Fated Mates - Romance Books for Novel People

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  S09.02: Romance by Numbers 16.09.2026 1ч 30мин

  This is a fun one! We’re talking romance novels with numbers in the titles today, a wide collection of books from zero to infinity! While we came prepared to talk about four or five books each, we ended up playing a little impromptu game where we name books for every number we can. We haven’t reread most of these, but you’ll hear that there are a few peppered through here that we were prepared to talk about. We had a great time, and hope you do.If you’d like to come over and talk about romances, with or without numbers, please join us on the Fated Mates Discord, where you’ll find a few thousand other listeners who love talking about these books we love. You also get one extra episode a month from us!Fated States, our democratic phonebanking initiative begins this week! We’ll be calling Georgia to get out the vote for Jon Ossoff and Keisha Lance Bottoms! There will be games, prizes and special guests! Learn more and register to phone bank with us at fatedmates.net/fatedstates.A Number of BooksBelow Zero by Ali HazelwoodZero to Sixty by Marie HarteIt Happened One Summer by Tessa BaileyOne and Only by Jenny HolidayParty of Two by Jasmine GuilloryGoldie and the [three] Bears by Hannah MurrayThree Dirty Secrets by Nikki SloanThree Way Split by Elia WintersParty of Three by C. Travis RiceFourth Wing by Rebecca YarrosFourth Wing by Rebecca YarrosFive Brothers by Penelope Douglas Six by Opal CarewHoliday for Six by Kelly FinleySeven Secrets of Seduction by Anne MalloryThe Seven Rings by Nora RobertsThe Seven Year Slip by Ashley PostonSeven Days in June by Tia WilliamsChasin’ Eight by Lorelai JamesEight Nights of Flirting by Hannah ReynoldsEight Seconds to Ride by Ashley JamesThe Hell’s Eight Series by Sarah McCartyNine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake by Sarah MacLeanTen Ways to Be Adored When Landing a Lord by Sarah MacLean Ten by Roxie Riveria Ten Hammers by Liz ArcherEleven Scandals to Start to Win a Duke’s Heart by Sarah MacLeanTwelve Nights by Hope TarrA Duke a Dozen by Shana GalenCowboys by the Dozen by Tina LeonardTwenty Boy Summer by Sarah OcklerFifty Shades of Gray by EL James52 Reasons to Hate my Father by Jessica Brody99 Percent Mine by Sally ThorneTo One Hundred by Melissa Blue The 1001 Dark Nights Series3000 Reasons to Act by Jamie P Bradley10,000 Hours with a Rich Menace by Jahquel J.How to Marry a Millionaire Vampire by Kerrilyn SparksThe Blackout Billionaire Series by Naima SimoneInfinite by Corinne Michaels Love Times Infinity by Lane Clark An Infinite Love Story by Chanel CleetonSPONSORSHarpercollins, publishers of Laurie Gilmore’s Big Bad Wolf, available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, or wherever you get your books.Orbit Books, publishers of Rachel Gillig’s The Knave and the Moon, available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, or wherever you get your books.Little, Brown & Company, publishers of Elin Hilderbrand & Shelby Cunningham’s The Thoroughbreds, available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, or wherever you get your books.Union Square & Co., publishers of Morgan Elizabeth’s Meet Cute Magic, available in print, ebook or audiobook at Amazon,
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  S09.01: Cloud Nine: Romance in the Sky 09.09.2026 1ч 52мин

  Nine seasons of talking about romance, and no signs of quitting! We’re starting a new season, full of much of our same old nonsense, now with more nonsense, because who needs tropes when you can talk about microtropes! Today, in honor of Season Nine, we’re talking about Cloud Nine — both the WNBA star and the feeling you get when you fall in love. We’ve got a whole lot of books featuring romance in the sky — pilots, astronauts, plane crashes, astronauts and mile-high-clubs…and all of them featuring romance that won’t quit.If you’d like to come over and talk about romances, both in the sky and on land, please join us on the Fated Mates Discord, where you’ll find a few thousand other listeners who love talking about these books we love. You also get one extra episode a month from us!Fated States, our democratic phonebanking initiative begins next week. Learn more and register to phone bank with us at fatedmates.net/fatedstates.BooksThe Vegas Top Gun Series by Katie PorterOn Broken Wings by Chanel CleetonWild Card by Elsie SilverBeyond the Limits by Katherine GarberaThe Last Man on Earth by Shae SandersPuck Me Secretly by Odette StoneCrash Landing by Annie McQuaidPregnant in the Italian's PalazzoTurbulence by Whitney G.The Skyland Series by Kennedy RyanThe Professional by Kresley ColeNotesFated States is back! We’ll be phonebanking every weekend on Saturdays starting September 19th, but the final weekend before the election, we’ll instead phonebank on Sunday Nov 1 to avoid Halloween.The way to find a book club is to read River Town by Peter Hessler and then go to your nearest local indie bookstore and let the bookclub reveal itself to you.Find out more about The Sunday Letter Project.Pilots have been hot since Top Gun, and not just because of the volleyball scene.Natasha Cloud is a baddie and she gave an irrelevant man the business for being transphobic, and Jen thinks she’s a literal hero.The Spanish Space Program, the Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial was created in the 1940s and was replaced by the Agencia Espacial Española in 2021. According to Wikipedia, as of 2026, there have been Four Spanish astronauts.SponsorsHarpercollins, publishers of AT Qureshi’s Rider of Dragons, available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, or wherever you get your books.Rose Prendeville, author of The Unknown Birds, available in print, ebook or audiobook from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or with your monthly subscription to Kobo Plus. Use the code FATEDBIRDS at Rose’s website to get a signed print book and 30% off!Isabel Sterling, author of With All My Haunted Heart, available in print, ebook or audiobook, from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple Books, Kobo or your local bookstore.Orbit Books, publishers of Louisa Carmody’s The Shadows that Listen, available in print, ebook or audiobook at Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, your local bookstore, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.Blue Box Press, publishers of Ashley Eckstein & Samantha Chase’s Lucky 22 and David Eckstein’s Just Enough, available in print, ebook or audiobook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books or wherever you get your books.The RestFor even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2026/9/6/s0901-cloud-nine-romance-in-the-sky If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates. Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some...
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  RERUN: S06.10: Men in Fur: Aliens, Warlords, and Vikings 03.09.2026 1ч 7мин

