Michelle Monkou | Sauntering Down Memory Lane

A friend recently celebrated her wedding on the beach of Cayman Islands. The bright blue sky, turquoise water, and white sandy beach provided a romantic setting for the couple in love. The photos from her wedding remind me of my April release – No One But You – that beautifully highlights a bride standing on a beach ready and waiting for her perfect match.

No One But You, Harlequin Kimani Romance, introduces the first in the Ladies of Distinction series about sorority sisters who pledged together and now face life after university. Basically after college, Jackson Thomas chose his family business over Sarafina Lovell. Now Jackson is back, and Sara plans to give him one sultry goodbye kiss to prove she’s moved on. His sizzling kiss awakens memories of passion too hot to ignore.…

I am happy to have Essence Bestseller Francis Ray share her thoughts about my book: No One But You . . . is romance at its best - fun, sexy, memorable.

Although I write romances, I am an avid romance reader. From 13 or 14 years old, I read romances that had lush settings in Australia, Argentina, English countryside, and so on. Yes, I could have easily enjoyed reading my book in a quiet corner, but I derived great pleasure in discussing the book.

In high school, way before there was such a thing as bookclubs, my friends and I read the book and then conducted major discussions. At first, it was only my friend and me. Then as others heard about our lively conversation, they wanted to join. We didn’t have rules. However, if a person wasn’t an avid reader and, heaven forbid, not an avid romance reader, then she wouldn’t be a good fit with the group. We read almost a book a day and probably two or three books over a weekend. Granted we didn’t have video games and the multitude of TV channels to tempt us.

This connection between romance books and friends has not diminished over time. Being a member of Romance Writers of America places a person in the middle of active, supportive writers, but more importantly readers, of romance. I’m convinced that a writer cannot be a good writer if she does not read.

I won’t pretend that our discussions were always intellectual and thought provoking. Sometimes it simply was sharing common appreciation like when we talked about heroes -- their motivations and conflicts -- never gets dull. And yes, a full discourse about which celebrities match the hero would make the discussion complete. At 15 years old, sharing page numbers of fabulous bodies described in Johanna Lindsey’s books reduced us to a group of giggling girls. Now several decades later, I can still enjoy a few minutes of frivolity with my girlfriends over a romantic, sensual, handsome hero.

I am grateful for the ties between romance books and friendships. Each served to strengthen the enjoyment of the other. I look forward to continuing my deep relish of the latest romance books and the new friends that will come my way.

Introduce a friend to a romance book.

Michelle Monkou
http://www.michellemonkou.com/