Calling all fans (or haters – we don’t discriminate!) of the Bridgerton-verse! We are diving into the latest season of Netflix’s most popular rompy regency romance, and comparing it to the book it’s based off of, ‘An Offer from a Gentleman’, by Julia Quinn. Since watching (our favorite) season 2 together, with the recent release of season 4, we thought it would be even more fun to read the source material and discuss both book and show!

We start the episode with our thoughts on season 4 – what we liked, didn’t like, and how it stacked relative to previous seasons. Then, we get into the book, noting all the ways it was similar, different, and dare we say, better than the series. If you love a good show vs. book breakdown or simply adore the Bridgerton series, this is an episode you can’t miss!

S7E1:And just like that, we have done 6 seasons of the Hot Girls Read podcast! Welcome to our first episode of season 7: the one where we share our 2026 goals.

We recorded this episode a couple of days after the start of the lunar near year, and perhaps it’s the action-focused energy of the zodiac (year of the fire horse!) that inspired us to dedicate an episode to our literary hopes and dreams for the year.

From chatting about astrology and Saturn Returns to what the year might hold for us as readers and podcasters, this episode heralds the start of a new year, a new season, and hopefully, lots of brilliant happenings in 2026!

The big question: are we living in a literary golden age or a post-literate society ???

On this week’s episode we’re doing something a little different to our usual bookish chats, and we’re breaking down a couple of intriguing Substack essays on the combined subject of literature and society. Our primary references include ‘Ignore the pessimists – we are living through a literary golden age’ by Henry Oliver versus ‘The dawn of the post-literate society’ by James Marriott. From the simultaneous (oddly, and apparently) global decrease and increase in reading to the role of screens in the downfall of reading comprehension, we wade through the facts, the arguments, and our own experiences to come to a conclusion about the current state of the literary world. But, we’re also interested to hear what you guys think – tune in and join the debate!