Historical Romance Bodice Rippers

A Bodice Ripper refers to a romance novel that is set in a historical setting and plot is about the seduction of the main character. Frequently, the heroine initially dislikes the male character but, over time, succumbs to temptation. It usually involves "forced seduction".

According to "Art and Pop Culture" The story often features a dominant alpha male. Sometimes there will be violence, i.e. rape or physical abuse toward the heroine of the story. These historical romances did not shy away from sensational topics such as rape, slavery, the loss of family members, and the effects of poverty and disease.

The heroines of such a novel were often abducted, held for ransom, sold into slavery, forced into marriage, or captured after running away. Larger than life heroines toured the world, fell from princess to pauper, rose from gutter rat to queen. These women were frequently seduced by their alpha-heroes, sometimes forcibly.

Heroes ran the gamut from aristocrats to highwaymen, from gamblers to pirates. They were universally strong, physically fit, demanding, prone to choosing action over inaction.

These romances were popular in the 1970's- 1980's and featured book covers which generally depict a female whose bodice is being ripped by a muscular, often shirtless man.

According to "Writing Explained" The "Bodice Ripper" expression first appeared in the year 1980. It refers to a "bodice" which is an item of clothing that women wear which covers their chest.

Therefore, a bodice ripper would refer to a person ripping off, or removing, that clothing.

You can read or borrow a book if the bar underneath the cover says "Borrow" or "Read." If a book says it is "not in library" or "checked out," another copy might still be available! Click on the book's cover to see if you can borrow one of the other editions.
Want to donate a physical book to make it borrowable? Click for Book Drive info.