We're joined by Sam Ashworth (The Death and Life of August Sweeney) to talk about the ultimate ending: death. Our book this week is Julian Barnes' 2008 memoir about death and dying, Nothing to Be Frightened Of. We discuss ruminative books, and whether all narratives need to have an arc. Plus: the triumphant return of Judge a Book By Its Cover.

Thanks, as always, for listening! If you like the show, and would like some more Book Fight in your life, you can join our Patreon for just $5 a month: https://www.patreon.com/c/BookFight

To keep up with Sam, or to learn more about his work: https://www.samuelashworth.com/

No guest this week, as we wanted to do an episode with just the two of us, here at the mid-point of our final season. For our reading, we dive into A Clockwork Orange, which Mike had somehow never read. Meanwhile, not only had Tom read it, he wrote a paper about its ending, back in his undergrad days, which by some miracle (or anal-retentiveness?) he still has a copy of.

Also this week: one final installment of Fan Fiction Corner. How has AI affected the fanfic community? Should politics be part of fanfiction? And can a time-traveling Toby Maguire prevent the Kennedy assassination?

Thanks, as always, for listening. We've got a few more guest episodes this season, then a final episode that'll just be the two of us. We're also continuing to post bonus content on our Patreon, if you need more Book Fight in your life. Just $5 a month gets you access to loads of bonus content from the last several years: https://www.patreon.com/c/BookFight

We're joined one last time by fan favorite Katherine Hill (A Short Move) to talk about Nora Ephron's 1983 novel Heartburn, a thinly veiled account of the author's divorce from Carl Bernstein. Specifically: Why does it seem like everyone is reading this book right now? And is it somehow the godmother of the recent spate of Millenial divorce books?

Also discussed: humor as a coping mechanism, voice-driven novels, recipes in fiction, and why are people on Goodreads mad at Nora Ephron?

If you're enjoying the show, and would like more of it, check out our Patreon, where we post bonus episodes every two weeks (and where you'll have access to a veritable treasure trove of previous episodes, for a measley $5 a month): https://www.patreon.com/c/BookFight