Shows / Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Welcome to Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast! The podcast where we spiral over fictional characters and discuss things that finally made it out of the group chat! We’re three book besties covering SJM, romantasy, fantasy, and whatever else we can’t stop thinking about—from plot breakdowns and character deep dives to fan theories and plenty of chaos. Spoilers and adult language ahead. Welcome to A Court of Cortisol & Chaos—now go get back to your TBR!
Episodes
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
SJM Fantasy Draft
Not your ordinary Fantasy Draft... Today, we are putting together the ULTIMATE SJM Fantasy draft. We’re taking turns picking characters from across Sarah J…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
ACOTAR Bonus Chapters — Part 2
We’re back with Part 2 of our ACOTAR bonus chapter discussions, and this time we’re talking about A Court of Silver Flames. We’re covering two bonus chapters…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
ACOTAR Bonus Chapters — Wings and Ember
For Part 1 of our ACOTAR bonus chapter series, we’re talking about “Wings and Ember,” the bonus chapter from A Court of Mist and Fury. For years, this chapter…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Fall Releases We Can’t Wait For
Fall is here, which means we have a whole new stack of books to add to the TBR. In Episode 3, we’re talking about the fall book releases we’re most excited…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
ACOTAR 6 Predictions | What We Think Is Coming Next
Welcome back to Cortisol and Chaos: The Podcast. We’re diving back into A Court of Thorns and Roses with one very important question: what the hell do we think…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Series We’re Starting, Continuing & DNFing
In our first episode, Amy, Dom, and Lindsay are looking at the series we’ve started recently and deciding which ones are worth continuing, which ones we’re…
Cortisol & Chaos: The PodcastEpisode 8: Eo — Sacrifice, Symbolism, and Storytelling | ACOCAC Podcast
Before we begin, we want to name that this episode discusses character death, gendered violence in storytelling, and the concept of fridging. We’re approaching…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 7: Galentines Day & Bookish Superlatives | ACOCAC Podcast
It’s Galentines Day, and we’re doing what we do best: talking books and gently roasting each other.In this episode of A Court of Cortisol and Chaos, we play…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 6: Galentines, Valentines, & Overrated Book Boyfriends | ACOCAC Podcast
February kicks off with a Galentines/Valentines-inspired episode—and yes, we start with a little controversy.In this week’s episode of A Court of Cortisol and…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
S2 Ep. 5: Red Rising — Our Final Thoughts | ACOCAC Podcast
⚠️ This episode contains spoilers for Red Rising ⚠️In Season 2, Episode 5, we’re sharing our full spoiler reactions to Red Rising by Pierce Brown. We break…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
S2 Ep. 4: Alchemised, Manacled & the Fandom Conversation | ft. Emily.Reads.ALot | ACOCAC Podcast
Emily (@emily.reads.alot) is back for Part 3 of our Alchemised miniseries, and this episode dives headfirst into one of the most complicated conversations in…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
S2 Ep. 3: Red Rising — Non-Spoiler Expectations & First Impressions | ACOCAC Podcast
We’re officially kicking off our Red Rising era.In this episode, we share our non-spoiler expectations and first impressions as we start reading Red Rising by…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
S2 Ep. 2: Villain Deep Dive — The Viper Queen of Crescent City | ACOCAC Podcast
This week, we’re diving into one of the most fascinating figures in the Maasverse: the Viper Queen of Crescent City.In this villain deep dive, we break down…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
S2 Ep 1: Our Bookish Year in Review | 2025 Book Wrapped | ACOCAC Podcast
Season 2 starts here—& we’re kicking things off with our very own Book Wrapped.In this New Year’s Day premiere, each of us shares our worst read of 2025, our…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 25: A Holiday Send-Off + Our January Fable Book Club Pick | ACOCAC Podcast
We’ve reached the final episode of the year 🤍For Episode 25 of A Court of Cortisol and Chaos, we’re sharing Christmas and Holiday wishes, gratitude, and a…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 24: Why A Court of Frost and Starlight Actually Matters | ACOCAC Podcast
A Court of Frost and Starlight might be one of the most overlooked books in the ACOTAR series, but we think there’s a lot more happening beneath the surface…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 23: Brimstone Part 2: Plot, Theories, & Reading Preferences | ACOCAC Podcast
It’s time for Brimstone Part 2 — and the chaos ensues.In this episode of A Court of Cortisol and Chaos, we’re starting with a debate that every reader has an…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 22: Brimstone by Callie Hart: Our Thoughts, The Book, + The Editing Controversy
This week we’re diving into Brimstone by Callie Hart—the plot, the vibes, the characters, and everything that pulled us in.But we’re also addressing the…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 21: Friendsgiving: The ACOCAC Origin Story, Our Friendship, + SJM | ACOCAC Podcast
