I came late to the works of Nora Roberts, who goes by the
moniker of The Nora among romance fans because, well, there is only one. This
legend of romance authors has written more than 225 novels under several pen
names, including that of J.D. Robb, her “futuristic” novelist persona. She was a
founder of the Romance Writers of America® and the first inductee into its Hall
of Fame; she is the winner of 21 RITA® awards; and since 1999, every one of her
novels has been a New York Times bestseller, including 24 that debuted
at Number One.
Whew! Okay, so that should be enough to recommend her to any serious reader of romance. For any serious writer of romance (or any other genre), her work ethic should close the deal. Like another famous writer who dominates the bestseller lists, Stephen King, she writes eight hours a day, every day, even on “vacation.” The Nora may be rich and famous, but she has earned it.
Despite the fact that Roberts has written so many novels across a wide variety of subgenres of romance, I had avoided reading her work for a long time. I’ll admit I’m a contrarian—if a lot of folks like something, I tend to resist going with the flow. Then, too, I read one of her J.D. Robb In Death series novels, which are a kind of romantic suspense set in the near future and didn’t care for it much. Just not enough science fiction OR romance for me.
However, not too long ago I picked up her latest romance trilogy, Chronicles of the One, a paranormal/SF/ dystopian apocalypse/romance mashup, the first novel of which, Year One, was published in 2017. And I was hooked. Maybe it was the worldbuilding. Roberts does a much better job here of describing a world crumbling after a power-hungry warlock opens a portal to Hell, unleashing a plague that kills most of the population and leaves the rest with new, magical powers, some light and some dark. Maybe it’s because I have an apocalyptic streak myself—I enjoy following the heroes’ struggle to survive in a harsh, new environment. Maybe it’s because the romantic elements are given full play. Certainly the dystopian, paranormal and romantic aspects of the story work seamlessly together to make a great story that carries through three books successfully.
But what had me seeking out more of Roberts’s novels, and particularly her paranormal trilogies, was an aspect of her work that may provide one explanation for her success as a romance writer. (Well, besides the fact that she works her tail off.) The protagonists of her series, including the central heroes and heroines, don’t face their external challenges—the Doom and dark magic, for example in Chronicles of the One—alone. They gather a circle of power and friendship around them, a family—sometimes of blood, most often not—to stand against evil. Between the scenes of action and danger in the novels, there are quieter moments of bonding and love within that circle—meals, planning sessions, conversations. And in those scenes, those moments, Roberts creates the true magic. She draws the reader into the circle and into that warmth of family. She makes you want to be part of it.
This a familiar formula in the trilogies she writes. She has dozens of them, though I’ve only read four of the paranormal sets of three so far. In all the ones I’ve read, she brings together six people—three couples, some members of whom are related, some not—for a single purpose: to complete an ancient quest or fight an ancient evil. At the beginning of the trilogies, most of the six don’t know each other; by the end, they are all family, bound together by their love as couples and as friends and brothers-and-sisters-in-arms in the extended battle they have fought together. Since we as readers have been right there with them, we feel we belong in that intimate embrace, too. And it is something we don’t want to give up.
One of the intimate moments shared on Trek.
To compare this with something
we all know, there were only three seasons of the Original Star Trek,
but true fans have watched those episodes—and the movies based on them—over and
over again. They have passed their love for the show down to children and
grandchildren. Why? Not only because of Trek’s vision of travel to the
far edges of the galaxy, but also because of the bonds between Kirk, Spock,
McCoy and the others. The show made us feel we were part of that family, that
intimate circle we saw depicted every episode on the bridge, on the rec dec, in
Kirk’s quarters, in Away teams, in quiet moments as well as in crises.
Too often science fiction (and correspondingly science fiction romance) relies on the lone wolf trope—the lonely explorer on his (or her) own, the warrior, the gladiator without ties. This isolated hero or heroine may find a mate to share his or her life with, but too seldom is he or she part of a family, a tribe, a circle of intimacy that the reader can join. I’m working on that in my Interstellar Rescue series, providing quiet moments of warmth within a familiar set of characters that readers have gotten to know and love. I’m not nearly up to The Nora’s speed—or to Star Trek’s—but I’m plugging away, and maybe someday I’ll get there.
Cheers, Donna
Great blog, Donna. That sense of family or team was also very prevalent in other sci-fi icons like Star Wars ("Your trust in your friends is your weakness," said the Emperor to Luke), The Expanse, and Firefly, though the crew of Serenity was a touch more dysfunctional than your usual ensemble. It was also very much a part of the lesser known series Defying Gravity where the characters all had interwoven backstories and interrelationships from five years of training together.
ReplyDeleteI love a good ensemble story. Though I haven't read Nora in many years, now I'm curious to explore the dynamics in Year One.