Comfort Reading Tuesday, October 03, 2006

Recently, my fiance and I lost power at our apartment in the late afternoon. He works graveyard and eventually went off to work, leaving me in a dark house. Alone. At first, I figured I'd try to sleep, but found myself unable to do so. Ultimately, I armed myself with a cigarette lighter, a bunch of candles, and my toppling to-be-read stack.

Several hours later, when I was nearly finished with the book I'd settled on reading (The Dragon Lord by Connie Mason), I realised something odd. Most every time I sit down to read something "comforting" (outside of beloved favorites), I usually end up reading something with the same opening premise: the heroine, a feisty young woman, is unwillingly entered into an arranged marriage. (Alternatively: feisty young heroine fleeing from her restrictive life.)

Which really made me think hard. A lot of my old favorites fit this theme, too. Hawkmistress! by Marion Zimmer Bradley. Arrows of the Queen by Mercedes Lackey. Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce. And a slew of others.

Most of these are fantasy because I didn't get into romance till a few years ago. Even still, my choice in "comfort" romance tends to have the same premise, although it's often handled differently than in fantasy. (For instance, often the woman's betrothed is often the hero, while I don't ever think I've seen this in fantasy.) I'm sure this must say something about my subconscious, though I'm not quite sure what. LOL.

Does anyone else notice recurring themes/premises in reading choice? Or am I just nuts here? ;)