I love the romance between Saul and Rose. It's very realistic, with him, the sociopath, wanting real love, and her being what I'd call a hostess, equating romance with gifts given and the strange things Asura does to entertain guests.
I think she wants to love Saul, but she also wants to pull her weight. Saul, however, considers himself her sword and shield. It gets them into some amusing situations.
This phenomena is unfortunately not a new thing. It's been going on since at least as far back as the Victorian Era, where many a book that were of similar, if not worse raunchiness to what we get in the "romance" genre today were published by women under male pseudonyms. There's some pretty wild stuff out there when it comes to the smut of their day, some of which would make the people writing "romance" now blush.
The problem isn't the presence of the sex focused stuff, but the saturation of it. Little exists on the market as a counter to "romance" and "romantasy" fiction that isn't among the classics. The Lord of the Rings, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Last of the Mohicans, Musashi, A Tale of Two Cities, and many other romance classics do still hold sway and popularity among men, but we don't end up seeing much in the way of new work that showcases the romantic ideals of stories like these. This isn't to say it's not out there, just that the eyes aren't finding it. The question then becomes one of both reaching and cracking into that readership.
I love the romance between Saul and Rose. It's very realistic, with him, the sociopath, wanting real love, and her being what I'd call a hostess, equating romance with gifts given and the strange things Asura does to entertain guests.
I think she wants to love Saul, but she also wants to pull her weight. Saul, however, considers himself her sword and shield. It gets them into some amusing situations.
Eee thank you Joseph - I love that you love their relationship. It Arcs with the story - but of course true love never runs smooth...
there may be gunslinging and wrasslin...
I don't know if you can really undo what the Female Gooning Epidemic has done.
The damage is enormous - but we have to try. It starts with us.
I love romance. Not to spoil anything but it’s a recurring theme in pretty much every story I write.
This phenomena is unfortunately not a new thing. It's been going on since at least as far back as the Victorian Era, where many a book that were of similar, if not worse raunchiness to what we get in the "romance" genre today were published by women under male pseudonyms. There's some pretty wild stuff out there when it comes to the smut of their day, some of which would make the people writing "romance" now blush.
The problem isn't the presence of the sex focused stuff, but the saturation of it. Little exists on the market as a counter to "romance" and "romantasy" fiction that isn't among the classics. The Lord of the Rings, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Last of the Mohicans, Musashi, A Tale of Two Cities, and many other romance classics do still hold sway and popularity among men, but we don't end up seeing much in the way of new work that showcases the romantic ideals of stories like these. This isn't to say it's not out there, just that the eyes aren't finding it. The question then becomes one of both reaching and cracking into that readership.
And that's why we are here.💖 I am taking up the mantle, and I know others are with me -
let it be us.
My dad used to read the old Harlequin Romances back when they were actually clean and had a marriage at the end.
It's like finding a unicorn now! but I LOVE a great romance - it's warmth and light for cold times.