Chapters in this book

1. Frontmatter i
2. Contents vii
3. Preface: The Most Popular, Least Respected Literary Genre xi
4. Part I. Critics And The Romance Novel
5. 1 The Romance Novel And Women’S Bondage 3
6. 2 In Defense Of The Romance Novel 9
7. Part II. The Romance Novel Defined
8. 3 The Definition 19
9. 4 The Definition Expanded 27
10. 5 The Genre’S Limits 47
11. Part III. The Romance Novel, 1740–1908
12. 6 Writing The Romance Novel’S History 53
13. 7. The First Best Seller: Pamela, 1740 63
14. 8 The Best Romance Novel Ever Written: Pride And Prejudice, 1813 75
15. 9 Freedom And Rochester: Jane Eyre, 1847 85
16. 10 The Romance Form In The Victorian Multiplot Novel: Framley Parsonage, 1861 93
17. 11 The Ideal Romance Novel: A Room With A View, 1908 99
18. Part IV. The Twentieth-Century Romance Novel
19. 12 The Popular Romance Novel In The Twentieth Century 107
20. 13 Civil Contracts: Georgette Heyer 125
21. 14 Courtship And Suspense: Mary Stewart 143
22. 15 Harlequin, Silhouette, And The Americanization Of The Popular Romance Novel: Janet Dailey 155
23. 16 Dangerous Men: Jayne Ann Krentz 169
24. 17 One Man, One Woman: Nora Roberts 183
25. Conclusion 205
26. Works Cited 209
27. Index 219
28. Acknowledgments 225