The Wicked Wallflowers Club

Katee Robert is back to talk all things Neon Gods! Where the idea for a mythological retelling (Katee style!) came from, what's coming next in the series, Hadestown, taboo books, and more! 

One of our favorite guests, Rose Lerner, is back to chat with us about her awesome audiobook, The Wife in the Attic! We also discuss the distance between author and subject...and the impact of personal bias on translations of classical texts.

This week, we chat with novelist and screenwriter Sarah Tarkoff - who also happens to be one of Sarah's best friends. We discuss her YA Eye of the Beholder trilogy, all about screenwriting, and that time Sarah and Sarah lived together in a house of horrors.

We're joined by #1 NYT Bestselling author, Patricia Briggs, who is the author of the Mercy Thomson series as well as the Alpha and Omega series! We chat about her latest book, Wild Sign, as well as her journey as an author, the pressures and expectations that come with writing a popular series, and why she made some of the choices she did along the way. 

Happy St. Vincent Day!! We're thrilled to feature a special crossover episode with Heaving Bosoms to celebrate! As if that wasn't awesome enough, we're also joined by beloved author Andie J. Christopher who hosts Drunk Romance History on Instagram! Listen for Andie's solemn vow to write us a St. Vincent/Derek Craven MMF, why we all adore Sebastian St. Vincent, and how we think you should celebrate St. Vincent Day! Come tell us who you picture as St. Vincent and how you plan to celebrate! 

We're joined by Suleikha Snyder! We chat about her sexy new shifter book, Big Bad Wolf...as well as soap operas, snake sex, pegging carrots, and why we shouldn't feel confined by what we're "supposed to" writer. 

Maureen Lenker from Entertainment Weekly is back to talk to us about the best books she read in 2020. We talk through the 10 that made her Best of 2020 column along with some honorable mentions she didn't have space for and some of Jenny's favorites. Also enjoy a discussion of words we evidently don't know how to pronounce correctly (are you saying segue and buoy the right way?) and why Sarah thinks Jenny is far more metal than she actually is.

We're baaaaack! So we're releasing our holiday movies episode in February...but *gestures at the world*. We hope the absolute delight of having Andie and Naima back will help to make up for it. We discuss The Holidate and Happiest Season--and how we were shocked that we loved the one we thought we'd hate and hated the one we thought we'd love. In addition to the movies, we talk about our worst first kisses, why Andie is going to be the "vodka aunt", and what dating life might be like post covid. 

It's our third anniversary! We're so grateful for all of our listeners and guests who've made it an incredible 3 years! In this episode we reflect on some of the things we've been most struck by in past episodes, share some favorite memories, do a quick What We're Reading, and Jenny recaps the romance novel that kicked off Sarah's love of romance...and it is gloriously bananas! Also enjoy: Jenny's truly horrifying German accent, an Animaniacs song, the moment Sarah mixes Jenny up with a Miss Congeniality character, and the number of times Sarah is attacked by her cat!

We're joined by the fabulous Elle Keck! Elle is an editor for Avon and works with some of our favorite authors like Alexis Daria, Cat Sebastian, and Olivia Dade! During this tumultuous week (year!), we hope we can offer you some distraction and joy. If you're trying to tackle NaNoWriMo in the midst of this chaos--or just trying to get some work done--we had you in mind when we were recording! Hang in there and slay some words if you can. 

Katee Robert is back to talk all things villains with us! Why do we love them, which ones can't be redeemed, and how did our obsession begin? We also catch up on all the other amazing stuff she's just released or has coming soon and generally have a much needed laugh.

We're joined by Milla Vane!!! We let Sarah hardcore fangirl because Milla Vane is also Meljean Brook, which makes her Sarah's favorite romance author of all time! We also chat about her barbarian fantasy romance series, A Gathering of Dragons, which starts with A Heart of Blood and Ashes. We discuss her incredibly nuanced characters who can sometimes start out as anti heroes as well as bloody handjobs and how much we love a mean kidnapping. 

Sarah catches up with her friend Madi Sinha! We talk about her debut women's fiction novel, The White Coat Diaries, as well as the problems plaguing the medical field and how she balances life as a doctor, wife, mother, and author.

We're joined by debut author Rosie Danan! Her novel, The Roommate, is an absolute delight, so we talk all about the book, her research into the world of adult performers, and how the pandemic has impacted our reading habits. 

