Bookish Trends That Need to Die/I Want More Of

AKA, Gillian is a Negative Nancy once again and doesn't give a damn

Abusive douchebucket love interests
I think this one pretty much speaks for itself, doesn't it? I love me some bad boys, but I don't like boys who are actually bad. There's a big difference. Or at least, books who portray bad guys as good guys. I like complex, not black and white characters. But most of the time, these negative characteristics (like being controlling, physically or emotionally abusive, sexist, cold, cruel, secretive, overly protective to the point of being coddling) are romanticized in YA lit. And me no likey.

Protagonists whose whole lives center around their love interests
Again, it speaks for itself. People are complex. They've got siblings, parents, school, friends, dreams, fears, worries. And yes, having a significant other is very important when you're a teen (and... well, any age, really), but it's not all.

Vanishing parents
This is a tricky one for me, since a lot of the time, having no parents in the picture really does help (see: The Hunger Games). But I always find it really refreshing when YA parents actually seem to 1) exist, 2) care about their children, 3) not Disapparate off the page whenever the main character really could use some parental intervention. It's one thing if the book focuses on a strained parent-kid relationship. It's another if the parents just HAPPEN to be WOEFULLY OBLIVIOUS to all the shenanigans afoot right beneath their mustachioed noses (poor Charlie Swan).



Stereotypes
It's hard to avoid them completely, obviously--sometimes the plot really does require a mean girl-- but why not make the mean girl a geek instead of a cheerleader? Poor? Not blonde?

Unrealistic teenage sex
I think it's realistic for teenagers in to books to have sex. It's realistic for them not to. But it's NOT realistic for a teenager's first time to be mind-blowing and coordinated and awesome. No, most likely you'll be like Seth and Summer, and someone will get kneed in the leg or fall off the bed and afterward you'll both just stare at the ceiling, hoping it will fall down on you. 

 

Angels
I'm not a huge angel fan to begin with, and I think this trend has passed its high point. There are some (a few? one or two?) really good angel books, but the vast majority really don't do it for me.

Instalove
I wrote a whole other long, rant-y, gif-tastic post on the subject of instalove. I like to root for romances I can believe in, that have some emotional foundation. I refuse to believe you're willing to give your life for someone who you only just made eye contact with. I don't care if angels sang and the sky became a rainbow  and every possible synonym for "fiery" was used to describe your body at the moment of said eye contact. You're not in love yet.

Greek mythology
 Let me be clear here: I LOVE Greek mythology. I read and memorized the D'Aulaires Book of Greek Myths the summer after fifth grade when I went to Greece. The cover fell OFF because I read it so much. And there continue to be lots and lots of great Greek myth-inspired books out there (Everneath, Antigoddess, The Percy Jackson series, etc.). But there really is quite a lot of it out there. Let's go for Egyptian gods, or Norse, or Mayan, or Indian, or anywhere else for a little big. Zeus and Co. will always be there to return to.



Whitewashing/heteronormativity
The world is a diverse place. I love when books accurately reflect that.


The trends everyone expects to be on these type of lists but that I'm only going to sort of include:

Love triangles just for the sake of a love triangle

You may remember I wrote a post in defense of love triangles a little while ago, because I actually think when deployed correctly (key phrase), they can be awesome. They're good for personifying a conflict in a main character. Do I roll my eyes a bit every time I read a synopsis that hints at a love triangle? Yes, I do, but who knows-- it might be one of the good ones. So while I wish this weren't really a trend anymore, and didn't pop up in every single book I read, I still like love triangles. SUE ME. 



Vampires
Am I inclined to pick up vampire books nowadays? No sirree. Am I a huge vampire fan to begin with? NO. But I'm also obsessed with The Vampire Diaries TV show and I just started The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black and it's kind of crazy awesome. So I'm all for vampires as long as it's something new or done really well.

And now for the trends I want MORE of!

Retellings
I never get sick of retellings. Retellings of fairy tales, classic novels, folk tales, you name it--I love seeing new spins on old stories.

New Adult
The more New Adult books that get written, the better and more clearer the category will become. As a New Adult myself who just read and LOVED Faking It by Cora Carmack, I think this can only be a good thing.

What trends are you sick of/can't get enough of?