WEBVTT 00:00:11.300 --> 00:00:13.519 Welcome to your safe space. The podcast, your 00:00:13.519 --> 00:00:15.160 partner, friends, parents, whoever thinks it's 00:00:15.160 --> 00:00:17.219 dirty. Don't have time to read books? Want to 00:00:17.219 --> 00:00:18.859 understand all the jokes and the TikToks? We 00:00:18.859 --> 00:00:21.300 got you fam. We're the spice traders and we deal 00:00:21.300 --> 00:00:23.839 in spicy books. I'm Katie and I need it to make 00:00:23.839 --> 00:00:27.710 sense. I'm Liz and I'm hypercritical. Before 00:00:27.710 --> 00:00:29.510 we get to today's episode, we want to encourage 00:00:29.510 --> 00:00:31.250 you to check out our Patreon, where we publish 00:00:31.250 --> 00:00:33.490 extra episodes every other week, as well as ad 00:00:33.490 --> 00:00:35.170 -free versions of our regular feed episodes. 00:00:35.729 --> 00:00:37.549 Also, any series we read past the first book, 00:00:37.689 --> 00:00:39.670 all that coverage is Patreon only, so think series 00:00:39.670 --> 00:00:42.850 like Akatar, Fourthwing, Guild. Anyway, we really 00:00:42.850 --> 00:00:44.649 appreciate the support and encouragement to continue 00:00:44.649 --> 00:00:46.450 doing something we love and sharing it with you. 00:00:46.910 --> 00:00:49.369 Thanks in advance for checking that out. As always, 00:00:49.429 --> 00:00:51.590 we start this episode with three things. First 00:00:51.590 --> 00:00:53.869 is a generic trigger warning. You can find specific 00:00:53.869 --> 00:00:55.549 triggers for this book in our show notes, so 00:00:55.549 --> 00:00:57.850 please check those out. We also use foul language 00:00:57.850 --> 00:01:00.049 and talk a lot about sex. If you have sensitivity 00:01:00.049 --> 00:01:02.090 to either of those things, our podcast probably 00:01:02.090 --> 00:01:05.049 isn't for you. Second, our episodes talk about 00:01:05.049 --> 00:01:06.689 books, the whole book, nothing but the book, 00:01:06.790 --> 00:01:08.450 so help me goddess. If you don't want something 00:01:08.450 --> 00:01:10.590 spoiled, don't listen to this episode. And finally, 00:01:10.810 --> 00:01:12.469 we acknowledge that a good book can hit you at 00:01:12.469 --> 00:01:14.849 the wrong time. Our views discussed in our episodes 00:01:14.849 --> 00:01:16.730 are our opinion, and we don't want to diminish 00:01:16.730 --> 00:01:18.609 the work or the talents of the authors in our 00:01:18.609 --> 00:01:33.719 community. That said, we have some notes. So, 00:01:33.799 --> 00:01:35.459 girl, what are we talking about today? Today 00:01:35.459 --> 00:01:37.739 we're talking about Trick Shot by Kayla Gross. 00:01:38.200 --> 00:01:40.760 This was published in 2023, and it is a standalone 00:01:40.760 --> 00:01:43.200 novella, but it's in the Puck Brothers series, 00:01:43.260 --> 00:01:46.760 which has one other novella. This book is 194 00:01:46.760 --> 00:01:50.219 pages long, and that's a shorty. This is our 00:01:50.219 --> 00:01:58.260 first foray into hockey romance, which is why 00:01:58.260 --> 00:02:00.760 I chose it, but turns out none of them are hockey 00:02:00.760 --> 00:02:06.719 players in the story. We tried, guys. Funnily 00:02:06.719 --> 00:02:09.259 enough, the second novella is called Puck Shy, 00:02:09.560 --> 00:02:11.479 and that's about the hockey playing brother. 00:02:12.240 --> 00:02:18.259 So. Oh, OK. We were close. We were close. And 00:02:18.259 --> 00:02:21.159 like hockey is mentioned. One's like an ex hockey 00:02:21.159 --> 00:02:23.039 player. We'll get into it. There's not much to 00:02:23.039 --> 00:02:29.680 say. So I mean, this we chose this as a holiday 00:02:29.680 --> 00:02:32.770 special. This comes out, I believe, on like Christmas 00:02:32.770 --> 00:02:36.469 Eve or the day before Christmas Eve, so... My 00:02:36.469 --> 00:02:38.569 brain wants to go Merry Christmas, fuckers, but 00:02:38.569 --> 00:02:44.210 I don't want to say that. Merry Christmas, you 00:02:44.210 --> 00:02:48.509 filthy animals. You filthy animals. So the cover 00:02:48.509 --> 00:02:51.870 sets up for exactly what this plot is. It's a 00:02:51.870 --> 00:02:56.849 very... cartoony image of two men and a woman, 00:02:57.270 --> 00:02:59.669 and the background is red with Christmas lights. 00:02:59.889 --> 00:03:02.939 It's a spicy Christmas novella. we get exactly 00:03:02.939 --> 00:03:06.840 what we're here for. I do appreciate that the 00:03:06.840 --> 00:03:09.479 characters on the cover, though cartoonish, it 00:03:09.479 --> 00:03:12.939 doesn't bother me. And they do reflect the way 00:03:12.939 --> 00:03:16.000 they are described in the book. And our female 00:03:16.000 --> 00:03:18.340 main character is distinctly curvy. And I really 00:03:18.340 --> 00:03:20.340 appreciated seeing that on a cover. We never 00:03:20.340 --> 00:03:23.639 see that. And we rarely even hear about it. Yeah, 00:03:23.860 --> 00:03:25.919 I really, I totally agree with what you said. 00:03:26.039 --> 00:03:28.590 I mean, I like the diversity that we have in 00:03:28.590 --> 00:03:30.789 the characters, but I also didn't mind this cover 00:03:30.789 --> 00:03:35.069 art because it No, it's almost a little bit on 00:03:35.069 --> 00:03:40.069 the anime side of yeah her eyes Yeah Which I 00:03:40.069 --> 00:03:41.650 think is why I don't mind it because sometimes 00:03:41.650 --> 00:03:44.810 you get like more on the fan art side of like 00:03:44.810 --> 00:03:47.990 covers and those I Don't know. That's just not 00:03:47.990 --> 00:03:50.469 my thing typically, but this isn't bad doesn't 00:03:50.469 --> 00:03:53.610 bother me No, it did. It was reminiscent to me 00:03:53.610 --> 00:03:55.750 of anime as well. And there's a second cover 00:03:55.750 --> 00:04:02.069 that's just like kind of a generic like image 00:04:02.069 --> 00:04:04.509 of like zoomed in on a Christmas train and ornament. 00:04:04.729 --> 00:04:07.330 I actually prefer the cartoony one a lot better. 00:04:07.389 --> 00:04:08.949 I think the character, the diversity, like you 00:04:08.949 --> 00:04:11.389 said, and it was reminiscent of like reading 00:04:11.389 --> 00:04:14.490 manga and that made me happy. Mm hmm. Yeah. Although 00:04:14.490 --> 00:04:16.149 if you have a physical copy of this book and 00:04:16.149 --> 00:04:18.250 you're reading it with that cover, like everybody 00:04:18.250 --> 00:04:21.000 knows what you're reading about, girl. Oh yeah, 00:04:21.139 --> 00:04:25.800 this is why KU exists and I wouldn't, I wouldn't 00:04:25.800 --> 00:04:30.699 read it in public personally. Okay, scratch that. 00:04:30.939 --> 00:04:33.139 I read it in public. I just wouldn't read it 00:04:33.139 --> 00:04:35.839 with the cover, what it is in public, but that's 00:04:35.839 --> 00:04:38.740 just me. That's the one. Yeah. I mean, really 00:04:38.740 --> 00:04:40.660 just because I don't want to invite more conversation 00:04:40.660 --> 00:04:44.220 from strangers than I already do. So teaming 00:04:44.220 --> 00:04:48.050 up with friends over here. Exactly. So. Let's 00:04:48.050 --> 00:04:50.610 get into this. We have so much complex plot to 00:04:50.610 --> 00:04:54.509 talk about. So Katie, why don't you kick us off? 00:04:56.970 --> 00:05:00.050 Yeah, I mean, so this is going to be a little 00:05:00.050 --> 00:05:03.050 bit of an interesting episode because I think 00:05:03.050 --> 00:05:07.209 this is probably the shortest and the lightest 00:05:07.209 --> 00:05:11.050 on plot books we've ever read. It kind of honestly 00:05:11.050 --> 00:05:14.649 reminds me of I think two or three years ago, 00:05:14.769 --> 00:05:17.689 we did those Halloween books and we did Scream 00:05:17.689 --> 00:05:21.689 for Us. Yes, that's what it kind of reminded 00:05:21.689 --> 00:05:23.610 me of too. But even that had a little bit more 00:05:23.610 --> 00:05:26.149 plot. Yeah, I mean, at least in that you had 00:05:26.149 --> 00:05:28.269 this whole like interlude of them killing people. 00:05:29.250 --> 00:05:33.180 But. I'll just kind of give an abroad overview 00:05:33.180 --> 00:05:35.579 of the plot and then we'll kind of get into some 00:05:35.579 --> 00:05:38.139 specific things that we liked or didn't like 00:05:38.139 --> 00:05:40.839 and then we'll go into our ratings. I think that's 00:05:40.839 --> 00:05:42.160 the way that we're going to be the most successful 00:05:42.160 --> 00:05:47.439 here. I think so too. So this book revolves around 00:05:47.439 --> 00:05:50.519 three people. Our main female main character 00:05:50.519 --> 00:05:54.040 Riley and she is described as having strawberry 00:05:54.040 --> 00:05:56.699 blonde hair and she comes to have the nickname 00:05:56.699 --> 00:05:59.839 Shortcake. because of it. But she's stranded 00:05:59.839 --> 00:06:02.600 in an airport in New York on Christmas Eve trying 00:06:02.600 --> 00:06:04.939 to get home to Seattle and her flight gets cancelled. 00:06:05.399 --> 00:06:09.120 So she's sitting in a bar and she strikes up 00:06:09.120 --> 00:06:11.819 a conversation with this guy who she recognizes 00:06:11.819 --> 00:06:15.560 as a famous hockey player named Lucas and We 00:06:15.560 --> 00:06:17.540 get this story from multiple points of view. 00:06:17.660 --> 00:06:19.240 We get it from all three of our characters. We 00:06:19.240 --> 00:06:21.939 get it from Riley, this guy that she met, and 00:06:21.939 --> 00:06:24.779 then eventually a third person. But when we switch 00:06:24.779 --> 00:06:26.759 to this guy's point of view, we learn that he's 00:06:26.759 --> 00:06:30.540 actually Leo, who is Lucas's identical twin brother. 