Amy & Book Club

For the final week of October, we're putting our books aside to discuss horror movies: our favourite (and not so favourite) horror films, the return of campy monster horror, future horror movie trends, potentially controversial opinions about the movies Weapons, and more!   LINKS: Follow Mik & Onj on IG: @mikandonj Watch the full episode on YouTube: @AmyAndBookclub Follow the Amy & Podcast on IG: @amyandbookclub  Join the Amy & Bookclub: Amy & Bookclub  Follow Amy Matthews on IG: @amymatthewsauthor  Follow Amy Barry on IG: @amybarryauthor Our theme music is by Mass Wisteria. Stream their single "Same Old" here.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Join the podcast team and get spooky as we sit down to chat about our horror BOTM, Feast While You Can by Mikaella Clements & Onjuli Datta. Feast While You Can is a (extremely delicious) strange and sexy novel of queer love in a small town, in which the monster that possesses Angelina Sicco can only be repelled by the touch of her childhood crush, sternly handsome Jagvi … oh no 😔    Follow Mik & Onj on IG: @mikandonj Watch the full episode on YouTube: @AmyAndBookclub Follow the Amy & Podcast on IG: @amyandbookclub  Join the Amy & Bookclub: Amy & Bookclub  Follow Amy Matthews on IG: @amymatthewsauthor  Follow Amy Barry on IG: @amybarryauthor Our theme music is by Mass Wisteria. Stream their single "Same Old" here.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, we dive straight into talking about one of our favourite reads this year, and get the chance to interview married couple and our BotM authors, Mikaella Clements and Onjuli Datta. We talk about what it's like to write possession, how horror and romance intertwine, the consumption of the dreaded Pit Monster, and--of course--what's behind Jagvi and Angelina's tender, thorny path towards each other. 🎃    Our book of the month is Feast While You Can. Read along with us and tune in to the live book club on October 23! Follow Mik & Onj on IG: @mikandonj Watch the full episode on YouTube: @AmyAndBookclub Follow the Amy & Podcast on IG: @amyandbookclub  Join the Amy & Bookclub: Amy & Bookclub  Follow Amy Matthews on IG: @amymatthewsauthor  Follow Amy Barry on IG: @amybarryauthor Our theme music is by Mass Wisteria. Stream their single "Same Old" here.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Strap in for more horror talk this week because Amy & Harry and Millie are joined by horror connoisseur Riley Jones to talk all things horrormance (horror/romance). Is paranormal fiction just a subgenre of horror? Does horror actually have to be scary? Are you allowed to kill the queer characters in your horrormance? All these questions and more will be answered. Our book of the month is Feast While You Can. Read along with us and tune in to our interview with the authors on October 16 followed by the live book club on October 23! Follow Riley on IG: @rileyblufield  Watch the full episode on YouTube: @AmyAndBookclub Follow the Amy & Podcast on IG: @amyandbookclub  Join the Amy & Bookclub: Amy & Bookclub  Follow Amy Matthews on IG: @amymatthewsauthor  Follow Amy Barry on IG: @amybarryauthor Our theme music is by Mass Wisteria. Stream their single "Same Old" here.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Amy & Abby are joined by writers and experts Tabby Knight and Oscar Sparkes to kick off our horror-themed October (because what else would we be doing this month?!). What to expect from this spooky episode: defining genres, the origins of liminal horror, mad scientists, fears, and a watch- or read-list the length of a Stephen King novel. Our book of the month is Feast While You Can. Read along with us and tune in to our interview of the authors on October 16 followed by the live book club on October 23! Follow Tabby on IG: @tknightacademic  Follow Oscar on Letterboxd: https://boxd.it/1OC3n Follow Oscar on Goodreads: https://goodreads.com/oscarsparkes  Watch the full episode on YouTube: @AmyAndBookclub Follow the Amy & Podcast on IG: @amyandbookclub  Join the Amy & Bookclub: Amy & Bookclub  Follow Amy Matthews on IG: @amymatthewsauthor  Follow Amy Barry on IG: @amybarryauthor Our theme music is by Mass Wisteria. Stream their single "Same Old" here.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hi Booklovers! This week, Amy & the podcast team sit down to chat about Fiona Wright's 'The World Was Whole', a gorgeous essay collection about our bodies, homes and shelter and how we might navigate the world and our place within it. Join us to chat about what home means to us, the comfort of everyday habits, slowing down to appreciate the mundane, why more poets should write prose, and more.   