The most listened to romance novel podcast, Fated Mates is co-hosted by bestselling author Sarah MacLean and romance critic Jen Prokop. Weekly episodes include romance novel read-alongs and lively discussions of the work of the genre, highlighting the romance novel as a powerful tool in fighting the patriarchy…with absolutely no kink shaming.

We're taking a second run at second chance romance this week, and while we intended to recommend a million books, we ended up talking about all the ways this trope really works and really doesn't work for us! We're talking about rekindling love, unrequited love, resurrecting old wounds, the unforgivable stuff and of course, pining. It's a long one, and yes, Jen is talking about present tense. If you love this one, you can listen to our first <a href="https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2021/4/19/s0335-second-chance-romance-interstitial-with-priscilla-oliveras" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Second Chance Romance episode</a> with Priscilla Oliveras here. It's that time of year again--Sarah's next book, These Summer Storms is out in July and she is going on tour! What's more, there is a real deal Fated Mates LIVE planned for July 8th in St. Louis, MO! Get tickets to any of these events (Jen will be at a bunch of them, and other pod friends will be popping up along the way) at <a href="https://sarahmaclean.net/tour" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">sarahmaclean.net/tour</a>! If you can't make the tour, you can <a href="https://www.therippedbodice.com/product/these-summer-storms-sarah-maclean-signed" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">preorder These Summer Storms signed with a special romance dust jacket</a> from The Ripped Bodice. If you want more Fated Mates in your life, please join our Patreon, which comes with an extremely busy and fun Discord community! Join other magnificent firebirds to hang out, talk romance, and be cool together in a private group full of excellent people. <a href="https://www.patreon.com/fatedmates" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Learn more at patreon.com</a>.<h2>The Books</h2><ul><li><a href="https://amzn.to/43Ewabq" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Love’s Encore</a> by Rachel Ryan</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/43YCZDD" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Queen Move</a> by Kennedy Ryan</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/43YCWYt" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ravishing the Heiress</a> by Sherry Thomas</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/43TdG5L" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Day of the Duchess</a> by Sarah MacLean</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/3FwRnLn" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Daring and the Duke</a> by Sarah MacLean</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/3FRXn1b" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Before I Let Go</a> by Kennedy Ryan</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/4jMYk99" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">If I Told You, I’d Have to Kiss You</a> by Mae Marvel</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/4mQVTVL" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Left of Forever</a> by Tarah DeWitt</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/3HzA9gK" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Designing his Duchess</a> by Gabrielle Carr</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/3TeNpdk" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">A Lot Like Adios</a> by Alexis Daria</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/4l2Deo5" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Broken by the Horde King</a> by Zoey Draven</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/3Zoc6rg" rel="noopener...

Fated Mates - Romance Books for Novel People

Second Chance Romance Redux

Another deep dive episode, and this one feels like it shouldn't have taken so long! We're reading Run Posy Run, talking about the way Cate C. Wells walks a fine line of mafia romance while keeping the book on the morality chain side of the line from dark romance. We talk about heroines against the wall, heroes who have to suffer, the way violence fits into these romances, and about sex and how it's deployed in these books to enormous effect. We love this one (as you all know), and we were so excited to go back to it and give it the deep read it deserved. You can find all of our deep dives at <a href="https://fatedmates.net/book-club" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">the Fated Mates Book Club</a>. It's that time of year again--Sarah's next book, These Summer Storms (complete with sexy, silent, deeply competent hero) is out in July and she is going on tour! What's more, there is a real deal Fated Mates LIVE planned for July 8th in St. Louis, MO! Get tickets to any of these events (Jen will be at a bunch of them, and other pod friends will be popping up along the way) at <a href="https://sarahmaclean.net/tour" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">sarahmaclean.net/tour</a>! If you can't make the tour, you can <a href="https://www.therippedbodice.com/product/these-summer-storms-sarah-maclean-signed" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">preorder These Summer Storms signed with a special romance dust jacket</a> from The Ripped Bodice. If you want more Fated Mates in your life, please join our Patreon, which comes with an extremely busy and fun Discord community! Join other magnificent firebirds to hang out, talk romance, and be cool together in a private group full of excellent people. <a href="https://www.patreon.com/fatedmates" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Learn more at patreon.com</a>.<h2>The Book</h2><a href="https://amzn.to/3FHAGN9" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Run Posy Run</a> by Cate C. Wells<h2>Notes</h2><ul><li>A boat, ship whatever, <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c991n8p4pdyo" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">ran into the Brooklyn Bridge</a>, and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DJzfxjrPsZg/?igsh=ODQ5OXhjd2NydWI5" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here’s a video of a woman who is a mariner explaining what might have happened</a>. </li><li>The Chicago River is an engineering marvel.<a href="https://www.wttw.com/chicago-river-tour/how-chicago-reversed-river-animated" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> In 1887, they reversed the river</a> and sent it out to the Mississippi rather than having it flow into Lake Michigan. They were moving rivers around in Rhode Island because of Mayor SOMEBODY and his desire to turn Providence into the Venice of the United States. <a href="https://waterfire.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Waterfire is a Providence thing</a>, but it isn’t the same as <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/cuyahoga-river-caught-fire-least-dozen-times-no-one-cared-until-1969-180972444/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">the water fire[s] in Cleveland</a>. The greatest of <a href="https://www.glslcompactcouncil.org/about/about-the-great-lakes-st-lawrence-basin/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">the Great Lakes</a> is <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/lakesuperior.bsky.social/post/3lqnxndmxfc2f" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Lake Superior, to be honest, and it’s not afraid to tell everyone about it.</a> Station Eleven is a great book set in and around the Great Lakes. No one ever talks about Lake Huron <a href="https://amzn.to/4kQdNGk" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">except for Jenny Holiday</a>. <a href="https://www.jupmode.com/products/great-lakes-great-times-shirt?srsltid=AfmBOooogOkpk-9R6kyK8P6PziglF5KXQmveLb4d8BsqC3s5QKXgI72i" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Great Lakes, Great...

