Top Ten Tuesday: Romance Trends

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

Today's topic is all about romance. What do you like/dislike when it comes to romance in books? What do you want to see more of? What do you wish to never see again? This is such an unbelievably hard topic for me since I think about these things ALL. THE. TIME. but then I go blank when someone actually asks me to list them. So let's hope I don't want to edit it tons after it's published. 

the DON'TS:

1. Insta-love - Instant attraction is a thing, instant love is not. I don't want to step on anybody's toes that believe in "love at first sight," but I want to roll my eyes every time I hear that.

2. Love triangles - First of all, how is this girl (usually it's the girl facing a decision) able to snag two guys' undeniable attention, making them wait and pursue her? HOW? Second, I have so many other problems with this trope, I don't know where to begin. Mostly, just go check out Lauren's blog. 

3. Abuse/manipulation - Come on, as girls, we're told that bad boys are actually good. Some authors actually succeed in this, but when it goes to abuse or manipulation or just downright jerky/bad, count me out. That's just wrong. (Looking at you, 50 Shades) 

4. All about that bass - One of them is lusting after the other and describing them constantly. And yes, I said lust. You can be attracted to someone, but when you're only focusing on their looks so many times I lose count, that's lust in my opinion. 

• Special looks - The girl is prettier (and has a way different name, if you can imagine) than the other girls. Even though she's Miss Special, she's single and a loser. 
• Special snowflake - This person can do no wrong! They suddenly realize they're the savior for the whole world! They realize they have powers! So their "love interest" is captivated by them. I'm just wondering, do you know what their favorite color is? If they're a breakfast or "just coffee" person in the morning? Sometimes I would just like to see characters caring about the person's personality and if they can actually live together in the long run. 

5. The safe, hypocritical zone - So many times, the girl stays with her safe boyfriend even though she's attracted to another. Sometimes she finally gets the chance with her lifetime crush and holds on to that even though suddenly the other guy is more attractive to her. Although this "let's stay safe" trope gets on my nerves, what makes it worse is when they go to forms of cheating. Hate. Cheating. Flirting, emotional bondage, a form of a date, etc. I bet you that if your significant other or even just that crush did it to you, you'd dump him real quick. 

 

the DO'S: 

1. Slow burn - On the other end of insta-love is the slow burn. The romantic tension KILLS. Of course, if this happens too much, it'd become like any other trope, but I do wish that it happens more and in a well-written way.

2. Brains being appreciated - I don't want to read about a Romeo & Juliet story where it ends up in a double suicide. Your romance, especially if it just happened, is not an end-all and be-all kind of situation. Think.

3. Friendship first - I appreciate a romance a whole lot more when there was a level of friendship first. This friendship doesn't necessarily have to happen before we meet them on the page, but I like friends who become a couple. 

• Best friends - That whole "best friends turned lovers" trope is a favorite of mine. I can't deny.
• The disguise - If a girl disguises herself as a boy and they become friends first before he realizes she's a girl and now he's attracted to her — if this happens, I will be very, very happy (if done right). 

4. Social class differences - Typically in a dystopian society where one is higher up in the ranks. I'm a fan. 

5. Wit - There needs to be humor in the situation! I'm a big, big fan of witty conversations and an author will win me over if there's banter. 

Based on these personal preferences, do you have any suggestions? Do you share these sentiments?

Review: THE ART OF LAINEY by Paula Stokes

Title: The Art of Lainey
Author: Paula Stokes
Publication date: April , 2014
Publisher: HarperTeen
Source: an e-galley provided by the publisher for an honest review

Soccer star Lainey Mitchell is gearing up to spend an epic summer with her amazing boyfriend, Jason, when he suddenly breaks up with her—no reasons, no warning, and in public no less! Lainey is more than crushed, but with help from her friend Bianca, she resolves to do whatever it takes to get Jason back.

And that’s when the girls stumble across a copy of The Art of War. With just one glance, they're sure they can use the book to lure Jason back into Lainey’s arms. So Lainey channels her inner warlord, recruiting spies to gather intel and persuading her coworker Micah to pose as her new boyfriend to make Jason jealous. After a few "dates", it looks like her plan is going to work! But now her relationship with Micah is starting to feel like more than just a game.

What's a girl to do when what she wants is totally different from what she needs? How do you figure out the person you're meant to be with if you're still figuring out the person you're meant to be?

Take away my contemporary-romance-lover card away all you want, but I just didn't get it. I didn't get THIS. This book, The Art of Lainey, and why everyone was going all cuckoo for cocoa puffs on this. There were certain things happening in this book that kept me from loving it, opposite of what I see most people felt like. It was enjoyable to read, but I had way too many issues with it to love it as much as I thought I should have. 

