Bestie Book Date: Fantasy/Romantasy, Favorite Tropes & The Books That Broke Us | Booked & Busy w/ Olivia Ponton

Hi, angels. Welcome back to another episode of Booked and Busy. Today, we have an incredible guest. We have my best friend in the whole wide world. Miss Emma Brooks. Hi, guys. On our way to the studio, I could see Emma's location on my phone that was like right next to me. So I look out the window and she's down. So I was like, "You!" She did, she cat-called me. Yeah, I didn't. And you know, it worked. So it did work. I picked her up. Maybe let's not recommend. Okay, so clearly on Booked and Busy, we're talking about all things books related. So I want you to tell the story from your perspective on how we both got back into reading because I've said it before, but I wanted to come from the heart, the heart and the soul. Yeah, I got back into reading what it was 2021 when we were living together. Yeah, end of 2021. That wretched apartment. Yeah, that was, yeah, a scary, scary place. But we were living together and you came home with a humongous book and it was Crave by Tracy Wolf. And I don't know, you just really got into it like in a very obsessed fashion. I felt like it was right after Christmas break because I remember I read it when I had COVID in New York City. So I didn't, I was locked in my apartment for two weeks. And I couldn't tell you what in my brain was like, let's pick up this 500-page book and like, let me just try reading it. I didn't. Like, off-rep, like I did not read anything else prior to that. Like this was before you fell in love with Colleen Hoover. Yeah, like you. This is the first book, like, I don't know when it incentivized me. And no, but you loved it so much and it made me want to love something that much. But I also, I used to, I used to love reading, especially whenever I was younger. And I fell out of love with it because I feel like it was forced upon me. Yeah. That made me not want to read as much. That was the same thing. I just don't like how much teachers, do you ever read the giver ring up? Yeah, that was like a part of art. Yeah, that was a thing. School. I liked that one more because it was like a part of that dystopian. But it was an older book. So it was like a little bit more old fashioned. But I remember reading Silas Marner and like hating my life. And it was like forced upon me. And I just did not want to, I didn't want to read it. And it was, that one specifically, I hate it. But that was the way you feel about that book was with me and the giver. Like it was so forced. And we had to read like a certain amount of pages like every single night for this class. And I would literally just like skim a page. And if they asked me a question, I'd just be like, I'm sorry, I did. And it's so boring to me. Like I just, I couldn't get into it. But I think it's because I hated my teacher so much. And anything that they told me to do, I was like, no. Yeah, no, I was also the same. Like I just literally didn't want to do anything that they told me to do. So out of spite. Yeah, sorry. And then, um, no, she read all of the books in the Crave series. Oh, I devoured. Yeah, I think I only read, I got to the book before when Jackson and what's the main character of the book again, Holden and Grace, like his, his brother, his evil brother Hudson. Yeah. Hudson. Yeah. Am I getting Jackson from his name's Grace? Yeah. Gargoyle Grace. Yes. Oh my god. Okay, I'm not going to lie. Like looking back on that book. It's not. I've read other fantasy books that have opened up my, um, eyes to maybe what no Tino shade to trace you off. There's just, there's better world building. Yeah. And what makes like a good fantasy, like what makes it well-rounded. And like you know, I'm a diehard thrown of glass fan through ruin through a moment of silence for thrown of glass. Thank you very much. I mean, I would honestly agree with you because I felt like it was a really good first book for me to read and hopefully for you too, because I feel like that was the first bit of like addiction I got from a book. Yeah. And then I feel like we went on to feel those exact feelings with like calling Hoover, but like that first moment where you're like 100 pages in and you're like, wait, I think I, I think I like it here. I think I'm going to say it. Yeah. Like I think we, especially because it flew by like 100 pages to 300 pages, like then you're done and you're like, wait, what? It's been two days. But no, I, I remember flying through those books and then from there, I read, I needed to understand the hype behind calling Hoover, because this is whenever she was really blowing up. So I read like five of her books backed back. Is there a memory? Yeah, and I remember very, very specifically. I was on my way home from the Newark Airport and I called you because I think I just finished like ugly love or November 9th. Yeah. And we like had to talk about it. Both, I mean, I've read not every book by her, but pretty much you've read more calling Hoover than I like read five and like I haven't picked it up since. Yeah. But I would say the same, I read all of her books and then I haven't really touched one, but she just came out with a book called Woman Down I think. Hey, it's supposed