108 | Compelling, subversive, beautiful: the books we loved most in 2024
Release Date: 12/10/2024
122 | Bonus ep! How to be a fictional character with Felix Shannon
James and Ashley Stay at Home
In episode 122, Ashley asks fellow crime fiction fan and podcaster what it's like to find yourself as a fictional character in a new novel from one of your favourite authors. Felix 'Flex' Shannon shares his experience of being fictionalised in the latest mystery novel from Sulari Gentill, Five Found Dead. Hear from Sulari in ep 121! Felix Shannon is a radio presenter, producer, technician and educator. Together with Benjamin Herder, Felix hosts the crime and mystery fiction podcast Death of the Reader. Books & authors discussed in this episode: All the Tears...
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121 | The crucial element is not panicking with Sulari Gentill, author of 'Five Found Dead'
James and Ashley Stay at Home
When bestselling author Sulari Gentill was diagnosed with stage four cancer, she decided to write the ending she wanted. In episode 121, she joins James and Ashley to discuss her seventeenth novel, Five Found Dead, which features a main character riding the Orient Express to celebrate his recent cancer recovery – and who ends up solving several murders along the way. Sulari shares her own experience of riding the Orient Express and describes how her creativity and writing reminded her who she was at a time when her illness was reducing her sense of self to 'patient'. Plus she...
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120 | If society collapses, head to the beach with Michelle Prak, author of 'Barren Cape'
James and Ashley Stay at Home
In episode 120, bestselling author Michelle Prak discusses how she set her latest thriller against the backdrop of Australia’s housing crisis and why she writes flawed, sometimes rash characters. She also reflects on how growing up in a lower socio-economic home influenced her love of reading and her ambition to be a writer, and also how it delayed her efforts to make that dream happen. Michelle Prak is a professional communicator with a thirty-year career in PR, social media, and politics. She lives in Adelaide and teaches communication subjects at the University of South...
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119 | Becoming a stranger to yourself with Nathan Dunne, author of 'When Nothing Feels Real'
James and Ashley Stay at Home
In episode 119, debut author Nathan Dunne joins us to discuss his memoir, When Nothing Feels Real, which shares the story of his onset of severe depersonalisation and his quest to find a diagnosis. He shares the challenge of conveying his experience to those unfamiliar with the condition, his multi-year challenge to reach a proper diagnosis, and the long and uneven journey to recovery. We also discuss the community of fellow sufferers that supported him in the completion of his memoir. Nathan Dunne was born in Brisbane and grew up in India. As a journalist and critic, he has contributed...
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118 | Cybercrime, murder and audiobooks - behind the scenes on 'Like, Follow, Die'
James and Ashley Stay at Home
Ashley's brand new thriller Like, Follow, Die is out now as an audiobook exclusive from Audible! In episode 118, Ashley discusses the book's unique development and what it was like working with an ensemble cast of prominent Australian actors to bring her third book to life. Like, Follow, Die is a "shattering and provocative psychological thriller that dives into the darkest corners of the internet and the powerful bonds between parents and children." Books & authors discussed in this episode: John Sandford (narrated by Richard Ferrone) JP Pomare Why Can't I Just Enjoy Things? by Pierre...
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117 | Writing towards your greatest fear with Melanie Cheng, author of 'The Burrow'
James and Ashley Stay at Home
Award-winning author Melanie Cheng joins James and Ashley to discuss her writing practice, her pet rabbit, and The Burrow, her 'most personal book' and its many parallels to her own life. She also shares her experience of writing toward her greatest fear, coming to terms with her cyclical writing process, and how teaching narrative to medical students can help increase communication between doctors and patients. Melanie Cheng is a writer and general practitioner. She was born in Adelaide, grew up in Hong Kong and now lives in Melbourne. Her debut collection of short stories,...
