Do Hayekian economic theory and campaign-trail politics get you all hot and bothered? Then here is some can’t-miss reading for your summer trips to the beach: a new romance novel inspired by Minnesota congresswoman, Republican presidential candidate, and tea-party darling Michele Bachmann.
On June 1, author Tréy Sager will release his new e-book, Fires of Siberia, courtesy of publisher Badlands Unlimited, known for its eclectic offerings (e.g., Saddam Hussein’s early speeches, or a set of 1964 interviews with urinal-“artist” Marcel Duchamp). Badlands summarizes its new bodice-ripper as follows:
Presidential candidate Danielle Powers, full of firebrand pluck and red state sex appeal, has the country in a tizzy. But on an international tour to beef up her foreign policy experience, disaster ensues — her plane explodes over Siberia. Miraculously, Danielle survives, along with one other passenger — a mysterious stranger named Steadman Bass. Trapped in a wilderness of snow and ice, the two begin a journey that pushes Danielle to the brink. There she must confront her deepest self and choose between civilization and a wild, primitive ecstasy.
Sager says the book is a feminist tome. “The romance novel is kind of a unique genre because it’s viewed by many as a feminist genre,” Sager told Politico. “So it’s also possible that it’s kind of an empowering genre, and I actually really do believe that.”
But he says that, while his politics do not align with Bachmann’s, he is still a fan:
I really admire her, and I think she’s both unique and enigmatic. . . . I had seen her a number of times and had been fascinated by her, this cultural figure, and I began to see how intently everybody seemed to feel about her. One way or another, people were really psyched about her or were making T-shirts, calling her bats — crazy. And it kind of startled me at first . . .. I do feel that one of the reasons that she drives people crazy is because she’s a woman in power and I think that it’s a phenomenon in our culture that makes people react strongly. Couple that with her attractiveness and sex appeal, and I thought, ‘OK, well maybe a romance novel is a good place to look into some of these cultural feelings.’
Sager says that he wants readers, upon finishing the book, to feel “strange.” Sir, mission accomplished.
Still, it seems almost anything’s better than first-family erotica . . .