Tag Archives: Melissa Hepburne

Item: Passion's Proud Captive
Rating: 4
Author: IntrovertReader

The Male Authors of Vintage Romance

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Romance Is For Everyone

In the past, Sweet Savage Flame has focused on authors who used pseudonyms. We’ve posited reasons why romance writers would use pen names. One possibility given was that men were romance writers. As romance is often considered a woman’s topic, it’s understandable that male romance writers would favor an opposite-gendered moniker when publishing.

The realm of fictional violence has been historically masculine. Romance, on the other hand, has been consigned to the feminine sphere. Upon closer inspection, the matter is not so black-and-white. While females account for 82 to 85% of the romance genre readership, that still means many men enjoy love stories with happy endings.

Consider that romance is a billion-dollar industry, with a 30% market share of paperbacks alone. Romance lags (barely) behind only the suspense/thriller genre in total sales for adult fiction. In the United States, about 25 million romance books are sold annually. Despite being a primarily women’s domain, that means there are quite a few male romance readers. What about the writers?

male romance writers — *_{Photo by Anastasiya Lobanovskaya on Pexels.com}*

Men Who Wrote Romance Novels

Men were part of the 1970s romance revolution, and to this day, they remain part of it as writers and readers. Most male writers published books under pseudonyms in the early years of historical romance.

A few years after the release of The Flame and the Flower, in 1976, Avon’s competitor Warner Books published Love’s Tender Fury by Jennifer Wilde. Wilde had released Gothics under the names Edwina Marlow and Beatrice Parker.

In reality, he was Thomas E. Huff of Texas, and his 550-page saga became a huge hit, receiving dozens of printings and selling multi-million copies. Written in the “savage” style of romance, it told the tale of indentured servant Marietta Danvers and her rocky relationship with the purported hero, Derek. However, Marietta had other lovers along the way.

Unsurprisingly, it turns out that Huff was among many men who were romance writers working under pseudonyms. Subsequently, we decided to find out who were the authors behind the names.

Robert Vaughan’s Take on Being a Male Romance Writer

“I wrote [them] as Patricia Matthews, made number one on the list. In 1981, I sold 6 million books. In my lifetime, I have probably sold 40 million books, but nobody knows who I am. Now, my wife Ruth and I are co-writing romance novels as Sara Luck. She’s actually quite good at it, and I’m proud of her. And though the Sara Luck books don’t have my name, Ruth and I at least own the name.”
ROBERT VAUGHAN

Men Who Write Romance

Below is a list of male writers who authored romance novels during the 20th century.

There are men since 2000 who now write romance but are not on this list. For example, men like Ilona Andrews or Sylvain Renard.

Nicholas Sparks, Robert James Waller, and similar authors are also not included, as they were/are not writers of the Romance genre in general.

List of Male Romance Writers (or Male & Female Duos)

A

Felicia Andrews – Charles Grant

B

Monica Barrie – David Wind
Emma Blair – Iain Blair
Jessica Blair – Bill Spence
Stephanie Blake – Jack Pearl
- Cousin to author Donald Bain aka Lee Jackson
Madeleine Brent –Peter O’Donnell
- Brent had successfully published Gothics for years before the new bodice ripper era.
Elizabeth Bright – Tim Myers

C

Tori Carrington – Lori Karayianni & Tony Karayianni
Shana Carrol – Kerry Newcomb & Frank Schaeffer (both men)
Lucy Clark – Lucy Clark & Peter Clark
Jan Coffey – Nikoo McGoldrick & Jim McGoldrick

D

Emma Darcy – Wendy Brennan & Frank Brennan
- Until Frank’s death; then Wendy wrote by herself.
Fancy Dewitt – Paul Fairman
Jennifer Dalton – David Wind
Marilyn Davids – David Wind
Marilyn Davidson – David Wind
Diana Douglas – Richard Wilkes-Hunter

F

Paula Fairman – Paul Fairman & Robert Vaughan
- Fairman passed away in 1977. He was a prolific science fiction editor and writer who lived from 1916-1977. Fairman published two romances as Paula Fairman before he passed on. Later, Pinnacle Books, his publishing house, would continue to release Paula Fairman novels through a ghostwriter, a la V.C. Andrews. That “ghostwriter” was the even more prolific Robert Vaughan, author of the bestseller Andersonville.
Caroline Farr – Richard Wilkes-Hunter

