PODCAST

Story Secrets

Fr. Roderick Vonhögen

Fr. Roderick Vonhögen explores the deeper layers of the stories that you love.

religion & spirituality christianity

All Episodes

18:42

Story Secrets - Why I'm Publishing My Book One...

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/28

At the end of the first quarter of 2025, I'm ready to take the next step in my creative journey. For the past three months, I’ve been working hard on writing a fantasy novel – a project I’ve dreamed about for years but never dared to start. It’s been tough, but also incredibly rewarding.The truth is, writing can be a lonely process. I spend hours at my desk, conjuring up characters and stories only I know. And while I talk about the process on my Booktube channel, I’ve realized I want to

17:13

Story Secrets - What Went Wrong with Your Favorite...

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/27

Have you ever wondered why some of your favorite movies feel so authentic, even when you know it’s all make-believe? Take Titanic, for example. Part of what made the acting feel so real was the genuine fear of the actors and extras filming scenes in massive water tanks, with entire sections of the ship tilting and throwing them into the water. Talk about dedication to realism! It’s stories like this that fascinate me. I’ve always been drawn to how movies are made—the triumphs, the

19:38

Story Secrets - Shadowlands: C.S. Lewis's Love and Loss

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/26

Here on the Story Secrets podcast, I’ve reviewed movies, TV shows, books, and even video games. But this time, I’m diving into something I’ve never talked about before: a theatre play. And not just any play, but Shadowlands by William Nicholson. You might know this story from the movie adaptation starring Anthony Hopkins, but I haven’t seen the movie. Instead, I listened to an audio recording of the stage performance. What makes this play so fascinating is its focus on C.S. Lewis. Yes, the

17:21

Story Secrets - A Spooky Adventure with Heart: City...

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/25

What if you could actually talk to ghosts? Not just in some spooky, fake haunted house on a Halloween night, but for real—crossing over into the world of spirits, building friendships with the dead? That’s the brilliant premise of City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab. And it’s more than just a cool ghost story; it’s a story about identity, friendship, and finding your place in the world. The book follows Cass, a young girl who, after a near-death experience, gains the ability to cross over

29:14

Story Secrets - My Mind-Blowing VR Adventure in...

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/24

Yesterday, I experienced something truly amazing. I played the first stage of a VR game on my Quest 3, based on the legendary gaming franchise Assassin’s Creed. Now, I’ve played parts of previous games, but this was something else entirely. This was the first VR version of the game, called Assassin’s Creed Nexus, and it completely blew my mind. The franchise is known for its deep, history-inspired storytelling. From ancient Jerusalem to Renaissance Italy and even ancient Greece and Egypt,

11:27

Story Secrets - The Mind-Blowing Finale of Severance...

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/21

Wow. The Season 2 finale of Severance was nothing short of brilliant. Apple TV+ has done it again, delivering a masterpiece that feels like the best thing since Lost. But unlike many mystery-box shows, Severance gives you answers while keeping you hooked with even more questions. At the heart of this show is the creepy and mysterious Lumon corporation, where workers undergo a procedure to "sever" their consciousness. This creates two separate identities: the "Innie" who only exists inside

10:31

Story Secrets - The Pit: The Grittiest Medical Drama...

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/20

If you were addicted to ER back in the day like I was, you might want to check out The Pit. It’s a new medical drama starring Noah Wyle (Dr. Carter from ER), and it has that same chaotic, high-intensity energy—but with a much darker, grittier edge.Set in the emergency room of a major city hospital—nicknamed The Pit because it feels like a war zone—this show dives deep into the brutal realities of healthcare. Overcrowded waiting rooms, patients left in hallways, doctors stretched to their

10:09

Story Secrets - Wheel of Time Season 3

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/19

Have you seen the first episode of Wheel of Time Season 3? Amazon dropped three episodes at once, and I’ve watched the first one—and wow, they have seriously stepped up their game. For those unfamiliar, Wheel of Time is one of the most famous fantasy book series out there. Robert Jordan started it, crafting an epic world where history repeats itself in cycles, and where magic is woven—literally—by powerful women. It’s complex, sprawling, and honestly… a bit overwhelming. Jordan passed away

7:04

Story Secrets - Why Adolescence is the Best Netflix...

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/18

There’s a new series on Netflix that’s suddenly blowing up, even though it wasn’t really advertised. No big promotional campaign, no flashy trailers—just word of mouth making it explode in popularity. And after watching the first episode, I totally get why. It’s called Adolescence, and at first glance, it sounds like a typical crime drama. A 15-year-old boy is arrested for a brutal murder, and we follow the police as they interrogate him. Sounds like a whodunit, right? Well, not

5:03

Story Secrets - The True Story of St. Patrick

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/17

Most of what people think they know about St. Patrick isn’t actually true. He wasn’t Irish. He probablydidn’t chase snakes out of Ireland. And he definitely didn’t invent green beer (sorry, folks). But here’s something even more surprising: we have a firsthand account of his life, written by St. Patrick himself. It's called The Confessio, and it’s not just an old historical text—it’s a raw, personal, and deeply human story of faith, struggle, and redemption. 📖 Patrick’s Real Story As a

15:32

Story Secrets - Warrior Cats: Into the Wild Review...

