The English Club Podcast

I only read half of Fourth Wing! Can I guess how it ends, or will I lose to a tarot prediction? Find out on this episode as Rebecca Yarros joins our club! Also features a good bit of Fourth Wing Analysis & Review. Is this booktok darling worth the hype? Can you plot a novel using tarot cards? Hang out with the English Club and find out!

In Episode 1, the Saint Balasar University English Club critiques Norman Boutin's Empress Theresa.  Music by Benjamin Davis.

It's not a secret, and we're not about to be contrarians: reviews for The Age of Scorpius are not very good. There's no question that this is not the ideal version of this story. Only one single question is left: what does Audra Winter do now?She says she's rewriting this book, hiring editors and all kinds of artists to realize the world of Gardian. Which is all well and good, especially if you're hiring human artists. The world is, despite what the LLC might tell you, not very well-developed, the characters are awkward, and the plot seems very convenient and by the numbers. But does any of that matter when your prose is littered with misused words?Here at SBU, we're real life critique partners at a fictional university. Our hosts J (they/them) and Andrew (he/him) focus on elevating panned and/or controversial books by offering actionable advice, and leaving out booktok drama as much as possible. But when your entire existence is predicated on booktok fame, is there any avoiding it? Are unpleasant Internet figures truly our enemy, when so many forces are set against the continued existence of books as we know them? All this and more is... not really answered, but definitely discussed, in another action-packed episode of the SBU English Club Podcast!Music by Benjamin Davis

Long before booktok was an even worse place known as SomethingAwful. A squalid, terrible place, it nonetheless gave birth to many characters that have become Internet darlings--such as Nick "ulillillia" Smith.Ulillillia is one of the coolest people ever; despite a hard childhood of video game-induced phobias, he mastered the art of self-improvement by conceiving of his perceived faults as EXP bars in an RPG. Unfortunately, however, his debut novel The Legend of the 10 Elemental Masters is a bit of a mess. Join Andrew and J in another book deep dive and analysis through the sands of time, and see just what the adventures of Knuckles and Speed can offer writers--particularly those interested in LitRPG and adjacent genres.

Team Kitt stays losing.Powerless, Reckless, and Fearless make up a young adult trilogy full of love triangles, enemies to lovers, and absolutely unintelligible plot twists. J and Andrew lose their minds as we try to tackle the last two parts of this trilogy, giving you a deep dive into both books and then an analysis of the books' and the series's strengths and weaknesses, in the hopes of saving aspiring writers with actionable, grounded advice.

Unfortunately, Divergent is good now. There was a time when it was the worst YA dystopia ever, but now all we can do is quietly smile at how silly it was. Well, sorta. In a world untouched by booktok—a world in which you can have two characters get steamy without being worried that Violet Sorrengail will Make the Lightning Happen—darker things than tropelists lurk in the shadows. Veronica Roth’s deepest desires and her weird, weird beliefs take Andrew and J to new literary depths, unpacking centuries-old religious debates and reworking the literary world into which Divergent was born. The days of debating whether you’re Team Oro or Team Grim are long gone. Now, the only question facing the SBU English Club is this: what is the true meaning of fear?Please consider supporting us! Members get early access to our videos, vote on our next podcast episode, and get exclusive content, like Not an Audiobook: A Crown of Starlight Companion Podcast! https://www.youtube.com/@sbu_englishclub/membershipFollow Andrew on Instagram! https://www.instagram.com/sbu_englishclub/Follow J on Twitter! https://x.com/sbu_englishclub

Love it or hate it, everyone’s talking about Blood of Hercules. Jasmine Mas’s catapulting from shifter romance to new adult romantasy shocked booktok and normal people alike. And intrepid bottom-feeding trend chasers Jay and Andrew are no exception. Having faced books that left more to be desired and others that are ontologically evil, they were ready for anything—anything BUT what was about to be thrown at them. Brooding boys, sassy snakes, enemies to lovers back to enemies, unambiguously unwanted advances, and a really “memorable” protagonist. Step into the SBU club room and join Jay and Andrew in a much-too-long discussion covering everything from trailer park thermodynamics to the use of parentheses in prose to the dynamics of fantasy vs reality to unqualified and over-simplified explorations of feminism to who is and who is not welcome in my shed.Not gonna lie, this one’s a little intense.

