Welcome to the romantic Z fan girls podcast. Melina and I are so excited that you're here. You're already a subscriber to the show you are awesome. Honestly, your support means more than you know. And if you just stumbled upon our little corner of the interweb over here, hello. Make sure you hit that subscribe or follow button, we release new book deep dives every Tuesday. Okay, time to get lost in a world of magic, romance and adventure. Let's go. Welcome to the romantic Z fan girls podcast where Charlie and Melina were cousins, self professed book nerds and unapologetic romantic sci fi and girls. Each episode we bring you an in depth summary of a few chapters from your favorite fantasy romance books. After that, we get to the juicy and spicy parts, which includes chats about characters, unpacking fan theories and more. Thank you for joining us for our very first episode, I can't believe we actually made it. I feel like we've been holding our eyes open with toothpicks and running on vanilla sweet cream cold brews for weeks now, but it's all been worth it. And before we dive in, we do need to go over a few ground rules. So please listen closely. Most importantly, these episodes are very spoilery. But don't worry not in a leftover food sort of way. In a let's get down and dirty into the details way and not just for Crescent City. But for all of Sanjay masses other works including avatar and Throne of Glass. So if you don't know why we're still laughing every time we see a vacuum, go finish the first two books in the Crescent City series and come back to us. We'll still be here. Next, whether you fully gone down the rabbit hole of fantasy or just starting to dip your toes in, you're probably aware that these books are not always appropriate for younger eyes and ears. With that being said, This podcast is rated our Melina and I are adults. We love to read and chat about adult books. And we do use adult language on here. So if you're not into that, it's totally cool. But this isn't the podcast for you. And our favorite pronunciation. We will not be held responsible for mispronouncing any of your favorite characters, places, spells, foods, etc. So please do not come at us in the comments on social media or give us a flat rating solely because of pronunciation. And lastly, before we jump into how's the flame and shadow episode one, if you really love what we're doing here on our mantasy fangirls and you want to support us please check out our Patreon or you can show a one time gift of support through buy us a coffee. We have two membership tiers within our Patreon. The first is the drop or for just $5 a month you get access to our awesome discord community and can participate in live monthly q&a is with Melina and i i get special discounts on our mantasy fan girls merch which is coming soon. We also have our Starborn tier which were just $10 a month includes everything in the drop. Plus early access to both the audio and video versions of our episodes are full episode outlines and show notes. They're seriously like 30 to 40 pages long and literally take us hours to write bloopers and so much more joined today@patreon.com backslash romanticized fan girls. Or you can check out the link in the show notes or our YouTube captions. And regardless, Melina and I just want to say a huge thank you to each and every one of you who has ever listened to an episode, shared it with your romantic besties or left us a rating and a review. We are seriously so grateful to be able to do this and love being a part of the bookish community. And now it's time to dive in. This episode is going to be a little bit different than most because you want to know who we are, who you're listening to, and why you should listen to us. So let's start with Eric show. My name is Callaghan. I go by Charlie as my nickname. And if you're wondering, I'm married with two fur babies. They are Bernese Mountain dogs. Also Charlie and Thor and I have a horse named Henry. I'm also addicted to cold brew coffee. Not iced coffee, ma'am. Let me tell you that just cold brew. Let's put that out there. I've loved reading ever since I can remember mostly historical fiction, traditional high and epic fantasy. And it wasn't until about 2009 or 2010 Molina I can't remember when my dearest cousin here introduced me to a little known series called Throne of Glass and honest to god I took one look at that massive stack of books and I thought yeah, no not doing it. This is too young for me too many pages too much of a commitment. But yeah, I started reading anyway. And I started with Assassin's Blade so we'll jump into the preferred reading order of the Masters on this show. Don't worry you can and fanatics out there and I fell in love with Selena and Sam sidenote, I do 100% ship Aylan and Rohan but my heart has truly never fully recovered. heard from Sam rip? Has whose has? Yeah, come on SJ. I'm not really just that one really, I never got over it. And I've truly never been the same sense. And I'm not one bit sorry about it since then I read every SJ M book she's released. I'm including thrown a glass at guitar. And now Crescent City, I've gone down the rabbit hole of dark romanticism and dark romance, and I'm not going to come out. So I would say I'm the more quote unquote stable one and of our deal, and we'll get to what that means. But Molina may completely disowned me and disagree with that one. But that's okay.
No, I love it. I love it. That's fair. That's perfect. I
love all the back end stuff and producing a show as well as really diving deep into chapter summaries. So we're gonna do the thoughts and theories together and which in this show, the summary is going to be called the anchor. We'll get into that a little bit later. And yeah, your turn girl, right?
So I'm Melina. I'm a little bit spicy, as my friends and family call me. Yes, we love our cold brew coffee. I am a Chipotle girl. So I also have that going for me. My True, true, right. I've been a reader. My whole life. I always always always had a book or two on me. I was the nerd in school. But I was taller than everybody else. So that that kind of gave me a leg up. I didn't get didn't get pushed into any lockers. So that was handy.
tall girls because you and I are both tall. So any tall girl listeners out there. I'm gonna You're
seriously and all of the good and weird things that come with that. Thank you very much. So yeah, anyway, I've I think I've always really been drawn to fantasy. I read the entire Lord of the Rings series in fifth grade, which is just ridiculous, quite frankly. But I did it and loved it. I reread Harry Potter every year. But my I think my true passion for fantasy books really started when I found the Tamara Pierce series, the first series of herds that I found was a protector of the small quartet. And it was the first time that I saw other than I mean, Hermione gave a lot of us girls some a character in that series to look at. But it was really the first time that I saw myself in a fantasy series, you know, Kells becoming a knight and it it absolutely changed my world. I of course then bought every single Tamara Pierce book I could get my hands on. And then with her as my foundation, I was just so lucky to be able to stumble upon Sarah's books, I think it was to go back and check I want to say was like maybe 2012 2013? I think it was because you
got them when they like we're only what like Throne of Glass and then on Amanda. Yeah, yeah,
I mean, I was I know, there's people who were very, very early, but I do pride myself on being on the early, early tear
on the early side. Yeah.
