Bookwild - Books That A24 Films Should Adapt

Episode Date: February 2, 2024

This week, we share books that A24 Films should adapt into movies!Follow us on Instagram:Gare @gareindeedreadsKate @thegirlwiththecookonthecouchBooks We Talked About:Ace of SpadesNice GirlsBath HausSeeing StrangersProphetReal EasyThe Lady UpstairsLook What You Made Me DoAlmost Surely DeadHow We Named the Stars Get Bookwild MerchCheck Out My Stories Are My Religion SubstackCheck Out Author Social Media PackagesCheck out the Bookwild Community on PatreonCheck out the Imposter Hour Podcast with Liz and GregFollow @imbookwild on InstagramOther Co-hosts On Instagram:Gare Billings @gareindeedreadsSteph Lauer @books.in.badgerlandHalley Sutton @halleysutton25Brian Watson @readingwithbrian 

Guys, welcome to the Killing the Tea podcast. This is Gare and Kate. And we are going to be discussing all things, chills, thrills, and kills. Kate and I are going to be talking about our favorite books, TV shows and movies that are in the thriller or crime fiction genre, as well as some reading habits and other items related to how we met on Bookstagram that will fit in with this podcast. So, Thank you so much for joining us, and we hope that you have fun and get totally terrified. So I was scrolling TikTok last night, as I do. And I saw the craziest thing that I think I've ever seen on Book Talk. And it was two girls talking about how they read books and listen to the audiobook at the exact same time. And like all of the comments, like everyone's mind. were melted. So I know I was like not alone in it, but I was like, this is insane. Like I could never. And they're like listening at it at like 1.5 speed and like listening to anything sped up

stresses me out. Tyler likes to do that and it makes me feel like whatever is being told to me is rushed and it just makes me like not enjoy it. So that was already stressing me out. But then some of the comments were talking about how some of people watch TV as subtitles and like it's kind of the same thing. So my icebreaker though is do you ever watch TV with um I can I think I just said it subtitles. Subtitles. I don't. I find it very distracting. Me too. The only time I have to use subtitles is when like I don't understand what someone's saying. Like if, right, you know, okay, so here's, here's my thing with, yes. Or if like somebody's talking really quickly and, okay, so here's my, here's my, here's my example.

But I have a thing about, I have a thing about audio nowadays because I feel like whenever something is happening, it feels like my house is going through an earthquake. Like, if there's action or like the music or whatever. But whenever. people speak, it's like very quiet and you can't understand what you're saying. Do you know what I mean? Like whenever somebody talks, it's like very low. So you turn it up and then something happens and also your house is shaking. So or if someone's having sex. If somebody's having sex, I'm like, my neighbors think that I'm a dirty pervert because they can hear, even though my neighbors are very far away, like it's just so everything like that's very loud. Um, the whole time that I watched the movie

scream in my entire existence, which is a lot. there's one part where when the Jew Barrymore is on the phone with the killer, he says something like, can you handle that blondie? I, for the longest time, thought he said, can you handle that bloody? And I was like, why is he talking in a British accent all of a sudden?

So that is like an example of him. Like, what did he say? Like, I don't get it. And, like, that is an example of when I will use subtitles. If I just, like, have rewound it, like, three or four times that I still cannot process what they're saying. Yeah. Do we actually watch a YouTube video about how a lot of people feel the way you do and that dialogue is quiet and everything else is too loud? And I can't remember the complete conclusion of the video, but like you're not the only person to feel that way. So my thing is when I got Apple TV, I thought that sound was perfect. And then I got a new TV. When I got a new TV, I got a sound box.

Oh, yeah. And ever since then, it's like the hours that I've spent on my settings for my TV, my settings for my soundbar and my settings for Apple TV has been wasted because, like, I just don't understand it. Oh, that sucks. And it's like certain apps, too. Like anything Hulu is very loud, but like HBO Max, Netflix, some other apps. It's like I have to like crank the volume like crazy.

I have noticed that that like there's the difference between the volume of YouTube and Hulu. This is so fascinating. What an icebreaker. It's crazy. It's like I just think that there are some things that are a scam. Yeah. I think that it's very weird that my old TV had better sound than my brand new TV, which is very low. So it's like they did something to the TV.

so you have to buy a soundbar in order to like hear what you're watching. But that's, I mean, I also feel the same way about, I also feel the same way about skin care. Like a few years ago, the biggest thing was like, make sure that you include toner

in your skincare routine. And now I keep seeing TikToks of like dermatologists that are like the biggest scam is toner. Yeah. And so like I'm like a wash my face, moisturize SPF, that's it.

Like you're not, I'm not buying serums. I'm not buying toner. I'm not buying anything else. That's it. Really? I feel like if you are moisturized, I feel like it makes a pretty big difference.