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116 | Bonus ep! 'Cold Truth' Live with Ashley & James
James and Ashley Stay at Home
If you missed hearing Ashley and James live in conversation at the launch of Cold Truth, we've got the full event recording for you here, complete with fake nazi invasions, terrifying cybercrime stats, and the satisfying crunch of James being forced to try genuine Manitoban dill pickle chips. Thanks to local bookseller Roaring Stories for hosting this event! Upcoming events: Join Ashley and podcast fav Hayley Scrivenor for the Mystery and Mayhem Readers Retreat at the 5-star Tamborine Mountain Glades, 3-5 October Learn more about Ashley's thrillers, Dark Mode and...
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115 | Where's my 'Menopause: What's Happening to Me?' book with Jay Martin, author of 'Boom Town Snap'
James and Ashley Stay at Home
How did Jay Martin go from an award-winning memoir to a fiction manuscript she ultimately abandoned? And what did she learn that helped her craft her debut novel, Boom Town Snap? Jay talks with Ashley and James about what toxic workplaces have in common with abusive relationships, and how we get trapped in toxic relationships at the community level as well. Jay Martin’s first book, Vodka and Apple Juice: Travels of an Undiplomatic Wife in Poland, won the Hungerford Award and was published in 2018. She has worked in a range of roles including in community development, government...
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114 | Bonus ep! Winter Writing Retreat with Lynne Ainsworth
James and Ashley Stay at Home
Lynne Ainsworth is the founder of Writers at the Woolshed, an emerging writer, and a person who 'loves hanging out with people who read and write'. She loves it so much, she not only created a pop-up festival to connect authors with regional readers and writers, she's now hosting the first Winter Writing Retreat, featuring masterclasses with Eleanor Limprecht, Betty O'Neil, Audrey Molloy, Ashley Kalagian Blunt and Lee Kofman (from eps 3, 76 and 112). In this special bonus episode, Lynne tells us how she first became a festival director, and shares details of the...
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113 | Rewriting your stalker with Pip Drysdale, author of 'The Close-Up'
James and Ashley Stay at Home
How does having a stalker change your life? We talk with bestselling novelist Pip Drysdale about her latest novel 'The Close-Up,' its real-life inspirations, and how surviving a stalker shifted her worldview. We also discuss how to navigate public image and the role anxiety has to play in creative pursuits. Plus, this ep's What Are You Reading? inspires a debate about what's derivative and what's inspired, and if those can be the same thing. . Pip Drysdale is an author, musician and actor. She grew up in Africa, Canada, and Australia, became an adult in New York and...
info_outlineIt's that time of year again - the annual Bed on a Plinth Awards, in which James and Ashley discuss the best books they've read in the last twelve months! Use this particularly eclectic list to gather Christmas gift ideas, or simply top up your own 'to be read' pile.
Books & authors discussed in this episode (spoilers below!):
- Red River Road by Anna Downes
- The Last Trace by Petronella McGovern
- An Ambush of Widows by R.W.R. McDonald (audiobook)
- Seventeen Years Later by JP Pomare
- Girl Falling by Hayley Scrivenor
- The Pulling by Adele Dumont (interviewed in episode 93)
- Nuclear War by Annie Jacobsen
- Not Everything Counts but Everything Matters by Ivan Cleary & Andrew Webster
- Fragile Creatures by Khin Myint (interviewed in episode 101)
- Ghost Cities by Siang Lu (interviewed in episode 99)
- Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra
- Sociopath by Patric Gagn
- The Writer’s Room by Charlotte Wood
- Tyranny of the Minority by Daniel Ziblatt & Steven Levitsky
- Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
- Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver
Upcoming events
- Ashley is teaching Year of the Novel for Writing NSW beginning on Wednesday evenings starting 26 February 2025
- The Cold Truth tour is happening in February! Sign up for Ashley's newsletter here for full details
Learn more about Ashley's thrillers, Dark Mode and Cold Truth, and get your copies from your local bookshop or your library.
Learn more about James' award-winning novel Denizen and get your copy from your local bookshop or your library.
Get in touch!