  Today we're revisiting a 2023 episode. It's a fun one. While the episode is unchanged, we did spend a full hour of our morning updating the Men in Fur Mood Board. (revA)The RestFor even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2023/11/14/s0610-men-in-fur-aliens-warlords-and-vikings If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates. Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough. If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.
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  S08.49: A Rogue By Any Other Name 26.08.2026 1ч 36мин

  It’s the end of Season 8 (what! how!), and we usually celebrate the end of the season with a read along of Sarah’s new book, but since there is no new book, we have no choice but to go back to the beginning of “The Casino Series,” which is what Sarah calls The Rules of Scoundrels. We’re reading A Rogue By Any Other Name, the first in the series focused on the rakish owners of The Fallen Angel, Sarah’s casino. We talk Bourne, turning around big ships, writing sexy stained glass windows, and what it means to look back on the early part of a career.Next week, we’re taking a little break, and then we’ll be back with Season Nine of Fated Mates. As ever, we’re so grateful to you for listening, reading and being a part of this community. We’re nothing without you.If you’d like to spend more time talking about romance novels, join our Patreon! You’ll get an extra monthly episode from us and access to the incredible readers and brilliant people on the Fated Mates Discord. Learn more at fatedmates.net/patreon.NotesThe jellyfish thing is a myth, you don’t have to pee on a jellyfish sting.All about the amygdala, or Amy for short if you think of her as that messy friend who will definitely lead you astray.JB Pritzker talked about the colors of school folders, and it’s A MESS. Feel free to report back on your preferences for folder colors if you, like Sarah, are outraged.New York Times hosted a conversation with Tressie McMillam Cottom, Nadja Spiegelman, and Mary HK Choi called “Have We Turned Personality into a Diagnosis?” It’s worth the listen!Is it true that Gen Z is this puritanical (the Puriteens!), or are they just worried that everything is cringe?JK Rowling is a piece of shit.Gambling has always been bad, but it’s especially bad on your phone. Please talk to your kids about sports betting and make sure these apps are not on their phones.Crockfords moved a lot of money in the Regency.One of the big influences for Bourne & Penelope was Alfred de Vigny’s poem Éloa, ou La sœur des anges about an angel who falls in love with a stranger who turns out to be Lucifer. English translations are tough to find, but here’s a website that has part of it in translation.When you think of the The Fallen Angel (the club), you might think of the famous painting by Alexandre Cabanel, but that’s from 1847!SponsorsMegan Frampton, author of Demons and Diplomacy, available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, or wherever you get your books.Madison Score, author of Wild About You, available in print, ebook or audiobook at Amazon.Tracy MacNish, author of Of the Ashes, available in print or ebook, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.Hachette Books, publishers of Jennifer Givhan’s The Sleeping Sisters, available in print, ebook or audiobook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, or wherever you get your books.The RestFor even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2026/8/25/s0849-a-rogue-by-any-other-name If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates. Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough. If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.
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  S08.48: Long Live Historicals, Volume II 19.08.2026 1ч 53мин

  We are once again celebrating a wide swath of historical romances that are recently published and by authors we’ve not talked much about on the podcast! Saddle up, because we’re talking the Titanic, submissive heroes, heroines against the wall, bodily autonomy and even centaurs! If you’re a historical lover, you’re going to have a great time finding your next read in here, and if you’re not a historical lover, what are you waiting for? We're so excited to be your discoverabilibuddies on this one!Come talk about your favorite recent historical romances over on our Patreon! You’ll get an extra monthly episode from us and access to the incredible readers and brilliant people on the Fated Mates Discord. Learn more at fatedmates.net/patreon.Our next read along, next week, is Sarah’s A Rogue By Any Other Name, the first in her casino series. This is one we’ve gotten a bunch of requests for, and so, it will be our final read along of the season. Get it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books or wherever you get your books.BooksAcross the Living Infinite by Logan Sage AdamsTo Covet a Countess by Sapna BhogCentaur and Sensibility by Quenby OlsonThe Seduction of Mr Alfred Sainsbury by Lydia LloydThe Magnificent Earl of March by Cecilia ReneYou Had Me at Heist by Christina BrittonI Shall Never Fall in Love by Hari ConnerFavors From a Gentleman by Lauren HayworthMrs. Milner Gets a Kitchen by Jane Hadley His Awful Grace by Anne KnightEarl on Fire by FeNotesListen to our Long Live Historicals, Volume I here.Fill out more about the Romance Novel Collective and fill out their survey.There was a salt water pool on Titanic. The centaur in The Lion, The Witch & the Wardrobe is not a centaur or a satyr, but a faun, and his name is Mr. Tumnus. Here’s a primer on the difference between satyrs and fauns. Apologies to the Greeks, Romans, and CS Lewis fans in the crowd. The OG Centaur books Sarah mentioned are also not centaurs, they are satyrs, but they are Holy Cannoli, Batman and by Elizabeth Amber. Proceed with caution.Some SFW and NSFW images about centaurs.The RestFor even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2026/8/17/s0848-the-new-historicals-volume-iii If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates. Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough. If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.
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  S08.47: Romance Tattoo 12.08.2026 1ч 25мин

