Romance in books: A Love/Hate Relationship

Tags

Book Sale, Fantasy Romance, Romance

I love romance. Straight up, putting it out there and feelin’ no shame: I looove it. A friend of mine once told me I was in love with love. It could be true because a good love story gives me the fuzzies, the butterflies, the squees. Whatever you want to call it, a romantic sub-plot so does it for me. It takes a really good writer to make me not notice its absence because I usually feel like the story was missing something when there isn’t one.

So, you can imagine I’m pretty familiar with what sucks about them. I’ve read stories where the plot/worldbuilding/characters are all amazing, but for some reason they shoved in a glaringly bad love story that dragged down all the good. My working theory is that there are authors who think they have to have a love story in order to catch the attention of readers who prefer stories with them (like me), but they don’t actually read/write much romance themselves and thus don’t have a good feel for what it should look like.

Whatever the case may be, I’ve boiled it down to three main things that make readers despise a romance — and which give the romantic sub-plot in books a bad name.

1. Melodrama & Manufactured tension

I’d put the love triangle/square/hexagon mess under melodrama, because really, what a problem it is when one JUST CAN’T DECIDE between multiple hotties. The triangle can work. I’ve seen it done well and it was awesome, but most of the time it’s a total blunder. Also, I have a hard time rooting for a character who strings love interests along under the rationale that they don’t want to “hurt” one of them, or they’re “so in love with them both”. Lord, give me a break.

This is also the category where I file the miscommunication gag that could be solved with a single conversation, and the dumb arguments where one side is mad at the other for something ridiculous that wasn’t even the other one’s fault. If they’re gonna fight, let it be for something real. There’s plenty of that to choose from.

2. Insta-Love/No chemistry

When Romeo saw Juliet from across the room and fell in love, proclaiming that “she doth teach the torches to burn bright”, his best friends immediately told him he was an idiot and ribbed the crap out of him. “You were in love with someone else not five minutes ago, man!” (uh, paraphrasing here) So, yeah, insta-love is hard to believe in, and with only a few exceptions I’ve come across, it does not work well. Insta-attraction, hells yeah, that exists. But love is familiarity. Love is seeing their sadness while everyone else sees a convincing smile. That takes work to convey on the page.

Similar deal with the no chemistry thing. That relationship needs to be grown from a bond that’s believable, one based on mutual understanding and a genuine affection. Readers know the difference between a connection that’s real and one that’s inserted to check off the romance sub-plot box.

3. Abuse as romance

This is a big one. It takes many forms but to avoid the endless rant I’m capable of I’ll outline one specific thing I’ve noticed recently, especially in YA:

I don’t know how many times I’ve read a book where the pair started off as enemies (which is okay) but one of them imprisons/physically harms/threatens with death/verbally abuses/endangers or abandons the other one who eventually turns out to be the love interest later on (which is incredibly NOT okay).

I really don’t understand this or why people love the trope so much. If the relationship started out as harmful, HOW can the one harmed grow to trust and love the other one knowing what they are capable of in the absence of those lovey feelings?? The memory, the echo of that fear, does not just vanish no matter how sassy-tough the character is. If the harm happened on the field of battle — like, literally, they were in opposing armies attacking each other — that’s something else. It’s the intentional cruelty at the beginning of their association that I don’t feel can be overcome. Forgiven, sure, but turned into a romance, noooo. A complicated introduction can be done without this element!

Anyway, I promised not to rant, so I’ll stop there.

You might be wondering at this point, given how badly a romance sub-plot can go, why am I still a fan? That’s easy. When a romance is done well, when time and effort and, you know, love is invested in it, it can make a story that was good into something transcendent, one I’ll read and reread over and over again.

How?

Two big reasons:

1. Love is transformative

Don’t everybody roll your eyes at me! The world is a cynical place and we are surrounded by tragic endings, and injustice, and wrongdoing, but this does not mean that love isn’t a force that can change everything. In books, I don’t think that love should replace personal strength, or require the sacrifice of one’s own dreams, or that it can cure trauma, but it can be the spark that shows the characters that there is more than despair. It can be the safe space offered by someone who loves that person for who they are, who will support them no matter what. It’s someone saying, “I believe in you” when the world is shouting the other down. Tell me that isn’t something that can turn defeat into victory and sorrow into joy.

