12 romance tropes that will make you swoon

Ever read or listened to a romance story and thought to yourself, “Haven’t I encountered this storyline before?” The reason for that familiarity is because the writer is using a trope. Romance tropes are the heartbeat of the genre, shaping plots and allowing writers to explore endless variations of universal themes, like attraction, passion, and most of all, love.

Beloved by millions, romance stories rely on familiar tropes to captivate readers and tell compelling love stories. Recurring themes and plot devices, from the classic enemies-to-lovers to the heartwarming second chance romance, create a framework that readers and listeners can rely on. It promises an engaging, comforting narrative structure while leaving room for creativity and surprise.

The enduring appeal of the most popular romance tropes lies in their consistent ability to delight their audience, and ohhh, are they delightful. If you don’t already happen to have a favorite (or 12), you will by the time we’re done sharing ours.

12 of the most popular romance tropes

The romance readers of BookTok, Reddit, and beyond are obsessed with these tropes, and so are we!

1. Enemies-to-lovers

Enemies-to-lovers sets two people on opposing sides of a conflict until they realize they don’t have to be enemies after all. Having enough passion to hate each other has got to lead somewhere, right? Tons of beloved romance novels feature some seriously heart-tugging tension coupled with (pun intended) witty banter as the opposing pair trades barbs.

The stages of this trope start with hatred and typically journey through some level of begrudging admiration before climbing the ranks to true love. Sometimes, it’s enemies to reluctant allies to lovers, while other times, it’s enemies forced into proximity to lovers.

This is a popular office romance trope, like in “The Hating Game” (Sally Thorne) or “Beautiful Bastard” (Christina Lauren). It also works well in romantasies, as any of us “Fourth Wing” (Rebecca Yarros) devotees will tell you. Dipsea’s "Wings of Winter" series is where we’ve been getting our fix lately.

2. Forbidden love

Star-crossed lovers is as wildly popular as it is because it works. (Romeo and Juliet, anyone?) Sometimes, knowing something is forbidden only serves to make it that much more enticing.

The forbidden love trope evokes conflicting (and therefore powerful) emotions, with stories featuring protagonists whose love is doomed by external forces, such as family feuds or societal expectations. These characters highlight the pain of unattainable desires, and eventually, love's resilience. Despite a couple’s deep connection, fate conspires to keep them apart, sometimes leading to tragic or bittersweet moments throughout the story—and ultra-satisfying happily ever afters.

A personal favorite? “Forbidden Fruit.” Hades and Persephone’s story has been retold in all kinds of delicious and swoon-worthy ways because having the King of the Underworld whisk away the Goddess of Spring never gets old. Take me away, Your Majesty.

3. Friends-to-lovers

From the other end of the spectrum comes friends-to-lovers, which puts any two buds together, from mildly friendly to attached at the hip since birth. Cherished for its authentic development and the heartwarming journey from friendship to lasting love, this romance trope is an affectionate reminder that love’s strongest foundation is friendship.

Sibling’s best friend, best friend’s sibling, childhood friends, BFFs, and close coworkers are all common examples of the friends-to-lovers trope. This trope will often start out as a one-sided, seemingly unrequited love, then typically involves an outside catalyst or influence that propels both sides to romance. Think: hidden diary entry confessing a crush, meddling family members pushing them together, etc.

The shift from a platonic bond to a romantic one gets tested by things like inner personal fears and “should we risk losing our friendship” anxieties. Examples from “When Harry Met Sally” to “People We Meet on Vacation” by Emily Henry to season three of “Bridgerton” apply!

4. Love triangle

The love triangle is eternally satisfying because what better conflict could you hope for? Who will they choose?!

A love triangle often pits two love interests against each other for the main character’s affection, but this can also transform into a “why choose?”/polyamory situation. From Arthur, Guinevere, and Lancelot, Camelot’s infamous trio, to Peeta, Katniss, and Gale from “The Hunger Games,” many of these setups overlap with friends-to-lovers, enemies-to-lovers, and forced proximity. Katniss and Gale, for example, are friends to lovers but she’s in a forced proximity scenario with Peeta. Guinevere and Arthur are an arranged marriage trope, while she and Lancelot are a forbidden romance.

“Pinedale Falls,” an audiobook on the Dipsea app, has got a lock on a love triangle trope. Crush on the two werewolves pining for you and get ready for goosebumps. puts on headphones

5. Second chance

The second chance romance trope is when former partners get another shot at love with each other. But let’s be clear—that’s not an encouragement for you to text your ex. Second chance romance can also include the one who got away: When a character always had a crush on someone, but they never made a move. Now they get another shot to profess their love.

