I am obsessed with romance novels and going by statistics, so are millions of other readers. For all its popularity, it is not easy to admire this genre in a public setting or on social media comfortably, thanks to the ‘trashy’ reputation that people associate romance novels with. Hardcore readers of this genre soon realize that admitting openly to one’s love for reading romance invites judgement, snobbery, and contempt. After all, romance novels are usually written for women by other women, on sentiment-laden topics like love and marriage. They don’t offer motivation, intellectual invigoration, or bragging rights for reading award-winning fiction. They are dismissed as ‘fluff’ or derided as ‘giving young women unrealistic expectations.’