Fated Mates - Romance Books for Novel People

Revisit this season four episode on your way to or from your local No Kings March!
The Rest
For even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2022/4/16/s0431-vampire-romance-interstitial
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 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 you do at patreon.com/fatedmates.
Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough.
If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.

This one is very meta (complimentary): Fated Mates (the duo) explains Fated Mates (the trope) on Fated Mates (the podcast). We can’t believe all these years in, we’ve never talked fated mates! We’re rectifying that right now with a collection of paranormal romances (and a few that aren’t) that are going to give you a lot of joy. We talk about demons and vampires and alpha’s and ice planet barbarians, star-crossed lovers and soulmates and what it really takes to convince a reader you’re fated.
Fated States, our democratic phonebanking initiative continues this week—we’ll be calling Texas to get out the vote for James Talarico and democrats up and down the ticket! There will be games, prizes and special guests! Learn more and register to phone bank with us at fatedmates.net/fatedstates.
If you’d like to come over and talk about your favorite fated mates romances (or your favorite fated mates podcast), please join us on the Fated Mates Discord, where you’ll find a few thousand other listeners who love talking about these books we love. Join the Fated Mates patreon to get access, and You also get one extra episode a month from us!
Books
Demon from the Dark by Kresley Cole
Wicked Abyss by Kresley Cole
Rejected by Jaymin Eve
The Tyrant Alpha’s Rejected Mate by Cate Wells
Ice Planet Barbarians series by Ruby Dixon
Claimed by The Orc King by Roxy Taylor
The Warlord Wants Forever by Kresley Cole
MacRieve by Kresley Cole
Hot Blooded by Heather Guerre
Pack Darling by Lola Darling
Feral Warriors series by Pamela Palmer
The Mane Event by Shelley Laurenston
Daring and the Duke by Sarah MacLean
The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren
Whiteout by Adriana Anders
Bet Me by Jennifer Crusie

Notes
Check out our website, especially the list of DRM audiobooks.
Our first road trip romance interstitial was one that was really important to our evolutions (before we figured out the season numbering protocol!)
This list of fated mates book on goodreads has nearly THIRTY THOUSAND TITLES, so good luck to you and I don’t actually know how that’s possible.
It’s a portal fantasy!
The way you know that Jen doesn’t read Omegaverse is the way she OVER AND OVER AGAIN say that Lilah in Pack Darling was a beta, but I think she was an omega. Sorry! What we do know is that no one in the book was a wolf, and honestly, that’s kind of a win for us?
What is The Cut (or Vulture, or NYMag) going to say about romance this week?
Of all the gin joints in all the world…
Will Liz Lemon end up with Wesley Snipes, her future husband?

Sponsors
Avon Books, publishers of Joanna Shupe’s The Gilded Rose, available in print, ebook and audiobook, at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, or wherever you get your books.
Elle Kennedy, author of Bad Idea, preorder now in print, ebook or audiobook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo or wherever you get your books.
Attic Wall Books, publishers of Isobel Lynn’s Godhunter, available now in print, ebook or audiobook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books or wherever you get your books.

The Rest
For even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episdoes/2026/10/12/0906-fated-mates
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 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 you do at patreon.com/fatedmates.
Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough.
If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.

00:00 BDE Bantr
03:00 Fated Mates (the podcast) Lore
14:57 How to Choose & How it Works
25:04 Demon from the Dark
29:04 AD: GODHUNTER
31:10 Wicked Abyss
37:21 Rejected
42:33 The Tyrant’s Alpha Rejected Me
46:51 AD: THE GILDED ROSE
49:20 Old School Suffering
53:21 Ice Planet Barbarians
57:21 Claimed by the Orc King
1:00:00

Spooky stuff is timeless, so we're sharing a Halloween episode from back in season five.
Please consider contributing to our Fated States Project Giving Circle. We're only half way to our goal and we're running out of time.
The Rest
For even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2022/10/24/s0507-halloween-and-other-spooky-romances-interstitial#spooky
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 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 you do at patreon.com/fatedmates.
Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough.
If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.