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/14

Okay, confession time. I did not expect to get emotionally invested in a book about warrior cats. But Into the Wild pulled me in fast. At first, I thought, "Oh, this will be a fun, light read." And then suddenly, I was knee-deep in clan politics, betrayals, and existential questions about loyalty. This book is way smarter than it looks. And today, I want to dive into exactly why it works so well. First off, the worldbuilding is fantastic. These aren’t just talking cats. The clans have their

16:02

Story Secrets - How I Fell in Love with Reading Again

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/14

I was a library kid. My happy place was a quiet corner, surrounded by books, far from the constant noise of home—my dad’s bagpipes, my brother’s piano practice, and the general chaos of family life. Yet despite my love for books, there was a long period when I barely read at all. What happened? School. In the Netherlands, we were forced to read “real” literature for every language we studied—Dutch, English, French, German. And let me tell you, German post-war literature? Absolutely

15:42

Story Secrets - Severance Is 'Lost' for the Streaming...

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/12

I can’t stop talking about Severance. It’s rare for a show to capture my imagination the way this one does. Every episode is like a puzzle piece, and the internet is buzzing with speculation, theories, and analysis. It reminds me of the Lost era when fans would dissect every frame for hidden clues. What makes Severance so special? A Thriving Fan Community – Unlike toxic fandoms that seem to hate everything, Severance fans are excited. They analyze every shot, every line, every hidden

15:11

Story Secrets - The Magic of Star Wars Toys

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/11

If you grew up with Star Wars, you probably had that one toy that defined your childhood. Maybe it was a lightsaber, an action figure, or a model of the Millennium Falcon. For me, those early Star Wars toys were more than just collectibles—they were how we kept the magic alive between movies. Back then, you couldn’t just rewatch Star Wars whenever you wanted. No VHS, no streaming, no DVDs. If you were lucky, the movie might air on TV years later. So for my siblings and me, Star Wars toys

13:29

Story Secrets - The Role of Providence in The Hobbit

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/10

Over the weekend, I dived into a fascinating series of lectures on The Hobbit by Joseph Pearce. If you're not familiar with his work, he's written extensively about the deeper layers of Tolkien's stories, especially their Catholic themes. But this lecture series really opened my eyes to something I hadn’t fully appreciated before: the role of grace and providence in Bilbo’s adventure. A lot of people dismiss certain events in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings as mere "luck." But Tolkien

20:41

Story Secrets - The Irish Saint Who Inspired Tolkien...

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/07

Did you know that an Irish saint from the early Middle Ages helped inspire both J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis? His name was St. Brendan the Navigator, and his legendary voyage to a mysterious land echoes through some of the greatest fantasy stories ever written.I’ve been diving deep into early medieval Irish history while writing my own fantasy novel, and the story of St. Brendan has captivated me. His legend tells of a perilous journey across the sea in search of a mystical land—a place

15:57

Story Secrets - The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue – A...

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/06

The idea of making a deal with the devil has been explored in countless stories, but The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by Victoria Schwab does something truly unique with it. This book surprised me—in the best way possible. The story follows Addie, a young woman in 1714 France who, in a desperate moment, makes a bargain with a mysterious figure named Luc (short for Lucifer, naturally). She asks for freedom, to never belong to anyone. The price? No one will ever remember her. The moment she

12:42

Story Secrets - The Lazarus Project: A Time Travel...

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/05

What if there was a global reset button for time? A way to roll back history whenever humanity faced disaster—whether it be a world war, a pandemic, or some other catastrophe? That’s the premise of The Lazarus Project, a sci-fi series I recently started watching, and let me tell you—it’s fascinating. The story follows George, an ordinary guy who suddenly realizes he’s trapped in a time loop. But unlike your typical Groundhog Day scenario, he discovers that a secret organization, The Lazarus

31:42

Story Secrets - Is Assassin’s Apprentice Worth the Hype?

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/04

I finally read Assassin’s Apprentice by Robin Hobb—the book that everyone on BookTok and BookTube seems to love. And I went in with high expectations. A fantasy classic? Deep characters? A compelling story? Count me in. And then… well, let’s just say my experience was very different from the glowing reviews I had read. Here’s the gist: The story follows Fitz, a royal bastard trained as an assassin in a kingdom full of political intrigue. He has a magical ability to bond with animals (which

21:20

Story Secrets - Andor Isn’t Just a Star Wars...

Story Secrets ·

2025/03/03

The trailer for Andor Season 2 just dropped, and wow—it reminded me why this series is one of the best things to come out of Star Wars in years. And no, it’s not just because of the gritty storytelling or the fantastic cinematography. It’s because Andor is about something bigger than a galaxy far, far away. At its core, Star Wars has always been about the battle between oppression and resistance, between fear and hope. And Andor takes that to a whole new level. It strips away the space

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