Here's a quick rundown of what I loved: Bianca, somewhat Micah, semi-enjoyable read, and...oh, wait, that's it. Bianca wasn't present in this as much as she should've been in my opinion because she was a great best friend. However, I was completely confused at her behavior. When Jerky Jason dumps Annoying Lainey and she gets the bright idea to text him immediately, stalk him, and bemoans the fact that she has no identity without him, Bianca is there to tell her that she's crazy. But then suddenly, BIANCA is the one who suggests using Sun Tzu's book to win him back. EXCUSE ME? 

Bianca, honey, what happened to your brain? I get that they're best friends. I also understand that she might've been trying to shut Lainey up for once, but there are other ways. Bianca could've suggested a short plan that will get Lainey to crash and burn faster than a long one. I didn't understand why Bianca was suddenly helping her best friend and why Lainey was so attached to him when NOBODY likes the guy. Unless it was coming from Lainey, I didn't hear one nice thing about Jerky Jason. Nada. GIRL, LOOK AT YOUR LIFE. 

And that's another problem. Jerky Jason dumped Annoying Lainey and Lainey's biggest issue was that she wasn't "complete" without him and that she couldn't possibly survive three weeks, much less all year, without him or talking to him or staring at him and no touching. THE HORROR. She repeatedly talked about how despite her fabulousness, she didn't know who she was without Jerky Jason. 

Of course, she's also best friends with Jerky Jason's horribly nasty and selfish sister. Lainey, I beg of you to just look at your choices in life. You say you feel incomplete in life without him, but NO STOP. In fact, if I could rate who I was most annoyed with, it would start with Lainey, then Jason, then his sister. Lainey had all the evidence in front of her about how silly she was acting about her so-called perfect ex-boyfriend and still denied the truth. Micah was refreshing at times, but I didn't clamor over him because he displayed some jerky tendencies as well. 

"But wait, didn't you say it was an enjoyable read?" It was...in a sick sense, it really was. I actually kept forgetting I had it on my iPad (shows you how memorable it was), but once I picked up where I last left off, it sucked me in. It's one of those books that makes you relaxed while reading, but you're not getting anything beneficial out of it and you have a not-so-good aftertaste. I can easily think of several food metaphors but I'll spare you.

I wanted to like it. It had the great fake dating plot, a punk baker, and a great best friend. But I hated reading about a self-centered, obsessive girl trying to win back her jerky boyfriend with the help of a funny, yet sometimes rude boy as she makes frequent insults about her coworkers and others. The synopsis sounded fun. It sounded perfect for a contemporary lover like me. We just didn't mesh.

Verdict: I can only hope that a different Paula Stokes will be better. 

The Dos and Don'ts of YA Romance

Imagine you're reading a book that you're liking and connecting with, it's feeling good and you're bobbing along, ready to see what happens next. Then WHA-BOOM. Something annoying happens and it's lost. All of it. The connection, the interest, the patience, the respect, and the increasing love. It comes to a screeching halt and then disappears. That wha-boom can come from many things and vary from person to person. Sometimes the wha-boom isn't really a wha-boom at all, but is a build-up of repeated offenders. But there is one aspect of a story that gets a beating more than others—in my opinion, at least—and that's romance. In YA, romance is a fickle thing and can conjure up more groans from me than any other part (the narrative and realism are very close). So I decided to make up a list of my personal dos and don'ts of YA romance (hence the title).

DO: Let it simmer

I want the slow-burning kind of love! I do enjoy a whirlwind romance now and then, but I realized that I'm in desperate need for a friend-turned-lover kind of relationship. Let that tension build! It builds up my emotions, the feels, the angst, and while it's not a quickie romance, it's still very exciting.

DON'T: Insta-love it

Of course, the opposite of tension-feeling and realistic love is insta-love. Who likes instant-anything? I'd much rather cook my oats then have those nasty packets, so why would I want to make my fictional romance instant as well? 

DO: Talking is a beaut

I don't want to be bogged down by dialogue and I love affection just as much as the next person (ahem, Alienated), but it would be nice if they talked more than they lay hands on each other. This is a bit like insta-love in the way of not feeling authentic. I don't FEEL the romance when all there is between them is lust.

DON'T: Overuse the understanding card

A big problem I have, especially in contemporary, is when the girl protagonists talk as if their love interest is so amazing and so special because he "understands" her like no one else. He can understand you, but don't keep saying it over and over as if I'm a stupid reader and you're trying to convince me of something. Hearbeat by Elizabeth Scott, anyone?

