Holy Ship: A Romance Novel Podcast

Bestselling erotic theologian, professional heretic and author of the bible, Sierra Simone, talks to us about why kink and religious ritual have so many things in common, fun Catholic shame vs. miserable shame, focusing on the incarnation of Jesus, nurturing mental health in her fictional monastery, and so much more. Truly, this episode is our most on-brand to date and Sierra just GETS IT. If you only listen to one episode, make it this one! Notes: Salt Kiss, the first installment of Sierra's Lyonesse trilogy, is out September 12th. A Holly Jolly Ever After, a Christmas raunch-com by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone, is out October 4. Sierra's recs for further fiction reading: Hot Under His Collar by Andie Christopher The Anti-Hero by Sara Cate Original Sinners series by Tiffany Reisz Lessons in Sin by Pam Godwin (for dark romance readers) Preacher Man by Jessa Kane (for bonkers fun) Purity by Skyler Mason (for the purity culture girlies [gender neutral]) - stay tuned for our upcoming chat with Skyler next month The Godwicks Series (specifically The Rose) by Tiffany Reisz (for mythology retellings fans) If you have comments, suggestions, corrections... you can always reach out to us via email at holyshipromancepod@gmail.com, or on Instagram @holyshipromance.

Sarah Grunder Ruiz chats with us about converting from a Methodist to a Catholic to…just Sarah Grunder Ruiz. Also jokes about balls. It was a very balanced conversation. We absolutely loved this discussion and you will love listening to it! Sarah's brand spanking new sophomore novel, Luck and Last Resorts, is available now in stores and on the internets, as is her debut – Love, Lists, and Fancy Ships. You can find her on Instagram @sarahgrunderruiz, on Twitter @grundercats, and on her website, www.sarahruizwrites.com.

We've been so looking forward to talking to author Erin Hahn about purity culture and romance novels! If you grew up in church, you might get secondhand embarrassment, and if you didn't there might be a few WTF moments along the way. Erin's YA novels, You'd Be Mine, More Than Maybe, and Never Saw You Coming, are available now! Her first adult romance, Built to Last, is out October 18! You can find Erin on Instagram and Twitter @erinhahn_author and on her website www.erinphahn.com.

It was the perfect time to indulge in Timothy Janovsky's thoughtful and deeply joyful debut novel, Never Been Kissed. Wren and Derek were beyond delightful, and we love when the underdog gets the guy. This one is SO PURE, yall. NOTE: In this episode we talk extensively about all kinds of queerphobia and shaming in a religious context. If mention of those attitudes may be triggering for you, please protect your peace and skip this one.

For this episode, our friend Hannah of Fringe Book Reviews joined us to talk about reviewing books, and a historical romance she loves, A Matter of Temptation by Stacy Reid. There were SO many moments to squeal about in this book, we really struggled to calm ourselves long enough to talk about them. Follow Hannah on Instagram and Goodreads @fringebookreviews, and on Twitter @fringebookhan Follow us and see we're reading next on Instagram @holyshipromance

We love this series, and we had to talk about all the books - Haven, Sanctuary, and Harbor - at once, because they're not exactly plot-driven, despite all the murder, and then it's a steamy slide through...well, a lot of beards and bondage, surprisingly enough! Other books mentioned in this episode: Dark and Dirty Sinners' MC series by Serena Akeroyd Open Hearts by Eve Dangerfield Our next book is A Matter of Temptation by Stacy Reid, with special guest Hannah of Fringe Book Reviews!

We catch up with our Fifth Avenue Rebels friends with a brief recap of books one and two, and then dive into this delightful friends-to-enemies-to-lovers historical by Joanna Shupe, who blessed us with a sex party in the first 50 pages and a historical Good Luck Chuck who has us jonesing for his HEA in the next installment.

