Beach reads, eats and the best rosé twist ever. Plus, SPECIAL BONUS: Hitha goes DEEP on Love Island!

All the sexy beach reads and a little bitching about the dismal state of the world rn. Laura’s out East, Hitha’s in Bucks County, and we’re sharing what we’re reading (Atmosphere, 32 Days in May, Daisy), what we’re watching (Love Island, Resident Alien, The Gilded Age), and what’s on our plates (Old Bay crabs, Indian-style corn, Wegmans Gouda). Plus: Hitha goes DEEP on Love Island, special bonus episode at the end of this chat!

📚 Books We Loved

Laura’s Picks:

• Atmosphere by T.M. Logan
• Daisy by Maxie McCoy
• Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter
• The Sicilian Inheritance by Jo Piazza

Hitha’s Picks:

• 32 Days in May by Betty Corrello
• Main Character Energy by Hannah Orenstein
• This Summer Will Be Different by Carley Fortune
• Summer Storms by Sarah MacLean
• Bad Summer People by Emma Rosenblum

📺 What We’re Watching

• Love Island (UK edition, live drop on Hulu or Peacock)
• Resident Alien (Peacock)
• The Gilded Age (Max)
• Just Like That (Max — briefly!)
• The Buccaneers (Apple TV+)
• Throwback TV: Beverly Hills 90210 summer episodes, Saved by the Bell: Malibu Sands mini-arc

🍽️ Summer on a Plate (and in a glass)

Laura’s Summer Staples:

• Wölffer Estate Rosé – “Summer in a Bottle”
• Fresh raspberries in ice molds
• Old Bay + crab mallets
• Corn + tomato + beer = classic Maryland-style meal

Hitha’s Summer Staples:

• Wegmans Hatch Chile Gouda
• Jalapeños in oxidized rosé (frozen slices = chef’s kiss)
• Vinegary and mustard-based potato salads
• Corn on the cob “Indian style” – lime, chili, no cream
• Sparkling water all day, every day

Join us for a funny and sweet catch up, where we make each other laugh and commiserate on the wonky way the world is working at the moment! We also talk about lots of books making us hot and should make their way to your beach bag!

Books

• Forever by Judy Blume
• Orbital by Samantha Harvey
• In the Country We Love by Diane Guerrero
• Path of Temptation (series) by Auren Hadley
• The Lady Astronaut series by Mary Robinette Kowal
• The Spare Man by Mary Robinette Kowal
• The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells
• Dragonriders of Pern by Anne McCaffrey
• How to Lose Your Mother by Molly Jong-Fast
• Daisy by Maxie McCoy
• The Sicilian Inheritance by Jo Piazza

Shows

• For All Mankind
• Designated Survivor
• The West Wing
• The Hunger Games: Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

Music

• Sapphire by Ed Sheeran

Style / Summer Staples

• Breathable Cotton Shirt (Amazon)

What we’re reading:
Hitha just finished The High Dive by Chelsea Fagan, a steamy, smart class-clash romance set on a luxury yacht in the Mediterranean. She’s also excited to start Fitting Indian by Jyoti Chand, a graphic novel that explores the experiences of Indian millennial girls growing up in the U.S.

And in true Chaos Queen fashion, she skipped book one and jumped straight into the Psy-Changeling Trinity series by Nalini Singh, a second-wave romantasy universe full of intricate worldbuilding and slow-burn reveals.

Laura’s got two very different picks: Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix, a rage-fueled, culturally resonant revenge fantasy about girls sent to a 1970s home for the “wayward,” and The Path of Temptation by Auryn Hadley, a steamy “why choose” romantasy where one heroine is trained in seduction—for spiritual purposes, of course.

We’re also talking about Everyone Is Lying to You by Jo Piazza—Hitha has the galley, Laura is jealous, and the tradwife thriller is already a contender for most addictive book of the summer. Also coming soon: Kyra Alessy joins us on the podcast, which means more romantasy homework for Hitha.

What’s bothering us:
Laura reacts to DHS reportedly floating a “citizenship game show”—yes, a real policy concept—and Hitha explains why Senator Hawley’s prescription drug bill is political theater, not real reform. She breaks it down in more detail here, including why smart, effective legislation like the Inflation Reduction Act deserves more attention.

Welcome to Hot & Bothered, a conversation about romance novels and resistance!
Friends Laura Brounstein & Hitha Palepu talk about the hot books they're reading, the watches that are worth it, the issues that are bothering them, and more.

Hot books we shared this week:

• Laura: Degradation by Kyra Alessy and my forever comfort books, The Twilight Saga books by the one and only Stephenie Meyer. #TeamEdward
• Hitha: Ilona Andrews Innkeeper Chronicles and Abby Jimenez's new book, Say You'll Remember Me.

The issues bothering us:

A little mess called “Liberation Day.”

What's making us happy:

• New Jersey Senator Cory Booker and his historic 25+ hour filibuster
• White Lotus, specifically Leslie Bibb’s “C**ty Bob!)
• Mission Impossible & Tom Cruise?

Follow us:

• Hot & Bothered on Instagram
• Hot & Bothered on YouTube
• Hitha Palepu on Instagram
• Laura Brounstein on Instagram

Welcome to Hot & Bothered, a conversation between two friends,

Laura Brounstein

&

Hitha Palepu

talking about the hot books they're reading, the issues that are bothering them, and more.

Books we talk about this week:

• Laura: OG fave Knight in Shining Armor by Jude Devereaux
• Hitha: Not Safe for Work by Nisha J. Tuli

The issues bothering us:

• The fall of the American empire?
• Is Trump a William McKinley 2.0, or if Lindbergh had won the presidency alternate reality? (Ie. Like in The Plot Against America.)

What's making us hot:

• The emerging respect for the romance genre
• ‘Vacation reading’
  • Hitha’s recommendation: Empress of Rome series by Kate Quinn
• Bridget Jones: All About The Boy
• Infrared saunas

Follow us:

• Hot & Bothered on Instagram
• Hot & Bothered on YouTube
• Hitha Palepu on Instagram
• Laura Brounstein on Instagram

Welcome to Hot & Bothered, a conversation between two friends,

Laura Brounstein

&

Hitha Palepu

talking about the hot books they're reading, the issues that are bothering them, and more.

Hot books we shared this week:

• Laura: Demons & Debts by Kyra Alessy
• Hitha: Time Loops & Meet Cutes by Jackie Lau

The issues bothering us:

• The cancellation of the FDA advisory meeting for the flu vaccine
• Teresa Borrenpohl’s attack in Idaho

What's making us happy:

• Disney movies - especially Hercules and Zootopia
• Paradise on Hulu
• Related: James Mardsen

Follow us:

• Hot & Bothered on Instagram
• Hot & Bothered on YouTube
• Hitha Palepu on Instagram
• Laura Brounstein on Instagram

It's our big Onyx Storm deep dive episode! We get into our romantasy Xaden casting, the book's final scene with Imogen and Violet and our personal theories for what's next. Hitha does a valiant job trying to get us all excited about F1 and romances that take place in that world and Laura talks romance novel boyfriends. We also talk about the NOT hot men making a mess of the country/world right now.