Happy New Year, Magnificent Firebirds! We don’t know what 2025 is going to bring, so we’re starting with a bang—the long awaited deep-dive of Judith Ivory's The Proposition, featuring that rakish rat catcher, that ferret-loving firebrand, the man himself, Mr. Mick Tremore! We’re talking sexual tension so overwhelming it makes a girl cry, horse-faced ladies who bring men to their knees, kissing on omnibuses and legs! All that, and Sarah and Jen disagree heartily on the issue of mustaches, but agree heartily that lionhearted virility is the energy we want this year.

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The Notes

• We did some holiday movie watching, as one does: Moonstruck, Sleepless in Seattle, and some scenes in particular were great to watch with our kids, the bus scene in Almost Famous and the underwear scene in Bridget Jones’s Diary.
• Lil Romance and Jen also watched When Harry Met Sally. There’s a new book called Nora Ephron at the Movies you might like, and this TikTok is great. Sometimes I just find cool stuff when I’m working on show notes, like this 2014 article from The Cut about the visual storytelling in When Harry Met Sally.
• A rolodex, including Marie’s portable version.
• Sarah was wrong about Nightime radio host Delilah, but you know. We aren’t apologizing for anything in 2025.
• Judith Ivory published 6 historicals, and then another 4 as Judy Cuevas.
• The Proposition is a Pygmalion/My Fair Lady retelling with a side of Trading Places.
• Do we think the dormouse is Ravishing the Heiress was inspired by Mick?
• Legs is a ZZ Top song

The Sponsors

• Mila Finelli, author of Empire of Temptation, available in print, ebook, audiobook or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.
• A.E. Merriweather, author of Marin in the Moonlight, available in print, ebook or audiobook, from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple Books or wherever you get your books.
• Max Monroe, author of What I Should've Said, available in print, ebook or audiobook at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, from your local indie, or with your monthly subscription to Kindle Unlimited.