
We’re getting in a little romance this month, with co-owner of The Ripped Bodice, Leah Koch. The Ripped Bodice is the first Romance centric bookstore in The United States. Leah sheds light on what its really like to own your own bookstore, breaks down the criteria of romance novels, and suggest a few titles for people who are new to the genre.
SHOP AT THE RIPPED BODICE Romance Gateway books. Opening your own bookstore.
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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes and on Bookshop.org and Amazon.
Books
- The Red Wall Series by Brian Jacques
- Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbit
- Nora Roberts
- Nalini Singh
- Susan Mallery
- The Hating Game by Sally Thorne
- Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
- Leigh Greenwood
- Ilona Andrews
- A Night to Surrender by Tessa Dare
- A Study In Scarlet Women by Sherry Thomas
- Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang
- Dance Upon the Air by Nora Roberts
- Sierra Simone
- Sinner by Sierra Simone
- Year of Yes by Shonda Rhimes
- Look Both Ways by Jason Reynolds
- Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
- Susanna Kearsley

- Bellewether by Susanna Kearsley
- Courtney Milan
- The Duchess War by Courtney Milan
- Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri
- The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger
- The Kingmaker by Kennedy Ryan
- The Witches are Coming by Lindy West
- Desperate Measures by Katee Roberts
- The Devil’s Daughter by Katee Roberts
- Learn My Lesson by Katee Roberts
- Emma Straub
- Nice Try by Josh Gondelman
- Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
- The Alice Collection by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
- Harry Potter Series by J. K. Rowling
- Now I’ll Tell You Everything by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
- My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell
- The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
- The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
- The Princess Bride by William Goldman
- The Girl Who Owned a City by O. T. Nelson
- Lord of the Flies by William Golding
- Zeitoun by Dave Eggers
- What is the What by Dave Eggers
- Julie Murphy
- Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy
- Puddin’ by Julie Murphy
- Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty
- Wild by Cheryl Strayed
- To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han
- White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo
Everything Else
- The Ripped Bodice (Culver City, CA)
- Kickstarter
- Loves Sweet Arrow (Tinley Park, IL)
- Ripped Bodice Patreon
- “Ep 163: The Ripped Bodice owners, Bea and Leah Koch” (First Draft with Sarah Enni)
- Romance Writers of America

- Grey’s Anatomy (ABC)
- How to Get Away with Murder (ABC)
- Scandal (ABC)
- “Ep. 18 Year of Yes by Shonda Rhimes — The Stacks Book Club (Ashley North)” (The Stacks)
- “Ep. 85 Recipes Have a Happy Ending with Hugh Garvey” (The Stacks)
- The Ripped Bodice Awards for Excellence in Romantic Fiction
- New York Film Critics Circle Awards
- Books are Magic (Brooklyn, NY)
- Women and Children First (Chicago, IL)
- John Mulaney
- Book Expo
- The Princess Bride (Rob Reiner, 1987)
- Dumplin’ (Netflix)
- Big Little Lies (HBO)
- Wild (Jean-Marc Vallee, 2014)
- Jean-marc Vallee
- To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before (Netflix)
- By the Book (The New York Times)
Connect with Leah & The Ripped Bodice: The Ripped Bodice | The Ripped Bodice Twitter | The Ripped Bodice Instagram |
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