DO: Incorporate other "life stuff," but DON'T force conflict

We have a twofer! Here's the thing. Personally, I need something to be going on besides the romance. It can involve the romance, but make me care. Be cautious! I see many books just add conflict because they know they need it, but it's not developed well so I still don't care. And now I'm just annoyed.

DON'T: Clinginess

When I read about a love interest who clings, like guys who border on being abusive because they're controlling, I really feel like squirming and yelling, "GET OFF OF ME." Yes, they're on the other person, but I feel suffocated and frustrated just looking at it. And from what I hear from Twilight readers, I'm looking at you, Edward.

DO: Caring is sharing
When I say that, I mean that when you show that the two lovers truly care about each other (deeper than the quick, superficial stuff), it spills over and makes ME care. So really, the caring is being shared around. Rae Carson's Hector and Elisa , anyone?

DON'T: Make her be a flip-flopper
Flip-flopping usually happens to girl protagonists during a love triangle. Even though there should NOT be a love triangle anyways (so overrated, Lauren can tell you why), if you do have one, don't make her flip-flop between the guys. I get the heart's conflict, but when she constantly says she's in love with one and then says it to the other, I really wish that both guys would dump her. She deserves to be forever-alone.

What are your dos and don'ts for YA (or any category) romance?

Happy Valentine's Day! Go to my list here to have recommendations for great swoon-worthy books!

Review: HEARTBEAT by Elizabeth Scott

Title: Heartbeat

Author: Elizabeth Scott

Publication date: January 28, 2014

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Source: An e-ARC provide by the publisher for an honest review, 100%.

Life. Death. And...Love?

Emma would give anything to talk to her mother one last time. Tell her about her slipping grades, her anger with her stepfather, and the boy with the bad reputation who might be the only one Emma can be herself with.

But Emma can't tell her mother anything. Because her mother is brain-dead and being kept alive by machines for the baby growing inside her.

Meeting bad-boy Caleb Harrison wouldn't have interested Old Emma. But New Emma-the one who exists in a fog of grief, who no longer cares about school, whose only social outlet is her best friend Olivia-New Emma is startled by the connection she and Caleb forge.

Feeling her own heart beat again wakes Emma from the grief that has grayed her existence. Is there hope for life after death-and maybe, for love?

Review:

Her mother is brain-dead so that the baby inside can live and Emma lives with her stepfather? New and interesting concept! How does someone even deal with that? Your mother is right there in front of you, but you know she won't ever wake up. At the same time, her stomach is moving because of the baby inside of her so it gives you a sense of twisted hope and feeds your longing to have your mom back.

The unfortunate thing about it all is that any possible intrigue into this book stops there. The whole time I read it, I felt as if I was a hamster on its stupidly annoying wheel. Running around and around, never going anywhere. We have conflict between Dan, the stepfather, and Emma, but I lost all sympathy for her pretty quickly. The anger and hurt from her to him was supposed to make us feel and be emotional. But it didn't, at least not for me.

The situation: Emma was angry and hurt with her stepfather because she believes that her mother only got pregnant to make Dan happy. Once her mother went brain-dead, the doctor gave Dan the choice to either keep the baby alive by putting tubes into his wife or pull the plug. Obviously, he chose to keep his baby son alive. Emma believed that Dan pushed her mother into this horrible fate and once she died, only was using her to gain what he wanted. After he he got what he wanted, he would throw away his wife without a care in the world. To Emma, the years they spent as a family meant nothing to him, that he didn't love either of them.

My problem: I wanted to say that Emma sounded like a thirteen year old, but I sounded more mature than that at thirteen. Of course, that's not good considering that she's seventeen. Seventeen! A senior in high school, getting ready for college, supposedly used to be the top in her class; and how does she act? Like an immature kid who only sees her narrow way and no one else's. Whenever she has a confrontation with Dan (which happened frequently), he tries to tell her his side and she refuses to hear it, only attempting to be cuttingly sarcastic and wanting to win at the blame game.

The situation: CALEB.

My problem: While they "knew" each other before, it still felt like insta-love. Caleb starts staring at her and she finds that compelling. Wait a second. A guy, who has stolen cars and did drugs and has gone to rehab, is staring creepily at you and you're captivated and you SWOON? She swoons! If that happened to me, I would avoid all contact and be very paranoid. Not just because of his past, but because creepily staring is creepy. Another bad side to Caleb is how Emma acts with Caleb. I lost count of how many times she says "Caleb is the only one who understands." If I lost count of how many times she said that, I lost count of how many times I rolled my eyes throughout the whole book. She suddenly replaces her best friend with this guy, acts as if they are meant to be because he is the "only one who understands" her, and I'm supposed to like them as a couple?

