Bestselling authors Victoria Aveyard and Soman Chainani record an episode of their Plot Twist podcast. Live at the Heartland Book Festival, they discuss Aveyard’s latest novel, Tempest, the story of protagonist Cat Rose, the queen of a pirate tavern. When opposing forces close in on her people, she must decide how she will save her kingdom: Turn in the only man she’s ever loved — or hang.

The two authors started the weekly podcast in 2025 to talk about their creative processes, hot topics in publishing and entertainment, and to imagine plot twists they’d like to see happen in real life.

Aveyard is an internationally bestselling author and screenwriter, born and raised in a small town in Western Massachusetts. She has a BFA in Writing for Film & Television from the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts and is the author of eight Young Adult novels, including the Red Queen series and the Realm Breaker series, both of which have topped the New York Times, USA Today, and Sunday Times bestseller lists.

Chainani is the New York Times bestselling author of The School for Good and Evil, a global franchise spanning books, film, and education. The series has sold more than 4.5 million copies, been translated into 35 languages, spent over 50 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, and was adapted into a major Netflix film that debuted at #1 in more than 80 countries. His latest book, Young World, is a geopolitical YA thriller. Chainani is a graduate of Harvard University and Columbia University’s MFA film program. He lives in St. Louis.