is a fantastical take on the 1950’s feminist rage movement with women taking back their power and the space they hold, while creating a community of dragon women who lift each other up, even when they themselves are being ostricized. 

Our Fantasy expert, Sierra Marshall, joins me today to talk about all things dragons, feminism, and the choices we face as women.  

In this episode we cover: 

• Why YA authors are absolutely killing it in the adult fantasy space


• Would we dragon if given the chance? 


• Why this book kept on surprising us. 

Open your book and press play on a podcast episode that will leave you feeling enraged, empowered, and excited all at the same time. 

Mentioned in the Pairings section of the podcast:

• Good Girls Revolt (TV Show)


• House of the Dragon  (TV Show)


• Don't Worry Darling  (Movie)


• The Stepford Wives (Movie)


• The Invitation (Movie)


• Where the Crawdads Sing (Book)


• Women Who Run With Wolves (Book)


• Fresh (Movie)


• The Umbrella Academy (TV Show)


• Untamed (Book)

Wine Pairings: Jalepeño Margarita

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Once you're done listening, hop onto our Instagram and TikTok @rwreadspodcast to give us your thoughts on the discussion and the book. We look forward to hearing from you!

With a book that has seven husbands in it, it really isn’t about the husbands at all. And we loved every second of it. 

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is a story of old Hollywood, the struggle to fit into society’s perfect mold, and what it means to be idolized and hated all at once. 

Our Historical Fiction expert, Abby Williams, joins me today to talk about a book that yanked at our heartstrings, had us yelling at the characters through the page, and had us RUNNING to the bookstore to pick up any more Taylor Jenkins Reid books we could find. 

In this episode we cover: 

• Why we don’t necessarily like Evelyn, but we do respect her


• TJR is the QUEEN of character development…THE QUEEN


• Why we’re now secretly thinking, “What if we named our future daughters, Connor”

Open your book and press play on a podcast episode that will leave you rethinking your desire for fame and fortune.

Mentioned in the Pairings section of the podcast:

• Halston (TV Show)


• City of Girls (Book)


• Daisy Jones and the Six (Book)


• Hollywood (Book)


• A Star is Born (Movie)


• La La Land (Movie)


• A League of Their Own (TV Show)


• Little Women (Book)

Wine Pairings: 2018 Screaming Eagle ; Cote de Roses; and SALDO

We’re answering a VERY important question today: Does Stephen King live up to his decades of hype? 

The Mist takes place in a normal, small town when some strange dark clouds roll in. Suddenly a violent storm sweeps across the lake and ends as abruptly and unexpectedly as it had begun. Then comes the mist...creeping slowly, inexorably into town, where it settles and waits, trapping you in the supermarket with dozens of others, cut off from your families and the world. The mist is alive, seething with unearthly sounds and movements. What unleashed this terror? Was it the Arrowhead Project---the top secret government operation that everyone has noticed but no one quite understands? And what happens when the provisions have run out and you're forced to make your escape, edging blindly through the dim light?

Our Stephen King expert, Ella Kopeikin, joins the podcast today to talk about why King rocks the horror side of things, but is horrible at writing about the human experience.  

In this episode we cover: 

• Political anarchy, religious cults, and people preying on fear


• Why green eyes are Drayton’s kryptonite 


• Which supermarket faction would we fall into? 

Open your book and press play on a podcast episode that will tap into your greatest fears and have you questioning, “Should The Mist replace Lord of the Flies in schools?”

Mentioned in the Pairings section of the podcast:

• Stranger Things (TV Show)


• Lord of the Flies (Book)


• Yellowjackets (TV Show)


• The Mist (Movie)


• The 5th Wave (Book)


• The Fog (Movie)


• Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (Movie)


• Total Drama Island (TV Show)


• Ben 10 Alien Force (TV Show)


• Spongebob Movie (Monster Scene) (Movie)

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Once you're done listening, hop onto our Instagram and TikTok @rwreadspodcast to give us your thoughts on the discussion and the book. We look forward to hearing from you! 

What do you get when you mix an alien with jazz hands, too many scientific references, and a hint of cannibalism? A really tough read. 

Project Hail Mary follows Ryland Grace, the sole survivor on a spaceship where he can’t even remember his own name, let alone the nature of his assignment or how to complete it. Hurtling through space on this tiny ship, it’s up to him to puzzle out an impossible scientific mystery—and conquer an extinction-level threat to our species. And with the clock ticking down and the nearest human being light-years away, he’s got to do it all alone…or does he? 

