Romance Tropes! Love ’em or hate ’em?

Guest Post
Alice Renaud

Until I started to write romance, I didn’t know what a “trope” was. If you’d asked me, I would have said it was probably some sort of short mountain troll (I know – I spend too much time reading fantasy novels). A trope is “a significant or recurrent theme; a motif” and many romance novels are built around one or several tropes. Many romance readers like specific tropes and will be more tempted to pick up a book if it features one of their favorite themes. So here are a few of my favorite (and not so favorite) tropes!

Forbidden love: one of my favorites. Actually, all my published books feature this theme. My fantasy romance series Sea of Love follows the lives and loves of three young merfolk. Each one falls in love with a human, in defiance of the laws of their people, and have to choose between the duty to their families and Clans and their heart. I love that trope because it generates great internal conflict for the characters and forces them to show what they’re made of.

Fated Mates

Fated mates is a popular trope in paranormal and fantasy romance, and one I team up with forbidden love in the Sea of Love series. Merfolk have a legend that every merman and mermaid has a soulmate somewhere. Only when they find him or her will they be complete. In the case of the three young merfolk in the series, Yann, Rob and Caltha, their soulmate happens to be human, but they are helplessly drawn to them just the same.

Hero/heroine in jeopardy

I love a good jeopardy! My favorite scene in Music for a Merman, the second Sea of Love book, is when the heroine Charlie is chased through the marshes at night by angry mermen. But she saves herself… and then saves the hero too. The traditional set up in romance is the strong hero rescuing the heroine, but I like to turn it around and have the heroine save the hero. My heroines are strong women!

Virgins

I like a virgin (no snickering at the back) because first love is one of the most profound experiences in life. My heroes and heroines so far have been young, and their fated mate is their first true love. This is magnified when the heroine is a virgin, as in my third book, Mermaids Marry in Green. Many romances feature a female virgin, particularly historical romances, which is appropriate for the period they depict. Again though, I like to put a twist on it in some of my stories. In Music for a Merman, the hero, though not a virgin, is a lot less experienced and sexually confident than the sassy heroine. I am planning to write a book where the hero is a virgin. Well, as a time-traveling medieval monk, he will have a good excuse!

One variant on this trope is the young (sometimes very young) heroine seduced by an older man. There, I have to say… Eek. In the days of Me Too, this does not look right. Older romance novels do feature that theme, but it’s less popular now, and I think that’s a good thing. For example, in the Poldark novels, the heroine, Demelza, is 12 when Ross Poldark first meets her, and only 17 when he first sleeps with her. In the TV adaptation, they wisely made Demelza older (the actress was 21 in the first series) and a lot closer in age to the dashing hero.

What about you? Do you have a favorite or most hated trope? If yes, let me know in the comments!

Check out Alice’s Latest Romance!

Music for a Merman
By Alice Renaud
$1.99, 128 pp, Kindle
Genre: Fantasy Romance
Available at Amazon

Blurb

Rob Regor knew that humans were trouble. All the shape-shifting mermen of the Morvann Islands knew it. And human women were double trouble… especially when they were lying on the road in front of a digger. Rob has a mission. Go to the mainland. Work as a policeman. Spy on humans. Report back to his father, the head of the Regor Merman Clan. It should be easy. Until he has to arrest Charlie. Rob can’t fight his attraction to the sexy eco-warrior, and it puts him on one hell of a collision course with his family and his Clan. Will he break the rules – or break her heart, and his?

Love ‘em and leave ‘em, that was Charlie’s motto. It had served her well until now. But Rob is different… Can she open up her heart to Rob – when a secret buried in her past surfaces and changes her completely?

About Alice Renaud

Alice lives in London, UK, with her husband and son. By day she’s a compliance manager for a pharmaceutical company. By night she writes fantasy romance about shapeshifting mermen, water monsters and time-traveling witches. Her first book, “A Merman’s Choice,” was published in January 2019 by Black Velvet Seductions. It is the first book in a fantasy romance trilogy inspired by the landscapes and legends of Brittany and Wales. The second book, “Music for a Merman,” is out now and the third, “Mermaids Marry in Green” will be released later this year. Alice has also written a short story, “The Sweetest Magic of All,” included in the BVS “Mystic Desire” anthology, out now. Alice loves reading and writing stories, and sharing them with anyone who’s interested!

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June 3, 2020 19

#IWSG – Swallow Rejection, Focus on the Work

Mis Quince Años (28) Insecure Writer’s Support Group

Writers have secrets! What are one or two of yours, something readers would never know from your work?