Hello, church! We're re-energized and ready for season 2! Today we'll talk highlights from recent reads, our Plans to Hang Out in Real Life, and spiritual journey updates. Books mentioned in this episode: Titan by Jillian Graves Praise, and Eyes on Me by Sara Cate Hoops series (Long Shot, Block Shot, and Hook Shot) by Kennedy Ryan Saint, and Midnight Mass by Sierra Simone A Merry Little Meet Cute by Sierra Simone and Julie Murphy Astrid Parker Doesn't Fail by Ashley Herring Blake A Lady for a Duke by Alexis Hall Every Summer After by Carley Fortune Runaway Girl by Tessa Bailey My Killer Vacation by Tessa Bailey (and its cover controversy) The Rakehell of Roth by Amalie Howard Seventh Inning Heat by Lyssa Kay Adams How to Be a Wallflower by Eloisa James The Bride Goes Rogue by Joanna Shupe Rebel, and Wild Rain by Beverly Jenkins The Forever Night Stand / Falling for the Enemy duet by Katie Golding Filthy Rich Americans series (Lush Money, Hate Crush, Serving Sin) by Angelina M. Lopez Transcend / Epoch duet, and What Lovers Do by Jewel E Ann Beautiful Player, Beautiful Bastard, and the Wild Nights series by Christina Lauren

This week, author/friend of the pod/Canadian A-Lister Ruby Barrett joined us in reading Ashley Herring Blake's Delilah Green Doesn't Care, a brand spanking new sapphic romcom that had us all up in our feels. We discuss one of literature's hottest lesbians, champagne towers, vibrators (again), Canadian driving times, the kink scene in Ottawa, the hotness levels of political leaders, dads doing the bare minimum, struggling fictional book shops, and so much more. Follow Ruby on Twitter @rubybarretwrite and Instagram @rubybarrettwrite. You can also read Hot Copy and The Big Book of Orgasms vol. 2 now, and preorder The Romance Recipe!

We were so invested in the Gothic architecture, the metadata annotation, and St. Sebastian's lip ring, we're jumping right into book two immediately. What ever happened to Poe's mom? Can Auden achieve orgasm through actual physical contact? Will Rebecca ever finish that f*cking maze? We'll let you know at a later date. For now, join us as we talk about ritualistic cannibalism, a voyeuristic priest, large print mysteries, and so much more in this spankfest of a novel by erotic theologian Sierra Simone.

This one is short because we had no banter because we are Very Important People living on pocket snacks! But we are both obsessed with this book and you should read it.

Our Valentine's Special for all the 'ships we've 'shipped before - we discuss some of our favorite swoony moments, first kisses, steamy scenes, and a favorite books for the big tropes. Then we have a candid chat about sex toys. The conversation gets increasingly explicit after the 32 min mark, so... know thyself! We mentioned way too many books to put in show notes, so we'll post a story highlight over on Instagram @holyshipromance to catalog them all. If you'd like, read along with our next book: The Worst Guy by Kate Canterbary.

This week, we read the second book in Katee Robert's Dark Olympus series... finally, a book we have very different opinions about. Fair warning: We spent about 20 minutes talking about the book, and most of the time talking about sex mirrors. CW: Fat shaming. And assassins! Please join us for our Valentine's Spectacular next week! Contact us on Instagram @holyshipromance

Reah quizzes Esther in a round of Romance Novel or Bible?, we discuss John Piper and a whole slew of Christian and ex-Christian influencers, religious trauma (Judgment Houses, anyone?) and mental health in the church. People mentioned in this episode: Abraham Piper John Piper David Platt Beth Moore Rachel Held Evans Jamie (Wright) the Very Worst (Missionary) Mark Driscoll If you want to crap your pants by learning more about judgment houses: look no further. Contact us on Instagram @holyshipromance

