Shows
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 29 – Readercon & LovestruckPodcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Featuring interviews with:Rae Borman @ ReaderconRiley @ Lovestruck BooksHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughTranscribers: Kate Dollarhyde and John WM ThompsonReferences:Rae BormanNew England Finger DancersNaomi Novik’s ScholomanceBrandon Mull’s FablehavenKatherine Rundell’s Impossible CreaturesJames BlishJoanna Russ’s The Female ManBenjamin Rosenbaum & our episode on Fire Logic2025-07-2852 min
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 28 – EXCESSION with Abigail NussbaumPodcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Abigail NussbaumTitle: Excession by Iain M. BanksHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughTranscribers: Kate Dollarhyde and John WM ThompsonReferences:VectorLos Angeles Review of BooksThe GuardianStrange HorizonsLawyers, Guns & MoneyWarren ZevonAsking the Wrong QuestionsAbigail’s Track ChangesColourfields by Paul KincaidNina Allan’s 2025-07-141h 08
Octothorpe138: A Tedious Number of Questions About What It’s Like to Run a Games ShopJohn chaired, Alison is off on holiday, and Liz has the agenda.
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: None
Letters of comment
Ang Rosin (Facebook)
Andrea Bell and Derek Hockridge
Bridget Bradshaw (Facebook)
Chris Garcia (email)
Farah Mendlesohn (email, Facebook)
Jake Casella Brookins (Bluesky)
Louise Hughes (Bluesky)
Neil Ottenstein (Facebook)
Paul Weimer (email)
Roseanna Pendlebury (Bluesky)
...2025-07-031h 05
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 27 – 40,000 IN GEHENNA with Arkady Martine (and a 4th Street Fantasy Report)Podcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Arkady MartineTitle: 40,000 in Gehenna by C.J. CherryhHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughTranscribers: Kate Dollarhyde and John WM ThompsonReferences:Vote in the Ignytes!Our episode with Archita MittraA Memory Called Empire, A Desolation Called Peace, Rose/House, "Three Faces of a Beheading"Mick Herron’s Slow HorsesPip Adams' Auditi...2025-06-301h 20
Octothorpe137: My Brain Automatically Goes to SandwichesJohn is well-read, Alison played a game, and Liz needs an Allen key.
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: None
One hour of Mon Mothma dancing
Letters of comment
Andreas Davour (Mastodon and Mastodon)
Andy Openshaw
Jez Lowe
Ang Rosin
David Bamford (Bluesky)
Ed Morland (Bluesky)
Farah Mendlesohn (Facebook)
Jake Casella Brookins
Nuala Fahey (Bluesky)
Raj...2025-06-181h 01
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 26 – DEATH OF THE AUTHOR with andré m. carringtonPodcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: andré m. carringtonTitle: Death of the Author by Nnedi OkoraforHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughTranscribers: Kate Dollarhyde and John WM ThompsonReferences:andré’s Speculative Blackness, The Black Fantastic, and Audiofuturism (forthcoming)The Eaton ConferenceMalik Gaines & Alexandro Segade's cosmic opera Star Choir, based on the work of Octavia E. ButlerHa...2025-06-161h 14
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 25 – THE HUGO NOVELS & NOVELLAS with Roseanna PendleburyPodcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Roseanna PendleburyTitles: The 2025 Hugo Novel & Novella ListHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughTranscribers: Kate Dollarhyde and John WM ThompsonReferences:Hugo Novella Finalists:The Brides of High Hill by Nghi VoThe Butcher of the Forest by Premee MohamedNavigational Entanglements by Aliette de BodardThe Practice, the Horizon, and the Chain by Sofi...2025-06-021h 27
