Why I Don’t Read Romance

A Valentine’s Day Confession

I don’t read romance novels. That is, I usually don’t. I have, but I don’t do it as a rule. I know a lot of romance authors and I completely respect what they do, but I find the genre to be a minefield of problematic depictions that I just don’t care to navigate. Let me explain.

Now I’ll start by saying that I love a handful of books that could be classified as romance. I’ve read the Sookie Stackhouse novels all from cover-to-cover. I’ve read Shakespeare’s comedies,...