Fans of Interracial Romance discussion

I hope this is okay since I have been storing up book complaints for two weeks now waiting for the original thread to reopen. I have a few gripes I'd like to discuss lol.

The first of which is broke ass heroines who really should not be all that broke. I keep reading books about teachers and nurses. Both careers that are notoriously underpaid, which I understand. But any sane, rational, responsible human being in either of those career paths should be making ends meet just fine unless they have multiple dependants. I don't understand it. I am in the middle of the Swirl Series right now and this is the brokest nurse I have ever come across in my life. True enough she's raising her 10 year old brother but still broke to the point where kids are teasing him for his clothes at school? Where she is embarrassed to have the hero come to her home because it's an "extremely tiny" apartment with "shabby furniture" and she does not feel "looks like a home"? I just don't get it. And it keeps happening. A lot.

Savannah I am glad you started this thread because i miss the other one. When I was searching Amazon about a month ago for new books I ran across Swirl the title alone was a red flag(stereotypical). Then I read the excerpt and I came to the same conclusion you stated in your comments it was described as if the heroine was working a minimum wage job instead of being in the nursing profession. Being a former school teacher I can honestly say yes teachers are very much under paid but I did quite well. I raised three sons in a very nice home and they were very well provided for. As for nurses yes another profession that's under paid and under appreciated in my opinion. My mother is a retired nurse and she and my dad raised 10 children granted I was raised in two parent home. My baby sister is a nurse raising two children they attend private schools involved in many extra activities that costs money. I have two friends both are nurses and raising children as single parents no they are not rich but they live a very good life. I knew this would be a series that wasn't my taste to read and when I saw the title and when I read excerpt that was confirmation for me. Lately some of the new IR books being published especially BWWM I stop at the title and ask myself "what were they thinking?"

A-W I it took me awhile to start this series. I downloaded the first book quite a while back but kept passing it up on my reading list because of the title. Lol so yes the author definitely is not doing yourself any favors with that one. The turnoff have been multiple simply in the immature mindset of both the hero and heroine along with the circumstances that add to the basic immaturity of both. He's walking around on a broken leg so he can't drive and is always having a friend drop him at her place. Is there anything more stereotypically immature than that? Then we go into how he is literally so unsure of himself. Now thats almost refreshing considering how he is described and the reactions of women around him. But its too evident in his personality overall. I guess even my betas need to be more self assured. I feel like this book would have been perfect for the YA genre with a few tweaks (as in she is a nursing student instead of an actual practicing nurse).

In the real world, RNs make some pretty damned decent money. Not only that, it is a job in demand. An experienced nurse will never be unemployed. Ever. For years we lived next door to a nurse and her husband who was a construction worker. It was a neighborhood that was heavily populated with Professors and professionals who worked at the University where I worked. They had a pretty nice house and their kids wore the same dept. store clothes my kids did, all the rest of the kids did. We would stand at the bus stop in the morning with our kids and all the kids had the same homogenous middle-to-upper-class well fed look.

I think the proliferation of wealthy heroes/heroines in romance novels have left a skewed sense of what is healthy finance in the genre.

I think you are right from the low level of maturity you described from the leading characters perhaps I would be a better read in the YA genre. Yes if she was putting herself through school to become a nurse while raising her younger brother that would make more sense of her facing the financial woes and issues described in the excerpt. Not having read the book only the excerpt I thought the hero was some type of professional athlete. If my memory serves me correctly. Why is a friend dropping him off at her home if that is the case instead of having a private driver. I don't get it.

Savannah- Quad Motherin' Book Readin' Diva wrote: "I hope this is okay since I have been storing up book complaints for two weeks now waiting for the original thread to reopen. I have a few gripes I'd like to discuss lol.

The first of which is bro..."

Savannah, I know it's a little thing, but it's one of those things if combined with a couple misused words, will almost guarentee me DNFing. Especially if it's mentioned more than once, and a big part of the story arc because it will drive me crazy. Bad or lack of subject research is one my big pet peeves, IR or otherwise. It drives me crazy, if something is happening that just doesn't make common sense. I read a book (not IR thank god) with a character was an extremely attractive stripper with a heart of gold, that worked in New Orleans (a party town mind you), but was so broke she was feeding her kid spoiled meat. Spoiled meat! I was too through. A IR book drove me crazy because a hero supposedly well versed in tattoos was telling a brown skin heroine he wanted to put a bright colorful tattoo on her. If he was such a great artist he would know that those colors notoriously don't show well on dark skin. Hell just watching that horrible VH1 show Black Ink, they never have colorful tattoos as finished work for a reason. It's a small thing, but it's detail easily obtained with a quick google search. I am not expecting a writer to embed themselves with the troops in order to write a military themed romance, but I do expect Army soldiers not to wear Marine uniforms.

