Romance Writing

"Breezy, adventurous and accessible, Romance Writing offers an ambitious cultural history of romantic love, exploring how it articulates with – and sometimes swerves dramatically from – the stories of romance as a genre, of courtship as an institution, and sex, sexuality and desire. En route Lynne Pearce tracks some of our cherished popular clichés to their literary heartlands."

Trev Broughton, University of New York

"In Romance Writing, Lynne Pearce implores us – with remarkable insight and unwavering perception – to reconsider our grand narratives of love. By positioning a new and thoroughgoing cultural history of romance, she succeeds in daring readers to investigate the endlessly seductive and confounding languages of literary love. In so doing, Pearce accomplishes one of criticism's greatest of feats: her book illuminates our minds, while challenging us to ponder the mysteries that live in our hearts."

Kenneth Womack, Penn State Altoona

"Lynne Pearce's Romance Writing spans an extraordinary range, from chivalry to chick-lit, and bravely pits romantic love against an array of its enemies: death, sex, marriage and self-help lifestyles."

Chris Baldick, Goldsmiths College