3 Signs the Book You’re About to Dig Into is About a Bad Boy
I love romance.
Duh.
No. Seriously. Like, can you believe Meghan Markle growing up in what we used to call a broken home and totally rocking a prince and getting married at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle and becoming a real-life princess.
Get out.
You freakin’ kidding me? That’s real romance.
But I love made-up romance, too. In other words, kissing books.
Yeah. That’s right. Kissing books.
And because I write and read kissing books, I’m of course obsessed with the men who roam their pages.
They’re so fun—and few kissing books are as much fun as bad boy romances. Bikers. Mafiosi. Christian Trevelyan Gray-style dark billionaires. (Yeah, that’s his middle name.) Rock stars. You name, they’re bad, bad boys. And oh so good.
Spotting the Bad Boy
But here’s the deal: Sometimes it’s not always clear whether the romance you’ve cuddle up with features a bad boy. (Yeah, I know. The whips and paddles Christian was so into should be used on a few romance writers.)
And the title of the story gives you no clues. This is especially true these days as subtitles in romance novels seem to be going the way of bell bottoms and bindis.
Even the blurb may not offer much help.
You’re just not into spending 80,000 words with a sensitive, metrosexual best friends-to-lovers story. You want to sink your teeth into one of those alpha-holes who knows what he wants and is all about taking control and cutting to the chase.
And if there a few whips and chains, so be it.
I feel you.
Bad boys are a hoot in a well-crafted story.
So what to do you do?
Gimme Some Bad Boy
Well, the cover is gonna be your friend.
For the purpose of this little exercise, let’s say the title of the story is Into to You. Could be steamy. Could be sweat and clean. Could be funny. Could second chance. Could be enemies-to-lovers. Argggh! We can’t tell. The story could definitely feature a bad boy hero. But then again it could be a silly rom com with anything but a bad boy. The description is vague. (Though comedies can, of course, have bad boys. I know. That’s basically all I write 🙂
So the title doesn’t much help. And there’s no subtitle to clear things up. And the blurb isn’t helping with the storyline but leaves him a bit vague. All you’ve got is the cover image of the guy. How can you tell if he’s a bad boy hero?
1- Tattoos
I know what you’re thinking. Tattoos? Tattos are everywhere. Even my grandpa has a tat. Totally true but this is fiction. We make stuff up. And tattoos have become the default cue for authors to tell you their hero is a bad boy. Take a look at these two cover by Aubrey Wright, whose stories I love.
Which is the bad boy? Yup. You guessed it. The guy on the left with the tats is our troublemaker. In storytelling, there are no laws. Guys without tattoos can be sweet gentleman. But more often than not, that tat on his pecs won’t lead you astray. The other guy is totally an alpha but his chin is as smooth as a baby’s patootee and is that an ever-so-slight smile. Ah, that’s an issue and we’ll get to it in just a sec.
But just to emphasize my point. Take a look at one of my covers and the one from Lisa Lace. We use the same model! But she tats him up and I don’t. Why do you think her book cover designer chose to put all those tattoos on the guy?
Well, aside from the back that the title of the book is Bad Boy Daddy and there’s a fiery red background, maybe—just maybe—he’s trying to tell us this is one badass guy. Look at my guy. Alpha, billionaire, got Silicon Valley at his beck and call. But bad boy? Nope.
Finally, let’s take a look a cover by Annie J. Rose. I actually haven’t read her books. This book is on my list. The Perfect Match isn’t much to go on. We don’t even have his face to read. No brood. No nothing. The blurb is a little vague. So we really don’t have a whole lot to go on. What is the cover guy telling us about the kind of hero he’s gonna be?
Well, he’s got the whisker thing going and the sleeve. On both arms. I think it’s safe to say he doesn’t sell insurance for a living. I read the word Trust on his six pack. So this is screaming bad boy. I’m going to read the story but if you’ve read it, post a comment below as to how close this cover bad boy lives up to the hero in the story.
2- Frownie face
Another way to know if the guy is gonna be a bad boy is the look. It’s no laughing matter. Literally. Being a bad boy means giving you that slithery, come hither look. It’s all about the bedroom eyes and that dark, serious I-own-the-place-and-I’m-about-to-own-you look. Yeah, exactly. That look. Can bad boys ever smile on a cover. Ummm? Yeah but not really. As a reader, I hate when authors do that. They’re sending mixed signals. Occasionally, if he’s more alpha-hole than bad boy, he might have a Cheshire cat kind of grin. But, typically, it’s all about the brood. Like so …
This guy’s ready to rip right out of his shirt. It’s an MC (motorcycle club, for those of you new to the genre) romance, so we obviously know these guys aren’t the sweet, sensitive types. It’s a dead giveaway but the point is the same. He’s all tatted up, the five o’clock shadow, and that brooding, smoldering look. Bad boy.
3- The Pose
The final easy way to figure out whether we’re gonna be hangin’ with a bad boy is the pose. I tend to add a subtitle so you, as a reader, know what the deal is and what you can expect. But then I hit you over the head with guy and the pose. This the cover to my Love Lost Reignited box set is a case in point.
Yeah. So this guy doesn’t go around saying pretty please or making pinky promises. He’s brooding. He’s got tats. And that pose that is pretty much saying, WTF? You talking to me? This guy’s trouble. Bad boy.
So there you have it. My quick guide to sexy bad boys. This, of course, only applies to contemporary romance. That’s the kind of stories I write. It’s also the most humungus genre in romance. But if you’re into regency, or sweet and clean, or reverse harem, and the rest. Never fear. I’ll be posting about those genres and their covers. Can’t wait. And check out my other covers here. Can you tell just by the cover picture if I’m dealing with a bad boy?
Don’t forget to check out my books for your new book boyfriend. Lots of bad boys there, by the way!
