Literary agent Alison has been in love with her favorite author-client for years. Not that paperback romance writer Carolyn has ever noticed. She sees Alison as a close, loyal friend; she has never questioned society's conventions. When Alison negotiates a lucrative contract for her, Carolyn seizes the unexpectedly large advance to fulfill a passion of her own. Beginning in Paris, scene of her brief, calamitous marriage, she will immerse herself in great music from the world's great orchestras. Paris brings a dramatic encounter with Nicolas Frost, the remote, driven young conductor who is creating a reputation for musical brilliance. When the smitten Carolyn discovers the conductor's masquerade - necessary to achieve recognition in the male - dominated higher echelons of classical music - she is suddenly faced with the true nature of her powerful attraction to Nick. Meanwhile, Alison has found her own consolation. But does sweet, passionate Samantha have any chance of winning Alison's affections away from Carolyn? Can there be any future for Nick and Carolyn? Find the answers in this captivating, deliciously romantic and erotic tale from one of our most entertaining storytellers.

"Often derided as an inferior form of literature, "romance" as a literary mode or genre defies satisfactory definition, dividing critics, scholars and readers alike." "Romance is a clear and wide-ranging introduction for students of literary history, comparative literature and modern literary forms. It is also a convincing case for a literary concept too often set to one side."--BOOK JACKET.

Romance: The History of a Genre is a collection of essays devoted to the highly popular and no less controversial genre of romance. A genre often disregarded for its stereotypical language, shallow characters, and predictable plots, dismissed as “women’s” fiction, accused of conventionalism, romance is a genre which, after ups and downs in its millennial history, is now holding a leading position on the international bookselling market. This achievement has also been possible with the endorsement of contemporary media and modern technology, cinema, television, the Internet, etc. Much has been written in both traditional and more recent literary theory about the origins and evolution of the early forms of romance, from the classical Antiquity, through the Middle Ages, and into the Renaissance and early modernity in Western Europe. A corpus, which is becoming more and more substantial today, is already available about the gendered status of contemporary romance, both in terms of the writing ethos and in terms of reader response, with theories coming from the combined areas of feminism, social sciences, and psychoanalysis. The aim of the present volume is that of noting the fluid character of the genre, with the great number of subcategories, mixed and hybrid, bringing evidence to the polymorphous nature of contemporary popular culture. This book proposes, in four parts and twelve chapters, a fascinating and multifaceted journey into the history, substance and geography of romance. From its origins to the latest developments, from its subgenres to its features, from print to film, from television to Facebook, romance comes in various shapes and colours, which the reader can fully explore. The journey in the world of romance takes the reader from familiar corners to less familiar ones: from North America, Great Britain, Romania, or Turkey, to India or South Africa. The numerous approaches to romance generate diverse data, varied analytical frameworks and interesting, fresh and solidly grounded findings.

The complete guide to turning romances into cash. Romance novels are the top-selling genre in fiction. How can aspiring writers break into this lucrative field? With Writing the Great American Romance Novel, the most complete guide to writing that novel, getting it published, working with editors, agents, and publicists, and promoting it once it’s out! Step-by-step instruction shows how to create romantic heroes and heroines, structure a story, and write love scenes, as well as how to plan outlines, use timelines and grids, conduct personal interviews, and do historical research. With extras such as a list of publishers, a sample press release, a sample synopsis, and much more, this book is must-have for any aspiring romance writer passionate about writing. • Romance accounts for $1.2 billion in sales and 55 percent of the paperback market • The group Romance Writers of America has almost 10,000 members • Takes writers beyond writing to selling and promotion Allworth Press, an imprint of Skyhorse Publishing, publishes a broad range of books on the visual and performing arts, with emphasis on the business of art. Our titles cover subjects such as graphic design, theater, branding, fine art, photography, interior design, writing, acting, film, how to start careers, business and legal forms, business practices, and more. While we don't aspire to publish a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are deeply committed to quality books that help creative professionals succeed and thrive. We often publish in areas overlooked by other publishers and welcome the author whose expertise can help our audience of readers.

""Finding Love the Hard Way"" is a three story collection of sweet romance where the road to love is a bit complicated. ""The Trouble with Fishing"" takes a city girl to the great outdoors where she discovers a sexy wilderness guide. But what about the man she came with? ""Christmas Tears"" is the poignant tale of a widow with two children who has no place left to go. Will a kind lawman make a difference in their lives? ""Lady Constance Yankee Spy"" is a historic tale of a southern woman who spies for the north and is called back to duty after the Civil War. When she runs into a former protector, will they still be on the same side?

For the better part of three decades romance comics were an American institution. Nearly 6,000 romance comics were published between 1947 and 1977, and there was a time when one of every five comics sold in the U.S. was a romance comic. This is the first book devoted entirely to the rarely studied world of romance comics. The text includes information on several types of romance comics and their creators, plus the history, numbers, and publishing frequency of dozens of romance titles. The author examines several significant periods in the development of the romance genre, including the origins of Archie Comics and other teen romance publications, the romance comic "boom and bust" of the 1950s, and the genre's sudden disappearance when fantasy and superhero comics began to dominate mainstream comics in the late 1970s.

Swashbuckling sailors, dashing dukes, naughty nurses, and sexy steward-esses caught in webs of love, passion, betrayal, and intrigue: these are the raw materials of the romance novel--and the lusty covers that advertise them. In The Look of Love, Jennifer McKnight-Trontz provides a rollicking history of the covers and stories that have captivated millions of readers worldwide. More than 150 of the most sensational covers from this venerable if venal literary form are shown in glorious color, focusing on the period from 1940 to 1970, romance design's most fertile era. The Look of Love features artwork and excerpts from titles such as Passion Flower, Kept Woman, Rendezvous in Lisbon, and Jungle Nurse. Along the way, it brings attention to the pioneers of the romance novel: cover artists such as Barye Phillips and Robert Maguire, who helped define the look of paperbacks in general, and Harlequin, the grand dame of romance publishers, with more than 100 million novels sold each year. McKnight-Trontz reveals the themes that typify both the story lines and the covers--hospital romance, the rich and raunchy, royalty, tropical paradises, Westerns, "taboo" relationships, pirates and warriors, and love triangles--resulting in this definitive compendium of camp. A book for romance lovers everywhere.