00:06:31.680 --> 00:06:34.240 But he doesn't expect this to go anywhere. And 00:06:34.240 --> 00:06:37.060 so he doesn't correct Riley that he's not his 00:06:37.060 --> 00:06:39.399 brother, Lucas, and that he is, in fact, Leo, 00:06:39.579 --> 00:06:44.310 Lucas's agent. So anyway, they strike up this 00:06:44.310 --> 00:06:47.850 conversation. Leo is also supposed to be going 00:06:47.850 --> 00:06:50.089 home because that's where his family is in Seattle 00:06:50.089 --> 00:06:51.889 as well. They were supposed to be on the same 00:06:51.889 --> 00:06:54.629 flight. Their flight gets canceled. And so Leo 00:06:54.629 --> 00:06:57.750 invites Riley to come home with him. They are 00:06:57.750 --> 00:07:00.810 kind of having a little bit of chemistry and 00:07:00.810 --> 00:07:02.610 he's like, why the fuck not? And she's like, 00:07:02.670 --> 00:07:06.629 yeah, why the fuck not? So they get picked up 00:07:06.629 --> 00:07:13.040 by Leo's quasi roommate, quasi boyfriend, friends 00:07:13.040 --> 00:07:21.579 with benefits, friend, Jace, who is originally 00:07:21.579 --> 00:07:23.819 from Hawaii and is described as being one of 00:07:23.819 --> 00:07:28.819 those barrel chested kind of big dudes, which 00:07:28.819 --> 00:07:33.040 I don't know about you, but I stan. I stan too. 00:07:33.139 --> 00:07:35.500 And it was really refreshing, again, to read 00:07:35.500 --> 00:07:40.139 about characters that don't fit into the Like 00:07:40.139 --> 00:07:43.779 tall dark and handsome traditional sense like 00:07:43.779 --> 00:07:45.160 really I want to say blonde hair blue eyes, but 00:07:45.160 --> 00:07:46.459 they really have blonde hair That's just like 00:07:46.459 --> 00:07:49.000 my Draco Malfoy fantasy coming out, but to read 00:07:49.000 --> 00:07:51.800 someone who's like not white specifically not 00:07:51.800 --> 00:07:55.240 like Anglo -Saxon because there's like vague 00:07:55.240 --> 00:07:57.779 allusions to Hawaii and like his Polynesian culture 00:07:57.779 --> 00:08:00.620 and like his tattoos and like even vague references 00:08:00.620 --> 00:08:03.259 like what he's drinking and it was just Nice 00:08:03.259 --> 00:08:06.720 like for such a plot light book. There were some 00:08:06.720 --> 00:08:13.149 lovely character details I agree, I agree. So 00:08:13.149 --> 00:08:16.370 Jace picks them up and they go back to Leo slash 00:08:16.370 --> 00:08:18.910 Lucas's place and they end up just like spending 00:08:18.910 --> 00:08:22.509 most of the book romping around in the apartment. 00:08:22.949 --> 00:08:25.089 And there's a couple of crucial details here. 00:08:25.110 --> 00:08:27.970 The first one is that this entire time Riley 00:08:27.970 --> 00:08:31.790 thinks that Leo is Lucas and Leo has asked Jace 00:08:31.790 --> 00:08:35.250 to go along with this. But of course at some 00:08:35.250 --> 00:08:38.149 point the truth comes out and Riley freaks out 00:08:38.149 --> 00:08:40.860 because of having trust issues based on experiences 00:08:40.860 --> 00:08:44.480 with past men, and she leaves in a huff. And 00:08:44.480 --> 00:08:47.720 that's shattering to everybody because over the 00:08:47.720 --> 00:08:49.879 course of the night, they've really developed 00:08:49.879 --> 00:08:53.539 a strong emotional and physical connection. And 00:08:53.539 --> 00:08:55.539 when we switched into each one of their internal 00:08:55.539 --> 00:08:58.600 monologues, they were all like, I don't want 00:08:58.600 --> 00:09:00.379 to say the cliche of like hearing wedding bells, 00:09:00.419 --> 00:09:02.019 but they were all thinking this was more than 00:09:02.019 --> 00:09:04.620 just a one night stand. Yeah, there's that immediate 00:09:04.620 --> 00:09:07.490 connection, which I like. I mean, you see It 00:09:07.490 --> 00:09:11.409 was very similar to me to like, um, like when 00:09:11.409 --> 00:09:14.909 you do a reverse harem and the guys are instantly 00:09:14.909 --> 00:09:18.549 like in on the whole thing. Yes, it was that, 00:09:18.549 --> 00:09:20.750 like they were all sold. I actually feel like, 00:09:20.769 --> 00:09:22.009 and we'll talk about a little bit more after 00:09:22.009 --> 00:09:25.429 the synopsis, but I feel like Jason Leo were 00:09:25.429 --> 00:09:28.029 more sold. And then when we come back to Riley, 00:09:28.190 --> 00:09:30.450 we don't really see how sold she is until the 00:09:30.450 --> 00:09:33.509 end. She's like in a sex haze and it was like, 00:09:33.509 --> 00:09:39.610 Oh, no, wait, actually. Shit, is it love? Is 00:09:39.610 --> 00:09:44.289 this love? So Riley leaves and goes back to Seattle 00:09:44.289 --> 00:09:46.809 and all three of them spend a little bit of time 00:09:46.809 --> 00:09:51.149 pouting and thinking about their choices. Jace 00:09:51.149 --> 00:09:53.690 and Leo come to the decision that not only are 00:09:53.690 --> 00:09:55.129 they going to be more upfront about the way they 00:09:55.129 --> 00:09:57.230 feel about each other, but they also want to 00:09:57.230 --> 00:09:59.950 try to get Riley back. And so they fly to Seattle 00:09:59.950 --> 00:10:03.570 where Riley has been moping essentially and is 00:10:03.570 --> 00:10:05.330 out with her sister telling her the details. 00:10:05.600 --> 00:10:08.080 The dudes show up, they get Riley back, they 00:10:08.080 --> 00:10:10.120 spend a little bit of time in the hotel room 00:10:10.120 --> 00:10:13.080 that night. And then we flip forward to a year 00:10:13.080 --> 00:10:15.379 where they've spent all year together on their 00:10:15.379 --> 00:10:18.759 anniversary. The two boys essentially propose 00:10:18.759 --> 00:10:21.500 to Riley. And even though they can't get legally 00:10:21.500 --> 00:10:23.960 married, they all have matching rings and they 00:10:23.960 --> 00:10:28.259 commit to each other in that way. And it's fucking 00:10:28.259 --> 00:10:31.100 adorable. It's fucking adorable. But that's the 00:10:31.100 --> 00:10:33.879 book. So, like, there's no. Yeah. There's no 00:10:33.879 --> 00:10:35.820 there's nothing a whole lot more to talk about 00:10:35.820 --> 00:10:38.080 except for the smile, which is honestly what 00:10:38.080 --> 00:10:40.980 we came here for. It's exactly what we came here 00:10:40.980 --> 00:10:44.620 for. And I I remember I texted you. I was like 00:10:44.620 --> 00:10:47.080 58 percent of the way through the book. And I 00:10:47.080 --> 00:10:48.899 texted Katie and I was like, is this just one 00:10:48.899 --> 00:10:53.320 big sex scene? Yes. Yes. Yes, it is. I was like, 00:10:53.360 --> 00:10:57.059 I don't understand literally half of the book. 00:10:57.139 --> 00:10:59.539 And it's not a long book, but a hundred pages 00:10:59.539 --> 00:11:02.779 into the book. It's all been like foreplay, like 00:11:02.919 --> 00:11:04.659 some intense foreplay, but like they haven't 00:11:04.659 --> 00:11:09.340 even done it yet. So it's like, OK, this is just 00:11:09.340 --> 00:11:12.840 one long scene and it was excellent at every 00:11:12.840 --> 00:11:17.879 turn. Yeah, no, no, no. I mean, look, I love 00:11:17.879 --> 00:11:20.279 a scene that like willfully suspends my disbelief 00:11:20.279 --> 00:11:22.240 in the amount of times a man can come in a single 00:11:22.240 --> 00:11:27.059 night. Yeah. And this book definitely did that. 00:11:28.580 --> 00:11:30.740 So. It's making all kinds of noise over here. 00:11:31.879 --> 00:11:35.179 I'm so sorry about life. It's usually me that's 00:11:35.179 --> 00:11:40.399 like, whapapam. It really shows me how much I 00:11:40.399 --> 00:11:42.320 talk with my hands, which I already knew I did. 00:11:42.419 --> 00:11:45.220 But it's one thing to know it conceptually and 00:11:45.220 --> 00:11:47.080 another thing to be made aware every time you 00:11:47.080 --> 00:11:51.879 slap something. Right. And then essentially rub 00:11:51.879 --> 00:11:53.899 your own nose in it when you go to edit the episodes. 00:11:53.940 --> 00:11:55.980 And it's just like, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, 00:11:55.980 --> 00:11:59.009 pop. And I'm like, what the fuck was I doing? 00:11:59.169 --> 00:12:01.330 Like, I'm just sitting here. There's nothing 00:12:01.330 --> 00:12:04.570 on my desk. Like, why is this happening? Yeah. 00:12:06.889 --> 00:12:10.450 Anyway, one of the things that I liked about 00:12:10.450 --> 00:12:13.690 this book was the, I mean, the smut is excellent. 00:12:13.750 --> 00:12:16.149 And I'm sure we'll get there in a second. But 00:12:16.149 --> 00:12:20.559 I am not a Polly person. But this book was very 00:12:20.559 --> 00:12:22.259 much geared toward, like, this is the beginning 00:12:22.259 --> 00:12:25.320 of a poly relationship. And it was so interesting 00:12:25.320 --> 00:12:28.019 to me the way these characters thought about 00:12:28.019 --> 00:12:32.039 and approached love and sex. And that is just 00:12:32.039 --> 00:12:34.259 it's interesting to me because it's not how my 00:12:34.259 --> 00:12:36.720 brain works. And that was fun to kind of explore 00:12:36.720 --> 00:12:39.379 and like, you know, kind of try on, you know, 00:12:39.480 --> 00:12:42.200 reading about these characters. Yeah, because 00:12:42.200 --> 00:12:46.360 we I mean, we hear at space traders, space traders, 00:12:46.639 --> 00:12:52.509 we have the best. Oh, we here, you and I struggling 00:12:52.509 --> 00:12:55.789 today. I'm not even going to give that weird 00:12:55.789 --> 00:12:58.049 intro. Whatever. It's fine. We like reverse harem. 