to be like a scary book, like a horror one. Okay. So like Verity's obviously like a little bit more like haunted vibes. Yeah. And then she's one named Lila. I honestly didn't finish it because I lost the book and I visa and then I never bought it again, but I read the first like three quarters and it was basically like a couple got it lived in this house and she was in love with the man, but a ghost started communicating to her and then I think she starts falling in love with the ghost. It was really weird, but it was like creepy, but not creepy to the point where I couldn't read it. Yeah. It was just like all at some point. So I was like, okay, she's an interesting one. Yeah. And then so I think Woman Down is like in that same kind of field because I think Verity performed so well. Yeah. Verity was really good. I actually will say I enjoyed it. Now like I think like November 9th was like my favorite for a while, but then it was like so I read five calling hooper books and then I read Killer Jenkins Read and that's whenever I was like, oh, this is good writing. And then I was like, okay, I'm back into reading. I read like seven husbands of Evelyn Hugo, Malibu Rising and Daisy Jones in the six back to back to back. I couldn't do Daisy Jones. And I told you this one because I love Evelyn Hugo. That was like in my painting, like a six star book, like incredible. Yeah, I love that. And it was just like good. Like at the time of my life, I felt like I could relate to the characters and like a weird kind of parallel universe. And then I read Malibu Rising and I thought I was in love with it because it's Malibu and it's surfing and it's like so me. I'm like, okay. And then I think I equally got like three fourths done. I remember you not like finished it. I remember I don't think you did because I remember you couldn't get it. I couldn't get into it. Yeah, I remember you not being able to get into it. I think I read that one last and I loved it because I thought it was fun that there was like crossovers from like the universes. Like it did have seven like Evelyn Hugo crossover and the Daisy Jones crossover, I believe. It's been so long since I've read it. But no, those were those were like the stages of me getting back into reading. Um, would you read after that then? After that because I remember that time it was right when I moved into the apartment that I live in now because I was reading Evelyn Hugo and I remember posting it and people being like I feel like that was also when book talk was like really getting on my for you page. Yeah. And like I was finally talking about books with other people than just you because I feel like for like a year and a half for the only person I talk to pop books with. Yeah. Because you're the only person that in my life that read, which you still kind of are. And Sabrina reads too. Yes, yes she does. No, after that I read I was getting into like different romances. Now the books that I read, it's very different. Like I read Spanish love deception book lovers. That's the only Emily. Yeah, that's the only. What do you think about book lovers? I loved it. Really? I'm really I'm looking at my looking at my review right now on what he's good read. I'm a Brooks. I know it's I'm a book. We that's really. Yeah. That's my user name. Oh, let's see. What did I say? This book was so fun to read. The character development is amazing. And what you think happens actually doesn't happen, which in my opinion is a win. This is so funny. Like, yeah, being unpredictable can sometimes be hard with romance novels. Also, the romance between Charlie and Nora and never made me cringe. Their chemistry was very enjoyable. This book is definitely for anyone looking for a good romcom read. Did you laugh out loud reading it? I think so. I think there was a couple points. And then I read normal people and conversations with friends back to back and had a manic episode because of it. You know, literally made me spiral. I remember being I was in New York actually and I was sitting on the sidewalk with on the phone with my therapist, like rocking back and forth, crying, being like, and I was like, damn you, who's Ali Rooney? And you know what? I feel like that is why I like reading so much because I feel like it can give you emotions that like nothing else really can because yes, you'll have like a manic episode about it, but then you can come back to Earth and be like, this isn't real. Oh, 100%. And I feel like that's what I like, I read if he had been with me. Oh, I don't remember the author, but it was like a book talk book. No, I remember. I remember that. Yeah. And I read it. I was in Columbia with my family for Christmas. Yes. Yeah. And there was guys six people in one a one bedroom apartment. It mean my dad, my sister, it was a lot, but I didn't really have anything to do. So I read this gut wrenching book and it was so cute. It was a love story. I was like, oh, it's adorable. Like I love this book. And then the ending happened and I woke everyone up from about the amount of it's crying at night. They were like what my mom literally thought like something really traumatic happened to me And I was like my book and she's like bro, you kidding me. It's like wait, I want to cry I