Red Deerians are apparently in the mood for love — a lot.
Our city was named one of the top 20 most romantic cities in Canada by online book and music retailer Amazon.ca
Amazon listed Red Deer as the 12th most romantic city. Victoria came out on top.
This list was compiled by comparing sales data of romance novels, sex and relationship books, romantic comedy DVDs, CDs from Michael Bublé and other crooners since Jan. 1, 2012, on a per capita basis in cities with over 80,000 residents.
Dean Frey, director of Red Deer Public Library, isn’t surprised by the results, particularly when the city of more than 90,000 is relatively young.
“I think it’s cool with Valentine’s Day coming up that we’re being recognized as the great lovers that we are in Red Deer,” said Frey.
Frey said there’s a lot of interest in romance on the book shelves. It’s more than just the current best seller Fifty Shades of Grey, he added.
“There’s a wide range of romantic-themed literature out there, from Jane Austen to the new romantic comedies,” Frey said. “A lot of people like reading the romance novels in our fiction area.”
Frey said they have a display of romance books and other items in a pink-themed display. It will be showcased through Valentine’s Day next Thursday.
Jen Ewing, manager of For Lovers Only store in south Gaetz Avenue, wasn’t surprised by Red Deer’s title, particularly when a lot of her clients aren’t single people, but couples.
“We get a lot of customers looking for ways to spice up their relationship and bring romance into it,” said Ewing.
Popular items are lingerie, massage oils and sex toys.
Amazon.ca also revealed a number of other interesting tidbits from its third annual ranking of the Top 20 Most Romantic Cities in Canada.
Sex and the (Smaller) City: Though nearly half of Canada’s 20 Most Romantic Cities lie in Ontario, both Toronto and Ottawa don’t rank as passionate as their less populous neighbours.
Prairie Love: Residents of Saskatchewan are heating things up in the living room. Both Regina and Saskatoon make the overall Top 10, keeping the flame burning, especially with date night DVDs. Red Deer, Alberta and Winnipeg, Manitoba also place in the Top 20.
Bublé-ing Over: Kamloops is crowned Canada’s largest buyer of Michael Bublé albums per capita, proving size (of a city) doesn’t matter. Overall, British Columbia’s crush on their local crooner remains at an all-time high, with five of the Top 10 Michael Bublé-loving cities within its borders.
ltester@www.reddeeradvocate.com