Are you all ready to harness your collective powers for another Rec League? This request comes from Anna:
This question was inspired by your recent Silver Fox Rec League.
Could you recommend me some books where the hero is more mature and self-aware than the heroine, and comes to terms with his feelings far quicker than she does, teaching her something about herself in the process?
This theme is my ultimate catnip, but I only managed to find a few book based around this premise (What I Did for a Duke by Julie Anne Long, Slightly Dangerous by Mary Balogh, Kulti by Mariana Zapata, Her Best Worst Mistake by Sarah Mayberry, and Pretty Face by Lucy Parker).
I would be more than grateful, if you managed to come up with some more titles focused on this theme.
Amanda: I like to call this the “mentor” trope and I think it’s a situation often seen is ward/guardian pairings.
I’m drawing a blank on recommendations that I can personally give, but I’ve added this trope to our Book Repository. So feel free to check back in the future as we build up the database!
Sarah: The Paper Magician by Charlie N. Holmberg is about a young woman who is apprenticed to a paper magician after graduating from a magical academy. Ceony is not pleased about it, because other magics are more flashy and have more panache, and once she’s apprenticed to one form, that’s the only form she can practice. Of course the magician, Thane, is pretty nifty and mysterious. The romance develops very slowly then very abruptly, but I really liked the magical world building and the rules of magical practice.
These Old Shades by Georgette Heyer is a classic guardian/ward ( A | BN | K | G | AB ), as are a few of Garwood’s if my brain isn’t deceiving me.
Amanda: Wow, I’m ashamed I couldn’t remember that one.
Sarah: Oh – and Daddy Long Legs by Jean Webster – we had a guest squee about that one, and so many of the SBTB community have fond memories of that book.
I have re-read Once & Always by Judith McNaught easily two dozen times over the years as it was one of the few paperbacks I owned that would travel with me. It has Issues as some older historicals do, but Victoria is indeed Jason’s ward, and Jason is grumpy and there is SO MUCH MELODRAMA. So while it doesn’t work for me now, Sarah from 20 years ago (??!! that is a thing I can say omg ??!!) would shout about it.
YES – good job, brain: Castles by Julie Garwood is a guardian/ward. The thing is, mentor/mentee and ward/guardian are two very different flavors.
Amanda: Agreed, that mentor/mentee I think has more of a focus on “teaching” and ward/guardian usually has moments of guilt boners from the guardian. But I can see a ward/guardian pairing having elements of the former. Kind of like a rectangle is a square, but a square isn’t a rectangle sort of deal.
What romances would you recommend to Anna?
I think Nora Roberts has several books that fit this trope. The one that readily comes to mind is Born in Fire because I recently re read it. If you like NA fantasy then I’d suggest Sarah J. Maas A Court of Thorns and Roses series, especially the second book A Court of Mist and Fury. also, Nalini Singh’s Shards of Hope in the Psy Changeling series has this trope.Come to think of it several of the books in that series would probably qualify such as Slave to Sensation and Visions of Heat.
Soldier’s Heart by Kathleen Korbel – it’s a 1990s category romance about two Vietnam vets recovering from PTSD. The hero is further along in his healing than the heroine and helps her find help without being domineering or mansplainy. She was a nurse in Vietnam and saved his life – the book starts with him seeking her out to thank her and he unintentionally sets off a crisis for her, because she hasn’t dealt with her past trauma yet.
I love this book so, so much. I wrote a guest review for DA and the author commented, explaining that when she wrote it, they were just realizing that women who served as doctors and nurses got ptsd too.
http://dearauthor.com/book-reviews/overall-a-reviews/a-minus-reviews/review-a-soldiers-heart-by-kathleen-korbel/
I love age- and experience-gap pairings, so I expected to have something to recommend, but as I mentally reviewed favorite titles with that dynamic, I realized that most of them give the less-experienced partner the “emotional intelligence” as a kind of counterbalance against the other’s power or authority. (Here I do my usual hand wave and say “see any Jayne Ann Krentz book published prior to 2000,” specifically Perfect Partners or Scandal.)
The only book I could think of that meets the criteria was J.L. Langley’s With Caution, a m/m wolf shifter romance. A former Samhain title, so it’s no longer reasonably available for purchase.
