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Ana Huang is a popular romance writer who started gaining traction from her “Twisted” romance series in 2021 — “Twisted Love,” “Twisted Games,” “Twisted Hate” and “Twisted Lies.” In 2022, she began writing a new romance series called “King of Sin,” with each book focusing on a main male character that represents a deadly sin. “King of Gluttony” and “King of Lust” are planned to be published in less than a year, with “King of Gluttony” already having a release date of April 28, 2026 — according to the authors website.
In her most recent publication, “King of Envy,” Vuk Markovoić — also known as “The Serb” due to his Serbian background — is in love with his best friend's fiancé, well known model, Ayana Kidane. Oh, and did I mention that Markovoić is the best man in their wedding? The interesting thing, however, is that Markovoić is unaware that his best friend Jordan’s wedding is of convenience and not of love. The romance genre tends to portray the idea that “love conquers all,” when love is not enough. However, does Markovoić’s love and desire to be with his best friend’s fiancé trump his responsibilities as the best man?
Markovoić and Kidane go through many hurdles to find their way to each other. “King of Envy” goes beyond the brooding morally gray man who lives happily with the hesitant main female character. Still, it’s a romance book that shows how Vuk Markovoić shows the vulnerable pieces of himself and how Ayana Kidane finds the grounds to stand up for herself against the toxic model agency she works for.
If Vuk Markovoić never struggled with the jealousy he faced while watching the love of his life be on her way to wed someone else, he would have never realized that his envy blinded him from seeing the struggles his best friend, Jordan, was going through that brought him to plan such a marriage. Meanwhile, had Kidane never faced the toxicity of her industry, she wouldn’t have learned to fight for herself and other models in the way she had.
Similar to her assorted display of challenges that character's face, I love how diverse Huang’s characters are. In fact, in her upcoming read “King of Gluttony,” it has been rumored on Instagram that the main female character will be of Indian descent and the main male character of French. Clare Mulroy from USA Today interviewed Huang on her publications, her dedication to romance writing and the representation she includes in her books in an article posted earlier this month. In addition to discussing her priority to diversity, Huang also mentions her experience writing romance, and a summary about what goes down in “King of Envy.”
Vuk Markovoić, however, has more representation beyond just his ethnic background. Due to suspension building trauma from his past that is revealed throughout the read, Markovoić is selectively non-verbal. He uses sign language to speak with all characters, and Huang mentions that Kidane has an aunt who is hard of hearing, which is how she knows American Sign Language to communicate with Vuk Markovoić.
It’s very inspiring to see Huang publish so many books recently with both well represented characters and amazing plots. As an avid romance reader, it’s not common to see characters with the diverse backgrounds that Huang creates, and it’s very refreshing to read. Adding such representation to her books adds a sense of identity to her writing for each character, which makes the read all the stronger.
Romance comes in all forms, and Huang may be one of my favorite authors that illustrates that. She takes the characters’ struggles and portrays how they overcome their challenges while actively falling in love. Like how characters in romance books at some point realize — in some shape or form — it’s important to be ready for the next chapter in your romantic world.
Aryana Amin-Tehrani (she/her) is a senior studying marketing, management and digital and social media business applications.