2. Love is fun

You know what I mean here. Love is banter. It’s inside jokes, teasing. LAUGHTER. I can’t tell you how many stories I’ve read where the romance was so friggin’ seeerious with the smoldering gazes and angst and agony that I just couldn’t get into it. I remember closing the book and thinking, “You know what this story could’ve used? Some funny.”

For me, humor does not deflate intensity. It actually makes the romance–the bond–seem more real. And when they’re torn apart by *insert terrible thing happening in the plot*, the longing each character suffers is visceral because I feel the absence of that bright spot in their life with them.

These two things together are why I still adore the romance sub-plot even though it gets mishandled. An occasional disappointment, yes, but always eclipsed by my joy when a story does it well.

Anyway, that’s all I’ve got for today on the subject.

One last thing: If you like some romance in your books and enjoy reading Fantasy, there’s a big multi-author sale going right now over at author Nicolette Andrew’s website

As you can see, it ends after tomorrow, so hop over and see if there’s an awesome read for you. The sale includes my own fantasy novel, A Ransom of Flames, which is 99¢ until this sale ends.

Happy Monday and have a great rest of the week!

 

The Law of Moses

Tags

Five-Star, Paranormal, Romance, Self Published Book

Title & Author: The Law of Moses, Amy Harmon

Genre & Publication Date: Paranormal/Romance, November 27, 2014

Book Description: “If I tell you right up front, right in the beginning that I lost him, it will be easier for you to bear. You will know it’s coming, and it will hurt. But you’ll be able to prepare.

Someone found him in a laundry basket at the Quick Wash, wrapped in a towel, a few hours old and close to death. They called him Baby Moses when they shared his story on the ten o’clock news – the little baby left in a basket at a dingy Laundromat, born to a crack addict and expected to have all sorts of problems. I imagined the crack baby, Moses, having a giant crack that ran down his body, like he’d been broken at birth. I knew that wasn’t what the term meant, but the image stuck in my mind. Maybe the fact that he was broken drew me to him from the start.
It all happened before I was born, and by the time I met Moses and my mom told me all about him, the story was old news and nobody wanted anything to do with him. People love babies, even sick babies. Even crack babies. But babies grow up to be kids, and kids grow up to be teenagers. Nobody wants a messed up teenager.
And Moses was messed up. Moses was a law unto himself. But he was also strange and exotic and beautiful. To be with him would change my life in ways I could never have imagined. Maybe I should have stayed away. Maybe I should have listened. My mother warned me. Even Moses warned me. But I didn’t stay away.

And so begins a story of pain and promise, of heartache and healing, of life and death. A story of before and after, of new beginnings and never-endings. But most of all . . . a love story.”

First Line: The first few words of every story are always the hardest to write.

My Take: If you’ve never read an Amy Harmon novel, there are a few things that will take you by surprise. The first is how she breaks all kinds of craft rules with writing. There’s exposition in the beginning, usually a lot. Sometimes she jumps point of view in the middle of a chapter, more than once (not especially with this one but with other books of hers I’ve read), and she starts a story waaaaaay at the beginning of things. I’m saying, like, Genesis level beginnings. I can think of three novels at least in which her characters start out either as children or young teens and move through the years to adulthood. With all this rule breaking you’d think she’d lose you early on, that your attention would wane and you’d be like, “Feh, this is taking too long and explaining too much.”