I will, however, be one-clicking Her Best Worst Mistake, since I love the other three books listed as examples of the requested trope.
Well, we are left to infer his feelings from a few clues here and there, but Mr Knightley from Emma fits this theme perfectly. His calm good sense contrasts with Emma’s Lady-of-the-Manor-style meddling and it takes her a long time to realise how much she esteems him. Emma has to grow up a bit to be a worthy match for him.
Oddly (because it’s completely wrong in many ways), another book which sprang to mind when I read the brief was Mr Impossible by Loretta Chase. I haven’t read it in quite a while and I know that Rupert is a cheerfully dim man-child in many ways (so, not mentor material, on the surface at least) but he does know what he’s good at and he is unwavering in his support and admiration of Daphne. If I remember rightly, it takes him a while to put a name to his feelings but he definitely teaches Daphne about having fun in life.
@cleo I think I have to pick up Soldier’s Heart. You’re review alone got my attention, but then the author’s own comments made it a must. Fascinating. Yet another example of the genre breaking ground.
If you like the relationship in the Paper Magician series I’d also recommend Sabriel by Gareth Nix and The Naming by Alison Croggon.
These Old Shades by Georgette Heyer is a perfect example of the mentor trope. I just re-read it this past Christmas.
The magician mentor/mentee recommendations remind me of the book Uprooted by Naomi Novik as well as the entire The Sharing Knife series by Lois McMaster Bujold.
Soldier’s Heart was a great read. I had most of Kathleen Korbel’s (Eileen Dreyer) books, but Jake’s Way” is one of my all time favorites. Published author falls in love with…someone that doesn’t read. You’ll have to read the book to find out why!
“The Immortals” series by Tamora Pierce.
Definitely second @Baji’s rec of “Uprooted” by Naomi Novik – beautiful book.
I second @oceanjasper’s rec for Mr. Knightley and Emma. I love them and their relationship, in part because it’s always a relationship that is enabling them both to do more good in the world and be jointly/individually happier… *happy sigh*
Corlath and Hari from The Blue Sword might also count. They’re both magic-users, and they have a lovely smoldery friendship. She’s processing a lot, and he gives her time to do so without pressing his feelings.
If you like historical fantasy with romance where the romance is a slow burn type and secondary to the story, “Uprooted” by Naomi Novik fits nicely. And, it’s just a lovely story with a grumpy reluctant mentor and lively young heroin. This one would be perfect for non fantasy readers.
Off the top of my head, there’s the few that have already been recommended (Sabriel, Uprooted, the Blue Sword), but I’d also like to add Wintersong by S Jae-Jones. It’s actually a two part book from what I can tell, with the sequel coming out in February (?). I think this trope works best in historical or fantasy novels, as evidenced by the plethora of fantasy that’s been recommended.
Another one I just remembered: The Countess Conspiracy by Courtney Milan. The hero has been in love with the heroine, and supports her knowing that the issues from her first marriage mean nothing can happen between them. (Obviously things happen)
The first book that comes to mind is “Whitney, My Love” by Judith McNaught. The hero knows immediately while the much younger Whitney takes a bit of time to mature and stop her juvenile antics.
It is certainly not my favorite by McNaught, but to me it fits the theme.
Lucy Walker, one of my favorite authors, wrote several books where the hero was older and more mature than the heroine. The one that comes to mind is Love in a Cloud. Sonia was orphaned at the age of four, and her guardian places her with a couple who raise her, while he sends gifts and pays her school tuition, and so forth. But she doesn’t actually see him in person until she graduates from school and he invites her to come visit.
I adore Lucy Walker, though her books all seem to follow the same basic plot – young girl is transplanted from her city life to the Outback. Her heroines are all similar, as are the heroes, but even so every book is still unique. Her books are also very tame, and quaint, having been published mostly (if I remember correctly) in the 70’s and 80’s.
I second The Sharing Knife AND the Sarah j. Maas series.
Love this mentor thing…have to scurry over to amazon and download book samples!
Uprooted also had the mentor thing, but the ending was NOT very satisfying imho.
The Nadia Stafford series by Kelley Armstrong fits. Jack is Nadia’s mentor in the field of, ahem, assassination. He’s also 50, having a midlife crisis, and fallen deeply in love with his 32 year old beautiful protégé.
