This Rec League came from Kim. Thanks, Kim!
I just read Rachel Reid’s excellent m/m hockey romance Time to Shine, and am looking for more “golden retriever”-style MMCs. Can be any gender pairing, but my preference is m/f or m/m. If m/f, it should be a golden retriever MMC, not FMC.
I think of the golden retriever hero as joyful/playful, extroverted, loyal, supportive of the other MC, physical/physically affectionate, and not especially book smart. I feel like this character is also usually promiscuous, but in a “I love touching everybody!” way rather than a rake-ish way. I think golden retrievers tend to be paired with reserved/shy or somewhat prickly partners, and the general vibe is usually low angst.
Other examples that I think might qualify include Mr. Impossible (Loretta Chase) and maybe Gouda Friends (Cathy Yardley).
Amanda: Is this a new term for a Cinnamon Roll hero or is this different?
Sarah: Different, I think. Smarter than a Himbo, more active than a Cinnamon roll.
The character archetype descriptions I see online most often for this type of character are “Golden retriever boyfriend,” “Golden (Retriever) Energy” and “Golden Retriever/Black Cat” pairings for the leads. I interpret this as a sunny disposition, energetic, smart and faithful, determined, warm, open and unconditionally loyal. It’s kind of like the sunshine-y inverse of a morality chain hero, who is morally ambiguous, loyal to one person only, and could burn everyone else to the ground.
Maybe the GRE hero is clumsy or knocks stuff off the coffee table with one swipe of his tail (I had a Golden, her name was Tilly, and no coffee table was safe from a solid tail swipe).
Spoiler Alert by Olivia Dade is one.
The hero of The Deal by Elle Kennedy has GRE. And Chloe Liese writes GR heroes but I can’t remember their names beyond “Bergman.”
Oh – Wallbanger by Alice Clayton ( A | K | AB | Au )
OH – one GRE hero from Liese would be the lead in Always Only You. ( A | BN | K ) GOOD JOB MY BRAIN.
Elyse: Curveball by Charlotte Stein
Sarah: And The Widow of Rose House has big GRE. In Aarya’s review, she wrote, “Sam is an eccentric and endearing hero who is the human equivalent of a bouncing puppy. He’s adorable, kind, sensitive, and full of lightness. The exact opposite of Heathcliff, which explains why I love Sam so much (sorry, Heathcliff stans. I despise him).”
Amanda: Every time you type GRE, I think of graduate exams
Sarah: Oh me too.
GoldRetEnergy looked silly so I went with GRE.
If I can’t make a portmanteau, I’m gonna make an acronym. I cannot be stopped.
Shana: I feel like the hero in Love Radio by Ebony LaDelle is kind of a golden retriever. He’s positive and playful and super supportive of the more guarded heroine (and his disabled mom). Also, how cute is it that he’s a teenage boy with a love advice show on the radio?
Which books would you recommend? Let us know!