After having shared my views on romance novels online for nearly nine years now, one might wonder what in the hell I still have to say that could be of any interest to anyone. As long as I run a website devoted to romance and keep reading romance, I’ll never run out of things to talk about.
These days I’m watching the tremendous growth of Romantica (when juxtaposed with the current growth of Inspirational Romance it’s particularly fascinating). Although online romance readers in no way represent the real romance-reading public (of this I’m convinced), online trends may disproportionally affect the mainstream publishing industry. The growth of Romantica in e-book form (and via fan fiction) is something I’m sure Harlequin, Kensington, and Berkley (to a smaller extent) took into consideration before deciding to focus and expand the market.
And this is of interest to me these days because I’ve begun to read quite a bit of short story Romantica (my favorite guilty pleasure read from 2004 is Merry Christmas, Baby, mostly because of the delightfully naughty entries by Donna Kauffman and Susanna Carr).
I owe most of this interest to MaryJanice Davidson (and to a lesser extent, Alison Kent - had authors like her not pushed the Harlequin Blaze envelope, I’m sure I’d be reading even fewer Blaze titles than I do now – how many more virginal sex therapists, uptight lingerie store owners, and frigid talk show hosts and librarians can you stand to read about? 
).
We’d reviewed some of Davidson’s earlier work at All About Romance, but it wasn’t until Undead and Unwed that I actually read her. That was enough…soon it was her other 2004 single title releases, and then there were her earlier Romantica short story contributions to the Secrets anthologies, which led me to Angela Knight’s Romantica contributions to the Secrets anthologies, which led me…well, you can see where this is going.
Take a reader who’s discovered one voice of an author she loves, is thrilled to
discover a second voice by the same author, and sit back and watch the glom phenomenon take over…and spreads.
For those unfamiliar, "to glom” means "to seize or latch on to something," but I adapted the term in the mid-1990’s to describe what happens to readers when we discover an author we love – we become slightly maniacal as we try and locate their backlist to read. It wasn’t long after I fell in love with Davidson’s snarky Chick Lit/Romance hybrid voice that I decided I also craved her dirty Romantica voice.
I couldn’t wait to dive into her just-out Derik’s Bane, which is a the third in a series of Romantica werewolf stories. The first two were published in the Secrets anthologies while this new offering is a single title release for Berkley.
I may be the only reader I know who adored Derik’s Bane, but what Davidson’s managed to do may be instructive to others out there. She’s not only managed to parlay her small/e-press romantica success into the mainstream of romance publishing, she’s been able to take her characters with her for the ride. And for those of us readers who get off on connected stories and books – a sizable group, btw – this is exciting indeed.
Let’s get to know one another…if you’re reading (much) romantica
these days, who popped your cherry, so to speak, and whom do you
crave now?
TTFN, Laurie Likes Books
Related posts:
Alison K, with her gIRLgEAR Blaze novels! I’ve always read [and written] erotica, and preferred it to have a strong romantic element ie. central HEA relationship, but Alison’s were the first sensual romance novels that I really got into. I like her blend of tasteful raunch and loving relationships.
Crave now? Well, anyone who can produce the same degree of well written hot stuff that fires the imagination!:smile:
It’s what I’m attempting to write these days, too.
I haven’t actually glommed a romantica author, but I have enjoyed Shannon McKenna and Emma Holly.
I enjoyed Derik’s Bane, too. I know a little readers didn’t care for the way she reacted to a lot of devasting news in the first couple of chapters with “Oh, okay,” but her books entertain me. The dialogue is amazing, the pace lightning fast, and I just enjoy the ride. (Now I’ve got to find the first two Secret stories)
I guess I’m a little hazy on the line between steamy romance and erotic romance. But I enjoyed some of the Blaze line, and followed Nancy Warren to Brava with her novella in Bad Boys On Board. Jaci’s Passion In Paradise: Paradise Awakening got me hooked on EC.
I think the book that bumped my reading tastes from steamy to I want more! was Alison Kent’s Blaze, The Sweetest Taboo. (Sebastian Gallo’s solo shower scene is one of the most erotic scenes I’ve ever read.)
