Hot and Bothered

About Hot and Bothered

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, writer of the Bridgerton series, gave weekly assignments so listeners could follow along in the process. Season one was made in collaboration with Spoke Media. Hot & Bothered is produced by Not Sorry Productions, a feminist organization that produces podcasts, educational content, live shows, and immersive experiences with the explicit goal of addressing the spiritual needs of its participants. Through community, rigor, and ritual, we treat traditionally secular things as if they were sacred. To learn more about what we do, visit https://notsorryworks.com/ (https://notsorryworks.com/) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

Publisher

Not Sorry Productions

Category

arts · arts · society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

27 Feb 2018

Latest episode

3 Nov 2026

Latest episodes

114 of 334 episodes have a transcript.

1. 

   3 Nov 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Persuasion, Chapter 17: A Widow Mrs. Smith

   Vanessa and Stephanie interview Dr. Laura Mooneyham White about how Austen's Christianity shapes Persuasion, Chapter 17, introducing the character Mrs. Smith.

2. 

   27 Oct 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Persuasion, Chapter 16: Our Cousins in Laura-place

   Host Vanessa Zoltan and Dr. Annie Tindley, a scholar of Irish peerage, explore Lady Dalrymple's social standing and the Elliot family's reaction to her arrival in this interview.

3. 

   20 Oct 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Persuasion, Chapter 15: It Was All Bath

   Host Vanessa Zoltan and author Julia Argy discuss Anne's social standing and Mr. Elliot's visit during her first night in Bath in this interview episode.

Inside a recent episode

Persuasion, Chapter 17: A Widow Mrs. Smith

Published 3 Nov 2026 · Transcript excerpt

[…] That's right. I think she takes pleasure in it. And she also feels the claim of these friendships on her. She sees it's part of her human duty is to maintain these relationships, but it's not a drag. She doesn't drag herself over to Mrs. Smith. She's really eager to talk with her and learn from her. […]

Who has been a guest on Hot and Bothered

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Laura Mooneyham White
• Dr Annie Tindley
• Julia Argy
• Jane Gregory
• Jon Stobart

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

YouTube views

1,282,630

Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.7 / 5

1,092 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 73 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

71

Social presence

0

YouTube

93

Engagement

94

Contact Hot and Bothered

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

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