The Return of Scifi Romance

Everyone wants to follow the trends. Writers, readers, you name it. What's hot? What's next on the list that I should read? Look, I'm a fan of romance across the board. Contemporary, historical, futuristic, fantasy. But at my core, I've always been a die-hard fan of science fiction romance. And from what I see at Amazon lately, science fiction romance is HOT. It's back, baby!

Don't confuse science fiction with science fiction romance. The two are very different genres. Science fiction revels in all the science and theoretical possibilities of life in the stars. And God forbid you get the physics wrong in your spaceships. Readers tend to be pretty hardcore about their science.

Not so much with science fiction romance. It's all about aliens and humans/androids/humanoids (take your pick) falling in love. I've been a fan for years. Some of the most creative, sexy, and fun stories have involved other worlds, creatures, and tribes created with incredible world building and imagination.

I was a fan of Kathleen Morgan, Stobie Piel, Catherine Spangler, Jayne Castle, Dara Joy, and other Dorcester and Zebra authors I can't remember now. It was and still is difficult to find good science fiction romance. I like solid world building tying my characters together, but I don't like it when the world overtakes the romance. It needs to be a balance between the two. This coming from my perspective as a reader, mind you.

As a writer, it's fun to make up all the rules. I love it. I'd been in a contemporary writing frame of mind last year, and I decided to go "old school" back to my roots in science fiction romance with a barbarian/alien/menage that released a week ago. Is it angsty? Nope. A long novel? No, a novella. Full of drama, will make you cry? No again. It's a fun story meant to entertain and heat you up. Period.

If you're in the mood for alien barbarians and humans mixing it up in the far future, check out A Civilized Mating. And if you're wanting more fun and sexy books set in alternate worlds in the far reaches of space, I'd like to recommend these science fiction romances from my own keeper shelves. (Note, I'm not getting any kickbacks for sharing. LOL These are reads I love to gobble up time and time again.)

• Morgan Hawke's Interstellar Service & Discipline series (erotic, incredible world building, polyamorous, science fiction with kick)
• Any of Jayne Castle's Harmony books (she just keeps getting better and better. Psychics with an Earthy background, mild heat level. Always some suspsense thrown in with the romance)
• Eve Langlais's Cyborgs: More than Machines series (erotic, fun, at times angsty books, worth the read)
• Sherrilyn Kenyon's The League series (I only read books 1-3 but I enjoyed these.)
• Angela Knight's Time Hunter/Warlord series (erotic, great reads with very alpha males)
• Evangeline Anderson's Brides of the Kindred series (She has a quite a following and a ton of books in this series once you get hooked.)
• Allyson James' Tales of the Shareem (very erotic, androids built to serve who rebel, great stuff)
• And an oldie but a goodie I just love, Johanna Lindsey's Warrior Woman (the first of her Ly-San-Ter books.)

Anyone have any science fiction romance they particularly like or would recommend? Let's add to the list!

Happy reading!

Marie
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