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February 15, 2026

Episode 211: Mark J. Wilson – Full of Beans: A Back-In-Time Mystery

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A chat with Mark J. Wilson about his new time-travelling detective novel, Full of Beans.

Website
markjwilson.com

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@markjwilsonauthor

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@markjwilsonauthor

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@markjwilsonauthor

Amazon.com | Amazon.ca

About Full of Beans

Phil Beans has a lot on his plate. A dead professor. A cheating husband. A missing graduate student. A mysterious Umbrella Guy. And a suicide that doesn’t make sense.

For the ambition-challenged and exertion-adverse private investigator, Phil Beans, who is usually content to use his time-traveling skill working straightforward divorce cases, solving each of these seemingly disparate crimes seems like a lot of work, and (maybe) not worth the effort.

But he’s made promises that he must keep, so Phil sets off on his mission of discovering the truth about these crimes, and maybe even gets the girl in the end, as a bonus.

Full of Beans is author and scientist Mark Wilson’s highly engaging new time-bending novel in the Back-in-Time book series, set in Oxford, England. Tightly woven and a fun story, it is filled with eccentric characters, engrossing plots and subplots, and a detailed sense of place that will keep readers hooked from the first page to the last.

About Mark J. Wilson

Mark J. Wilson lives in Washington, D.C., with his wife, Carrie, but he was born and brought up in Reading, England, and his favourite place in the world is in the Cotswolds, just down the road from Oxford (where most of Full of Beans is set).

Mark went to college in Canterbury, where he earned a Ph.D. in biochemistry. He has worked in biopharmaceuticals for the last 35 years or so, but is now working in gene therapy, helping to develop a much-needed cure for Rett Syndrome.

He worked in Nottingham and Cambridge before moving back to Reading, them moved to the United States in 2009, living in North Carolina for seven years before moving to the DC area.

Growing up in Reading gave him a fascination with trains and planes, since, in his words, “there wasn’t much else there to interest a kid.” He loved hanging around at the west end of Platform 5, and when Concorde would fly over. His dad gave him a lifelong passions for astronomy, physics, chess, cooking, and model-making. He loves model trains, and over the years, in his spare time, has also been a watercolor artist and a music producer. He particularly loves electronic dance music.

February 1, 2026February 1, 2026

Episode 210: Dr. Paul Michael Privateer – Mindweavers II: Attack

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A conversation with Dr. Paul Michael Privateer about the latest book in his Mindweavers science fiction series, Mindweavers II: Attack.

Website
paulprivateer.com

Amazon.com | Amazon.ca

About Mindweavers II: Attack

What if a virus could rewrite not just your biology, but your very sense of reality?

In Mindweavers II: Attack, Paul Michael Privateer delivers a razor-sharp, genre-defying techno-thriller that fuses the urgency of Contagion with the cerebral intensity of Black Mirror and the geopolitical paranoia of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan. This second installment in the Mindweavers series takes you deep into a world where genetic warfare, ecological collapse, and cognitive manipulation converge into a single, terrifying threat.

When a bizarre mass whale stranding rocks the Atlantic coast during a global security summit, a rogue team of Interpol specialists uncovers a viral intelligence capable of mutating across species and consciousness itself. As the storm surges and world leaders gather, the narrative races through autopsy labs, military lockdowns, digital forensics, and quantum neuro-hacking, building to an explosive confrontation that asks: What happens when the next war is not over territory, but over thought?

If you loved The Three-Body Problem, 12 Monkeys, or the philosophical tension of Annihilation, this book will haunt you. It’s a mind-bending plunge into bioethics, machine sentience, and the future of human identity. Fans of speculative thrillers, climate fiction, and political intrigue will find Mindweavers II both terrifyingly plausible and addictive.

About Dr. Paul Michael Privateer

Dr. Paul Michael Privateer is a former Strategic Air Command missile specialist turned academic who crafts genre-bending fiction about the terrifying line between human and machine. A professor at Georgia Tech and Arizona State University, and guest professor at MIT, his commentary has appeared in The New York Times and on NPR, CNN, and the BBC.

His Mindweavers series draws on real-world expertise in military tech and data science to create a dark vision of genetic warfare. Privateer turned to fiction because he realized some truths need to be dramatized, not just analyzed.

January 18, 2026January 18, 2026

Episode 209: TC Ross – Blood Diamonds

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A conversation with author TC Ross about her new fantasy novel from Raconteur Press, Blood Diamonds.