think I need I think I need another book that will that book right that hard. Yeah, that book made me ball my eyes out A thousand boy kisses. I remember me. Oh my god. I was not I was not okay after that book And then I just read enemy of time. Oh my god I didn't know that was gonna be sad book either until I got to the end and then I was literally Yeah, sounds intriguing Okay, so now we're gonna go back into the crave series because I want to know from your perspective Why do you think it was a good book for you to get into and segue into reading? I think it was really good for me because it's just it's Fantasy is so easy to enjoy if you like Love that realm anyway like especially like I love I enjoy those kinds of movies I already whenever I was younger I really was a big hunger games girl. So like that era of time where like maze runner like divergent I was literally gonna ask you I was like if you had to pick a movie between divergent hunger games and maze runner, which would be your favorite movies hunger games Really catching fire specific. Yeah Best one like the actual adaptation of it is so good and We read them. Yeah, I read all of them. I was a hunger games girl like I had the side braid in everything I actually really want to see a picture of yeah, I need to find I am like my childhood best friend her name is Alex and she She was like my cat in a sever dain Truly she was where you feed up. I Was a gale. I was just attracted to Liam. I was worth whenever I was a kid But when I know I know I'm an adult because PETA is obviously the best man out there But whenever I was younger those thick eyebrows really got me Are you serious? I think I also like him and like Miley were yeah, I'm sick of her and like I just like loved them but no Gale sucks so bad stop whining god damn Anyway, what were you I was you give divergent? Yeah, like I I would say it's in between divergent and Hunger games, but I love I found maze runner a little bit later in life like I didn't watch them Tell no Brian, so I think I remember watching the first maze runner movie I think I was in like seventh grade because I remember being up my childhood friends Claire Daniels house And we watched it and I was like what what's up with these walls moving what is going on? I was so confused and then I feel like I watched divergent and that actually changed the way that I looked at life. I Really really really wanted to be a part of divergent I wanted it to be a real thing. I was like oh my gosh like what which of the the four would you be? I think I would want to be don't list, but like I feel like I'd go into law probably probably really law maybe maybe I'm just saying I would see like Have negation or isn't abnegation isn't the the woman like in the fields. Oh, that's like you think I'm a farmer I could kind of see you like me. I would love a peaceful life like yeah, like I don't really I'm trying to remember all of them I know I'm not the one where they're like no the stiffs. Yeah Are you talking about I like looking at myself? No, yeah I wouldn't be don't I probably would but would I be you you'd probably be a lawyer you think yeah wow you're like Would you think I would be with the government that that you know remember like the whole preface of dot Oh, yeah, I virgin is like the government versus the people and yeah Well, yeah, cuz like I be with them or would I be a part of the rebels? Well, I feel like I would hope in the world that we would be a part of the rebel. Yeah, we would be rebels Did you read reform by Ariel Sullivan? No, I did. It's like really similar to divergent Oh, and it's like really really really really really good. There's I want to put the sound to the to the internet because I've been Looking for this book series that I read whenever I was in middle school. I'm curious if you know I don't know the name of it, but it's a series. Okay. It's a young adult Mm-hmm, and it's like five teenagers in this like beachside town. There's like really There's like the really rich kids and there's like one girl who's like not so rich Mm-hmm, but like one of she has like she's like getting bullied but like dating one of the guys and there's like a murder Oh, and it's like a murder mystery kind of Thriller YA it was like existing around the pretty little liars. Okay of the world at that time and if anyone knows What it is. Please come. Please believe it. I've gone I've been looking for two years to find this book But me saying all of this is I already loving dystopian books whenever I was younger I had never really read I had never read Twilight whenever I was younger which I regret yeah, but I still haven't read it Actually, we'd love to read that but I had never tapped into fantasy So when you write I was like oh like I loved these books when I was younger Maybe I'll enjoy it as an adult and I thoroughly did They'll open the open the door to thrown of glass. Yeah, Akatar was a disco like once I discovered Akatar Which you know, I know everyone's read it I know how popular it is and I loved it as I was reading it But then I discovered like reading thrown of glass was such an all-encompassing experience because it's just such a commitment and it's she does such a good job with doing great world building