My Top Five Favorite Tropes

Tropes, in the sense that I'm using it in here, means a device, motif, or cliche within a work of literature.  There are some common ones out there, quite a few of them, actually.  And some of them are bad... like, rolling your eyes so hard you pass out bad.  That being said, there are several that, when done right, I can't help but love.  So, here are my top five favorite tropes.

1. Enemies to Lovers

I freaking love this trope.  This is, without a doubt, my all time favorite one.  I'm always quite taken with the villains of the story, so when they turn and see the light because they've fallen in love with the main character... *sigh*  It makes me so happy.

Example:

2. Tyrannical Government

I'll be honest, in my total list of books I've read, dystopian doesn't cover many.  And this is a trope that is most often found in that genre.  But... I love it.  The whole rebel against the tyrannical government just really gets me invested every time.

Example: 

3. Forbidden Love

I don't read a lot of romance, but two of these so far are far more likely to end up in romance novels.  Huh.  Anyhow, I love the forbidden love trope in the same way I love the Enemies to Lovers trope.  The whole "will they defy the odds" or "will they push those feelings way down"... I mean, come on... most of the ones I read have them defying the odds... but that's why I love it!  I was really into vampires in my youth (still love them, I've just branched out) and this is a common trope in those books.  It was ingrained early. 

Example:

4. The Chosen One




Okay, yeah, everyone knows this one, right?  The person is chosen for a grand destiny of some sort.  Most often, they don't want it.  There are a lot, a lot, of books that play this wrong.  I mean, really wrong.  But there are several, also, that do it right.  And those are the ones I love.  Yeah, maybe they aren't happy with their destiny, but they do it anyhow, with minimal complaint.  I actually love it when they step up to the bar with the attitude of "might as well."  Those are the best ones, in my opinion. 






Example:

5. The Unlikely Hero of Humble Origins

I also like to think of this one as "the one you least suspect."  I read up on this trope, and Harry Potter was listed under this one.  If they are talking about certain characters from the series, then yes, absolutely.  But if they mean the title character?  No.  I would say Harry falls under The Chosen One trope.  He meets the requirements of a prophecy and was literally thrust into this heroic role.  I would argue that Neville Longbottom better exemplifies this trope.  And it is for characters like Neville that I love it.  They're the little guy.  No one expects anything great from them.  And then, boom... you grow up and chop off a snake's head after telling off a dark lord.  Or something like that.  So, for Neville...

Example:

And that's it.  Those are my top five favorite tropes.  Honestly, there's several more I love.  And these books that I've listed as examples are just the tip of the iceberg.  Get out there and explore the tropes.