Apparently, the people who made the giant replica of Noah’s ark also wrote a pseudo-fantasy trilogy about Noah’s early life. This one has a T-REX GLADIATOR FIGHT ON THE COVER OHH MY GODDDDD! Join us for a really really weird experience as Tim Chaffey and K. Marie Adams return. I'm surprised more people aren't talking about this book because it's UNBELIEVABLE.

Lightlark was terrible. Nightshade was less terrible but more disappointing. Now I don’t know how I feel. Alex Aster has tested the SBU English Club ever since she first started going viral on TikTok. Barely a romantasy and hardly a love triangle, the tropes we were promised were always bad but now are now completely diluted. But we’re determined to turn this into an actual story, despite BookTok’s best efforts.

They all said Zenith was a disaster. And they were right, but for the wrong reasons. And then they never said anything about Nexus. So here's 3 and a half hours of us talking about how Nexus is good actually. It is genuinely mind boggling how subjectively better Nexus is than Zenith, how objectively good it is, and how much it's slept on by the online YA/BookTube/SciFantasy community. It's even crazier that Nexus is a gonzo, trippy, borderline experimental sci-fi story in which bombing a black hole full of ghosts to take over the universe is one of the more straightforward plot points. For having started with a book so poorly received that one might argue it was reviewbombed, Nexus is the redemption arc that the SBU English Club Podcast desperately needed. Especially because the new Lightlark book just dropped...

Lauren Roberts has a viral BookTok sensation on her hands. "Red Queen meets Hunger Games," she calls it. “Worse than Lightlark,” responds the Internet. Still, questions abound. How can some people love this book, while others consider it one of the worst books ever? Which BookTok book has the best dumb twist ending? Is TikTok book marketing a surefire path to success in publishing your book? Join critique partners and Lightlark superfans Jay and Andrew as they explore this "spicy" romantasy that works in all the wrong ways.

YOU WON’T GET THIS ANYWHERE ELSE. Controversial book deep dives & analysis, booktok fights, review bombing, and the wildest book drama to come out of Twitter—all right here at the SBU English Club. Our club members face their greatest challenge yet: Cait Corrain’s Crown of Starlight! Cait had everything—a two-book traditional publishing deal, rave reviews from literary critics, and a successful ARC distribution. And then she made it go up in flames. But what about the book itself? What was it about? Would this have been the next Fourth Wing, had she not reviewbombed everyone who would’ve supported her? What are the ethics of reading a discontinued book with such a bad reputation, and what responsibilities do we have to each other as readers, writers, and Internet users? Also in this episode: Cait Corrain drama explained! You’ve heard the story before, you’ve seen the fake Discord chat, but do we—can we—know the full story, and trust the people telling it to us? Join us as we put laser focus on facts that others have glossed over—facts that can NEVER exonerate Cait Corrain, but CAN illustrate the risk that there may be some of them in all of us. Please support Cait Corrain’s victims: https://www.asakkalon.com/2024-debut-books-to-support-thanks-cait-corrain/

It's YA Sci-Fi gone wild! Join the SBU English Club as they review what has to be one of the longest YA books ever--Zenith by Sasha Alsberg and Lindsay Cummings! Don't believe the author drama--this book is nowhere NEAR as bad as they say it is. But they also don't talk about what makes this book REALLY bad. Weird how that happens. Whether you're a fan of the genre or just curious about the controversy, join us for a deep dive into what we will come to call the proto-Lightlark.

Somehow, J.A. Johnstone has returned. And she’s brought a new book that’s somehow more insane than the last. Join the SBU English Club as they tackle another ripped-from-the-headlines Johnstone thriller, and try in vain to figure out just what headlines this is supposed to be ripped from. Just as a warning, this one gets kinda real, so listen at your discretion.

The worst author ever is back with a furry mountain-climbing fever dream! This one’s so much to deal with that our heroes need to call in the help of a friend. Throw yourself to the wolves and join the fun as the English Club tackles a book that may literally be ontologically evil. Is it safe to climb a mountain in a fursuit? How much are you (not) supposed to spend on marketing your book? Is this guy serious? Find out on our newest episode!

