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I am Lover of romance, who indulges in the romantic adventures of literature

My name is Renee, and I am the host of this site. I am a 34 year old woman, on the prowl for her mate, searching out the best of books, exploring the wilds of the imagination and delving into the heart of a beautiful love story.

 

Historical Romance 101: Favorite Settings

by | Apr 15, 2016 | Uncategorized | 23 comments

Welcome to another segment of Historical Romance 101. Today we will be discussing book settings and what we love about them and share some personal favorites. Please join in and visit the other fabulous ladies: Jennifer @ Feminist Fairy Tales, Amanda @ On A Book Bender, and Quinn @ Quinn’s Book Nook

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In this post, we are sharing about our favorite settings in historical romance, now this is going to be fun to share with you all!! What I love about settings is seeing the different locations that a romance can take place and this adds a sense of unique quality to the story. It changes the style of the set up of the story. This is one of the most important elements in a story, and is one of my favorite aspects of a romance. It can be the time, place or environment that the story takes place. Below I am going to list some of my favorite places or environments for a story. Some are popular, some aren’t…..but they are what I enjoy the most. It can be very refreshing to read in different settings. I have found I will get bored easily with one setting, so I always try to mix it up and it keeps my love for historical romance alive and inspiring.

American West 

I have always had a fascination with the wild west, I blame it on all those John Wayne movies I grew up around hehe but honestly, I love this setting in romance. Texas Glory by Lorraine Heath was my first introduction into this setting, and I fell in love instantly and thus began my fascination with westerns, especially in historical romance.

Native American 

I have a certain special connection to this setting. I love this culture, and it makes a great set up for a romance. I love the Native American culture, always have—such a beautiful and rich culture they have. Its quite heartbreaking what happened to them. But what I love most is how deeply provoking these books can be and the love stories I have read so far, have been so tender and sweet. My two favorites would be Savage Skies—a great audiobook and a wonderful story. Then a more recent read, Tennessee Bride by Rosanne Bittner (which is amazing). We see the resilience of these people, but still hold true to their beliefs and connection to the beauties that surround them.

Nautical 

I love romances on the sea!!! Most of the time you see these as pirates but other times you see it on privateer ships or merchant ships. These stories can be so entertaining and full of adventure and passion. They are different than your average romance though. Which I great love about them.

Scotland 

Scotland is a beautiful setting no matter what time you are reading in. I have a great respect for this country and their history. If I had to choose one country to read permanently in, it would be this one. There is something so rich and majestic about the Scots.

Middle East 

This is a very sensual setting, many great romances I have read this setting in, and most of the time you will find those sexy Sheikh romances. I love them!!! They are very different, but are just as fabulous as many of the others. And they have great characters in what I have read so far.

England 

Now there is so much fun to be had with this setting. It is most well known for its medieval and regency periods but there are quite a few others that are just as fun!! There is a great historical context to this setting, and much that an author has to work with. From balls and soiress in London, to country estates in the countryside.

Imperial Russia 

I will admit, I haven’t been able to find many books in this setting but the ones I have found I have loved and adored. I know very little about Russia, or its history unfortunately. So its been a blast to discover the jewels I have over the years. l Love the culture though and it is so completely different yet very passionate and stimulating.

Asia Territories 

I fell in love with this setting when I actually first started romance. But for the life of me I couldn’t remember my first read. Its was more general fiction with some romantic elements. I loved it though. It was so fabulous, and I fell in love with the culture shown. I have always been fascinated with China, Japan and Korea and even Mongolia. It can be such an adventure to take a dip into their lifestyle and culture.

Ireland 

Oh the good ole’ Irish. Love these people and boy have they been put through the ringer in many different ways. They are tough though and strong spirited but just as passionate as many other cultures. Such a beautiful country and people.

Spain 

Now I love spain and quite frankly, I wish there was more variety to this setting. But I have enjoyed what I have read so far.

 Australia

Oh I love Australia, and one day I plan on traveling there!! Ever since I first read Gables Against The Sky, I fell in love with this rugged land. Its amazing what this country has gone through. There was so much diversity, and I wanted to do a shout out about this setting. Because it is so unique in many ways, and I have adored every book I have read so far. Eager to read more.

Giveaway: 

So as part of Historical Romance 101β€”we are offering a giveaway. There will be five winners. 1 Grand Prize winner, 2 Runners Up and 2 Second Runners Up. One entry per day per person through April. Winners must live in U.S.

 

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23 Comments

  1. Amanda @ On a Book Bender

    Once again, Renee, your post is spectacular and comprehensive! So many good settings (and books) here! πŸ˜€

    Reply
    • Lover Of Romance

      oh thank you Amanda!!! I am so glad you enjoyed it. I definitely love a good variety. Hope you got some new books to check out. It can be refreshing to try some new settings or settings that aren’t super popular.

      Reply
  2. Carole's Random Life

    Wow! I would have said that I have read a good variety of HR before reading this post but now I realize how limited my focus has been. I really need to love at some of these settings since I seem to always go with the west, Scottland, or England.