We're joined by fan favorite Molly O'Keefe! We chat about why we all love take charge heroines who chain heroes to the bed, what it's like writing across genres, Jenny's love of dick piercings (sorry, Molly!), and what it's like writing during a pandemic. 

We chat with two of our beloved coven members, Danielle and Jacqueline, about what we've all been reading, so if you're looking for something new to read, this is a great episode! They're romance loving sisters and talking about books with them is always a delight. For reviews, covers, and stepbacks galore, check out their Instagram: @onthesamepa9e 

Sarah chats with NYT Bestselling author Gail Carriger about her San Andreas Shifter series and her exciting new nonfiction work, The Heroine's Journey (out October 1, 2020). This book will explain (quoted from Gail's website):* How to spot the heroine's journey in popular books, movies, and the world around you.* The source myths and basic characters, tropes, and archetypes of this narrative.* A step-by-step break down of how to successfully write this journey.It's about time heroines got more focus and Gail can explain why!

We're back with another What We're Reading episode! We chat about the awesome books that've been giving us an escape, give some life updates, and somehow end up talking about spider mating dances. 

We get a little ridiculous discussing the Netflix film 365 DNI with Naima Simone and Andie J. Christopher. Chaos and giggling ensues. 

It's time for another book recs and laughs episode, this time featuring Alexa Martin and Eva Moore!

We're back with another book recs and laughs episode, this time featuring listener favorites, Naima Simone and Katee Robert!

In this "What We're Reading" episode, we take a break from romance to highlight some of the antiracist books that have been most impactful to us recently. We discuss our own paths to becoming better allies and ways we can all be doing a better job of examining how racism shapes our lives. We discuss how important it is to be actively antiracist as opposed to being passively "not racist," and how that work begins with deep self-reflection. Please note, this conversation is primarily aimed at our white listeners and may be particularly triggering to our Black listeners. We don't want to add to the burden of anyone who has already been dealing with the trauma of racism in their lives, but we think these conversations need to be happening more between white people. If we have said something problematic, please don't hesitate to let us know. 

We're taking a break from our Book Recs and Laughs series this week to share the very last interview we got to do in person before lockdown! Jenny got to chat with Karina Halle about her bonkers, immersive writing process, her adventures in Hollywood going to the Westworld premiere and the Golden Globes, and why travel is the best!

We've started a new series of episodes to help us all through the isolation! It's kind of a spin on What We're Reading, but with funny stories and lots of old friends! We're having past guests (and some exciting new voices) come on to share "a book rec and a laugh" with us. We're basically crowd sourcing good books and joy for you from some of our favorite people!This episode features Melody Carlisle who is a goddamn delight. She cohosts the Heaving Bosoms podcast, which you should definitely check out if you haven't yet! I was about to suggest some favorite episodes and couldn't even narrow it down--literally pick one that sounds interesting and join the cult.Our second guest is our beloved Sierra Simone. She shares the most on brand mortifying story ever. 

We're joined once again by Christina Hobbes and Lauren Billings, the dynamic duo that makes up New York Times Bestselling author Christina Lauren! This time, they're back to share some book recs and some funny stories with us! We also discuss TV shows, how we're all occupying ourselves during quarantine, and where you should start if you're going to pick up your first CLo book as a quarantine read! 

Things have gone off the rails here in the Wicked Wallflowers Club. This episode (and the show we're talking about) may or may not be kind of a shit show, but we hope it's a hilarious, delightful shit show. Andie J. Christopher and Naima Simone are back to help us attempt to digest the train wreck that is Netflix's new show, Too Hot to Handle! I have no idea how else to summarize this, so I've included some choice out of context quotes instead of show notes!"I have trust issues because everyone hates my Christmas tree dick." -Sarah"I just laughed so hard I poured coffee all over my bed!" -Sarah"When I was in my early to mid twenties, I would've fucked both Harry and David." -Andie"It just looked like a tit explosion!" -Naima"...they start using Lana as a sex toy." -Jenny"In my early thirties, I would've fucked Matthew." -Andie"You know Sharron does not eat pussy. He has never had a pussy near his face." -Andie"With Bryce...I had to look inside my soul and make sure I hadn't actually fucked him." -Andie"Wait...you haven't been hogtied?" -Jenny"What kind of trash bag doesn't even offer to reciprocate!?" -Naima

We're back with our second in our Book Recs and Laughter series intended to bring you the best books and nuggets of joy. This week includes a compilation of chats with Tif Marcelo, Leigh Kramer, and Jen Prokop from Fated Mates! We cover The Tudors, excellent memes, and Jen attempts to explain TikTok to us! 

