Romance Trends, Tropes, and Themes that I Do Like

I recently made a post about romance trends, tropes, and themes that I don't like. I figured that to balance that out, I should make a post sharing those that I do like! While we're past Valentine's Day, and February is over, I think we can celebrate romance and love all year round, including the awesome love and romance books that captivate and entertain us.


Disclaimer: My opinions shift around a lot. What I love today, I might hate a few months from now. Also, just because I mention a certain trend, trope, or theme, doesn't mean that books without these trends, tropes, and themes are somehow lesser. I love, and have loved, many books that don't feature any of the following!

Diversity 

 I love reading books with diverse or minority characters! I especially love it when a book contains characters of all different skin colours, genders, and sexualities. I love seeing books that take a step away from the general, heterosexual, white, perfect-body romances. Of course I enjoy many books that aren't diverse, but it's exciting to see a bigger selection of different kinds of romances and characters!

Polyamory

 

 I've been reading more books featuring polyamorous romance and I love it! I've always thought that its weird that everyone can love multiple siblings or friends or parents, but we act like its strange to love more than one person romantically. I love reading about groups of people who love each other. The Hostage Bargain is the first book in a series about one woman and her three lovers, and its often very sweet and I love it!

Paranormal romance

I love a good contemporary romance, but paranormal romance holds a special place in my heart. I enjoy reading about romantic tension, but I also love vampires. Put those two things together into a good paranormal romance and you've got me satisfied. 

Enemies to Lovers

I like books where the main characters start out as enemies of some kind, but end up in love. I think the journey from hating each other, to loving each other can be beautiful, scary, exciting, and hopeful. 

Dark Romance

 

Dark romance is my guilty pleasure! I love romances that take place in dark situations, with less-than-moral characters and taboo themes. Some people might find themselves upset by the content in these books (which is fine, we all have our limits) but I like the way that these books take me out of the real world, out of my values and beliefs, and take me to a purely fantasy world, even if the setting is simply contemporary. A great example is Captive in the Dark. 

So what do you think of these trends, tropes, and themes? Are you also a fan of any of them? 

Happy reading, everyone!

Romance Trends, Tropes, and Themes that I Don't Like

So with Valentine's Day coming up, I thought I'd talk a bit about romance books! I love romance, whether it is young adult or adult, erotica or paranormal, contemporary or suspense. However, I've gotten tired of certain themes, or I find myself rolling my eyes at tropes and trends that I haven't personally read yet, but see mentioned often. I thought I'd share a few of those today and see what all of you think!



Disclaimer: my opinions shift around a lot. So whats annoying me today might have been my favourite trend ever yesterday, and it could end up captivating me for months starting tomorrow. So these thoughts may not necessarily last forever, and don't be surprised if they don't! I am also not passing judgement on people who do like these trends, tropes, and themes, nor am I placing moral judgement or value on them. As I like to say, fiction is fiction. I don't read novels to affirm my morals, I read to be entertained.

The mafia

I see tons of books about mafia-themed forbidden romance. I personally don't see the appeal, I mean I like romance books featuring crime, but when I think of the mafia I think of old men in gray suits smoking cigars in 20th century Chicago or something. (Please don't judge me if my perceptions are way off!).

Bikers/biker gangs

 

I don't find bikers/biker gangs in romance novels to be appealing. I tend to avoid books featuring these kinds of characters, although I will admit I have a few on my to-read list. As I've mentioned before, I do remain pretty open to various types of books, and my taste is always changing. 

Very specific titles 

Sometimes I find myself cringing or chuckling at some oddly specific romance titles. As a fan of Maya Banks, I ran into this one: The Tycoon's Pregnant Mistress. Personally, I find this humorously specific. Other examples include The Billionaire's Blackmailed Bride , The Sicilian's Ruthless Marriage Revenge , and of course, The Sheikh's Virgin Bride. 

"Cardboard" love interests

You know him....he's hot, he has abs and bulging muscles, and he has a crooked, bad-boy smile. He may or may not have a leather jacket, ride a motorcycle, and have short, dark hair. That's right, it's cardboard cut-out romance hunk! Now available for the low price of $39.99 (head not included)!

