Blue collar romance:
the appeal of a working hero.

A suit can look very good. So can a man who has finished his shift, knows his way around an engine and makes you laugh before you have decided whether you ought to be flirting.

For me, the appeal of blue collar romance is the person behind the job: his humour, his competence and the way he treats the people around him. A practical occupation gives a character a working life beyond the relationship. It does not tell us everything about who he is.

What does blue collar romance mean?

Readers often use the label for a romance featuring someone in a practical, manual, trade or service occupation. It can suggest a different everyday world from the boardrooms and expensive offices familiar in billionaire romance. The label describes the work, rather than promising a particular personality, income or level of spice.

Competence is attractive. Kindness helps.

There is pleasure in watching a character do something well. But fixing a problem is only part of the attraction. Listening, making room for another person’s choices and knowing when to step back matter just as much. Practical ability can create the first spark; the relationship needs something more to keep it alive.

Meet Tristan Davidson

In Ideally Positioned, Tristan works in council garbage services. Evie Hartley sells luxury Sydney property for her family’s agency, Hartcliff Homes. Her working day depends on presentation, appointments and keeping the professional smile in place. He becomes a very persuasive distraction.

Tristan drives a red-and-black 1971 Valiant Charger, and the chemistry arrives early. His job is one part of his life, alongside his humour and his connection with Evie. Their attraction puts two different working worlds in the same room, with rather interesting results.

Choosing your next blue collar romance

Before choosing a book, check what you enjoy beyond the hero’s occupation. Do you want immediate attraction or a slow build? On-page intimacy or a closed bedroom door? Light comedy or more difficult emotional themes? A job label alone cannot answer those questions.

Ideally Positioned has instant attraction, explicit consensual intimacy, Australian banter and emotional complications around trust and personal choice. It is intended for adults. The spoiler-free reading guide explains the heat and includes the novel’s content notes.

If a funny council worker and a very distracted property agent sound like your kind of company, try the first chapter before deciding.