Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.
This is an interesting topic – the full prompt includes ‘avoid’, but honestly, I’m going to stay away from that (for now). Maybe one to touch on again in the future! For now, here’s some words and phrases (including tropes) that usually make me grab a book.
Top Ten Buzzwords/Phrases That Make Me Want to Read A Book
vampires
Vampires remain my true, top love when it comes to…almost any media! No matter the genre, if there’s vampires, I want to check it out. They’re versatile and able to step into role of villain/antagonist, protagonist, love interest, and so many more. In fact, I love them so much I’m doing a series over at DHR where I go back and watch every English language vampire film, starting with Dracula (1931).
doomed/star-crossed lovers
Doomed and star-crossed are different, but I’m throwing them together here because I like them both for similar reasons. There’s just something about reading a couple you know are doomed, whatever the reason. Or lovers who have to overcome huge odds just to be together.
rivals & enemies-to-lovers
Same as the above – these are different, but I love for similar reasons. And, well, often the two get conflated. Anyway, seeing two people who may dislike each other at the start – or actually really like one another but can’t admit it – gradually grow closer just heals my soul.
fake dating
I love the fake dating trope! I love those moments when the characters realise it’s not so fake after all, but are scared to admit it to one another. Seeing usually two idiots bumble their way to admitting their own feelings is incredibly satisfying.
queer
I will happily read anything queer – sapphic is definitely the top thing for me, but I’m happy to pick up anything featuring queer characters, in any genre. Bonus points if it includes any of the above, too.
why choose
This might not be an automatic ‘must read’ for me, but it’s pretty close. I quite like who choose stories, especially if there’s an element of paranormal to them, and prefer the term over ‘reverse harem’. It can make for some interesting storytelling.
fated mates
Fated mates has to be one of my favourite tropes. It helps that it fits in very nicely with paranormal (a favourite subgenre). There’s just something irresistible about destiny and especially when characters try to fight against it. Best example has to be the Immortals After Dark series.
Gothic
I mentioned Paranormal above as a favourite subgenre, so thought I’d include Gothic here as another. I love gothic books – it’s such a varied subgenre, and gothic can be used to explore so many different themes. In the right author’s hands, gothic literature can be a wonderful, transformative thing.
What are some of your favourite buzzwords, phrases etc – a few others for me would be forbidden romance, morally grey, werewolves and folklore.
Unwrapping Words 