Podcast
Hot and Bothered
Hosted by Not Sorry Productions · EN
Hot and Bothered is all about the power of romance culture. We analyze romance novels and movies to better imagine our own happy endings. Episodes release weekly on Tuesdays.
CURRENT SEASON: Jane Austen’s Persuasion
For Season 6, Hot and Bothered is returning to its roots with a classic romance: Jane Austen's Persuasion. Many readers consider Persuasion Austen's most romantic novel. As a podcast obsessed with romance (and Austen), it was only a matter of time before we answered its siren call.
Joining Vanessa Zoltan this season is her longtime mentor, Harvard Divinity School Professor Dr. Stephanie Paulsell. Together, they'll read Persuasion one chapter at a time, asking what Austen's timeless novel can teach us about grief, beauty, aging, and—of course—love.
SEASON 5: Hot and Bothered (Movie Edition)
For our fifth season of the show, we turned our attention to romantic films. The season began with ten episodes on How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, an iconic film of the early 2000s rom-com oeuvre. Following those episodes, Vanessa was joined by beloved academic and podcaster Hannah McGregor to dig into the canon of romantic films, from Titanic to Twilight to When Harry Met Sally, (just to name a few). We asked every movie “what does this believe about love?” And “do we agree?”
SEASON 4: Live from Pemberley
In Live from Pemberley, we continue our deep-dive into the classic texts of romance literature. This season we take a close look at the most famous Romance novel of all time: Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Every episode, Vanessa Zoltan and Lauren Sandler read through the book, talk with experts, and ask themselves the question ‘is this still a story for our time?’
SEASON 3: On Eyre
Vanessa Zoltan and journalist Lauren Sandler embark on the English class you always deserved, diving deep into Jane Eyre through the themes of power and desire. Discussions range from ideas of class and colonialism to sex and gender as Lauren and Vanessa explore the roles of oppression and inequality, empowerment and rebellion in the text.
SEASON 2: Twilight in Quarantine
You may remember BFFs Vanessa & Julia from their all-star advice giving in Hot and Bothered Season 1. In this COVID-19 quarantine they got on the phone three times a week to read and talk about Twilight. On Twilight in Quarantine, they worked their way through the Twilight saga one chapter at a time, giving brilliant well-informed advice to Stephenie Meyer’s characters along the way. Advice like: “maybe you shouldn’t kidnap people.”
SEASON 1: Writing Romance
Season one of Hot and Bothered followed ten first-time romance writers as they tried to write their own romance novels. Each episode explored a particular romance trope and why we love it so much. Along the way, Julia Quinn, wri...
46episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Persuasion, Chapter 3: The Sea Is Not Beautifier
4d ago01:03:00Tap to summarizeIn Chapter 3 of Persuasion, The Elliot’s and their friends discuss whether it would be acceptable to rent Kellynch Hall to a Navy officer.This week, Dr. Catriona Kennedy joins us at the end of the episode to give us a little context on the British Navy in the Napoleonic Wars.If you want to be part of the conversation, you can still join us for our weekly class which will follow each episode of the podcast!---Hot and Bothered is a Not Sorry ProductionFind us at our website | Follow us on InstagramDon't spend your daughter's dowry, but if you can spare $5/month, we'd love to have your support on Patreon! On Patreon we have more great Austen content including a weekly bonus conversation between Vanessa and Stephanie. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Transcribe →Persuasion, Chapter 2: They Must Retrench
2w ago01:08:40Tap to summarizeIn Chapter 2 of Persuasion the Elliots and their close friends try to strategize about the family's pressing debt. This week we're joined by one of our closest friends (and our former co-host), Dr. Hannah McGregor, to dissect the chapter.Dr. Alexander Wakelam also returns at the end of the episode to teach us more about debt in the early 19th century. If you want to be part of the conversation, you can still join us for our weekly class which will follow each episode of the podcast!---Hot and Bothered is a Not Sorry ProductionFind us at our website | Follow us on InstagramDon't spend your daughter's dowry, but if you can spare $5/month, we'd love to have your support on Patreon! On Patreon we have more great Austen content including a weekly bonus conversation between Vanessa and Stephanie. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Transcribe →Persuasion, Chapter 1: The Ancient and Respectable Family
3w ago00:57:22Tap to summarizeWe meet The Elliots in Chapter 1 of Persuasion and Vanessa and Stephanie Paulsell introduce our themes for this season. Every week we'll be discussing Anne's moral compass, and where we see ridiculousness, beauty, and grief in the chapter.This week, Dr. Amy King joins us at the end of the episode to help us understand how the word 'bloom' is operating in this book.If you want to be part of the conversation, you can join us for our weekly class which will follow each episode of the podcast. This class also free for our $50/month patrons on our Patreon, which you can join here.---Hot and Bothered is a Not Sorry ProductionFind us at our website | Follow us on InstagramIf we give you butterflies, consider supporting us on Patreon! On Patreon we have more great romance content including a bonus conversation between Vanessa and Stephanie. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Transcribe →Jane Austen’s Persuasion: An Introduction