AW- unfortunately there are conflicting details surrounding just how successful the hero is. He is described as an up-and-coming extreme sports star. The accident that lands him in the hospital is a result of sabotage he suffered in the event competition that was to solidify his career. So on the one hand you get the vibe that money is no issue for him as he has achieved at least some level of success if not the pinnacle he is striving for. Its made know that money isnt something he had to worry about. On the other hand you definitely get the impression that he's still trying to get a foothold in the industry even though the first few chapters detail the abundance of get well cards and flowers that the hospital is flooded with from his "fans". So I have no clue where he is financially.

Pagan You KNOW I feel youd pain. It doesnt take a LOT of things fo tudn me off. Just ons or two basics that tgdiw my brain into atoryline/plot denial. I think Ths Swirl author did some basic research on snowboarding since that was the event that the story opened with and it took us through his accident. It was obvious she knew something about the sport and how it's played. However I think that's all that was done as far as I can tell. The lifestyle isn't fleshed out or the financial aspect of it. That's why there is such ambiguity as far as where he is in life. He is supposed to be an extreme sports star. So he does play other sports, BMX biking for one. However we're not getting into that as he's laid up so it kind of seems like she did a hit and miss on the snowboarding and that was it.

I recently read The Boy is Mine series by Lena Skye the complete box set was .99cents on amazon so I figured why not. About halfway through the first book I had to stop it was filled with so many stereotypes. The heroine had so many insecurities about herself and her abilities yet she had achieved great success in the fashion industry and was steadily climbing to the top. She was described as very attractive, confident and smart but agreed to have a friends with benefits type of relationship with the hero. The constant issues she had with her body image continued to throughout the entire series was a total turn off. The vocabulary and conversations amongst the heroine and her friends were so juvenile and stereotypical. I finally finished it by skimming through and was very disappointed.

@A-W Insecurities/body image issues in a heroine is a big turn-off for me too. It's gotten to the point where I rarely read books labeled BBW or that feature a bigger heroine for this reason. The main conflict in those books always seems to center around the heroine's dislike of her own body. No thanks! I'm okay with insecurities being a small part of who she is, but I hate when it's front and center.

Lavender wrote: "@A-W Insecurities/body image issues in a heroine is a big turn-off for me too. It's gotten to the point where I rarely read books labeled BBW or that feature a bigger heroine for this reason. The m..."

Lavender, I don't read those books for the same reason. Even worse than the heroine's body issues, is the feeling in quite a few that the hero is taking one for the team. You know, all his other girlfriends are super hot, but her heart of gold makes him overlook her cellulite. That's right up there with "You're cute for a black chick...", in my eyes. Not today Satan, not today. I think authors forget the key element in BBW, big BEAUTIFUL woman. Being a plus sized heroine, doesn't make her an automatic Plain Jane dumpy girl. I don't like Plain Jain stories in any romance genre, so reading about this plus sized ugly clothes, and just giving up on her presentation is a quick trip to DNF-landia. And please stop putting skinny girls on the cover, not mentioning the heroine is plus sized, and three pages in the reader runs into her complaining about her pants not fitting. That bait and switch is another short cut to a DNF shelving and bad review rants.

See I cant entirely abandon BBW books. I can say that I dislike the ones where the entire crux of the drama is a hinged on her insecurities about weight. When she goes back and forth fluctuating over how and why this guy can fall for her. Yes I hate that- it's a turnoff. But I also hate it when they are so confident that there is never a moment's question about size or weight. That is not true to life. It simply isn't. Even the average sized woman has her insecurities so if you're talking about a truly plus sized AMERICAN female who has some ultimate textbook hot American, wealthy guy after her- umm ya, it (the size thng) should be mentioned, put to rest and moved on from with decisiveness and haste lol. I think it is true to life that a lot of larger women have insecurities about their weight. There's no getting around that and to me it comes off as unrealistic to portray anyone who has grown up in this society and TRULY fits the definition of what the average person considers to be a "big girl" as being so uber confident she doesnt question it. We can preach to high heaven about how in reality men are attracted to more realistically built women than we aee in the media and I honestly believe that to be true. But I was born and raised in the USA and the stereotype is well deserved for a good many men still. We have been brainwashed as a culture and that deserves a nod of acknowledgement- just not an entire storyline LOL.

