We're crossing off a classic romance novel structure this week -- the list! Whether life changing to-do lists, bucket lists, or lists for kinky exploration, these romances take characters and readers on remarkable rides, reminding us all that sometimes it really does pay to be organized.

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Our next read along is Rachel Reid's Heated Rivalry, which you can get in print, ebook, audiobook or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited. Find it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books or wherever you get your books.

The Books

• Nine Rules to Break when Romancing a Rake by Sarah MacLean
• Get A Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert
• The Last Days of Lilah Goodluck by Kylie Scott
• Wicked Nights with a Lover by Sophie Jordan
• What Heals Us by Maggie Gates
• The Ending I Want by Samantha Towle
• Camera Chemistry by Chelsea Curto
• 30 Days and 30 Nights by Christine d’Abo
• The Seal’s Rebel Librarian by Anne Calhoun
• How to Fail at Flirting by Denise Williams
• Rockaway Bride by Pippa Grant
• Mr. Swoony by Piper Rayne
• Three Little Mistakes by Nikki Sloan
• All Played Out by Cora Carmack

Show Notes

• We’re excited about these author and listener created lists at the Fated Mates Collections Department. And in case you want to see the one from Competitive Yam about Skinny dipping, here it is.
• Kelsey Plum’s cigar photos went viral and now she models for a cigar company. We love this for her.
• The Bucket List (2007) stars two terminally ill men, Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson. They are out checking items off their list before the “kick the bucket.”  
• We’ve done deep dives of several of the books on this episode: Nine Rules, Chloe Brown, and Three Little Mistakes.

The Sponsors

• 1001 Dark Nights, publishers of Vows & Veils: A Celebration of Love, available in print or ebook, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.
• Elizabeth Bright, author of Wild, Wild Cowboy, available in print, or ebook, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.
• Rachel Griffiths, author of The Trouble with Anna, available in print, ebook, audio, from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books or wherever you get your books.
• Andrea Jenelle, author of Spine of Steel, available in print or ebook, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.

The Rest

• For even more info about this episode, and to explore everything Fated Mates has to offer, visit: https://fatedmates.net/episodes/2025/4/7/0730-romances-with-a-bucket-list
• If you wish you had six more days in a week of people talking about romance, may we suggest joining our Patreon? Aside from an additional episode every month you get access to our Discord, where other romance readers are talking about books they love (and many other things!) all the time. It’s so fun! Learn more about the Patreon and go join those cool people who love romance as much as you do at patreon.com/fatedmates.
• Beyond your favorite podcast app, you can find us on Instagram, Threads, Blue Sky, Tumblr, and probably some other places, too, if you look hard enough.
• If you've never listened to our Stop Book Banning episode, there's no better time than now.