I love writing (and reading!) romantic suspense books. There is just something so appealing about the fast-paced and intense blend of romance and suspense. The couple is falling in love…and, ahem, usually trying to stay alive at the same time.
Here are a few of my favorite romantic suspense tropes:
- The ticking clock. I love it when the hero and heroine have to race against the clock in order to save the day. Maybe they have twenty-four hours to find a missing hostage. Or maybe in forty-eight hours the heroine will be arrested for a crime she didn’t commit…time is of the essence, so the story always has to move FAST.
- Woman (or man!) in jeopardy. When the heroine is being stalked by a serial killer…or if the hero is in the killer sights, I find myself on the edge of my seat. I want to know when the next attack will be coming. I tense up as I get ready for danger.
- Oh, but I do love those protective bodyguards. In my own books, I’ve had both the hero and the heroine act as a bodyguard. A bodyguard has to be super protective and ready to take a bullet in order to carry out the protection job. And, of course, when you have a bodyguard situation that leads to another favorite trope…
- Forced proximity. Due to the nature of the danger they face, the hero and heroine have to stay close together. Close as in…day and night. Close as in…never-leave-my-sight. Close as in…whoops, is there only one hotel room available? Well, got to stay close so…
These are some of my fave romantic suspense tropes. But what are you faves? Are they included on my list? Or do you have other tropes that you enjoy? I’d love to hear about them!
LOCKED IN ICE by Cynthia Eden
Ice Breaker Cold Case Romance #9
The world called him a monster, so he became one…
Guilty. Innocent? Definitely dangerous. The media chases Lane Lawson wherever he goes. Once upon a time, he’d been locked away because the Feds believed he was a serial killer. Every single day that he’d been in that hell, he’d had to fight for survival. Now he’s out, free, seemingly clear, but he’ll never be the man he was before a nightmare ended the life he knew.
It’s his turn to be the predator.
So he hunts. Adrenaline and rage fuel him, and he hunts the killers who think they’ve gotten away with their crimes. He paid for someone else’s sins before, and he’s determined that the guilty will be the ones to suffer. He’s joined up with the Ice Breakers, a team of cold case solvers—a team that helped get him out of his hell—and he will not stop until the scales of justice have been balanced.
And in this new life, he has an unlikely new partner.
PI Ophelia Raine is Lane’s opposite in every way. Fiery when he’s ice cold. Smiling when he’s ready to rip the world apart. She’s supposed to balance him, to help train him as an Ice Breaker…and, most importantly, he knows that Ophelia is supposed to keep him in check. Don’t let him go off the deep end. An order he’d heard her receive.
But the problem is that the more he’s around the gorgeous and tenacious Ophelia, the more Lane’s control begins to fracture. Because it has been far too long since he’s taken something—someone—for himself. And he very, very much wants Ophelia. A dark and desperate desire that begins to consume him.
Ophelia has her own darkness hidden inside.
The more he’s around her, the more Lane realizes that Ophelia’s bright and beautiful veneer is just a facade. She’s hiding secrets. Secrets that she’s keeping from him and all of the Ice Breakers. And when Ophelia’s bloody and violent past comes back to haunt her…
She will need a monster to keep her safe.
Author’s Note: Cold case solvers need to get ready—Ophelia’s past isn’t dead and buried the way she’d desperately hoped. Instead, it’s alive and well…and coming after her. She’ll need the help of a very unlikely protector—a man who claims to be no one’s hero—in order to survive the evil heading her way. But heroes are overrated, and sometimes it’s the “monsters” who are the only ones who can get the job done. Prepare for some huge blurs between truth and lies, ice-meltingly hot scenes, and a love that might just be worth killing for…
Romance Suspense | Romance Erotica Sensual [Hocus Pocus Publishing, Inc., On Sale: March 28, 2024, e-Book, ISBN: 9781960633651 / ]
Buy LOCKED IN ICE: Kindle | BN.com | Amazon CA | Amazon UK | Amazon DE | Amazon FR
About Cynthia Eden
Believe in monsters. They believe in you.
Award-winning author Cynthia Eden writes dark tales of paranormal romance and romantic suspense. She is a New York Times, USA Today, Digital Book World, and IndieReader best-seller. Cynthia is also a two-time finalist for the RITA® award (she was a finalist both in the romantic suspense category and in the paranormal romance category). Since she began writing full-time in 2005, Cynthia has written over thirty novels and novellas.
Cynthia is a “hybrid” author. She has published extensively with New York (her New York publishers include Kensington, Grand Central, and Harlequin), and she has also enjoyed success in her indie writing career.
Cynthia lives along the Alabama Gulf Coast. She loves romance novels, horror movies, and chocolate. Her favorite hobbies including hiking in the mountains (searching for waterfalls) and spelunking.
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