What bugs ME is when they have a story with a woman who is maybe a size 12 or at most 14 who is so insecure she is constantly questioning everything. Take a look around. Thats average. I know "plus" is relative, but c'mon. To have her emotionally crippled by it? Too much.

Oh and what I reeeeeeally cant stand is the word "curvy" used to cover every female in double digits. "__ (ie the hero) always preferred a woman with curves." WTF? Define curves. If you're gonna go there, THEN GO THERE cuz when I hear curves I think hourglass- be it a big one or a smaller one. And I know damn well half these books are NOT referring to that shape.

LOL!!! I had to chuckle about the "curvy" comment. I agree with you there. Curvy can be big or small, and it seems like everyone is "curvy in all the right places." Which still doesn't explain what the woman looks like. I like it when an author is straight forward about the size. I like to have a good visual, but not that it's necessary. In other words, if it's gonna be mentioned, let's be honest and real to the reader. I agree with you, that some authors make a character overly confident or insecure about her weight. I also think that most women have insecurities about their weight, whether small, medium, or large. Back in the day, I used to be skinny, but I thought I was fat. Well after kids, I'm not so skinny. I lost a lot of my baby weight, but 5 years later and I'm still at size 14. It's all good though, I finally accept my size, and feel more confident than ever! Would I like to be skinnier? Sure, but I finally accept that this is me now. I work out, try to eat healthy, and that's what matters at the end. Enough about me, I just saw your post, and had to laugh, cause it's so true!

Savannah- Quad Motherin' Book Readin' Diva wrote: "See I cant entirely abandon BBW books. I can say that I dislike the ones where the entire crux of the drama is a hinged on her insecurities about weight. When she goes back and forth fluctuating ov..."

Savanah the only plus sized heroine book I ever gave more than 3 stars isn't IR, . The heroine did have insecurities because her sister was a former beauty queen, but what sold me was hero being god smacked at first sight when seeing her. The storytelling made it plain she was an 18, but she was beautiful too. I like pretty, maybe it's the libra in me, but I'm a visually stimulated person. I'm also a sixteen myself, who at times might not be the most confident. Yet I don't like reading about any of that really. I think the big problem is everything is written in first person now, versus my favorite is in third. Heroine's of any size complaining about their appearance strains my attention span, it goes double when they do such a good job, I can't even believe the hero is attracted to them because of their whiny personality.

Pagan- yaaaaaaaaas! I am so very much with you on the third person thing! WTF has happened to romance? I do not need to be that far in somebody's every thought til where all of the mystery is gone and I am NOT left to fill in any thing with my own imagination. Sometimes it is refreshing to have it from the heroes perspective but enough already with living inside the heroine's brain!!!

And I also agree that I do not need so much reality in my books that I need to know everytime they are self conscious about a muffin top. I do indeed love a story where the heroes FIRST REACTION clarifies beyond all doubt just how attractive he finds the heroine. Let him think it, show it and BURY the issue right out the gate. I also prefer pretty lol! I get enough reality in my reality! I do not need to be reading about Plain Jane or Homely Helen whose inner light shines so brightly Brad Pitt's twin falls for her.

Natalie- IKR?? I mean, say whacha friggin mean!!! That " curves in all the right places" crap dives me up a WALL! WHAT are the right places to this guy? Half the time its pretty clear they are talking about boobs and thats not neceasarily "curvy"! I'd rather they underplay or skim a description than half ass it!
Oh and Pagan, we're size mates! 5'6 and a sixteen here. I have my days where I wouldnt change a thing and days when I want to self lipo with the Dirt Devil. I think its a lil pointless when they throw numbers out anyway in books since we women all know a ten on one person looks like a fouteen on another. I'd rathed get shape and proportion adjectives.

