The Spicy Librarian Podcast

Dark romance and romantasy podcast The Spicy Librarian is back and slightly delirious. The Maasquerade Ball has been and gone, and this week Dee and Katie are sitting down to debrief everything — the horses, the fire, the slippers, the broken glasses, the men who were absolutely terrified, and what is coming next. Buckle up. We are recording this on a Tuesday. You are listening on a Thursday. And we have not stopped since the ball. This week on The Spicy Librarian Podcast it is a full post ball DeeBrief — what actually happened across both nights, what the attendees experienced, what was happening behind the scenes, and the moments we are never going to forget. Fire warriors on horseback. A string quartet playing modern music covers, Bridgerton Style. Bat wings that took out a table of glasses. Dee in slippers. A 400 year old war relic. And under the mountain nightclub, where every man on the premises was absolutely terrified for his life.   We also get into what is coming next — an annual TSL Romantic Ball in June? a Spicy Christmas party with bottomless drinks and tinsel, and a festival announcement so exciting that NDAs have been signed and details cannot legally be shared… Yet. We talk about what we can, hint at what we cannot, and strongly encourage you to get on the festival waiting list immediately.   Plus the TSL Super Bowl is coming back for year two between Christmas and New Year, the dark romance Halloween quiz happened and the scoring system completely disintegrated, and Katie has half her Christmas decorations up and will not be apologising for it.   Timestamps: 00:00 — Post Ball Fever Dream Intro 00:19 — The Ball: What Attendees Experienced 01:37 — The Horsemen, the Fire Warriors & the Minibus Chaos 04:16 — Arriving at Rugby Hall: Fire Artists, War Drums & Champagne 05:16 — The High Ladies of the Court of Spice Hit the Balcony 06:20 — The Community: Outfits, Photos & the Moments That Meant Everything 11:37 — The Live Podcast & Dee Falls Off a Chair 12:57 — Under the Mountain Nightclub & the Men Were Terrified 15:31 — Midnight Book Countdown on a 400 Year Old Table 16:29 — Will There Be Another Ball? 17:42 — January Events: Still at the Drawing Board 18:40 — Festival Announcement: NDAs, Site Visits & Get On That Waiting List 26:33 — Dee’s Interview on Stage Thursday 5th November 29:33 — Watching the Podcast on the TV: Never Again 37:07 — The TSL Super Bowl is Back 41:37 — The Halloween Dark Romance Quiz & the Scoring System Collapses 44:14 — Christmas Decorations Discourse & On That Note Goodbye Books mentioned:  None explicitly, as you've heard we were a tad busy- full October round up shortly!    If you loved this episode follow the podcast so you never miss a drop, leave us a review — it genuinely means the world — and get on the festival waiting list via the link in our bio. We’ll see you next Thursday. 🖤

