Robin Uncapher, canwetalk moderator/At the Back Fence co-columnist - Ever since the day my mother slyly told me that I was too young for Jane Eyre, and would not enjoy it, I have been scanning history for "the good parts." How nice that the romance genre exists for people like me!

Lots of books interest me but, in addition to romance, I gravitate toward English classics, history, biographies, literary fiction and poetry. My list of favorite romance writers includes (the incomparable) Carla Kelly, Mary Jo Putney, Mary Balogh, Jo Beverly, Deborah Simmons, Julie Garwood, Karen Ranney and Adele Ashworth (only one book so far, but what a book!). I suspect my weakness for books like Pride and Prejudice and David Copperfield gives me a soft spot for historicals, but I also enjoy contemporaries by Elizabeth Lowell and Susan Elizabeth Phillips.

On a personal note, I have a small training consulting business in Bethesda, Maryland, developing programs for large banks and insurance companies. I have been married for twenty plus years and have two small children If you check way back on my resume you will find a BA in history from The George Washington University in Washington, DC.

Jane Jorgenson, Senior Reviewer - I'm a reference librarian and I work in a mystery bookstore. Still I don't get enough of books, my home is overflowing and I'm constantly on the hunt for new shelving. I've been a romance and mystery reader since I was twelve. The shelves in my old room at my parents' house are still filled with old Harlequins and Regencies, as well as the Trixie Belden and Perry Mason mysteries I collected as a young teen.

In addition to romance and mystery, I also enjoy an occasional fantasy or science fiction novel. I currently write mystery reviews for the bookstore and political/psychological thriller reviews for a professional journal. I'm also attempting to write a mystery of my own (although it's becoming something of a lifetime effort). The authors on my keeper shelf include J.D. Robb, Jane Feather, Julie Garwood, Charlaine Harris, and Kate Flora, among others.

I'm 34, with a B.A. in History and a Masters in Library Science. I grew up in Wisconsin, where I am once again living, after a couple of years on the east coast.

Teresa Galloway, MySpace editor, - I started reading romances in eighth grade when my English teacher recommended Pride and Predjudice, and I found that after halfway through, I couldn't put it down! After reading far too many series romances in high school, I slacked off in college and began reading contemporary single titles again in graduate school.

My favorite contemporary authors are Suzanne Brockmann, Linda Howard, and Susan Elizabeth Phillips - I like my romance with a lot of sizzle factor! When I read Historicals I gravitate to Lorraine Heath, Pamela Morsi and Catherine Anderson. No Regency author can top Jane Austen, but Mary Balogh and Carla Kelly are my favorites.

I'm currently a graduate student in linguistics, and slowly working on my dissertation. I have also worked occasionally as an American Sign Language interpreter and graphic artist. I married my college sweetheart in 1994 and last year gave birth to our first child. In my so-called spare time, I enjoy knitting, gardening, and watching Law and Order.