  We’re talking tattoos and body art this week! You might not have a tattoo, but odds are you’ve read a few thousand of them, as romance novels love a main character with a message…right on their skin. We talk about some of our favorite tattoo romances, about what tattoos represent, why they’re so sexy, and why romance loves a tattoo artist. Every one of these books is a banger…enjoy filling your end of summer TBR with them.Come talk about your favorite romances with tattoos or about romance in general over on our Patreon! You’ll get an extra monthly episode from us and access to the incredible readers and brilliant people on the Fated Mates Discord. Learn more at fatedmates.net/patreon.Our next read along, in two weeks, is Sarah’s A Rogue By Any Other Name, the first in her casino series. This is one we’ve gotten a bunch of requests for, and so, it will be our final read along of the season. Get it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books or wherever you get your books.BooksThe Montgomery Ink series by Carrie Ann RyanThe Duke with the Dragon Tattoo by Kerrigan ByrneTo Desire a Devil by Elizabeth HoytThe Magpie Lord by KJ CharlesDaring and the Duke by Sarah MacLeanThese Summer Storms by Sarah MacLeanMerry Inkmas by Talia HibbertRepeat by Kylie ScottWritten on his Skin by Simone StarkThree Dirty Secrets by Nikki SloaneUnder Her Skin by Adriana AndersPermanent Ink by Avon Gale and Piper VaughnSin & Ink by Naima SimoneReaper’s Legacy by Joanna WyldeHard as it Gets by Laura KayeNotesTattoos have a long history tangled up with colonization, which is why for a long time they were thought to be stigmatizing. They are definitely more mainstream now, which means tattoo culture is changing which has caused its own clashes, but they also aren’t thought of as class markers anymore.All about sextants.Merry Inkmas is actually Talia’s second book, her first was Bad for the Boss, which is no longer in print. Jen reviewed both of those for The Book Queen when they were released.Check out the secret tattoos collection on our website.SponsorsEllie Devine, author of The Survival Guide to Alexander McBryde, available in print or ebook, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.E. Kennedy, author of Thornbird, available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, or wherever you get your books.Harpercollins, publishers of Spellfire by Agatha WIllow, available in print or ebook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, or wherever you get your books.The RestFor even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2026/8/10/0847-romance-tattoo If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates. Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough. If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.
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  S08.46: Photographers in Romance 05.08.2026 1ч 40мин

  Why is photography so hot? We’re tackling this question this week, talking about why romance novels featuring photographers work so well and push so many sexy buttons. We’re talking about characters who notice, about characters who are patient, and about characters who carry sexy bags around the world. We’ve got storm chasers, nature photographers, CSI photographers, about darkrooms on boats and even historical nudes! You’re going to have a great time.If you want to talk more about your favorite romances that feature photographers, or about romance in general, come join our Patreon! You’ll get an extra monthly episode from us and access to the incredible readers and brilliant people on the Fated Mates Discord. Learn more at fatedmates.net/patreon.Our next read along is Sarah’s A Rogue By Any Other Name, the first in her casino series. This is one we’ve gotten a bunch of requests for, and so, it will be our final read along of the season. Get it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books or wherever you get your books.BooksA Duke Worth Falling For by Sarah MacLeanBest of Luck by Kate ClaybornChase me if You Can by Heather FrancesLay it Down by Cara McKennaMy Dirty Duke by Joanna ShupeTo The Ends of the Earth by Elizabeth LowellTaming Teddy by Lucy LennoxFlight by Laura GriffinThree Dirty Secrets by Nikki SloanManaged by KristeNotesThe WNBA all star game was pretty fun, and Sky player Sydney Taylor is both very beautiful and very good at basketball.Wicker the movie trailer, and our Sentient Object episode.Jen had a throwaway line about how “AI has ruined everything” in photography, but just like with everything else, that’s a real concern. Up Close and Personal (1996) is a movie with Robert Redford and Michelle Pfeiffer about television journalists.According to this timeline from Harvard about the history of photography, the first surviving permanent photograph dates back to the 1820s, but most people probably think of the daguerreotype, invented by Louis Jacques Mandé Daguerre in 1839.Um, in case you need to know what a darkroom is.There is a chain of 7 barrier islands in Texas on the Gulf of Mexico, Padre is probably the most well-known.The RestFor even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2026/8/3/s0846-photographers-in-romance-books If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates. Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough. If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.
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  08.45: Judith McNaught's Perfect: Content Warning, the 90's 29.07.2026 1ч 51мин

  We’ve been talking about the end (almost end) of this one since we started the podcast, so it seemed high time we did a deep dive on it! Judith McNaught’s Perfect is the most 90s thing we’ve ever read, so gird your loins for both the best all-is-lost scene in romance, and also Zach, Julie, prison breaks, illiteracy, the Coors corporation, Romance Cashmere, and so so many references to Kevin Costner. It’s the most 90s thing we’ve ever read, without question.If you want to talk more about Perfect or Judith McNaught, or about romance in general, come join our Patreon! You’ll get an extra monthly episode from us and access to the incredible readers and brilliant people on the Fated Mates Discord. Learn more at fatedmates.net/patreon.Our next read along is Sarah’s A Rogue By Any Other Name, the first in her casino series. This is one we’ve gotten a bunch of requests for, and so, it will be our final read along of the season. Get it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books or wherever you get your books.BooksPerfect by Judith McNaughtA Kingdom of Dreams by Judith McNaughtRemember When by Judith McNaughtDouble Standards by Judith McNaughtTender Triumph by Judith McNaughtNotesJen said Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead but she meant Adventures in Babysitting, which was a 1987 movie where suburban kids go on a terrifying adventure in the terrifying big city of Chicago.We did a deep dive of A Kingdom of Dreams in Season 2.Kelly Faircloth sent Sarah an ad for the book from People Magazine. In print versions of the book, there was a letter from Judith McNaught explaining the literacy plot in the book.Interestingly, the Coors literacy push was covered by the New York Times in 1992, discussing the push by big companies to adopt a cause and use it to burnish their image.Okay, apparently fleece also had a bellwether year in 1993, but let’s be honest, it was Old Navy who made performance fleece happen for most of us and that was 1998.In America, our access to Abortion is much worse than it was in 1993 and America still has a devastating epidemic of suicide among queer teenagers, as The Trevor Project explains “LGBTQ+ young people are not inherently prone to suicide risk because of their sexual orientation or gender identity but rather placed at higher risk because of how they are mistreated and stigmatized in society.”SponsorsFrayed Pages by Wattpad Books, publishers of EM Wilson’s Breakup for Two, available in print or ebook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, or wherever you get your books.Meghan Quinn, author of Just for the Plot, available in print, ebook and audiobook, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.Kylie Scott, author of Runaway Rockstar, available in print or ebook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, or your local independent bookstore.E.W. Andersen, author of the Midnights on the Square series. Available in print or ebook at at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, or wherever you get your books.The RestFor even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2026/7/28/0845-judith-mcnaughts-perfect-content-warning-the-90s If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates. Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough. If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.
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  S08:43: Romance with Magical Elements 22.07.2026 1ч 23мин