Yeah. So that was that's my claim to fame in life. I did. I did hop on this train pretty early. But I'm just so excited. I cannot believe that we have this many books from Sarah. I love every single one of them. And I love that the fantasy genre is expanding. I mean, we get to have a space for romanticism and that series, and just how the genres really growing is so cool with diverse authors and characters. And I mean, middle school, Molina could never have imagined being here today, reading what we're reading with all of the spice in it, and the smart and the magic and the strong female characters. I'm just here for all so of course, we had to we had to hop in here and this is our this is a passion of ours. So I'm so glad we get to do this.
Yeah, and the fun thing is like we don't always agree on books or what happened not what happens at um, but usually Molina is more up on that than I am. Yeah, we don't always agree. And you see things you know, that the other doesn't see. And so we're constantly like texting and laughing and you know, just swooning over these characters. So, yeah, we definitely feel like we earned our chops for you to listen to us and all things SJM and romanticism and let's get house of flame and shadow Molina. Absolutely. Let's do this. Awesome. So I am going to start off with our chapter summary, otherwise known as our anchor. Um, so we thought it would be nice or at least helpful in this first episode to start off Crescent City three, to kind of recap a little bit of the ending of Crescent City to house of sky and breath. So if you remember back then the beginning of That or the end of that book starts off with our team of misfits which is our girl Bryce hunt, aka the number mortise, who was recently mated with Bryce, Rune Cormac and theory on, the five of them traveled to the eternal city where they had to the Crystal Palace, which is the epicenter of the scary, creepy creepy. They've gone there to discover the secrets of the isteri that were revealed by Sophia and asked rip Sophie. And our boy rune is worried about the mission and his loss of his connection with Agent daybreak, who was also Sophie's contact for the Rebellion, who is actually a double agent in close connection with the history and so he plans to look for her in the palace. While they're there, he then drops a bomb on our girl brace by telling her that she outranks dear old dad and power and that hill support her in a coup, if they make it out of this place alive.
Nothing like I've just given your your sibling some massive news before attempt.
Yeah, I mean, that's such a guy thing, though. Right? Like, I mean, just really not thinking ahead, not processing and just spewing shit out of your mouth at the most inappropriate time.
Gosh, like, right, we just were in the Eternal City. We're about to go on. We're probably not going to live too much longer. But hey, here's some massive, emotionally traumatizing news. That is helpful. Sure it's positive. That's right now is when you decided to tell us. Thank you rune. Yeah.
Why not? You know. So once inside the palace, Bryce heads to the archives and begins to look for the door with the number that Sophie had carved into her arm before she rip. And then this is where she discovers there are seven types of firstlight with seven plaques, one for each of the steri I'm not going to read off their names because I'm going to butcher them and nobody's going to come at me for that. So each plaque displays the power level for each of the history and the isteri nomnom on the first light that the veneer give when they make winter.
That's incredible. Blimey, yet satisfying.
I love your subtle Disney references cleaner. Course you do is Disney grace. Yes, I know. We are huge, huge Disney fans. So any Disney listeners out there, you are also our people. So we were throw subtle references in anytime we can.
All the time we'll try to keep I'll try to keep it to a minimum. But I'm not going to promise anything.
I mean, you know, it's our show so we can do whatever we want. It's true. I love that for us. So the thrones that the isteri sit on lacked as the magical version of charging stations and they steal power from the citizens and bed guard. That's the big secret that Sophie had learned and used as leverage to have the rebels help look for her brother and meal. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, our boy rune has left the rest of our team to go off in search of day. And as he enters the prison section of the palace, he's quickly discovered by Murdoch who if you remember is a Dread Wolf, also the father of Danika currently working for the isteri
big Yikes. Big especially with more Doc's powers that he has runes over. Currently.
Guy like can never catch a break. I mean, I love him to death but like, honestly, I mean, we'll get into that it has to flame in shadow. I think he Anyway, moving on. Bryce Penn enters a room titled dusk where she finds star maps that have notes written all over them. And the notes label things like Concord, the names of constellations, and the number of people that were living on those planets,
right? Yeah, that honestly that boggled my mind when when Sarah wrote about that room and what was on the walls and what Bryce was seeing insane insane
I didn't like Star Wars vibes or like multiverse I mean, I know we're talking about that at the end of this house the sky and breath recap but like that, I don't know when she went in there and saw that I just immediately went like Star Wars.
Oh, yeah, for sure. It was definitely giving Star Wars fives but right I loved kinda like and right I'm a Marvel girly but the the multiverse like universe is larger than you think type deal. I was read. I was like, Oh, here we this is leveling up. Here we go.
Yes. Oh, Love it. Though we learn these theory have conquered other planets and other worlds and that mid guard is just another notch on this long line of conquests and the asteria are really fucking old like 15,000 years, so they've had a long time to be nomnom being on other planets and people's first like,
the original boomers graphs.
