The 2am Book Review Club

Elizabeth Kostova, bestselling author of THE HISTORIAN, is back with a sweeping story of immortality, theater, and what we're willing to sacrifice for love.

MYSTERY PLAY is an upcoming novel about a young man who becomes obsessed with a charismatic but dangerous historical figure, the Gilded Age actor Gael Brogan. And on Tuesday, October 31st, I'll be releasing an exclusive interview with author Elizabeth Kostova in which we discuss her favorite books, her twenty-year career, and (of course) MYSTERY PLAY!

You can learn more about the book here. And if you're interested in supporting my work, pre-order MYSTERY PLAY through my bookshop.org storefront!

Want to join the official book club? You'll get to participate in monthly book threads, swap book recommendations, and chat about all things books! Check out this link to join.

Subscribe to my Substack for exclusive essays, delivered right to your inbox.

Musical credits: pixabay.

Tune in for exciting book-related content every week here on the podcast, and be sure to also check out the companion Youtube channel: The 2am Book Review Club Youtube channel.

In September, I read 10 books, including a book I was peer-pressured into reading, some of my favorite romance books I've read all year, a fascinating biography, and... the most random book I've read all year? We've got a lot to talk about in this month's reading wrap-up!

Books discussed in this episode: J. R. R. Tolkien: A Biography by Humphrey Carpenter, The Tower and the Ruin by Michael D. C. Drout, I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman, House of Hunger by Alexis Henderson, Daughters of Rome by Kate Quinn, Diamonds and Deadlines by Betsy Prioleau, Gentleman Jim by Mimi Matthews, The Lily of Ludgate Hill by Mimi Matthews, Ravishing the Heiress by Sherry Thomas, Double Indemnity by James M. Cain.

If you enjoyed this episode, consider leaving me a tip! And if you'd like to buy your own copy of any of the books I discuss in this episode, please check out my bookshop.org storefront! I receive a 10% commission on all purchases.

Join our Fellowship of the Ring read-along here!

Want to join the official book club? You'll get to participate in monthly book threads, swap book recommendations, and chat about all things books! Check out this link to join.

Subscribe to my Substack for exclusive essays, delivered right to your inbox.

Musical credits: pixabay and Wikimedia Commons.

Musical attribution: Escola Superior de Música de Catalunya (ESMUC), CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

Learn more about Henry Purcell, his semi-opera The Fairy Queen, or listen to the Act 1 Overture again.

Tune in for exciting book-related content every week here on the podcast, and be sure to also check out the companion Youtube channel: The 2am Book Review Club Youtube channel.

In this very special bonus episode, I'm revisiting THE HISTORIAN, the 700-page dark academia vampire book I first reviewed back in 2024! Why? Well... I guess you'll have to listen to find out!

You can check out my original 2024 review on Apple, Spotify, or here.

If you're interested in Elizabeth Kostova's 2005 interview with The Independent that I reference in this episode, you can check it out here!

Musical credits: Wikimedia Commons.

If you enjoyed this episode, consider leaving me a tip!

Want to join the official book club? You'll get to participate in monthly book threads, swap book recommendations, and chat about all things books! Check out this link to join.

Subscribe to my Substack for exclusive essays, delivered right to your inbox.

Tune in for exciting book-related content every week here on the podcast, and be sure to also check out the companion Youtube channel: The 2am Book Review Club Youtube channel.

The Fellowship of the Ring is the first part of J. R. R. Tolkien's story of an epic battle between good and evil, starring not an Elf, not a Dwarf, not a Man, but one very scared hobbit. In this six-part deep dive from The 2am Book Review Club, we'll be exploring Tolkien's characters, themes, and world-building, and we'll be discussing why, more than 70 years after its publication, The Fellowship of the Ring remains one of the world's most famous and beloved stories.

This is episode 3, in which we're discussing Book 1, Chapters 9-12. This episode is focused on analysis, but as promised, if you'd like a recap of everything important that happens in these chapters, check out my latest Substack post!

If you enjoyed this episode, consider leaving me a tip!

Join our Fellowship of the Ring read-along here! If you'd like to buy your own copy of Fellowship of the Ring, and support the podcast, please check out my bookshop.org storefront! I receive a 10% commission on all purchases.

