Poll Archives

Research Into Category Romance

The history of series romances goes back roughly a century ago to 1909. Since the rise of paperback publishers, many romance lines have come and gone. Still standing is Mills & Boon and its parent company, Harlequin Enterprises Ltd. Bantam and Dell, no longer publish category romance, nor does Signet, Zebra, or Simon and Schuster. The latter formed Silhouette Books in 1980. However, Harlequin famously purchased that line, eventually folding it into its own.

*Arrows From the Dark,* Sophie Cole, Mills & Boon, 1909 (From Harper Collins Inside the Archives, courtesy of Reading University)

On our menu above, we have pages dedicated to romance authors, cover artists, and publishing houses. The history of publishing houses and imprints can be quite byzantine, as many companies were bought out by others, only to be resold again. In researching paperback romances of the past, I’ve come upon both an abundance and paucity of information, depending upon who or what I’m investigating. I want to do more in-depth research on each line, but often when I come upon fascinating tidbits of history, it leads to another line or publisher.

This is a rather tortuous way of saying I’m stuck.

the manatee category romance — *The Manatee*, Nancy Bruff, Harlequin, 1949, cover artist unknown

Who We Are

Sweet Savage Flame isn’t just a blog where we share our opinions of books. We are dedicated to providing as accurate information as possible about vintage historical and category romance. It’s also a place where we encourage viewer feedback and input. Your knowledge as a romance reader is as valuable as the information we obtain from research. We’re lucky to have followers who know more about certain genres or artists than we do. Sweet Savage Flame values those historical insights.

*Ellen Matthews*, Mission Nurse, Ralph E. Hayes, Dell, 1967, cover artist unknown

Questions For Our Readers

Would you like us to assign a page to each contemporary category line right away, and add information as we come upon it? We could either write articles on a more frequent basis or update the pages and announce any changes via a general monthly update.

Or would you prefer completed pages filled with as much information as possible, even though it means slower output?

Let us hear your views in the comments section below.

More importantly, what lines would you like us to focus on first? What are your best series or category romance lines? Personally, I adore vintage Harlequin Presents, and I cut my teeth on Harlequin Romances and Temptations.

(I had wanted to run a poll, but it looks like WordPress isn’t cooperating today). If you would please leave a comment saying what is your best-loved series of romance, that would be greatly appreciated!