637. RT Rewind October 1988 Ads & Features

It’s time for the Ads & Features of the October 1988 (!!) issue of Romantic Times Magazine.

Y’all. We’ve got:

• Vintage gossip!
• Blind items that are very easy to guess!
• Danielle Steel’s two blue Mercedes!
• Fuchsia covers with giant flowers and startled animals!
• Riverboat gambler romance heroes!
• And a truly paltry obituary for an extraordinary author.

It’s 1988. Fuchsia. So much fuchsia.

Blanket content warning for romances written in the late 80s. Be ready for some very offensive tropes.

Do not, and I mean this most sincerely, skip the visual aids. It’s 1988 y’all. The covers are glorious! 

❤ Read the transcript ❤

↓ Press Play

This podcast player may not work on Chrome and a different browser is suggested. More ways to listen →

Here are the books we discuss in this podcast:

LINKS. So many good links!

• “Double Trouble: One or Two Women?” by Gillian Whitlock about the alleged plagiarism of Lucy Maud Montgomery’s The Blue Castle by Australian author Colleen McCullough.
• Sam Lord’s Castle, Barbados
• Sharon Spiak Art listing for Wary Hearts
• Eye Heart Romance’s review for Mistress of the Seas by Ruth Langan
• Clothes in Books: “Mary Burchell aka Ida Cook” – the patterns from Mab’s Fashions!
• Mary Burchell’s Wikipedia page
• A BluSky thread from John Bull on Mary Burchell
• The Pudding magazine interactive article about romance covers by Jan Diehm and Sandra Chiu

music: purple-planet.com

Support for this episode comes from Playmaker, a Hidden Attractions novel, by author Deanna Faison.

If you’re a fan of Tessa Bailey and Elle Kennedy novels, then Playmaker, a spicy football romance, is for you.

Cameron is a hot NFL prospect, and a total player on, and off the field. But his moves don’t seem to work on Maddie. While she once crushed on him hard, that crush has since faded. She’s got big plans of her own and they don’t include him.

Then Spring Break turns their plans, and their feelings, upside down. Maddie and Cameron start a steamy affair, sneaking around behind their families’ backs.

But there’s one big problem: Maddie’s WAY overprotective brother–who happens to be Cameron’s best friend.

Will Cam be able to admit he’s got real feelings? Will Maddie ever be able to stand up to her brother and make her own decisions?

Cameron may be the pro, but Maddie is the one calling the shots.

Readers are saying that Playmaker is perfect for folks who love lots of yearning in their romances, especially because there are chapters from both Cam and Maddie’s perspectives. And if you like friends with benefits and forbidden romance with a hefty amount of spice, this is perfect for you.

Originally published on Wattpad as “My Brother’s Best Friend,” Playmaker by Deanna Faison is available wherever books are sold.

Thank you to Wattpad Books for sponsoring this episode, and thank you for supporting our advertisers!

Transcript

❤ Click to view the transcript ❤

This podcast transcript was handcrafted with meticulous skill by Garlic Knitter. Many thanks.

Support for this episode comes from Playmaker, a Hidden Attractions novel, by author Deanna Faison.

If you’re a fan of Tessa Bailey and Elle Kennedy novels, then Playmaker, a spicy football romance, is for you.

Cameron is a hot NFL prospect, and a total player on, and off the field. But his moves don’t seem to work on Maddie. While she once crushed on him hard, that crush has since faded. She’s got big plans of her own and they don’t include him.

Then Spring Break turns their plans, and their feelings, upside down. Maddie and Cameron start a steamy affair, sneaking around behind their families’ backs.

But there’s one big problem: Maddie’s WAY overprotective brother–who happens to be Cameron’s best friend.

Will Cam be able to admit he’s got real feelings? Will Maddie ever be able to stand up to her brother and make her own decisions?

Cameron may be the pro, but Maddie is the one calling the shots.

Readers are saying that Playmaker is perfect for folks who love lots of yearning in their romances, especially because there are chapters from both Cam and Maddie’s perspectives. And if you like friends with benefits and forbidden romance with a hefty amount of spice, this is perfect for you.

Originally published on Wattpad as “My Brother’s Best Friend,” Playmaker by Deanna Faison is available wherever books are sold.

Thank you to Wattpad Books for sponsoring this episode, and thank you for supporting our advertisers!