Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Top Ten Tuesday: Things I Dislike About Romances in Books


Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created and hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten Things I Dislike About Romances in Books

1. Cheating

This is probably the one thing I could never forgive, so I can't deal with it in romance novels. The only possible situation I find maybe acceptable is if the hero/heroine thinks the significant over is dead and there's been an appropriate grieving period. Not REALLY cheating, but it's close.

Guilty party - An Arranged Marriage (Company of Rogues #1) by Jo Beverley

2. Love Triangle/Square/etc.

Just stop already. We don't want the angst anymore.

3. Alpha Male

I roll my eyes at these men. I'm not amused and don't find it sexy. I'm an adult woman: I don't need a man telling me what to do. Unless he knows it's something I don't know how to do, like astrophysics, then sure. Or, it's killing spiders. I'm deathly terrified of spiders thanks to a nasty bite when I was a kid. Anyone can kill all the spiders for me. Thanks.

4. Force/Rape

No author can redeem a hero for me that has raped the heroine.

5. Billionaire Playboys

Ugh. Can we get another trope, please?

6. Pregnancy/Children as a Trope/Trap

If the couple is only staying together because of the kids or because of an unexpected (or planned) pregnancy, then the relationship has lots of other problems, and the relationship is not going to last. It's also just a lazy way of getting the couple back together or causing unnecessary drama.

Guilty party - Too Far series by Abbie Glines

7. Insta-love

This also lazy to me. Plus, it ruins my favorite part of romances - the anticipation, build up and courting.

8. Craziness on the Part of Either Party

He has anger issues or can't control his alcohol or he started the relationship by stalking. That's a toxic relationship. Get out now. Or she can't control her alcohol or almost burned down your house because she thought you were cheating. One of you is in physical danger. Get out now.

Guilty party - Beautiful Disaster (Beautiful #1) by Jamie McGuire

9. Student-Teacher, Especially When There Is a Huge Age Gap

It gives me the heeby jeebies.

Guilty party - Slammed (Slammed #1) by Colleen Hoover

10. Magical Penis/Vagina

She was physically abused or raped, or has never been able to orgasm before with a man, or she's a virgin. The hero touches her ONE TIME and it's just perfect, and they can have sex for 2 hours straight 3 times a day, every day. Nope.

Guilty party - Bared to You by Sylvia Day

What Romance Tropes Do You Hate?

4 comments:

  1. I agree completely with all of these. Some of them are just so disturbing, I wonder why people even write them. Really, it's neither romantic nor hot.

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    Replies
    1. Different strokes for different folks, I guess. It's just amazing to me how many of those books are extremely popular...

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  2. Wouldn't the world be a much better place with magical peens?

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  3. I had the Magical Penis concept on my list too - although I did not call it that, an oversight which I am hating myself for now. :)

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You are going to put words in my box?! *squeezes you* Now I shall stalk YOUR blog!