Get Lost in a Romantic Comedy Book

Sometimes you need to escape in a funny, light-hearted book without the angst. The world news is getting the better of your peace of mind and you don’t want any more dark, tragic reads. So, it’s time to turn to romantic comedy. The only problem is, the best romcom books can be hard to find. 

When is a romcom not a romcom? When it’s labelled as chick lit, women’s fiction or a romance novel, of course. It doesn’t really matter what category or genre it’s labelled under, in my humble opinion, if it has these essential elements:

-   At least one main character who is ‘played for laughs’ with a funny voice, witty dialogue or hilarious internal monologue

-   A central romance or love story (other stuff can also be happening)

-   A happy ever after (HEA) or happy for now (HFN) ending – ‘everybody dies’ books are not welcome here…

Wacky plot details and accidental misunderstandings are entirely optional! So without further ado, here’s a few of my favourite romcom books, or whatever you want to call them.

Marriage of Inconvenience by Penny Reid

 

Penny Reid has become one of my favourite romantic comedy authors over the past year or so. I stumbled across recommendations of her writing from a few sources, including the fabulous Kylie Scott, so I thought I was on a winner. This book is the last (probably?) in the outstanding Knitting in the City series. I have been hanging out to read this one, so much that I tried to pre-order it twice. Take my money, Ms Reid!

Anyhow, Marriage of Inconvenience is the story of Kat and Dan, secondary characters in some of the previous stories. Kat is a secret heiress to a big pharma company and Dan The Security Man is well, a security man! It’s an opposites attract set-up with characters from two different worlds who nonetheless have a real connection from the first time they see each other. Kat has to marry Dan to secure her company and her freedom, fighting off her terrible cousin who’s just after the family fortune. 

If you’re new to the Knitting in the City series, I recommend starting with Neanderthal Seeks Human. You’re in for a treat reading about brilliant and eccentric Janie, purveyor of useless but fascinating facts. 

The Hating Game by Sally Thorne

I read this one a few months ago and absolutely loved it. The Hating Game is the debut novel from Australian author, Sally Thorne, and she absolutely nails the enemies to lovers trope. It’s very funny, from the moment the two lead characters appear on the page, glaring at each other across the partitions in their fictional publishing office. 

The white water rafting, corporate team-building scene is particularly memorable in a cringe-worthy 'how embarrassing' way. Highly recommended! I can't wait for her next book...

Playing House by Amy Andrews

 

This is an unusual Aussie choice from one of my favourite authors, Amy Andrews (who I’ve shamelessly fan-girled at the Romance Writers of Australia conference more than once). 

Playing House is the latest instalment in a series of romantic comedies set in the world of Australian rugby. I absolutely adore her writing, which is both super funny and super sexy. Playing House has a wonderful blend of light-hearted humour around a virgin heroine with a Mr Darcy fixation, a one-night stand and a best friend’s brother trope, and more serious issues which totally snuck up on me -- yes, I cried when reading this one. You have been warned! 

Don’t be put off if you’re not a fan of sports-themed books or if you don’t really know anything about rugby (Who does? Not this little red hen!) because this is all about the tough guy heroes who have it all in a wordly sort of way, with fame and fortune, but who need love in their lives. The interconnected stories are great fun and easy reading, but start with Playing By Her Rules if you want to read the entire series. 

Content warning: this book contains a pregnancy loss/miscarriage that may be difficult reading for some. 

**NEWS FLASH** -- Amy Andrews has just been announced as a double RITA Award finalist! Congratulations, Amy!

Lingerie Wars by Janet Elizabeth Henderson 

 

An ex special forces operative, Lake Benson, buys a lingerie shop in a remote Scottish town. Because of course he does! There’s a goregeous ex-lingerie model to compete against, and tactics get dirty. I love all the wacky characters in the town who add a great fun element to this book. There are tartan undies and a hilarious fashion show attended by the whole town. 

I’m going to continue reading this whole series by New Zealander (from a Scottish background) Ms Henderson, and I’m really looking forward to it. 

Girl on a Plane by Cassandra O'Leary

 

Yes, I included my own book. Shameless self-promotion alert! I've been inspired by many awesome chick lit and romance writers and of course, romcom movies. There are quite a few references to these in Girl on a Plane. Careful readers will spot the When Harry Met Sally and Love Actually references, but can you spot more? 

I loved playing with the balance of humour and emotion in this book, and also the themes of travel and finding home. My Irish flight attendant character, Sinead, is played for laughs. Mostly. Aye, there's a bit of the craick. And some sexytimes. 

Romcoms to be read...

I've got a huge To Be Read list already, but let me know your romcom recommendations in the comments below!