Website
tcross.us

Substack
tcross.substack.com

Amazon.com | Amazon.ca

About Blood Diamonds

Every year, hunters ride into the cursed woods of Magnolia Manor chasing fortune.

Most never ride out.

September Zamfir isn’t after treasure. He’s running from a past that hunts him harder than any monster, and walking straight into the one legend no blade has ever ended.

But the beast is no mindless killer. Behind silver fur and porcupine spines is Verity: a young woman chained to an ancient curse, guarding the only family she has left.

When Sept offers the one thing no hunter ever has—help—she has to decide whether to trust the young man who sees through her claws . . . or condemn them both to the darkness that made her.

About TC Ross

TC Ross is an illustrator and urban fantasy author who also dabbles in related historical fantasy, romantic comedy, gaslamp, horror, and short stories.

She resides in Texas with her family, feeding the Fae and watching out for shifters. Hopefully, they never find her.

January 4, 2026January 18, 2026

Episode 208: Peter McChesney – Quinto’s Challenge

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A conversation with author Peter McChesney about his upcoming debut science fiction novel Quinto’s Challenge, which asks the question, “What if science and religion collided and resurrection became a reality?”

Website
petermcchesney.com

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@PeterMcChesneyAuthor

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@peteramcchesney

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@peter-mcchesney

Amazon.com | Amazon.ca

About Quinto’s Challenge

For fans of Andy Weir, Blake Crouch, and The Three-Body Problem comes a bold, futuristic, genre-bending debut challenging the conventions of religion, science, and political power.

On the 100th anniversary of JFK’s challenge to land a man on the Moon and return him safely to the Earth, visionary US President Vince Quinto challenges America with an even more audacious goal: finding a way to conquer death before the century is out—by developing the scientific means to achieve resurrection.

As the 21st century draws to a close, advances in genetics, quantum physics, and artificial intelligence converge to make Quinto’s Challenge possible. The final breakthrough—hailed as the Theory of Everything—is made by Deeley Carr, a young, shy quantum physicist recruited to work on a top-secret US government project.

However, those privy to this highly classified science quickly realize that the power to bring about immortality is a double-edged sword—if it falls into the wrong hands, it would become the ultimate weapon of surveillance and control, a tool for the subjugation of all.

Advance Praise for Quinto’s Challenge

“Lovers of science fiction novels with a touch of political intrigue and suspense will find Quinto’s Challenge by Peter McChesney an enthralling read.”–Readers’ Favorite

“In Peter McChesney’s sweeping science fiction novel Quinto’s Challenge, a brilliant young outsider’s theories change the trajectories of physics and philosophy.” –Foreword Reviews

“A compelling SF saga that focuses on the humanity behind big tech.” –Kirkus Reviews

About Peter McChesney

Born and raised on the beaches of eastern Australia, Peter McChesney is a dual US–Australian citizen whose path has taken him from academia to corporate America—and now, to storytelling. His passion for writing began early, especially after his parents bought him an Amiga 500 computer, which he used not only for games but also to craft stories and fuel his imagination.

He holds degrees in Writing and Publishing (Western Sydney University), Law and Constitutional Studies, and a master’s in Political Science (both from Utah State University). Each of these disciplines now finds expression in his fiction—particularly in his enduring fascination with America’s founding era and the novel’s geopolitical themes.

Peter has worked as an adjunct instructor in US history and political science, with most of his career spent in business-to-business software sales. He also led several teams that trained some of the world’s most advanced artificial intelligence.

Quinto’s Challenge is his debut novel and the first in a planned series that will explore the ethical, societal, and existential consequences should science ever advance far enough to make human resurrection possible. The story examines the tension between spiritual ideas and scientific ambition, reflecting Peter’s own formative influences from both faith and reason.

He lives in the United States with his family and dog—and still enjoys gaming when time permits.

December 21, 2025January 18, 2026

Episode 207: Sal Amato – Hidden Powers

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A conversation with actor, writer, and producer Sal Amato about his upcoming debut science fiction novel, Hidden Powers.

Website
salamato.com

Facebook
@hiddenpowersofficial

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@HiddenPowersUSA

Instagram
@hiddenpowersnovel

TikTok
@hiddenpowersofficial

About Hidden Powers

Investigative journalist Sarah Moore has exposed government corruption for years. Still, nothing prepared her for what killed her father: $47 trillion in unaccounted federal spending hidden across seventy years of black budgets.

