Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.
Most of the books we read are Fantasy/Paranormal/Dystopian/Sci-Fi so the romances are not usually the typical contemporary ones. Our love insterests are usually dealing with death, tyrants, or the end of the world so that influences some of the qualities of romance that we like/dislike and it also gives us higher expectations for the characters emotional maturity. As always, Sarah's opinions are in GREEN and Christina's are in PURPLE.
Things We Dislike
Acting like a dick/bitch
It's the classic boy meets girl, girl is curious about boy, boy acts like a total dick, girl is still interested story. I've seen this happen in quite a few books, but Twilight is probably the most well known for it. Of course it turns out that the particular character that was acting like a jerk actually has a reason, but I can never really forgive them after that first impression.
It's the classic boy meets girl, girl is curious about boy, boy acts like a total dick, girl is still interested story. I've seen this happen in quite a few books, but Twilight is probably the most well known for it. Of course it turns out that the particular character that was acting like a jerk actually has a reason, but I can never really forgive them after that first impression.
Leading on more than one person
Okay, I'm going to pick on the girls here because they are usually the middle of the love triangle and the one causing the trouble. I'm not saying they always lead the boys on, sometimes they're just confused and have other things on their mind but when they are all "I love you two and I just can decide so I'm going to keep flirting with you both" I really start to have dislike for the girl. Stop screwing with the guys minds and turning them against each other. If you can't decide, take a step back and be by yourself for a bit. My example for this is Tessa Gray from the Infernal Devices. I was yelling at the guys to drop her because their brotherhood was too important to ruin over a girl.
Okay, I'm going to pick on the girls here because they are usually the middle of the love triangle and the one causing the trouble. I'm not saying they always lead the boys on, sometimes they're just confused and have other things on their mind but when they are all "I love you two and I just can decide so I'm going to keep flirting with you both" I really start to have dislike for the girl. Stop screwing with the guys minds and turning them against each other. If you can't decide, take a step back and be by yourself for a bit. My example for this is Tessa Gray from the Infernal Devices. I was yelling at the guys to drop her because their brotherhood was too important to ruin over a girl.
Jealousy
This one really get's me because a lot of it I see as unnecessary jealousy and the guys end up acting like possessive douchbags or the girls just seem petty. Jealousy always leads to stupidity and it's very annoying.
This one really get's me because a lot of it I see as unnecessary jealousy and the guys end up acting like possessive douchbags or the girls just seem petty. Jealousy always leads to stupidity and it's very annoying.
Insta-love
Really, this just feels fake. There's no build up of trust or friendship and when a relationship is rushed I'm not really invested in it. Most of the time I don't even know if this characters would be able to carry on a normal conversation not linked to plot. It's not love at first sight, it's lust. There's a difference.
Really, this just feels fake. There's no build up of trust or friendship and when a relationship is rushed I'm not really invested in it. Most of the time I don't even know if this characters would be able to carry on a normal conversation not linked to plot. It's not love at first sight, it's lust. There's a difference.
Warning the other away "for their own good"
1. Don't you just hate when a character says "It's too dangerous for you to be around me so stay away" and then they continue to stalk them? Are they attracted to them that much or do they really want to get them killed?
2. This is the typical superhero line of "We can't be together anymore. It's for your own good... LOVE YOU!" NO! Don't do that! It either doesn't work out at all and the other person still pays for being close to them, or it doesn't last for long anyway. It's noble, sure, but since those storylines always turn out the same way it just feels like a waste of time.
Things We Like
Make a good team
One of the sexiest things in a fictional relationship is when the guy and girl actually make an amazing team. They work with each other instead of against each other. The mission usually comes first before anything else and they understand the issues that the other has to deal with. I absolutely love these types of couples and am always a loyal shipper.
One of the sexiest things in a fictional relationship is when the guy and girl actually make an amazing team. They work with each other instead of against each other. The mission usually comes first before anything else and they understand the issues that the other has to deal with. I absolutely love these types of couples and am always a loyal shipper.
Slowburn
This is the exact opposite of insta-love. It is when the relationship between two characters is built up over a long period of time. The characters get to know each other and work well together before they ever get in a relationship. Declarations of love are not thrown around like Halloween candy, they are hard earned.
This is the exact opposite of insta-love. It is when the relationship between two characters is built up over a long period of time. The characters get to know each other and work well together before they ever get in a relationship. Declarations of love are not thrown around like Halloween candy, they are hard earned.
Bickering
One of my favorite couples as a kid was Han Solo and Princess Leia, they influenced my love for romances with a lot of bickering. They are two headstrong characters who don't care for each other in the beginning but somewhere along the line their passionate fighting turns into passionate... other stuff.
One of my favorite couples as a kid was Han Solo and Princess Leia, they influenced my love for romances with a lot of bickering. They are two headstrong characters who don't care for each other in the beginning but somewhere along the line their passionate fighting turns into passionate... other stuff.
It turns out that it's hard to come up with 5 things that we like because these 3 things are the main qualities of all our favorite ships: Percy/Annabeth (Percy Jackson and the Olympians), Rose/Dimitri (Vampire Academy), Cammie/Zach (Gallagher Girls), Saba/Jack (Dust Lands), Ron/Herminone (Harry Potter), Elinore/Daniel (Something Strange and Deadly), Danica/Zane (Hawksong), Alina/Mal (The Grisha), Puck/Sean (The Scorpio Races)....... etc....
I also love couples who started out as friends. It's so much more realistic and interesting to me than people who only ever see one another as objects of desire and romantic partners.
ReplyDeleteJealousy in a story is a little annoying! I agree with many of your points this week. I especially dislike instalove! My TTT
ReplyDeleteLeading people on! I don't like it and I like it even less when it's justified as being okay because the character is confused and doesn't really mean to lead them on. ARgh!
ReplyDeleteLove the slow burn and bickering! :D
Kate @ Fictional Thoughts
Insta love is insta lust.
ReplyDeleteMy Top Ten Tuesday!
It seems to be pretty universal in the TTT today that everyone dislikes instalove! Maybe this will encourage more books with slowburn romance. Fingers crossed.
ReplyDeleteCheck out my list here: http://writeonsisters.com/writing-craft/romance/top-ten-tuesday-5-pet-peeves-5-fab-fixes-for-romance-in-books/
How could I have forgotten the classic "stay away from me; I'm dangerous." So sick of that. Oy.
ReplyDeleteI love couples that work well together, not just in the relationship itself, but with everything else in their lives! There is just something extra special about those characters when it happens. And a HUGE yes to slow burn romances, and a huge NO to insta-love :D Great list!
ReplyDeleteMy TTT