Kingdom of Thirst

Kingdom of Thirst
Kingdom of Thirst

History, hot takes, author interviews, and deep dives into romance novels every Wednesday. 100% NSFW. Each week writer and bookseller Abigail Kelly sits down with a guest to break down a book or romance trope of her choice in an adult-flavored book report. It’s mostly a hilarious celebration of the much-maligned genre, but there’s facts, figures, and history in there, too. We super-duper promise it’s not all willies! Really!

Episodes

  1. 09/06/2023

    The Disappearance of the Mass Market Paperback

    This week, Abigail takes on the slow-moving mystery of the disappearance of the mass market paperback. Discussion includes thicc books, the history of publishing, fishy claims, and the necessity of cheap books in an expensive world. ABIGAIL’S STUFF: https://linktr.ee/abigailkellyauthor CITIZENS OF THIRST DISCORD SERVER: https://bit.ly/30NsP8P TWITTER, FACEBOOK, & INSTAGRAM: @kingdomthirst KoT’S BOOKSHOP: bookshop.org/shop/kingdomthirst PO Box 460816 San Francisco CA, United States 94146-0816 Kingdom of Thirst is a member of the Frolic Podcast Network! Find all our episodes and tons of new podcasts to enjoy at frolic.media/podcasts. SOURCES: WHERE ARE MASS MARKET PAPERBACKS HEADED in PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY: https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/bookselling/article/90039-mass-market-paperback-sales-whither.html THE PAPERBACK REVOLUTION in BRITANNICA: https://www.britannica.com/topic/publishing/The-paperback-revolution THE REVOLUTIONARY EFFECT OF THE PAPERBACK BOOK in THE SMITHSONIAN MAGAZINE: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/the-revolutionary-effect-of-the-paperback-book-36209689/ ALLEN LANE & PENGUIN BOOKS INVENT THE MASS-MARKET PAPERBACK: https://www.historyofinformation.com/detail.php?id=2642 HOW PAPERBACKS TRANSFORMED THE WAY AMERICANS READ in MENTAL FLOSS: https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/12247/how-paperbacks-transformed-way-americans-read THE HISTORY OF DUST JACKETS: FROM DISPOSABLE TO COLLECTIBLE in BOOK RIOT: https://bookriot.com/history-of-dust-jackets/

    48 min
  2. 12/14/2022

    Gilgamesh: Part Two

    This is the second part of December’s special audio essay series on The Epic of Gilgamesh! This week, Abigail introduces you to romance’s most unlikeable hero: Gilgamesh himself. Discussion includes seventeen foot tall men, charisma out the wazoo, and why this king’s head is really, super-duper empty. You can listen to it or read it at patreon.com/worksbyabigail. INCREDIBLE MUSIC FEATURED IN THIS EPISODE: Kingdom of Thirst's theme (sans sax) by the incomparable Andrew Machado! bit.ly/2L1LcCL RESOURCES: GILGAMESH by STEPHEN MITCHELL: https://amzn.to/3B2BWom FALL OF CIVILIZATIONS PODCAST - EPISODE 13: https://bit.ly/3ijDfsD FALL OF CIVILIZATIONS PODCAST - EPISODE 9: https://bit.ly/3VolZkQ INANNA: QUEEN OF HEAVEN AND EARTH by DIANE WOLKSTEIN AND SAMUEL NOAH KRAMER: https://amzn.to/3XPgtt3 EVERYDAY LIFE IN MESOPOTAMIA by JEAN BOTTERO: https://amzn.to/3uk0vtu EPIC OF GILGAMESH by ABED AZRIE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ARRP5i2nw8 THE WRITTEN WORLD by MARTIN PUCHNER: https://bit.ly/3XSdRdI ABIGAIL’S STUFF: https://linktr.ee/abigailkellyauthor KOT’S MERCH STORE: https://rdbl.co/2Vg6ZeA CITIZENS OF THIRST DISCORD SERVER: https://bit.ly/30NsP8P TWITTER, FACEBOOK, & INSTAGRAM: @kingdomthirst KoT’S BOOKSHOP: bookshop.org/shop/kingdomthirst EMAIL: kingdomofthirst@gmail.com PO Box 460816 San Francisco CA, United States 94146-0816 Kingdom of Thirst is a member of the Frolic Podcast Network! Find all our episodes and tons of new podcasts to enjoy at frolic.media/podcasts.