but not too much I feel like the problem with Akatar was there was so much world building and that was my problem with it is I felt like I went From reading fourth wing and I think I tried reading Akatar like pretty much directly after it because I was like Oh, I love this like fantasy world like let me try this next and comparatively to fourth wing the world building was like times four and I was like is anything going to happen? Any fights no insects like what's going on? It took me I think it took me two to three Tries to get through the first book and then once I got to a court of Miss and Fury I was like okay, I'm understanding see my was opposite I really got into Akatar and then by a court of Miss and Fury whatever it is I would say furry but it's just not You also used to say a court of the words and the words It's like but I love it that I look. It's cute and endearing whenever you do that I said things by that I got it like halfway through this second book and I was just like I think I remember texting you and being like Does anything happen because like holy crap? I felt like I've spent the past month reading this book and I'm still not to something that is like attention grabbing. Yeah, so I gave up. No, and that's that's so Fair, but what was your favorite parts of throwing glass? Like if you could say like three Mm-hmm. I don't know like a theme or like something that was like reoccurring or like a love dynamic while there are like We'll be talking about this. I think alyn Gallatinius why aren't Crazy name by the way crazy name. I love the name alyn, but no she is probably one of my favorite protagonists I mean, I love how in fantasy books are like her tiny, skinny little waist Curves and you're bouncy curly hair. I'm like Jesus Christ But she's one of the I don't know sometimes I find that like some writers make their protagonist like Purposefully aggressive or like purposefully like really annoying and you kind of like hate them a little bit she Had secrets but like with good purpose and I really thought that there was always these full circle moments happening throughout the series Like things were always tying in together Constantly. It was like a venn diagram throughout each book connected to one another. I loved the tandem read Mm-hmm. I actually really enjoyed the tandem read by the at first I was like holy shit reading two books at the same time is really a commitment and this is crazy and the size of them too Yeah, because they were both like what 600 pages. Yeah, so it's like you're reading a 1200 page book, but whatever But whatever whatever it's fine and you know by the time I finished I was like wow I'm so glad that I did this and then the last book being a thousand pages Which kingdom of ash is I think about it every other day and that book made me cry like so like I was like four pages I don't know four chapters and I was like really I loved her and her dynamic with It was enemies to lovers, which is my favorite trope really enemy see I feel like you would not like enemies to lovers Oh, I love it. I love it so much What's your favorite trope I got asked this question a few weeks ago, and I like didn't really know to say because I'm like I love like this isn't a trope, but like I love a massive plot twist like preferably if the book can have like three plot twist That's like my golden ticket, but like a trope maybe I love like a protector of some sort and then like she's in trouble And like he needs to save her. Yeah, he's like because then that brings action into it. Don't touch her Yeah, sometimes when I'm reading that I'm like you know No one cares about why I'm like whenever it's so impressive whenever you can write something Mm-hmm like that and like not make me want to crawl out of my skin And that's probably why like I'm so bad at reading regular romance novels now. Yeah, I read problematic Italian summer Oh, I thought it was one Italian summer No, it was like problematic something. It's by Ali Hazelwood the girl. Oh, okay. Okay. It's problematic something Yeah, summer anyway, and now is like the first time I read a normal Romance that wasn't like a fantasy. It was good. I don't know fantasy romance Just hits different because I'm like yeah, you're in trouble the world is ending Everything is shit and it's not real like it's just not real. No It's not real in any capacity. Yeah, and all of the romance novels just maybe this is me being a pessimist they're all feelin' realistic to me. - And I would agree with that. My last episode was for The Deal by Elle Kennedy and while I was talking about it, it's a cute story, but it's a little cringe and everyone knows that and everyone agrees with that because it's so unrealistic because why would you ever fake date in real life? - Yeah. - You know what I mean? Like I get having a guy best friend in them being like, oh, let me hang out with you more so this guy gets jealous, but to a certain degree, I'm like, question more. I know I'm like, it's just not real and I think I enjoy the reality that fantasy is setting 'cause I'm like, oh, okay, I know this isn't real. I don't know, I think I just enjoy that kind of romance more, but sometimes I'll tap in just to be like, do I enjoy this? I was talking about it