What to Read Next — Book Recommendations for Romance, Thrillers & Escape Reads

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.What happens when influencer culture, megachurch ambition, and algorithm-driven community collide?This week, I’m joined by longtime friend and fellow early-podcaster Alli Hoff Kosik to talk about her debut novel, Too Blessed to Stress — a sharp, nuanced story about faith, friendship, ambition, and the very online world we’re all living in.We talk about how her MFA journey led her here, why religion in fiction felt like a “risky” topic just a few years...

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.Queer joy, Hollywood theater, and why romance doesn’t have to earn its happy ending.In this episode, I’m joined by returning guest Amy Spalding to talk about In Her Spotlight, her latest sapphic romance set at the intersection of celebrity culture, live theater, and second-chance love. We dig into why queer joy matters, how power dynamics shift when fame enters the room, and why it finally feels possible to tell coming-out stories without centering trag...

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.Quick Note Before You Press Play: The audio quality on this episode isn’t my usual standard (thank you for your grace 😅). If you want the best experience, I highly recommend watching the video version — it includes captions and the sound is much clearer. You can find it on Spotify and YouTube.Thank you for being here and for always supporting the show. 💛--------------------------What happens when a virgin sex toy engine...

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.What happens when you drop a retired serial killer into a luxury retirement home full of former investigators? You get chaos, secrets… and one very suspicious death.In this episode, I chat with British comedian-turned-mystery author Fergus Craig about his latest cozy crime novel, I’m Not the Only Murderer in My Retirement Home. We talk about writing a likable serial killer, the art of “cracked cozy” mysteries, and how parody crime novels unexpectedly launched his fiction...

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.What happens when a swoony rom-com set in Venezuela meets fake dating, music, and telenovela-level drama? I’m joined by debut author Maria José Morillo to talk about romance, bilingual reading, and writing against the odds.In this episode, I’m chatting with Maria José Morillo, a Venezuelan author making her Big Five debut with The Ex-Perimento. We talk about growing up bilingual, discovering romance through Harry Potter and Twilight, and what it means to write Englis...

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.What happens when a pandemic side project turns into a full-time creative career? In this episode, I’m joined by fantasy romance author Kate Golden to talk about writing through uncertainty, leaving a stable career, and why urban fantasy is having a moment.We get into Kate’s journey from working as a studio executive in Hollywood to indie publishing A Dawn of Onyx, landing a traditional book deal with Berkley, and finally quitting her...

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.Making adult friends is hard — but it doesn’t have to be lonely.In this Galentine’s Day special, I’m joined by my friend Jules from Friday Night Readers to talk about how we met as adults, how to build meaningful female friendships, and the six books that celebrate the complicated, beautiful, soul-shaping power of friendship.We share how sliding into DMs, podcast interviews, book communities, and even fitness classes can turn into real-lif...

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.What happens when love, music, and unfinished business collide—20 years later?In this episode, I’m joined by novelist Lisa Peers to talk about Motor City Love Song, a sapphic second-chance romance set against Detroit’s indie music scene—then and now.We dive into the late ’90s Detroit garage-rock era, the rise and fall of live music venues, and what it means to revisit the love and choices that shape who we become. If you lov...

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.Cozy Mysteries 101: Finding the Series That Actually Works for YouIf you’ve ever wanted to get into cozy mysteries but didn’t know where to start — or bounced off one that just didn’t work — this episode is for you. Amy from Novel Gossip joins me to break down what actually makes a cozy mystery work (and why some beloved classics… don’t anymore).We talk about cozy mystery conventions, foodie cozies, long-running series vs. sho...

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.What happens when a true-crime podcaster is forced to host a romance podcast… and a real murder hits close to home? In this episode, I’m joined by author Letizia Lorini to talk about her rom-com-meets-mystery debut A Killer Kind of Romance — a smart, funny love story with serial-killer vibes and a guaranteed happily ever after.We talk about Letizia’s journey from criminology to romance writing, how her background in white-collar and environmental crime sh...

