{"podcast":{"title":"What to Read Next — Book Recommendations for Romance, Thrillers & Escape Reads","slug":"what-to-read-next-book-recommendations-for-romance-thrillers-escape-reads-9873","podcast_index_feed_id":9873,"rss_url":"https://feeds.captivate.fm/whattoreadnext/","website_url":"http://www.whattoreadnextblog.com","image_url":"https://artwork.captivate.fm/f7acd6df-7bd5-4b9f-bdcd-cc1c6c790629/4osSDj37v6rAcBIBBysi07ET.png","author":"Laura R Yamin","episode_count":928,"summary":"You know you want to read. You just don't know what. What to Read Next is the podcast for readers who love romance, thrillers, and women's fiction — and spend more time staring at their TBR than actually reading it. I'm Laura, and twice a week I bring you book recommendations built around one thing: how you actually feel right now. Not what's new. Not what's trending. The right book for this exact mood, this exact moment, this exact week of your life. Some weeks that means asking an author what they read for joy — not what they wrote, but what they reach for when they need to escape. Their answer is always your next discovery. Some weeks it means me telling you exactly what I read, what stayed with me, what I DNF'd at 40% and why, and which one I'd press into your hands right now if we were having coffee. Romance across every subgenre. Psychological thrillers. Beach reads with actual substance. Women's fiction that makes you feel seen. The books that give you the escape you came for — and a few that'll quietly change how you see things too. New episodes every Monday and Wednesday. The Reading Receipt — my weekly reading log — drops every Thursday on Substack. Start anywhere. The r…","last_synced_at":"2026-07-30T20:17:08.396085+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/what-to-read-next-book-recommendations-for-romance-thrillers-escape-reads-9873"},"episode":{"title":"A Love Letter to Sapphic Romance and Live Theater with Amy Spalding | Celebrity RomCom","slug":"a-love-letter-to-sapphic-romance-and-live-theater-with-amy-spalding-celebrity-romcom","published_at":"2026-02-25T10:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/what-to-read-next-book-recommendations-for-romance-thrillers-escape-reads-9873/a-love-letter-to-sapphic-romance-and-live-theater-with-amy-spalding-celebrity-romcom","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/what-to-read-next-book-recommendations-for-romance-thrillers-escape-reads-9873","url":"http://www.whattoreadnextblog.com","audio_url":"https://episodes.captivate.fm/episode/50cd6cd3-70ca-4c00-b0d4-78b132c76ea7.mp3","summary":"This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Queer joy, Hollywood theater, and why romance doesn’t have to earn its happy ending. In this episode, I’m joined by returning guest Amy Spalding to talk about In Her Spotlight , her latest sapphic romance set at the intersection of celebrity culture, live theater, and second-chance love. We dig into why queer joy matters, how power dynamics shift when fame enters the room, and why it finally feels possible to tell coming-out stories without centering tragedy. We also chat about reading across genres, unexpected nonfiction rabbit holes, and Amy’s favorite sapphic and bisexual romances to add to your TBR—especially if you love stories about ambition, community, and women figuring it out together. 📚 Books Mentioned In Her Spotlight by Amy Spalding — Sapphic Romance | Celebrity Romance | Second Chance | Theater Setting Rooting Interest by Cat Dibasato — Sapphic Romance | Sports Romance | Career-Driven Characters Flirting Lessons by Jasmine Guillory — Sapphic Romance | Contemporary Romance | Wine Country Setting Writers & Lovers by Lily King — Literary Fiction | Women’s Fiction | Writing & Ambition Alice Rue Evades the Truth by Emily Zips — Bisexual Romance | Contemporary Romance | While You Were Sleeping Retelling ⏱️ Episode Timestamps [00:00] Welcome back + first impressions of In Her Spotlight [01:00] Writing queer joy during bleak times [02:00] Why sapphic romance has changed so much [04:00] Coming-out stories with nuance and community [05:00] In Her Spotlight elevator pitch [06:00] Power, consent, and the #MeToo context [08:00] Celebrity culture vs. theater life [11:00] Companion standalones & the Out in Hollywood series [12:00] Reading across genres as a…","meta_description":"This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Queer joy, Hollywood theater, and why romance doesn…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":1249,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/what-to-read-next-book-recommendations-for-romance-thrillers-escape-reads-9873/episodes/a-love-letter-to-sapphic-romance-and-live-theater-with-amy-spalding-celebrity-romcom/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/what-to-read-next-book-recommendations-for-romance-thrillers-escape-reads-9873/a-love-letter-to-sapphic-romance-and-live-theater-with-amy-spalding-celebrity-romcom.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}