Why y’all asking people to tell their secrets?

A lot of my work as a cultural critic and author involves me asserting confidence about my abilities and talents and using them to encourage writers to form supportive networks that will help us all get our words to the world. While I am blessed to get to write for online publications and my own stories, I also take advantage of opportunities to coach, mentor and cheerlead my fellow writers to get their thoughts and stories out there. I guess that is why it is hard to accept the infrequency for substantial mutual support. Continue reading “#IWSG – Swallow Rejection, Focus on the Work” →

June 3, 2020 5

#newrelease #bookteaser – Mad Dog By Seyna Rytes

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Mad Dog: Falling For The Johnsons by [Seyna Rytes, FoolProof Editing] Mad Dog
By Seyna Rytes
$0.99, 62pp, Kindle
Available at Amazon

Blurb

Strong Language

MYNNA
“Remember me? Mynna, the fun, lively baby sister? Yeah, that was ten years ago… These days, it’s more like: Mynna the hardened divorcee.
I dated the same guy throughout high-school, we got engaged at twenty and married a year later. It took us five years to reach a point of no return: irreconcilable differences, they call it. I say he was an immature prick!
Now, I’m busy dealing with an entirely different brand of prick. For the past four years, I’ve had a big ol’ crush on my jerk of a boss…” Continue reading “#newrelease #bookteaser – Mad Dog By Seyna Rytes” →

May 29, 2020 0

LWL #Interview: Marianne Rice Shares Her Writer’s Perspective

Hello, beauteous readers! I am thrilled to introduce author Marianne Rice. Marianne authored more than nineteen small-town romance novels set in rural New England towns. She loves high heels, reading romance, scarfing down dark chocolate, gulping wine, and Chris Hemsworth. Oh, and her husband and three children.

Marianne’s new book, Something More (book six in the Well Paired series) features Mia and Ryan, two people who find each other while searching for equilibrium. Check out the blurb.

A Well Paired

Available at Amazon

Mia Parker needs to reassess her wild lifestyle, get back to her lost passion for writing and drawing. At a quiet beach, she gathers inspiration, finding it in a stranger with mischievous dark chocolate eyes and a quirky passion for marine life. But the more time they spend together the more stoic and mysterious he becomes.

Continue reading “LWL #Interview: Marianne Rice Shares Her Writer’s Perspective” →

May 27, 2020 0

#bookteaser, #newrelease – Man in Chains By Sara Allen

Mis Quince Años (33)

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Man In Chains
By Sara Allen
$3.70, 360, Kindle
$13.68, pp358, Paper
Available at Amazon

Blurb

Man In ChainsGianni ‘The Diamond’ Marcello has one goal; to be the boxing champion of the world. It will take commitment, sacrifice, discipline and hard work, the biggest being love and a meaningful relationship. They won’t co-exist; responsibility for one’s family takes precedence. He’s prepared to leave one to achieve the other. In Shelley, he’s found the perfect girl. She understands his objectives. Until they’re married and every action proves him wrong. Disappointed, Gianni struggles to accommodate a situation he wasn’t expecting. Continue reading “#bookteaser, #newrelease – Man in Chains By Sara Allen” →

May 22, 2020 0

#newrelease – Queen of the Castle by Lyndell Williams

QTC 1release

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Queen of the Castle
By Lyndell Williams
$0.99, 112pp, Kindle
Genre: BWWM Romance
Available at Amazon

Blurb

From award-winning, bestselling author, Lyndell Williams, a story of bridled desire unleashed. Continue reading “#newrelease – Queen of the Castle by Lyndell Williams” →

May 21, 2020 0

#bookteaser, #newrelease Two Truths and a Lie by Daryl Devore

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Two Truths and a Lie
By Daryl Devore
$8.00, 195pp, print
$5.00, 195pp, Kindle
Genre: Romantic Comedy
Available at Amazon

Blurb

The legend of Robin Hood and Maid Marian with a twenty-first-century twist. If you love hot, billionaire romances, then this is a must-read.

From the author of the Two Hearts One Love Trilogy, multi-published, hot romance author Daryl Devoré’s latest book revolves around deceit, betrayal, passion and the theft of a multi-million-dollar, rare, red diamond. Continue reading “#bookteaser, #newrelease Two Truths and a Lie by Daryl Devore” →

May 13, 2020 0

#coverreveal – Queen of the Castle by Lyndell Williams

Book Review Feature (12)

Queen of the Castle

Open to Love Book Two

Coming Soon through After Hours Publications

From award-winning, bestselling author, Lyndell Williams, a story of bridled desire unleashed.