About Cassandra O'Leary

**Winner of the global We Heart New Talent contest run by HarperCollins UK. Nominated for BEST NEW AUTHOR in AusRomToday 2016 Reader's Choice Awards for excellence in Australian romance fiction**

Cassandra O’Leary is a romance and women’s fiction author, communications specialist, avid reader, film and TV fangirl and admirer of pretty, shiny things. Her debut novel, Girl on a Plane, was published in July 2016. 

Cassandra is a mother of two gorgeous, high-energy mini ninjas and wife to a spunky superhero. Living in Melbourne, Australia, she’s also travelled the world. If you want to send her to Italy or Spain on any food or wine tasting ‘research’ trips, that would be splendiferous. 

Read more or sign-up for Cassandra's newsletter at cassandraolearyauthor.com

Confessions of an Ex-Spritzer Chick

Mining your old jobs for writing gold

Once upon a time, I was nearly twenty years old and studying Communications (PR) at university. In other words I was a cash-strapped student looking for a part-time job. I came across an ad looking for casual perfume promotions people for a cosmetics group. This sounded like much more fun than telemarketing and other student-appropriate jobs in fast food, so I applied.

After a couple of interviews taking place in the promotions company office and then a meeting with cosmetics managers at a large department store, I got the job! This was the start of my career in perfume and cosmetics. I didn’t know it at the time, but I’d stick with this career path for about five years until I got my first full-time PR job out of uni.

Spritzing my way through university

I worked in various promotions gigs in many stores, including the largest stores in Australia – Myer and David Jones department stores at Chadstone shopping centre (actually the largest indoor mall in the southern hemisphere) and the grand old stores in the Melbourne CBD.

When I first started work on the Fine Fragrances counter at Myer, it was the 1990s and there was a major campaign running in store. It was the launch of Calvin Klein’s Eternity perfume, with a famous ad featuring model Kate Moss. The ad ran over and over on the TV monitors in store until I nearly went bonkers. 

I spritzed and pimped that perfume almost all day, every day, for an entire Christmas season and into the summer. I must have spritzed thousands of customers and sold hundreds, if not thousands of gift sets.

After a long shift, I went home exhausted after standing and walking in high heels. We wore all black or stylish white shirts and pencil skirts always with well-groomed hair (mine was dyed dark cherry red and tied back with a black ribbon) and black pantyhose/stockings were standard. There’s a certain glamour to the job, at least once you’re there among the lovely perfumes and gorgeous shop displays on the cosmetics floor.

It didn’t always feel so glam when I was riding the bus to get from the uni campus to the store, rushing to get to work for a noon or five o’clock shift after class or eating in the food court. Not to mention being nice to customers. A few were incredibly rude and treated us retail workers like slaves. 

Don’t even get me started on the drunk men shopping at the last minute on Christmas Eve, who thought they were hilarious with jokes like, “Do you come with the perfume?” or “Can I stick a bow on you?” Don’t worry, I also perfected my scathing glare as well as my beaming smile during this time.

It was worth it for all the free samples I scored from the perfume company reps. And the pay was pretty good if you worked on weekends.

Learning the world of perfume and cosmetics

I actually learned a lot from the job in the perfume department, from the top notes to base notes, the differences between eau de toilette and parfum and the various tricks to make perfume last longer.

After a couple of years I moved to makeup. I worked a little for Yves Saint Laurent (YSL) on contract. I loved their makeup and perfumes! Seriously, it was a perk of the job to make yourself up to look glamorous in the style of the supermodels of the time.

Then I started work as a Revlon Beauty Advisor. For the American readers, Revlon might not be a department store brand. But in Australia, it’s one of the most popular counters and customers would line up to buy the blockbuster gift sets at sale time. And I learned makeup application from professionals, including Cindy Crawford’s personal makeup artist. I didn’t get to meet Cindy though, although my manager did. Jealous!

I learned all about applying makeup, the business side of the job such as ordering more stock, recording sales figures against budget, branding and promotions, learning ‘product knowledge’ including ingredients and shades of hundreds of products. Back then, if I looked at you I could have told you exactly what foundation shade to buy to match your skin tone. And I always had perfect lipstick.

Learning about women

While working retail, I also gained an understanding of customers, mostly women, who were treating themselves to cosmetics products. Some just loved makeup or nail polish and collected all the new season colours, for fun. I was happy to help them spend their money.

On the other hand, some told me they didn’t deserve to spend money on themselves. Some women said it had been years since they’d worn makeup because their husband didn’t like it. A few said they were dating again after a bad breakup and wanted a new look. These customers made me sad, but I tried to help them feel better about themselves, if only in a small way.

