Science Fiction Romance
http://www.sfronline.com/


By A.M. Dellamonica

The genre of SF romance, according to this Web page, includes any work of fiction that blends a romantic plot or subplot with SF and fantasy elements, whether they are futuristic romances, romantic ghost stories or something in between.

The sponsor of the Sapphire Award for the best science-fiction romance of the year, SF Romance also offers a newsletter, a book catalog and over a hundred book reviews. While only portions of newsletter back issues are available online (full versions can be acquired for a nominal fee), the articles a visitor can read are packed with delights and useful information—interviews with authors like Wen Spencer and Ann Bishop, articles on whether writers interested in this type of work should select a romance critique group or an SF-based one, and a must-read article called "Futurehunk!"

The book reviews range from the succinct to the loquacious, covering an impressive number of recent works. Anyone interested in trying out a few SF romances would do well to browse here. The story descriptions are specific, providing an excellent guide to this blended genre of fiction while simultaneously showing its range and flexibility. And, after selecting a few titles, visitors can catch a link to an online bookstore for easy ordering.

Covering all bases possible, SF Romance also maintains a superb links page and a long list of resources for new writers. By combining a deep love for romantic speculative fiction with exhaustive amounts of relevant data on such works, this page scores high points both for informing visitors and for entertaining them, too.