Exaggeration

This really gets on my nerves, especially concerning the men's appearances (I mostly read female POV m/f romance). The ladies will be like "I turned around and saw him, and literally fell on my face because he looked like a divine angel, hallelujah, everything was perfect, oh and did I mention he was super rich?" And the world ceases to exist for that precious moment during which she lays her eyes upon this blemish-less, perfectly fit, radiant man. The end! Ugh....some romance books I ended up really enjoying lost stars because of this! I roll my eyes every time. Other exaggerations include declarations of 'true' (insta) love, almost inhuman levels of "romantic chemistry", and too much emphasis placed on abs and (rippling) muscles. 

Things aren't perfect? We can never be together! 

I find many romance books tend to feature unnecessary, often temporary break ups between couples. One thing goes wrong, they don't see eye to eye one time, and of course the world is ending. They have to always be on the same page, or they must burn the whole book! There's a loose nail in the bridge? Tear it down! Goodbye, there is no other choice! It's like some characters have never heard of sleeping on an issue, thinking it over, trying to compromise, or taking a temporary break while things cool down. I mentioned that the break ups in these books tend to be temporary, but its rarely due to a calm, rational cooling-down period. It's usually caused by unnecessary angst and black-and-white thinking between characters. I find this trope so unnecessary and annoying! One of the books I read recently lost a few stars because of this very thing!

Well, those are a few annoying trends, tropes, and themes in romance that bother me (for the time being...). Do any of these bother you as well?

50/50 Friday - Best/Worst Book Read in 2017

This feature is hosted at The Butterfly Reader and Blue Eye Books

This week's topic is best / worst book read in 2017

Best

 

 I read lots of awesome books in 2017. But one of the best was The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die. It was a really suspenseful mystery and I loved it! 

Worst

 

I'm only counting books that I finished, because some I dnf-ed. Neuromancer, by far, was the worst book of 2017. I had to read it for school, and I hated it. 

The Benefits of Reading Books

Hey everyone, so I know I haven't been super active on my social media and stuff lately. I've had a ton of assignments, and with the end of the semester coming up, I've had to study for tests and exams too. Hopefully once the winter break arrives, I'll be able to post more often!


I was thinking about the benefits of reading books, on a personal level. While I've read lots of articles describing generalized benefits of reading books, citing studies, I wanted to talk about the ways that reading books has personally helped me out!


1) Stress relief: Sometimes, you just have to take a break from what's stressing you out, and read a book. When I write my assignments, I often take little breaks to read and relax. It helps me to keep my focus.


2) Better grades: I've noticed that the more I read, the better my grades at school are! That's remained true throughout high school, college, and so far at university!

While I may not go to a vampire school like Evernight, I'm sure that upon my inevitable transformation into a vampire, my reading habits will continue to assist me as I adjust to life in a vampire boarding school.

3) Empathy: I find that reading has given me increased empathy for others. I'm able to step into another person's shoes in the fictional world, and I think this has assisted me in mentally doing this in the real world. I think reading has made me a better person.


4) Representation: While I'm not of the belief that every book must be diverse, or that authors are under any obligation to represent any group within their works, I must admit that representation within books is an exciting thing for me. I often feel very alone because of some of the groups I fall into, and when I see representation of people like me in books, it eases that feeling a little bit.

Symptoms of Being Human was the first book I read with a genderfluid protagonist. (Also sorry if anyone is annoyed by me talking about gender identity a lot on here and on Instagram....I'm just very alone and it's nice to have a place where people will listen. There's not many people I can talk to about this kind of stuff so it just builds up you know? Also I'd like to show others like me that they aren't alone, and that they can be awesome people and achieve their goals. Anyways.)

5) Goals: Books can sometimes portray characters who I look up to and want to be like in some way. Whether that's being more confident, open, or social, books can give me ideas on how I could change for the better. I also find myself discovering my own flaws through books....sometimes I'll read a character who bothers me a lot and then I realize we share some negative traits in common. I can then easily identify some of my flaws and consider changes I should make to become a better person.



So, what are some personal benefits you've found to reading books? How have books changed your life in a positive way?

50/50 Friday - Book You Were Early/Late to the Party in Reading

This meme is hosted at The Butterfly Reader and Blue Eye Books

This week's topic is book you were early / late to the party in reading

Early 

 

I don't think there's a ton of books I've been early to the party in reading. I mean, maybe Nevermore? When in doubt, answer Nevermore.  