G

Emma Goldrick – Emma Sutcliffe-Goldrick & Robert Goldrick
Victoria Gordon – Gordon Aalborg (We’ve reviewed one of his romances here)
Leigh Greenwood – Harold Lowry
- Greenwood openly writes a man but uses a gender-neutral pseudonym

H

Caroline Hart– Charles Garvice
- Unheard of today, but Garvice was the best-selling British romance author of his era, from the late Victorian to the Pre-World War I era, releasing over 150 romance novels.
Shirl Henke – Shirl & Chuck Henke
- Actually, Henke wrote all her books, but her husband would often guest-write a love or action scene, and Henke would leave you guessing which one it was.
Melissa Hepburne – Craig Broude
- Broude is the only romance novelist to appear in his own book and have relations with the heroine, that scamp! I recommend reading his books with your butt unclenched, as his books are silly romps.

J

Lee Jackson – Donald Bain

K

Madeleine Ker – Marius Gabriel Cipolla

L

Fabio – Fabio Lanzoni may have come up with ideas for his books, but he has at least two ghostwriters, one being Eugenia Riley.
Laura London – Sharon Curtis & Tom Curtis
Janet Lovesmith – Paul Fairman
Sara Luck – Robert Vaughan & Ruth Vaughan

M

Edwina Marlow – Tom E. Huff
Shauna Marlowe – Richard Wilkes-Hunter
Patricia Matthews– Patricia Brisco Matthews & Clayton Matthews, and Robert Vaughan
- The Matthews and their publishers claim she wrote her novels by herself, sometimes with the help of her husband. Matthews was labeled as “America’s First Lady of Historical Romance” after producing million-selling blockbuster after blockbuster. Interestingly enough, journeyman author, Robert Vaughan, claims responsibility for several of her bestsellers. We’ll follow up on this interesting discrepancy in a further article.
A.E. Maxwell – Evan & Ann Maxwell
- Author Elizabeth Lowell wrote some romances with her husband by combining the initials of her real name Ann Maxwell and her husband’s first name Evan.
May McGoldrick – Nikoo McGoldrick & Jim McGoldrick
Paula Moore – Paul Fairman; Robert Vaughan

N

Christina Nicholson – Christopher Nicole

P

Beatrice Parker – Tom E. Huff

R

Barbara Riefe – Alan Riefe
- Riefe published many books with Pla yboy Press and other publishers, selling millions of copies.
Clarissa Ross – W.E.D. Ross
Marilyn Ross – W.E.D. Ross
Vanessa Royall – Mike Hinkemeyer

S

Christina Savage – Kerry Newcomb & Frank Schaeffer (both males)
Gill Sanderson – Roger Sanderson
Con Sellers – Connie Sellers (male writing as a male)
- Sellers was a rarity in that he used his real name to write Pulps, Western and Historical romances, such as Marilee and Sweet Caroline.
Janette Seymour – Michael Butterworth
- We’ve reviewed of his bodice rippers and they’re quite entertaining.
Katherine St. Clair – Tom E. Huff
Jessica Stirling – Hugh Crawford Rae & author Peggy Coghlan
Pamela South – Donald Bain

W

Paulette Warren – Paul Fairman
Jennifer Wilde – Tom E. Huff

Y

Alison York – Christopher Nicole

**Saliee O’Brien & Francesca Greer** – Not a male, but often attributed as one. She was a woman named Frankie-Lee Griggs Weed Zelley Janas, who used several pseudonyms, male and female, especially Francis Leroy Janas.

Some Books by Male Authors Reviewed on Sweet Savage Flame

https://sweet-savage-flame.com/category-romance-review-dont-ask-me-now-by-emma-darcy/

https://sweet-savage-flame.com/category-romance-review-arafura-pirate-by-victoria-gordon/

https://sweet-savage-flame.com/book-review-passions-proud-captive-by-melissa-hepburne/

https://sweet-savage-flame.com/book-review-tempt-not-this-flesh/

https://sweet-savage-flame.com/historical-romance-review-emmies-love-by-janette-seymour/

SOURCES:

LOVE’S TENDER FURY, NY TIMES

Historical Romance Review: Passion’s Wicked Torment by Melissa Hepburne

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*Passion’s Wicked Torment,* Melissa Hepburne, Pinnacle Books, 1980, cover art Bill Maugham

Spoiler Alert & Warning: This Review and/or This Book May Offend You (Maybe) ⚠

3 Stars

Pinnacle Books‘ Passion’s Wicked Torment is a balls-to-wall 20th-century bodice ripper set in the gangster era during American Prohibition. From New York to Chicago, from Alaska to Europe, this book hops around the globe and features lots of mutually lusty sex scenes, rapes, and gangbangs. It stars a heroine so stupid and dumb, she could only have been written by Mr. Melissa Hepburne himself, the author of the blockbuster bestseller (I’m not kidding, it sold over a million copies!) Passion’s Proud Captive.

