I confess that I’m a romance novel junkie. Despite having an advanced degree in English, I can’t get enough of those steamy, predictable, falling in love stories. They provide the mindless entertainment I seek at the end of a long day.

My favorites are historical romances set in Regency England. As I get older, though, I’m finding that I relate less and less to the young heroines, who usually are under the age of 25.

This got me thinking: Are there any romance novels that feature  heroes and heroines  over the age of 40? A quick Google search gave me an answer, which is a resounding yes!

Here is a list of titles from Goodreads.  Note that the first few are by author Kristen Ashley. I have yet to read one of her books, but already I’m wondering how the love scenes will look in comparison to those with younger lead characters.

Photo via Goodreads

Here’s an excerpt from a traditional  romance novel, Put Up Your Duke, by Megan Frampton, told from the perspective of the young heroine, who is referring to her under-30 husband: “…that gorgeous, muscular, delicious body.” (342)

Now imagine a similar line from the perspective of a heroine over the age of 40, referring to her equally old lover: “…that sexy, somewhat muscular, slightly beer-bellied body.”

Hmm…which love scene would you rather read?

As if aging bodies weren’t enough to deal with, usually by the time a person reaches their 40s they bring some kind of baggage into a new relationship. This could be emotional baggage, such as a broken heart or career burnout, or physical baggage, like an ex-spouse or a house with an upside down mortgage.

Hardly the stuff of romance.

Nevertheless, I’m going to give one of the books a try. I trust that somehow the author found a way to bypass the baggage and saggage to create a compelling, happily-ever-life-after-40 story.