Valerie Bowman returns to talk about her new book, The Honeycrisp Orchard Inn, out September 9. Valerie has written over 30 historical novels but when asked by her agent if she’d be interested in pivoting to contemporary, Valerie jumped on the opportunity.

Please join us as we puzzle through the reasons why historical romance isn’t as popular, and what led to the pivot that so many authors are making. Plus Valerie shares the differences and similarities in writing contemporary and historical romance, and what question she gets the most from historical romance readers.

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You can find Valerie Bowman at her website, ValerieBowmanBooks.com. 

And you can listen to her in Episode 586. Saying Yes to the Dress with Valerie Bowman.

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Support for this episode comes from Head Witch In Charge by Avery Flynn, out on September 2, 2025. Several romance bookstores in the UK, Canada, and the US will have signed swag goodie bags for anyone who orders Head Witch in Charge while supplies last. Many offer online ordering, too! See the list and place your order at AveryFlynn.com.

Plus, Bookshop.org is offering a 15% discount to anyone who orders Head Witch in Charge and uses the code LOVEBOOKSELLERS.

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Thank you to HelloFresh for sponsoring this week’s episode. Visit HelloFresh.com/SARAH10FM to get 10 free meals and a free item for life!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s July 2016, and we’re back in the time machine to check out the ads & features from this issue of Romantic Times Magazine!

We spot an SBTB friend in the letters to the editor, and we talk about romances translated into English, the appeal of the wounded hero, and we spot an ad that’s very clearly some Tay-fic, as I’m calling it. We also discuss an article about Kickstarter in romance – and this is 2016. Look how far we’ve come – and how much RT had its finger on the pulse of new trends.

The July 2016 issue also has several scrapbook-style pages of the RT Convention in Vegas. We recorded a separate episode about those pages, with some conference memories, analysis, and memorabilia, and that will be the bonus episode for this month, dropping on August 26, 2025, for Patreon subscribers, with pictures galore.

We also discussed:

• Our Rec League for Sad Historical Businessmen
• Kickstarter: The Jane Austen Deluxe Collection
• Kickstarter: After the End – A Dystopian Romance Collection
• Kickstarter: Bonkers Romance
• Episode 604. Dessert Projects with Katee Robert
• Episode 620. Romance and Kickstarter with Oriana Leckert
• Review: Fresh Romance Volume 1
• Review: Fresh Romance Volume 2
• BBC News: “‘Every word has come back to haunt me’: China cracks down on women who write gay erotica”

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Molly Horan is a YA author, playwright, and professor who is writing a dissertation on aromantic and asexual characters in YA literature. Molly also teaches classes about YA literature, so we have a LOT to talk about.

Examining relationships between people within the context of aro/ace characters requires a re-examination of how we portray human bonds in media, and how they work in real life. There are many book recs, so don’t forget to check the shownotes to embiggen your TBR.

Find all the books Molly mentions in the show notes at SBTB!

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Music: purple-planet.com

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Want a free preview of our bonus content? You're in luck! Inspired by other Patreon folks, including Chris DeRosa at Fixing Famous People, I’ve made some of the Patreon content free so you can sample what we’ve got.

• Do you want to do a crossword puzzle from the May 1995 issue of RT? The crossword puzzle is available for free on Patreon right now!
• Would you like to read an issue of RT Magazine? The December 1997 issue is now available for your perusal.
• Or would you like to try one of our bonus episodes? Join Amanda and me as we look back at our 2024 predictions about romance and publishing.

This collection of special previews is available now to all listeners, and there’s a link in the show notes to dive in. And if you like our free samples, join us in the Patreon community where there’s bonus content and more.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We’re back! Amanda picked this month’s issue and so we are journeying back to July 2016!

• We tackle vague reviews that tell us no things.
• I try to coin a new portmanteau!
• We come up with the most unhinged romance bingo squares ever – tell us if we should use them!
• We have some plot summaries that are a RIDE, folks.

