Publishing house Precious Pages Corporation celebrates its 25th
Anniversary via the release of its coffee table book 25 Most Precious featuring 25 female authors who have made their
mark at the publisher’s Precious Hearts Romances line of romance novels.
The 25 writers featured in the book are Martha Cecilia, Amanda,
Maureen Apilado, Jinky Jamolin, Rose Tan, Vanessa, Elizabeth Mcbride, Camilla,
Jasmine Esperanza, Dawn Igloria, Laurice del Rio, Noelle Arroyo, Sheena Rose,
Claudia Santiago, Sofia, Sonia Francesca, Heart Yngrid, Victoria Amor, Dream
Grace, Angel Bautista, Belle Feliz, Mandie Lee, Aya Myers, Maricar Dizon, and
Luna King who are considered to be among the best-selling, most prolific, and
most pioneering in the Filipino romance novel genre.
It turned out to be an unusual and interesting experience for me as
I was able to get my hands on a copy of the book (thanks to Precious Pages
Corporation) and read about the writers first before getting to read any of
their works. For the fans of Precious Hearts Romances (and the various imprints),
it is the other way around with them already reading hundreds of titles and
then getting rewarded for their loyalty and unending support with the release
of this 160 page, hard bound, limited edition coffee table book featuring their
favorite writers.
The introductions mentioned how difficult it was to trim down the
numerous writers they’ve had into just 25. But it was never a question who
ended up as the first featured writer which was Martha Cecilia, dubbed as the
Queen of Filipino Romance. The entry, written by her daughter Nina Martinne
Cajayon, recounted her Martha Cecilia’s attempts in writing her first novel,
the challenges and intrigues she faced as her career bloomed, how she treated
her readers like family, and up to the time when her health declined until she
passed away. It did get me curious to check out her works. I initially thought
that it was going to be difficult for me to figure out where to start since
Precious Pages Corporation released around 50 new titles each month.
Thankfully, the book provided a perfect solution for me as it mentioned Martha
Cecilia’s first novel, Dugtungan Mo Ang Isang
Magandang Alaala, and it wasn’t difficult for me to find a copy for a wide
selection of her novels remain in print.
A regular copy of a Precious Hearts Romances novel is inexpensive,
making it very affordable to everybody across the socio-economic spectrum even
if there are dozens of new titles released every month. The novels are a quick
and relaxing read, very ideal for those moments whenever one finds
himself/herself waiting in line (which is a common occurrence here in the
Philippines). A bit of escapist fantasy with the two leads always having a
happy ending (after going through some speed bumps), it wasn’t difficult at all
for me to see why these novels have become popular for more than two decades.
Now, I need to finish reading Dugtungan Mo and the other random title that I’ve picked up. Then it will be time for me to get over
to the next writer and eventually check out their works as well. The limited edition coffee table book 25 Most Precious, published by Precious Pages Corporation, is now
available in Precious Pages retail stores.
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