at the book swap, now we did for Coach, we do what we do in the dark, which is like, sometimes I like the love story like that, which is like a sapphic story that is set between a student who has an affair with her professor. - I know. - And it's like not like one of those like, oh, this is like a he-he-ha-ha romance. This is like, oh, wait, that's not, wait, that's fucked up. But like, it's real, I'm like, wait, this is real. I was able to relate to it. I felt very seen in different ways and it was just like fascinating and like that's more interesting to me. And also like I try not to read just fantasy or like stick to one genre just so I can like expand my mind a little bit and not get sucked into the world of Prithian or more. - Well that was my thing is like, I feel like so many times I've read like the same genre for like three weeks straight or like three books back to back. And I feel like by the time I get to the third book in that same genre, it just doesn't hit the same because I'm like so used to those same emotions. So like recently I've been trying to do like, if I read a fantasy book, I can't read fantasy for like one or two more books. I have to like go into something else. And it's like that's been kind of good for me. Like I read the butcher in the blackbird and that's kind of like romance X like quarry horror almost. - Whoa. - It's like kind of disturbing, but like in a good way. If that makes sense. - Is it like a dark romance? - No, 'cause there's not like, no. Because I actually did read one and I stopped reading because once the guns came out, I was like, that's not this, I can't do this. - Yeah, I can't even talk about it, I hate that self. Yeah, I had to put that down. I was in Hawaii and I was like reading on the beach. And I was like, this is just not a book that you pick up on the beach, first of all. But it's kind of like a horror mix with like, there are two serial killers who like fall in love. But there are some killers that kill other serial killers. - Whoa. - So it's like a, I think honestly, probably would really like- - Wait, no, I would love that. - Yeah, so it's like, you go along with them on their like journeys to kill people. Sorry, that's like kind of gruesome to say it out. But then they also kind of like, realize that they really enjoy each other's presence and like that they understand each other because they're both like these like, I mean, you gotta be a little insane to be able to do that for your job. - Yeah. - So I don't know, I read that and that was kind of like, a genre I never tapped into it and then I read, the anime of Time, which like, I was really not, okay, after that one. I was really really, really proud of that one. - Yeah, and then I read Guilds by Raven Kennedy. Have you heard of that? - Yeah. - Like a white cover with a gold face on it. - Yeah, yeah, yeah. - I read that and it felt like the tip of an iceberg, if that makes me sense. - Okay. - Because the book was very short. It was like 250 pages or 300 pages. And normally fantasy book is like six or seven. Right, anyways, I felt like it was a perfect book to end off in, so you can start the second book, but I don't have the second book, so I was like, well, now I'm just stuck on it. It's cliffhanger. And then I'm reading Mile High by Liz Tom Ford. It's part of like her Wendy City series. - Oh. - If you know what I'm talking about. - I feel like I've heard of it. I haven't read it or anything. - So you know what was really good was the book that you got me, the Quicksilver book. - Yeah. - I actually really enjoyed that book. - Wanna tell about, talk about it. - Yeah, Liv and I did a book swap for Christmas. And she gave me this book, Quicksilver, which has a second book, Bremstone, that I really wanna read. I'm reading "Having Way" right now. - Oh. - This one also rises. I was like, let me expand my mind a little bit more. It's good so far, really. - Yeah, it's old, it's older books. So it's just like takes me a second. - Yeah. - No, but it's good. And I'll probably treat myself to Bremstone maybe after. - Okay, so now we're gonna go into self-care with books because for me at least, it is a part of my self-care routine because if you don't like set time to read every day, you don't read. And I feel like in my brain the only time I have to read is when I'm not doing like work or hangout friends and stuff like that. So my brain, self-care, because that's the way I can validate it. So tell me your favorite self-care routine or like day that includes reading. - Ideally, I'm reading in like a third space. So like whether it's like a coffee shop, a library, like a really like, I mean, there's so many libraries in New York, a park. Ideally outside is best case scenario if we're talking dream worlds like a spa. But like reading in a third space where like I'm like truly and like alone, 'cause I live alone time. And I'm just like with my book and I'm either drinking tea or wine. - Take your poison. Very comfy clothes, whether it's like a robe or just like loose trousers and like a t-shirt. Like and I'm just comfortable. - I like to listen to like, like playlist. That matches my book. - Yeah. - You're one of those people. - Oh my God, when I was reading Throne of Glass, like