LINKS Find Fiona Wright here: fionawright.net Watch the full episode on YouTube: @AmyAndBookclub Follow the Amy & Podcast on IG: @amyandbookclub Join the Amy & Bookclub: Amy & Bookclub Follow Amy Matthews on IG: @amymatthewsauthor Follow Amy Barry on IG: @amybarryauthor Our theme music is by Mass Wisteria. Stream their single "Same Old" here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we're stepping away from our books and onto the internet (oh no) as Amy, Justina & Abby chat to life writing expert Dr. Emma Maguire about online girlhood cultures and digital life writing. Join us as we discuss self representation online, 'authenticity' on social media, the commodification of the self and 'content' creation, the voices of women in a space labelled for 'girls', and the personal act of creating a zine. And, of course, Amy asks the most pressing question: can self-insert fanfiction be classified as life writing? Our Book of the Month is The World Was Whole by Fiona Wright! Grab a copy of the book, read along and join us at the end of the month for our live book club!   MENTIONS 📚 BOOKS: The Human Condition by Hannah Arendt ✏️ AUTHORS: Rachel Cusk; Vidgis Hjorth; Deborah Levy; Helen Garner; Roxanne Gay; Bianca Martin 📺 TV: Too Much (2025—)   LINKS Follow Emma Maguire on IG: @emmamaguire__ Find Emma's Publications here: emmamaguire.com Watch the full episode on YouTube: @AmyAndBookclub Follow the Amy & Podcast on IG: @amyandbookclub Join the Amy & Bookclub: Amy & Bookclub Follow Amy Matthews on IG: @amymatthewsauthor Follow Amy Barry on IG: @amybarryauthor Our theme music is by Mass Wisteria. Stream their single "Same Old" here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week life writing month takes an experimental turn as Amy, Payton & Justina chat to Olivia De Zilva about her debut genre-defying book Plastic Budgie, out now with Pink Shorts Press. Join us as we dive into the messy intersections of memory, nostalgia, fact and fiction, and we wax poetic about the unapologetically cringey kitsch of Adelaide and our love of novelty processed meats. Our Book of the Month is The World Was Whole by Fiona Wright! Grab a copy of the book, read along and join us at the end of the month for our live book club!   MENTIONS 📚 BOOKS: Plastic Budgie by Olivia De Zilva; Theory and Practice by Michelle de Krester; Peripathetic by Cher Tan; Twilight by Stephanie Meyer; Hush Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick; Looking for Alibrandi by Melina Marchetta; Girls Out Loud by Jacqueline Wilson; The Story of Tracy Beaker by Jacqueline Wilson; Eggshell by Olivia De Zilva 🎬 FILM: Grease (1978); Xanadu (1980); Call Me By Your Name (2017) 📺 TV: The Simpson (1989–); Kath & Kim (2002–2007); Glee (2009–2015); Stranger Things (2016–)   LINKS Get Plastic Budgie here and pre-order Eggshell here Follow Olivia De Zilva on IG: @oliviadezilva Follow Opinionated on IG: @opinionatedclub Watch the full episode on YouTube: @AmyAndBookclub Follow the Amy & Podcast on IG: @amyandbookclub Join the Amy & Bookclub: Amy & Bookclub Follow Amy Matthews on IG: @amymatthewsauthor Follow Amy Barry on IG: @amybarryauthor Our theme music is by Mass Wisteria. Stream their single "Same Old" here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This month we're talking about life writing.... including what on earth that means. Amy & series regulars Justina, Payton, and Millie may not be experts, but it turns out they've consumed a lot more of the genre than they thought. Join them as they talk about the myriad types of life writing, how scary it is to write about yourself, and why the patriarchy is at it again. Our Book of the Month is The World Was Whole by Fiona Wright! Grab a copy of the book, read along and join us at the end of the month for our live book club! LINKS Watch the full episode on YouTube: @AmyAndBookclub Follow the Amy & Podcast on IG: @amyandbookclub Join the Amy & Bookclub: Amy & Bookclub Follow Amy Matthews on IG: @amymatthewsauthor Follow Amy Barry on IG: @amybarryauthor Our theme music is by Mass Wisteria. Stream their single "Same Old" here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Amy & we're thrilled to be interviewing romance author and academic, Jodi McAlister, about her career and latest romance novel, An Academic Affair !! Join us as we ask Jodi all about writing romance fiction as an academic from her latest research on bonkbusters and erotic audio, to creating a believable rivals to lovers plot against the backdrop of a 'brutal neoliberal institution that will never love you back' (not to mention