Smart Podcast, Trashy Books: A Romance Novel Podcast

Recently, Mara Wilson was talking about her favorite (and least favorite) romance tropes on social media, so I invited her onto the podcast to tell us all about it. You may know Mara Wilson from Matilda or Mrs. Doubtfire, but she’s currently working very happily as an audiobook narrator, most recently for Chuck Tingle's Camp Damascus!Please note: we don’t talk a lot about the films she has been in, because this was recorded while SAG-AFTRA and the WGA were on strike. Special thanks to Basil and Freya!COUPON! Find your new favorite fits and get 15% off @marinelayer with our exclusive link -> marinelayer.com/SARAH15. #marinelayerpodMusic:Purple-planet.com  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We are back with the June 2014 issue of RT Book Reviews, and we are taking a look at all the advertisements and features – and it’s a ride.We discuss the RT awards, the ads congratulating the winning authors, strange distorted feet, and wolf eyed vikings.No, we don’t know what that means, either.But we do have a question! Amanda, it seems, has never read a Harlequin Presents! Which one should she read for Maximum Presents experience?Music: purple-planet.comCoupon! Coupon! New customers get $5 off Lume’s Starter Pack with our exclusive code and link. And for a limited time, returning customers can get $5 off their next purchase of $30 or more, too! Use code SARAH30 at LumeDeodorant.comLink! Link! Check out all the visual aids for this episode right here at SBTB! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

True crime expert and author Sarah Weinman discusses the genre's societal impact, ethical concerns, and mental health effects. They explore the evolution of true crime writing, online communities' positive impact, and the allure of true crime fascination. The conversation also delves into gripping crime fiction books and highlights a nonfiction case involving investigative genetic genealogy.

We’re heading back to June 2014 to look at the nearly three hundred new books reviewed in RT Book Reviews.Come on a journey with us through historical, contemporary, thrillers, and inspirational, and learn more about cattle fraud. We are obsessed with boilers.Also: apologies in advance for the fact that I cannot say "minutiae," which, my bad. It's a word that never comes out of my brain correctly. My apologies.All the book covers, images, and more are right here at this link.Music: purple-planet.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the May 2014 Ads and Features episode of our Romantic Times Rewind series, the cover feature was all about Valerie Bowman, her latest book - and inside was a mention of her appearance on Say Yes to the Dress: Atlanta in 2014!So Amanda and I connected with Valerie to hear all the details! We talk about weddings and dresses and reality tv, including a side trip discussion to the real housewives, Scandoval, and $17,000 sunglasses. Then we invent our own reality shows. This is a goofy, silly, very fun episode.Music: purple-planet.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We’re back, traveling in time to May 2014 to take a look at the ads and the features inside RT Book Reviews magazine! Side trips include Say Yes to the Dress: Atlanta, the immortality of strange stock images on book covers, and the importance of alligator fritters in the marketing budget.You can find all the ads and images on SBTB! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

THIS is episode 584 (I said in the intro that last week was 584 but I was wrong. Oops - my bad).Maggie Tokuda-Hall returns as a guest to talk about The Siren, The Song and the Spy, and so much has changed since our last conversation in Episode 406 when the first book, The Mermaid, The Witch, and the Sea released in May 2020.We also talk about racism and her experience with Scholastic regarding her book Love in the Library, and we talk about Baldur’s Gate and queer pirate fantasy. Come for the discussion of dismantling facism, and stay for the video game and book recs. You know, as usual.You can find Maggie Tokuda-Hall at her website, PrettyOKMaggie.com.We also mentioned:"Scholastic and a Faustian Bargain" Maggie's podcast, Failure to AdaptHarper's Bazaar: "Refusing to Censor Myself" by Maggie Tokuda-HallAnd the picture from Our Flag Means Death that had us both on the floor.I also mentioned my appearance on the Rephonic.com list of 12 Best Author Interview Podcasts - thanks, y'all!  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s our first Romantic Times Rewind episode, starting with May 2014! We are looking at all 298 (!) book reviews in issue 363 of RT Book Reviews Magazine.Amanda and I are going to pick a book from each of the review collections by genre, from historical to urban fantasy to the Teen Scene. We also discuss the very narrow grading rubric, and the rarity of two- and one-star reviews.Journey back to May 2014 with us! And come find all the fun visuals and books in the show notes at https://bit.ly/RTRW584 and at Instagram and Tumblr!You can find all the visual aids, screengrabs, and covers right here at SBTB.And the entire RT Rewind archive is at RTRewind.comMusic: purple-planet.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Typically on Tuesdays I release bonus episodes for the Patreon community, but this week, everyone gets the bonus because Amanda and I are introducing Romantic Times Rewind, a new series of podcast episodes where we look back at old issues of RT Book Reviews and Romantic Times Magazine. WOO HOO!Amanda and I are going to re-read old issues of RT, and record two episodes each month. One issue will be looking at all the reviews by genre in a particular issue, and the other will look at the features, ads, and book covers inside.I’ll be posting images and screengrabs from the issue on Smart Bitches, and on Instagram and Tumblr (for that extra retro flavor!).Plus, as a member of the Patreon, you’ll have access to the complete issues we’re looking at, so you can read along with us - and tell us which books from back issues you’d most want to read.Part of the inspiration for this series comes from the absolutely wonderful podcast Listen to Sassy, where Tara Ariano, David T. Cole, and Pamela Ribon re-read old issues of Sassy Magazine, which was a formative part of my teenager-hood.Romantic Times Magazine and RT Book Reviews isn’t online anywhere that I’ve seen, and the site went dark in May 2018 shortly after the closure of the magazine and the conference was announced.Most humbly, I ask: if you have back issues of RT Book Reviews or Romantic Times, print or digital, and you’d like to send them to be, PLEASE get in touch with me - sarah AT smart bitches trashy books.com. I’m scouring eBay magazine vendors and trying to gather as many as I can, and right now I have some from 2014, 2015, and 2016.Links!Listen to Sassy at ListenToSassy.comTime Magazine, March 2008: “Crazy and In Charge.”Delia's Catalog NewType Magazine Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Lorelei King has been a guest on the show before, and you may recognize her name and her voice from her work in romance audiobook narration. This week, Lorelei joins me to talk about her role as a core participant in the official UK government COVID Inquiry, which begins its second phase on October 3. We also discuss her volunteer work on the COVID Memorial Wall in London.A content warning: We’re talking about COVID, and about death, as Lorelei’s husband Vince Marzello died from COVID in March 2020. We’re also going to talk about Boris Johnson, so big content warning for buffonery there. So I want to give you a heads up now that this episode may not be what you want, and that’s ok. Please look after yourself.We’re talking about difficult things in this episode, but it’s fundamentally about living with grief, finding hope and finding purpose after terrible loss.Music: purple-planet.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.