Late

   

There are a lot of books I was late to the party reading. Throne of Glass and City of Bones are two that stand out 

What books were you early or late to the party reading?

50/50 Friday - Favorite/Least Favorite Movie Tie-In Cover

50 / 50 Friday is hosted at The Butterfly Reader and Blue Eye Books

This week's topic is favourite / least favourite movie tie in cover

 Favourite 

 

My favourite has to be Beautiful Creatures. I like the way the characters are arranged and I love the colours! 

Least favourite 

The Host by Stephenie Meyer. I think the positioning of the characters, especially the guys, seems really awkward. I'm also not a fan of the glowing O. I think it contrasts too much with the more muted colour scheme of the rest of the cover.

 

The Longest Book Tag

I was tagged by The Butterfly Reader

Sorry it took me so long to actually complete this tag....I don't think I've completed this before so I'll give it a shot. If I have, sorry....my memory is terrible. 

 

The rules:

1) Make a list of the 5 longest books you've ever read

2) Select 2 of the longest books on your tbr

3) Discuss 

 4) Tag others 

1) 5 Longest books I've ever read

Note: I'm not counting nonfiction, reference books, or bindups. 

Breaking Dawn: 756 pages

Eclipse, 629 pages

Kingdom of the Wicked, 607 pages

The Dying of the Light, 605 pages

Mortal Coil, 604 pages

2) 2 of the longest books on my tbr

 

Outlander, 850 pages

  

Fallocaust, 829 pages

3) Discuss

Well, there are some very long books out there, that's for sure. They actually kind of scare me....I prefer books that are 350-500 pages, usually. That doesn't mean that I won't read a book because its longer than that....I'm just a bit wary. Especially if it's a physical book, because my hands hurt after holding it for a while. Although I also find that when I read a book on my tablet or eReader, that it seems longer? So reading a super long book could take ages.

Some of my favourite books have been super long, though. Many of the Skulduggery Pleasant books are over 500 pages. When I love the characters and the world-building, the longer the book, the better! 

I have a bit of a personal issue when it comes to big books, though. So I'm a writer and I want to write a novel. But I keep getting into depressive episodes or school gets really busy, or I think of a better idea to write about. And I can't finish writing a novel, and then I see these authors writing 500 page novels and I feel kinda like a failure. Yeah I know, woe is me. But it does impact me as both a reader and a writer. 

Tags:

So, anyone who wants to do this is tagged! But specifically I tag Kristen at Metaphors and Moonlight and Lauren at Always Me. 

Also I'd like to apologize for not posting as often....university is really stressful already! Don't worry, I'm not on hiatus or giving up blogging, and I swear I love everyone's blogs and I will keep on blogging, but don't expect me to be too consistent with my post schedule in the upcoming months. 

50/50 Friday - Favorite/Least Favorite Series Cover Set

This meme is hosted at The Butterfly Reader and Blue Eye Books

This week's topic is favorite/least favorite series cover set

Favorite

The Skulduggery Pleasant series!

There have been lots of different covers, but they're all really awesome. I like them because they're colourful but not too colourful. Here are just a few of the awesome covers

Least favorite

The Lorien Legacies. I mean, they're not the most hideous covers that I've ever seen, but they're not very pretty, in my opinion

I really am not a fan of the cover of the first book, especially. You can find the covers here

Also sorry for the weird formatting and spaces.... I think blogger is glitching again -_-

50/50 Friday - Favorite/Least Favorite Cover Trend

This meme is hosted at The Butterfly Reader and Blue Eye Books

This week's topic is favorite / least favorite cover trend

Favorite

      

 As usual I have a few favorites. One of them is beautiful dresses but The Butterfly Reader already covered that! I was also thinking dark covers, like Hush Hush and Fallen, but some people might not see  that as a "trend". So I'm going with simple covers: covers that are quite bare/not very busy, except for an object, symbol, or person on the cover. Matched is a prime example of this! And of course I've included a few more. 

Least Favorite

      

Faces up-close. I kinda feel a bit uncomfortable, to be perfectly honest, with these covers. It's like I'm invading someone's personal space. 

