Laura Haley-McNeil

5/5/19, Romance Tropes Readers Love

Hello, Everyone!

Do you have your summer reading list ready? What books are you anxious to read? On top of my list are romantic suspense novels. I love it when a smart woman is matched with an alpha male. Recently, I read an interview with a romance editor and she discussed the romance tropes readers love. Some of them surprised me. These are premises that were popular when I first started reading romance. I thought readers would be tired of them, but according to her, readers can’t get enough of these types of heroes and heroines and the situations they find themselves in.

Secret Baby Trope

The first of the tropes that readers love that surprised me was the secret baby, but it’s even more specific than that. The heroine leaves town rejected and pregnant, but never tells the ex- (boyfriend, husband) that he’ll be a daddy. She has the baby and makes it on her own, but then there’s a reason she has to return to town, which she does, knowing she’ll meet with the ex. She hopes she can conceal the baby’s paternity. The baby’s now much older, and incredibly cute and steals the ex’s heart away. He always wanted to be a father. The heroine must now suffer silently as she watches her child and her ex bond, but she stays strong. She has a very good reason for keeping the paternity secret. But secrets never stay secret for long. The hero learns the child he always wanted is looking into his eyes now. But that isn’t the end of the story. Now he demands to know why she left and why she kept the baby a secret. Time to think fast.

Twist on the Secret Baby Trope

A twist on this trope is when the heroine is pregnant with another man’s child but there’s an obvious attraction between her and the hero. She’s in a situation, and he’s a kind soul who can help, but the feelings go deeper for many reasons: He’s always loved her, or they just met and an attraction develops. The situations are only limited by the author’s imagination and hopefully, the author is imaginative.

Billionaire Trope

Recently, a genre that has made great strides is the billionaire romance. Readers are devouring these books. Who wouldn’t want to read about a handsome movie star, tech titan, prince, etc., who whisks away a woman to his yacht, mansion, castle? It’s a fairytale with modern amenities or it could be historical or fantasy.

What about you? is there a premise you can’t pass up? I’d love to hear about some of your favorite books and what you plan to devour during the upcoming lazy summer days.

Have a wonderful and blessed week and remember to do something fun!

Love,

Laura

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