by Naomi
Watch out, kids! There’s a new genre in town. It’s a combination of crime fiction and romantic fiction, called ‘crimance.’ I didn’t invent this name, I promise. I first came across it in the description of A Cinnamon Falls Mystery by R.L. Killmore. (The name has to be a nom de plume. If not, they were apparently predestined to write crime fiction.) The blend between thrillers and romance is not entirely new; it has been a classic genre for a long, long time, known as romantic suspense. What is romantic suspense? The CrimeReads blog defines it as follows:
A romantic suspense novel is a romance novel with a plot that focuses on a mystery, suspense or thriller storyline. It’s a love story that develops in the context of a life-and-death crime—or potential crime—situation. The stakes are high on both the romance and suspense fronts.
Some authors who made their name in this crossover genre are Nora Roberts, Laura Griffin, Karen Rose, and Rachel Grant.
Crimance is different from romantic suspense, though. First of all, because mystery fiction is different from a thriller in that in a mystery novel, the main character(s) must solve a crime that has already happened. In a thriller, the crime has not yet happened and the protagonist is trying to prevent it. In a crimance novel, you will therefore find a crime that needs to be solved. There are one or more victims, clues and red herrings, and usually the main character has a personal link to the crime. This is also why crimance is closer to cozy crime than a thriller; the main character is generally not a professional investigator but becomes involved because the crime happened in a business they own or work at, they know the victim or they are a suspect and have to prove their innocence. (For more info about the cozy crime genre, read this blogpost.) The books also lean more into a rom-com vibe, whereas romantic suspense has an overall more serious tone. In crimance, there are usually quirky or kooky side characters, who bring some humor and levity to the story.
The most important (and really, the only) rule in romantic fiction is this: there must be a happy ending. If there is no happy ending (or a happy-for-now ending), it’s not romance. Mystery novels or cozy crime books can also have a romantic subplot, but in crimance the romantic storyline carries just as much weight as the mystery. And there you have it! ✨ Crimance ✨
For some recommendations in this genre, take a look at the carousel below. Happy reading!