But that’s not how it is. That’s the magic of this author’s storytelling. She doesn’t lose you. In fact, the more you read the more you cannot put the thing down. The scope keeps getting bigger, your investment in the characters more visceral, until you’re racing through the pages because this isn’t just a story anymore, it’s an all consuming urgency to know, to see, to understand. It’s one of those stories that consumes you. These people are real. What’s happening to them is real. That was the Law of Moses for me. Why? Because just like in real life, things don’t always work out on the first try. Or the second. Projecting our own loneliness and despair, we hurt each other. We move on impulse and learn the lesson from it after we crash headlong into the sea. How this is depicted here is beautiful, the way loss and memory can become beautiful even when steeped in regret.

You might have noticed I haven’t said a lot of details about the story itself. That’s because I don’t want to give away the big “thing” of this novel. It’s not given away in the description and I was so happy to experience the main twist (oh, and there are multiple ones!) from the point where I was, “Hm, wonder what that was all about…” to “Woah, THAT’S what’s going on???”. So, I don’t want to ruin that for you because it’s awesome.

The Magical: It’s got to be those moments in the book where I got those rumbles of dread in the pit of my stomach that grew and grew until the dread turned into great tectonic plates crashing with splintering force into the events unfolding before me. The author did this to me at least *counts on fingers* three times in this book.

Oh, and then there was this paragraph right at the prologue. Seriously one of the best prologues I’ve ever seen (and I usually hate them):

“I can’t tell you how it felt. How it still feels. I can’t. Words feel cheap and ring hollow and turn everything I say, everything I feel, into a tawdry romance novel full of flowery phrases designed to illicit sympathetic tears and an immediate response. A response that has nothing to do with reality and everything to do with easy emotion that you can set aside when you close the cover. Emotion that has you wiping your eyes and chirping a happy hiccup, appreciating the fact that it was all just a story. And best of all, not your story. But this isn’t like that.

Because it is my story. And I wasn’t prepared.”

The Mundane: Some will say the story is too long but I didn’t get that. I can see why it would wear on the patience of readers who prefer a faster pace, but that’s not the style here and nothing ever implies that it is. Go into this like a journey. Walk it carefully and watch the landscape around you. There is always something amazing to see.

Summary of Thoughts: Well, I waxed rather poetical on this review so I think you all get the gist that I loved this book. Sooooo much! It could’ve been just a straight up romance (and there’s nothing wrong with those) but this one took its time to develop the big themes. Longing, loss, growth, joy. Lots of that last one among the wreckage that life can hand you. This was moving, intertwining pain with hope. I can’t recommend it enough. Grab your copy on Amazon.

My first review of 2018 and its five stars. A great start to the year:)

Curious what others thought? Check out Amazon’s reviews here (Beware of spoilers!!)

Want to know more about the author and her work? Explore her website here

Fair, Bright, and Terrible (Welsh Blades Book 2)

Tags

Historical Romance, Indie Author, Romance, Self Published Book

Title & Author: Fair, Bright, and Terrible (Welsh Blades, Book 2), Elizabeth Kingston

Genre & Publication Date: Historical Romance, January 25th, 2017

Book Description: Minor Spoilers in this description. Read at own risk: “Wales is conquered, and Eluned has lost everything: her country, her husband, her hope. All that remains is vengeance, and she will stop at nothing to have it. Certain there is no trace within her of the idealistic girl who loved Robert de Lascaux a lifetime ago, she agrees to marry him to advance the fortunes of her son, to avoid the nunnery, and most importantly – as an easy way to gain access to the man upon whom she will avenge Wales.

When Robert is asked to marry the woman he has loved for eighteen years, he never hesitates. But the lady who greets him at the altar has so little in common with the girl he adored that he begins to doubt that there is anything left of her bold and passionate younger self. Marriage to her might gain him the fortune and status his family has always wanted, but no wealth has ever mattered to him as much as Eluned has. And she, it seems, does not want him at all.

Trapped in a web of intrigue, revenge, and desire, they cannot forget their past – but can they share a future? The fascinating world of medieval Wales is continued in this riveting companion novel to The King’s Man.”

First Line: It all ended in cold flesh.

My Take: This book was provided to me by the author for review.

