Welcome to Smart Podcast, Trashy Books! Each Friday, I talk with authors, readers, reviewers, bloggers, publishing professionals, editors, and librarians, or combinations thereof, and share the fun and mayhem with you. Frequent topics include romance fiction, the brilliant and interesting people who read, write, and produce it, and issues common among romance readers, along with a hefty side order of silliness. Plus, we always recommend some books we’re reading and really enjoying.
And speaking of recommendations, are you new to the podcast? Welcome!
If you’re feeling overwhelmed, fear not: here are some of our most popular episodes – so far!
A few months ago, Kayleigh Donaldson joined me to discuss Oscar predictions and other pop culture stories, and we decided to connect quarterly to discuss popular culture. We discuss the misogyny attached to Timothy Chalamet hate, a deep dive into the public post history of Club Chalamet as indicative of larger issues in fandom behavior, Madonna’s new album, Lizzo’s new album, and the Tartan Army. The through-line of our conversation is really fandoms, specifically changing … Continue reading 726. Q2 Pop Culture Report with Kayleigh Donaldson→
My guest this week is Kirsty Greenwood, whose new book Romantic Hero is out now everywhere, all over the world. Kirsty writes what she calls “speculative romantic comedy,” and I really loved her first book, Love of my Afterlife. We discuss SHOCKING topics like deleting the first book she tried to write, the character journeys in Romantic Hero, dealing with writer’s block, and punching people in the face. Want to watch this episode? Find us on … Continue reading 725. Romantic Hero with Kirsty Greenwood→
The time machine is all charged up, and we’re headed back to May 1996 to take a look at the ads & features from Romantic Times magazine. It’s the late 90s, so you know that means Incredible Cover Art. We also discover just how much creepy stuff Amanda owns currently, debates about babies in romance, cheap conference hotel rooms, woman flamingos, and incredible women heroines. I don’t know if you’re a video watcher, but the … Continue reading 724. RT Rewind: May 1996 Ads & Features→
My guest today is bestselling author Ashley Poston, whose new book, The Someday Garden, is out this week. The Someday Garden was inspired by The Secret Garden, so we’re going to talk about inspiration, gardening, fandoms, changing genres and having your readers grow up with you as a writer. TW/CW – discussion of grief, and of suicide at almost exactly 1 hour into our conversation. Want to watch this episode on YouTube?
We love the 90s, and that’s where we’re headed this month, gazing at the impossible mullets from Romantic Times magazine. We’re talking about the newest books from May 1996, including the second book in what is now a 15-book much-loved series, and some truly memorable character names. We’ll investigate, “What’s wrong with this man?” We’ll have “lashings of good fun.” Plus we learn a SHOCKING TRUTH about Amanda’s reading history.
Martha Wells is back, and we are taking a deep spoilery dive into Platform Decay. I want to be clear here: if you haven’t read Platform Decay, we are about to spoil the dickens out of it. Yes, Charles Dickens is in Platform Decay, you heard it here first. We’re going to discuss infrastructure fury, trains in Japan, Honor Princess Detective, and more – and when I say we are spoiling, we are spoiling. In … Continue reading 721. Exploring Platform Decay with Martha Wells→
We’re back in the time machine, heading to December 2012 to look at the ads and features from Romantic Times magazine. This episode features a high amount of extreme zany. We’ve got so many treats for you this week, including the Steeple Hill Drinking Game, the reverse Colonel Sanders, Jude Deveraux’s thoughts on modern romance heroes of the time, shifters and more.
We’re sampling Tropetails cocktail mixes, discussing what we’re reading and playing, and what books we’re looking forward to in the coming months. We were not paid to promote them, but we did receive free samples and they are delicious. You can get 10% off of Tropetails drink mixes with code SBTBTROPES! And! The transcript is already in! Enjoy!
We’re back in the time machine, heading back to December 2012 to see what new books were reviewed in Romantic Times magazine. We’ve got “multicultural” books, beefy paragraphs, big thorns, Schroedinger’s baby, and “charming vulgar nonsense.” Plus, we ask a very important question: if you were suddenly the heroine of an Inspirational romance, how would you know? TW/CW for the erotica section at the end. It was a time, y’all. If you want to watch … Continue reading 718. RT Rewind: December 2012 Reviews→
Nalini Singh is back to talk about Archangel’s Eternity, which I have been calling “Archangel’s Finale.” We’ve got questions from readers and listeners, and some behind the scenes details about how Nalini organizes the massive worlds she’s built in her series. Plus she teases some major surprises for the next Psy-Changeling book, and what she’s working on right now. You can find the video of this episode on our YouTube channel if you’d like to … Continue reading 717. Archangel’s Finale with Nalini Singh→
Programming note: this week’s episode is dropping on 30 April 2026. Smart Bitches Trashy Books, LLC, is withdrawing our labor on May 1, 2026, alongside other companies, school districts, and activists as part of the May Day Nationwide Day of Collective Action. For more information, visit MayDayStrong.org. Ilana Masad and Stevie K. Seibert Desjarlais are the editors of a new and excellent anthology called Here for All The Reasons: Why We Watch the Bachelor. The … Continue reading 716. Here for All the Reasons: Bachelor Critique With Ilana Masad and Stevie K. Seibert Desjarlais→
