You guys knew I'd come back to this eventually, right? I mean, what can I say? I love complaining. :P
I hope you all love complaining, too, or you might want to exit this tab right now, because we are about to get into a lot of complaining. Specifically, I'm going to be complaining about romance. And even more specifically, romance in fiction. And what better time to do it than Valentine's Day?
Hey, I have nothing against romance in real life. Or Valentine's Day. But so often, in fiction, it's done wrong. Badly wrong. It's cheesy at best, and toxic at worst. And it's everywhere.
Since my last post, I've come up with a few more annoying tropes (or not tropes, but just Annoying Things™) in fictional romances that need to stop.
Sound like fun? Good.
Let's get into it.
1. Everyone's a Couple Syndrome
My brother actually pointed this out to me at first, and now I can't stop noticing it in everything I read. Thanks for that. But literally so many YA books do this.
You know what I mean: there's a group of kids. And those kids all end up pairing up by the end of the series just because. Books that I can think of off the top of my head that do this: The Lunar Chronicles, Six of Crows, Renegades.
It's annoying. And it's also unrealistic. In a large friend group, it's likely that a few people will find a significant other among them. But all of them? And all of them have their love requited? Very unrealistic. Instead, maybe leave some characters single? Because, you know, being single is actually okay. I'm single. I'm fine with it. Have at least some of the characters be fine with it, too.
2. No Chemistry, No Nothing, No Anything at All
They're in love. They're happy. They're meant to be. They literally have nothing at all between them, and the reason for their mutual affection is lost upon everyone reading their story.
I hate it when characters get together for seemingly no reason other than the fact that "they have to". There's no reason that every single novel ever written needs a romantic subplot, and if it works better with the characters to not have a romantic subplot, please just let them be friends!
3. Forbidden *dramatic gasp* Romance
Forbidden romance can be really annoying at best, and creepy at worst. Sometimes, it's just the classic trope of "my father doesn't approve of him!" Which, granted, can be creepy, too, but the most weird take on this trope involves the (usually male) love interest telling the girl who's involved with him that "he's dangerous" and that she should stay away from him. But she's obsessed, so she gets involved with him anyway. Which is not okay and very creepy.
I don't know about you, but if some weirdo told me he was dangerous to be around, the first thing I'd do would be to call the police. Or at least get out of that situation as fast as I possibly could.
I'm not saying forbidden romance can't work as a plot device, but please think twice before wildly throwing into books.
4. No Friends Allowed Past This Point
This kind of ties in with Everyone's a Couple Syndrome. I hate it when everyone has to pair up, and can't just stay friends. The amount of times I've ground my teeth with frustration as yet another awesome friendship goes down in the flames of a badly conceived romance is way too often.
Friendships are allowed. Friendships can be awesome. Friendships make me happy. (And sidenote: just because two major characters of opposite genders happen to run into each other someplace does not mean that they have to become romantically involved down the road. There's no need for that.)
5. Her Boyfriend is Her Brother? What the Heck?
I don't think this needs much explanation. But here's one anyway. I think it's so weird and disturbing when two people in a story fall in love and then find out they're siblings. What point does it add to the story? Is there any reason for it apart from drama?
Please, this needs to stop. For real, guys.
6. Will You be My Valentine Disease
AKA gushy, long, cheesy speeches about the characters' undying and eternal love for each other. Everything feels fake, because everything is fake. The characters are constantly making eyes at the other person, thinking about them, telling them they love them, kissing, and otherwise being a "happy couple" -- but they're both flat as pancakes, and so is their supposed relationship. No one wants to read about gushy, cheesy, cringey romance -- at least, no one I know does.
7. Let's Not Talk About Our Problems
This is super common in fiction, especially YA. This is the trope where the two people involved in a relationship, and yet manage never to have a mature conversation throughout the whole book. This is the couple that's always having falling-outs and getting angry with each other because they can't communicate.
I also hate any scene in a book where one person is trying to communicate (usually frustration) with their love interest, and instead of actually listening and understanding, the love interest just kisses the other person until they stop talking. Which is awful, and not a healthy behavior in a relationship whatsoever.
I think we've all read at least one book that includes this trope. And I think we can all agree that it's just plain annoying.
8. Baby-Faced Romance
This might be just a personal preference thing, but I'm always weirded out by romance subplots in middle grade fiction. The age group for MG is 8-12, which means the characters are usually anywhere from eight to fourteen years old. (Sidenote: I'm not calling anyone in this age range babies. I just needed a catchy title for the section. :P) And having romance subplots between characters this young... I don't know, it just doesn't sit right with me. That's one of the reasons Keeper of the Lost Cities didn't work for me. The fact that Sophie is involved in a love square at age twelve... like, what? At twelve, I was fencing with sticks in the yard and playing in haylofts, not getting involved in complicated romantic drama. What happened to good old friendships in middle grade fiction?
In conclusion, I guess it's pretty obvious that I have a lot of problems with romance in YA. But that doesn't mean that authors should stop writing romance! I'm not against having romance in stories. But please, let it be developed, let it be interesting, let it be relevant to the actual plot, and let the characters be genuine and developed before getting involved with each other. Please and thank you.
So, now it's time for your opinion! Do you have any pet peeves with YA romances? Do you agree with any of my complaints? Are there any books you've read with really awesome, non-stereotypical romances? Let me know in the comments! I'd love to chat with you!
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