Not necessarily needing four different types of it. Yeah. Like I don't need like a hundred different things. I just, there are, there's scams everywhere. Speaking of scams. sweet new

Bruce that dog's outside that dog's outside hey Bruce there's dog barking like right out that window Bruce Wayne here me a bud

and I'm alone with the Bruce Wayne so I'm alone with both of them but he's the problem child oh yeah oh yeah and he's the one who's going to always be right next to me so okay

So I also don't like watching with captions. I feel like sometimes it, sometimes it spoils the stuff or the timing because you can like read ahead. Yes, that's how I feel about TikTok. It's suspenseful stuff. Yeah. Yeah, that's my feeling about captions.

Well, I sit here and pet Bruce to get through this podcast. guess. Well, there's kind of a big scandal going on right now that I feel like we should talk about. Universal Music Group? Possibly? No. Okay, go on. What's going on with that?

It's not even a scandal. I just didn't know because you said TikTok, but Universal Music Group, which is like Taylor Swift, Billy Ilish, Drake, like, tons of artists. They just pulled all of their catalog from TikTok. So now, like, anyone who has ever used the same. sound is completely muted. So it's like there are people who like have whole accounts that have been like built around stuff like this. And it's just complete like all their videos are muted now. Like people who did reaction videos and all of that. So it's like the TikTok community is pissed. I would be too. Do you have any idea how many times I've like gotten a song? I don't want to say like I bought it.

Yeah. Because I have Apple music. So like I get like unlimited whatever. But like I would I got a song or I bought it or I streamed it or whatever the case may be because I heard it trending on TikTok or like how many like singles were popular because of TikTok. That's so ridiculous. It was a dumb choice. I don't think I don't think it's going to be received as well as they thought they were going to be able to sneak it by. No.

Weird. No. What was what scandal were you talking about? Okay, I'm going to try to say this so that I don't get sued. Oh, nice. Right now there's a huge scandal with an author whose name is J.D. Barker. He is an Edgar Award winner. I've read his books.

I've loved his previous books. But he has a new thriller coming out. And it's like a romantic thriller or an erotic thriller. and allegedly his team or him had sent out these emails to a bunch of female influencers to promote the book. And it was like some of the ideas for the influencing videos they wanted would be like the camera going up a nude woman's body and her holding the book over her naughty bits. Oh my gosh. And people have posted screenshots. of these emails, right?

Oh my gosh. So, and it was one of those things where it felt very creepy in general, but the creepy thing that a lot of people are saying has gone too far is not only are you asking for that, but the videos and photos and stuff had to be sent to him personally for approval. No. And it is just blowing up all over. TikTok. It is blowing up everywhere. Again, even though there's screenshots all alleged, he's claiming that it was not him.

It was like the PR company that he works with. But like I guess he's one of the founders of that PR company. Right. And so it's just a huge mess. Like his books are like very, very, very popular because like he wrote a book called the fourth monkey which was like all over the place years ago um like he's been compared to like Stephen King um like big big names

and now it's like everyone's like trying to cancel him well yeah and I don't blame them and I'm so okay well I don't know if I didn't sign an NDA so whatever but I got the email blast for his book. And like I have worked with him previously and like you fill out a form like a Google doc that says if you want like an e copy or a physical arc and then like when you're going to post about it, whatever.

So I got one for his new book and I thought it was very strange that they like I filled it out before and I've gotten books from him. And then I filled out this one for his upcoming book. And I never. got a response or a copy of it. And I'm like, oh, because you don't want me to post a picture of myself with your book over my nipples. So, yeah, that's fine. And the, I mean, there's been like, it's like all over my TikTok right now. And the only thing that I think will come up that hasn't blown up yet is I was like scrolling and there was this guy who was like, a male book talker and he was like, hey guys, like, this is the book that I just got and it was like, because the fourth monkey book is the first in a trilogy. And so he was holding up a J.D. Barker book and he was like, this is the sequel to like fourth monkey, whatever. And like somebody, like I was like,

why are you promoting his books right now? Oh no. And somebody commented it was like, you might want to Google this author before you like promote his books. And he wrote, I'm aware. So there's like a male book talker out there who is like aware of like the scandal that's going on and it's still choosing to support him. And I was like disgusting. Not somebody I followed, but just like somebody that popped up. So that's the team. I'm looking at this now and I do remember you recommending it to me. But I never read it.

So now I probably never will. Fourth Monkey like obviously do with this information what you will, whether it's you or anybody. that's listening. Fourth Monkey, like, excellent, excellent book. Like, the trilogy was so good. It's about, like,

it's about, like, the police investigating, a serial, an active serial killer who was, like, hit by a bus. Oh, wow. And it, like, goes back into, like, his childhood, and it was really good. Really, really good.

I will not support him now. Right. I think that my copies of the fourth month, Monkey trilogy will probably be up on Pango very soon because I can't see myself reading them and enjoying them ever again. But yeah, that's just the thing, right? Like, I don't care if like somebody does something problematic that I don't read. Yeah. Because then I'm like, oh, yeah, like, if you're problematic or whatever, like, I'm going to support, you know, whoever and not you. But it just really sucks when I'm like, God, like, somebody that I really enjoyed, you know?

