Marriage on the Lam
Marriage conventions in the Regency period allow for a couple of fun—and perhaps alarming—tropes. Marriage Trope #1: Elopement Let’s talk about unintended consequences, shall we?… Read More »Marriage on the Lam
January 2016
The Joys of Literary Beauty Pageants
In Regency romance, any female rival is most likely a “diamond of the first water”: beautiful, poised, rich, accomplished, beautiful, well-dressed, beautiful. Did I mention… Read More »The Joys of Literary Beauty Pageants
The Benefit of Bucking Traditional Values
There’s this age-old lie in romance novels that truly eligible men are looking for something new, something fresh in the woman of their dreams. Often… Read More »The Benefit of Bucking Traditional Values
Gentlemen Fine and Dandy
Amid the plethora of Regency social rules is the expectation that young ladies entering Society have an established friend or relative of high reputation to… Read More »Gentlemen Fine and Dandy
Crushing Debts and Incorrigible Rakes
A number of literary tropes occur in the Regency genre, but I’m only going to hit on a couple of them in this post (as… Read More »Crushing Debts and Incorrigible Rakes
Regency Romance: The Grandmother of Guilty Pleasures
When it comes to Regency Romance, there is one name that stands out as the paragon of the genre, at whose altar all other Regency… Read More »Regency Romance: The Grandmother of Guilty Pleasures
A Message Whispering Sweet Nothings
Every cover sends a message, but the message intended and the message received can differ drastically. It’s the reason authors and publishers field-test their images… Read More »A Message Whispering Sweet Nothings
Hark! The Headless Hero!
As far as I’m concerned, the torso-only cover image serves two purposes. First, it absolves the designer from matching the model’s identifying features to any… Read More »Hark! The Headless Hero!
Feeling cute today? Paging Mr. DeMille!
It’s cute! It’s quirky! Welcome to extreme-closeup cover art! Sometimes you only get the eyes, and sometimes only the nose, cheekbones, and lips. Sometimes it’s… Read More »Feeling cute today? Paging Mr. DeMille!
Aesthetics: When the Book-Cover Stars Align
Every genre has its aesthetic. Book covers act not only as visual cues for the characters and story within, but they can also preview the… Read More »Aesthetics: When the Book-Cover Stars Align