This has been a rough week and an even rougher weekend, as I’m still trying to adjust to being unable to do anything close to what I was able to before. Over the weekend, my mother got sick, and has been feeling rotten. I have been trying my best to hold the fort down, but not going to lie, it’s hard. However, I’ve really been also focusing on keeping a sense of gratitude in my life. It actually does help me cope a bit when I can find a silver lining of any type. So I’m grateful that this isn’t worse. I’m grateful to have received a couple of adaptive products that I bought for my mom in the last few days, and once she feels better, hopefully this will help her retain a little bit more independence, which I think is important to do when helping to care for an aging parent (or any other type of aging individuals).
Since this has been such a Debbie Downer of a week, I wanted to close out the weekend on a fun note. When I’m reading certain types of books for escapism, there are tropes that I gravitate towards and enjoy. They are so intriguing and I find myself actively seeking out or avoiding books based on tropes that are involved in the story. This week, I want to invite you to share the tropes you love and the tropes you don’t love.
Everyone has different preferences, and there’s nothing wrong with that. The kind of tropes that make me immediately grab a book or put it back down are just my own preferences, but I stick to just a few favorite genres where certain tropes are seen more often.
Romance is the most obvious genre that comes to mind. While I don’t typically read a lot of romance, I do dabble and mostly enjoy it when it arises. If I’m on the fence about a romance book, if it includes tropes like fake dating or forced proximity I’ll be more likely to read it, while if it includes tropes like a secret pregnancy or miscommunication, I am less likely to read it. In fantasy, we see tropes like the chosen one and time slip, and the found family trope can be found in literally any kind of book. Those are some that I tend to love when they’re done right, no matter the genre.
Now it’s your turn. What are some of your most and least favorite tropes?
Categories: Sunday Bookish Discussion
Leah's Books 
I’m sorry to hear you all are struggling. I also love fake dating and close proximity. I avoid feuding family books. I think that’s about the most ridiculous trope for a romance. Especially a modern one.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s a great one to avoid, although I do like to read about secrets. Fake dating and forced proximity seem to be two really common tropes. My family has enough of our own issues, I don’t necessarily want to read about more all the time!
LikeLike
I have to say that I think the enemies to lovers trope is becoming a tad overdone. It’s not that I’ve read a particularly large amount of it, but I swear, every single romantasy book I hear about has that trope, and they all just blend into each other!
I do like a bit of arranged marriage or fake dating, and also friends to lovers. In fantasy I’m very fond of the quest/journey trope (which I think has fallen out of fashion a bit lately, given that I often see people saying they don’t enjoy that!)
LikeLiked by 1 person
I do have to agree with you – I don’t read much romance, but that trope appears in every genre, so I do find that it is a little overdone. However, when the author makes use of a trope well, it’s amazing!
Ooooh, I didn’t even think of the quest/journey trope, but that’s such a fun one! The last one I read was in the Carry On series by Rainbow Rowell. The main characters take a road trip through the US, so the trope isn’t completely gone!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Sorry to hear you’ve had a crappy week, I hope things start to brighten for you and that your mum feels better soon. I adore the found family trope. I love it so much that I think it should be a genre rather than a trope, and we should have a million books about people finding their people. Also, this is deeply unfashionable but my favourite romance trope is a love triangle!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I would love to see a million books about people finding their own people – that’s the section I’d be living in. I honestly never liked the love triangle trope until I saw a book that did it so well!
And I appreciate your well wishes. We’re going to try to take it easy this week and relax and heal as much as possible.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That sounds very sensible. I have to ask, what was the book that changed your mind about the love triangle trope?
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s going to bother me all day, but I can’t remember!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Haha, oh no!!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
My only problem is even recognizing tropes- honestly don’t know what they are. Sometimes struggle to spot them in books.
However, I do know one of my favorites is “found family”
LikeLiked by 1 person
It took me a while to get the hang of tropes, and even longer to figure out which ones I like or don’t. It’s hard to spot something you don’t even realize is a trope. Found family is one of the best tropes out there, IMHO.
LikeLike