Romantic Suspense
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I consider some of Nora Roberts' work, as well as Shannon McKenna (whose work is more on the naughty side), Pamela Clare, and Julie Garwood's contemporary works to fall under this category, and there are many others who write for it as well (you can do a search on Amazon if you would like more).
As far as your question about legitimacy, I don't know exactly what kind of an answer you're looking for but taking into account that I highly respect all of the above authors and don't consider them to be women who would write anything illegitimate, I would say that the genre is in fact legitimate.
As far as your question about legitimacy, I don't know exactly what kind of an answer you're looking for but taking into account that I highly respect all of the above authors and don't consider them to be women who would write anything illegitimate, I would say that the genre is in fact legitimate.
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I hear the word used by authors and publishers, so it is in use. What it is is fiction with strong elements of both genre romance and suspense. The proportions vary.
romantic suspense is a huge category. Harlequin has several lines dedicated to romantic suspense if you're looking at "category" romances. In single title romantic suspense, there are too many authors to name. If you go to the bookstore and look at all teh romance titles more than half of them will be romantic suspense. Here's a website dedicated to romantic suspense that will give you lists and lists of authors.
http://suspenseromancewriters.com/index.cfm
and here's a very incomplete list of some of the authors but it does include all the biggies.
http://www.akronlibrary.org/internetresources/pop/favfiction/romsuspense.pdf
http://suspenseromancewriters.com/index.cfm
and here's a very incomplete list of some of the authors but it does include all the biggies.
http://www.akronlibrary.org/internetresources/pop/favfiction/romsuspense.pdf
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Yes, it is a genre unto itself with a long and honorable history. They are told from the heroine's point of view, have a mystery to solve, and a hero who could just as easily be the bad guy. They can be adventure-themed, scary gothic with supernatural overtones, or comedy/drama.
The main point is the heroine solves the problem, preferably on her own. I've read a few where someone steps in at the last minute to save her and that is a cheesy rip off.
Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier is a famous example of a classic R. S., with a touch of the old gothic suspense thrown in. So is Jane Eyre.
The novels of Mary Stewart are my favorite romantic suspense. These were her pre-Merlin books. The Moonspinners, The Gabriel Hounds, This Rough Magic, My Brother Michael and more are classics of the genre.
I love the clever Vicky Bliss mysteries of Barbara Mertz, who is better known now as Elizabeth Peters. She had a number of excellent romantic suspense books out before catching on big time with the Amelia Peabody series.
With any genre, you're going to find really fantastic reads mixed in with literary versions of toe rags. You have to check out a wide range of writers to find the gems.
Years back there was a glut of buying from publishers who took in anything and everything providing it was written by a woman and had a female lead. Large houses turned them into a money machine, but it's no surprise that the quality of material ranged from so-so to bloody awful. These often featured the heroine Too Stupid To Live (or TSTL for short).
Try to avoid those, BTW. The only thing you'll learn from reading them is how not to write good romantic suspense.
Sadly, despite being TSTL, the brainless bimbo still clings grimly on in the genre, especially with the Old Guard writers and with neos who don't know any better and think it's expected.
Gimme a modern R-S where the heroine thinks Lora Croft and Xena are wimps!
The main point is the heroine solves the problem, preferably on her own. I've read a few where someone steps in at the last minute to save her and that is a cheesy rip off.
Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier is a famous example of a classic R. S., with a touch of the old gothic suspense thrown in. So is Jane Eyre.
The novels of Mary Stewart are my favorite romantic suspense. These were her pre-Merlin books. The Moonspinners, The Gabriel Hounds, This Rough Magic, My Brother Michael and more are classics of the genre.
I love the clever Vicky Bliss mysteries of Barbara Mertz, who is better known now as Elizabeth Peters. She had a number of excellent romantic suspense books out before catching on big time with the Amelia Peabody series.
With any genre, you're going to find really fantastic reads mixed in with literary versions of toe rags. You have to check out a wide range of writers to find the gems.
Years back there was a glut of buying from publishers who took in anything and everything providing it was written by a woman and had a female lead. Large houses turned them into a money machine, but it's no surprise that the quality of material ranged from so-so to bloody awful. These often featured the heroine Too Stupid To Live (or TSTL for short).
Try to avoid those, BTW. The only thing you'll learn from reading them is how not to write good romantic suspense.
Sadly, despite being TSTL, the brainless bimbo still clings grimly on in the genre, especially with the Old Guard writers and with neos who don't know any better and think it's expected.
Gimme a modern R-S where the heroine thinks Lora Croft and Xena are wimps!
Than-kew!
Thanks, all, for your responses and links. After I posted this thread, I left the house and while I was out I decided to go to my favorite used book store. I looked for a section of Romantic Suspense, and didn't see one, so I headed for an employee.
"Where would I find Romantic Suspense genre?"
"We mix them in with "Romance."
I told him I was writing a book, and watched his eyes glaze over. He guided me to the Romance section and pulled several books from the shelf.
"I recommend these," and he told me why.
