Love in the Stacks: Which books should be part of the romance canon?

In February, I attended The Popular Romance Project's What Is Love? Romance Fiction in the Digital Age Symposium. It was an interesting day full of discussion amongst authors, publishers, bloggers, fans and even academics. It was presented in the Library of Congress' Center for the Book and was just lovely to be surrounded by romance enthusiasts of all ilk.

One of the panels that I found interesting was the one discussing the romance canon. If you are anything like me, a definition had to be researched before the full effect of the panel could be appreciated. According to Merriam-Webster, a canon is "a sanctioned or accepted group or body of related works." The term is mostly a phrase for academics, and that was largely the case for this panel, which included two authors and three professors. Notably missing: librarians. In fact, there were no librarians on any of that day's panels, though the occasion was held in one of the many buildings of our national library.

So here's my chance to add insight to the conversation from a couple of librarians. I'd like to introduce Wendy Crutcher and Kristin Ramsdell. Both are librarians who are well-versed in the genre. Wendy is creator and producer of the blog The Misadventures of Super Librarian. Kristin is author of Romance Fiction: A Guide to the Genre. Now in its second edition, this publication helps guide hundreds of librarians every day in their quest to help patrons find just the right romance novel for them.

Christyna: Should there be an official romance canon?

Wendy: I think there should be, and is, a romance canon — but with a disclaimers. Not all fiction can stand the test of time, and genre fiction, especially, operates in what I like to call the here and now. Take espionage novels, for example. Once the Soviet Union fell, a book featuring villainous KGB agents is going to seem "dated."

Kristin: I agree with Wendy that there should be (and is, I think) a romance canon and that it should include books that shaped the genre. As Wendy says, a lot of these will seem dated now (e.g., most of Kathleen Woodiwiss doesn't read the same way now as it did years ago), but they were game-changers when they were published and the genre hasn't been the same since.

Christyna: What do you think should be in the romance canon?

Wendy: Probably too many books and authors to name, but let's get a jumping-off point. I think you need to seriously consider all of the original Avon ladies. The Flame and the Flower by Kathleen Woodiwiss. Bertrice Small — I think you can make an argument for The Kadin, but I'd personally pick Skye O'Malley because it was this vast, epic series. Johanna Lindsey, although I have a hard time picking just one book by her. And definitely Sweet Savage Love by Rosemary Rogers. Before Christian and Ana, we had Steve and Ginny!

Kristin: I think the original Avon ladies should definitely be included — Woodiwiss (The Flame and the Flower), Rogers (Sweet Savage Love), Small (Skye O'Malley — wonderful heroine), Johanna Lindsey (her Westerns, maybe?). Shirlee Busbee and Laurie McBain were also part of this, but I think the others are better examples.

Wendy: Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers was a hugely influential work that effectively kicked the door open for inspirational romances. Ask any inspirational author working today for a book that inspired them, and nine times out of 10 this one gets listed first. Rivers allowed her characters to be flawed. To be sinners. They weren't goody-goody paragons of virtue.

Kristin: I agree with Francine Rivers. She's one of the best of the inspirational writers. For some reason, Redeeming Love comes to mind, although she has lots of others, too. Janette Oke is an older, historical inspirational writer, and her historical series are well known. But I do think Rivers is a better writer.

Wendy: The Color of Love by Sandra Kitt. An interracial romance that had a huge impact on readers and a real thunderbolt for readers when it appeared in the mid-1990s. And I think you probably need to put Beverly Jenkins on this list for her trailblazing work in historical romance.

Kristin: Kitt's The Color of Love is a definite for this, I think, too. (She has some other good ones, too.) And Jenkins, of course, for the historicals.

Wendy: Georgette Heyer and Barbara Cartland need to be there somewhere. But again, how do you pick just one book? Impossible!

Kristin: Heyer for sure (loved These Old Shades, but that was Georgian and one or two of her Regencies should be included) and something by Cartland, but I have no idea which one — probably one of her earlier ones.

Wendy: Nora Roberts, definitely. Again, hard to pick just one book by Nora because she's so prolific, but I would strongly cast a vote for her work in category romance. Her categories were really revolutionary at the time in that many of her heroines had non-traditional careers (they weren't all librarians and kindergarten teachers!), and they had lives outside of the romance. Nora's heroines don't NEED the romance to "complete" them.

Kristin: Nora, of course. Her early categories are classics. I also have a soft spot for her Born in... trilogy. She was one of the first contemporary writers I read who did trilogies like that with linked characters, but she probably wasn't the first to do it.

Wendy: Jayne Ann Krentz. I say her early Amanda Quick books. Those have been extremely influential to a lot of historical romance writers. Books like Desire, Reckless and Mischief. Remember, when some of these early Quicks were published, we weren't that far removed from the bodice-ripper era. What Quick was publishing during the early 1990s was a real breath of fresh air for a lot of readers and brought them back to historical romance in some cases. But you can also put JAK in there for her Jayne Castle work — which is hard to ignore.

Kristin: I loved the first three Amanda Quicks (Seduction, Surrender and especially Scandal), but everything she writes is fun to read. Her early futuristics broke some new ground, but her later ones (Jayne Castle Harmony series) had more staying power.

Wendy: Maggie Shayne and Christine Feehan for their work in paranormal romance. Both of these women were writing it, getting it published and selling quite well before the genre was "cool." They really kept that flame alive during some very lean years.

Kristin: Yes, Maggie Shayne and Christine Feehan were early on the paranormal scene, and they had real staying power. There were a few others, but they didn't last as well — now everyone is doing it.

Wendy: Mary Stewart. I want to put in all the Gothic writers — like Victoria Holt, Phyllis Whitney and Barbara Michaels — but if I had to pick one, I think I'd go with Stewart. These women were really genre-bending before their time. I also think they're hugely influential in the mystery/suspense genre and frankly should get a lot more credit.

Kristin: I'd definitely include Mary Stewart — any of her romantic suspense stories (My Brother Michael, The Gabriel Hounds, Madam, Will You Talk?, etc.) would work; but I'd also include Victoria Holt's Mistress of Mellyn because it was the first of the historical Gothics that made an impact and suddenly there were copycat writers everywhere. Phyllis Whitney (lots of choices) and Barbara Michaels (Ammie, Come Home, esp.) could be candidates, too; their things were more in the contemporary Gothic vein.

Wendy: A Knight in Shining Armor by Jude Deveraux. A polarizing choice, I suspect, but time travel! Who knew you could be successful with a time-travel romance! And so memorable. Heck, let's just put in all of Deveraux's Montgomerys.

Kristin: Maybe Susan Elizabeth Phillips (It Had to Be You) because of the sports angle when every editor in New York was saying sports heroes wouldn't work?

Laura Kinsale, especially her Flowers from the Storm, needs to be in there. Her portrayal of a hero who suffers a stroke is exceptional and an early example (well done) of a badly wounded hero.

Susan Johnson was writing really steamy stuff early on — and doing it well — so I might argue for at least one of her books to be on the list.

Christyna: What do you think, readers? Are there other romance authors you feel should be included?

Check back in next week for part two of the romance canon discussion with Wendy and Kristin, who chat about whether canons are needed and if there should be a librarian canon.

Despite being born with a disability, Christyna Hunter has surpassed all perilous predictions. She graduated from college where a friend introduced her to romance novels, started a freelance writing career, self-published two romance novels, and worked at a non-profit organization. Currently she works as a library associate with Loudoun County Public Libraries in Virginia, reads romance novels in her free time, and prays often to her writing muse. Check out her blog at christynahunter.wordpress.com.