Have you ever read an interracial romance? If you think your
answer is no, then rethink it.
Take a quick look at my picture. Don’t I look like a black
woman? That’s because I am, but delve into my genetics and you’ll find that I’m
12.5% white on my mother’s side thanks to my great grandmother. I have aunts and uncles who are darker than me who possess a whopping 25%.
Any relationship I get into, no matter what his race, will be interracial, just
because I am. It makes me wonder how many other people in the world are
interracial yet don’t genetically show it.
Even in the 21st century race is still an unnecessarily big damn deal. I can’t truly imagine how things were like in the past. What kinds of hardships
couples may have had to go through just to be together. That’s what intrigues
me about interracial romance. Relationships are hard to begin with, but when
you add fundamental differences that some people don’t agree too, it makes
things more difficult.
On the flip side, sometimes even in interracial romances,
race doesn’t factor into the romance. The couple has too much other crap to
worry about, so petty things like skin color doesn’t even get mentioned except
to describe the characters.
In Love Undercover the heroine, Sarita Cerez is Columbian
while the hero, Matthew Carter is of mixed race, it’s just that none of the
inmates knows precisely races.
His skin reminded her
of the caramel in a Twix chocolate bar. The girls had come to a consensus about
his African American heritage, but no one could figure out if his light
complexion came from being Asian, Latino, or Caucasian. His exotic features
made it impossible to tell.
I read interracial romances for the depth it tends to add to
a story. Why do you read them?
Most times the dynamics are totally different for an interracial romance versus any other romance genre I've read and that is what appeals to me.
ReplyDeleteThose Dynamics add a depth to the story. Thanks for dropping by TM.
DeleteAs you said, people look at us and think they know who we are but our appearance doesn't tell the whole story. IR stories reflect the world I live in - my family, my friends. But even if they didn't, I couldn't pigeonhole myself into reading only one type of book. I'd be limiting my own growth... and isn't that one of the reasons we read?
ReplyDeleteI can't help but laugh when people say they can't read a certain genre because they can't relate to a character who's Black, Asian, Hindi, etc., yet they have never read a book with any of those ethnic groups as lead characters... so how would they know? LOL!
You had me nodding all the way through your comment. I agree 100%
DeleteI've read some interracial romances before! I agree, it can definitely help add depth to a story. Fiction doesn't always seem to depict these kinds of relationships as much as they should, so it's refreshing whenever one does. More reflective of real life.
ReplyDeleteVery, true.
DeleteWhy does skin color even matter? We're all human, aren't we? Anywho, I remember, many moons ago, the tension and hardships of interracial romances. And presently, we still have conflict at times...
ReplyDeleteMy great-great grandfather married a Cree Indian. At the time it was considered a travesty...but I love that I have a drop of Indian in me. And who knows what else...?
Skin color shouldn't matter, but it does because it makes up part of who we are. So you're part Cree Indian- nice.
DeleteTruthfully, skin colour is the last on my mind when I'm reading interracial romance, though I admit I've read just quite a few.
ReplyDeleteI read for the contents and pleasure, that is all.
That's good to hear.
Delete