We've started a new series of episodes to help us all through the isolation! It's kind of a spin on What We're Reading, but with funny stories and lots of old friends! We're having past guests (and some exciting new voices) come on to share "a book rec and a laugh" with us. We're basically crowd sourcing good books and joy for you from some of our favorite people! This first episode features Sarah and Jenny sharing their own recs and funny stories as well as a guest segment with Maureen Lee Lenker from Entertainment Weekly! In addition to adding to your TBR, you can hear about Sarah's adorable school girl shenanigans, Jenny's Playboy audition fail, Maureen's bus toilet incident, and more! Let us know what you think of the new idea and who you'd like to hear!

Join us as we chat about Australian TV show, Satisfaction. Satisfaction is set in a brothel, so we get into dating, sex work, emotional labor, dick pics, and our thoughts on full frontal male nudity. We don't give any major spoilers for the show if you haven't seen it yet and are worried! 

Need a break from the modern world? Dive into the Italian Renaissance with us! We geek out with Alyssa Palombo about why it's one of the most fascinating parts of history, why the Borgia family has captivated people for centuries, and how The Borgia Confessions is basically Cesare's villain origin story. 

We're joined by Erin Galloway and Jess Brock from Berkley. We did a What We're Reading with Erin last year where she shared all the amazing stuff Berkley had coming down the pipeline, so we decided to repeat that again this year and get a preview of what exciting releases they have coming up in 2020. Because we need things to look forward to!

We're joined by Maya Rodale, Courtney Wetzel, and Meghan Jones to talk about the awesome audio excerpt they created from Maya's newest book, An Heiress to Remember. We discuss how they adapted the excerpt, how the sound editing creates a more immersive listening experience, and where we hope this leads for the genre. We play the excerpt in its entirety, so you get to experience it too!

We're joined by #1 NYT Bestselling author Colleen Hoover. We cover a whole bunch of different topics      from her writing journey, to her parenting advice, to travel. We chat about why women's fiction written by authors who love and respect romance is amazing—and how that applies to her latest release, Regretting You.  Before we jump into the episode, we've got a few quick updates. The first is that our merchandise store is finally live on Redbubble.com , if you want to get your hands on Wicked Wallflowers shirts, stickers, and all kinds of other fun stuff. We've been loving seeing pictures of it all out in the wild and can't wait to wear ours to the next meet up. The second update is that we've finally started a Patreon. We're hoping to help the podcast to keep growing and start doing stuff like transcripts for each episode to be more inclusive, so we appreciate any support you can give us to reach those goals.  Speaking of support…this week's episode is sponsored by past Wicked Wallflowers guest Janna MacGregor! Janna writes some of my absolute favorite historicals and her latest is called Wild, Wild Rake. 

We're joined by the fabulous Mia Sosa! We chat about her fantastic newest release, The Worst Best Man as well as where the adorable cover came from, how she transitioned from lawyer to romance author, and much more!

We're joined by fantasy romance author Maxym Martineau who tells us about her debut novel, Kingdom of Exiles. We also chat about her amazing recipe for watermelon margaritas, how she's been adjusting to having a newborn, and how her books come to her in dreams. Also butt flaps and a random dude who walks in while we're talking about pubic hair and ejaculate!

In this special edition of What We're Reading, we chat with reviewer and author Leigh Kramer about romances that feature BDSM!

Piper J. Drake is back to talk to us about Forever Strong--the last book in her True Heroes Series. We also talk about her gajillion other projects, food in romance novels, and the dogs who make appearances in her books! She also tells us why she's doing a workshop about how to be inclusive as you're writing characters for your books and how to write experiences that aren't your own.

We're finally back with another What We're Reading episode chock full of book recs, shenanigans, and life updates! Books include Kennedy Ryan's latest, The Ladies Guide to Celestial Mechanics, Roughed In by Eva Moore, and much more!

