Fans of the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon have longed for the books to be adapted for the screen since the first novel was published in 1991. The 7 books (with an 8th due later this year) defy genre categorization, containing elements of romance, fantasy/time travel, and historical fiction. Thy are epic in scale, rivaling George R. R. Martin’s “Song of Ice and Fire” series for sheer page-count.
Ron Moore, creator of ‘Battlestar Galactica’, is on board to helm the new “Outlander” series for the Starz cable network. Set to unfold over 16 episodes, Outlander tells the story of married World War II combat nurse Claire, who accidentally steps back in time to the year 1743 where she is “immediately thrown into an unknown world of adventure that sends her on the run and threatens her life.” The ‘Outlander’ series of books have sold over 20 million copies.
As a huge fan of these books, I was both thrilled and wary when Ms. Gabaldon announced at BEA 2013 that Outlander would finally be adapted for the screen. So often, books we love don’t measure up when made into movies or television series. Still, I’ll be watching!
Romance
Linda reads: Cowboy Take Me Away by Jane Graves
After surviving a horrific childhood, Luke Dawson leaves Rainbow Valley, Texas determined to forget the past, including a childhood friend, Shannon North. Luke becomes a bull rider and is destined for the world championship. He decides to come back to town for the funeral of his father and maybe some closure on his past.
Shannon North left a high power, high paying job as a CPA to return to her roots in Rainbow Valley and take over the Rainbow Valley Animal Shelter. She worked there during her teens and it holds a special place in her heart. The shelter is now run down, overcrowded and dependent on donations. Shannon is hoping her experience in the finance world will help pull her beloved shelter from ruin. She and Luke have a past that ended badly, and she avoids his father’s funeral.
Luke’s plans are to leave town as soon as the funeral is over, but decides to take a look at the property and home his father left behind. Maybe if he goes into the house, he can erase some of the demons plaguing him. But as he tries to take that first step onto the worn porch, he crashes through and injures his knee. Luckily, Shannon drives by and suddenly they are thrown together whether they like it or not.
What follows is a painful, inspiring, hopeful journey where both Luke and Shannon have to overcome obstacles from their past and try to build on the feelings they reluctantly still feel for one another. Luke grows from an obstinate, juvenile delinquent to a charismatic, caring adult. He’s determined to show everyone in town that he is not his father’s son. Shannon struggles with her perception of him (helped along by an overbearing mother) and some of her own issues from her past. You can really feel this couple’s pain and will find yourself holding your breath for a happy outcome.
This story also includes some wonderful secondary characters in the towns’ people, an interesting legend, and the animals that are housed at the animal shelter bring an added extra dimension to the story.
This book fits in perfectly with the popularity of small town romances. It is heartwarming, inspiring and very entertaining.
There’s Just Something About A Cowboy!
Contemporary Western Romances have become very popular reads. That cowboy drawl, the tight jeans, the muscular body, the slightly long and unruly hair, chaps, the “yes ma’m, thank you ma’m”, the tough exterior with the soft and gentle heart – it stirs a woman’s heart! The Cheshire Library has many titles to choose from that will get your heart afluttering. Listed below are some of our most popular.
Cowboy Take Me Away by Jane Graves. This is the first in her new series Rainbow Valley, Texas. She also has several other titles on our Romance paperback shelves, including the very popular series Plano, Texas featuring Hot Wheels and High Heels, Tall Tales and Wedding Veils, Black Ties and Lullabies, Heartstrings and Diamond Rings.
Katie Lane has a popular series, Deep in the Heart of Texas. Titles in this series include: Trouble In Texas, Catch Me A Cowboy, Going Cowboy Crazy, Make Mine A Bad Boy.
Carolyn Brown’s final book in her Spikes and Spurs series, Cowboy Seeks Bride, will be out in August (we’ll be ordering it when the new fiscal year starts). The other books in the series are: Love Drunk Cowboy, Red’s Hot Cowboy, Darn Good Cowboy Christmas, One Hot Cowboy Wedding, Mistletoe Cowboy and Just a Cowboy and His Baby.
C H Admirand has a hot cowboy series – The Secret Life of Cowboys. Titles are: Tyler, Dylan and Jesse.
Emma Cane has a cute series – Valentine Valley. True Love at Silver Creek Ranch is the latest. A Town Called Valentineis the first.
Cardwell Ranch Trespasser is book number 3 in B. J. Daniels series Cardwell Ranch. Book one is Unforgiven. Book two is Redemption.
Joanne Kennedy’s newest cowboy book is Cowboy Tough. She also has several other titles on our shelves.
