State of Romance: Lots of great kissers live in Colorado
Colorado is on our short list of places to live once my husband retires from the Air Force. Its diverse geography — alpine mountains, sand dunes, deep canyons and lush forests — is an outdoor lover's paradise. Colorado is nicknamed the Centennial State; it became the 38th state on Aug. 1, 1876, 100 years (and 17 days) after our founding fathers signed the Declaration of Independence. Indeed, Colorado offers readers the freedom to explore the diverse genres of romance books set in its borders.
Contemporary romance delivers the rugged hero in Kristen Ashley's The Gamble, Victoria Dahl's Lead Me On, Marie Force's Line of Scrimmage and Donna Kauffman's A Great Kisser.
Historical romance finds passion in the Wild West with Catherine Anderson's Early Dawn, Jo Goodman's This Gun for Hire, Stacey Kayne's Mustang Wild, Elizabeth Lowell's Only You, Nan Ryan's Written in the Stars and LaVyrle Spencer's Hummingbird. Even the grand dame of historical romance, Barbara Cartland, is drawn to Colorado's beauty in Lucky in Love.
Fans of time travel will enjoy Deb Stover's A Moment in Time and Melissa Mayhue's Thirty Nights With a Highland Husband.
YA romance blooms in Lorri Hewett's Dance, Jennifer Echols' The Ex Games and Jordanna Fraiberg's In Your Room.
Amateur sleuths stumble into murder while rearranging furniture in Leslie Caine's Death by Interior Design (Domestic Bliss series), crafting a sweater with Maggie Sefton's Knit One, Kill Two (Knitting Mystery Series) and savoring cuisine in Diane Mott Davidson's Catering to Nobody (Culinary Mystery series).
Paranormal romance seeks wide-open spaces in Colorado for its epic battles in Karen Duvall's Knight's Curse, Carrie Vaughn's Kitty and the Midnight Hour, Lynn Viehl's Frostfire and Alayna Williams' Dark Oracle.
Colorado's rugged terrain gives way to romantic suspense in Kylie Brant's Deadly Intent, Carla Cassidy's Profile Durango, Tara Janzen's Loose Ends, Julie Miller's Pulling the Trigger, Ann Voss Peterson's A Rancher's Brand of Justice and Debra Webb's Secrets in Four Corners.
Last but not least, I recommend Pamela Clare's I-Team series based in Denver: Extreme Exposure, Hard Evidence, Unlawful Contact, Naked Edge, Breaking Point and Striking Distance. Clare matches female investigative reporters with men in service for a roller-coaster ride of thrills and chills. As a military veteran, I am often reluctant to read romantic suspense with military heroes. Yet Clare hits the target with explosions and emotions, paying tribute to those who serve, including an FBI agent, park ranger, DEA agent and Navy SEAL.
Add to the list of romance books set in Colorado by using #StateOfRomance on Twitter. Next week we cross the country to remember Maine — the Pine Street State.
Kim Lowe is an Air Force veteran, Air Force spouse and romance book blogger at SOS Aloha. You can reach her at sos.aloha@yahoo.com.