This month’s theme is relationships and partners. Other Genre-istas have offered great advice and insights into relationships, so I’ll take a different angle on this. Let’s look at some great relationships that are shown in recent novels.
A good relationship shows a partnership of equals, or people who have genuine respect for each other. Even when the two people are not complete equals, the two parties relate to each other, and the one with more authority or status supports the other as much as possible, given the circumstances. Several examples come to mind, but I chose three books that I read in the past year that fit my criteria in different kinds of relationships:
Best Parent and Child Relationship:
Cordelia and her dad in The Truth Project by Dante Medema
https://www.dantemedema.com/books.html
Best Friend Relationship:
Anna and Lucy in Dating Dracula by Kinsley Adams
https://www.kinsleyadams.com/dating-dracula
Best Romantic Relationship:
Lila and Orion in A Cuban Girl’s Guide to Tea and Tomorrow by Laura Taylor Namey
https://www.laurataylornamey.com/books/a-cuban-girls-guide-to-tea-and-tomorrow/
I’m sure there are more great examples of relationships in novels. What books can you recommend?
Lynn Lovegreen has lived in Alaska for over fifty years. After twenty years in the classroom, she retired to make more time for writing. She enjoys her friends and family, reading, and volunteering at her local library. Her young adult historical fiction is set in Alaska, a great place for drama, romance, and independent characters. See her website at www.lynnlovegreen.com. You can also find her on Facebook and Instagram.
4 comments:
Good points about quality relationships, Lynn! Thank you for the book recommendations. I would recommend for Best Brother relationship, Donte and Trey in Black Brother, Black Brother by Jewell Parker Rhodes.
It is hard to write a relationship of equals because it is often the unequal power dynamic that makes the story conflict real and makes the reader root for them to become equal. I haven't had a lot of time to read in the last couple of years, but prior to that a couple of interesting books come to mind. For everlasting friendship, The Orphans of Race Point by Patry Francis. For an equality-based romantic relationship the lists are endless. One of my fave writers is someone who blog here regularly, Paty Jager. Her women are always strong and independent, and that is required because the men are too.
Thanks for the recs, Sarah and Maggie!
Thanks for book recommendations, Lynn. I tend to read series where there is something that ties the main characters in each book together such as 3 brothers or sisters, friends from school, co-workers. What I like is that they have each other's back as the series continues and I get a glimpse in to the lives the characters in the earlier books. Obviously Nora Roberts does that well but I also love the books of Grace Burrows, Jo Beverley. I've used that arc in my own Sacred Women's Circle and it spin off series. In real life we do have friends for long periods of time and we do support each other through difficult times.
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