00:12:58.169 --> 00:13:02.289 We read a lot of reverse harem, but they're usually 00:13:02.289 --> 00:13:05.889 99 percent of the time framed within the romantic. 00:13:06.210 --> 00:13:08.990 Right. So so we have like shifters or vampires 00:13:08.990 --> 00:13:13.009 or werewolves or whatever. So to read about a 00:13:13.009 --> 00:13:17.379 polycule like this throuple without any. supernatural 00:13:17.379 --> 00:13:22.019 or like magic. I'm with you. It was really interesting 00:13:22.019 --> 00:13:25.940 to read about a realistic relationship that I've 00:13:25.940 --> 00:13:31.639 never had any connection with. And to like see 00:13:31.639 --> 00:13:34.779 how that worked and getting into some of that 00:13:34.779 --> 00:13:38.340 relationship. I honestly think my favorite part 00:13:38.340 --> 00:13:42.580 of this plot and story was Leo and Jace's love 00:13:42.580 --> 00:13:45.570 story and like how they thought about each other 00:13:45.570 --> 00:13:50.289 and like coming to terms with that like I think 00:13:50.289 --> 00:13:53.590 it was okay for a book that is literally all 00:13:53.590 --> 00:13:56.909 smut it was really beautiful yeah because it 00:13:56.909 --> 00:13:59.009 was interwoven into the scenes right because 00:13:59.009 --> 00:14:01.610 we would kind of swap between Riley Jace and 00:14:01.610 --> 00:14:04.809 Leo's perspective and they would talk about how 00:14:04.809 --> 00:14:07.110 they feel about Riley like she's so exciting 00:14:07.110 --> 00:14:08.769 and they're intrigued and they're immediately 00:14:08.769 --> 00:14:12.649 like drawn to her like a magnet but for them 00:14:12.649 --> 00:14:16.519 it really amplified and put a spotlight on how 00:14:16.519 --> 00:14:19.220 they feel about each other. And that was part 00:14:19.220 --> 00:14:23.039 of the plot too with Leo being the more emotionally 00:14:23.039 --> 00:14:25.840 unavailable one. And over the course of the book, 00:14:26.419 --> 00:14:28.779 this sounds way more deep than it actually was, 00:14:29.000 --> 00:14:31.860 but he did have a conversation with Jace about 00:14:31.860 --> 00:14:35.299 this interaction that they had with Riley made 00:14:35.299 --> 00:14:38.240 me realize the depth of feeling that I have for 00:14:38.240 --> 00:14:39.980 you and I don't want to hide that anymore. And 00:14:39.980 --> 00:14:41.759 I thought that that was a really beautiful way 00:14:41.759 --> 00:14:46.129 to describe that. Yeah, I agree. And like throughout 00:14:46.129 --> 00:14:47.990 their whole scene, like you mentioned, flipping 00:14:47.990 --> 00:14:51.210 back and forth. I okay, let me backtrack a little 00:14:51.210 --> 00:14:52.730 bit. I was really impressed with the way this 00:14:52.730 --> 00:14:56.070 author was able to get was able to give us pretty 00:14:56.070 --> 00:14:59.029 decent character development through just a single 00:14:59.029 --> 00:15:01.929 sex scene. Like, yeah, Jace is coming, excuse 00:15:01.929 --> 00:15:04.730 me, Leo's coming to terms with not only his actual 00:15:04.730 --> 00:15:07.149 feelings for Jace, and instead of being like, 00:15:07.279 --> 00:15:09.039 were friends that kind of fucked being like, 00:15:09.100 --> 00:15:11.259 no, I love you. I don't want to really be with 00:15:11.259 --> 00:15:15.279 anyone else except for Riley. And he also had 00:15:15.279 --> 00:15:17.159 to come to terms with feeling overshadowed by 00:15:17.159 --> 00:15:20.360 his brother. He has a lot of character growth 00:15:20.360 --> 00:15:24.000 in a book that nothing but sex happens. And I'm 00:15:24.000 --> 00:15:28.679 really amazed by how this author created that. 00:15:28.779 --> 00:15:34.519 I'm shocked. Yeah. And beyond the... But I don't 00:15:34.519 --> 00:15:36.120 want to say beyond, because it is part of the 00:15:36.120 --> 00:15:39.159 character development. Because we get information 00:15:39.159 --> 00:15:42.980 about how Leo is a switch, but typically is more 00:15:42.980 --> 00:15:45.539 dominant. And then we get to see Jace, who's 00:15:45.539 --> 00:15:48.220 typically not more dominant, be more dominant 00:15:48.220 --> 00:15:51.600 and take the lead. And they were telling us internally 00:15:51.600 --> 00:15:53.980 about how that dynamic works. And so it was just 00:15:53.980 --> 00:15:57.220 interesting to see that. play out as a part of 00:15:57.220 --> 00:15:59.460 character development, which I think we're going 00:15:59.460 --> 00:16:01.120 to get real existential about this book, even 00:16:01.120 --> 00:16:03.879 though it is just like 200 pages of sex. Like, 00:16:04.720 --> 00:16:07.840 I really think that Smut is underrated as a plot. 00:16:08.090 --> 00:16:12.690 device and yes character development tool because 00:16:12.690 --> 00:16:15.110 it is a part of people's lives unless you're 00:16:15.110 --> 00:16:18.470 asexual fine but like just to totally disregard 00:16:18.470 --> 00:16:20.669 it as something that like can't move the story 00:16:20.669 --> 00:16:22.789 along or anything like that i think is a mistake 00:16:22.789 --> 00:16:25.470 and i think that's why we gravitate toward the 00:16:25.470 --> 00:16:29.370 romantic genre because it has that like fantasy 00:16:29.370 --> 00:16:33.549 thing but it also has this very real like depiction 00:16:33.549 --> 00:16:36.899 of lived experience i think for both of us Yeah, 00:16:36.899 --> 00:16:38.440 I think that is such a good way to say that. 00:16:38.620 --> 00:16:41.980 And we get... I didn't expect to get existential 00:16:41.980 --> 00:16:44.259 with this book, but let's go. I'm ready for this. 00:16:44.519 --> 00:16:47.679 Merry Christmas, I guess. Merry Christmas, you 00:16:47.679 --> 00:16:52.299 filthy animals. We get some of Riley's character 00:16:52.299 --> 00:16:54.360 development too, where she had this like shitty 00:16:54.360 --> 00:16:58.759 ex that was abusive, if not physically, at least 00:16:58.759 --> 00:17:00.759 like emotionally. And she's still kind of trapped 00:17:00.759 --> 00:17:02.559 and like working for him and like trying to make 00:17:02.559 --> 00:17:05.759 her life work with what she wants to do. And 00:17:05.759 --> 00:17:08.960 then within that we have, I mentioned this at 00:17:08.960 --> 00:17:10.880 the top with the cover. And so I'm going to focus 00:17:10.880 --> 00:17:13.940 on Riley for a little bit. She is a curvy character. 00:17:14.339 --> 00:17:20.059 But at no point do we get like that body image 00:17:20.059 --> 00:17:23.640 concern. And I like seeing that from all sides, 00:17:23.819 --> 00:17:26.500 like from Riley as a character. accepting who 00:17:26.500 --> 00:17:29.059 she is and not being shy to these men, accepting 00:17:29.059 --> 00:17:31.640 who they are. And the flip side, sometimes we'll 00:17:31.640 --> 00:17:35.900 get curvy female characters. We never get a, 00:17:35.900 --> 00:17:40.339 like, not athletic trim male character, right? 00:17:40.460 --> 00:17:43.450 Yeah. Yeah, like to get someone like Jace, who 00:17:43.450 --> 00:17:46.009 is distinctly described as having like a round, 00:17:46.009 --> 00:17:48.730 soft belly. I was like, and he's really hot. 00:17:49.109 --> 00:17:52.410 Yeah. Within the story. Like you, the dad bod 00:17:52.410 --> 00:17:54.109 that you're picturing right now is exactly how 00:17:54.109 --> 00:17:57.029 he has been described in the book. Yeah. And 00:17:57.029 --> 00:18:00.430 it was like, it was just so refreshing from so 00:18:00.430 --> 00:18:03.730 many points to get such diversity. Excuse you, 00:18:03.809 --> 00:18:07.130 phone. You're on Do Not Disturb. OK. WTF. Why 00:18:07.130 --> 00:18:09.210 are you making any sounds? It was so refreshing 00:18:09.210 --> 00:18:14.359 to get such diversity in. like, the romance to 00:18:14.359 --> 00:18:16.940 have a throuple, which isn't quite that reverse 00:18:16.940 --> 00:18:19.420 harem. It's, I feel like, far more realistic 00:18:19.420 --> 00:18:22.359 than the whatever Christmas book we read two 00:18:22.359 --> 00:18:25.119 years ago, where she has nine fucking reindeer 00:18:25.119 --> 00:18:31.480 men. Eight to Rue. Eight to Rue. And I feel like 00:18:31.480 --> 00:18:35.339 I'm spiraling and repeating myself, but I just... 00:18:35.339 --> 00:18:37.240 Seeing each of their character development was 00:18:37.240 --> 00:18:40.940 so... fun. Oh, some other diversity, just like 00:18:40.940 --> 00:18:43.640 their body types and their skin color and like 00:18:43.640 --> 00:18:46.000 their backgrounds. It was just so nice to see 00:18:46.000 --> 00:18:52.029 them blend. Literally. Yeah. Same. And I want 00:18:52.029 --> 00:18:53.549 to be clear, because I said something that could 00:18:53.549 --> 00:18:56.069 be interpreted wildly differently. I said very 00:18:56.069 --> 00:18:58.450 true to lived experience for both of us. I don't 00:18:58.450 --> 00:19:00.029 want to get it. I don't want anybody to get it 00:19:00.029 --> 00:19:02.670 twisted. My husband does not have wings. I'm 00:19:02.670 --> 00:19:07.930 not talking about the mind blowing sex from a 00:19:07.930 --> 00:19:10.130 demon or whatever. But what I am talking about 00:19:10.130 --> 00:19:13.950 is the intimacy that you have between you and 00:19:13.950 --> 00:19:17.319 your sexual