Comments on: All the History I Learned From Romance

By: Tahyun

Tahyun — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 04:13:37 +0000

Lately I have been learning a lot of the various roles British soldiers played in India and various scraps of famous continental battles from Stephanie Laurens’s Black Cobra Quartet. I have always had a bit of interest in the East India Company as well, so I’ve been reading up on them recently (mostly wikipedia, but I am out of the country so extranious research in English can sometimes prove difficult). That is one of the things I love most about historicals, especially the ones that slip juicy details – it leads you on a wirlwind adventure for more information and other resources. I think they are a good starting point for the thirsty mind.

By: Becky

Becky — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 15:58:42 +0000

I love all the historical detail in Forever Amber…my first and best loved historical romance. The incredibly detailed descriptions of the plague epidemic were just awesome, although perhaps not for those with weak stomachs. That novel fueled my love of that particular period in British history. The novel has just been reissued and I am very pleased, because my 35 year old copy is crumbling! It was written a long time ago, but still a fabulous historical read.

By: Pat Storer

Pat Storer — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 13:54:28 +0000

Reading Historical Romances about Scotland has really made me want to go there. I want to stand in the middle of the field at Culloden, walk through castle ruins, meet the people, and listen for the ghosts of the past. I never paid much attention to that country before but now I want to experience it. I too read the Outlander series and Ms Gabaldon made that time and place come alive for me and so many others. There is also an interesting connection for me in writing about the early 1800s in the settlement of Alabama that I am researching and writing about….Where did all those Scots go who were sent, taken or escaped to other countries after the Battle of Culloden and the clearances? Guess what?…they came here, set up a life of fur trapping and intermarrying with the Muscogee/Creek Indians. Their children were on both sides of the conflict during the Creek Wars and the attack on Fort Mims. So, it’s a small world after all.

By: BevL(QB)

BevL(QB) — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 21:42:33 +0000

I’m loving this discussion because I’ve always said that “Everything I know about British history I learned from Romance novels.”

So for Regency, Stephanie Laurens sets the standard for me. Doesn’t matter if she’s right or wrong, she’s the one I compare all others to.

Bertrice Small creates a lush tapestry of the time she’s writing about, particularly the Ske O’Malley series which spans the time of Queen Elizabeth I through James I and possibly the last ones in Skye’s Legacy series were during Charles I’s reign or later.

Those of you that mentioned Gabaldon’s Outlander will probably get a kick out of this– soon after reading the book (please don’t ask which title) where Claire and Jaime settled in North Carolina, my husband and I took a much needed kid-free vacation down to that area. As we were wandering around and then took a cruise on a sightseeing boat, I kept finding myself thinking “Ooooh, THAT’s where Jaime did this, or THAT’s where this house or building was, or THAT’s where they were when this happened.” Then, of course, I’d laugh at myself because well, DUH… FICTIONAL characters, Bev!

By: Pat Storer

Pat Storer — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 20:21:51 +0000

Reading Historical Romance has given me a renewed appreciation for history. I am currently researching/writing a historical romance set in the early 1800s of the Mississipppi Territory (later to become Alabama). The events of history during that time including the massacre at Fort Mims, the dramatic rescue of a Mother and her 7 daughters by one of her attackers whom she had taken in and raised as a child, are so awe-inspiring that it is practically writing itself. (that’s a joke.) There are so many interesting people and situations involved that it is hard to decide what to put in and what to leave out…I think I sense a series coming on here. As an amateur, I am enjoying the research and the writing and consider it a journey, whether I am ever published or not. Anyway, anything that will help us know and enjoy the world around us more is worth the time and effort….Read on, my friends!!

By: Tina S

Tina S — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 19:36:47 +0000

I love well-researched historicals, but have a hard time reading medieval romances because I’m a medieval history student so it’s hard to forget that the middle ages weren’t really romantic, and that upper class people didn’t often marry for love-I can’t suspend my disbelief that far.

I also have a fun personal anecdote, I was watching Jeopardy with my family and my brother in law had been making fun of me for reading romances-thinks I’m too smart for them! But the final Jeopardy question was something about a French diplomat that spent some time in the Russian court as a woman and the British one as a man and I knew it was the Chevalier D’Eon from reading Jo Beverly’s Devillish and not because I’d read it in any of my history books. I gloated for weeks over that and no one makes fun of my reading material anymore!

By: mesadallas

mesadallas — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 15:44:11 +0000

I agree that historical romance novels are often told from the point of view of a character or the author which can be inacurate. However, they often act as a springboard which encourages me to delve deeper into the time periods of the story and do further research. They also serve as a good way to aquant people with the dress, lanquage, and everyday life of people of different time-periods.

By: barbie

barbie — Sat, 05 Mar 2011 21:39:09 +0000

What i like about reading historical romances is that i have to remember no cell phones no tv no techology! But I like the fact that I have to research a certain time period to understand where the moral/value system is coming from. I enjoy that but I like my technology.

By: Barbara

Barbara — Sat, 05 Mar 2011 16:36:01 +0000

I too have expaneded my knowledge of history through reading romance novels. The Outlander series is definitely one of those that takes you right to the place in history, whether in France, Scotland or the Colonies. The uprisings in India, the Napoleonic Wars, and the Spice Wars are the ones that immediately come to mind as events that I have learned about in romance novels.

Since the majority of romance that I read are Regency, England and especially London are easily pictured in my mind. When I had the chance to go to London and Wales I jumped at the chance. Here was my opportunity to see the places I had always read about but didn’t have a true picture of. I only had 3 days in London but I did it all. The Serpentine, Hyde Park, St. James Park, Parliament, Buckingham Palace (the queen was not in residence so I actually got a ticket to go through the public rooms), Kensington Palace and the British Museum. I stayed in the Mayfair area and walked the same streets as many a H/H. I not only used my guidebook, but I could picture what the areas looked like in the early 1800′s. What fun!

By: Lee

Lee — Sat, 05 Mar 2011 14:58:32 +0000

I never even heard of Culloden until I read the Outlander series. Or the Indian Mutiny until I read Kaye or the First Anglo-Afghan War (soo relative to what’s going on now) until I read Emma Drummond. Good authors, like the ones that have been mentioned by everyone, take history and weave it into the story seamlessly, so you get a great love story in a momentous time in history. When the history takes over, it’s not as enjoyable to me, becomes more like a lecture. But done right, ahhh, it’s sublime.