Aren’t Do-Do Birds Extinct?

Our heroine, Kristin Fleming, is perhaps an IQ point or two higher than Passion’s Proud Captive’s brainless Jenny-fair, whose stupidity made that book a hilarious blast. Now, I am not insulting our resilient sisters and aunts and mothers and grandmothers of the past when I refer to Hepburne’s heroines as too-stupid-to-live. This so-called historical fictional romance plays fast and loose with history, waffles around on the romance, and is HEAVY on the fiction. I doubt many women in reality who were capable of dressing themselves or had the mental know-how to expel their body wastes in a bowl of some sort ever inserted themselves into the moronic situations these caricatures of female protagonists did.

Here the heroine’s so dumb, and the action so predictable, yet somehow compelling, it’s like watching multiple gory car-wrecks in slow-mo, one after another, after another.

Kristin’s brother Chad gets kidnapped by a bunch of mafiosos. She has the brilliant idea to infiltrate a mobster’s club to find out where he is. Of course, Kristin has to get a makeover and change her persona. She’s a long-haired, virginal good girl, and that won’t do as she plans to sink her hooks into the head Capo, become his moll, and use her wiles to find her brother.

So she enters the club with her bobbed hair, slinky dress, and new fake identity & cozies up to the owner of a club, this hood, Dallas Hunter, to find who kidnapped her brother. With her gorgeous blonde looks, it’s as easy as cream pie to get into his bed. But Hunter gets angry with her when Kristin asks too many questions about his illegal biz while in bed. Newbie mistake; pillow talk is for AFTER sex, not during!

This is the Plot? For Real?

Dallas Hunter is a real Eye-talian with a dash of British panache. The next morning at breakfast:

Hunter ordered for both of them: scrambled eggs, spaghetti, sausage and buttered rolls. He also ordered kippers for himself, a smoked fish that was an English specialty.

Kristen sort of becomes Hunter’s gal, but she’s looking for bigger fish because she needs to get to the ultimate leader to find out what happened to her brother. Ironman is the top cat, and if anyone knows where bro-bro is, it would be he. So despite her burgeoning feelings for Hunter, she pursues Ironman, and that plan falls apart in spectacular fashion.

For you see, our hero Hunter is really a Fed, working undercover to infiltrate the mob. He, like Kristin, wants to find her brother, who is being held prisoner for reasons I forget but don’t really matter as this plot is (I’m not sorry to use this word) retarted (the misspelling is intentional).

Ironman finds out Kristin is not who she says she is, so he does some pretty nasty things to her. He has her drugged, up, chained to a bed, and forced into a vile porno with a sadistic creep. Things go from worse to worst for our heroine with a plan that’s not a plan.

First Plan: Kristen gets kidnapped, Hunter has to save her.

Second Plan: Kristen gets kidnapped, Hunter has to save her.

Third Plan: Kristen gets kidnapped, Hunter has to save her.

Oh, did I repeat myself? Well, that’s what this story does, too.

North to Alaska

Through various convoluted contrivances, Kristin finds herself in Alaska, where she meets a great bear of a man, McShane, a former Canadian Mountie. She and McShane enter a partnership to start a gambling house. They also get involved in a love affair with each other. McShane was the most decent character in this alleged romance novel and should have been the hero. This was the third Hepburne book I’ve read, so going by pattern, it seems s/he was setting McShane up to be the hero for a next book that never materialized (Hunter, this book’s male protagonist, and had been the “other” guy in a previous novel).

Really, in this brief portion of the book, Hepburne shows s/he’s capable of writing decent characters and a somewhat believable romance.

This was incredible. [Kristin] was surprising herself as well as McShane. Not only by her professions of caring for him deeply, but also by her strength and refusal to submit quietly. She felt more like a real woman now than she ever had before, a strong-willed woman who knew what she wanted and went after it.