partner. is a formative experience 00:19:17.319 --> 00:19:19.859 in your relationship and in your personal character 00:19:19.859 --> 00:19:22.480 arc. And I think that that's why this book is 00:19:22.480 --> 00:19:24.539 getting us a little bit existential, because 00:19:24.539 --> 00:19:28.380 it was only that. Like only it makes me smile, 00:19:28.480 --> 00:19:31.660 but it was character development. Yeah. And with 00:19:31.660 --> 00:19:33.500 that lived experience, like like you mentioned, 00:19:33.640 --> 00:19:36.500 unless you're asexual, sex is a part of life 00:19:36.500 --> 00:19:39.309 like. you have to come come to terms sounds like 00:19:39.309 --> 00:19:41.009 it's a negative thing but like you have to reconcile 00:19:41.009 --> 00:19:42.950 it within yourself once you like hit puberty 00:19:42.950 --> 00:19:44.910 and start discovering like masturbation and all 00:19:44.910 --> 00:19:46.670 those things and then you have to reconcile it 00:19:46.670 --> 00:19:48.690 again when you figure out who you're attracted 00:19:48.690 --> 00:19:50.349 to and then you have like your first times and 00:19:50.349 --> 00:19:52.509 second times and tenth times and like all of 00:19:52.509 --> 00:19:55.750 those are different and trying to navigate all 00:19:55.750 --> 00:19:58.130 of that i think you're exactly right that that's 00:19:58.130 --> 00:20:02.970 a lot of why many of us are drawn to smut i think 00:20:02.970 --> 00:20:06.450 we tend to brush it off as like There's a lot 00:20:06.450 --> 00:20:08.349 of the jokes on TikTok that are like, oh yeah, 00:20:08.470 --> 00:20:10.069 you read Smut because it's what you're missing 00:20:10.069 --> 00:20:13.109 from your life. Except for you guys, dark romance 00:20:13.109 --> 00:20:16.609 girlies, not you, not looking at you. But I don't 00:20:16.609 --> 00:20:19.609 even think it's that entirely. Like, yeah, sometimes 00:20:19.609 --> 00:20:22.609 and for some, but I think it's just such a human 00:20:22.609 --> 00:20:27.369 experience. Yeah. To read about it in a character 00:20:27.369 --> 00:20:29.089 way that's not just like porn, right? Because 00:20:29.089 --> 00:20:31.190 that's not character development. Right. But 00:20:31.190 --> 00:20:33.509 we get these stories and these characters that 00:20:33.509 --> 00:20:35.630 go through similar growth arcs that we have, 00:20:35.730 --> 00:20:38.730 like in this book, coming to terms with the fact 00:20:38.730 --> 00:20:41.990 that you have serious feelings for someone and 00:20:41.990 --> 00:20:43.609 you've been avoiding those feelings because of 00:20:43.609 --> 00:20:45.009 fear of commitment or fear that you're going 00:20:45.009 --> 00:20:46.690 to get hurt or like fear that it's not going 00:20:46.690 --> 00:20:49.269 to work out or ruin a friendship. Like those 00:20:49.269 --> 00:20:51.109 are real lived experiences that you'd be fucking 00:20:51.109 --> 00:20:55.130 for years. You'd be fucking and like, OK, it 00:20:55.130 --> 00:20:57.910 made me laugh every time because it's pretty 00:20:57.910 --> 00:21:01.819 subtle. But. When you read Leo's perspective, 00:21:01.819 --> 00:21:03.920 he's like, well, you know, we both fuck other 00:21:03.920 --> 00:21:07.000 people. Like, it's pretty chill. And then Jace's 00:21:07.000 --> 00:21:09.799 internal monologue is like, yeah, we fuck other 00:21:09.799 --> 00:21:12.380 people, but it's been like a while. Like, we 00:21:12.380 --> 00:21:15.900 really just fuck each other. Yeah, it's been 00:21:15.900 --> 00:21:18.099 a little dusty up in here. Like, let's not get 00:21:18.099 --> 00:21:21.779 it twisted. And it's so funny to see that comparison 00:21:21.779 --> 00:21:25.400 between the two and then see Leo wake up to be 00:21:25.400 --> 00:21:29.390 like, oh. It is just, it's just Jace. Yeah. Like 00:21:29.390 --> 00:21:31.410 he's fully in denial when the book starts and 00:21:31.410 --> 00:21:33.190 then toward the end, he's like, no, you're right. 00:21:33.329 --> 00:21:36.349 You're right. You're right. I have, okay. I have 00:21:36.349 --> 00:21:37.930 a question that I want to ask you, but I do want 00:21:37.930 --> 00:21:39.309 to acknowledge this. It's a really brief thing, 00:21:39.490 --> 00:21:42.369 but this book does give us the things I always 00:21:42.369 --> 00:21:45.130 like to call out in Smut that is relevant. We 00:21:45.130 --> 00:21:46.869 don't talk about it in fantasy cause like they 00:21:46.869 --> 00:21:48.309 don't get pregnant unless it's a breeding book. 00:21:48.349 --> 00:21:50.609 I don't know, but they talk about being on the 00:21:50.609 --> 00:21:52.069 pill. They talk about protection and they talk 00:21:52.069 --> 00:21:55.049 about getting tested. Like, and I just love seeing 00:21:55.049 --> 00:21:57.920 those models. Again, real human experience that 00:21:57.920 --> 00:21:59.819 like you can have those conversations without 00:21:59.819 --> 00:22:01.799 ruining the moment. It does not ruin the moment 00:22:01.799 --> 00:22:04.720 to be like, hey, I've been tested or hey, I'm 00:22:04.720 --> 00:22:06.359 not on birth control. Like I don't want to get 00:22:06.359 --> 00:22:08.279 pregnant. Do you have a condom? Like all of those 00:22:08.279 --> 00:22:12.480 things fall seamlessly and you could do it in 00:22:12.480 --> 00:22:16.559 real life. Even getting consent, right? They 00:22:16.559 --> 00:22:20.839 get consent at multiple points in the night and 00:22:20.839 --> 00:22:24.160 at some points Riley just tries to give a head 00:22:24.160 --> 00:22:26.000 nod and they're like, no, no, I need a verbal 00:22:26.000 --> 00:22:28.980 yes. I'm on a fucking exit row in a plane. I'm 00:22:28.980 --> 00:22:30.740 going to need a verbal yes. Thank you so much. 00:22:31.079 --> 00:22:34.180 And it's hot. It's really hot. They do it so 00:22:34.180 --> 00:22:36.839 seamlessly. It's really well done and really 00:22:36.839 --> 00:22:39.319 well, a good illustration of how it should be 00:22:39.319 --> 00:22:42.900 done. Yeah, you mentioned the consent. They also 00:22:42.900 --> 00:22:44.619 gave her very clear instructions of, hey, if 00:22:44.619 --> 00:22:48.759 it's too much, do this. Not just say stop, but 00:22:48.759 --> 00:22:52.680 tap me five times. Give me this explicit signal 00:22:52.680 --> 00:22:56.019 that you're done here. Yeah. And I like that 00:22:56.019 --> 00:22:59.220 too, because it wasn't a safe word that you have 00:22:59.220 --> 00:23:01.339 to say with your mouth, because there was not. 00:23:01.339 --> 00:23:03.759 When your mouth is full of dick? Yeah. Yeah. 00:23:03.759 --> 00:23:05.619 Sometimes you can't make words when you got a 00:23:05.619 --> 00:23:07.559 dick in your mouth. So I liked that it was a 00:23:07.559 --> 00:23:11.710 non -verbal tap out. Literally. Yeah, literally. 00:23:13.529 --> 00:23:16.569 OK, so we're going to jump around and this is 00:23:16.569 --> 00:23:18.930 not a logical flow of a listen. Here's the plot, 00:23:19.029 --> 00:23:24.890 guys. So at the end. OK, I have I have two questions. 00:23:24.910 --> 00:23:28.750 I guess I'll start at the front. Riley, the next 00:23:28.750 --> 00:23:31.609 morning, when she realizes that Leo is not Lucas, 00:23:31.609 --> 00:23:39.099 is upset because she feels lied to. How? you 00:23:39.099 --> 00:23:41.920 feel? Her sister seems to frame it as like, well, 00:23:41.920 --> 00:23:44.720 you don't know them anyway. So I want to know 00:23:44.720 --> 00:23:48.759 how you feel about that. I don't know. I don't 00:23:48.759 --> 00:23:54.740 think it's hard because I can see where Riley 00:23:54.740 --> 00:23:56.920 is coming from in the moment because she's being 00:23:56.920 --> 00:23:59.140 actively manipulated by somebody who she feels 00:23:59.140 --> 00:24:02.079 like only lies to her and she can't get out of 00:24:02.079 --> 00:24:04.940 that. And then having this really like deeper 00:24:04.940 --> 00:24:07.920 like experience with these guys who felt like 00:24:07.690 --> 00:24:10.069 You know, she could she could trust them. I can 00:24:10.069 --> 00:24:11.950 see where she's coming from. I don't think I 00:24:11.950 --> 00:24:13.630 would have that reaction because I'm a different 00:24:13.630 --> 00:24:16.769 person than Riley. I would probably be like, 00:24:16.829 --> 00:24:19.690 oh, that was kind of shitty. Like, is there anything 00:24:19.690 --> 00:24:24.289 else you want to tell me right now? Yeah. OK, 00:24:24.529 --> 00:24:26.450 that's that's where I was trying to get to. Like 00:24:26.450 --> 00:24:31.829 my. I kept flip flopping. Flip flopping. Oh, 00:24:31.829 --> 00:24:37.750 I can't say that word. I mean, flip flop. I was 00:24:37.750 --> 00:24:40.910 trying my OK, so my first like attempt to conceptualize 00:24:40.910 --> 00:24:44.970 it was if I knew someone and I didn't know they 00:24:44.970 --> 00:24:47.710 had a twin and then I slept with our twin on 00:24:47.710 --> 00:24:51.250 accident, I would feel really betrayed. But then 00:24:51.250 --> 00:24:53.750 I was like, but that's only if I knew them. But 00:24:53.750 --> 00:24:56.549 like if I like these Leo versus Lucas, they're 00:24:56.549 --> 00:24:59.869 both just strangers like. It doesn't make a difference. 