It is the holiday season and everyone is thinking about presents. Don’t lie, you know you are. You’ve been making a list (even if only in your head) of presents you’d like to receive and trying to work out what your loved ones would like. So, in the spirit of this time of year, we decided to talk to agents, editors, and reviewers about their wish lists for next year’s books.

We have been very lucky to receive contributions from:

But don’t worry, this episode still contains plenty of banter and nonsense from our intrepid trio. We go from suggesting a Breakfast Club/fairytale-inspired tale to the educational benefits of storytelling across multiple mediums.

As always, here is the comprehensive list of books, authors, TV, and films we mention in the episode:

Books and authors

  • Uprooted by Naomi Novik
  • Neil Gaiman
  • An Accident of Stars by Foz Meadows
  • The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
  • The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes
  • Dan Simmons
  • Sarah Pinborough
  • The Culture Series by Iain M. Banks
  • Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
  • The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
  • The Copper Cat Trilogy by Jen Williams
  • The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers
  • Impersonations: A Story of the Praxis by Walter Jon Williams
  • Nunslinger by Stark Holborn
  • Rhapsody: Notes on Strange Fictions by Hal Duncan
  • Neuromancer by William Gibson
  • Robert Holdstock
  • The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher
  • Drake by Peter McLean
  • The Blackheart Trilogy by Liz de Jager
  • The Poison Crow by Charlotte Bond
  • All the Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders
  • The Split Worlds Series by Emma Newman
  • The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman
  • James Frey (you can read more on his interactive YA series here)
  • The Foolish King by Mark Price

TV and film

  • Stranger Things
  • Black Mirror
  • Game of Thrones
  • Lucifer
  • Westworld
  • Star Trek
  • Firefly
  • Serenity
  • Alien
  • The Terminator