--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I still read romance, and I read…" description: "\"I still read romance, and I read suspense. I read them both. And part of it is, I like stories with strong characters, and I like stories where there's..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/84f/lisa-gardner-7497_books_i-still-read-romance-and-i-read-suspense_236231.jpg" --- # I still read romance, and I read suspense. I read them… ![“I still read romance, and I read suspense. I read them both. And part of it is, I like stories with strong characters, and I like stories where there's closure at the end. And I like stories where there's hope. That's a kind of empowerment. I think romance novels are very empowering, and I think…” quote by Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/84f/lisa-gardner-7497_books_i-still-read-romance-and-i-read-suspense_236231.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/84f/lisa-gardner-7497_books_i-still-read-romance-and-i-read-suspense_236231.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/84f/lisa-gardner-7497_books_i-still-read-romance-and-i-read-suspense_236231.jpg) > “I still read romance, and I read suspense. I read them both. And part of it is, I like stories with strong characters, and I like stories where there's closure at the end. And I like stories where there's hope. That's a kind of empowerment. I think romance novels are very empowering, and I think suspense novels are, too.” [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She values romance and suspense for their strong characters, closure, and hopeful endings, seeing them as empowering. **In simple terms:** Romance and suspense empower through strong characters and hopeful conclusions. Key Takeaway Seek stories with strong characters and hopeful resolutions. Themes empowerment character development hope Mood inspirational analytical Type genre psychology When to use this quote - book clubs - reading therapy - creative writing courses Key Concepts genre analysis psychology of reading narrative closure Questions to Reflect On - What makes a character feel empowering? - Do hopeful endings always resonate? A Different Perspective Not all readers find closure satisfying; some prefer ambiguity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Closure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/closure/) [Empowering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/empowering/) [Empowerment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/empowerment/) [Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Romance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/romance/) [Romance novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/romance-novel/) [Romance Novels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/romance-novels-2/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Suspense](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suspense/) [Suspense novels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suspense-novels/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [I like to believe my suspense novels marry the strong characters from my romance writing past, with the twisty, clever plots of my mystery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/i-like-to-believe-my-suspense-novels-marry-the-strong-characters-from/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [“We play and tease, but―darn it―he has not dragged me into the rain and kissed me senseless yet. And that's how it's supposed to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shari-l-tapscott/we-play-and-tease-but-darn-it-he-has-not-dragged-me-into-the-rain-and/) Shari L. Tapscott > [She understood now why her friend Elizabeth, with her near-genius, analytical mind gave wide berth to murder mysteries, psychological thrillers, and horror stories, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/she-understood-now-why-her-friend-elizabeth-with-her-near-genius/) [Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/) > [I haven't always felt it was okay to read romance novels. When I was younger, it embarrassed me to be seen with my books,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-robards/i-haven-t-always-felt-it-was-okay-to-read-romance-novels-when-i-was/) [Karen Robards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-robards/) > [I read too many romance novels during my formative years. I have a penchant for romantic comedies. I understand why 'Romeo and Juliet' came…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roxane-gay/i-read-too-many-romance-novels-during-my-formative-years-i-have-a/) [Roxane Gay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roxane-gay/) > [“I read so many romance novels someone should seriously cut my balls off and take my man card.” “Huh?” Kiersten wrinkled her nose. “You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-van-dyken/i-read-so-many-romance-novels-someone-should-seriously-cut-my-balls/) [Rachel Van Dyken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-van-dyken/) > [“There's a reason why most men don't read romance: Romance novels are wish-fulfillment for women. The fictitious men in romance novels fall all over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-markus-malloy/there-s-a-reason-why-most-men-don-t-read-romance-romance-novels-are/) [Oliver Markus Malloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-markus-malloy/) > [“After ten whole minutes of painful silence, I finally raised my hand and told Mr. O'Hara I loved Miranda Blythe's romance novels, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlen-rubino-bradway/after-ten-whole-minutes-of-painful-silence-i-finally-raised-my-hand/) Caitlen Rubino-Bradway > [I've always read suspense, so raising the stakes to life and death situations in my romance plots seemed natural.