So the Embrace finds one note that says hell lost a ie 17001 I don't even know how to 17,000 001 Well, it apparently caught on to these serious plans and fought against them and actually won, leaving them to abandon hell, and move on to other planets. They also in hell learned how to conveniently slipped between worlds, and came to pengarah to try to sway the inhabitants of that world to turn against the isteri this
also this was another that reveal that hell one. What a plot twist. i That Sarah's always good at those but I did not see that. Oh, I was and we already knew as I was talking with Bryce, but I think that was an interesting that was a crux point of, of really seeing like, oh, wow, hell standing on its own. There's stuff hidden in there that we haven't even seen yet. I
love that. Yeah, I really thought that we were gonna get even more of that whole underworld in houses guy and breath even though we were like close to the end. I thought that's where the book was going. Obviously, we know it wasn't but then just before our girl Bryce can reveal all the shenanigans to the team. He is caught by regular hours, aka the bright hand and what we will refer to from now on as a teenage puberty Fe boy Regulus. So he reveals to Emmeline I wrote that in the show notes and she's over her giggling Regulus reveals to Bryce that Sorry, not sorry, you're about to use your Starborn powers and Lunas horn on your back to help us open the gates to hell and other Fae close planets. So that we can have a smorgasbord of first light that never ends May thanks grey says I'll take a rain check on that dude and windows out of the archives to find hunt our boy rear only to find them already captured by the heartbeat. Oh
my and this is this is what we talked about, like every time every time we turn around, we can't
always like always any
trying to run off doing some like I don't even know heroic shit or something. homeboys like up not bears another guard. Great thank you. You're good. Didn't
know they were gonna be in this palace. I mean.
series like right hand henchmen. Oh my word Anyway, whatever. That's fine. All right. Yeah.
And yeah, they do a lot of that in house to flame and shadow to every
time like come on, guys. So all three
get locked in the dungeon with the harpy as company. And just as the heartbeat goes in for the kill on hunt, she is struck from behind by none other than the hind, who we now know is also agent daybreak. So before they were able to escape the prison though, polyx aka the hammer discovers the body of the Harpy and that Lydia had just killed to save hunt. But Bryce takes the credit for the killing. And Pollux leads the crew back up the elevator to the Crystal Palace to the Throne Room of the isteri I'm
free, I'm free. Dang it. Every time I get
that reference, I'm not sure we can be friends but I love you for that. So then shit really goes down and teenage puberty. Fe boy Regulus pretended to be Adas, and was the one that actually went to braces apartment, which is how he knew of all their plans and was able to anticipate their every move. And then Apollyon, who is the prince of the pit, truly had been trying to get raises attention, and he used the dust stalkers in the bone quarter to test her powers.
This was this was the point where I was a little I was a little salty about like, props to Regulus for appearing as Adas did ask the cat but then for a Pollyanna, like can we not just have any direct communication runes directly communicating at the most inopportune times? And then the prince of the pit is the least direct communicative person we have in this series? And it's just why why guys?
Why I mean, you know, maybe he's the only one at the pep at the pit like maybe he just lives alone and has no one to communicate with.
he's judging him for his communication skills. You know what? That's a fair point. I appreciate that. Maybe he doesn't understand that you have to not if he's 8 billion years old, that's fair. He wouldn't he wouldn't know that you talk to people. Okay.
I don't Yeah, I guess I don't know. I anyway, I think it just I think it's a guy thing again, I think we're circling back to that there's just no communication sense whatsoever that I don't
talk to a lot of men as much as possible, so that's fair.
So then sell a Steena. Who, you know, we call her our Dr. Jekyll, Mr. Hyde Angel was actually the one who snitched about grace and hunt lying about visiting Bryce's parents because they know about her secret and forbidden relationship with hypoxia. And that the star embraces chess is actually a beacon to the world that the Fae originally came from Hinton, the isteri plan to use this, to go back to the world to seek revenge on the Fae that they think are responsible for the death of their fallen brothers and sisters as well as to drain the power and magic that the world holds. So our girl Bryce being Bryce, you guys did barter to save her mate and her brother and she agrees to open up a gate for teenage puberty if a boy Regulus and he will then let them go on harm. So she says goodbye to hunt and to Brandon as we ugly cry onto our books trying not to smudge the
pages. We ugly cry all the time, all the time on tar. But our girl Bryce has her hands her bound hands behind her back, she is undone them sneaky,
so as we say goodbye to rune. He then uses his special mind speak ability and tells Bryce to take the star sword with her and that will need armies to fight the history. So he says out loud, Long live the Queen which is the signal for both Bryce and hunt to jump to action. So brace breaks forever chains grabs the star sword forces all our power onto the teenage puberty Fae boy Regulus lasting mo Starlight month then uses his lightning to hit a pillar, causing it to fall on teenage puberty. If a boy Regulus and pin him down buying our girls the more time as Bryce runs for the door the hammer goes after her only to be stopped by back then aka the hellhound and daggers mate and one of my favorites in the series. That
was such a cool too. I did not see that twist coming either. Oh my word and boys he harboring some resentment over there.
Yeah, hell hath no fury then brace runs from the throne room with teenage puberty Fae boy Regulus on our tail hunt continues. It's enlightening. All down the corridor all her way. And Bryce takes it in like I take in Starbucks vanilla sweet cream copers
ruli What a fabulous comparison.
She uses the last of her power to open a gate to transport her to hell, leaving hunt and our boy Brune behind as she falls into darkness escaping teenage puberty Fae boy ridiculous.
And here we fucking go.
Yes, our girl lands in what she believes to be hell and yet there's grass and bird singing. Okay, that's weird, but she calls out to Adas begging for help. And she sees a winged male and asks him to take her to Adas, but his attention is drawn to the star sword lying beside her and the grass. So the winged male blindfolds her flies into the house and then takes the blindfold off.
And again here would would not be mad would not be mad in the slightest I get not like understanding him but not I
mean, if you look like these men, I don't honestly care really what you do to me do I
know? I would, I would be like, Oh, sure, please pick me up. I'd be thrilled.
Blindfold That sounds fun.
Just another piece. And at this point
brace is as confused as I was during high school and college physics, which is pretty fucking confused. So the male in front of her is speaking a foreign language and more people start entering the room that she's in, including a little tiny female, who Bryce thinks resembles fury, as well as more Fay who are all dressed in fantastic old timey clothing.
old timey.
I know I can think of said it. I couldn't think of another word. bold fashion,
unlike it now Tommy.
Let's bring that back. Let's make a t shirt. old timey.
That's me. I like it.
