Christian Grey types are being supplanted in romance novels by heroes with a sweet, golden retriever energy – and some conservatives aren’t happy
Buckle up, ladies – it’s squishy boi summer. According to a recent piece in Publishers Weekly, the male leads of romance novels aren’t quite as hard as they used to be. The hot new industry trend is books featuring “squishy-centred men” AKA “sweet cinnamon roll heroes” and “golden retrievers”.
Perhaps you’re thinking that sounds … sticky? And sort of slobbery? Look, I don’t know all the sordid details but I can assure you that in romance novel lingo a “cinnamon roll” means a sweet, supportive hero: a gentleman in the streets, who irons your sheets. That sort of thing. And a “golden retriever” is an upbeat love interest with a floppy, friendly energy. The opposite, in other words, of an aggressive, domineering alpha such as Christian Grey from Fifty Shades of Grey.
Arwa Mahdawi is a Guardian columnist
