Welcome to the Historical Fiction Online forums: a friendly place to discuss, review and discover historical fiction.
If this is your first visit, please be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above.
You will have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed.
To start viewing posts, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Who are your favorite romance authors??

User avatar
LoveHistory
Bibliomaniac
Posts: 3751
Joined: September 2008
Location: Wisconsin, USA
Contact:

Post by LoveHistory » Mon September 21st, 2009, 5:19 pm

How, oh how did I miss this thread before???

I will read anything by Nora Roberts, Ruth Langan, Julia Quinn, Georgette Heyer, Mary Balogh, Jillian Hart, Deborah Hale, Gayle Wilson, Millie Criswell, Deborah Simmons. And a few others.

Leena
Scribbler
Posts: 29
Joined: September 2009
Location: USA

Post by Leena » Sat October 3rd, 2009, 3:55 pm

My favorite novel with a romance theme, is The Course of Honor, by Lindsey Davis. The main characters are Vespasian, who became emperor of Rome, and Caenis, a slave and later freed woman. These two people are so likable. Apparently, they loved each other their entire adult lives, yet had to separate when he married. They were reunited later however. Caenis is one of my favorite characters. She's depicted as being very intelligent, quite good at her line of work, stubborn, and honorable. The historical accuracy of the time seems well maintained. I love this book. It gave me such a nice feeling reading it, and I could tell that Ms Davis put a lot of love into it. It was her first book.

Davis is also the author of the Falco mystery series, also one of my favorites. The Course of Honor is thought to be her best book, so far. She's also just released a novel on the English Civil War.
"Years ago my mother used to say to me, she'd say, "In this world, Elwood, you must be" - she always called me Elwood - "In this world, Elwood, you must be oh so smart or oh so pleasant." Well, for years I was smart. I recommend pleasant. You may quote me. " (Elwood P. Dowd in Harvey)

User avatar
Ludmilla
Bibliophile
Posts: 1346
Joined: September 2008
Location: Georgia USA

Post by Ludmilla » Fri April 16th, 2010, 1:19 pm

[quote=""Spitfire""]Is there any Laura Kinsale fans out there. I loved Flowers from the Storm and The Shadow and the Star. The characters have such a depth to them that they really get under your skin. She really deviates from the typical romance formula that seems to get pumped out profusely these days. [/quote]


I don't read Romance that often anymore, but have been feeling drained lately so have been treating myself to a few, and testing the waters of some of the authors out there in this genre. I've just discovered Kinsale, and have thoroughly enjoyed what I've read of hers. Agree about her creating really interesting characters and deviating from the typical romance formula, and even when she doesn't deviate from it, the books are witty enough (or have some kind of interesting hook to the story) to make you not care.

I also tried Judith James' Highland Rebel (don't be put off by the shirtless male on the cover) and really enjoyed it... When I pick up romance, I'm usually looking for equal measure adventure and some exploration into the historical backdrop (or some kind of mystery... something more than just sexual tension and relationship to propel the story), and this one has a nice balance of those things. Takes place in Stuart England during the reign of James II. After the initial setup, the characters actually take some time to know one another, which I really appreciated, and the author did a good job with the banter, making them feel like individuals rather than romantic cliches.

SGM
Compulsive Reader
Posts: 700
Joined: March 2010

Post by SGM » Fri April 16th, 2010, 7:57 pm

I am glad to hear good things about Highland Rebel because I have just got hold of it and it is nearly my next read.

I read all Georgette Heyer's when I was in my teens (but that was so long ago she was still publishing one a year"). I recently re-read Venetia and was surprised how much I enjoyed it and also Friday's Child which I obviously didn't appreciate enough the first time.

Nowadays, I tend to find that I really need a decent plot that works and having recently re-read Red Adam's Lady, I found that fit the bill. So much happens in only 240 pages.

But I mostly enjoy the ones that are also funny -- most of the Julia Quinn Bridgerton novels worked for me for that reason although The Lost Duke of Wyndham was a disappointment. Most (but not all) of SEP work for me too because of the humour.

