I almost exclusively read romance right now (I can't handle not knowing things won't work out in an HEA) and it also drives me a little bonkers when if they would just USE THEIR WORDS everything would be fine. In trying to think of books where that's not used and the hero isn't too traumatized to love, I think I just came up with books where the heroine was traumatized. Haha. I would recommend Courtney Milan's books though. She has both contemporary books and historicals and they're wonderful. I don't feel like her books are quite as reliant on trauma and misunderstanding as some others, though there are elements of that in some of the books.
Regency romance; Christian romance; Pioneer-days romance; These are the ones I enjoy when I need a break from those heavy/complex reads of high fantasy or whatnot. I'm NOT a fan of erotica or sex-every-chapter romance. I like the sweet romances that involve good writing, so I appreciate your thoughtful reviews! (use their words…Preach it.)
My favorite romance authors are Beverly Jenkins, Alyssa cole and Jill shalvis. I have also read and enjoyed Jenny colgan and Annie england noblin. They are colgan and Egan are contemporary Jenkins and cole are historical
The conversation of âgood booksâ versus âenjoyable booksâ is fascinating. I see this in the book world but also in the music and movie world…I enjoy so many great films, but also can enjoy a very flawed blockbuster kind of movie… and same with music, I can appreciate a complicated symphonic work, but also love a good pop tune… and there are places and moods for each. Maybe I should try delving into romance too! Lol
I don't read many romances because many of the ones I have picked up have characters that are down right abusive and that really ruins them for me. Than again that could just be because I've only read a few in the last year or so and they were more popular ones. I am always open to suggestions of good romance, preferably ones that don't involve a man forcibly making all of the decisions and making the woman seem like an idiot for knowing what she wants to do.
I dont read many romance books either, but if I do, I turn to the 'queen' of regency romance, Georgette Heyer. So if you ever feel like exploring more of this subgenre: I can highly recommend!
I recommend anything by Julie Anne Long (What I Did for Duke is her best in my opinion and probably my favourite romance novel of all time), Courtney Milan and Meredith Duran. Eleven Scandals to Start to Win a Duke's Heart (3rd book in the Love By Numbers trilogy) by Sarah MacLean is also among my top 10. Do yourself a favour and skip the middle book though.
I read a ton of romance, and I have read some of those authors mentioned in the video, but they are not my favorites. My current favorites are: Courtney Milan (regency romance); Sonali Dev, Alisha Rai, Olivia Dade, and Alyssa Cole (contemporary); Kit Rocha (post Apocalyptic); Alyssa Cole also writes a killer post-apoc series called Off the Grid and a historical series called The Loyal Union. I will read anything Cole puts out. Her cast of characters are diverse and excellently written. Love, love, love her.
Dipping into romance is an interesting experience! I wanted to do it for a while because I know that there are really good books out there, though the problem for me is that hetero sex is like… borderline triggering to me. I get this really visceral "nope" reaction and a sick feeling in my stomach when I read it (oddly enough I'm fine with male/male sex scenes, it's just when its a man and a woman that I get this internal panic), which is a personal problem that I have tried to brush aside and not consider while reading romance (as I want to judge it fairly), but also has discouraged me from picking up the mainstream romances that people are talking about – tho I did pick up The Kiss Quotient, which I liked and the romance itself was cute, but was very slow to read because there were…. so many sex scenes. There's also this internalized bigotry that doesnt let me count f/f romance – even tho I enjoy that the most – as part of my "reading romance to get a hold of the genre and be able to judge it accurately", because it's not """real romance books, just indulges for you""" but obviously that's bullshit. Me enjoying a book makes it "not count" as a book apparantly? Even tho the romance genre is literally made for people to enjoy? Yeah, nope As for reccomendations. 1) Her Elysium by Emmy Egberts 2) Coffee Boy by Austin Chant 3) Style by Chelsea M Cameron 4) Colorblind by Siera Maley 5) The Intern by Mia Archer
Thoughtful review as always Mynameis. I really like your prefaces to help us get the most from your reviews. Here's my recommendation for something contemporary, but more action based too: To the Limit (Book 02) and To the Brink (Book 03) by Cindy Gerard. I think you will preciate her writing and her characters. There's depth there, and the story is really entertaining.
