Synchronize your clocks: It's the Bewitching Hour

'Tis the season to be wary: Despite what a thousand classic Christmas songs might tell you, the holiday season has the potential to be the most dangerous time of the year. According to the BMJ medical journal, your chance of having a heart attack peaks on Christmas Eve. Retail crime sees a spike in December. Robberies, burglaries and assault see a renewed interest around eves Christmas and New Year's, the same time of year that the baby eating Grýla and her more charming cousin Krampus nurse their grudges against children. It's enough to make you want to stay indoors and curl up with a book.

Which brings me to my point: There's a new Bodice Tipplers podcast! This episode brings together that most nefarious of holidays, Christmas, with our perennial heroines, witches. Sara and Courtney dive into Anne Stuart's 1986 novel "Bewitching Hour," the kind of nightstand reading that involves characters with names like "Sybil Richardson" and "Nick Fitzsimmons." The jacket summary uses the word "coming" about 18 times in case you have any doubts about the text/subtext of the novel. Also: witchcraft. It's like someone looked into Stevie Nicks' soul, wrote a book just for her and then deleted all the references to cocaine.

You can listen to the podcast below, and remember to visit the Bodice Tipplers website for additional background and reading recommendations. Merry Christmas!