This week on the Clean Romance Podcast, we’re joined by clean romance author Madelyn Smith for an honest and thoughtful conversation about explicit content in books and how it affects the brain.

Madelyn shares her personal story of overcoming a smut addiction and why she ultimately chose to write clean romance, all while sharing tips for readers with similar struggles. We also discussed the language we use—smut, spice, explicit content—and why the terminology matters.

As always, we wrap up the episode by sharing our latest five-star clean romance reads. Whether you’re navigating your own reading boundaries or simply curious about how books shape us, this conversation is one you won’t want to miss.

Follow Madelyn Smith on Instagram here @madelynsmithauthor

Here are affiliate links to all our five-star reads from this episode:

Madelyn's five-star reads:

The Heart of the Matter

A Dragon Outside

Tiffany's five-star read:

Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend

Sarah's five-star read:

Creatures of Chaos

Join the conversation on your favorite social channel!

Instagram

Youtube

TikTok

Check out our website: www.thecleanromancepodcast.com to learn more about Tiffany and Sarah and for links to all the five star reads!

To find out more about Tiffany and Sarah’s books, check them out here:

Tiffany’s books can be found here: Amazon

Sarah’s books can be found here: Amazon

Thank you to RCC Music for letting us use your song! If you love Christian music, you will LOVE RCC Music. Check them out on Spotify

Have you ever loved a book one week… and couldn’t stand something similar the next? You’re not crazy—your hormones might be in charge.

In this episode of the Clean Romance Podcast, we talk about how a woman’s hormonal cycle affects the way we read, feel, and review books. Tiffany walks us through the four stages of the cycle, what’s happening in our bodies, how we typically feel in each phase, and which kinds of romance stories we’re most likely to love at each stage.

We also share five-star clean romance reads that match every phase—from emotional and reflective to fun and flirty. If you’ve ever wondered why your reading tastes seem to change overnight, this episode might explain everything.

Here is the list of affiliate links to our five-star recs:

A Cross Country Christmas Courtney Walsh

Life After Julie Hall

Bounty Hunter Kaylee Jarvis

Reach O. McCarthy

Ambition Natalie Keller Reinert

Betting on the Boy Next Door Melanie Jacobson

The Lies of Vampires and Slayers K.M. Shea

Creatures of Chaos Julie Hall

{Insta}Kiss Jen Atkinson

Falling for Your Best Friend's Twin Emma St Clair

For links to other books we recommend, go to www.thecleanromancepodcast.com where Sarah may or may not have our reading lists updated.

Join the conversation on your favorite social channel!

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Youtube

TikTok

Check out our website: www.thecleanromancepodcast.com to learn more about Tiffany and Sarah and for links to all the five star reads!

To find out more about Tiffany and Sarah’s books, check them out here:

Tiffany’s books can be found here: Amazon

Sarah’s books can be found here: Amazon

Thank you to RCC Music for letting us use your song! If you love Christian music, you will LOVE RCC Music. Check them out on Spotify

Are Goodreads goals helping readers or hurting them?

In this episode, we kick off the new year by questioning reading goals, New Year’s resolutions, and the pressure to turn joy into a number. We talk about whether we set Goodreads goals (or rebel against them), what we want to see change in our reading lives this year, and how to read with more freedom and intention.
If you’ve ever felt behind, burned out, or boxed in by book goals, this conversation is for you.

Tiffany's Five Star Read: Dear Henry, Love Edith

Sarah's Five Star Read: Cole and Laila Are Just Friends

Join the conversation on your favorite social channel!

Instagram

Youtube

TikTok

Check out our website: www.thecleanromancepodcast.com to learn more about Tiffany and Sarah and for links to all the five star reads!

To find out more about Tiffany and Sarah’s books, check them out here:

Tiffany’s books can be found here: Amazon

Sarah’s books can be found here: Amazon

Thank you to RCC Music for letting us use your song! If you love Christian music, you will LOVE RCC Music. Check them out on Spotify

As we close out 2025, we’re taking time to reflect on a year that was both hard and beautiful—in life and in books.
In this final episode of the year, we look back on the moments that shaped us, including being in New Orleans during a terrorist attack, navigating major health-driven changes that led Tiffany to move away from family, and the unexpected healing and gratitude that followed. This year stretched us, but it also reminded us why stories—and community—matter so much.

We also dive into the books that carried us through, sharing our Top 10 Clean Reads of 2025, along with standout favorites and reading highlights from the year. Before all that, we kick things off with a fun round of Hit or Miss, breaking down current bookish trends and deciding which ones we’re loving—and which ones we’re ready to leave behind.

Thank you for listening, reading, and walking through this year with us. We’re so grateful for this community and can’t wait to see what 2026 brings.

Here are affiliate links to all books mentioned in this episode:

Tiffany’s top 5:

Sheppards in Love series by Martha Keyes: https://amzn.to/48XXYKE

The Cupid Chronicles by Courtney Walsh: https://amzn.to/4q4CtxW

Bram Baxter Marries the Wrong Sister by Latisha Sexton: https://amzn.to/4q7P7vK

Forget Me Knot by B.R. Goodwin: https://amzn.to/49vxlg7

Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson: https://amzn.to/48YzTDv

Sarah’s top 5:

The one with the kiss cam: https://amzn.to/3KWkv1g

Paper Hearts by Courtney Walsh: https://amzn.to/49gNpB6

This Life by Jennifer Rodewald: https://amzn.to/4syF9FE

The Traitor Prince by CJ Redwine: https://amzn.to/3N6E0EO

Off the Bench by Tiffany Noelle Chacon: https://amzn.to/49kz0Ec

Also mentioned:

The Aurelian Cycle by Rosaria Munda: https://amzn.to/4sgrkv8

Theo of Golden: https://amzn.to/4phPFy6

Join the conversation on your favorite social channel!

