Fated Mates - Romance Books for Novel People

Sarah headed off to the 831 Stories conference a few weeks ago, and was on a panel about tropes people hate, so of course she brought that conversation back to the pod! We’re talking about babies, about second chances, about virgins, about celibacy and about friends-to-lovers!
Tell us your most hated tropes over on the Fated Mates discord! Join the Fated Mates patreon to get access, and you also get one extra episode a month from us!
When we recorded this episode, we didn’t know how things would shake out this week, but now we do and we’re having a great day. Hope you are, too!
Books
A Whole Lotta History: One Direction and the Sound that Shaped a Generation by Jason Lipshutz
Out on a Limb by Hannah Bonham-Young
PS You’re Intolerable by Julia Wolf
Baby Come Back by Molly O’Keefe
Lies You Tell by LaQuette
Dark Needs at Night’s Edge by Kresley Cole
One Good Earl Deserves a Lover by Sarah MacLean
Hate to Want You by Alisha Rai
Nero by SJ Tilly
The Devil of Downtown by Joanna Shupe
Dreaming of You by Lisa Kleypas
Josh and Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating by Christina Lauren
Sapphire Spring by C. Travis Rice
The Tropoholic’s Guide series by Cindy Dees
Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase
Lead by Kylie Scott
The Player by Kresley Cole
Queen Move by Kennedy Ryan
Goddess of the Hunt by Tessa Dare

Notes
There are so many shows based off romance novels hitting the screen lately: of course the juggernaut of Heated Rivalry. At Amazon, they have the Off Campus series based on books by Elle Kennedy, The Love Hypothesis based on the book by Ali Hazelwood, and Drive based on the books by Tamara Lush. Also, they have made casting announcements for Butcher and Blackbird and 4th Wing. Here’s the story about Ride or Die and why it might have been cancelled despite its positive reviews and ratings.
Speaking of TV shows, Sarah has news about These Summer Storms!
Coming to Nextflixt next month is In a Holidaze based on the book by Christina Lauren, in which Rob Lowe plays someone other than Sodapop Curtis.
On Friday the 13th, go watch Wicker with Sarah, Adriana, and Ali if you’re in New York; otherwise, have a nice time with your lady at a local theater near you.
Sarah was at the 831 RomCon in Brooklyn a few weeks ago, and a game she played on a panel inspired this episode. Back in Season 3, we did a Trope off with Christina and Lauren for the release of The Soulmate Equation.

Sponsors
The Nightstand App, a book tracking app for readers. Visit nightstand-app.com/fatedmates for your 7-day free trial, and use the code FATEDMATES for 30% off your annual subscription.
Penguin Young Readers & Berkley XO, publishers of Charlotte B. Plumb’s Reap & Sow, available now in print, ebook or audiobook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books or wherever you get your books.
Meghan Quinn, author of Christmas Staycation, available in print, ebook or audiobook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble or wherever you get your books.

The Rest
For even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2026/11/3/s0910-the-tropes-people-love-to-hate
If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates.
Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough.
If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.

It's Election Day and we are just vibrating! We're not the only ones.
The first and best way to get through the day is to volunteer. Visit mobilize.us to find volunteer opportunities near (or not so near) you.
The second way is to listen to us yammer about Moonstruck.
The Rest
For even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2022/10/11/s0505-were-moonstruck-on-our-200th-episode
If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates.
Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough.
If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.

00:00 Start Your Romance Novel Today!
01:42 Our 200th Anniversary!
07:47 Moonstruck's Influence
11:38 The Moonstruck House
15:28 Frozen in Time
17:43 SPONSOR: Grand Central Publishing
20:08 Loretta's Bad Luck
26:48 The Multigenerational Family
32:33 Ronnie
37:39 Love and Loss
39:53 SPONSOR: Alyxandra Harvey
41:28 Marker 12
44:09 Loretta and Ronnie
49:46 Cosmo's Moon
55:58 The Next Day
57:46 SPONSOR: Lumi Labs
58:52 Marker 17
1:01:21 A Night at the Opera
1:06:57 Why do Men Chase Women?
1:11:05 A NIght of Speeches & Choices
1:18:31 A Reckoning (over oatmeal)
1:32:47 Outro

It’s demons and death and decorative gourd season, and we’re talking about all of them, along with sewer monsters and twelve-foot tall skeletons and a vampire or two! If you’re looking for a Halloween read, we’ve got you this week with a little something for everyone. This is the next in a long line of spooky reads episodes, so when you’re done with this one, head over and listen to the rest (a list of them is in show notes!)
Fated States, our democratic phonebanking initiative wraps up this weekend—we’ll be calling Michigan to get out the vote for Abdul El-Sayed ! There will be games, prizes and special guests! Learn more and register to phone bank with us at fatedmates.net/fatedstates.
If you’d like to come over and talk about Halloween reads with us, please join us on the Fated Mates Discord, where you’ll find a few thousand other listeners who love talking about these books we love. Join the Fated Mates patreon to get access, and You also get one extra episode a month from us!!
Books
The Demon’s Curvy Angel by Brill Harper
Decorative Gourd Season by DL White
No Bones About It by Cassandra Elizzabeth
A Date with Death by Kelly Creagh
What Happens at Nightfall by Lauren Willig
Fangbanger by Sophia Travers
Demons and Diplomacy by Megan Frampton
The Romance Revival by Christina Lauren
Jenny Will Eat You Now by Gillian Daniels
Die For Me by Shirlene Obuobi

