I went to the Emerald Isle as an Emerald baby
And came back to a starred review.
I found romance novels the summer after the seventh grade.
I don’t remember the weather, but I imagine it was hot and muggy. My mother gave all three of her children the gift of reading, so we would make a weekly trip to the local library where we would check out stacks of books each, finish all of them on our deck under the sun where we would “pretend” to be playing outside, and wait (im)patiently for our next library trip.
The summer after seventh grade was the most memorable, because I wandered into the adult section in search of new reading material. I had finished all of the Babysitter’s Club books, all of the Nancy Drew and Hardy Boy books, all of the Boxcar Children, Animorphs, Goosebumps, Sweet Valley High, and the classic romances like Pride and Prejudice, Little Women, Jayne Eyre and more. I was desperate for romance, and I wasn’t finding it in the limited children’s book section. (young adult didn’t really exist at the time.)
I had to pass the new releases rack, and there, on the mass market paperback shelf, was a shiny copy of RISING TIDES by Nora Roberts. It had a peachy pink beach scene on the front and the book blurb on the back was sweet and sweeping. (Spoiler: the book blurb lied).
Thus began my love affair with adult romance novels, and Nora Roberts. I slid right into her Irish trilogies like the Gallaghers of Ardmore and the Concannon sisters.
The reason why I feel like it’s important to share this story is because Nora had always painted this fantastical view of the Emerald Isle. Where the men and the accents were incredibly sexy and the women were all red heads and spunky. Obviously I knew that wasn’t true once I entered adulthood, but the fantasy lived on in parts. That fantasy of Ireland was intricately tied with my memories of reading Nora.
Did Nora Roberts oversell Ireland? I don’t think so. It was just as green as she always described. The people were incredibly friendly, the pubs were packed with music and conversation, and the countryside were dotted with puffy white lambs.
I always wanted to visit Ireland because of those early romances about pubs in Ardmore or glass houses in Shannon and Dublin, but I enjoyed Ireland because it was the break I needed after writing three books in six months. I am, as many of Nora’s characters were when they visited Ireland, burned out.
More importantly, I was celebrating my 38th birthday, which I have been dreading for months. The older I get, the less likely I am to have children. I’ve been on this IVF journey for years now, and getting away was exactly what I needed to distance myself from my reality.
So I welcomed my 38th with my memories, with a person I love, and with the intention of recharging so I could get back home and start a new book.
Because sometimes, the best way to move forward is to appreciate what you’ve left behind. Nora taught me that.
If you’re interested in my notes from my Ireland trip, I’ve added them to a Google doc here! Remember, I am not a local and this is just from the perspective of a first-time tourist so proceed with caution.
Even though a trip to Ireland was a birthday gift all on its own, I came back to a starred review in Publisher’s Weekly for TASTES LIKE SHAKKAR!
“With a charming (and lovingly meddlesome) supporting cast and plenty of glamorous pre-wedding events along the way, this exhilarating rom-com hits all the right notes.”
Don’t forget that TASTES LIKE SHAKKAR, the second book in the ‘If Shakespeare was an Auntie’ series, comes out August 1, and if you liked book 1 (DATING DR. DIL), I hope you enjoy book 2 just as much. Pre-orders and adding the book to your Goodreads page is a huge help to authors, specifically those writing marginalized characters, so help a girl out!
Until next time, this is 38 <3
Looking forward to Book #2!!!!