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 24 – THE LOST BOOK OF ADANA MOREAU with Maia Gil′AdíPodcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Maia Gil′AdíTitle: The Lost Book of Adana Moreau by Michael ZapataHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughReferences:Palgrave SFF: A New CanonThe Zombie ArchiveDoom Patterns: Latinx Speculations and the Aesthetics of ViolenceAugustina Bazterrica's Tender is the FleshFernanda Trias' Pink SlimeKazuo Ishiguro's Never Let Me GoColson Whitehead's Zone OneToni...2025-05-191h 00
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 23 – DREAMS OF AMPUTATION with Sean McTiernanPodcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Sean McTiernanTitle: Dreams of Amputation by Gary J. ShipleyHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughTranscribers: Kate DollarhydeReferences:The SFUltra podcastAlasdair Gray’s Lanark & Poor ThingsJames Joyce’s UlyssesFredric JamesonAbsolute DC comicsMichael Comeau’s HellbertaAlan Grant & John Wagner’s DoomlordRay Nayler’s Where the Axe is Buried2025-05-051h 06
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 22 – THE TERRA IS A FORMER MISTRESS with Christian P. HainesPodcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Christian P. HainesTitles: The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert A. Heinlein, and The Terraformers by Annalee Newitz Host: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughTranscriber: Kate DollarhydeReferences:Stephen King's The Shining and CarrieRafael Bernal’s His Name Was DeathMichel Nieva’s Dengue BoyDaryl Gregory’s When We Were RealAdrian...2025-04-211h 29
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 21 – LUD-IN-THE-MIST with Marita ArvanitiPodcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Marita ArvanitiTitle: Lud-in-the-Mist by Hope MirrleesHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughReferences:A Meal of Thorns and the Ancillary Review of Books are Hugo finalists! We are delighted and honored; a big congratulations to all the finalists.Dianna Wynne Jones, Greer Gilman, Elizabeth BearDianna Wynne Jones’ Fire and HemlockElizabeth Hand’s...2025-04-071h 21
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 20 – AMONG OTHERS with Archita MittraPodcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Archita MittraTitle: Among Others by Jo WaltonHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughReferences:Eliza Chan’s Fathomfolk & Archita’s reviewSue Lynn Tan's ImmortalLavanya Lakshminarayan's Interstellar Megachef & The Ten Percent ThiefMichael Nieva's Dengue BoyIsaac Fellman's Notes from a RegicideUrsula K. Le Guin's The Lathe of HeavenErnest Cline's 2025-03-2457 min
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 19 – HEIR TO THE EMPIRE with Dan HartlandPodcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Dan HartlandTitle: Heir to the Empire by Timothy ZahnHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughReferences:Gautam Bhatia's The SentenceAlex Pheby's WaterblackCristina Rivera Garza's The Taiga SyndromeKatherine Addison's The Tomb of DragonsElizabeth Sandifer's Hugboxing vs ScabpickingDavid BrinThe Wilhelm ScreamJack London's The Call of the WildBrandon Taylor’s “against cast2025-03-101h 22
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 18 – THE SILMARILLION with Eden KupermintzPodcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Eden KupermintzTitle: The Silmarillion by J.R.R. TolkienHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughReferences:anarchySF, heavy blog is heavy, Eden’s work at ARB, the Death // Sentence podcastAlex Pheby’s WaterblackAdrian Tchaikovsky’s House of Open WoundsDarkly Lem’s Transmentation TransienceDeath // Sentence episode on Unknown Language2025-02-241h 19
