Since today is Valentine’s Day, this week’s theme is all about romance tropes so I’ve decided to list my top five favourite romance tropes in YA novels and my top five least favourite romance tropes in YA

  1. Hate to love – This is one of my all time favourite tropes because the bickering is just so cute. I love seeing the relationship grow and build over time and how their fights turn from genuine and angry to just adorable banter between them.
  2. Best friends to lovers- This one is just so cute because they already know all about each other, so they know they’re perfect for each other, it just took them a while to figure it out. They share their past and have so many inside jokes and such a long story to tell and it’s just adorable.
  3. Star-crossed lovers – These two are in love but they can’t be together for whatever reason. Whether it’s their family, their social status or fate itself, something is trying to stop them, but they love each other so much they’re willing to fight and do whatever it takes. It’s so cute!
  4. Soulmates – This one (if done well) can be something I really enjoy. It shouldn’t be an excuse for instalove but can be a clever way to spark a connection between two people and can often have all sorts of cool supernatural bonuses like being able to speak to each other in their minds.
  5. Pretending to date – This one always promises to be a lot of fun. It starts out as merely an agreement but it ends as true love! Sometimes it can get a little cringey but it’s usually good fun. Awwww, how cute! 

And now for what I reckon are the more interesting four. After all, hating is so much more fun than loving!

  1. Love triangles – I think almost everyone in the YA world is stick to death of love triangles. Genuinely, I am so done with these. These are (mostly) a lazy plot device and create needless conflict.
  2. Insta-love – This is another one that is just downright annoying. There are very few situations in which this actually works so 99% of the time it just looks like the author can’t be bothered to write a romance that develops over time.
  3. Romance solving all – Romance is not and should not be a cure for all problems. Even if you have the best significant other in the whole universe, you will still have problems and it is unrealistic to expect romance to solve them.
  4. Lack of communication or honesty – This one is so frustrating yet it seems to be such a popular way for authors to create conflict in relationships and usually ends with me screaming at the characters to just talk to each other!

So those are my favourite and least favourite romance tropes for Valentine’s Day! What did you do for your Top Ten Tuesday? What are your favourite and least favourite tropes? Let me know in the comments! 


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