  The last few years have brought a wave of romances with magical elements—not really paranormal, not really witches, not really contemporary — books where something is just slightly ✨magic✨. Today, we’re talking about those books, how they work, what they’re saying, and how they work in terms of character, plot and POV. We’re also discussing how the books exist on the outer edges of the romance pool.If you want to talk more about these speculative romance novels, or about romance in general, come join our Patreon! You’ll get an extra monthly episode from us and access to the incredible readers and brilliant people on the Fated Mates Discord. Learn more at fatedmates.net/patreon.Our next read along is an old school contemporary, Perfect by Judith McNaught. Sarah says it has the greatest all-is-lost moment in romance history. Read it to find out if she’s right. Get it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books or wherever you get your books.BooksA Love Song for Ricki Wilde by Tia WilliamsMy Date with a Pair of Gray Sweatpants by Cassie O. PeiaThe House of Now and Then by Edward UnderhillDo Your Worst by Rosie DananEvery Version of You by Natalie MessierThe Night Island by Jayne Ann KrentzThe Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston The Someday Garden by Ashley PostonLosing Sight by Tati RichardsonStruck Speechless by Tati RichardsonNotesThis year’s men’s World Cup actually broke the Own Goal record with 14 of them. Get ready for the Women’s World Cup in Brazil next year in 2027! So these English fans made up a bunch of chants for a regular player, which is very charming. Speaking of soccer, Mamdani continues to show us all that politicians can just…help make people’s lives better?Here’s a handout Jen uses to teach the three genres that fall under the speculative fiction umbrella, and why magical realism isn’t a catch-all or synonym for any writing with speculative elements.The pink dress question: how do you decide if your characters need to heal themselves in order to fall in love, or if falling in love is what heals them?Matthew Rhys and Matthew Macfadyen are in fact different people, but everyone’s watching Widow’s Bay.SponsorsLumi Gummies. Go to lumigummies.com and use code FATEDMATES for 30% off your order.Lucy Score author of The Dead Guy Next Door, the first in the Riley Thorn series, available in print, ebook and audiobook, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.Harpercollins, publishers of Sleuths, by Samantha Moody, available in print, ebook and audiobook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, or your local independent bookstore.The RestFor even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2026/7/5/s0843 If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates. Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough. If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.
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  S08.42: Romance Reasons Meet Thriller Reasons with Anders de la Motte 15.07.2026 1ч 37мин

  Once upon a time, Sarah went to Sweden and met a thriller writer who likes talking about the rules of writing in genre as much as we do. We’re so excited that to be able to bring Anders de la Motte’s brilliant thoughts about thrillers and mysteries to Fated Mates in this far-reaching conversation on romance’s sister genres—thrillers & mysteries. We talk about Anders’s path to writing, about the rules of writing thrillers and mysteries, about the covenant mysteries and thrillers have with readers, and about Mystery Reasons™️. We had the best time with this one — you’re going to love it.Learn more about Anders’s books at his English language publishers, Simon & Schuster and HarpercollinsIf you want to talk more about Genre Carrying the Myth, Jayne Ann Krentz’s genius way of thinking about the work of genre fiction, or about mysteries and thrillers, come join our Patreon! You’ll get an extra monthly episode from us and access to the incredible readers and brilliant people on the Fated Mates Discord. Learn more at fatedmates.net/patreon.Our next read along is an old school contemporary, Perfect by Judith McNaught. Sarah says it has the greatest all-is-lost moment in romance history. Read it to find out if she’s right. Get it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books or wherever you get your books.Thrillers and Mysteries Mentioned in This EpisodeThe Mountain King by Anders De la MotteThe Glass Man by Anders De la MotteThe Rust Forest by Anders De la MotteShutter Island by Denis LehaneThe Usual SuspectsWidow's BayMurder on the Orient Express by Agatha ChristieColumboPoker FaceMurder, She WroteKnives OutThe Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg LarssonKilling Floor by Lee ChildOrphan X by Gregg HurwitzSmall Mercies by Dennis LehaneThe DaVinci Code by Dan BrownJames BondEvil Under the Sun by Agatha ChristieDeath on the Nile by Agatha ChristieAnd Then There Were None by Agatha ChristieOne of Us is Lying by Karen M. McManusThe Thursday Murder Club by Richard OsmanThe WireMemoRandom by Anders De la MotteEnd of Summer by Anders De la MotteGame by Anders De la MotteNotesWelcome Anders de la Motte, author of mysteries and thrillers. Many of his books have been translated to English, most recently The Asker series.Many of the most famous fictional detectives we mentioned are on this list.In fiction, unreliability is a narrative device meant to purposefully confuse or lie to the reader for the purposes of the story. We’ve argued that it’s more or less impossible to have an unreliable narrator in romance. A good explainer on the difference between close 3rd (used in romance) and limited 3rd (used in mysteries/thrillers)MacGuffins and other mystery and thriller tropes and vocabulary.SponsorsJill Shalvis author of Falling Into You, available in print, ebook, audiobook from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or your local independent bookstore.Jess Turner, author of The Only Catch, available in print, ebook or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.Hachette, publishers of In the Wake of the Ruined, by Kalie Cassidy, available in print, ebook and audiobook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, or your local independent bookstore.Oliver Heber Books, publishers of The Forbidden Duke, by Darcy Burke, available in print, ebook and audiobook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books. Support the special 10th...
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  S08.41: Country House Parties 08.07.2026 1ч 39мин