Dark romance and romantasy podcast The Spicy Librarian sits down with Jean Kwok — Harvard physicist, former professional ballroom dancer, bestselling literary author and now debut romantasy writer. We talk Dominion, Ruby’s story, the twists we did not see coming, and why this book is unlike anything else in the genre right now. This week on The Spicy Librarian Podcast we have one of our most special guests to date. Jean Kwok came all the way from New York via London to sit with us in the Spicy Librarian and we are still not over it. Jean’s story is genuinely one of the most remarkable we have ever heard — arriving in New York from Hong Kong at five years old, living in unheated apartments and working in a garment factory as a child, finding her solace entirely in books and the public library, going on to study physics at Harvard, becoming a professional ballroom dancer, writing her debut novel in her attic in the Netherlands over ten years, being dropped by her agent when it was finished, and then sending to the biggest agents in the world anyway and signing within 48 hours. We could not make this up. We did not have to. We get into Jean’s full backlist — Girl in Translation, Mambo in Chinatown, Searching for Sylvie Lee, and The Leftover Woman — before diving deep into Dominion, her debut romantasy and a book that has genuinely taken us by surprise. Four warring dominions, telepathic man-eating tigers, a ribbon dancer with amnesia, enemies to lovers with a love interest who burned down her hut and killed her chicken, and a twist so big three people in the shop turned around to check if Dee was okay. She was not okay. She still isn’t. We also take Jean’s Dominion personality quiz live on air, debate which dominion we belong to, and officially nickname her the Trauma Queen of New York. She accepted. Book two is coming. It takes place in the Red Phoenix Dominion — a matriarchal society of fire sirens run by powerful women — and big news is coming very soon. We will say no more.   00:00 — Introduction: Dee and Katie are recovering from the Maasquerade Ball 00:51 — Welcome Jean Kwok to the Spicy Librarian 01:45 — Jean’s Story: Hong Kong, New York, Poverty & Finding Books 07:13 — Harvard, Physics & Writing a Poem Instead of Homework 09:57 — The Agent Who Dropped Her & Sending to the Top Ten Anyway 15:31 — The Call That Changed Everything 16:41 — Jean’s Backlist: Girl in Translation, Mambo in Chinatown & More 24:41 — Searching for Sylvie Lee & The Leftover Woman 27:09 — Why Jean Finally Made the Switch to Romantasy 30:21 — Dominion: The Full Pitch 34:38 — The Twist We Did Not See Coming 35:40 — Taking the Dominion Personality Quiz Live 45:01 — Book Two: Red Phoenix Dominion Teaser 49:30 — Ruby’s Journey & What’s Coming Next 50:35 — Thank You Jean & See You Soon Dominion — Jean Kwok (romantasy, debut, enemies to lovers, amnesia, fantasy) Girl in Translation — Jean Kwok (literary fiction, coming of age) Mambo in Chinatown — Jean Kwok (contemporary fiction, ballroom dancing) Searching for Sylvie Lee — Jean Kwok (suspense, literary fiction) The Leftover Woman — Jean Kwok (contemporary fiction, one child policy, second chance romance)   If you loved this episode follow the podcast so you never miss a drop, leave us a review — it genuinely means the world — and head to our website or Instagram for all the latest updates. We’ll see you next Thursday. 🖤  

Dark romance and romantasy podcast The Spicy Librarian is back for round two of Would You Rather — and this time we are throwing Dee and Katie headfirst into dark romance and horror for a Halloween special. Final girl or best storyline? Hunted or protected? Attic or cellar? They don’t have to agree. They do have to justify. You asked for round two. We delivered. Last time we dropped Dee and Katie into the romantasy world — this time it’s dark romance and horror, it’s Halloween, let the chaos begin. We’re tackling fifteen questions that get progressively more unhinged — from whether you’d rather be the final girl or have the best storyline, to whether you’d survive a horror movie or a dark romance novel, to the one that started a genuine debate about attics versus cellars that we are still not over. There are villain monologues, obsessive love interests, supernatural hauntings, primal chases through the woods, and a reverse harem question that absolutely did not need to be as divisive as it was. We’re referencing Crown Me Dead & Crown Me Yours by Liv Zander, Hunting Adeline by H.D. Carlton, The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides, Penpal by J.T. Geissinger, Feathers So Vicious by Liv Zander, Spark of the Everflame by Penn Cole, and This Family Lies by J.M. Cannon, and taking notes from our FMC's and because every good Halloween episode needs a reading list to go with it. Timestamps: None officially, just straight into general chaos Books Discussed: Crown Me Dead & Crown Me Yours — Liv Zander (dark romance) Hunting Adeline — H.D. Carlton (dark romance, stalker romance) The Silent Patient — Alex Michaelides (psychological thriller) Penpal — J.T. Geissinger (dark romance, thriller) Feathers So Vicious — Liv Zander (dark romantasy) Spark of the Everflame — Penn Cole (romantasy, slow burn) This Family Lies — J.M. Cannon (psychological thriller) If you loved this episode follow the podcast so you never miss a drop, leave us a review — it genuinely means the world — and head to our website or Instagram to send us your most unhinged would you rather for round three. We’ll see you next Thursday. 🖤