Hop into our newly refurbished time machine – we needed a bigger drinks fridge – and let’s look at the July 2016 new releases!

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Inspired by other Patreon folks, including Chris DeRosa at Fixing Famous People, I’ve made some of the Patreon content free so you can sample what we’ve got.

• Do you want to do a crossword puzzle from the May 1995 issue of RT? The crossword puzzle is available for free on Patreon right now!
• Would you like to read an issue of RT Magazine? The December 1997 issue is now available for your perusal.
• Or would you like to try one of our bonus episodes? Join Amanda and me as we look back at our 2024 predictions about romance and publishing.

This collection of special previews is available now to all listeners, and there’s a link in the show notes to dive in. And if you like our free samples, join us in the Patreon community where there’s bonus content and more.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Recently, I posted a collection of cozy, mostly British mysteries that all mimic the Richard Osman Thursday Murder Club covers in just about every way.Then, Kayleigh Donaldson said she had many thoughts about them.

One of the worst things you can do is be one of my favorite people to listen to and then tell me you have thoughts about something I posted on SBTB. I WANT TO HEAR THE THOUGHTS. Good thing I have a podcast, right? So here we are.

We’re going to talk about the Osman Aesthetic in cozy mystery, where it comes from, why it works, and what’s happening next.

TW/CW: mentions of a book that contains on-page sexual assault and discussion of That Writer being a TERF, plus the effect of her politics on Scotland. That discussion is at 35:30 and you’ll want to skip forward about 1 minute.

Note for Patreon folks: our bonus episode next week is going to be over an hour of Kayleigh and I talking about pop culture, concepts of masculinity and femininity in celebrity personae, and more.

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Inspired by other Patreon folks, including Chris DeRosa at Fixing Famous People, I’ve made some of the Patreon content free so you can sample what we’ve got.

• Do you want to do a crossword puzzle from the May 1995 issue of RT? The crossword puzzle is available for free on Patreon right now!
• Would you like to read an issue of RT Magazine? The December 1997 issue is now available for your perusal.
• Or would you like to try one of our bonus episodes? Join Amanda and me as we look back at our 2024 predictions about romance and publishing.

This collection of special previews is available now to all listeners, and there’s a link in the show notes to dive in. And if you like our free samples, join us in the Patreon community where there’s bonus content and more.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jo Piazza’s new book, Everyone is Lying to You, is a trad wife influencer murder mystery out this month. I loved this book. Jo has been covering trad wives and influencers for a long, long time – she has a podcast called “Under the Influence,” and has been writing about celebrity culture for most of her career.We are talking about trad wives, celebrity influencers, and how celebrity has changed with social media. We also talk about how and why trad wife influencers are so, well, influential, and how so many parts of our society have let women down.

Want some fresh burning feminism and critique of predatory influencing? This is your episode.

…

Inspired by other Patreon folks, including Chris DeRosa at Fixing Famous People, I’ve made some of the Patreon content free so you can sample what we’ve got.

• Do you want to do a crossword puzzle from the May 1995 issue of RT? The crossword puzzle is available for free on Patreon right now!
• Would you like to read an issue of RT Magazine? The December 1997 issue is now available for your perusal.
• Or would you like to try one of our bonus episodes? Join Amanda and me as we look back at our 2024 predictions about romance and publishing.

This collection of special previews is available now to all listeners, and there’s a link in the show notes to dive in. And if you like our free samples, join us in the Patreon community where there’s bonus content and more.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When I record with Nalini Singh, since she’s in New Zealand and I’m on the east coast of the US, it’s weird hours for both of us – so thank you to Nalini for speaking to me bright and early in the morning. We talk about Atonement Sky, about writing and worldbuilding, and saying goodbye to characters. I also mix up my animal pluralities but I fix it, don’t worry.

NOT thanks to Wilbur, my cat, who was vocally put out with my choices, and ends up with Nalini representing him in feline court.