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joann-ross/i-ve-always-read-suspense-so-raising-the-stakes-to-life-and-death/) [JoAnn Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joann-ross/) > [“I think romance is maligned in large part because at first glance, love seems so pedestrian. It’s all around us. It’s in books and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-maclean/i-think-romance-is-maligned-in-large-part-because-at-first-glance/) [Sarah MacLean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-maclean/) > [I was 12 and read my first romance novel; it was a sweeping desert saga, and I got to the end of it and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-day/i-was-12-and-read-my-first-romance-novel-it-was-a-sweeping-desert/) [Sylvia Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-day/) > [“To belittle romance fiction is to belittle women. To read romance fiction is to confront the strength of women, the variety of their experience,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-arnold/to-belittle-romance-fiction-is-to-belittle-women-to-read-romance/) [Judith Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-arnold/) > [People read romance novel one after another, their searching for the one story better than they could write themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-victor-paskavich/people-read-romance-novel-one-after-another-their-searching-for-the/) [Stanley Victor Paskavich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-victor-paskavich/) > [“Scary movies and books were too much for her—she read only romance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-shalvis/scary-movies-and-books-were-too-much-for-her-she-read-only-romance/) [Jill Shalvis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-shalvis/) > [“When women read romance books, one of two things generally happen.” Mal ran a hand through his lovely locks. “They either want to discuss…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kylie-scott/when-women-read-romance-books-one-of-two-things-generally-happen-mal/) [Kylie Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kylie-scott/) ## More by Lisa Gardner > [It's kind of the yin and yang that fascinate me. That for all the evil men do, there are also people who work obnoxiously…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/it-s-kind-of-the-yin-and-yang-that-fascinate-me-that-for-all-the-evil/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [Everyone should say what they wanted. It saved time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/everyone-should-say-what-they-wanted-it-saved-time/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [You try as a parent. You love beyond reason. You fight beyond endurance. You hope beyond despair. You never think, until the very last…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/you-try-as-a-parent-you-love-beyond-reason-you-fight-beyond-endurance/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [“The results are about as meaningful as a sixth toe - gives you something to look at, but doesn't do a damn thing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/the-results-are-about-as-meaningful-as-a-sixth-toe-gives-you/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [Post-apocalyptic novels tell you that in the future there is some great war. I would tell you that most cops say that it's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/post-apocalyptic-novels-tell-you-that-in-the-future-there-is-some/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [“Not the cute kind of cuckoo, or the lights-on-but-nobody's-home loony. She's really, genuinely, sold my-soul-to-the-devil crazy. She don't care about me or anyone else…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/not-the-cute-kind-of-cuckoo-or-the-lights-on-but-nobody-s-home-loony/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [“God give me the strength to change the things I can change, the courage to let go of the things I need to let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/god-give-me-the-strength-to-change-the-things-i-can-change-the/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [If you choose to do something, do it with your utmost. And remember, expect nothing and life will be velvet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/if-you-choose-to-do-something-do-it-with-your-utmost-and-remember/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [“MY PAIN IS NAMED”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/my-pain-is-named/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [You can be the hunter, or you can be the hunted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/you-can-be-the-hunter-or-you-can-be-the-hunted/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [“Alex said, his voice subdued, tense. “So it would seem,” D.D.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/alex-said-his-voice-subdued-tense-so-it-would-seem-d-d/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [All I've really ever done is write since I was 17, so I don't know anything about anything. For me to do a novel,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/all-i-ve-really-ever-done-is-write-since-i-was-17-so-i-don-t-know/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [My secret vice is Sudoku puzzles. Can't stop playing them. My parents are accountants. I blame them entirely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/my-secret-vice-is-sudoku-puzzles-can-t-stop-playing-them-my-parents/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [“For a bit, he picked up the paperbacks, thumbed the worn edges. Military thrillers. Books with clear right and wrong where the good guys…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/for-a-bit-he-picked-up-the-paperbacks-thumbed-the-worn-edges-military/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) > [What I learned is that it's arrogant to be certain of anything. The world is a complex place and only idiots or assholes think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-gardner/what-i-learned-is-that-it-s-arrogant-to-be-certain-of-anything-the/) [Lisa Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) [Explore all 86 Lisa Gardner quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-gardner/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) Christopher K. Krebs > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I still read romance, and I read suspense. I read them both. And part of it is, I like stories with strong characters, and I like stories where there's closure at the end. And I like stories where there's hope. That's a kind of empowerment. 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