i read the next book in this sportsman series im reading. Jaci Burton, "Thrown By A Curve". it was the best one in the series so far, because the characters were much more substantial and realistic than in the previous books. they did not just "fall into bed", they had genuine reservations about it, and i thought that the reservations were portrayed realistically.
also, they were portrayed as consistently using condoms. i think condoms are a major point of contention in romance fiction. i dont think that there is any way that writers of contemporary romance fictions can realistically pretend that condoms do not exist. it is totally and completely necessary to deal with condoms, for so many reasons. the reasons are so obvious that maybe it is pointless to mention them. but they have to do maybe not so much with contraception (everyone knows they prevent conception), but with respecting others, both in terms of transmissible pathogen infection, but also, and also connected to and arising from this idea of respecting someone enough to protect them from possible illness, a "psychological barrier", a respectful distance that is created in the development of intimacy. i always get annoyed when the couple becomes so impassioned that they "forget" to use the condom. this happens all the time in these novels. how is it possible to "forget" to use a condom? this is not good enough for me... if you love someone, you use a condom at times when you have not yet discussed the meaning of condoms and expectations for levels of commitment that are associated with not using them.
well i guess i just find it very interesting, the ways that these books deal with condoms.
ive decided to take a break from reading romance. ive been finding it cloying. also, it is not providing any sense of escape for me, because i have been feeling no desire within myself for close intimacy with another person.
ive decided to read childrens classics. due to my study, and stressful life events, i dont seem to have been able to concentrate on literary fiction for a pretty long time. im just so busy every day, working or studying, i dont have the energy to read historically important works of literature. too exhausted, too much concentration!
at the moment im about 2/3 through "Anne of Green Gables". it is light and entertaining, but also has fascinating depths to do with character and religion. im intending to read all of Montgomery's books about this character.
i guess i will post on this thread more when i am reading more romance again! or maybe when i have more thoughts about it. which i guess may end up being sooner than i hope.