Y’all, we’ve made it to another Friday. Let’s congratulate ourselves and celebrate the occasion with champers, books, TV, tasty business, friends, whatever makes you happy! I personally recommend going to see Vengeance at your local cinema, because that movie is rad as hell.

ICYMI on FYA

For this week’s Stream It, Stephanie raves about Ready or Not, a darkly funny slasher that rakes the rich over the coals.

In book reviews:

  • Stephanie gets spooked by Tiffany D. Jackson’s White Smoke.
  • Mandy C. reviews Below Zero, the final story in Ali Hazelwood’s STEMinist Novella series.
  • Stephanie finds a comfort read with Tricia Levenseller’s Master of Iron (Bladesmith #2).
  • Mandy C. reviews Francesca Zappia’s Katzenjammer, where brutal reality meets magical realism.

Book Things

Read the first chapter of Leigh Bardugo’s new annotated version of Shadow and Bone.

Obama’s summer reading list!

Loving this NYT profile of Julia Whelan, one of the most in-demand audiobook narrators working today.

Are ebooks on the decline again?

Onscreen Things

Lots of scoop out of San Diego Comic-Con:

I’m gonna miss Samantha Bee SO hard.

Will this finally be the good adaptation of Vampire Academy? Because the first one certainly wasn’t.

In highly important abs news, Steven Soderbergh on expanding the Magic Mike franchise.

Check this interview with Eva Reign, star of Billy Porter’s directorial debut, Anything’s Possible.

Bridgerton Season 3 casting update!

Retta is still “salty” about the Good Girls cancellation, and we are too.

The Black Panther 2 trailer is here to give you a good, inspirational cry:

How the hunt for a teenage version of Desperate Housewives launched the Pretty Little Liars phenomenon. Also, meet the cast of Original Sin! (BTW, if you haven’t seen our archive of PLL recaps, GET OVER HERE.)

We’ve got a new Belle of the ball! H.E.R. is set to play our beloved bookworm in ABC’s 30th anniversary special of Beauty and the Beast.

Victoria Beckham, who was the last holdout, has finally agreed to do a Spice Girls documentary, zig a zig ahhh!

Virgin River has a new showrunner, and we’re stoked.

Cosmopolitan profiles the “coolest, most exciting new actors in Hollywood” and reminds us of those Vanity Fair spreads of yore.

Speaking of VF, here’s their take on the Blonde trailer, with Ana de Armas as Marilyn Monroe.

With Reginald the Vampire, Spider-Man breakout star Jacob Batalon takes a big bite out of Hollywood.

Dammit, The Wilds got cancelled.

Social Media Things

I live for Sarah Dessen Easter Eggs so this made me happy. HATE SPINNERBAIT!

I mean, it’s just a fact:

#Goals:

I think we can all agree, Victorian writers said it better:

Riverdale… what else is there to say?

Bella, seriously though:

@smallestkyle

This trend is so funny #twilight #booktok

♬ original sound –

Miscellaneous Things

Amber Ruffin wants to talk about her uterus, and we are here for it!

An examination of FYA’s mascot, the unicorn.

File this under “W” for We Never Asked For This: you can now take a cruise inspired by Gone Girl.

What’d we miss? Add your fave distractions of the week in the comments.

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Sarah lives in Austin, and believes there is no such thing as a guilty pleasure, which is part of why she started FYA in 2009. Growing up, she thought she was a Mary Anne, but she's finally starting to accept the fact that she's actually a Kristy.