Irish Thoroughbred

Irish Thoroughbred
The center of the cover shows the head and torso of a woman with long hair, leaning against the head and torso of a man. The man's right hand cups her neck, and the couple are looking at each other. In the background are a horse and a large building. Above the image are the words "Nora Roberts" and "Irish Thoroughbred". The outer edges of the cover have a solid border, with the words "Silhouette Romance" repeated. In the top right corner is the number 81.
Front cover by Silhouette Romance, #81
AuthorNora Roberts
LanguageEnglish
GenreRomance novel
PublishedJanuary 1981 (Silhouette Books)
Publication placeUnited States
Media typeMass Market Paperback
Pages189
Followed bySearch for Love 

Irish Thoroughbred is American author Nora Roberts's debut novel, originally published by Silhouette in January 1981 as a category romance. Like other category romances, the novel was less than 200 pages and was intended to be on sale for only one month. It proved so popular that it was repackaged as a stand-alone romance and reprinted multiple times. Roberts wrote two sequels, Irish Rebel and Irish Rose.

Roberts drew on her Irish heritage to create an Irish heroine, Adelia "Dee" Cunnane. In the novel, Dee moves to the United States, where her sick uncle arranges for her to marry his employer, wealthy American horsebreeder Travis Grant. Although the early part of their relationship is marked by frequent arguments and misunderstanding, by the end of the story Travis and Dee reconcile. According to critic Mary Ellen Snodgrass, the couple's transformation from adversaries to a loving married couple is one of many formulaic elements in the book. Although the protagonists adhered to many stereotypes common to romance novels of the 1980s, Roberts's heroine is more independent and feisty than most heroines of the time. This book's popularity helped pave the way for other romance authors to experiment with heroes and heroines who had greater economic and emotional parity.


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