I know. That sucks. But, yeah, I will not be supporting him in the least bet. People posted, like, screenshots of the emails that they got and everything and the recommendations and stuff. It's a disaster. It's a disaster. That's terrible. I was, like, laughing, too, because I was like, this is, like, we've had so many conversations where I was like, I read mostly female authors.

Yeah, I know. This is why, like, Jessica Noel is not asking for this from me. Do you know what I mean? Like, when I get my Jessica Noel tattoo, I will be the, very, very comfortable in the fact that I know that she will never ask me to, like, promote her book by, like, holding it against my nipples or my, like, naughty areas. Yeah, definitely out of the naughty areas. So I'm just like, okay, like, you know, this is why.

I know. I was looking at my between the lines lineup, I guess is what you would say. And I was like, man, I don't really have men on very often. But now maybe that's just fine. Yeah, yeah, not a good look. Not a good look for. Like, there's just so many, since I started, like, my bookstore account, there have been so many, like, authors that people are trying to cancel. Yeah. And they're all men.

Oh, yeah, I haven't heard about a woman. No. Mm-mm. The only woman I've heard of recently was, there was, like, a fan. fantasy writer who like lost her deal because she was like, she was like writing bad reviews for other fantasy books that were coming out in the same year as hers. And then like, I remember this. Try to like say it was like her cousin that did it or something. And like, it was just like a big mess. But I think she lost her, her, um, I think she lost her book deal.

Damn. And stuff like that. There's, um, there's an. There's an. author, a romance author who wrote like a historical romance book and she's kind of under heat right now. I don't know what her name is, but she's under heat right now because, and this is just a PSA to readers and authors in general, but like in the trigger warnings in the beginning of her book, like in between sexual assault and violence was M.M. Contact. So like she thought that like gay, Male male, like, sexual contact, it should be a trigger warning. Oh, my God. So I was like, and to put it in between, like, sexual assault and violence, like, it's

like something that's going to disturb people. I was like, honey. Oh, my gosh. Yeah. Yep. So. Dude, you need a trigger warning for when there's not male male contact. Yeah.

No butt stuff. No gear. I'm out. you mean the opposite. Yeah, I know. Like there is only heterosexual love in this. Yeah. But I actually don't mind because I won't read like,

I like, I prefer MM romance, but I don't mind if there's romance in a thriller. As long as I can thirst after the character. Like, and listen for the lie. I had a crush on him. Like, he was talking. and gorgeous and delicious and delicious and I loved him. Yes.

And witty. So I can like totally crush on him. Yeah. Same. But that was a perfect amount of FM contact. Yeah. For a thriller. Like it didn't distract from it, but it was a nice addition.

There was a lot that I was like, oh, okay, I'm kind of enjoying this. But then it was like a little like fade to black. Yes. Yeah. I was definitely black, which is TBH,

that's enough for me. I'm like, I'm ready to get back to the, to the plot action. Yeah. You need with that? So,

you had an amazing idea for this. Yeah. Also, while I was scrolling TikToks. Clearly my TikTok hours are up this week. But someone was doing

a TikTok of books. They think or books they thought should be 824 movies like adapted by them and I was like ooh we could definitely do that that's a subject yeah I love that I love love love that's what we're here to talk about today um I went with like did you have like a theme with yours no I just like went with like what feels like because they have they have like they do do a wide variety

yes but it's typically like a more unique story I guess would be the only way I could it's like not it's not as like common of a story like it's not a kind of retold story if that makes sense not in a bad way but like it's just like a different kind of plot than you're used to for something that's what I went with I went with stuff that was like unique or like

very creepy or had something like very different about it. Yeah. We're like they're really dramatic aesthetic that they all let people lean into. And their filters. Their camera filters are amazing. Yes. That's kind of

what was also in my mind. For definitely for like three of my five. It was like also like feel like their aesthetic would match the vibe of the story. Yeah. I think like my aesthetic for it is like unique, quirky, and creepy. Yeah, a little bit more offbeat than one. Yeah. So yeah, now that we've like over, like completely explained our criteria. Yeah,

now's a good time. You want to kick us off? Yeah. So to the point of like the creepy aesthetic or like being able to lean into an aesthetic in this case, it would be creepy. The first one that came to mind for me was, Ace of Spades by, I'm so sorry, Farida Abike I'm I hope I got close. So it is kind of like build as like Gossip Girl meets Get Out. So welcome to Nidious Private Academy where money paves the hallways and the students are never less than perfect until now because anonymous textor Aces is bringing to

students' dark secrets to light. Talented musician Devon buries himself in rehearsals, but he can't escape the spotlight when his private photos go public. Headgirl Shyamaka isn't afraid to get what she wants, but soon everyone will know the price she has paid for power. Someone is out to get them both, someone who holds

all the aces, and they're planning much more than a high school game. This was like dark, Y.A. It is Y.A., but It was so dark and very, like, I feel like the walls are closing in around you as the story progresses. And I feel like they can aesthetically do that pretty well. I think that was why that one came to my knees for me first. I can talk. Yeah, we're just going to, yeah, we're just going to talk about creepy aesthetic and we don't have to talk about the books.

