A Harlequin Romance Series – publication began in 1949 by released its first book, Nancy Bruff’s The Manatee, in May 1949

Series published by Harlequin Enterprises ULC is a Canadian publisher of romance, women’s fiction and various other genres under multiple publishing imprints. Founded in Winnipeg, Canada, in 1949, from the 1960s, it grew into the largest publisher of romance fiction in the world.

Harlequin was founded in 1949 by Richard Bonnycastle in Winnipeg, Manitoba, as a paperback reprinting company. He founded the business while working at Winnipeg’s Advocate Printers, a branch of Toronto’s Bryant Press, as a way to keep the presses busy.