Romantic Fiction Favorites
No Spoilers!
It is not often that romance novels are wholesome. When you go to the bookstore and find yourself standing in the romance genre aisle, it is difficult to pick up a novel with a juicy blurb on the back and not be skeptical. This is simply because modern day romance no longer resembles the pure and genuine love similar to that of Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy. The untainted and romantic written word that makes you gush has become a lost art. Instead, romance novels often entail unnecessary sexual content, unoriginality, or, like my most recent read, the love interest turns out to be gay in the end and the main character ends up alone. It is a frustrating cycle that often originates in the romance aisle of the local Barnes and Noble.
If you are like me, and you need a good palette cleanse from underwhelming romantic fiction, here are four great works that are worth investing your time (and feels) into.
A Walk to Remember by Nicholas Sparks
(Romance)
“Love is like the wind, you can’t see it but you can feel it.” – Nicholas Sparks, A Walk to Remember
Enough cannot be said about the beauty in this book. Of Nicholas Sparks’ works, this is a definite favorite. The book recounts the story of 17-year-old Landon Carter and his sudden attraction to the minister’s innocent daughter, Jamie Sullivan. He had never seen Jamie as more than anything but the girl he had gone to school with for many years. However, a lack of suitable dates prompts Landon to ask the very conservative Jamie to the school dance. Thus begins a journey Landon never expected with a girl whom he would never think to associate with profound compassion and love. The story will instill hope in the reader as it allows Landon’s character to grow and heal from past disappointment through the surprising romance between he and Jamie. Though you may want to stock up on Kleenex beforehand, this book will surely broaden your understanding of sacrificial and devoted love.
Newton & Polly by Jody Hedlund
(Christian Fiction)
“For it is certain that whatever seeming calamity befalls you, if you thank & praise God for it, you turn it into a blessing.” – Jody Hedlund, Newton & Polly
Newton & Polly is an enchanting tale of love and grace that is sure to make the reader swoon. The story follows a young John Newton in his quest to prove himself worthy of the lovely Polly Catlett. At the start of the book, John is an impulsive and careless teen who falls in love with his distant cousin, Polly. However, she is a god-fearing, lovely, and pure character with a Father who questions John’s heart. Though John loves Polly dearly, and she reciprocates, the doubt that Polly’s family has in John, and that he has in himself, prompts him to begin a journey of self-discovery. The story is told over the course of seven years as John wrestles with his faith, his longing for Polly, and his internal temptations. John Newton is the original author of the famous hymn Amazing Grace, and this book reveals what lead John to experiencing the deep and unfailing grace of the Holy Spirit.
Turtles All the Way Down by John Green
(Y/A Fiction)
“Anybody can look at you. It’s quite rare to find someone who sees the same world you see.” – John Green, Turtles All the Way Down
When you first begin to fall in love or even date someone, you begin to question why the person even likes you to begin with. Your flaws are heightened, and your confidence becomes shaken. This story gives readers a peak into the mind of someone who has those thoughts 24/7, regardless of her love interests. Aza Holmes is struggling with intrusive, obsessive, and strangling thoughts that seem to shatter her self-confidence and prevent her from relating to others. In the midst of the disappearance of Russell Picket, a local billionaire, Aza is reconnected with his son, and her childhood friend, Davis. Through the struggles of her mental health and his Father’s disappearance, their relationship is anything but simple. As the two struggle to navigate these difficulties a resilient and empathetic love develops that will remind the reader what it feels like to fall in love with your best friend.
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
(Classics)
“Love, whether newly born or aroused from a deathlike slumber, must always create sunshine, filling the heart so full of radiance, that it overflows upon the outward world.” – Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter
Though many people feel robber by their high school English teacher when others talk about The Scarlet Letter, the book is an actual masterpiece. Nathaniel Hawthorne has adeptly constructed a breathtaking story of failure, sin, guilt, hatred, and ultimately forgiveness and redemption. Hester Prynne is a young woman living in Boston Massachusetts among the puritans in the 1600s. She commits the sin of adultery and, after giving birth to an illegitimate child, is publicly punished in the town square. She must forever wear the red letter “A” on the torso of her dress to represent her ignominy. The name of her lover remains a secret as she attempts to protect his reputation. Meanwhile, her husband arrives in Boston for the first time only to find his wife on the scaffold where she is publicly shamed. His identity is unknown to the townspeople, and his vengeance grows as he uncovers who his wife’s accomplice is. The guilt-ridden father of the child wrestles with God and himself as he must internally face his sin and cordially encounter Hester and his daughter on a daily basis in order to hide his involvement. The story demonstrates the complexities of sin, while reiterating the importance of forgiveness and hope after making mistakes. Hawthorne accurately, and possibly unintentionally, applies the meaning behind John chapter 8 to The Scarlet Letter for a moral that is relevant in any century.
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