    34 min
  3. 12/07/2022

    Gilgamesh: Part One

    This is the first part of December’s special audio essay series on The Epic of Gilgamesh! This week, Abigail breaks down what it is, why it matters, and why you should maybe, possibly care about it. Discussion includes the world’s first paranormal romance, plowing [REDACTED], and how Gorbie became Gorbie the Great. You can listen to it or read it at patreon.com/worksbyabigail. INCREDIBLE MUSIC FEATURED IN THIS EPISODE: Kingdom of Thirst's theme (sans sax) by the incomparable Andrew Machado! bit.ly/2L1LcCL RESOURCES: GILGAMESH by STEPHEN MITCHELL: https://amzn.to/3B2BWom FALL OF CIVILIZATIONS PODCAST - EPISODE 13: https://bit.ly/3ijDfsD FALL OF CIVILIZATIONS PODCAST - EPISODE 9: https://bit.ly/3VolZkQ INANNA: QUEEN OF HEAVEN AND EARTH by DIANE WOLKSTEIN AND SAMUEL NOAH KRAMER: https://amzn.to/3XPgtt3 EVERYDAY LIFE IN MESOPOTAMIA by JEAN BOTTERO: https://amzn.to/3uk0vtu EPIC OF GILGAMESH by ABED AZRIE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ARRP5i2nw8 THE WRITTEN WORLD by MARTIN PUCHNER: https://bit.ly/3XSdRdI ABIGAIL’S STUFF: https://linktr.ee/abigailkellyauthor KOT’S MERCH STORE: https://rdbl.co/2Vg6ZeA CITIZENS OF THIRST DISCORD SERVER: https://bit.ly/30NsP8P TWITTER, FACEBOOK, & INSTAGRAM: @kingdomthirst KoT’S BOOKSHOP: bookshop.org/shop/kingdomthirst EMAIL: kingdomofthirst@gmail.com PO Box 460816 San Francisco CA, United States 94146-0816 Kingdom of Thirst is a member of the Frolic Podcast Network! Find all our episodes and tons of new podcasts to enjoy at frolic.media/podcasts.

    37 min
  4. 10/27/2021

    A Brief and Biased History of Twilight

    Everyone knows Twilight, right? Maybe, but no one knows Twilight better or more intimately than lovers of romance. We live with it, we adore it, we scoff at it, we comp it, we reluctantly tip our hats to it -- and everything in between. Mostly, it's complicated. In this episode, we're taking a deep dive into its impact on a genre, an industry, and our own personal lives to tease out A Brief and Biased History of the Twilight Saga. Donate to the Quileute Move To Higher Ground Fund: www.mthg.org ANDREW MACHADO’S MUSIC: bit.ly/2L1LcCL Quotes, in order of appearance: STEPHENIE MEYER TALKS TWILIGHT WITH BORDERS BOOK CLUB: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnKl8UxpxWc STEPHEN KING SPEAKS TO STUDENTS AT UMASS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8TkQvdJVbc LAURA VON HOLT: host of The Mermaid Podcast, writing romance as Laura Lovely. She can be found at mermaidpodcast.com (also on the Frolic Network!) and lauralovelybooks.com. JODI MCALISTER ON TWILIGHT’S LEGACY: https://www.buzzfeed.com/jennaguillaume/ya-authors-on-twilight AMALIA DILLIN: author of SON OF ZUES, PLAYING TO WIN, and BY HELEN’S HAND. She can be found at amaliadillin.com and https://twitter.com/AmaliaTd SUCKING THE QUILEUTE DRY by ANGELA R. RILEY: https://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/08/opinion/08riley.html PAIGE HUGHES: Her illustrations can be found at bit.ly/3qoR5si. You can find her on social media as @page.hues. CM NASCOSTA: author of MORNING GLORY MILKING FARM and GIRLS WEEKEND, her work can be found at https://amzn.to/3B9fg32. You can find her on social media as @cmnascosta. FIFTY SHADES OF GREEN by FORBES: https://www.forbes.com/sites/hayleycuccinello/2017/02/10/fifty-shades-of-green-how-fanfiction-went-from-dirty-little-secret-to-money-machine/?sh=71cf88d8264c HOW TO KEEP FANFICTION LEGAL by SYFY: https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/how-to-keep-fanfiction-legal-and-avoid-trouble-with-lawyers KOT’S MERCH STORE: https://rdbl.co/2Vg6ZeA CITIZENS OF THIRST DISCORD SERVER: https://bit.ly/30NsP8P TWITTER, FACEBOOK, & INSTAGRAM: @kingdomthirst KoT’S BOOKSHOP: bookshop.org/shop/kingdomthirst EMAIL: kingdomofthirst@gmail.com Kingdom of Thirst is a member of the Frolic Podcast Network! Find all our episodes and tons of new podcasts to enjoy at frolic.media/podcasts.

    53 min
4.8
out of 5
15 Ratings

About

History, hot takes, author interviews, and deep dives into romance novels every Wednesday. 100% NSFW. Each week writer and bookseller Abigail Kelly sits down with a guest to break down a book or romance trope of her choice in an adult-flavored book report. It’s mostly a hilarious celebration of the much-maligned genre, but there’s facts, figures, and history in there, too. We super-duper promise it’s not all willies! Really!

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