Here is a brief history of the pre-cursors to the modern romance novel. You probably know most of these already, but you may be thinking, “Daphnis and Chloe? I think I missed that one.” But you didn’t! It’s essentially retold in The Princess Bride. It’s one of five Hellenistic Romances which are the earliest novels in western literature. That’s right, the first novels ever written were romance novels. The list ends with Kathleen Woodiwiss because her books are considered the first modern romances.
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- Daphnis and Chloe, Longus, 2nd c. A.D.
- Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen, 1813.
- Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte, 1847.
- North and South, Elizabeth Gaskell, 1855.
- The Sheik, E. M. Hull, 1919.
- The Grand Sophie, Georgette Heyer, 1950.
- The Flame and the Flower, Kathleen Woodiwiss, 1972.
So, what else belongs on this list?
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