If you've yet to read book one, LIFE & DEATH OF LILY DRAKE, I urge you to--it rocks! And please visit T on her website, Facebook, Goodreads or Twitter to wish her a Happy Release Day. :-)
First up, a bit about the book:
by T. Michelle Nelson
pub date: Yesterday!
product description from goodreads.com
With a doting husband and a new job training a vampire military, Lily Drake was living up to the prophecies of being the best. Her life was seemingly perfect, until tragedy strikes bringing her a loss she's not sure she can endure.
The hard-working super mom / vampire slayer, Lily Drake, has just learned problems still exist even after you become immortal.
As everyone knows, even if you find your soul mate, you don't always get a happily-ever-after. Lily may have found temporary happiness being a newlywed, but the honeymoon is over. When she finds her husband going out for late night bites with another woman, Lily has to fight to try and regain what she wants most, love and a happy family.
If Lily thought being a single mom was hard, she’ll find being married can be a bloody mess.
T was so kind in agreeing to guest post on my blog today, talking about what writing romance is like in today's world. Take it away, T!
One major difference I see in romance books today compared to their predecessors is the
Do books have to end this way? Personally, I love a good tragedy. In college, I despised reading Shakespeare’s comedies. My personal favorite was Othello…forbidden love that winds up with a husband killing his wife. Give me a great tragedy anytime. Makes a person feel better about their own life, you know? Case in point, my favorite author (who won a Pulitzer Prize, by the way) Edith Wharton. Almost all of her novels ended up in tragedy or at least an unhappy ending, and they are classics. Why is it readers now expect a happy ending out of a romance?
Maybe it’s because times are so much different. Sure, life was harder back in “the old days” as far as work and the lack of technology, but I never hear my grandmother recalling how stressful life was. People were married at a young age and stayed together. Today, the divorce rate is around half of all married couples, and finding a suitable partner isn’t always the easiest thing. Maybe that’s why we like a cheerful ending now. We have enough to worry about without a depressing story bringing us down.
A great point, T, how life today has certainly influenced all aspects of the writing world, but none more so perhaps than the Romance genre.
What about you guys...Do you think romance novels of today tend to give a false sense of "happily ever after?" Or do you think they keep hope alive? Weigh in below!
Also, T. Michelle has a really cool photo contest going on, with a pretty awesome swag pack up for grabs--check it out HERE!
Also, T. Michelle has a really cool photo contest going on, with a pretty awesome swag pack up for grabs--check it out HERE!
And Happy Release Day, T and Lily!
Thanks for having me! <3
ReplyDeleteMost readers like to feel good at the end of a novel. Authors write for their audience, so that gives "happily ever after" a clear edge. Me, I like a good tragedy. What's life without a few tears?
ReplyDeleteI'm with you, jfowen--bring on the tragedy! :)
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