The Return of the Paranormal Romances
It honestly surprises me that it has only been recently that the romance industry has wholeheartedly embraced the paranormal/science fiction/fantasy sub-genres. Many romance readers could have told them years ago that it would be successful. In fact, I even did once. Back in the mid-90s, I was at a writer's conference listening to those in the "know" state that readers didn't like paranormals. I then stood up, mentioned I worked at a bookstore, and that whenever anything paranormal was shelved in the romance section, it sold quickly. I still hear references to this.
So this month, I want to embrace some of my favorite paranormal romances. I've only been reading romances since 1990, so please forgive me that I don't include any from before that time.
1991- Lori Herter - Vampire Romances
I can remember shelving books and coming across one with what looked like a vampire on the cover. Whoa, that one quickly got set aside to check out later. Obsession, Possession, and Confession was a trilogy about two characters where the HEA didn't happen until Confession. Personally, I only re-read Obsession and the end of Confession, but I still love this introduction into the paranormal. Later, the author did a fourth in the "trilogy", Eternity. This, however, was the story of secondary characters.
1992 - Silhouette Shadows
First came the 1992 Anthology, then Harlequin/Silhouette launched the Silhouette Shadows line. I was hooked from the very beginning, and I bought, and still have, every book from that line. A couple of my favorites include, but of course are not limited to, Helen R. Myers (Whispers in the Woods and Night Mist) and Maggie Shayne's Wings in the Night (Vampires) series. There was also a 1993 Anthology which had one of my all-time favorite short stories. It was by Lori Herter, titled The Phantom of Chicago. Unfortunately, the line had a short life. Luckily, several of these authors had made a mark, in particular Maggie Shayne whose Wings in the Night series is still going strong.
1994 - Shadow's Kiss by Joan Hohl
This is another "judge a book by its cover" story. I just adore this cover, and, of course, I would have seen the cover when shelving and decided to flip it over to learn more. Now, whenever I see the cover, I think, what a great story it is. I can't resist opening it and skimming some of my favorite scenes.
Mid '90s
It was during this time that I had to keep reminding myself that I didn't like paranormals - after all, that is what we were being told. Ok, it didn't work. I have so many from this time that I adore, so many by Maggie Shayne, (Annie's Hero and the duo - Fairytale and Forever Enchanted), Saranne Dawson, and Ruth Owens computer series in the Loveswept line. The Harlequin American line even had titles where the heroes were "More Than Men". One of my favorite stories during this time was Terry Lawrence's Shadow Lover from Loveswept where the hero was invisible.
Late 90s into 2000s
Luckily, by the end of the 90s, the publishers started to print more and more paranormal romances, to where today, I could probably read one a day, and not have any rereads. Many are available through "New York" publishers, but there are so many that are available through e-publishers as well.
We can start in 1999 with Dark Prince by Christine Feehan(Please check out my reviews!) and her amazing world of the Carpathians. There is also the Dark-Hunters series by Sherrilyn Kenyon which truly began with Fantasy Lover in 2002, but while set in that world, isn't technically a DH story. There is also the 2002 George & the Virgin (Please see my review!) by Lisa Cach which is somewhat based on the idea of St. George versus the dragon.
There are also Science Fiction romances. Last month I profiled Susan Grant's Otherworldly Men Series (Please see my profile!). Soon, I plan on profiling Kel-Paten. He is my all-time favorite hero from any romance genre novel. He is the hero of Linnea Sinclair's Games of Command (Please see my review!).
There are so many paranormals published by epublishers that I enjoy, but I will limit the list. Some of my favorite epub'd paranormals include the Templar Knights series by Rene Lyons (Please see my profile!), Rebecca Going's Wolverine series (Please see my profile!), and Dani Harper's new Dunvegan Wolf Clan Series, the first titled Heart of the Winter Wolf (Please see my review!)
Today
Today, there aren't many realms where a paranormal romance isn't set. We have vampires (hero or villain), various shifters, fairies, ghosts, alternate history, alternate reality, witches, and much much more. Silhouette has launched another paranormal line - Silhouette Nocturne. I am looking forward to reading many paranormal stories in the upcoming months. Luckily, contrary to some opinions, the paranormal subgenre is going stronger than ever.
And that makes me very happy.
Welcome
I truly enjoy sharing my love of reading. This site was started to allow me to share some of my favorite books. I hope that if you look around and find that you agree with some of my selections (see my reviews), that you will return and hopefully find new authors. I plan on having periodic "Recommended Reads" lists that will include books I recommend, as well as suggestions by visitors to this site. I will also keep you up-to-date on different upcoming events, special offers, etc.
As you look around, I'm still learning my way around HTML, etc. If you see any errors, typos, please e-mail me.