Tarika is happy living single. She loves her home—her castle—and is not looking for some man to try and take over everything she has built. When her best friend, Hafsah throws Aqil her way, Tarika makes it clear that she is not interested in the shy man, who barely speaks to her. When she needs his help after an accident, she allows Aqil and his daughter into her life, making it difficult to resist his sexy gray eyes and sultry smile. The more time she spends with him, the harder it is to keep her distance.

Aqil planned to stay focused on rebuilding his life with his daughter after a messy divorce until he saw Tarika. He tries to maintain a respectful amount of space, but her confidence and beauty draw him in. He knows he has everything Tarika needs and gets closer to her, bringing them into a passionate abandon that can break down the walls of her inhibitions but may also shatter their lives.

cooltext357118732343216 Continue reading “#coverreveal – Queen of the Castle by Lyndell Williams” →

May 11, 2020 0

#NewRelease – Mission Mr. and Mrs. Lee By Jade Moon

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Mission Mr. and Mrs Lee: A Spy and the Scientist Military Romance by [Jade Moon, AMBW Press] New Release
Mission Mr. and Mrs. Lee
By Jade Lee
$2.99, pp 272, Kindle
AMBW Press and Love Journey Books
Available at Amazon

Blurb

Kuan Lee was a military spy working for the Secret Intelligence Service with a unique skill set. He’d been deployed all over the world and was accustomed to following orders, but these latest instructions were surprising.

The mission: To marry a woman named Dr. Malaya Sterling.

Malaya is a brilliant billionaire scientist and expert in her fields – DNA, pharmaceuticals, and chemical weapons, to name a few. But definitely not a spy… until now.

Continue reading “#NewRelease – Mission Mr. and Mrs. Lee By Jade Moon” →

May 7, 2020 0

#Bookteaser, New Release ~ Don’t Forget the Dog By Linda O’Connor

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Don't Forget the Dog (Dr. Brogan Corkie Matchmaking Doctor Book 2) by [Linda O'Connor] Don’t Forget the Dog
By Linda O’Connor
$7.99, 151pp, paperback
$0.99, 158pp, Kindle
Genre: Medical Romantic Comedy

Available at Amazon

Blurb

Don’t Forget the Dog (Dr. Brogan Corkie Matchmaking Doctor, Book 2)
Dr. Brogan Corkie is happily semi-retired from medicine and now has time for other hobbies. Her passion for food is second only to her skill at matchmaking!

Blaine McKinnon, owner and executive chef of an upscale restaurant in Mapleton, has an adorable Old English sheepdog named Tacos. Brogan is roped into dog-sitting Tacos at Blaine’s house. The upside is the spectacular kitchen at her disposal.

Dr. Sabrina Langfield, a newly minted doctor, is in a bind when her mom, Rue, falls and fractures her wrist. Brogan offers to help and does double-duty looking after Tacos and Rue.

Blaine and Sabrina were high school sweethearts but parted ways when Blaine pushed Sabrina to pursue a career. Sabrina hasn’t seen him since, but Rue is a huge fan and frequents his restaurant. Rue’s biggest regret is her part in Sabrina and Blaine’s break-up, and with Brogan’s help, she’s determined to get them back together. It might not be that easy – Sabrina is wary of Tacos and, more pressing, she’s decided to move a four-hour flight away to do five more years of training in emergency medicine.

Will meddlesome matchmaking, Blaine’s persuasiveness, and – don’t forget the dog – Tacos’ sweet nature be enough to convince Sabrina to stay?

Continue reading “#Bookteaser, New Release ~ Don’t Forget the Dog By Linda O’Connor” →

May 6, 2020 0

#NewRealease -Quarantine 2020 By Brenda Stokes Lee

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New Release
QUARANTINE 2020
By Brendan Stokes Lee
$1.99, pp 75, Kindle

FREE on Nook

Available at Amazon

BLURB

As nervous as a virgin, holding a tape measure, at a penis measuring contest, NHL Superstar, Karma Manhattan stared blankly out into space. At his doctor’s office, getting screened for the coronavirus, and COVID- 19, he questions, how he got in such a precarious predicament.

