S.2 Ep. 140: Dark Academia, Dead Bodies, and an Ancient Nordic Monster: Taylor Grothe on Lethal Kiss
S.2 Ep. 140: Dark Academia, Dead Bodies, and an Ancient Nordic Monster: Taylor Grothe on Lethal Kiss  
Podcast: The Mythic Mic Podcast
Published On: Wed Oct 21 2026
Description: 🎙️ Welcome back to The Mythic Mic Podcast, where sometimes the monster in the classics department isn't the professor who literally eats people.This week, host Bethany Amanda sits down with author and medieval scholar Taylor Grothe to discuss Lethal Kiss, a dark academia horror romance blending Jennifer's Body energy, Nordic folklore, murder, monsters, queer romance, and one deeply sinister university.At the center of the story are two professors: Marcella, an ancient Nordic revenant hiding centuries of trauma and a need to feed, and Lacey, an autistic mortal professor desperately fighting for tenure in a system seemingly designed to keep her from succeeding. When they discover a body on the top floor of the classics department, they're dragged into the festering underbelly of their university, where some of the monsters are supernatural and some definitely aren't.🩸 What happens when one of your professors is literally an ancient monster?📚 What if the darkest part of dark academia isn't the supernatural horror at all?🖤 And can falling in love make horror even more terrifying?If you love dark academia, queer horror romance, ancient monsters, Nordic folklore, feminine rage, morally gray characters, murder, academic corruption, forbidden knowledge, literary horror, camp, gore, and romances between women who have absolutely been through it, this episode is for you.🔥 IN THIS EPISODE, WE TALK ABOUT:✨ Taylor's journey from medieval scholarship and studying Arthuriana and Nordic saga to leaving academia and becoming a published author.✨ The realities of changing literary agents and why Taylor believes authors should remember that an agent is ultimately a business partner.✨ Moving from YA horror into adult fiction and why writing for adults had always been Taylor's long-term goal.✨ Lethal Kiss, a Jennifer's Body-meets-Ninth House dark academia horror romance about two professors, a dead body, and a university crawling with monsters.✨ Creating Marcella, an ancient Nordic revenant inspired by medieval saga and Beowulf, and Lacey, an autistic professor fighting for tenure while carrying religious trauma.✨ Using supernatural horror to explore the corruption, misogyny, elitism, and systemic problems Taylor encountered within academia.✨ Why Taylor believes romance doesn't soften horror but can actually make the horror more intense.✨ Going completely full throttle with gore, camp, unhinged winter formals, and a final showdown Taylor describes as “crazy bananas.”✨ The deeper themes of trauma, self-acceptance, and learning that what happened to us can shape us without having to define us.✨ What's next, including the gothic fantasy Monstrous Beautiful Things and a deeply unsettling spore-horror story filled with grief, mushrooms, and things that definitely should not be happening.CONNECT WITH US🎙️ The Mythic Mic Podcast – @MythicMic👤 Bethany Amanda – @BethanyinFantasyland👤 Sara Santillan – @the_magical_quill📚 Taylor Grothe – @TaylorLGrothe✨ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review. It helps more fantasy readers and aspiring authors find their way to The Mythic Mic.