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 17 – FIRE LOGIC with Benjamin RosenbaumPodcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Benjamin RosenbaumTitle: Fire Logic by Laurie J. MarksHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughReferences:Ben’s novel, The Unraveling, and latest game, The Ghost & The GolemThe Mohanraj & Rosenbaum Are Humans podcastGennaRose Nethercott’s ThistlefootKelly Link’s The Book of LoveAnn Leckie’s Ancillary Justice & sequelsEvan Dahm's 2025-02-101h 22
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 16 – AURORA with Hilary StrangPodcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Hilary StrangTitle: Aurora by Kim Stanley RobinsonHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughReferences:Marooned on Mars, a podcast about the works of KSRUrsula Le Guin’s The DispossessedMargaret Killjoy’s A Country of GhostsKSR’s Mars trilogyFredric Jameson’s Archaeologies of the FutureJohn Dos Passos’s U.S.A. trilogyWiscon“...2025-01-271h 22
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 15 – MISTRESS OF MISTRESSES with Jared PechačekPodcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Jared PechačekTitle: Mistress of Mistresses by E.R. EddisonHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughReferences:Jared’s book, The West PassageBy-the-Bywater, a podcast about TolkienAnya Johanna DeNiro’s OKPsycheCaroline Hagood’s Death And Other Speculative FictionsEddison’s The Worm OuroborosThe InklingsBarbara Remington, artist and illustrator. Hard to find good scans of...2025-01-131h 11
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 14 – 2024 Wrap-Up with Roseanna PendleburyPodcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Roseanna PendleburyHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughIn Memoriam:Alan Jeffrey & Cameron Estrich-WatsonReferences:Tor’s The Most Iconic Speculative Fiction Books of the 21st CenturyJo Walton’s commentary on putting together those listsAdam Roberts, Greg EganKatherine Addison’s The Goblin EmperorJacqueline Carey’s Ku...2024-12-301h 39
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 13 – THE THIS with Anna McFarlanePodcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Anna McFarlaneTitle: The This by Adam RobertsHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughReferences:Anna's books, including Cyberpunk Culture and Psychology, The Routledge Companion to Cyberpunk Culture, Fifty Key Figures in Cyberpunk Culture, and Adam Roberts: Critical EssaysMary Butts’ “Mappa Mundi”Jordan S. Carroll’s Speculative WhitenessAdam Roberts’ The Thing Itself,2024-12-161h 16
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 12 – MELMOTH with Jon GreenawayPodcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Jon GreenawayTitle: Melmoth by Sarah PerryHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughReferences:Jon's latest books: Capitalism: A Horror Story and A Primer On Utopian PhilosophyEdgar Allen PoeFredric Jameson’s The Years of TheorySally Rooney’s IntermezzoRoberto Bolaño’s The Savage DetectivesNapoleon Dynamite, dir. Jared HessCarmen Maria Machado, George SaundersLey...2024-12-021h 06
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 11 – THE BALLAD OF BLACK TOM with Garrett Bridger GilmoreMore podcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Garrett Bridger GilmoreTitle: The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor LaValleHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughReferences:“The Horror At Redhook” by H.P. LovecraftLovecraft Country by Matt RuffThe Night Ocean by Paul LaFargeLone Women by Victor LaValleThe Dunwich Horror by H.P. Lovecraft“The Lovecraft Boomlet” of adaptions/re...2024-11-181h 11
Octothorpe122: Topical PumpkinJohn is on the periphery, Alison is carving, and Liz went to Japan.
