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Let's travel back to Oz in this West of Wicked Book! The day we’ve been waiting for since we started this podcast has come… the day when one of our favorite authors of all time’s people pop into OUR inbox to talk with our people (just us) for some crazy reason and invite us to yap about her new book. After we passed away, revived ourselves, and regained composure we immediately sent an email back to let them know that yes… we’d love to have NIKKI ST. CROWE on to promote West of Wicked!

Today we’re completely fangirling over chatting with originally indie published and now trad published queen of spicy Romantasy reimaginings Nikki St.Crowe! We’re here to celebrate her newly released spicy Oz retelling: West of Wicked, book one in The Great and Terrible Land Series! Think: Oz but Dorothy is badass, there are four witches, and the tinman, scarecrow, lion, and wizard are hot AF… You know, just exactly what all of us fairytale girlies have been fantasizing about our entire lives.

Today's episode will be completely spoiler free, so stick around to get to know Nikki better and to find out what you’ll be getting into when you pick up West of Wicked, or any of her other spicy fairytales, like her Vicious Lost Boys Series which begins with The Never King. We talk about what inspires her, how the transition from indie to trad publishing has been, themes, strong female characters, her audiobooks being unmatched in the romance genre, and what she has planned for the future.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for making this possible.

Follow Nikki on Instagram for the latest updates https://www.instagram.com/nikkistcrowe?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==

Get your copy of West of Wicked today! https://go.magik.ly/ml/3pvxs/

Don't be shy, subscribe! New Podcasts every Tuesday!! (And sometimes Friday!…)

Check out these author interviews? ⬇️

Penn Cole talks with us about Strong Female Characters, Feminist Themes, and her debut bestselling Spark of the Everflame Series! https://youtu.be/7ukNImyoObw?si=7C3Y9kOUMN4hfcKb

Check the official Follow Up Author Interview with Lindsay Straube of the Split or Swallow Universe all about Between Two Kings! https://youtu.be/OW1cxXTVcTc?si=oOxVIzbIheET_bNE

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Shop Bookish Merch we are wearing:

Ashley is wearing a Wicked OZ shirt from @TrendyStreetCouture but no longer makes this t-shirt

Liz is wearing our Besties and the Books Cropped hoodie from our Merch Drop | *

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We read Little Women and we want you to too! Even if after all is said and done we feel the unrelenting urge to store this beloved text in the freezer instead of on the bookshelf. IYKYK… and if you don’t, you will soon. We promise.

Welcome to our newest bonus series where we’re taking deep dives into some of the most beloved classics of our time. We kicked it off with Wuthering Heights, followed it up with Pride & Prejudice, and today we’re moving on to the final book in this classic series journey with our “Phone a Friend’ mini reading guide covering Little Women by Louisa May Alcott.

We decided that rather than attempt to become overnight experts we would send an SOS signal out into the universe and rope a friend in to assist! So today Nicole @neuroticallybookish is here to flex her teaching skills and give us a little help with Little Women, providing us with the tips and tricks we need to really understand this novel.

Nicole expertly breaks down the three character categories, the genre and themes, gives us some background on Louisa May Alcott herself, contextualizes the time period and relevant history, and gives us all her advice on how to truly immerse yourself in this story, and get the most out of it.

We hope that you enjoy this bonus mini episode, and will join us for our future deep dive into the novel and movies! And don’t forget to go follow @neuroticallybookish for some more amazing bookish content!

Don't be shy, subscribe! New Podcasts every Tuesday!! (And sometimes Friday!…)

• Shop our Merch line | * https://besties-and-the-books-shop.fourthwall.com

Check out these narrator interviews? ⬇️

Anthony Palmini gives us the lowdown on what it’s like to voice act Rhysand, Kingfisher, AND Slade Ravinger!

https://youtu.be/zcCyrlZ5Jcc?si=2k7ULbRPgZl_5pUJ

Check out these author interviews? ⬇️

We interviewed Callie Hart all about her NYT Bestseller Quicksilver! Watch it here! https://youtu.be/CED5s7qDBdQ?si=8xtIRO1IzX6Rsld4

Check the official Follow Up Author Interview with Lindsay Straube of the Split or Swallow Universe all about Between Two Kings! https://youtu.be/OW1cxXTVcTc?si=oOxVIzbIheET_bNE

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Shop Bookish Merch we are wearing:

Ashley is wearing: A Anne of Green Gables T-shirt from Amazon | *https://amzn.to/41eXnA2

Liz is wearing : A “So Lorcan Did” Tank by @swoonandspineshop | swoonandspine.shop

Any link with an * is an affiliate link through the service Magic Links and is eligible for a commission to us with no extra cost to you. Thank you for helping support our podcast!

Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

Support the show

YouTube | TikTok | Instagram | Podcast Platforms
@BestiesandtheBooksPodcast

Besties and the Book Club on Fable!
https://fable.co/bestiesandthebookclub-474863489358

Liz
Instagram | TikTok
@TheRealLifeVeganWife

Ashley
Instagram | TikTok
@AshleyEllix

Send us Fan Mail

Well, we’ve laughed, we’ve cried; we’ve gasped and screamed and waited with breath that was bated… and now here we are, at book six: Goldfinch, the final installment and official conclusion to the Plated Prisoner Series by Raven Kennedy.

What an incredible journey this has been. So today, to commemorate the ending of our coverage, we’re bringing you our final deep dive AND our official book ranking, our rating of the series as a whole, our thoughts on the ending, and our premonitions for the future!

We discuss our favorite and least favorite parts, characters, and tropes, but also get into deeper themes, feminist and societal issues addressed, and why this Romantasy series is particularly important (and one of our favorites of all time). We also talk audiobook deets, Goodreads reviews, and potential openings for a spin off series. And… we introduce a new tool in the Besties workshop: the Cryometer™.Yes, it’s a gauge designed to track and quantify how many tears Raven Kennedy collected from us during this 706 page rip-your-heart out finale.

Tune in for all that, our recent Disney trip fave and fails and a smash or pass, rapid fire Plated Prisoner edition.

Don't be shy, subscribe! New Podcasts every Tuesday!! (And sometimes Friday!…)

Check out these narrator & author interviews? ⬇️

Anthony Palmini gives us the lowdown on what it’s like to voice act Rhysand, Kingfisher, AND Slade Ravinger!

https://youtu.be/zcCyrlZ5Jcc?si=2k7ULbRPgZl_5pUJ

We interviewed Callie Hart all about her NYT Bestseller Quicksilver! Watch it here! https://youtu.be/CED5s7qDBdQ?si=8xtIRO1IzX6Rsld4

+ so many more!

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Shop Bookish Merch we are wearing:

Ashley is wearing: A Custom FireHeart Cropped Tee from @DownTheBondofficial | Use Code: BestiesandtheBooks for 15% | https://www.downthebond.com

Liz is wearing : The Female Gaze Petrifies the Men Crop Tank by @feralreaderco | https://feralreaderco.com

Any link with an * is an affiliate link through the service Magic Links and is eligible for a commission to us with no extra cost to you. Thank you for helping support our podcast!

Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

Support the show

YouTube | TikTok | Instagram | Podcast Platforms
@BestiesandtheBooksPodcast

Besties and the Book Club on Fable!
https://fable.co/bestiesandthebookclub-474863489358

Liz
Instagram | TikTok
@TheRealLifeVeganWife

Ashley
Instagram | TikTok
@AshleyEllix