To be honest many women of all races and sizes have or have had insecurities about their body image in some way shape or form. When I was growing up I was shaped very differently from my four sisters and female cousins in my family they were all small waist and had full bottoms whereas I was like this thin string bean lol straight up and down. So of course I stood out as very different and it did make me feel awkward at times. It wasn't until I started running that I gained muscle and tone that made me fill out more but I was never shaped like them. To this day I'm shaped the same way but eventually I had to grow and accept this is the body that God designed for me and I do my best to take care of it. So yes I think it's very realistic to bring it up in a book what I don't like is when it takes over the base of the story. Be it male or female or whatever race we love who we love whatever their size shape or color. Our hearts have a mind of it's own but no one wants someone who so insecure with themselves that it makes them second guess everything about them or always comparing themselves with someone from a past relationship that it keeps you from growing in the present. It becomes too dramatic and a complete turn off.

Savannah, you are too funny! Almost spit out my drink, when I read your comment about the "Dirt Devil." Gonna have to keep that one in mind...LOL. I especially hate the hourglass comments...Even when I was skinny, I didn't have an "hourglass." I have boobs and but, but my waist line...let's just say...it's hard to find(LOL) Would be nice for an author to through that in for a change. A woman can still look good without the "Curves in the right places" and "hourglass" description. Anyways, authors just need to keep it real ;)

Natalie, my ass is disappearing as I age lol. Im actually not happy about it and its hard to explain to some raised outside of certain cultures lolol! I have always been hippy. To hear my mama tell it, Ive been hippy since birth practically, so carrying all these hips around only to have a lacking ass is something that I lament regularly. I used yo have the teeniest waist...*sigh* Alas, Ive kept the hourglass...its just Days of Our Lives sized now LMAO!!

Have you guys ever seen the movie 'Hollywood Shuffle?' it is with Robert Townsend and it is a comedic look at the struggles that black actors have getting work? Well there is a scene where a black actor is reading in front of a casting director for the role of "thug" and has to tell the police officer that he is unarmed. Well the actor is Julliard trained and says in a very Shakespearean voice "Officer, I am unarmed." But the writers and the producers tell him, "No,no,no, that doesn't quite sound right." After constantly working the scene, they are thrilled when he finally makes it sound "authentic". So in the end the scene has him actually saying the the officer: "Hey Pig, I Ain't be got no weapon."

This makes me think of one of my pet peeves. I'll read a book where the heroine has an MBA from Harvard and works in a high powered firm, and yet every word out of her mouth sounds like "I ain't be got no weapon."

Just. No.

Someone speaking that way would not have made it past the phone interview, let alone be hired.

I think I DNF'd at least three books with this problem and read samples of a few more and chose not to purchase for that very reason.

One of the great things that really stood out for me with the Nina Perez series was that she had her heroine Chloe code-switch effortlessly, almost instinctively. When she is with her cousins and best friends in their soul food restaurant in Harlem, her speech is recognizably colloquial. She doesn't quite slip into AAVE. But she sounds like a sistah. Meanwhile she works for a marketing firm and works with big money clients. When she is at work, her speech patterns are perfect and professional.

@Tina, that sounds perfect! And it really speaks to me because that's exactly how most of the women (and a great deal of the men) in my family sound.

Code-switching had been very important for me because, even though I also never quite make it to speaking "AAVE*" – and when I have tried, I have been by turns mocked and scolded by the elders – there is something... I don't know— not unifying... Anyway, speaking in colloquialisms makes family discussions more comfortable at times whilst doing so at work would be... problematic at my job.

Then again, I've been on the receiving end of the "you're so articulate" comments, which are invariably followed up with the "it's a compliment! why do you find that offensive?' questions. :-( (hint: it's because "articulate" is the least one should expect of an educated adult who doesn't suffer from a speak pathology. Try "eloquent' or, better yet, not commenting on my speech patterns at all! /end rant) There have been times when I've wanted to do the "I Ain't be got no weapon" thing just to make those nitwits feel deeply uncomfortable. Only, it probably wouldn't work as planned. :-(

tl;dr: Yeah. Unless there's an explanation for it, I don't want to see Sassy Black Best Friend(TM) playing the high-powered businesswoman of a main character in a romance.

*I've got issues with this designation since I firmly believe (and personal experience has shown me) that while there are several different lects within what linguists and others call African American Vernacular English,they are often treated as a single entity. grrr. But that's a gripe for another day and a different group.