dreaming about the perfect wine pairings). Our Book of the Month is An Academic Affair by Jodi McAlister! Grab a copy of the book, read along and join us at the end of the month for our live book club! LINKS Find the TEXT special issue here: Trope Actually - Popular Romance Find Jodi here: @jodimcalister Watch the full episode on YouTube: @AmyAndPodcast Follow the Amy & Podcast on IG: @amyandpodcast Join the Amy & Bookclub: Amy & Bookclub Follow Amy Matthews on IG: @amymatthewsauthor Follow Amy Barry on IG: @amybarryauthor Our theme music is by Mass Wisteria. Stream their single "Same Old" here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome back to Academia Month! This week, we talk through two fascinating academic articles, 'The Australian Convict Prostitute Romance', and 'Conflict and Colonialism in 21st Century Romantic Historical Fiction: Repairing the Past, Repurposing History' by one of our podcast favourites, Professor Hsu-Ming Teo, with a shoutout to Dr Paloma Fresno-Calleja too! Prepare for a raucous discussion, a mysterious disappearance by our very own Abby Guy, and multiple moments where we get so entangled in our discussion that we cut each other off. Mentions: The Convict Wives Trilogy by Lena Dowling Damned Whores And Gods police by Anne Summers A Cargo of Women by Babbette Smith Academic Rivals by Jodi McAlister TEXT Journal by Scholastic Romance Writers Australia Articles: The Australian Convict Prostitute Romance Narrating Social and Sexual Justice for “Damned Whores” by Hsu-Ming Teo. Conflict and Colonialism in 21st Century Romantic Historical Fiction: Repairing the Past, Repurposing History by Hsu-Ming Teo and Paloma Fresno-Calleja  Our theme music is by Mass Wisteria. Stream their single SAME OLD here: https://tr.ee/Mn6oTQ2AOW Our Book of the Month is An Academic Affair by Jodi McAlister! Grab a copy of the book, read along and join us at the end of the month for our live book club! LINKS Find the TEXT special issue here: Trope Actually - Popular Romance Watch the full episode on YouTube: @AmyAndPodcast Follow the Amy & Podcast on IG: @amyandpodcast Join the Amy & Bookclub: Amy & Bookclub Follow Amy Matthews on IG: @amymatthewsauthor Follow Amy Barry on IG: @amybarryauthor Our theme music is by Mass Wisteria. Stream their single "Same Old" here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to Academia Month, where the vibes are casual but the thoughts are deep 🧠. In this episode, Amy is joined by Justina, Millie, and special return guestie Kathleen Stanley to talk all things academia. Tune in to hear all about their TEXT special issue, how being an academic is both scary and fun, and why you don't have to justify being a romance researcher anymore! Our Book of the Month is An Academic Affair by Jodi McAlister! Grab a copy of the book, read along and join us at the end of the month for our live book club! Our Book of the Month is An Academic Affair by Jodi McAlister! Grab a copy of the book, read along and join us at the end of the month for our live book club! LINKS Find the TEXT special issue here: Trope Actually - Popular Romance Find Kathleen Stanley on IG: @decktheshelves Watch the full episode on YouTube: @AmyAndPodcast Follow the Amy & Podcast on IG: @amyandpodcast Join the Amy & Bookclub: Amy & Bookclub Follow Amy Matthews on IG: @amymatthewsauthor Follow Amy Barry on IG: @amybarryauthor Our theme music is by Mass Wisteria. Stream their single "Same Old" here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Not ready to say goodbye to Western month yet? Good! Neither are we! It's the last week of our cast takeover and we’re lucky enough to have a cheeky fifth Thursday – which means it's time for Amy & After Dark! These are the late-night episodes where we get cosy and yap about all the things that don't fit into our regular podcast schedule. At the behest of Amy, our holidaying host, we tucked into some popcorn and s'mores with all the table manners of a band of backwoodsmen and sat down to watch Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. This 1954 technicolour Western (directed by Stanley Donen, with music and lyrics by Gene de Paul and Johnny Mercer, and starring Howard Keel, Jane Powell and, crucially, Julie Newmar as our dear Dorcas) is an Academy Award–winning smash hit from the golden age of Hollywood studio musicals. For some of us, it's a classic comfort watch and for others it was a brand new experience but, bless our beautiful hides, boy do we have a lot to say about it! In this episode we chat about everything from barn raising dance battles, to the cultural and political climate of 1950s USA, to the colonial impulses at the heart of Hollywood’s fascination with Ancient Rome.   