There's been a lot of discourse surrounding our latest pick. Everything's Fine by Cecelia Rabess has been fodder for a think piece by The New York Times, an interview in The CUT and hundreds of hot takes on Twitter. Was the book worth all that chatter? Not really. Listen in as we discuss the "controversy" surrounding the book's marketing, what we think the author was trying to achieve and the authenticity of fake hair. We also love it when you rate, review and subscribe to us on iTunes,...

Hi, readers! We've got another fun interview for you this month. We chatted with author and self-proclaimed L.A. stan Rachel Howzell Hall about her new book, What Never Happened, and what it's like to be a Black woman in the thriller space — whether that be as an author or a main character. Learn more about the plotting process and character development of thriller characters, Rachel's philosophy on plot twists and which of her books she thinks she'd survive. (Interview begins at 12:48) ...

Hi, readers! It's June and Black Chick Lit is celebrating Pride month! Given all the mess happening in the news, the government and even at Target, we wanted to do a special episode to talk about what's going on and how it impacts Black women. We spoke with author and speaker Kianna Alexander on what Pride means to her, her journey to finding her identity and how all of that impacts her writing and reading. Kianna is the author of more than 40 books and her latest, Can't Let Her Go, will be...

Happy new year, readers! We're kicking off 2023 as we do every year with mess and hijinks. It's Urban Fic Month, and this year, we read Everybody Ain't Your Friend, by Tanisha Stewart. This isn't a lesson we needed to learn, but our main character, Mia, was in desperate need of some education. How did she have so many unstable people in her life and not notice it? Why didn't she block anyone on Facebook? Why did she spell Tyreke with an "I"? So much to learn. As always, a very special thank...

Hey readers! We're still getting hyped for FX's new series, Kindred. Last time, we gave you a refresher (or possibly an introduction) to Octavia Butler and her work. In this episode, we invited an awesome panel of sci-fi fans and creators to chat about Butler, her legacy and what we hope to see in future adaptations of her work. Our awesome panelists are: Isis Asare is the founder and CEO of Sistah Scifi, the first Black owned bookstore focused on science fiction and fantasy in the United...

Hey, readers, We're doing something special this episode! In preparation of FX's new series Kindred, which will stream on Hulu beginning Dec. 13, we've decided to study up and learn more about the book and its genius author, Octavia Butler. Join us as we share some cool info about Ms. Butler, including what she had to say about her ability to write the future with eerie accurateness. Fun fact: The people at NASA are some real sci-fi nerds. Our girl Octavia has not one but two(!) astronomical...

Hey, readers! We're continue our celebration of Black Chick Lit with the second part of our discussion of the Black girl classic, The Color Purple by Alice Walker. We read the book and watched Steven Spielburg's 1986 film, made famous by Whoopi Goldberg, Danny Glover and, the Queen of the Nineties herself, Oprah! Be cure to check out the first part of our conversation if you missed it. We finish up by discussing the tragic story of Sophia, that time Celie got a bit murder-y and the...

Hey, readers! We're celebrating six years of Black Chick Lit with a discussion of the Black girl classic, The Color Purple by Alice Walker. We read the book and watched Steven Spielburg's 1986 film, made famous by Whoopi Goldberg, Danny Glover and, the Queen of the Nineties herself, Oprah! You know what this book is about. So, join us as we talk about Ms. Celie, THE Shug Avery, and that low-down dirty dog Mr. ______. We'll finish up the conversation in two weeks, so be sure to join us then,...

This winter, we got cozy with the podcast's first cozy mystery. We read A Glimmer of Death by Valerie Wilson Wesley, the first in the Odessa Jones series. We loved the characters in this book — and there are a bunch of them. There's Charlie, Dessa's a*****e boss/murder victim; Harley, her co-worker, whose innocence Dessa is tasked with proving; and Lennox, a former cop turned BBQ pit master who thinks Dessa is in way over her head. We gossip about all of them and their mess. We also chat...

Urban Fic Month may be delayed but it’s never canceled.

In this episode, we're joined by a special guest, Frank, to discuss another of our favorite genres: horror! Why does it share in common with romance? What defines a work of horror? And why are people trying so hard to "elevate" the genre? We also brainstorm the perfect romance for Frank to try and list off a dozen of different horror recs. If you wanna be part of the cool kids club, head over to Pateron and sign up. You’ll also get access to bonus materials including video and podcast...

October is here, and we're ready to get creepy. This episode, we read These Toxic Things by Rachel Howzell Hall. It was full of creepy stalkers, ruthless serial killers, explosive family secrets and ... one big dummy of a main character. (Mickie, girl, here's some advice: don't sleep with dudes you suspect may have killed their own mother.) We also chat about getting into the holiday spirit, that L.A. life and Rachel's expanded KU universe. If you wanna be part of the cool kids club,...