50/50 Friday - Book You Enjoyed with the Most/Least Page Count

This meme is hosted at The Butterfly Reader and Blue Eye Books

This week's topic is book you enjoyed with the most / least page count

Most pages

 

The book I enjoyed with the most pages is Kingdom of the Wicked. It's at 607 pages, and its the 7th book in the Skulduggery Pleasant series

Least pages

The book I enjoyed with the least pages is probably The Wrong Turn by Annika Martin. I read it as an eBook so I'm not sure how many pages it was considered, but Goodreads puts it at 103 pages. (I'm not counting short stories here)

50/50 Friday - Bookish Gift You'd Most/Least Like to Receive

This meme is hosted at The Butterfly Reader and Blue Eye Books

This week's topic is bookish gift you'd most / least like to receive

Most

 

Besides actually books or gift cards to bookstores, I'd love to get some nice bookmarks. I've started a small bookmark collection and I'd love to add more! 

Least

I'd be thankful for any bookish gift, but I guess the bookish item I'd use the least would be a piece of jewelry related to books (i.e book fandom necklace, bracelet with a book charm, etc). I like jewelry but I often just forget to wear it.

Do you have any bookish jewelry? What's your favourite bookmark?

50/50 Friday - Place You Buy the Most / Least Books

This meme is hosted at The Butterfly Reader and Blue Eye Books

This week's topic is place you buy the most / least books 

Most

 

Thrift stores. In recent years, my financial situation has gotten worse so I have bought less books new, straight from the bookstore, and instead I've been going to thrift stores! This includes both general thrift stores, and used book stores. (Image found here)

Least

 

Bookstores, where they sell the books brand new. I still go to Chapters / Indigo, and I still order from Amazon on occasion (and I've started using BookOutlet too) however I definitely don't buy books brand new very often anymore.  (Image from my Instagram)



Where do you get the most / least books? Do you share my love of thrift stores?

50/50 Friday - Favorite/Least Favorite Character Name + Mid-Year Book Freak Out Tag 2017

This meme is hosted at The Butterfly Reader and Blue Eye Books

This week's topic is favorite / least favorite character name! 

Favorite

 

I have several favorites. Skulduggery Pleasant, for one. I also love the name Chaol Westfall. 

 

Least Favorite

 

I'm not a huge fan of the name Grace. I also don't really care for the name Isobel. I don't hate these names at all, I just don't think they're the most interesting names ever. 

What do you think of these names?

~ ~ ~

Now it's time for the mid-year book freak out tag! I found it on The Butterfly Reader

1) Best book you've read so far in 2017

 

I've read lots of awesome books, but those that stick out include Mask of Shadows, A Court of Thorns and Roses, and Demon Road.

2)  Best sequel you've read so far in 2017

 

Crown of Midnight!

3)  New release you haven't read yet but want to

 

Ohhhh there are tons of new releases I want to read but haven't yet! The Beast is an Animal is only one of them.

4) Most anticipated release for second half of 2017

 

So I already read an ARC of Mask of Shadows (thank you NetGalley!) however I am definitely anticipating the release date for this book so I can get a physical copy. 

5) Biggest disappointment

 

Keeping You A Secret was quite a disappointment for me. 

6) Biggest surprise

 

 I wasn't expecting to like Proxy so much!

7) Favorite new authors

 

Sarah J Maas! 

8) Newest fictional crushes

Chaol!!!!! Celaena too. 

9) Newest favorite character

Yeah I don't have just one favourite character, but many. Chaol, Celaena, Feyre, Tamlin (Sarah J Maas is essentially providing me with a good portion of my favourites nowadays, as you can see). I also really liked Amber from Demon Road and Syd from Proxy. 

10) Book that made you cry

 

When Everything Feels like the Movies. To be fair, I can't remember if I actually cried or if I only shed a few tiny tears, but either way this book was very emotional for me. 

11) Book that made you happy

Mask of Shadows! Genderfluid represent!

12) Favourite book to movie adaptation you've seen so far in 2017

I don't think I've seen any! :(

13) Favourite review you've written so far in 2017

 

Oblivion. It's not some epic review, but its a review for the last book in one of my most favorite trilogies ever. 

14) Most beautiful book you've bought so far this year. 

 

I have bought lots of lovely books, but Zodiac stands out for sure!




15) What books do you need to read by the end of the year?

So many. I'm not even gonna bother to list them. Just... so many.



If you've completed this tag on your blog, please leave the link below! Anyways, how has your reading year been so far?