S06.16: Happy New Year: Breeding Kink with Mila Finelli

This week, we are doing something a little different, talking about the New York Times's Best 100 Books of the 21st Century, a list that Sarah was asked to contribute a ballot for. We talk about how Sarah made her list, what she put on it, and why...and why we think there are no romance novels on the final top 100 list. Don't fret, though -- on the Discord, FM listeners have started collecting nominations for the 100 Best Modern Romance Novels (since the publication of The Flame and the Flower)! Join the group to submit your own nominations and vote on the final list throughout August.We're coming up on the end of Season 6 (what?! how!?), which means a deep dive of one of Sarah's books, even though she doesn't have a new one this year! We're talking Wicked &amp; the Wallflower, the first of her Bareknuckle Bastards series. Get it at: Amazon, Barnes &amp; Noble, Apple Books, Kobo, or wherever you get your books.The BooksWe talk about lots of books today, but most of them aren't romance novels. The nine romances on Sarah's list for the New York Times are: Kate Clayborn's Georgie, All AlongKresley Cole's Dark Needs at Night's EdgeJennifer Crusie's Bet MeUzma Jalaluddin's Hana Khan Carries OnBeverly Jenkins's ForbiddenLisa Kleypas's Again the MagicAngelina M. Lopez's After Hours on Milagro StreetSherry Thomas's Ravishing the HeiressMilla Vane's A Heart of Blood and AshesShow NotesIn between the recording of this episode, about two hours after Biden dropped out of the race, and the time we released it on Wednesday: Kamala Harris has locked up the delegates for the nomination and raised 100 million dollars from small donors, a majority of whom are first time donors. Click here to express your interest in joining us for Fated States phonebanking. If you’re an author who would like to donate books to phonebankers, please fill out this form.We’re mad at Aaron Sorkin for writing a boneheaded oped in the New York Times, which was truly the dumbest thing, and then retracting it later.The New York Times <a...

Jen and Sarah are together at last (again), and we’re taking your questions! Listen as we revisit some of our favorite past episodes of the podcast, as we discuss our favorite books with our least favorite tropes, and recommend a bunch of books that take the finger. We’re also talking about historical romance, and why it remains an absolute bop.We're coming up on the end of Season 6 (what?! how!?), which means a deep dive of one of Sarah's books, even though she doesn't have a new one this year! We're talking Wicked &amp; the Wallflower, the first of her Bareknuckle Bastards series. Get it at: Amazon, Barnes &amp; Noble, Apple Books, Kobo, or wherever you get your books.The BooksThe Next Best Fling by Gabby GamezChef’s Kiss by TJ alexanderUnmasked by the Marquess by Cat SebastianSomething Spectacular by Alexis HallThe Perks of Loving a Wallflower&nbsp; by Erica RidleyLove and Other Disasters by Anita KellyAn unsuitable Heir by KJ CharlesThe Ghost Town East Series by Amelia SheaIsland Princess Starts a Scandal by Adriana HerreraThe Duchess Hunt by Lorriane HeathMorning Glory Milking Farm by CM NacostaJust Playing House by Farah HeronThe Duke Gets Even by Joanna ShupeMystery Man by Kristen AshleyPreacher Man by Jessa KaneThe Show NotesJen went to go see Illinoise when she was in New York, and the Fated Mates team ate at Claro in Brooklyn.Some of our favorite episodes of the podcast: the Derek Craven episode with Kate, the first category romance interstitial, and trailblazers <a href="https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2021/11/13/s0411-vincent-virga-a-trailblazers-episode" rel="noopener noreferrer"...

For the last few years, The Ripped Bodice bookstore has published a Summer Romance Bingo Card and this year, we're helping you win! With absolutely no prep, we're recommending books for every bit of the game, from Lost Treasure to Time Travel to the Olympics. Head to The Ripped Bodice's instagram feed to see the bingo card and get reading! Books Mentioned Only and Forever by Chloe LieseA Novel Love Story by Ashley Poston&nbsp;One Last Shot by Betty CayouetteRemember Summer by Elizabeth LowellFire on the Ice by Tamsen ParkerSeduction on the Slopes by Tamsen ParkerFrom Lukov with Love by Mariana ZapataThe Amorous Education of Celia Seaton by Miranda NevilleHottie Scotty and Mr. Porter by R. Cooper&nbsp;Breath of Magic by Theresa MedierosOutlander by Diana GabaldonCrazy Stupid Bromance by Lyssa Kay AdamsShaken and Stirred by Kathleeen O’ReillyDouble Down by Katie PorterCopper by Lily AtlasSanta’s Baby by Chloe MaineLighthouse on Moonglow Bay by Lori WildeDragged to the Wedding by Andrew GreyLooking for a Sign by Susie DumondStar Crossed Seduction by Jenny BrownaA Touch Magical by Sonia HartlReaper’s Property by Joanna WyldeWaylon by Theodora TaylorDo Your Worst by Rosie DananThis Scot of Mine by Sophie JordanSummertime Punchline by Betty CorrelloWild Ride by Jennifer Crusie and Bob MayerSomething Wilder by Christina Lauren<a href="https://amzn.to/3xFH4Rf"...

