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I have a confession to make. I never used to read romance novels. It wasn’t that I was opposed to them; I just couldn’t relate to the submissive heroines who seemed to populate those early, 1970’s era books. While society was changing and women’s liberation was gaining steam, too many romance heroines seemed stuck in a less than liberated past.
Then gradually, romance heroines began to change to reflect the times. I fell in love with romance novels and read them whenever I could. But by the turn of the new millennium, the pendulum had swung to the other extreme, and “kick-ass heroines” came into vogue—those super competent, super independent, super hard-nosed women who refused to lean on a man, even when common sense demanded it (such as refusing the help of a bodyguard when they had a crazed serial killer on their heels). Frankly, I couldn’t relate to that type of heroine, either.
So where did that leave me as a reader? I didn’t like wimps. There was nothing admirable about a woman who let a man mistreat her in the name of “love.” But pushy, aggressive women turned me off, too, as did men with similar traits. I wanted to read about strong women with a soft side. Ones I could relate to and admire. Heroines who struck me as real.
So when I started writing my own novels, I tried to keep that in mind. Take the three women in my Buried Secrets trilogy. These heroines are fighters. They’ve had to be. They grew up in abusive homes. But instead of submitting, they fled, running away as teenagers in order to escape the abuse. Running, in their cases, wasn’t cowardice. It was an act of courage, the only means they had at that age to survive.
The three girls met on the streets of Baltimore. Unprepared for the violence, they banded together for protection and became good friends. But then, their lives turned even worse. They witnessed a terrible murder, setting them on the run again.
But again, these girls are survivors. And by the time the trilogy begins fifteen years later, they’ve all forged productive lives. Brynn Elliot (Fatal Exposure) is a famous, but reclusive, photojournalist who chronicles the brutal reality of street life. Haley Barnes (A Kiss to Die for) runs a shelter for pregnant teens. Nadine Seymour (Seduced by His Target) is a plastic surgeon who does pro bono work on battered women. They are still fighting back, trying to help other unfortunate women and make a difference in the world.
But then their past catches up to them. A chance photograph of Brynn in the newspaper sets the killer on their heels again. And one by one, they are forced to deal not only with that powerful killer, but the terrible dangers that originally drove them from their homes.
What I like most about these heroines is that they aren’t superhuman. They are very real and very scared. But they also have spines of steel. They have spent their lives fighting back and protecting the people around them, and they aren’t about to back down now. When danger comes calling, they stand their ground.
These Buried Secrets heroines have a lot in common with those earlier, kick-ass heroines. They are street savvy and determined, women I can truly admire. But they also have a soft side and vulnerabilities, especially when it comes to romance.
These two sides come to a head when they meet their worthy heroes. They must call on all their strength to take one last step—to confront their darkest fears and change. Like true survivors, they do. And in the process, they’re finally able to grasp the love they deserve.
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Gail Barrett is the author of eleven award-winning romantic suspense novels. A former RITA and Daphne finalist, Gail has received numerous awards, including the Book Buyer's Best Award, the Holt Medallion, the Booksellers Best, and the National Readers' Choice Award. FATAL EXPOSURE, the first book in her BURIED SECRETS trilogy, is out right now. Readers can contact her through her website: www.gailbarrett.com.