A few customers still stand out in my memory, such as the teenager going to her high school formal, who had terrible eczema on her face and body. She said she was ashamed to show her face at the dance and just wanted to look pretty for once. I gave her such a great makeover that her mother had tears in her eyes and took photos in store. That was a magic moment.

Old jobs as writing fodder

The reason I’m writing about this job for Romancing The Genres now, is because my old job has become the inspiration for my current writing. After the idea struck me a few months ago, it's been quite easy and fun to create a story based on my past career. My new Christmas romcom novella, Heart Note, will be released on 6 November 2017.

The story revolves around Lily Lucas, a funny, vintage fashion and 80s pop music loving perfume counter manager, and a band of ‘spritzer chicks’ or promotions staff. There’s more than a bit of me in the character of Lily, although her backstory and family are quite different to mine.

I found that once I started thinking about writing a story set at a perfume counter, a whole range of experiences came flooding back. There were heaps of funny memories which are great romcom fodder, but also the more emotional moments of working with a band of women.

I hope to write more in the Spritzer Chicks series and continue mining my past work experience for gold. For the other writers out there, I recommend thinking about your old jobs and considering them as research. You never know what ideas might pop into your head.

Note: In case anyone from the Melbourne retail scene is reading this – I’m writing fiction, not real people. I won’t name names! 

About Cassandra O'Leary
**Winner of the global We Heart New Talent contest, HarperCollins UK. Nominated for BEST NEW AUTHOR in AusRomToday 2016 Reader's Choice Awards for excellence in Australian romance fiction**

Cassandra O’Leary is a romance and women’s fiction author, communications specialist, avid reader, film and TV fangirl and admirer of pretty, shiny things. Her debut novel, Girl on a Plane, released in 2016 and Heart Note: A Christmas romcom novella will be published in November 2017. 

Cassandra is a mother of two gorgeous, high-energy mini ninjas and wife to a spunky superhero. Living in Melbourne, Australia, she’s also travelled the world. If you want to send her to Italy or Spain on any food or wine tasting ‘research’ trips, that would be splendiferous.
cassandraolearyauthor.com 

Phyllis Bourne, Author of #BigDumbSexyFun Stories

by Michelle Monkou

Romantic Comedy is not my cup of tea...usually. But, there are always delightful exceptions to any absolutes, which is why you should never say never. And I'm happy that the exception is in the form of stories by award-winning author Phyllis Bourne.

(Remember the hashtag: #bigdumbsexyfun because whenever you see it, Phyllis's books and author news are sure to follow. )

Phyllis is an avid schedule planner-bee and you can probably find her in a Michael's store devouring the latest planner accessories. With those planners, she sets her goals for the year, the week, even on a daily basis to produce those well-written stories. Focused is what got her to this point, but she started with several Romance Writers of America's (RWA) chapter contest wins and finaling in RWA's Golden Heart®  (unpublished author) contest TWICE and the RITA® (published author) contest.

Focused on her brand of romantic comedy with a chick lit vibe, Phyllis underscored her talent with two recent releases:

Between A Rock And A Hot Mess

Amazon: Kindle Unlimited or E-book/Paperback

Riley Sinclair has man problems. Trouble is, everyone has one but her. 

After years on the sidelines at weddings, the head of Sinclair Construction now sits home alone on what used to be girls' night. Her only companions are television, a bottle of wine and a crush on a stranger she doesn’t have the guts to approach. Too bad she isn’t more like the daring heroine of her favorite show Hot Mess. Men want to bed and wed the glamorous Delilah Cole, while rough-around-the-edges Riley is relegated to the friend zone. 

Enter the perfect solution - an interactive app where the star of Hot Mess dishes style, beauty and relationship advice guaranteed to transform any woman into a man magnet. 

Riley re-invents herself, and thanks to the app, is on the brink of landing her dream man…and another she didn’t count on. Soon Riley’s embroiled in her own hot mess and has to choose between the Cinderella fairytale with the man she wants or the soul deep passion found only in the arms of the man she needs.

and

Between A Honeymoon And A Hot Mess

Amazon: Kindle Unlimited or E-book/Paperback

If anybody deserves a drink, it’s Hope Sinclair.

After catching her fiancé cheating, all Hope wants is to get through her sister’s Las Vegas nuptials and then return home to cancel her own wedding.

But champagne and too many martinis screw up the straitlaced Sinclair sister’s best-laid plans. She wakes up the next day with a hangover, a ring on her finger and in the bed of a man from her past.

Hope’s new husband insists she’s always been the love of his life, but she won’t commit without trust. Twice-burned, will Hope go with her heart  - when her man and marriage are tested by a hot mess?

Here's Phyllis celebrating her first bike ride without the aid of her hubby aka "Mr. Phyllis."

Check out the video: First Bike Ride!!! Let's wish Phyllis a hearty congrats. :-)