Groveling is a powerful thing. When it’s done right, it can demonstrate that a hero or heroine has truly changed, that they understand the flaws of their past behavior and are ready to be not so much of an asshat. Sometimes, depending on the plot, the happy ending rests on the strength of the groveling scene.
Groveling in a romance is something we’ve talked about before – particularly in the big behemoth thread from a few years ago on rape in romance. There’s some powerful juju in hearing someone say, “I was wrong. I was so, so wrong.” Whether it’s mistaken identity or stupidly large misunderstandings, or misunderstanding the heroine when she said she wasn’t a prostitute (“I thought you said, ‘I look hot in a suit!’”), the groveling and asking for forgiveness can do a lot in the hands of a skilled writer to strengthen a character, and establish the possibility for a true happy ending.
Insufficient groveling can be problematic – this was the basis of my problem with Anna Campbell’s Claiming the Courtesan when I read it. And sometimes the groveling is absent altogether. I received this email from a reader recently:
I just read a craptastic book by Diana Palmer involving an alpha male that
I found, okay, okay, bought >: ( and am so angry!So the hero (psshhh) is a cowboy/millionaire who is the object of a girl’s
crush and basically treats the girl like crap through the whole book and I
keep reading and reading and finish the book and felt completely ripped off!
I was contemplating why I hated it so much and I realize that there was no
grovel scene! The only way I allow the hero to act like an ass is because I
am waiting for the wonderful great part where he makes it up to me, um . . .
I mean her, by the fantastic grovel/apology/gesture/change he willing to
make because of luurve. I know that I’m not the only reader who loves this
cathartic part of the book and would love a suggestion of some books that
have great groveling. I need to heal and take this awful taste of
shenanegans out of my mouth!
It occurred to me that we’ve never done a list of books that really satisfy those readers who enjoy the gesture or groveling of a formerly-asshatted hero. What books rocked your socks in terms of the grovel – and which books didn’t have nearly enough?
Becca, I absolutely agree about the groveling in Bed of Roses. I had a few issues with how the heroine thought to deal with the situation, and her reaction. Mutual groveling, at the least. (Still not
convinced what the hero did was all that bad.)
I remember one of Eloisa James’s books had insufficiency groveling, but I can’t remember which one. It was an early one, Potent/Midnight/Enchanting Pleasures. I thought the heroine let him off the hook waaaay too easily.
I agree with the Kleypas/Devil in Winter grovel—Sebastian was my favorite hero of the Wallflower series simply because he had the most growth, the most believable growth, due to his earlier grovelling.
The Roberts/Bed of Roses hero, Jack, is one of my favorites as well, even though the book only came out, what, a week ago? Her heroes are always pretty straightforward and understandable, and that’s just a sign of good writing, that we get to see His thought processes as much as Hers, but for some reason I loved Jack more than many of Roberts’ other heroes.
The first book in this series, Vision in White, has a nice grovel from the heroine, which you don’t see very often. And it may be less grovel than “A-ha!” moment, but it’s still nice to see Mac realizing her ridiculousness. Frankly, I think this “Bride Quartet” series might turn out to be one of my favorite Roberts reads ever.
I recently found myself totally entranced by Kresley Cole’s “Immortals After Dark” series, which I love because of the way her heroes are strong and smart and special but are completely dependent (for their own well-being) upon the happiness and safety and sexual satisfaction of the females. And I don’t usually like paranormals. Dark Desires After Dusk, Cadeon’s story, is heartbreaking, simply because he knows, the entire time he’s with Holly, that he’s going to betray her, and he keeps trying to find ways to avoid it and can’t. Luckily, she’s pretty kick-ass and doesn’t exactly need him when push comes to shove (which I applaud), but you watch this long road you know is leading to an impossibly huge grovel at the end. And even though it’s not the world’s longest grovel, it contains some pretty strong elements of sacrifice and expressions of understanding and love.
The most recent Jayne Ann Krentz/Jayne Castle
I was severely pissed off that the hero never really apologized to the heroine. He makes her life much worse, his whole family and everyone that knows him keeps picking at her for not treating him well enough, and he never has to take any responsibility for his behavior. He makes a vague noise to appease her and she forgives him everything. (2 paragraphs maybe?)
With most JAK heroine’s, I understand why they are forgiving the hero. This one needed at leaset another few months of the cold shoulder.
GRRRRRrrrrrrrrr.