Our Sci-fi expert, Ella Kopeikin, joins me today to talk about this hot mess of a 400-page book we had to endure. 

In this episode we cover: 

• Why we REALLY disliked this book (some would say hate)


• Why the necessity of an alien doing jazz hands was beyond us


• How this book has 4.5 stars on Goodreads…just, how?!

Open your book and press play on a podcast episode that will leave you squirming and red in the face for all the wrong reasons. 

Mentioned in the Pairings section of the podcast:

• Space Force  (TV Show)


• The Martian (Book)


• Gravity (Movie)


• 2001: A Space Odyssey (Book)


• Guardians of the Galaxy (Movie)


• Real Genius (Movie)


• Regular Show (TV Show)

Wine Pairings: Moon X and any gin, because Ella hates gin

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Once you're done listening, hop onto our Instagram and TikTok @rwreadspodcast to give us your thoughts on the discussion and the book. We look forward to hearing from you! 

Maybe a little easy, breezy romance is all you need to feel happier. But does that romance novel have to contain a weird side story that includes a cult? Maybe not…

Beach Read follows Augustus Everett, an acclaimed author of literary fiction and January Andrews, a writer of bestselling romance novels. They’re polar opposites. In fact, the only thing they have in common is that for the next three months, they're living in neighboring beach houses, broke, and bogged down with writer's block. Until, one hazy evening, one thing leads to another and they strike a deal designed to force them out of their creative ruts: Augustus will spend the summer writing something happy, and January will pen the next Great American Novel. Everyone will finish a book and no one will fall in love. Really.

Our Romance expert, Sierra Marshall, joins me today to talk about all things ooey, gooey romance, A.K.A. the good stuff that makes up a fictional love story. 

In this episode we cover: 

• Why Jenna really needs to get out of her head, and just enjoy an easy read once in a while. Not everything has to be incredibly deep and thought-provoking. Sometimes a good sex scene is purely just a good sex scene. 


• Why beaches are not strictly found near oceans. 


• Why for every romance novel we read, we will now have a sexy corner, where we talk about the sexiest part of each book. 

Open your book and press play on a podcast episode that will have you talking a little more sweetly to your beach house neighbors (hint, hint, wink, wink). 

Mentioned in the Pairings section of the podcast:

• Bridgerton (Season 2)  (TV Show)


• Portrait of a Scotsman (Book)


• Set it Up (Movie)


• To Love and To Loathe (Book)


• Mr. Malcom's List (Book)


• Candy Jar (Movie)


• Little Italy (Movie)


• Bridget Jones's Diary (Movie)


• Gilmore Girls (Rory and Logan or Rory and Jess Seasons ONLY) (TV Show)

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Once you're done listening, hop onto our Instagram and TikTok @rwreadspodcast to give us your thoughts on the discussion and the book. We look forward to hearing from you!

A Russian female sniper during WWII who has more kills under her belt than most of the men in her own army. She’s also good friends with First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. Oh and this is all a true story.  

The Diamond Eye takes place in 1937 Kiev (now known as Kyiv). Wry and bookish history student Mila Pavlichenko organizes her life around her library job and her young son—but Hitler’s invasion of Ukraine and Russia sends her on a different path. Given a rifle and sent to join the fight, Mila must forge herself from studious girl to deadly sniper—a lethal hunter of Nazis known as Lady Death. When news of her three hundredth kill makes her a national heroine, Mila finds herself torn from the bloody battlefields of the eastern front and sent to America on a goodwill tour. Still reeling from war wounds and devastated by loss, Mila finds herself isolated and lonely in the glittering world of Washington, DC—until an unexpected friendship with First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt and an even more unexpected connection with a silent fellow sniper offer the possibility of happiness. Based on a true story, The Diamond Eye is a haunting novel of heroism born of desperation, of a mother who became a soldier, of a woman who found her place in the world and changed the course of history forever. [Summary shortened from Amazon]

Our Historical Fiction expert, Abby Williams, is here to talk about all things bada** women war heroes. 

In this episode we cover: 

• Why Alexi, though sexy and a doctor, is actually the worst villain in any book. 


• Why Kate Quinn needs to be crowned the queen of historical fiction right this minute.


• How our college journalism professor fits into this episode. 

Open your book and press play on a podcast episode that will have you running through the snow barefoot with antique pistols in your pocket. 

