The Sword and Laser

By Tom Merritt and Veronica Belmont

What's The Sword and Laser about?

Read along with the Sword and Laser book club! From classic science fiction to the latest gritty fantasy, we cover it. Subscribe for book discussions, author interviews, hot releases, and news from the genre fiction world!

5.0

341341 ratings

Download our free app to listen on your phone

The Sword and Laser episodes:

04.18.2024
#487 - Have We Reached Critical Maas?
OMG all of the top bestsellers are romantasy! What order should you read series in? Does it matter? Also why is Veronica telling Tom to suck it? Or did we misunderstand. Tune in and find out!
04.08.2024
#486 - Pre-re-read
Will Veronica and Tom make it to Glasgow? Not after that embarrassing German pronunciation. And after talking some baseball, they dig into non-spoilery discussion of Cordelia's Honor.
03.27.2024
#485 - Triangles Are Stronger
The Nebula Award nominees are out! Should we re-read Neuromancer? Veronica explains Type I, II, and III fun. The truth behind Cordelia's Honor. And our final thoughts on Iron Widow.
03.07.2024
#484 - It's Giving "Mad"
We check in on who's winning the tournament. A vikings kids book! Where it's stabbing time! We talk a little bit about Iron Widow, and wrap up Shadow of the Gods.
02.23.2024
#483 - C is for Chestburster
A few more thoughts on the Hugos, who would win in a fight between Maas and Yarros, and we preview our March Madness brackets!
02.09.2024
#482 - Let's Talk About Seax, Baby
We've opened nominations for Mad Marchness!, our March tournament of book picks. Plus, the failure of the Hugos and the rise of Romantasy. And we begin our first impressions of Shadow of the Gods by John Gwynne.
01.26.2024
#481 - Big Trouble in Little Worldcon
Surprise, there's a problem with hosting the Hugos in China. Plus: Keanu Reeves is co-writing with China Mieville, we kick off our February read, The Shadow of the Gods. And our spoilery thoughts on The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes.
01.04.2024
#480 - What You Can Do With Mickey Mouse
Alternatives to Goodreads, and one of them is Amazon. Which owns Goodreads. What you can and can't do with Mickey Mouse. The "Who should play Murderbot" discussion continues. Typical human and augmented human stuff! Plus why Veronica should read this...
12.30.2023
#479 - Where Have All The Beef Suits Gone?
Are there too many Nat 20s in Kings of the Wyld, our stance on Skarsgard as Murderbot, and we introduce the January pick (which has a lot of triggers).
12.14.2023
#478 - Without A Lick of Condensation
All the end of year book picks are out with lots of great titles to add to your own list! Did Vonnegut think he was a genre writer? And our non-spoilery thoughts about Kings of the Wyld.
11.30.2023
#477 - I Said What I Said, She Said
Veronica now knows how to catch up on Old Man's War. Should good books not be SciFi? Is "they said" saying too much? He “sucked his teeth” is not enough! We kick off Kings of the Wyld and wrap up...
11.16.2023
#476 - Don't Get Your Atmoscarf In A Bunch
We're huge fans of mushrooms! Fourth Wing is EVERYWHERE. And remember, the very aspects of a novel you might not fancy could be the same ones that captivate someone else.
11.02.2023
#475 - Father Knows Best
Awards season is here! We're celebrating deserving winners and discussing potential TV and movie adaptations of our favorite books. This November, we're diving into a novel about trains on Jupiter and concluding our October discussion on Father’s “5D chess.”
10.19.2023
#474 - The Vibe-rary at Mt. Char
Best books of the year? Already? How Veronica got her k-wires out. And our non-spoilery thoughts on Library at Mount Char.
10.10.2023
#473 - Dewey Decimated
Veronica's state of K-wires, the most highly-rated books in the world, we kick off our read of The Library of Mount Char, and wrap up China Mountain Zhang.
09.28.2023
#472 - Felicia Day Opens Her Third Eye
We talk to Felicia Day about her new Audible Original Third Eye, and how her own struggles led to her story about a chosen one who fails. Plus, we talk about the importance of doing what you love and learning...
09.21.2023
#471 - PSL: Pumpkin Sword and Laser
Guess what? The new Bobiverse is coming, and we would love to have your emails! Plus, we've got some super cool thoughts (no spoilers, promise) on China Mountain Zhang by Maureen F. McHugh. But you don't have to take my...
08.31.2023
#470 - Hammfisted
The last new Terry Pratchett stories, the rise of nonsense literature, a brief intro to our September pick China Mountain Zhang, and final thoughts on Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo.
08.24.2023
#469 - Venomous Breaded Hairtail Sucker
Veronica has been in Canada for a year, and the best book in Canada is about Marie Antoinette. Tom ate some breaded hairtail and is excited about Gail Carriger's K-pop post. Plus, we announce the September book and give a...
08.10.2023
#468 - Go Tweed Lions!
Veronica curses the Lions and eats SO many blackberries. Also, our non-spoilery thoughts on Ninth House and Ivy League schools.
08.03.2023
#467 - It Was Good Filk
We get to the bottom of why it's called Fahrenheit 4-5-1 and which songs get stuck in our heads when we hear “Aes Sedai.” We finish up our thoughts on Planetfall by Emma Newman and kick off Ninth House by...
07.20.2023
#446 - Spoon & Ladle
The Hugos are out! The Hugos are out! Huge cookies are out! TRIKE READS READER'S DIGEST? Plus, the varied emotions caused by Planetfall.
07.07.2023
#465 - Skirting on the Edge of Danger
Some of our favorite authors are giving away free short stories and winning Locus Awards. What the best book club pick we ever made was. Why books that make you uncomfortable are important to read. And our last thoughts on...
06.17.2023
#464 - Awesome Bundle
So much good news! Telltale Games is making a game based on The Expanse! Season 2 trailer for Good Omens!Humble Bundle has Mercedes Lackey books. And we think it should stop being humble and admit it's awesome! Plus we check...
06.01.2023
#463 - OK Ant Computer