Her father, David Moore, a government accountant, discovered the pattern in 2009—the same representatives approving secret budgets, the same shell corporations receiving them, the same suppressed technologies that would have eliminated scarcity. He died of a “heart attack” at fifty, alone in his office at 2:17 AM.

Sarah follows the money to 127 phantom corporations, 6,000 coordinated elites, and 847 murdered researchers whose discoveries would have freed humanity from controlled resources. Then Victoria Sterling contacts her with the answer:

In 1954, world leaders agreed with an extraterrestrial species called the Greys—not for technology, but for permission to manage humanity as property. Sterling, a former architect of this control system, explains there’s no grand conspiracy—just thousands of people worldwide who believe they own everyone else, coordinating through a shared worldview rather than direct communication. They’ve suppressed cures, buried innovations, and murdered whistleblowers, all while convincing the “owned” to defend the systems harming them.

The cruelest part: people have been taught to root for their oppressors, by becoming ‘fanatical’ in trusting the shiniest marketed bulbs.

On October 17, 2026, Sterling stands at the Washington Monument and reveals everything with irrefutable documentation that will change the course of humanity.

About Sal Amato

Sal Amato is an actor, writer, producer, and now novelist whose career has been defined by an insatiable curiosity about human nature and the stories we tell ourselves. With a long career that included attempts to develop streaming media platforms in the mid-’90s to 2000s, and a music industry insider with moderate success, Sal has never felt he’s achieved what he set out to do, but that has never stopped him.

As a performer, Sal began his journey in 1978 doing a Betty Crocker commercial. From there, he’d move on to movies (Bad Boys 1982) as well as being one of the youngest members ever at The Second City, one of the most prestigious comedy institutions in the world where he would learn the craft under the late, famed Don DePollo As time went by, Sal developed his voice performing stand-up and improvisation, learning to read audiences and craft narratives that resonate. With very odd jobs along the way, including a DJ, broadcasting, and working at grocery stores, Sal continued to try to find his way, never giving up. This foundation led to a moderate success in acting in both film and television, with appearances in The Untouchables, My Best Friend’s Wedding, Chicago Overcoat, Where It Gets You, Chicago Fire, The Big Leap, and numerous other productions, including commercials.

As a creator, Sal expanded beyond performance into writing and producing. His animated series Bakers In The Burbs, a project blending comedy with social observation, has been optioned by a production company actively seeking placement on major streaming platforms.

When not writing, Sal continues to work in entertainment, bringing stories to life across multiple platforms and as an analog-to-digital transfer specialist.

December 8, 2025January 18, 2026

Episode 206: Alan Smale – Burning Night (Apollo Rising: Book 3)

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A conversation with Sidewise Award-winning novelist (and former NASA astrophysicist) Alan Smale, talking about Burning Night, Book 3 in his Apollo Rising alternate-history science fiction trilogy.

Website
alansmale.com

Facebook
@alan.smale

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@alansmale.bsky.social

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@AlanSmale

About Burning Night

On July 4, 1983, Vivian Carter and her NASA crew of seven set off on an audacious double flyby of Venus and Mars, a two-year mission with repurposed Apollo technology that will push their ingenuity and resourcefulness to the limit. Meanwhile, superpower conflicts escalate on Earth, mirrored by a dangerously unstable arms race and battles for valuable mineral resources on the Moon. Full-up lunar military actions and treacherous sneak attacks decimate Vivian’s friends, allies and colleagues on both sides of the Iron Curtain and threaten everything she has worked to achieve.

Vivian’s odyssey is a high adventure that will bring mankind new knowledge and unimagined insights … just as the risk of worldwide nuclear war has never been greater. Now, on her triumphant return in 1985, Vivian Carter’s path inevitably brings her back to where she began: a desperate rescue mission with no NASA support and no safety net, to a dangerous, war-torn Moon where she will be hard pressed to tell friend from foe.

In the concluding volume of Alan Smale’s highly acclaimed Apollo Rising series (“A nail-biting thriller.” – Publishers Weekly) humanity faces a stark choice: a bright new interplanetary future … or nuclear apocalypse on two worlds.

