Top 5 Tropes I’ve Had Enough Of

Caveat: Any trope, done right, is still a joy to read. But done right usually means expertly written, with a new and unique angle. Anything else will induce groans and eye-rolling of epic proportions.

This week’s Top 5 Tuesday, a weekly meme hosted by Shanah the Bionic Bookworm, is the Top 5 Tropes I’ve Had Enough of.

Love triangles

Edward, Jacob, Bella. Katniss, Peta, Gale. Harry, Hermoine, Ron. Okay, that last one is debatable, but you get the idea. This seems needless, and should never be the focus of any book longer than a chapter or two. “Look, there are the two boys I like. I think I like that one better.” Done.

Instant Love

Probably a lot of love related tropes on my list. *shrug* The idea of instant love is kind of ridiculous. Instant infatuation, sure. Instant lust, of course. Love? No. What happens when you’ve declared your love for someone and then find out they clip their toenails while watching TV and leaving them in a little pile of the coffee table?

Absent/Dead Parents

I get it. Nothing builds character faster than someone forced into having to do everything for themselves with no help, but it just seems like every main character has dead parents or parents that for one reason or another just can’t be around. Why couldn’t Harry’s Dad be at the quidditch games cheering him on? All that other stuff still could have happened. “Go get em, son! Buy, that Snape’s a bit of wanker, eh?”

Damsel in Distress

Unavoidable, because everyone gets in distress sooner or later. But our female characters should be the hero as often as the damsel.

Love cures/solves everything

It’s not some super power. It can’t defeat an enemy. It can’t bring people back to life. I think we can all agree, love can be great, but it has its limitations. Like Aleeve.

Fun fact about this post: I’m sick. Not fun, but fact.