Notes
It’s (finally) Scorpio season!
We’re talking about Michigan and Maps, which is just our regular brand of off topic nonsense and has nothing to do with this episode. South Detroit is actually Canada, and the Model T was invented by Henry Ford in Michigan, and that’s why all the American car companies were headquartered in Detroit.
Sarah says you can just watch the end of Ted Lasso for Roy and Keely.
Luckily, Brill Harper has rereleased Demon’s Curvy Mate on all platforms after we did email, that’s just how hard we are willing to work for you! But you should still get aBrooklyn Public Library card if you want.
It’s Decorative Gourd Season, Motherfuckers is a classic from McSweeney’s.
Turns out a lot of classroom skeletons are real, and some schools found out and had funerals for their own Mr. Bones-Jangles. That’s a reference to famous dancer Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, and if you’ve never watched his stair dance from 1932, you should.
If you’re looking for more Halloween reads, listen to our past episodes on: Spooky Stuff, Romance Demons, Devils, Ghosts, Morticians, and the Dead, Manimals!, Monsters, Witchy Romance, and Why Horror.

Sponsors
The Nightstand App, a book tracking app for readers. Visit nightstand-app.com/fatedmates for your 7-day free trial, and use the code FATEDMATES for 30% off your annual subscription.
Maria Vale, author of Molly Molloy and the Angel of Death, available in print, ebook, audiobook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books or wherever you get your books.
Lucy Score author of The Dead Guy Next Door, the first in the Riley Thorn series, available in print, ebook and audiobook, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle+.

The Rest
For even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2026/10/26/0908-halloween-grab-bag
If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates.
Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough.
If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.

00:00 Scorpio Season
03:32 Fated Maps
14:20 AD: MOLLY MALLOY AND THE ANGEL OF DEATH
16:40 The Demon’s Curvy Angel
26:15 Decorative Gord Season
31:22 AD: NIGHTSTAND
33:25 No Bones About It
40:35 A Date with Death
48:41 AD: THE DEAD GUY NEXT DOOR
50:23 What Happens at Nightfall
56:07...

We’re talking about the mythmakers again this week with a chat about romance’s sister genre, horror! We’re joined by NEA fellow, Bram Stoker Award winner and bestselling horror writer Stephen Graham Jones, and librarian and horror expert Becky Spratford. We talk about Stephen’s lifelong love of horror, the way horror reflects the world, the rules of horror and how romance and horror are actually two sides of the same coin. Happy spooky season, book lovers.
Fated States, our democratic phonebanking initiative continues this week—we’ll be calling Tennessee to get out the vote for Justin Pearson in the Tennessee 9th, and into Montana to get out the vote for Sam Forstag, candidate in the Montana 1st! There will be games, prizes and special guests! Learn more and register to phone bank with us at fatedmates.net/fatedstates.
If you’d like to come over and talk about horror with us, please join us on the Fated Mates Discord, where you’ll find a few thousand other listeners who love talking about these books we love. Join the Fated Mates patreon to get access, and You also get one extra episode a month from us!!
Horror Fiction, Film, and Television Mentioned in This Episode
The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones
Off the Reservation by Stephen Graham Jones
Why I Love Horror by Becky Spratford
Mongrels by Stephen Graham Jones
Flowers in the Attic by VC Andrews
The Howling (1981)
The Wolfen by Whitley Strieber
Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein
A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
Heart Eyes (2025)
I was a Teenage Slasher by Stephen Graham Jones
The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones
The Indian Lake Trilogy by Stephen Graham Jones
Widow’s Bay (2026)
Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke by Eric LaRocca
Our Cut of Salt by Deena Helm
Angel Down by Daniel Kraus
The Grip of It by Jac Jemc
Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Japanese Gothic by Kylie Lee Barker
Scream (1996)
Sinners (2025)
Horror for Weenies by Emily C. Hughes
The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
Headlights by CJ Leede
This Movie Doesn’t End the Way We Want by Hailey Piper
Kiss, Slay, Replay by Rachel Harrison
The Reformatory by Tananarive Due
The Devil Takes You Home by Gabino Iglesias
My Best Friend’s Exorcism by Grady Hendrix
Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix

Sponsors
Avon Books, publishers of Emily Rath’s Devour Me, available in print, ebook and audiobook, at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, wherever you get your books, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.
Piper Rayne, author of Chasing Smoke, available in print, ebook, audiobook at Barnes & Noble, wherever you get your books, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.
Meghan Quinn, author of Christmas Staycation, available in print, ebook or audiobook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble or wherever you get your books.
Penguin Young Readers & Berkley XO, publishers of Charlotte B. Plumb’s Reap & Sow, available now in print, ebook or audiobook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books or wherever you get your books.

The Rest
For even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2026/10/19/horror-with-stephen-graham-jones-and
If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates.
Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads,