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?

Legacy of Lies & Don't Tell by Elizabeth Chandler

Series: Dark Secrets
Author: Elizabeth Chandler
Page Count: 431
Published: March 8th, 2011
Publisher: Simon Pulse
  3.5 Stars ★★★

In this bind-up, two suspenseful stories are told. In Legacy of Lies, Megan is being haunted while staying at her grandmother's house. She is adopted, and along with dealing with her grandmother's cold attitude towards her, she has to deal with Matt, her "almost-cousin"'s aloofness as well. The story of her late great aunt comes to light, with many mysteries surrounding her death. How did she really die? And how does her death connect to the present, to Megan and Matt? Megan may not live to find out the truth. 

In Don't Tell, Lauren has returned to Wisteria for the first time after her mother drowned there years ago. With her cousin Nora seemingly unhinged, and her cousin Holly and old friend Nick welcoming her with open arms, Lauren isn't sure if she's ready to face the dock where her mother died. Her aunt Jule doesn't have much empathy towards Lauren's remaining sadness, but more is at stake than Lauren's feelings. Nora claims to hear Lauren's mother asking for her child, and mysterious knots begin to appear, things tying up themselves. Is Lauren going to survive this trip? Or will she face the same fate that her mother did?

I gave Legacy of Lies four stars, and Don't Tell three, with this averaging out at 3.5 stars. As you can see, I enjoyed the first book a bit more than the second. 

Both stories had characters with very sinister pasts, pasts that threatened to affect their present lives. I liked this connection between the past and the present, this idea that the characters couldn't outrun the past. Both stories contained suspicious deaths, deaths that may or may not have turned out to really be murders....the mystery behind what happened to Megan's great aunt and Lauren's mother were the main issue behind both stories, the events that started it all.

Legacy of Lies took place in a creepy mansion-like home, with a grandmother that I hated and an interesting paranormal component. I have to say, I did not see the twist coming at all. I was very surprised by the ending and I think it wrapped up the story very nicely. Megan was a great narrator, and I enjoyed reading about the creepy events she was experiencing, through her own eyes.

Don't Tell also had a very interesting twist that I wasn't able to guess. There was also a possible paranormal component throughout the story: I often found myself debating whether it was paranormal or simply a living person mundanely messing with Lauren. I won't give away the truth, but I think the explanation was fitting for the story. I liked this story less because I think some of the explanations were a bit hazy....most were fine, but at times I was really confused as to why people were acting the way they were. On the one hand, it made me keep reading. Yet on the other, it made some events a bit unclear. However, the story was enjoyable overall.

I recommend this bind-up to people looking for short, creepy stories. If you're a fan of Elizabeth Chandler or you want to read books about secrets affecting peoples' lives, this is a great pick for you.

Find Legacy of Lies and Don't Tell on Goodreads

The Creeping by Alexandra Sirowy

Series: N/A
Author: Alexandra Sirowy
Page Count: 400
Published: August 18th, 2015
Publisher: Simon Schuster Books for Young Readers
  3 Stars ★★★

As a child, Stella and her friend Jeanie disappeared. Jeanie never came back, and her body was never found. Eleven years later, the mystery still haunts the town of Savage. 

Stella's summer is ahead of her, and she's hoping for a relaxing break spending time with friends and hanging out at the beach. Her hopes are shattered when a body is found... a body that looks like Jeanie. Suddenly, old wounds are ripped open and Stella fears that she may be targeted by a killer. With her old friend Sam and Jeanie's brother Daniel, she hopes to uncover the truth of what's happening in Savage. But the truth may be more disturbing than she expects, and a monster may be killing the residents of Savage. 

This book looked quite creepy to me. I mean look at that cover! And the idea of a monster going after people..... Sounds really, really creepy. While parts of this book certainly held a good creep-factor, other pieces of this book annoyed and disappointed me. 