This novel is the sequel to “The King’s Man” which I’ve reviewed and loved (Read it!!). Book Two follows Eluned, the mother of book one’s heroine. When we met her in “The King’s Man” she was frighteningly ambitious, wickedly clever, and painfully jaded. “Fair, Bright, and Terrible” picks up this thread without missing a beat. I don’t want to give too much away as far as plot because this is a sequel, but I really enjoyed it. Twists and turns in the political landscape with a relationship at its center, it had everything you’re looking for in a historical romance.

Robert is a new character whom we didn’t meet in book one, but I liked him a lot. Open-hearted and hopeful, he was Eluned’s opposite. When they were young they’d had a passionate affair, one that ended because of circumstance rather than sentiment. Robert went on to idolize their time together, never realizing how much the years would change Eluned from the loving and quick witted girl she’d once been. When they’re reunited, he’s happy to find her intelligence as keen as ever (something he’d always admired, bless him) but she’d lost all of her former softness. Poor guy gets hit with disappointment over and over on this score as Eluned tries to hang on to her hard outer shell. Sometimes she made me crazy with this, even though I understood it.

Here’s the thing I found incredibly beautiful in this novel–it’s about how love with the right person can change us for the better. There are so many stories of how a relationship can ruin a life or shatter someone’s ability to trust. These happen, in real life and in fiction, but love isn’t all sorrow. It also isn’t a panacea, I know. It takes effort, a willingness to see yourself and your own faults, and the courage to change. Because vulnerability is courage, not weakness. It’s the path back to joy and to each other.

The Magical: Something awesome about this author: She doesn’t just coast to the end when we get to the 85/90% mark. More happens, one last exciting crescendo. Man, I love that and it’s something that makes this author’s work an auto-buy for me.

The Mundane: I think I mentioned this but Eluned’s constantly closing herself off no matter what got to me at times. I understood she did it instinctively since she’d had to do it all her life just to survive, but since this is what kept her and Robert apart I wanted to yell at her sometimes.

Summary of Thoughts: An absolute gem of a book for the genre, I highly recommend this one! Currently it’s $4.99 on Amazon. I do advise reading “The King’s Man” first for context as there are cameos from book one which you’ll love all the more if you’ve met them before. Political machinations, a heart melting romance, and plenty of action and intrigue all the way through. I can’t wait for the next installment in this series!

Many thanks to author Elizabeth Kingston for providing a copy of the book to review.

Curious what others thought? Check out Amazon’s reviews here

Want to know more about the author and her work? Explore her website here

Hell Squad

Tags

Book Reviews, Book Series, Indie Author, Romance, Science-Fiction, Self Published Book

Title & Author: Hell Squad series (Books #1 – #4, Marcus, Cruz, Gabe, Reed), Anna Hackett

Genre & Publication Date: Sci-Fi Romance, April 19, 2015

Book Description: *From Book One: Marcus* “In the aftermath of a deadly alien invasion, a band of survivors fights on…

In a world gone to hell, Elle Milton–once the darling of the Sydney social scene–has carved a role for herself as the communications officer for the toughest commando team fighting for humanity’s survival–Hell Squad. It’s her chance to make a difference and make up for horrible past mistakes…despite the fact that its battle-hardened commander never wanted her on his team.

When Hell Squad is tasked with destroying a strategic alien facility, Elle knows they need her skills in the field. But first she must go head to head with Marcus Steele and convince him she won’t be a liability.

Marcus Steele is a warrior through and through. He fights to protect the innocent and give the human race a chance to survive. And that includes the beautiful, gutsy Elle who twists him up inside with a single look. The last thing he wants is to take her into a warzone, but soon they are thrown together battling both the alien invaders and their overwhelming attraction. And Marcus will learn just how much he’ll sacrifice to keep her safe.”

First Line: Her team was under attack.

My Take: Oooookay, I read four books of this eleven book (soon to be 12 book) series. Usually when I review a series I read everything that’s out but *rubs eyes* I had to stop. I’ve read so much sex with this set that I’m starting to feel like that episode on Friends when Joey and Chandler somehow got free porn on the TV and never turned it off until they noticed it began to warp their minds. So, yeah, in my ongoing exploration of the Sci-Fi Romance genre I read four books in this highly popular series–which I didn’t realize were crammed full of erotic situations. I now understand that I should’ve figured this out by the book covers alone.