Music: purple-planet.com

Find links to Nalini's website and newsletter, and the picture of her + Nutella, at SBTB!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Danielle Allen is the author of 55 books, including the new release Plus Size Player, part of the Curve series alongside Curvy Girl Summer, and Big Girl Blitz. And the player, as you’ll find out, is the heroine.

The trilogy focuses on three best friends, and so we talk about friendship, loyalty, and about centering fat Black women as romance heroines. Danielle has also written contemporaries inspired by Poe stories, so of course we talk about interpreting Poe as well.

You can find Danielle Allen at her website, AuthorDanielleAllen.com, and on her Patreon, Curvy Girl Confessions. You can also follow her on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and BlueSky.

Her cover artist is Keo Majoy. 

…

A special invitation: free samples of our bonus content!

Inspired by other Patreon folks, including Chris DeRosa at Fixing Famous People, I’ve made some of the Patreon content free so you can sample what we’ve got.

• Do you want to do a crossword puzzle from the May 1995 issue of RT? The crossword puzzle is available for free on Patreon right now!
• Would you like to read an issue of RT Magazine? The December 1997 issue is now available for your perusal.
• Or would you like to try one of our bonus episodes? Join Amanda and me as we look back at our 2024 predictions about romance and publishing.

This collection of special previews is available now to all listeners, and there’s a link in the show notes to dive in. And if you like our free samples, join us in the Patreon community where there’s bonus content and more.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

You may know Gaby Leon as HappyGabyCooking on TikTok and Instagram. She’s also the author of a new cookbook! The Enchanted Feast is a gorgeous book filled with recipes inspired by Gaby’s favorite Rrrrrromantasy titles. There are cocktails, snacks, entrees, and terrific cookies and desserts. This episode, and this cookbook, might make you hungry.

If you’re thinking you might need to check out this cookbook, yes, yes you do. And if you’ve got a potluck coming up, this book has you covered.

Inspired by other Patreon folks, including Chris DeRosa at Fixing Famous People, I’ve made some of the Patreon content free so you can sample what we’ve got.

• Do you want to do a crossword puzzle from the May 1995 issue of RT? The crossword puzzle is available for free on Patreon right now!
• Would you like to read an issue of RT Magazine? The December 1997 issue is now available for your perusal.
• Or would you like to try one of our bonus episodes? Join Amanda and me as we look back at our 2024 predictions about romance and publishing.

This collection of special previews is available now to all listeners, and there’s a link in the show notes to dive in. And if you like our free samples, join us in the Patreon community where there’s bonus content and more.

You can find Gaby León at HappyGabyCooking on TikTok and Instagram.

We also mentioned:

• The Meghan Markle on-pot pasta dish 
• Josu salts
• Binging with Babish

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is a delightfully unhinged issue. We’ve got a plethora of old-skool covers, weird language about China and Taiwan, Poconos hot tubs, and Elizabeth Lowell is thrown under the bus – twice?

Are you one of the most privileged readers in the world? I crave satisfaction in this matter!

Don't miss the links and visual aids for this episode - they're at SBTB.com.

A few housekeeping notes:

In July, I won’t be doing any RT Rewind episodes. This is partly because I have a BUNCH of interviews I am very excited about and want to share with y’all. We’ll be back in August with RT Rewind, so the time travel machine can have its annual service appointment in July.

And! Inspired by other Patreon folks, including Chris DeRosa at Fixing Famous People, I’ve made some of the Patreon content free so you can sample what we’ve got.

• Do you want to do a crossword puzzle from the May 1995 issue of RT? The crossword puzzle is available for free on Patreon right now!
• Would you like to read an issue of RT Magazine? The December 1997 issue is now available for your perusal.
• Or would you like to try one of our bonus episodes? Join Amanda and me as we look back at our 2024 predictions about romance and publishing.

This collection of special previews is available now to all listeners, and there’s a link in the show notes to dive in. And if you like our free samples, join us in the Patreon community where there’s bonus content and more.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.