In the finale for our Fantasy season, we finally get to the Gathering of Dragons series - Book 2, A Touch of Stone and Snow. Get into misleading book covers, men who should bottom, the warrior ladies who should top them, alcoholic mercenaries, and the coolest pet saber tooth tiger ever, Caeb. (Fan club t-shirts? Maybe.) We also talk sentimental heroes, Throne of Glass , souls in the basement, and fellowships where everyone dates in the end, AKA how Lord of the Rings really should have ended. ***...
Aug 27, 2021•1 hr 2 min•Season 8Ep. 5
We’re back to YA in another miniseries for you RAAG Hags! This time we’re discussing a favorite of Bridget and Jane both, The Folk of the Air series. We talk spying and sneaking, fairy politics, family swords, magical balls, Jude’s excellent narration, glamor (the bad kind), Jude stabbing her own hand like a bad bitch, sister crimes, Jude doing her damn best, did we mention Jude? Have you heard about our Lord and Savior Jude? Well you’re gonna, RAAG Hags. You’re gonna. Buy The Cruel Prince by Ho...
Aug 25, 2021•1 hr 7 min
A highly anticipated review, we finally get into A Promise of Fire by Amanda Bouchet! Featuring some of Bridget and Shani's favorite things: dragons, magical ropes, and a cadre of hot dudes. The magical rope could have been put to better use, is all we're saying. We also discuss villains that go flat, circuses and the lack thereof, Jason Momoa, and child servants. There might also be a long tangent about Twilight, fangs, growling, and wigs. We can’t promise to stay on topic, but we can promise y...
Aug 22, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Season 8Ep. 4
The author of A Promise of Fire calls in from France! She gave us the ins and outs of her writing process as well as publishing, book cover photo shoots, French translations, and audio books. Amanda shared the struggles of reading slumps and gave us some books we will definitely be adding to our lists: Navigating the Stars by Maria V. Snyder, Capture the Crown by Jennifer Estep, and White Out by Adriana Anders. We also commiserated about our shared Tiktok addictions and listening to our kids rea...
Aug 11, 2021•41 min
A CRAZY hot male lead...and we mean that literally. We talk hilariously bad covers, rational heroines (thank god), unsexy dog tags, cute family detective agencies, and a painful slowburn. The iconic Ilona Andrews flexes her chops in writing a meet cute that somehow involves kidnapping and torture (lowkey though, lowkey), while still giving us a great romance. This urban fantasy includes hot bad boy villains and magical phantom touches - what’s not to love? *** Get your copy here: Burn for Me by ...
Jul 23, 2021•1 hr 7 min•Season 8Ep. 3
Getting into a romance by the legendary Grace Draven. Finally, something a little different from the leading men...though whether it works is up for debate. Join us for secret magic powers, romantic hand stabbing, warlocks, orange groves, and false gods trying to possess your body like an unholy vessel in order to bring the world to its knees in trembling worship. This book’s got a little bit of everything! On the side, the real star of the show was friendship (Gurn we love you). We also discuss...
Jul 17, 2021•1 hr 15 min•Season 8Ep. 2
Kicking off our Fantasy season with one that came well recommended - The Winter King by CL Wilson! Today’s episode edges on the short side, but this book certainly didn’t! So much to discuss: evil maids, beautiful high priestesses, stubborn heroines, and hot summer palace princes who honestly might have been a better bet for this main character. Join us for magic, beautiful high priestesses, and questionable aphrodisiacs, all while shining like goddesses in our little recording boxes of death. I...
Jul 09, 2021•37 min•Season 8Ep. 1
So much is happening! Tune in to see what's changing in our lives and the podcast, what books and guests we have coming up, and what special treats we've planned for our lovely RAAG Hags. This summer is gonna be HOT in all kinds of ways! Thanks so much for following us all the way here, sharing and reviewing the show, and staying with us through the craziness. Let's get it poppin!! *** Leave us a rating and review on Itunes *** A lot of additional listening on Patreon ! 30 day free trial on Kind...
Jul 02, 2021•25 min
Tiffany and Robert indulged all our questions about their partnership - professional and romantic! We talk about merging sci-fi and romance in their novels, how they work together, and who comes up with the tentacle stuff ;). These two have a beautiful long distance love story, complete with calling cards and moving across the country for each other. They shared influences, roleplay, Kathryn Ann Kingsley , video games, and Saga . We had such a great time talking to them and can’t wait to read al...
Jun 29, 2021•59 min
The incredible Grace Goodwin hit this one out of the park for our Alien finale. Join us for crazy sex dreams, three love interests, excellent dirty talk, and starting off with a bang. Literally. This episode’s got off the charts heat, gentlemen in the streets and freaks in the sheets, Shani’s Dom fantasies and cum. Lots of cum. Like, guys...a lot. Also a slight disagreement about seed power. What the hell is seed power? You’re gonna have to listen to find out! *** Get your copy here: Mated to th...
