Unabridged Podcast

Welcome to Unabridged! Ashley and Jen (shown left to right in the photo) talk books, share recommendations, and celebrate all things bookish. On our blog (see our posts below!) we share bookish faves, pub day shout-outs, show notes, and book reviews.

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Oct 21
2 min

Jacqueline Firkins's MARLOWE BANKS, REDESIGNED - A Fabulous New Adult Romance with Tons of Banter

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Thanks to partners NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the digital ARC of Jacqueline Firkins’s Marlowe Banks, Redesigned (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm). The book is out Tuesday. I absolutely loved Hearts, Strings, and Other Breakable Things and How Not to Fall in Love, Jacqueline Firkins’s first two books, so I was so excited to read her new book, Marlowe Banks, Redesigned. It did not disappoint—what a fun, amazing book. Marlowe is living and work

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Sep 7
4 min

5 Books to Bring Your Reading Mojo Back

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@teachingtheapocalypse) As listeners know, I have had quite the tumultuous year, and that has made reading very difficult at times - hard to find the time, hard to find the motivation, hard to find the headspace. So as I looked over the reading I've done recently, I wanted to share some books that helped me get my reading mojo back during a difficult and busy season of my life. Here are five of my favorites that I could not wait to get back to readi

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Sep 2
3 min

Emiko Jean's TOKYO EVER AFTER - Discovering Japan and the World

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@teachingtheapocalypse) Emiko Jean's Tokyo Ever After (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm) I just finished Emiko Jean'sTokyo Dreaming (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm), book 2 in this series, which I devoured on audio all in one sitting. (Yes, I was also driving across several states at the time, which I've done a lot of this summer. The book was a great driving companion!) Listening to Book 2 reminded me of all of the things I absolutely love about this brilliant

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Aug 5
3 min

Alexis Hall's A LADY FOR A DUKE - Historical Romance with a Twist

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@teachingtheapocalypse) Alexis Hall's A Lady for a Duke (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm) Longtime listeners to the podcast may remember how much I (Ashley) loved Alexis Hall's Boyfriend Material. (Check out my review of that one here.) I am eagerly anticipating reading Husband Material (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm), which just came out on Tuesday! I saw this one, Alexis Hall's A Lady for a Duke, come out in spring of 2022, and I couldn't wait to dive in! I l

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Apr 8
3 min

Samantha Markum's THIS MAY END BADLY - A Prank War with Heart

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Samantha Markum's This May End Badly (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm) Thanks to partners NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the digital ARC of Samantha Markum’s This May End Badly in exchange for an honest review. The book is out on April 12! I picked up Samantha Markum’s This May End Badly when I was in somewhat of a reading slump . . . which Markum promptly ended. I could not put down this book! The novel begins with Doe and her best friends (Gemma,

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Mar 22
4 min

New Book Releases Featuring Dana Brown, Judy I. Lin, and Taj McCoy

by Sara (@meaningfulmadness) Here are three books coming out today that I'm excited to read! Taj McCoy's Savvy Sheldon Feels Good as Hell (Libro.fm | Bookshop.org) Description from Publisher: "A delicious debut rom-com about a plus-size sweetheart who gets a full-life makeover after a brutal breakup—with the help of an irresistible cast of friends and family, a kitchen reno and a devastatingly handsome contractor. "Savvy Sheldon spends a lot of time tiptoeing around the crac

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Mar 18
3 min

Book Review of Mariana Zapata's Super-Slow Burn Romances

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) So, I know that typically, we choose a single book to review on Fridays, but instead, I want to share FOUR books by one of my favorite new-to-me authors. Mariana Zapata writes super-slow burn romances. These are long books—the shortest here is just under 500 pages—which makes for plenty of space to develop characters and relationships. While I'm working on Zapata's backlist, here are the four I've read so far: The Wall of Winnipeg and Me (Book

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Mar 7
4 min

Self-Published Romance Recs to Warm Your Heart and Heat Up Your Life

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Last week, as we moved into March, we capped off our month-long celebration of romance with a re-release of last year's Love Is in the Air episode. In February, we released a new Love Is in the Air episode; discussed Helen Hoang's The Heart Principle, our Book Club pick; and chatted about Sally Thorne's The Hating Game AND its adaptation. While I review a lot of romance, I thought it might be fun to zoom in on some popular subsection of the ro

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Mar 2
13 min

219: Encore of Love Is in the Air 2021 - Our Latest Romance Book Recs

In this Encore Unabridged Love is in the Air episode, we talk about some romance book recommendations we each want to share, including discussions of Alexis Daria's You Had Me at Hola, Alisha Rai’s First Comes Like, and Talia Hibbert’s Take a Hint, Dani Brown. There's something for everyone who is looking for a great romance book to read. If you're looking for more romance book recommendations, don't miss this great bookish fave from Jen or our previous romance episodes from

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Feb 23
7 min

218: Helen Hoang's THE HEART PRINCIPLE - February 2022 Book Club

Are you looking for romance reads that also explore important issues in meaningful ways? We are all fans of Helen Hoang's books and were excited to dive into her latest release. In our February 2022 book club, we're discussing Helen Hoang's The Heart Principle. We also share our pairings, which include Talia Hibbert’s Act Your Age, Eve Brown, Michelle Zauner’s Crying in H Mart, and Jasmine Guillory’s The Wedding Date. Bookish Check-in Ashley - Ruta Sepetys’s The Fountains of