Abusers are capable of groveling. Apologies and promises to reform are part of the cycle of abuse. Which is why I also need to see some kind of behavioral change in the asshat hero to believe in the HEA.
Nora gets it, and several of her MacKades do a great grovel. But my favorite is Wulfric in Mary Balogh’s Slightly Dangerous.
Miles’ grovel/non-grovel to Ekatarin the Bujold’s Civil Campaign: nothing like an alpha determined to grovel better than anyone else.
Not a book but if you’re in the mood for a movie I love the modern version of Sabrina, especially the end when Harrison Ford’s character shows up in Paris and grovels to Sabrina for the way he treated her and promises to make her happy in the future. Oh yeah and he grovels to her dad in the scene before that too. Great stuff.
As usual whenever these questions pop up I’m drawing a blank, though I know I’ve read several books with fantastic groveling.
So, am I the only one who hated Sarah more than Roman in Sarah’s Child? Not that I liked Roman, but I felt that Howard gave us enough good introspective moments with him that as much he sucked he could still reasonably be forgiven with enough groveling. But Sarah? Every time I was subjected to that stupid bitch’s thoughts I kept hoping Howard was pulling a genre switch and Roman would turn into the crazed serial killer who would kill the TSTL secondary character. And I felt the same exact way about the “heroines” in the the two other Howard books I tried before giving up on the author.
I love almost all of Julia Quinn’s books – she’s one of my favorite romantic comedy authors – but the one book that frustrated me so much with its LACK of a grovel was The Duke and I. I couldn’t believe that Daphne never, ever apologized to her husband for what had read to me
***SPOILER WARNING****
like a really nasty instance of marital rape (committed by her against him).
**END OF SPOILER*****
It really ruined their HEA for me, and it’s the one Bridgerton novel I immediately gave away and never read again.
Henofthewoods, I felt the same way about that book (Obsidian Prey by Jayne Castle). I got why he did what he did, but I wanted him to show more understanding of how his actions negatively affected her and express remorse. He did lie to her and betray her after all. A big flaw for an otherwise enjoyable hero.
Captain Wentworth, in Jane Austen’s Persuasion doesn’t just grovel, he commits his grovelling to paper, and thus writes the best apology/declaration love letter I’ve ever encountered.
I definitely think the Judith McNaught fans have a point about her grovel scenes. The dual grovelling in Almost Heaven was good stuff, but does Royce’s public humiliation/beating in Kingdom of Dreams count as grovelling? (I say yes!) If so, nothing can beat that…
As aside: There is no amount of grovelling that could have possibly saved Whitney, My Love for me.
I just found a copy of Indiscreet by Mary Balogh. The book is out of print, but it has some pretty good groveling.
The heroine is living life in a small village when Mr. Viscount comes along and decides he’d like to spend some time bedding her to cure his boredom. He accuses her several times of being a tease because she continues to deny him despite the obvious chemistry. He’s really a jerk throughout the book-unwilling to accept her refusal and punishing her for refusing him.
They end up married because he compromised her reputation because he was…wait for it….indiscreet. We later come to find out that she was raped by a well known rake, delivered a premature baby that later dies and was exiled by her family to the village because she refused to marry her rapist. Mr. Viscount grovels because his refusal to accept NO as an answer to a possible dalliance, punishing her for her refusal, compromising her reputation- which results in what is initially a loveless marriage- is all pretty horrible. He apologizes profusely naturally and even duels her rapist.
AWESOME!
Reading this thread brings home to me (again) how different readers can be in their tastes and perceptions. What actions require groveling, what is a sufficient grovel, what is too little too late—fascinating questions that we obviously answer differently.
I don’t like book-ending grovel scenes usually; I’m with those up-thread who want to see the reformed behavior, not just hear the apology (however good it is). This is particularly true for me when there’s a pattern of behavior, not just one inciden.
I’m guessing it was Potent Pleasures. I really liked that one early on, but the “hero’s” jealous accusations and abandonment of the the heroine still piss me off. If I remember correctly, *SPOILER ALERT*
….he ships her off after the wedding night b/c she wasn’t a virgin (turns out he was the deflowerer years ago and didn’t recognize her), takes her back, then dumps her again when for no good reason that I can recall he believes that their baby is really his twin brother’s. He turns up just in time for her to give birth, afraid she’s gonna die, after (maybe?) his brother convinces him that the baby is really his.
This last scene kind of reminded me of the Diary of Miss Miranda Cheever. Yeah, the hero was scared, but where’s the long, heartfelt, DESERVED apology?