I haven’t glommed in a while, but if I had to name one author who is just not writing fast enough to suit me, I’d say Lucy Monroe. (I know–she’s fast, but I’m greedy
)
Great column, Laurie! Now I’ll be spending the weekend pawing through my ‘well-read keepers’.
Who popped my cherry…hmm. Well, I think the first true romantica I ever read was by Jodi Lynn Copeland, and after that I started reading Brava anthologies–and I’ve enjoyed them. I haven’t read any single title romanticas from any publisher, but one of these days I’d like to give Emma Holly a try.
Another great column! I love Jaci Burton, and I’m pretty sure she was one of my first EC’s. Like Larissa, I love the Brava anthologies. I like ‘em short and well, not so sweet. http://www.romancingtheblog.com/blog/wp-images/smilies/icon_cool.gif
“The Sun Also Rises” – E. Hemingway. A great novel about love that could not be realized.
I also started with the Secrets anthologies, which I found by accident through Liz Maverick’s site. Her excerpt of Kiss or Kill got me hooked. So my reading and writing romantica came directly because of her.
My first introduction to the spicy side of romance was Thea Devine. She’s still one of my big guilty pleasures. When she gets it right, her books are like a sexed-up version of a primetime soap opera with a whole lot of naked people
The first erotica author I read was Emma Holly. Boy howdy! I just love her books. Sure her “tamer” (and I use that term loosely!) historicals were good, but nothing beats her erotica writing IMHO.
Robin Schone’s, The Lady’s Tutor, was my first romantica — and she deflowered me just right. Read it, loved it, had to have more.
I had heard much about Angela Knight’s stories in the Secrets line so I bought the two that had her stories. Still I didn’t read them. It wasn’t until I read Undead and Unwed by MaryJanice Davidson that I went back to these anothologies and read her stories. I have yet to read a romantica that *hits* me right…okay there was this one scene…:oops: Anyways, I am looking forward to trying more by Brava, although I am going to see if I can track down that Blaze title Shannon mentioned!
CindyS
Cindy -
I know a lot of people really like The Sweetest Taboo, but I think Kent’s Striptease is better. See if you can find that one.
TFN, LLB
Hey, I wrote my bit at my blog about erotica before I read this. (no, really!)
Bah. These essays are great. Thanks, Laurie, Shirley, Shannon and Maili and everyone else.
Oh, right, the subject at hand: glomming. Loretta Chase. . .In 2004, I found LC and am still happy about it.
Thank you Shan and Emily! Wow, I made the list!
I bought the first Brava anthology and the first Secrets anthology, then read Marly Chance as my first Ellora’s Cave book and was hooked on reading (and writing) erotic romance.
Robin Schone, Beatrice Small, Susan Johnson. I can’t remember who popped my contemporary cherry. gg. But Lora Leigh was the first EC author that I glommed followed closely by Shiloh Walker.
Oh, forgot to say, fantastic column, Laurie!
Interesting topic.
I’ve enjoyed Donna Kauffman for a while, so I bought some Brava anthologies with her stories in them. Then I discovered Shannon McKenna’s “Touch Me” (from Bad Boys on Board, I think), and was amazed by the emotion, the passion, all of it. I love that story.
I still enjoy McKenna, but I try other authors. I started reading MaryJanice Davidson last year, though I didn’t enjoy Derik’s Bane as much as Laurie did. I am looking forward to Undead and Unappreciated, though. I’ve also started reading Angela Knight.
Alyssa
My first romantica was Angela Knight’s “Roarke’s Prisoner” in Secrets 2. Blew me away; it was exactly the right mix of hot sex and romance. The next one that gave me the same reaction was MJD’s “Love’s Prisoner” (and, luckily, another Angela Knight story in the same book). I went online, Googled, and found Ellora’s Cave and a bunch of authors. What I also liked about it was the wonderful mix of my two favorite things: alternate reality and romantica.
Emma Holly’s Menage. That was the one that got me hooked..and I still grab her books as soon as they come out!