Monday, April 18, 2005

Moving with an author

First off for any who haven't read Maili's http://mcvane.blogspot.com/2005/04/warning-long-whiny-ramble.html/ excellent and recent whine/blog she really says what I think a lot of us feel about many of the romances out there today.

After many years of reading romance, a number of my favourite authors have switched genres or completely left the romance behind them. I then have to decide whether to follow them in their move. Since they have been favourite authors and I hate to loose them almost always I have followed them or at least attempted to, in their move. The first author this happened with was Tami Hoag. I loved her romances, Sara’s Sin and Lucky’s Lady being a couple of my favourites. But then she moved on to romantic suspense and I followed her reading Night Sin, Guilty Sin and Dark Paradise. These were my introduction into romantic suspense and while I enjoyed them, I wasn’t quite ready to embrace the genre. I took a break from Tami Hoag and by the time I tried her again, she was almost completely into straight suspense and had left romance behind. I don't care that much for straight suspense. I know I missing some very good reads but it’s kind of like magicians; I don’t like them either because it drives me nuts when I can’t figure out how they do the tricks. Whenever my DH watches the David Copperfield specials, I always leave the room. I think it must be something similar with thrillers. I want to know why what's happening is happening. At least with romantic suspense, I have the romantic part to distract me.
Julie Garwood is another author whose books I loved when I first started reading romance. When she moved to romantic suspense, I tried (3 times) to get into Heartbreaker but couldn’t. I enjoyed her second romantic suspense Mercy much better but didn’t particularly enjoy Killjoy. And that was that. Garwood was now off my list. Mary Jo Putney was the third favoured author to switch genres. I was one of the few I think who liked The Burning Point. A lot of readers loathe this book and while I can certainly understand their point, it is a difficult subject to write about, it worked for me. I also liked her second book The Spiral Path. But after reading on message boards how much she had politicized her third book I passed on Twist of Fate and until she goes back to her roots with historicals, she is another author I haven’t moved any further with.There are some other lesser well-known authors I’ve attempted to move with. Patricia Ryan now writing as PB Ryan is writing a series of historical mysteries. I have her first book and started it but didn’t get into it very far. I’ll probably give it another go sometime. The problem with her books is they don’t stock them on the shelves and it would mean specially ordering the other books in her series.Teresa Weir is now writing thrillers, as Amy Frasier is similar to the Tami Hoag situation. I have her first book but not any of her later ones. Same deal with Penelope Williamson. Jill Marie Landis is an author I am still sticking with although I’m waiting for her books to come out in PB.
So looking over my list of favourite authors who have moved, I’ll go with them a certain distance but then wave them on their way, wishing them good luck and make my way back to my comfort zone and look for new authors to replace them.

3 comments:

Bev (BB) said...

You'd think that being such a die-hard fan of Garwood's historical romances, I'd be more upset that she's moved on. I'm not, but then I'm also not reading the newer books.

The one author that I keep telling myself I'm going to catch up on is Krentz. I actually think I could manage to read and enjoy her newer fiction stuff. And yet I seem to actually pick any of them up in the store. Why not? I honestly don't know.

sybil said...

I try, sometimes. I miss them. Really really miss them, but I can undestand wanting to try something new and all that.

I love Garwood but haven't read any of her new books. Love Elizabeth Lowell but nope not a RS yet. Not sure if I will read Brockways next novel or Kleypas but I might pick them up and look them over.

Anonymous said...

Best regards from NY! » » »