I love to read romance to see the hero or the heroine through the love truck
gaze of their partner. Romance. Passion. Sizzle. Smoking hot bods. Ripped
abdominals. Gentle eyes. Hard jaws. The hot guys of romance all share one thing
in common – they’re good-looking charmers who are ardent protectors of the
ladies in their lives. Reading Shannon K. Butcher’s LOVE YOU TO DEATH I am
reminded of why I love to read romance – and it is not just for the hot guys,
but they don’t hurt.
Eyes of Love
In LOVE YOU TO DEATH,
Elise is terrified for her sister Ashley. Ashley’s something of a flighty,
artistic type that forgets her car is running or that her front door is open
when the next shiny object comes along. But she always calls her sister, every
day, she calls and touches base. When two days go by with no phone call, Elise
flies halfway around the world to find her sister and check on her. She breaks
into her house (with a key) and has to use a flashlight (a fuse is blown) and
catches the attention of Ashley’s ex-cop neighbor Trent.
From the moment of their first encounter, struggling in the dark, we learn that
Trent is hard-bodied and very tan. He’s damn good-looking, but Elise really
isn’t paying that much attention other than to catalog him as the “hot lawn guy”
her sister mentioned. She is not looking at Trent with passion or sizzle, she’s
looking at him with suspicion despite his obvious genetic good fortune.
When Trent proves that he wants to help and becomes a rock of support for Elise
in her search, she begins to see him in a new light – the light muted by
love-struck glasses. He’s still good-looking, he’s still ripped and he’s still a
fine specimen, but now he’s attractive and handsome and safe and protective and
all the things that make a woman’s stomach flutter with a thousand butterflies
of anticipation..
That’s what love-struck glasses do.
Romance by the Heart Light
A few days ago, I was reading a friend’s guest blog. She was talking about the different
aspects of romance, but at the end she mentioned her husband – the love of her
life, the father of her children and how he is in every hero she writes. It made
me think about my own husband and yeah, he is the romantic hero in my life. He
is not perfect, but I love him and when I see him, I see all those fantastic
qualities we see in the heroes in the novels.
He does not have to leap tall buildings, he does not have to solve crimes and he
does not have to have a paranormal ability. He just has to be him. That is
enough for this love-struck woman’s heart to vault into a double-tuck and stick
the landing, every time.
Check out Love You to Death
I love Shannon’s books in general, but check out LOVE YOU TO DEATH for the
suspense, the hunt and the love-struck romance. Just the right amount of sizzle
with a dash of fancy!
---
Be sure to stop by Fantasy Dreamer's Ramblings today and check out Heather's
guest blog: Never Judge a Witch by Her Leather.
A lifelong writer turned author,
Heather Long's first book
Remembering Ashby is
available for purchase at Sapphire Blue Publishing. Coming soon is the urban
fantasy:
Prime Evil.
The
Daily Dose explores books, television, writing and more -- all topics
that Heather enjoys.
13 comments posted.
I LOVE Romantic Suspense - that's my favorite to read. Yeah, I guess we do see the hero from the heroine's love struck glasses - but we all want to see someone that way.
(Kelli Jo Calvert 1:26pm November 12, 2009)
"Love you to Death" sounds like my kind of book. I added it to my to-read list which has grown by leaps and bounds. I hope I have time to read everything:)
(Theresa Buckholtz 1:51pm November 12, 2009)
This book has it all. Characters that you want to know more about as well as action and suspense. Sign me up! I am anxious to read 'Love You to Death'.
(Rosemary Krejsa 3:27pm November 12, 2009)
I just added "Love You to Death" to my list of I'm going to get them. Sounds like a GREAT book that I'd be very interested in.
(Evelyn Day 4:42pm November 12, 2009)
Sounds good. My tbr pile is growing daily. (and yes, hunky heros find their way to the top)
(Susan Driskill 9:21pm November 12, 2009)
Many times we pass up something or someone exceptional because of our first impression. Take time to really check things out.
(Karin Tillotson 2:10pm November 13, 2009)
When first perousing a book, I take a few pages to see if the characters are ones I can identify with and then check the middle for continuity and interest. Then I put it in my must read now or later pile.
(Alyson Widen 12:41pm November 14, 2009)