00:25:00.309 --> 00:25:01.950 And Riley's sister says that, like, I go out 00:25:01.950 --> 00:25:03.529 of the time and use fake names. And I've slept 00:25:03.529 --> 00:25:05.529 with people who don't know my real name. Like, 00:25:06.130 --> 00:25:08.690 it was just a name. Like, he didn't lie to you 00:25:08.690 --> 00:25:11.930 about who he was. Yeah. Well, and I think that 00:25:11.930 --> 00:25:15.289 was really I think even coming off of because 00:25:15.289 --> 00:25:16.849 she gives herself that little pep talk in the 00:25:16.849 --> 00:25:18.509 mirror. Like, hey, this is when I stand. Don't 00:25:18.509 --> 00:25:20.029 catch feelings like maybe you can have one more 00:25:20.029 --> 00:25:21.549 thing. But then this is just going to be like 00:25:21.549 --> 00:25:22.990 spank bank material for the rest of your life. 00:25:23.710 --> 00:25:26.490 Like, yeah, don't. don't catch feelings right 00:25:26.490 --> 00:25:28.349 and then so I feel like to have that reaction 00:25:28.349 --> 00:25:30.690 on the heels of that it had to have been just 00:25:30.690 --> 00:25:33.430 kind of a knee -jerk reaction which is why like 00:25:33.430 --> 00:25:34.910 I just think I would have reacted differently 00:25:34.910 --> 00:25:36.509 because my knee -jerk reactions are different 00:25:36.509 --> 00:25:40.690 well and honestly like so this whole this whole 00:25:40.690 --> 00:25:42.809 story is kind of predicated on the love of her 00:25:42.809 --> 00:25:45.269 sight thing my knee -jerk reaction would have 00:25:45.269 --> 00:25:47.369 been to wake up in the morning and get the fuck 00:25:47.369 --> 00:25:50.349 out of there like before anything else yeah I 00:25:50.349 --> 00:25:51.869 would have been like thank you so much this was 00:25:51.869 --> 00:25:55.579 perfect I want nothing to ruin this Yeah, exactly. 00:25:55.740 --> 00:25:57.099 Or like I would have been a little embarrassed 00:25:57.099 --> 00:25:59.240 the next morning. I mean, they all have big feelings 00:25:59.240 --> 00:26:04.680 for each other. But the only the only conflict 00:26:04.680 --> 00:26:06.859 in this book comes from that mistaken identity. 00:26:07.700 --> 00:26:10.380 And it made me wonder if the author put it in 00:26:10.380 --> 00:26:12.779 there just to give it some framing of a plot. 00:26:13.140 --> 00:26:16.140 It's like it didn't need to be there. I can see 00:26:16.140 --> 00:26:18.960 that. It was like, yeah, that makes sense because 00:26:18.960 --> 00:26:22.450 I'm with you like. The most awkward part about 00:26:22.450 --> 00:26:24.990 a one night stand is seeing the person next, 00:26:25.089 --> 00:26:28.470 like the next day. Yeah. Thank you so much for 00:26:28.470 --> 00:26:32.390 seeing my naked body. I need to go. I need to 00:26:32.390 --> 00:26:34.150 go. I would have left. And she's sitting here 00:26:34.150 --> 00:26:35.869 like, oh, I'm going to make breakfast. And I'm 00:26:35.869 --> 00:26:38.049 like, we are different people. Yeah, I would 00:26:38.049 --> 00:26:40.269 not. I would have left. I might have left my 00:26:40.269 --> 00:26:42.029 number if I felt a connection to be like, hey, 00:26:42.109 --> 00:26:43.750 call me, because that was great. And I wouldn't 00:26:43.750 --> 00:26:45.890 be opposed to doing it again. But I would not 00:26:45.890 --> 00:26:53.819 be making pancakes. No. Yeah. I can see your 00:26:53.819 --> 00:26:56.599 point about the plot, because them flying across 00:26:56.599 --> 00:27:00.940 the US to win her back. Very grand romantic gesture, 00:27:01.079 --> 00:27:03.640 and I like that that's how the book ended. Oh, 00:27:03.640 --> 00:27:09.500 yeah, I wasn't mad about it. We also get just 00:27:09.500 --> 00:27:13.339 enough Christmas theming that it made it a Christmas 00:27:13.339 --> 00:27:18.180 book, but it didn't need to be. OK, the only 00:27:18.180 --> 00:27:22.910 part. That was pretty Christmassy. That didn't 00:27:22.910 --> 00:27:25.130 upset me at all. It was when he, like, fucks 00:27:25.130 --> 00:27:27.990 her with the Christmas tree decoration. Yeah. 00:27:28.470 --> 00:27:30.150 Well, and he calls it an ornament. I'm like, 00:27:30.309 --> 00:27:32.029 brother, that is not an ornament. Like, that 00:27:32.029 --> 00:27:38.069 is like a glass figurine. Yeah, exactly. An ornament 00:27:38.069 --> 00:27:41.069 is when you pull off the tree. Right. And this 00:27:41.069 --> 00:27:44.029 thing just feels substantial. It's going to weigh 00:27:44.029 --> 00:27:47.460 the tree down. Exactly. I did appreciate, just 00:27:47.460 --> 00:27:50.759 to go with the realism a little bit, that he 00:27:50.759 --> 00:27:53.960 has this, it's a glass tree. I'm assuming it 00:27:53.960 --> 00:27:55.740 didn't have, you know how, OK, if you were to 00:27:55.740 --> 00:27:57.000 draw a Christmas tree, like a five -year -old, 00:27:57.059 --> 00:28:00.059 you know how it has tears, right? Yeah. I'm assuming 00:28:00.059 --> 00:28:02.819 it didn't have tears. I'm assuming it was a smooth 00:28:02.819 --> 00:28:08.319 cone. Yeah. But I did, the characters in this 00:28:08.319 --> 00:28:11.079 book are just so human. So he picks it up, and 00:28:11.079 --> 00:28:13.380 he's like, I'm going to do these things to you. 00:28:13.789 --> 00:28:15.450 I don't remember what he says, nothing like that. 00:28:15.630 --> 00:28:18.210 But Riley's like, no, no, no. Have you not seen 00:28:18.210 --> 00:28:20.470 all of the news articles of people who get like 00:28:20.470 --> 00:28:22.430 weird shit stuck in their butt? She's like, that 00:28:22.430 --> 00:28:24.670 is not a sex toy. You cannot put that in my body. 00:28:24.809 --> 00:28:27.109 He's like, no, no. It's solid glass. It's not 00:28:27.109 --> 00:28:29.849 going to break. It's not sharp. And I appreciated 00:28:29.849 --> 00:28:32.509 the both sides of like, you're right. It's not 00:28:32.509 --> 00:28:35.369 a sex toy. But here's why it's safe, with the 00:28:35.369 --> 00:28:37.690 undercurrent of like, don't use breakable glass 00:28:37.690 --> 00:28:40.950 objects. Yeah, like this one's solid. And things 00:28:40.950 --> 00:28:43.809 that don't have bases. Yeah. And I love that 00:28:43.809 --> 00:28:45.789 he was like, OK, one, it's not going in your 00:28:45.789 --> 00:28:51.430 butt. We can get it out. We can get it out. There's 00:28:51.430 --> 00:28:54.869 already something in your butt. Yeah. Yeah, that 00:28:54.869 --> 00:29:00.210 was wild. I didn't mind it. Like, I didn't mind 00:29:00.210 --> 00:29:05.210 it at all. OK, I have to. There was one. I was 00:29:05.210 --> 00:29:06.549 going to say there was one sex scene. It was 00:29:06.549 --> 00:29:09.710 one big sex scene. There was one scene that I 00:29:09.710 --> 00:29:13.910 couldn't figure out the logistics. But I'm hoping 00:29:13.910 --> 00:29:18.750 you can explain it to me. Oh, goody. Let me set 00:29:18.750 --> 00:29:21.670 the stage here. So they go into the quote unquote 00:29:21.670 --> 00:29:25.250 man cave that is like the North Pole through 00:29:25.250 --> 00:29:26.910 up in there, right? Like it is all the Christmas 00:29:26.910 --> 00:29:31.410 you could ever want. And Jace is on the couch 00:29:31.410 --> 00:29:35.069 and Leo is on his knees in front of Jace sucking 00:29:35.069 --> 00:29:39.410 him off. And then Riley somehow gets under Leo 00:29:39.410 --> 00:29:43.799 to also suck him off. I'm with you. But then 00:29:43.799 --> 00:29:46.759 somehow there's language about Riley's words 00:29:46.759 --> 00:29:50.900 the first time, but it gets on the couch. And 00:29:50.900 --> 00:29:53.259 I don't understand where her body is in relation 00:29:53.259 --> 00:29:55.539 to the couch. Because I pictured her on the floor 00:29:55.539 --> 00:29:58.099 underneath Leo, so she wouldn't be on the couch. 00:29:58.680 --> 00:30:01.019 Yeah. OK. I can help with this one. I thought 00:30:01.019 --> 00:30:02.099 you were going to talk about some of the other 00:30:02.099 --> 00:30:04.319 ones, where I was confused. But OK. Oh, good. 00:30:04.740 --> 00:30:09.579 The couch is a chaise. Or it has a chaise on 00:30:09.579 --> 00:30:14.980 one side. So when the scene starts, Jace is on 00:30:14.980 --> 00:30:18.380 the couch and he says, come over here. And Leo 00:30:18.380 --> 00:30:22.119 kneels in between his legs. And then before they 00:30:22.119 --> 00:30:24.940 actually start, Jace pushes himself back onto 00:30:24.940 --> 00:30:28.599 the chaise. And then Leo gets on top on his knees, 00:30:29.019 --> 00:30:31.519 in between his legs, on the long part of the 00:30:31.519 --> 00:30:34.859 chaise. So then when Riley gets up there, she's 00:30:34.859 --> 00:30:40.180 laying on the chaise underneath Leo. OK, so I 00:30:40.180 --> 00:30:41.859 had the positioning correct. I just forgot that 00:30:41.859 --> 00:30:44.720 there was a chaise that they were on. Yeah. Right. 00:30:44.920 --> 00:30:47.599 But I mean, to that point, it's a long ass chaise. 00:30:48.799 --> 00:30:52.119 These are big dudes. Yeah, they're big dudes. 00:30:53.119 --> 00:30:56.400 They're like really big dudes. And just, again, 00:30:56.400 --> 00:30:58.279 I'm here for all of the body positivity. But 00:30:58.279 --> 00:31:02.559 none of these are thin people. That's a lot of 00:31:02.559 --> 00:31:05.160 maneuvering. Yeah, it's a lot of maneuvering. 00:31:05.240 --> 00:31:07.240 I say that. I say that as not a thin person. 00:31:10.330 --> 00:31:12.309 I love that. It's like when they went into the 00:31:12.309 --> 00:31:14.269 bedroom, she like calls out. She's like, wow, 00:31:14.269 --> 00:31:15.750 California King. I'm like, oh, that's how they're 00:31:15.750 --> 00:31:18.990 all going to fit. Got it. OK. Which I appreciate 00:31:18.990 --> 00:31:22.970 those notes because I don't know how you would 00:31:22.970 --> 00:31:24.609 fit into this. OK, that makes way more sense. 