Romance Lovers for the Challenge-Impaired discussion

Reading the original heroes and heartbreakers article gave me a fun idea. The article says:
"A covenant is “an agreement, usually formal...to do or not do something specified.”
So what agreements would be in the Romance Covenant?"


The Rules that were covered in the article:


★There must be a Happy Ever After.

★Neither hero nor heroine can be with other people after they’ve become interested in the other.

★The hero and heroine must be absolutely, breathtakingly in love with the other as they near their HEA.

Can you think of any others?

★ Heroine cannot be TSTL (too stupid to live). Not that I don’t like a good rescue scene, but don’t push it in how she got in whatever situation she is in…

★ For Romantic Suspense, I like the H/h to be together for most of the action. Sometimes an author will have them separate, which is okay… depending. The climactic action scene should always have the H/h together.

The "misunderstanding" between the MC should be solved after the right amount of time, instead of being dragged throughout the novel.

The heroine can look anything from beautiful and curvy, to plumb and short
but
the hero must look anything from dropdead gorgeous to ruggly handsome. He must be a heartstopper of some sort.

hehehe good one!

Lisa Kay wrote: "★ Heroine cannot be TSTL (too stupid to live). Not that I don’t like a good rescue scene, but don’t push it in how she got in whatever situation she is in..."

Amen to this one! This is one of my ultimate rules. I despise the TSTL heroine. >(

A rule for me is that the Hero can be a total Alpha but he must NEVER abuse the heroine physically, verbally, and/or sexually.

Excellent Rachel. Too many have to get their high at the expense of others.

I couldn't agree more, Rachel! I love verbal sparring, but neither H/h must cross the line between a witty popping-the-ego style remark and true insult. That's a line in the sand for me.

yep, he hits her once and I couldn't warm up towards him throughout the book.

I recently read a book where the Hero called the heroine a whore & told her she was stupid. Not only did he say these things to her face, but he also "thought" about her in this way during his POV chapters - he basically thought of her as a cold hearted whore. He changes his tune about 4 chapters in but by that point I despised him and couldn't forgive him. The book was ruined for me.

I really hate it when the so-called "hero" is a judgmental douchbag. I don't care how much groveling he does later on in the book. I'd hope the heroine would have enough spine to dump his sorry ass; but unfortunately, she usually turns out to be a doormat who puts up with his nonsense because she looooves him. Can you tell I've read some 80s romance (with clenched teeth and often a DNF-reading the first few chapters and the last chapter)?

The hero and heroine must meet before the halfway point in the story.

The heroine must be kind and not shallow.

@Sandra:
Blame, Jane Austen ;-)

Midu wrote: "@Sandra:
Blame, Jane Austen ;-)"

Except, being judgmental seems to be common within male communication. Talking as though women are good for nothing but sex and are lesser people who do little but manipulate others was not typical for Jane Austen's characters. Personally, I know many men (and so do my friends) who are judgmental. Our current news reporting is full of these comments as well.

Like Sandra, I had a very hard time reading a 1980's Johanna Lindsey book, A Loving Scoundrel: A Malory Novel, that is very popular. The hero only talks about the heroine (and every woman except family members, regardless of class) in the most derogatory terms, but his manipulation to get her into bed was fine. He was otherwise likable, but I only felt disgust for him.

And as to the overall topic, I like romances where ther following is true:

1. The hero has a strong character, and doesn't let others steamroll him,; he doesn't have to be an alpha-male even though I like them

2. The hero's personality, and connection to/love for, the heroine outshines his physical characteristics

3. The relationship has time to develop; immediate attraction is fine (I've felt it myself), but the actual relationship isn't immediate

4. Definitely a HEA ending

5. A smart heroine who fits with the times, and yet still manages to make her point and stand for herself

6. Situations that are natural and not contrived to create tension

7. A hero who loves the heroine for who she is, despite any faults, rather than ignoring her uniqueness

Hmm, I could probably go on, but I think those are the main ones for me

They are some good ones, Lara. I, too, like the relationship to slowly percolate. Sometimes it works when there is instant attraction and the H/H react on it; however, it takes an author with a deft hand to pull it off and make it work for me.