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: con artistry, privilege, racism
Letters of comment
Jake Casella Brookins
Sankey diagrams on the Ancillary Review of Books
Ali Baker Brooks
I’m a Fan of That
Christopher J Garcia
Emily January
Kat Kourbeti
SH...2024-11-0759 min
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 10 – TAINARON with Shinjini DeyMore podcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Shinjini DeyTitle: Tainaron: Mail From Another City by Leena Krohn, translated by Hildi HawkinsHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughReferences:George Eliot’s Silas Marner, Elizabeth Gaskell’s Cranford, Charles Dickens, Karl Marx The “Post-Exotic” novels by Antoine Volodine etc- Kree, Mevlido’s Dreams, Postexoticism in 12 LessonsThe New Weird, ed. Ann...2024-11-041h 09
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 09 – PATTERN RECOGNITION with Sunny MoraineMore podcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Sunny MoraineTitle: Pattern Recognition by William GibsonHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughReferences:Your Shadow Half RemainsLong Hidden: Speculative Fiction From the Margins of HistoryLooming LowSinging With All My Skin and BoneSerial horror podcast GoneThe Shadow Files of Morgan KnoxGibson's Neuromancer, Virtual Light, Mona Lisa Overdrive, “The Gernsback Contin2024-10-211h 13
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 08 – GILDED NEEDLES with Juan MartinezMore podcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Guest: Juan MartinezTitle: Gilded Needles by Michael McDowellHost: Jake Casella BrookinsMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughReferences:Juan’s collection Best Worst American & horror novel Extended StayJackleg PressStoryStudioTananarive Due's The ReformatoryEden Robins’ Remember You Will DieSofia Samatar's The Practice, the Horizon, and the ChainAnanda Lima's Craft: Stories I Told the DevilJesse Ball's 2024-10-071h 04
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 06 – THE PASSION with Dan HartlandMore podcasts, reviews, interviews, essays, and more at the Ancillary Review of Books.Please consider supporting ARB’s Patreon!Credits:Host: Jake Casella BrookinsGuest: Dan HartlandTitle: The Passion by Jeanette WintersonMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughReferences:This blog has a round-up of articles and commentary on the Gaiman allegations.Dan’s Snap! Criticism series at AncillaryHandheld PressVonda McInty’re The Exile Waiting & DreamsnakeThe 2024 Academic Conference on Canadian Science Fiction and FantasyAnnie Luong on...2024-09-091h 13
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 03 – PIRANESI with Misha Grifka WanderAncillary Review editors Jake Casella Brookins and Misha Grifka Wander discuss Susanna Clarke's PIRANESI: epistolary realism and the novel, numinous personhood, and glimpses of utopia in rejecting capitalist expectations.
Notes, Links, and Transcript
A Meal of Thorns is a podcast from the Ancillary Review of Books.Credits:Guest: Misha Grifka WanderTitle: Piranesi by Susanna ClarkeMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John Brough...2024-07-291h 17
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 02 – DEAD COLLECTIONS with Roseanna PendleburyHost Jake Casella Brookins talks to critic Roseanna Pendlebury about Isaac Fellman's DEAD COLLECTIONS (a novel about a trans vampire archivist) and how it addresses grief, portrayals of bodies and identities over time, fanfic and low-budget television, and the place of more experimental fiction in genre publishing.
Notes, Links, and Transcript
ContactRSS feed | Spotify | Apple Podcasts | +lots of other platforms (let us know if it’s not on your favorite)You can follow A Meal of Thorns on Twitter and Bluesky.Email us at mealofthorns@gmail.com.Support the Show!...2024-07-151h 03
A Meal of ThornsA Meal of Thorns 01 – THE SCAR with Dan HartlandHost Jake Casella Brookins talks to Dan Hartland, critic and reviewer, about China Miéville's novel THE SCAR, the genre of the New Weird, and many related works and ideas.
Notes, Links, and Transcript
Credits:Guest: Dan HartlandTitle: The Scar by China MiévilleMusic by Giselle Gabrielle GarciaArtwork by Rob PattersonOpening poem by Bhartṛhari, translated by John BroughLinks & works referenced:Strange Horizons reviewsDan’s Snap! Criticism seriesCahokia Jazz by Francis SpuffordDan’s review of Cahokia Jazz at Strange HorizonsHim by Geoff RymanThe Practice, the Horizon, and the Chain by Sofia...2024-07-011h 20
Strange HorizonsCritical Friends Episode 10: The Complicity of Science FictionIn this episode of Critical Friends, the Strange Horizons SFF criticism podcast, Aisha and Dan discuss a recent essay by Jake Casella Brookins that appeared in the Ancillary Review of Books. "The vaunted prophylactic prophecy of science fiction—the ability to prevent an undesirable future by loudly predicting it—has consistently proven false," argues Brookins, and so Aisha and Dan ask themselves: what good, and bad, might SF do? And when we find a piece of good criticism such as this essay, how can it help us think better about its questions?2024-01-2940 min