My 3 Favourite Romance Tropes and Why!
Through all my exploration of genres and stories, one thing that’s never changed is that romance is my favourite genre. It’s my tried and true, where I’m most comfortable and where my reading really flourishes. I’ve spent so much time on this blog talking about non-romance topics and books, so I thought maybe it’s time to go back to my roots, even if just for a moment.
I wrote a post a few months ago on the romance tropes that boiled my blood – 4 Romance Tropes I Love to Hate. That one was very much a rant about how, despite loving a book, one thing in the story can ruin it all for me.
So I thought I’d switch it up this time. Here, I’m talking about my favourite romance tropes, the ones where I don’t even need to read the synopsis. If this trope is in the book, count me in. I’m a romantic at heart, and these tropes really capture what I adore most about romance books: the yearning, the heartfelt confessions, the secret touches—all of it. It’s what it really means to get to know someone and fall for them.
Forbidden Love
Now before I delve into this trope — DISCLAIMER — I’m not talking about weird age gaps, family members, or any of that creepy shit—nothing inherently harmful here.
The forbidden love romance trope involves a romantic relationship between characters who are kept apart by some external force or circumstance. This could be family disapproval, societal pressures, or conflict between their respective groups. The heart of the trope is the characters’ passionate desire for each other despite all the obstacles in their way.
It’s that passionate desire that makes this trope so good. There’s so much tension, the stakes are high, and every encounter is dripping with angst! I love how the tension makes you appreciate every moment they get to spend together — you feel it as much as they do, especially when it’s done well. Chemistry by Grey Huffington uses this trope perfectly in a government official and kingpin romance — the fear in my heart wondering how it would work out really kept me on my toes!
Forced Proximity
I absolutely love a good forced proximity romance trope. This is when characters are stuck in close physical or social quarters for an extended time, forcing them to interact — and maybe fall for each other. A snowstorm trapping them together? Perfection. A long, awkward road trip? Even better. Some of my favourites are when characters end up stuck in a cabin or holiday home together, bonus points if they can’t stand each other at first. Combine forced proximity with enemies to lovers? Inject it straight into my veins. There’s only one bed in the hotel room? I’ll snort it up right now. Sure, strangers can work too, but there’s just something delicious about this trope that keeps me coming back for more.
I think it perfectly combines awkwardness with tension, there’s a thin line between love and hate and nowhere is it more apparent than in this trope.
The romance here is allowed to flourish when the characters realise they have more in common than they thought, or have their misconceptions about the other person rectified. They tend to form a much deeper bond, even if it happens over a short period. It’s kind of like Love Island lol.
Work Romance
The office romance is one of my favourite romance tropes because it’s really a mix of both forced proximity and forbidden love, a romance tropes sub-genre if you will, and I love it. It usually plays out in an office setting and, let’s be honest, 9 times out of 10 the man is the billionaire boss or CEO. Of course, there’s always the risk of a power imbalance, so authors really have to walk that line carefully to keep it from feeling predatory or uncomfortable, but when it’s done right, it’s so good. One of my all-time favourite books, Reel, is technically both a work romance and a forced proximity story, and it pulls it off beautifully. There is nothing I love more than a man ready to risk it all for the woman he loves…realistic? No, heartfelt? Yes!
Vows Before Love
This is my all-time favourite romance trope – ever! Whether it’s Married at First Sight, marriage of convenience, or an arranged marriage, just sign me up. I didn’t even realise how much I loved this trope until 2023 when I read Sight Unseen by Kasha Thompson. I enjoyed it so much (and I already love Married at First Sight — the show) that I immediately went hunting for every single Black vow-before-love story I could find. Huge shoutout to the book blog girlies who put those lists together.
I think what I love most about this trope is the will-they-won’t-they tension. It’s all about watching two people fall in love without even realising it’s happening. They keep trying to stick to the original terms of the arrangement, even though they spend all that time literally acting like the perfect couple. I especially love it when the MMC is the kind of man who really shows up for the woman, the little gestures, the protectiveness, the slow reveal of his soft side. It all builds up to that big, swoon-worthy declaration of love at the end and ugh, my heart can’t take it!
My favourite version of this trope is the kind rooted in family duty and benefits, rather than two strangers marrying at first sight just for the sake of it. I love it when there’s that layer of deep unwillingness, they don’t want this, but they’d sacrifice everything for their families anyway. That conflict makes the emotional payoff so much sweeter. One of my favourite books that does this beautifully is Shadows and Whispers by KC Mills – I absolutely loved it. But honestly, there are so many amazing arranged marriage stories out there to choose from.
Marriage of convenience is a little different since it’s usually orchestrated by the characters themselves. I love this trope because there’s often so much more fighting and emotional avoidance compared to a traditional arranged marriage story. They choose the situation for practical reasons, then spend the rest of the book desperately pretending feelings aren’t getting involved. A perfect example is Wild Side by Elsie Silver.
I love this trope in all its forms: regular romance, historical fiction, fantasy…whatever I don’t care just give it to me! I definitely need to make a vow-before-love romance recommendation post. I have so many to choose from.
In Conclusion…
So here we have it: forbidden love, forced proximity, and vows before love – my holy grail of romance tropes. These are the stories that hook me before I’ve even read the first page. Because I love these tropes so much, I consider myself something of an expert, and it especially breaks my heart when they’re done badly. I’m a tough critic, especially when it comes to vows before love. So while these tropes will definitely make me pick up a book, don’t be fooled, I won’t automatically love it!
Now that you’ve heard my favourite tropes I would love to know yours! Are you friends-to-lovers or second-chance romance people? Let me know in the comments!
Thanks so much for reading and see you soon!
Signed,
