What to Read Next — Book Recommendations for Romance, Thrillers & Escape Reads
A Debut Romance Set at the US Open You Need to Read | The Open Era by Edward Schmit
Descripción
This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. What happens when the first openly gay man competes in a Grand Slam — and falls for his opponent across the net? Debut author Eddie Schmit joins the show to talk about The Open Era, his queer tennis romance that's equal parts heart-racing competition and sweet slow-burn love story. Eddie shares how a mental health journey led him to tennis, how tennis led him to a book deal with Penguin Random House, and why the US Open — right in his Queens backyard — became the perfect backdrop for a story about identity, anxiety, and falling in love at exactly the wrong time. We also dig into his reading list: the Andre Agassi memoir that gripped him from page one, a practical mental health survival guide, a quirky queer literary novel about a mountain lion in the LA hills, and a cozy paranormal romance that reads like a warm hug. 📚 BOOKS MENTIONED The Open Era by Edward Schmit — Buy on Amazon [https://amzn.to/4uKWP1o] | Queer Romance / Sports Romance | Audio ✅ Open by Andre Agassi — Buy on Amazon [https://amzn.to/4vffu5e] | Memoir / Sports Nonfiction | Audio ✅ Where to Start by Mental Health America, illus. Gemma Carrell — Buy on Amazon [https://amzn.to/3RGJkBd] | Nonfiction / Mental Health | Young Adult crossover; also available in Spanish The Inner Game of Tennis by W. Timothy Gallwey — Buy on Amazon [https://amzn.to/4edp4Qh] | Nonfiction / Sports Psychology | 50th Anniversary Edition | Audio ✅ Dearly Departed by Chip Pons — Buy on Amazon [https://amzn.to/4uGe3wG] | Queer Paranormal Romance / Mythology Romance Open Throat by Henry Hoke — Buy on Amazon [https://amzn.to/3RCEll3] | Queer Literary Fiction | Short / great for gifting | Audio ✅ ⏱️ TIMESTAMPS [00:00] Welcome & introducing Eddie Schmit [00:30] Eddie's background: acting, PR, and New York City life [02:00] Finding tennis as a mental health tool [04:30] How tennis became a full personality — and a book [06:00] The Open Era: plot, characters & what makes it special [08:00] Anxiety, masking, and representing mental health realistically in fiction [10:00] The messy, non-linear journey of managing anxiety [12:00] How Eddie ended up writing romance [14:30] Why romance is the perfect genre for character arcs and high stakes [16:00] Nonfiction rec: Open by Andre Agassi [18:30] Nonfiction rec: Where to Start by Mental Health America [20:30] Nonfiction rec: The Inner Game of Tennis by W. Timothy Gallwey [23:30] Fiction rec: Dearly Departed by Chip Pons [24:30] Fiction rec: Open Throat by Henry Hoke [25:30] Where to find Eddie + The Open Era release date JOIN THE CONVERSATION Subscribe to our Substack [https://wtrnblog.substack.com/] for exclusive recommendations. (wtrnblog.substack.com [https://wtrnblog.substack.com/]) Follow & Subscribe: What to Read Next Blog [https://www.whattoreadnext.com/] | YouTube: What to Read Next [https://www.youtube.com/@WhattoReadNextBlog] Subscribe & leave a review!
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