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

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Pirates, mermaids, sea witches, and a slow-burn enemies-to-lovers romance — this episode has everything.
Leslie Vedder joins us to talk about The Siren's Kiss, a sapphic fantasy romance she describes as Pirates of the Caribbean meets The Little Mermaid, following a cursed pirate and a fierce mermaid who team up to take down ancient sea gods. We dig into her love of anime and manga, her upcoming graphic novel, and get five (okay, six) can't-miss pirate and fantasy-romance recommendations for your TBR.
📚 Books Mentioned
The Siren's Kiss by Leslie Vedder — Buy on Amazon | Search on Libby | YA Fantasy Romance / Sapphic / Pirates
Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller — Buy on Amazon | Buy on Libro.fm | Search on Libby | YA Fantasy / Romantasy / Pirates
The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea by Maggie Tokuda-Hall — Buy on Amazon | Buy on Libro.fm | Search on Libby | YA Fantasy / Sapphic / Pirates
The Devourer by Alison Ames — Buy on Amazon | Buy on Libro.fm | Search on Libby | YA Fantasy / Sapphic / Pirates
In Deeper Waters by F.T. Lukens — Buy on Amazon | Buy on Libro.fm | Search on Libby | YA Fantasy Romance / Mermaids
The Wicked Bargain by Gabe Cole Novoa — Buy on Amazon | Buy on Libro.fm | Search on Libby | YA Fantasy / Historical Piracy / Trans MC
A Harvest of Hearts by Andrea Eames (bonus) — Buy on Amazon | Buy on Libro.fm | Search on Libby | Fantasy Romance

⏱️ Timestamps
[00:00] Welcome back Leslie Vedder
[00:30] What she's been up to since her debut trilogy
[01:00] Elevator pitch for The Siren's Kiss
[01:30] Sapphic pirates and badass female pirate captains
[02:00] Pirate history research and the reality behind the myth
[03:30] Anime and manga influence on her writing
[05:00] Upcoming sapphic Robin Hood graphic novel ⚠️ genre departure
[07:00] Book recommendations: pirates and mermaids
[10:30] Where to find Leslie online

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Six books, one vote, and a whole community weighing in — Deedi's back to break down this year's Hugo Awards Best Novel nominees.
Our resident awards correspondent Deedi (@DeediReads) returns to walk us through the 2026 Hugo Awards — sci-fi and fantasy's biggest fan-voted prize. We cover how Hugo voting actually works, break down all six Best Novel nominees, and Deedi tells us which one she's rooting for (and which one she thinks will actually win). Perfect for anyone who loves a good genre awards deep-dive or is just looking for their next fantasy or sci-fi read.
📚 Books Mentioned
The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow — Buy on Amazon | Buy on Libro.fm | Fantasy
The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson — Buy on Amazon | Buy on Libro.fm | Fantasy/Mystery
A Drop of Corruption by Robert Jackson Bennett — Buy on Amazon | Buy on Libro.fm | Fantasy Mystery
The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett — Buy on Amazon | Buy on Libro.fm | Fantasy Mystery | 2025 Hugo winner, prequel
The Incandescent by Emily Tesh — Buy on Amazon | Buy on Libro.fm | Fantasy
Death of the Author by Nnedi Okorafor — Buy on Amazon | Buy on Libro.fm | Science Fiction
Shroud by Adrian Tchaikovsky — Buy on Amazon | Buy on Libro.fm | Science Fiction
Cinderhouse by Freya Marske — Buy on Amazon | Buy on Libro.fm | Fantasy Novella
The River Has Roots by Amar El-Mohtar— Buy on Amazon | Buy on Libro.fm | Fantasy Novella

⏱️ Timestamps
[00:00] Welcome back, Deedi — our official awards correspondent
[00:01] Why the Hugos are different from literary prizes
[00:02] How Hugo voting actually works (Worldcon membership, nominating)
[00:03] All the Hugo categories beyond Best Novel
[00:05] Popular vote pros and cons — vs. the Goodreads Choice Awards
[00:07] This year's six Best Novel nominees, announced
[00:08] Novella category as an easier entry point (Cinderhouse, The River Has Roots)
[00:09] How Deedi fits 6 award books into a realistic reading pace
[00:13] Deedi's "three words" method for choosing what to read next
[00:17] Letting go of reading identity and genre guilt
[00:19] Revisiting YA dystopia — Hunger Games, Divergent, and a brewing essay
[00:22] Breaking up with Amazon and the Kindle ecosystem
[00:26] Why indie bookstores give you more than just books
[00:27] Supporting indie authors outside Amazon
[00:32] Deedi's personal favorite — and her prediction for the win
[00:35] Where to find Deedi online

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Laura's back with a solo update on slowing down, making reading friends in a new city, and two mysteries that actually caught her off guard.
In this episode, Laura shares how she's navigating a season of burnout, the low-key monthly reading date she's started with a friend (dubbed "Silent Book Club for Two"), and gives full reviews of two standout reads — a cozy small-town mystery obsessed with designer dogs, and a millennial mystery starring a very unlucky crossing guard. If you're looking for your next cozy or millennial-mystery pick, or just want a simple way to build more reading time into your life, this one's for you.
📚 Books Mentioned
Murder Bites by Mimi Montgomery | Cozy Mystery | Audio ✅
Don't Cross Mo Ellery by Birdie Horne | Mystery | Audio ✅