We're joined by Tracey Suppo who is trying to create the perfect way for romance readers to find their next book. We talk about Book + Main Bites--how it works, why it's specially designed for romance readers, and where the idea came from. Sarah and Jenny try to corrupt the tool to use for their own filthy purposes ("Can I search for double vaginal penetration?"). We also cover Ice Planet Barbarians, fisting, and lots of great book recs!

This week we have a slightly different format than usual. Jenny got the chance to sit down with Jennifer Ryan and Laura Lee Gurhke during an event at the Huntington Beach Library, but since we were really tight on time they were much shorter individual interviews than normal—so we've combined them into one episode for your listening pleasure. We wouldn't want to abandon you with a short episode in the middle of your commute or while you're trying to put your laundry away. Jennifer Ryan is a NYT and USA Today Bestselling author of suspenseful contemporary romances. We chat about her brand new surprise grandbaby, her Wild Rose Ranch series, and why she's drawn to stories with complicated family dynamics. Laura Lee Gurhke is a NYT and USA Today Bestselling author of historical romance. We chat about her latest book, Heiress Gone Wild, and the rest of the books in the Dear Lady Truelove series. We also discuss her writing process, her advice for aspiring authors, and why none of us should move to Idaho.

We're joined by author Asa Maria Bradley! We chat about her series which features immortal Vikings, why she fell for Norse mythology, how she juggles being a professor with her writing, and more!

We're joined by Avon Books editor Nicole Fischer (who is the editor of some of our favorites like Tessa Bailey, Talia Hibbert, and Vivienne Lorret). We're also joined by Emma Brodie who is an editor for William Morrow. We talk about their How to Write a Romance book which Emma worked on with the Avon romance editing team. We also talk about how they got their start, what we can expect from Nicole's authors in the near future, and why Jenny and Nicole agree that “thrust” is the best word to search a book for if you're trying to find the steamy bits.  

We're joined by Vanessa Zoltan who is the host of two awesome podcasts: Hot and Bothered (a romance podcast) and Harry Potter and the Sacred Text. We talk about how books can be sacred, female empowerment through romance and fan communities, and why women shouldn't need to justify the things that bring them joy.

We're back with part 2 of our interview with Penny Reid, this time with Cathy Yardley in the hot seat! We find out what Smartypants Romance is all about--what it means that authors are writing in Penny's universe, how the idea came about, and what we can expect going forward. We also chat about Cathy and Penny's publishing journeys, the state of indie publishing, and why it's so important for authors to support each other.

We're joined by historical romance author Eva Leigh who chats with us about her latest series (and how it has all of our favorite tropes!), why editing remains brutal no matter how many books you've written, and how we could all be incorporating mindfulness into our own writing process, and more!

We're joined once again by NYT Bestselling author Penny Reid, but this time she's brought along actress and voice actress Joy Nash who narrates Penny's audiobooks. You might recognize Joy from Dietland, Twin Peaks, or the Mindy Project. We chat about what it's like for them working together as author and narrator, Penny's latest books (and why it's not her fault if she makes us cry), how Joy got her start narrating audiobooks, what they fangirl over, and much more! This is part one of two episodes with Penny Reid. Be sure you don't miss part two, which will feature Penny Reid with Cathy Yardley!

We're joined by fan favorite Andie J. Christopher and her editor at Berkley, the fabulous Kristine Swartz! We chat about Not the Girl You Marry, how their author/editor relationship came to be...and Jenny may or may not cry while talking about the book!

It's our two year anniversary! We reflect on the past two years, share some stats and memories, and share the books we've been reading and loving lately!

Andie J. Christopher is back to chat with us about Speed (it's totally a romance!), This Means War, and My Best Friend's Wedding. We also discuss some of the more mortifying moments from our youth. If there's a movie you'd love to hear us discuss, be sure to let us know!

We're joined by USA Today Bestselling romance author (and librarian) A.J. Pine and 2018 RWA Librarian of the Year Frannie Cassano. We chat all about libraries--our love of them, why they're important, and the challenges they're facing. We also discuss cowboy romances and A.J.'s journey into writing them as well as Frannie's experiences as Librarian of the Year.

We could not be more excited to be joined by Angelina M. Lopez to talk about her outstanding debut, Lush Money! Angelina was one of our earliest listeners when she was still prepublished and now her first book is out in the world! We also chat about Fated Mates, her twenty year path to publication, the upcoming books in her series, and the state of publishing.