I still really want to read that. I still just... It is so good, but there is not a single shred of, well, no, there's really not steamyness. There kind of is, but I really wouldn't even call it that. Well, my steam is a little different nowadays, so I would be fine with, um,

what's calling it light steam. But, yeah, I do want to check that out. I'm super excited for the next book, which I'm going to have to start you too. There's a little sad face looking at me. My first one is also probably one of the creepiest books I've ever read. The ending is one of the most disturbing and dark and unsettling endings I've ever read. So this was actually my first pick because I was like, if A-24 did this. this. I just picture them doing the book justice because you know how it is with like adaptation.

Sometimes you're like, oh, you ruined my favorite book. But if A-24 did Nice Girls by Catherine Dang, I would totally be sold. Mary used to be a nice girl. She was the resident Wizz kid of Liberty Lake Minnesota, the quiet chubby teen with the scholarship to an Ivy League school. But now, three years later, Ivy League, Mary is back, a thinner, cynical, restless failure who was kicked out of Cornell at the beginning of her senior year and won't tell anyone why.

Taking a job at the local grocery store, Mary tries to make sense of her life's sharp downward spiral. Then the beautiful magnetic Olivia Willand, I believe his last name, goes missing. So Olivia's a rising social media star and admired by everybody in Liberty Lake,

except for Mary, because Mary and Olivia used to be best friends. And so nobody knows the true Olivia like Mary. So as the town obsesses over perfect lovely Olivia, Mary wonders if her disappearance might be tied to another missing person, a 19-year-old named Damaria Jackson, whose case was widely dismissed as a runaway. So they say, you know, who is the real Olivia? Where did she go?

what happened to Damaria, and Mary tries to figure out what's going on and if these two cases are connected. I just need to read that. Oh my God, it's so dark and so sinister. You would love, love, love, love. It sounds like it. I love the cover. I even, like, bought it after you talked about it one time.

I love the cover. I love the cover. This is, like, one of those books that I was like, this should get the gone girl treatment. And there's just, like, so much. going on, which like anybody who's read it can like DM me anytime. You and I can talk more in depth about it when you read it. But there's just like a lot going on that I think is very timely. And especially the whole, you know, this this girl who was a black girl goes missing.

And the cops are like, oh, she's a runaway. And then like the popular pretty white girl goes missing. And like the town is like in shambles. you know, so there's like a lot of like that kind of conversation in the book and there's a lot like other things that are a conversation to be had. But for spoilers, I won't say anything because no more. Everybody needs to be shocked, disturbed, and bewildered. Like an A24 should pick it up. You have sold me. You need to bump it back up. So good. I know your dog just shut up and mine is scratching my foot right now. He's like,

having a dog heavy podcast. If I don't have a babysitter, I record from here because I want him to think that I'm working, because like usually he'll just like do his own thing when I'm working. Sometimes like he like catches on because like now he's just like, okay, I'm just going to be sad over here in the corner. Like let me know when you're done fake working. Fake working. Yes. Well, my next one. I also, it was the aesthetic. I feel like they would make this one so cool. And it is, I don't know why I'm building it up with so much suspense, but it's Bathhouse by PJ Brunin that first just keeps scratching my foot. Wouldn't they kill it? Did you have it on yours? No, but that's such a good. I'm actually

so glad that I didn't have it on mine because like, you know how like sometimes I'll be like, oh shit, that's a good one. I wish I would have thought of that. But it's like, I'm glad I didn't think of that because you putting that on my radar is just like, you're completely 100%. Kill it with this one. Like so much of it. So Oliver Park, a young recovering addict from Indiana. Woohoo. What?

Finally getting representative fiction. Indiana. Yeah. Yeah. Not so much this time of year. So he finally has everything he ever wanted. Sobriety and a loving, wealthy partner in Nathan, a prominent D.C. trauma surgeon. Despite their difference in age and disparate backgrounds, they've made a perfect life together.

With everything to lose, Oliver shouldn't be visiting house, a gay bath house. But through the entrance, he goes and it's a line crossed. Inside, he follows a man into a private room and it's the final line. Whatever happens next, Nathan can never know. But then everything goes wrong, terribly wrong, and Oliver barely escapes with his life. He raises home in full-blown terror as the hand-shaped bruise grows dark on his neck. The truth will destroy Nathan and everything they have together. So Oliver does the thing he used to do so well.

He lies. What follows is a classic runaway tree narrative full of exquisite escalations, edge of your seat, thrills, and oh my God twists. which is so true. So true. It is such a fun thriller. They would just kill it. They would kill it with the vibes. I just

am obsessed with that book and I'm obsessed with you for saying it. I think that like my plan in life is to like find you

like queer thrillers that we can enjoy together. I know. Because unfortunately the romance doesn't there's not enough for me most of us this time but yes

we need we need to find them yeah yeah I 100% agree that thousand yes it is and it's the perfect segue because my next one is a queer thriller perfect

my next one is too we're going to have a little line of them oh my god this is amazing let's go let's get it So mine, and this is really funny too because mine's a queer thriller, but I also agree with you about everything you said about Bathhouse. This is how I feel about seeing strangers by Sebastian J. Plata. It's just like the style, like they would just like do such a good job with like the creepy building tension in the story.

