I was raised in and still hold to eastern values socially, familiarly and religiously. So, whenever I read a romance novel, I always feel a disconnect with the banter of the characters and the easy fluidity of their relationships.
When the characters face obstacles it's usually because of some external factors that are unique to their circumstances such as money problems, disease, family or so on. But for the most part their relationships aren't surrounded with complexities such as the very values that millions around them hold.
I dont know if I'm making a whole lot of sense or not but I guess what I'm looking for is something that is simultaneously real in its slow-burn-ness but also real in the fact that a very large portion of the world doesn't experience meet-cutes and tonnes of instant banter and that instead romance and love actually looks like a lot of tip-toe careful decisions before you commit to spending the rest of your life with that person and that those decisions involve the consideration of the centuries of culture that weigh its traditions on it. And that it depicts that realness in a beautifully elegant and poetic way
The books don't have to be written by western authors and could instead be written by authors local to the Middle East or South Asia or East Asia, etc. I would greatly greatly appreciate any and all recommendations as such. I've been in need of a filling of a hole in my heart for quite sometime because romance and love isn't as simple as what's depicted in its ease of access.
by silent_lurker21
1 Comment
There’s a lot of romance novels that are centred around Asia, mainly South Korea and Japan. ‘Shine’ by Jessica Jung I’ve heard is good, based around K-Pop. ‘XOXO’ is a Korean-American MC, yet again haven’t read but have heard lovely things!