The Regency era is the most popular setting in historicals. For the week of Monday, November 15, to Sunday, November 21, 2021, our theme for the covers of the week is Regency romances. Enjoy!
romance books
5 Romance Tropes We Love
At Sweet Savage Flame talked about tropes before. There are some plot devices and character types that never go out of style. We’ve looked around to seek the most popular tropes in Romancelandia that readers enjoy. Here are five that we think you’ll agree that make romance novels more exciting!
Instagram and Vintage Romance Books
There’s never been a better time to be a collector of vintage or old-school romance novels if you want to show them off. The Instagram app is a great place to do this!
A Brief Look at Category (aka Series) Romance
Category lines, or series romance, are one of the cornerstones of the romance novel industry. As we document the genre’s past on Sweet Savage Flame, we’ll delve deeper into each individual line. Category romance, as their name implies, are sorted into category lines and defined by tropes.
The Male Authors of Vintage Romance
While women comprise most of the Romance genre readership and the vast majority of writers, there are many men who enjoy the genre, too. In fact, in the early years of romance, there were quite a few male authors, who had to use pseudonyms to publish their works.
Covers of the Week #26
We had a lot of fun a couple of months back doing Covers of the Week #12, where we posted images of when romance covers by talented artists go hilariously bad. So we’re doing it again! For the week of Monday, October 4 to Sunday, October 10, 2021 (which happens to be my birthday week), enjoy these silly or awful-looking covers that make us smile.
Podcast: 15 Old-School Must-Read Romances
The latest Sweet Savage Flame podcast episode discusses 15 historical romances that had a significant impact on the genre.
A Closer Look At Sharon Spiak
Illustrator and fine-art painter Sharon Spiak has made a name for herself in the romance industry for producing various gorgeous covers for many bestselling authors. She also had the privilege to paint Fabio almost as much as the Duillo ladies did.
Contemporary Romance Review: Tonight and Forever by Brenda Jackson
Brenda Jackson’s Tonight and Forever is her first published book and the first in her long-running series of the Madaris family. It’s a Pinnacle Arabesque romance from 1995, which are category romances but are not numbered, at least not to my knowledge. What propels Tonight and Forever into a “better than good” zone is that it isn’t just a romance about the healing power of love, it’s a book about the power of love itself. 3 1/2 stars
Romance Authors With Pseudonyms
In the romance genre, an author might use an alias for various reasons. Perhaps their real name lacks a certain je ne sais quoi. Because some romance writers create fiction for multiple genres, different names ae used. Others are men who want to appeal to a vast female audience. Or they could be married couples or duos who need a catchy nom-de-plume.