Dark romance and romantasy podcast The Spicy Librarian is back with the September reading roundup — and we’ll be honest, this one went a slightly different direction than planned. Ber flu hit, catch up happened, and we read a lot of books anyway. As you do. The ber season arrived and brought its flu with it. So instead this week on The Spicy Librarian Podcast, we sat down for an unexpected catch-up — bringing you news from the centre, what we have been reading, and the books that have been living in our heads rent-free this month.  Katie brings us You Girls Play Nice by K.D. Aldyn, Home Before Dark by Riley Sager, Spark of the Everflame by Penn Cole, and The Right Move by Liz Tomforde — fake dating, forced proximity, gothic thriller, and a romantasy slow burn that we cannot stop recommending. Dee talks us through — Friends with the Monsters by Albany Walker, Incidents Around the House by Josh Malerman, The Lamb by Lucy Rose, and the A King of Flesh and Bone & A Queen of Rot and Ruin duology by Liv Zander. Plus Threshing Day by Rebecca Yarros — the brand new Empyrean companion collection that Empyrean fans need in their hands immediately. Dee had a great time.   Timestamps: 00:00 — Welcome & Ber Flu 05:01 — News from the Centre 45:00 — Katie’s September Reading Round Up 52:00 — Dee’s September Reading Round Up   Books Discussed: You Girls Play Nice — K.D. Aldyn (indie, contemporary) Home Before Dark — Riley Sager (gothic thriller, spooky season read) Spark of the Everflame — Penn Cole (romantasy, slow burn) The Right Move — Liz Tomforde (contemporary romance, sports romance, fake dating) Friends with the Monsters — Albany Walker (indie dark romance) Incidents Around the House — Josh Malerman (horror) The Lamb — Lucy Rose (gothic horror, folk horror, queer fiction) A King of Flesh and Bone & A Queen of Rot and Ruin — Liv Zander (dark romance) Threshing Day — Rebecca Yarros (romantasy, Empyrean series, Fourth Wing universe) If you loved this episode follow the podcast so you never miss a drop, leave us a review — it genuinely means the world — and head to our website or Instagram for all the latest updates. We’ll see you next Thursday. 🖤

The rules are simple. You have £20. You need five book boyfriends. Every man on the market has a price tag and you have to build the best possible roster without going over budget. Easy. Completely straightforward. Nobody lost their mind at all. Drafting Zade from Haunting Adeline, Josh from Lights Out, and Acker from Metal Slinger ( the first book Katie ever spoiled, throwback) — who came all the way across the ocean for you, and we respect the commitment. Katie went for Ruhn from Crescent City, Xaden from Fourth Wing (Katie's roster, Katie's rules and Greyson from Daggermouth — masked man, awful in-laws, but somehow still a solid ten. Then we had to defend our rosters. You’re getting involved. The logistics of five men living with you were discussed in more depth than we anticipated, and the results were illuminating. But which house would you live in? Round two gave us a trope budget — enemies to lovers, forced proximity, one bed, taboo relationship, fake dating, accidental pregnancy, miscommunication, instalove, grumpy sunshine and second chance all hit the table — and from those picks we arced the next two New York Times bestseller and the return of Chad and Poppy. The publishing industry is not ready, and it’s welcome. Timestamps: 01:15 — Rules of the Draft 05:10 — The Draft Begins 26:33 — Roster Defence: The Logistics of Five Men 39:29 — Round Two: The Trope Budget 45:13 — Arcing the Next Bestseller: Chad, Poppy & the Book That Could Save Publishing   Books & Characters Referenced: Zade — Haunting Adeline by H.D. Carlton (dark romance, stalker romance) Josh — Lights Out by Navessa Allen (dark romance, masked MMC) Kingfisher — Quicksilver by Callie Hart (romantasy) Ruhn — Crescent City by Sarah J. Maas (romantasy) Vale — Crown Me Yours by Liv Zander (dark romance) Xaden — Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros (romantasy, enemies to lovers) Rhysand — A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas (romantasy, MaasVerse) Seven — White Rose Painted Red by Elena Lawson (dark romance, why choose, indie) Acker — Metal Slinger by Rachel Schneider (dark romance) Greyson — Daggermouth by H.M. Wolfe (dark romantasy, masked MMC) If you loved this episode follow the podcast so you never miss a drop, leave us a review — it genuinely means the world — and head to our website or Instagram to tell us who would be in your £20 roster. We'll see you next Thursday. 🖤