But I’m rambling and not reviewing so let’s get it on–I mean, get on it–I mean, get–you know what I mean.

Warning up front: I dig into the XXX rated stuff included in the series so if that bothers you, please skip this review.

The plot, outside of the intertwining, hit on the good Sci-Fi expectations for a post-apocalyptic alien invasion, followed by an alien occupation. A group of military and civilians are hunkered in a defensible mountain military base that the aliens haven’t found. They send out teams to rescue additional civilians, as well as gathering intelligence on where to strike back. They’re trying to figure what brought on the invasion and what exactly these aliens want from Earth, especially when they start noticing that the aliens are abducting human beings. Each book moves the story along and they discover more and more about what’s really going on.

That part of the books is really interesting. If only there was more plot and less bouncing on bed springs, I’d probably have read more of the books but I’m afraid the sex (which wasn’t all that great–we’ll get to that) occupies most of the page space. We’re talking three scenes or more in each book, scenes that take up more time than the actual story itself, especially since these books aren’t very long. To be fair, I will say that the author does really well playing up the longing and tension between the two meant-to-be characters prior to the heaving and panting. I like that their emotions are involved and they actually fall in love. Call me traditional, but I like it when the characters that get together actually have feelings for one another.

The characters are likeable enough as well but the men have a bit too much of the Alpha male for my taste. A little brooding goes a long way. The author offsets this a bit by having the women MC’s be intelligent and capable, but still they fall in love with the possessive, bullish male military archetype. Layers needed there.

The Sex

All right, I can’t review this series without actually commenting on the wham-bam that went on. As frequent and explicit as things got, those scenes were really…bland. Oh, there was plenty of heat and fervor, but I noticed a lack of description in the subtler things–the stuff that makes it lush and vibrant. Does that make sense? I mean the small intimacies like the scratch of an unshaven cheek or drawing lazy patterns on warm skin or tracing fingers over broad shoulders or even (possibly entering TMI territory) the feel of a man’s weight against you. In other words, the acts were there but vividness of the experience wasn’t. It was also repetitive as hell. Every encounter was essentially the same across the books to the point that I started to wonder if all these guys read the same playbook when it came to moves. For books that are pretty much centered on those scenes, it could’ve used more imagination. In particular there was one move that ALL of them did that read really awkward. I mean, how can he slip his hand there right when he’s slamming–Okay, breaking it off here because that’s definitely TMI territory.

The Magical: I liked the alien invasion plot and the missions they went on. Lots of action and adventure on that front.

The Mundane: Could definitely do with less coupling action but something tells me that people are buying these books for that purpose.

Summary of Thoughts: The first book, Marcus, is FREE on Amazon if you’re curious about the series. I think book one was the best of the bunch because the author was busy with worldbuilding more than in the other books. Simple, straight-forward prose, these stories are good for a quick (and dirty) read. Although without much substance and easily forgettable, they’ll entertain you but don’t expect to be moved. They’re kind of like the literary equivalent of chewing bazooka gum–the flavor is gone pretty quick but it’s good enough if you’ve got nothing better.

I’m giving what I read of the series three stars on the whole for the decent Sci-Fi plot and because I know a lot of my dislike is personal preference. Those who enjoy reads centered on the erotic side will likely enjoy it.

Curious what others thought? Check out Amazon’s reviews here

Want to know more about the author and her work? Explore her website here

 

Stars Across Time

Tags

Book Review, Indie Author, Romance, Science-Fiction, Self Published Book

Title & Author: Stars Across Time, Ruby Lionsdrake

Genre & Publication Date: Sci-Fi/Time-Travel Romance, March 15, 2015

Book Description: “Can love take root in the cracks of time?