The Fury look like notice is the star sword and The first male draws his dagger. And guess what the blades are twinsies black hilted and bladed the petite female calls the star sword gwydion that how you say it that how you pronounce it?
I think so I think that's how I pronounced it. I feel like my brain changes it on me every now and again. i That sounded right.
Why Dion?
Yeah, first of all is good. Okay.
Grace uses are slim at knowledge of the ancient language. Remember she, you know, belt in antiquities back in Jessup as shop. And so she tries to communicate with the lookalike theory and recognizes the old language, so she claims the old tongue and the Fae. This lookalike theory hasn't been spoken there for 15,000 years. And wait, that's the same amount of time that the isteri had been stuck in bed guard. Another coin going cat 10. So Bryce, yeah,
we got to talk about that coming up. Yes, ma'am.
Bryce axe asks what world she's in when a dark haired male enters the room who looks exactly like our boy brand.
What a plot twist that we didn't see coming. I think I think I shrieked at this point. I think I was making weird noises. I was very excited. Yes.
And our girl tries to explain again that she has come to this world to find out for mid guard and then she's trying to find hell, god dammit. So a female with tattooed hands, asks Bryce a question in the old language. And the petite female who speaks the old language translates and asks brace her name, and so brace responds and the translation is, my name is Bryce Quinlan, the Mailstop Torah tucking in his wings, he smiled slightly and said any old language and a voice like glorious night, hello, Bryce Quinlan. My name is Risa and
I remember sitting in my room in February of 2022, and losing my entire shit. I was absolutely lose it. I didn't. I didn't throw my book, because that's not how I live my life. But yeah, I remember making like out loud. I was like, Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god. This is incredible. This is a yes. losing it.
I was screaming. I was like, and you had finished it before? I did. So I was like, frantically texting you going? Oh, Mark.
I cannot believe because right. We didn't have any hint of a crossover before that. So we I mean, I didn't
know of one like, I mean, did you hear anything?
I don't think we knew that it was coming. Not that I can remember. And so right, like she lands on the grass and it's by the river and there's a city. So like, You got I could just feel it building. But Oh, my word when he introduces himself. I just right. Yeah. All of us died right on the spot.
Yes, we just expired and Okay. SJM make us wait two freaking years for the next book after that ending. Like I was salty about that.
ood rude if I ever meet her in person, I will probably fall to my knees and worship her. But then I will probably yell at her about this particular point.
Yes, please don't do that with the next one. Even though I know we're getting acheter five in the meantime, but you know, can we just keep it movin do something Yeah. If you love or mantasy fan girls and want to support us and making this dream our livelihood, if you want more bookish content, more community, discounts on merch, early access and ad free episodes. Five monthly q&a is with us book bingo and more, please check out our Patreon. We have two membership tiers the drop and Starborn The link is in the show notes or YouTube captions and really and truly thank you for helping us bring these episodes to you. Alright, so here we go. How's the flame and shadow? We go? So we start with a prologue which is surprised to how long the prologue was like I was just I don't know, usually I think of a prologue is like, maybe three to four pages, but this was a lot. Yeah,
that was that was a surprise. You texted me and said alright, I'm starting on that. And then I felt like respectfully. It was a long time when you were like, Okay, I'm on chapter one. And I'm like, okay, that's okay.
You just say like it is Molina like, Oh my God, why she's so fucking slow.
Well, you're not also not that was not what I was trying to say. Oh, I know. I know. It did take it took a little bit longer than I was expecting. And
Ted. Yes. I'll claim that one. Yeah. So it's a long prologue. He is moving on we open up two days after the events of all substan breath. We're still in the throne room in the Crystal Palace and eternal city behind in the hammer or in the isteri throne room along with autumn King, I say in our I don't know how you say it, said it, Bri I love that for us. Great aka braysen runes dad aka autumn scum and Fay King more event aka climax dad and another fella Scott. And I'm wondering too, like Sarah really must not like bottom as a season in general because like all the autumn people in her books are really not think about that. I don't know. Like I just did kind of just I don't know. Yeah,
because the autumn the autumn Lord in Avatar is a dick. Yeah. Worst.
And his sons. So
although we know.
Hey, we said spoilers. So
yeah. Hey, yeah, everyone. I don't want to hear anybody being salty about that. Yeah, I
don't know. I just thought about that. As I was like reading this prologue again, and I thought maybe our girl SJM really doesn't like fall. I mean, I like fall. But hey, to each their own. That's
such an interesting point. I love that. You pointed that out. I did not think about that at all. Yeah.
So anyway, SJM you were saying you don't like foul. So call us up, tell us that we're wrong. Got it. We'll die on the spot. But the isteri are grilling these vague things on whether or not they knew of their son's involvement in the breaking of the palace, as well as what went down in the lab when poor Cormac blew himself to smithereens and killed PIPA and the mech suits and process so rip Cormac more vendus owns Carmax actions, saying that he acted in his own accord. He had no knowledge of his son's treason, and if he did, he would have handed them over, handed him over to the hysteria himself. So our favorite teenage puberty fanboy Regulus is here, and he pretty much calls Morgan a liar. Oh, yeah. No way he actually does. But Morgan insists that he doesn't know anything about his sons treachery any vows that he will have no grave, no burial, no ship, to sail him to the summer lands and that His name will be wiped from the records of the Royal House.
Nothing like really committing to the bid on that one. nests. Like, yeah, my son blew himself up, I'm going to stand here and disown him, and then tell you that I'm not even gonna have a ceiling for him and his name will be wiped from the records. I love like
do we really like Regulus? Much to like, your son?
It's such a Yeah, it's such a statement on like, the level of cowardice that that male has, it's just and I think it says to I like that it pointed out like Lydia even for a minute before she had to put the hind mask quote unquote back on. She feels so bad for Cormac that's his dad. It's just the cowardice is unbelievable, but it's such a good example of these females and how unbelievably shallow and cowardly they are.
