Between U.S. politics and the coronavirus pandemic, it’s hard to deal with the ambient stress level. I’m not a politician or a medical professional, so there’s very little that I can do to help this situation. But what I can do, is recommend distractions.

Whether you’re under quarantine, or just need something easy to focus on as an alternative to twitter, let me share some podcasts that have brought me joy. I’ll write about books and TV shows in upcoming posts.

Kaleidotrope

Do you appreciate the tropes of fanfiction and romantic comedies? Have you ever wished that real life promised such happy endings and neat resolutions? Then I have the audio drama for you!

The entire story is told in a mere ten episodes, each of which is about thirty minutes long, so you don’t have to fear getting involved in something that you won’t have time to finish. Drew and Harrison are reluctant co-hosts of a radio show at the fictional college of Sidlesmith, where every student is guaranteed their meet-cute and happy ending, thanks to the magic of the university founders and their star-crossed romance. Over the course of the story, they help callers with their relationship problems, while also uncovering hidden secrets about the school.

I can not over state how much I loved this story. It’s utterly infectious, without being saccharine, and the actors have amazing chemistry. You can find out more at Kaleidotrope podcast, and listen through your podcast aggregator of choice.

Castle Charming

Do you love Discworld, but you’re in the mood for a slightly more gentle social critique? Do you like M/M and F/F slow burn romance, fairytale tropes, and messed up (if generally well-meaning) royal families?

The Sheep Might Fly podcast is much more than just the Castle Charming novellas – Tansy Rayner Roberts serializes all kinds of different novellas there – but they are my favorites. Over the course of the four novellas, you will get to meet a cast of unique characters, including a foreign princess under a lot of pressure to catch a prince, a beleaguered corporal of the guard and confidante to one of the princes, a tomboy magical princess who really does not have time for anybody else’s BS, a sweet young newspaper reporter who is new to kingdom, and so many more.

The entire Sheep Might Fly archives is helpfully broken down into its component novellas. Be sure to start with Glass Slipper Scandal. Or if you prefer to read them, the author has a new Kickstarter to publish all-revised editions. That runs until April 7, 2020.

And more!

I’m currently listening to Thor: Metal Gods on Serial Box. Since I haven’t finished it yet, I can’t officially recommend it. So far, it’s light and fun and does a surprisingly good job of translating the lengthy action scenes endemic to superhero comics into an audible medium. And who can resist Thor and Loki teaming up with a Korean tiger goddess and a non-binary space pirate?

So those are my top recommendations for some light audio fiction. What are some light, escapist audio stories that you’ve enjoyed recently? Please share your favorites in the comments!