This episode, we're joined by Derrik of the Ratchet Book Club to discuss Loving My Wife and Her Sister, Too by Lady Lissa and Shelli Marie. We meet Analise (the wife), Zakiya (the sister) and Gavin (the f*****y) and dig into the messiness (or lack thereof) of their lives. Is Gavin a predator who groomed his wife (and her sister, too)? Would Analise ever cheat on Gavin? Who the f**k even is Micaela?? We also talk about the unexplored rachetness of Kindle Unlimited, new merch slogans and...

We’re getting spooky already at Black Chick Lit. This month, we read The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris and we had … thoughts. Listen in as we discuss what makes good Black horror, hair products you need to stay away from and iffy Instagram hashtags. If you wanna be part of the cool kids club, head over to Pateron and sign up. You’ll also get access to bonus materials including video and podcast outtakes. As always, a very special thank you to our Patrons: Ali, Andrea, Brittney,...

There were so many Arrested Development jokes we could have made. We're back for take two of our discussion of Stacey Abrams' novel While Justice Sleeps. It's not Ms. Abrams' writing debut, it is the first fiction book she's written under her name since becoming a national political force. And, to be honest, this book may be too smart for us. Along with complicated word puzzles, sophisticated chess analogies and bioengineering (wasn't expecting that!), this legal thriller dives into some...

There shall be no Luther slander on this podcast.

We're digging into all the -isms in this episode, y'all. We read Such a Fun Age, by Kiley Reid, which takes a sharp look at racism, classism and all the ways they can f**k up our lives. We read as Emira struggles to manage two flavors of problematic white people: her overcompensating, liberal #girlboss boss and her wanna-be-down love interest. They're both a mess and we hate them both! Listen in for a discussion on the insidiousness of microagressions, the cult of motherhood and how...

Hey, readers. Life really came and kicked some of us in the teeth, but we're back, we got all our shots and we're talking books. Bad news is good news, it turns out. Join us as we catch up, talk Simon & Schuster's complete lack of f***s and accept the fact that we are, in fact, nerds on a power trip. We also try to figure out what Middle Grade is and whether it's just for middle-schoolers. (Turns out, no!) QUESTION: What are your favorite middle grade books for an 8 year old who is...

Happy 2021, lovely listeners! It's our favorite time of the year: Urban Fic Month. (Okay, so we were still a little hungover from 2020 and this episode is a tad late. Forgive us!) This year, we read a classic: The Cartel, by Ashley & JaQuavis. There's money, romance, murder and a lot of anti-Haitian sentiment. It's uncomfortable. There's also some "sexy" farting (or should we say queuing?), a graphic castration and a whole lot of colorism. Get the alcohol ready, because this one is...

We’re wrapping up 2020 by talking about all the things we did (and didn’t do) to keep our heads above water. Sister Sistermarathon anyone? Topics include: Dr. Jill Biden Booktube shenanigans a campaign to get Dani to play Mass Effect Mollie saying Dallinar a lot and a reflection on our very social year Thanks as always to our generous patrons — we’ve got a ton of extras from this episode coming your way! Shout out to Martel, Jennifer, Ansela, Therese, Melissa, Catherine, Katie, Emily, LaToya,...

The children are alright. We just don't know what the hell they're doing.

What’s this? Another special guest?! This week we read When No One is Watching by Alyssa Cole, and we’re not gonna lie, the discussion goes in some weird places (apologies in advance to Robo X).  This is a thriller and it’s SPOILER FREE YA’LL, so you really have no excuse to download, listen, then go read this book! As always, a very special thank you to our Patrons: Martel, Jennifer, Ansela, Therese, Melissa, Catherine, Katie, Emily, LaToya, Ali, Kat, Montara, Maria, Adoria, Frank, Ellen,...

We're back and we have another special guest joining us this week! (Honestly, we're not used to being so popular.) This episode, we read The Boyfriend Project by Farrah Rochon, and got to chat about the book with the author herself. She spoke with us about the differences between traditional and indie publishing, how Samiah and her girls came to be and whether Daniel is too perfect a romance hero. She also gives us a few hints about the next book in The Boyfriend Project series. Thanks to our...

We got a real treat for y'all this episode! We read Take a Hint, Dani Brown, by Talia Hibbert, and were joined by the author herself for a conversation about everything including her move from indie publishing to traditional, the Black Lives Matter movement in Europe and whether her parents read her books. We did manage to also chat about Zaf, Dani and their hilarious romantic hijinks. Thanks to our patrons for their support: Adoria, Ali, Ansela, Bryonna, Catherine, Ellen, Emily, Frank, I...