Yeah, for sure. So Polaris, the North Star then states that there won't be a ship sailing or Cormac to the summerlands because he blew himself up so there probably isn't a body or soul to send on and then we learned that the isteri cannot pierce the myths that shroud avolon That's how I say it and Lydia is thinking in her head that while this knowledge has never really been tested so that's interesting. And then it's in ours torque turn in our in our I don't know how I said it the first time but that's all I'm saying it now turn to get roasted and the isteri asked him to explain the actions of his son our boy rune but in our says that rune has always been a wild child and gay for that and says brace Lord him into this mess and he also descends both of them
all. Asik like we didn't see that coming. And I love that. Of course he blamed it on Bryce.
Yeah, why why would knee Oh my word. So meanwhile, pollack still thinks Bryce killed the harpy and so he tells an AR that wherever brace went, when she gets back, he's going to do the same thing to her that she did to the Harpy. But in our says he doesn't know where Bryce went. And that he does know though where his son is, and he says, where he deserves to be, which, again, like I cannot imagine a father, like saying that of their child at any time, then No matter what they did,
truly, it is horrendous. Well in Morgan's earlier comment about I tried to beat it out of him I mean Sarah's setting up the just disgustingness of these two males. During
this talk of Rouen the hind really has to work to keep her emotions in check and as Molina stated earlier, killer Face mode enacted with her mask and then in our actually finally learns that our girl Bryce is actually no longer in mid art he learns that teenage puberty Fe boy Regulus are from him that the information that Bryce escaped to another world is absolutely not to be shared with anyone implied you shall be killed so then a silver bell rings to signal the next meeting. I don't know about you. I'm picturing like I grew up Catholic. But I also am a huge fan of Downton Abbey. So I'm picturing like a little tiny ringing bell but they like some in the servants with I don't know is that what you pictured when you read this?
I love Yeah, like the little what? I can't think of what movie it is. But she picks up that it's like rural tiny right? And it says yeah, yeah. Oh, I'm thinking of Pocahontas.
Doesn't he Hell yeah.
No. And then I just like expect Percy to like come out of the woods. Yeah, yeah, you're next.
Oh, I love it. So that basically dismisses are to fake scumbag kings leaving behind the hind and the hammer still kneeling on the throne room floor. So they're Turner's next are teenage puberty. Fae boy Regulus? Ask them how the interrogations are going, which at this point, we kind of know who he's talking about as far as interrogate and behind states that they are still in the opening movements, but that she will get them to break and teenage puberty if a boy Regulus has complete faith in her dismisses them both to do whatever the hell they want to do. And you know, that's kind of what these evil parasite old god creatures do, I guess. Well as the hind and polyx walked down the palace hold of the dungeons. Pollux asked Lydia, if he thinks Bryce really went to hell, but Lydia dismisses it saying that she'll show up again someday because her mate is still in mid guard. So she's thinking as they walk about opions failure, her failure that rebellions failure to destroy the mech suits and the lab, and that the metal army is now stationed atop Mount Hermon, which is the same place that hunt and Shahar had staged their first and final battle of their rebellion. So it's all like deja vu, I guess. But when they reached the dungeons holics asked Sunline if she's keeping her in and hunt alive to try and bait Bryce to come back, and she says yes. So as they enter, Lydia again, completely shuts down, turns the emotions off, Don's behind mask, and we find hunt and backscene hanging from the ceiling by corsi and shackles. They've been tortured, their backs are bleeding onto the cold floor, like the descriptions and this were just an even, I guess, like all of House of flame and shadow, like the descriptions of the torture, were really, really vivid for me.
I was gonna say that I thought it was such an interesting this, this book really felt like she described much more of the darker side, right, like the details it was it just had a much darker vibe. Yeah, I think that was really speaking to, you know, the violence that these overlords and tyrants are allowing to fester in this kingdom of there's some but yeah, I mean, she Yeah, Sarah did not hold back on on some of the really like gory intense details. Yeah,
I would say like, if you haven't read it yet, that's a trigger warning. I mean, there is a lot of gore and a lot of gore on page and so I think that people should know that going into it because I think that is different than least I thought it was different than a lot of her other books have told us. I would
agree. I think it's I mean, she's always I mean, right there's there's violence in these books and as as Yeah, world as well. But this one really, I think was was poignant and much more intense.
Yeah, for sure. Pollux wakes up haunt, telling him that it's a beautiful day, and begins mercilessly slashing him with a whip. Lydia, even though she doesn't want to she looks at the third person hanging from the ceiling in the dungeon, which is our boy room when he lets out a cruel laugh to the word politics. So Lydia tries to reach him via her mind you Using his callsign night, and I'm already crying because I just I cannot with these two like they are just the sweetest babes and I don't want anything bad to happen to them. Oh, this
was so rough. I know every time I was like, No
thanks, can we please just get a little bit of happiness for some of these characters? So she's been trying to communicate with him, you know, ever since they entered the palace way back and how's the sky and breath? But our boy rune refuses to talk, and just gives her this bloody snarl. Which
I know everybody has differing opinions on this. I am not mad about any of the snarling I think that's hot. Go for it. You're however tall apparently attractive as all get out. Some of the fan art PS shout out to our Instagram page that Charlie has threadably good at facilitating this this past week. That one fan art of room. So oh my god. Oh, let me all day. All day. Yes, yes. I will. I will say thank you and come back for more. Yes.
That was incredible. I will definitely I can't remember. I don't want to get it wrong. So I will put the artists name of that fan art on our Instagram page in the show notes. Because I definitely want to credit them because it is incredible. Yes.
Thank you. Yeah, always want to credit the artists. So yes, whoever you are. Thank thank you on behalf. Yes. And my thank you.
