This Rec League comes from Anna. Thanks, Anna!
This might be a long shot, but I was listening to one of my favorite podcasts the other day and enjoying the banter between one of the hosts and the producer, and it made me think of how many fun dynamics there are in that scene. Are there any romance novels set in the podcasting industry? The closest thing I can think of is The Ex Talk, which I loved, though that’s public radio rather than podcasts. I guess the question can be expanded to romances set in creative, collaboration-heavy workplaces in general. Thank you so much!
Sarah: Radio makes me think of Charlie All Night by Jennifer Crusie, ( A | BN | K | G | AB | Au ) which is about late night radio (the great grandparent of podcasting).
Amanda: I know there are a couple where the heroine runs a podcast, but not both characters.
Those would be Royals Next Door by Karina Halle ( A | BN | K ) and What If You & Me by Roni Loren ( A | BN | K | AB ).
Elyse: Knot My Type by Evie Mitchell ( A ), the heroine has a podcast.
Do you have any recommendations? Let us know in the comments!
Not podcasting either, but maybe adjacent: In THANK YOU FOR LISTENING by Julia Whelan the hero and heroine collaborate as narrators on the same audio book. Lovely story as well, definitely worth a read!
Also not podcasting (lol sorry) but Headliners by Lucy Parker is about co-hosts of a morning tv show.
I think outside of ex talk, I’ve mainly seen podcasts being used as a plot device in thrillers/mysteries which makes sense given that the popular perception that podcasts are mainly true crime.
It is not primarily a romance but Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera is a fun murder mystery based around a true crime podcast. The female lead is the main suspect in the murder of her best friend a few years prior and when the novel begins she’s recently become the subject of the aforementioned podcast. The hot host and his producer are important characters and the podcast is central to the book. It has romantic elements but no true love forever at last vibes.
Not out yet, but “Back After This” by Linda Holmes, releasing February 2025.
@Rebecca F – yes there are quite a few podcast mysteries and thrillers – plus there is the movie “Vengeance” with BJ Novak (not a romance).
Dirty Talk by Lauren Landish is good but is also radio.
See You Yesterday (Rachel Lynn Solomon): they have to work together to get out of a time loop, and she’s trying to get a position on the college paper. I liked The Ex Talk and loved SYY.
Tweet Cute (Emma Lord): You’ve Got Mail situation by rival brands on twitter that ropes in public opinion. The initial setup isn’t collaborative, but creative and heavy banter is the backbone of the story.
Begin Again (Emma Lord): they both work on a clandestine college radio show, though I can’t remember the tone of the show.
Yes & I Love You (Roni Loren): she’s an online reviewer. He helps her add new video components at a co-op work space.
The Sweetest Revenge (Lizzy Dent): they collaborate on a tv project(?). The main character starts out unlikable but has a good arc.
Haven’t read but the setup is collaborative:
– Truly, Madly, Deeply (Bellefleur)—podcast!
– Love, Comment, Subscribe (Yardley)
– Just One Taste (Dent)
“What If You & Me”, by Roni Loren: This book is the second in her “Say Everything” series (and my favorite of the three books). Andi is a true crime podcaster (and a well-known novelist), and podcasting is a way for her to heal from a trauma she suffered before the start of the book. Hill is a firefighter who suffered a career-ending injury on the job and is still struggling to cope. He owns a duplex – he lives on one side, Andi on the other. A lot of the story is them trying to help each other recover from their traumas. It turns out that Hill is quite the cook, so later in the book, Andi helps him record a vlodcast of him preparing a recipe, as a proof-of-concept for his new career path.
INFINITE JES by Sam Starbuck – A M/M romance between a returning expat podcast producer and a retired king who decides to get into podcasting. Its a lovely story, although to truely appreciate it, read the first in the series FETE FOR A KING which pairs the Crown Prince with an American TV chef brought in to cater the coronation.
Also not a podcast, but podcast adjacent, Love, Comment, Subscribe by Cathy Yardley is about two YouTube influencers with very different audiences and themes have to collaborate to reach the next level.
Radio again, but Rival Radio by Kathryn Nolan. Protagonists with opposite takes on love are coerced into cohosting an advice show (?) to generate buzz for their public radio station. I enjoyed it, but it doesn’t occupy much real estate in my memory.
I gleefully second the mention of Roni Loren’s “What If You & Me”, I adored that book.
Erin Hahn’s latest, “Friends Don’t Fall in Love”, is set in the world of country music, and the heroine makes appearances on podcasts, radio shows, talk shows–the impact of social media on the music industry is a part of the story.
Yes to Rival Radio!!! Kathryn Nolan is a fun romantic and socially aware author.