Tina wrote: "Have you guys ever seen the movie 'Hollywood Shuffle?' it is with Robert Townsend and it is a comedic look at the struggles that black actors have getting work? Well there is a scene where a blac..."

First off Tina, I try to insert, "You betta run before da polices come" into random conversations as much as possible, so yes Hollywood Shuffle is a fave. lol I know exactly what you mean, when it comes to overly hood street patterns in professional situations that don't seem exactly right. I need to check out the series you mentioned because that sounds like something I could get into. I can be fluidly boughetto depending on the time and place. I understand unconscious code switching. Though my "hood" gets teased too. lol

Tina- I loved Hollywood Shuffle!
Code switching. New term for me but very familiar concept. Ingrained and encouraged since childhood. Back when the "other" black kids would tell me and my sibs "Oh, y'all think you white." My parents knew the world they were sending us out into and though they were not highly educated people they made damn sure their kids took full advantage of what can be learned in the public school system if one applies themselves.

I know many of my white friends likely dont know what to make of ths interactions they see of me with my peepa on FB or even social settings with black coworkers/mixed crowds.

Savannah- Quad Motherin' Book Readin' Diva wrote: "Tina- I loved Hollywood Shuffle!
Code switching. New term for me but very familiar concept. Ingrained and encouraged since childhood. Back when the "other" black kids would tell me and my sibs "..."

Forgive my ignorance... I've never heard of code switching. Should I just google it to find out more about it, or is it one of those things that you have to experience to truly understand? I grew up very country and poor in Texas, and no one in my family did the code switching thing. My mother is Hispanic, so she and her boyfriends did a lot of Spanish and Spanglish. Is it sort of the same thing?

Indigo.plume wrote: "Forgive my ignorance... I've never heard of code switching. Should I just google it to find out more about it, or is it one of those things that you have to experience to truly understand? I grew up very country and poor in Texas, and no one in my family did the code switching thing. My mother is Hispanic, so she and her boyfriends did a lot of Spanish and Spanglish. Is it sort of the same thing? "

Indigo, I think everyone kind of does it a little bit no matter their race or ethnic background. It basically boils down to how you act around strangers, family,friends, work, and home socially. I mean a blond surfer dude might sound like Spicolli on the beach, but go into corporate environment during the week at presents rather formally. The same way your mother and her boyfriend's Spanish/Spanglish. I think American black people unfortunately get penalized in mainstream society in a strange way, if we aren't as successful at it, IMO.

Ardent reader wrote: "OMG I just started reading a book that I hate so much I want to break my KINDLE to pieces!!!
It is a non-IR romance book, and the author thought to add a paragraph somewhere, maybe to show how 'div..."

Sounds a lil condescending at the very least, if not suspect lol. "I was so proud of her.." What is she, her mama? LOL

I'm in a bad place with books right now as I've enjoyed an a relatively high amount of actual GOOD IR reads in recent months compared to my usual. I've had a horde of horror stories too, for sure. But the good has me always on the lookout for more more more! Which will only lead to heartbreak. I get worried when I find myself having a hard time getting into a romance novel that ISN'T IR now....no good will come of that. This genre is not strong enough to feed me exclusively.

Savannah- Quad Motherin' Book Readin' Diva wrote: "Ardent reader wrote: "OMG I just started reading a book that I hate so much I want to break my KINDLE to pieces!!!
It is a non-IR romance book, and the author thought to add a paragraph somewhere, ..."

I know what you mean. I am in a slump too. I know there're good books out there, but there is just so much more crappy books that it's near impossible to find the good ones. If you come across any, please send them my way

Oh! I forgot one!

Authors who seem to think that a Russian speaking English just means littering the dialog with "Dah". Or "Nyet" lol.

Savannah- Quad Motherin' Book Readin' Diva wrote: "Oh! I forgot one!

Authors who seem to think that a Russian speaking English just means littering the dialog with "Dah". Or "Nyet" lol."

lol

Savannah- Quad Motherin' Book Readin' Diva wrote: "I hope this is okay since I have been storing up book complaints for two weeks now waiting for the original thread to reopen. I have a few gripes I'd like to discuss lol.

The first of which is bro..."

Thank you for restarting this thread. I had a couple of other issues to add, but for the likes of me I can't remember now. Perhaps they will return...