I'm barely dipping my toes into romance as well so I don't know that many but I would really like to recommend The Girl with the make-belief husband by Julia Quinn I really enjoyed that story the guy wasn't a douche( at least not from what I remember) and I really liked the female character.
I'm not really sure if it even counts as romance, but This Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover really stuck with me. I read it a year ago, and I still think about it from time to time.
Okay I just added Indiscreet to my TBR without even reading the synopsis because that's how much I trust your reviews! I highly recommend Cotillion by Georgette Heyer! Fake engagement trope, NO too-traumatized-to-love man, really thoughtful depictions of class/gender issues amidst all the humor, and no miscommunication plot! It's definitely more of a Regency comedy with a subtle romance, but I think the romance is all the better-developed for that reason! Also I absolutely adore your earrings! Loved this discussion and wrap up. I'm also discovering I have some very clear preferences when it comes to romance novels! It's a genre I'm not terribly familiar with either but I'm slowly building a small group of favorites.
I have so many thoughts and recommendations swirling around in my head watching this… but Iâll limit it to one âșïž. I highly recommend checking out the blog âSmart Butches Trashy Books.â They write great, critical reviews of romance and it was an invaluable resource to me doing my thesis, which was on romance novels. They also have a ton of great resources for crowdsourcing recommendations and they do a lot of tagging by tropes, so you could do some searching to find regencies without an emotionally constipated hero or miscommunication conflicts, both of which I also hate
PS- OK, one book rec! Maybe try Courtney Milan… I love âKiss for Midwinterâ or âThe Duchess Warâ
I also tend to turn towards romance when I need a bit of a break since I read lots of stuff that can be really heavy. Also the world is trash and we all need a little happily ever after. But I can only take it in small doses because of the "too wounded to love" thing.
That said I am definitely going to check out Mary Balogh. And maybe Stacy Reid. Not Regency, but I recently read the Forbidden Hearts trilogy by Alisha Rai and liked them a lot, if you want something contemporary
I really enjoyed this. Romance has been an important part of my reading experience but I stopped reading them for a number of years. Recently I've been picking them up again and the genre has come a long way. I've been noticing more emphasis on consent and less douchiness from the central characters. But maybe that's more a reflection on the books I've been picking up. Lately my favorite has been Alyssa Cole. Especially her civil war series which as a historian I think she did a great job with less emphasized aspects of the history. I'll just add that you were quite fair in your reviews here and personally I hate when the miscommunication goes on too long. Use your words indeed!
if you like historical romance check out Beverly Jenkins, she writes african american romances, Courtney milan does great regency, so does amanda quick, julia quinn, stephanie laurens are all some of my personal faves. julia quinn's series just got picked up to be made into a show by shondaland.
Tessa Dare is the queen of regency, Alyssa Cole writes excellent black women protagonists across all genres and time periods, and The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang is an incredible gender flipped "Pretty Woman" that includes a lot of great autism rep. Hope you find a book you love!
I hate miscommunication in books!!! I really enjoy you trying books different to your typical genres. This was a fascinating video and I can't wait to hear more đ
The discussion you prompt at the beginning of this video is something Iâve been thinking a lot about lately! 2018 is the first time Iâve ever dipped my toes into the romance genre (Iâm only on my second book, and also tend to gravitate toward regency/historical romances) and it has certainly been interesting.
Itâs funny too how certain tropes can stand out to certain readers. Iâm also not a big fan of the âtoo traumatized to loveâ plot line but it definitely bothers me less than the âlady tames the rakeâ sort of story than 90% of romance synopses seem to have.
I wonder if you might find beta heroes irritate you less? I've had that become a bigger and bigger issue for me in romance and I now only want to read beta heroes. Courtney Milan is a good place to start for beta heroes as is Alyssa Cole. I'd also recommend picking up Alisha Rai, as she's excellent.
I've been dipping my toes into romance as well and it's been a mixed experience. You might want to try the Wilde series by Eloisa James. There are two books so far and neither of them have the issues you're talking about. I particularly liked book 1. Oh and if you haven't yet, definitely check out Alyssa Cole! She has some fantastic books that also deal really thoughtfully with big issues.
