Mad Madam M here once again…
I know you all wish for Crys to return, but unfortunately you are stuck with me for a while longer. However, I thought I would take this opportunity to discuss a couple of trends in romance novels that I both loathe and adore: the inclusion of rare medical conditions with ‘miracle’ cures and disease awareness.
To be honest, I can handle almost anything it if it is done well or tastefully - with the exception of ventriloquism and student productions of Broadway shows - and the same goes with books. I don’t mind being informed or even reminded of various deadly disesase can be easily dealt with if found early. In most cases, I’m thrilled that someone is trying to eductate the general public on a variety of medical topics or showing a different type of hero or heroine that don’t fit the ‘pretty people’ stereotypes. It is refreshing and I’m glad that people are attempting to inform as well as entertain. However, the ‘afternoon special’ quality in some of the books drive me nuts.
Now, before you jump to the conclusion that I am a heinous harpy that is impossible to please, I would argue that in fact I’m criticizing the way the conditions are used within the story or the inexplicable cure is handled, not the noble attempt at enlightenment. So here are some examples:
The Good
Karen Marie Moning’s The Highlander’s Touch
Sabrina Jeffries’ A Notorious Love
Lucy Monroe’s The Scorsolini Marriage Bargain
In each of these books, the author achieves the perfect balance of story and information. Both Moning and Monroe eloquently deal with diseases that affect women: cervical cancer and endometriosis. I think both authors do a fantastic job at trying to educate women about diseases that may affect not only themselves but also family and friends. Although not as much of a concern in our modern times, Jeffries creates a great heroine aflicted with disease in Regency England.
The Bad
Lucy Monroe’s Blackmailed Into Marriage
Elizabeth Roll’s The Unexpected Bride
Lucy Monroe’s The Greek’s Christmas Baby
I will begin with the statement that I love Lucy Monroe books, I mean I own most of them….but (hey you knew it was coming) she sometimes has the habit of going overboard with medical conditions. In Blackmailed Into Marriage the heroine not only suffers from vaginismus, but her daughter has a small hole in her heart. I could easily handle one medical condition, but I found that the inclusion of 2 didn’t allow enough room for the ‘love story’ part of the novel. The other two books, suffer from the use of ‘miracle’ cures to rare afflictions. I loved that the heroine in Roll’s The Unexpected Bride was blind. It was different and handled wonderfully until the end. (I don’t want to ruin it.) However, Monroe’s use of amnesia in The Greek’s Christmas Baby made me want to pull out all my hair and style it into one of those nifty Victorian hair wreaths.
All in all, I doubt many of you have made it to the end of this never ending article. But if you have, please chime in with your thoughts. I have been mulling over this trend for a couple of years now and I have come to no real conclusion. I like it when I like it and hate it when I hate it. I admire what some authors are attempting, but I don’t feel I can whole heartedly agree with how it is handled. So in the end, I guess I will have to start growing out my hair so I can finish that wreath!
