First Encounter—A Historical Romance Podcast

First Encounter is a podcast exploring both the foundations, and the future, of Historical Romance. Hosted by Andie James, Historical Romance author and enthusiast. There will be two episodes per month: Second Wednesday of each month: These episodes are an interview with an Indie Historical Romance author discussing topics related to the genre, and hopefully helping you discover a new author to love! Fourth Wednesday of each month: These episodes are a deep dive in to a Historical Romance 'classic' Andie has never read. Andie will discuss the book with a fellow Historical Romance enthusiast who knows and loves the book.

First Encounter—A Historical Romance Podcast is a arts podcast hosted by Andie James, with 25 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Andie James hosts First Encounter—A Historical Romance Podcast, a arts show with 25 episodes published.

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  Episode #18

  S1 E18—The Duke of Shadows by Meredith Duran with Melissa (@aduchessinside)

  Sep 23, 20261h 1mS1

  I had such a great time chatting with Melissa this week about my first Meredith Duran, THE DUKE OF SHADOWS! In this book deep dive for September, we are talking about the bold choice to not only set this book in India, but also in the midst of the Sepoy Rebellion in 1857. We appreciated the way Duran condemns colonialism while still presenting the violence on both sides of the conflict, and the brilliant way she set up both of our characters to be able to deal with this traumatic event. And as always, we talk about what makes historical romance so great and why we love this genre so much! Follow Melissa on Instagram (@aduchessinside) Learn more about Meredith Duran and her books And support the podcast on Patreon (link below) to get my upcoming novella, STAY HERE FOREVER —out 10/2/2026 ——————————————————————————————————— First Encounter is a podcast exploring both the foundations, and the future, of Historical Romance. Hosted by Andie James, Historical Romance enthusiast and author. Support First Encounter: Patreon Follow First Encounter: Website Instagram Follow Andie James: Website Instagram Logo designed by Books and Moods Theme Music by TheJayMan

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  First Encounter—A Historical Romance Podcast

  Bonus Episode—A Match Made in Autumn

  Sep 2, 20261h 7mS1

  Today’s show brings together all of the authors participating in the A Match Made in Autumn collaborative series, being released in Fall 2026. A series of eight novellas by Indie historical romance authors, all the stories center characters finding themselves with a second chance at finding love, and all are set in Autumn! I’ve loved collaborating with these ladies and I can’t wait for all of you to read their stories! You can find more information about the series here ( https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H72JXDV1 ), and the first novella releases September 11, 2026! Learn more about the authors participating in the series and find their other novels: Sylvie Sinclair Bianca White Ally Hudson Andie James Misty Urban Kelsey Swanson Laura Linn Ava Bond First Encounter is a podcast exploring both the foundations, and the future, of Historical Romance. Hosted by Andie James, Historical Romance enthusiast and author. Support First Encounter: Patreon Follow First Encounter: Website Instagram Follow Andie James: Website Instagram Logo designed by Books and Moods Theme Music by TheJayMan

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  Episode #16

  S1 E16—Devilish by Jo Beverley with Sri Savita

  Aug 26, 20261h 22mS1

  This month we are discussing DEVILISH, by a new to me author, Jo Beverley! I am joined in discussion of this book by my friend and fellow historical romance author, Sri Savita. Sri loves this book and I had heard her talk about it (and re-reading it) several times, so I asked her to come on the podcast and talk about it, and to lend us her expertise in psychology as we examine core themes in the story! This book is an incredible example of power and control in both society and relationships and takes a deep look at gender dynamics. Written in 2000, it’s also ahead of its time in regard to issues of consent (thought here is a pretty dramatic assault scene, so be warned!) Sri and I also discuss her own work, centering Indian characters within the peerage in Regency England, and an upcoming Anthology she is participating in—HOLIDAYS AT NORTHFIELD HALL! Learn more about Jo Beverley and the Malloren books here Find out more about Sri and her novella, THE DEED WITH THE DUKE here Learn more about HOLIDAYS AT NORTHFIELD HALL here Listen to my episode with Katherine Grant and learn more about Northfield Hall here First Encounter is a podcast exploring both the foundations, and the future, of Historical Romance. Hosted by Andie James, Historical Romance enthusiast and author. Support First Encounter: Patreon Follow First Encounter: Website Instagram Follow Andie James: Website Instagram Logo designed by Books and Moods Theme Music by TheJayMan

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  Episode #15

  S1 E15—Closed Door and Low Spice Historical Romance with Nichole Van

  Aug 12, 202652 minS1

  I was so grateful that Nichole Van was willing to sit down with me again for this episode after our bonus episode last week where we discussed AI in publishing. Nichole is one of my favorite historical romance authors. I think she writes some of the most romantic, swoon-worthy, intimate stories with all the yearning you could ever want, and she manages to get all that deeply sexy emotion across while keeping the door closed. We discuss several of her books, including her brand new release, A LASS BELOVED, the second book in the Earls of Cairnfell series. We also look at what makes for an enjoyable read at any spice level based on intimate scenes that feel true to the characters, and acknowledging real adult thoughts and emotions around sex even in closed door romances. Other topics we hit on include writing older characters, and why the social restraints within a historical setting can lead to some really great stories! You can find out more about Nichole and her books on her website , and you can follow her on Instagram A LASS BELOVED is now available to purchase or read in Kindle Unlimited First Encounter is a podcast exploring both the foundations, and the future, of Historical Romance. Hosted by Andie James, Historical Romance enthusiast and author. Support First Encounter: Patreon Follow First Encounter: Website Instagram Follow Andie James: Website Instagram Logo designed by Books and Moods Theme Music by TheJayMan

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  First Encounter—A Historical Romance Podcast

  Bonus Episode—AI in Historical Romance Publishing with Nichole Van

  Aug 5, 202655 minS1

  After I announced that I’d invited fellow historical romance author Nichole Van onto the podcast, I had a listener reach out to me asking if hosting Nichole came into conflict with my no Gen AI stance as they believed she had used Gen AI images in promoting her books previously. So, I reached out to Nichole and said, “hey—my bad for not looking into this. I’m leaving it up to you if you still want to do the episode or not, but just be prepared for some comments or questions about AI.” And Nichole responded that she had stopped using AI and would love to chat about it. As we prepared, we realized we had so much to say about AI that we decided to make this discussion an entirely separate bonus episode. We talk about A LOT related to AI in this episode and it was fascinating to hear Nichole’s thoughts as someone who’s had not just her writing scrapped by AI, but also her images as a photographer, shaping her understanding and relationship to it. There’s how we define AI tools vs. Gen AI, a lot about all the gray areas in-between that are hard to navigate, and really that we are both against Gen AI, but there are no easy answers. Especially as some of the historical romance space around us has begun to embrace AI. And we wrap up with the thought that at the end of the day, we all just need to think through where we stand and be clear about it ,while lending one another some grace as we all figure this out in a rapidly changing system. All my thanks to Nichole for a truly great conversation, and I hope you’ll all tune in next week as well to hear about her amazing books! First Encounter is a podcast exploring both the foundations, and the future, of Historical Romance. Hosted by Andie James, Historical Romance enthusiast and author. Support First Encounter: Patreon Follow First Encounter: Website Instagram Follow Andie James: Website Instagram Logo designed by Books and Moods Theme Music by TheJayMan

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