#The Duchess’s Bodyguard by Drea C

[betterbooksandthings]

“Bodyguard romances provide an excellent opportunity for a unique dynamic. You have your physical (and sometimes emotional) well-being in the hands of a bodyguard. They commit to keeping you safe from others and, sometimes, from your own reckless choices. There is a tension that develops then, between the protector and the person they are protecting. Sometimes, romance clouds a bodyguard’s judgment, so they avoid it at all costs. Sometimes, it provides the perfect opportunity for a close emotional bond to form. Especially when you end up mixing in a “there’s only one-bed” trope into the mix.

We cannot forget another crucial component of bodyguard romances: eminent danger. A bodyguard is protecting someone who needs defending. Even if they can defend themself, they cannot always do it alone. They could be a royal, a noble, famous, or a political target. In that case, bodyguard romances can break down the clear communication boundaries between separate classes. All the other reasons someone needs a bodyguard also make for unlikely pairings. I also cannot deny the appeal of knowing the plot has an element of danger attached to it. 

I think an aspect of medieval courtly love echoes in bodyguard romances. In medieval romances, courtly love was a kind of relationship dynamic seen in poems between ladies and knights. They were not married but had a kind of “suffering in love” approach. Knights would sacrifice anything to love their lady. A great example is Marie de France’s Lais from the 1100s in modern-day France. This relationship was not reflective of actual knights and ladies in the period, but it was popular in entertainment. I don’t care what era you’re talking about; everyone loves wistfully looking back on an imagined past. Especially when that imagined past contains a knight that will protect your body and heart.“

[betterbooksandthings]

"In this age of ever-expanding nerdery, there is a fantasy romance book for every type of geek—including, of course, those of us who love a good tabletop role-playing game like Dungeons & Dragons. To understand the existence of DnD-inspired fantasy romance books, you only have to look to the growing popularity of both DnD and high fantasy romances."