Top Ten Tuesday: My Favorite Romance Tropes


Top Ten Tuesday is a book tag hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl. Every Tuesday, she posts a bookish prompt that anyone can answer with their top ten books that fit the prompt.

This week's prompt is "Love Freebie" in honor of Valentine's Day, so I've chosen to gather my favorite romance tropes and list a few of my favorite books that fit each trope (this post features a lot of Kasie West, just so you know). I've listed the tropes from my personal least favorite to personal favorite (saving the best for last!).


I. Friends to Lovers

This one can be cute and fun when done well. When done poorly, it's just ... cringe.

    1. Love, Life, and the List, by Kasie West
    

    2. The Elegance of the Hedgehog, by Muriel Barbery


II. Enemies to Lovers

Is it a little overdone? Yeah, sure. Is it awesome? YES.

    3. Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen (obvi)


    4. The Shadows Between Us, by Tricia Levenseller


    5. A Deadly Education, by Naomi Novik


    6. A Curse So Dark & Lonely, by Brigid Kemmerer


III. Fake relationship 

I love this trope so much that I started writing my own spin on it! But I haven't read nearly as much as I would like in this category. The only one I can think of is:


    7. To All the Boys I've Loved Before, by Jenny Han


Need to read: The Fill-In Boyfriend, by Kasie West, which I apparently somehow haven't read yet??! Let me know if there are any fake relationship books you love!

Oh, I almost forgot: Season 3 of Sanditon also features a fake relationship, but I wasn't crazy about that subplot and it's a TV show anyway, so it doesn't make it onto the formal list. But I just wanted to note it.


IV. Pen Pals/Secret Identity

 

   8. Moment of Truth, by Kasie West


    9. P.S. I Like You, by Kasie West


    10. We Are the Perfect Girl, by Ariel Kaplan


(Side note: WATPG is fun because the roles are reversed; the main character is the one who's keeping her identity secret from her admirer.)


And that's it for my Top Ten Tuesday! What are your favorite romance tropes?


Comments

  1. AnonymousFebruary 13, 2024 at 7:41 AM

    I didn’t realize that pen pals were a thing in some romances!

    Here is our Top Ten Tuesday.

    Astilbe

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    1. Karis DeHavenFebruary 13, 2024 at 1:29 PM

      Yes! It's not as common as some others, which is probably why I like it so much :)

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  2. LaurieFebruary 13, 2024 at 9:00 AM

    Great topic idea! Personally, I'm not a fan of the fake dating trope.

    My TTT: https://laurieisreading.com/2024/02/13/top-ten-tuesday-books-with-love-in-the-title/

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  3. TheaterwriterFebruary 13, 2024 at 9:08 AM

    Great topic. Here is my post https://paigesofnovels.com/2024/02/13/top-ten-tuesday-favorite-romance-tropes/.

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  4. Deanna @ A Novel GlimpseFebruary 13, 2024 at 10:00 AM

    I love these tropes as well! They're so fun!

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    1. Karis DeHavenFebruary 13, 2024 at 1:47 PM

      Yes! I know a lot of people hate tropes (or just certain ones), but I enjoy seeing the new twists authors put on old scenarios.

      Delete
  5. EmilyFebruary 13, 2024 at 11:32 AM

    Interesting. I didn't realise there were so many tropes!

    Have a great week!

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    1. Karis DeHavenFebruary 13, 2024 at 1:48 PM

      There are so many, haha! I had to Google "romance tropes" to remind myself of some, because I don't read that much romance.

      Delete
  6. AnonymousFebruary 13, 2024 at 12:14 PM

    I didn't realize the Pen Pal troupe was a thing, but fun! I love these as well. I am currently reading Be My Ex by Michelle Pennington (it's on KU) and it is a fake relationship and it is HILARIOUS!!! I have laughed out loud over and over again, which I love! Dear Henry, Love Edith by Becca Kinzer is a pen pal type book, it's also hilarious. Google won't let me sign in, this is Cindy from https://cindysbookcorner.blogspot.com/2024/02/top-ten-tuesday-in-mood-for-love.html

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    1. Karis DeHavenFebruary 13, 2024 at 1:49 PM

      Thanks for the recommendations! I'll have to check those out :)

      Delete
  7. PamFebruary 14, 2024 at 2:10 AM

    Like anything, there are great examples of tropes and horrible examples. I don't mind fake dating, but let me believe the reasons behind it. Don't have it just be to fool an ex or something unless the ex is a complete jerk! LOL! The same goes for enemies to lovers. Why are they enemies? How long has the hate been going on?

    Pam @ Read! Bake! Create!
    https://readbakecreate.com/favorite-romances-read-in-2023/

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    1. Karis DeHavenFebruary 14, 2024 at 5:36 AM

      Oh, absolutely! Tropes are really only fun when they're well done. Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment! I really enjoyed your post and tried commenting on it yesterday, but I just checked and it looks like it didn't go through :( I really enjoyed your list, though, and I'm especially interested in Weather Girl and Famous for a Living. I loved how you listed out the genre and the tropes for each one.

      Delete
  8. Lisa @ Bookshelf FantasiesFebruary 14, 2024 at 7:31 AM

    Fun topic! These are all great! I really enjoy friends-to-lovers (enemies-to-lovers is a great concept, but I think I've just read too many of these to enjoy it anymore). I love secret penpals as a trope too!

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    1. Karis DeHavenFebruary 14, 2024 at 11:15 AM

      Thank you! Yes, I feel like enemies-to-lovers is one of the most used romance tropes. It's a good one, but on the other hand, it's nice to read other tropes too!

      Delete
  9. dinipandareadsFebruary 17, 2024 at 3:50 AM

    Divine Rivals has the pen pal/secret identity trope and it was fantastic. Made me realise that I haven't read nearly enough romances with this trope and I'm going to look out for more of them now! 😍 Great list!

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