She Wore Black

Today, is my first crossover podcast with podcaster and author, Sarah Wendell, from Smart Bitches, Trashy Books. I’ve listened to her romance book podcast for years so I am thrilled to have this podcasting icon on my show. We talk about podcasting, deep dive into genre and the metaphorical meaning of various tropes, and she has some spooky romance recs. I will link to the books in show notes using...

Today, I’ve invited friend and author, Desiree M. Niccoli to do a buddy read with me. We discuss the book, “The Ghost Bride,” by Yangsze Choo, compare the novel to the Netflix adaptation, and share our favorite sexy smooch moments of the book. If you want to read “The Ghost Bride” after all of our squeeing, you can order your copy using my bookshop.org link to support the show, as well as independ...

Today, I’ve invited author, Riley Sager to talk about his book, “The House Across the Lake,” a mystery novel that explores Hitchcockian voyeurism with an unreliable narrator, and includes a classic Sager twist you don’t see coming. I want to issue a trigger warning for both the book and the show, since the main character is an alcoholic. We discuss this at 14 minutes and 20 seconds into the episod...

Today I interview mystery author, Megan Collins. We talk about her most recent book, “The Family Plot,” a novel I had a lot of fun reading and have been sharing with all my friends. It has a spooky house, detailed and gruesome dioramas, and a family obsessed with True Crime. You can buy “The Family Plot” using my bookshop.org link to support the show, as well as independent bookstores nationwide....

This episode is the second part of my interview with author and editor, Alex Woodroe, who is one of the geniuses behind the indie horror treasure that is Tenebrous Press, so it dives right into the middle of our previous conversation. We look at the book industry from the retail and library side, and she actually interviews me with questions from other writers for most of this one. We focus on how...

Today’s episode is an impromptu interview with V. Castro about a Uvalde, Texas charity book sale she and Cynthia Pelayo are doing with their anthology of Latinx horror writers, called “Latinx Screams.” Cynthia is also working on another anthology that will be released in October for the same purpose, so stay tuned for their social media for that info. I do want to make a correction in my show. I a...

Today, I’ve invited author and editor, Alex Woodroe, who is one of the geniuses behind the indie horror treasure that is Tenebrous Press. We talk about “In Somnio,” their collection of modern gothic short stories, as well as the innovative place they have carved out as a young publisher. I’ve divided this episode into two parts, so transitions aren’t quite the same as in a normal show. The second...

Today, I’ve invited author, LP Hernandez, who I was lucky enough to meet at Ghoulish Book Festival in San Antonio prior to our recording. We talk about his upcoming novella, “Stargazers,” as well as his short story collection, “The Rat King,” which you can buy using my bookshop.org link to support the show, as well as independent bookstores nationwide. That’s at bookshop.org/shop/sheworeblack. You...

CW: incest and pedophelia in Anne Rice's work is discussed Today, I’ve invited horror author, Josh Malerman, to talk about Anne Rice. He has been reading through her books and wanted to chat about both her vampire and witch series. I was more than happy to oblige. We talk about her craft and world building, as well as the impact she had on horror, but we also take an honest look at some of her pro...

Today, I’ve invited author, Carolyne Topdjian, to talk about her fun and spooky gothic novel, “The Hitman’s Daughter.” We squee over the parts that sizzle, and talk about the joy of indulging gothic's melodrama. There are family secrets, a haunted hotel, a surprising amount of action, and a slightly ambiguous ending that leaves us eagerly awaiting book 2! What a good time! You can find "The Hitman...

Today, I’ve invited author, V. Castro to talk about Erotic Horror and the merging of genre. We examine the definitions of Erotica and how it differs from Erotic Horror, discuss the significance of the sub-genre in the context of a broader conversation about consent and agency over our bodies and sexual identity. We use Castro's stories for this discussion and she shares what we can look forward to...

Today, I’ve invited author, Alma Katsu to talk about her book, “The Fervor,” her most recent historical horror novel, this time set in a Japanese internment camp during WWII. You can pre-order your copy of “The Fervor” using my bookshop.org link to support the show, as well as independent bookstores nationwide. That’s at bookshop.org/shop/sheworeblack. I also want to add that you can help out the...

