This week, we're talking about romance's most common family: the dysfunctional one! Sarah wrote a book about one, so we're thinking about what makes them special to romance, and what sets the romantic dysfunctional family apart from the ones that live outside of the genre. Jen has five categories. There's a game involved. You can play along at home!

If you love this one, you can listen to our Daddy Issues (not the fun kind) episode with C. Travis Rice. And if you just want to listen to an episode about Daddies (the fun kind), we've got you.

Sarah's book, These Summer Storms is out in three weeks and she is going on tour! What's more, there is a real deal Fated Mates LIVE planned for July 8th in St. Louis, MO! Get tickets to any of these events (Jen will be at a bunch of them, and other pod friends will be popping up along the way) at sarahmaclean.net/tour! If you can't make the tour, you can preorder These Summer Storms signed with a special romance dust jacket from The Ripped Bodice.

If you want more Fated Mates in your life, please join our Patreon, which comes with an extremely busy and fun Discord community! Join other magnificent firebirds to hang out, talk romance, and be cool together in a private group full of excellent people. Learn more at patreon.com.

The Books

• The Filthy Rich Americans series by Nikki Sloan 
• The Uptown Girls Series by Joanna Shupe
• The Dukes in Disguise Series by Louisa Darling
• American Royalty by Tracey Livesay
• Along Came Amor by Alexis Daria 
• One and Only by Jenny Holiday
• The Billionaire’s Bargain by Naima Simone
• Lead by Kylie Scott
• After Hours on Milagro Street by Angelina M. Lopez
• Dark Needs at Night’s Edge by Kresley Cole
• The Player by Kresley Cole
• Preferential Treatment by Heather Guerre
• Darkest Sins and Sweet Prison by Neva Altaj
• The Dangerous Royals Series by Annika Martin
• Natural Born Charmer by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
• Dream a Dream by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
• A Kingdom of Dreams by Judith McNaught
• Beautiful Beast by Neva Altaj
• Welcome to Temptation by Jennifer Crusie
• The Scandal and Scoundrel Series by Sarah MacLean
• The Proposition by Judith Ivory
• The Blue Cedar Falls Series by Jeanne Chin
• Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez
• The Takeover Effect by Nisha Sharma
• The Vega Family Love Stories Series by Natalie Cana
• Mistakes Were Made by Meryl Wilsner

Notes

• If you love Derek Craven, check out  the newest entry at the Fated Mates Collections Department, Spectacular Spectacles courtesy of Sanj. 
• You can listen to our Susan Elizabeth Phillips episode as you do your “one a days.” (When we recorded all the eBooks were on sale, but they aren’t anymore. SORRY.)
• According to Psychology Today, there are 5 specific types of dysfunctional families.
• Taking the Finger, explained 
• Jen called it a Drive-Thru in Dream a Little Dream, but she meant a DRIVE-IN. Maybe go to one if you want and report back, idk! Or the new version is this Rooftop Cinema Club, where you sit together with bluetooth headphones.
• A great discussion of why it’s problematic or damaging to always redeem the family, read this powerful essay about why queer people have the right to leave their harmful family members behind by Nathan Burgoine. 

Sponsors

• Kristen Jennings, author of Lessons From a Tour Guide, available in print, ebook, audiobook or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.
• Amy James, author of Crash Test, available in print, ebook, or audio from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple or wherever you get your books.
• JL Birchwood, author of Power Ballad, available in print, 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/2025/6/17/0739-romances-dysfunctional-families
• 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.