"Great! Thanks, and I want to read something in the Literary genre, too. Can you..."
"Follow me," and then he plopped several more books on my pile while giving me a number of good reason for recommending each book.
I left the store with a bag heavy enough to give my arm muscles a much needed workout:
The World According to Garp, John Irving (I never read this before, because I didn't think I could stand to read a book where the MC's name is "Garp."
)
Whispers, Dean Koontz
Intensity, Dean Koontz
Velocity, Dean Koontz
The Crimson Petal and the White, Michael Faber
The Tenth Circle, Jodi Picoult
Social Crimes, Jane Stanton Hitchcock
French Twist, Roxanne StClaire
Sweet Revenge, Nora Roberts
Thanks, all, for your responses and links. After I posted this thread, I left the house and while I was out I decided to go to my favorite used book store. I looked for a section of Romantic Suspense, and didn't see one, so I headed for an employee.
"Where would I find Romantic Suspense genre?"
"We mix them in with "Romance."
I told him I was writing a book, and watched his eyes glaze over. He guided me to the Romance section and pulled several books from the shelf.
"I recommend these," and he told me why.
"Great! Thanks, and I want to read something in the Literary genre, too. Can you..."
"Follow me," and then he plopped several more books on my pile while giving me a number of good reason for recommending each book.
I left the store with a bag heavy enough to give my arm muscles a much needed workout:
The World According to Garp, John Irving (I never read this before, because I didn't think I could stand to read a book where the MC's name is "Garp."
)Whispers, Dean Koontz
Intensity, Dean Koontz
Velocity, Dean Koontz
The Crimson Petal and the White, Michael Faber
The Tenth Circle, Jodi Picoult
Social Crimes, Jane Stanton Hitchcock
French Twist, Roxanne StClaire
Sweet Revenge, Nora Roberts
[I left the store with a bag heavy enough to give my arm muscles a much needed workout:]
And now your eyes will get a good work out too!
And now your eyes will get a good work out too!
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The World According to Garp is one of my favorite novels ever, and John Irving one of my favorite authors. I'm glad to hear it's being recommended. (They also did a really nice job with the movie version--Robin Williams in the title role, Glenn Close as his mother and John Lithgow was superb).
If you like The World According to Garp, be sure to read The Hotel New Hampshire, Irving's best, IMHO. Terrible, terrible movie version, though.
If you like The World According to Garp, be sure to read The Hotel New Hampshire, Irving's best, IMHO. Terrible, terrible movie version, though.
ummm call me crazy but the world according to garp is not romantic suspense. and i dont think of dean koontz as a romantic suspense writer either.
Look at Roxanne St. Clair, Cherry Adair (whom I detest but lots and lots of people love), Suzanne Brockmann, Sandra Brown, Iris Johanssen, Merlin Lovelace. Those are romantic suspense writers. Not dean koontz or Irving. Romantic Suspense as a genre has a large focus on romance. It's not a minor addition to the plot, it's a very big part of the plot. SO just because a book is suspense, and the MC falls in love with someone doesn't make it romantic suspense.
The focus 99% on the woman. Yes the POV very often includes the male character, but the woman is usually the focus of the book and very often the one that solves the mystery/crime/conspiracy.
romantic suspense is really a misnomer. it really should be called suspenseful romance. lol
Look at Roxanne St. Clair, Cherry Adair (whom I detest but lots and lots of people love), Suzanne Brockmann, Sandra Brown, Iris Johanssen, Merlin Lovelace. Those are romantic suspense writers. Not dean koontz or Irving. Romantic Suspense as a genre has a large focus on romance. It's not a minor addition to the plot, it's a very big part of the plot. SO just because a book is suspense, and the MC falls in love with someone doesn't make it romantic suspense.
The focus 99% on the woman. Yes the POV very often includes the male character, but the woman is usually the focus of the book and very often the one that solves the mystery/crime/conspiracy.
romantic suspense is really a misnomer. it really should be called suspenseful romance. lol
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No-no-no...of course you're right; but I asked for Romantic Suspense AND Literary. He gave me Dean Koontz and Irving as representative of Literary. He also recommended Jodi Picoult as well in that category.
Nevada, why do you detest Cherry Adair? What is it about her writing that turns you off?
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didn't realize you asked for literary as well. my fault.Cherry Adair. Where shall I begin? Her situations are beyond ridiculous. One that stands out is the secret hotel in the middle of the desert that nobody knew had been constructed but now all the world's heads are meeting there including the queen of england. Riiiiiiiiiight. Cause constructing a hotel in the desert is such an easy thing to hide. Where is the water coming from? Where is the sewage going? Where did the concrete come from? Several thousand trucks of concrete driving into the desert doesn't raise any eyebrows at all. Do you know how long it takes to construct a hotel as fancy and as big as she describes? Do you know how many construction workers you need to build a hotel that size? and nobody talked about it?
I won't even mention the sex on a camel.