Anyhow, of late, I have noticed some writers selling their writings by the chapter. I recently bought what I thought was a trilogy. When I got to the second and third parts I realized that they were simple chapters. I immediately returned them (Kindle is a wonderful instrument)

Savannah- Quad Motherin' Book Readin' Diva wrote: "See I cant entirely abandon BBW books. I can say that I dislike the ones where the entire crux of the drama is a hinged on her insecurities about weight. When she goes back and forth fluctuating ov..."

If an author has made this as the focal point of the heroine, why doesn't she write that the heroine did something about it? If you don't love yourself how can you expect someone to love you? So how can there be a HEA?

@Justine I totally agree. This has become the common line by the heroine in so many of these stories when they are referring to the hero "a guy like him would never be into a girl like me. He usually goes for the tall thin blond model type." When I read that line I'm like here we go again and it continues throughout the book even though the hero is jumping through hoops to prove his interest and love for the heroine.

Well....unfortunately I think there are a whole lot women actively looking for love who don't love themselves. But that's a whole other ball of wax. I really do get it when they question the man's interest but at some point one has to accept that all men do not have the same tastes or perception of whats beautiful. I just prefer my heroines to ACCEPT that quickly and move along lol. Especially after a man has gone above and beyond to prove his sincere interest. Nothing worse than having to rehash the same issue over and over no matter what it is. Even more so when its the weight thing.

Okay, ya'll know that I don't court controversy and am pretty lax in my reading standards. But this was in my email this morning and after the red haze cleared I thought that I would let you know that someone is trying to actually promote this crap. What. The. Hell. Shocked and appalled? Yep. What's worse is that it has a publication date of June 1, 2014. Suffice it to say that this is one of my turn offs...

Monica **can't read fast enough** wrote: "Okay, ya'll know that I don't court controversy and am pretty lax in my reading standards. But this was in my email this morning and after the red haze cleared I thought that I would let you know t..."

wow...just...wow...! This seems like a hateful book. I wouldn't touch it with a ten-foot pole. I won't even view it's page on kindle, or wherever it's being sold.

Monica **can't read fast enough** wrote: "Okay, ya'll know that I don't court controversy and am pretty lax in my reading standards. But this was in my email this morning and after the red haze cleared I thought that I would let you know t..."

OK girl....I would be mad too but let me just say THANK YOU for the BEST Monday morning laugh I have had in a coon's age. Y'aaaaaaall when I opened that blurb and saw "colored" ....DONE! Still rollin! And THEN I look down and saw some dude added it to his read list....DEAD!!!! I dont mean go get personal but its a combo of what the book is obviously about, its wrongness and potential fetishizing of such a horrid subject then this pic of this man.....done !!!

I saw that too Savannah & it looks like this fellow likes the way that this author's mind works. There are more lovely subjects that this author fetishizes that are on the fringes to put it mildly...

Savannah- Quad Motherin' Book Readin' Diva wrote: "Monica **can't read fast enough** wrote: "Okay, ya'll know that I don't court controversy and am pretty lax in my reading standards. But this was in my email this morning and after the red haze cle..."

I missed the pic of the man who added it the first time! Yeah, he looks like a real winner, lol. It's so typical that the very men who publically say we are the lowest in the social hierarchy are the same ones that secretly want sexual possession of our bodies.

I am still laughing. Seriously. Just wow.
Indigo/Adrienne- you are 100% correct!

Monica **can't read fast enough** wrote: "Okay, ya'll know that I don't court controversy and am pretty lax in my reading standards. But this was in my email this morning and after the red haze cleared I thought that I would let you know t..."

Curiosity (or masochism) made me read the excerpt on Amazon. It's even worse than it sounds. It's a damn good thing I don't believe in book burning because this ish would be roasting s'mores.

This hack (I will not call them an 'author') makes Savannah's so-not favourite Russian mafia book read like freaking Shakespeare. Just because it's erotica doesn't mean it has to read like a kid from Romper Room wrote it with a purple crayon.

Stoooop! "kid from romper room..." and "purple crayon"...y'all gon' get me fired today!

But hold up...check out dude's read list. hahahahahahaha! "The Billionairre's Human Cow"??? aaahahahahaha!!

TheFountainPenDiva wrote: "Monica **can't read fast enough** wrote: "Okay, ya'll know that I don't court controversy and am pretty lax in my reading standards. But this was in my email this morning and after the red haze cle..."