Instagram

Youtube

TikTok

Check out our website: www.thecleanromancepodcast.com to learn more about Tiffany and Sarah and for links to all the five star reads!

To find out more about Tiffany and Sarah’s books, check them out here:

Tiffany’s books can be found here: Amazon

Sarah’s books can be found here: Amazon

Thank you to RCC Music for letting us use your song! If you love Christian music, you will LOVE RCC Music. Check them out on Spotify

In one of our very first episodes, we dreamed up a Christmas romance—and now it’s finally here. In this episode, we reveal the finished story and announce the winner of our Christmas book title contest!

We’re also getting festive with a round of Christmas This or That (play along in the comments on YouTube), and wrapping things up by sharing YOUR latest five-star reads based on our live viewers comments.

Grab a cozy drink (hot chocolate, cocoa, or eggnog?), join the fun, and don’t forget to tell us what you’re reading and loving this season.

Grab your FREE copy of our new Christmas novella at www.thecleanromancepodcast.com

OR you can pay for it at The Closed Door Romance Bookstore or Amazon

Join the conversation on your favorite social channel!

Instagram

Youtube

TikTok

Check out our website: www.thecleanromancepodcast.com to learn more about Tiffany and Sarah and for links to all the five star reads!

To find out more about Tiffany and Sarah’s books, check them out here:

Tiffany’s books can be found here: Amazon

Sarah’s books can be found here: Amazon

Thank you to RCC Music for letting us use your song! If you love Christian music, you will LOVE RCC Music. Check them out on Spotify

What do clean romance, closed door, fade-to-black, open door, low spice, and no spice actually mean? If romance book terms leave you feeling confused, you’re not alone.
In this episode of The Clean Romance Podcast, we’re joined by Rachel Parker of @ClosedDoorRomance for a fun game of Two Tropes and a Lie, followed by a deep dive into romance spice levels and reader expectations. Rachel breaks down popular romance terminology you’ll see on Bookstagram, BookTok, and Goodreads, explaining how these labels impact both readers and authors.
Whether you love clean romance, prefer closed-door love stories, or are just trying to understand the ever-changing romance genre, this conversation will help you read—and recommend—romance books with confidence.

Follow our guest, Rachel Parker, on instagram at ⁨@ClosedDoorRomance⁩
She also has a store, www.closeddoorromancebooks.com where all books are closed door.

Here are the links to our five-star reads (we always use affiliate links, because every penny helps!)

Tiffany's five-star read, Bounty Hunter by Kaylee Jarvis

Rachel's five-star read, Sometimes Love Throws a Curveball by Laura Hawkins

Sarah's five-star read, Wooing Caddie McCaffrey by Bethany Turner

Join the conversation on your favorite social channel!

Instagram

Youtube

TikTok

Check out our website: www.thecleanromancepodcast.com to learn more about Tiffany and Sarah and for links to all the five star reads!

To find out more about Tiffany and Sarah’s books, check them out here:

Tiffany’s books can be found here: Amazon

Sarah’s books can be found here: Amazon

Thank you to RCC Music for letting us use your song! If you love Christian music, you will LOVE RCC Music. Check them out on Spotify

Let’s just say FML and FMC are very different things.

In this episode, we break down the most common bookish terms you’ll spot on Bookstagram, BookTok, and Goodreads. If you’ve ever wondered what DNF or HFN actually mean—or you just love hearing us rant and rave about them—this one’s for you.

Plus, Tiffany shares her meet-cute, and when we say it was young love, we mean YOUNG. Prepare to swoon, giggle, and maybe even kick your feet… unless you’re completely heartless.

For Sarah's five-star read, click here: Amazon.com

For Tiffany's, click here: Amazon.com

Join the conversation on your favorite social channel!

Instagram

Youtube

TikTok

Check out our website: www.thecleanromancepodcast.com to learn more about Tiffany and Sarah and for links to all the five star reads!

To find out more about Tiffany and Sarah’s books, check them out here:

Tiffany’s books can be found here: Amazon

Sarah’s books can be found here: Amazon

Thank you to RCC Music for letting us use your song! If you love Christian music, you will LOVE RCC Music. Check them out on Spotify

It’s a Christmas romance extravaganza! In this festive episode of The Clean Romance Podcast, we dig into why holiday love stories have such a hold on us. Are we drawn to the coziness? The nostalgia? The mistletoe? Or do Christmas romances accidentally set us up for unrealistic expectations?

Then we put our money where our mouth is and plot our own Christmas romance, written just for our listeners. Grab your hot cocoa and settle in as we build the characters, the meet-cute, the conflict, and all the snowy vibes.
To wrap things up, we share our 5-star read(s) of the season, perfect for filling your TBR with cozy holiday cheer.

To enter the book title contest, drop a comment with your book title idea on our YouTube episode or you can comment on our Instagram post @thecleanromancepodcast.

Check out the five-star read, Faking Christmas by Cindy Steel on Amazon

Join the conversation on your favorite social channel!

Instagram

Youtube

TikTok

Check out our website: www.thecleanromancepodcast.com to learn more about Tiffany and Sarah and for links to all the five star reads!

To find out more about Tiffany and Sarah’s books, check them out here:

Tiffany’s books can be found here: Amazon

Sarah’s books can be found here: Amazon

Thank you to RCC Music for letting us use your song! If you love Christian music, you will LOVE RCC Music. Check them out on Spotify