I liked the mystery behind it all. Who took Jeanie? Is she dead? Who is the body that was found? I was kept reading because I just needed answers to these questions. The element of suspense was really used well by the author. I loved how folktales and superstitions played a big role in the story, with the main characters actually considering that a monster might be terrorizing their town. 

I also really liked Sam. He was my favourite character: sweet, forgiving, and determined, he decided to help Stella out even after she ditched him years ago. He was honestly the only character that I really liked, though. 

I didn't like Stella, I thought she was kinda of superficial. I really, really hated Zoey, Stella's friend. Zoey was so freaking annoying. She was like that mosquito buzzing in your ear when you're just trying to enjoy a campfire, but no matter how much you swat at it, it won't go away. I rolled my eyes so much at her. I think the book would have been a lot better without her, to be perfectly honest. 

I think the big reveal at the end was very anti-climactic. I was hoping for something creepier, but the explanation for everything was mundane and disappointing. 

Overall, while I liked the creepy atmosphere of the book, I only like Sam and disliked the other characters. The ending was also disappointing. 

I recommend this book to readers looking for a creepy book with a main character in the "popular" crowd. If you like books about mysterious disappearances, you may enjoy this one. 

Find The Creeping on Goodreads

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. 

Send by Patty Blount

 Series: N/A
Author: Patty Blount
Page Count: 304
Published: August 1st, 2012
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
  4 Stars ★★★★

Daniel is moving to a new school, hoping that nobody will find out his secret. He wasn't always Daniel....he used to be somebody else, somebody who cyber-bullied another kid into suicide. He has to keep his secret closely guarded...if he isn't careful, Liam's father will come after him and his family. 

He gets into a fight on the first day of school, while defending someone from Jeff, a bully. This isn't the way he wanted to start out, immediately brought into the spotlight. He also meets Julie, who seems to have something against him, although they don't even know each other. It's almost like she knows something about him.....

This was an emotional book about the effects of cyber-bullying, on both victims and bullies alike. I really liked that the book started out with Daniel going to a new school, I think that this was a great place to begin as opposed to while he was still a bully, or in juvenile detention. While things like the nature of the bullying and the impact it had on Daniel's mental health weren't completely discussed right away, I think that they were well addressed throughout the book and provided a reason to keep reading even when I got tired. I wanted to know more about the situation, I wanted to understand what had happened, and what was happening to Daniel now. For a book with a slower plot and a contemporary setting, I remained hooked on Daniel's story throughout. 

Daniel as a character was so interesting and tragic. I couldn't find it within myself to hate him for his actions. He made a mistake....and many people suffered for it. But that didn't make him a bad person overall. He was complex, dealing with a mental health crisis, suicidal thoughts, and lots of guilt. I found him relatable although I've never been in his situation, and I think this was very impressive! I connected to him through his suffering and attempt to distance himself from the past, despite having drastically different lives. As a character, he had so much depth, he was truly likeable in my opinion. I think he definitely redeemed himself. 

Julie, Jeff, and Brandon, the boy Daniel befriends after saving him from Jeff on that first day of school, were interesting secondary characters who played very important parts throughout the novel. Often, their relationships with each other and Daniel were very unstable, which actually gave this sad contemporary novel a feeling of suspense at times. I was always wondering what was going on with poor Brandon. I was worried that Jeff would target Brandon again or even go after Daniel. And Julie, as a supporting character and love interest to Daniel, was both interesting and frustrating. I found her part in this book a bit unbelievable at times. I can't say much more without spoiling the reveal, but I found it made very little sense that she'd go so far as to befriend and even date Daniel. That's why this book lost a star. 

I think the ending to the book was well done. It was emotional and unsure, and it made me really wish for a sequel. 

Overall, this was an enjoyable, emotional book with interesting characters. It discussed real life issues in a way that considered multiple sides of the story, and I am glad I found this book. I'll be looking for more books by Patty Blount in the future. 

I recommend this book to those interested in reading about the effects cyber-bullying could have on the perpetrator. If you like books with complex characters, this novel is for you. 

Find Send on Goodreads