Ah, if only. Kristen should have stayed in Alaska. But remember, she has to find her brother, Mr. MacGuffin. So she returns to the mobsters’ world, and she and McShane buy a ship to use for illegal gambling and drinking off the coast of Long Island.

Alas, those plans fall apart, as the mob doesn’t like competition, and Hunter again comes to the rescue. More plot shit is flung at the proverbial walls.

Kristin sells her share of the casino ship to McShane and flees to Europe to party her sorrows away.

A Gary Stu Supporting Character?

An unusual aspect of this book is that the author Melissa Hepburne, whose real name is Craig Broude, literally self-inserts himself into the story to have a gang-bang sex scene with the heroine. It’s tongue-in-cheek but also rather sad, as Kristin drinks, parties, and sleeps with various men in an attempt to forget all the hurts committed upon her body and spirit.

When Kristin finds out that Hunter is looking for her, she asks Broude, or Brady, as he’s called in the story, to make him scarce:

Would Brady succeed in throwing him off her trail? Probably, she thought. Her American friend was a very smart man and could be extremely cunning and crafty when he put his mind to it. The reward she promised him would certainly motivate him to do his devious best, that she was sure of.

Eventually, Kristin finds her way back to the States, sober and resolved. Dallas Hunter is there for her, and the two rekindle their romance (What romance, you might ask? Don’t. Just roll with it.).

But uh-uh-uh, there are still evil goons after them. Fortunately, the true hero of this book, McShane, who truly loves that silly do-do bird, shows up in his boat and saves the day, allowing for Hunter and Kristin to live their lives happily ever after.

Oh, and as for the missing Chad, the brother Kristin was searching for, and the whole reason she was embroiled in this ridiculous mess? Ignominously killed off partway through the book and long-forgotten by the end.

Final Analysis of Passion’s Wicked Torment

Melissa Hepburne only published four romances, but they were successful enough to put some serious cash into Craig Broude’s pockets. Good for him, I say. For despite being lackluster love stories, they were some seriously whacktastic reads I was glad to experience. Passion’s Wicked Torment, his final bodice ripper, wasn’t as fun or shocking as Passion’s Proud Captive, his first, so that it might have been a case of diminishing returns. Still, for the not-easily offended reader, these books made for wild rides.

Reviewed by Introvert Reader

Historical Romance: Passion’s Proud Captive by Melissa Hepburne

Spoiler Alert & Content Warning ⚠

The Book

Passion’s Proud Captive by Melissa Hepburne is not a book for modern readers, but it’s tailor-made to suit my awful tastes.

How does one begin to review such sublimely horrendous art as Passion Proud Captive?

Not for the Easily Offended 😁

As far as “romance novels” go, I am stuck in a time warp.

This 50-year old genre has more variety now than ever. Even so, I find modern romances lacking. I’ll read a keeper on a rare occasion, but they just don’t do it for me for the most part. I know they’re well-written, insightful, witty, with mature sexuality.

It’s simply that many bore me.

I’m a troglodyte, okay! I like cheese!

Spare me your Ivy-league educated authors with doctorates who create such works of literature like Seven Scandalous Secrets to Seduce a ~~Man-Slut~~ Scoundrel or Count Duke, Who?

Eh. Give me those 21-year-old-housewives, those retired grandmothers, those crazy cat ladies! Now they knew how to write the crap I like…

Crap like Passion’s Proud Captive.

Have you ever wondered if a book was so trashy, so poorly written yet so awfully enjoyable that it could be considered to novels what crap like Manos the Hands of Fate or The Room are to movies? Then look no further than Playboy‘s very own: Passion’s Proud Captive!

Or, as I would call it: Miss Jennifer van der Lin’s Ribald Tales of Rapetastic Adventures in White Slavery featuring ugly, greasy men and a few good-looking ones, too.

This book just doesn’t give a f^#@! It knows what it is: utter, sleazy trash.

The Ludicrous Plot

Melissa Hepburne’s first book Passion’s Proud Captive begins in medias res during the war of American Independence on a ship in the Atlantic Ocean.

Our fearless heroine Jennifer is about to be punished by an angry British captain before all the sailors aboard. She is stripped, groped and threatened with rape. Before the baddies can whip her naked flesh, our two heroes save the day!

No, this is not a ménage romance, just a lame love triangle. Lancelot Savage (a moniker derived from the romance novel hero/porn star name generator), henceforth known as Savage, a handsome, swarthy seaman with zero personality, no notable character traits, or charm of any sort, is the main guy.