@Darlene Marshall – you are so right. The twisting characterization was amazing, and the end? Totally made me cry. I freaking loved that book.
Love both the P&P and the Persuasion scenes.
Sarah’s Child had a sequel (can’t remember the name) that really needed a grovel scene and didn’t get it. He seduced her for inside info his company needed and then says her problems are her insecurities which she just needs to get over. I don’t think there was even a general apology.
My other fave is Laura Kinsale’s Flowers from the Storm. The Duke speaks in the Quaker meeting house, struggling with his speech (post-stroke? I always wondered), telling her of his love; that he would go down on his knees if she asked; that he wanted no one else to raise his bastard daughter ‘cause no one else could teach her bravery. I love this passage, it’s too long to quote all of it: “. . . . fornication? I called it . . . love for you. Before God . . . love . . . honor . . . my wife . . . cherish all my days. I said it. Still truth, Maddy. Still the truth . . . in me, and always,” Then, he tells her he will wait outside 5 minutes and she must come then or never. And then he waits, and waits, and waits till she does come out. I think I cried the first time I read it. Still my favorite.
My thumbs down goes to The Pirate Prince by Gaelen Foley. Here I was enjoying the story when suddenly, about the last quarter of the book, the hero does a—well, maybe not a 180 but he did start to make a turn for the worse, and for no real reason. The guy started to piss me off royally. But wait! He realizes he’s done wrong and even says to his pirate crew that he has to do some groveling, so I’m ready to give him a second chance. He’d better get on his knees and shed some tears or something, I’m thinking. The hero shows up just in time to save the heroine’s life. Okay, here it comes! Here comes the great groveling scene! And………….nuttin’. I can’t even recall if he ever said he was sorry for his asshat behaviour. I was totally, totally ticked off and the only reason now I remember reading the book is because of the way it made me feel mad.
As for a thumbs up choice, I’m going to go totally out of the field and say the best groveling scene I remember came from a soap opera years ago. It was As The World Turns. I can’t remember the characters names, I think the woman was Emily. She and this businessman/crime boss were starting to get hot and heavy then something caused them to argue. I don’t recall over what but I do remember Emily told the guy the only way she’d take him back was if he came crawling back on his hands and knees. Later, at some kind of event they end up dancing a sexy tango in front of everyone and get really turned on. Emily returns alone to her apartment when the doorbell rings. She opens the door and there’s the businessman/crime boss – down on his hands and knees! See, it’s stayed with me after all this time. That’s a grovel for you.
For some reason early Jude Devereaux books are coming to mind. Lyons Lady and Twin of Ice were my favs of hers. And I even believe that Lyons Lady’s many groveling scenes even included the Heroine disguising herself as a Camp Servent to follow her estranged husband. She ends up learning to belly dance (or some kind of strip routine) to entice him and then can follow through with the seduction cuz he thinks she’s a servent girl (but by then he’s figured it out already). Anywho, later on there are many many opportunities for him to grovel also. Including our heroine being kidnapped by a home-wrecker intent on her man and when she is rescued she is basically IN LABOR and the grovel scene during and after delivery is pure gold.
I think another book of hers is Temptation? Not sure if that is the right name. The hero’s family practically destitute and he weds the lovely lady for her money although she is convinced that she can make him love her. He’s an absolute ASSHAT most of the book until she finally shows some gumption and cleans house (literally).
Hmmmm I have to dig these up now to re-read. Jude’s were my first historicals way back before puberty. Not crazy about her recent stuff but her 80-90’s books are pure goodness :0)
I always liked the scene in Krentz’ Family Man where the hero tries to cook a gourmet meal for the heroine. It’s not really a grovel, but he is making a fool of himself in an effort to convince her to marry him.
My least favorite nongrovel is an old Linda Howard, the name of which I have mercifully forgotten. The “hero” destroys the heroine’s business, causing her to lose her home, because he mistakenly believes she is involved in something illegal. He even realizes he is mistaken, but figures it doesn’t matter because he is going to marry her and take care of her anyway. Aaarghh.
Second the love for the grovel, and many of the favorites others have already mentioned.
Darlene:
This was Edith Layton’s ABANDONED BRIDE. As many have noted, the lady could write and *awesome* grovel (and a very very early mainstream romance of a [spoilerific] trope-busting.
Also loved, loved, loved Miles’s apology letter in CIVIL CAMPAIGN. Totally in alpha character, yet literally sealed in his own blood.
