“Romance again? Come on, give me something a little more interesting.”
I often catch myself thinking this whenever I wander into a small bookstore or scroll through my streaming services at home. Even as an imaginative child who grew up watching princess movies and their inevitable happily-ever-afters, I always found myself tilting my head whenever a story leaned too heavily into romance alone. Despite being a hopeless romantic, a trait I still carry with me, stories that exist purely to showcase two people circling each other and their feelings rarely hold my attention.
More often than not, the stories I love most are the ones with a larger narrative at play, where romance is subtle, optional, or left to the audience’s interpretation. I enjoy the quiet crushes that never take center stage, the fleeting glances tucked into the background, the feelings that grow alongside something bigger. Perhaps that is also why I am not rushing into a relationship beyond friendship just yet. I am content with experimenting, learning about myself, and letting things unfold naturally, even if I still crave a sense of adventure tied to such a powerful emotion. It is a little ironic, I admit.
Stories set in ordinary places with ordinary people whose only struggle is navigating their feelings tend to make me restless. But place those same characters in the middle of a chase, a journey, or a fight for survival, and suddenly I am hooked. Let them fall in love while running from danger or searching for something greater, and I am fully invested. That balance of romance and motion is where my heart lies.
I know my take on romance is often debated among my peers. Maybe I am impatient, or maybe my mind simply craves action, tension, and forward momentum. I struggle to stay engaged when a story slows down solely for mushy moments, no matter how sincere they are. By all means, let the characters fall in love. I just want that love to bloom alongside explosions, close calls, and impossible odds. There is something undeniably swoon-worthy about finding comfort in someone’s arms while chaos unfolds behind you.
Perhaps what I truly love is the idea of finding connection in unexpected places, or discovering love while chasing something bigger than yourself. Maybe I want the promise of partnership to feel earned through shared trials, the same way it does for the characters I admire. Either way, romance on its own does not pull me in right now, not in real life and not in fiction. Romance paired with adventure, though, is a different story.
That is why Escape to Love by Mayumi Cruz surprised me. Despite centering on a genre I usually shy away from, the book delivers exactly what I look for without trying too hard. It balances romance with humor, witty dialogue, and an exciting runaway adventure that pushes its characters forward. Even amid the action, the story does not lose its heart. The warmth of budding love is still present, making the journey feel grounded and sincere rather than overwhelming.
One passage in particular stayed with me, especially since I often describe love as a fickle emotion. Escape to Love captures it with striking simplicity:
“Love should give one peace, not turmoil; security, not uncertainty; happiness, not anguish; hope, not despair; and contentment, not fear.”
If you are someone who believes love does not have to stand alone to be meaningful, this book is worth picking up. It proves that love and adventure can exist side by side, and that sometimes, the most genuine connections are found when you least expect them.
By Frances Arwen Samonte