Our second hero, Darcy Calhoun, a Frenchman, calls the heroine Jenny-fair. And ze way ee tahk laik zeez ahl zroo ze booook, eet eez zo veree, ‘ow yoo zay: F$#!ing irritating.

1 star was taken off just for having to figure out his lame dialogue.

Savage is injured during the rescue, and Jenny-fair nurses him back to health.

And then he rapes her. But since she likes it, and he’s the hero, it’s okay.

Anyway, he’s captured by the British. In order to save him from the hangman’s noose, Jenny-fair arranges with the booby-hating gay villain to be the fat governor’s mistress for a year.

Sex scenes are described in titillating detail. No matter how obese, ugly, or nasty the rapist is, it’s somehow bawdy and thrilling. Jenny-fair is taken by man after man, and her body betrays her every time.

Oh, No, It Gets Worse

Savage escapes from prison to be with his true love but is shocked to find her shagging the old, decrepit magistrate.

Never fear, dear readers. Our plucky heroine will get her man back.

Jenny-fair has the brilliant idea of travelling by ship to far-off England, somehow arranging for Savage–a pirate wanted dead by the British–to travel across the Atlantic Ocean, and somehow she will arrange for the booby-hating villain to admit all his wrongdoings and for Savage to overhear it.

Jenny-fair signs up for indenture and boards a ship bound for London. She’s signed on to be a prostitute.

No reason to worry, she just knows she’ll be able to escape.

I felt bad for Jenny-fair, who was obviously mildly retarded with an IQ south of 70. She should never have been allowed out of the house without proper supervision.

When she is sold to a whore house, her first customer is a 15-year-old boy with a big schlong who schtups her silly. And man, does she like it!

Later there is some voyeuristic, girl-on-girl action with an ostrich feather. Of course, there is the requisite sold to some sheik where Arabs/Indians/Turks (according to the author, it’s all the same thing) live on an island in the Mediterranean.

Finally, there is an evil Jenny-fair look-alike.

Before you know it, our adventures are over…

Wait, It’s Not Over!

Passion’s Proud Captive dares to end in a cliffhanger with no definite conclusion. So the reader is left wondering: huh?

Final Analysis of Passion’s Proud Captive

Don’t despair, anxious readers. There’s a sequel to Pasion’s Proud Captive, so the fate of our protagonists will be fully and satisfyingly revealed… Right?

This so-called romance is a mess. A hot, nasty mess. I read this bodice ripper so quickly because it really doesn’t take much thinking. It starts in action and just keeps going.

There is no introspection and proto-feminism of Wicked Loving Lies.
Don’t expect an intense, emotional rollercoaster of a ride like Stormfire.
There’s not even sumptuous purple-prose and rich attention to detail and history as in Skye O’Malley.

Other books have a witty style, historical research, deep characters, however Passion’s Proud Captive has none of those things.

The heroine is literally too stupid to live. The hero is a non-entity. The villains are clichéd and dumb.

It’s pure fun and cheeseball bodice ripper good times.

For what it was, I enjoyed this book very much. The sequel is another story…

Post Script

The author of this brilliant piece of fiction, Melissa Hepburne, was really a man, Craig Broude. Broude republished his novels on e-format. So you have no reason not to read this!

I recommend reading Passion’s Proud Captive with your butt firmly unclenched to enjoy this silly romp.

4 Stars

Rating Report Card
Plot	4
Characters	3.5
Writing	4
Chemistry	4.5
Fun Factor	4.5
Cover	3
Overall:	3.9

Synopsis:

At the mercy of a cruel, rapacious captain, beautiful Jennifer van der Lind is about to be assaulted before the leering crew when a sailor springs to the bridge, holds a dagger to the officer’s throat, and orders the girl released.

When she learns that her handsome rescuer is really an American captain — a fugitive pirate — Jennifer escapes with him to the Colonies. But Lancelot Savage is captured, accused of piracy, treason and other crimes, and sentenced to be hanged. Jennifer’s pleas for leniency are heard by the Tory Governor who makes her an offer: he will spare Lancelot’s life on the condition that she live with him as his mistress for a year.

In desperation, Jennifer makes a supreme sacrifice and becomes a prisoner of lust — submitting to the perverse pleasures of a man she secretly despises in order to set free her beloved… the only one who could ever completely possess her — body and soul.
PASSION’s PROUD CAPTIVE by MELISSA HEPBURNE