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Even if you’re the type who thinks of romance novels as unrealistic fantasy drivel—the offensiveness enhanced by a cover with Fabio’s hair swaying and pecs bulging—I would make the case that you still root for love in whatever genre of books and movies you prefer. Something deep inside us can’t help loving an authentic love story.
The movie Mr. and Mrs. Smith, starring Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, is a perfect example and one of my favorite movies. If you haven’t seen it, it’s a hilarious action movie about two assassins who unknowingly marry each other and then are forced to try to kill each other. I challenge you to get through this high-octane action movie without rooting for Mr. and Mrs. Smith to work it out. Even as they are shooting at each other, I’m not only praying they will miss, but I’m hoping they will reignite the spark between them as well.
So why do we champion a good love story even in the midst of death and destruction? I mean, who wasn’t hoping for John McClane to work it out with Holly at the end of Die Hard? The answer is pretty simple: we all want to see a love story triumph because we all want to be loved.
God created us with a longing for love. First, He loved us so that we could love others.
Every novel I write—whether it’s Christian suspense, dinosaur thriller, or time travel—has an undercurrent of loyalty, trust, and love because all of us respond to the nobility of those characteristics on a gut-level.
This world has so many examples of how we tear each other down. Parents who belittle their children, children who don’t respect their parents, intimate partners who abuse each other, and even random trolls on the internet who spread hate to people they will never meet. These destructive behaviors all stem from fear, leading to obsessive control, hate, and manipulation. If we stop and look these people in the eye, we will see a frightened person at their core, but also someone who was created by God and who just wants to be loved and express love.
This is why we read, watch, and sing about love. Love is the ultimate hope for the human race. And in the end, every love story, romantic movie, and love song points us to the Author of love.
