Whoa!mance: Romance and Ourselves

Who knew Christian charity could be so draconian? This week, Jane and her cohort at Lowood continue to suffer from a lack of nutrition and comforts, the chill in the air is met with the return of the dreaded Mr. Brocklehurst, and Ms. Temple proves herself once again to be an angel in disguise. Whoa!mance is a part of the Frolic Podcast Network.

Spooky season may be over y’all, but it’s gonna take more than a new month to get yr girls out of Scotland. This week, Morgan and Isabeau embark on a historical romp through the Highlands in The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie by Jennifer Ashley. Our titular character, Lord Ian, is shrouded in rumors and hearsay when he crosses paths with our heroine Beth, on the arm of her then fiance. As her fianc...

It’s day two at Lowood y’all, and things are looking bleak. This week, Jane wakes to frozen wash water, her new best-friend-in-the-making Helen Burns is publicly dragged by the repugnant Miss Scatcherd, and our heroine confides in Helen her desire to smash all those who treat her unfairly. We feel you girl. Whoa!mance is a part of the Frolic Podcast Network.

It’s Jane’s last morning at Gateshead, and despite the ever-present rain, things are looking up. This week, our heroine takes a slow coach to Lowood, meets the esteemed faculty, and maybe makes a friend. Whoa!mance is a part of the Frolic Podcast Network.

Yr girls are fresh from the cliffs and ready to slay some fey. This week, Morgan and Isabeau are back at the Ball with another selection from The Monster Ball Year 2; Assassin’s Match by Everly Frost. Our heroine Tanzanina (yikes) is a born-witch whose power and love have been stripped from her by an evil curse. But when her only hope of lifting the curse, a special spellbook, is stolen, our heroi...

With an out from Gateshead on the horizon, the anxiety is palpable. This week, Jane squares off with purity wonk Mr. Brocklehurst, tells her aunt where to shove it, and finds a new candor in Bessie. Whoa!mance is a part of the Frolic Podcast Network.

While the Ball rages on, yr girls have to refuel on angst and mood before another heavy bout of haunting. This week, Morgan and Isabeau journey to the edge of the Cornish cliffs in Mistress of Mellyn by Victoria Holt, a nom de plume of Eleanor Hibbert. Our heroine Martha Leigh is past her seasons. In lieu of a husband, she becomes a governess to the daughter of gaunt widower and lesser of two hero...

Whew! That was a close call y’all. This week, Jane recuperates from a frightful stay in the Red Room, learns of poverty’s harsh realities, and is once again dreaming of escape. Whoa!mance is a part of the Frolic Podcast Network.

Special surprise drop - but for real this time! Yr girls Morgan and Isabeau joined our friends Erin and Clayton over at Learning The Tropes to talk romance, sexiest parts, and life on and off the mic. Check out Learning The Tropes wherever you get your podcasts - rate, review, and spread the love. IG: @learningthetropes Twitter: @learningtropes Whoa!mance is a part of the Frolic Podcast Network.

To keep this spooky train rolling, we’re chugging on up to Auld Reekie for the supernatural event of the season. This week, Morgan and Isabeau crash a party with a selection from The Monster Ball Year 2, an anthology of works imagining that self same soiree, titled “Turning The Tides” by Wendy Higgins. In this telling, a malevolent beast known as the Magpie is throwing the Ball, and this once who’...

Can a girl just read about ducks? This week, the Red Room, its requisite terrors, and the pitfalls of childhood trauma. Is the Red Room the OG Chokey? Is that uncanny feeling just the lingering spirit of Jane’s beloved uncle? Tune in if you dare. Whoa!mance is a part of the Frolic Podcast Network.

It’s officially spooky season y’all, and we’re jumping in with both feet. This week, Morgan and Isabeau explore the categorical and the supernatural in Angie and the Ghostbuster, by Theresa Gladden. When paranormal investigator Dr. Gabriel Richards is drawn to a mysterious home, what he finds there raises more than just his neck hair. There to greet him is the blonde and dream-eyed Angie, Gabriel’...

Friends we are beyond thrilled to be kicking off this new project, a podcast-within-a-podcast Jane Eyre Read Along! Each Sunday, yr girls Morgan and Isabeau will be taking turns reading Charlotte Brontë’s novel in its totality, one chapter at a time. This week, our eponymous heroine learns a bit about water fowl, Jane's cousin John Reed establishes himself as a real prick, and something called “th...

