It's All About the Romance
I've seen a few posts online lately about readers purchasing books labeled as romances but on reading them they discover there's nothing romantic about the book. i.e. no satisfying happy-ever-after ending. This leads to a cheated feeling on the part of the reader, and it probably doesn't help the author's sales either since unhappy readers tend to vote with their wallets.
As a reader I stick mainly to romance with the odd foray into mysteries, fantasy and science fiction. At the moment I'm reading The Better Part of Valor by Tanya Huff. It's a science fiction and anyone who has read this story will know there's no romance. But, the seeds of possibility are there. Although I'm enjoying the book, I keep thinking, "Go on. Get the heroine involved with that human guy. I know she likes him." This is the second Tanya Huff book I've read recently and I thought the same thing all the way through the book. To be fair, the heroine is pretty busy fighting aliens and keeping her team of marines alive. I don't suppose there is much time for her to hook up romantically even though I keep hoping.
For a book to qualify as a romance, it needs a relationship between two people that grows throughout the book and ends in a happy-ever-after. That's my definition, at any rate, and the way I classify a book as a romance or as something else.
What do you think about the way some publishers are labeling their products as romances when they're not really a romance at all?
How do you define romance?
Shelley
As a reader I stick mainly to romance with the odd foray into mysteries, fantasy and science fiction. At the moment I'm reading The Better Part of Valor by Tanya Huff. It's a science fiction and anyone who has read this story will know there's no romance. But, the seeds of possibility are there. Although I'm enjoying the book, I keep thinking, "Go on. Get the heroine involved with that human guy. I know she likes him." This is the second Tanya Huff book I've read recently and I thought the same thing all the way through the book. To be fair, the heroine is pretty busy fighting aliens and keeping her team of marines alive. I don't suppose there is much time for her to hook up romantically even though I keep hoping.
For a book to qualify as a romance, it needs a relationship between two people that grows throughout the book and ends in a happy-ever-after. That's my definition, at any rate, and the way I classify a book as a romance or as something else.
What do you think about the way some publishers are labeling their products as romances when they're not really a romance at all?
How do you define romance?
Shelley
posted by Shelley Munro at 4:28 AM
7 Comments:
I'm with you on the romance definition. If I were to pick up a book that says 'Romance' on the spine and it turns out to be something else, I'd be pissed. If I'd wanted to spend my hard earned dollars on a different kind of book, then I would have done that. I don't like to feel duped out of my cash.
Okay, I have a different take on the issue. Mainly I think many of the people complaining the loudest are complaining about books that aren't marketed as romance (for instance I've seen people whine about the Sookie books and the Anita Blake books which are not romance at all - the Huff books included, which I LOVE, by the way)
Moreover, I frankly don't think it's as big a deal as it's being made out to be. It's a blog tempest in a teapot and it gets certain blogs lots of hits and some time in the spotlight.
In any case, I don't feel duped if I liked the book. I don't feel duped if I pick up a book that isn't a romance and it's not a romance. I read a lot of different genres and I like being surprised by a good story I wasn't necessarily expecting.
Lauren,
We seem to have a lot of likes in common with books :-) Despite the lack of romance, I loved the Huff books. I see there's another coming this year but it's in hardcover. Torin is an awesome heroine, and I'll be lining up to read it. I liked it enough that I'd consider buying the hardcover, despite the lack of romance.
I love both Sookie and Anita. They're not traditional romances - true - but they have enough to feed the desire in me for a romantic element. I don't have a problem with them at all.
The main problem I think, is the way authors are blending genres. It makes the books difficult to categorise and publishers are perhaps struggling with this issue as much as readers. Personally I like this trend of blending genres even though there are times when I wish for more romance between the pages. The lack of romance or perhaps a non-traditional romance doesn't stop me appreciating a good book.
I'm excited by the blending of genres. I like things that are different and unexpected. Romance should be fresh when it can be, fiction should be. So rather than be distressed by genre blurring, I love it and I want to see more.
I personally find it limiting to have such tight genre boxes - as a reader and an author.
I look at Kim Harrison's Hollows books for instance and think that ten years ago, she may have not had a place for them to be published! But they're great books. Lilith Saintcrow is another author who blends genres and has created something really special.
I think with tight genre boxes, we miss things that are truly wonderful.
I know publishers are struggling to on one hand, put out books that fit in those genres but also books that challenge expectations too (like Harrison's books). I can only hope they keep it up.
I don't like that publishers are calling non-romance books romances. I think it only serves to confuse and anger the reader. The person who pays is the author. I do think in order for a book to qualify as a romance there has to be a HEA in the end.
I agree a book should have a HEA to be classified as a romance. That's my criteria for judging.
These days though, with the genre mixing, it isn't always black and white as to what a particular book should be called with all the different elements. I suspect that no matter how some of these books are classified, a section of readers will end up unhappy. The fact is that bookstores need some sort of classification to help customers find books. I'm not sure what the answer is. I wonder if they should label books like they do food with a list of ingredients? LOL
I agree with your definition of a romance. If it's marketed as a romance then I want a relationship that grows and a HEA. That said, I enjoy reading other types of books. But when I pick up a romance, that's exactly what I want.
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