We’re talking about romance with baking and sweet treats today! This is one of romance’s most common Romance Jobs, and we’re getting to the bottom of the appeal of the bakery in romance. Why do we love it when one character makes masterful desserts? What is so compelling about characters who know their way around the oven? We’ve got historicals, reality tv competitions, magic baking and menage — a little something for everyone this week!
Stay tuned at the end of the episode for a chat with Leah Greenberg, the co-Founder and co-Executive Director of Indivisible, our Fated States phonebanking partner! Fated States, our democratic phonebanking initiative continues this week! We’ll be calling Georgia to get out the vote for Jon Ossoff, Keisha Lance Bottoms, and democrats up and down the ticket! There will be games, prizes and special guests! Learn more and register to phone bank with us at fatedmates.net/fatedstates.
If you’d like to come over and talk about your favorite romance bakers, please join us on the Fated Mates Discord, where you’ll find a few thousand other listeners who love talking about these books we love. Join the Fated Mates patreon to get access, and You also get one extra episode a month from us!
Books
Marrying Winterborne by Lisa Kleypas
How the Dukes Stole Christmas
Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel
The Glass Kitchen by Linda Francis Lee
Fake It Til You Bake It by Jamie Wesley
A Legend in the Baking by Jamie Wesley
Battle Royale by Lucy Parker
Sweethand by NG Peltier
Lips Like Sugar by Jess Hardy
Craving It All by Kati Wilde
Tart by Lauren Dane
The Remaking of Corbin Wale by Roan Parrish
Delectable Desire by Farrah Rochon
Delicious Destiny by Yarrah St. John

Notes
We’re discussing slang this week: a hilarious explanation of BDE at wikihow, check out urban dictionary for DTF, a fun new online site I just discovered called GenZ decoded turnt, and although the WNBA’s Washington Mystics Young Heaux nickname was covered in the New York Times, by far the funniest official usage of it was during the televised broadcast of a Mystics v. Storm game.
The Cupcake Guys is a bakery owned by former football players, and it was also a reality TV show.
We’ve mentioned them a million times, so they aren’t in the photo array, but the two books with baristas that Jen mentioned are Lick by Kylie Scott and Nero by SJ Tilly. The book with a femdomme is Candy by Torrance Sené.
Learn more about Indivisible and find a local Indivisible chapter to help at Indivisible.org. Join us for phonebanking every weekend between now and Election Day at fatedmates.net/fatedstates.

Sponsors
Rachel Grant, author of False Flag, available in print, ebook and audiobook, at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, or wherever you get your books.
Tierney Page, author of Lyrics of Summer, available in print, ebook or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.
LJ Andrews, author of The Stolen Crown preorder now in print, ebook or audiobook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books or wherever you get your books.

The Rest
For even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2026/10/5/0905-sweet-treats-bakeries-amp-coffee-shops-in-romance
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 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 you do at patreon.com/fatedmates.
Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough.
If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.

00:00 Intro
02:38 Bantr (We Love You Baby Girl!)
14:24 Eric, the DRM King
17:36 AD: THE STOLEN CROWN
19:17 Sweet Treats
26:58 Fake It Till You Bake It & A Legend in the Baking
33:23 AD: FALSE FLAG
35:41 Battle Royale
42:02 Sweethand
47:20 AD: LYRICS OF SUMMER
49:04 The Luxury of Sweetness
53:49 Lips like Sugar
1:01:22 Craving It All
1:07:10 Tart
1:17:33 The Remaking of Corbin Wale
1:20:57 The Draysons: Sprinkled with Love
1:24:57 Baristas
1:28:00 Wrapping Up
1:30:38 Indivisible

Just revisiting an episode from last autumn. Enjoy!
The Rest
For even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2024/10/26/s0708-i-see-dead-people-grief-amp-the-pandemic-in-romance#books
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 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 you do at patreon.com/fatedmates.
Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough.
If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.