Romance novel can be much less successful in a European market. Although Italy is the strongest foreign market for the chick lit sold by single-title imprint Red Dress Ink, in that country romance readers do not care to read books about cowboys, as this type of occupation was not common in their culture. The paranormal romance genre is not popular in countries such as Poland and Russia, although historical romance tends to be very successful. Inspirational romance does not sell well in Europe, where romances that feature babies are very popular. German readers enjoy reading more erotic romance novels, and some German
Historical romance or the Renaissance, including "About Catherine de Medici" and "The Elixir of Long Life". "The Hunchback of Notre-Dame" (1831) by Victor Hugo is an important French historical romance of the early nineteenth century. The title refers to the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, on which the story is centred, and the true protagonist of the story Esméralda. English translator Frederic Shoberl named the novel ""The Hunchback of Notre Dame"" in 1833 because at the time, Gothic novels were a popular form of Romance at that time in England. The story is set in Paris, France in the Late Middle Ages,