Air Force pilot Andromeda “Andie” Kim dreams of being chosen to join NASA so she can go to space. Instead, she’s stolen by savage kidnappers from a dystopian future where fertile women are needed for breeding purposes. One of her kidnappers, a man named Mace, goes out of his way to protect her from the other slavers, but she’s not about to trust him. All she wants is to escape and find a way back to her time before she’s sold as broodstock and stuck in this ruined world forever.

Colonel Aloysius “Mace” Theron of the Cascadian Alliance is a battlefield commander, not a spy, but after twenty years of service, he’s also trusted by his superiors. That’s why they choose him for a top-secret mission: to infiltrate an organization of thieves using a time machine to plunder the past. He’s supposed to find and destroy the machine, not fall in love with one of the captives, but Andie is as much of a fighter as he is, and he’s drawn to her from the beginning. Yet if he fights too hard to protect her, his identity will be discovered and his mission will fail, leaving criminals to terrorize the past, perhaps irrevocably changing history and endangering everyone he knows and loves.”

First Line: Andie Kim dug through her pack in the dark, mashing her fingers against a canteen, packets of dehydrated food, a first-aid kit, and something gooey on the bottom–she didn’t know what that was and decided to embrace the ignorance.

My Take: I loooove time-travel stories. Altered timelines, paradoxes–grandfather and otherwise–I just enjoy the crap out of them. I might try my hand at one sometime…if I can keep all those shifting events straight. Seriously, I have abundant admiration for those that can keep things complex enough for that type of plot but still comprehensible enough for the reader.

But anyway, on to the book in question: I’m a bit torn on it, to be honest. For a romance it definitely has plenty of action and adventure in it to make things interesting and not just one note. The heroine is a straight up awesome gal who has strength of character, empathy, and a few good butt-kicking moves, not to mention her smart-ass sense of humor (always a win in my book). The hero is likable–and not just because of his muscles. Their banter is well-written but my trouble was I just couldn’t quite believe their love story. There was too much danger going on to buy into their building connection, especially for Andie given that she’s been kidnapped, strip searched, and pawed at by the other miscreants in charge of the kidnapping. Would she really be of the mind-set to notice that scruffy, good looking guy over there or even have sexy stuff going through her head? Um, no. Assault does not leave one feeling turned on.

And by the way, why is it they need to abduct ONLY women for breeding purposes? If there’s an infertility thing going on, wouldn’t that affect men as well? Why aren’t they rounding up the young and strapping too? Maybe that wouldn’t be as titillating of a plot as women being kidnapped? If that’s the case, there’s really something wrong with our society, but I suppose we already knew that.

What’s that, you say? I’m getting off track again? Yeah, that happens around here. Back to it.

The book is well written for what it is–a speculative fiction premise woven into a romance. There’s good action and twists and sentimental scenes scattered throughout. I liked the dystopian future and the world building. Would’ve been nice to read more about that but this appears to be a standalone so unfortunately it didn’t have much room to expand on that aspect.

The Magical: The main characters, and even the side characters, are well drawn. I liked them a lot and rooted for them all the way. There’s also some witty humor in this one that I thoroughly enjoyed.

The Mundane: The Sci-Fi fan in me was irked by one or two missteps when it comes to time-travel rules. At one point, while in the future, they looked up Andi’s life and her importance in the timeline…except, HELLO, she wouldn’t have a recorded life if she were kidnapped to the future. She would’ve disappeared that day, never to be seen again unless she is returned to her time. Given that this is a time-travel book, the author should have caught this.

Summary of Thoughts: This book is currently $3.99 on the Kindle (also available on Kindle Unlimited). In all, it’s an enjoyable read for those looking for something that doesn’t stretch the mind too much and has some romance with a Sci-Fi twist. If that’s you, I’d recommend this book wholeheartedly.

Curious what others thought? Check out Amazon’s reviews here

Want to know more about the author and her work? Explore her website here

NOTE to my readers: For a little while you might frequently see Sci-Fi Romance reviews on the blog as I’ve recently learned about this genre (I know, where have I been? For more on that, check out Candlelight in the Cosmos). I’ve strapped on some knee pads, secured my helmet, and am diving head first at the genre to get a feel for it. I think it’s going to be an interesting ride.