Which was the Jane Aiken-Hodge historical set in Greece?
Currently reading - Emergence of a Nation State by Alan Smith

annis
Bibliomaniac
Posts: 4585
Joined: August 2008

Post by annis » Sat April 17th, 2010, 1:32 am

Originally Posted by Spitfire
Is there any Laura Kinsale fans out there. I loved Flowers from the Storm and The Shadow and the Star. The characters have such a depth to them that they really get under your skin. She really deviates from the typical romance formula that seems to get pumped out profusely these days.
I read her Medieval Hearts series. I found For My Lady's Heart quite bizarre. Kinsale tried an experiment with that one- she wrote the whole novel in a quasi-Middle English language which wasn't a good idea, and happily she ditched it for plain modern English for the sequel, Shadowheart, which I did enjoy.

I liked Madeline Hunter's medieval novels, and I'm currently re-reading Catherine Coulter's Season of the Sun after a mention on the cheesy covers thread! I'm finding I still think it's good, though why the author had to give her heroine the name Zarabeth I don't know- hardly likely for an Irish girl of the 9th century. Inappropriate names for period are a pet peeve of mine when it comes to historical romance :(

annis
Bibliomaniac
Posts: 4585
Joined: August 2008

Post by annis » Sat April 17th, 2010, 1:39 am

Posted by SGM
Which was the Jane Aiken-Hodge historical set in Greece?
Could beGreek Wedding?

i remember reading several of her gothic regencies at one stage.

User avatar
Ludmilla
Bibliophile
Posts: 1346
Joined: September 2008
Location: Georgia USA

Post by Ludmilla » Sat April 17th, 2010, 4:33 pm

[quote=""SGM""]I read all Georgette Heyer's when I was in my teens (but that was so long ago she was still publishing one a year"). I recently re-read Venetia and was surprised how much I enjoyed it and also Friday's Child which I obviously didn't appreciate enough the first time.

[/quote]

Not all of Heyer's novels work for me, and I didn't discover Heyer until her books started being reissued in recent years, but I adored Venetia. Out of the 5 or 6 that I've read so far, I think that and The Grand Sophy are her best.

SGM
Compulsive Reader
Posts: 700
Joined: March 2010

Post by SGM » Sun April 18th, 2010, 10:28 am

Grand Sophy was a good one too. It's the later ones that don't work for me -- from Cousin Kate onwards. Joan Aiken-Hodge is good on what went wrong with Cousin Kate. Although I now have different views about some of the early ones, it is interesting to see her how her plots changed over time. What amazes me is that I can still read and enjoy them which isn't the case with others such as Victoria Holt.
Currently reading - Emergence of a Nation State by Alan Smith

User avatar
Ludmilla
Bibliophile
Posts: 1346
Joined: September 2008
Location: Georgia USA

Post by Ludmilla » Tue April 20th, 2010, 12:55 pm

I've just discovered another Romance writer I like... Has anyone read Judith Ivory (originally wrote some under the name Judy Cuevas)? I just finished Black Silk, which is not your usual kind of romance at all with a rather clever but perverse twist on the Pygmalion theme, some of which is evident some of which is not. It struck me as the kind of book that might fall through the cracks because romance readers might not fully appreciate the complexity of it and literary types would probably snobbishly dismiss it because of the romance label. I dunno... I thought it was unusual and quite liked it.

User avatar
Ashley
Scribbler
Posts: 35
Joined: August 2010
Location: Houston

Post by Ashley » Wed September 22nd, 2010, 7:58 pm

My favorite is good old Jude Deveraux's A Knight In Shining Armor, even though it's hideously dated and the heroine is annoying to the extreme. I love this idea and being a fan of time travel stuff anyway (Barbara Erskine, Diana Gabaldon) I gave this one a try as someone gave it to me.

Love it, love it. Hated the ending. :( But I kept my copy and will reread it again someday.
Last edited by Ashley on Wed September 22nd, 2010, 8:01 pm, edited 1 time in total.
~Ashley

King Arthur Fan Fiction, maintainer

My writing can be found on my Live Journal, HERE.

Post Reply

Return to “Historical Romance”