54 - What We're Reading: Anniversary Edition (#5)

The Wicked Wallflowers Club

It's our one year anniversary, and we couldn't be more honored that you've chosen to spend time with us and be part of this incredible journey! The show has grown into something much bigger than we could ever have hoped for a year ago!

We start this episode reflecting on the past year, sharing all the cool new Wicked Wallflowers stuff we're working on, and then go into a discussion of the fabulous books we've been reading lately. Fair warning, wine was consumed during the recording of this episode!

We were overly ambitious when we recorded, and the website changes aren't quite finished yet, but it should be all up, running, user friendly, and gorgeous by the end of this week, so keep an eye out!

Wicked Wallflowers Club Updates!

1. Join the Wicked Wallflowers Club Facebook Group!

We want to have a place where you guys can talk to each other and share the awesome stuff that you send us in messages, emails, and on Twitter right now! We're terrified of Facebook, but are super excited to build a group where we can support each other and connect about books. In our group, you will probably be able to find anything from fantastic book recs to a beta reader. Click HERE!

2. We've rebranded!

Have you noticed our fancy new logo? We're pretty excited about her! When we started out, we didn't have a clear sense of our identity, but now we feel like it's time that our logo feels a little more like our show. We're also in the process of revamping the website, so keep an eye out in the next few days for those changes to be completed!

3. Sign up for our newsletter!

It's taken us a year to get our shit together, but we're finally ready to start sending out a monthly newsletter with all kinds of fun stuff! We're planning on sharing updates, book recs, author spotlights, events, and more! Click HERE or go to our Contact page to sign up!

4. Please leave us a review on iTunes or the platform you use to listen! We have some hilarious rewards available if you shoot us an email at [e-mail] to let us know you did it! Options:

• Signed copy of Jenny's book, The Scarlett Letters: My Secret Year of Men in an L.A. Dungeon
• Shout out on the podcast
• Custom limmerick written by Sarah and shared on the podcast--seriously, please make her write so many of these!
• Name a character in Jenny's Penthouse column!

Life Updates

• Sarah has finished another book and Jenny is Beta reading it! It's a fantasy novel about a ruthless princess and Jenny is all about the lady rage so far!
• Jenny spends alot of time at Petco. Like alot of time.

Books!

• Duchess by Design by Maya Rodale
  • Historical that is incredibly timely and empowering
  • Both Jenny and Sarah absolutely adored it
  • Dresses with pockets, a Duke who is educated by the heroine about his privilege, marvelous sexual tension, and powerful feminism
• Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
  • YA fantasy heist story that lives up to the hype
  • Hero is a glove wearing, cane wielding, antihero named Kaz...and he's marvelous
  • The whole cast of characters is brilliant with wonderfully ass kicking, competent female characters.
  • Not everyone is white and not everyone is straight...and that isn't a thing, which was great.
• For the Duke's Eyes Only by Lenora Bell
  • James Bond meets female Indiana Jones on a quest to recover the Rosetta Stone
  • Lady Indy gives no fucks about the rules of society
  • Rochester is a spy pretending to be a drunken, useless Duke as part of his cover
  • Childhood friends to enemies to lovers with delightful pop culture references and witty banter
• Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J. Maas
  • Final book in the Throne of Glass series
  • Epic world building and a fantastic conclusion to the series
  • Well done female friendships, love stories, and empowered female characters
• Jane Doe by Victoria Stone
  • Feminist rage book of 2018
  • Sociopath named Jane plots the downfall of her only friend's boyfriend who drove her to suicide
  • Psycho in the best way
• Kill the Queen by Jennifer Estep
  • Gladiator meets Game of Thrones in which all the power players are female
  • Heroine survives a massacre of the entire royal family and finds her power and identity while hiding out with a gladiator troupe
• Managed by Kristen Callihan
  • rock star romance with buttoned up, control freak hero
  • workaholic British band manager falls for sassy American social media manager
  • blistering sexual tension
  • "Spray that filth on the page and I'm gonna lap it up!" -SH
• Sin and Ink by Naima Simone
  • Former MMA fighter tattoo artist falls for his brother's widow
  • Lots of simmering sexual tension and smoking hot sex scenes
  • Heavy on the angst
• Scoring With the Wrong Twin-Jenny has just started!
• The British Knight by Louise Bay-Sarah is currently reading!
• Burn Down the Night by Molly O'Keefe
  • Smoking hot story with a kickass proudly bisexual heroine
• A Nordic King by Karina Halle
  • A widower, single father king of Denmark falls for the nanny
  • Navigates the power dynamics well
  • Sexytimes

Currently Reading:

• Pride by Ibi Zoboi as part of the Great Big Romance Read
• Flow, Grip, and Still by Kennedy Ryan
• Unraveled by Courtney Milan
• Camp So-and-So by Mary

Recs We're Looking For:

• Control freaks
• Super sexy books ("explodey bangs")
• Paranormal romance