Romantic Novelist's Association shortlist

I'm a bit later posting this then I meant to be.

As you've probably gathered by now I am a fully paid up enthusiastic member of the Romantic Novelist's Association, though you would be lucky to catch me in a boa and rattling twinset and pearls. (Actually I don't know a single member of the RNA to whom such a description would apply. And we don't all wear pink either - got that?).

Anyway. This week they posted the shortlist for their annual award, and a very wonderful list it is too. I promised I'd help promote it, so here it is. I hope there's something here that will appeal to some (if not all - ok I'm a zealot but you won't be thrown off this blog for not being a fan of romantic fiction, I am nothing if not eclectic in my tastes!) of you. I myself am just about to dive into the JoJo Moyes - I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to write the reader's notes for The Ship of Brides which was shortlisted in 2005 and which I loved, so am looking forward to this one.

Enjoy!

PS The winner is going to be announced on February 4 at the RNA Award Lunch, to which this year I am rather excitingly going to go for the first time...


Shortlist announced for the
Romantic Novel of the Year 2008


The Romantic Novelists’ Association today announced the shortlist for the Romantic Novel of the Year 2008. The shortlist was selected by a panel of RNA members, who scored the books on such criteria as romantic content, readability, dialogue, characters, plot, style and setting.

The shortlist includes:

One Last Summer – Catrin Collier (Orion)
Silk and Steel – Catherine King (Sphere/Little, Brown)
The Leaving of Liverpool – Maureen Lee (Orion)
Silver Bay – Jojo Moyes (Hodder & Stoughton)
Pillow Talk – Freya North (Harper Collins)
Young Wives’ Tales – Adele Parks (Michael Joseph/Penguin)

The winner of the 2008 award will be decided by the judging panel, which this year includes comedienne Helen Lederer, Good Housekeeping Books Editor Kerry Fowler, and Chris Rushby, Buying Director of Bertram Books, Britain’s leading book wholesaler.

The 2008 winner will be announced at the Awards Lunch on February 4th at the Royal Garden Hotel, London.

The panel of RNA members said of the shortlisted titles:

One Last Summer – Catrin Collier (Orion)
“It is very moving and the complexities of love and war are explored in depth. A memorable read.”

Silk and Steel – Catherine King (Sphere/Little, Brown)
“I enjoyed this book very much. It had drama, conflict, intrigue as well as love and romance. The main character, despite all the desperate situations in her life, came through it to win in the end and she was likeable and admirable.”

The Leaving of Liverpool – Maureen Lee (Orion)
“This is one of the best books I have read in a long time. I loved the characters, the story, the way it was written. I love books from this era. Outstanding.”

Silver Bay – Jojo Moyes (Hodder & Stoughton)
“I was drawn into this story. I wanted to be a guest at the Silver Bay Hotel and savour the experiences and kinship of the characters. I thoroughly enjoyed this moving tale, with its sentiment and humour.”



Pillow Talk – Freya North (Harper Collins)
“Petra is the girl we all dreamt of being and Arlo the man we all wanted to meet. Who doesn’t wonder ‘what if…’ to the long lost first love?”

Young Wives’ Tales – Adele Parks (Michael Joseph/Penguin)
“An excellent modern romance, sharp and witty. The characters were well defined and the dialogue flowed along nicely. For me, a perfect read.”

For further information about the Romantic Novel of the Year 2008,
photographs and bios of the shortlisted authors, please contact Katrina Power at Midas Public Relations on 020 7590 0802 or katrina.power@midaspr.co.uk



Notes to Editors

Romantic Novel of the Year Award: The Award was inaugurated in 1960 to recognise excellence in romantic novels and thereby enhance the standing of the genre. Any novel which is published in the UK (or simultaneously with other countries) in 2007 is eligible for the Award.

2007 Winner: The 2007 winner was Rosie Thomas for Iris & Ruby. Recent winners include Erica James, Katharine Davies, Jojo Moyes, Sarah Mason, Cathy Kelly, Philippa Gregory, Maureen Lee and Clare Chambers. To download past winners: log onto www.rna-uk.org

Organisers: The Romantic Novelists’ Association (RNA) was set up in 1960 to promote respect for the genre and to encourage excellence. Full membership is open to authors who have published a romantic novel or a romantic serial. Aspiring writers are admitted as probationary members. In 2005, an RNA team beat teams from Wisden and The Economist in University Challenge - The Professionals, only going down to the Privy Council in the final. The Chairman is Catherine Jones. For more information log onto www.rna-uk.org.

Submissions: 189 submissions were received this year from 22 large and small publishers. 5 publishers submitted for the first time, and there were several first-time authors.

Judging: 90 keen members of the reading public, drawn from all over the country, with an even distribution in age groups, selected the long list of 21 titles. Each book was scored three times to achieve the long list, the criteria covering romantic content, readability, characters, plot, dialogue, style and ending. A panel of RNA members then whittled this down to the shortlist, which is then assessed by the judging panel.

Judging Panel: the panel for 2008 is chaired by comedienne, actress and author Helen Lederer, who is joined by Kerry Fowler, Books Editor for Good Housekeeping, and Chris Rushby, Buying Director for Bertram Books.

Winner Announcement: on 4th February 2008 at the Award lunch at the Royal Garden Hotel, Kensington.

For further information about the Romantic Novel of the Year 2008,
photographs and bios of the shortlisted authors, please contact Katrina Power
at Midas Public Relations on 020 7590 0802 or katrina.power@midaspr.co.uk