Praise for the Apollo Rising series

“A nail-biting thriller.”−Publishers Weekly

“I loved it. Great ‘hard’ science fiction with convincing space battles.”−Larry Niven

“Will delight and enthrall.”−Library Journal

“A provocative science fiction novel.”−Foreword Reviews

“Alan Smale is one of the brightest stars in the hard-SF firmament, and Hot Moon is his best novel yet. ”—Robert J. Sawyer, Hugo and Nebula Award-winning author

“Intriguing, adrenaline-fueled, and engaging, author Alan Smale’s Hot Moon is the perfect sci-fi meets political thriller.”—Anthony Avina

“A superb mind-expanding sci-fi novel!”−Grady Harp (Amazon Hall of Fame Top 100 Reviewer)

About Alan Smale

Alan Smale writes alternate history, historical fantasy, and hard SF. His novella of a Roman invasion of ancient America, “A Clash of Eagles,” won the Sidewise Award for Alternate History, and his novels set in the same universe, Clash of Eagles, Eagle in Exile, and Eagle and Empire (2015-2017) are available from Del Rey in the US and Titan Books in the UK and Europe. His “Roman baseball” collaboration with Rick Wilber, The Wandering Warriors, came out from WordFire Press in 2020, and Hot Moon, his alternate-Apollo “technothriller with heart,” set entirely on and around the Moon, was launched by CAEZIK SF & Fantasy in 2022, with sequel Radiant Sky following in 2024 and the grand finale, Burning Night in 2025.

Alan has sold more than fifty stories to Asimov’s and other magazines and anthologies, and his short story “Gunpowder Treason” earned him a second Sidewise Award in 2022. His non-fiction essays have appeared in Lightspeed, Journey Planet, and Galaxy’s Edge.

Alan grew up in Yorkshire, England, and earned degrees in Physics and Astrophysics from Oxford University. Until recently, he performed astronomical research into galactic neutron star and black hole binary systems at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, and served as the Director of one of NASA’s big-three astrophysical data archives.

November 23, 2025November 23, 2025

Episode 205: Betty Jane Hegerat – Elephants in the Room

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A conversation with award-winning Calgary author Betty Jane Hegerat about her latest collection of literary short stories, Elephants in the Room.

Website
bettyjanehegerat.com

Facebook
@bettyjh

About Elephants in the Room

Fourteen jewel-like stories unveil the tender chaos of lives unlived and loves unspoken

In Elephants in the Room, Betty Jane Hegerat masterfully uncovers the quiet fractures of ordinary lives—the unspoken regrets, the buried griefs, and the fragile threads of connection that bind families across generations.

From a devoted son’s frantic dash to help his mother glimpse the Queen to a reluctant father’s stunned reunion with the daughter he never knew, from a woman dressing her mother-in-law for an eternal rest to a boy’s guilty reckoning with a bully’s untimely death, these unforgettable stories illuminate the elephants in our lives we ignore at our peril.

With tender wit and unflinching insight, Hegerat explores the weight of what we leave unsaid: the ache of lost chances, the solace of small mercies, and the stubborn grit that carries us through. As poignant as a stolen glance, as resonant as a half-forgotten lullaby, the stories in Elephants in the Room whisper the unvarnished secrets of family ties—where regrets loom large, and small acts of grace light the way home.

Praise for Elephants in the Room

“Betty Jane Hegerat is a meticulous observer of the human condition, and the family in particular. The stories in Elephants in the Room are written with succinct, unadorned prose and a gentleness that belies the strength of their messages. With warmth, humour, empathy, and intimacy, her characters search for the connection and remembrance we seek in those moments of heartbreak that punctuate all of our lives. A most moving collection of short fiction.” – Lori Hahnel, author of Flicker and Vermin: Stories

“Elephants in the Room is a gorgeously beguiling collection. Individual stories are beautifully paced, with a skilful interplay between past and present. Delightful.” – Peter Midgely, writer, editor, and translator

“Betty Jane Hegerat tells her stories with intense care and in a soft-voiced, clear way that is lean on descriptions, explanations, and emotional fireworks. Even the passages of dialogue are kept short. The stories range from family members struggling to deal with everyday problems familiar to most of us that are nevertheless inescapable and painful, to the heart-shattering issues in the aftermath of broken marriages, to what to do with the willfully (or not) unfailingly incompetent family members of whom most families have at least one, to the deep love for friends whose suffering one is helpless to alleviate. In this collection, Hegerat examines with admirable restraint the serious and mostly unanswerable questions about living the ordinary life with dignity and kindness. This is a book to be loved.” – Sharon Butala, award-winning author of Leaving Wisdom

About Betty Jane Hegerat

Calgary author Betty Jane Hegerat was a social worker in a long-ago life. The stories she has written since she left that career behind reflect an ongoing need to make sense of conflict and chaos in relationships, and to find moments of laughter and even glimmers of redemption.