I was like, (imitating music) like I was like listening to like music scorings while I was like reading my book because it felt like a movie. Like literally there was, oh my God. I'm gonna sound like a crazy person. Okay, whatever. They were on the battlefield and like the, like the, when the perfect song starts playing and like a scene is playing out in a book. Oh my God, it just feels like so serendipitous. It's so awesome and it's fun. Like it's so fun to like have something like that happen and I've only done that. I think it was with fourth wing and I listen to like the ambiance music from the playlist. But I know some books have like a curated playlist for it. But I can't listen to music that has words in it while I'm reading. So I normally listen to like anti-anxiety frequencies. I like one very specific playlist on Spotify that I listen to literally every single day. - Oh. - And I just listen to my free time day because it comes to me now. - No, I love listening to frequencies, especially if I'm walking. But now I want to do audio books while I read. Like for example, the book that I'm reading right now, like I said, it's a little bit harder. I mean, to just like sit down and read. Once honestly though, once I started reading it and like a transatlantic accent, it made it a lie to read 'cause I was like, I'm understanding the tone. I was not getting the tone. I was reading it in my voice and I was like, what the fuck are you saying? - I'd love to hear you. - You narrate an audiobook for me. - Oh, I would love. That's my dream. I want to, I would love to narrate a book. - I know, wouldn't that be fun? I've also talked about that. I'm like, that would just be like, 'cause I drew a wheelie on who's a little narrated, like 700 audiobooks. So I'm like, what's that like? And she's like, I read a lot and I read books two or three times. And I'm like, okay, I don't know about reading a book like twice and she's a reader. And I'm like, I just don't want to learn that one. - But have you listened to any other books on audiobooks that would that be your first one? - This would be my first one, just saying. - So I'm trying to, yeah, I want to, I have some words to say about that. - So you know, Sterling, I went to a Spotify, the Spotify, did you go to that? - No, I wasn't able to. - Okay, at the event. So Harling Cobain gave a speech to you that is. He's like the author of like, you know, all those craze. Oh, I don't know if you watch those types of movies. I love them. They're like a limited series on Netflix. He's most recent one that just came out was called Missing You. And it's about like a missing person. I've probably watched four of them. So there's ones called Stay Close, Missing You, Lazarus, The Woods, they're all in Netflix. - Okay, I'll have to look it up. - But, oh, I'm a huge fan of it. But anyways, Spotify just came out with this new feature that you can scan your physical book and then it will pick up the audio book version of it. So 'cause my biggest thing with audiobooks is I hate having to find exactly where I, 'cause I like to go back and forth. So if I'm like cleaning one day, I want to listen to the audiobook, but then I'm gonna read it later that night, my kryptonite is like trying to find where I left off in between, but now you can just scan the book and it will go vice versa. So if you're listening to audiobook, you scan your book and like you're gonna have to flip a few pages, but then it will tell you the exact sentence that it left off on and what page that's gonna be on. - Wait, amazing. - So it's the nice. So that was what you missed. It's about a five thing. - I feel like it'll help with reading books that are a little bit like harder like the classics. Like the classics are not easy. - Yeah. - I'm just not, I'm just, I want, I want to be one of those people I want to be. - I'm just a fourth wing girl at heart. I don't know what to tell you. - No, it's. - Have you read Pride and Prejudice? - I have read a fourth of it. Okay, and then I also have like, like I have like weathering heights for dummies, which haven't read yet. - Oh, there's one for dummies. - Like it's like a, well, I don't know if you did this in high school, but when we were doing Shakespeare, like there's like someone called Shakespeare for dummies, and it like will have the play on one side, and then a modern translation on the other side. So it's just like easier to understand if you're dumb. You were not dumb. But I just think like anyone, that's why I've always been so daunted by like the older classmates. - It's intimidating. - It's intimidating. - I just don't talk like that. And for me to sit down and lock into a book, like I just, I have to be able to. read it in like a timely manner because if I spend more than like three weeks on a book, it's like, I'm done. I'm not doing this anymore. That was actually my 2026 resolution is that if a book took me longer than three weeks to read, I'm just gonna, I'm done. Yeah. Unless, of course, it's like a thousand-page book. But if it's like 200 pages and I haven't touched it in four days, it's like, well, yeah, I'm not gonna, I never forced myself to finish anything. Okay, now we're gonna ask Q and A's, which I feel like it's basically