The Green Jell-O Book Club: A Goodreads Group about Fiction Written by LDS Authors discussion

Mine are: A Different Blue by Amy Harmon, Edenbrooke by Julianne Donaldson, For Nick by Taylor Dean, Behind the Mask by Elizabeth D. Michaels, House Divided by Jennifer Peel

Wow! That was harder than I thought! There are a lot of romances that I love, but to pick favorites wasn't easy. I came up with some that are my go-tos when I want to read a certain genre:
Professional Boundaries - when I feel snarky
Just the Way You Are - great second chance story
All's Fair in Love, War, and High School - my favorite YA read
Edenbrooke - perfect any time
The Unexpected Wife - funny Regency

Confession #1: Romance isn't my favorite genre. I like a love story to be part of a novel, but I like it best when characters fall in love while trying to solve a mystery or overthrow an evil tyrant or something like that. Because . . .

Confession #2: I'm not very charitable with fictional characters. With a lot of romances, I think, "if you two aren't smart enough to talk through this and figure it out, then you're too stupid to deserve each other."

But here's what I wrote when Goodreads asked all authors about their favorite fictional couples:

Who is your favorite fictional couple, and why?

Honestly, my favorite fictional couple is always whoever I’m writing about at the time. There’s just something about creating characters and manipulating how they interact that’s hard to beat.

But I don’t think that’s what the question meant. It’s hard to pick a favorite, but I think I’ll go with Kate Sutton and Christopher Heron from the Perilous Gard. It’s a YA book I first read decades ago, and that long association may have a role to play in them being my favorites. Both are great characters—Kate is strong, curious, and determined. Christopher is haunted by misplaced guilt and has a bit of a martyr complex, but he’s inherently good. I like the initial bickering between them, then how they grow together and support each other through difficult times. I also loved that there were really good reasons why they never talked about how they felt for each other, which made for a great resolution. Bonus—their relationship is wholesome enough for younger readers to watch play out. I wouldn’t call the book a romance. It’s more an adventures story, and I’ve found that my favorite fictional couples are never the ones in straight romances. I like the love story to be an addition to the plot, rather than the main driver.

Other couples worth mentioning: Vin and Elend from the Mistborn Trilogy by Brandon Sanderson, Kit and Nat from The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare, Alan and Kate from Dead Cert by Dick Francis, and Eugenides and the Queen of Attolia from the Queen’s Thief series by Megan Whalen Turner.

I agree with you on Professional Boundaries, Alisa. That one is a hoot that I've reread a few times. Edenbrooke. Sigh. It's awesome. And now I'm going to read All's fair in Love and war... because I've had that one on my kindle for a while, but hadn't heard anything about it, so kept ignoring it. That you mentioned it as one of your favs makes me want to give it a go. Thanks.

Romance isn't for everyone. I actually went through a decade (my 30s) that I didn't prefer romance. I wanted only historical fiction during that time--go figure. My brain rewired or something, but has reverted back to romance now in my 40's. I loved your last few books. You worked in a great romance--especially in the Spider and the Sparrow.

Charissa wrote: "Romance isn't for everyone. I actually went through a decade (my 30s) that I didn't prefer romance. I wanted only historical fiction during that time--go figure. My brain rewired or something, but ..."

Thanks, Charissa!

I heard somewhere that it's pretty typical for readers to change genre preferences. So maybe someday the romance genre will grow on me . . .