#80 - Bloodmarked by Tracy Deonn (with Sam Cabrera-Dixon of Hardcover Hoes)

11/16/22 • 77 min

5 Listeners

Tune in as Sam Cabrera-Dixon (Hardcover Hoes) returns to 2CC for a discussion on Bloodmarked, the second book in the Legendborn Cycle by Tracy Deonn. The first book, Legendborn, had plenty of goodness to offer fantasy readers as a contemporary YA retelling of Arthurian legend. Is Bloodmarked a worthy follow-up (spoilers: it is)? Comparing the intricate worldbuilding to that of the Blood and Ash series, taking a minute to remember a specific Taylor Swift song, and diving into the layered dynamic between Bree and Sel are just a few of the things that Arthur and Sam do on this episode.

TW: Death of a parent and traumatic grief, combat/battle flashbacks, alcohol consumption, mind control/memory manipulation, drugging/medical abuse, forced captivity, racist macro and microaggressions, emesis (vomiting), blood, ritual magic self-harm to access blood (via hands with safety pin and sword), mild gore, torture, combat/interpersonal violence, murder, death, and mention(s) of: physical abuse, racist violence, sexual violence.

Spoilers start at 12:15

Good Word:

• Arthur: Netflix’s Falling for Christmas

• Sam: Midnights (3am Edition) by Taylor Swift and Christmas by Michael Bublé

Reach out at [email protected] if you want to recommend things to watch and read, share anecdotes, or just say hello!

Be sure to subscribe, rate, and review on iTunes or any of your preferred podcasting platforms!

Follow Arthur on Twitter, Goodpods, StoryGraph, and Letterboxd: @arthur_ant18

Follow the podcast on Twitter and Instagram: @two_centscritic

Follow Arthur on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144101970-arthur-howell

Spoilers start at 12:15

Good Word:

• Arthur: Netflix’s Falling for Christmas

• Sam: Midnights (3am Edition) by Taylor Swift and Christmas by Michael Bublé

Reach out at [email protected] if you want to recommend things to watch and read, share anecdotes, or just say hello!

Be sure to subscribe, rate, and review on iTunes or any of your preferred podcasting platforms!

Follow Arthur on Twitter, Goodpods, StoryGraph, and Letterboxd: @arthur_ant18

Follow the podcast on Twitter and Instagram: @two_centscritic

Follow Arthur on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144101970-arthur-howell

Previous Episode

#79 - The Deal by Elle Kennedy (with Dawn Marie of Opinionated Lushes)

4 Recommendations

Tune in as Dawn Marie (Opinionated Lushes) stops by the program to break down The Deal, the New Adult contemporary romance by Elle Kennedy (Briar U, Avalon Bay). As the first entry in her Off-Campus series, it follows the banter, the tutoring, the sparks, and the vulnerability between music major Hannah Wells and hockey captain Garrett Graham at Briar University. Breaking Bad, the importance of consent, and using overly cruel words to dump your partner are just a few of the topics that Arthur and Dawn touch on throughout the episode.

TW: discussion of rape, domestic abuse, child abuse, parental death, and cancer; there’s also quite a bit of sexual content, specifically in the second half of the book.

Spoilers start at 21:10

Good Word:

• Dawn: Still Beating by Jennifer Hartmann

• Arthur: Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Reach out at [email protected] if you want to recommend things to watch and read, share anecdotes, or just say hello!

Be sure to subscribe, rate, and review on iTunes or any of your preferred podcasting platforms!

Follow Arthur on Twitter, Goodpods, StoryGraph, and Letterboxd: @arthur_ant18

Follow the podcast on Twitter and Instagram: @two_centscritic

Follow Arthur on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144101970-arthur-howell

Next Episode

#81 - You by Caroline Kepnes (with Laura Petro and Meggie Gates of YA, We Read It!)

6 Recommendations

Tune in as Laura Petro and Meggie Gates (YA, We Read It!) hang out with Arthur for a review and recap of You, the 2014 debut novel by Caroline Kepnes. This psychological thriller is quite the wild ride, following bookstore clerk Joe Goldberg as he endeavors to show aspiring writer Guinevere Beck just how much he loves her and wants to take care of her—so much so that he’s willing to stalk, kidnap, and murder his way into her heart. The chillingly fleshed-out layers that Kepnes has written for the monstrous Joe, the many literary and film references, reimagining Werner Herzog as a food critic, and the parts of the story that play out like a rom-com are just a few of the topics that the hosts cover.

TW: stalking, murder, toxic relationship, misogyny, sexual content, drug abuse, infidelity, mentions of suicide, brief self-harm

Spoilers start at 26:00

Good Word:

• Meggie: Season 3 of Netflix’s Love Is Blind

• Laura: Season 31 of Survivor

• Arthur: The House Across the Lake by Riley Sager

Reach out at [email protected] if you want to recommend things to watch and read, share anecdotes, or just say hello!

Be sure to subscribe, rate, and review on iTunes or any of your preferred podcasting platforms!

Follow Arthur on Twitter, Goodpods, StoryGraph, and Letterboxd: @arthur_ant18

Follow the podcast on Twitter and Instagram: @two_centscritic

Follow Arthur on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144101970-arthur-howell