This request comes from Sam. Thank you, Sam!
Sarah: I’m so frustrated because I know I’ve read books like this but I can’t remember the titles (story of my life).It’s been a rough year for me work-wise, and my confidence has taken a bit of a beating. I’m trying to pick myself up for a better year next year, but I’d love some inspiration/encouragement from my favorite genre. As such, I’d really love to read some romances about ladies getting their groove back. I’m looking for heroines who are wary to be burned again to clarify – not those looking to be adventurous for the first time.
The ones closest to what I’m thinking are more overcoming relationship-fear hurdles (along the lines of Kerrigan Byrne’s THE HIGHLANDER, Suzanne Enoch’s ENGLAND’S PERFECT HERO, Olivia Dade’s READY TO FALL, and Sarina Bowen’s HARD-HITTER), and I’m happy for recs there, but I’d really love some romances (any genre!) where the heroine’s confidence blow has come from a non-sexual place too.
Oh – Patricia Gaffney…To Have and To Hold!
Or better, To Love and To Cherish ( A | BN | K | AB ), with a vicar hero and a heroine’s horrible marriage to a man who used to be the hero’s friend. Both are quite angsty in an older historical style, though.
Not exactly relationship fear but a lot of hesitation for valid reasons: Flat-Out Sexy by Erin McCarthy ( A | K | G | AB | Au ). The heroine is a widow of a NASCAR driver who ends up in an affair with a younger man, also a driver, something she swore she’d never do again.
Forbidden by Jo Beverley. The heroine, Serena, was married to a sadistic horrible man and then he dies. Some dislike the hero in this one, while I struggled more with the depictions of her marriage and her memories, though her experiences are important to her healing.
And Talk Me Down by Victoria Dahl ( A | BN | K | G | AB ) – one of her earliest (if not the first) contemporary. The heroine, Molly, is an erotic fiction author who has a creepy ex, so she returns to her tiny hometown (of course) and hello, the police chief is verrrry hot. The heroine isn’t so much restoring her sexual confidence as she is restoring her sexual creativity in writing, but this book made me laugh a lot.
Carrie: Persuasion by Jane Austen ( A | BN | K | G | AB | Au )
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte ( A | BN | K | G | AB | Au | Scribd )
Fast Women by Jennifer Crusie ( A | BN | K | G | AB )
There’s one on the tip of my tongue but I can’t remember anything about it.
Amanda: I know I just mentioned Roman Crazy ( A | BN | K | G | AB ) in the travel romance rec league and I think that fits here too! Heroine is finishing up a divorce and goes to Italy with her friend for the summer.
And the Wanderlust by Lauren Blakely. I’m listening to it on audio with Richard Armitage has the hero narrator. The heroine is a chemist who takes a job in Paris. She just got out of a long term relationship and she’s in her 30s and she’s in no rush to get back into a relationship. (It’s something she tells the hero when he first asks her out.)
What other romances would you recommend? Any books that Sam just has to read?
Oh! What about the Lady Julia Grey mysteries, beginning with SILENT IN THE GRAVE? Lady Julia’s husband, who was like, fine, dies, and, after a year of mourning in which her life basically ground to a halt, Lady Julia ends up investigating his death with the help of an attractive fellow…
Also, HOW SWEET IT IS by Melissa Brayden, an f/f contemporary wherein our heroine is living a quiet life, mourning the death of her partner and working at her bakery, when her partner’s younger sister comes back to town…
And! FRENCHMAN’S CREEK by Daphne Du Maurier in which a bored society lady escapes London and goes to her husband’s estate in Cornwall, where she meets a pirate! Dresses a boy! Captains a ship! Fights off baddies! Basically, Du Maurier’s dream adventure.
*Dresses as a boy – sigh
Not a book, but the movie Bridesmaids has this.
How about LIBERATING LACEY by one of my favorite romance writers, Anne Calhoun? Lacey has gotten divorced after a long marriage (her husband left her for a younger, socially well-connected woman). Lacey’s husband has been her only sex partner and she decides to shake things up. She goes to a club and meets a hot (and younger) cop. Hot sex (and some complications) ensue.
Also, I know I sometimes make fun of Lexi Blake’s spies/espionage and bdsm mashups, but THE MEN WITH THE GOLDEN CUFFS is a good book about an erotic romance author whose ex-husband had always looked down upon her writing (even though it paid the bills) getting her groove back with two hunky bodyguards she hires to protect her from a stalker. Ménage and bdsm themes, but a lot of fun with a really likeable heroine.
Looking through my kindle content made me realize how many of my favorite historicals fit this Rec League.. Hope they give you the comfort and pick-me-up you need 🙂
-The Countess Takes a Lover – Older, very well-developed women, younger botanist man.
-The Stranger I married – Sylvia Day
-For the first time – Kathryn Smith
-Almost a gentleman – Pam Rosenthal (it’s pretty heavy, but the heroine’s character development was so rich!)
-A Marquess for Christmas – Christi Caldwell
-Sweet Disorder – Rose Lerner
-Wed at Leisure – Sabrina Darby (Taming of the Shrew adaptation, so the burn is not from her love interest, but it affects her life quite a bit)
-It Takes Two to Tangle – Theresa Romain
-All Through the Night – Connie Brockway
-And Then He Kissed Her – Laura Lee Guhrke (Blow here is both her attractiveness and her work, but her subsequent growth is well done)
-Unlocked – Courtney Milan (I would categorize this is a non-sexual blow)
-That Scandalous Evening – Christina Dodd
Edge of Glory by Rachel Spangler, ff contemp – Olympic alpine skier coming back from serious injury
Breathing Room by SEP – popular self-help guru’s life completely falls apart and she puts it back together on vacation in Tuscany
The Jade Temptress by Jeannie Lin, mf historical – courtesan has to reinvent herself
Charlie All Night by Jennifer Crusie, mf contemp – my fave of Crusie’s early categories – radio producer has to reinvent herself after being reassigned from the morning drive time slot to night
If you haven’t read it already, THE ARRANGEMENT by Mary Balogh is about a heroine whose basically been treated like a “mouse” almost her entire life and has serious self-esteem issues because of that. The hero is a war veteran who was blinded during the Napoleonic wars and they help each other regain confidence in the sweetest way possible. It’s also pretty low-angst with almost entirely internal conflict, so it that bothers you I’d give this one a skip .
There’s also THE ROPE DANCER by Roberta Gellis. In this one the heroine has no self-worth because she was in an abusive relationship until the hero who has his own insecurities helps her find value in herself. It’s also a medieval historical that actually deals with common player protagonists basically trying to stay out on of an approaching war( it doesn’t work, but the action scenes are fun).
Another Anne Calhoun: Afternoon Delight. The heroine is a chef who took a break from dating and work to care for her aunt who was dying of cancer and then moved to New York to try to become herself again. She ends up operating a food truck and runs into a hot paramedic who clearly needs to be fed lunch. Lots of hot and lovely sex, food porn, highly competent people and a clear affection for the city of New York.
Paladin of Souls by Lois McMaster Bujold, a fantasy with strong romantic elements. The heroine, Ista, is so down in the beginning that people believe her to be suicidal, but boy does she recover. (Sequel to The Curse of Chalion ).
Another Mary Balogh: ONLY A KISS. Imogen’s husband was killed during the war and it’s scarred her for reasons you don’t find out until later. I love this one because the heroine has all the wounded veteran hallmarks and the more optimistic hero has to draw her out.
I rec this everywhere but if you don’t mind fantasy, you can’t go wrong with PALADIN OF SOULS by Lois McMaster Bujold. The heroine, Ista, is the dowager queen (aged about forty) who married as a young girl and was traumatised by a family curse which has since been broken (in the previous book, but this one stands alone). The gods still have plans for her and she could not be less interested in what they might be. Ista is an absolute badass and nearly everyone is a bit afraid of her, but part of her arc is getting over her past, when she felt powerless.
@JoS Great minds!
The entire Dream trilogy by Nora Roberts (Daring to Dream, Holding the Dream, Finding the Dream) has a “getting your groove back” feel to it. All three deal with women that grew up together, and all three get a series kick to the teeth, and have to get back from it and pull their lives together, and conceive of and pull together a successful business in the process. And the third one has Michael Fury, who, awesome name aside, is probably one of my favorite heroes. He’s your basic reformed (ish) bad boy that likes kids and animals.
Blue Eyed Devil by Lisa Kleypas. The heroine faces challenges both in her personal relationships and in the workplace. Really good depictions of narcissism and gaslighting in this.
If I might recommend one of my own: One Year Past Perfect. The heroine is a physician well rid of a betraying husband. In claiming her inheritance (a house in Honolulu) from her great-aunt, she finds herself assuming the role of housekeeper in order to find out what her great-aunt was up to in renting the house just before she died. There’s also a diary being read and the heroine finds out just how strong and resilient the great-aunt was.
the Lady Darby series, the first one is the Anatomist’s Wife, by Anna Lee Huber. Historical mystery series. Lady Darby is a widow whose first husband was a abusive, both mentally and (hinted at) physically. She’s an artist who was forced to draw pictures of cadavers for her husband and the public but ostracized and humiliated her after his death. She in the course of the series she both finds love again and has to get her art groove back on track.
Not strictly a romance, but THE LIFE LIST by Lori Nelson Spielman reads as quick as a romance, is thoroughly engrossing, and will definitely fit that getting your groove back need. Brett is in line to be CEO of her family’s company, but her mother’s will says Brett must fulfill a list of seemingly impossible childhood dreams to take her place. Brett must question her current path and decide whether to reinvent herself completely, but her mother has left behind letters with words of wisdom and a little tough love.
Jewels of the Sun by Nora Roberts: The heroine’s partner dumps her which also damages her professional life, so she retreats to Ireland to regroup and find out what she really wants to do with herself. This is one of my comfort reads.
Jewels of the Sun by Nora Roberts: The heroine’s partner dumps her which also damages her professional life, so she retreats to Ireland to regroup and find out what she really wants to do with herself. This is one of my comfort reads. Oh, and similar type of plot but much sexier: Bad Boys Do by Victoria Dahl.
I second the recs for FRENCHMAN’S CREEK (Daphne DuMaurier) and anything at all by Anne Calhoun.
Bouncing back stories that aren’t related to divorce/breakups:
NO REGRETS by Claire Kent. Both the hero and heroine have to come back to life after emotional shut-downs, difficult times, etc. The story starts with the heroine having to take her elderly, sick dog to the vet for final assistance – that is extremely tough. I don’t have a dog, but it was tough for me. The hero is the on-call veterinarian. He’s very kind, and sees her sitting alone at the dog park later while he’s jogging, and approaches her to offer another word of sympathy. I think it was handled well, and the story definitely fits the “life has handed you something that knocked you down, and you need to get back up, but it takes real work and isn’t solved by sex but by time and your own choices” theme.
Also – although I can’t remember the title/author (I’m sure someone else will) — there’s a rockstar romance where the heroine has a daughter who is high functioning on the autism spectrum, and is helped by attending a very small private school, but the heroine is having a lot of money troubles and a bad ex. She works at the daughter’s school, and a rock star comes to do some music therapy … and you see where that goes. I was pleased to see a very good representation of a high functioning ASD girl, such a rare thing in the world of “Rosie Project” and “Big Bang Theory,” and it helped me personally. Although fyi, it was heavy bdsm, part of a “ranch” series, if I recall.
I have a romcom to suggest: Woman On Top, starring Penelope Cruz. She and her husband split because he can’t handle that she has to be in control (she has to drive the moped and be on top in bed because she gets motion sick if she doesn’t). She moves to a new city and starts a new career as the chef of a cooking show (she had a restaurant before, because she was born with a talent for putting her feelings into her cooking, but the tv part is new). I remember really enjoying it. Magical realism + a women getting her self confidence back.
I would suggest the Mrs. Pollifax books by Dorothy Gilman. They are about a retired woman who becomes a spy.
There’s no romance (that I remember), but I enjoyed them when I read them several years ago. A friend and I were talking about them earlier this week.
Adriana Anders’ Blank Canvas series! All three books are about damaged heroines reclaiming their confidence (sexually and otherwise). They’re on the intense side (trigger warnings for backstories involving rape/abuse/trauma) but still enjoyable, sexy reads.
Breathing Room by SEP is an excellent suggestion Cleo! Such a funny sexy book with a fabulous ending!
Oh h unni I’m right there with you. It is so hard everyday and we simply must encourage each other wipe our tears eyes to and forward. Both Jane Eyre and breathing room are so good I p,an to reread this rainy cold weekend. Thanks!
Edge of Desire by Stephanie Laurens — this is the penultimate of her Bastion Club series but it’s not necessary to have read the rest to appreciate this story. Our hero and our heroine are both hurt by each other — and of course the grand misunderstanding. good stuff.
I’ll throw out some non-romance ones: iassume everyone has read it by now, but the guernsey literary and potato peel society I think meets this req. bitter is the new black by Jen Lancaster (memoir about a woman who lost her job and has lots of hilarious temp jobs before finding a career as a writer). In terms of romance, I would also recommend getting rid of Bradley by Jennifer Crusie.
I loved Live: by Mary Ann Rivers . The heroine is out of work. So good.
Also, Deeper: A Novel (Caroline & West Book 1) Kindle Edition
by Robin York . The heroine ex uses revenge porn. Her coming back into her own is amazing. Shameless by Sarina Bowen is also really good.
I’m going to echo the people who recommended The Dream Trilogy, although it is a little dated (it came out in 1996, guys!). I reread the entire trilogy about a year ago and reviewed it on my blog: http://www.mylittlebookcorner.com/2017/03/throwback-review-dream-trilogy-by-nora.html. Mostly, it held up, although the heroes of the first two books were a little too controlling for my present tastes.
