ISN'T IT OBVIOUS?

A podcast host falls in love with her producer via email, only to discover she knows (and despises) him in real life.

When Yael Koenig started The Sophomore English Agenda podcast under the pseudonym Elle Rex, she never imagined that a show discussing high school reading would get more than a handful of listeners. But practically overnight, her secret podcast amassed a major following, and it’s more than she can handle on top of her day job as a public school librarian in Portland, Oregon. Her roommate, Charlie, and best friend, Sanaa, insist Yael needs help, so she hires a New York–based editor named Kevin Kisson to produce and edit her show. Immediately, the two strike up an email friendship; soon, she can’t get enough of their funny, vulnerable, sometimes flirty banter, which offers her solace amid personal and workplace stress. The latest drama? Yael’s new volunteer for her after-school queer book club is Charlie’s one-night stand, Ravi…whom she caught sneaking out the window post hookup. Little does she know that Ravi the jerk is actually Kevin Ravi Kisson. At book club, Yael and Ravi can barely contain their dislike for one another, but after hours, the tension between them starts to sizzle. Online, Elle and Kevin have decided to keep things professional, even though it’s obvious they like each other, maybe even love. What happens when they find out each other’s real identities? Can the real Yael and Ravi be as open in person, without a screen making hard things easier to say? Katz’s third novel is an expressive, modern take on classic “meet-disasters” like You’ve Got Mail, with characters who are refreshingly communicative and vulnerable. Both leads are queer people of color—Yael is Black and Jewish and Ravi is Trinidadian—and the author artfully explores their complex relationships with family, friends, and partners. Another highlight is Yael’s tongue-in-cheek podcast episode list, which Katz offers a snippet from after the epilogue.

This enemies-to-lovers romance has all the winning ingredients: compassion, spice, comedy, books, and more.