MADreads

Mmm, so meaty*

September 23rd, 2008 Jane J. - Central Library

A common complaint amongst romance readers today is that there aren’t enough historicals being written and the ones that are showing up in the bookstores are too light in tone. Authors who used to write meaty, angsty romance - Loretta Chase, Lisa Kleypas, Judith Ivory - have changed course and are now writing books that read a little faster, have switched to writing contemporaries or simply aren’t writing any more. What’s a fan to do? Discover Jo Goodman.

Jo Goodman has been writing for a number of years, but has recently caught the eye of readers because of the darker tone in her newer novels. That darkness coupled with strong characterization and great dialogue has finally garnered her some buzz.

Thank goodness for the buzz. In The Price of Desire Goodman takes an old romance trope - young man wagers more then he can afford and ends up leaving his sister holding the marker - and creates a warm and deeply emotional story around it.

The young man who’s in too deep is Alistair Cole and the man he owes is Griffin Wright-Jones. When Alistair leaves a message that Olivia Cole will serve as his marker, Griffin takes him at his word and orders the woman (who he thinks is Alistair’s wife) to appear. With Olivia’s arrival, Griffin realizes his mistake. And though he is unwilling to let her go, he is determined to protect her privacy and reputation.

The set-up is classic. But the characters are not. Griffin and Olivia could have been the stereotypical alpha male and his long-suffering, though saintly counterpart. Instead they are hard-headed and contrary and frequently wrong. They are also well-matched in every way. And the realistic handling of their slow-building relationship and the charm with which it develops make this a meaty enough romance to satisfy any reader’s heart.

*Thanks to The Soup

Entry Filed under: Recreational Fiction, Romance