Patricia Johns

Romance novels are incredibly important. People make fun of them, disregard them, and push them aside as “fluffy women’s fiction,” “smut,” “bodice rippers,” or “the book equivalent of Hallmark movies”… They try to tear romance novels down by mocking them, and yet they continue to be the top sellers in fiction.

But romance novels are powerful–why else do people fight them so hard? In romance novels, women get their needs met. Women are not a prize to be won. They are not the characters sacrificed at the beginning to give the hero a reason for his mission. They are not stock characters who fill a role like mother, friend, receptionist, or even senator. In romance novels, the heroines find their voices. The heroine asks for what she wants, and the book is not over until she gets it! Romance heroines don’t have to sacrifice their careers, or sacrifice having a family of their own if that’s what they want, either. They don’t have to empty themselves out to care for others, or burn themselves out to keep others warm.

In romance novels, women are desired, pursued, cherished, and loved. They don’t have to share their men. They don’t have to change the way they look–their hair, their skin, their weight. They can expect passion, honesty, respect and monogamy. And when women read romance novels, they see another option out there–one where they are worthy, just as they are, and where having their needs met isn’t just a hope, it’s mandatory.

So explore all the variety that the romance genre has to offer! There are a lot of options out there. Why not check out a few of mine? You might just find your next read.

Happy reading!

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