Laura Moore has a new series, Silver Creek. Book one is Once Tempted. Her Rosewood Trilogy was very popular. Book one is Remember Me. Book two is Believe in Me. Book three is Trouble Me. 
Other popular authors that write Contemporary Western Romances are: Janet Dailey, Joan Johnson, Jodi Thomas, Debbi Macomber, Kat Martin, Linda Lael Miller, Diana Palmer and Jodi Thomas. Come in and check out our extensive collection in the Romance Paperback section of the library.
Linda reads : All He Ever Dreamed by Shannon Stacey
The Kowalski family has owned and operated the Northern Star Lodge in Whitford, Maine for four generations. The current generation includes five siblings. Josh is the youngest and only one left living at the Lodge. All his siblings have found other interests and occupations that do not include the running, upkeep, maintenance and all the work that it takes to run the Lodge. Josh feels he is being forced to give up his own dreams of exploring a life outside of Maine and the Lodge. When the family discovers just how upset he is with being stuck at the Lodge, they try to find a way that Josh will be able to leave and fulfill his dreams – even if it means selling the Lodge.
Katie Davis is the daughter of the Lodge’s live-in housekeeper, Rose. Katie grew up with the family and feels like she’s another sibling to them. She owns a barber shop in town. Secretly, she has always been in love with Josh, but he thinks of her as a sister – until late one night when she walks into the kitchen in her pajamas. Suddenly, Josh is not seeing a “sister”.
Everyone in the family and in town can see that Josh and Katie are meant to be together, but Josh can’t see what’s right in front of him. It was fun to watch Josh stumble along when he realizes he’s in love with his “best friend”. Suddenly Josh’s vision of leaving Maine becomes clouded by his feelings for Katie. She is committed to staying in Whitford and has no desire to leave. Josh feels guilty about leaving her and the Lodge and you can really feel his dilemma. The author does an excellent job of keeping the reader guessing what’s going to happen.
There’s a sweet side story between the housekeeper, Rose and her late husband’s best friend Andy. The other Kowalski siblings’ stories are also entertaining and the various townspeople of Whitford, Maine add another layer of interest.
Shannon Stacey has the winning formula for contemporary romances. Her stories are witty, charming, filled with emotion and fun to read!
This is book 6 of The Kowalski Family series. The books do not have to be read in order. Learn about the rest of the Kowalski clan in the previous 5 books:
1. Exclusively Yours
2. Undeniably Yours
3. Yours to Keep
4. All He Ever Needed
5. All He Ever Desired
Erotic Romance vs. Erotica
Erotic fiction has been around for a very long time. One of the most erotic pieces of poetry is the Song of Songs in the Bible. The late 18th century brought us the French aristocrat, Marquis de Sade whose name gave us the sexual kink of “sadism”. In the early 20th century, Lady Chatterley’s Lover and Tropic of Cancer helped reform obscenity laws in the United States. In the 1970’s there was a dramatic increase in erotic fiction with Fear of Flying, and My Secret Garden. The 1980’s brought us Anne Rice’s Sleeping Beauty Trilogy. Many new publishers were founded to keep up with the demand of erotic fiction.
Erotic romance gained more ground with the introduction of ebooks. By the mid 2000’s when traditional romance publishers saw the interest in this genre, they launched imprints dedicated to the print publication of erotic romance.
There has always been a strong core of erotic romance readers, but with the introduction of the Fifty Shades trilogy, erotic romance became more main stream. However, it is often confused with erotica. Generally speaking, erotic romance ends with “happily ever after” and erotica does not. Erotic romance has more of a story line, exploring love and emotions and centering on two main characters. It’s all about the romance with the sexual journey second. It differs from mainstream romance because it is more sexually graphic. Erotica is all about sex and little else. It can entail some romance, but the focus is the sex.
The Cheshire Library has been seeing more and more requests for books like Fifty Shades, or erotic romance. In an effort to fulfill our patrons’ requests, we have placed orders for similar books. The second most popular author of this genre is Sylvia Day. She self-published Bared To You and when Berkley Books heard how popular it was, they immediately published it in paper. It was followed by Reflected In You and the third book in the trilogy, Entwined With You, will be released in June.
Megan Hart is another author that is very popular. We own several of her titles.
There are three other trilogies that are “like Fifty Shades” and they have received excellent reviews. They are:
The Submissive Trilogy by Tara Sue Me
- The Submissive
- The Dominant (due out in August)
- The Training (due out in October
The Stark Trilogy by Julie Kenner
- Release Me
- Claim Me
- Complete Me (due out in July)
Breathless Trilogy by Maya Banks
You may place holds on these items. Let us know how you like them and if you’re interested in the library acquiring other titles.
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