00:31:24.829 --> 00:31:28.390 I was like, but because they have like kind of 00:31:28.390 --> 00:31:31.190 a long conversation about like not ruining Leo's 00:31:31.190 --> 00:31:35.630 carpet. And I'm like, but I want carpet. Just 00:31:35.630 --> 00:31:38.029 say that you want to be in the bedroom like don't. 00:31:38.579 --> 00:31:41.619 Don't bring in money to replace the carpet. That 00:31:41.619 --> 00:31:43.599 conversation I was like, can, okay, just move, 00:31:43.619 --> 00:31:45.099 just move, just move, just go into the bedroom, 00:31:45.259 --> 00:31:48.119 go. Just go, I don't need this, just go, go, 00:31:48.119 --> 00:31:51.839 go, go. Speaking of logistics though, there were 00:31:51.839 --> 00:31:54.980 a couple of other parts in the other scenes where 00:31:54.980 --> 00:31:59.579 they would just be in a position and then there 00:31:59.579 --> 00:32:01.940 would be this line of, oh, and then he ran his 00:32:01.940 --> 00:32:04.779 nose along her collarbone or kissed her shoulder 00:32:04.779 --> 00:32:11.140 or whatever. And I'm like, How? But that read 00:32:11.140 --> 00:32:16.059 to me honestly of like one handed book, like 00:32:16.059 --> 00:32:20.220 we're not writing technically specific sex, right? 00:32:20.539 --> 00:32:22.799 Like we're writing for the vibes, right? So a 00:32:22.799 --> 00:32:26.410 little bit. And so that to me felt like... vibe 00:32:26.410 --> 00:32:28.529 sprinkles because, like, the author knows that 00:32:28.529 --> 00:32:30.210 this is a one -handed book club reader, like, 00:32:30.710 --> 00:32:32.650 all day, right? And so you need those little, 00:32:32.650 --> 00:32:35.549 like, those little, like, flavor bombs of, like, 00:32:35.569 --> 00:32:37.750 things that are happening even though his neck 00:32:37.750 --> 00:32:41.210 isn't that long, actually. Right, or he's, like, 00:32:41.349 --> 00:32:43.869 behind her, so he can't possibly get to her collarbone. 00:32:44.150 --> 00:32:47.170 With his nose, certainly not. Certainly not. 00:32:47.470 --> 00:32:49.670 Yeah, I had some of those, too. And then the 00:32:49.670 --> 00:32:54.619 scene that... Honestly, just made me laugh because 00:32:54.619 --> 00:32:56.720 just in my picture, it just looked ridiculous. 00:32:56.759 --> 00:32:59.779 And I'm sure it works in real life, but like 00:32:59.779 --> 00:33:02.740 they're going to DP her and they're like getting 00:33:02.740 --> 00:33:04.319 ready to do it. And then I don't know who it 00:33:04.319 --> 00:33:06.519 is, but Jace, one of them is like, no, no, let's 00:33:06.519 --> 00:33:08.720 spoon. And I'm like, how the fuck are you spooning 00:33:08.720 --> 00:33:10.920 the three of you while also being inside her? 00:33:11.019 --> 00:33:12.799 Like two of you are facing each other and one's 00:33:12.799 --> 00:33:14.940 like the big spoon. I get that. But then I'm 00:33:14.940 --> 00:33:18.440 picturing like. If you're facing your partner 00:33:18.440 --> 00:33:21.960 and you're also like. connected, right? And then 00:33:21.960 --> 00:33:23.400 someone's behind you. Like, it just looks like 00:33:23.400 --> 00:33:25.880 this weird, like, I know their listeners can't 00:33:25.880 --> 00:33:29.119 see me, but, like, the angles don't work for 00:33:29.119 --> 00:33:33.720 me on that. Yeah. I mean, I don't, I'm going 00:33:33.720 --> 00:33:37.740 to be real honest. I don't have personal experience 00:33:37.740 --> 00:33:40.319 to pull from here. I don't either. But I'm with 00:33:40.319 --> 00:33:47.299 you. I can picture spooning with one person and 00:33:47.299 --> 00:33:49.059 having sex while doing that. I can't picture 00:33:49.059 --> 00:33:51.440 facing another person and having sex with both 00:33:51.440 --> 00:33:54.700 of them. Well, it really, to me, where it gets 00:33:54.700 --> 00:33:57.140 ridiculous is when you add in the motion, right? 00:33:57.420 --> 00:33:59.839 Because is it this thing? That's the part. Or 00:33:59.839 --> 00:34:03.460 is it like a seesaw action? I think it's like 00:34:03.460 --> 00:34:09.679 a seesaw, but I just don't. I'm like, where are 00:34:09.679 --> 00:34:12.519 your legs? I just don't. The motion. Where are 00:34:12.519 --> 00:34:15.400 her legs? Right. Because where are her legs? 00:34:15.920 --> 00:34:19.599 Yeah. Yeah. That's where I was like. And it did 00:34:19.599 --> 00:34:21.119 not. Again, going back to your original point, 00:34:21.619 --> 00:34:23.179 it's one hand reading club. It didn't take me 00:34:23.179 --> 00:34:25.000 out of the Janice at all. But there was that 00:34:25.000 --> 00:34:27.400 little voice in my head of like, what the fuck 00:34:27.400 --> 00:34:29.760 are they doing? It's like the scene in the Peter 00:34:29.760 --> 00:34:32.139 Pan book where they both they double penetrate 00:34:32.139 --> 00:34:33.980 her up in the air while they're flying. And I'm 00:34:33.980 --> 00:34:39.909 like, but how? Yeah. Yeah. And yeah, actually, 00:34:40.090 --> 00:34:42.150 you know what? That one makes more sense to me 00:34:42.150 --> 00:34:45.090 because there's not a bed constricting their 00:34:45.090 --> 00:34:46.610 movement. Because their legs can dangle. Yeah, 00:34:46.610 --> 00:34:50.530 you have 360 degree movement. Whereas the bed 00:34:50.530 --> 00:34:53.250 kind of is the solid wall that you can't go past. 00:34:53.469 --> 00:34:56.250 Yeah, I just kind of I went with it. I didn't 00:34:56.250 --> 00:34:58.329 I tried not to get stuck in those logistics because 00:34:58.329 --> 00:35:00.389 I'm like, I don't know what I'm talking about. 00:35:01.110 --> 00:35:04.880 I know me either. And it's fine. The other part 00:35:04.880 --> 00:35:06.920 that made me laugh that wasn't necessary for 00:35:06.920 --> 00:35:10.360 the plot, but I'm so glad she included it was 00:35:10.360 --> 00:35:12.559 we get an epilogue, right? The one year later. 00:35:13.980 --> 00:35:16.059 Where it's Riley's point of view and she talks 00:35:16.059 --> 00:35:20.159 about how she like told her family and how her 00:35:20.159 --> 00:35:22.519 dad just like didn't say anything for like three 00:35:22.519 --> 00:35:27.960 months, but then came around. Yeah. I like that, 00:35:28.239 --> 00:35:30.639 too. Just made me laugh. I was like, I didn't 00:35:30.639 --> 00:35:33.969 need this, but I'm so glad you included it. Yeah, 00:35:34.010 --> 00:35:36.429 okay, but so what do you think about the like 00:35:36.429 --> 00:35:46.789 engagement at the end? Okay It's All right, so 00:35:46.789 --> 00:35:48.769 it's super cute I think it's adorable that they 00:35:48.769 --> 00:35:51.650 all have like their rings with each other The 00:35:51.650 --> 00:35:55.110 realist in me is like it's been one year and 00:35:55.110 --> 00:35:59.289 then the you guys Okay, and the second part of 00:35:59.289 --> 00:36:03.030 me was like I mean A little bit, it took me out 00:36:03.030 --> 00:36:06.489 of the fantasy when one of the boys says, I know 00:36:06.489 --> 00:36:10.429 we can't legally marry you. And I was like, but 00:36:10.429 --> 00:36:13.469 now I'm just thinking about polygamy. And I know 00:36:13.469 --> 00:36:15.570 poly polygamy, I get it, but those have two different 00:36:15.570 --> 00:36:19.869 connotations. And it just made me feel a little 00:36:19.869 --> 00:36:24.190 icky. I don't know. I can't explain it. Yeah, 00:36:25.210 --> 00:36:28.610 the comment about, I know we can't legally marry 00:36:28.610 --> 00:36:33.960 you. Also kind of hit sideways because it feels 00:36:33.960 --> 00:36:36.179 very much like I look I'm gonna be the first 00:36:36.179 --> 00:36:38.699 one to say I have no idea how polycules work 00:36:38.699 --> 00:36:42.559 Nope, but like Jace and Leo tend to talk about 00:36:42.559 --> 00:36:47.500 like we as like our singular entity and like 00:36:47.500 --> 00:36:52.860 Riley is the like External party like and maybe 00:36:52.860 --> 00:36:54.239 that's how they see it and maybe that's what 00:36:54.239 --> 00:36:56.820 works for them But then saying like we can't 00:36:56.820 --> 00:37:00.960 legally marry you It's like, okay, well, are 00:37:00.960 --> 00:37:03.980 you guys legally married? Like, is anybody legally 00:37:03.980 --> 00:37:06.920 married? Yeah, I feel like, well, one of you 00:37:06.920 --> 00:37:11.179 can, or you can marry each other, which I get 00:37:11.179 --> 00:37:13.719 takes out the equality of the polycule. And again, 00:37:13.719 --> 00:37:16.019 like I've never been anywhere near a threeple 00:37:16.019 --> 00:37:18.380 or a polycule. But I think, okay, I'm going to 00:37:18.380 --> 00:37:20.420 say when I've read about them, but like I haven't. 00:37:20.420 --> 00:37:23.139 This is just on like Instagram or TikTok, like 00:37:23.139 --> 00:37:26.260 people that I follow. There's like two people 00:37:26.260 --> 00:37:28.900 that are married and then they have like extra. 