Fellowship of the Ring reading schedule:

• September 14th: Book 1, Chapters 1-4
• September 21st: Book 1, Chapters 5-8
• September 28th: Book 1, Chapters 9-12
• October 12th: Book 2, Chapters 1-3
• October 19th: Book 2, Chapters 4-6
• October 26th: Book 2, Chapters 7-10

Want to join the official book club? You'll get to participate in monthly book threads, swap book recommendations, and chat about all things books! Check out this link to join.

Subscribe to my Substack for exclusive essays, delivered right to your inbox.

Musical credits: pixabay and Wikimedia Commons.

Tune in for exciting book-related content every week here on the podcast, and be sure to also check out the companion Youtube channel: The 2am Book Review Club Youtube channel.

The Fellowship of the Ring is the first part of J. R. R. Tolkien's story of an epic battle between good and evil, starring not an Elf, not a dwarf, not a Man, but one very scared hobbit. In this six-part deep dive from The 2am Book Review Club, we'll be exploring Tolkien's characters, themes, and world-building, and we'll be discussing why, more than 70 years after its publication, The Fellowship of the Ring remains one of the world's most famous and beloved stories.

This is episode 2, in which we're discussing Book 1, Chapters 5-8. This episode is focused on analysis, but as promised, if you'd like a recap of everything important that happens in these chapters, check out my most recent Substack post!

Join our Fellowship of the Ring read-along here! If you'd like to buy your own copy of Fellowship of the Ring, and support the podcast, please check out my bookshop.org storefront! I receive a 10% commission on all purchases.

If you enjoyed this episode, consider leaving me a tip!

Fellowship of the Ring reading schedule:

• September 14th: Book 1, Chapters 1-4
• September 21st: Book 1, Chapters 5-8
• September 28th: Book 1, Chapters 9-12
• October 12th: Book 2, Chapters 1-3
• October 19th: Book 2, Chapters 4-6
• October 26th: Book 2, Chapters 7-10

Want to join the official book club? You'll get to participate in monthly book threads, swap book recommendations, and chat about all things books! Check out this link to join.

Subscribe to my Substack for exclusive essays, delivered right to your inbox.

Musical credits: pixabay and Wikimedia Commons.

Tune in for exciting book-related content every week here on the podcast, and be sure to also check out the companion Youtube channel: The 2am Book Review Club Youtube channel.

Apologies that this episode is a day late!! Unfortunately I've had a lot going on in my personal life.

The Fellowship of the Ring is the first part of J. R. R. Tolkien's story of an epic battle between good and evil, starring not an Elf, not a dwarf, not a Man, but one very scared hobbit. In this six-part deep dive from The 2am Book Review Club, we'll be exploring Tolkien's characters, themes, and world-building, and we'll be discussing why, more than 70 years after its publication, The Fellowship of the Ring remains one of the world's most famous and beloved stories.

This is episode 1, in which we're discussing Book 1, Chapters 1-4.

Timestamps:

Chapters 1-4 Recap (4:14)

Concerning Hobbits: An In-Depth Analysis of Chapter 2 (58:54)

Join our Fellowship of the Ring read-along here! If you'd like to buy your own copy of Fellowship of the Ring, and support the podcast, please check out my bookshop.org storefront! I receive a 10% commission on all purchases, and all proceeds will go towards supporting the podcast.

If you enjoyed this episode, consider leaving me a tip!

Fellowship of the Ring reading schedule:

• September 14th: Book 1, Chapters 1-4
• September 21st: Book 1, Chapters 5-8
• September 28th: Book 1, Chapters 9-12
• October 12th: Book 2, Chapters 1-3
• October 19th: Book 2, Chapters 4-6
• October 26th: Book 2, Chapters 7-10

Want to join the official book club? You'll get to participate in monthly book threads, swap book recommendations, and chat about all things books! Check out this link to join.

Subscribe to my Substack for exclusive essays, delivered right to your inbox.

Musical credits: pixabay and Wikimedia Commons.

Tune in for exciting book-related content every week here on the podcast, and be sure to also check out the companion Youtube channel: The 2am Book Review Club Youtube channel.

In August, I read 12 books, including one of the best books I've read all year, the weirdest book I've read all year, and multiple books diving deep into the history of Hollywood!

