I like romance novels. Many of them. To me, they’re like mystery novels, where you get to stack up all the clues, and you know the case will be solved in the end. 

The best writers know how to get from start to finish. Leading men can’t be perfect on Page 1 because that would be boring. No stakes. No plot.

I just read a book with an enemies-to-lovers trope that made me think … “If this story happened in real life, 50 percent of it would have felt miserable.” It took a while to get to the good stuff. 

I think you’re forgetting that most of your favorite love stories dedicate at least 100 pages to the buildup. Sometimes book boyfriends begin as enemies, rogues, awkward silent party guest in corners, and characters who say the wrong thing at the wrong time. Heroines are similar. Depending on the genre, they might be standoffish, judgmental, too focused on work or obligations to notice love, or maybe even a vampire who is bored by all humans.

My advice for dating in Boston – or anywhere – as a romance book lover, is to imagine first dates as Page 1. Would you keep reading that book, with some hope things might change? Great. Then you move to Date 2.

It seems like there are lots of toads here, and maybe there are. But there are also some characters – real-life people with character – who get overlooked because it was only the first page.

Romance novels are the best when they’re slow burns. Have the patience to stick with the story.

– Meredith