May 14th, 2009 | by Amie Stuart |
@Karenknowsbest twittered this morning about a sign she saw on the freeway. It said: “Kelly I love u, pls come back!”
The collective Awwwwwwww was heard ’round Twitter. I know I awwwwwwwww’ed and I’m about as close as you can get to a cynic. I mean really, other than the gooey mushy closet romantic center that is my heart. But please, don’t tell anyone. I’ll just deny it.
But it got me back to thinking about something I’ve been thinking about for a while and that’s themes writers address in their books. And I’m talking as a reader AND a writer. For the most part I try not to think too hard when I wear my reader hat or get too scholarly about what I read–I read purely for enjoyment (unless it’s self-help LOL)….
In Hater by David Moody (not a romance), the main protag was an ass for like 1/2 the book, the stuff going on around them was horrifying (people appear to be infected with “something” that makes them attack the people around them) and the Protag is very judgmental/hateful of the attackers….until the end when the big reveal comes. Granted Hater is very much a horror novel in the tradition of classic twisty horror and not for the faint of heart but what did I realized when I was done? I think the author deliberately didn’t want me to like the Protag. and in the process took me on an exploration of the different facets of Hate.
And in Ann Aguirre’s Blue Diablo…well, where do I begin? First off, if you haven’t read it, why not? Yes, I’m a total fan girl and while BD isn’t “technically” a romance, I think it’s worth looking at because Blue Diablo tackles a theme I see a lot in my own work (believe it nor LOL)…and that’s Redemption and not just with Corine who I think seeks/wants/needs some form of redemption regarding her mother’s death, but with Chance, who redeems himself in Corine’s eyes by showing her (and the reader) a more vulnerable side, and even the alleged baddy who joins them at the end (whose name I can’t remember); I don’t want to say too much for fear of spoilers regarding him but I thought it was a really cool twist.
I picked both of these books because they left a strong impression on me. Like I said, I see a lot of redemption though mostly in my non-erotic/less hot work. And of course, as a closet romantic, I think “Love” is the ultimate redeemer.
So what are some of your favorite themes? Is it also redemption? And do you have any favorite redemption books/redeemed heroes or heroines?
So everywhere you go these days it’s all HoHo…er Doom n Gloom, HoHo…er Doom n Gloom, rinse and repeat. I have to say, it’s tiring. The economy’s in the sh*tter, the book business is imploding (Except for K who thankfully, that we know of, have had no layoffs), the car industry is sinking like sumo wrestler in quicksand and the jobless rate is an at all time high. 