And it's about a guy named Greg Kelly. He's married to Spanish-born artist Christian, who is handsome kind and can even cook. So basically they kind of have the perfect life and they also have an open marriage. So it's been open for the past few years. This arrangement's been very appealing to Greg because he has a very high sexual appetite. But as they approach their mid-30s, fatherhood and adulthood call and they enlist a friend to act as a surrogate. So in order to focus on building a family, Greg and Christian decide to close their marriage. when the baby arrives, which basically is like pushing Greg to be like, I need to like bang

everybody in the city that I want to before this baby comes. So he's kind of going to miss like the hookups, but also is looking forward to like one last summer. Hurrah. So he meets a bunch of guys and coordinates train routes and lunchtime hookups and all these other things. But, as the baby's due date approaches, anxiety sets in over Greg's impending parental responsibilities, the loss of his sexual freedom, and his marriage to Christian. So before he can set out his feelings, an old hookup reappears. His name is Russell. He's an arrogant TV producer.

And he's kind of pissed off at Greg. But the problem is Russell won't go away and kind of infiltrates his way into Greg's life. in the worst way possible, threatening both his marriage and sanity. So to me... I'm remembering you talking about this one. This was another one I needed to read. I'm so glad we did this subject.

This is like one of my favorite episodes ever. That's so fun. You are a fucking genius. And I love you like with all of my heart. But like, seeing strangers is just like a combination of the movie shame with Michael Fastbender, where he, like, goes on a downward spiral because he's a sex addict, and fatal attraction. Like, it's kind of like if fatal attraction were remade by A24, but they were like, let's just like make this a queer thriller,

like sexy men, butts everywhere, like, tension, creepiness, like, and there's something like, I don't know. Oh, we were talking about. about Omina Oktar's book, but like there's something very claustrophobic about a thriller that takes place in New York City because everything is so out in the open, like you are not safe unless you are in a relatively small apartment. Yes. So I just, it's so good. It's so good. I love it. I love that book with all my heart. I need to read that one out too. I forgot about it for who knows. many months. If you can hear

Harley's chewing in the background on a big raw hide, I apologize. It could be worse, okay? Like Murphy has not asked to go pee yet. Right. Harley's hinting at it, but I'm like, girl, you just get to wait. So my next one is called Prophet by

Helen McDonald and Seen Blasch. Definitely a French name. so who knows if I did that right. But this one, the concept, feels so 824, like a concept that they would pick up. And the concept is your happiest memory is their deadliest weapon. This is profit. It knows when you are happiest, it gives life to your fondest memories, and then uses them to

destroy you. But who has created it and what do they want? An all-American diner appears overnight in a remote British field. It's brightly lit, warm and inviting, but it has no power, no water, no connection to the real world. It's like a memory made of flesh, a nostalgic flight of fancy, more and more objects, toys, fairground rides, pets, and other treasured mementos of the past. And deaths quickly follow. Something is bringing these memories to life than stifling innocent people with their own joy.

This is a weapon like no other, but nobody knows who created it or why. Sunil Rao seems a surprising choice of investigator, chaotic and unpredictable. The former agent is the antithesis of his partner, Colonel Adam Rubinstein, the model of a military man. But Sunil has the unique ability to distinguish truth from truth from truth in objects. I feel like there's an extra word there. truth and objects, words, and people in the passing in real time, and Adam is the only one who truly knows him after a troubled past together. Now, as they battle this strange new reality, they are drawn closer than ever to defend what they both hold most dear. For profit,

can weaponize the past, but only love will protect the future. I forgot it had such a powerful synopsis under there. But yeah, it has so many things going on, very like sci-fi. but also like a lot of fun questions brought up about if someone could use something that makes you like so happy to lure you into traps like that is pretty terrifying so like that part is fascinating and it's a thriller and they have tension through the whole book so what kinds of stuff going everything little something for everyone Well, that sounds wild. Yeah.

It was very unique. It was very different than most things I read. It was one of the first books I got on that gallery. Really? Yeah. Well, if you want wild and unique. Always. This is actually the one that I was like, because I told you, I made like a list of like 10 books.

And I was like, I don't know what I'm going to do with my list. Like, I don't know how I'm going to narrow these down, but like, this is like the one that I was like, if somebody from A24 grabbed my list, this would probably be the one, like, the top one on my list that they would make into a movie. Just because it's so, like, unique and stylish and, like, you can just kind of see it, like, as an A24 movie when you read it. Yeah. So it's called Real Easy by Marie Rukowski. And in 1999, Samantha has danced for years at The Lovely Lady. a strip club. She's not used to mixing work and friendship. After all, between her jealous boyfriend and his young daughter, she has enough on her plate. But the newest dancer is so clueless that

Samantha feels compelled to help her learn the hustle and drama of the club. How to Sweet Talk the boss, fit in with the other women, and make good money. One night, when the new girl needs to ride home, Samantha agrees to drive, a simple decision that turns deadly. Georgia, another dancer drawn into the ensuing murder and missing person investigation, gathers information for Holly, a grieving detective determined to solve the case. Georgia just wants to help, but her involvement makes her a target. As Holly and Georgia round out their suspects, the story's point of view shifts between dancers, detectives, children, club patrons, and the killer. And the author was, um, another one I've got to read.

