Veronica's sick but she soldiers on and we review the final four of the March tournament. Plus our non-spoiler check in on Automatic Noodle. Also, we talk about our favorite noodles.

WHAT ARE WE NOMMING?

Tom: Taquitos and Caesar Salad
Veronica: Peppermint Tea

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MARCH FINAL FOUR

Which of these will move on? One of these matchups is currently a dead heat, while the other has a 42-vote lead!

There Is No Antimemetics Division by qntm (aka Sam Hughes) | Goodreads
Slow Gods by Claire North | Goodreads
Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao | Goodreads
The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson | Goodreads

QUICK BURNS

Phil: Legendary author Dan Simmons (Hyperion, The Terror) passed away from a stroke last Saturday at the age of 77. While his later works, like 2011's Flashback, drew heavy criticism for their political themes, his contribution to the genre via the Hyperion Cantos remains a staple for many fans. Read the Guardian Obituary.

Mark: Coming this November from John Scalzi and Tor Books: Monsters of Ohio, a heartfelt exploration of a tentacular solution to the struggles of the modern world. Details at Tor.

Mark: Scalzi is also taking an indefinite hiatus from book club invitations due to the sheer volume of spam. He noted: "I can spend my days sorting 'book club' spam, or I can write books. One pays me money. The other does not." Read more at Whatever.

Calvey: ACOTAR fans rejoice! ACOTAR 6 is set for October 27, 2026, followed quickly by ACOTAR 7 on January 12, 2027. The Cut Article.

Mark: The British Book Awards have added a Science Fiction & Fantasy category! The shortlist includes:

Alchemised by SenLinYu
Brimstone by Callie Hart
Ice by Jacek Dukaj (trans. Ursula Phillips)
Katabasis by R.F. Kuang
Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros
The Devils by Joe Abercrombie

BARE YOUR SWORD

terpkristin: The pronunciation of Eyre was amusing. Right on point for this show, which I still love.

tamahome: She should have been named "Jane Eyrie." She might have had some corvid blood.

Stephen: How did Tom and Veronica go through life and miss all the Jane Eyre adaptations? If you have 2 to 5 hours, YouTube has the 1943 version with Orson Welles, Joan Fontaine, and Agnes Moorehead! Plus, Netflix has a new one planned with White Lotus star Aimee Lou Wood.

Jan: I feel the very carefully phrased statement about how long it took Tom to finish the book is the closest thing we will ever get to Tom "hating" a book. 😅 (Disclaimer: I am NOT saying Tom hated it! I just thought it was funny.)

BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION

Automatic Noodle by Annalee Newitz Amazon | Bookshop

Community Thoughts:

terpkristin: "If ever there was a book for 'what are we nomming,' this is it... For Italian noodles, I love a good penne alla vodka."
Aaron Bell: "There are a bunch of cryptocurrencies mentioned early on... I know ETH is mentioned, which is a real one designed for self-executing contracts."
Jan: "If any pick asks for a 'what are we nomming?' thread, it's a book about robots making 'authentic' biang biang noodles!"

ADDENDUMS

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Sword and Laser

S&L Podcast #530 – You’re Pulling My Noodle