We've covered fairy tales, sci-fi, a little bit of fantasy, and we've definitely covered historical. But what about the big cheese...contemporary? Confused as to what that genre heading even means? Don't worry, Jen and Jackie go hardcore librarian for this one and break down the contemporary romance genre just for you!

Questions/Comments/Concerns/want to weigh in on the great contemporary debate? Email us at ragingromantics@nopl.org!

**A quick note on radiocarbon dating! Radiocarbon (C-14) dating is used to garner the age of organic and some inorganic materials (not metal) up to 60,000 years old. It was discovered as a dating practice in the 1960's and so the first calibration was used to dating something B.P. (before present date), which is used as 1950 in the dating community**

• "Carbon dating, the archaeological workhorse, is getting a major reboot" (Jones, 2020)
• "How Does Carbon Dating Work" (Beta Analytic, 2023)

Books/authors we mention:

• Pamela by Samuel Richardson
• Alien series by Michele Mills
• Nora Roberts
• Shamela by Henry Fielding
• Window Shopping by Tessa Bailey
• Beach Kingdom series by Tessa Bailey (lifeguards)
• Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood
• The Makeup Test by Jenny Howe
• Bridgerton series by Julia Quinn
• Finding Mayhem by Layla Frost
• Toby and Isabel series by Tessa Dare (horse racing)
• Siren of Sussex by Mimi Matthews
• Katee Robert ***Wicked Beauty** (Jackie said the wrong book)
• The Billionaire's Wake Up Call Girl by Annika Martin
• Deceiving the Corsair by Ruby Dixon
• House of Pleasure by Kate Pearce
• Hell's Eight series by Sarah McCarty (Texas Rangers series)
• Plated Prisoner series by Raven Kennedy
• Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie by Jennifer Ashley
• Mortal Folly by Alexis Hall
• One Night in Hartswood by Emma Denny (Queer medieval)
• Morning Glory Milking Farm by C.M. Nascosta
• Bromance Book Club series by Lyssa Kay Adams
• Sarah MacLean
• The Matzah Ball by Jean Meltzer
• R'jaal's Resonance by Ruby Dixon (new Ice Planet book!)
• Beverly Jenkins
• Vanessa Riley
• Lotus House series by Audrey Carlan
• Fake It Till You Bake It by Jamie Wesley
• Mistakes Were Made by Meryl Wilsner
• Partners in Crime by Alisha Rai
• Loathe to Love You by Ali Hazelwood
• Hunger by Roxanne Gay
• Barrow of Winter by H.M. Long

Sources:

• "Down With Dewey" (Lindell, 2019)
• "Contemporary Romance" (Wikipedia)
• "About the Romance Genre" (Romance Writers of America)
• "6 Common Romance Subgenres to Guide Your Writing" (Masterclass, 2021)
• "Contemporary Romance" (Winnipeg Public Library, 2023)
• "The Five Most Common Contemporary Romance Tropes" (Grimes, 2022)