Yeah, the author was a former dancer. So, like, she kind of has experience. But it's just very real. It's a very, like, female-driven story. It's a large cast. It's kind of, like, just very stylish and very well-written. So I think that, like, this would be one of those situations where, like, if she wrote the screenplay, it would be amazing.

Right. Yeah, it sounds like that's one that has like lots of perspectives, right? Did you hear that? Hmm. You did not hear him bark? I didn't. Oh my God, a little psycho. He's just being a brat.

Yes, it has a ton of different perspectives. Yeah, that's what I thought. Sounds cool. Yeah, it's really good. I heard that one. Well, everyone knows we have to have this point. so. Well, I have

another one. Laying on the ground. He's laying on the ground. This is mine. Whining. I'm going to take a picture and text it to you because this dog is just ridiculous. He's being a dog dog. He's like, I am the center of the universe.

He's just a little brat. What's your next one? So it is another really female driven one working. Oh my gosh, she's being dramatic. Working a non-traditional job, I guess is what I'm going to say. And it is the lady upstairs by our girl, Hallie Sutton, who we love. Yes. So this is about Joe.

Joe's job is blackmailing the most letcherous men in Los Angeles. Hansy Hollywood producers, adulterous actors, corrupt cops. Sure, she likes the money she's making, which comes in handy for the debt, she's paying off, but it's also a chance to take back power for the women in the city. Eager to prove herself to her co-worker of Lou and their enigmatic boss, known only as the lady upstairs, Joe takes on bigger and riskier jobs. When one of her targets is murdered, both the lady upstairs, and the LAPD have Joe in their sights, desperate to escape the consequences of her failed job.

She decides to take on just one more sting, bringing down a rising political star. It's her biggest con yet, and she will do it behind the ladies back, freeing both herself and Lou. But Joe soon learns that Lou and the lady have secrets of their own and that no woman is safe when there is a life-changing payout on the line. this one is like a kind of like cedy la noir and i feel like they would just make so many of the scenes like so cool you know i bet i bet i can't wait to read that one i have a copy of it i really loved it i flew through it yeah i feel like i feel like the thing that is interesting too is that like 824 hasn't done like a lot of like noir so like that would be a perfect pick

I just realized this one's LGBT as well, is one of its genres. So that means all of them. That must have something about age 24 must speak to that side of my books. Yeah. I have one that I think is like very creepy and stylish that we've both read. That I think would work. And this was like my last, this was like my last pick because I was like, I don't know. if I could like see it or if I just really want it.

Yeah. But it's look what you made me do by Elaine Murphy. Ooh, yeah. And it is just so good. There's a woman named Carrie Lawrence who just wants a normal life. And she doesn't need a happily ever after. She'll just settle for after because it's been a decade of helping her sister hide her victims.

A lifetime alive. she just wants to be safe, boring, and not trekking through the woods at night with a dead body wrapped up in a carpet. Her sister, Becca Becca, wants to get away with murder. Becca Lawrence does not believe in happily ever after because she's already happy. She's gotten away with murder for a decade and has blackmailed her sister into helping her hide the evidence. What more could a girl want? But first, they have to stop a serial killer because 13 bodies are discovered in their small town and everyone is shocked, but not as shocked as Carrie, because she thought she knew all of the bodies that were hidden.

But Becca swears that she's not the one that's behind all of these crimes. So they realize that not only is Becca an active serial killer in town, but there's another one in town who is onto them. It is so good. It's so good. Murphy thinks it's great too. That would be a really fun one to see. Yeah, I just picture like

sequel so they could even do the sequel. Mm-hmm. And I'm crossing my fingers for a third book. Yeah. I'm crossing my fingers. I just don't, I mean, I don't really care what she writes next. I'll read it. I just am obsessed with the story.

I'm trying to remember. I interviewed her about the sequel and I can't remember if she said there was maybe a third one. I'll have to go back and listen now. I think especially like with Carrie's perspective, like you could do anything. Yeah. Yeah, I agree. But especially, like, all of the scenes in the woods, I can picture that, like, blue-green hue. Yes.

And it just being, like, oh, my God. Like, just kill me now. I would love. I would love. It's really low-lit scenes you have to, like, focus on. Yeah. Yeah, I'm with you on that. So.

Well, my next one, you almost made me bring up earlier. because it is a very claustrophobic one and it's almost surely dead by Omina Oktar first scene when you were like talking about I was trying not to talk about it too long but like the first scene is like kind of terrifying to like read and that's like I can only imagine

how well they would do that for a scene but it is about Dunya Ahmed who lives in ordinary life where she definitely used to now she's the subject of a true crime podcast. She's been missing for over a year, and no one knows if she's dead or alive. But her story has listeners obsessed, and people everywhere are sporting merch that it's a man's fine Dunia. In the days before her disappearance, Dunia is a successful pharmacist living in New York.