00:37:29.150 --> 00:37:34.750 Yeah. The other thing that if I had thought too 00:37:34.750 --> 00:37:36.750 much about it, and I did think about it throughout 00:37:36.750 --> 00:37:39.849 like the first half of the book, is it's like 00:37:39.849 --> 00:37:42.690 Riley and Leo and then Jace is the third. And 00:37:42.690 --> 00:37:44.630 then it's like Leo and Jace and Riley is the 00:37:44.630 --> 00:37:51.170 third. And it just. I, I kind of I would honestly 00:37:51.170 --> 00:37:53.989 like to read. I don't need a whole book. But 00:37:53.989 --> 00:37:56.849 like a hundred pages of like a week in their 00:37:56.849 --> 00:37:58.670 lives, because she mentions in the epilogue, 00:37:58.750 --> 00:38:02.409 like we have normal relationship fights, you 00:38:02.409 --> 00:38:03.909 know, like just when you're with each other, 00:38:03.909 --> 00:38:05.510 like about the laundry or dishes or whatever. 00:38:06.429 --> 00:38:09.530 But I want to know, I'm always so curious how 00:38:09.530 --> 00:38:12.309 that works in a polygual, like the jealousy and 00:38:12.309 --> 00:38:14.010 the navigation and like date nights. Like, do 00:38:14.010 --> 00:38:16.309 you ever go off into like a couple and one or 00:38:16.309 --> 00:38:20.449 are you all three always together? Like. I want 00:38:20.449 --> 00:38:24.789 to read 100 pages on that scenario. Yeah, I always 00:38:24.789 --> 00:38:26.650 had that kind of question in real life too. But 00:38:26.650 --> 00:38:28.190 just going back to the marriage thing briefly, 00:38:28.429 --> 00:38:32.980 I don't want our listeners to... Feel like I 00:38:32.980 --> 00:38:35.820 feel like I'm such a big big supporter of marriage 00:38:35.820 --> 00:38:37.539 because I'm not right like the government now 00:38:37.539 --> 00:38:39.539 be in your relationship But I just feel like 00:38:39.539 --> 00:38:41.300 it puts them at a disadvantage because they are 00:38:41.300 --> 00:38:42.900 such high earners in the book that like they 00:38:42.900 --> 00:38:44.639 can't get that tax advantage Maybe that works 00:38:44.639 --> 00:38:46.119 for them. That's really the only thing where 00:38:46.119 --> 00:38:48.139 my head went and the because my head went there 00:38:48.139 --> 00:38:50.420 I was like, why am I thinking about taxes now? 00:38:51.059 --> 00:38:54.250 anyway But those things that you just talked 00:38:54.250 --> 00:38:58.570 about, how does an everyday relationship work 00:38:58.570 --> 00:39:01.929 with more than one person? I don't know. And 00:39:01.929 --> 00:39:07.590 that's what always felt exhausting about being 00:39:07.590 --> 00:39:11.429 in a polycule like that for me personally, because 00:39:11.429 --> 00:39:15.610 I just... I think I'm also in a place where it's 00:39:15.610 --> 00:39:17.809 just so easy with my partner that I don't... 00:39:17.809 --> 00:39:19.409 Adding another person in there, I'm just like, 00:39:19.449 --> 00:39:24.489 Jesus Christ. It just sounds kind of. Exhausting, 00:39:24.809 --> 00:39:27.489 and I'm not knocking anyone like I would love 00:39:27.489 --> 00:39:29.550 if we have listeners that are in polycules or 00:39:29.550 --> 00:39:33.210 have been in polycules like. Phone in because 00:39:33.210 --> 00:39:35.489 I have a questions and I don't want this to be 00:39:35.489 --> 00:39:37.809 like I'm judging you, but I also had a fleeting 00:39:37.809 --> 00:39:40.809 thought about taxes because like at least Jason 00:39:40.809 --> 00:39:44.050 Leo are very well off and I guess Riley is like 00:39:44.050 --> 00:39:46.030 working on her career like she's a publicist 00:39:46.030 --> 00:39:49.530 or something like in advertising. So I also had 00:39:49.530 --> 00:39:52.480 that. a fleeting thought of like, but there are 00:39:52.480 --> 00:39:55.460 financial benefits for some of you. That you're 00:39:55.460 --> 00:39:59.079 missing out on, yeah. Yeah, but I did really 00:39:59.079 --> 00:40:03.119 like the commitment at that of like, no, it's 00:40:03.119 --> 00:40:06.500 the three of us. I liked the thought behind the 00:40:06.500 --> 00:40:08.940 little proposal and engagement thing. And I would 00:40:08.940 --> 00:40:10.739 like to see them have a little wedding, because 00:40:10.739 --> 00:40:12.480 it seems like all their families are on board, 00:40:12.639 --> 00:40:15.599 I guess, except for maybe Jason's family. Exactly. 00:40:16.300 --> 00:40:18.750 Yeah, it just. I think what I'm trying to say 00:40:18.750 --> 00:40:22.630 is if it is a polycule, I'm sure that there is 00:40:22.630 --> 00:40:26.070 a different thing that polycules do to show their 00:40:26.070 --> 00:40:29.989 commitment. I think it would have been less jarring 00:40:29.989 --> 00:40:32.309 if they were like, hey, let's do this thing to 00:40:32.309 --> 00:40:35.570 signify our commitment to each other and not 00:40:35.570 --> 00:40:38.309 put it in such monogamous terms since they are 00:40:38.309 --> 00:40:41.010 very clearly not a monogamous couple relationship. 00:40:41.010 --> 00:40:42.869 Yeah, you're right. I think that's a good way 00:40:42.869 --> 00:40:44.409 to phrase it, because it was just kind of jarring 00:40:44.409 --> 00:40:47.750 to phrase it as like a proposal. And then, like 00:40:47.750 --> 00:40:50.090 we both said, that line of we can't legally marry 00:40:50.090 --> 00:40:52.590 you, which I was just sort of like, but I never 00:40:52.590 --> 00:40:58.369 thought you would. Right. Like that's. OK, anyway, 00:40:58.969 --> 00:41:02.570 very also. And my only my only last point on 00:41:02.570 --> 00:41:05.150 that like proposal thing is like it's Christmas 00:41:05.150 --> 00:41:07.449 Eve, it's their anniversary. That's fucking adorable 00:41:07.449 --> 00:41:08.829 that that's when they're going to like commit 00:41:08.829 --> 00:41:12.440 or propose or whatever. But those two boys, Jason 00:41:12.440 --> 00:41:15.400 Leo, go out that morning to get the rings. And 00:41:15.400 --> 00:41:17.599 I was like, to pick them up? Or did you just 00:41:17.599 --> 00:41:22.440 have this idea? Because I don't like, I want 00:41:22.440 --> 00:41:25.380 it to be premeditated. Not just like, hey, you 00:41:25.380 --> 00:41:26.760 know what would be a really fun Christmas present? 00:41:26.900 --> 00:41:29.840 It's like, we just got engaged. Well, I feel 00:41:29.840 --> 00:41:32.619 like because they had the three rings picked 00:41:32.619 --> 00:41:35.460 out in size, it must have been premeditated. 00:41:35.980 --> 00:41:39.880 Yeah, OK. That makes sense. With your own experience 00:41:39.880 --> 00:41:42.219 on ordering a fucking ring that's the right size. 00:41:42.739 --> 00:41:43.219 It's kind of a pain in the ass. You're right. 00:41:44.059 --> 00:41:46.179 It's a long process. But then that brings you 00:41:46.179 --> 00:41:49.699 back to like, it's been one year. Yeah. Okay. 00:41:49.840 --> 00:41:53.679 But I can't talk because I got engaged within 00:41:53.679 --> 00:41:57.760 a year. So. Did you really? Yeah. I mean, so 00:41:57.760 --> 00:42:01.860 we started officially dating in August and then 00:42:01.860 --> 00:42:06.800 we got engaged. We we we bought a house really 00:42:06.800 --> 00:42:12.019 the following May and then we got engaged I Guess 00:42:12.019 --> 00:42:14.199 technically the December so a little bit more 00:42:14.199 --> 00:42:15.900 than a year, but we fucking bought a house together 00:42:15.900 --> 00:42:19.320 like we were gonna get married that seems crazy 00:42:19.320 --> 00:42:23.280 and Then within by that next August we were married. 00:42:23.280 --> 00:42:29.940 So we were we only dated for two years Okay, 00:42:30.099 --> 00:42:32.849 and I mean I've only been dating my fiance for 00:42:32.849 --> 00:42:36.849 a year and a half. So whatever, cut everything 00:42:36.849 --> 00:42:41.070 I just said. OK, it's like, you know, and I do. 00:42:41.150 --> 00:42:43.250 And I think that this book, just to bring it 00:42:43.250 --> 00:42:45.070 full circle, this book does a really good job 00:42:45.070 --> 00:42:48.210 of showing that, like they did know that totally. 00:42:48.210 --> 00:42:52.050 And it's super cute. You're right. I take I take 00:42:52.050 --> 00:42:53.829 back everything I said about it only being a 00:42:53.829 --> 00:42:59.420 year. Time is weird. I feel like that's just 00:42:59.420 --> 00:43:03.059 your mother coming through on loudspeaker. That's 00:43:03.059 --> 00:43:06.760 not how you actually feel. No, it's not. Now 00:43:06.760 --> 00:43:10.539 I want to go re -record the last 10 minutes. 00:43:11.760 --> 00:43:14.699 No, I think this journey's better. OK, great. 00:43:14.860 --> 00:43:17.179 Keep this whole journey in. I have come on a 00:43:17.179 --> 00:43:19.219 journey. You know what? I'm doing a lot of unlearning. 00:43:19.460 --> 00:43:22.480 It's part of adulthood. It's fine. Look, it's 00:43:22.480 --> 00:43:24.739 tough. That unlearning shit, holy shit, dude. 00:43:25.199 --> 00:43:30.619 God, it's so hard. It's so hard. Let me propose 00:43:30.619 --> 00:43:34.000 this. Do you have any other thoughts on general 00:43:34.000 --> 00:43:36.159 debrief -y style things before we get into our 00:43:36.159 --> 00:43:40.280 ratings? No. No. Okay, then let's get into our 00:43:40.280 --> 00:43:49.139 ratings. I don't. This book is delightful. I 00:43:49.139 --> 00:43:50.519 don't think we need to belabor the point about 00:43:50.519 --> 00:43:53.679 the smut anymore. It's a five. It's fucking amazing. 00:43:53.880 --> 00:43:55.679 They have the immediate chemistry. It's really 00:43:55.679 --> 00:43:57.880 romantic. They have like all of the consent and 00:43:57.880 --> 00:44:01.940 all the things. And it's we talk about wanting 00:44:01.940 --> 00:44:06.239 lengthy scenes. This scene is not even exaggerating. 