Annabeth Albert’s M/M series Safe Harbor has an overarching backstory about a decades-old mystery. Two of the MCs, Monroe (Bring me Home) and Holden (Make me Stay) have done a podcast about it. This has already happened when the books start. Holden of Make me Stay is the one who actually runs the true crime podcast. He’s also an ex-police officer and law professor – so not just an amateur. The books can be read on their own, but you won’t get the resolution of the mystery til the last book, so they are best read in order.
Alexis Hall has a murder mystery novel with a lesbian couple, one of whom has a podcast and the fans ship her with that partner not her actual partner. I *hated* the book so much I have actually blocked the name from my mind. I suspect there’s plenty of banter because that’s something I generally like about Alexis Hall, but I really have forgotten as much about that one as I can so I am not sure.
There is a LOT of fan fic on AOL about various podcast hosts. I try to avoid RPF so if I am still running across it, odds are excellent you’ll find what you’re looking for there.
I just finished Kate Clayborn’s latest book, releasing next Tuesday, THE OTHER SIDE OF DISAPPEARING. The plot is about a woman and her younger sister who get drawn into a trip to find their mother who ran off with the subject of a true crime podcast 10 years prior. The host of the podcast convinces them to help her track their mother down so that the podcast can be updated.
I’d also recommend YOU SPIN ME, by Karen Grey set in 1988 and revolving around late night radio. It features a Boston area actress commuting every day to a long distance job who starts calling in to a late night alt rock radio show and forms a connection with the DJ. The book has some serious themes about the value placed on appearances, but is also a lovely romance. The series as a whole is quite nostalgic for those of us who were in our 20’s and 30’s in that time period.
I knew that at least one book in the Penny Reid universe featured a podcaster; it’s Parks and Provocation by Juliette Cross. Technically the romance is between the host and one her guests, but I remember some fun chemistry between with her producer/co-host (?) as well.
https://smartypantsromance.com/books/parks-and-provocation/
The Vers Podcast series by Riley Hart – mm contemporary romance series about 4 bantering best friends who record a popular gay podcast together. None of the love interests are podcasters but the podcast does feature in most of the books.
The Love Study by Kris Ripper – queer romance about a genderqueer YouTuber with a popular advice show. Read the sample first – the narrator is A LOT.
Jayne Ann Krentz’s new series The Lost Night Files is podcasting adjacent. The heroines have a podcast, but there isn’t a lot of actual podcasting in the books.
Book 1 is Sleep No More
Book 2 is the Lost Island
Book 3 isn’t out yet, presumably next year
“Seven months ago, Pallas Llewellyn, Talia March, and Amelia Rivers were strangers, until their fateful stay at the Lucent Springs Hotel. An earthquake and a fire partially destroyed the hotel, but the women have no memory of their time there. Now close friends, the three women co-host a podcast called the Lost Night Files, where they investigate cold cases and hope to connect with others who may have had a similar experience to theirs—an experience that has somehow enhanced the psychic abilities already present in each woman.”
Yes! Hana Khan Carries On by Uzma Jalaluddin is amazing!
From google books:
“From the author of Ayesha at Last comes a sparkling new rom-com for fans of “You’ve Got Mail,” set in two competing halal restaurants
Sales are slow at Three Sisters Biryani Poutine, the only halal restaurant in the close-knit Golden Crescent neighbourhood. Hana waitresses there part time, but what she really wants is to tell stories on the radio. If she can just outshine her fellow intern at the city radio station, she may have a chance at landing a job. In the meantime, Hana pours her thoughts and dreams into a podcast, where she forms a lively relationship with one of her listeners. But soon she’ll need all the support she can get: a new competing restaurant, a more upscale halal place, is about to open in the Golden Crescent, threatening Three Sisters.
When her mysterious aunt and her teenage cousin arrive from India for a surprise visit, they draw Hana into a long-buried family secret. A hate-motivated attack on their neighbourhood complicates the situation further, as does Hana’s growing attraction for Aydin, the young owner of the rival restaurant—who might not be a complete stranger after all.
As life on the Golden Crescent unravels, Hana must learn to use her voice, draw on the strength of her community and decide what her future should be.”
A Thousand Miles by Bridget Morissey has a female lead who hosts a podcast of stories about her friends and family who goes on a road trip with her high school ex-boyfriend. There was decent detail about how the podcast worked, she was good friends with her producer, and an interview with the male lead is part of the main conflict.
Hana Khan Carries On by Uzma Jaluluddin is literally what I’m reading right now and as soon as I saw the question it popped in to my head. The female lead is a podcaster and meets the love interest because he comments on her podcast. She’s also doing an internship at a radio station and trying to get a job in radio so has colleagues in that space. Plus the’s some business rivalry stuff because as well as trying to get in to radio she’s working at her parents Halahl restaurant and so the love inserest comes and opens a nearby Halahl restaurant. Also, lots of interesting talk about diversity in media. Plus whilst it covers some difficult and very present issues it’s fun.