Books discussed in this episode: Kin by Tayari Jones, Typewriter Beach by Meg Waite Clayton, The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins, I’ll Be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara, Goddess, Whores, Wives, and Slaves: Women in Classical Antiquity by Sarah B. Pomeroy, The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher, and Child Star: An Autobiography by Shirley Temple Black. Plus, episodes I promised to link: my interview with Kathryn Niocolai, September new releases.

If you enjoyed this episode, please consider leaving me a tip!

Join our Fellowship of the Ring read-along here! If you'd like to buy your own copy of Fellowship of the Ring, and support the podcast, please check out my bookshop.org storefront! I get a 10% commission on all purchases, and all proceeds will go towards supporting the podcast.

Official Fellowship of the Ring reading schedule:

• September 14th: Book 1, Chapters 1-4
• September 21st: Book 1, Chapters 5-8
• September 28th: Book 1, Chapters 9-12
• October 12th: Book 2, Chapters 1-3
• October 19th: Book 2, Chapters 4-6
• October 26th: Book 2, Chapters 7-10

Want to join the official book club? You'll get to participate in monthly book threads, swap book recommendations, and chat about all things books! Check out this link to join.

Subscribe to my Substack for exclusive essays, delivered right to your inbox.

Musical credits: pixabay, The Hebrides Overture by Felix Mendelssohn via MusOpen/Wikimedia Commons.

Tune in for exciting book-related content every week here on the podcast, and be sure to also check out the companion Youtube channel: The 2am Book Review Club Youtube channel.

Welcome to a very special episode, where we're celebrating some new books that are releasing in September!! We've got lots of romance and even a horror book, so if you're looking for something new to read this fall, you've come to the right place.

Special thanks to Atria Books and Simon & Schuster Audio for sending me these ARCs.

You can listen to my interview with Jodi McAlister about An Academic Affair on Apple, Spotify, or here.

If you enjoyed this episode, consider leaving me a tip!

Join our Fellowship of the Ring read-along here! If you'd like to buy your own copy of Fellowship of the Ring, and support the podcast, please check out my bookshop.org storefront! I get a 10% commission on all purchases, and all proceeds will go towards supporting the podcast.

Want to join the official book club? You'll get to participate in monthly book threads, swap book recommendations, and chat about all things books! Check out this link to join.

Subscribe to my Substack for exclusive essays, delivered right to your inbox.

Musical credits: pixabay.

Tune in for exciting book-related content every week here on the podcast, and be sure to also check out the companion Youtube channel: The 2am Book Review Club Youtube channel.

In this week's episode, I discuss ON THE STREET WHERE YOU LIVE with author Kathryn Nicolai, best known as the host and creator of the podcast Nothing Much Happens!

You can check out Kathryn's cozy new audio novel here. Also, be sure to check out Kathryn's sleep podcast Nothing Much Happens here! I highly recommend it if you're struggling to sleep.

If you enjoyed this episode, consider leaving me a tip!

Want to join the official book club? You'll get to participate in monthly book threads, swap book recommendations, and chat about all things books! Check out this link to join.

Subscribe to my Substack for exclusive essays, delivered right to your inbox.

Musical credits: pixabay.

Tune in for exciting book-related content every week here on the podcast, and be sure to also check out the companion Youtube channel: The 2am Book Review Club Youtube channel.

In this special episode, I'm announcing that our September/October book club pick is The Fellowship of the Ring, by J. R. R. Tolkien!

Join our Fellowship of the Ring read-along here! If you'd like to buy your own copy of Fellowship of the Ring, and support the podcast, please check out my bookshop.org storefront! I get a 10% commission on all purchases, and all proceeds will go towards supporting the podcast.

Fellowship of the Ring reading schedule:

• September 14th: Book 1, Chapters 1-4
• September 21st: Book 1, Chapters 5-8
• September 28th: Book 1, Chapters 9-12
• October 12th: Book 2, Chapters 1-3
• October 19th: Book 2, Chapters 4-6
• October 26th: Book 2, Chapters 7-10

If you enjoyed this episode, consider leaving me a tip!

Want to join the official book club? You'll get to participate in monthly book threads, swap book recommendations, and chat about all things books! Check out this link to join.

Subscribe to my Substack for exclusive essays, delivered right to your inbox.

Musical credits: pixabay.

Tune in for exciting book-related content every week here on the podcast, and be sure to also check out the companion Youtube channel: The 2am Book Review Club Youtube channel.