The Need for HEA: Happily Ever After

All romance novels have a HEA, aka Happily Ever After. Just like fairytales we read when we were children, the story ends with happy feelings, contentment. Sometimes it’s the whole shebang, loving marriage and lots of babies. Sometimes it’s just a really healthy and happy relationship. There are so many tropes used in romance novels, like enemies to lovers, grumpy-sunshine, forced proximity, and brother’s best friend. According to Tiktok, there are also microtropes like ‘he washes her hair’ or ‘there is only one bed available’. These tropes and microtropes can be mixed and matched and can be used in abundance, but there is always a HEA. This is a must in the romance genre. In fact, it defines the genre. 

I have been a reader all my life. I grew up on The Baby-Sitters Club and Sweet Valley High.  That morphed into fantasy books from authors like Robert Jordan and George R.R. Martin. Yes, I read The Lord of the Rings before the movies were a thing. After university, I must have missed learning because I devoured non-fiction thanks to Malcolm Gladwell and Mary Roach.  But then I had kids and I didn’t read much for a long time. Until about 5 years ago. I lost the job I had for 16 years and was frankly in the dumps. My guilty comfort during that time was the romance genre and the satisfaction of a guaranteed Happily Ever After. I didn’t want sad or scary or even realistic. I just wanted stories that ended positively. So romance novels with a HEA were my new thing. It was guaranteed to lift me up.  

Now you say, Andrea, what about the ultimate love story? Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliette? That is all about romance, sweet words, and yearning but… (spoiler alert)... they both tragically die in the end. That doesn’t sound like a HEA. Well, I am sorry to say that Romeo and Juliette is not a romance and would not be classified as a romance novel in the modern genre - it’s an epic love story, but not a romance. 

Quick aside for Shakespeare enthusiasts, yes I know that Romeo and Juliette is considered one of the Tragedies meaning it ends with the characters worse off then they started. As opposed to the Comedies like Taming of the Shrew, which end with the characters better off then when the story started (Thank you grade 9 English and Mr. Boland)…but I digress.  

A more modern take - I recently got into Heated Rivalry. It really was a must read as a Canadian romance enthusiast (It had nothing to do with the show and it’s actors but it helps- wink wink, nudge, nudge). Anyways, for those that don’t know, Heated Rivalry is a romance about two male NHL hockey players and the challenges of being gay in a sport that doesn’t have any openly gay people playing in it at the highest level. It is written by a Canadian, Rachel Reid, and the TV show is produced by a Canadian. Magically, this story has skyrocketed to popularity and was picked up by HBO in the United States - you can’t go anywhere without hearing about it. But if you have been living under a rock (or in a snowbank), it is based on the 2nd book in a 6 book series (so far), but is supposed to be a standalone romance novel that ends in a HEA - more on this in a sec. Books 1, 3, 4, and 5 are also standalones featuring different hockey adjacent characters. 

Book 6, The Long Game, comes back to the couple from book 2, Heated Rivalry. This does not mean books 2 and 6 are a duet. Duets are two books following the same characters and often have a cliff hanger between books. With regards to Heated Rivalry and The Long Game - there was no to to be continued and they are not advertised as a duet. Plus there were 3 books about different relationships in between publishing books 2 and 6.  

Ok here are the spoilers - if you don’t want to know the ending - you’ve been warned. In Heated Rivalry, the men grow up in the hockey world together and their relationship develops. It ends with them being ‘out’ with one set of parents and officially a couple. But, they live in different cities, 2 hours apart, playing for two different teams. They are not openly out and still have to hide their relationship. Is this a HEA?

Well in my humble opinion, this is not a Happily Ever After. Perhaps it’s because I think it’s awful to have to hide who you love. I have raised my kids to believe Love is Love*, no matter what (*between consenting adults). I am extremely supportive of the queer community. So in Heated Rivalry, I wanted them to openly be together, not hiding their relationship from the world. After reading the book, I was left with a yucky feeling and not the happiness of a HEA.  

That is not to say I wouldn’t recommend this book. I loved it, and if you keep reading the series, you get glimpses of the Heated Rivalry couple and in The Long Game they do end up with a true HEA, married, openly gay, and living in the same city with a hockey team that supports them. Recently, I was talking to a friend who read Heated Rivalry only and knew I had finished the series. She said to me, “Please tell me they end up happy and ‘out’.” I did reassure her she would be happy with where the couple ended up. But her question just demonstrates that the ending in Book 2 was unexpected for romance readers. We need the reassurance that all is well - everyone is happy.  

But I see why Rachel Reid did this. In these circumstances, perhaps this semi-HEA was the best we can expect considering the context. I won’t get into politics of the NHL or Canadian Hockey in general because I am not an expert. I love hockey romance books but not watching or playing hockey. I do know, however, that homophobia (and misogyny) run rampant. There have been some positive steps forward at various levels in the hockey community, but there is still not an openly gay player in the NHL, a statistical impossibility.  

So, Rachel made her ending the happiest ever after that could be expected. She wrote something realistic for the hockey world. Do I like it?... no. Do I understand it? … yes. But it’s not the HEA I hoped for. I was unfulfilled. So what did I do? Well obviously, I did some speed reading of the series and ignored my family for a few days to get to book 6 and the true HEA.  Well played, Rachel. 
So with my enthusiasm for the HEA, I can promise you that the books in the Love Moore Series have Happily Ever After endings. It looks differently for each couple, but it’s relative to what would make those characters happy. Not only does this fulfill the genre expectation, but it honestly makes me happy to see my characters happy (because, yes, they feel like real people to me). So if you’ve read our currently published books in the Moore Love Series, you will know that Austin and Sarah get their HEA and so do Connor and Beth. But what about the other Moore Brothers, Noah and William? Well stay tuned for Noah’s story coming in the Spring of 2026. His HEA is a long time coming, but we don’t leave you hanging for long. As for William, his story is still in the works but yes we promise a very happy Moore family at the end of the series. Because it’s what you expect when picking up our books and a part of the Romance genre we hold dear.