That seriousness aside, she loves the Calgary writing community. She has taught at the Alexandra Writers’ Centre, the Fernie Writers’ Conference and for Continuing Education at the University of Calgary, and was Writer in Residence for the Calgary Public Library. In 2015 she was honoured to receive the Writers Guild of Alberta Golden Pen Award for lifetime achievement in writing

Betty Jane’s stories have been published in anthologies and magazines. She has five previous books: a novel, Running Toward Home (Newest Press), a collection of stories, A Crack in the Wall (Oolichan Books), another novel, Delivery (Oolichan Books), and two YA novels, Odd One Out (Oolichan Books) and The Boy (Oolichan Books). The Boy is a French braid of investigative journalism, fiction, memoir, and meta-fiction. The book was shortlisted for the Calgary Book Prize, the High Plains Book Awards, and the Alberta Writers Guild Wilfrid Eggleston Non-Fiction Award.

November 10, 2025November 10, 2025

Episode 204: John R. Carlos – Cryonic Dreams: Awakening

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A conversation with author John R. Carlos about Cryonic Dreams: Awakening, the first book in a science-fiction thriller trilogy.

Websites
johnrcarlos.com.au

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@JohnRCarlos

About the book

Dr. Michelle Brown pioneers a revolutionary biotechnology: reanimating the long-dead through advanced cryonics.

Her first subject, Maryanne, awakes after 133 years, her memory wiped, her body restored. But as this breakthrough captures global attention, it triggers a dangerous chain reaction: sabotage, murder, and the rise of AASID—a secretive global order bent on silencing Maryanne’s past.

Forced to flee Gemini City for Mars, Michelle races to protect her discovery and unlock the secrets buried in Maryanne’s DNA—secrets that could reshape humanity’s future or lead to its downfall.

Praise for Cryonic Dreams: Awakening

“This true thriller plunges readers into an electrifying race from Gemini City to the stark landscapes of Mars, where conspiracies rage, and ruthless forces will bury secrets at any cost. Packed with heart-stopping suspense, vivid world-building, and thoughtful explorations of scientific ethics, this novel is a captivating must-read for anyone interested in the world we are all sliding towards.” – International Review of Books

About John R. Carlos

Born in Madrid, Spain, John R. Carlos migrated to Australia while very young, spending his early years in Perth, Western Australia. After completing high school, he enlisted into the Royal Australian Air Force and, many years later, commissioned as an officer, ultimately reaching the rank of Wing Commander. John’s permanent career of 42 years included movement to numerous locations around Australia and several overseas deployments, including to the Sinai, Egypt, Baghdad, Iraq, Khartoum, Sudan, UAE, and Afghanistan.

Throughout his career, John was able to advance his educational qualifications to Associate and Advance Diploma level. He retired from the full-time Air Force in 2020. Since retirement, John has honed his professional writing skills through various educational creative writing courses. With the publication of his first novel, Cryonic Dreams: Awakening, he’s accomplished a long-held desire to be a published author.

October 26, 2025October 26, 2025

Episode 203: Mary Robinette Kowal & Sam J. Miller – Red Star Hustle/Apprehension

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A conversation with award-winning authors Mary Robinette Kowal and Sam J. Miller about the new Saga Double containing their science fiction novels Apprehension and Red Star Hustle, back-to-back.

