This thesis aims to highlight the importance of genre labelling in contemporary romance fiction and the larger implications that come from the misuse of labels. Considerations of the genre based on narrative elements (Regis, 2003; Michelson, 2022), age categorization (Cart, 2011; Tribunella, 2007), and emerging market conditions (McAlister, 2018; Stewart, 2013) have generated considerable discussion over the last twenty-five years. While each of these scholars draws important conclusions about romance and its subgenres, none of them consider the significance of reader opinion, which is now enhanced due to literary digital spaces. In this paper, I examine nine romance novels for their narrative elements and sexual content before considering the ways in which the marketing of these texts differs between publishers, authors, and their respective readers. The results show varied understanding of each subgenre’s meaning, for which I suggest the implementation of a new maturity rating system.
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