Comments on: Guest Post: You Never Forget Your First Time

By: Contest Winners: You Never Forget Your First Time : The Good, The Bad and The Unread

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 15:01:29 +0000

[...] thanks to everybody for swinging on by the pond during our stop on Harlequin editor, Marsha Zinberg’s recent blog tour. Thanks to the awesomeness that is [...]

By: Cynthia

Cynthia — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 21:20:11 +0000

I absolutely LOVE historical romances, I’ve read so many different theme books, and styles of romance novels, that I don’t know where to begin. They’re all classics to me, The first series I ever read though was about a family of scottish warriors.. “Rory, Conor, and Brianna”by Ruth Langan. were the first romance novels I ever read. Their stories, captured my heart, and I was glued to romance novels ever since to this day, I still read romance novels, they’re my escape from a bad day, from days where I fight with my father, and when i’m just flat out lonely bc none of my friends are around at the time being, I can sit down and read a book and escape to another time, place and world. Romance novels have always been there. Even today as new categories come out, or I discover NEW books and authors that I love, I enjoy reading books.

By: ev

ev — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 14:17:17 +0000

I wish I could remember the title. It was an old Harlequin from the early 70′s. There were a bunch at our old family camp and it was raining. I had nothing to do, had read all my books. I was 12 or so and reading sci-fi/fantasy at the time.

I remember the heroine had gone on a cruise and came back fit and trim and no one recognized here.

Also in the stack was The Wolf and The Dove. At 12. That did it. I was hooked.

Never did tell my mother I had read it although I doubt she would have cared.

By: Chris Roberts

Chris Roberts — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 21:48:25 +0000

Diana Palmer’s books are classics for me.

By: MariaV

MariaV — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 17:16:13 +0000

Penny Jordan was one of the first Harlequin romance authors I read. MARRIAGE OF CONVENIENCE gives me the warm fuzzies to this day.

By: Angela T.

Angela T. — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 17:11:59 +0000

I really like The Winston Brothers by Lori Foster. The classics are the ones that stand up well with the passage of time and multiple re-reads.

By: Victoria Janssen

Victoria Janssen — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 15:24:21 +0000

The first true romances I ever read were Harlequin Presents, but I don’t remember any of the titles…the first romances I loved were by Mary Stewart, in particular TOUCH NOT THE CAT and THE MOONSPINNERS. Mary Jo Putney’s ONE PERFECT ROSE got me into historical romances as an adult.

My favorite Harlequin category author is Janice Kay Johnson.

By: Maggie J

Maggie J — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 15:16:37 +0000

My first romance’s would be by Johanna Lindsey,Nora Roberts,
Catherine Coulter and Diana Palmer.
I can’t remember which I read first.

By: Nikki H

Nikki H — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 04:39:36 +0000

The first romance book I read was also The Flame and The Flower. I even remember when/where I bought it–the summer of ’72 as my mom was shipping me off to college. Egads! Boy did that book save my sanity. I at least had something familiar(TF&TF) in my awful dorm and I must have read the book 5 or 6 times that summer. But for Harlequins, nobody can top Linda Howard.

By: tatt3r

tatt3r — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 11:18:20 +0000

I loved Harlequins in the 80s, and devoured romances set in Australia or the Continent. Then I found Roberta Gellis and her magnificent Roselynde Series – still in my bookcase.

By: willaful

willaful — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 07:12:30 +0000

I really love some of the eighties Harlequin Presents, before they were all Greek Tycoons having Secret Babies. The Call of Home by Melinda Cross is the sort of story you just don’t find anymore.

By: Sandy (Strlady)

Sandy (Strlady) — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 13:24:48 +0000

I will need to go back and read it to see if has stood up to the test of time, but one of my favorites from a classic author is The Flame and the Flower by Woodiwiss. It is a traditional bodice ripper and yes it’s not for everyone but I remember when I first read it I absolutely loved it and kept it on my keeper pile (which has very few titles on it). I haven’t re-read it in a very long time but I’m sticking with my fond memories of this one.

By: heidenkind

heidenkind — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 06:30:48 +0000

My first romance was Stranger in My Arms by Lisa Kleypas. I was hooked from that point on.

By: Jane

Jane — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 04:59:36 +0000

My first and favorite romance is “The Bride” by Julie Garwood. I also read a lot of Jude Devereaux.

By: BookFiend

BookFiend — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 03:12:26 +0000

For me, romance classics is Danielle Steel books. My first book was actually Star by Danielle Steel. Other classics are anything by Nora Roberts or Judith McNaught.

By: Michelle Willingham

Michelle Willingham — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 01:14:31 +0000

I love anything by LaVyrle Spencer. I could re-read all of her books and never get tired of them. And like Anne Stuart, the first romance I read was by Victoria Holt. Loved those gothic historicals!

By: Debora Hosey

Debora Hosey — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 00:04:21 +0000

I’m another Harlequin junkie! I’m a woman of a certain age, so I cut my eye teeth forty years or so ago with bags and bags of Mary Burchell and other classic Harlequin writers. My best friend’s mom was from England…and she had a subscription to Harlequin Romance and a whole library full of those colorful paperbacks. She let me take home shopping bags full of those treasures…I remember the summer of my 12th year reading one Harlequin Romance after another! Such bliss! But my favorite harlequin Romance of all time has to be BLUE JASMINE by Violet Winspear…ahhh…

By: Kim

Kim — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 23:41:39 +0000

The first romance I read was Shanna by Kathleen Woodiwiss. The classics that I’ve enjoyed over the years were written by Judith McNaught, Laurie McBain, Marsha Canham, Julia Quinn, Susan Elizabeth Phillips and many, many others.

I started with Nora Roberts, Kim Cates and Heather Graham with their Silhouettes and then followed them when they began writing full-length novels. More recently, I’ve discovered Jessica Bird’s Harlequins. Any chance that she’ll be writing more?

By: Jane A

Jane A — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 21:42:57 +0000

The romance classics that come to mind for me were The Flame and the Flower, The Wolf and the Dove and Ashes in the Wind, all by Kathleen Woodiwiss. I also loved books by Laurie McBain, like Tears of Gold and Moonstruck Madness, and Shirlee Busbee who wrote Gypsy Lady. All these authors wrote true “bodice rippers”. I haven’t picked them up in years and I’m not sure I’d want to, but I remember them fondly!

By: Samantha

Samantha — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 21:17:10 +0000

A Knight in Shining Armor by Jude Deveraux will always be a classic to me.

By: maered

maered — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 18:33:19 +0000

Classic romance for me has to be The Soldier and the Baby by Anne Stuart. I just love this category romance so much – my copy is literally in tatters. I would also have to include Lord of Scoundrels. This book is so well written that it will defintely be considered a classic for a long time.

By: cheryl c.

cheryl c. — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 18:18:54 +0000

Favorite classic romance? The first two to pop into my head were Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase and Dreaming of You by Lisa Kleypas. Both had unforgettable characters and storylines.