I love all the books the requester mentioned.
Here are some books I recommend:
Hester Waring’s Marriage by Paula Marshall Historical. Hero really opens her eyes to issues of class.
Sheltered by Charlotte Stein. The heroes isn’t that much older than the heroine but he really helps her see herself. Contemp
Heart Secret by Robin Owens the hero teaches the heroine how to fight PNR
Who I Used to Be by Alexa Land is a mm book where the older hero helps the younger hero into recovery Contemp
The Admiral’s Penniless Bride by Carla Kelly Historical
The Mary Russell series by Laurie R King feature Sherlock Holmes meeting a much younger woman, teaching her to be his apprentice and eventually marrying her. But they’re mysteries with an occasional dash of romance, rather than romances.
The first romance that springs to my mind is Liz Carlyle’s Temmpted All Night. Both are jaded and scarred, but he’s decided to go on and live his life and who cares what people think, while she’s still hiding in the shadows.
sighs.
There’s only one m in the Liz Carlyle book.
The Lord & Lady Hetheridge Mysteries by Emma Jameson.
The romance is very much secondary, but the storyline of Mercy and Adam in the Mercy Thompson books fits.
/spoiler/
Adam knows he loves her waaaaay before she does, and announces to the pack that she’s his mate (partially to keep her safe), then leaves the spot open for years in hopes that she will take it up. Mercy doesn’t know this until several books in and doesn’t realize how vulnerable it makes Adam in the pack.
/end spoiler/
What a great rec league!! I feel like this could easily fold into the “care-taking alpha” trope that we talk about too.
I feel like I always rec Jo Goodman, but I think she’s usually pretty adjacent to this trope. Her heroes aren’t necessarily “older, but the hero almost always comes to understand his feelings much quicker than the heroine. The ones that come to mind are Never Love a Lawman & If His Kiss is Wicked.
I’m thinking Penny Reid’s Kissing Tolstoy might fit this trope of student and brilliant professor finding and teaching each other. Certainly the literary parts are passionate and fascinating as the romance.
Another, somewhat old fashioned, group of novels are Eva Ibbotson’s, especially The Morning Gift and A Company of Swans. Truly charming romances with muted sexytimes. The heroines are brave and innocent and the heroes are experienced, protective, and tender. Yum.
Just finished Uprooted for the first time and it was the first title I thought of.
It isn’t mentor themed but in Frederica by Georgette Heyer the hero comes to the realization of his feelings way before she does.
Two wildly different books:
Christmas novella (I think it was a daily deal here?) A DANGEROUS NATIVITY by Caroline Warfield. The heroine has the farm management and boy-child-wrangling smarts that the hero needs, but he’s the emotionally grounded one who ushers her into taking a chance. He’s not a doofus, he’s a decent business manager, just not farm savvy. And he’s mature enough to tap into her knowledge in an excellent way, and also guide her and the other people in his life into happier times.
Also, this isn’t quite as squarely in the mentor/mentee space, but FALL by Claire Kent is space futuristic prehistoric survival (think Clan of Cave Bear, Trek version, with good sex). I read and reread this book. Heroine has tech smarts (although lot of good that does when she’s dropped on a planet as punishment. Hero is smart #2 hunter in cave-dwelling clan, too smart to challenge for #1 job … and he saves her from a bad clan. It’s a great story of communication and learning, of course going both ways (she learns about survival, he learns about sex), although *maybe* there’s a little deus ex machina in that a different off-world guy was also there and could translate for her at first.
Marian’s Christmas Wish by Carla Kelly has a diplomat hero who realizes his feelings for the heroine right away. He’s 28 and she’s almost 17–“the infantry” as someone points out. He teaches her some things but also learns from her. It’s a very good book, with an interesting mix of hilarious and serious.
“After the Scandal” by Elizabeth Essex, I could write a squee about it, it is all the things!
A recent Harlequin Historical by Elizabeth Rolls, “His Convenient Marchioness”-definitely should be added to the silver fox recs.
“A Little Bit Wild” by Victoria Dahl.
“The Seduction of Lord Stone” by Anna Campbell(novella)
“The Weaver Takes a Wife” by Sheri Cobb South-this is one is a lot fun, cross-class romance.
