I love romance novels. I'm an avid reader of both fiction and non-fiction, and I'd guess that romance novels make up about 25% of my reading. Besides romance, my favorite genre is journalistic non-fiction. I also really like biographies and memoirs. I'm currently reading Confederates in the Attic, by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Tony Horwitz. It's a fascinating book about the long-term affects of the civil war.
Anyway, I find that romances are a fun way to unwind. I don't watch much television, so for me, romance novels are the equivilent of whatever sit coms I'm missing each evening. Especially since I read so quickly, that I usually read a romance novel in the time it would take me to watch an evening of primetime television. However, I'm extremely picky about which authors I read. I'm easily annoyed by horribly contrived plots and errors. Historical inaccuracies (like Wendy mentioned) bother me, but because that is not really my area of expertise, I can overlook minor errors. However, I read a novel not long ago where the plot setup was that the heroine was a columnist for a major newspaper who was suddenly thrust into being the sole reporter covering a professional sports team in the area. If that wasn't bad enough, the reason she got the job was that the team manager had requested she do it because he thought the old reporter was "unlucky" for his team. She then fell in love with one of the players and carried on an illicit affair with him while continuing to cover the team. Conflict of interest, anyone? Though normally I just stop reading books with major errors, this was was so ludicrous that I couldn't stop. It was like a train wreck.
Anyway, after a couple of instances like this, I got REALLY picky about romances and basically I wait for author recommendations before trying someone new. I love historical romance, and thanks to folcs I discovered Mary Balogh and Mary Jo Putney. I haven't read any Jo Beverly yet, but I've been hearing good things about her, so she might be the next author I start reading. For modern day romances, I like Sandra Brown and Linda Howard. (Though I don't recommend either of their early works, they've definitely improved with time.) And I adore Janet Evanovich, though her books are really classified more as mystery than romance. I love the romance elements of them though, and they are so funny. I like some Catherine Anderson books, but sometimes her heroines are so helpless and pathetic, I can't even work up any sympathy for them. And I'm always looking for more recommendations.
Annie