For our first historical on the pod, it couldn't be anyone other than Evangeline Jenner and Sebastian St. Vincent. We give our unofficial rankings of the Bergman Brothers books, update you on Esther's former church chaos, discuss the good and bad of BookTok, Esther's Tessa Bailey backlist binge, Reah's wedding day hangover and... we have some questions for the Catholics. Then we visit a subpar London gambling hell, weigh the most problematic things St. Vincent does and says to Evie's face, question why we like it so much, and gloss over all the consumption and homicidal madness in Devil in Winter by Lisa Kleypas! You'll also get more TMI from Reah and hear about our favorite reads of 2022 so far. Other books and authors mentioned in this episode: The Bergman Brothers Series by Chloe Liese Look the Part by Jewel E. Ann The Girl series, and It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey CC Monroe Dreaming of You, and Chasing Cassandra by Lisa Kleypas If You Ask Me by Libby Hubscher Saint, and Misadventures with a Professor by Sierra Simone The Thalanian Dynasty series by Katee Robert Ink by Elizabeth Hunter Pack Up the Moon by Kristan Higgins The Worst Guy and the Walshes series by Kate Canterbary Contact us on Instagram @holyshipromance

In the follow-up to The Roommate, we get a porn star and a rabbi walking into a bar - and a synagogue, and a modern intimacy seminar, where they create a syllabus for love. We absolutely adore Naomi and Ethan together, and this book had some of our favorite, most quotable lines and declarations of love. Contact us on Instagram @holyshipromance

Welcome to our first Wednesday Night Testimony, our time to chat and tackle whatever's on our mind in terms of faith, deconstruction, and the church. We talk about what media we've been consuming, dive deep into Esther's deconstruction journey, and share some anecdotes. We talk about a LOT of heavy subject matter in this episode, so please consider the content warnings at the beginning. Mentioned in this episode: Encanto is a Disney movie absolutely everyone should watch. The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill is a Christianity Today podcast about a Seattle church, founded by Mark Driscoll, notorious for its toxic, abusive environment. Background on Calvinism. The Making of Biblical Womanhood by Beth Allison Barr is a fantastic look at the history of women in the church and the patriarchal structure of the Christian evangelical church today. The Naked Fisherman by Jewel E. Ann is the first book deep dive we did on the podcast. Josh Duggar was sentenced to up to 20 years in prison last month. This is the Girl Defined video Esther mentioned. Instagram is the best way to contact us @holyshipromance

It's another case of the crude boy and the prude girl. Will we ever get tired of it? No. No we will not. Join us as we discuss educational porn and whether you would Google that roommate in this sweet-as-sin 2020 debut from Rosie Danan! Show notes: The resources we mentioned were: OMGYes, Bellesa, Bonjibon (Toronto-based sex shop) Keiran Lee is the adult film star whose penis is insured for a million dollars. For further interest: Holly Randall is an adult film director who hosts a podcast solely for interviewing adult performers on their experiences. The Free Speech Coalition is the nonprofit dedicated to protecting the rights of sex workers and people in the adult industry. Other books mentioned in this episode: Hate by Tate James is the stepbrothers RH Reah didn't read Unveiled Attraction and Marriage of Unconvenience by Chelsea M. Cameron Mangoes and Mistletoe by Adriana Herrera Follow by Tessa Bailey Priest, Sinner, Saint, Midnight Mass, and the New Camelot series by Sierra Simone Our next book is The Intimacy Experiment by Rosie Danan. Contact us: Instagram @holyshipromance holyshipromancepod@gmail.com

We tried hard and failed to contain our very non-fictional emotions about Fisher and Reese. We spent half this episode in a state of collapse. There's no easy way to explain it; you just HAVE to read these books. (Book talk begins about 4 mins in.) Contact us on Instagram @holyshipromance

We gush over our favorite couple of 2021, develop some new kinks in the name of Fisher Frickin' Mann, laugh so we don't cry over religious guilt, and become Reese Capshaw's biggest cheerleaders in The Naked Fisherman by Jewel E Ann. This romance had an age gap, a delicious bath scene, the possible (real or imagined) implication of a foot fetish, the best banter we can remember reading, and a sexy landlord who is NOT f*cking jealous of Bible Boy! This is a two-part series, and we will continue with its conclusion, The Lost Fisherman, next week. Contact us on Instagram @holyshipromance