Today, I’ve invited author, Kris Waldherr to talk about Mary Shelley, the beloved gothic icon who penned Frankenstein as a teenager and whose life was truly stranger than fiction. Kris has a book coming out this fall, called “Unnatural Creatures,” which is about the women of Frankenstein, and she will be back for a deep dive into that novel later this year. If you want to support the podcast and t...

Today, I’ve invited librarian and anti-censorship activist, Carolyn Foote from FReadom Fighters, to talk about the state of book banning in America, especially in Texas, and what authors and readers can do to combat this. As a former librarian myself, this subject is important to me. You’ll hear how dire the situation is, tales of ridiculous things happening in school board meetings, and I share s...

Today, I’ve invited author, Isabel Canas, to talk about her book, “Hacienda,” a very gothic haunted house story that takes place in 1830s Mexico. You’ll be able to hear just how excited we both were about doing the show. I hope you enjoy our conversation about this book, Latinx representation, hot priests and how she came to write horror. You can pre-order your copy of “The Hacienda” using my book...

Today, I’ve invited author, Charish Reid to talk about her book, “I’ll Come Back for You,” a novel that is as scary as it is sexy. Two sisters inherit their grandmother's haunted B&B, and one sister invites a famous ghost hunting show to help purge the ghost while the other sister gets a second chance at romance with an old crush. Like I said, scary and sexy! It’s pretty obvious we had a great...

Today, I’ve invited the wonderful gothic authors Nicole Eigener and Beverly Lee to talk about their joint story, “Crimson is the Night.” Many of you know Nicole from her lush vampire novel, “Beguiled by Night,” and Beverly’s fans have followed her through her “Gabriel Davenport” vampire series as well as other novels. We talk about their shared project, some writers they adore, as well as finding...

Today, I’ve invited author of the very popular Lady Sherlock mystery series, Sherry Thomas. We talk about how she came to create a fresh adaptation of a beloved classic character and series, her roots as a romance author, and a bit about the craft of writing mystery. The 6th book in the series, titled “Miss Moriarty, I presume” is out now, and be on the lookout for the 7th book later this year. I...

Today, I’ve invited author and editor of dark speculative fiction, Alex Woodroe. Her writing and editing credits are too many to list in the intro, but I specifically wanted to talk to her today about her collaboration with Brigits Gate Press on their anthology, “A Quaint and Curious Volume of Gothic Tales.” We also talk about her experience as a writer from Romania and how that’s impacted her car...

Today, I’ve invited author Wendy Dalrymple back to the show for a Buddy Read on the popular gothic romance novel, “The Widow of Rose House” by Diana Biller. I wanted to round out the Valentine’s episodes with a closer look at a book known for being spooky as well as a proper romance. Since Wendy writes gothic romance, including the novella “The Ghost and Mr. Moore,” I thought she would be the perf...

On this episode, Book Riot contributing editor, PN Hinton, joins me to talk about Gothic Romance. We break down the differences between gothic and gothic romance, as well as offer recommendations, links to which can be found in show notes on our website.

It's February! She Wore Black is doing a few episodes that discuss the merging of gothic and horror with romance, starting with a discussion on the recent success of Monster Romance as a sub-genre of both. Desiree M. Niccoli has a vicious mermaid novel out this fall with City Owl Press, titled "Called to the Deep," and a novella, "Given to the Ghoul" out now. Thanks for listening!

Join me as I talk to debut gothic novelist, Paulette Kennedy. We talk about her book, "Parting the Veil," what we love about gothics, and what's coming from her later this year. Links will be in show notes to books and authors we discussed in the episode.

Listen as I talk to PJ Hoover about her crossover from middle grade and YA fantasy to adult horror with her short stories in the Castle of Horror anthologies, including their most recent collection she edited on Femme Fatales. Links to the books can be found in show notes on our website.

Listen as I interview Mimi Matthews about her gripping gothic novel, "John Eyre." We discuss her switch from romance to gothic, how she used her skills as a historical romance writer to craft a dark and brooding story that is a nod to both "Jane Eyre" and "Dracula," and all the things we love about the gothic genre. We also discuss her new novel, "The Siren of Sussex."