Dangerous Hero Addict Support Group discussion

Rakes seem to be one of the hallmarks of historical romance. 9 out of 10 heroes seem to fall in this category. I don't think I'm overestimating that number, but feel free to correct me.

Where do you stand with rakes?

What is their allure?

What doesn't ring true in the way most rakes are written?

When is a rake too rakish?

Is there a difference between a fake rake and a real rake? Do you like your rakes cleaned up for romance or the real thing?

Who writes the best rake heroes?

Inquiring minds want to know!

I started this thread because I recently read a book about two rakes who make a bet for who would be the one to relieve the heroine of her virginity. Honestly, it left a bad taste in my mouth.

I think the author was pretty realistic in her portrayal of rakes, showing their amorality, especially in the second character.

I was reading up about the 2nd Earl of Rochester, John Wilmot because I was watching the movie "The Libertine" with Johnny Depp. This man died of venereal disease at 33, and it made me think about how historical romance seems to dodge around that. Now there is a passing nod to watching out for pox and perhaps using 'french letters' (condoms), but the truth is if you're dipping your wick all over the place, including brothels, your chance of getting something is pretty high.

I kind of have a love/hate thing with rakes. I like when an author can show me something deep in a rake hero, but I don't like how their behavior is trivialized, like they aren't harming themselves or others. One can say that as long as their partners are consensual, no harm done. But in the case of that last book I read, their making bets over seducing women was pretty heinous. How many devastated women did they leave in their wake? How many women's reputations and lives were ruined by that?

This book was set in the Georgian era, when society was a bit more lenient about sex. The Regency was stricter and definitely Victorian age.

What are your thoughts on this subject?

I'm not a huge fan of rakes to be honest. I prefer my historicals to have a gruff scottish hero, a scarred hero, or even a shy hero. I know it's odd because I love contemporary romance with Motorcycle Clubs but I like the men in my historicals to be a little better behaved.

At the moment I can only think of two historicals I enjoyed with rakes and

Hello This is a good thread topic.
I was brought up reading Johanna Lindsey and Stephanie Laurens.......full of rakish men.
It after a while left me a bit miffed. I would think of all the sex that had been had and how they always fall for the virginal girl and all I could think was, what awful diseases are they passing to there wife.

I like a rake with substance, I like the rake that is the family man and is quite dedicated to doing things by the book ( if you can do it that way at all when you were a rake)
Most seemed to be having sex with widows or womens who's husbands were too old etc ( god that all sounds awful) Rather than preying on the fresh faced debutantes and virgins.

I think that rakes are a bit overused in HR. I think they can be well-done, but when they make the rake super-nice it's hard to believe in them, knowing that goes against the code of being a rake.

At the same time, I don't like if they cross very hard lines, like the rake in the book I mentioned.

I think that if there is a "reason" behind a rakes bad behavior but somehow the heroine solves that problem for him, it's much more believable when he starts to behave better. And by solve I don't mean her family's money will be enough to cover his gambling debts....

Tammy wrote: "I think that if there is a "reason" behind a rakes bad behavior but somehow the heroine solves that problem for him, it's much more believable when he starts to behave better. And by solve I don't..."

I agree. I prefer the books where the hero is a tortured rake instead of just being an overpriviledged jerk with no morals.

I love a Rake in historical romances! The classic Rake - the roguish, bad guy with charm. The Rake characters often do questionable actions and say questionable things and this is part of their allure for me, but in the right circumstances they pull something out the bag and redeem themselves!

Thinking about a real-life Rake... that’s not so romantic! Not at all! If I’d been a woman back in history I wouldn’t have wanted a man who was a Rake in my life haha.

But the character of a Rake in romance works for me because I am reading about a character who pushes the boundaries, who walks on the wild side and who has that roguish charm that works in a romance novel. The hero who is a Rake still has to be the hero and have the strength and good qualities that I expect in a romantic hero - the Rake heroes are just edgier and more complex.

Too Rakish a character would be for me where the Rake just isn’t a nice person or is totally unlikeable, then they aren’t a true romance novel ‘Rake’.

When I think of rakes I recall an article I read about Winston Churchill's parents. I think his father could be described as a rake, certainly the marriage was convenient. She was American, rich and very beautiful, he was charming and needed her money. They were very attracted and their children were raised by nannies. I think Randolph died due to dementia caused by syphilis. I think his beautiful wife was infected from him, but died many years later. I think syphilis can have a long dormancy sometimes - up to 20 years before symptoms begin? It must have been common in rakes?

Syphilis definitely could have a long dormancy and could be transmitted to children in the womb as well. It was a scary disease. Fortunately, it responds really well to antibiotics in the contemporary world, as long as it's not at the tertiary stage.