Top 5 Tuesday!
The idea of ‘tropes’ has always been a tricky one for me. I think all books follow similar plot lines. There are only so many out there, and the specifics are what makes each book better or worse.
These are the 5 I HATE!
Top 5 Tuesday was started by Shanah at Bionic Book Worm!
The random surprise baby.
I hate this trope. Hate it with a passion. No matter how great the book is, this one will always ruin it. It’s so cliche to me. Children are fine, if they make sense with the story. So frequently they just feel thrown in for shock. Please please give readers some originality!
Evil Step-Parents
Stop. Just stop. There is nothing wrong with step-parents. There’s a stigma, but the reality is they are just people, and there are loving ones and not loving ones. As a woman from a family with a step-parent, I get so tired of this stereotype. Show love!
(With that said, I didn’t hate this book. I only hated the portrayal of the step-parents.)
Bad Boy/Good Boy love triangle
I’m over love triangles in general, but this one’s the worst. I’ve read a few books with a love triangle where I found that it works. Infernal Devices is a good example of a truely interesting triangle. However, the good vs bad love triangle has got to be the most ridiculous.
Warrior/Assassin Heroine
We all love reading strong female characters, especially in YA. I’m not trying to say there isn’t a place for this type of heroine. I’m a major Buffy the Vampire Slayer fan, so I’ve got my love for the badass type. I just feel like we’re smothered with the same female character type. Look, I love Veronica Mars just as much as I love Buffy. Both of them are equally strong, even if Veronica isn’t a 10th degree black belt. Strength comes from the mind too.
Uber Instalove
I’m good with instant attraction. I can even handle a book with insta-lust. I get that sometimes you look at someone and the sparks just start flying. All that is cool. I’m talking about two characters whose eyes meet across the room and suddenly they’re sacrificing everything for each other because the rest of the world (and the book plot) ceases to mater. Usually I’ll quit these books.
Birdie Bookworm 
Ha, I was totally expecting the surprise baby cliche in ACOFAS. It is truly terrible.
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LOL!! It’s awful! It always takes a great book down! I get an immediate eyeroll.
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No love triangle forme either!
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Nooooo! And the bad boy/good boy triangle is the WORST
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Ooh interesting list 🙂 I actually quite like warrior/assassin characters, but I like them to be balanced.
Cora | http://www.teapartyprincess.co.uk
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That’s one where I can like them, especially when they first came on the scene a few years ago. Now I find I avoid books like that. I want something fresh.
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[…] Birdie Bookworm […]
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YES to the random baby trope. Whenever a TV show has a surprise pregnancy, I always feel like it has jumped the shark a little, and books can be the same way. It just seems like the go-to to continue a series or add drama.
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Oh man, that’s it exactly! It’s the oldest and most used trope ever. I can’t stand it.
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Great post! YES the evil step-parents one really annoys me because it’s so stereotypical. I also did a post – feel free to check it out 🙂
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I definitely will!!
I guess, coming from someone raised by a Step-Parent and with an adopted sister, any trope that vilifies non-biological family members usually makes me sad and turned off.
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Awesome thank you!! Aww yes, it’s really sad that people tend to assume that…
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Lol, Uber instalove… NO, No, No…
I love kids in books but I agree with you, if they’re not essential part in the plot, there’s no point of having them. 🙂
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Right, and actually I like kids in books too. I even like a pregnancy. I just don’t like when a surprise pregnancy is used as a plot twist.
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[…] have decided to jump in and join a new meme this week. I became aware of it thanks to BirdieBookWorm and KristinKravesBooks. The topics seems like a lot of fun and the blog that hosts it is great. […]
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I had love triangles on my list too, just too overdone
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I think a lot of us are way over it.
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“Random surprise baby” – actually happened to someone I know. Also – Buffy! (Made my positive side of the 5 tropes I don’t like)
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Buffy was a freaking superhero! She exceeds my expectations!
I think random surprise baby happens to a lot of people in real life, haha.
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I hate the random surprise baby so much!! Especially if it’s meant to throw a wrench in the romance. OR when the girl finds herself unexpectedly pregnant after the father of the baby dies, or leaves, or something to that nature.
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Yes and YES! In both cases! It’s the worst! It’s so cliche!
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Hey – Random surprise baby is my life story! LOL
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LMAO! It works in real life… oddly enough. (Looooove your picture!)
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These are all great choices! 🙂 My least favorite trope out of these has got to be the dreaded love triangle. There’s one of those in almost every TV show I watch and it just makes the characters seem really dumb. Just make a choice already, the angst is killing me!
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For SURE! I was watching some show, suddenly I can’t remember which one, and they were advertising the love triangle like it was the big draw, and all it did was turn me off.
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