By
Paulette
Gagnon, Reader’s Advisor
West
Warwick Public Library
Summer is quickly approaching and, just in time, so are some new romance novels. Romances are written to be accessible and easily read which make them an excellent “beach read.” The reader can put it down when interrupted and pick it back up and fall right back into the story. This time of year as we slow down, relax and enjoy nature, we also enjoy a happy ending which is almost always true with a romance novel.
There are many sub genres of romance to give readers a variety of
settings and authors to pick from.
Contemporary romances reflect the dual role of women today pursuing
careers before and during marriage, as well as before and after having children.
Today’s contemporary romance emphasizes more on the heroine and her
fulfillment both professionally and personally, and no one does this better than
Nora Roberts. Roberts has written more than one hundred novels including several
trilogies, romantic suspense and also a paperback futuristic series under the
pseudonym J.D. Robb. Roberts’s newest endeavors include Three Fates in
which vivid characters, a strong plot, and an Irish, European and New York
setting make this romantic suspense impossible to put down. In Face the Fire
Roberts concludes her masterful trilogy on Three Sisters Island, which began
with Dance Upon the Air and Heaven and Earth.
Along with Roberts, Jayne Ann Krentz is one of the most popular authors
of contemporary romance. Krantz’s newest is a conclusion to a delightful
trilogy beginning with Eclipse Bay, then Dawn in Eclipse Bay and
ending with Summer in Eclipse Bay. She also writes futuristic romances as
Jayne Castle, which are set on the imaginary planet of St. Helens.
Writing as Amanda Quick in Don’t Look Back, she mixes her
historic romance with mystery, as partners-in-crime duo Lavinia Lake and Tobias
March continue their newfound relationship with a mix of risky business, passion
and murder.
Continuing in the romantic suspense genre is Linda Lael Miller’s The
Last Chance Café where a down on her luck woman finds refuge in a café in
a small Western town. Linda Howard has written a romantic thriller full of
desire and obsession in Dying to Please. Elizabeth Lowell’s Running
Scared is the second in her Rarities series following Moving Target;
this one is Lowell at her stunning best.
Historical romance is another popular sub genre that includes historical
details, but not as extensively as historical novels. Another characteristic of
historical romances is that they often have elements of adventure, espionage and
mystery but in historical settings. A popular author in this category is Johanna
Lindsey, who’s newest The Pursuit, is a sequel to her Scottish
historical romance, Say You Love Me. It is a passionate adventure filled
with romantic dilemmas. Also, Dorothy Garlock’s High on a Hill has a
1920s atmosphere and the lead couple is just delightful. Jo Putney has written The
Bartered Bride, which has an exotic 1830s environment.
I have only listed a few of the new and forthcoming novels in the romance
genre. Whether you like just romance or maybe a little suspense or history with
your romance, there are many choices to pick from.