The situation: The ending.

My problem: A pet peeve of mine is when things are wrapped up too neatly and too quickly. This is was one of those books that seemed like there was a fairy flying around and waved her wand so poof! it's fixed! Actually, having a fairy in this story would have made it way better.

Weirdly enough, I didn't DNF it. Why waste my time? I went through this whole book with no connection to the character and lots of eye rolling, but I kept going.

Good: I thought after Emma kept rehashing and rehashing and rehashing her mom's situation and the conflict with Dan and the baby that I would lose every bit of interest in the storyline. Oddly, I still wanted to see it through and wait until I read about that baby out of her mom's stomach. So I guess that's a redeeming factor. Also, the book wasn't horrible, just annoying.

Good: It was a quick read.

Just a few eye-roll worthy quotes:

"I don't even know what a gallbladder is."

"It helps with digestion, but you don't have to have one, especially if it gets infected. Or if you get gallstones."

"Oh," Caleb says, leaning forward a little and looking at the ground. His hair falls over his face again. "You really are smart. I mean, I knew you were because of all the classes you're in, but still."

THAT is smart? You're honestly impressed that she knows what a gallbladder is? You both are SENIORS in high school. 

No one can make things better, but Caleb...Caleb gets it in a way no one else does.

On page 125 and I feel like she's said it 125,000 times. 

It's Caleb. And he's awake.

You have to read the book to actually get this one, but really, you thought he would be asleep? Did you want to watch him sleep? YOU CAME TO HIS HOUSE AT NIGHT. I don't get this.

"You're supposed to be asleep," I say, and Caleb stares at me.

Oh. Well, apparently, she did want him to be asleep. And now Caleb is not the official creepy one.

[insert one of her many rants toward Dan]
Blah, blah, whine, blah, blah, whine, blah

While it was an interesting concept, it lacked execution. Overall, it was an annoying meh bordering on an angry ugh, if that makes sense.

Verdict: Annoying aspects to a potentially great plot that gave my eyes a workout from all the rolling.

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Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Romances

Property of The Broke and the Bookish

This week on Top Ten Tuesday, we get to list our top ten favorite romances. This will feel incredibly difficult considering the whole time I write this and then after I publish the post, I will have the nagging feeling that I forgot a couple. But I will do my utmost best to remember my favorite ten.

Romances in books are the greatest

In no order: 

1. Beauty and Beast from Beauty by Robin McKinley

Hands down, my favorite fairytale retelling. I love any Beauty and the Beast retelling actually, but Robin McKinley hits it right on with the romance. 

2. Sarah Dessen's couples from Sarah Dessen books

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I can't pick just one! Although, my top would probably be Dex and Remy from This Lullaby, Auden and Eli from Along for the Ride, and Wes and Macy from The Truth about Forever. Sarah Dessen writes great contemporaries and in them are even greater romances. They make me sigh and swoon, pulling me into their world and wishing I had a Dex. 

3. Anne and Gil from Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

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For all of my childhood, I wish I had a Gil. I would grunt with frustration over Anne pushing him away, giddily smile with any interaction between them, and imagine having a friendship and relationship like theirs. This is definitely one of the greatest romances.

4. Aria and Perry from Under the Never Sky series by Veronica Rossi

Aria is thrown into a world she's always believed to be horribly savage while Perry has always thought her world never truly lived under their false beliefs. In the first book, and I do have to use a cliche saying for this, they found love. In the second book, they overcome odds. Power couple! 

5. Mia and Michael from The Princess Diaries series by Meg Cabot

This series makes me go into a book hangover of sorts. Out of all of the books, the last one, Forever Princess, is by far the best one romantic-wise. There's a scene in the carriage where it just makes me smile so hard, my face hurts. I love Anne Hathaway, but they need to do another movie adaption, but do this one correctly. 

6. Kat and Hale from the Heist Society series by Ally Carter

Alright, technically, they're not in a relationship in the beginning, but there's an understanding. Also, they have such great chemistry together, I always got so excited to see Hale's name on the page. I'll be posting my review of Perfect Scoundrels later in the week so watch out for more cuteness!

7. Cammie and Zach from The Gallagher Girl series by Ally Carter

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You may all sigh now. They don't meet until the second book, but do I care? No. They have such great chemistry, but there's also conflict and trust issues. Their relationship and romance is so wonderful, I can't even say. Ally Carter, you are the best.

