While I don't have a favorite romance novel
per se there are two romantic stories penned by the same author that do come to mind that I am not ashamed to admit. While both tales are written by J.R.R. Tolkien, the stories occur at two different time periods in the history of the world and, interestingly, contain the same elements--the love of a mortal man for an Elvin princess.
Beren is a war hero of sorts, and Luthien is the daughter of King Thingol. Beren fell in love the moment he saw Luthien dancing in a glade. Enraptured with her grace and beauty, he called out to his "Nightingale" and she in turn, fell in love with him. King Thingol disapproved of the matter and sent Beren on an errand to prove his worth--retrieve three Simirils, jewels once stolen from the elves. Beren does not complete the errands but his dedication causes King Thingol to change his mind and permits Luthien's marriage to Beren.
Not long after, Beren is killed and Luthien mourns her lover with a grief so deep that her immortality breaks and she too dies. Mandar (keeper of the house of the dead) is so greatly moved that he returns life to the lovers who both live a long life and die natural deaths.
The second tale (much like the first) is most well-known thanks to The Lord Of The Rings movies--being the love story of Aragorn and Arwen. Some critics say the story of Beren and Luthien was the model for Aragorn and Arwen's story but one might consider the evidence that shows such a fantastic love story occuring twice in Tolkien's long history. After all, it is fantasy.
My understanding is that a stand-alone book telling the tale of Beren and Luthien will be released May of 2017.