  It’s summer, so we’re talking Country House Parties! We’re skulking around, having scandalous meetings in cupboards, getting caught in the rain near the groundskeeper’s cottage, and generally causing chaos during a summer party at an enormous country house where someone is definitely ending up married (or at least ruined). This is another one where we’re pretty shocked we haven’t done it before. Gird your loins, historical lovers!!If you want to talk more about country house parties, about historicals, or about romance in general, come join our Patreon! You’ll get an extra monthly episode from us and access to the incredible readers and brilliant people on the Fated Mates Discord. Learn more at fatedmates.net/patreon.Our next read along is an old school contemporary, Perfect by Judith McNaught. Sarah says it has the greatest all-is-lost moment in romance history. Read it to find out if she’s right. Get it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books or wherever you get your books.BooksDay of the Duchess by Sarah MacLeanDuchess by Night by Eloisa JamesBand Sinister by KJ CharlesAny Old Diamonds by KJ CharlesHow the Duke was Won by Lenora BellA Dangerous Man by Connie BrockwayForever Your Duke by Erica RidleyDo You Want to Start a Scandal by Tessa DareSlightly Dangerous by Mary BaloghWhat I did for a Duke by Julie Ann LongThe Fifth Avenue Rebels Series by Joanna ShupeAgain the Magic by Lisa KleypasNotesIt’s officially called The Obama Presidential Center, but you can also call it The Obamalisk OR the Taj Michelle. Whatever works for you! It’s a great place for a first date!The tall ships! It’s not the St. Charles, but the St. Lawrence waterways, it’s manmade, because you know, Niagara Falls. We know geography!Some people got married at Madison Square Garden and some other people got engaged at the top of the Empire State Building.In Tatler, author Lucy Foley wrote about the country house party.Noises Off is a farce.SponsorsRachel Griffiths, author of Just for the Season, available in print, ebook, audiobook from Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, signed from the Ripped Bodice, or wherever you get your books.Max Monroe authors of Where I Should Have Been, available in print, ebook, audiobook from Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, or your local independent bookstore.Kristin Jennings, author of A Legacy of Magic & Monsters, available in print, ebook or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.Union Square & Co., publishers of Pot Shot, by Laura Piper Lee, available in print, ebook and audiobook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, or your local independent bookstore.The RestFor even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2026/7/5/s0842-country-house-parties If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates. Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough. If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.
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  BONUS: Sports Romance Rerun + Jen Chats with Gina Prodan Kelly [FIXED] 03.07.2026 1ч 48мин

  F1! WNBA! NY Nicks! World Cup! We swear we're not turning into a sports podcast, but we did feel like it's a great time to rerun our most recent Sports Romance episode with the brilliant Jessica Luther. But first, Jen talks with Cleveland Soccer Group CMO and Cleveland Astra cofounder Gina Prodan Kelly about women's soccer and the World Cup.GOOOOOOOOOOAL!Show Notes: S06.09: Sports Romance with Jessica Luther
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  S08.40: Summer 2026 Preview 01.07.2026 1ч 38мин

  We’re filling summer reading lists and making sure that you have plenty of beach reads ready for whatever your plans are! It’s hard to believe it’s July, but we’ve got another quarterly upcoming romance episode here to ease the pain of half the year already passed! Here’s a huge list of books arriving in July, August & September 2026—historical, paranormal, speculative, contemporary, a YA or two and a romantic suspense or two, we’ve got something for everyone. As a reminder, we haven’t read most of these, but we have big plans!If you want more recommendations and more people with whom you can discuss 2026 romance novels, maybe you want to join our Patreon? You get an extra monthly episode from us and access to the incredible readers and brilliant people on the Fated Mates Discord! Support us and learn more at fatedmates.net/patreon.Our next read along is an old school contemporary, Perfect by Judith McNaught. Sarah says it has the greatest all-is-lost moment in romance history. Read it to find out if she’s right. Get it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books or wherever you get your books.AUTHORS: Do you have a book coming out in 2026 that you’d like to make sure we know about? Or, are you a debut romance author who’d like to make sure we know about your debut? Fill out the forms here:2026/2027 Upcoming Romance Novels2026 Debut Romance NovelsJune Releases (Better Late Than Never)Love is a Contact Sport by Frederick SmithA Deal at Dawn by Vanessa RileyJuly ReleasesSeduced by the Werewolf Highwaymen by Eva LeighFIRE on Fire by Lukas GainesPrincess Bride with Benefits by Bella MasonAs Long as it Takes by Jill FrancisDie For Me by Shirlene ObuobiKiss, Marry, Kill by Cara TanamachiThe Paddock Club by Madge MarilAffairs of State by Calvin JamesFormula Zero by Meredith LanzenA Date with Death by Kelly CreaghDearest Beast by Felicia GrossmanFalling For You by Natasha MadisonThe Romance Revival by Christina LaurenEclipse of the Crown by AK CaggianoTheir Summer Rescue by Sera Taíno Maggie and Arthur’s Magic Moment by Leslie ReneFoxx by Paisley HopeRavenous by Kresley ColeAn Education in Longing by Charlotte SteinOne Shattered Crown by Rebecca ZanettiAugust ReleasesI Punched an Alien and Now We’re in Couples Therapy by Kimberly LemmingSteelborn by Taylor LaRueEmbrace by Bal KhabraThe Cozy Nook Bookshop by Jeannie ChinIn What World by Bridget MorrisseyIt’s a Business Doing Pleasure With You by Lindsay LewisRoped by Saffron KentDon’t Say Mafia by CR JaneSee you at the Sunset by Susan LeeOld Flames by Nadine GonzalezSex Positive by Brooklyn RoseInternational Relations by Zac HammettHer Undercover Protector by Kayla ParrinThe Marriage Rebound by Meka JamesFull Throttle by JK MaclarenVow of Eternal Night by Lily CrozierSeptember ReleasesLove Me like a Rock Song by Shelley Jay ShoreHexy Beast by Avery FlynnYou’re the One that I Haunt by Katie JungA Spell of Heart and Havoc by Kristen ValeThe Alibi Club by Carrie TalickThe Invisible Roommate by Timothy JanovskyFrom Beijing With Love by Bei LinDemons and Diplomacy by Megan FramptonWith all my Haunted Heart by Isabel SterlingIsn’t He Romantic by Adib KhorramHow to Ruin a Rake by Kate PearceGhost Me, Maybe by Manda CollinsSee you Next Tuesday by Kate Stayman-LondonGame Over by Bella NorthFormula He’s the One by Andie J ChristopherDoomsdate by Laura Piper LeeSponsorsFelicia Grossman, author of Dearest Beast, available in print, ebook, audiobook from Amazon, Barnes & Noble,
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  S08.39: Romance Birthday (Do Men Have Them?) 24.06.2026 1ч 19мин