Somehow, Lightlark has returned. Some call it the worst YA book ever made, others call it a victim of a chemical reaction between the publishing industry and the TikTok machine. Whatever led Lightlark and Nightbane to get published, they're full of common mistakes made by newbie fantasy writers and remain some of the most controversial books. We don't care. We're hell-bent on saving it, anyways. Maybe it's something with the character introductions, the romance subplot, or even that this book needs a bit more Reylo--J and Andrew will do whatever it takes to make the world of Isla, Oro, and GRIMSHAW make sense. ABOUT THE BOOK: Isla Crown has secured the love of two powerful rulers and broken the curses that plagued the six realms for centuries, but few know the true origins of her powers. Now, in the wake of a crushing betrayal, Isla finds herself hungry for distraction, preferring to frequent Lightlark’s seductive haunts instead of embracing her duties as the newly crowned leader of two separate realms. Worse, her fellow rulers haven’t ceded victory quietly, and there are others in Isla’s midst who don’t believe her ascent to power was earned. As certain death races toward Lightlark and secrets from the past begin to unravel, Isla must weigh her responsibility to her people against the whims of the most dangerous traitor of all: her heart. ABOUT US: English Club Podcast is a joint venture between two critique partners at "Saint Balasar University". The goal of each episode is to give internet famous fiction a fair critique, as if the authors were members of a writing group themselves. CHOOSE YOUR MAGICAL CREATURES: Antler Bear, Moss Wolf, Giant Spider: https://www.instagram.com/sbu_englishclub An actual panther like literally just a large cat with no other cool features: https://twitter.com/sbu_englishclub

Apparently, the people who made the giant replica of Noah’s ark also wrote a pseudo-fantasy trilogy about Noah’s early life. Our intrepid heroes don’t expect much from the first book, but lo—fantasy writing tips, dinosaurs, and Renaissance-era poetry await! Will Jay and Andrew let their differing beliefs stop them from working together to save this book? Can a work be true, even when it’s not factual? Will iron mining operations disrupt local pterodactyl habitats? Some of these questions will be answered!

Join the English Club for a deep dive into the controversial book that everyone on Twitter and TikTok has been lit up about. Journey across 18th century France, the god dimension, colonial America, another god dimension, Dinosaur Fairy hell, and probably some other places too during this whopper of a club meeting. Plus: who is Lauren M. Davis? Is she a Cait Corrain sockpuppet, or an AI writer? Who is Nova, and is her playlist any good? CAN you copyright the sun? And what makes this book so interesting and controversial anyway? Full book synopsis on our website: https://englishclubpodcast.com/2024/01/04/novas-playlist/ Review on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6072707343 Follow Marve M Anson so something good comes out of this: https://www.instagram.com/justmarvewrites/ ABOUT US: English Club Podcast is a joint venture between two critique partners at "Saint Balasar University". The goal of each episode is to give internet famous fiction a fair critique, as if the authors were members of a writing group themselves.

From lawsuits to internet drama to a very odd trilogy of books, Onision brings it all to the SBU English Club. Join us and our friend Holly as we provide Greg Onision YouTube’s Stones To Abbigale the thoughtful and balanced critique and analysis that he definitely got and ignored before hitting the Publish button on Amazon. ABOUT THE BOOK: This book is made up of events that occurred in my own life mixed with fiction from the made-up life of James. James is essentially a better version of myself. His home, his school & his life all resemble my own at his age. The people James analyzes and is surrounded by are not so unlike those I’ve known as well. I have experienced much of the loss James has however his happier moments are more often than not also mine. I want to share my story without it being purely non-fiction. I simply felt this approach would make for a far better book. At points I cried while writing this, at others I laughed.Stones To Abbigale is not just a book I wrote; it is a piece of who I am. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25251380-stones-to-abbigale ABOUT US: English Club Podcast is a joint venture between two critique partners at "Saint Balasar University". The goal of each episode is to give internet famous fiction a fair critique, as if the authors were members of a writing group themselves. Davis Fan Club: https://www.instagram.com/englishclubpodcast/ Join the Rollerskating Team: https://twitter.com/sbu_englishclub

SEASON 1 FINALE! I've never seen a (normal-seeming) book with such a low goodreads score. But does Rin, Tongue and Dorner actually deserve the negativity? Find out as we face the final boss of English Club Podcast, Season 1! ABOUT THE BOOK: Take a delirious hyper-metaphorical ride with a love triangle into a fiery cosmos. Shapero’s outer space uncannily mirrors inner space, daring us to ditch our expectations and probe the depths of human desire. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40937423-rin-tongue-and-dorner ABOUT US: Hee naur naur hee naur naur hee https://twitter.com/sbu_englishclub https://www.instagram.com/englishclubpodcast/ englishclubpodcast@gmail.com