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Original poster

Would you read this book?

56 replies

Showmethefood · 22/06/2022 09:00

Hi all
I would love your honest opinions please.
Would you read a book where the main character was a woman of 65 who has recently started dating a man of 70 - who then catches the attention of a man in his 30s and pursues her?

OP posts:
Original poster
Showmethefood · 22/06/2022 11:31

I haven’t written a draft. :) The idea only came to me yesterday, hence it being a bit vague. Wanted to get peoples opinions to see what they thought :)

OP posts:
FooFighter99 · 22/06/2022 12:32

Plot twist, 30's man turns out to be her son, manipulates her and blackmails her for giving him up for adoption and lying to everyone she knows for 30 years...

or something

Antarcticant · 22/06/2022 12:36

It would depend on what the 'hook' was. A straightforward romance, no. If there was underlying intrigue, possibly.

Interested in this thread?

Then you might like threads about this subject:

Books
steppemum · 22/06/2022 12:50

as you have written it, it sounds like a MIlls and Boom.

But there are many good books which underneath are basically a romance. It is all about how well written.

I would rarely pick up a book just based on the plot summary as you have written it, as I an not fundamentally interested ina book which is only about boy meets girl.
So, yes, it needs more plot and interest.

Also, I am 54, and i am very much not interested in the idea of a 30 year old. Same generation as my kids! I prefer someone with a bit of life maturity.

larkstar · 22/06/2022 13:00

No. There's got to be more to it than what you have described - something none of us could guess or predict based on what you have said - if she was ex-KGB assassin and he was MI6 - son of woman eliminated by ex-KGB... then - maybe.

Original poster
Showmethefood · 22/06/2022 13:06

I think you are all correct! On reflection it would need to have a much more exciting storyline than just the romance! Thank you all so much.

OP posts:
driedgrassinavase · 22/06/2022 13:08

Harrystylestutu · 22/06/2022 10:02

Maybe if you spin it in a way where the reader thinks the younger man is the con artist or something, but the older lady is the villain.

I like this idea

TheYearOfSmallThings · 22/06/2022 13:09

No - not unless you throw in a good murder or something.

Cornettoninja · 22/06/2022 13:13

I think it would an interesting angle to explore a relationship where the woman had been in a very controlling, confidence destroying marriage and found herself with the dynamics reversed with a younger partner. Not very romantic though.

or a scenario where she sets her sights on the younger man and decides to get him away from a current partner whilst disguising her actions from the older man. If you’ve seen ‘You’ on Netflix - that kind of vibe.

monsterastuckiosa · 22/06/2022 13:18

It sort of brings to mind (but then, I can't stop thinking about it anyway - it's so wonderfully brilliantly good)

thecatsthecats · 22/06/2022 13:25

As a writer, I would advise you not to ask whether or not someone will read your book as a prelude to writing it.

Partly, as this thread has shown, because it will kill your inspiration dead. You can't write to a formula, especially if that formula is "what other people will think would make a good book". You have to feel the shape of the whole story and try it out before you pitch it to other people.

But writing is SO rewarding in its own right that you should do it.

Ormally · 22/06/2022 14:07

Harrystylestutu · 22/06/2022 10:02

Maybe if you spin it in a way where the reader thinks the younger man is the con artist or something, but the older lady is the villain.

Yes, that would be cool!

JesusInTheCabbageVan · 22/06/2022 14:16

thecatsthecats · 22/06/2022 13:25

As a writer, I would advise you not to ask whether or not someone will read your book as a prelude to writing it.

Partly, as this thread has shown, because it will kill your inspiration dead. You can't write to a formula, especially if that formula is "what other people will think would make a good book". You have to feel the shape of the whole story and try it out before you pitch it to other people.

But writing is SO rewarding in its own right that you should do it.

This. I was trying to think of a good example, and Remains of the Day is a perfect one I think. If Kazuo Ishigaro had started a MN thread asking whether people would read a book about [SPOILER] an older man who fancied his colleague but didn't ask her out when he had the chance... there's bugger all there, and it sounds pretty dull, really. But it's the most amazing and poignant book.

11Hawkins · 22/06/2022 14:17

No, I'm not into romance though especially not older romance. I think your target market would be quite slim unfortunately.

Alicetheowl · 22/06/2022 14:44

I'm not into Romance as a genre, but there might be some interesting twists. For example, she might meet a 30 something, decide he's a bit more vibrant than her 70s plodder, consider leaving him for 30 something, then 30 something gets a serious illness/disability, which means she becomes a carer., something you would expect with an older person. Or a twist on the golddigger plot-he is an e-commerce millionaire, she has little money apart from a small pension. She wants the lifestyle, but once she has it, or is in sight of having it, gets paranoid the novelty might wear off for him.

PoseyFlump · 22/06/2022 14:50

@Showmethefood I think a good book is like a stand up comedians routine. They open with a gag that the audience completely forget all about while they're laughing along to the rest of the jokes and then the final gag ties in nicely with the opening one and everyone feels satisfied with the ending and thinks the author a genius.

Antarcticant · 22/06/2022 14:51

JesusInTheCabbageVan · 22/06/2022 14:16

This. I was trying to think of a good example, and Remains of the Day is a perfect one I think. If Kazuo Ishigaro had started a MN thread asking whether people would read a book about [SPOILER] an older man who fancied his colleague but didn't ask her out when he had the chance... there's bugger all there, and it sounds pretty dull, really. But it's the most amazing and poignant book.

Show quote history

Yes, this is true. If the OP was planning to write the story in a literary style - that is, not plot-driven fiction, it might be an excellent book. But where the merit of the book lies in its characterisation, prose style or exploration of themes, it's going to be very difficult to sum up in a 'would this be a book you'd buy' thread.

dingit · 22/06/2022 14:51

I think I would if it was laugh out loud funny!

AppaTheSixLeggedFlyingBison · 22/06/2022 15:57

The 65 year old dating sounds interesting. Would be interesting to hear about dating at that age. Maybe if she had a backstory too.
Not keen on the 30 year old pursuing her though.

Maybe chapters on different dates she goes on, e.g. the guy who lied about his age and was much younger, the person who turned out to be married, the gold digger, the person who ghosted her, the person who was perfect apart from they had small kids and she didn't feel able to take that on

And then at the end she either settles down, or decides she's actually quite happy being single

AppaTheSixLeggedFlyingBison · 22/06/2022 16:00

Maybe some sort of other story happening too. E.g. teenage daughter pregnant and doesn't know what to do, trying to finalise divorce with uncompromising ex husband, death of someone close to her, health worry.

This way it would add a bit more substance and not every chapter would be romance

Sliceofpi · 22/06/2022 16:20

I like a crime thriller, so would be ok if part of a bigger plot or a side plot

JaneJeffer · 22/06/2022 16:29

No I wouldn't. I would find it disturbing.

PoseyFlump · 22/06/2022 16:45

The real question is: Are you a 65 year old woman who would get a thrill out of reading a book about a woman of the same age shagging a 30 yr old?

CupidStunt22 · 22/06/2022 16:47

Showmethefood · 22/06/2022 09:41

Appreciate your feedback - thought I’d check and see what people thought before I tried to write it. If it’s a poor idea I’d rather know.

You'd have to write it better than your OP, which doesn't actually make any sense.

Eightiesfan · 22/06/2022 16:52

No, sorry, sounds a bit ick if I’m honest.