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Feb 16
5 min

217: Book-to-Film Adaptation Discussion - Sally Thorne's THE HATING GAME

In this Unabridged book to film discussion, Sara, Jen, and Ashley talk all about Sally Thorne's The Hating Game and the recent film adaptation! We also share our latest reads in our bookish check-in, and we talk about some of our kids' latest favorite reads in this week's Give Me One. Don't miss it, and join us on social media to let us know your thoughts! Bookish Check-in Ashley - Emiko Jean’s Tokyo Ever After (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm) Jen - Samantha Cohoe’s Bright Ruined Th

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Feb 14
6 min

5 Books I Wanted to Hug When I Finished Reading

by Sara Voigt (@meaningfulmadness) Today is Valentine's Day. Instead of making a list of romance books, I thought I would do something a little different. You know that feeling you get after reading a book that is just so satisfying that you want to hug it at the end? (Maybe it's just me, but you get my point...) Well, today, my list is going to be five of those books for me. These books aren't necessarily romance books, but they are books that hit the spot and were everythin

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Feb 11
3 min

Casey McQuiston's ONE LAST STOP - A Twisty Love Story Full of Fascinating Stops

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@teachingtheapocalypse) Casey McQuiston's One Last Stop (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm) Friends, I did not see what was coming in Casey McQuiston's One Last Stop, and let me tell you - I was here for it! Longtime listeners know that I was a huge fan of Red, White, and Royal Blue, and I still think of that one as one of my most favorite romances ever! While there are some traits that are present in both books -- heartfelt characters with rich personalitie

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Feb 9
6 min

216: Love Is in the Air - Our 2022 Romance Recs

In the 2022 edition of this annual episode, Jen, Sara, and Ashley are all happy to share some of their latest romance recs. Our picks this year include Ali Hazelwood’s The Love Hypothesis, Jasmine Guillory’s While We Were Dating, and Jenny Bayliss’s A Season for Second Chances. All of us read a lot of romances in 2021, so we're happy to share some of our top picks with you! Bookish Check-in Ashley - Casey McQuiston’s One Last Stop (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm) Jen - Jane Austen’s

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Jan 24
6 min

Five New Releases to Pre-order for 2022

by Sara Voigt (@meaningfulmadness) My reading life has been up and down so far this year. However, that doesn't mean that I am not SUPER excited for several books coming out in the first half of 2022. Here are 5 books that I am ecstatic to read this (1st half of the) year: Jordan Calhoun's Piccolo Is Black: A Memoir of Race, Religion, and Pop Culture (Amazon.com | Bookshop.org) Release Date: April 26, 2022 I cannot wait to read this book from Calhoun. I was fortunate enough t

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Jan 14
3 min

Emma Lord's WHEN YOU GET THE CHANCE - A New Book from an Auto-Read Author

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Thanks to partners NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the digital ARC of Emma Lord's When You Get the Chance (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm) in exchange for an honest review. When You Get the Chance is my second book by Emma Lord. (I loved You Have a Match [Bookshop.org | Libro.fm] and have Tweet Cute [Bookshop.org | Libro.fm] on my shelf to read ASAP.) Yes, she’s now an auto-read author for me. This one focuses on Millie Cooper, a super-extroverted,

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Jan 7
2 min

Jenny Bayliss's A SEASON FOR SECOND CHANCES - Romance at Its Best

by Sara Voigt (@meaningfulmadness) I just devoured Jenny Bayliss’s new book, A Season for Second Chances. (Libro.fm | Bookshop.org) I cannot tell you how much I adored this book. Last year, I reviewed Bayliss’s holiday romance, The Twelve Dates of Christmas, for the blog (see that here), and I really enjoyed that one too. In A Season for Second Chances, Annie Sharpe, a successful chef and restaurateur, finds her adulterous husband in a compromising position with one of the s

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Jan 3
6 min

Five of Sara's Favorite Reads of 2021 (Part 2)

by Sara Voigt (@meaningfulmadness) Hello, friends! I can't believe we are here at the end of 2021. My first half of the year was definitely more robust than my last half in terms of reading, but I have been fortunate to read several books in the back half that I have really enjoyed. All of us here at Unabridged have different criteria for these posts. For me, I just look at my last half of the year and pick five of the books that stuck with me. You can find my favorites for t

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Dec 29, 2021
7 min

210: Encore of Our Cozy Reads Recommendations - Curl Up with a Good Book

In this encore episode of the Unabridged Podcast, we each share some cozy read recommendations with you. After our Bookish Check-in, we talk about what makes a cozy read for us, and then we each share one that we've loved. The books we chose include Alan Bradley's Flavia de Luce series, Colleen Wright's The White Christmas Inn, and Alexis Hall's Boyfriend Material. We end the episode with our Give Me One . . . Cozy Comfort. Bookish Check-in Ashley - Karina Yan Glaser’s The Va

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Dec 22, 2021
9 min

209: Encore of Christina Lauren's IN A HOLIDAZE Book Club Discussion

In this encore episode of our Unabridged Book Club pick from December 2020, we talk about Christina Lauren's holiday rom-com, In a Holidaze. After our Bookish Check-in, where we each share what we're reading, we chat about the novel and then offer another holiday book recommendation. We end with our Give Me One and talk about holiday songs that make us cringe. We'd love to know what holiday books you'd recommend! Head over to our social media pages to share some recs. Bookish

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