Candlelight in the Cosmos

Tags

Genre Mash-up, Indie Writer, Romance, Science-Fiction

Recently I met with my critique group where, aside from going over manuscripts and raking over the finer points of craft, a discussion arose surrounding romance in Science-Fiction, specifically Sci-Fi Romance as a genre. I was amazed to find that our members fell into two very distinct camps on this issue:

Group A: ROMANCE HAS NO PLACE IN SCI-FI (No, I didn’t leave the caps lock on. That was the level of conviction on this side of the aisle)

Group B: Sci-Fi Romance is a legitimate genre that does not detract from the integrity of Sci-Fi in general.

Now, to clarify, we weren’t talking about your dystopian future situation or paranormal with aliens showing up on contemporary Earth. No, this was about whether romance should be in hardcore Sci-Fi, as in the kind with interstellar travel, spaceships, and faraway galaxies.

My opinion? In point of fact the Sci-Fi Romance genre has not crossed my Kindle so I wasn’t very aware of it. As an avid (obsessive?) fan of Sci-Fi, the reactionary side of me cringed at the idea of a Harlequin-ed version of Science-Fiction out there. On reflection though, I could envision it as something interesting. Why? Well, for any story to work it must still be built on a foundation of world building, high stakes, and three dimentional characters, even if the focus is on romance. In that context, why wouldn’t it be good?

As to the argument that romance should not exist AT ALL in Sci-Fi, to that I say you’d have to be some scruffy headed nerfherder living under a rock to believe that a driving force as powerful as love would disappear completely when a plot breaks orbit. Men and women, in all types of relationships, do not huddle in their respective corners on a spaceship like some weird version of a junior high dance floor. They live together and work together and, you know, intermingling abounds.

I will say that I’ve found romance in general to be hit or miss in stories I’ve read. As strong of a force as love is, it takes a lot of subtlety to integrate it well into the story. I’ve read books that force the relationship to the crisis point before taking the time to even build the bond between them. The same goes with the sex. Hey, if it’s a casual thing then sure, let ’em jump into the sack but don’t try to sell it to me as a world moving melding of souls when they just met last week. Or at least hang a lantern on it, as they say in Hollywood, and have the character comment on how crazy it is to feel this way when they’ve only just met. And then the sex itself…Sometimes I wonder what the author was thinking. One memorable book reached for rather colorful euphemisms for body parts. I don’t think I’ll ever scrub the words “nether lips” out of my head.

Back to my point though, I do enjoy a romantic element in my reading, something more than the “they’re together now” insert. I enjoy when it’s the main plot point of the story (when it’s done right) and often find these reads to be rather more character driven. Although I’ve mostly seen it in Paranormal and Fantasy genres, I’d be willing to take a look at its treatment in Sci-Fi. It’s one of those elements that is the catalyst for so many character choices. Your hero/ine can be going along with one thing in mind for the future and then BLAMO! they meet someone who changes everything. Or maybe it comes on subtly, growing in scope like an approaching meteor until the sky fills with its light.

I think that’s something many readers identify with and why it’s so fun to read about, regardless of if the stage is sword and sorcery or the galactic variety. It can twist a plot in so many ways and deliver a gut punch like no other. It certainly DOES have a place in Science-Fiction. In books. In movies. In games.

So say we all.

What do you think? Sci-Fi Romance: Is it a good mash-up or one that should be relegated to the celestial dustbin?

Also, if anyone knows of a good Sci-Fi Romance, please give me a heads up in the comments. I’d be interested in checking it out.