what I've been doing. But these are more like niche, specific questions that I came up with myself that I was like, yeah, what am I curious about with so first question. If you could reread a book for the first time, which book would you reread? Oh my god, that's such a question. My first answer was the alchemist because that book, I read it in high school, but it really like kind of changed my philosophy on life. It just like changed my way of thinking. It was so good. I really wish I could rediscover that book for the first time. And then the indulgent side of me wishes I could read Kingdom of Ash. For the first time. I would do anything. I've never read either of these books. Alchemist is really amazing. And he's a short book too. It's a short book. It's just, it's so, it's so good. I was recommending it like when I first started reading, like right after I think I read the Crave series. And I bought it. I had two of them. Just never touched it. Favorite place to read at your house. My town couch that I have in the corner. Can you explain this couch? Yeah. So I have a couch. It's my first, I have couch. I got it when I first moved, like when I first moved to LA, I thrifted it for like 90 bucks. It's an amazing couch. And I've literally dragged it with me from like wherever I have lived. Okay. For six years. We need to preface the Koreatown apartment. Yeah. So basically when Emma and I first met, it was in Los Angeles. Right when TikTok started, there was like these crazy Snapchat. Group chats. Yeah. Where it would just be like anyone that was even remotely on the app, we would get added into these, like I'm talking like 20 plus people in these Snapchat group chats. And we would just talk 24/7 all day long and a lot of those people are so in my life, like really? This is how I was introduced to Emma. What did I post because you swiped up on it? You posted something about either signing to Illumina or going to college to like your dream school. Yeah. And I set up on your story about you modeling. And then you told me that you were moving to LA. And then I told her I was moving to LA because I was doing an internship out there. And she was like, oh, like we should be friends. Like I don't know anyone. And I was like, I don't know. At all. Like I know actually zero people. That is how we initially became friends. And then we started hanging out and going on hikes all the time. Yeah. And she was like my health active friend. And then I dragged her to the dark side. And then we started just like going out a lot. I remember so specifically I was at a party in Malibu. And it was like four o'clock in the freaking morning. And no ubers were connecting. And this was like an Oscar's party or something like that. Yeah. Crazy, crazy night. And I couldn't get an Uber. I had been trying for like two plus hours. So I call Emma at like literally three o'clock in the morning. And I was like, can you come pick me up? She drove from Koreatown to I'm talking deep Malibu. Like it had to have been like an hour or two drive. It picks me up and then takes me back to my house in Calabasas. And I think he went back home after that. I did. Like how? And that's when I was like, wow. And I went to work next. That's crazy. Yeah. Yeah. She's always been like that very protective, which I love in a very protective over my friends. But yeah, that's how we met. But I was living in this like really. I was a broke 18 year old. I had to live in LA. Like I lived in like a really dodgy place for a little bit. But that's where I live and I met. And that's where this couch came in. And now it's like, but it's so comfortable. It's like one solid cushion, like a love sea. And I left like huddle into the corner. It's like molded to my body now at this point. So that's my favorite place to read. It was just a meme. Is that couch went with you every single place that you went? Yeah. And you were like, can't forget the Ktown couch. No, it's the one thing. I'm a very sentimental person. And it's like one of the only pieces I have from that time. And it was, I don't know, that apartment is so important to me. So I just was like, I'm going to keep you forever. And like even my mom, my mom now is like, if you ever want to get rid of that couch, like, please give it to me. I'll keep it. And I was like, okay, I'm really sentimental. Yeah. Going back to the Q&A, what is one destination from one of the books that you've read? Like any of the magical islands, like any of that, which would you travel to? Mine would be Lightlark. The island of Lightlark from The Lightlark by Alexander. I want to read that book. I really recommend I think as a fantasy world, you would, it's a perfect mixture of like world building and action. Okay. My opinion. I would go to yeah, Akatar is. I don't know how pronounced that either. I would go there because it just like the night court sounds so magical. Spring court sounds nice. Spring court is definitely your vibe. I like love. I think the night court is like my dream. So yeah, I have to go there. I would go to where Guild is taking place because the king turns everything into gold. So your entire living quarters are like the entire castle is made out of gold because everything touches it turns gold. I feel