Hi Smooches! Liz here. On today’s episode, I’m telling Meg about one of my favorite books of the year, definitely in the top 3 and possibly my book of the year. It’s a dark rom-com between a black cat trauma nurse, and a golden retriever thirst trap creator who is more than a little obsessed with her. It’s a book that asks, what if the obsessed sta…

Hi Smooches! On this episode, Meg takes us on a wild ride through A Soul to Keep by Opal Reyne. Do you like demonic love interests, creative anatomy, a little sexy body horror, and plots thicker than dat ass? Then this is the book for you. Spoilers ahead!Find us on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/makeoutalreadypod/?hl=enBuy Liz’s new book, …

Hi Smooches! Did you miss us? We’re back from hiatus to celebrate spooky season, and kicking things off with a recap of a kinky Halloween novella, The Dare by Harley Laroux. Spoilers ahead!Find us on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/makeoutalreadypod/?hl=enPreorder Liz’s next book, IN ON THE ACTION: https://a.co/d/87RjuZCMMF short story: htt…

Hi Smooches! We’ve been truant, and we’re sorry, OK?! Life is just like really really hard. But we have so many books to talk about, including my new MMF short story, And They Were Roommates, and all the very informative and depressing books Meg is reading in her therapy studies. Meg kept getting kicked out of the Zoom meeting, and I kept in every …

Hi Smooches! On this episode, we recap a gorgeous YA sapphic romance told partially through poetry, Just Another Epic Love Poem by Parisa Akhbari. It’s about two friends who have passed notebooks back and forth for their entire friendship, writing poems to each other, and how everything changes when they acknowledge their deeper feelings. Spoilers …

What makes monsters so erotic? On today’s episode, we talk to writer and researcher Ella Gallego about her Monstrous Desire study. We talk about the increasingly vocalized attraction many of us feel for monsters, our first monster crushes, and how Stephenie Meyer just loves a cuckolding fantasy. Find us on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/ma…

Smooches, get your headphones and your wallets. This episode is about to load up your TBR with heroines who are not to be messed with. We’re talking about heroines who serve the most see-you-next-Tuesday with Courtney Clark Michaels and Eve Dangerfield. Liz is offering copy editing services and tarot brainstorming sessions for romance authors! Go t…

Hi Smooches! On this episode, we're recapping I'm Engaged to Mothman, the second book in Paige Lavoie's Mothman in Love series. We previously recapped the first book with our friend and Mothman groupie Molly, so go listen to that episode if you haven't already.Some future episode announcements. Sometime in April, we're going to recap Just Another E…

Hi Smooches! On this episode, we’re chatting with boundary coach Kami Orange, author of the new book Say the Thing: Boundary-Setting Scripts and Phrases to Communicate Directly and Speak Up with Kindness. Meg and I have both separately followed Kami’s work and when we reached out to her for an interview were delighted to find out she’s a romance re…

Hi Smooches! We’re talking about sooo many books today with Anne, also known as andrearaereads on TikTok. She is such a wealth of knowledge about incredible books across multiple genres, and she’s writing a vampire romance that sounds scrumptious. We talk about what Lizzie Bennet was really doing on those long walks, which monsters we most love, an…

Hi Smooches! Today we have a really fun, dishy episode with debut author Tanvier Peart. We’re playing Would You Rather? in honor of her second-chance forced proximity romance, The Seven Month Itch. It’s about a couple that’s been separated and runs into each other at a singles retreat. Other unexpected guests turn up, and shenanigans ensue. Stuff w…

Happy New Year, Smooches! Today, we’re talking All Things Austen with author Melodie Edwards, who has written a beautiful contemporary reimagining of Persuasion. It’s got Stars Hollow vibes with its setting of Niagara-on-the-Lake and riotous cast of characters, a hyper-competent Anne, and a swoon worthy Wentworth. You can preorder the book, which c…