We're taking a break this week, but we forgot to tell anyone about it. We’ll be back next week. In the meantime, check out Romancing the Vote 2024!

Who says it has to be Halloween to celebrate witches? It’s 2024 and frankly, we could do with a few more powerful, spell-casting women around here. We’re talking about our favorite witch romances, many of which (see what we did there) have nothing at all to do with spooky season! There are rumors of a new Practical Magic in the air, which (ope!) makes us extremely happy, and we’re just trying to decide which (!!!) of these fabulous books to reread this week. We’re going deep into romance history to talk about why witches are so compelling, why they’re perfect for a light, frothy romance, and why magic in the hands of men doesn’t hit the same way. We are the weirdos, Mister.The BooksJill Barnett's BETWITCHINGTeresa Medeiros's BREATH OF MAGICTeresa Medeiros's TOUCH OF ENCHANTMENTAnnette Blair's SEX AND THE PSYCHIC WITCHAnnette Blair's GONE WITH THE WITCHAnnette Blair's NEVER BEEN WITCHEDNora Roberts's DARK WITCHNora Roberts's SHADOW SPELLNora Roberts's BLOOD MAGICMolly Harper's WITCHES GET STUFF DONEMolly Harper's BIG WITCH ENERGYCelestine Martin's WITCHFUL THINKINGJuliette Cross's RESTING WITCH FACEAJ Sherwood's A FAE COIN TRANSPORTED ME INTO ANOTHER WORLD AND NOW I'M THE GAY HOLY MAIDENKimberly Lemming's THAT TIME I GOT DRUNK AND YEETED A LOVE POTION AT A WEREWOLFMeg Cabot's ENCHANTED TO MEET YOU Alexis Daria's WHAT THE HEXErin Sterling's THE EX HEXThe NotesIf you liked the post-it note situation in The Fall Guy, or the low-tech pre-post it note version from Romancing the Stone, Aqua Notes may be for you.&nbsp;Today banter portion was very into “Great Lakes, Great Times.” If you would like to talk to Sarah about the Wisconsin fish boil from Top Chef, please take that up with her and leave Jen out of it. Or travel across Lake Michigan on <a href="https://ssbadger.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer"...

We are talking about a full on banger this week — Joanna Shupe’s The Devil of Downtown, which is Sarah’s favorite of the Uptown Girls series (Jen is a The Prince of Broadway fan, but honestly, all three are basically perfect). We love this one so much, you’re about to get an hour or so of squeeing and sighing — Jack Mulligan is everything you could possibly want in a romance hero, Justine Greene is the do goodingest do gooder who ever was, and the way they adore each other is enough to wreck you. If you haven’t read this one yet, do yourself a favor and go read the whole series right now…Joanna Shupe proves that historical romance is everything you want.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 1000 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 we do at patreon.com/fatedmates.Show NotesJoanna Shupe also writes mafia romance under the pen name Mila Finelli, and we love The Kings of Italy series.&nbsp;The Greene sisters are loosely based on the Schuyler Sisters, made famous by the musical Hamilton.&nbsp;On the TV show The Wire, a popular drug dealer named Stringer Bell only moved up to the big leagues of evil once he started buying up real estate and rubbing elbows with politicians and businessmen, who are portrayed as the biggest crooks of all.&nbsp;The story of the Triangle shirtwaist factory fire is tragic, and ultimately led to labor reforms around the country.&nbsp;The Sex in the City gals have some thoughts about butt stuff.SponsorsDr. Melissa Dymond, author of Paging Dr. Hart, available in print or ebook, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle UnlimitedMary James Ketch, oil painter. Find her new series of paintings and prints, Book Lovers, at her online studio. Pocket Books Shop in Lancaster, PA. Check out their new $40 Swoony Subscription Box for a monthly delivery of brand new, hand-selected romance novels and access to a discussion Discord. July’s box includes TRIPLE SEC by TJ Alexander,&nbsp;FOR REAL by Alexis Hall, and A LIAISON WITH HER LEADING LADY by Lotte R. James.

