The Best Military Romances
Romance novels centered on characters in the military are especially appropriate this month, when we remember the sacrifices members of the armed forces have made and give thanks for their safe return. With a smaller percentage of Americans serving in the military than ever before, fiction can give civilian readers an eye-opening look at what soldiers and their families have endured over the past decade-plus of war. In addition to the work of Suzanne Brockmann, Maya Banks, and Tara Janzen, who have all written well-regarded series featuring military heroes, here are four more favorites. Because there are few things hotter than a man in dress whites, am I right?
Julia Spencer-Fleming’s 2011 novel One Was a Soldier twines together the stories of five veterans returning from war, all of them damaged and struggling—often failing—to regain some sort of normalcy. This is the masterpiece in Spencer-Fleming’s eight-book series, deftly weaving together a central mystery with the five characters’ sprawling stories, and then wrapping up with a conclusion that feels utterly right, utterly just—until she kicks the legs out from under you at the very end. It’s a delicious torment.
Barbara Longley’s three-book series, set in the small town of Perfect, Indiana (yes, it sounds impossibly twee and cloying, but Longley manages to avoid sappy Mayberry clichés), focuses on returning veterans who are all dealing with some sort of injury, either physical or emotional, and often both. The third book in the series, A Change of Heart, follows the recovery of a female soldier, Corporal Cory Marcel, after she’s sexually assaulted by her commanding officer. It’s—to put it mildly—a heavy way to start a romance novel. Longley writes with empathy and humor, though, and brings her characters through the fire to become whole and healthy in time for their happy ending.
Author Jessica Scott’s debut novel, Because of You, fairly vibrates with detail and realism—and well it should, as Scott herself is a career army officer. Unlike many military-focused novels, Because of You dedicates a good chunk of the book to the active-duty characters’ deployment as well as the toll the Iraq and Afghanistan wars have taken on military families. On the lighter side, for fans of big, burly, tattooed heroes: this one’s your man.
And for something with an absolute minimum of angst, Jo Leigh’s steamy Hotshot reunites former lovers Luke Carnes and Sara Weston, both Air Force captains, and both still reeling from their nasty breakup years before. Leigh’s books tend to be efficient, to-the-point blush inducers, and this one’s no exception.
What’s your favorite military-themed romance? Do you go for SEALs or the infantry, Marines or pilots?