Anyway, I feel the same way about romance books. I'm just starting to dip my toes into the genre and realizing how (even more than other genres) it feels like it is all about preferences. Like I enjoy a very specific type of female character and I prefer contemporary, etc. So when I'm trying these books out, I DNF even faster than other books because I can tell if it just is not the one for me
Did anyone else loathe Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake? Admittedly, straight historical romance isn't really my go-to genre. Even so, I thought it was an exceptionally shallow and poorly-developed wish-fulfillment fantasy with only the barest semblance of being "historical."
SO MANY REGENCY ROMANCES!! I need the good ones lol. I want to read Indiscreet and anything by Sarah McLean bc Iâve heard nothing but great things about her last couple of books.
I loved what you said in the beginning about being critical about escapism and what people say and think about romance genre.
Jenica Dawn
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
I almost exclusively read romance right now (I can't handle not knowing things won't work out in an HEA) and it also drives me a little bonkers when if they would just USE THEIR WORDS everything would be fine. In trying to think of books where that's not used and the hero isn't too traumatized to love, I think I just came up with books where the heroine was traumatized. Haha. I would recommend Courtney Milan's books though. She has both contemporary books and historicals and they're wonderful. I don't feel like her books are quite as reliant on trauma and misunderstanding as some others, though there are elements of that in some of the books.
Sandy Lender
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
Regency romance; Christian romance; Pioneer-days romance; These are the ones I enjoy when I need a break from those heavy/complex reads of high fantasy or whatnot. I'm NOT a fan of erotica or sex-every-chapter romance. I like the sweet romances that involve good writing, so I appreciate your thoughtful reviews! (use their words…Preach it.)
Starrkg77
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
My favorite romance authors are Beverly Jenkins, Alyssa cole and Jill shalvis. I have also read and enjoyed Jenny colgan and Annie england noblin. They are colgan and Egan are contemporary Jenkins and cole are historical
siwe
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
I could listen to you talk for hours about books. You have such a beautiful voice and your analysis are also top 1.
Books With Alyssa J
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
i always love hearing your thoughts on books, even though i don't think i've ever picked up a book fully dedicated to romance haha
A Musical Bookworm
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
The conversation of âgood booksâ versus âenjoyable booksâ is fascinating. I see this in the book world but also in the music and movie world…I enjoy so many great films, but also can enjoy a very flawed blockbuster kind of movie… and same with music, I can appreciate a complicated symphonic work, but also love a good pop tune… and there are places and moods for each. Maybe I should try delving into romance too! Lol
Jay G
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
Iâve never even heard of any of these
Nat
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
I don't read many romances because many of the ones I have picked up have characters that are down right abusive and that really ruins them for me. Than again that could just be because I've only read a few in the last year or so and they were more popular ones. I am always open to suggestions of good romance, preferably ones that don't involve a man forcibly making all of the decisions and making the woman seem like an idiot for knowing what she wants to do.
Nicole Sweeney
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
we gotta do a whole episode of the podcast about this good/enjoyment thing
love your face as always
Britta Böhler
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
I dont read many romance books either, but if I do, I turn to the 'queen' of regency romance, Georgette Heyer. So if you ever feel like exploring more of this subgenre: I can highly recommend!
Shaegeeksout
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
Some of the tropes in the romance genre can be super frustrating. I haven't read a lot of regency romances. I've been wanting to check some more out.
Thoughts on Tomes
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
I also want to dip my toes into romance but I live in fear of the miscommunication plot. I can't abide it.
booksandabeer
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
I recommend anything by Julie Anne Long (What I Did for Duke is her best in my opinion and probably my favourite romance novel of all time), Courtney Milan and Meredith Duran.
Eleven Scandals to Start to Win a Duke's Heart (3rd book in the Love By Numbers trilogy) by Sarah MacLean is also among my top 10. Do yourself a favour and skip the middle book though.
Also, I LOVE your earrings!
Michelle Boule
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
I read a ton of romance, and I have read some of those authors mentioned in the video, but they are not my favorites. My current favorites are: Courtney Milan (regency romance); Sonali Dev, Alisha Rai, Olivia Dade, and Alyssa Cole (contemporary); Kit Rocha (post Apocalyptic); Alyssa Cole also writes a killer post-apoc series called Off the Grid and a historical series called The Loyal Union. I will read anything Cole puts out. Her cast of characters are diverse and excellently written. Love, love, love her.
