The Subtleties of Romance Genres

By Fiona Jayde (Guest Blogger)

I spent most of last week at the Romantic Times convention, meeting a lot of authors and readers of romance, and it struck me how widespread and diverse the genre "Romance" has become.

There's subgenres mashing onto subgenres to create something completely different and new (Pride and Prejudice and Zombies?) and there's the traditional we still can't get enough of - Historicals, Contemporaries, Action Adventure, Paranormal, you name it.

For someone who generally sticks to romance for her reading pleasure (what can I say - I'm a sap!), this opens up a wide avenue of reading material to look forward to. I can read about vampires in Regency London, and also about a newly recruited spy who may or may not freeze on her very first kill. There are unique and delightful flavors for every taste: whether you like spicy action, nail biting suspense or transform your world fantasy - there's a romance out there.

Perhaps the common view of a "traditional romance novel" or "trashy beach reads" as my cousin calls them (I think she is embarrassed about being caught reading one) is finally changing?

The RT craft panels echoed this diversity - offering workshops on writing Suspense or Humor or Action Adventure or Historical, and isn't it wonderful that any of these could be applied to a Paranormal Vampire story to spin a truly unique tale? What struck me as interesting at RT was meeting a number of male authors - both published and aspiring, who were interested in writing a romance.

At the RT book signing event, an erotic romance author sat next to an author of a "traditional" Regency historical, and both were chatting about the subtleties of sexual tension or creating a hero readers would melt for. And wouldn't it be interesting if they switched for a day and we could see what types of stories they could come up with?

To the readers - what are some of your favorite traditional and non-traditional romance genres?

Review: Cold Victory by Fiona Jayde

(You can buy Cold Victory at Loose Id.)

Commander Stark of the battle cruiser Victory has been fighting the enemy for years without any real progress. Supplies are dwindling, as are the ranks of able-bodied soldiers to pilot the Sabre fighting ships. So when Zoya Scott, one of the last survivors of an abandoned space colony and a convicted thief, is assigned to the Victory, Stark has no choice but to accept her as part of crew. Zoya may be rebellious to the point of insubordination, but she knows how to fly, unlike the raw recruits he's being sent. What he can't deal with is the discovery that the cold, insolent redhead appears to be his bloodmate -- a genetically perfect match who inspires unbearable lust despite his fierce will to resist.

Proud and reserved, Zoya has no interest in sex or reproduction. She is a secret saboteur, sent to the Victory in order to destroy the cruiser when it is close to the enemy, and ultimately end the war. The biological imperative linking her to Stark undermines her plan and her resolve.

As mysterious Murk ships attack the Victory, Zoya and the commander struggle to contain the fires of lust that threaten to consume them. Gradually, their pre-destined sexual connection is tempered by mutual respect and then, by caring. Unless they can find a way to end the war, however, they will both die - whether by enemy fire or through Zoya's treachery.

Cold Victory is classic space opera, in the tradition of Star Wars or Star Trek (but with a lot more sex!) The characters are vividly drawn. Emotionally scarred by her experience in the doomed Primus colony, Zoya is tough, edgy, suspicious, ready to die in order to bring the unending conflict to some resolution. Stark is the epitome of the gruff military man, grim and powerful, never showing emotion. Yet each time one of his men dies, he adds a tattoo to the grid on his arm, to remind him of his responsibility for these lost lives. His second in command, the biologically augmented Dex, also comes alive on the page. Practically omniscient due to the constant flow of data to his brain, Dex too is haunted by his own personal tragedies.

The sexual encounters between Zoya and Stark communicate both the intensity of their connection and their unwillingness to surrender to its demands. The ebb and flow of power between the two makes arousing reading. Predestined soulmates are common in romance, but one doesn't often find the protagonists battling so hard against their fate. The concept of a genetic bond that makes each of them supremely sensitive to the other is sufficiently scientific to work in the context of a scifi plot. After all, research has already shown that biological affinities exist between particular humans.