I havent read her in a while, but I remember thinking that her writing was extremely awkward, extremely badly researched, and totally ludicrous. It didn't read as a real story, more like a fantasy by some chick who has no clue about reality. "Oh wouldn't it be romantic if we both rode on teh same camel and had sex even though there's someone else with us on another camel? I'll just make him ride a bit ahead of us. I'll just ignore the fact that camels reek to high heaven. I'll just ignore basic physiology. Wouldn't it be romantic if...... I'll just ignore reality."
I'll buy into suspension of disbelief. Absolutely. But if you are going to give people guns, you better know which end is which to say the very least. So many times with some romantic suspense writers, they just don't think about the realities. One book, not cherry adair, had the heroine strap a glock to her inner thigh. A standart 9 mm glock. Those are guns that cops use. How do you strap that to your inner thigh and still walk? Stuff like that.
And with my luck, Cherry Adair reads this forum. But that is how I feel. But like I said, many many women love cherry adair. So she must be doing something right.
Cherry Adair. Where shall I begin? Her situations are beyond ridiculous. One that stands out is the secret hotel in the middle of the desert that nobody knew had been constructed but now all the world's heads are meeting there including the queen of england. Riiiiiiiiiight. Cause constructing a hotel in the desert is such an easy thing to hide. Where is the water coming from? Where is the sewage going? Where did the concrete come from? Several thousand trucks of concrete driving into the desert doesn't raise any eyebrows at all. Do you know how long it takes to construct a hotel as fancy and as big as she describes? Do you know how many construction workers you need to build a hotel that size? and nobody talked about it?
I won't even mention the sex on a camel.
I havent read her in a while, but I remember thinking that her writing was extremely awkward, extremely badly researched, and totally ludicrous. It didn't read as a real story, more like a fantasy by some chick who has no clue about reality. "Oh wouldn't it be romantic if we both rode on teh same camel and had sex even though there's someone else with us on another camel? I'll just make him ride a bit ahead of us. I'll just ignore the fact that camels reek to high heaven. I'll just ignore basic physiology. Wouldn't it be romantic if...... I'll just ignore reality."
I'll buy into suspension of disbelief. Absolutely. But if you are going to give people guns, you better know which end is which to say the very least. So many times with some romantic suspense writers, they just don't think about the realities. One book, not cherry adair, had the heroine strap a glock to her inner thigh. A standart 9 mm glock. Those are guns that cops use. How do you strap that to your inner thigh and still walk? Stuff like that.
And with my luck, Cherry Adair reads this forum. But that is how I feel. But like I said, many many women love cherry adair. So she must be doing something right.
Thanks, Nevada. All very good reasons! I could go the desert hotel if it's underground, or something like that - Coober Pedy comes to mind -- but I like a little reality with my fantasy.
I read a Nora Roberts book recently. The beginning was good, but the writing really sucked. I bought it primarily to look at the writing and was surprised that it was soooo bad. The story was not that good either. I'm going to read another NR and compare the two books, particularly the writing and construction to see if I can figure out why she has such a fine reputation as a writer of Romantic Suspense.
Question: Show or Tell?
Is this passage Show or Tell? How about punctuation? Sentence structure?
"Adrianne didn't want to question why she felt so at ease with him -- relaxed as she had been on the evening they'd spent at a country inn outside London. She wasn't a woman who had legions of friends, but, rather, acquaintances, people who came and went in her life. Where she gave friendship, she gave herself completely, with no limitations, and therefore she gave it carefully. Though trust wasn't fully in place, she felt friendship for him, and despite her reservations was pleased to have him with her."
How about this one?
"She closed the door between the parlor and her bedroom. It was risky to use the phone. For day she had tried to think of a better, or a safer way. Though she had needed relief, she hadn't touched a tranquilizer or a drink since he announced the trip. Her mind was clearer than it had been in years. So clear it hurt. Still, she could think of no way except the phone. Her only hope was that he wouldn't suspect betrayal from a woman who had tolerated his abuse for so long."
Is this passage Show or Tell? How about punctuation? Sentence structure?
"Adrianne didn't want to question why she felt so at ease with him -- relaxed as she had been on the evening they'd spent at a country inn outside London. She wasn't a woman who had legions of friends, but, rather, acquaintances, people who came and went in her life. Where she gave friendship, she gave herself completely, with no limitations, and therefore she gave it carefully. Though trust wasn't fully in place, she felt friendship for him, and despite her reservations was pleased to have him with her."
How about this one?
"She closed the door between the parlor and her bedroom. It was risky to use the phone. For day she had tried to think of a better, or a safer way. Though she had needed relief, she hadn't touched a tranquilizer or a drink since he announced the trip. Her mind was clearer than it had been in years. So clear it hurt. Still, she could think of no way except the phone. Her only hope was that he wouldn't suspect betrayal from a woman who had tolerated his abuse for so long."
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Try Hot Ice. There are many, many, many more recent NR books out, but this one's always been one of my more favorite.
Other romantic suspense authors: Catherine Coulter (contemporaries), Linda Howard.
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