When In Romance

Jess and Trisha give some (non-lawyer) updates on #cockygate, talk about the role of fan-voted “best of” lists, offer a podcast high-five to Stacey Abrams, and start talking about their favorite books of 2018 so far.

Jess and Trisha offer some thoughts and updates on #cockygate; react to the news that the Romantic Times publication, convention, and awards are coming to an end; and talk about the books we’ve picked up at RT 2018 that have us excited.

Jess and Trisha delight in the winners of the (still odd) RT Awards, offer thoughts about preparing for RT and other book cons/festivals, and toss around a bunch of recs for the early days of May’s #RomBkLove challenge.

Please enjoy this bonus excerpt, courtesy of the Recommended podcast, featuring Alisha Rai recommending Sonali Dev's A Distant Heart.

Jess and Trisha discuss the implications of how race and class are represented in historical romance, have some VERY strong feelings about the denigration of the romance genre by those who profit from it, and delight in some romance that’s either new or soon to be coming your way.

Trisha and Jess discuss about Amazon changing the categories and rules for erotica, talk about why it matters that the RITA awards are failing hard at inclusion, and recommend some books that would win awards if they ran the bookish world.

Jess and Trisha talk about who’s losing with Audible’s romance subscription service, consider some of what makes romance unique in the world of self-publishing, deliver news about a couple of publishers, and – as always – recommend books.

Trisha and Jess wade into an author identity maelstrom, work to untangle the implications of The Ripped Bodice's Report on Diversity in Romance Publishing, and wrestle with the age old question of what to read next.

Jess and Trisha make an important clarification about who gets publishing deals in romance, discuss who is and is not - EVER - redeemable even in fiction, and play Calvinball with romance awards for books from 2017.

Trisha and Jess talk about how non-romance fans talk and write about romance in the Valentine’s Day season; discuss romance authors’ use of pseudonyms; and offer recommendations for readers featuring cranky dukes, dystopian settings, and two people partially brought together by a ferret (Jess swears it works).