My one complaint about Cold Victory is that I found the plot elements outside of Zoya's and Stark's relationship somewhat obscure. I didn't follow the political motivations of Zoya's mentor Pazlov nor the conflicts among the different branches of the military. I had trouble picturing the battle scenes. I also didn't really understand the nature the nature of Zoya's mysterious ailment. With regard to events before the story begins, I had the sense that much was being left unsaid. Generally this is a good strategy for a writer. You don't want to spell out every detail of the backstory. In the case of Cold Victory, though, I think I would have appreciated a bit more narration as opposed to murky allusions.

All in all, though, Cold Victory offers an entertaining, exciting romance between two memorable characters. If you're one of those people who always wanted to see Spock and Ahura finally make it to bed, you'll probably enjoy this novel.

Feminine Feminists

By Fiona Jayde (Guest Blogger)

As the role and power of women in society has been changing, so have female heroines. More and more we see instances where the heroine rescues the hero as well as apprehends the bad guy. More and more we see kickass women not afraid of danger while at the same time not afraid to show their softer side to their families, their friends and their lovers.

I always wonder how this role of feminism applies to our romance heroines. If a strong woman is aroused by a sexually alpha hero, does that mean she secretly craves to be "mastered"? Is she seen as weak by the reader? If a strong woman refuses to get into a fight with her assailant, choosing instead to give him her purse and safely get away, will the reader consider such action as weak? In real life, I'd call that smart, but would we expect extraordinary feats from our fictional heroines? On the other hand, if a heroine is too strong (mentally or physically), is the reader no longer able to identify with her?

Recently I saw a comment about Yancy Butler - who played the tough detective Sarah Pezzini in Witchblade, The Series. The comment was that the portrayal of Sarah was too masculine. These were all of course opinions, but considering that Butler was often shown in tiny tank tops which showed her belly and outlined her other assets, I had a feeling that the word "masculine" came from her behavior - tough, no nonsense, swaggering motorcycle riding asskicker. And this made me strongly question my own writing and my own heroines.

My favorite novels and shows features extraordinary kickass heroines: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Eve Dallas from In Death series, Maxine from Dark Angel with her genetically bred "super powers", Starbuck the Hotshot Pilot from BattleStar Galactica, Detective Sarah Pezzini from Witchblade. These are extraordinary women, most of them living in extraordinary times. They have loved, have lost, and have a soft spot under a hard shell exterior. And they kick major ass - as do the female characters I naturally gravitate toward writing.

In Pas De Deux, I was faced with a challenge of writing a very feminine heroine - since a ballerina would think twice about kicking someone for fear of hurting her feet! Lynn Kovaleva is determined to get back her reputation, despite the pain and discipline of arduous training. She is probably the most feminine heroine I've written (there's no punching bag in sight anywhere in the novel!). And yet I would still consider Lynn to be a kickass heroine - due to her immense inner strength and discipline. And her smart mouth:)

I did include a small kicking scene in Pas De Deux, but even that was done in a smooth motion resembling a dance.

Pas De Deux © Fiona Jayde

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She smiled, serene and beautiful. And Mateo barely missed a pink-shod foot aimed at his jaw.

He caught it just before she clocked him, felt a short tremble when he gave in to the urge and rubbed his thumb over her skin.

Those dark eyes flared wide and soft and brown.

“Let go.” A firm no-nonsense voice. More color on her cheeks.

“Say pretty please.”

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To The Readers: Who are some of your favorite feminine kickass heroines?

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Fiona is a space pilot, a ninth degree black belt in three styles of martial arts, a computer hacker, a mountain climber, a jazz singer, a weight lifter, a superspy with a talent for languages, and an evil genius. All in her own head. In life, she is an author of kickass, action packed, steamy romances, possesses a brown belt in Tae Kwon Do and blue belt in Aikido, a web developer, scared to death of heights, loves jazz piano, can bench-press about 20 pounds — with effort, speaks English and Russian fluently, and when not plotting murder and mayhem enjoys steamy romance novels, sexy spy thrillers, murky mysteries and movies where things frequently blow up. Her website is: www.fionajayde.com .