The daughter of Pakistani immigrants, she's coping with a broken engagement in the death of her mother. But when something happens, it really shakes up, shakes her. up. Someone tries to murder her. When her would-be killer winds up dead, Dunia figures the worst is over, but then there's another attempt on her life and another and police suspect someone close

to her may be the culprit. Dunya struggles to make sense of what's happening, and as childhood superstitions seep into her reality, she becomes convinced that someone or something is truly after her. It's just very creepy.

It's so creepy. read and so I can only imagine like how creepy you would be in like a cinematic sense. Similar to Amina Octar's writing, I feel like it's like you have to be very like you have to have like a specific tone in a movie in order to have like a thriller with like supernatural elements in it. Yes. And make it like believable and like entertaining and terrifying. And like that's exactly what she portrays in her books. Yeah. So I could totally see that being an 824 film.

100%. It could creep me out. Yeah. One time I was, I can remember if I said this already on here or not, but when I was reading it, I started it at like probably like seven or something on a night when Tyler was like out of town. And when I got to like 10 o'clock, I was like getting to some really creepy, very descriptive parts and I had to be like, I need to pull myself out of this.

Like I was like so, especially because I'd been like so sucked into it for so many hours. I was like, I need to snap out of this if I'm going to sleep tonight. It's really funny too because when you were telling me that about like being creeped out and like maybe I should not read this alone, I was like, I cannot wait to pick this up and see if I can pinpoint what happens in the book that made you so scared. and then as I was reading the book I was like okay so it's cover to cover like there's not one chapter

that like there wasn't something like unsettling or creepy happening that like you would want to read alone and that end made this fucking and he was wild yeah that ending was fucking wild it's like it's almost like if you wanted to compare like Amina Akhtar's

book is like the hereditary of thrillers. Like. Oh, yeah. Because hereditary was like a thriller that had like supernatural elements in it. Yeah. It just, yeah, really, really good. Yeah, I loved it. She's such a good writer.

She and I talked forever per year. So you can also listen to that. Mm-hmm. Well, my next pick, my last pick, is the book that reminded me of moonlight and the emotional reaction I had to moonlight, which I thought was like very sad and very, like, devastating, but also, like, beautiful and amazing.

And it's one of my favorite movies. So I just read this this past week. It's my favorite book of 2024. Like, nothing's going to talk. this. I love it, love it, love it so much. How We Name the Stars by Andre and Or Dorica, Orderica. O-R-D-O-R-I-C-A. I'm sorry if I butcher your last name, but your book is amazing and I love you.

We apologize to everyone. Sorry. Yeah. It is about Daniel DeLuna, who arrives as a scholarship student at an elite East Coast University, and he bears the weight of his family's hopes and dreams and the burden of sharing his late uncle's name. So Daniel flounders at first, but then he meets his roommate, Sam, who changes everything. And as Sam and Daniel's relationship evolves from brotherly banter to something more intimate, Daniel finds himself in love with a man who helps him see himself in a new light. But just as a relationship takes flight, Daniel's pulled away. First by Sam's hesitating.

and then by a brutal turn of events that changes his life forever. So as he grapples with profound loss, Daniel finds himself in his family's ancestral homeland in Mexico for the summer, finding joy in his setting, even though he struggles to come to terms with what's happened in his life. So he questions, how does the person he's connected with this place and his family comes from? How is his own story connected to his late uncles? and how might he reconcile the many parts of himself as he learns to move forward.

You texted me about this one. I'm still sad. You're so shook. So shook. Love, love, love. So, like, I'm like, okay, I used to be, this is like one of my 20, 24 things, right? It's like, I used to be big on, like, being like, this is what I have to read in the month. And very focused and determined on a monthly TBR.

And then I was like, I need to be more like free willy when I like read my TBR. So now I do it only by week. Like I'm like here are like two, three books I want to read during the week, whatever. Yeah. And I had like picked up that one because I wanted something like that. But like my next book after reading it was Amina Oktar's book. Oh yeah. And I was like, how do I go from something like this to just like picking up a book the next day?

And like it was a little bit of a struggle. It would have been a struggle for me to get into any book. But I was just like, this is probably one of the worst book hangovers I've ever had in my entire life. I bet. Like I immediately finished it and like cried. And then I was like, do I just pick this up again and like torture myself all over? But yeah, it's an amazing story. And I love it.

And it's going to be my favorite book of 2024. Oh, man. You just know. I know. A related note, you texted me about it while we were seeing American fiction. So freaking good. Like, it is so good. It was so funny.

Like, the satire is just amazing. But then, like, all the stories they fit in. And it like, it was way more emotional than I expected. It was just, yeah, it was amazing. It's like fun if you kind of are into fiction and read fiction. But- I have to check it out. The satire and the like the way that they made fun of like hyper-woke culture.

