Whoa!mance: Romance and Ourselves

This ep, we're staying space together (continuing FanFicUary) for the space kids (you, faithful listeners) by discussing THE LOVE HYPOTHESIS by Ali Hazelwood. Olive (Stanford University Biology PhD Candidate AU Rey from Star Wars) and Adam (AU Kylo Ren) should not be together - he is tenured faculty in the department she's working on a PhD in. Thank goodness they are not together for real. But as...

We're officially kicking off FANFIC-UARY here at Whoa!mance--We're dissecting an Isabeau fav fic in the Castlevania canon. Want to have sex on your period AND fight demons? Fanfic can get you there baby! Want to wander Eastern Europe in the Middle Ages killing Dracula's nigh creatures while watching two characters fall in love? Join us as we follow the winding questions of who's fanfiction written...

As we pass into the ultimate HURT / COMFORT month, we feel called to speak on a subject near and dear. The kissin' cousin of our beloved Romance Genre - FAN FICTION. How does cultural context inform fic and romance? Do you need to be a fan to enjoy fic? Why has this taken us so long? We will interrogate the boundaries of fic and romance via a beloved object- one of Isabeau's fave fics - "Rough Mag...

In which Mr. Collins shows his whole a$$ and Morgan and Isabeau discuss what makes a whole a$$.

Sometimes it gets cold enough in winter that you want to wear a hat on a hat. Times like that call for cozy romps like A ROSE IN WINTER by KATHLEEN WOODIWISS. Erienne is the prettiest gal in town, so her father - The Self-Same Mayor of Mawbry - has no problem auctioning her off to the mysterious and masked Lord Saxton. Problem is, she's still got butterflies over her family's sworn nemesis and not...

In which Lizzie has a really good time at a ball until she has a really, really bad time and yr grls Morgan and Isabeau ponder why Austen doesn't have more "Economy of Language" cred that Hemingway.

Don't know about you, but we're feeling '2̶2̶ '23. It is that time of year, when we reflect on the past and don shades to look into our bright, bright future. Is a year-in-review cliche? YES! But it isn't like we're doing a clip show or anything. These are FRESH and HOT takes, not just on the books, but romance culture and our own backlog. Join us as we get heated, remorseful, baffled, joyful whil...

In which Lizzie becomes aware of Mr. Collins's plans for her cousin hands, but doesn't mind because there's a cool ball coming up, and Jane plants herself firmly on the fence about Darcy.

AgiftofJoy by Whoa!mance: Romance, Feminism, and Ourselves

Happy Howdy-days, this eppy yr grls are staring hard at the tight jeans of Westmoreland Number 24 - ONE WINTER’S NIGHT by BRENDA JACKSON. Alpha ditches Florida (plus an ex-fiancée, and parents who can’t accept her sister’s adult media past) to plan parties in Denver. But not just any parties in Denver! Riley Westmoreland drew the short straw managing the company Christmas party, but he ends up get...

In which Wickham is dishy and dishing, leading Morgan and Isabeau to ponder - what is the appeal here? Do hotties get lost in the translation of time? Whatever the answer, it makes Mr. Collins seem marginally less ick.

In which the gals bring their weird cousing, Mr. Collins, along on a walk to Meryton and we the readers end up feeling bad for Mr. Collins. And Isabeau and Morgan ponder - What did Denny know? What is Denny's culpability?

Novella November wraps (in a very diaphanous, sheer sort of way) with GODDESS ABDUCTED by SCARLETT PECKHAM. Lydia Houghton is the titular Goddess Abducted when a highwayman picks her up in her Diana getup from a costume ball. But Lydia isn’t totally unwilling, and ends up on a very cozy hostage situation. What did Bodice Rippers leave us? What do trigger warnings give us? Did we disclaim enough? K...

In which Mr. Bennet gets tickled and Mr. Collins gets ticked and then Morgan and Isabeau get sad because why do these losers get to have such an okay time? #JusticeForMrsBennet.

Light a fire, wrap a quilt around your shoulders, and hold that mug with two hands - this episode yr grls get in their comfies with THE CRAFT OF LOVE BY E.E. OTTOMAN. Benjamin is a silversmith in need of a quilt. Remembrance is a quilter in need of a tea service. Can I make it any more obvious (in the style of Avril Lavigne). Also, Benjamin is trans and Remembrance's ex is a woman and it is 1830....

In which Mr. Bennet reads a letter from the relative who may turn out all the Bennet ladies on their ear and Isabeau gives Morgan a rather disappointing update on British politics.

Ghosts exist yearround, but they are most welcome at Halloween Time. Thus Mo and Isa are discussing THE DEAD ROMANTICS by ASHLEY POSTON. Professional ghost writer and hobby ghost talker-to'er Florence accidentally gets the tingles for her new editor, Kylo--EXCUSE ME--Benji, just as she loses tingles for her genre, romance. These problems get thrown into perspective when her father dies, followed s...

In which Darcy does a lot more thinking than finger flexing, causing Morgan to re-think that he's such a projector screen after all. Maybe we've made him that way ourselves?

This week yr grls ask you to consider the toilet in their discussion of A COURT OF MIST AND FURY by SARAH J. MAAS. Friend of the pod and noted Fae convert Feyre is feeling...weird about Tamlin (see that guy's deal in episode 140). Rhysand gets it and thus sweeps her away to high-fantasy Santa Fe one week at a time. Feyre slowly discovers not only a whole new world, but a whole new Feyre and maybe...

In which Jane feels a lot better, Caroline feels a lot worse, and Darcy and Elizabeth raise eyebrows at each other. What can we make of a repetitive chapter by a talented author? What are the key changes in Bingley between text and film and why might that be? We don't know yet, but we're excited to talk about it with you.

Yr grls return to discuss everybody's favorite pandemic baby - A COURT OF THORNS AND ROSES BY SARAH J. MAAS! Feyre thought things couldn't get much worse while she was desperately hunting a mysterious wolf to feed her starving family. She was right! Because things actually get pretty groovy once she's kidnapped by Tamlin the Beast/Fae King of the Spring Court (whatever that means!). But then they...

In which Caroline Bingley acts more like CRINGE-o-line Bing-leave-me-outta-it! and Darcy and Lizzie have...moment.

Do we talk about this book enough? The red shoes? The mother's wedding veil? The pew? Probably not. So we're just going to release the whole damn thing again. Originally aired Summer 2020. Abigail McKenzie felt like an outcast in her one train stop town. Yet when two men are wounded in the same train robbery, she agrees to take them in: David, the model of a gentleman, and Jesse, hot-tempered and...

In which Isabeau and Morgan maybe overidentifiy with the ridiculous Mrs. Bennet and the villainous Caroline Bingley.

In which Lizzie rethinks the whole "The Bingley Sisters aren't so bad" thing while Fitzwilliam continues to rethink the whole "My opinions about women are vaild" thing.