Meg and Laine talk about books
The Plot Trysts podcast is a delightful exploration of historical romance novels. For someone like me who usually dislikes listening to podcasts, I found myself thoroughly enjoying this one. The hosts, Meg and Laine, create an atmosphere that feels like chatting with your close friends about adult fairy tales. Their discussions are engaging and informative, making it a perfect choice for those interested in both history and shared interest in books.
One of the best aspects of this podcast is the chemistry between Meg and Laine. Their conversations are filled with catty remarks and brutally honest assessments, which adds a fun and entertaining element to the show. They have a knack for breaking down storytelling techniques, tropes, and plots, providing valuable insights into the world of historical romance novels. Furthermore, their frank assessments of various elements such as sex, offensiveness, quality, and more give listeners an authentic perspective on the books they review.
Another great aspect of Plot Trysts is its style. While there are several good podcasts on historical romances out there, very few have hosts who speak with the same level of style as Meg and Laine. It's clear that these two share a deep passion for language and ideas. Their editing skills also deserve praise as each episode is well-structured and engaging from start to finish.
On the downside, it would be helpful if Meg and Laine provided some information about themselves in an "about us" section. While it's merely speculation on my part, I imagine they must have majored in English literature or possess a profound love for literature based on their insightful analysis of books. Additionally, at times their synopses during their random number readings can be difficult to catch in its entirety due to their fast pace.
In conclusion, stumbling upon The Plot Trysts podcast has been a stroke of luck for me as it has opened up a new world of escapism during these trying times. The candid breakdowns of various books provided by Meg and Laine are both thoughtful and entertaining. They manage to strike the perfect balance between humor and insight, creating a conversationally-driven book review podcast that is enjoyable to listen to. If you're in search of a podcast that offers structured, thoughtful, and humorous reviews of historical romance novels, then look no further than Plot Trysts.
Meg and Alex are joined by Harper St. George to discuss The Dream Hunter by Laura Kinsale.
Look, this series is totally adorable and this book in particular is really fun. It's one of those that comes close enough to great that the parts that fall short are more frustrating than they shold probably be because you're so mad it isn't perfect. I was too harsh in this episode, but only because it was sooo close to ideal.
I'd be lying if I said this episode was anything other than Laine fangirling over Amelia Peabody and squealing about how much fun this novella is. Sethos-coded lost all meaning because it was said too many times.
Meg and Laine disagree about the amount of world building we want in a Romantasy, but agree that this book is super cute. Please uncancel My Lady Jane, someone.
Alex and Meg are joined by Candy Tan to discuss this book, which sounds completely insane TBH.
We remain enamored with Jenna. That is all.
Meg and Alex are joined by Cat Sebastian to discuss Alex's favorite book of all time.
We were both very charmed by this mystery novel and can't help speculating on the future romantic turns. What does "cozy" mean to you?
Laine and Meg ostensibly talk with Emily Sullivan about spies. Come for the spies, stay for the tax questions.
Meg and Alex are joined by Colleen Kelley to discuss this fairytale-adjacent book.
This book is for anyone who was ever an embarrasing teenager.
Meg and Alex are joined by Eloisa James to discuss My Sweet Folly by Laura Kinsale. Having not read any of these books, this hero really needs therapy.
This book provided a moment of light in a dark world. We will be immediately consuming everything that Jenna Bigelow puts out immediately for the forseeable future.
Meg and Alex are joined by Tasha Suri to discuss Shadowheart. I concur that nothing in this book inspired the character in BG3.
Meg and Laine are joined by Olivia Waite to discuss the use of amnesia in romance.
Meg and Alex are joined by Olivia Waite to discuss For My Lady's Heart, and all I could think of was "a little sincerity is a dangerous thing, a great deal of it is absolutely fatal."
Don't you miss the days before museums had things like security or glass cases?
This is now a Roman Empire/Republic romance fan account.
We are now a Roman Republic/Empire Romance fan account.
Meg and Alex are joined by Adriana Herrera to discuss Laura Kinsale's most conventional book. (That is not a diss.)
We ADORED this book and it managed to be fun while dealing with some serious topics.
This book is adorable and so much fun to read and I really enjoyed the balance of romance and world building and I wanted it to be smut and it wasn't. If you go in knowing what to expect it's a romp.
We were both so charmed by the road trip romance between a brutal Visigoth and a Roman princess. We were not charmed by the asshole king letting his people starve, oh wait, it was the same dude.
Alix E. Harrow joins Meg and Alex to discuss The Prince of Midnight, by Laura Kinsale, a book that is both bonkers and heartbreaking.
The concept of this series is very cool, and this book is very effective, but it was also hard to read at this moment in time.
Do I get what is objectively good about Mary Balogh's writing? Yes. Is a low-stakes, low-conflict, low-steam story what I need right now? Not really.
Loretta is BACK. Is this the marriage in crisis as we expected? No. But once you set aside the expectation that something horrible is about to happen this book is a FANTASTIC brother's best friend romance.
Meg and Alex resume their read of all Laura Kinsale's books. Today they are joined by Angelina M. Lopez to discuss the Shadow and the Star.
This book is exactly what we expect from this series, rompy and very very sexy. Please give me a book about Jasper, I am such a sucker for a real spy.
We read this because we will read pretty much anything set in Egypt. There were parts that were really fun, but you can really tell it was written in 1997.
We were both a bit scared of this book and were pleasantly suprised, but were left wondering who the target audience was. Also, we now return to our regular posting schedule.
Stephanie Laurens NYE novella? Sign us up forthe batshittery.
Meg and Alex are joined by Charis Michaels to discuss Laura Kinsale's first book. If I learned anything from editing this episode, you should definitely listen to the audio book.
This is the perfect Christmas novella to end our season with. Yes, I know it's January 9th.
Everything about this book charmed us, even the things that shouldn't have. It's a Christmas miracle!
A sex cabin 12 days of Christmas book? Well ok, if we must, we must.
The Halifaxes are all home for the holidays, and it's exactly what you expect (that is a good thing).
This is super Christmasy and super sexy but we do have to hate on the heroine at the beginning of the book. She improves very much over the course of the story! And Christmas!
It's really fun to see the convention of introductions in the regency taken to a rom-com extreme. We liked it, even if the ties to Christmas feel tenuous.
The end of the Christmas Notch series returns with plenty of Christmas cheer and gingerbread lube.
This sexy newsletter novella was the perfect transition from fall to Christmas aka Thanksgiving.
We both like low-stress couples, but this book took it to an extreme. It had its moments, but we needed more.
Sometimes what you need is a well written and sexy good time.
Katherine Grant continues to tackle themes we're not used to seeing in Romance. While this book achieves what we think it set out to do, it was also authentically a series of awkward conversations and events between burgeoning adults and an honest look at society's ills.
This book leans into romance novel tropes in all the right ways, and was sexier than we were expecting (which is a very good thing).
We're joined by Sherry Thomas to discuss Beast, by Judith Ivory. We talk author inspiration, interconnected literary worlds, and much, much more. Thank you, Sherry!
We love the Palace of Rogues. That is all.
We wrap up this adorable series with Ben and Eleanora and we were both thoroughly charmed.
Our version of spooky season continues with "Mated to My Ex." We usually like Kate Prior's social commentary, but she goes a differnt route with this one. Laine is grossed out, but Laine has insufficient exposure to wolf stuff.
© 2020-2025 Ivy Podcast Discovery LLC