    Carole @ Carole’s Random Life

    Reply
    • Lover Of Romance

      haha oh those are great settings too!!! But thanks to Johanna Lindsey and Kathleen Woodiwiss, I got hooked on various settings early on while discovering romance. But there is so much more variety than what most modern authors write now. But it can be an enlightening experience to try something new and different.

      Reply
  3. Sophia Rose

    Yes! The setting can be as diverse as the era for me, too. Yay, I love all of these. I was thinking as I looked through your choices and thought about my early historical reading that I have to thank Louis L’Amour for getting me fascinated about so many different settings. His Sackett series starts in England, goes to the sea, then Colonial America, Frontier America, Native American, and Western all in one series. Then there are so many others he writes that do the same and believe it or not, the man likes his romance along with the adventure and grit.
    But yes, such a rich amount of choices within one genre.

    Reply
    • Lover Of Romance

      oh my goodness…it has been so long since I have read Louis L’Amour. I only read a few of his books, but the ones I read when I was younger I really enjoyed. I really respect how he explored different settings in America. SO FUN!! I do love great diversity. It is always great to find a male author that likes to write some good adventure with romance.

      Reply
  4. Karen

    I would love more books to be set in Australia! I’ll have to check out your picks.

    Karen @For What It’s Worth

    Reply
    • Lover Of Romance

      oh they are fantastic, especially since they aren’t common to find.

      Reply
  5. Quinn's Book Nook

    Oh you know I adore Scotland/Highland settings. It’s my favorite by far. And obviously England, as nearly all the HRs I read are set there. I’ve never read any historical romances set in the middle east. I should look into some of them.

    When I first got into historical romance, I did have a soft spot for Nautical settings too. I’m not quite so into them anymore. I’m not really sure why. Maybe because I discovered the highlands! πŸ™‚

    Reply
    • Lover Of Romance

      oh yes….the Highlands are SO fun right??!! I am glad I got hooked on them when I first started reading romance. Oh the middle east ones are fun, even some Contemporary ones that are lighthearted enough you would love from Iris Johansen. Let me know if you want to try one out. They are different but so unique and sensual.

      Well I do have some recommendations for a mix of sea and highlanders!!! Monica McCarty and Margaret Mallory. They are both fantastic.

      Reply
  6. Heidi

    Another great discussion. I always love books set in the American West, New Orleans, Paris and Ireland.

    Reply
    • Lover Of Romance

      oh those are great settings to read in!! I do want to read more in New Orleans!!! I have only read a few. But Ireland is so fantastic,

      Reply
  7. LilyElement

    I like when you do these. Gives me more insight to different genres πŸ˜€ Thank ya!! Hope you have a great weekend!

    Reply
    • Lover Of Romance

      oh thanks hun!!! It is good to get different genres right? And I only listed my favorites hehe there are way more than this. πŸ˜€

      Reply
  8. Eva

    Wow, so many of these I’ve never read and never even thought of! Going to check out some of your recs in Spain, Australia and Russia! ♥

    Reply
    • Lover Of Romance

      oh that is awesome!!! I love all of those regions, and I just wish they were more common. But they are much more fun and unique.

      Reply
  9. Grace @ Rebel Mommy Book Blog

    Wow! That is so many. I never even would have thought of some of them. I think Scotland would be my favorite. Fun post!

    Reply
    • Lover Of Romance

      Scotland is so fun, especially since there is so much history there!!

      Reply
  10. Michele H

    What a cool way to look at HR books! I’ve never broken my reading habits into regions but I’m with you on Scotland. If I had to choose one it would be that region. (Guys in kilts…hello?!) Love the nautical books, too. I read The Lady’s Command by Stephanie Laurens not long ago and really enjoyed it.

    Reply
    • Lover Of Romance

      haha yeah men in kilts and that sexy brogue—yum!! I don’t think I have read Lady’s Command yet, but I have read her backlist. You definitely should read more of her. This is what I love about romance, especially older romance. Is seeing all the various regions all over the world that you can explore with romance!!! It is what I love most about HR. Hope you found some good recommendations.

      Reply
  11. Lola

    I pretty much only have read historical romance set in England or America so far. This is a great list and I never realized how many different settings and time periods there are and it makes me want to try out more settings and see how that influences the story. I love it when authors can really make a setting come alive, in cozy mysteries for example it’s also great to see how the setting shapes the story and how the authors can really make you feel like you’re there. I love it when a setting is done well. I once won a historical romance set in Asia, so I am looking forward to reading that one. Great post!

    Reply
  12. Blodeuedd

    Nautical can be good, or boring, I mean ship and all πŸ˜‰ I’d love to see more settings, and not just fake European cuntries

    Reply
  13. Jennifer_FairyTales

    I love that you showed off books set outside the United Kingdom. I really want to read more historicals that take place in Spain, Australia, and Imperial Russia.

    Reply

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