Hello everyone!! Welcome to Dunecember!! Lots of Dune to cap off 2024! For starters, we tackle the one, the original, the 1965 book by Frank Herbert! It's been a long-time coming, and we hope it was worth the wait. So join us as we talk religious manipulation, "untapped human potential", warrior cultures, being a weird little guy, and lots more in the last Left Page episode of the year. Enjoy! And please support our Patreon if you can and are interested in early episodes and the Here Be Extras! https://www.patreon.com/leftpage  Intro: "Ultralounge" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Ou ..read more

Hello everyone!! Here is us finally talking about the Elden Ring DLC (or just a standalone game according to the GOTY-awards, Geoff should be struck down for his hubris and so on) we hope you all enjoy it! Due to technical difficulties Ash's precis was added post-recording. Our sincere apologies if it sounds odd, it was the best we could do. Find the Crypt dwellers near a cemetery or at the following links: https://www.patreon.com/c/horrorvanguard/ https://bsky.app/profile/thelitcritguy.bsky.social https://bsky.app/profile/darrowvania.bsky.social And please support our Patreon if you can ..read more

Hello everyone!! For this month's Left Page we turn back to China Miéville, in a weird and fascinating book about detective stories, borders, and violence, it is The City and the City! In this episode we dive into the place of these cities, both fictionally and the real-world cultures they interact with and are a part of; we consider the detective narrative and how it interacts with this story, and the inherent violence to sustaining and upholding borders! Enjoy! And please support our Patreon if you can and are interested in early episodes and the upcoming Here Be Extras! https://www.pat ..read more

Hello everyone!! The end of the year and the holidays approach rapidly, but not yet! Rejecting that, we remain in the lands of horror, as we talk about Brian Evenson's Good Night, Sleep Tight, with our friend Nate! We dive into some of the themes in this collection of short stories, their representation of childhood and anxieties of parenthood, sleep and more. And while elaborating on elements we enjoyed and... didn't, unfortunately! Still, we have an excellent time chatting about it, and we hope you like it too! Enjoy! Do check out Nate's previous writing on Evenson and his fiction! http ..read more

Hello everyone!! For this month's spooky HBM we go back to Interview with a Vampire! Season 2! And in good company too, with Jay, of LibraryPunk and Tender Subject fame! It's vampire talk again, as we go back into interviewing immortal beings and finding out just how interesting their drama really is. Is it? We wonder that as we dive into this continued adaptation, its successes and limits, and just how effective, or not, their queer representation really is effective or that engaging! Enjoy! And, of course, check out Jay's work elsewhere! LibraryPunk Tender Subject And please support ou ..read more

Hello everyone!! It's October and you know what that means! We drag the ghost, from their crypts (or ship) and have a good Halloween book chat! As Jon joined us for China Mieville's 2nd book of the Bas-Lag Trilogy: the Scar! It's a great time talking about the power and potential of class consciousness, the strange dynamics of cities, pirates, liberation, and the terrible risks of mishandling quantum and nuclear physics. It's Mieville, it's a fun book, and a phenomenal chat! Enjoy! Also buy Jon's Book! https://repeaterbooks.com/product/capitalism-a-horror-story-gothic-marxism-and-the-dark ..read more

Hello everyone!! For our second HBM we'll dive into an animated sci-fi series that's weird, strange and very very interesting, we talk about Scavenger's Reign! And we won't do so alone, as we invited our great friend Nate along! Join us as we discuss the challenges of being marooned in an alien moon, the inherent horror of capitalism in space, and how we must be open to engage with the environment and the world around us, and even then, we can't escape ourselves, our traumas, and our hopes. Enjoy! And please support our Patreon if you're interested and want access to early content and the ..read more

Hello everyone! To round out this month's episodes, we dive back into sci-fi, and more utopian fiction! With a recommendation from listener, and patron, Nate: Monica Byrne's The Actual Star! It's a complex discusson on Utopian writing, its challenges, and how sometimes things don't quite work out as we'd like. So join us in this conversation on Utopia and Religion, historical and sociological approaches, and more! And if you, listener, have other suggestions and recommendations, by all means, let us know!! Enjoy! Do check out our other episodes mentioned in this one, on Kim Stanley Robin ..read more

Hello everyone!! For this chaotic month's HBM we're diving into one of Frank's favourite genres, right back into detective fiction! This time talking about the very weird and very interesting Paradise Killer! Join us as we discuss the complexities of building a world from scratch, of making a sociologically compelling story, and creating a decent and engaging medium to solve a mystery. All while dealing with the colonial violence and oppression exacted by an even more powerful ruling class! What kind of detective are we, when we're the supreme elite? All this and more on this episode! Enjo ..read more

Hello everyone!! We kick off September with a very interesting concept episode, as we talk about Tropes, and clichés and archetypes! A very good time as we consider not just the creation of art, especially literature, but also its very superficial and weak discourse that is mostly upheld by these building blocks of tropes. We also go over a general engagement with art and the willingness to confront plenty of both good and bad, and even some of our personally most enjoyed and hated tropes! Enjoy! And please support our Patreon if you can and are interested in early episodes and now live ..read more