Raging Romantics

What trope will come out on top?! Will it be Second Chance? Love Triangles? Or Fake Relationships?! Cast your votes now at [email protected]!

Books we mention:

• Heartstopper by Alice Oseman
• Twilight by Stephanie Meyer
• Astrid Parker Doesn't Fail by Ashley Herring Blake
• The Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare
• *The Sword Catcher by Cassandra Clare (Jackie said Kingmaker Chronicles)
• *The Day of the Duchess Sarah MaClean husband book
• Red White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
• They Never Learn by Layne Fargo
• It Happened one Summer by Tessa Bailey
• The Dragon's Bride by Katee Robert
• Weather Girl by Rachel Lynn Solomon
• Happy Place by Emily Henry
• Good Boy by Sarina Bowen and Elle Kennedy
• The Darkest Seduction by Gena Showalter
• Against a Wall by Cate C. Wells
• Kiss Her Once For Me by Alison Cochrun
• Love Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood
• Unfortunately Yours by Tessa Bailey
• Window Shopping by Tessa Bailey

Happy Hispanic Heritage month! Let's celebrate by ready some absolutely amazing OWN VOICES romances:

• You had Me at Hola by Alexis Daria
• A Caribbean Heiress in Paris by Adrianna Herrera
• After Hours on Milagro Street by Angelina Lopez

Friday Night. Podcast Night. In your eardrums. WHICH TROPE WILL COME OUT ON TOP? Jackie and Jen rage it out while Thomas decides the winner. Did we miss your favorite trope? Did you disagree with the outcomes? Email us at [email protected]!

Books we mention:

• The Wall of Winnipeg and Me by Mariana Zapata
• Mimi Matthews
• Happenstance by Tessa Bailey

Let's break the norm and find some non-Regency, non-cowboy, non-Scottish historical romances! A tall order, indeed.

Questions/Comments/Concerns/Recommendations? Email us at [email protected]!

Books we recommend:

• It Happened One Fight by Maureen Lenker
• The Siren of Sussex by Mimi Matthews

Content warning - we will be talking about the loss of life from fires, including past lives lost during the Great Fire of 1666, Idaho in 1910, and others, as well as the recent fires in Hawaii.

American Library Association's Banned and Challenge Books

• Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
• 1984 by George Orwell

Questions, comments, concerns, recommendations? Email us at [email protected]

Books/Authors We Mention

• Kit McBride Gets a Wife by Amy Barry
• The Dragon's Bride by Katee Robert
• Chasing Fire by Nora Roberts
• Pamela Clare
• James Rollins
• Robert Ludlum (Jason Bourne author)
• The Roommate Pact by Allison Ashley
• Exes and O's by Amy Lea
• If You Ask Me by Libby Hubscher (the book Jackie was trying to find at the end of the episode)
• Luxe series by Anna Godbersen

Images:

• Fire Badges in London
• Boston Fire Sledge, 1678
• Horses in Chicago
• First fire bell

Sources:

• “The History Of Firefighting” (merrimacknh.gov, n.d.)
• “History of Firefighting” (firefighterfoundation.org.uk, n.d.)
• "The History of Wildland Firefighting" (NIFC.org, n.d.)
• "Wildland Fires: A Historical Perspective" (US Fire Administration, 2001)
• "The History and Evolution of Wildland Firefighting" (National Fire Fighter Wildland Corp, 2015)
• Wildland Firefighter Foundation, About
• "World’s First Fire Alarm System" (Computerimages.com, 2012)
• "Stop, Drop, and Roll: Firefighting in 20th Century Richmond" (Hughes/The Valentine)
• "The Modern Environmental Movement" (PBS.org)
• "The Great Fire of 1910" (fs.usda.org)
• "Hawaiian Electric takes responsibility for 1st fire, but faults county firefighters" (McDermott, 2023)
• "8 Irresistible Stories Featuring Men in Uniform" (Harlequin.com, 2017)
• "Out of a job – February 5 1923" (Chicago and Cook County Cemeteries, 2020)

***Firefighter gear only weighs around 45 pounds...oops

***Barbie has been pushed back until later this year :(

It's our three year anniversary!!! To celebrate we wanted to highlight some stories that feature a new chance at old love - anniversaries and second chance romance, anyone?