Happy Friendsgiving, book besties! 🦃✨In honor of the season (and all our new followers!), we’re getting cozy and chatty with a full get-to-know-us…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 20: Alchemised Part 2: Deep Dive- Burnout, Trauma, & More with Emily Reads | ACOCAC Podcast
Emily (@emily.reads.alot) returns for Part 2 of our Alchemised miniseries!We open with a little fun—in honor of Kaine Ferron, we each share our favorite…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 19: The Alchemised Miniseries Begins: Story, Themes & Symbolism with EmilyReads! | ACOCAC PODCAST
Our Alchemised deep dive begins!In Episode 19 of A Court of Cortisol and Chaos, we’re joined by our first-ever guest, Emily (@emily.reads.alot), to kick off…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 18: Cozy Chaos: Festive Holiday Book Recommendations | ACOCAC Podcast
We’re starting November with some festive chaos! In Episode 18 of A Court of Cortisol and Chaos, we kick things off with a game of “Holiday Gift Ideas for SJM…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 17: Childhood Chaos: Scary Movies That Traumatized Us & SJM HeadCanons | ACOCAC Podcast
It’s spooky season, and we’re diving straight into childhood trauma (the fun kind). In Episode 17 of A Court of Cortisol and Chaos, we’re talking about the…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 16: Quick Chaos: TOG Rankings, Alchemised Updates | ACOCAC Podcast
We’re keeping it short and chaotic this week! In Episode 16 of A Court of Cortisol and Chaos, we discuss our Throne of Glass rankings, talk about our reading…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 15: Terror at the Gates Deserves More Hype | ACOCAC Podcast
Terror at the Gates by Scarlett St. Clair took us by surprise....and straight into our Top 5 reads of the year. In Episode 15 of A Court of Cortisol and Chaos…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 14: Alchemised, Manacled, and Fanficton | ACOCAC Podcast
In Episode 14 of A Court of Cortisol and Chaos, we take a thoughtful look at the conversation surrounding Alchemised- a recently published book with origins in…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 13: Casual Chaos: Celebrity Crushes, MMCs & Hot Takes | ACOCAC Podcast
Who would you cast as your favorite MMCs? In Episode 13 of A Court of Cortisol and Chaos, we're spiraling about celebrity crushes, dream casting fantasy book…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 12: Casual Chaos: Crescent City Scenes, Plot Points & Reading Updates | ACOCAC Podcast
In Episode 12 of A Court of Cortisol and Chaos, we’re catching up on all things bookish before diving back into the Maasverse.We’re sharing what we’ve been…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 11: Crescent City Casual Chit Chat | ACOCAC Podcast
It’s game time! In Episode 11 of A Court of Cortisol and Chaos, we’re playing a “what if” game- imagining what our favorite characters would be like in real…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 10: Neurodivergence & Disability in Fantasy (Dain, Sawyer, Andarna) | ACOCAC Podcast
We’re back with another episode of A Court of Cortisol and Chaos, and this time we’re mixing book games with a deeper fandom discussion.In Episode 10, we’re…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 9: Casual Chaos: Book Chat + Our Hot Takes | ACOCAC Podcast
We’re keeping things a little more casual this week with a bookish catch-up episode of A Court of Cortisol and Chaos.In this episode, we’re talking about what…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Ep 8: Fourth Wing, “This or That,” & Violet’s Disability Representation
We’re diving back into Fourth Wing! In this episode of A Court of Cortisol and Chaos, we’re starting things off with a chaotic round of “This or That” before…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Ep 7: Dain: Red Flags, Repression, and Revolution
Dain gets a lot of criticism in the Fourth Wing fandom, but in this episode of A Court of Cortisol and Chaos, we’re taking a closer look at his character and…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Episode 6: Fourth Wing Intro | ACOCAC Podcast
We’re finally talking about Fourth Wing! In this episode of A Court of Cortisol and Chaos, we’re sharing how we found Rebecca Yarros’ Empyrean series, our…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Ep 4: Crescent City Check-in + Our Favorite Spicy Scenes | ACOCAC Podcast
If you've ever wondered where you'd end up in the Sarah J. Maas universe, this episode is for you.We kick things off with a chaotic game of SJM MASH, deciding…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Ep 3: In Defense of- Nesta and Chaol
Some Sarah J. Maas characters seem destined to divide readers—but are they really as controversial as they're made out to be?In this episode of A Court of…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Ep 2: Underrated Scenes and Overused Tropes
Some of the best moments in fantasy aren't the ones everyone talks about.In this episode of A Court of Cortisol and Chaos, we're sharing the most underrated…
- Cortisol & Chaos: The Podcast
Meet the Chaos: Our Sarah J Mass Spiral Begins
Welcome to the very first episode of A Court of Cortisol and Chaos!Meet your hosts—Amy, Addy, Dominique, and Lindsay—as we introduce ourselves, share how we…