00:44:06.300 --> 00:44:08.599 A hundred and twenty pages long. Yeah, it's the 00:44:08.599 --> 00:44:10.320 majority of this book. And we get a couple of 00:44:10.320 --> 00:44:14.980 other smaller scenes. And it is specific. It 00:44:14.980 --> 00:44:20.980 is like. varied, I'll say there's different things 00:44:20.980 --> 00:44:24.300 that happen in different rooms. There's different 00:44:24.300 --> 00:44:27.340 kinks at play like just a lot a lot is happening 00:44:27.340 --> 00:44:31.300 and I have no notes. Okay, my only note and this 00:44:31.300 --> 00:44:34.699 isn't a note against the smut. But we do get 00:44:34.699 --> 00:44:37.099 a disclaimer in the front of this book. And one 00:44:37.099 --> 00:44:40.079 of the things that lists is a shaving kink. And 00:44:40.079 --> 00:44:42.000 I gotta say I did not enjoy the scene of him 00:44:42.000 --> 00:44:46.219 shaving her legs. It made me incredibly nervous. 00:44:46.960 --> 00:44:50.099 OK, yep, great. Thanks, me too. But I did not 00:44:50.099 --> 00:44:53.260 enjoy it. Some people are into that. It doesn't 00:44:53.260 --> 00:44:56.760 do anything for me. No, it just made me nervous. 00:44:56.860 --> 00:44:59.199 I was just picturing you're all hot and bothered 00:44:59.199 --> 00:45:04.820 getting nicked. Yeah, exactly. It's like, you 00:45:04.820 --> 00:45:06.519 do you. I'm not yucking your yum. But I was just 00:45:06.519 --> 00:45:10.179 like, I hope no one slips. It also doesn't help 00:45:10.179 --> 00:45:12.559 that I recently got a new razor and basically 00:45:12.559 --> 00:45:17.880 flayed my entire shin with it. That's just my 00:45:17.880 --> 00:45:21.219 own personally inflicted trauma. Anyway, let's 00:45:21.219 --> 00:45:24.500 get into the writing style. How do we rate that, 00:45:24.599 --> 00:45:31.380 girl? We both rated it a four. There's not any 00:45:31.380 --> 00:45:33.659 egregious typos. I didn't catch any typos or 00:45:33.659 --> 00:45:36.820 grammar issues. There were a couple points that 00:45:36.820 --> 00:45:39.840 went either. And I did not go back and read it 00:45:39.840 --> 00:45:41.940 closely enough to see if I was right. And I don't 00:45:41.940 --> 00:45:43.360 think I was even right. But there were a couple 00:45:43.360 --> 00:45:46.400 points when either Jace or Leo We were getting 00:45:46.400 --> 00:45:49.340 their perspective that it almost felt like there 00:45:49.340 --> 00:45:51.260 was a slip and they like talked about themselves 00:45:51.260 --> 00:45:53.500 But I think I just wasn't reading it closely 00:45:53.500 --> 00:45:57.880 enough. Mm -hmm, but they're While their characters 00:45:57.880 --> 00:45:59.860 are different. Their voices weren't distinctly 00:45:59.860 --> 00:46:01.900 different. And so that got a little bit confusing 00:46:01.900 --> 00:46:05.719 to me where I would be like Why is Leo talking 00:46:05.719 --> 00:46:08.920 about himself in the third person? Yeah, he's 00:46:08.920 --> 00:46:13.500 not got it It also didn't help that it was confusing 00:46:13.500 --> 00:46:16.920 that Leo was Leo in his internal monologue and 00:46:16.920 --> 00:46:18.980 in Jay's internal monologue and he was Lucas 00:46:18.980 --> 00:46:22.460 when they were talking about him out loud. Yeah, 00:46:22.539 --> 00:46:24.400 or in Riley's internal monologue, it was Lucas. 00:46:25.179 --> 00:46:27.739 Right. Yeah. So that was a little bit messy. 00:46:27.980 --> 00:46:31.559 But it didn't take away from the scenes. No, 00:46:31.719 --> 00:46:34.719 not at all. It was really great. So that brings 00:46:34.719 --> 00:46:37.119 us to quality of storytelling. I think we spent 00:46:37.119 --> 00:46:39.519 the First half of this episode talking about 00:46:39.519 --> 00:46:41.059 how much character development there was in this 00:46:41.059 --> 00:46:44.320 book shockingly Yeah, so we rated it a four. 00:46:44.519 --> 00:46:47.440 I was surprised I was not expecting to rate it 00:46:47.440 --> 00:46:49.980 so highly but I think for the story that was 00:46:49.980 --> 00:46:52.980 there the quality of it was pretty high like 00:46:52.980 --> 00:46:56.099 Yeah, I mean obviously we didn't get anywhere 00:46:56.099 --> 00:46:58.099 close to having plot holes, but like the character 00:46:58.099 --> 00:47:01.510 development the like the circumstances that they 00:47:01.510 --> 00:47:03.829 were in the things that were used to move the 00:47:03.829 --> 00:47:05.650 plot forward like everything was really well 00:47:05.650 --> 00:47:08.150 done especially in 200 pages so super appreciate 00:47:08.150 --> 00:47:11.190 that. Yeah it was really impressive and it does 00:47:11.190 --> 00:47:14.050 make me want to read more by this author like 00:47:14.050 --> 00:47:16.030 I wouldn't be opposed to reading the one about 00:47:16.030 --> 00:47:20.869 real Lucas. Yeah exactly. Also just in the storytelling 00:47:20.869 --> 00:47:22.969 kind of going to the character development once 00:47:22.969 --> 00:47:27.050 Riley knows who Leo is it is super cute. um she 00:47:27.050 --> 00:47:29.150 like sees a picture of Lucas or like sees him 00:47:29.150 --> 00:47:31.769 on tv and is like here are some distinct differences 00:47:31.769 --> 00:47:34.050 because like now I know Leo and like their eyes 00:47:34.050 --> 00:47:37.090 are different like their aura is different essentially 00:47:37.090 --> 00:47:39.789 and I thought that was really sweet yeah I did 00:47:39.789 --> 00:47:41.750 too but I did have the question I was like is 00:47:41.750 --> 00:47:43.429 one of them not in a hockey jersey and then I 00:47:43.429 --> 00:47:45.429 was like wait are hockey players just constantly 00:47:45.429 --> 00:47:48.489 in hockey jerseys no that's that can't be right 00:47:48.489 --> 00:47:52.510 also one note about the next book we should definitely 00:47:52.510 --> 00:47:55.650 read it because um it's about her sister Stevie 00:47:58.659 --> 00:48:02.599 Okay. If we can fit it in as like a quickie in 00:48:02.599 --> 00:48:05.599 2026, I would be down to do it. I mean, I busted 00:48:05.599 --> 00:48:09.599 this book out in like a day. Okay, real quick. 00:48:09.760 --> 00:48:11.860 You can cut this out if you want, but it was 00:48:11.860 --> 00:48:14.639 killing time before my doctor's appointment on 00:48:14.639 --> 00:48:16.400 Wednesday. And so I was reading this book and 00:48:16.400 --> 00:48:18.360 I was reading it at Starbucks as one does. So 00:48:18.360 --> 00:48:21.099 I was fully reading this in public, which was... 00:48:20.619 --> 00:48:23.659 I was just like blushing. I could not read it 00:48:23.659 --> 00:48:25.099 at work though. I often read in the bathroom 00:48:25.099 --> 00:48:26.900 at work. I could not read this book at work. 00:48:27.000 --> 00:48:28.960 Like I was like, I'm doing something wrong. I'm 00:48:28.960 --> 00:48:30.440 going to get caught. Like, I don't know. It was 00:48:30.440 --> 00:48:32.599 weird, which I felt that way about the ritual 00:48:32.599 --> 00:48:34.320 too. I was like, I can't read this at work. So 00:48:34.320 --> 00:48:36.760 I was reading it at Starbucks, but then I get 00:48:36.760 --> 00:48:38.760 in my car to go to my doctor's appointment and 00:48:38.760 --> 00:48:40.420 I've been listening to crime junkie. So like 00:48:40.420 --> 00:48:44.019 I have all this smut in my head and then my Spotify 00:48:44.019 --> 00:48:45.679 starts up and it's like, and then they found 00:48:45.679 --> 00:48:47.960 his desk, his dismembered body in the woods. 00:48:47.960 --> 00:48:51.139 And I'm like, What the fuck is the media that 00:48:51.139 --> 00:48:55.880 I consume? Girl, that is so relatable to me. 00:48:56.300 --> 00:48:58.019 Like, crime junkie is the only thing I listen 00:48:58.019 --> 00:49:02.019 to. So do we recommend this book? Yes, we do. 00:49:02.019 --> 00:49:04.440 And I want to read more by this author. I do, 00:49:04.440 --> 00:49:06.079 too. This was such a delight. And it really, 00:49:06.579 --> 00:49:08.539 like, I know you said there was just enough Christmas 00:49:08.539 --> 00:49:10.380 to make it a Christmas novella. I agree. But 00:49:10.380 --> 00:49:11.880 it got me into the Christmas spirit a little 00:49:11.880 --> 00:49:14.980 bit more than I already was. Exactly. Yeah, because 00:49:14.980 --> 00:49:16.300 there's just, like, going in the storytelling, 00:49:16.300 --> 00:49:18.989 like, back to the writings, like, They're having 00:49:18.989 --> 00:49:20.829 sex in this room that's like decked out. So they're 00:49:20.829 --> 00:49:22.929 talking about like the glow from the Christmas 00:49:22.929 --> 00:49:26.670 tree. And it was just really nice ambiance for 00:49:26.670 --> 00:49:32.210 all of the filth. Yeah, definitely. And just 00:49:32.210 --> 00:49:33.550 like the little touches of like the Christmas 00:49:33.550 --> 00:49:37.630 ornament, like penetration was just great. Anyway, 00:49:37.710 --> 00:49:41.130 it was great. So instead of our regular outro, 00:49:41.590 --> 00:49:43.949 Liz is going to read the dedication to this book. 00:49:45.099 --> 00:49:48.239 I feel like I need to do that sultry after hours 00:49:48.239 --> 00:49:53.699 voice, but I might be incapable. So to all the 00:49:53.699 --> 00:49:56.400 ho ho ho's, may your jingle balls be merry and 00:49:56.400 --> 00:49:58.760 bright and may this smut satisfy you all through 00:49:58.760 --> 00:50:03.239 the night. Oh, happy holidays y 'all. We'll see 00:50:03.239 --> 00:50:07.920 you in the new year. See ya. Bye. Bye.