Welcome to the first episode of the Cakes & Ale Book Club! Every month we will be bringing you a mix of discussions and interviews about recent genre fiction we’ve been reading, and we’re kicking things off in style with The Loosening Skin by Aliya Whiteley, published by Unsung Stories.
The Loosening Skin is set in a world where, every seven years, people shed their skin – and with it shed aspects of their personality, even their love for one another. Those emotions and memories remain bound up in the old skin, to be kept, or burned, or sold. Rose Allington, a former celebrity bodyguard whose relationship with client-turned-lover Max Black ended abruptly with her last moult, falls back into his world when his old skins are stolen and he doesn’t know who else to trust to get them back. But as the world around her turns to medication to keep their skin from ever shedding again, Rose is determined to be true to herself – even when that means leaving behind everything she used to be.
Direct download: Episode 27: Book Club – The Loosening Skin
We kick off with a discussion about this wonderful book, with comments from listeners who have been reading with us this month, followed by a interview with Aliya Whiteley about her work and career. Aliya is the author of many novels, novellas and short stories in the realm of weird and speculative fiction, including the BSFA award-nominated The Arrival of Missives and Saboteur award-nomiated The Beauty. You can find out more about Aliya’s work on her blog and follow her on Twitter.
Stay tuned to the end to hear what our next book club choice will be!
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