Oh. Dear.

Man, FPD, I salute you. You basically threw yourself on a literary grenade to save the rest of us.

I seriously could have gone all my life never knowing this book exists. LOL.

TheFountainPenDiva wrote: "Monica **can't read fast enough** wrote: "Okay, ya'll know that I don't court controversy and am pretty lax in my reading standards. But this was in my email this morning and after the red haze cle..."

I just scrolled through Butch's books! Great googa mooga... this guy has some pretty lowbrow literary tastes. Normally, I wouldn't be okay with shaming someone for the type of books they prefer, but this guy is really just ASKING for it.

Milking the College Student...?

The Filthy Time Machine: Mated and Milked by the Morlocks...wth?

Impreggnation...(yes, that's how it is spelled)

Jenny's Forced Foray...(obvious from the cover that it's a rape book)

Training my BBW Slave...wtf?

Okay.... I didn't even realize that people wrote crap like this and actually made it available to the general public. These books sound like files the police find in a sexual predator's computer after they get caught. And all of the covers are butt-ugly (meaning they have naked butts in them). My naiveté about "literature" is now totally gone. Now, I have to spend the day rethinking every little thing I think I knew about life.

Adrienne- I totally missed Training My BBW Slave!!! Dammit!

A-W wrote: "@Justine I totally agree. This has become the common line by the heroine in so many of these stories when they are referring to the hero "a guy like him would never be into a girl like me. He usua..."

Real life experience has shown that it is indeed rare for a guy like him to be interested in a girl like her. But this is fiction, and I guess some poetic license is allowed. I just wish writers would make better use of that plot device.

I recall a book that I read some years ago, in which the heroine was fat and had some sort of disease. (I think it was some sort of skin disease). I could barely finish the book and so I avoided part 2.
When we read books, I think we have idealized characters in mind, because of the fantasy aspect; I simply could not develop a liking for an obese character who wails about her obesity yet take no steps to do something about it.

When I saw his list I was like-"that's all folks" I'm done!

Writers who out of left field make their characters go off the deep end, just to create contrived drama.

Books that have unbelievable contrived drama.

Justine, I dont know. I get where you are coming from in that I have a hard time rooting for heroines I dont really respect. But to me, the weight thing is a bit like saying I can't deal with characters who have been abused or cheated on even though it was obvious they were getting abused and cheated on. They put up with it just the same as one might assume an overweight cperson does nothing about their body. For most "obese"people, their weight is product of a lot of some psychological issues just as much as straight up love of food. Just as there are a great many psychological reasons women stay with cheaters and abusers. I have literally had to train myself not to judge those things too harshly knowing that just because something isnt a problem I can see myself living with, doesn't mean another person would get out from under it so easily.

Thats why I am such a Pepper Pace fan. She has a way of making me see circumstances I tend to judge too harshly in a different light. I DO agree that we idealize characters in romance and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that imo. Its escape....fantasy, whatever. But I do think books with imperfect characters have their place in romantic fiction for so many reasons. I just try to be sure Im in the right mood to deal with those types of leads when I sit down to read their stories.

Justine wrote: "Real life experience has shown that it is indeed rare for a guy like him to be interested in a girl like her. But this is fiction, and I guess some poetic license is allowed. I just wish writers would make better use of that plot device. "

For me, the BBW who obsesses over her weight/race and doesn't understand why the super-fit, abs-of-steel, David Gandy look-alike hero would want her only for him to constantly reassure her goes beyond poetic license right into the arena of wish fulfillment.

It also feels like a subset of the larger trope that seems to permeate IR where the heroine can be a bundle of all kinds of issues and insecurities and the hero really is super-heroic in knocking them down one-by-one with just the power of his love/lust.

There are so many books where the heroine is downright unlikeable because she doesnt trust the guy, blows him off, is mean to him, is dismissive of him etc. etc. and yet we are supposed to buy the fact that this awesome guy is that much into her he's gonna fight not only whatever external plot conflicts but also her for her.

I find it harder and harder to root for that dynamic. When i see reviews where the consensus seems to be that the heroine was irritating, I pass. I may be in the minority, but what sells any romance for me is how much I like the heroine. She is the one who I need to enjoy the most.

Monica- I am SO done witchu right now!!