4w ago00:14:21Tap to summarizeVirginia Woolf called Persuasion "the most deeply felt of Jane Austen's novels." It may also be her most difficult novel. This season, we're taking it slowly, reading one chapter each week and lingering over Austen's extraordinary sentences together.Join Vanessa Zoltan and the Rev. Dr. Stephanie Paulsell as they explore Anne Elliot and Captain Wentworth's second-chance love story while asking timeless questions about grief, goodness, beauty, yearning, and what it means to find your way in a world that doesn't always see your worth.If you want to be part of the conversation, you can join us for our weekly class which will follow each episode of the podcast. This class also free for our $50/month patrons on our Patreon, which you can join here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Transcribe →Season Six Trailer: Jane Austen's Persuasion
Jun 2600:01:58Tap to summarizeWe're returning to our roots with Season 6 of Hot and Bothered – reading classic romance literature. This season, Vanessa Zoltan will be joined by her mentor Dr. Stephanie Paulsell to read Jane Austen's Persuasion one chapter at a time. We'll ask questions about grief, beauty, aging, and, of course, love. If you want to be part of the conversation, you can join us for our weekly class which will follow each episode of the podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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So What Did We Learn About Romance Movies?
Jun 2300:16:19Tap to summarizeThat's all folks! Season Five of Hot and Bothered, all about romance movies, has come to close. On today's episode, Vanessa shares her finals thoughts on the genre.In two weeks, we're starting our chapter-by-chapter read through of Persuasion! If you want to join us for our weekly class, which will accompany the podcast, you can sign-up at notsorryworks.com or become a $50/month patron at patreon.com/hotandbotheredrompod.---Hot and Bothered is a Not Sorry ProductionFind us at our website | Follow us on InstagramIf we give you butterflies, consider supporting us on Patreon! On Patreon we have more great romance content including a summary of Vanessa's ten top favorite movies we watched this season. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Ending Of: Casablanca
Jun 1600:28:11Tap to summarizeFor our final bi-weekly scene study, Vanessa, Hannah, and Stephanie Paulsell analyze the ending of Casablanca. They discuss Ilsa's agency, Captain Renault's treatment of women, and how to improve the famous last line of the film.---Hot and Bothered is a Not Sorry ProductionFind us at our website | Follow us on InstagramIf we give you butterflies, consider supporting us on Patreon! On Patreon we have more great romance content including a FREE bonus close scene analysis with Vanessa, Hannah, and Stephanie. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Casablanca
Jun 901:14:17Tap to summarizeVanessa Zoltan, Hannah McGregor, and Stephanie Paulsell meet at Rick's Café Américain to record this week’s episode of Hot and Bothered – our last movie of the season, Casablanca.This week we discuss why this movie is an enduring classic, the sexual schemes of Captain Renault, and what makes "America." We finish the episode by calling film historian Noah Isenberg to discuss his book We’ll Always Have ‘Casablanca’: The Life, Legend, and Afterlife of Hollywood’s Most Beloved Movie.---Hot and Bothered is a Not Sorry ProductionFind us at our website | Follow us on InstagramIf we give you butterflies, consider supporting us on Patreon! On Patreon we have more great romance content including a bonus close scene analysis with Hannah, Stephanie and Vanessa. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Ending Of: Moonstruck
Jun 200:28:21Tap to summarizeFor this week’s bi-weekly scene study, Vanessa and Ariana Nedelman analyze the ending of Moonstruck. They discuss the confrontation between Rose and Cosmo, why Ronny doesn't have to kneel for his proposal, and the underuse of Cher as leading lady. ---Hot and Bothered is a Not Sorry ProductionFind us at our website | Follow us on InstagramIf we give you butterflies, consider supporting us on Patreon! On Patreon we have more great romance content including a bonus close scene analysis with Ariana and Vanessa. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Moonstruck
May 2601:05:26Tap to summarizeVanessa Zoltan and our producer, Ariana Nedelman, meet-up at The Met to record this week’s episode of Hot and Bothered, all about Moonstruck. This week we discuss the specter of death, the gender dynamics, and the acting choices of the film. We finish the episode by calling Dr. Fred Gardaphé to get some context on Italian-American portrayals in film. ---Hot and Bothered is a Not Sorry ProductionFind us at our website | Follow us on InstagramIf we give you butterflies, consider supporting us on Patreon! On Patreon we have more great romance content including a bonus close scene analysis with Ariana and Vanessa. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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