I've heard good things about this series, but I didn't get chance to pick it up. I'm so glad you're reading. Could you tell me how it is? It's on my TBR for a while now. I've been trying really, really hard to find more IR that aren't necessarily erotic(or extremely erotic). :) Not that I dislike Erotica/Erotic Fiction, just I also like reading other stuff too. It can start to feel like you're reading the same thing over and over again. Haha. Also, I like Chick-Lit/Women's Fiction and Chick Lit/Women's Fiction-esque Romance novels stuff too. So, yes, please let me know how it is.
I've been meaning to hit you up as soon as I picked up this book, because it keeps making me think of you. I really like it so far, and I'll keep you posted.
It's only hit a couple of our pet peeves so far. There's a two references that link her to food, but not in the "chocolate queen" kind of shit. More of the sight of her in a tailored dark brown suit reminds him of his favorite coffee drink and he wonders if she would taste as sweet.
What I really like from the start we see a broad range of women, both black and white, all rather impressively humanized. I really love how Chloe describes her mother and their interactions. I'm only just getting into Patricks parts, but he's pretty fleshed out too. And he has an authentically male voice and narrative, one that's being fleshed out as much as Chloe's, and already I can see how and why these two would be compatible on a very fundamental level.
On the whole with only having read this little amount this book is really promising.
Thank you. So far, it doesn't sound super bad. The coffee comment is a little off-putting; I'll agree with that. But it's not as bad it could've been. That's not really any excuse, yeah, I know. But....yeah. But yes, keep me posted.
I'm giving him a pass on the coffee comment because it's pretty clear he is ignorant about that kind of thing, and other than that he has been very respectful of her on all levels. Though I am a little meh about the cheating boyfriend being a black man. I mean I get that it's part of Chloe's backstory of never having dated a white man, but I hate the Black man are all aggressive, egomaniac cheaters. So tired of that trope.
Same. Same. Why couldn't have not worked out for whatever reason? Why does it always, ALWAYS have to be cheating? I'm so tired of that trope. That and what has been called IMO the "baby daddy" trope [basically, the heroine, usually due to trying to get over an ex, a good percentage of the time a cheating one, has a one-night-stand with a guy at some event/place, and gets pregnant, guy is white, heroine is black, and go through about 60% of the book where the "race issue" are barely actually touched or barely scraped on the surface(i.e, white, thin, super model ex-girlfriend who wants the MMC back, people staring at them as they walk down, or feeling as if they are), and finally they decide to get married just after/before she gives birth, more likely than not, to twins, usually a boy and a girl]. I have no problems with an unexpected pregnancy. But I just wish the circumstances/events of what happens changes. Same goes for the black "cheating ex-boyfriend".
I actually did a flip on that accidental pregnancy trope with one of my fan fics. Where they knew each other before, were attracted to each other before, but didn't act on it because of various social stigmas and personal issues. Then BAM one night stand turns into booty calls and regular fucking, but the accidental pregnancy didn't happen till their feelings were already there. It was the catalyst for them to finally be honest about their feelings. Plus I made the lead female the one who cheats on and dumps the ex-boyfriend. Because women make mistakes and we learn and grow from them.
Yeah, I think a lot of these tropes are born out of the cultural game of telephone we all keep playing with each other. Where we keep repeating these stories so much we believe they are true and they influence how we tell our fictional fantasies. And it needs to stop, like yesterday.
I was just going to suggest wanting to see a story where the heroine is the one who cheats instead of the hero. :P By any chance is this fic still online and may I please have the name/link to it? :D It's sounds really interesting. It would be nice to see a change.
Well, I think it's that. Plus, I think stereotypes kind of influence it as well. (i.e, using the cheating boyfriend example "men can't control themselves, they need sex, they'll bang anything with nice legs, etc., etc.). But that's probably what you're saying. :P I also think some of it is born out of what's popular and what sells. I've been to a lot of writing forums where people have been told they probably shouldn't write XYZ(for example, a cheating heroine or a hero who cheated but is given a second chance) because people don't want to read that kind of story or it wouldn't be popular or it breaks genre convention.
I think it's a combination of both. What sells are the same old tired (racist and sexist) cliches that people are used to, that they believe they're the truth and will get pissed when you tell them a different story. That's why there's a lot of backlash against putting "cheaters" in lead roles, because it humanizes mistakes and runs counter to the LIE that everyone makes them.
I've been cheated on, had my heart broken, but I've also done it too. I think it's interesting to explore why we do these things, and I think it makes for better storytelling too, but remember the genre of romance is built on comforting cliches. I think that foundations is being chipped away little by little, but there's still a mountain of old shit that needs to be cleared away.
Neat. I'll check it out once I get some more free time, which will be very soon. :D
Probably. It makes sense anyway.
And I agree that a lot of the subjects that people don't want to bring up in Romnace are interesting IMO. And I also agree that a lot of those "conventions" are being broken and taken away (thank goodness for that) but some of them are still firmly there at the same time. On top of that, there's is still plenty that needs to be taken away, like you said.
I'm going to warn you again, it is ROUGH! There are tons of little errors, and it's 1st person and longer than a pornstars dick. So feel free to quit at any time. It could be better, but I don't have the time to go back and fix it, when I'd rather focus on writing original stuff.