MENTIONS 🎬 FILM: Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954); Raise Your Voice (2004); High School Musical (2006); Braveheart (1995) 🎭 THEATRE: Seussical the Musical; The Book of Mormon; Mamma Mia!; Cats; Stomp; Hadestown; Six 📺 TELEVISION: Ru Paul’s Drag Race/“The Rusical” 📚 LITERATURE: “The Sobbin’ Women”, Stephen Vincent Benét; Parallel Lives, “Life of Romulus”, Plutarch; Ab Urbe Condita, Titus Livy; Ars Amatoria, Ovid 🎓 SCHOLARSHIP: “Two Hundred Years of Changes to Native Peoples of Western Oregon”, David Lewis; “The Australian Convict Prostitute Romance: Narrating Social and Sexual Justice for ‘Damned Whores’”, Hsu-Ming Teo; “Ancient Allusions and Modern Anxieties in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954)”, Christopher M. McDonough; “Livy’s Sabine Women and the Ideal of Concordia”, Robert Brown; “Hunks, History, and Homophobia: Masculinity and Politics in ‘Braveheart’ and ‘Edward II’”, Sid Ray; 100 Film Musicals, Douglas Pye & Jim Hilliery 🏛️: ON-CALL CLASSICIST/ARTIST: Gemma Neall / 🎨 IG: @gememberthat   LINKS Our BOTM is Seven Brides for Beau McBride by Amy Barry Watch the Live Bookclub on YouTube: @AmyAndPodcast Follow the Amy & Podcast on IG: @amyandpodcast Join the Amy & Bookclub: Amy & Bookclub Follow Amy Matthews on IG: @amymatthewsauthor Follow Amy Barry on IG: @amybarryauthor Our theme music is by Mass Wisteria. Stream their single "Same Old" here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our amazing host is off galavanting in the mountains and in her absence we read Amy Barry's latest release, Seven Brides for Beau Mcbride. ⋆˖°.𖤓𓄀🂾𐚁𓃗.°˖⋆ Beau Mcbride might just be Amy Barry's most swoon-worthy cowboy yet — and we are so ready to catch the next train to Montana. Join us as we discuss why we (genuinely) love these books, and just how easily the Mcbride siblings have lassoed our hearts. We talk all things character, setting, plot, Junebug antics, representations of diverse masculinities, the relationships between women on the page, and just how perfect Ellie is for Beau.  Nobody does historical western romance like Amy Barry (no brown-nosing found here).  If you loved our conversation (and Amy) follow the link to secure your copy !!   LINKS Watch the full episode on YouTube: @AmyAndPodcast Follow the Amy & Podcast on IG: @amyandpodcast Join the Amy & Bookclub: Amy & Bookclub Follow Amy Matthews on IG: @amymatthewsauthor Follow Amy Barry on IG: @amybarryauthor Our theme music is by Mass Wisteria. Stream their single "Same Old" here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

SPOILER ALERT! Cast takeover month continues as Abby, Harry, and Payton interrogate— I mean interview bestselling author Amy Barry about her latest release and our July book club pick, Seven Brides for Beau McBride! Learn what Harry REALLY thinks about this book, why Abby fantasises about getting stuck on fences, and whether or not Payton is a brown-noser, this week on Amy &. Mentions: The McBrides of Montana by Amy Barry Frontiers of the Heart by Tess Lesue Someone Else’s Bucket List by Amy Matthews 'Entangled: The Exegetical Process of a Romance Author' by Amy Matthews ‘The Wicked Problem’ developed by Horst Rittel and Melvin Webber in the 1973 article, ‘Dilemmas in a General Theory of Planning’. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Put on your cowboy boots and grab a partner for the square dance, because we ain't finished talkin' cowboys just yet! ⋆˖°.𖤓𓄀🂾𐚁𓃗.°˖⋆ In this episode we are joined by writer, social media manager, cowboy enthusiast and boot scootin' professional, Bee Saint James, as well as academic and Christmas romance (occasionally on a ranch) expert Kathleen Stanley, to talk all things contemporary cowboy romance novels. Should we bring back the dance social? Which parts of the wild west do contemporary cowboy romances reinscribe? How much of the dirty reality of farming does the contemporary romance ignore? And we are still stuck on the most important question: what types of farming are the sexiest?  Our Book of the Month for July is Seven Brides for Beau McBride by Amy Barry! Grab a copy of the book, read along and join us at the end of the month for our live book club!   