I also have a soft spot for Patricia Veryan’s DEDICATED VILLAIN, which was basically the hero’s book length grovel to just about everyone for his behavior in the previous five books of the series.
And, just to prove I read new books occasionally, Julie James’s PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT has a very short, but very sweet, concluding grovel.
@Kristina- I was so thinking of Jude’s stuff as well. “Velvet Promise” seems to ring a bell- hero rapes wife on wedding night (which isn’t the biggest issue) but then doesn’t get his ex-mistress to STFU, wife ends up having a miscarriage thanks to an accident caused by said ex…anywho- I recall there being a great deal of remorse communicated in that book and found it quite believable and touching. There’s also the matter of LOVING heroines that don’t immediately respond with a “omg, you apologized for being a complete and total ass, breaking my heart, treating me like crap and I luuuuurrrrrve you so much NOW that you apologized this ONCE.”
Johanna Lindsey has also done some wonderful grovel scenes. Can’t recall particular books right now though…
To someone who mentioned Mr. Rochester above- I think his groveling was pretty well noted in that scene with Jane shortly before she left him. Didn’t work toward an immediate reconciliation but it was still one of the most heart rending scenes I’ve read to date (those are the kind of grovel scenes I like- no quick forgiveness, reconciliation).
Catherine Coulter’s Rebel Bride is still the one that gets me so mad I could spit. Julien not only commits ultimate betrayal, then he blames HER for how angry he gets, and he never truly apologized to her. Then he gets to be the HERO at the end because her dad is an evil evil bastard. Whoooo…
The letter I got from CC basically telling me to get over it after I read it didn’t make it any better; I never write to authors, but I was SO angry… “That’s how we wrote the books back then” for a re-published edition doesn’t fly as an excuse.
His apology is sincere and touching, but not good enough for our Jane. I think that’s the thing I love most about her. She still loves the bejesus out of Rochester, but the offer isn’t good enough for her.
@Julia- Oh, I think what was best about Mr. Rochester’s apology was that it didn’t work to woo (sp?) her back, however it was one of the best groveling/sincere apology/please forgive me for being an ass scenes ever. I almost always hate groveling scenes that end in a “You apologized now I take you back”. Just never strikes me as quite true to life. Gotta love the heroine more for saying “I love you, but I just can’t….” Because of how it played out I was in tears and I can’t ask for any more than that in a groveling sequence. 😉
Same goes with Scarlett- loved her epiphany but gotta admit that Rhett wouldn’t have been the hero he was if he hadn’t given her that lovely line as a response.
Laura (in PA)>
Your thinking of The Return of Rafe Mackade. Just finished it.
Any picks I had have already been taken, sooo…
@hapax—Yes! That was it. Thanks for the reminder.
I’m not surprised that I scene I remember that well was written by Layton. *sigh*
I’ve been going ‘oh, of course’, as I read these comments. Yes to P&P and Persuasion and Slightly Dangerous. There’s also Suzanne Enoch’s The Rake, where the Hero and Heroine both get to grovel.
Another one that could have done with a bit of grovelling is The Spymaster’s Lady, by Joanna Bourne. On the whole I really enjoyed the book. One of the only things that anoys me is that Grey didn’t appologise for his appalling behaviour at the beginning, when he treated Annique with complete contempt. Eventually the penny drops – she wasn’t responsible for the ambush of his men – but does he say sorry for kidnapping, drugging and dominating her? Nooo.
Um… accidentally clicked ‘submit’ before I’d finished. Or edited.
There are some good moments in fantasy as well, like when Fainne sings to Darragh at the end of Child of the Prophecy (not my favourite book, but it’s a good moment). Even better is Fitz’s grovelling to the Fool after The Fight in Robin Hobb’s The Golden Fool. The tension is so hot.
@aadttsm – Fire Song is another of Catherine Coulter’s books that makes me so angry. Graelam (aka the uber-asshat) does every horrible thing imaginable to Kassia, including rape, cheating on her with one of his servants and getting her pregnant (then shipping HER off to marry someone else), accusing Kassia of kidnapping herself and then offering to forgive her if she’ll only says she’s sorry, etc… and then there is a two-second grovel session at the very end of the book. The grovelling isn’t even because he realized he was a douchebag, but because he found out from someone else that he was wrong! Gah!
Jane O, I think the Linda Howard book you referenced is ‘Loving Evangeline’ and there was not near enough groveling to redeem that book.