Naturally, Karma knew the answer. The self-professed playboy entertained the urges of his little head, and ignored the sound advice of his big head. Stuck in quarantine, alone, Karma finds himself in need of some female companionship. With few options, he seduces Crystal, the fast food delivery girl. Now, realizing it was a bonehead decision, pun intended, he’s forced to face the consequences of his actions, as he waits for his coronavirus tests results. Continue reading “#NewRealease -Quarantine 2020 By Brenda Stokes Lee” →

April 30, 2020 0

#BookTeaser -Danger in the Deep Forests of the Bitterroot

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Tender Misdemeanors
By Alana Lorens
$17.99, 348pp, paper
$ 5.99, 258, Kindle
Genre: romantic suspense

Available at
Amazon
Barnes and Noble

Blurb

Caryn Orlane has law enforcement in her blood; her father was a cop, and his father, too. She’s a federal agent in northwest Montana, protecting the old forests and keeping the peace. Levi Bradshaw also believes in protecting the forests but has a very different MO. He’s the leader of a group of eco-warriors, determined to save the trees of the Bitterroot by legal—and illegal—means. When they meet in the woods at gunpoint, their encounter ignites a spark of interest, despite operating on opposite sides of the law. When their worlds turn on them, they only grow closer. If they don’t work together, can either survive?

Excerpt

Continue reading “#BookTeaser -Danger in the Deep Forests of the Bitterroot” →

April 29, 2020 0

Why Grammar Pet Peeves Die

#openbook

What are your pet peeves when it comes to grammar and spelling?

I have some pet peeves. I can’t stand going into my kitchen to cook and finding dishes in the sink. There is something about having to clean in order to eat that I find especially annoying, and I can’t resist shouting, “Who left these dishes” across the house to find the perpetrator.

I am also challenged to overlook passive aggression, whether on social media or in person. I hate when someone is clearly trying to stick it to me with a smile on their face or with feigned self-deprecation and sanctimony. I fail to let it go. My claws come out, and I make no apologies for it.

Peeve vs. Pet Peeve

Unlike many peeves or annoyances that people may be able to disregard, a pet peeve is adopted and nurtured like a pet. As with me and those dishes in the sink or the jerk on Facebook, they can’t keep pet peeves from bothering them to the point of complaining. I tend not to have pet peeves when it comes to grammar and spelling. I grew up using layers of language and studied literary criticism, semiotics, and hermeneutics, which encouraged me to favor a more descriptive approach to both.

Continue reading “Why Grammar Pet Peeves Die” →

April 27, 2020 6

#BookReview – Erotic Office By L.W. Boudreaux

Review by Lyndell Williams
EROTIC OFFICE
By L.W. Boudreaux
$0.99, pp 35, Kindle

We all have those reading moments when we want to cut to the chase. In erotica, that often means reaching sex scenes as soon as possible. No fuss, no muss. Well, maybe a little muss. After all, if an author doesn’t heat things up fast, it is not erotica. In Erotica Office, L.W. Bordeaux sets up main characters Niki and Tyler so they get busy pretty fast. Not lighting speed because Niki had to first hating Tyler’s guts.

To Nikki, her handsome new boss comes off as a condescending jerk, rightfully so. It’s amazing that she gets … thrilled at all. He spent the initial few minutes of their conversation letting her know what he found wrong with her. Grown … behind women would peep his dump session for what it was, a playa move to make her self-conscious and easy to manipulate. They would call him out on his bull and send him on his merry way. Continue reading “#BookReview – Erotic Office By L.W. Boudreaux” →

April 23, 2020 0

Writing Characters in Real Places and Spaces

#openbook

Talk about the setting of your book. Is it entirely imaginary or is it based on a real-life place?

I love writing stories that allow readers to tap into the fantasy and escapism that fiction provides. At the same time, I like to include points of reference from my environment. Similar to integrating real-life characters experience, my story plots also contain geographical references to position readers in characters’ environments, potentially essential to reinforce arches and allow them to relate.

Settings in the romance genre tend to be at economic and geographic extremes. At a Popular Cultural Association conference, romance scholar Jodi McAllister pointed out that romance plots frequently unfold between female protagonists and rich men in cities or small-town bearded hunks. She posed a question asking why people didn’t seem to fall in love in the suburbs. She made a great point. I spent my teens and early adult life reading about ridiculously wealthy men taking their love interests to bed. Not necessarily a bad thing, I enjoyed the escapism, but not everyone lives like that way, nor do they exist in tiny towns with one traffic light. I want my readers to see themselves in my stories. Continue reading “Writing Characters in Real Places and Spaces” →

April 20, 2020 7

#NewRelease – The Jealous By Laury Silvers

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The Jealous: A Sufi Mystery (The Sufi Mysteries Book 2) by [Laury Silvers] New Release
THE JEALOUS
By Laury Silvers
$4.99, pp 400, Kindle
Available at Amazon

Blurb

Book Two in the Sufi Mysteries Series

Baghdad 295 hijri/907 CE

A woman’s howl of pain echoed through the courtyard. “She’s killed him!” Her husband’s face was twisted with terror, staring at something that was not there, looking at the space just over his chest, grasping at his left arm as if to wrest some unseen force away. Saliha gasped, “A jinn! God protect us from evil things!”

