Nothing says love like an abducted, injured woman (which I'm probably misquoting)

[meganbmoore]

Now, here's something I don't get in fiction(spawned by various posts and discussions the last month or so, as well as yesterday's adventure):  Falling in love with your kidnapper stories.

I mean, seriously.  Why on earth would a person fall for someone who abducted them and held them against their will, typically with imprisonment and/or being bound at some point?

There are times I can get past it.  Fantasy, for example, can often get me to smile and nod and get past it, though even then thats the exception.  Typically it involves a case of abduction but not captivity, either because of a vase of mistaken identity, and/or things quickly happening(such as a mutual enemy or the abductee freeing her/himself) and most of those cases involve a preexisting relationship or some sort that keeps the people in question from knowing each other purely in the context of abductor/abductee.

There's also Stardust, of course, though I hesitate to include it(but feel I should.)  There, it's more a case of a stupid boy doing a stupid thing and needing to grow up(and doing so) and the girl going "ok, am ditching the stupid boy first chance I get" and then doing so, and then not giving him a chance until he's proven himself in another context, at which point, it's "ok, the stupid boy has his uses and isn't so bad...just stupid" and eventually "ok, he's a stupid boy but he grew a brain and he's my stupid boy anyway, so I'll keep him."

But mostly, though, these stories are women(and sometimes men) falling for a person who abducts them and holds them prisoner, and falling for the person in that context.

I'd like to handwave it as a certain subset of romance novels, but it seems to be in most genres of any medium, and has a huge following.  It also seems to be really, really popular in fanfic.

Anyone have any opinions on this one(and, seriously, it is something I've always wanted to understand why it's popular)?

Comments

[morwen_peredhil]

I quite like captor/captive storylines as long as they are well-written (which obviously leaves Cassie Edwards and her ilk out). It's a kink that works for me in that dirtybadwrong way.

That's the thing about kinks: if you don't share them, you're unlikely to be able to fathom their appeal.

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

I can go for it if it's handled well, so sometimes it works for me, but most of the time it isn't handled well, but rather in the Edwards way, botht in fanfic and professional works.

Except for things like rape and cheating, I can get behind most kinks if handled right, really.

[morwen_peredhil]

The whole "You're a total stranger who kidnapped me and held a knife to my throat, like, an hour ago. *giggles vacantly* Hey, let's get it on!" thing is not what I like. Give me acknowledgement that's a disturbing situation and some darkness and layers of emotional complexity, and it's got me.

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

Yeah, the first example is what most of the stories are, which is while the general appeal escapes me.

More often than not, I do ok if they know each other in another context before the kidnapping, or its it's portrayed as wrong wrong wrong...and she falls for him in another context.

But "Oh! You kidnapped me...well...I've stamped my foot some and you're hot, so it's ok" is what it usually is.

[morwen_peredhil]

Not just the stamping of a dainty foot. Don't forget the flashing violet eyes and the tossing of the luxuriant golden tresses. And our hero-with-heaving-mantitty-and-rampant-manhood.

This is why I have mostly given up on romance novels. I used to read a ton of them, but my tolerance for that sort of thing is pretty much gone.

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

I've found that I do ok with romance novels if I largely limit myself to medieval, regency, and victorian set ones. While those attract their hair share of dreck and window dressing, they also tend to attract more actual storytelling...probably because of the history involved and(for regencies and victorians) the opportunity at dialogue.

[morwen_peredhil]

I pretty much stick with medievals, but they're not too popular at the moment. Plus I've gotten a lot pickier.

I've never read a Cassie Edwards romance, but I'll bet Connie Mason's medievals would give Cassie's Indian romances a run for their money in the low-quality dreck department.

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

Yeah, medievals seem to be getting rarer.

I think I tried reading a Connie Mason book once. IIRC, it involved vikings.

[morwen_peredhil]

Sometimes you can judge a book by its cover.

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

yes, that's the one

[smillaraaq.livejournal.com]

Wow, I don't think Cassie Edwards had any titles with exclamation points. Now I'm feeling really cheated, those lucky Scandinavians get a cover model who's at least vaguely ethnically appropriate AND gratuitous punctuation! WHERE IS THE LOVE?