The dour, windswept moors. A precocious, homely child. The intellectual and implied sexual education of said child. But more importantly, a tentpole Romance of the highest order. We’re of course talking about Charlotte Brontë’s 1847 novel, Jane Eyre. And what better way to explore this mother root of the genre than by reading it cover to cover. This week, yr girls Morgan and Isabeau preview a new...

Everyone experiences the agonies and ecstasies of expanding a circle of friends, but what about the trials and tribulations of expanding a circle of lovers?. This week, Morgan and Isabeau mix with the hoipolloi of Edwardian elite in Jude Lucens’ polyamorous historical Behind These Doors, Radical Proposals Book 1. When a gossip columnist stumbles on the harmonious throuple of a Lord and Lady, and a...

When we say Jude Deveraux, you probably think: lioness in her field, titan of titillation. Both are true. But that’s only part of the story. This week, yr girl Morgan walks yr girl Isabeau through a truly bananas true crime story starring none other than Jude Deveraux. We’re talking psychics, heartbreaks, movie stars, and war criminals. Buckle up for a true crime side quest that’ll have you hookin...

It’s no secret that Whoa!mance is a product of the university - a meeting of minds that began with the pursuit of knowledge and ended in a holocaust of emotions. But we digress. This week, Morgan and Isabeau audit a few classes with Katrina Jackson’s ivory tower romp, Office Hours. High-achieving and beleaguered Assistant Professor of Sociology Dr. Deja Evans is in a rut. With her 3-year track to...

We don't know about y'all, but this summer had us spending way more time indoors than usual. This week, Morgan and Isabeau share some of what's been keeping them afloat and joyful in these trying times. Whoa!mance is a part of the Frolic Podcast Network.

Before we get started, this book is brand spankin’ new. And if you know anything about us here at Whoa!mance, y’all know we peddle in spoilers. You have been warned! This week, Morgan and Isabeau sneak on the set of a telenovela in You Had Me at Hola, the much anticipated new novel by RITA award winner Alexis Daria. Jasmine Lin Rodriguez, a budding star after a stunning rom-com debut, is back in N...

In honor of Romance Bookstore Day this past week, we're re-releasing one of our recommendations from the new romance section at Women & Children First in Chicago. Throwing it all the way back to episode 14! Giddy up. For this episode Morgan and Isabeau tackle a western! Do you love cowboys, history, and sex positivity? Got secret hots for the country doc? This book has it all! Whoa!mance is a part...

As promised, Part Two of yr girls’ conversation with the illustrious Scarlett Peckham, and a deeper dive into Judith McNaught’s canonical debut novel Whitney, My Love. Sexiest parts, weirdest parts, and all the parts in between. CW: sexual assault, intimate partner violence If you experienced sexual assault and need or would like help, visit centers.rainn.com for resources in your area, or call 80...

On July 25th, as part of the 2020 Chicago-North RWA Spring Fling Writers Conference, yr girls Morgan and Isabeau were joined by the brilliant and talented Scarlett Peckham for a very special live-via-zoom-taping of Whoa!mance, to discuss Judith McNaught’s authorial debut, Whitney, My Love. This week, part one of yr girls’ conversation with Scarlett on how this novel sparked a burgeoning love of Ro...

We don’t know about y’all, but after all that Entrop[e]y, yr girls needed a little faith restored. This week, Morgan and Isabeau dive into the new multimedia romance audio series Ten Week Turnabout, by Amelia Rose, produced by ConSensual. Told through a variety of means, the story follows the reunion of Ingrid and Noah, former high school crushes from a small town in Indiana, who are meeting again...

We did it y'all. Yr girls have arrived at the final stop on this Entrop[e]y tour with one last trope: the secret baby. This week, Morgan and Isabeau tackle the culture wars relic, Nobody’s Baby But Mine, Book 3 in the Chicago Fires series by Susan Elizabeth Phillips. Jane Darlington, a 34 year old physics professor, wants a baby. But she doesn’t want that baby to be a smarty pants weirdo like her...

Back in December, the Romance Writers of America (RWA) tried to pull a yuletide fast one hoping twitter’s watchful eye was fixed on other cravings. This week, Morgan and Isabeau reflect on that fateful reckoning, the Ritas becoming the Vivians, and other reasons to be cautiously hopeful about the future of Romance. Whoa!mance is a part of the Frolic Podcast Network.