Sam and Dan review Moss'd in Space by Rebecca Thorne.

SPOILER ALERT: This episode contains spoilers. We strongly recommend reading this book before listening.

Join us as we venture into cosy sci-fi with Moss'd in Space, a warm, low-stakes story that puts relationships, banter, and emotional comfort ahead of dramatic twists and high-stakes jeopardy. We discuss what defines a successful cosy read and whether a book designed to relax rather than challenge its audience needs to leave a lasting impression.

We dive into the developing relationship between Torian and Moss, exploring Moss's experiences of trauma and abandonment and the emotional growth at the heart of the story. We also discuss the absence of a traditional antagonist, the surprisingly small and local feel of its space setting, and why even potentially catastrophic events rarely create a genuine sense of danger.

From a cover and blurb that perhaps promise a different story to the one we actually get, to questions about stakes, sacrifice, and emotional depth, we explore why Moss'd in Space may not have the lasting impact of our favourite cosy reads—but still succeeds at being charming, comforting, and an extremely easy book to spend time with.

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Sam and Dan review A Beast Slinks Towards Beijing by Alice Evelyn Yang.

**SPOILER ALERT:** This episode contains spoilers. We strongly recommend reading this book before listening.

Join us as we explore this dark folkloric family saga, following three generations whose lives are shaped by colonial legacy, generational trauma, and the ways pain, memory, and silence echo through families. We discuss the novel's historical backdrop, from the Japanese occupation of China to the Cultural Revolution, and how it sits somewhere between historical fiction, fantasy, and folkloric realism.

We dive into the experiences of Wei Hong, Ming, and Qianze, exploring how food, illness, childbirth, family conflict, and inherited trauma weave their way through each generation. We also unpack the book's deliberately ambiguous approach to magic and prophecy, and why its refusal to clearly separate folklore, metaphor, and reality makes the story all the more powerful.

From its beautifully atmospheric writing and complex family relationships to an ending that offers hope and repair without pretending that generations of trauma can simply be undone, we discuss why this heavy but deeply affecting debut left such a lasting impression on both of us.

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Sam and Dan review The Mistral by Felix Mosse.

**SPOILER ALERT:** This episode contains spoilers. We strongly recommend reading this book before listening.

Join us as we dive into The Mistral, an ambitious debut epic fantasy that takes us back into the sprawling worlds, magic, politics, and religion of high fantasy. We explore its huge cast of characters, shifting perspectives, and expansive magic system, as a dying mystical force known as the Mistral connects seemingly separate stories across the world.

We discuss the journeys of Swan and Fenne, the refreshing friendship between Fenne and Tom, and a collection of antagonists whose belief that they're acting for the greater good adds some welcome moral complexity. Along the way, we unpack the mysterious relationship between the Mistral, Zephyr, roots, prophecy, and the Bengen, as well as the novel's potential commentary on environmental collapse, technology, religion, and the ways societies respond to dwindling resources.

From comparisons with Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn to an explosive ending that refuses to neatly resolve the story, we discuss what worked, what didn't, and why the huge questions left unanswered have us intrigued to see where Felix Mosse takes the series next.

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