A number of Carla Kelly books, like “Marrying the Captain”, “Marrying the Royal Marine” and “The Wedding Journey”.
And of course the Lord Peter Wimsey books about his romance with Harriet Vane-starting with “Strong Poison” fits the bill exactly!
A Promise of Fire by Amanda Bouchet. It’s a trilogy and most of the first book is the heroine learning about and then coming to terms with the hero’s feelings for her, and her feelings for him. Live together or die trying!
I think Listen to the Moon by Rose Lerner might work. Hero is older, he’s a valet turned butler whereas the heroine doesn’t have experience as an upper servant, and he questions whether he’s right for her a lot, but doesn’t really doubt his feelings for her.
It’s been years since I read it, but maybe Mary Balogh’s One Night for Love as well? I’m hazy on whether Neville comes to terms with his feelings before Lily does.
I’ll second the Lord and Lady Hetheridge mysteries by Emma Jameson. He’s almost 60, a rich baron and a high-ranking Scotland Yard superintendent, while she’s a detective in her early 30’s from a pretty rough lower class background. They are mysteries with strong romantic elements.
After reading those, I was looking for something similar and found Anne Cleeland’s Doyle and Acton series which I also love and would fit this theme. Again, he’s a peer and a well-respected Scotland Yard detective, while she’s Irish, a junior officer, but has really good instincts as well as a bit of second sight that helps her solve crimes. This series isn’t for everyone though because when it starts out, he’s a stalker who’s gotten fixated on her. In the series, this is openly acknowledged and the power differential between them is not one-sided so I was fine with it, but YMMV.
The inimitable Georgette Heyer used this trope several times. Apart from the titles mentioned above Regency Buck and Arabella come to mind.
I second the Carla Kelly recommendations. She is a terrific writer.
I also second the Dorothy L Sayers ( Lord Peter Wimsey) quartet of books from Strong Poison through Have His Carcass , Gaudy Night to Busman’s Honeymoon that shows the developing relationship and romance between the more experienced Lord Peter and Harriet Vane. Very romantic and yet there are no overt sex scenes. If you like classic murder puzzles from the “ golden age of detective fiction” and a romance that develops between two smart, strong minded people, you will enjoy these. Just keep in mind that Dorothy L Sayers was very bright and very well educated (she was one of the early women graduates from Oxford University) and loved to drop literary allusions, quotes – ( in one book she has Lord Peter say “ I love to use quotes, it saves the necessity of having original thought.” ) , bits of French and Latin into her stories. One of the advantages of reading her books as ebooks is that you can stop, whip across to check the translation or literary reference, and then come back to the story. This deepened my enjoyment of the stories and I also discovered a lot of sly humour in the references.
This is a great Rec League topic. Thankyou for the suggestions.
Mea culpa I misquoted Dorothy L Sayers. Lord Peter Wimsey’s actual words were “ I always have a quotation for everything. It saves original thinking.” ( Have His Carcass).
The Mary Balogh books referred to above are also good examples of this trope and I think Stephanie Lauren’s Devils Bride could fit in too.
It occurred to me that what is appealing about the books listed is that, though the H may be older and have more knowledge of how the world works, the h is not an airhead who is looking for a father figure to look after her. The reader has the distinct impression that the relationship will be built on romance, friendship and respect for each other’s intelligence. :: sigh::
More Than Love Letters by Rosy Thornton. Please read the review on Dear Author. This book is one of my all time favorites.
Kulti by Mariana Zapata. She is a professional soccer player, and he just retired from playing. He is her coach. It is a great slow burn romance.
Ice Blue, the first Lord & Lady Hetheridge book by Emma Jameson, is currently free @ Amazon.
Murder In Containment, the fourth book in the Doyle & Acton series by Anne Cleeland is free for Kindle Unlimited.
Poison Study by Maria Snyder would definitely fit here, and is a lovely book (though I confess I don’t love the sequels).
And these are older, and YA, but Mairelon the Magician/The Magician’s Ward by Patricia C. Wrede!
I think Lois McMaster Bujolds Sharing Knife series has been mentioned, which i love love love, but also wanted to add her the Curse of Chalion. Fantastic books if you are into fantasy. Slightly Dangerous by Mary Balogh and Kulti by Mariana Zapata also already mentioned are awesome 🙂