Hi Smooches! On today’s episode, which we recorded way back in September, we talked with author Annie Rains about her wonderful book Through the Snow Globe. It’s women’s fiction (because the hero is in a coma for most of it) described as It’s a Wonderful Life meets Groundhog Day. So we discussed our top three most rewatchable holiday movies. Enjoy!…

Hi Smooches! This year’s holiday gift guide isn’t going to be business as usual. We’re discussing ways to spend less money and consume more ethically this holiday season if you choose to give gifts. We talk about how even if there’s no ethical consumption under capitalism, it’s our responsibility to do as little harm as possible in a society that m…

Hi Smooches! On this episode, we're recapping some recent reads: a sci-fi/dystopian romance; a paranormal romance; a lit fic title that's actually a romance; and a sports romance by one of our besties. Spoilers ahead! Books recapped: The Spirit Bares Its Teeth by Andrew Joseph White Deal with the Devil by Kit Rocha Off His Game by Courtney Clark Mi…

Hi Smooches! Today we’re doing something a little different. In honor of NaNoWriMo, I’m going to read the first chapter of my work in progress. This is from my draft of In On the Action, which is Book 2 in the Seducing Steel City series. If I were better at marketing or planning, I’d have preorder links for you, maybe a Goodreads page where you cou…

Hi Smooches! We couldn’t close out spooky season without some monsterfucking. So we brought our senior cryptid correspondent Molly on to recap “I’m In Love With Mothman” by Paige Lavoie. What happens when a burnt out lifestyle influencer moves to the middle of nowhere to live out her cottagecore fantasy, then ends up having to nurse a sexy bug/bird…

Hi, friends! We are embarking upon spooky season with the 2019 indie horror/romance After Midnight. It's eerie, it's funny, it's cute, and it's just the right amount of scary. Stay tuned for a mimosa-fueled review of the movie with our horror specialist, Deanna. Where to find us Website: www.makeoutalreadypod.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.co…

Hi Smooches! On this episode, I am risking it all by going Gaylor on main more than I ever have. I tell Meg, not for the first time but for the first time in this much detail, all about the maybe love affair between Taylor Swift and Karlie Kloss. We’ll discuss timelines, lyrical clues, and recent events. If you’re a skeptic, this episode is for you…

Hi Smooches! We hope you had a lovely Labor Day off last week and that you’re staying healthy, supporting striking workers and drinking whatever seasonally inappropriate pumpkin beverage your heart desires. On this episode, Meg and I talk about what we’ve been reading recently. There is contemporary romance, romantasy, YA, bleak speculative fiction…

Hi Smooches! This is Liz, and you’re listening to Make Out Already. On today’s episode, we’re recapping “Funny Guy” by Emma Barry. It is a delicious slow burn contemporary about a famous comedian hiding out at his lifelong best friend’s apartment after his pop star ex writes an unflattering song about him. What he doesn’t know is his bestie has bee…

Hi Smooches! This episode we were thrilled to welcome back Shantel to the podcast! Chantel won the bidding for the second year in a row to be a guest on this pod in the Romance for Reproductive Justice Auction. It's a damn shame that we need such an auction, but we're grateful to Meet Cute Romance Bookshop for creating the fundraising opportunity, …

Hi, Smooches! Liz is back, baby! And so is our author bestie, Courtney Clark Michaels! This episode we are giving our top recommendations for retellings of classic stories, from Greek mythology to Arthurian legend to Jane Austen to Disney classics. Meg also learns the term "Why Choose" and that Courtney has 1,202 unread books on her Kindle. And tha…

Hi Smooches! It's the return of Liz! But this is more like a time-capsule-Liz. We recorded this episode very shortly before she went into labor a few months ago, so some of our topical references are already a bit dated and there's a tiktok we mention that I simply could not find. Mea culpa. In this episode, we revisit a couple of our favorite book…

Hi Smooches! I'm Meg and this is Make Out Already. While my co-host Liz is out of office taking care of brand new Baby Liz, I invited our friend Bryson on to talk about a trio of rom-coms: You People, Your Place or Mine, and Ghosted. All three came out this year and are streaming now. Bryson, in addition to watching just about every movie that come…

