Episode 46: Serial Killers
Summary: Welcome to Spooky Season, friends! Holly and Devin kick their favorite time of year off with a real bang today discussing books with serial killers. One host avoids true crime and scary stories at all costs - the other host has never felt more at home than in October vibes. Both hosts agree that that national obsession with serial killers acts as both an exploration into the muddy waters of human nature and a genuinely helpful protective mechanism for cis and trans women who need to be on their guard. Join us for some lighthearted fun about more than one murder!
Topics Discussed:
The Dagger (3:17): Holly discussed All The Sinners Bleed by S.A. Cosby, a detective procedural following Titus Crown, the first Black sheriff of Charon County, as he responds to a call about a shooting at a local school and then must confront a reeling community and the fact that the true threat is still at large - a serial killer hiding in plain sight. Holly’s key takeaways were:
While sometimes plot is enough, S.A. Cosby’s writing is phenomenal in this book, filled with with the kinds of delightful and original turns of phrase common in Southern speaking; he even names the county after the figure who ferries souls across the Rivers Styx and Acheron into the underworld in Greek mythology.
Racism and hatred that exists bubbling under the surface, or on the surface at times, of this town and community. Titus must confront his own role and place in racial dynamics as a Black man but also as a law enforcement officer; he is met with hatred by both Black and white members of the community as he seeks to understand what “right” is.
The cat-and-mouse game between Titus and the serial killer explores how things may not be what they seem - which is also reflected in the religious community. Cosby explores the choices people can make and how bad people can still do good things - they just prefer to do bad things more.
The Heart (20:30): Devin discussed Love in the Time of Serial Killers by Alicia Thompson, a novel following PhD candidate Phoebe Walsh as she spends a summer in Florida cleaning out her childhood home after her estranged father’s passing. Things escalate quickly when she becomes convinced that the next door neighbor, Sam Dennings, is a serial killer. Devin’s key takeaways were:
Thompson highlights the very real (but slightly exaggerated) feelings across many cis and trans women of fearing cis men, especially men they don’t know or trust, and how knowing everything about Ted Bundy is actually a mechanism by which they protect themselves from very real danger.
At twelve, Phoebe’s parents divorced and she and her brother Connor (he was five at the time) essentially picked sides and were subsequently raised by different parents; in returning to Florida, Phoebe must confront her past, her trauma, and her defense mechanisms that keep her from vulnerability that might unlock the door to real romantic love.
This novel explores confirmation bias and what assumptions can do to our sense of selves and our relationships. Phoebe makes a lot of assumptions about Sam, who he is and what he cares about, and Thompson shows the reader the importance of uncovering truth.
Hot On the Shelf (40:10):
What’s Making Our Hearts Race (44:46):
Devin: What We Do in the Shadows Season 5 on Hulu
Holly: Big Fish
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