  Is it our birthday? It is not! But who says you need to celebrate a birthday in real life to celebrate birthdays in romance novels? Not us! Today we’re talking about books that focus on birthdays — something that you would think would be more common in romance. We talk about birthdays that are cursed, about mistakes made on birthdays, about why heroes don’t seem to have birthdays, and about old reliable — I’m turning thirty, better get rid of this pesky virginity!Tell us about your favorite birthday romances over on the Fated Mates Discord, where it’s probably someone’s birthday—or at least close to someone’s birthday. The Discord is accessible to our Patreon subscribers. By joining the Patreon, you meet other Fated Mates listeners and get an extra monthly episode from us. Support us and learn more at fatedmates.net/patreon.BooksThree Little Mistakes by Nikki SloanBrazen and the Beast by Sarah MacLeanSuddenly You by Lisa KleypasNero by SJ TillyWicked in Your Arms by Sophie JordanAll of Me by Tiya RayneWitness to Passion by Naima SimoneBirthday Girl by Penelope DouglasIt Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time by Kylie ScottBirthday Shot by Rilzy AdamsThe Viscount Who Loved Me by Julia QuinnNotesYou can visit The Book Nook bookstore and go on the Blue Bell Ice Cream Tour if you’re ever in Brenham, Texas.This reflecting pool situation, honestly, if someone wrote it into a book would be too heavy-handed a metaphor.What is clipping, you might be wondering. Well, something that’s bad, actually.Charlie Chaplin had babies when he was 73! We had a whole episode about Ruination in season 7.The “turning 3O book” Jen couldn’t think of is Charlie Quinn Lets Go by Jamie Varon. The nonfiction book she mentioned about “being frozen” is Girls Play Dead by Jen Percy.Chicago, don’t miss Jen and Sophia Benoit tonight (June 24), to celebrate the release of her first historical romance, The Very Definition of Love.SponsorsLotte James, author of From Rogue to Viscount, available in print, ebook, audiobook from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, or wherever you get your books.Macmillan, publishers of Julie Murphy’s The Undergrads: Student Union, available in print, ebook, audiobook from Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Kobo or wherever you get your books.Blue Box Press, publishers of To Catch a Sinner, by Dylan Allen, writing as Lucy Wilson-Tagoe available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, or wherever you get your books.Lumi Gummies. Go to lumigummies.com and use code FATEDMATES for 30% off your order.The RestFor even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2026/6/23/s0839-birthday-romances If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates. Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough. If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now. 00:00 Summer Bantr!05:51 Romance Birthdays13:37 Three Little Mistakes16:40 AD: FROM ROGUE TO VISCOUNT18:35 Turning Thirty26:20 Nero31:26 AD: TO CATCH A SINNER33:45 Wicked in Your Arms39:33 All of Me45:36 AD: THE UNDERGRADS: STUDENT UNION47:22 Witness to Passion53:52 Birthday Girl1:00:17 It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time1:00:42 AD: LUMI GUMMIES1:07:41 Birthday Shot1:12:47 The Viscount Who Loved Me1:16:36 Wrapping Up
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  S08.38: Seven Days In June by Tia Williams 17.06.2026 3ч 7мин

  We’re back with a deep dive on one of our favorite recent romances, Seven Days in June by Tia Williams! We talk about yearning in contemporaries, about books that have a powerful sense of place, about dual timelines, about secondary characters, about lines that stick with us years later, and about how fated mates works as a trope in a contemporary romance.Tia also has a new book out this month, The Missed Connection. Get it wherever you get your books.Listen to our Season 3 episode with Tia Williams about writers in romance and head over to talk about Seven Days in June or any of her other books on the Fated Mates Discord, accessible to our Patreon subscribers. By joining the Patreon, you meet other Fated Mates listeners and get an extra monthly episode from us. Support us and learn more at fatedmates.net/patreon.Read Seven Days in June at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, wherever you get your books, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.NotesSorry, we’re a Knicks podcast now, everyone. Sarah because of New York and Jen because of Villanova. Sarah did look up that Knickerbocker thing, but we never got back to it. Learn more about how those trousers became a symbol of NYC here. Sports curses are bad, just ask Red Sox fans! Spike Lee has really been through it, Jalen Brunson’s interview after the game just shows you a man trying to deal with his feelings.The World Cup, we just don’t know anything about that yet, but we’re gonna get up to speed on that, just like all the people of the world getting up to speed on America. Also, feels important to romance that we bring you the news that the Tartan Army cleared Boston out of beer.We had Tia Williams on the podcast back in season 3 when Seven Days in June was released. Although there is not a sequel to Seven Days, Shane and Eva are secondary characters in the YA romance with Audre that came out in 2025. Find out more about Tia, and see all her books at her website.Come see Sophia Benoit in conversation with us in NYC (June 23) and Chicago (June 24) to celebrate the release of her first historical romance, The Very Definition of Love.SponsorsFrederick Smith, author of Love is a Contact Sport, available in print, ebook, audiobook from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, or wherever you get your books.Little Brown & Company, publishers of Lu Chekowsky’s Don’t Buy What I’m Selling: On Breaking Up with Advertising and Finally Learning to Love My Whole, Fat Self, available in print, ebook, audiobook from Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Kobo or wherever you get your books.The What in the Smut? Podcast, available wherever you get your podcasts.W by Wattpad Books, publishers of Nicole Alfrine’s Brain Games. Available in print and ebook from Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, or wherever you get your books.The RestFor even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/2026/6/16/s0838-seven-days-in-june-by-tia-williams If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates. Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough. If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.
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  S08.37: Road Trips and a Chat With Mary Kay Andrews 10.06.2026 1ч 18мин