Demetrius (Brethren Origins, Book 2)

Tags

Book Review, Paranormal, Romance, Self Published Book

Title & Author: Demitrius (Brethren Origins, Book 2), Barbara Devlin

Genre & Publication Date: Paranormal/Historical Romance, March 13, 2016

Book Description: “Athelyna Des Moutiers has lived the better portion of her years in a convent, isolated from the harsh realities of her world, and has dedicated her life in service to a higher calling. When her father dies, her manipulative older brother negotiates a betrothal contract to one of the King’s knights, surrendering her to a creature utterly foreign—a man. A wedding present, an ancient brooch with mythical powers, foretells a future she cannot deny, so she accepts her fate. Can she win the love of her husband, a stubborn brute equally resistant to marriage?

Demetrius de Blackbourne is a Nautionnier Knight, a pious man, and a virgin who, much like his bride, has vowed to devote himself to divine endeavors, and his plans do not include a wife. When he is tasked with settling a troublesome region, and installing the King’s new garrison, he neglects the most important charge of all—his lady. But the gentle spirit and quiet strength of Athelyna manifest a temptation he can neither ignore nor deny, and Demetrius finds himself fighting for the one thing he never thought he would want—her heart.”

First Line: Two road weary travelers, a wide-eyed young couple returning from a pilgrimage to Santiago, sought refuge behind the trunk of a large tree and clung to each other.

My Take: When I learned of this Indie author’s horrendous experience at the release of this title, I decided to pick up her book and give it a read as a show of support. Technical difficulties in the Amazon downloads resulted in hundreds of angry readers sending hateful emails to this author (who had nothing to do with the tech stuff on Amazon’s side.) You can read her post about it all here and if you’re like me you’ll burst with sympathy for her.

On to the review!

(FYI: Although this is book two, it can still be read as a standalone.)

To avoid misconceptions about the story of this one, the paranormal side is very limited. It’s more of an historical romance than a paranormal, but it does include a mystical object that shows the wearer their destiny if they sleep with it attached to their clothing. Bit of a plot device and the message in the prophetic dreams was easy to predict, but this is a romance after all, so I didn’t mind it.

I liked the development of the relationship. It didn’t happen overnight and took a lot of soul searching to finally get there, so it was well built. I would’ve preferred if there’d been less fumbling between them that led to misunderstanding. It happened one too many times for my taste. I thought the story could’ve used some much needed external conflict to drive them together. Although this is hinted at in the description, I didn’t think it really manifested. The story still held together well though and kept me turning the pages, but I felt a twinge of disappointment with the lack of action. This is the middle ages, after all. Let me see some swordplay!

The Magical: Hats off to the author for the authentic speech used by the characters. Learning that archaic language form took effort, I’m sure. Some might be put off by the “thee-thy-thine” verbiage, but you get used to it and it really immerses you in the time period.

The Mundane: Fair warning–Euphemisms n’ more blatant stuff ahead: Okay, so the title named character, Demetrius, was a likable enough guy, and the love growing between him and Athelyna was sweet, but the sexual stuff annoyed the bejesus out of me. I don’t mind reading sex in a story but this took awkward to a whole new level.

I had no trouble believing that our noble knight, a former Templar knight who took a vow of chastity to join the order, was still a virgin. What I found really, REALLY hard to believe was that he needed a friend to explain how to, you know, privately handle his own plow. Was he never a teenager? Because from what I understand guys generally get acquainted with how to work their own gears early on. Also, calling it “the one eyed dragon” started to get to me after a while. Please call it by name, or manhood, or really anything else. It is what it is. Let’s not beat around the bush (okay, that phrase might not be the best choice here).

And seriously, stop talking so damn much once you have sheathed thine dragon in thine lady. Those speeches are better reserved for before or after gettin’ it on. Also, it’s a little weird to yell out things like, “Sweet sanctuary!” upon entry. It’s a nice compliment but shut up already.

Summary of Thoughts: Currently this book is just $0.99 for the Kindle. I’m giving it three stars with the addendum that this may just be a “not my cup of tea” situation. On the whole, I liked it, though I found a few things about the characters a tad unbelievable and, well, silly. Still this one kept my interest and I wanted to finish the journey. I just wish there had been a little more action outside of the bumbling mis-communications between them. Endearing but not totally captivating.

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