I think if people mess up because they’re human and admit they’re wrong and apologize and make amends then that works for me. But I want to hear ‘I was wrong’ or some variation of such. A lot of old-school romances were real turn-offs for me because it was like asshattery was the name of the game instead of genuine human faults.
Has anyone read the book Silver Angel by Johanna Lindsey? There were several parts that could be redeemed (maybe too strong a word) by a good, healthy, floor-licking grovel. And speaking of rape in romance, wow, this book was chalked full of forced seduction. Reeeally didn’t do it for me
Double Standards by Judith McNaught
I love the grovel scene. It makes me cry every time I read it. The guy really was a total ass. If I remember correctly, he comes to apologize to the heroine at her dad’s house while she is decorating for Christmas. She is standing on a ladder and he grovels and basically begs her to take him back by hugging her legs. Great imagery putting her higher than him.
Just awesome.
I swear this thread of comments is having me furiously scribble titles down both on my “to read” list and “don’t read” list- the latter I’m totally thinking of actually formulating thanks to the ladies of the bitchery.
I’m an equal opportunity groveller, which means I’m still looking for books where the heroine is allowed to be an asshat and have a great grovel scene.
Is that so wrong?
Hmm put me in as a vote for Darcy. That book kind of defines it all.
Bet Me by Jennifer Crusie is kind of amazing in its uniqueness. Its climax involves both hero and heroine trying to grovel at the same time, all while trying to have hot foreplay/conversation in the living room. Meanwhile, everyone and their cat decides to come over for a visit, knocking on the front door to share their opinion on the groveling/relationship.
And someone here mentioned Susan Elizabeth Phillips. Her books always have first class groveling. In fact her character’s tend to spend most of the book atoning for some major character flaw or another. If one character is really a jerk the other gets a first class tell-off scene before the asshat atones. Natural Born Charmer is one of my favorite stories hands down. Made me cry.
the last few johanna lindsey novels didn’t have anywhere near enough grovelling to cover for all the asshattery, in my opinion. but honestly, between the heroine being such a blatant mary sue and the hero being such a tool (no, i’m sorry, your hungry hungry penis only gets to be an excuse for idiocy for so many pages, and then you get to TAKE RESPONSIBILITY for your behavior), “no choice but seduction” (and the TITLE, omg, are you serious?) was as close as i get to a wallbanger. and then the classic excuse in “captive of my desires”, “but….but she was a pirate! that excuses everything, right? well, ok, her dad’s the pirate, BUT STILL!”
and “devil’s web” by mary balogh? what a letdown. she’d been building up to their relationship for two whole books and then the “hero” spends the whole book being a jerkwad and the heroine does most of the grovelling with all her self-loathing. ugh.
Thanks to Caroline, up above, who mentioned Flowers from the Storm by Laura Kinsale. Yes, that groveling nearly made me cry too…
In Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series, Jamie and Claire both do a fair amount of groveling, repeatedly throughout the series thus far.
It’s funny this topic has arisen, as yesterday I finished “Captain Fawley’s Innocent Bride” by Annie Burrows and I was quite bothered. I spent the whole book waiting for the big well deserved grovel but in the end what little there was of it was too little too late for me. I enjoyed the plot immensely (love a good angry wounded hero story), as the hero not only has facial scarring, but is missing a hand and a foot. The heroine is a shy plain Jane who is secretly in love with the hero but he has barely noticed her. He behaves appallingly to her, flipping between being a real asshat, who doesn’t want to believe he is wrong about his interpretation of events, to being terribly regretful of his behaviour (stemming from his mistaken assumptions about the heroine), only to keep on doing it! I get that he has issues about his disability, but I really wanted him to realise much sooner how awful he is being to her, even if he doesn’t know she loves him. No one deserves what he does and says. At the end it’s almost worse that she has to tell him how she feels because he never really shows he understands what he has put her though. I really wanted to see that because, if we are expected to like him, we needed to know that he has an honorable core. It is no use presenting an angry wounded hero unless he is shown to be redeemed. I wasn’t convinced.
This reminds me of a story I’ve been trying to find-it was a Silhouette Desire (I think) She’s a columnist in SF (again I think) and she meets this guy at a restaurant she frequents. She writes about him in her column -calls him Sam. Anyway she blows it with him and at the end basically confesses her love/grovels in her column and asks him if he forgives her to meet her at the restaurant-where a ton of people who read the column are hanging out at to see if he forgives her. Can’t for the life of me remember the name :(. but a great example of the WOMAN asking for forgiveness.