[ SECRET POST #2389 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #2389 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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[Avenged Sevenfold]


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[Professor Layton]


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[Yoroiden Samurai Troopers (Ronin Warriors)]









Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 01 pages, 015 secrets from Secret Submission Post #341.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

Romance novel recs?

[(Anonymous)]

I don't know how many of you here on F!S read romance novels... but I've recently started writing what I guess could be classified as a romance novel (since the whole point of the story is how the two main characters fall in love.)

So I thought I should probably read in the genre a bit. Plus, I'm in the mood for reading something humorous and sweet. (The rest of my reading material is depressing litfic and university textbooks, so that gets tiring.)

Problem is? I utterly loathe many of the "tropes" in romance novels. Especially "alpha males", who seem to be running through the checklist of "red flags for predatory behaviour". I find it even more disturbing when these things are presented as romantic and desirable.

I just want to read something funny and adorable, without throwing the book across the room. Please help!

Re: Romance novel recs?

[(Anonymous)]

Unfortunately, much of the genre doesn't fit the mold you're looking for. There are a lot of authors I read, but I almost always have some beef with the tropes they write.

Re: Romance novel recs?

[(Anonymous)]

The only good (IMO) romance novel I can recommend is "Almost Like Being in Love" by Steve Kluger - it's an adorable m/m romance, at that.

Like you, I'm not a huge fan of the romance genre as a whole, so the only time I've ventured into it is for queer romance - a lot of which comes with its own set of problems. That said, get-together fic is pretty much fluffy romance anyway; if you can write that, you can write a romance. Just because it doesn't follow the same formula or call into the same tropes doesn't mean you're doing romance wrong or something.

Re: Romance novel recs?

[(Anonymous)]

Unbridled is good, and the Love Interest doesn't hit that check list. In fact, the person who does hit those [namely the guy who the main character leaves at the alter at the start of the book] is portrayed as negative and borderline abusive because of the ones he has [and rightly so.]

It's also got secondary story that's a little bittersweet involving the M.C. family's history.

Re: Romance novel recs?

[(Anonymous)]

All my stories are pretty much romances, but they're usually m/m and kind of dark, and I'm about to start writing some fluffy, kind of romantic comedy het because it's a wee bit more lucrative. I recommend clicking around at Smart Bitches, Trashy Books. This sounds like the kind of book you're looking for:

http://smartbitchestrashybooks.com/blog/rita-reader-challenge-crazy-little-thing-by-tracy-brogan

They're really funny and direct, and Sarah Wendell has a couple of books out. They call the alpha males you're talking about alpholes, you can read a little about them and other types in Beyond Heaving Bosoms at google books: http://books.google.com/books?id=ptYyfGu1KbMC&pg=PA77&lpg=PA77&dq=alphole&source=bl&ots=3-wpY-COnH&sig=rOtZusYasJiwcmOH_14Drj7WUH0&hl=en&sa=X&ei=md_oUaWeIciZjAKc0YDIBw&ved=0CFEQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=alphole&f=false

Re: Romance novel recs?

[(Anonymous)]

Just chiming in to second the recommendation of SBTB!

Re: Romance novel recs?

[(Anonymous)]

It's YA I think but I really love the Nature of Jade.