Hi Smooches! This is Make Out Already and I'm Meg, here to take you on a mimosa-fueled journey through Emily Henry's latest release, Happy Place, which came out in April of this year. I invited my bff and fellow Emily Henry lover, Leslie, onto the podcast to talk about this friends-to-lovers-to-second-chance-romance story that's, frankly, pretty he…

Hi Smooches, this is Meg and you're listening to Make Out Already. While Liz is out, tending to her wee babe, I've invited two new friends onto the podcast--co-authors Audrey Bellezza and Emily Harding. Their new book is Emma of 83rd Street, a retelling of the classic Jane Austen tale, but set in modern times on the upper East Side of Manhattan. Tr…

Hi Smooches! This is Meg, and I am continuing my solo hosting stint while Liz is on maternity leave with a special guest-visit from Deanna, our spooky season correspondent and horror wh*re! We chat about Hell Followed With Us, the debut novel from Andrew Joseph White. It's a dystopian horror romance, and its rife with religious trauma. If that happ…

Hi Smooches, Meg here. While Liz is out on maternity leave, I've invited Benno, aka Mr. Meg, on to the podcast to share his expertise. If I'm a book person, he is a movie person. And his favorite kind of movie lately? The erotic thriller. I asked him to join me and educate me on the genre, and he spent actual hours writing paper notes and an outlin…

Hi Smooches! This is Meg, and I am continuing my solo hosting stint while Liz is on maternity leave with a special guest-visit from Sarah! You might recognize her from our episode on the amazing movie "Practical Magic." She's joining me to lend her slutty daddy expertise to this episode about season 2 of the Netflix series Shadow and Bone, based on…

Hi Smooches! We are happy to share that our newest cohost has entered the world! That's right, our Queen Liz has welcomed her princess and is now sailing away on maternity leave, and Meg is beginning a solo expedition. Batten down the fucking hatches, smooches! In this episode, my friend and colleague Teddy was kind enough to share their fanfiction…

Hi Smooches! On this episode, we’re recommending romances with mental health themes, whether the characters are explicitly diagnosed with a mental illness or living with a neurodivergence, or are coded as such. If you have mental health recs you’d like to share, we’d love to add them to our list! Let’s get into it. Where to find us Website: www.mak…

Hi Smooches! On this episode, we’re recapping a YA romance by one of our favorite authors, Talia Hibbert. It’s called “Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute,” and it’s a friends to enemies to lovers romance about two high school seniors who join the same highly competitive wilderness enrichment scholarship program. We also talk about how most conspir…

Hi Smooches! On today’s episode, which was actually recorded a few weeks before our most recent episode, I sat down with my Internet friend Kate to talk about Sierra Simone’s New Camelot series through the lens of Stucky fanfiction. Stucky of course is the ship of Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes in the MCU. It’s less of a reach than you might think t…

Hi friends! Today we have a little bit of a switch-up! We have our very own Liz (Elle Diaz) in the hot seat to talk about her debut novel, “How That Makes You Feel.” It’s going to knock your socks off when it drops on February 14. Joining me as my temporary co-host is author R.M. Virtues. So listen in as we discuss “How That Makes You Feel,” how it…

Hi Smooches! On this episode, we had the pleasure of talking with author Emma Barry about her book “Chick Magnet,” which comes out January 24th. It’s about a social media influencer who raises backyard chickens, and the grumpy small-town vet who has been hate-watching her content long before she moved into town. Meg and I both loved this book, and …

Hi Smooches! It’s the last episode of 2022. Was it a delightful or dud year for you? Are we going into 2023 excited or terrified? We’re hoping it’ll be a fantastic year for you, but first let’s finish things off with some latkes. We’re recapping Hallmark’s “Hanukkah on Rye” with author Ieshia Wiedlin. Big spoiler alert: It’s “You’ve Got Mail” with …

Hi friends! Slight delay due to holiday hecticness: Our recap of "Hanukkah on Rye" with author Ieshia Wiedlin will be out tomorrow, 12/28. Thanks for your patience. Air kisses!