so overwhelming. It could be, but it could also be gold. Love to go. Love to try it out. Who's your favorite author? If you could pick like literally one, like if you could set out a talk to one of them, I would probably be RF quang, or RF quang. She wrote Babel, which was one of my favorite books of 2024 that I've read. And I think that she would just be very interesting to talk to. Like that book truly for an entire, for like the rest of the year, I was just talking to everyone about translation and conversation. I just find it's so fascinating. And like I think she'd be someone who's really interesting to talk to her or Otesa Mochefeg. Yeah. I just want, I'm like you fast name me. Where the, did you come up with this reading lap, Vona was the craziest experience of my life. Like what are you the grape scene? I don't know what you're talking about. I don't want to know what you're talking about. I'm scared about it. You don't even want to know. You wouldn't like it. It's so gnarly. So I think Otesa is someone who I would like love to talk to. And like I, I haven't read Eileen, but I got my girlfriend Eileen for her birthday. And she read it and she loved it. I just like find her mind fascinating. Like you're a breast and relaxation. Like there's just so many. I remember you reading me your good reads for my year of breast and relaxation. And I was just like, I like, I whenever I do write a review, I, you know, I'm not a critic and I'm not, you know, I write for fun. I'm not a critic. I'm just writing that it's the longest review that I have because I was like, what is going on? So those are two people. I mean, and then for fun, like Miss Moss, of course, because I'm just like Sarah J Moss. Sorry. Okay. My girl is like, where? When is she getting more? For me, she's coming out to be this year. But are they all across? I don't know. I don't know what they're apart. It's also Crescent City is like a good one, actually. I really enjoy all of her bugs. So. Okay. So then this kind of ties into my other question, because I think I know what you're going to say. But if you could be casted in a book adaptation, what character would you want to be casted for? It's okay. It's white horn. What? The main character from, uh, the main character from the one of us. Okay. So then I was going to say before, before you really had that locked in there. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. I was just like, okay, divide it into like fantasy and then romance to see. Okay. Because I think that's two different genres. I was going to say romance, but I just don't really feel like you're giving. No. You want to be in the romance. I mean, I think for film, yes. Okay. So then throw that genre in there. Actually, I know exactly. I know exactly what I would want to be. I would want to be in a dark and drowning tide, which is just like dark, accurate, sapphic, dark academia, kind of minor bits of fantasy. Okay. It's actually more about, it's more like alchemy. So the next segment we're going to do is if you could recommend me one book from what we've talked about today, which would you recommend me? And then I'm going to say for you. I would recommend you actually wrote down, actually wrote down three. Okay. While she looks at those, I would recommend you conform by Ariel Sullivan, just from like hearing your movie preferences and the fact that you love a dystopian world. That is like the perfect dystopian world. And it's not too long of a book. I think it's like 400 ish. And the next book comes out, I think in March. So if you like read it kind of soon ish, then you could go right into the next book, which could be. I think you would really, really, really, if you liked quick silver, I feel like I kind of have a good part. So I think that would be good. I think that you would really like, since you're kind of reading different things now, I think the last thing he told me was a really good Laura Dave. It was actually turned into a show or a movie, but I read it in one sitting on a plane. And it's like, it's like a mystery thriller about this woman looking for her husband. And I just think that since you're like kind of switching up your genres, like that would be really good. One for you. And then I wrote every summer, I've been recommending every summer after two or really a second now. But you think I would really like it. I just think it's like sweet. It's like a good, like when you go to the beach, like when you're, when a summertime again and not miserable. I think that's a really great beat trade for you. It's really sweet. So I think one golden summer is the sequel to every summer after. Oh, I could be so wrong. I don't know. I don't know the books that well, but well that is kind of the end of the episode. I feel like we talked about kind of a plethora of things and book recommendations, self-care, how our love for reading kind of started. We wanted to do this for a while because I felt like Bookton Busy kind of was planted from when we both started reading and she was the only person that I talked to about reading. And I was like, I need more people to talk to about this. So now we're here. And yeah, that's my best friend. That's my best friend. Okay, thanks for watching. Love you.