It was hilarious. And it was fun seeing in a movie theater too because people really were like cracking up multiple times. That's really fun when like you see a movie that has like that kind of reaction where like people are either laughing all at the same time or like in my case like screaming at the same time um but yeah we saw anyone but you which was another one that like blew my expectations out of the water um so much funny than I expected and like there really was a lot of plot happening so you didn't feel like you were stalling in a rom-com basically but when they first kissed someone

like the best way I can describe it is like squeed. Like someone was like, someone like got so excited and started clapping behind us. And I was like, okay, like it would never be me, but that was adorable. That's me reading my MM romances. Yeah, I wonder. Like there's something about like, this is kind of like how I feel about like thrillers and romance, but it's like, you know when you would like read a thriller and you think that you have

pieced together the ending or you think like you guess like, a twist or who the killer is. But then like you're like, you know what? I still enjoyed the book because I enjoyed it, even though I guessed it. Like I enjoy getting. That's kind of like when I read a romance, I'm like, okay, this is obviously going to be like a happily ever after. But I'm really excited to see how we get to that point and like what happens throughout

the book, especially if it's like enemies to lovers. Yes. Like, oh my God. Like the proposal with Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds is one of my favorite movies in the entire world. Anyone but you is like in that same vein. Oh my god, I'm so excited. It's more like fake dating, but like they're kind of enemies before they fake date. Yeah, yeah. I also just watched something borrowed recently, which I love. That's one of my favorite ones with Kate Hudson. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I'm down for more. We were, Tyler and I were both laughing, like quite a bit during

it. Um, something. something borrowed is like a cheating trope and it's just it's like Kate Hudson Kate Hudson and Jennifer Goodwin are like best friends and when they were in college like Jennifer Goodwin had a crush on this guy but like she was too nervous to tell him so like Kate Hudson is like the wild sexy friend and she's like fine ask me out and he like ends up asking her out and they, like, get engaged. And then, like, the friend sleeps with Kate Hudson's fiancé. Oh, man.

And it's just, like, drama and comedy. Like, John Krasinski's in it, and he's so fucking funny. Steve Howey's in it from, like, Shameless. Yes. Oh, my God. He is hilarious in it. It is so funny. Oh, my God.

It's one of my favorite movies in the entire world. I know I saw it back when I remember seeing it with one of my friends but I haven't seen it in a while so I didn't remember all of that. Yeah. Definitely I mean I didn't know who Steve how it was when I would have seen it now. Me either. It's just like one of those things is like I'm a rewatcher. So like when I was like I saw it like on social media or something and I was like oh my God I need to rewatch something borrowed. Like, I just, like, love that movie. It's a comfort watch. And then, like, I saw him in it. And I was like, oh, my God. Like, I did not have enough respect or, like, the ability to recognize Steve Howey when I first saw this movie compared to, like, now. Yeah. I totally get that. I found kind of a new

comfort watch, which, like, obviously I don't like necessarily watch, but I would consider it a very comfort watch show and it is the traitors on peacock i don't know everyone keeps telling me to watch this oh my gosh it is such fun reality like but like it's like big brother and like clue kind of together so like there are two traders or there there's a different amount of traders each season that are like murdering people each night kind of like mafia and then the faithfuls are trying to figure out who the traitors are it is is so fun. It's like way too campy. So sometimes you're like, oh my God, they're really playing this kind of music right now in a reality TV competition, but like very easy to watch, but also

like I'm very suspenseful. It kind of feels like you're in a Agatha Christie trope, but reality TV. Well, I just finished and secure. Oh, yeah, you did. And it took me a while. I have a little puppy who needs a belly round. Oh, I have. It took me forever to get through it because I would like watch a season and then get distracted by something else. And I literally watched the entire last season in like two days. And I was like, wow, I'm like feeling kind of emotional. Like I'm really going to miss Issa and Molly and like all of the like gorgeous men in that show.

So many beautiful men. Oh my God. So I was like, I'm feeling like. a little emotional. Lots of butts. Lots of butts. Um, and I was like, oh my God, I just am going to miss this show so much. And I was feeling very emotional. And the next morning is when I started how we named the stars. Oh, wow. So I was like, oh, my God. That's a lot. I was not, like, I probably should have watched like fucking blues clues or something before I, like, like, read how to name the stars.

Yeah. I was just not ready. Well, at least you loved it. We did. I love insecure and I love how we name the stars. Yeah. And all of our 824 adaptation recommendations. Oh, my God. So much fun. So much fun. And they're like, can you guys, can you guys help us adapt more movies?

Hey, do you guys want to be like producers? Yeah. Why don't you guys just read all of these books and just like, we'll pay you to read every day. And we will pay you to find us all of the queer stories and all of the thrillers and all of the queer thrillers and all of the, like, sci-fi and cool shit that you guys love. We're going to turn that shit into movies. This is what we are manifesting for. I mean, we're in the first day of February, but. Yeah.

This feels like something good to me. investor 2024 oh my god yeah Hollywood here we come