Books we mention:

• Bromance Book Club by Lyssa Kay Adams
• Love Her or Lose Her by Tessa Bailey
• Happy Place by Emily Henry
• Retrieval by Aly Martinez
• The Bride Test by Helen Hoang
• Good Boy by Sabrina Bowen and Elle Kennedy
• Lady Isabella's Scandalous Marriage by Jennifer Ashley
• Day of the Duchess by Sarah MacLean

You have arrived at your destination...the final medieval romance episode!!!!! And hey, in this one we actually talk romance books. Finally. So what team are you dear listener- time travel back to the 12th century with Jackie? Or enjoy the modern amenities with Jen? Or stare on in horror with Thomas?

Let us know! Email us at [email protected].

Books/authors we mention:

• Tessa Dare
• Emma Denny
• Connie Mason
• Gwen and Art Are Not In Love by Lex Croucher
• Tamora Pierce
• Can't Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne
• Blacksmith Queen by G.A. Aiken
• Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree
• Solomon's Crown by Natasha Siegel
• The Wolf Suit by Sid Sharp
• Fangirl Down by Tessa Bailey
• Immortal Longings by Chloe Gong

Sources

• Well Met: Renaissance Faires and the Counterculture by Rachel Rubin (2012)
• “Reading the Past” (Johnson, 2010)
• "Medievalism" (wikipedia)
• "Introduction to DNA Testing History" (DNACenter.com)
• "U.S. Bicentennial, 1976" (Rymsza-Pawlowska, 2019)
• "The Utopian Vision That Explains Renaissance Fairs" (Dudley, 2019)
• "The Beginning of Medieval Historical Fiction: Ten Novels from the 19th century," (Medievalists.net)
• "Why Game of Thrones & Fantasy Literature Get Medieval" (Mock & Hines, 2019)
• "Fantasy of the Middle Ages Explores Medieval Influence on Modern Imagination" (Getty.edu, 2022)

Medieval ladies kicking butt and taking names? YES PLEASE!

• Scarred Earth Saga by G.A. Aiken
• Nimona by N.D. Stevenson
• The Rebel Nun by Marj Charlier
• Joan by Katherine J Chen
• Highlander In Her Bed by Allie McKay
• Son of the Morning by Linda Howard
• Spell of the Highlander by Karen Marie Moning

Content warning @ 26:21 - 30:24 for violence against women in the medieval and earlier time periods as part of military practices

Why did chivalry get romanticized in medieval literature? And what values do we still hold to the title today? And did knights really think that they were part of King Arthur's court?

Questions/comments/concerns/recommendations? Email us @ [email protected]!

Movies Jackie recommends:

• Knight's Tale (st. Heath Ledger)
• Robin Hood (st. Russell Crowe)
• King Arthur (st. Clive Owen and Keira Knightley)
• First Knight (st. Richard Gere)
• Tristan and Isolde (st. James Franco)

Books we mention:

• Allison Weir
• Christine De Pisan
• Sir Walter Scott
• Claire Heywood
• Natalie Haynes
• Pat Barker
• Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
• Chretien de Troyes
• Yvain the Knight of the Lion
• Percival the Knight of the Grail
• Why Fathers Cry at Night by Kwame Alexander
• Light For the World to See by Kwame Alexander
• From Below by Darcy Coates

Sources:

• "Chivalry Is a Medieval Ethos That Has Evolved Over Time" (Abels, 2013)
• "Chivalry or The Chivalric Code" (uidaho.edu, n.d.)
• "Chivalry – the Knight’s Code of Honor" (fiveminutehistory.com, n.d.)
• "The Code of Chivalry" (Knights of the Virgin)
• "The Pell" (Medieval Life and Times)
• "Arms and Armor—Common Misconceptions and Frequently Asked Questions" (Breiding, 2004)
• "Jousting: Origins and history of the medieval sport" (Gravett, 2022)
• "History of the Spanish Riding School" (Brownlow, 2023)
• "Lancelot" (britannica.com)
• "Eleanor of Aquitaine: The Queen Who Chose Her Kings" (Galloway, 2021)
• "Eleanor of Aquitaine" (Library of Congress Research Guide)
• "Eleanor of Aquitaine" (History.com, 2019)
• "Women in medieval society" (Bovey, 2015)

Our first episode of September is pushed back a week, so let's fill the void with a few Barbie book recommendations!

• Secretly Yours by Tessa Bailey
• Mortal Follies by Alexis Hall
• Practice Makes Perfect by Sarah Adams

Make sure to tune in September 8th for our deep dive into FIREFIGHTERS!

Questions/Comments/Concerns? Email us at [email protected]