Hi Smooches! 2022 is almost out the door, so we’re doing our podcast version of Wrapped. We’re going to reveal our most-read trope, shout out our favorite (and your favorite) episodes, and reminisce about memorable quotes in a game of Who Said It? On the subject of the inspiration for this episode, we do get our own Spotify Wrapped for the podcast.…

Hi Smooches! Today we’re recapping another Netflix Christmas movie, “The Noel Diary.” Despite some truly baffling story choices, this was an interesting film. It’s about a famous writer who returns to his childhood home after his mother’s death, and meets a woman who seeks answers to her past linked to his family. Spoilers ahead. Where to find usWe…

Hi Smooches! Today we’re recapping “Kiss Her Once for Me” by Alison Cochrun. This book is a sapphic Christmas second chance romance with a fake engagement to the love interest’s brother. It sounds complicated, and it is. It’s the perfect holiday read for you if you loved the movie “Dan In Real Life,” if you wanted Kristen Stewart and Aubrey Plaza t…

Hi Smooches! On this episode, we welcome back author Courtney Clark Michaels to recap Lindsay Lohan’s triumphant return in “Falling for Christmas.” It checks all the Netflix Christmas cinematic universe boxes, with an amnesia plot and a rugged outdoorsman love interest thrown in (and we’re actually not talking about the guy Lindsay’s character fall…

Hi Smooches! We’re doing our part for capitalism by giving you the best bookish, romance-inspired and Smooch-tailored gift guide we could come up with for the holidays. There are romance novels. There’s a cookbook. There’s tech. There’s tarot. There are craft projects. There is money flying out of your wallet and buying the love and devotion of the…

Hi Smooches! I am so nervous to upload this episode, because I’m afraid that I hate something a lot of you love. Meg and I recap the classic romantic comedy “You’ve Got Mail,” and it made me mad. If you love this movie, please, forgive us. We still love YOU!Where to find usWebsite: www.makeoutalreadypod.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/makeo…

Hi Smooches! We’re getting the other side of the story in that whole Romeo and Juliet drama. We’re recapping the Hulu original “Rosaline.” Shakespeare was definitely a messy bitch, and we think he’d approve of this classic/modern mash-up. Spoilers ahead. Where to find us Website: www.makeoutalreadypod.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/makeou…

Hi Smooches! Today we have a special guest, Katie, who recommended the game Arcade Spirits to us, about the visual novel and other romance-themed games. If you played The Sims just to get them to “woo-hoo!” your wallet might feel lighter after this episode. We talk console games, freemium phone games, and choose-your-own-adventure books. And Meg gi…

All good things must come to an end, including spooky season. But we are ending this one with a bang — in the mirror, with a sexy vampire who doesn’t have a reflection. We’re recapping “Blood Moon” by Jillian Graves. It’s a short little novella full of business misunderstandings, spelled cocktails, badass witches and strange creatures. Spoilers ahe…

Hi Smooches! On this episode, we get something Meg and I have been begging for: a monster romance where a heroine is the monster! Our horror hoe Deanna is back to recap the 2014 movie “Spring” starring Nadia Hilker and Lou Taylor Pucci. I read full spoilers before watching this movie because that’s the only way I can engage with horror movies, and …

Hi Smooches! For our next spooky season recap, we’re covering “The Dark King” by Gina L. Maxwell. It’s the first in a new urban fantasy series called “Deviant Kings” about fae royalty ruling Las Vegas. Content warning that this book includes one BDSM scene (among several scenes) that’s dubious consent. We also invite you to prepare for our next rec…

Hi Smooches! We’re back and we’re kicking off spooky season with an in-depth analysis of “Don’t Worry Darling.” We go to some dark corners of the Internet to learn about cultural themes we spotted in the movie, including alpha males and tradwives. We discuss the successes and failures of the movie in getting its message across, and conclude that th…