Jun 22, 2021•59 min•Season 7Ep. 5
We were so excited to interview the authors that make up Grace Goodwin ! We get the inside scoop on how these two dynamos met, the process of a writing duo, different inspirations, and their 6 month success. These two pack a punch on the very first page and want to create love interests for all kinds of fantasies! They also told us about the book to partner action, competency porn, and the logistics of bringing their books to screen as well as giving us some different love advice from what we’ve...
Jun 16, 2021•1 hr 4 min
Get ready for the most alien alien romance yet! Our wonderful RAAG Hags really delivered with this recommendation. This was a super duper sweet romance with domesticity, a wide array of relationships, diverse characters, and...a talking dog? We chat about alien finger banging, Radiance by Grace Draven and nonbinary plant alien friends. Someone may or may not win five dollars. *** Get your copy here: Strange Love by Ann Aguirre Get 30 days free on Kindle Unlimited just for our listeners! Or liste...
Jun 11, 2021•59 min•Season 7Ep. 4
Anna Hackett gave us a deep look into her writing process. We talk about the ratio of action to romance, found family, a bit of the intricacy of her world-building and how a good editor can help, writing retreats, and writing science fiction VS contemporary. She also told us about her journey from mining engineer to romance author and gives us some hints about what she's planning. Take note RAAG Hags, this one is full of writing advice! You can check out Anna’s series Galactic Gladiators here. C...
Jun 09, 2021•1 hr 17 min
Get ready for a little ranting. We loved these badass space marine heroines! We chat about questionable man-baby behavior, training room sex, sabotage, betrayal, and some complicated feelings about this book's love interest. Shani brings you some valuable relationship advice. TW: Debatably dubious consent *** Get your copy here: Bonded to the Alien Centurion Get 30 days free on Kindle Unlimited just for our listeners! Or listen on Audible like Shani and get up to two free ebooks when you try Aud...
Jun 04, 2021•46 min•Season 7Ep. 3
A chat from across the pond with the author of the Warriors of the Lathar series ! Disclaimer: the audio gods were not on our side, and we definitely experienced some tech breakups. But Shani worked her magic, and you're not gonna want to miss this gem of an inteview. Mina Carter is an indie author who writes across many, many genres, publishing one book a month. We had such a fun talk with Mina about rugby thighs, Star Trek awakening our alien feels, Jason Momoa, and an EXCLUSIVE on when we’re ...
Jun 02, 2021•45 min
It’s time for some action in our Aliens season! Gladiator gave us a badass heroine, sexy wrestling, scrappy characters, and a perfect potato chip read. We chat about books giving us an alpha hero while still letting the protagonist have her badass moments, how to stay classy and primal at the same time, anatomical improvements of Aurelian men, and endearing bossiness. We’ll see if this one wins us our five dollars from Jane. Gladiator is on Kindle Unlimited. Get 30 days free just for our listene...
May 28, 2021•44 min•Season 7Ep. 2
How could we not read Ruby Dixon for our Aliens season? We take a look at the seventh book in the well-loved Ice Planet Barbarian series ! TW: rape; pedophilia, child abuse (all in the past and off-page) How does Barbarian’s Mate compare to the rest of the series? Listen in for how the romances match up, our thoughts on 14-month pregnancies, sexy alien spurs, sorely needed alien bro time, badass and whiny protagonists, and what makes our khuis sing! Bridget has some serious opinions on this one,...
May 21, 2021•55 min•Season 7Ep. 1
We got to geek out with Jananie, the YouTube creator behind thisstoryaintover, and Ayman, the Tiktok creators from aymansbooks , about the full season of Shadow and Bone - our likes, dislikes, and hopes for the future! Ayman talks about her all-nighter binge when the season dropped Jananie and her love for Mal and facial hair Different opinions on Ben Barnes's facial hair - rugged general or sweet, fresh-faced boy? What we think about the Darkling telling Alina his first name The special effects...
May 05, 2021•53 min
Samantha, YouTube creator from the channel Thoughts on Tomes , is here with us today to talk about episodes 7 and 8 of Shadow and Bones Netflix! We talk about how Samantha and Jane didn't like the Darkling (General Kirig) flashback love interest That Mal and Alina have a lot more agency in the series Samantha breaks down which team she is on between Mal and the Darkling Samantha agrees that Mal isn't a fuckboy like he is in the books anymore Our feelings on the look of the amplifier on Alina's c...
May 04, 2021•1 hr
We had to get some mafia romance in our dark season and Cora Reilly came highly recommended by our dear listeners on Instagram! This book is part of the Born in Blood Mafia Chronicles , but it is the exact same book as Bound by Honor , but told from the male perspective vs the female perspective. There seemed to be a lot of people in the reviews saying they thought the author was trying to redeem the character for cheating on the page, and so we investigated to see what we thought. And if the ba...