Are lengthy books inherently inferior? Tom and Veronica ignite a clash of generations! Furthermore, we delve into the captivating world of Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros and conclude the enthralling journey of Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky.
05.18.2023
#462 - $5 FOR SCI-ANTS!
Foundation is coming back to Apple TV, why Silo is great, you should not eat a bear, and what makes a great alien.
05.04.2023
#461 - CheckItOut!
Taika Waititi is adapting a fantasy novel and also looked quite fine at the Met. Plus, self-publishing award winners, Locus nominees, and we have a progressive story in the works!
04.22.2023
#460 - Thimble's Kitchen
We wrap up Legends and Lattes and have a great idea for a sequel involving Thimble doing a cooking show. Plus, we're getting a Twilight TV series? We’ll make our best guesses about that too. Finally, Veronica's thoughts on spotted...
04.08.2023
#459 - Leave the Broadsword, Take the Biscotti
We hear a better version of the Pokemon cookbook than the real one, Veronica gets the tipoff for hot sauce, and our first cozy feelings about Legends and Lattes.
03.31.2023
#458 - Pikastew is Off the Menu
New books for spring, finalists for the Annual Lambda and Imadjinn Awards, and the Internet Archive's e-book lending lawsuit. Plus, we kick off the March Madness winner!
03.09.2023
#457 - Timecozy
The March Madness semifinals are here! And the race is TIGHT. Our first (non-spoiler) thoughts about Under Fortunate Stars by Ren Hutchings. Nomination lists are out for Nebulas and Bradbury's, and nomming has begun for the Hugos (hint hint). Plus...
02.24.2023
#456 - The Clarkesworld Flood
Our “March that is Mad” tournament is live! 15 books enter, one gets to be the April pick, and everyone wins! Plus, please stop flooding Clarkesworld with AI-written manuscripts. Use ChatGPT for good! Also, we kick off our March read...
02.09.2023
#455 - When Life Gives You Bones, Make a Bone Dog
Three Body Problem is coming to two platforms, so many beginning-of-the-year reading lists, and why we all love Bonedog (even Tom).
01.26.2023
#454 - Baltimore, City of Baltars
We may be getting some Zelazny TV, Murderbot is coming back, some ideas of non-fiction book picks we could try, and we kick off our February book pick, Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher.
01.12.2023
#453 - And That's How the News Goes
We check in on how everyone is feeling about Brightness Falls From the Air. We also feel mildly optimistic about Apple's digital narrators, and we discuss the best way to introduce someone to a series.
12.29.2022
#452 - Having Feelpinions
A very tense episode as Veronica and Tom violently agree about Elric of Melniboné. Plus, the most anticipated books of 2023, and how to take advantage of Novelist at your local library.
12.15.2022
#451 - When Your Anti-Hero Gets a Little Too Anti
We properly credit the amazing Nancy Pearl and her four doorways into stories. And we want yours! Send them to [email protected]. Plus our mid-read takes on Moorcock's Elric of Melniboné. Also, we break the news about Henry Cavill to Veronica...
12.02.2022
#450 - Where the Wild Nerds Are
We wrap up our thoughts on Six Wakes by Mur Lafferty and Tom tries out his 4-part way of evaluating books to explain why people enjoyed it differently. Plus we kick off our December pick, Elric of Melniboné, encourage...
11.17.2022
#449 - Finding a Leggy Blonde
Veronica forgets what beer she had. Must be a good beer. It was a blonde in a tall can. A leggy blonde perhaps? Also, we have the World Fantasy Award winner AND the SPFBO finalists! Plus our non-spoilery first impressions...
11.04.2022
#448 - The Reverse Heisenberg
Veronica is very concerned about the Witcher news. Also on this episode: we have some prize winners to increase your to-read list. We pick a tentative fan name for y'all. We kick off our November read, Six Wakes by Mur...
10.20.2022
#447 - Sword and Lazy
It's our 15th anniversary! And we celebrated by making puns, discussing our favorite wearable fantasy and sci-fi weapons, and finding rumors about our hometowns. We also check in on our read of The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri.
10.06.2022
#446 - Don't Blurb on a Dime
[Ed. note: We tried to fix V’s audio, sorry for the weirdness!] Veronica may have overdone becoming a friend of crows. She has more than 100 of them in her driveway now. Plus, we kick off our non-spoilery thoughts on...
09.23.2022
#445 - Release the S&L Cut!
We love the Wellsian Touch, be it murderbots or fantasy. Is there a Harry Potter of SciFi? And we wrap up How High we Go in the Dark… and suggest the S&L edit.
09.08.2022
#444 - Cut Thieves and Purses
The Hugos are here and lots of very deserving winners. A roguish story bundle. Are TV shows worse than an ending? Our first thoughts on How High We Go in the Dark, and our last thoughts on Rivers of London.
08.19.2022
#443 - The Land of MoarTor
We get more Tor now and possibly more Lord of the Rings movies. Plus a nuanced discussion of representation in a book when the author is white.
07.28.2022
442 - Multiverse Penguin
Is Hunt the Stars a summer fling? We wrap up our thoughts on the SFR hit. Plus, the lowdown on the RandomPenguin antitrust lawsuit as they try to buy Simon and Schuster.
07.15.2022
#441 - Multiverse Tom Read It
Has a book ever changed your mind? Do authors write differently for audio? Pack that reading list with Clarke award nominees, it’s a new Sword and Laser!
07.01.2022
#440 - Mr. Darcy in Space
We have Locus winners and Veronica read so many of them! Plus, what makes some books seem like a retread while others more of a remix? And our first thoughts on Hunt the Stars by Jessie Mihalik.
06.23.2022
#439 - And the Rest is History
So many awards! We learn about a novelization of an unpublished Alien 3 script by William Gibson. We take a brief trip back to episode 1. And we share the books we picked to read this month in honor of...
06.02.2022
#438 - New Ruth Rising
It's award season! We have Nebulas, we have Mythopoeics, we have Nommos. We also have some nice reviews of the show, and we wrap up our thoughts on Machinehood by S.B. Divya. It made us think!

What's The Sword and Laser about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

The Sword and Laser episodes:

#487 - Have We Reached Critical Maas?

#486 - Pre-re-read

#485 - Triangles Are Stronger

#484 - It's Giving "Mad"

#483 - C is for Chestburster

#482 - Let's Talk About Seax, Baby

#481 - Big Trouble in Little Worldcon

#480 - What You Can Do With Mickey Mouse

#479 - Where Have All The Beef Suits Gone?

#478 - Without A Lick of Condensation

#477 - I Said What I Said, She Said

#476 - Don't Get Your Atmoscarf In A Bunch

#475 - Father Knows Best

#474 - The Vibe-rary at Mt. Char

#473 - Dewey Decimated

#472 - Felicia Day Opens Her Third Eye

#471 - PSL: Pumpkin Sword and Laser

#470 - Hammfisted

#469 - Venomous Breaded Hairtail Sucker

#468 - Go Tweed Lions!

#467 - It Was Good Filk

#446 - Spoon & Ladle

#465 - Skirting on the Edge of Danger

#464 - Awesome Bundle

#463 - OK Ant Computer

#462 - $5 FOR SCI-ANTS!

#461 - CheckItOut!

#460 - Thimble's Kitchen

#459 - Leave the Broadsword, Take the Biscotti

#458 - Pikastew is Off the Menu

#457 - Timecozy

#456 - The Clarkesworld Flood

#455 - When Life Gives You Bones, Make a Bone Dog

#454 - Baltimore, City of Baltars

#453 - And That's How the News Goes

#452 - Having Feelpinions

#451 - When Your Anti-Hero Gets a Little Too Anti

#450 - Where the Wild Nerds Are

#449 - Finding a Leggy Blonde

#448 - The Reverse Heisenberg

#447 - Sword and Lazy

#446 - Don't Blurb on a Dime

#445 - Release the S&L Cut!

#444 - Cut Thieves and Purses

#443 - The Land of MoarTor

442 - Multiverse Penguin

#441 - Multiverse Tom Read It

#440 - Mr. Darcy in Space

#439 - And the Rest is History

#438 - New Ruth Rising