LINKS Follow Bee Saint James on IG: @beesaintjames Find more from Bee (or fancy an evening of boot scootin'?) here. Follow Kathleen Stanley on IG: @decktheshelves Watch the full episode on YouTube: @AmyAndPodcast Follow the Amy & Podcast on IG: @amyandpodcast Join the Amy & Bookclub: Amy & Bookclub Follow Amy Matthews on IG: @amymatthewsauthor Follow Amy Barry on IG: @amybarryauthor Our theme music is by Mass Wisteria. Stream their single "Same Old" here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Howdy! Amy is off on holiday so we (the collective & of AMY &) have taken this opportunity to do a sneaky takeover of the pod 😈 Welcome to WESTERN MONTH! Yee, and I cannot stress this enough, haw 🤠 🌄🐎🌾🐄🌵 We’re keen as a tin of hot beans to deep dive into all things both country and western, from cowboy heroes to spirited heroines, rugged outlaws to lonesome ranchers, the wild mountains of Montana to small desert towns that, try as we might to huddle close together, just can’t quite seem to fit the two of us. In this episode we’ll be asking the big questions: Why are westerns so hot right now? What is it about the rough masculinity of cowboys that’s so attractive to readers? What makes a good heroine and why is the answer “spunk”? How can we navigate the fantasy of fictional frontier life with the violent reality of settler colonialism? And of course, what’s the sexiest kind of farming? Our Book of the Month for July is Seven Brides for Beau McBride by Amy Barry! Grab a copy of the book, read along and join us at the end of the month for our live book club!   LINKS Watch the full episode on YouTube: @AmyAndPodcast Follow the Amy & Podcast on IG: @amyandpodcast Join the Amy & Bookclub: Amy & Bookclub Follow Amy Matthews on IG: @amymatthewsauthor Follow Amy Barry on IG: @amybarryauthor Our theme music is by Mass Wisteria. Stream their single "Same Old" here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hi Booklovers! This week, Amy & the podcast team sat down to chat about Melanie Saward's novel, Love Unleashed, for Pride Month! We discuss the boundaries of genre, bisexual representation, the sheer quantity of layers and depth that Melanie has weaved into this narrative, relationships and love, and the importance of community. Melanie Saward is a proud Bigambul and Wakka Wakka woman. She is a writer, editor, and university lecturer based in Tulmur (Ipswich), Queensland. Her debut novel Burn was published by Affirm Press in September 2023 and she’s also had work published in the literary journals Griffith Review, Meanjin, Overland, Kill Your Darlings, and has fiction published in the anthologies Flock: First Nations Stories Then and Now, and New Australian Fiction. Her first romantic comedy novel, Love Unleashed, was published by Penguin Random House in 2024.   Follow Melanie on IG: @littleredwrites Check out more from Melanie here: littleredwrites.com.au Follow the Amy & Podcast on IG: @amyandpodcast Check out our YouTube for video content: AmyAndPodcast Follow Amy Matthews on IG: @amymatthewsauthor Follow Amy Barry on IG: @amybarryauthor See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this third week of Pride month, Amy & Justina and Harry interview THE Patrick Lenton, author of In Spite of You, who joins us for a wildly honest chat about queerness, the chaos of writing, and the unexpected beauty of Gimli and Legolas. We dive into craft, community, and smile with equal delight about the splendour of the romance community! Patrick Lenton is a journalist and writer who lives in Melbourne. He is an amazing comedy writer and a regular arts and culture commentator in the media, having appeared on The Project, ABC's The Mix, ABC Breakfast, and more. His independent publication, Nonsense, covers comedy, queer news and culture, and his debut rom-com novel, In Spite of You, releases this year (2025).   LINKS Pre-order your copy of In Spite of You here. Find Patrick Lenton on instagram: @patrick_lenton . . . and his queer culture and comedy newsletter, Nonsense, here.   Watch the full episode on YouTube: @AmyAndPodcast Follow the Amy & Podcast on IG: @amyandpodcast Join the Amy & Bookclub: Amy & Bookclub Follow Amy Matthews on IG: @amymatthewsauthor Follow Amy Barry on IG: @amybarryauthor Our theme music is by Mass Wisteria. Stream their single "Same Old" here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this second week of Pride month, Amy & Justina, Payton, and Millie try to talk broader queer fiction, get distracted by queer romance again, but ultimately persevere to talk first queer classics, genre fiction with incidental queers, and their hopes for future queer fiction.   LINKS Watch the full episode on YouTube: @AmyAndPodcast Follow the Amy & Podcast on IG: @amyandpodcast Join the Amy & Bookclub: Amy & Bookclub Follow Amy Matthews on IG: @amymatthewsauthor Follow Amy Barry on IG: @amybarryauthor Our theme music is by Mass Wisteria. Stream their single "Same Old" here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.