Books and Sass
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
Dipping into romance is an interesting experience! I wanted to do it for a while because I know that there are really good books out there, though the problem for me is that hetero sex is like… borderline triggering to me. I get this really visceral "nope" reaction and a sick feeling in my stomach when I read it (oddly enough I'm fine with male/male sex scenes, it's just when its a man and a woman that I get this internal panic), which is a personal problem that I have tried to brush aside and not consider while reading romance (as I want to judge it fairly), but also has discouraged me from picking up the mainstream romances that people are talking about – tho I did pick up The Kiss Quotient, which I liked and the romance itself was cute, but was very slow to read because there were…. so many sex scenes. There's also this internalized bigotry that doesnt let me count f/f romance – even tho I enjoy that the most – as part of my "reading romance to get a hold of the genre and be able to judge it accurately", because it's not """real romance books, just indulges for you""" but obviously that's bullshit. Me enjoying a book makes it "not count" as a book apparantly? Even tho the romance genre is literally made for people to enjoy? Yeah, nope
As for reccomendations.
1) Her Elysium by Emmy Egberts
2) Coffee Boy by Austin Chant
3) Style by Chelsea M Cameron
4) Colorblind by Siera Maley
5) The Intern by Mia Archer
Amy Norris
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
Have you read Tessa Dare yet? Sheâs the best historical romance writer in my opinion.
Jane
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
Thoughtful review as always Mynameis. I really like your prefaces to help us get the most from your reviews.
Here's my recommendation for something contemporary, but more action based too: To the Limit (Book 02) and To the Brink (Book 03) by Cindy Gerard. I think you will preciate her writing and her characters. There's depth there, and the story is really entertaining.
Jennifer
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
I'm barely dipping my toes into romance as well so I don't know that many but I would really like to recommend The Girl with the make-belief husband by Julia Quinn I really enjoyed that story the guy wasn't a douche( at least not from what I remember) and I really liked the female character.
Guro WĂ„gan
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
I'm not really sure if it even counts as romance, but This Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover really stuck with me. I read it a year ago, and I still think about it from time to time.
Paola M Guerrero
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
LOVED THE INTRO TO THIS VIDEO!! LOVED THE ENTIRETY OF THIS VIDEO!! IM NEVER GETTING TIRED OF YOUR REVIEWS!!!
Wilde Book Garden
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
Okay I just added Indiscreet to my TBR without even reading the synopsis because that's how much I trust your reviews!
I highly recommend Cotillion by Georgette Heyer! Fake engagement trope, NO too-traumatized-to-love man, really thoughtful depictions of class/gender issues amidst all the humor, and no miscommunication plot! It's definitely more of a Regency comedy with a subtle romance, but I think the romance is all the better-developed for that reason!
Also I absolutely adore your earrings!
Loved this discussion and wrap up. I'm also discovering I have some very clear preferences when it comes to romance novels! It's a genre I'm not terribly familiar with either but I'm slowly building a small group of favorites.
bookslikewhoa
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
I have so many thoughts and recommendations swirling around in my head watching this… but Iâll limit it to one âșïž. I highly recommend checking out the blog âSmart Butches Trashy Books.â They write great, critical reviews of romance and it was an invaluable resource to me doing my thesis, which was on romance novels. They also have a ton of great resources for crowdsourcing recommendations and they do a lot of tagging by tropes, so you could do some searching to find regencies without an emotionally constipated hero or miscommunication conflicts, both of which I also hate
PS- OK, one book rec! Maybe try Courtney Milan… I love âKiss for Midwinterâ or âThe Duchess Warâ
Wendy Reed
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
I also tend to turn towards romance when I need a bit of a break since I read lots of stuff that can be really heavy. Also the world is trash and we all need a little happily ever after. But I can only take it in small doses because of the "too wounded to love" thing.