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.Coming out doesn’t always look the way we expect — especially when bisexuality, straight-presenting relationships, and queer community intersect in complicated ways. In this episode, I’m joined by novelist and journalist Jordyn Taylor to talk about her adult debut See You at the Summit and why bisexual representation in romance still matters.We dig into bi-erasure, “double discrimination,” and what it means to claim your identity even when the world reads you incorrectly. Jordyn also shares how...

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.Haunted lighthouses, bake shops, ghost hunters, and cozy mysteries with heart.In this episode, I’m joined by cozy mystery author Darci Hannah to talk about how she went from historical fiction to building three beloved cozy mystery series — including haunted lighthouses in Michigan, small-town bake shops, and a ghost-hunting food show gone very wrong.We dive into her Beacon Bakeshop Mysteries, the origin of her haunted lighthouse setting, how real Midwest ghost stories insp...

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.Some books don’t just retell a classic — they hold your hand through a hard season. In this episode, I’m joined by Virginia Kantra to talk about Anne of a Different Island, a modern homage to Anne of Green Gables set in the shadow of COVID, nostalgia, and finding your way forward when life doesn’t follow the script.We talk about why Anne Shirley still resonates more than a century later, how stories help us proce...

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.Bridgerton Season 4 Is Going Full Cinderella — Here’s What to Read While You WaitBridgerton Season 4 is officially heading into Cinderella territory, and I’m breaking down what that means — from class divide drama to why Benedict might finally be the Bridgerton brother we root for. Joined by returning guest Julia Diaz-Young, we talk book canon vs. show changes, why Sophie Beckett is such a compelling heroine, and which historical romances perfectly capture that upstairs-downstairs energy.If...

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.Some historical figures feel larger than life — until you finally meet the woman behind the myth.In this episode, I’m joined by Lynn Cullen, an acclaimed historical fiction author who has spent decades uncovering the real people behind cultural legends. We dive into her latest novel about Marilyn Monroe, focusing on Marilyn’s deeply personal relationship with photographer Eve Arnold — the only woman Marilyn ever trusted to photograph her.We talk about trauma, fame, th...

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.If you love romance but want to dip your toes into mystery without gore, trauma, or thriller chaos—this episode is for you.In this conversation, I’m joined by Jenny Elder Moke, author of the millennial cozy mystery-romcom She Doesn’t Have a Clue and her upcoming release Cross Your Heart and Hope He Dies. We talk about why mystery is not the same as thrillers, how “millennial cozies” are changing the genre, and why her books...

Before What to Read Next was a podcast… before author interviews, Kindle Unlimited lists, and mystery obsessions—there was one conversation that changed my reading life forever.In this throwback episode, I’m sharing a 2016 interview that quietly reshaped how I read, why I read, and eventually, why this podcast exists at all. We talk about losing your reading life in grad school, rediscovering books as an adult, and the joy of falling headfirst into stories again—without pressure, productivity, or obligation.This episode is for anyone who used to love reading, feels disconnected from it now...

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.What happens when you don’t give up on writing—even after a failed debut attempt, agent rejections, and a long detour through corporate life? In this episode, I’m joined by London-based author Rosie Storey, whose debut novel Dandelion Is Dead is finally making its U.S. release.We talk honestly about Rosie’s nonlinear publishing journey, the persistence it takes to keep writing after rejection, and why messy, mid-thirties lives deserve to be at the cent...

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.What if Indiana Jones, National Treasure, and a swoony rom-com had a bookish baby? That’s exactly what today’s episode delivers. I’m joined by Jo Segura, author of adventure rom-coms that bring danger, banter, and kissing back into the genre.We talk about why Hollywood stopped making true adventure romances, how Jo blends real archaeology research with rom-com pacing, and why her heroines are always smart, capable, and never damsels in distress. If you love r...

This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.What does it really look like to make a living as a romance author in today’s publishing landscape? In this episode, I’m joined by romance author Lauren Connolly for a candid conversation about hybrid publishing, creative sustainability, and her latest rom-com Love in Plane Sight.We talk about Lauren’s journey from libraries to publishing nearly 30 books, why diversifying income streams matters, and how she balances self-publishing with Big Five contracts without burnin...