When a distinguished scholar dies at the Barmakid hospital in Baghdad, nearly everyone points the finger at his slave Mu’mina, as the one who called a demon to kill him. Tein, a former frontier fighter turned investigator with the Grave Crimes Section, has no time for religion, let alone jinn, and sets out to prove her innocent. But Ammar, Tein’s superior and old wartime friend, has already pushed her case before the Police Chief’s court where she’s sure to be executed or condemned to rot in the prisons built into the damp walls of Baghdad’s Round City. Continue reading “#NewRelease – The Jealous By Laury Silvers” →

April 17, 2020 0

#NewRelease-Too Far By Yvonne Bennett

Mis Quince Años (27)

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New Release
TOO FAR
By Yvonne Bennett
$2.99, pp 330, Kindle

Afterhours Publications

Available at Amazon

BLURB: Nadia Mitchell is a headstrong F.B.I agent, looking to take down the head of the illustrious Carmine empire. What she didn’t bank on was the risk that came with being obsessed with Andres, the cutthroat cousin of Agostino. Nadia didn’t know that she would have to get in too far to catch her prey. Now she has to protect herself…and her heart.

THIS IS A COMPLETE NOVEL. NO CLIFFHANGERS

Continue reading “#NewRelease-Too Far By Yvonne Bennett” →

April 10, 2020 0

#BOOKREVIEW -Hurricanes and Butterflies By N Gray

Butterflies and Hurricanes (Blaire Thorne Book 3) by [N Gray] Review by Lyndell Williams
BUTTERFLIES AND HURRICANES
By N. Gray
$2.99, pp 223, Kindle

So, there are two paranormal hunks fighting over you. What is a girl in the middle of a supernatural world to do? Well, if you are Blaire Oona Thorne, nothing much. There is no time to start digging on either one of them too hard with everything else happening. In Butterflies and Hurricanes by N. Gray, the main character Blair has a laundry list of things to do. Let’s see, she must:

Regain her memory;
Find her daughter;
Figure out why she keeps shifting into a bevy of beasts;
Track down and kill the monster who slaughtered her mother, and
Discover who is poisoning the local monsters, shifters and such in Chicago and her hometown, Sterling Meadow.

Continue reading “#BOOKREVIEW -Hurricanes and Butterflies By N Gray” →

April 9, 2020 1

An Author’s Life of Teaching

#openbook

What did you want to be when you grew up vs. what you are today?

I always wanted to be a writer. Since I could remember, words … Psych!

Of course, I didn’t grow up wanting to write. I hated writing. I still get flashbacks of cramps when I see one of those little penmanship books. Like many children, I wanted to become a teacher when I grew up. It wasn’t because of a favorite teacher or anything like that. I liked standing in front of people and telling them what I knew.

I like being smart and right; it was the essential motivation that drove me to become an educator. It wasn’t until I became older that fulfillment from conveying knowledge to another overrode my hubris. I was usually the oddball at school. I spent a lot of time in corners, working or eating alone. But, every so often, a classmate would come to me with a concept they just couldn’t grasp or a hard-to-solve problem. I helped them, even my bullies. It was then that I realized that I liked explaining what I knew more than just showing it.

Continue reading “An Author’s Life of Teaching” →

April 6, 2020 6

#CoverReveal: Jana Richards’ New Romance

To Heal a Heart – A new romance by Jana Richards

Blurb

Garrett Saunders’ world changed two years ago on a road in Afghanistan. Back home, he feels like a stranger. As he struggles to find his place in the world, he meets a horse destined for the slaughterhouse and a woman bent on rescuing the strays of the world, including him.

Blair Greyson moves to Masonville to look after her ailing grandfather and give her rescue horses a home. Right away she butts heads with a surly former Marine. Despite a rocky start, they come to an agreement: Blair will board Garrett’s rescue horse and he’ll help with repairs around her farm.

Garrett finds purpose working with Blair—and falls in love with her. But she’s hiding a secret. Can she forgive herself and accept Garrett’s love, or will she let guilt and regret continue to rule her life?