Websites
maryrobinettekowal.com
samjmiller.com

Facebook
@maryrobinettekowal
@sentencebender

Instagram
@maryrobinettekowal
@sam.j.miller

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@maryrobinettekowal.com
@sentencebender.bsky.social

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@sentencebender

About the book

Two expertly crafted crime stories set in a far-future science fiction universe, from two award-winning authors known for their gripping plots and unforgettable characters—a short novel and a long novella that will thrill fans of space adventures, mystery, and intergalactic intrigue in this Saga Double

Apprehension
A family vacation arranged by Bonnyjean, a grieving mother, her son-in-law Jax, and her six-year-old grandson Tristan, quickly becomes disastrous as Tristan is kidnapped by a terrorist operation that is hoping to affect the planet’s upcoming elections between rival parties. They believe Bonnyjean was given a secret by the double agent who died in her arms. However, not only is this a deadly misunderstanding, but it’s also a dangerous one as Bonnyjean was last on Nahatanau when she was a special forces operative. Unfortunately, that was over thirty years ago, but she won’t let the years nor her bad hip get in the way of rescuing her grandson. Beloved Hugo Award–winning author Mary Robinette Kowal has crafted an intricate mystery of mistaken identity on an alien planet.

Red Star Hustle
Aran, a happy-go-lucky high-class escort, is on the run after he’s framed for the assassination of his famous filmmaker client. The last thing he needs is to fall for the studly and noble clone of a murderous puppet monarch while he’s trying to stay one step ahead of an ace bounty hunter, who is trying to keep a fatal secret from her toxic boss/mom, which means she can’t stop to worry about a little thing like whether her target might actually be innocent. Set within a universe of epic mech battles, and billions of human-made wormholes that make traveling to a distant star as easy as walking through a door or scheduling car service. This science fiction thriller by Nebula Award–winning author Sam J. Miller is a crisscross of heartbreak, addiction struggles, queer messiness, and resisting evil empires, coming together in a space-hopping fight with the whole damn galaxy.

About Mary Robinette Kowal

Mary Robinette Kowal is the USA Today bestselling author of the Hugo, Nebula, and Locus award winning alternate history novel The Calculating Stars, the first book in the Lady Astronaut series. She is also the author of The Glamourist Histories series, Ghost Talkers, The Spare Man, and Molly on the Moon, and has received the Astounding Award for Best New Writer, four Hugo awards, the Nebula and Locus awards. Her stories appear in Asimov’s, Uncanny, and several Year’s Best anthologies. Mary Robinette has also worked as a professional puppeteer, is a member of the award-winning podcast Writing Excuses, and performs as a voice actor (SAG/AFTRA), recording fiction for authors including Seanan McGuire, Cory Doctorow, and Neal Stephenson. She lives in Denver with her husband Robert, their dog Guppy, and their “talking” cat Elsie.

About Sam J. Miller

Sam J. Miller‘s books have been called “must reads” and “bests of the year” by USA Today, Entertainment Weekly, NPR, and O: The Oprah Magazine, among others, and have been translated into nine languages. They’ve also been banned in Florida, and stolen by AI. His work has won the Nebula, Locus, Shirley Jackson, and Subjective Chaos Kind of Awards, as well as the John W. Campbell Memorial Award. He’s also the last in a long line of butchers. Sam lives in New York City.

October 12, 2025January 18, 2026

Episode 202: Alan Bradley – The Flavia de Luce Mystery Series

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A long chat with internationally bestselling author Alan Bradley about his Flavia de Luce mystery series, which is now up to Book 11: What Time the Sexton’s Spade Doth Rust.

Websites
Penguin Random House
alanbradleyauthor.com

About What Time the Sexton’s Spade Doth Rust

AN INSTANT NATIONAL BESTSELLER

One of the best mystery novels of 2024, The Washington Post

Amateur sleuth Flavia de Luce, along with her pestilent younger cousin, investigates the murder of a former public hangman and uncovers secrets that bring the greatest shock of her life.

Flavia de Luce has taken on the mentorship of her odious, moon-faced cousin Undine who has come to live at Buckshaw following the death of her mother. Undine’s main talent, aside from cultivating disgusting habits, seems to be raising Flavia’s hackles, although in her best moments she shows potential for trespassing, trickery, and other assorted mayhem.

When Major Greyleigh, a local recluse and former hangman, is found dead after a breakfast of poisonous mushrooms, suspicion falls on the de Luce family’s longtime cook, Mrs. Mullet. After all, wasn’t it she who’d picked the mushrooms, cooked the omlette, and served it to Greyleigh in the moments before his death? “I have to admit,” says Flavia, an expert in the chemical nature of poisons, “that I’d been praying to God for a jolly good old-fashioned mushroom poisoning. Not that I wanted anyone to die, but why give a girl a gift such as mine without giving her the opportunity to use it?”