8. Katniss and Peeta from The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins

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I bet that almost every list will have these two on there. They had to overcome an arena designed to leave only one kid left, a dystopian world where starvation kills more than normal, threats, a boy named Gale, amnesia of sorts where Peeta becomes a non-Peeta, war, and other horrible things. Through it all, you know they're perfect for each other. They complement each other. It doesn't hurt either that they have moments in the series that make you swoon.

9. Hazel and Augustus from The Fault in Our Stars by John Green.

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I don't even know what to say. It's just all so beautiful and plays with your heart in a way that you don't think it's possible. My review is here, if any of you are interested and haven't read this magnificent novel.

10. Christy and Todd from the Christy Miller series by Robin Jones Gunn

I started reading this series when I was about in middle school, max. Todd was probably one of the first guys I ever swooned over. This was one of the first series I remember getting on hold over and over at the library and would skim some parts just to see Christy and Todd together. 

Honorable mentions:

Ismae and Duvall from Grave Mercy, Mia and Adam from If I Stay/Where She Went, Annie and Finnick from The Hunger Games, Elizabeth and Darcy from Pride and Prejudice, Juliette and Warner from Shatter Me (I'm a Warner fan, but since I haven't read Unravel Me, I haven't seen the true romance), and so many others!

What are YOUR top romances? 

Review: UNDER THE NEVER SKY by Veronica Rossi

Since she’d been on the outside, she’d survived an Aether storm, she’d had a knife held to her throat, and she’d seen men murdered. This was worse.

Exiled from her home, the enclosed city of Reverie, Aria knows her chances of surviving in the outer wasteland—known as The Death Shop—are slim. If the cannibals don’t get her, the violent, electrified energy storms will. She’s been taught that the very air she breathes can kill her. Then Aria meets an Outsider named Perry. He’s wild—a savage—and her only hope of staying alive.

A hunter for his tribe in a merciless landscape, Perry views Aria as sheltered and fragile—everything he would expect from a Dweller. But he needs Aria’s help too; she alone holds the key to his redemption. Opposites in nearly every way, Aria and Perry must accept each other to survive. Their unlikely alliance forges a bond that will determine the fate of all who live under the never sky.

For the first however many pages, I felt as if my feet were dragging behind me. I was a little bored and Aria annoyed me. I wasn't terribly interested in the description either because of so many "dystopian" names. I love dystopias, don't get me wrong. But "Dweller", "Death Shop", "Reverie", "Outsider"; it was just too much for me! It's possible it was because I was just coming off of reading a couple of other dystopians that I felt slightly sick of it all. 

I picked it up anyways and after being nagged by my sister, I read it. Man, oh man, am I glad that I did! 

Under the Never Sky is told in third person and is switched from Aria to Peregrine (aka Perry). I feel as if I keep picking up more and more dual narratives and so far I haven't been disappointed. How can I when I feel so incredibly grateful to have BOTH insights? I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be so head over heels in love with Perry if it was just Aria's perspective. 

With a Smarteye, Aria can experience different Realms. She lives in a secluded pod, but everything is stimulated. Even feelings are stimulated. Children are designed to the T and not a single girl has her period (hip hip hooray!). But when Aria loses contact with her mother who is in Bliss, she's determined to play lackey to top dog Soren to find answers. That's when it all slides downhill. 

I'm not being a spoiler for saying this. Trust me, you know they're going to do stupid stuff (it's in the very beginning) and that's how Aria is exiled. She's rescued by a mysterious Outsider and after some complications, she's then banished out of Reverie. She then meets this Outsider known as my Perry. Er..I mean Perry. 

"But that is called 'cannibalism', my dear children,
and is, in fact, frowned upon in most societies."

Perry is the exact opposite of Aria. He's an Outsider. He kills, he hunts, he protects. He has a disreputable bond with his nephew, who is taken away. They team up so that Aria can find her mother and Perry can find his nephew. Along the way, we meet cannibals. My sister calls them charming, I call them...not. I forgot to reread that section when she said that, but the only thing I think of is Johnny Depp's Willy Wonka. 

After Aria stopped being annoying (I hated her calling Perry a Savage, but I guess I understand), my opinion of her bumped up several levels. She's very talkative and inquisitive. Perry is quiet and withdrawn. Aria comes from a world where you don't really do anything except have a good time. He's the younger brother of the Blood Lord of the tribe. He's never known anything except hardship. While predictable, I did like seeing their relationship grow. I couldn't help smiling when Perry turned to be the one trying to converse and Aria was keeping her lips shut. Now THAT was charming.