The Doomsday Book, Connie Willis. If formula romances are analogous to ditties, Connie Willis books are symphonies. (Formula books are fine -- ditties are fine. It's just an analogy.) I just finished Doomsday for the nth time, and it is more rewarding on every reread. I mean, it really does hit a lot of hot spots for me -- plagues and british humor and medievality and time travel and competence...
P.S. I will never understand why people don't read books or watch movies over again. If the point were to find out what happens, a synopsis would do.
P.P.S. Plagues! Come on! You can't go wrong!