  This week, we’re visiting with Mary Kay Andrews, a longtime writer and certified badass who we adore for her WTAF Wednesdays and her delightful books. We talk about her writing journey, her decision to get publicly, vocally political, and about her new book Road Trip. We had a great time chatting and talking about writing, about research, and about how we should all just take a road trip through Ireland. Of course, we recommend a few books!Find Mary Kay Andrews (and catch WTAF Wednesdays) on Instagram, Threads, or her website.Listen to our earlier romance road trip episode from Season 1 and head over to tell us all about your favorite road trips and find an endless list of road trip recs on the Fated Mates Discord, accessible to our Patreon subscribers. By joining the Patreon, you meet other Fated Mates listeners and get an extra monthly episode from us. Support us and learn more at fatedmates.net/patreon.Next week, our read along is Seven Days in June by Tia Williams. Get it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, wherever you get your books, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.Books DiscussedRoad Trip by Mary Kay AndrewsSummers at the Saint by Mary Kay AndrewsThis Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by Ilona AndrewsNevermind the Mistletoe by Louisa DarlingThe Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark TwainThe Odyssey, Emily Wilson's TranslationThe Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise by Colleen OakleyThis Tender Land by William Kent KruegerThe Road to Tender Hearts by Annie HartnettSponsorsEdward Underhill, author of The House of Now & Then, available in print, ebook, audiobook from Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, or wherever you get your books.Kristina Forrest, author of The Summer Girlfriend, available for preorder in print, ebook, audiobook from Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Kobo or wherever you get your books.Little Brown & Co, publishers of Emily Adrian’s Seduction Theory. Available in print, ebook and audiobook from Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, wherever you get your books, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.Lumi Gummies. Go to lumigummies.com and use code FATEDMATES for 30% off your order.The RestFor even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2026/6/9/s0837-road-trips-with-mary-kay-andrews If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates. Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough. If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.
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  S08.36: The Rain Fell in Torrents: Weather Is Genre 03.06.2026 1ч 27мин

  We’re celebrating the paperback release of These Summer Storms this week, and that means we’re talking about the weather! We talk about rain and snow and wind and tempests and tornadoes and monsoons, and we talk about why we all like weather in books so much (hint, it’s because it’s dialed up to 11).Tell us all about your favorite weather in romance novels and find an endless list of books that are as wild and stormy as you like over at the Fated Mates Discord, accessible to our Patreon subscribers. By joining the Patreon, you meet other Fated Mates listeners and get an extra monthly episode from us. Support us and learn more at fatedmates.net/patreon.Our next read along is Seven Days in June by Tia Williams. Get it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, wherever you get your books, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.BooksThese Summer Storms by Sarah MacLeanEleven Scandals by Sarah MacLeanStruck Speechless by Tati RichardsonA Tempest of Desire by Lorraine HeathBeautiful Russian Monster by Odette StoneWild Rain by Beverly JenkinsUncharted by Adriana AndersWhirlwind by Kayla GrosseAfter Hours on Milagro Street by Angelina M LopezNotesWe are fans of Mayor Mamdani, texting Sarah about the weather. This lady didn’t get the memo, but we hope she’s okay. After this episode was recorded, the Knicks were headed to the MNBA finals, and the Mayor repealed bedtimes for all the kids in New York. Could we love him any more?Eric was camping, which Sarah and I imagine is like Ferngully, but it was real rainy.Half agony and half hope is from Persuasion, which just goes to show you that you can never read Jane Austen and still get the basics!Send Help is a movie with Rachel McAdams and it’s basically light horror, maybe? Idk, Jen covered her eyes a lot, but it was super fun.It was a dark and stormy night is from Snoopy, and also an 1830 novel called Paul Clifford by Edward Bulwer-Lytton, who was an aristocrat! He was the first Baron Lytton! Paul Clifford is an example of a Newgate novel.Snowed-in is a subset of forced proximity, but the snowed-in is a symbol.You can watch People We Meet on Vacation on Netflix.Speaking of Crash Landing on You and weather.James Joyce was afraid of thunderstorms.Sophia Benoit will be with Sarah at Book Club Bar in Brooklyn on June 23rd, and with Jen at Women & Children First in Chicago on June 24th. Sarah will be with Mary Kay Andrews on Long Island on June 12th.SponsorsRachel Griffiths, author of Just for the Season, available for preorder in print, ebook, audiobook from Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, signed from the Ripped Bodice, or wherever you get your books.Lulu Morris, author of The Dating Pact, available for preorder in print, ebook, audiobook from Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Kobo or wherever you get your books.W by Wattpad Books, publishers of Sabrina Blackburry’s Half Wylde. Available in print and ebook from Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, or wherever you get your books.The RestFor even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2026/6/1/s0836-weather-is-genre-these-summer-storms-paperback If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates. Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky,
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  S08.35: Sad Boys Who Punch Things with Veronica Roth 20.05.2026 1ч 31мин