Some people are always going to want the status quo, and that's fine, but I think the rest of us are demanding room for more. Which is great. I think there's room for all kinds of romance. But I've been accused of being overly optimistic on many occasions. ;)
Trust me. I'm sure it's fine. I've read some of your other work, and I loved it. :)
Yeah, that's true. I think they're always going to be the "true Romance" series/line/genre. And that's great. I think everyone should read what they want to read and what makes them happy and enjoy reading. And if reading that kind makes someone happy, then by all means, go for it.
But for myself, applying that same idea, there should be other types of Romance out there than just status quo. Plus, there should be more out there AND it should actually be considered Romance in my opinion. Which I think is the problem too. Because I do think there are some Romances out there that aren't necessarily all of the rules that were set in place (by Harlequin/RWA/etc.), but due to the fact that they don't follow those conventions, unless it's a big name/super popular/guarantee author, they aren't considered Romance. And sometimes when author IS all of those things, it's still not considered Romance.
And hey, there's nothing wrong with over optimism. ;) And who knows? You could be right. The genre is starting to branch a bit in what's considered "truly in the genre" and what's actually selling (that's placed in that genre). So, cross your fingers, this may be a good thing. *crosses fingers*
It's only hit a couple of our pet peeves so far. There's a two references that link her to food, but not in the "chocolate queen" kind of shit. More of the sight of her in a tailored dark brown suit reminds him of his favorite coffee drink and he wonders if she would taste as sweet.
What I really like from the start we see a broad range of women, both black and white, all rather impressively humanized. I really love how Chloe describes her mother and their interactions. I'm only just getting into Patricks parts, but he's pretty fleshed out too. And he has an authentically male voice and narrative, one that's being fleshed out as much as Chloe's, and already I can see how and why these two would be compatible on a very fundamental level.
On the whole with only having read this little amount this book is really promising.
I'll keep you posted.
I actually did a flip on that accidental pregnancy trope with one of my fan fics. Where they knew each other before, were attracted to each other before, but didn't act on it because of various social stigmas and personal issues. Then BAM one night stand turns into booty calls and regular fucking, but the accidental pregnancy didn't happen till their feelings were already there. It was the catalyst for them to finally be honest about their feelings. Plus I made the lead female the one who cheats on and dumps the ex-boyfriend. Because women make mistakes and we learn and grow from them.
Yeah, I think a lot of these tropes are born out of the cultural game of telephone we all keep playing with each other. Where we keep repeating these stories so much we believe they are true and they influence how we tell our fictional fantasies. And it needs to stop, like yesterday.
Well, I think it's that. Plus, I think stereotypes kind of influence it as well. (i.e, using the cheating boyfriend example "men can't control themselves, they need sex, they'll bang anything with nice legs, etc., etc.). But that's probably what you're saying. :P I also think some of it is born out of what's popular and what sells. I've been to a lot of writing forums where people have been told they probably shouldn't write XYZ(for example, a cheating heroine or a hero who cheated but is given a second chance) because people don't want to read that kind of story or it wouldn't be popular or it breaks genre convention.
I think it's a combination of both. What sells are the same old tired (racist and sexist) cliches that people are used to, that they believe they're the truth and will get pissed when you tell them a different story. That's why there's a lot of backlash against putting "cheaters" in lead roles, because it humanizes mistakes and runs counter to the LIE that everyone makes them.
I've been cheated on, had my heart broken, but I've also done it too. I think it's interesting to explore why we do these things, and I think it makes for better storytelling too, but remember the genre of romance is built on comforting cliches. I think that foundations is being chipped away little by little, but there's still a mountain of old shit that needs to be cleared away.
Probably. It makes sense anyway.
And I agree that a lot of the subjects that people don't want to bring up in Romnace are interesting IMO. And I also agree that a lot of those "conventions" are being broken and taken away (thank goodness for that) but some of them are still firmly there at the same time. On top of that, there's is still plenty that needs to be taken away, like you said.
Some people are always going to want the status quo, and that's fine, but I think the rest of us are demanding room for more. Which is great. I think there's room for all kinds of romance. But I've been accused of being overly optimistic on many occasions. ;)
Yeah, that's true. I think they're always going to be the "true Romance" series/line/genre. And that's great. I think everyone should read what they want to read and what makes them happy and enjoy reading. And if reading that kind makes someone happy, then by all means, go for it.
But for myself, applying that same idea, there should be other types of Romance out there than just status quo. Plus, there should be more out there AND it should actually be considered Romance in my opinion. Which I think is the problem too. Because I do think there are some Romances out there that aren't necessarily all of the rules that were set in place (by Harlequin/RWA/etc.), but due to the fact that they don't follow those conventions, unless it's a big name/super popular/guarantee author, they aren't considered Romance. And sometimes when author IS all of those things, it's still not considered Romance.
And hey, there's nothing wrong with over optimism. ;) And who knows? You could be right. The genre is starting to branch a bit in what's considered "truly in the genre" and what's actually selling (that's placed in that genre). So, cross your fingers, this may be a good thing. *crosses fingers*