Yes, that is now possibly my phone background. We're not going to talk about
credible news. What I love. You know, we
always throw those Easter eggs in here. So Pollock's phone rings, and it's more Och, he is now the Heinz captain. Remember he's Danica is that beat dad? So he's now reporting to Pollux in the high end, since he Pollux commandeer the dread wolves to search for Bryce? Since they can't find her. So while Pollux is Mamma Mia distracted on the phone, Lydia again turns to rune and in her mind says his name, but he doesn't answer. So she does the whole arm in front of the face goes Hi, and once again. And when politics gets off the phone she tells him to get the barbed wire instead and seen and I was glad we ended the scene because I did not want to read about that,
that that hurt enough. Yeah, I did not need any more of that.
Oh, yeah. Like I said, that's the prologue here people like that's a that's a long prologue that has a lot happens
there. So prologue agreed and justifying my
slow reading pace once again.
I'm never bringing that up again.
I have a complex but no, you are such a fast reader that Emelina honestly, like she is just like, I read fast, but this girl just is like hyperspeed I don't even get it. I feel so behind when it comes to reading with you.
It's like my one like super talent that I have. Fortunately, it does not apply to like real life books. So like textbooks were a no go. But fantasy books I can read and comprehend like incredibly quickly. So you know, you will lose some over here.
We finally get to chapter one with Yes, I did make it the Emelina Thank you. But Bryce is in a cell under the I'm just giving you a hard time. I hope you know that. Oh, yeah. Bryce is in a cell under the hewn city being questioned by Amarin eyes and reads and we're still fan girling I read this
crossover. Your percent fan girling over this correct. So
at first our girl Bryce decides that she's just going to make shut up about myth guard because as what as is our ability to call her out on her lies pretty much puts an end to that so she gives them like little bits and pieces and tells them about the history tells them they know about this world. Reese disagrees, but Amarin states and I love AMA and like always just putting race in his place to be like, Don't I know? He's like, Yeah, they actually do know about us. But here we just call them the daggone race immediately like his face goes pale and he went away and he comes back with the Veritas or so. In my mind. This is like STMS pensive from HP. Harry Potter. Is that what you get?
I loved that you made that connection. I thought that was so cool that I didn't put it together that same way. But as soon as you said that, that makes a ton of sense to me. I love that comparison. That's a great one.
Thank you. So Bryce puts all our memories of the wars The weapons you know the mech suits the battlefields the guns as far as like her dad Randall teaching her how to shoot throws it all into the orb. Let's re see it. And also let's have him see teenage puberty. If a boy Regulus shooting down the hall at her as she thought she was going through the gate to hell and then ended up in Perth in G then tells Reese and the isteri that all of this June is coming to Meridian. And then we channel our Alice in Wonderland era, because Amarin gives brace a silver bean that she has to swallow that will translate the mother tongue and allow her to speak it well. So I have a thought on this because I thought at the end of house and Skye and Brock, like Grace, hen speak this language right or am I totally like not remember, I
know I was trying to think about this too. So her right? She can they can communicate a little bit in this like old language, I guess. Yeah.
I guess maybe not enough to like, I don't know. Right
to make it I guess they're just getting like very generally D ideas in terms. I mean, to be fair, that's like me with I took however many years of Spanish I had way too many years of Spanish and I can like sing happy birthday and tell you like vegetables. But that's about it. So I'm assuming the magic bean grammar then of course, so again, my Disney brain thinks about the Mickey and the Beanstalk being Yes, yeah. And I'm like, I can't take this seriously. I
know. I just I don't know, I think that we needed something other than a magic bean to I don't know, I've acted like I was like smoking weed while I was reading this because I was just cackling like, it was just so funny to me. I just could not like you said I could not take it seriously.
And I get like having to you know bridge the divide with the languages like how were you going to do that? I would have loved like, I don't know, like magic. I don't know. magic beans really kind of threw me for a loop. Like it's not a whole point. Like help. Like he's got the mind thing. And they not figure it out like brain to brain. Right?
I don't know moving on from our magic being. You know, hopefully, it worked. Okay, it worked. So you know, she swallows it. She falls to the floor. She has this like lightning cleaving her brain type feeling, which sounds painful but as isn't sure what's going on. So he's like poised over her ready to strike with truth teller. Amarin, of course, calls him out again tells him to put it away. Because the dagger calls to Bryce. Bryce feels the knowledge of the new language, you know, stinging throughout her body and then realizes that the letters in the horn on her back, which say through love all is possible, or reacting to whatever had been in the beans spell. Dinner Mark starts glowing. So Amazon turns to Reese and says the glowing letters inked on her back. They're the same as those in the book of breedings. All three surround her and as says, explain Are you die and have chapter done
dunked
and seen? What did you think overall of this prologue and chapter one house of blame and shadow?
I like I was really thinking about so the prologue really gives us that glimpse into what's happening back on mid guard and seeing kind of what rune and hunt and backscene are going through. And then chapter one gives us this really good look at now where our girl Bryce is on on Pythian. And what's happening here, I appreciate that she got me we ended sky and breadth on on our crossover, right. So getting quickly back into that, I think was because so we again, we waited two years for this, like, ya know what's happening with the crossover characters. So this was a really solid opening for me. I felt like yeah, I
liked it, too. Like I said, I I did appreciate him. And as much as I make fun of the prologue being longer than normal, I did really appreciate it because I liked the way that it really set up where we were, like you said, just right after houses sky and breath, and then also we'd see Lydia really still trying to bridge that connection with Rouen and make up for she's done some really shitty things to him, and he's just not having it and so I appreciate that it was done in such a way that like, yeah, it's not going to be like a quick fix. It's not going to be a clean, convenient, you know? I love you again. Not I love you. But you know what I mean? Like it's just not we're not falling right? back into it. And this whole book really like there's not a ton of romance or not like we're used to with some SJ M's earlier stuff, which I kind of appreciate. I mean, I definitely love, you know, the romance in it and stuff. But I do really like the fact that we got a lot of plot even in these first the prologue and chapter one, like, I think we she really started off with a bang.