Run Posy Run by Cate C. Wells

Sarah is over the moon that we're talking about celebrities again, especially because we're keeping it tight this time around and limiting it to celebrity/normal person romance (mostly -- Jen is ungovernable)! Yes, Sarah is going to talk about Perfect, but also we're going to talk about celebrities who fall for stranger normies, for normies they knew before they were celebrities, for normies who work with them, and for normies who protect them. The episode is 1200 books long and honestly, we're not sorry. In case you wondered why Sarah is breaking her rule about talking about her own books, it's that time of year again! Her next book, These Summer Storms (complete with sexy, silent, deeply competent hero) is out in July and is going on tour, and there is a real deal Fated Mates LIVE planned for July 8th in St. Louis, MO! Get tickets to any of these events (Jen will be at a bunch of them, and other pod friends will be popping up along the way) at <a href="https://sarahmaclean.net/tour" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">sarahmaclean.net/tour</a>! If you can't make the tour, you can <a href="https://www.therippedbodice.com/product/these-summer-storms-sarah-maclean-signed" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">preorder These Summer Storms signed with a special romance dust jacket</a> from The Ripped Bodice. If you want more Fated Mates in your life, please join our Patreon, which comes with an extremely busy and fun Discord community! Join other magnificent firebirds to hang out, talk romance, and be cool together in a private group full of excellent people. <a href="https://www.patreon.com/fatedmates" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Learn more at patreon.com</a>.Our next read along is Cate C Wells's Run Posy Run, available right now in print or ebook, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited at <a href="https://amzn.to/44HX8A1" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Amazon</a>, <a href="https://books.apple.com/gb/audiobook/run-posy-run-unabridged/id1641752042" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple Books</a>, and <a href="https://www.awin1.com/cread.php?awinmid=25361&awinaffid=1785000&ued=https%3A%2F%2Flibro.fm%2Faudiobooks%2F9781960486417" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Libro.fm</a>.<h2>The Books </h2><ul><li><a href="https://amzn.to/3SJzPP7" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Perfect</a> by Judith McNaught</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/43y5xUc" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">All The Feels</a> by Olivia Dade</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/4jq668G" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Hollywood Jinx</a> by Sariah Wilson</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/3SiZv4R" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Fan Service</a> by Rosie Danan</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/3HuhTVW" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Not a Bad Boy</a> by Louisa Edwards</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/4kHAUmt" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">LOL</a> by Lucy Lennox & Molly Maddox</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/3ZCKr5U" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Mechanic</a> by Reina Torres</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/43tdERV" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Stand-In</a> by Lily Chu</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/45r3iVi" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Decoy Girlfriend</a> by Lillie Vale</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/4kBhPlC" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">32 Days in May</a> by Betty Corrello</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/3SZMihn" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Bollywood Bride</a> by Sonali Dev</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/4jlS2gj" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ghosted </a>by JM Darhower</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/3Frm8kH" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Small Town Swoon</a> by Melanie Harlow</li><li><a href="https://amzn.to/43rA2et" rel="noopener noreferrer"...

Celebrity + Normie Romance

We're on hiatus this week. We planned this long ago, but forgot to tell you about it. Honest! Please visit the <a href="https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2022/7/12/s0443-sex-on-the-beach-reads" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">original season four episode page</a> for more info.

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