That said I am definitely going to check out Mary Balogh. And maybe Stacy Reid. Not Regency, but I recently read the Forbidden Hearts trilogy by Alisha Rai and liked them a lot, if you want something contemporary
BookWhimsy
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
I really enjoyed this. Romance has been an important part of my reading experience but I stopped reading them for a number of years. Recently I've been picking them up again and the genre has come a long way. I've been noticing more emphasis on consent and less douchiness from the central characters. But maybe that's more a reflection on the books I've been picking up. Lately my favorite has been Alyssa Cole. Especially her civil war series which as a historian I think she did a great job with less emphasized aspects of the history. I'll just add that you were quite fair in your reviews here and personally I hate when the miscommunication goes on too long. Use your words indeed!
Aisha TheBewitchingBibliophile
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
if you like historical romance check out Beverly Jenkins, she writes african american romances, Courtney milan does great regency, so does amanda quick, julia quinn, stephanie laurens are all some of my personal faves. julia quinn's series just got picked up to be made into a show by shondaland.
Tiffany E.
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
Tessa Dare is the queen of regency, Alyssa Cole writes excellent black women protagonists across all genres and time periods, and The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang is an incredible gender flipped "Pretty Woman" that includes a lot of great autism rep. Hope you find a book you love!
Simone Perren
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
I hate miscommunication in books!!! I really enjoy you trying books different to your typical genres. This was a fascinating video and I can't wait to hear more đ
Wish Fulfillment
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
I love and appreciate you bringing light to the fact that you will not bash something that's connected with women. That's so important to talk about!
Great video, as always!
Shakespeare and Such
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
The discussion you prompt at the beginning of this video is something Iâve been thinking a lot about lately! 2018 is the first time Iâve ever dipped my toes into the romance genre (Iâm only on my second book, and also tend to gravitate toward regency/historical romances) and it has certainly been interesting.
Itâs funny too how certain tropes can stand out to certain readers. Iâm also not a big fan of the âtoo traumatized to loveâ plot line but it definitely bothers me less than the âlady tames the rakeâ sort of story than 90% of romance synopses seem to have.
Aimee Miles
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
I wonder if you might find beta heroes irritate you less? I've had that become a bigger and bigger issue for me in romance and I now only want to read beta heroes. Courtney Milan is a good place to start for beta heroes as is Alyssa Cole. I'd also recommend picking up Alisha Rai, as she's excellent.
Beautifully Bookish Bethany
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
I've been dipping my toes into romance as well and it's been a mixed experience. You might want to try the Wilde series by Eloisa James. There are two books so far and neither of them have the issues you're talking about. I particularly liked book 1. Oh and if you haven't yet, definitely check out Alyssa Cole! She has some fantastic books that also deal really thoughtfully with big issues.
rincey reads
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
Reaaaaadddd Alyssa Coleeeeeeee
Anyway, I feel the same way about romance books. I'm just starting to dip my toes into the genre and realizing how (even more than other genres) it feels like it is all about preferences. Like I enjoy a very specific type of female character and I prefer contemporary, etc. So when I'm trying these books out, I DNF even faster than other books because I can tell if it just is not the one for me
Elicia C
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
You should try Radiance by Grave Draven. It's an inexpensive ebook and there is no drama or misunderstanding!! Words are used haha
Infinite Brain Coral Void
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
Did anyone else loathe Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake? Admittedly, straight historical romance isn't really my go-to genre. Even so, I thought it was an exceptionally shallow and poorly-developed wish-fulfillment fantasy with only the barest semblance of being "historical."
Paola M Guerrero
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
SO MANY REGENCY ROMANCES!! I need the good ones lol. I want to read Indiscreet and anything by Sarah McLean bc Iâve heard nothing but great things about her last couple of books.
I loved what you said in the beginning about being critical about escapism and what people say and think about romance genre.
Jessica Moro
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
why haven't we talked about this
Jessica Moro
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
After having the flu i dont know how you read
Jessica Moro
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
leave my tools alone
Jessica Moro
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
A GIRL HAS TO KEEP HER SECRETS
@6:40
Jessica Moro
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
BUT WHY DIDNT YOU READ A SECRET BABY BOOK
Elisabeth Lane
July 28, 2021 at 12:57 pm
I loved this! Thank you so much for not looking down on romance! I'll have to find a more recent video of yours where you look at more romance.