Author's Afterword

Charlie and Elodie Harper (Boudicca's Daughter) discuss the Iceni women history didn't deem important enough to give us names for, working with morally grey relationships for which there are no answers, and, in all this context, Ancient Britain and Ancient Rome.

Please note that there is mention of rape and violence in this episode.

General References: Butser Ancient Farm

Books mentioned by name or extensively:
Elodie Harper: The W...

Charlie and Juhea Kim (A Love Story From The End Of The World) discuss Juhea's fantastic largely environmental and philosophical short story collection. This is a book that looks at the problems with our present as well as the possible futures that may result from them.

General references:
Rocky
Groundhog Day
In The Mood For Love
Kpop Demon Hunters

Books mentioned by name or extensively:
Dante Alighieri: The Divine Comedy
Juhea Kim...

Charlie and Clémence Michallon (Our Last Resort) discuss Clémence's epic multi-thousand-a-day writing streak and how she cuts sentences that don't work, often not replacing them, also Charlie's discomfort with the idea of the morally grey aspect of the novel and Clémence's thoughts that we think of morality in the context of the book/show, and fictional pets staying alive beyond the pages.

Please note that the book under discussion...

Charlie and Nikki May (This Motherless Land) discuss her childhood in Lagos and moving to England, various ways Nikki's story changed over time (quite a lot!), the Nigerian women's relay team of 1992, and the upcoming TV adaptations of both This Motherless Land and Wahala.

Please note that there is some swearing in this episode.

General references:
About the Nigerian Women's Relay team win at the 1992 Olympics
Rocks (2019)
Nikki ma...

Charlie and Jim C Hines (Kitemaster) discuss how his story developed over a number of years, including wonder and physics reasoning in the book, his excellent study of grief (and humour in that context), and his unique and choices in regards to the book world's belief system of an afterlife.

Please note there is some very mild swearing in this episode, as well as discussions of cancer and death. Please also note, on a very differen...

Charlie and Julie Kagawa (Fateless) discuss video games, working with fate and destiny, Julie's brilliant world building and magic system, and the decisions she made about where to end the book.

General references:
Charlie and Julie's pre-show chat (which is the reason Charlie knows Julie meant Final Fantasy X)
My episode with Samantha Sotto Yambao is 122

Books mentioned by name or extensively:
Julie Kagawa: The Iron Fey
Julie Kaga...

Charlie and Maggie Stiefvater (The Listeners) discuss the lesser-known history of the US hosting Axis diplomats in luxury hotels, the arrangements made to swap diplomats one for one, including disability and mental illness in such a story, Maggie's main character's dachshunds and their relationship to the man they never let pet them, the era-aligned game that Maggie created, and much more.

General references:
Shiver (film adaptatio...

Charlie and Emily Slapper (Everyone I Know Is Dying) discuss her phenomenal book that looks at a young woman spiralling from mental illness. This involves discussing romantic relationships when one is depressed, the affect of parents, the affect of society, and not using labels.

General references:
I spoke to Samantha Sotto Yambao in episode 122

Books mentioned by name or extensively:
Emily Slapper: Everyone I Know Is Dying
Sylvia ...

Charlie and Michael Stewart (Black Wood Women) discuss the persecution of Irish people in the 17th century, the loss of and possible reintroduction of wolves in Britain, and 17th century hippies.

Please note that there is discussion of drugs in this episode.

General references:
The Bronte Writing Centre

Books mentioned by name or extensively:
Elizabeth Fremantle: Honey And The Sting
Ian D Rotherham: Yorkshire's Forgotten Fenlands
M...

Charlie and Paul McVeigh (I Hear You) discuss Paul's time writing stories for the BBC, being an emotional writer, and a traumatic medical experience that has had a big effect on some of his work.

Please note there are two incredibly mild swear words in this episode.

General references:
BBC Writers Room, now BBC Writers
Paul's play is called Big Man
Paul's blog post about tips from Heather Larmour

Books mentioned by name or extensiv...

Charlie and Sophie Jo (Red Flags) discuss healthy relationships particularly in the context of young people and in terms of values and hobbies. They also delve into popular media from the '90s and 2000s as included in Sophie's book.

General references:
Love Respect
10 Things I Hate About You
How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days
The OC
Girls
Normal People TV adaptation

Books mentioned by name or extensively:
Sally Rooney: Conversations With...

Charlie and Carmel Harrington (The Stolen Child) discuss her stunning thriller wherein the reveal is given at the start and we have to find out the how and the why, a boy stolen as a child and now he's found his way home...

Please note we mention abuse, kidnapping, and prostitution.

Books mentioned by name or extensively:
Carmel Harrington: The Stolen Child
Carmel Harrington: The Nowhere Girls
J R R Tolkien: The Lord Of The Rings

R...

Charlie and Samantha Sotto Yambao (Water Moon) discuss her UK debut - yay! - exploring the concepts of fate and choice, the process of evolving the romance, and, we catch up on the lives of Sam's dogs.

A transcript is available on my site

General references:
Ticket link for the podcast live events
Sam joined me to discuss The Beginning of Always in episode 50
Sam joined me to discuss Before Ever After, Love and Gravity, and A Dream...

Charlie and Amy Jordan (The Dark Hours) discuss the Irish police force, the Garda, in the 1990s, particularly where it involves sexism. They also discuss the effects on a relationship of being a member of the police, and the way trauma can influence extreme actions.

A transcript is available on my site

General references:
The New York Times review (paywall)

Books mentioned by name or extensively:
Amy Jordan: The Dark Hours

Release ...

Charlie and Amy Engel (I Did It For You) discuss her literary thriller wherein the killer did it but it isn't that simple, wherein both the victim's and killer's families are given empathy, and wherein the sister of the victim and the brother of the killer start a romance.

Please note that whilst there are no references to detailed violence, this episode looks at various issues surrounding murder cases.

A transcript is available on...

Charlie and Nydia Hetherington (Sycorax) discuss the witch Shakespeare's Prospero hates so much and Nydia's reimagining slash prequel to The Tempest. This involves conversation about chronic illness, attitudes to women in regards to the occult, and on a seemingly unrelated subject, the tendency of pirates to leave problematic people on isolated islands.

A transcript is available on my site

General references:
W H Auden: The Sea And...

Charlie and Gill Paul (Scandalous Women) discuss Jackie Collins, Jacqueline Susann, and the way the 1960s publishing industry treated women.

A transcript is available on my site

General references:
My other episodes with Gill are 42 and 86
The Love Machine (movie)
Some of Richard Osman's words on the subject can be found here
Once Upon A Time In America
Lady Boss trailer
Mad Men
Feud: Capote Vs His Swans
Cold Blooded: The Clutter F...

Charlie and C J Wray (The Excitements) discuss the WW2 women her book about fun-loving nonagenarians is based on and her views on modern and historical adoption as an adoptee herself. We also discuss the Peter Jones (John Lewis) department store, using Morse Code, and Diamond Doris, a jewel-thief who got away with quite a bit.

Please note there are a couple of mild swear words in this episode. Please also note we talk of the First ...