⏱️ Timestamps
[00:00] Intro + August update
[01:00] Birthday PTO and navigating a season of burnout
[02:00] Making local reading friends through her yoga studio
[03:00] How the "Silent Book Club for Two" reading date started
[04:00] Why a one-on-one reading date beats a full book club
[05:00] Murder Bites by Mimi Montgomery — setup and premise
[06:00] Murder Bites — the reveal that actually surprised her
[07:00] Don't Cross Mo Ellery — setup and premise
[09:00] Currently reading Dungeon Crawl Carl + KU cancellation + sign-off

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What if the boy secretly writing your story isn't just trying to help you grieve — he's trying to get into college with it?
Debut author Gabriela Gonzales joins the show to talk about her YA rom-com How to Love You When You're Gone, a fake-friends-to-lovers story about grief, first love, and the messy business of growing up. We dig into writing Latine representation in genre fiction beyond trauma narratives, why romance's happy ending is actually the hardest thing to earn, and Gabriela's favorite grief-and-joy reads.
📚 Books Mentioned
How to Love You When You're Gone by Gabriela Gonzales — Buy on Amazon | YA Romance/Rom-Com | Audio ✅ (narrated by Elena Rey & Jeff Ebner)
Our Way Back to Always by Nina Moreno — Buy on Amazon | YA Rom-Com | Audio ✅
Dungeons and Drama by Kristy Boyce — Buy on Amazon | YA Rom-Com | Audio ✅
Book Lovers by Emily Henry — Buy on Amazon | Adult Romance/Rom-Com | Audio ✅
⏱️ Timestamps
[00:00] Welcome + Gabriela's arts school & circus class background
[00:03] Deciding to become a writer at age five
[00:05] Signing with her agent in 2020 on a dystopian circus novel
[00:06] Her sister's passing and discovering rom-coms
[00:09] Why a happy ending is the hardest thing to write
[00:11] The many subgenres of romance — there's a book for everyone
[00:12] Writing Latine characters beyond trauma narratives
[00:14] Latina identity isn't monolithic
[00:17] Elevator pitch: How to Love You When You're Gone
[00:19] The "grief backpack" metaphor
[00:21] DBT, glimmers of hope, and managing big emotions
[00:25] Book recommendations begin
[00:26] Our Way Back to Always by Nina Moreno
[00:31] Dungeons and Drama by Kristy Boyce
[00:35] Book Lovers by Emily Henry
[00:39] Where to find Gabriela online

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Four best friends, one Vegas casino, and absolutely nothing left to lose — meet the septuagenarian heist crew you didn't know you needed.
Bestselling author Julia London joins the show to talk about her genre-bending new release, Rules for Aging and Larceny, a commercial fiction romp about four 70-something women reuniting to pull off one last con — this time against a crypto scammer. Julia also shares four wide-ranging reading recommendations, from a quietly devastating Norwegian translation to the LitRPG series everyone's talking about.
📚 Books Mentioned
Rules for Aging and Larceny by Julia London — Buy on Amazon | Commercial Fiction, Heist | Audio ✅ (narrated by Christina Moore)
Mrs. Bridge by Evan S. Connell — Buy on Amazon | Literary Fiction, Classic | Audio ✅
The Ferryman and His Wife by Frode Grytten (trans. Alison McCullough) — Buy on Amazon | Literary Fiction, Translated | Audio ✅
Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman — Buy on Amazon | LitRPG, Sci-Fi/Fantasy | KU ✅/ Audio ✅ (highly praised narration)
Jane and Dan at the End of the World by Colleen Oakley — Buy on Amazon | Commercial Fiction | Audio✅
⏱️ Timestamps
[00:00] Welcome & intro
[01:00] 29 years in publishing, starting in historical romance
[02:00] The shift away from historical romance/mass market
[03:00] Backlist entry points: dog-centric rom-coms & women's fiction
[04:00] Elevator pitch: Rules for Aging and Larceny
[05:00] The friend group, the original heist, and the fallout
[06:00] The health diagnosis that brings the gang back together
[07:00] Planning the casino heist — and why being "invisible" helps
[08:00] Being underestimated as an older woman in public spaces
[09:00] Julia's real-life stint as a white-collar crime investigator
[10:00] Would you still have it? The book's central question
[11:00] Recommendation: Mrs. Bridge by Evan S. Connell
[12:00]–[13:00] Why Mrs. Bridge still feels relevant nearly 100 years later
[14:00] Recommendation: The Ferryman and His Wife by Frode Grytten
[15:00] Comparing Grytten to Fredrik Backman
[16:00] Recommendation: Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
[17:00]–[18:00] Why the audiobook and LitRPG genre have taken off
[19:00] Recommendation: Jane and Dan at the End of the World by Colleen Oakley
[20:00] Where to find Julia online
[21:00] Social media, content strategy, and closing thoughts

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