I also want to suggest her Three Sisters’ Island Trilogy. This one came out around the time I was in high school (I’d like to say 2002-2003), and at first the only one that I thought fit this description was Dance Upon the Air (the first book), but I realized that Heaven & Earth and Face the Fire do as well. The first book’s heroine, Nell, was running from an abusive ex husband when she started dreaming of Three Sisters’ Island and decided to go there. The second book’s heroine, Ripley, wasn’t hurt romantically, but was afraid of the power she had inside of her–all three women are witches. If this book was written today, she might actually be described as being on the edge of becoming an Obscurus–but that might just be the Harry Potter nerd in me coming out. The final book’s heroine, Mia, had trouble trusting her ex, who was also her hero, and Ripley because they’d both abandoned her when she needed them the most. Her book is about forgiveness and being able to get her life back together again.
A more recent series that may fit is Sarah Morgan’s From Manhattan with Love, starting with Sleepless in Manhattan. In that book, heroine and her two best friends are let go from their jobs and start their own event planning company. I really enjoyed the first three books in the series. Starting with the fourth book, there is a different set of characters (siblings) and I think they fit too. In New York, Actually, the heroine was a disgraced psychologist/tv personality, whose life was turned completely upside down, so she moved to NY (from the UK) and started over again. I haven’t read the other two books in this trilogy, but they’re about sisters whose childhoods scarred them.
Last, there is The Ones Who Got Away by Roni Loren. One of the bitches reviewed it a few weeks ago, which caused me to check it out. It was so good, but it was about survivors of a school shooting (12 years after the fact).
Both Relationship Goals by Christina C Jones and Back in the Saddle by Karen Templeton fit, I think. Maybe also Ghost Dance by Catherine Gayle, though it’s somewhat more subtle there — you don’t really get why she’s doing what she’s doing until background stuff is revealed pretty close to the end of the book.
Mrs Pollifax (Dorothy Gilman) is in a series of books and ultimately marries a retired judge sheerts on a safari she takes as an undercover agent for the CIA. She continues to be a spy after she marries.
I just started Tempting the Billionaire by Jessica Lemmon, whose contemporary romances are a favourite of mine. The main character lost her professional and personal confidence after her divorce and the book is about her getting it back.
Also, I don’t see that much Jessica Lemmon love around here. Her contemporary romances are my favourites after Julie James.
I’ve been reading some Jill Mansell, which are maybe more chicklit than romance but do include romance. The one that might be the best fit is A Walk in the Park. The main character moves back to the childhood town she left without a word, bringing her teenage daughter. Meanwhile, her best friend walks away from her wedding because she discovers her fiance was cheating on her. They’re humorous and silly, but also deal with some real issues.
I love Mrs Pollifax, and I loved that she did get a romance halfway through the series!
I also think Joanna Bourne’s The Spymaster’s Lady and Rogue Spy could fit – in the first the heroine is a spy trying to escape from that life, and in the second she’s a former spy in hiding who gets thrown back into spying. Black Hawk also has a retired spy trying to start a new life after the Napoleonic Wars.
Ooh, what about Rock Hard by Nalini Singh? Charlotte spends the whole book coming out of her shell and gaining confidence after a horrible college relationship (TW for stalking and abuse). She’s got an amazing best friend, and the hero, who’s a former rugby player, is so gentle and patient with her, and it’s amazing to watch her transform into someone who can snap back at him and handle business deals on her own. It is a workplace romance, but once of the few that I really like, and Gabriel, the hero, is very clear about asking for Charlie’s consent before doing anything.
It’s the second in Singh’s contemporary series, but definitely stands alone as Charlotte & Gabriel are secondary characters in the rest of the series.
Big Girls Don’t Cry and The Other Woman, by Brenda Novak. One book each about two women getting their groove back after finding out they were “married” to the same man.
Marking Time, by Marie Force (the second book in the “Treading Water” series, about a woman who comes out of a three-year coma to find her husband has fallen in love with someone else).
Jane Eyre is the best book ever. I’ve re-read it many times since I first read it when I was about 10, and as I get older, I find new things in it to appreciate and new perspectives. That said I wouldn’t categorize it as “getting her groove back” — more as finding it/developing it.
In all three books in the Windchime series by Sophie Moss the heroines get their groove back and overcome pending unemployment, personal tragedy, and PTSD.
Also, Ice Games by Jessica Clare – mf contemporary. 3rd in the series but stand-alone. Discraced Olympic ice skater competes on a reality tv show that’s like Dancing with the Stars but on ice skates.
I’ll second the recs for Rock Hard, Paladin of Souls, Adriana Anders and Marie Force’s Treading Water series! These are awesome.
One of my comfort reads, Vanessa Vale’s NAKED CHOKE (re-issued as FIGHT FOR HER), fits this request (my Goodreads review: “All the feels! No D/s, no kink, no BS! Great heroine, TDF alpha hero (not alphole!)”.
And Barbara Bretton’s THE DAY WE MET (maybe that’s still a freebie for Kindle?).
I’m a little late to this party, but I have been preaching the gospel of Mrs. Pollifax for years. I want to be her when I grow up. My go to comfort reads when I need a dose of wisdom and quiet competence.