This week, Danielle is joined by Alex Aster, the prolific, Romantasy Queen of Booktok. Coming out of 2025, in which she published four novels, Alex is back with Starside, her first foray into adult fiction – and, later this year, Barbie: Dreamscape, a YA retelling of the beloved Mattel doll. Alex and Danielle talk perseverance in publishing, the power of storytelling, and which romantasy tropes give Alex the ick (spoiler: hardly any of them do). 

BOOKS MENTIONED:

A Guide to Literary Agents by Robert Lee Brewer

Lightlark Series by Alex Aster

Starside by Alex Aster 

Curse of the Night Witch by Alex Aster

Curse of the Forgotten City by Alex Aster

Summer in the City by Alex Aster

Barbie Dreamscape by Alex Aster

 

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On this week’s episode, Danielle sits down with Rufi Thorpe, the author of Margo’s Got Money Troubles, the wildly original novel that’s now been adapted into a highly anticipated Apple TV+ series. They talk about the chaos and comedy of motherhood, the reality of being in your twenties with no roadmap, and the power of choosing your own path even when it makes people uncomfortable. Plus, Rufi reveals her delightfully messy writing habits and gives some fun BTS details from the show.

 

BOOKS MENTIONED:

Margo's Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe

The Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M. Auel

The Master Butchers Singing Club by Louise Erdrich

Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane

The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride

What We Talk About When We Talk About Love by Raymond Carver

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This week, Danielle is hanging out in an icon’s closet. And not just any icon – Lisa F*cking Rinna. Fresh off her book tour for her new memoir, You Better Believe I’m Gonna Talk About It, Lisa is here and ready to show up as her full self – silly, joyful and growing — always growing! Lisa takes Danielle behind the scenes of writing her memoir, deep dives into some juuuicy Real Housewives drama – and even devises a little acting role for herself, should, you know, the opportunity arise. 

 

BOOKS MENTIONED:

You Better Believe I’m Gonna Talk About It by Lisa Rinna 

Pretty Mess by Ericka Jayne 

Believe Me by Yolanda Hadid

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This week, we’re talking with author (and puzzle entrepreneur) Rachel Hochhauser about the March Reese’s Book Club Pick, Lady Tremaine. It’s not just a re-telling of Cinderella — it’s an un-telling that dares to ask: what if the wicked stepmother wasn’t wicked … but a mom trying her best to provide for her children? And what if a marriage isn’t a happily ever after … but the beginning of a whole new story? Danielle and Rachel talk puzzle-solving strategies, falconry, and decentering men and romance in women’s stories. You may think you know the story of Cinderella, but you’ve never read it like this.

BOOKS MENTIONED:

Lady Tremaine by Rachel Hochhauser

Cinderella by Charles Perrault 

Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine

Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen

Sleeping Beauty by  Charles Perrault

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This week, we’re time traveling with Philippa Gregory, prolific author and feminist historian (and maybe Danielle’s new bestie???). Philippa is the woman behind over 50 historical fiction novels that trace narratives across Medieval and Tudor England, including The Other Boleyn Girl, which was adapted into a film starring Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johansson. Her latest novel, The Boleyn Traitor, follows the infamous Anne Boleyn’s sister-in-law, Jane Boleyn, through her life as a spy in the English court. And this story, as so many of Philippa Gregory's do, brings a complicated, sometimes unlikeable, largely forgotten woman to the forefront. Because Philippa doesn’t really trust pure, pious women. She’s drawn instead to the truth – that women in from history are just as layered and diverse as we are today. 

BOOKS MENTIONED: 

The Boleyn Traitor by Philippa Gregory 

Normal Women: 900 Years of Making History by Philippa Gregory 

Wild Acre by Philippa Gregory

The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory 

Richard III by William Shakespeare

This Little World: A New History of Tudor and Stuart England by Nandini Das

The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling

Little Grey Rabbit by Alison Uttley

The Female Eunuch by Germaine Greer

Ulysses by James Joyce

Mine Own Executioner by Nigel Balchin

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This week is a big one. For the first time ever, three romance royals sit down together: Beverly Jenkins, Tia Williams, and Kennedy Ryan. They talk about pioneering Black love stories when the industry didn’t make space for them, reshaping modern romance with depth and desire, and why a happily ever after is anything but predictable — it’s powerful. From writing Black female desire without apology to protecting your creative vision, this conversation is funny, honest, and deeply moving. 

