Romance & fantasy tropes
Tropes are the story patterns readers seek out — the menu of a romance. Each guide explains the trope, its variations and pitfalls, classic examples, and lists books tagged with it.
Romance tropes
Enemies to Lovers
Two people who start out openly hostile end up in love.
1 booksRivals to Lovers
Competitors — for a prize, a job, a title — fall for each other.
121 booksFriends to Lovers
Long-time friends realise what they have is love.
50 booksSlow Burn
Attraction builds over most of the book before anything happens.
172 booksMutual Pining
Both leads are secretly in love — and each is sure the other isn't.
31 booksFake Dating
A pretend relationship becomes real.
117 booksForced Proximity
Circumstances trap two people together until they fall for each other.
GuideOnly One Bed
The inn has a single room left — and it has one bed.
30 booksGrumpy / Sunshine
A gruff, closed-off lead falls for a relentlessly cheerful one.
113 booksSecond Chance Romance
Former lovers get another shot years after it went wrong.
3 booksHurt / Comfort
One character is wounded — physically or emotionally — and the other cares for them.
59 booksForbidden Love
The couple is not supposed to be together — by law, family, rank or nature.
15 booksSecret Relationship
The couple hides their relationship from everyone else.
172 booksMarriage of Convenience
They marry for practical reasons and fall in love afterwards.
6 booksOpposites Attract
Two very different people turn out to complete each other.
48 booksAge Gap Romance
A significant age difference between the leads.
347 booksBodyguard Romance
A protector falls for the person they're sworn to keep safe.
14 booksFated Mates
Destiny — or biology — says these two belong together.
21 booksInsta-Love
Love at first sight, then the story tests it.
239 booksLove Triangle
One character torn between two love interests.
162 booksComing Out
A character comes to terms with, and shares, their queer identity.
114 booksSmall Town Romance
Love in a close-knit community where everyone knows your business.
705 booksHoliday Romance
Love stories set over Christmas, New Year and other holidays.
13 booksMorally Grey Love Interest
A love interest who does bad things for reasons you almost agree with.
Fantasy, gothic & story tropes
Found Family
Misfits who aren't related become each other's family.
82 booksThe Chosen One
An ordinary person is destined to save (or doom) the world.
14 booksDeal with the Devil
A crossroads bargain: power, love or talent — for a soul.
98 booksBeauty and the Beast (Monster Romance)
Love for someone monstrous — on the outside, the inside, or both.
642 booksHaunted House
A house with a history that refuses to stay buried.
179 booksImmortal Lover
One lover will live forever; the other won't.
129 booksThe Trickster
A clever rule-breaker who wins with wit instead of strength.
59 booksDark Academia
Elite schools, obsessive scholarship, secrets and murder.
53 booksHeist
A crew of specialists plans an impossible theft.
457 booksCurse Breaking
Someone is cursed — and the plot is how to break it.
524 booksSecret Society
A hidden organisation pulls strings behind the scenes.
302 booksFae Bargain
A deal with the fair folk — binding, literal and dangerous.
369 booksReincarnation
Lovers, enemies or souls that meet again across lifetimes.
162 booksUnreliable Narrator
The person telling the story can't be trusted.
76 booksMad Scientist
Genius that crosses a line nature (or God) drew.
89 booksSecret Identity
Someone is not who they claim to be.
185 booksRedemption Arc
A villain or failure earns a second chance through change.