{"id":8160,"date":"2012-01-31T00:00:38","date_gmt":"2012-01-31T05:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/theseasonforromance.com\/wordpress\/?p=8160"},"modified":"2012-01-31T00:00:38","modified_gmt":"2012-01-31T05:00:38","slug":"wanted-a-heroine-whos-just-like-me","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/smittenbybooks.com\/blog\/2012\/01\/31\/wanted-a-heroine-whos-just-like-me\/","title":{"rendered":"Wanted: a heroine who\u2019s just like me"},"content":{"rendered":"

by<\/em> Kat Latham<\/strong><\/p>\n

Having moved to a new country just a couple of months ago, one of the biggest things I miss about my life in London is my friends. I miss talking about men and relationships with them. I miss venting about life\u2019s challenges. I miss confessing all the ways I think I\u2019m a bit messed up and discovering to my relief that they feel the same about themselves.<\/p>\n

Missing my friends has made me all the more eager to seek out contemporary romance novels where the heroine seems like a woman I\u2019d happily share a jug of sangria with. I love a heroine with a quirky voice, a funny outlook on life, and quite a few flaws.<\/p>\n

This weekend I \u201cmet\u201d one of those heroines. Her name is Jazz Shepherd, and she\u2019s in author Amie Denman<\/a>\u2019s<\/em><\/strong> upcoming novel Her Lucky Catch<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Jazz is funny, uncoordinated and can laugh at herself. She\u2019s not above gossiping about her romantic rival, and she stabbed her ex-husband in the butt with safety scissors when she caught him cheating.<\/p>\n

\"\"Jazz is my kinda gal. She tells her story in first person, so as I was reading I felt more like I was sitting at a caf\u00e9 (okay, maybe a cocktail bar) next to the marina where she works, listening as she told me all about her love life. Reading Her Lucky Catch<\/a><\/strong> is like getting tipsy with a woman who\u2019s a lot like me.<\/p>\n

But with a slight inclination toward violence.<\/p>\n

This weekend I also read a novel where the heroine was perfect. It was a military romantic suspense, and the heroine was the best at everything she tried\u2014the best helicopter pilot, a gourmet cook, and so incredibly skilled at self-defense that she wiped out a group of hulking secret servicemen at a gym.<\/p>\n

This woman is nothing like me. She had not a single flaw, and I began resenting the time I had to spend with her. I couldn\u2019t connect, couldn\u2019t relate.<\/p>\n

There are plenty of incredible romance heroines who are talented in ways I\u2019ll never achieve, but I need to feel they\u2019re similar to me in at least one way\u2014even if it\u2019s that we\u2019re both imperfect.<\/p>\n

The delightfully imperfect Jazz Shepherd made my weekend. I only wish I could buy her a drink.<\/p>\n

Although Her Lucky Catch<\/a><\/strong> isn\u2019t out until the end of February (mark your calendars), I\u2019m shouting about it now because it\u2019s one my picks for February\u2019s contemporaries to covet<\/a><\/strong>. Stop by my blog this week and tell me what contemporary romance novel you\u2019re coveting this month and you could win a gift certificate for yourself AND for the author you mention<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Do you like heroines to be people you can relate to? Or do you prefer them to be someone you wish you could be?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

Kat Latham<\/strong>\u00a0has been reading romance for a couple of decades. With degrees in English lit and human rights, she loves stories that reflect the depth, humor and emotion of real life. When she\u2019s not writing contemporary romance novels, she can usually be found blogging or tweeting overly personal information. She loves meeting other readers and writers online, so\u00a0follow her on Twitter<\/a>\u00a0or\u00a0check out her blog<\/a>\u00a0and say hello!<\/p>\n\n

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