Mentioned in the Pairings section of the podcast:

• The Great (TV Show)


• The Huntress (Book)


• Hidden Figures (Movie)


• The Nightingale (Book)


• The Hunger Games (Movie)


• Mulan (Movie)

Wine Pairings: Prisoner  

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Once you're done listening, hop onto our Instagram and TikTok @rwreadspodcast to give us your thoughts on the discussion and the book. We look forward to hearing from you! 

Who are we? Do our lives matter? Did that one choice affect the rest of our lives? Just some nice, light icebreakers for you to answer after finishing our most recent read. 

The Glass Hotel follows two half-siblings, Vincent and Paul, who grew up apart from each other, both physically and emotionally, in British Columbia. Paul has lost large chunks of his life to heroin addiction and Vincent is a high school dropout who makes video art in her spare time. Paul and Vincent find jobs at a hotel on the north end of Vancouver Island, Vincent as a bartender and Paul as a night houseman. It's there that Vincent meets Jonathan Alkaitis, the hotel's owner, a successful New York businessman who falls for the young woman.Vincent quits her job and moves in with Jonathan. She's not in love with him, but longs for financial security. Their world falls apart when Jonathan is arrested for running a Ponzi scheme that ruins the lives of his investors. He's sentenced to 170 years in prison, and finds himself haunted by "a creeping sense of unreality," as well as a self-pity that doesn't quite make sense to him. [Summary shortened from NPR Article]

Our Emily St. John Mandel expert, Ella Kopeikin, joins the podcast today to share her thoughts on the death of Vincent, the supreme character development, and the mystery that is the world around us (existential crisis? maybe). 

In this episode we cover: 

• How Jenna’s dog had a freakout, but unfortunately (or fortunately?), it was cut from the audio


• Why Emily St. John Mandel is both intimidating and inviting — We want to have dinner with her, but we know she’s way too smart for us


• Why Jenna literally got lost in the country of Canada while reading this book 

Open your book and press play on a podcast episode that will have you questioning everything, from the “what ifs” to the “if thens”. 

Mentioned in the Pairings section of the podcast:

• Station Eleven (TV Show)


• Into the Wild (Book)


• The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (Movie)


• Life After Life (Book)


• Palm Springs (Movie)


• The White Lotus (TV Show)

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Once you're done listening, hop onto our Instagram and TikTok @rwreadspodcast to give us your thoughts on the discussion and the book. We look forward to hearing from you! 

WARNING. SPOILERS. YES, EVEN IN THIS EPISODE DESCRIPTION. YOU WERE WARNED.

When you’re saving the world and navigating a blooming relationship, you’re bound to run into some issues. Maybe a fight regarding the safety of your partner, or maybe sending one partner into a portal into another world while you slowly get your mind erased by the evil, soul-sucking Asteri. 

House of Sky and Breath is the second novel of the newest Sarah J. Maas series, Crescent City Series. In this book, Bryce Quinlan and Hunt Athalar are trying to get back to normal―they may have saved Crescent City, but with so much upheaval in their lives lately, they mostly want a chance to relax. Slow down. Figure out what the future holds. As Bryce, Hunt, and their friends get pulled into the rebels’ plans, the choice becomes clear: stay silent while others are oppressed, or fight for what’s right. And they’ve never been very good at staying silent.

Our SJM expert and super fan, Sierra Marshall, joins me on today’s episode to once again talk about how this book was just as good, if not better, than the first in the series. 

In this episode we cover: 

• How Jenna has escaped the spoiler void that is #BookTok


• Why SJM doesn’t seem to miss, especially with this series


• Why lips rings are maybe the sexiest facial accessory out there thanks to Ruhn Dannan

Open your book and press play on a podcast that will take plunge you into another book where angels fight on rooftops, people have sex in a mind bridge (if you know, you know), and where fae princesses are flung across the universe through a portal they opened with their powers. 

Mentioned in the Pairings section of the podcast:

• Lucifer (TV Show)


• The Witcher (Book Series)


• Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (Movie)


• The Heroes of Olympus  (Book Series)


• Eternals (Movie)


• The Good Place (TV Show)


• The Vampire Diaries (TV Show)

Drink Pairings: Citrus Pomegranate Sangria and Parts and Labor Red Blend

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Once you're done listening, hop onto our Instagram and TikTok @rwreadspodcast to give us your thoughts on the discussion and the book. We look forward to hearing from you!