Have you tucked into a romance novel lately? If not, you might be in the minority of readers.

Romance sales are soaring. Last year, they grew twice as fast as the rest of the fiction market.

In the past, the genre’s commercial value was widely accepted - romance books have always been big sellers. But now, its literary merit is being recognized, too.

So this Valentine’s Day, there’s more reason than ever to find love in a stack of books. And we won’t leave you hunting.

GUESTS: 
Charlie Hunts, owner of Charlie’s Queer Books in Seattle
Ren Rice, owner of The Romance Era Bookstore in Vancouver, WA
Jenna Zarzycki, a librarian with the King County Library System

RELATED LINKS: 
NPR producer shares her pick of romance novels from our annual Books We Love list — KUOW
A surprising genre of romance novels is gaining popularity — KUOW
The Romance Era Bookshop
Charlie’s Queer Books

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW. You help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes.

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

Have you tucked into a romance novel lately? If not, you might be in the minority of readers.
Romance sales are soaring. Last year, they grew twice as fast as the rest of the fiction market.
In the past, the genre&rsquo;s commercial value was widely accepted - romance books have always been big sellers. But now, its literary merit is being recognized, too.
So this Valentine&rsquo;s Day, there&rsquo;s more reason than ever to find love in a stack of books. And we won&rsquo;t leave you hunting.
GUESTS: 
<ul>
<li>Charlie Hunts, owner of Charlie&rsquo;s Queer Books in Seattle</li>
<li>Ren Rice, owner of The Romance Era Bookstore in Vancouver, WA</li>
<li>Jenna Zarzycki, a librarian with the King County Library System</li>
</ul>
RELATED LINKS:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.kuow.org/stories/npr-producer-shares-her-pick-of-romance-novels-from-our-annual-books-we-love-list" data-stringify-link="https://www.kuow.org/stories/npr-producer-shares-her-pick-of-romance-novels-from-our-annual-books-we-love-list" data-sk="tooltip_parent">NPR producer shares her pick of romance novels from our annual Books We Love list</a> &mdash; KUOW</li>
<li><a href="https://www.kuow.org/stories/a-surprising-genre-of-romance-novels-is-gaining-popularity" data-stringify-link="https://www.kuow.org/stories/a-surprising-genre-of-romance-novels-is-gaining-popularity" data-sk="tooltip_parent">A surprising genre of romance novels is gaining popularity</a> &mdash; KUOW</li>
<li><a href="https://theromanceerabookshop.com/pages/about" data-stringify-link="https://theromanceerabookshop.com/pages/about" data-sk="tooltip_parent">The Romance Era Bookshop</a></li>
<li><a href="https://charliesqueerbooks.com/?srsltid=AfmBOoqjIOQhWnZo4WlBWKsRUKBgI93bYhCGYScPxGZlaMb9scXKF1YG" data-stringify-link="https://charliesqueerbooks.com/?srsltid=AfmBOoqjIOQhWnZo4WlBWKsRUKBgI93bYhCGYScPxGZlaMb9scXKF1YG" data-sk="tooltip_parent">Charlie&rsquo;s Queer Books</a></li>
</ul>
Thank you to the supporters of KUOW. You help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to&nbsp;<a href="http://kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes" data-stringify-link="http://kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes" data-sk="tooltip_parent">kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes</a>.
Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

Soundside

Soundside host Libby Denkmann hosts a panel of experts on ROMANCE BOOKS! It's a Valentine's Day special as our guests discuss the latest & greatest in Romance Novels, so you too can fall in love at a bookstore near you.

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