Booktails Podcast

🦇BLACK HISTORY HALLOWEEN 4🦇 This October we are celebrating Black History Month and Halloween together- delving into spooky, paranormal tales written by black writers. 🐈‍⬛ This week in ‘White is for Witching’ by Helen Oyeyemi, a haunted house is calling your name and no matter how far you go you won’t be able to escape its’ secret passageways and ghostly footsteps… 🧙‍♀️ Miranda is slipping away, not eating food, not sleeping and she no longer looks like photographs of herself from a year ago. Is she being called to the witchy business of her ancestors? When she disappears entirely her twin brother, girlfriend and even the house itself all have their take on where she is, but who can be trusted? And will Miranda ever come back? 🍎 Expect discussions on the appeal of an unsolvable mystery, Caribbean folklore, Miranda’s stilettos, racist haunted houses, wunderkind authors and debates on what those apples really meant… 🏚️ It’s one of our highest rated books of the year for a reason, we can’t recommend this one highly enough and hope you’ll join us to delve into a page turning, spine chilling adventure that raises more questions than it answers…⌚️

🦇BLACK HISTORY HALLOWEEN 3🦇 This October we are celebrating Black History Month and Halloween together- delving into spooky, paranormal tales written by black writers. 🐈‍⬛ What’s next in our Jack o’ Lantern of Treats? ‘The Gilda Stories’ by Jewelle Gomez 🧛‍♀️ A runaway slave from Mississippi becomes a humane vampire and travels the US for over 200 years watching society change around her.  Expect discussions on sapphic vampires, historical fiction meeting sci fi, quite a lot of champagne, the definitive ranking of periods of modern history, and our thoughts on which celebrities are probably secret vampires. 🩸 They take blood, not life- and they always, always leave something behind… ⚰️ If you haven’t already, go and check out previous episodes in this series: ‘Die for Me’ by Shirlene Obuobi, with special guest Alyssa from Stories and Spoilers Podcast and ’The Reformatory’!

🦇BLACK HISTORY HALLOWEEN 2🦇 This October we are celebrating Black History Month and Halloween together- delving into spooky, paranormal tales written by black writers.  If you haven’t already, go and check out last week’s episode on Die for Me by Shirlene Obuobi, with special guest Alyssa from Stories and Spoilers Podcast!  But next up we have another treat for you: the deliciously creepy ‘The Reformatory’ by Tananarive Due. Based on the harrowing true story of a real school where the author’s great uncle died as a child, this is the story of Robert who is unfairly sentenced to the Reformatory and his ability to see the ghosts who are trapped there is quickly seen and exploited- but these ghosts may just hold the key to finally finding justice and escape before the living join the dead.  Join us to discuss the real life inspiration, the dual storylines of the reformatory and racial prejudice and injustice, the importance of the setting to the paranormal aspects and those poor dogs!  Because sometimes a place can be haunted by things far scarier than ghosts…

🦇BLACK HISTORY HALLOWEEN 1 🦇 This October we are celebrating Black History Month and Halloween together- delving into spooky, paranormal tales written by black writers.  Up first we are so excited to team up with Alyssa from Stories and Spoilers Podcast who recommended this book to us!  Paranormal romance. Strong female lead.  Age gap.  Chosen family.  And so much more!  This week’s book is ‘Die for Me’ by Shirlene Obuobi, the tale of a strong, successful interventional cardiologist who meets a handsome, charming younger man who seems too good to be true, especially when she starts getting sick whenever they’re apart and her dark hair turns grey overnight…  Expect discussions on inherent good and evil, the importance of Sean’s life before Julian, the real life badass author, and the possibilities of future books!  Beware the man of your dreams; it may not be safe to go to sleep! 

📆BIRTH YEAR PICK 2: 1994 📆 Before we get into spooky season it’s time for a ✨Booktails Interlude! ✨ We are doing a two book series based on our years of birth! 🐣 Up next, Rachel has chosen a book published in 1994, Serena’s year of birth: ‘By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept’ by Paulo Coelho. It’s a timeless tale of a young woman at a crossroads in her life who reconnects with her first love. He has turned to faith and is said to perform miracles- but is willing to give it all up for her. But can they really be together or are these star crossed lovers destined to end in tragedy?  Dive into the River Piedra headfirst with Serena and Rachel to discuss nameless heroes, the hundredth monkey effect (the real one), spirituality  and the utter joy of an unexpected happy ending.  Our game this week has us speaking in tongues (maybe from the tequila based cocktail!) but will you be able to decode?  Ready to go for a swim? (hopefully not in our own tears!💅)