This post first appeared in the Roswell Daily Record…
I’ve been binge watching a few of my favorite reality TV shows again, which put me in a mood to discuss the use of reality show backdrops in romance. Of course when there’s a phenomenon as fraught with drama and excitement as a reality show can be (not to mention the possibilities for romance) authors are going to be inspired to place their characters in that environment and let the plot unfold.
I’ve done it myself with Star Cruise Dream Dancer, which drew on my love for the show “Dancing with the Stars.” I placed the action aboard my luxury space cruise liner the Nebula Dream and made the Female Main Character (FMC) one of the ship’s professional dancers. She knows her days of dancing are coming to a close and has hopes of transitioning into choreography. This contest represents her golden opportunity to shine since she’ll be coming up with routines she and her arrogant billionaire partner will dance. (The contest is for charity.) I had so much fun envisioning futuristic dance routines and telling backstage stories while also nurturing the inevitable romance between the FMC and her dashing dance partner. Of course there were wrinkles along the way. Did the judges and the galaxy vote my couple the winners? Well it is a romance and they do always come with a guaranteed Happy Ever After.
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One which has stayed in my memory for years is Mars Ho! (Mars Adventure Romance Series Book 1) by Jennifer Willis. Her concept is a reality show broadcast 24/7 globally, in which the contestants are competing to earn a spot on the first colony ship to Mars. The FMC genuinely wants to travel to Mars but as the blurb says: “…when she entered the corporate-sponsored Mars Ho competition, she didn’t anticipate the chaotic, meat-market atmosphere that has candidates vying with each other on everything from creative seduction to life-and-death in the airlock.” She also didn’t expect her attraction to one of the strongest, most popular competitors. I enjoyed the way the competition played out as well as the relationship between all the characters. There are three books in the series, each revolving around a different couple with a variety of connections to the reality show. Amazon
Once Upon a Rose Ceremony: MM Fantasy Romance (Wings & Whispers) by Callie Colby also occurs in the context of a dating show. As the MMC puts it: “I signed up for a cheesy dating show to fake a romance and score enough money to fix my life. But I never expected the lead to be an actual fairy prince…” Reviewers wished it were a longer book but praised the sweetness and heat level. AmazonKU
Stranded With the Alien King: A Sci Fi Alien Warrior Romance (Alien Love Island Book 1) by Lindsay R. Loucks kicks off a five book series. In the initial book, the FMC is a courier trying to deliver a secret package but an alien warrior king is determined to take the package for his own reasons…and they get kidnapped together and dumped on a deserted planet. They’ve been drafted into an alien dating show and have no choice but to participate. Now they’re a team, pretending to play along with the game when the cameras are on but working hard to find out the truth about the whole situation. When they aren’t distracted by their deep, steamy attraction to each other of course. Reviewers loved the suspense, the romance, the spice…the cliffhanger ending not so much but the entire series is now available. Amazon AB
So You Think You Can Marry an Alien: Stargazer Alien Reality Show Brides #1 (Intergalactic Dating Agency) by Tasha Black has the alien Main Male Character (MMC) coming to Earth with his brothers, in search of brides. He decides his best option is to be the star of a reality dating show. The FMC is a famous actress on the run who hides on the set of the alien dating show. Of course complications ensue and she and the alien bachelor have chemistry. Reviewers found the book to be high energy, enjoyed the sweet alien and thought highly of the feisty take charge FMC. This is a three book series. AmazonKU AB
Love Galaxy (The Intergalactic Dating Show Book 1) by Carlotta Page follows the alien dating show trope but the program takes place in another galaxy. Here the FMC also makes the assumption she can compete, have free room and board, lose, cry prettily and return home. Then she’s paired with a 7’ alien whose plan to woo her is simple: “Convince me to stay beyond the twenty-day trial. Convince me to fall in love with him. And he’s prepared to use any tactic he can. Including studying human dating rituals. Including “practicing” kissing.” It’s a three book series, each book about a different couple. I think the final book has a great premise – the show is cancelled and the producers run off, leaving the FMC stranded. Not to worry though, the HEA ending is always guaranteed. AmazonKU
I Accidentally Joined a Demon Dating Show: A Reality TV Monster Dating Show (Rated M for Monster Book 1) by Sage Clark is a recently released paranormal romance which kicks off a six book series. It’s on my To Be Read list since I enjoyed the sample. The FMC is a software developer working on a dating app for werewolves and vampires when there’s a glitch and she gets abducted into a demon dating game. She has thirty days to play the game or be erased from existence and the handsome demon host announces he’s going to play too. Guess who the sparks and spice will be with? But then someone is murdered and she and the host have to solve the crime along the way. This is so new there aren’t any reviews as yet but I’m willing to take a chance on it. Book two features an alien/human match and the other books in the series feature an assortment of paranormal partners for the FMC’s. AmazonKU
There are a number of other reality show trope romances out there (including in the non-SFR, non-PNR romance genres too of course). Happy reading!
VS NOTE: Two more that didn’t fit into my space limitation for the newspaper column:
ENTERED IN THE ALIEN BRIDE LOTTERY (KHANAVAI WARRIOR BRIDE GAMES BOOK ONE) by Margo Bond Collins
VS Note: The Games are broadcast…
Every unmarried female human over the age of twenty-one gets entered once a year. They can also pay legal fines by accepting extra entries instead, which many women do, considering the chances are astronomical their name will get chosen to be one of the hundred or so women who get shipped off to space every year. And even if their name is drawn, the odds are slim that they’ll match up with an alien who’s looking for a mate. Most of the lottery-drawn women come back to Earth every year and resume their lives as if nothing changed. But some don’t….And no matter what, getting drawn in the Lottery means you have to compete in the Bride Games. Which is where I’m heading now, with every hope and prayer that I’ll avoid catching the eye of one of the giant, rainbow-hued aliens who mission it is to protect Earth…in exchange for human brides. Here on earth, these aliens are considered our intergalactic protecters; but rumors have it that, when it comes to their behavior on their own home planet, they’re brutes in bed. Somehow, I need to do just well enough in the games to survive…but poorly enough to not seem appealing as a mate. And if I fail, I may just discover the consequences of being an Alien’s Bride are far worse than I ever imagined. AmazonKU AB
GUARDIAN (PRISON PLANET BOOK ONE) by Emmy Chandler
VS NOTE: Underlying the concept of this prison planet is an interstellar reality show where the top fighters battle it out. It’s a very gritty but good series.
“Choose wisely. Then keep your head down and do what you’re told. Time will pass, and we’ll be back for you.” Audra Copeland is among dozens of newly convicted felons dropped off on the prison planet Rhodon, where she discovers that the women of zone four have a long-standing arrangement with the men. If they hand over six of the new arrivals, the men won’t raid. And Audra has just been drafted.
She can take her chances on her own, or select a guardian. The deal is simple, if barbaric: sex, in exchange for food and safety from the other two hundred men in zone four. It’s a terrifying proposal. The men are violent, filthy degenerates. Then Audra sees Tyson at the edge of the crowd. A hulking, scarred figure, the other men call him a savage, but his clothes are clean, and he’s holding a freshly caught rabbit. He can clearly protect what’s his. As compassionate as he is powerful, Tyson ignites something fierce in Audra, and their connection is white-hot. The problem? Every thirty days, she’ll have to pick a new guardian. Now that he’s found Audra, Ty has every intention of keeping her for himself. Even if he has to destroy the fragile zone four peace treaty to do it. AmazonKU AB