A common use of this trope is in small town romances where an old high school flame is reignited, but exes come in all forms! Often the reason for the first breakup is outside of a character’s control and leads to a misunderstanding by their partner. This is usually unresolved by the time they reconnect, then resolved by the end of the story to strengthen their bond. “Before I Let Go” by Kennedy Ryan and “The Ex Hex” by Erin Stirling do this beautifully. Who doesn’t love a years-old misunderstanding leading to a heated argument that winds up in a spicy scene?

6. Forced proximity

Forced proximity is a romance novel trope that repeatedly puts the main characters in each other’s path until those gorgeous sparks finally ignite. This can take many forms, such as a bodyguard and their charge (“From Blood and Ash” by Jennifer L. Armentrout!), coworkers assigned to the same project, or even arranged marriage.

This is also where we get the immensely popular and all-too-delectable “only one bed” scene, where two characters have to stay in a room that only has one measly bed to share. Whatever will they do?!

“The Unhoneymooners” by Christina Lauren and “Moonshadowe Chronicles” by Dipsea both do this exceptionally well.

7. Fake dating

“Let’s pretend to be together to make him jealous!” “Convince my parents you’re my longtime girlfriend this Christmas—you owe me.” “I need to help my friends see I’m not a lost cause. Say you’re my boyfriend, and make sure you sell it.”

We’re already giggling and kicking our feet. The reasons to be in a fake relationship are endless, which is what makes them so fun. The twist always comes when one or both parties inevitably confuse fictional feelings with real ones. Check out “The Spanish Love Deception” by Elena Armas or listen to “Plus One” starring and co-produced by E.R. Fightmaster on Dipsea. You’ll get it.

8. Fated love

The fated lovers trope involves characters whose partnership is destined, typically foretold by a prophecy or supernatural forces. Their bond feels inevitable and highlights the power of destiny in bringing two people together with the eternal message that soul mates are meant to be, regardless of the challenges.

This is a common plot device used in romantasy stories, especially any involving ahem primal instincts. No werewolf/shifter romance is complete without a little “you’re mine”/alpha territorialism, right? The real excitement enters the chat when one or both resist the pull toward each other—even better when the resistance is steeped in a protective instinct that transforms into “I want you to choose me.” OMG.

9. Fairytale retellings

Tale as old as time? Some tropes really are too magical not to be reimagined in unique ways. “Beauty and the Beast” is a particularly popular starting point that inspired “A Court of Thorns and Roses” by Sarah J. Maas as well as “Cruel Beauty” by Rosamund Hodge, but “Cinderella” and “Sleeping Beauty” retellings have undoubtedly made their mark on romance writers as well.

10. Marriage of convenience

Of all the reasons to get hitched quickly and all-too-conveniently, romance authors find dozens of them: political alliances, financial stability, avoiding a social scandal. These tales nearly always start off by treating a couple’s nuptials purely as business arrangements, but once a pair is married, well, it can make for some amorous entanglements, can’t it?

11. Opposites attract

Sometimes, you just can’t fight the chemistry. The grumpy/sunshine pairing, recently rebranded on BookTok and social media as black cat/golden retriever energy, is a classic case of opposites attract, but they come in many forms. “Pride & Prejudice,” “It Happened One Summer” by Tessa Bailey, and “Boyfriend Material” by Alexis Hall all nail this trope exceptionally well with their variations on what makes a couple an unlikely match.

While plenty of these stories deal with the push and pull of a personality clash, more often than not, it’s outlying forces like family expectations and societal pressures that are the real problem, making for exquisite conflicts and passionate resolutions. Ever read a billionaire romance or even an age gap tale? That’ll do it.

12. One night stand

A brief, impulsive encounter between a couple meeting for the first time. No expectations of catching feelings. A couple of drinks later, and…

The one night stand trope introduces a couple initially interested in a no-strings-attached arrangement, but when unexpected circumstances bring them back together, it reveals deeper feelings and the potential for a lasting relationship. This trope explores themes of unexpected romance, personal growth, and the transformative power of initial attraction and love at first sight. Chemistry works its magic in mysterious ways, after all.

Listen to spicy audiobooks with your fave tropes

Do one or more of the above pique your interest? Take a deep dive into tons of juicy tropes with Dipsea’s collection of stories, where you can search by your trope of choice or discover new favorites.