The One You Can’t Forget

There are challenging premises for a romance novel (like a less-than-popular time period), and there are premises that can derail the entire book if not handled well (say, a character recovering from abuse). And then there is Roni Loren’s latest series, The Ones Who Got Away, where the central characters are the adult survivors of a school shooting. In the hands of a less talented author, this could have superficial at best, exploitative at worst. Loren’s detailed, multifaceted depictions of trauma, as well as her empathy for even minor and antagonistic characters, are on full display in its sequel, The One You Can’t Forget. We talked to Loren about what prompted her to take on such a heavy topic in a romance, how she writes emotionally raw conversations and more.