We’re recapping all kinds of stuff this week, and today: our top five podcast episodes from 2024!
Looking at the year overall, these are the top five most listened to Smart Podcast, Trashy Books episodes of the year – and thank you to everyone who listened, recommended, shared, and posted about the show. Special thanks to all our Patreon community members, who helped shape this season and keep the show going each week!
Honorable Mention
Sarah: I brought on romance scholar and The Bachelor aficionado Dr. Jodi McAlister, and we had a lot of fun on 626. The Bachelor and Romance with Dr. Jodi McAlister.
Top Five
5. 608. Women as Shields and Scapegoats: Talking Kate Middleton with Melissa Blue (March 29)
Mel Blue was my guest when we discussed Spare – which has become one of my most listened-to episodes – so I asked her back to talk about the narratives of PR, why the weird stories around Kate Middleton grabbed attention worldwide, and why so many people were and are paying attention.
On one level it’s a story that originated in gossip about rich and powerful people in an archaic power structure being weird. But it’s also a story of misinformation, propaganda, and a complicit media system, and we deal with that over here in the US, too.
4. 614. Dollar Princesses and Marriages of Convenience with Harper St. George (May 10)
Harper St. George joins me to talk about The Stranger I Wed and the dollar princesses of the Gilded Age. We talk about transactional marriages, the power dynamics of marriages of convenience – and Harper has a few recommendations of her favorites!
3. 602. Foundations of Fantasy Romance with Jennifer L. Armentrout (February 16)
Jennifer L. Armentrout joins me to talk about the books she considers the foundation of her fantasy romance reading, and what classical historical romances she adores. Her newest book, Visions of Flesh and Blood is out next week, so we’re looking forward, and back – and way, way back in the past.
We talk about a series she’s paused, and why, and what it means to update a book that doesn’t ‘age well.’
2. 604. Dessert Projects, Romantasy, and Whimsy with Katee Robert (March 1)
Katee Robert joins me to talk about her many releases this year, about marketing through Kickstarter and direct-to-reader options like Patreon, and about the foundational books in fantasy and romance that got her started.
We also talk about current issues, like Findaway Voices and Spotify’s changes to the terms of service for authors.
And, the number one, most popular episode of 2024?
1. 600. Life is Too Short to Have Sex You Don’t Like, with Emily Nagoski (February 2)
It’s our 600th episode!! Emily Nagoski is back to talk about her new book Come Together: The Science (and Art!) of Creating Lasting Sexual Connections.
We talk about the genesis for this book, which is in part that writing a book is stressful and hard, and while writing Come As You Are, Emily noticed that her own interest in sex was missing. By diving headlong into all the research, she realized that people who sustain lasting sexual connections have a few major things in common, which is what this book is all about.
What do you think of the top five? What episodes were your favorites this year? Let us know what you’d like to see next year!