  This week, we’re joined by one of the greatest, Veronica Roth, whose new book, Seek the Traitor’s Son, features one of her most beloved of tropes: Sad Boys Who Punch Things. We were delighted when she suggested we do an episode on this very particular, very delicious romance concept, and of course, we invited her to join us! We talk about how it works, why we love soft boys who are full of rage, and how we stan a hero who is willing to stand back and let his partner be awesome. We also talk about The West Wing & Ladyhawke (makes sense). And of course, we talk about her books!If you’d like to continue the conversation about sad boys who punch things or about Veronica’s deep backlist, please join the Fated Mates Discord, which is accessible to our Patreon subscribers. By joining the Patreon, you meet other Fated Mates listeners and get an extra monthly episode from us. Support us and learn more at fatedmates.net/patreon.Our next read along is Seven Days in June by Tia Williams. Get it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, wherever you get your books, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.BooksSeek the Traitor’s Son by Veronica RothWhen Among Crows by Veronica RothDivergent by Veronica RothDaughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini TaylorShadow’s Claim by Kresley ColeLothaire by Kresley ColeManaged by Kristen CallihanThese Summer Storms by Sarah MacLeanThe Professor by Charlotte SteinHow to End a Love Story by Yulin KuangThe Dragon and the Pearl by Jeannie LinLove in the Afternoon by Lisa KleypasWait For It by M. O’KeefePaladin’s Grace by T. KingfisherA Discovery of Witches by Deborah HarknessNotesVeronica Roth’s newest release is Seek the Traitor’s Son, the first in a dystopian fantasy duology with a strong romance subplot.We love the follow sad boys: Toby Ziegler, Angel, Fox Mulder, Tobias from Animorphs, and Rutger Hauer from Ladyhawke.The Sixth Faction is coming soon! SponsorsPiper Rayne, author of The Hotshot, available in print, ebook, audiobook and with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.Rose Prendeville, author of A Faire Affair, available in print, ebook and with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.Blue Box Press, publishers of Dylan Allen’s beautiful new print editions of The Daredevil, The Mastermind & The Wild Card. Available in print and ebook from Amazon and Barnes & Noble.Lumi Gummies. Go to lumigummies.com and use code FATEDMATES for 30% off your order.The RestFor even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2026/5/18/s0835-sad-boys-who-punch-things-with-veronica-roth If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates. Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough. If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.
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  S08.34: Historical Romance with Ali Hazelwood and Adriana Herrera 13.05.2026 1ч 53мин

  We are thrilled to have two of our favorite people with us today to discuss one of our favorite genres! Ali Hazelwood and Adriana Herrera, the masterminds behind the AH2 Kickstarter of Historical Trailblazers are here to talk about all the ways historical romance is unmatched! We talk about the new Historical Trailblazer special edition box set that AH2 launched this week, about the power of historicals, and about some of our favorite historical romances, past and present.The Historical Trailblazer Box Set of books, including Indigo by Beverly Jenkins, Butterfly Swords by Jeannie Lin, The Magpie Lord by KJ Charles, Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase, and (of course) Dreaming of You by Lisa Kleypas. The box set includes stunning hardcover editions, gold foil, sprayed edges, original artwork and letters from the authors. Learn more at the AH2 Kickstarter page.If you’d like to continue the conversation about historical romance, please come join the Fated Mates Discord, which is accessible to our Patreon subscribers. By joining the Patreon, you meet other Fated Mates listeners and get an extra monthly episode from us. Support us and learn more at fatedmates.net/patreon.Our next read along is Seven Days in June by Tia Williams. Get it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, wherever you get your books, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.BooksIndigo by Beverly JenkinsButterfly Swords by Jeannie LinThe Magpie Lord by KJ CharlesDreaming of You by Lisa KleypasLord of Scoundrels by Loretta ChasePassion by Lisa ValdezNight Hawk by Beverly JenkinsFlowers from the Storm by Laura KinsaleCan't Get Enough of the Duke by Lenora BellMy Beautiful Enemy by Sherry ThomasDevil's Bride by Stephanie LaurensProvoked by Joanna ChambersA Deal with the Devil by Alyxandra HarveySponsorsBlue Box Press, publishers of Larissa Ione’s Legacy of Desire, available in print, ebook or audiobook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, or wherever you get your books.Juniper Butterworth, author of The King in the Forest, coming soon in print, ebook and with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.Elle Kennedy, author of The Off Campus series, beginning with The Deal, now a television show on Amazon, available in print, ebook and audiobook, at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books or wherever you get your books.Dawn Banks, author of The Spreadsheet Situation, available in print or ebook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, free with Kobo Plus, or wherever you get your books.The RestFor even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2026/5/11/historicals-with-ali-hazelwood-and-adriana-herrera If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates. Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough. If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.
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  S08.33: Ian Mackenzie is DTF: The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie 06.05.2026 1ч 36мин

  We’re deep diving into one of our favorite historicals from the 00s today — Jennifer Ashley’s The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie. It’s a great follow up to our Paris episode last week, but we also talk about how Ashley really wrote the heck out of this book. We talk about widows, about sex in historicals, about autism rep in historicals, romance families, and the way this series electrified us as readers. This book is a straight up banger.If you’re interested in learning more about the AH2 Historical Trailblazer Kickstarter, featuring beautiful, hardcover special editions of Lord of Scoundrels, Indigo, The Magpie Lord, Butterfly Swords and Dreaming of You, head over to the Kickstarter page and sign up for updates!If you’d like to continue the conversation about The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie or any of Jennifer Ashley’s other books, please come join the Fated Mates Discord, which is accessible to our Patreon subscribers. By joining the Patreon, you meet other Fated Mates listeners and get an extra monthly episode from us. Support us and learn more at fatedmates.net/patreon.Our next read along is Seven Days in June by Tia Williams. Get it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, wherever you get your books, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.NotesCheck out the AH2 kickstarter, partnering with Fated Mates and Julia Whelan’s Audiobrary. It goes live next week!Dua Lipa met her fiance Callum Turner because they both were reading the same book, Trust by Hernan Diaz. Dua Lipa’s book club is called Service 95.You, too, might enjoy reading Dungeon Crawler Carl. Or Reacher. Or Murderbot. Jen is thinking of going to bedazzle a copy of Dungeon Crawler Carl, but is that too silly?Dorchester Publishing was a house that published mostly mass market paperbacks, and it shuttered shortly after the publishing of The Madness of Lord Ian MacKenzie. The editor of the book, Leah Hultenschmidt, is now at Forever.There’s a new-ish translation of The Odyssey by Emily Wilson that you might like. Xenia is the ancient Greek word for hospitality, and Wilson talks a about how the word comes from the root xenos, meaning both stranger and friend. Maybe if we were all a little more open to those we don’t know, things would be different.SponsorsHarperCollins, publishers of Laurie Gilmore’s The Daisy Chain Flower Shop, available in print, ebook or audiobook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, or wherever you get your books.Michelle Ruoff, author of A Summer to Stay, available in print, ebook and with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.Jennilynn Wyer, author of All Our Next Times, available in print, ebook and audiobook, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.The RestFor even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2026/5/4/0833-the-madness-of-lord-ian-mackenzie If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates. Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough. If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.