Best known for her Kate Delafield detective series, Katherine V. Forrest is recognized as one of the preeminent figures in lesbian popular literature. Yet her work has received little scholarly attention. This critical study explores Forrest's entire body of work, including her fiction and (perhaps more important) her writing about writing, popular genres and her readers. Her science fiction and romance novels are analyzed, with a focus on the reasons behind their enduring appeal. Her most famous romance, Curious Wine, originally published in 1984, remains in print-a longevity far exceeding the typical romance novel.