The English Club Podcast
Episodes
The Hero's Journey and Its Consequences | Twisted by Miranda Leek
12 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
ROLLER COASTER ROLLER COASTER ROLLER COASTER
Crowntide Deep Dive | Lightlark Keeps Getting Weirder
26 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Lightlark is back, baybeee! We've met Alex Aster, we've shaken her hand in diplomatic friendship, and now she either betrays or rewards us wit...
Tyra Banks's Book is a Mixed Bag | Modelland Deep Dive & Analysis
19 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Modelland by Tyra Banks is a fantasmagorical nightmare dreamworld where anything can happen! Join the SBU English Club as they recount the misadventur...
This book’s author QUIT booktube! Meg LaTorre's The Cyborg Tinkerer
11 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It may be the one thing The SBU English Club categorically is not—writing advice. Top 10 Easy Ways to Plot a Scene! Top 3 Things to NEVER put in Dia...
we read Age of Scorpius and have some thoughts
02 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It's not a secret, and we're not about to be contrarians: reviews for The Age of Scorpius are not very good. There's no question that this...
The Weirdest Book We've Ever Read! Legend of the 10 Elemental Masters
08 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Long before booktok was an even worse place known as SomethingAwful. A squalid, terrible place, it nonetheless gave birth to many characters that have...
here’s the entire plot of the powerless trilogy by lauren roberts and what we think about it
23 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Team Kitt stays losing.Powerless, Reckless, and Fearless make up a young adult trilogy full of love triangles, enemies to lovers, and absolutely unint...
History has Absolved Divergent
07 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Unfortunately, Divergent is good now. There was a time when it was the worst YA dystopia ever, but now all we can do is quietly smile at how silly it ...
Blood of Hercules is Romantasy's Rock Bottom
12 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Love it or hate it, everyone’s talking about Blood of Hercules. Jasmine Mas’s catapulting from shifter romance to new adult romantasy shocked book...
This Bible Fanfiction SUCKS! But it's also great YA fantasy???
01 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Apparently, the people who made the giant replica of Noah’s ark also wrote a pseudo-fantasy trilogy about Noah’s early life. This one has a T-REX ...
Skyshade is the Worst Book I've Ever Read
23 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Lightlark was terrible. Nightshade was less terrible but more disappointing. Now I don’t know how I feel. Alex Aster has tested the SBU English Cl...
Zenith's Sequel is a Hidden Gem!
22 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
They all said Zenith was a disaster. And they were right, but for the wrong reasons. And then they never said anything about Nexus. So here's 3 and a...
Powerless isn’t that bad, you guys are just mean
18 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Lauren Roberts has a viral BookTok sensation on her hands. "Red Queen meets Hunger Games," she calls it. “Worse than Lightlark,” responds the Int...
Let’s Read Crown of Starlight! Cait Corrain Controversy | Booktok Book Deep Dive and Analysis
23 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
YOU WON’T GET THIS ANYWHERE ELSE. Controversial book deep dives & analysis, booktok fights, review bombing, and the wildest book drama to come ...
Zenith is Lightlark in Space! YA Book Review and Deep Dive
21 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
It's YA Sci-Fi gone wild! Join the SBU English Club as they review what has to be one of the longest YA books ever--Zenith by Sasha Alsberg and L...
Trigger Warning’s Author is Back! Not My Home RANT REVIEW
16 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Somehow, J.A. Johnstone has returned. And she’s brought a new book that’s somehow more insane than the last. Join the SBU English Club as they ta...
This Furry Fantasy Book is EVIL! Rich Shapero’s Wild Animus
20 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The worst author ever is back with a furry mountain-climbing fever dream! This one’s so much to deal with that our heroes need to call in the help...
Nightbane Deep Dive! The YA Fantasy BookTok Darling is Back
25 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Somehow, Lightlark has returned. Some call it the worst YA book ever made, others call it a victim of a chemical reaction between the publishing indus...
Is This Controversial Bible Fanfiction Actually Good?
12 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Apparently, the people who made the giant replica of Noah’s ark also wrote a pseudo-fantasy trilogy about Noah’s early life. Our intrepid heroes d...
BookTok Drama, Twitter Fights, Copyrighting the Sun: Lauren M. Davis's Nova's Playlist
10 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join the English Club for a deep dive into the controversial book that everyone on Twitter and TikTok has been lit up about. Journey across 18th cent...
Stones To Abbigale Review: Onision’s Facts, Greg’s Fiction
21 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
From lawsuits to internet drama to a very odd trilogy of books, Onision brings it all to the SBU English Club. Join us and our friend Holly as we pro...
Guessing Fourth Wing’s Ending! Fourth Wing Review
09 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
I only read half of Fourth Wing! Can I guess how it ends, or will I lose to a tarot prediction? Find out on this episode as Rebecca Yarros joins our c...
Let's Read Rin Tongue and Dorner: Empress Theresa's Evil Twin
28 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
SEASON 1 FINALE! I've never seen a (normal-seeming) book with such a low goodreads score. But does Rin, Tongue and Dorner actually deserve the neg...
Let's Read Lightlark: (too) many good book ideas
15 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The critique group no one asked for is back with Alex Aster’s booktok famous novel Lightlark! Is this book really that bad, or is it a misundersto...
Ready Player One RANT REVIEW: An Unintentional Self-Report
17 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Hang out with the English Club as we discuss Ernest Kline's Ready Player One! We both read our own half, and together, we try to put the pieces ...
Becoming an English Major 📚🖊️ Why Study Literature, Books to Read, Joining Writing Groups
20 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
If you've ever wondered what it's like being an English major, or wanted to study literature but not known exactly what that entails, come hang out wi...
Gothikana - RuNyx's Dark Academia Teacher Student Romance Book!
25 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today the English Club reads Gothikana, RuNyx's TikTok famous dark adacemia teacher student romance! Well, they read half of it. BUT, both read a diff...
Episode 5: True Allegiance by Ben Shapiro
11 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Spend your evening with the English Club wrestling with one of the most challenging books we've encountered to date--Ben Shapiro's True Allegiance! Li...
Episode 4: Reaper's Creek
19 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Reaper's Creek (2018) the last of a spiritual trilogy by notable YouTube personality Onision. It follows Daniel, a young boy in the rural midwest whos...
Lani Sarem Interview (2/2): Dads, Dyslexia, Divinity!
20 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
SPECIAL EPISODE PART 2 of 2: Our interview with Lani Sarem continues! This one is more light-hearted, focusing on Lani's creative background and her r...
Lani Sarem Interview (1/2): Magic, Movies, Mental Health!
31 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
SPECIAL EPISODE PART 1 of 2: After our last episode, we received an interesting phone call from a club member you might be familiar with. We think it'...
Episode 3: Handbook for Mortals
15 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Lani Sarem's Handbook for Mortals has been the subject of derision on the internet ever since its first publication. While there's no excusing the "ma...
Episode 2: Trigger Warning
25 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
William W. Johnstone (and Jo) joins the English Club with their controversial novel Trigger Warning. Is it really "one of the worst books of all time"...
Episode 1: Empress Theresa
21 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In Episode 1, the Saint Balasar University English Club critiques Norman Boutin's Empress Theresa. Music by Benjamin Davis.