S03.11: Comfort Reads with Dani Lacey

It’s comfort read week! What makes a comfort read, why do we turn to them, what do we want from them, and why on earth do blue aliens fit the bill?! This week, we all need a comfort read, and we’re joined by Dani Lacey, host of Ice Planet Pod and Black Chick Lit Podcast, to talk about all things comfort reads!

We’re putting read alongs on hold for a bit to spend the next few weeks hanging out with some of our favorite people and talking about books and tropes that give us joy, so we hope you’ll join us and keep a pen handy so you can add to your TBR list as needed!

Also! please join us for a Fated States phonebanking session with Indivisible.org on Saturday — it’s so fun! We love seeing so many of your amazing faces there, hanging out, and lifting each other up through absolute anxiety! Please join us, fellow Fated Maters, and special guests for Fated States Phonebanking Part 5 this Saturday, October 24th at 3pm Eastern to call South Carolina! It’s easy, not scary, and there will be prizes!

Thank you, as always, for listening! If you are up for leaving a rating or review for the podcast on your podcasting app, we would be very grateful!

Fated States!

Join us this Saturday, October 24th at 3pm Eastern to call Iowa and make sure it turns up blue! It’s easy, not scary, and there will be prizes! Sign up at the link, watch the video, and come hang out!

Remember: "Despair is not a strategy."

Call Your Senators. Tell them you want "the McConnell Rule" enforced, and no confirmation hearings for the Supreme Court until January 22.

Donate Donate Donate (if you can). We're thrilled to support "Get Mitch or Die Trying" via ActBlue -- donations to this are immediately split evenly between Senate candidates in elections

Text bank

Phone bank

Write postcards

Vote early by mail if you are planning to vote by mail. Be sure to check that your ballot has all the correct information, and is returned accorting to the instructions (this goes double for people in NYC and Pennsylvania).

Vote early in person if your state has early voting.

Stay fired up!

--

Show Notes

Welcome Dani Lacey, host of Ice Planet Pod and Black Chick Lit podcast. Black Chick Lit is a podcast Dani hosts with her friend Mollie, and the focus is books by and about Black women. Ice Planet Pod has different guests every week, and Jen has been on and Sarah will be on!

Some of the specific Ice Planet Podcast episodes that Dani mentioned: she did one with her friend Mollie from Black Chick Lit, Jen talked about what would happen if Wedding Magazines existed on that world, and the latest release was with author Katrina Jackson.

All about Hoopla and the difference between Hoopla vs Libby (Overdrive). If your public library doesn't have Hoopla, it's probably becasue they can't afford it.

You, too, can have a banana phone. Don't tell Sophie, but Sarah's definitely getting her one of these.

In the Ice Planet books, the khui is the magic thing that “resonates” to tell the two people that they are a destined to be together--it also allows these shipwrecked humans to survive the ice planet, and also to speak the same language.

A couple of times, Dani mentioned “Harlow’s book, and the title of that one is Barbarian Mine.

Jen's friend Julie was a little worried about Chuck Tingle being sad when he released Chuck Tingle Pounded in The Butt by a Knockoff Book that Glorifies a Deadly Tragedy and Doesn't Prove Love is Real Then Accepting This as a Sad Side Effect of Making Wider Positive Impact as an Author, but the following week it was Mike Pence Pounded in the Butt by His Handsome Werefly, so he’s probably fine.

Magic Mike XXL is a pure, beautiful movie about men and their feelings. We highly recommend it.

If you’re a fan of the Stage Dive series, there was a new novella that was released yesterday called Love Song. It’s the book about Adam Dillon, a character that the band mentored in later books in the series.

How the Reddit forum AITA (Am I the Asshole) reveals the sexism of everyday life.

The two audiobook companies are Tantor and Brilliance, but with the huge rise of popularity in audiobooks, lots of audio in now produced in house.

When it comes to the Ice Planet audio, Dani loves the two narrators Hollie Jackson and Mason Lloyd. The Ice Home series, a spin-off of the Ice Planet Barbarians Series, has two new narrators Sean Crisdenand Felicity Munroe. But Jen recently listened to a book narrated by Sean Crisden and it was awesome. So we think you should give the Ice Home audio a try, Dani!

Welcome to Night Vale is a podcast and also a book.

Books and Series We Mentioned: Ice Planet Barbarians by Ruby Dixon | Barbarian’s Mate by Ruby Dixon | The Boyfriend Project by Farrah Rochon | Grace Goodwin's Interstellar Bride Series | Barbarian Mine by Ruby Dixon | A Heart of Blood and Ashes by Milla Vane | Sweet Ruin by Kresley Cole | Lead by Kylie Scott | Dreaming of You by Lisa Kleypas | Again the Magic by Lisa Kleypas | Forbidden by Beverly Jenkins | A Chance at Love by Beverly Jenkins | The AI Who Loved Me by Alyssa Cole | Brothers Sinster Series by Courtney Milan | Her Halloween Treat by Tiffany Reisz | Love All Year a holiday anthology |Halloween Boo by Sarah Spade | A Winning Season by Rochelle Alers | Hidden Legacy Series by Ilona Andrews | Jack Reacher Series by Lee Child | Welcome to Night Vale is a book based on the podcast |