BOOKS MENTIONED: 

Night Song by Beverly Jenkins

Iola Leroy by Frances Ellen Watkins Harper 

Frances Harper: Poems, Prose, and Sketches – This collection features “Bury Me in a Free Land”.  by Frances Ellen Watkins Harper

Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov 

Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

The Devil Wears Prada by Lauren Weisberger

The Perfect Find by Tia Williams 

Can't Get Enough by Kennedy Ryan

Before I Let Go by Kennedy Ryan

Seven Days in June by Tia Williams

Through the Storm by Beverly Jenkins 

Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid

Hazard and Somerset by Gregory Ashe 

Ghalen by Walter Mosely

Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

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This week, we’re talking to director and screenplay writer Maggie Gyllenhaal about her upcoming film, The Bride! Maggie reveals how she gave a character from the 1930s with only a few minutes of screentime a big dose of main character energy. Danielle and Maggie also discuss the unthinkable thoughts of Mary Shelley, IMAX screenings, and what it was like to narrate a 48-hour audio book. Plus, get a sneak peek of the March Reese’s Book Club Pick, Lady Tremaine.

BOOKS MENTIONED: 

Good Morning, Midnight by Jean Rhys

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare

Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy 

The Lost Daughter by Elena Ferrante 

My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante

Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

Mating by Norman Rush

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This week, we’re back with the author of the February’s Reese’s Book Club pick, Philippa Malicka, and we’re diving deep into her debut novel, In Her Defense. A whirlpool of love, lies and deceit, In Her Defense raises the chilling question: If you can’t trust your own memories, what else, or who else, can you rely on? Danielle and Philippa get into process, character development, reclaiming your own agency – and how, sometimes, writing a new story can feel like falling in love. 

BOOKS MENTIONED 

In Her Defense by Philippa Malicka

Hamlet by Wiliam Shakespeare

The Glass Essay by Anne Carson

Stranger, Baby by Emily Berry

Mother Mary Comes to Me by Arundhati Roy 

Brother of the More Famous Jack by Barbra Trapido

Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

Dogger by Shirley Hughes

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

Birthday Letters by Ted Hughes

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On this special live episode of Bookmarked in collaboration with Apple Books and Apple TV, we’re celebrating Laura Dave’s newest novel, The First Time I Saw Him—January’s pick from Reese’s Book Club—and the highly anticipated second season of The Last Thing He Told Me on Apple TV. Danielle Robay is joined on stage by Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Garner, Laura Dave, Angourie Rice, Judy Greer, and Rita Wilson for a candid, funny, and deeply thoughtful conversation about bringing the story into its next chapter.

 

BOOKS MENTIONED 

The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave

The First Time I Saw Him by Laura Dave

The Cocktail Party by T.S. Eliot

The Book of Alchemy by Suleika Jaouad

Trust by Hernan Diaz

Bel Canto by Ann Patchett 

Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton

Heartburn by Nora Ephron

JAmes by Percival Everett

Stuck Up & Stupid by Angourie Rice & Kate Rice

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If you’ve ever struggled to feel like you matter, you’re not alone. Feeling like you matter is as fundamental a need as food or water, yet it’s a need going unmet by many. Danielle sits down with journalist and author Jennifer Wallace, who spent over six years researching and interviewing everyday people about losing and regaining that sense of mattering. They discuss what it really means to matter, the role social media plays in the mattering crisis, and how to show up for your loved ones and make them valued. 

Books Mentioned

Mattering by Jennifer Wallace

Never Enough by Jennifer Wallace

1929 by Andrew Ross Sorkin

Be Ready When the Luck Happens by Ina Garten

Choosing Civility by P. M. Forni

Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky

The Doorman by Chris Pavone

The Good Life by Robert Waldinger, M.D. and Marc Schulz, Ph.D

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