Today, I’m doing the Get To Know The Romance Reader Tag created byBree at Falling for Romance.
What is your romance origin story? (How you came to read your first romance novel)
I didn’t start reading romance until my early 20s. The used bookstore I went to had shelves and shelves of them but none of the ones I chose at random quite piqued my interest. I didn’t really start reading romance regularly until I binged theSmart Bitches, Trashy Books podcast in 2014 and got ALL the recs. This podcast is also what made me want to start a romance blog and be apart of romancelandia.
If you could be the heroine in a romance novel, who would be the author and what’s one trope you’d insist be in the story?
I’d want my author to be Erin McCarthy because I like the world she created in her Fast Track series and I’d love to be apart of it. She writes really witty and fun female friend groups and hardworking heroes/heroines with close family ties and complex lives. The race car drivers are just famous enough they get to do fun and interesting things but not so famous they can’t just be normal people. My favorite trope is fake relationship so I’d want that in there!
What is a romance you’ve read this year, that you want more people to read?:
Most of my reads have been pretty mainstream books so I’ll say the Mixtape anthology. There are a few 1-star stories in it but overall it has some good stories and it was fun to see how different authors tackled the prompt. I also liked listening to the songs as I was reading.
What is your favorite romance subgenre? What subgenre have you not read much from?:
My favorite subgenre is contemporary romance, I just sort of gravitated to it. I haven’t read much paranormal romance, I think in 5 years of blogging I’ve only reviewed two so if you have recs leave them below!
Who is one of your auto-buy romance authors?:
Alexa Martin is my most recent. She doesn’t have many books out but I like her voice and I hope she gets more attention.
How do you typically find romance recommendations? (Goodreads, Youtube, Podcasts, Instagram..):
I mostly get them from Twitter, podcasts and blog hopping
What is an upcoming romance release you’re excited for?
The Wallflower Wager by Tessa Dare
What is one misconception about romance you would like to lay to rest?:
The idea that they are trashy.
Look, is some romance trashy ridiculousness? Yes.
Do I read that stuff? Also, yes.
But romance authors tell such a broad range of stories with an HEA at the center. Romance as a genre is so complex and interesting and I hate how it is dismissed or constantly having to be defended. I feel like the illustrated cover resurgence has changed some of this misconception. But I wish the man chest or clinch covers had the same chance to be seen as books worthy of being on mainstream summer reading lists.
Who is the most recent romance reading content creator you came across that you’d like to shoutout?
I am just getting into Booktube and recently found romance Booktuber Steph’s Romance Book Talk
If someone had never read a romance before and asked you to recommend the first 3 romances that come to mind as places to start, what would those recommendations be?
This is fun! Okay, my picks are:
Hints of Spice by Christina C. Jones
I like this book because it’s a novella that hits all the romance beats without feeling like a truncated story. I also think novellas are great for people dipping their toes in the genre. Romance gets called feminist a lot but not all of it is. I think the sex-positivity in this story (the heroine is a former stripper who doesn’t get shamed for it) is a good example of feminism baked into the genre.
Forever Your Earl by Eva Leigh
Regency historical is a big part of the genre and I chose this one because I like how subversive it is. The heroine is in her 30’s and owns her own newspaper. Phaeton racing. Leigh steers completely clear of the ballroom culture and I think that makes this more accessible for a reader with no context for the intricacies of the ton that is often presented in Regency romances.
Ruled by Elle Kennedy.
This is a weird rec because it’s the third book in a canceled series but it does a few things I like. It’s a post-apocalyptic M/F/M and I like how it shows romance can exist with more than two people and how you can have an HEA without the marriage/baby epilogue.
