Heroes, Heroines, and Happily Ever After

I think I was probably fourteen or fifteen when I read my first romance novel. Janet Dailey wrote it, and though I can’t recall the title, I do recall the gist of the story was an innocent, soft-spoken heroine patiently coaxed the tough-talking, self-absorbed hero into realizing he needed to get over himself, and realize what he’d been looking for outside of earning millions and pursuing his bad-boy ways was standing right in front of him. His attitude adjustment resulted in her Cinderella lifestyle, and they both lived happily ever after.

To the teenage girl I was then, there wasn’t much that could be better than that!

In the thirty years since, the formula for happily ever after has been tweaked in a number of ways. Heroes today range from having fangs to being single fathers. And unless your heroine is still wearing a petticoat, the requirement of innocence is loooong gone. My heroines are typically butt-kickers with agendas of their own, who just happen to stumble across a hero who…well, frankly, needs a butt-kicking. And still somehow they both stumble into happily ever after.

I suppose a social commentary on the evolution of heroes, heroines, and happily ever after would state though the roles of men and women have changed over the years, one element remains tried and true. And perhaps the reason romance novels continue to bank stellar sales even in the most dismal of economies is because happily ever after will forever stand the test of time.