Why do bad things sometimes make us warm? And we’re not talking about some slicked back James Dean or the guy in Misfits PPE. We’re talking about straight up military industrial complex, black site torture, for-profit CIA hijinx, the full front and back nine of bad feeling. Because that’s exactly the kind of bad this week’s book, Nothing To Fear by Juno Rushdan, manages to dress up for a night on the town. Our hero, Gideon Stone, is tasked with uncovering a mole in his deep state, Tom Clancy-esque, transcontinental murder-for-hire organization, Gray Box, before the whole operation is torn asunder. His chief suspect and our heroine, Willow Harper, is in his crosshairs for allegedly selling bio-agents on the black market, an act that’s surely grounds for ermination. But as the real mole remains hidden in plain sight, Gideon will stop at nothing to keep Willow safe, even if it means dipping into his toolbox of grisly implements to extract the truth before it’s too late. Trigger warning: contains some descriptions of torture and the truth about for-profit military action in the name of unfettered capitalist growth.
While we’re still not leaving the house, yr girls are giving the books a rest in favor of Romance on the silver screen. For this Whoa!nus, Morgan and Isabeau are revisiting their mutual childhood favorite and sleepover film par excellence, Romancing The Stone, directed by Robert Zemeckis. Joan Wilder (post-Body Heat Kathleen Turner) is a successful but cloistered Romance novelist, who embarks on a journey of treasure hunting and self-becoming set in motion by the murder of her brother-in-law. Travelling through Colombia, Joan links up with exotic bird trafficker and egotistical boating enthusiast, Jack T. Colton (pre-sex symbol Michael Douglas) to find a prize emerald, El Corazon. But the dreaded Colonel Zolo is on their heels, and will stop at nothing to claim El Corazon for himself. It’s a harrowing tale of adventure, discovery, the perfect smokey eye.
As yr girls Morgan and Isabeau continue to shelter in place, stories of normal life - drinks in a cozy bar, dinner with a friend - are becoming just as titillating as the triumphs of our heroines. So imagine the excitement when Not The Girl You Marry by Andie J. Christopher was set in Chicago, with real life landmarks transported to the page like distant comforts. But the novel, which turns How To Lose A Guy In Ten Days on its head, is a not-so-friendly reminder that the “normal” we remember is still a funhouse mirror of patriarchal control. What makes a good ally? What role should believability play in a romantic fantasy? And aren’t we all just other girls? We may need a few more weeks indoors after this one y’all.
This is an historic week y’all, for this is our final Boner. The ultimate rod. The closing chubby. That’s right, we’re going beyond the bone where no romance podcast has gone before, careening into the wild blue yonder to bring you: The Whoa!nus. Where it took plagues to discover gravity and write King Lear, our modern twist on the Black Death has generated untold megatons of creativity that bring you, dear listeners, the humble rebranding of our bonus episodes. And it is in this spirit of revision that yr girls Morgan and Isabeau are reaching back in this Whoa!nus to amend Whoa's and No's that don’t hold up in the face of time and memory. Dive into our inaugural Whoa!nus and see which bits of the Whoa!mance catalog are getting a well deserved tune up!
As you know, we at Whoa!mance possess an undying reverence for yr grrl Jane (see JANEuary if you don’t), and we’re smitten with this own voices retelling of P&P. This week, Morgan and Isabeau escape to Toronto in Ayesha At Last by Uzma Jalaluddin, a modern Muslim twist on the Austen classic. Ayesha is an aspiring poet struggling to repay loans to her wealthy uncle, when her life collides with Khalid. While their styles and worldviews clash, there’s an unavoidable tug each feels toward the other. Can traditional and modern interpretations of Islam find a common ground of titilation? Are office dress codes tools of negation and oppression? What is the value of 100 marriage proposals if none begets a bride? This rendition may keep it sweet, but the stakes are high y’all.
Ever wonder what yr girls Morgan and Isabeau are like when they’re not behind the mic? Or what their high school experiences were like? Or the ins and outs of how they feel about this or that aspect of romancelandia? We asked you, our beloved listeners, to submit questions via our various social platforms, and thankfully, you asked back. This week, Morgan and Isabeau answer your questions in an exclusive, no holds bar, tell-all, exposé. For this Boner, we’re letting it all hang out.