Because sometimes I need a happy ending.
At first, I was going to call this post Guilty Pleasures, but then I wondered what I have to feel guilty about. They are books. I love books. I am willing to give any book and any genre a chance. Yes, there are some I gravitate towards more than others, but I’m not going to discount a book just because someone calls it "cheesy" or "fluff" or whatever. I have been reading contemporary, ebook, romances. Mostly from Melissa Foster, a few from Bella Andre, some from Gena Showalter and Juliana Stone, and most recently, Merry Farmer.
It first started with Bella Andre. I can't remember why I read the first book in the Sullivan series. I remember it was free at the time. In The Look of Love, boy saves a girl, but the girl also has to learn how to save herself. She escapes a bad relationship, finds freedom, and also find a super hot guy. Also he’s rich.
A lot of these people tend to be rich, at least one of the two main characters. Some are billionaires, some just live comfortably. They often on their own business that they’ve built from the ground up. A lot of the times, they work hard and don’t have time for relationships. Some of the men and women are more promiscuous then their partner, but love changes them or they see others in love and it changes them before they meet "the one". Usually the men come from a big family. They love their parents or at least one parent, they yearn for love, but often feel they don’t deserve it.
So maybe there’s a formula to a lot of these books, but I don’t care. Melissa Foster has become a favourite of these ebook romance authors. Though she writes about alpha males, females are independent, intelligent and strong-willed. They often don’t have time for relationships too. They are trying to build a business, or move forward with their lives in someway. They don’t necessarily need a man, but when the right one comes along they can’t resist each other, most of them often try. No matter who these people are or what trouble they have to overcome, there is always a happy ending.
Lately, I’ve needed happy endings. The world is kind of being a difficult place to live in. After a hard day, after reading the news and watching emotional videos, after listening to abrasive, emotional, commentary, I need a happy ending. I love reading all sorts of book, but they don’t always have happy endings. I don’t want to spoil anything for anyone, but I wouldn’t call the end of Empire of Storms happy. The Ministry of Utmost Happiness is only kind of happy at the end, the entire novel is laced with sadness. Even the end of the second Wonder Woman graphic novel I read left me a little angry. The Rules of Magic made me cry, as well as Anne Of Green Gables. Sometimes, I just want things to work out. I wanted a man and a woman to be together. I wanted the business to flourish. I wanted the little girl to get adopted.
I have to make a quick comment about why I added Merry Farmer to the mix. I think I was just looking at the Goodreads Giveways page when I saw a book that was number four in a series called Nerds of Paradise! Nerds! Like actual rocket scientists. Nerds who meet small town ranchers, farmers, etc. Boy nerds and girl nerds. I couldn't resist a title like that, so I checked out the series. The first one, Opposites Attract is free, so I read it. I have read the second and third novels since.
So, when I need a happy ending, these authors are who I go to. The books only take a day or two to read, and I am left feeling satisfied. For a few moments (maybe longer), I feel like things can work out. People can be nice. Love will win.
