[Note from Frolic: We’re so excited to have author Rebecca Yarros guest posting on the site today. She’s rounded up some TV series perfect for romance lovers. Take it away, Rebecca!]
More, please.
Someone asked me how I cope with writer’s block today. I don’t often get blocked, but when I do, I know I need to fill my creative well. How? With music, reading, and the occasional binge-watch. That’s right. There’s nothing more soothing to this author’s soul than popcorn, M&M’s, and devouring seasons one through five of whatever I’ve just fallen into.
And yes, Netflix, I’m still watching. Stop asking every four episodes. I’m committed.
So in the spirit of refreshing the creative well, here are my top five series to binge-watch if you’re a romance fan.
Virgin River
Adapted from the beloved novels by Robyn Carr, this series explores small town life and love through the eyes of a widow who has just moved to town as she begins to heal through her grief. On a personal note, if Robyn Carr hadn’t told me to get to a writer’s conference back in 2012, I wouldn’t have my career today!
Sweet Magnolias
Adapted from the beautiful books by Sherryl Woods, this is the go-to show when you need all the feels from strong friendships, tight knit families, and fresh starts. Toss in all the yumminess that is Justin Bruening, and you have an evening (or two) well spent.
To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before
Though this is technically a movie franchise and not a series, there are now three of Jenny Han’s amazing novels adapted for the screen and I can’t get enough. High school drama? A fake relationship? First loves? First kisses? Noah Centineo? Yes, please. There are hours of YA romance ready for the binging in this one!
Outlander
Just in case you’ve been living under a rock, I have to toss Jamie and Claire your way. For five glorious seasons, romance lovers everywhere have tuned in to see what happens when time-traveling Claire finds herself back in 1743… and stumbles into the arms of the mouth-wateringly gorgeous highlander, Jamie Fraser. Who cares that she’s already married back in the 1940’s. Frank-who? Give us more Jamie.
Bridgerton
Ah yes, the holy grail of romance adaptations. The one that may have just woken up the world to the fact that romance fans everywhere are begging for more. Gossip Girl style drama? Check. Brother’s best friend trope? Check. Complicated family dynamics? You bet. Or maybe it could have something to do with the scrumptiousness that is Regé-Jean Page. Either way, if you have a Saturday to spare, falling into Julia Quinn’s lush regency world is a fabulous way to spend it!
As for what’s next? I’m ridiculously excited for BB Easton’s Sex/Life on Netflix, which is the adaptation of her novel 44 Chapters About 4 Men, and can’t wait to see Alexa Martin’s Intercepted to come out on Starz. Football romance? Yes, please. I’m greedy for all the romance I can get over here.
Hopefully Hollywood will catch on and catch up, and until then? Well, I’ll be over here on my sixteenth rewatch of Bridgerton!
About the Author:
Rebecca Yarros is the Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestselling author of over ten novels, including The Last Letter and Great and Precious Things. She is the recipient of the Colorado Romance Writers Award of Excellence for Eyes Turned Skyward from her Flight and Glory series and can survive on coffee and peppermint bark when necessary.
Rebecca loves military heroes and has been blissfully married to her now-retired apache pilot for nineteen years. She’s the mother of six children, ranging from first grade to law school, and is somehow surviving the teenage years with three of her four hockey-playing sons. When she’s not writing, you can find her catching her sons’ games at the hockey rink or sneaking in some guitar time. She lives in Colorado with her family, their stubborn English bulldogs, and a Maine coon kitten who rules them all. Having fostered, then adopted their youngest daughter, Rebecca is passionate about helping children in the foster system through her nonprofit, One October.
The Things We Leave Unfinished by Rebecca Yarros, out now!
Twenty-eight-year-old Georgia Stanton has to start over after she gave up almost everything in a brutal divorce—the New York house, the friends, and her pride. Now back home at her late great-grandmother’s estate in Colorado, she finds herself face-to-face with Noah Harrison, the bestselling author of a million books where the cover is always people nearly kissing. He’s just as arrogant in person as in interviews, and she’ll be damned if the good-looking writer of love stories thinks he’s the one to finish her grandmother’s final novel…even if the publisher swears he’s the perfect fit.
Noah is at the pinnacle of his career. With book and movie deals galore, there isn’t much the “golden boy” of modern fiction hasn’t accomplished. But he can’t walk away from what might be the best book of the century—the one his idol, Scarlett Stanton, left unfinished. Coming up with a fitting ending for the legendary author is one thing, but dealing with her beautiful, stubborn, cynical great-granddaughter, Georgia, is quite another.
But as they read Scarlett’s words in both the manuscript and her box of letters, they start to realize why Scarlett never finished the book—it’s based on her real-life romance with a World War II pilot, and the ending isn’t a happy one. Georgia knows all too well that love never works out, and while the chemistry and connection between her and Noah is undeniable, she’s as determined as ever to learn from her great-grandmother’s mistakes—even if it means destroying Noah’s career.