We’re talking about brothers and sisters as secondary characters in romance today — by popular demand from listeners, it’s our sibling episode! We get to the bottom of why we all love secondary siblings—the overbearing olders, the wild child middles, the delightful youngers, the equally handsome and broad shouldered boys, the snarky, stunning girls, and everyone else who’s ever caught our eye and made us say “now where’s there book?!” We tackled complicated relationships, shared history and the perfect fantasy of family that romance delivers so well.Next week, we’re reading Joanna Shupe’s The Devil of Downtown, from her Uptown Girls trilogy. There are sisters! Also, it’s Jen’s favorite in the series and an absolute banger. Get it at Amazon, Barnes &amp; Noble, Kobo, Apple or your local indie.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 1000 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 we do at patreon.com/fatedmates.Show NotesWe’ve done twins, and we’ve done siblings’s best friend, but this time we’re talking about plain old siblings in romance. We’re definitely not talking about anything Tangled Lies adjacent this time.If you want the deep dives we mentioned, they are Preferential Treatment, Gentle Rogue and Devil’s Bride.Illinoise is playing on Broadway if you’re in New York this summer.&nbsp;They’ll be a meet-up at Steamy Lit Con for us with our listeners, details coming soon!&nbsp;There’s a dark romance podcast called Trigger Warning you might want to check out, and in case you want to read that romance with mummification but no cheating, it’s Dead Love by Audrey Rush&nbsp;The Orphan X book with the evil killer...

School’s out for Jen’s summer and Sarah’s in the final stretch so we’re dreaming of romance beach reads and talking about our massive summer TBR piles! There’s something here for everyone — hot librarians, superheroes, heists, funeral homes, wedding planners and baseball players and F1 drivers and, of course, dukes.Our next read along is Joanna Shupe’s The Devil of Downtown, from her Uptown Girls trilogy. It’s Jen’s favorite in the series. Get it at Amazon, Barnes &amp; Noble, Kobo, Apple or your local indie.If you love a fire hose of romance recommendations, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where 1000 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 we do at patreon.com/fatedmates.Show NotesMaybe men shouldn’t cover the WNBA, tbh.&nbsp;All about The electric slide.You can follow DodoTheBookBitch on Instagram; follow Sarah there to see the scratch-off TBR poster.&nbsp;Jacque is one our romancelandia faves, and she has a Pride reading challenge for you all. RomanticallyInclined is on Threads reading books with fewer than 100 reviews all through June.&nbsp;&nbsp;For reviews in advance of publication, your best bet is Kirkus (Jen reviews for them), but you can also try Booklist or Publisher’s Weekly. We also talked about NetGalley and Edelweiss to discover upcoming books.If you’re in NYC, don’t miss the launch event for Liana de la Rosa’s Isabel and the Rogue next week! She’ll be at The Ripped Bodice with Sarah and Adriana Herrera…and Sophie Jordan will be there, too! Tickets and info here.

One of our most popular interstitial topics, we had to come back for a third run at Curvy Heroines this month in celebration of Bridgerton-mania online and our absolute delight that we finally get to see Penelope get that handsome man who is just back from his long trip to glow-up-land (we deserve nice things, and so do curvy heroines)! Sarah’s talking exclusively about historicals today, and Jen is bringing new-to-the-pod authors to the table…all that, and we’re naming the six historicals Sarah’s written with curvy heroines (There’s also a contemporary! Check the photo array, below). This one is a lot of fun.Our next read along is Joanna Shupe’s The Devil of Downtown, from her Uptown Girls trilogy. It’s Jen’s favorite in the series. Get it at Amazon, Barnes &amp; Noble, Kobo, Apple or your local indie.Happy anniversary to our founding Patreon members — May marks one year of our Patreon and our Discord! We love you a whole lot. Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as we do at patreon.com/fatedmates.Show NotesYou can visit the Sleeping Beauties Exhibit at the Met, which sounds pretty fascinating, is there all summer through September 2nd.&nbsp;All about smelling salts, Kardashian levels of rib removal which is called&nbsp;tight lacing, Each and Every brand deodorant, and retinol. If you’re interested historical fashion and lingerie, follow Cora Harrington on twitter, she wrote about corsets on her blog back in 2012. If you’re interested it watching a guy talking about cologne, here is link to Joshua Godfrey, the guy with the labyrinth tattoo and his journey.&nbsp;If you loved Fury Road, you should read Blood, Sweat, and Chrome, which is the story of how the movie was made. Here’s a supercut of Tom Hardy grunting.

Gather together your bouquets and boutonnières, wedding season is here! But, in typical Fated Mates fashion, we spend the first 20 minutes talking about Pulp Fiction (just go with it, these are the mysterious ways of the podcast and you just need to trust the process). Then, we’re talking weddings in romance novels—not the books where the main characters get hitched, but instead they are guests at a wedding. Maybe they’re fake dating, maybe they’re the wedding planners, or maybe they’re the runaway bride or abandoned groom. Of course, we can’t wait to hear about your favorite books that happen at a wedding..