In the first part of their (somewhat delayed) Halloween Booooook Club, the fellas dive in to what is supposed to be one of the most iconic and scariest books in British horror: The Woman in Black.... and find it to be a massive disapointment. A dry, laughably unscary drag completely upstaged by both of its famous adaptations. Tune in to hear Geordie unleash the frustrations of a difficult day on a deserving punching bag, and hear Duncan realise he'd really rather talk about the Magnus Archives. They also cover Duncan accidentally reading a censored children's version of the Force Awakens, and end the episode with undoubtably the most unexpected book choice in the entire podcast.But before we get to the next book, its time to return to the world of Berserk.
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1:07:53
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1:07:53
Paladin's Grace
Slather yourself in gingerbread and fail to solve a mystery, its time for Duncan and Geordie to cover 'Paladin's Grace' by T. Kingfisher. They discuss an excellent love story, and a real pallete cleanser from the hormonal teenage romantasies they've experienced up till now. Even if the political intrigue and mysteries promised by the blurb fails to materialise. This episode Geordie learns a surprising amount of Ancient Greek, Duncan tries to weird out Geordie by describing a video game, only to discover that its pretty de rigeour by anime standards, whilst Geordie forces Duncan to exactingly describe the book's steamiest scenes.Next time.... things are getting spooky with the return of the annual October boooook club.
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1:41:20
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1:41:20
Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser: Ill Met in Lanhkmar
For the final time (and this time we mean it) the fellas are embarking on another sword and sorcery adventure with the introduction to Fritz Leiber's classic dynamic duo Fafhrd and Grey Mouser in 'Ill Met in Lankhmar.' The fellas rave about the story's humour and excitement and beautifully morbid setting, and appreciate the irony of a classic 'fridging' scene appearing right after they covered Gail Simone.We at the Is This Just Fantasy Studio™ cannot condone the Fafhrd and Grey Mouser drinking game where you drink every time we mention Conan and Elric. Not without an ambulance.Dear audience, we are aware that for the first time in the history of the podcast, Duncan has been able to pick the book three times in a row. We are also afraid that it may have driven him mad with power. He will be put back in his place again soon.
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1:26:10
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1:26:10
Red Sonja: Consumed
Can you ever really escape your fate? Not if Duncan has trapped you in a never ending cycle of sword and sorcery. Once again the fellas are going back to the Red Sonja well. Its the same author. Its the same character. Its... quite a few of the same plot beats as well, actually, but dumber this time. Duncan chose Red Sonja: Consumed, Gail Simone's first ever novel, and her second take on Red Sonja. The fellas unpack some bizarre and kinda stupid plot points, Geordie's relates his worst trip to the theatre ever, Duncan gets bent out of shape about contradictions to Hyborian Era geography, whilst Geordie demonstrates eerie powers of prophecy, and comes to the radical conclusion that Lord of the Rings is a good book. Who knew?They promise to never discuss Red Sonja again... until Duncan sees the movie.Also, Duncan wants to make clear that comments about beloved nerd actor Felicia Day were made by only one host of this show.
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1:40:01
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1:40:01
Red Sonja: Queen of the Plagues
Is it Halloween already? No? Then how come the fellas are reading a comic book?! That's because this time, as preperation for the release of the new Red Sonja movie, Duncan has taken the fellas back to the Hyborian Age, with Red Sonja, written by comic book legend Gail Simone.Duncan leads the episode through the complicated canon of Red Sonja (and her endless reboots), whilst Geordie tries to figure out why Innsmouth fishpeople (with the colour pallette of Bikini Bottom) are here. They discuss action in western comics vs manga, a pretty bizarre ending, the legally important distinction between Red Sonja and Red Sonya, why Duncan chose a comic book when Gail Simone has just written a Red Sonja novel as her prose debut, and round out the episode with a quick game of 'Snog, Marry, Avoid."
The book club where we review all things fantasy! Join Duncan and Geordie as they embark on a quest to track the breadth and history of the fantasy genre, one epic at the time.
Whether you're a fan of book-stopper tomes like Duncan, or lighter YA fantasy like Geordie, we want you to read-along with us. Episodes are released every two weeks, giving you enough to read the book (or skim the synopsis if you're just here for the banter.)
Ireland