Hi and welcome to – once again – a kind of late Let’s Talk Bookish post! I swear I have to better prepare these, but you know, life. Anyway, this week’s topic is romance novels and I’m 100% sure we did the same topic last year, with similar prompts even, so I’m giving it my own spin this year. Instead of answering the prompts, I will highlight some features of romance novels and elaborate on whether I like them or not. So put on a playlist full of Taylor Swift songs (at least I did when writing this post) and buckle up, because let’s talk about romance!
Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme that was originally created and hosted by Rukky @ Eternity Books starting in August 2019, and was then cohosted by Dani @ Literary Lion from May 2020 to March 2022. Since April 2022, this meme is hosted by , Aria @ Book Nook Bits and since February 2025, Dini @ DiniPandaReads is the co-host. Let’s Talk Bookish is a meme where participants discuss certain topics, share their opinions, and share their love by visiting each other’s posts.
Original prompts: It’s almost Valentine’s Day, which means that the most popular book genre is bigger than ever! Do you like to read romance novels? Who are your favourite fictional couples? Which characters from different books or series do you think would be perfect for each other?
My own spin, here we go!
Dual POV narrative
One of the biggest bonuses for me in a romance is the dual POV narrative. This is pretty controversial, because you either love or hate it. I find myself zoning out a lot when a romance only is told through a single POV narrative, it just doesn’t hit me that hard in terms of tension. When both main characters get their own voice, you A) can get to know them better and B) witness the romance blooming from first hand. It’s interesting to get a glimpse of both protagonists’ thoughts and to witness the chemistry growing. It’s just a great way to captivate the reader, something that romances told through a single narrator just hardly manage to achieve.
Romances with 400+ pages
It really depends on whether I like them or not. If they are done well with interesting characters and ditto growth, sure! However, if most of the pages feel like filler, no please don’t. However, the 400+ page books seems to be the trend now in contemporary romance and in this subgenre it’s really really tricky. When talking about romantasy, it absolutely makes sense, because we also have a world to explore and a plot line to unfold. These elements aren’t as important for contemporary romance, so here lies the difference in my opinion.
Character growth
Characters always make or break a book and this is even more the case in romance novels. They should be character driven at all times, and this involves character growth. A character being well-developed makes the reading experience so much more enjoyable, it brings deeper layers to these books. Again, romantasy should be more of a mix, but I prefer when authors choose characters over plot and let them grow significantly. Plot driven books in contemporary just barely makes sense, I’m sorry.
Smut
In recent years we’ve seen a huge increase in smutty novels. Although I don’t really mind smut as I discuss in this post, it definitely has to add up something to the story. If it’s just smut for the smut, it’s a hard pass. But when done well, why not? I don’t really like clean romances, they feel a bit boring to me. But I understand these are appealing to other readers so they still should be available.
The fake dating trope
Okay hear me out, but I deeply, deeply hate the fake dating trope. I’ve tried, but never could get into these books at all. What do you mean, let’s date for the sake of dating? And end up falling in love for real anyway? No, please don’t. I have to admit that I like it in some cases, but there has to be more to the story and the characters should be written really well.
The romance series
Okay I’m jumping from here to there, but it’s my corner on the internet, so I don’t care. Again, there is a huge difference between contemporary romances and romantasy. Romantasy definitely works better as a series because of the aforementioned world and plot building, but it shouldn’t be dragged. Contemporary romances don’t have any business to be a series in my opinion, but these days, it’s unavoidable. Every romance seems to be part of a series now, because it’s popular and sells well. Understandable, but impossible to keep up with.
The third-act breakup
Another element that keeps returning in romances is the third-act breakup. We all see it coming and brings a bit more tension to the table, but it’s becoming quite preditacble. We know it will be happening anyway, and we also know how it will work out in the end.
Predictability
This applies to contemporary romances especially, but this genre is not the most unpredictable genre out there. In fact, it’s pretty predictable. Is this inherently bad? No, because it makes romance my go-to genre when I’m in need of a palate cleanser. Furthermore, it’s all about the characters and their individual growth anyway. As long as this is done well, I don’t mind predictability.
The miscommunication trope
One that has been pretty overdone and therefore disliked by many. I didn’t pay too much attention to this before, but recently I read books with healthy communication (looking at you, Out on a Limb) and this made me notice how many romance books revolve around the miscommunication trope and I definitely understand why people are tired.
The married couple
Another element we hardly see in this genre (or I simply don’t encounter them) are romances revolving around a married couple. Many books are about new beginnings and finding new love, but what about people who have been in love for years, married even, but are losing one another? A great example of such a novel is the third book in Chloe Liese’s “Bergman Brothers” series, Ever After Always. The couple are still married, but their marriage is on the verge of collapsing. Another book about a married couple that lost each other along the way is Before I Let Go by Kennedy Ryan. Please read the trigger warnings before considering picking this one up, because this book is trigger heavy. However, romances centered around married couples are such a refreshment amidst the landscape of finding new love and people meeting for the first time.
Forced proximity
Another classical romance trope is forced proximity. A bit overdone, a bit tiring, and pretty predictable. Because we all know how this will end anyway. Again, the characters and their growth is what makes or breaks a book with this trope.
There is a lot more to say about romance novels and it’s features, I just have to stop now before this post is becoming even lengthier. But now it’s up to you!
Do you enjoy reading romance novels and what do you enjoy most about them? And if not, why not? Are there any tropes you want to ban from the genre for good? What is your favorite trope? Do you mind series? Let’s discuss!