Apr 30, 2021•1 hr 13 min•Season 6Ep. 10
So happy to have our special guest Christine from Poland Bananas Books on YouTube! Christine has been in the book review game for a decade and is a titan of BookTube and we were so thrilled she said yes! IF YOU DON'T WANT SPOILERS WAIT TO LISTEN TILL YOU WATCH!!! We talked through: Mal's character compared to the books being an improvement The costumes, especially the Kefta's and Inej's outfits How quickly Mal and Alina get past their miscommunication The difference between the filming of the Sh...
Apr 28, 2021•48 min
Welcome to the Grishaverse! We happily dove into Episodes 1 - 3 on the new Netflix show Shadow and Bone for our miniseries! Bridget and producer Jane are going to be breaking down the show over the course of 4 episodes with special guests in each episode. This episode we're joined by our very own Shani, who was feeling some FOMO as Jane and Bridget were planning the miniseries and read the book to be in on the fun! IF YOU DON'T WANT SPOILERS WAIT TO LISTEN TILL YOU WATCH!!! We talked through: Th...
Apr 25, 2021•58 min
The title, cover, and description of this book got us! We were super excited to dip into this book and were so shocked when the second male MC showed up halfway through the book! This week we get into story structure, why stuffing too many plots in doesn't work, and how we felt hoodwinked by the ending. Plus, some steamy scenes, how to make a great, and sexy entrance, and our feelings on MCs having sexy with someone else on the page. *** Pet is on Kindle Unlimited. Get 30 days free just for our ...
Apr 23, 2021•1 hr 24 min•Season 6Ep. 9
This interview is NSFW kids, so buckle the fuck up! Avril Ashton is an indie author who writes super dark, super hot twisted dark romances, many of them MM! We got super into allll the dark and taboo elements of these books, including how to have your MCs come back from torturing each other! Avril was a dream guest and was so forthright and funny. We got into it!! Plus she gave some excellent writing tips and showed her own work tons of love which we absolutely loved. *** Avril has a bunch of bo...
Apr 20, 2021•54 min
Indie dark romance Love the Sinner by Avril Ashton was incredibly hot! Detective Gabriel falls in love with gang leader Angelo and they start a secret love affair. Gabriel has never felt this way about another man, and Angelo is in the closet with his gang members. There is a lot of intrigue and frankly a few crazy story elements, but one thing Avril can do is write the hell outta some primal, amazing sex scenes. Read Love the Sinner here . *** Call the Coroner is on Kindle Unlimited. Get 30 day...
Apr 16, 2021•52 min•Season 6Ep. 8
This book was steamy AF with some of the hottest scenes we've reviewed on the podcast so far! #yourewelcome We dove deep down the rabbit hole, discussing their experiences with people who make up stories, as well as their wildest sexual escapades with their exes, from finding cum stains in unusual places, having non-stop sex over a long weekend, and going for a peculiar morning tea. *** The Devil & Devil's Advocate is on Kindle Unlimited. Get 30 days free just for our listeners! Or listen on...
Apr 09, 2021•1 hr 15 min•Season 6Ep. 7
We tots were hoping this book was going to be dark as fuckkkkk. But surprisingly our boy Pestilence ended up being a shy virgin?! We had THOUGHTS! Read Pestilence on Kindle Unlimited. 30 day free trial of Kindle Unlimited. *** Leave us a rating and review on Itunes *** A lot of additional listening on Patreon ! Free 30 day Audible Trial to read like Shani A diverse, inclusive podcast that explores romance novels and helps our listeners pique their naughty curiosity with 100% honest reviews, spon...
Apr 02, 2021•53 min•Season 6Ep. 6
Dark romance author Pepper Winters is here today to talk about us about tiny horses!! And also writing romance novels with lots of taboo. Pepper is the author of Goddess Isles and Dollar Series and Tears of Tess , which we covered earlier this season, and in this episode, she breaks down taboos and shares with us her creative writing process. She gives useful advice for authors on how to stick to their creative process, diving deep into the common dilemma of being forced to say "yes" to contract...
Mar 30, 2021•46 min
While Shani’s favorite dark romance to date in the season… this one may have had a little too much suspense and intrigue for her! Bridget, of course, was in heaven! Do you share Shani’s take or do you think there’s so much more to the book than that? Join in and share your thoughts! Read Corrupt on Kindle Unlimited. 30 day free trial of Kindle Unlimited. *** Leave us a rating and review on Itunes *** A lot of additional listening on Patreon ! Free 30 day Audible Trial to read like Shani A divers...
Mar 27, 2021•1 hr 25 min•Season 6Ep. 5
What do you make of a book where a character falls in love with her abuser? In this episode, Shani and Bridget dive deep into the novel while uncovering this different and rather controversial dark romance genre—bully romance. As the title suggests, B.B. Reid’s book depicts the story of an angsty teenage boy inflicting fear on the main character who found herself falling in love despite the bullying and torture. Shani and Bridget talk over some of the themes that call for better treatment, espec...
Mar 19, 2021•1 hr 13 min•Season 6Ep. 4