Absolutely. I think that's such a really cool instance for me of it's important that those complexities are are brought to light with Lydia having just kind of like code switch between being behind and seeing, you know, this guy that she has very intense feelings for that, you know, we're all like, Okay, please love him, that's fine.
But if you don't, girl like I'm next in line, so sign
us up immediately. Thank you. But I think to like the courage, I think I'm going back to also the parallels of Lydia's courage of being in that trauma and doing what she has to do. Versus and I keep going back to this a cowardice of Fe kings who just dipped as soon as the Assyria were interrogating them and disowned everybody. And I think that parallel as well. And I mean, as as we know, as jam is so great as our our female character is the one holding the courage and the two males are the ones who are the cowards really starting off. I mean, that's what we've come to expect, but it never gets old. Yeah,
no, definitely not. It never will. So I have I have questions and you're more of like, the, you know, you do so good with like the details of these books. Do we think that? Oh, because when Bryce meets race, right, and then, as in Corinthian, she immediately notices like his black hair and his violet blue eyes, and she makes a reference in her head that like, oh my gosh, this looks just like ran. And let's preface this by saying like, we're going to talk about these chapters as if like, we haven't read further on in the book. What do we think about runes relation to as or race like, is there one? Yeah,
I think everybody who read sky and breath right and an earth and blood, we're st rune has dark hair, and the blue eyes and the shadows. So, you know, when the crossover did happen at the end of sky and breath, I think there's always that hope or theory, that there's some relation, but then I think we think about there's that 15,000 year gap. Right. So are we from the same place? Are we actually related? Is there like a distinctive, you know, generational line there? I think that's what we're waiting to discover. Because right, she sees rise and goes, Oh, my gosh, it's root on. We know that as an kacian Look, somewhat like, like rise, does it? Should
we throw it? I think we should throw it out there now in episode one that like Millena is she's Kaz all the way. Right? Like, that's your guy?
I Yeah, it's, uh, honestly, I'd like to pass on like, Okay. I'm like, if if rice is not in the picture, it's cast on their skin, right? Like, rise always wins of the three. But if it's just cash versus as cash all the way for sure. Yeah.
I'm gonna send you those tic tock videos with the heads and then you can pick in great,
great plan. Yeah.
Who are you? Which I was surprised, like, because I think I saw one of Sarah do it. Oh, I'm gonna have to put it like and it was between like race and Robin. And I think she ended up picking Reese because, you know, I think we all think that she based him off of her husband, you know, so,
um, I see a picture of like, okay, yeah, that's the most respectfully but right. I guess
we'll find out more about that connection if there is one down the road, but like Lydia torturing these three males in the dungeon. I just I don't know how you do that. And I'm thinking of like, Okay, what if I had to torture my husband hanging up? There are like, US torture best friend. I don't know how she does that. I don't know how she flips that switch.
I think that yeah, for me, and this goes into a little bit, and I'm sure I'll bring this up in later episodes. I always and I get like a little I think I've talked to you about this. I get a little salty. These beings that we're reading about like they're not Cubans. They're not like 21st century human beings in America. So I think For me holding that in my head of everything, all of that is so different. I think that for me, is always important to keep in mind. But I think to your point, I guess you have to, I don't know if I could do it, you turn your brain off. But if it's to save them eventually, like, I guess you would? Do you tell yourself the end justifies the means type deal? Like, yeah, yeah, I
was just gonna say that. It's yourself to
I would do it, I guess to save them? Would it intrinsically break a piece of who I am? I absolutely think so. Again, like, there's that trauma piece that comes into it? Yeah.
I think that's a great point, though, that you brought up as far as like, just remembering that, and I need to do this too, like in a lot of fantasy books as a member that, yeah, these really aren't humans. So attaching human emotions or human responses to them, like 100% isn't always the right thing to do, or like the best thing to do. Right and wrong, really doesn't apply. But yeah, I think that's a great point, because I tend to think of it more humanistically I think that I don't know, is that a word? I don't know. Yeah, it's our it's our show. It's a word. I need to not do that as much that I can look at it more as they're doing it, or she's doing it to save them. And maybe I would in that instance, for sure. I
was just gonna say, the other interesting piece to that is to I think, and we were giggling about this earlier with the snarling like, they are more animalistic, right? That's Yes. Yeah, definitely. That's what makes them really hot. Like, right. I don't want Bob down at the bar on they're gonna be snarling at me and bass. But we're talking about a right they're not. Yeah, they're fe. And so I think that holds a whole different. It's an intrinsic piece that's communicating for them. It's just something else. I don't know, I always see everyone's like, they're always snarling. And I'm like, right, they're not mean, they're not dudes that you're gonna fray. Like, right? This is they're a they're a whole separate species. And
yeah, like you had made a good point in the shownotes, in our outline before we started race being down in that cell in the human city. And then you know, we get the mention of creatures down below which we reference in silver flames. So I think that's a really good point to bring up, because obviously, it translates into later chapters in the book. But I love how Sarah set that up. And I honestly had not reread silver flames prior to this. And so you know, when you brought that up, going through our outline, I was like, oh, yeah, that's a great point. So I want you to kind of take that and run with it a little bit.
