As Divine Caroline's You.Propelled campaign continues to support the big payouts that come through small changes, I started thinking about passion and how the lack of it can be such a hugely divisive, distancing factor in a relationship. So, here's a bell-and-whistle-free fix for putting you in the mood.

Whether it's thumbing through the sleaziest romance novel at the grocery store or discreetly Googling plot synopses of X-rated movies, one of the easiest ways to enhance your love life right now is to simply read—and let your imagination run wild.
Sex guides and toys be damned, I … Read More

Love Bytes: three must click sex, dating and relationship links.

Is a drab fashion sense enough cause to look elsewhere? "Though I am attracted to him, I am not attracted to his style. Help me out on this one: is boring style a dealbreaker?" [TheFrisky]

Authors of Beyond Heaving Bosoms: The Smart Bitches’ Guide to Romance Novels, Sarah Wendell and Candy Tan, sound off on the best/worst euphemisms for sex in a romance novel. [TresSugar]

The Salli saddle system protects men's genitals from poorly designed chairs. [Asylum]

Talk about an Amish paradise!

The quaint community from Southeastern Pennsylvania are quickly developing their very own Carrie Bradshaw in Cindy Woodsmall—the Amish romance novelist.

Woodsmall (who is not Amish herself) penned not one, but two New York Times bestsellers with her first series, Sisters of the Quilt. The book series chronicles a conservative Amish woman as she struggles with the demands of the Amish world and affection from a man outside of it.

Woodsmall is just one of a number of successful authors penning Amish romance novels, with the genre earning its own nickname "bonnet books."

The author, who is … Read More

Is your partner still the same man you married? Does he have the same pep in his step and sense of idealism that you fell for back when he was buying you drinks and begging for a second date? Perhaps he's a bit wearier, a bit weightier or even a bit weathered from the financial storm that has threatened to take the fun and spontaneity out of marriage.

Don't let life's downers drag you down. Moreover, don't allow your hectic schedules and harried lifestyles make you so preoccupied you forget to have a little fun. When couples … Read More

If you asked if me if I'd ever read a romance before, I'd say "no, of course not."

Then I'd pause and realize, that's not right –– I'm a voracious consumer of young adult vampire novels!

Twilight, by Stephenie Meyer, and Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side, by Beth Fantaskey, are two of my favorite vampire romances (both young adult novels).  Though they're not packaged as "romances," exactly, I surprised myself enamoured with –– swooning, even! –– over the hunky male protagonists. 

Even though they're, um, undead.

At first, neither Edward in Twilight or Lucius … Read More

There's a metric ton of summer reading lists out there, many of which feature books that by international law must have a colon in the title. Books with names like, Murderous Flapjacks: An Esoteric Halflife of Breakfast.

These books feature incredibly deft use of language, explore themes of human suffering or perhaps reveal deeper truths about lasting peace. Or they rip your heart out of your chest and hand it to you. There you are, at the pool, at the beach, on a warm green hillside in the cool, breezy mountains, eager for a vacation that took … Read More

Settling in for a romantic night? Add an erotic read into the mix to stimulate body and mind. Here’s a taste.

Little Birds Anaïs Nin (Harcourt)

“At the same moment that she felt she was falling into darkness, into his golden-brown flesh, he fell towards her, covered her with kisses, very hot, quick kisses, into which his breath passed. He kissed her behind her ears, on her eyelids, her throat, her shoulders.…She was blinded, deafened, made senseless. Every kiss, like a gulp of wine, added to the warmth of her body. Every kiss increased the heat of … Read More