But Flavia knows the beloved Mrs. Mullet is innocent. Together with Dogger, estate gardener and partner-in-crime, and the obnoxious Undine, Flavia sets out to find the real killer and clear Mrs. Mullet’s good name. Little does she know that following the case’s twists and turns will lead her to a most surprising discovery—one with the power to upend her entire life.

Praise for What Time the Sexton’s Spade Doth Rust

“Anyone who’s read Alan Bradley’s Flavia de Luce series knows that the author’s superpowers are creating the pitch-perfect emotional vulnerability and mental prowess of his prococious pre-teen heroine, as well as depicting the sometimes-silly antics and logical deductions of this amazing girl. We’re ecstatic that Flavia has returned.” —Canadian Living

“I love the Flavia de Luce novels! I identify, though I unfortunately didn’t have an Uncle Tarquin and was forced to make do with a Christmas chemistry set from the Sears catalog. Flavia is the best female detective I’ve ever read, full of realism, self-confidence and emotion (in roughly equal parts), and her tales are hilarious, engaging and occasionally heart-breaking.” —Diana Gabaldon, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Outlander series

“To say I am overjoyed by the return of the magnificent Flavia is a massive understatement. It is a great day when we have her back in our lives with a new, and riveting, crime to solve. Brava Flavia. Bravo Alan!” —Louise Penny, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Inspector Gamache series

“Cozy mystery fans will love this latest installment featuring Flavia de Luce, Alan Bradley’s plucky and spirited protagonist. Delightful!” —Nita Prose, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Maid

“The enchanting 12th installment of Bradley’s Flavia de Luce series. . . . Flavia’s characteristic quirky humor and unorthodox thinking are on full display, and the ending finds her taking a well-earned step forward in her maturity. This series is as fresh as ever.” —Publishers Weekly

“Flavia De Luce is in top form. . . . Bradley gives his loyal readers a story that will more than satisfy their expectations while also inviting new readers to discover an endlessly entertaining amateur young sleuth who has much to teach her elders.” —Booklist (starred review)

“Bradley’s intrepid amateur sleuth is witty and whip smart as ever, and Bishop’s Lacey remains both a colourful backdrop and a microcosm of a nation in transition, paralleling Flavia’s own trepidation at entering adulthood. A layered plot rife with dastardly deeds and shocking revelations makes for an intriguing and entertaining read, and nicely tees up the (one hopes) next installment in the irresistible Flavia de Luce series.” —BookPage

“Rejoice, fans of fiction’s youngest franchise detective: Flavia de Luce is back after a five-year hiatus, and she hasn’t aged a bit. . . . Nobody could possibly unite intelligence work, mythological monsters and village gossip as adroitly as Bradley’s heroine.” —Kirkus Reviews

“A lively and welcome 11th instalment [to the series].” —Toronto Star

“Watching Flavia grow emotionally is one of the keener pleasures of Mr. Bradley’s inimitable series. Her ego remains undimmed (“It is not always easy being blessed with a superior brain”), but she keeps getting better at working with (and for) others to ensure that justice is delivered.” —Wall Street Journal

About Alan Bradley

Alan Bradley is the Globe and Mail and New York Times bestselling author of eleven Flavia de Luce mystery novels and the memoir The Shoebox Bible. His first Flavia novel, The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, received the Crime Writers’ Association Debut Dagger Award, the Dilys Award, the Arthur Ellis Award, the Agatha Award, the Macavity Award, and the Barry Award, and was nominated for the Anthony Award. His other Flavia de Luce novels are The Weed That Strings the Hangman’s Bag, A Red Herring Without Mustard, I Am Half-Sick of Shadows, Speaking from Among the Bones, The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches, As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust, Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew’d, The Grave’s a Fine and Private Place, and The Golden Tresses of the Dead, as well as the ebook short story “The Curious Case of the Copper Corpse.”

Alan was born in Toronto, Ont. and grew up in the pleasant lakeside town of Cobourg, Ont. After a long career in television broadcasting, he took early retirement from the University of Saskatchewan to write full-time. He has published many children’s stories as well as lifestyle and arts columns in Canadian newspapers. His adult stories have been broadcast on CBC radio and published in various literary journals. He has also written several screenplays and taught university-level courses in screenwriting. He was the recipient of the first Saskatchewan Writers Guild Award for Children’s Literature.

After writing for several years on the Maltese island of Gozo, Alan Bradley now lives on an island in the middle of the Irish Sea.