I think I just I was my brain. My brain flagged that as because I did try to attempt to real quick do my reread of silver flames. But I remember that, particularly towards the end of silver flames when I was and as an CAS have the autumn corps soldiers. They were they were just in the bog Nesta got the mask from the Kelpie like all of that pass and as killed most of them and then brought to back to interrogate into this cell, I think at the Hume City. So that Trulia is that talks specifically about the creatures down below snarling like under the gate where some of them down. So I thought that was an interesting No Have we know that it's this cell then? So
my gosh, I would have never put that together. Like that's, I thought I need to do what my
brain does. Well, you said this entire thing up so my brain hurts like details of my fantasy novels. But I think it sets the scene too for Bryce is not they're not sitting in the living room. Right? Bryce is in the cell in the human city. They're not on with this. I think that was such an interesting, interesting piece for Sarah to set, set that scene up. So I my theory when I was reading this chapter in real time was when Amerind says the lettering on the back of Bryce with the etched in the horn, that tattoo lettering is the same as the book of briefings. And, and this is going to sound really silly if we've already talked about this and or it's already been proven in an avatar, but we don't know what that language is. Right? I always assumed that it was I don't think so. I didn't think we did either. So my assumption is still standing of, I think there wordmarks from Throne of Glass, that At to me of opening portals, right? We saw we saw Selena Aylin do that in the Throne of Glass series with the blood and the word marks Honestly, my gosh. And in literally in Throne of Glass, the first one was Yeah, I think that's I really am waiting to see how that plays out. Um, because I want it like, we already did a one crossover, right? So like, come on, like, I'm just waiting for a third girls over I
feel like I'm in the opposite court because I want like, Throne of Glass to just be its own entity, right? I just kind of want I don't know, maybe that's like, the purest in me, but I just am like, oh, just leave them alone. I don't want them in this office. But like,
like they suffered enough type deal. Like yeah, yeah. So get that. I think my thing is one I'm just obsessed with that series. Like to the nth. Yeah. But also, maybe my thing now is to if we've already brought one in, are we just gonna bring the other one in? Like, are you really gonna know? Yeah. Or the odd man out here, but we shall have to see. We shall have.
I mean, I wouldn't be mad about it. I wouldn't. I would just be like, please protect my babies. And don't
wear our thing of I think you and I are similar in this. I don't care if we get to the end of the book and all 85 main characters are still alive. Do not Yeah.
All day every day. Yes. Yeah. And I mean, I'm gonna throw in that reference to like fourth wing, because we killed off like a spoiler alert. Sorry, we kill off a main character in that book. And I just was like, I I thought it was way too soon. Like I was not I don't think that was come at me. I don't think that was the right thing to do. I'm not saying never kill off a main character. But I think the characters that Sara has set up and all these series like I don't know how you would do it without any of them really?
Right. I think that's what's so interesting to me too. And especially I mean, we've we've introduced the concepts of of mates you know, we saw the end of silver flames you cannot kill off rise without killing off Feira. Next is now in the picture. ocassion. And Nesta, once you link them, are you gonna get rid of both of them then? Or are you just live forever in mental, emotional, spiritual torment? Wow. Thank you. Yeah,
I mean, that brings up a good point about like vaccine, you know, because he obviously lost his mate. And we'll get into this in later episodes as far as making the shapeshifter phase and stuff. So I don't know, maybe that is a different level of the meeting bond. But, I mean, obviously, he's still like, just completely tortured over it, and will be for as long as he's alive. So yeah, I just I don't know how you. I don't know how you would do that with these characters. I
don't either, which is fine with me. Like, just keep keep them all. I'm really attached to all of them. Thank you. Yes. Do right, because I don't think we I don't think I always connect with all of them. But I do love. And that's always been one of Sarah's strongest points. I mean, the characters, always. Now there are some similarities. Sure. But the characters always stand on their own. And I feel like have their own voice. Ethan is the jock. But and he's i But he's a little small, small baby. And theory. And I mean, theory is like the party boy like goofy, whatever. I could see other authors making them much more similar. And at all, they stand completely on their own and rune is different from Dec and Flynn. And they could all be, you know, quote unquote, similar male characters. So, so really cool of the diversity of the of the characters that we get. Yeah,
for sure. And I mean, we do like setting up the next episodes. I mean, we get everybody in this one, right? We're constantly bouncing around POVs. But yet, I didn't mind it. I know some people did. But it to me, it was really interesting, and just kind of kept the pace going in such a way that I was constantly entertained as per usual in these books. Rude. Yeah, so yeah. Final Thoughts on prologue and chapter one.
I was real, real excited. I mean, as we said, waited two years to get into this. I got to dive right in. I think we started off really strong. I think we have our two two separate worlds set up and each taking their own adventures from there. Um, so I'm really excited to get into into the next ones. How about you?
Yeah, I really appreciated the prologue and everything that it gave us. And then I also think that starting out I Basically with Bryce because we wanted to know what happened to her when she landed in Perth in so giving us that tidbit right off the bat as far as waiting the two years was. Thank you, Sarah, what us out of our misery. I'm just really excited to see where all these characters though, and how the crossover happens. So stick with us for the next episode, where we are going to dive into chapters two through six. Hope you join us for the next one. Thanks
for this first one. We had a lot of fun doing it. And yeah, join us for the next and you'll get get more references from us more info and much more laughs
Yeah. I think we need to bring alcohol to the next one. We can do that. It's our show.
My diet coke and my massive mug.
Yes. Let's see that. Put that up to the screen like that amazing mug.
I'm fully booked this knee and Amen. All in one. This mug is like the size of my head. But
yes, we need to add that to the Instagram just for size reference so people can I
will selfie for our first first recording and my massive Diet Coke might not have any rum in it yet.
Yeah, we'll remedy that. Just stay with us. We'll remember that. All right, we will see you in the next episode.
First off, thank you for listening. You and the bookish community are amazing and we're so thankful to be included in it. We hope you enjoyed the episode. If you haven't done so already, make sure you hit that subscribe or follow button so you never miss one. We release new episodes every Tuesday. We'd also love to see you on our mantasy fan girls newsletter list. Just head to our website romanticism fan girls.com and enter your email address where it says join the email us no spam here. Ramas just more honest to goodness book content. Learn what we're currently reading upcoming new releases we can't wait to get our hands on and what Molina says about my unhealthy obsession with all these cold brew coffee foam. Seriously though, if you haven't tried it yet, are you even living? Sign up today?
