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Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Five Favorite Tropes...


Top Ten Tuesday is a fun weekly meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week's theme is Favorite Tropes. I came up with five of my favorite story premises. And if you read my blog a lot, you can probably guess what most of them are. But here it goes anyway:



  • The main character inherits an old estate or house that holds some secret. (I like it even more when said house is haunted.)
  • An EMP or other major natural disaster occurs, forcing the main characters to fight for their survival.
  • An archaeological mystery with ancient maps, lost artifacts, secret societies, and a touch of the arcane.
  • Kids getting sent away to boarding school. (Especially if said school happens to be a magical one.)
  • Mail Order Brides  (preferably in an Old American West setting). But that whole arranged marriage trope that crops up a lot in Regency Romances is always good, too.

That's it for me this week.
Happy Reading!

I just thought of a sixth one:  K-9 mystery where the dog plays a key role in solving the crime!

40 comments:

  1. Oh, number 1, lol! I was just noticing this, not for the first time, that many of the books I was scanning on Goodreads said, X left home, until Y died, leaving them a home in the small town they'd been happy to leave... or a guy was still living in the town and they came face to face again!

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    1. Ha! That is such a common trope these days. I've run across a lot of books with that same plot line. :)

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  2. Yes, I'll read these too, especially old houses and boarding school (magical or not). I've to add isolated and a cold setting is another of my favourite, too. :D

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    1. An isolated and cold setting always draws me in, too!

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  3. These aren't really surprising :) I do like the whole haunted house thing and boarding schools/school settings made the "like" part of my list too.

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    1. :D I think you guys pretty much know what I like to read.

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  4. Ooh, we have similar tastes! I love it when characters inherit old houses, too.

    My TTT

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    1. Isn't that the best? Can't wait to see what's on your list!

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  5. Dystopian novels are a favorite of mine - I look to them as preparation for the future, a good learning experience. LOL

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    1. I love dystopian books, too. And they do make you wonder whether or not you're prepared for something like that to happen. :D

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  6. Boarding school books are just so much fun!

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  7. Ooh, I love all of these! Boarding schools are fun to read about. EMPs are terrifying, but it's always interesting seeing how the characters adapt. And K9 mysteries are the best!

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    1. I don't know why I can't seem to resist a boarding school book, but I always want to read them. :D

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  8. I love me some haunted house books, too! Especially when the characters have no idea what they're walking into or doubt its hauntedness. So much yes to archaeological mysteries! Give me all the magic items, crazy conspiracy theories, and lost artifacts!

    Here's my TTT post.

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    1. Lost artifacts, secret societies and hauntings are always huge draws for me. They make for such fun reads. Thanks for commenting! :D

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  9. I love the first one, and yes, it is doubly good if the house is haunted. And arranged marriages are a lot of fun is historical romances, and sometimes in contemporary too - I loved The Bride Test by Helen Hoang, for instance. Great list!

    My TTT

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  10. Great list. Andy yeah, no surprises really. You know what you like!

    I’m definitely a sucker for a locked room (inaccessible island, etc.) mystery and I also can’t resist a book where family secrets are unearthed (when that is in the blurb I mean).

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    1. I'd definitely go for a book set on an inaccessible island! And locked room mysteries are always good. :)

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  11. Hi Lark, Great tropes. I like those books as you say involving the main character inheriting an old estate and the secrets buried there. I like Christmas stories set in a log cabin setting out in the American West during the 19th century. I like books where a character having difficulties in their life goes on a journey.

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    1. Christmas in a log cabin would definitely draw me in, too.

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  12. Archaeological mysteries- yes! I LOVE secret societies. Give me all the cults, lost artifacts, etc haha! Old houses and boarding schools too- especially if the boarding school has a secret society!!

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    1. :D A boarding school with a secret society would be awesome!

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  13. I need to find a good haunted house book. It’s been too long since I read one!

    Aj @ Read All The Things!

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    1. Well if you find a good one, be sure to let me know! :)

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  14. You know I'm with you on the EMP disaster! It is just so tense and scary and society just unravels into chaos...I love reading that!

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    1. I don't know what that says about us, but I love it, too. ;D

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  15. You've made me realise I've never read an archealogical mystery! That sucks! I need to investigate this trope further!

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  16. Great picks! Honestly I've only recently become acquainted with the Mail Order Brides trope (in a Proper Romance I read earlier this year called Healing Hearts; I loved it) and it was a little more complicated than just a mail order bride.

    It was like... a case of wires crossed? Anyways, it piqued my interest so now I'm like... well, gotta look more in depth into this trope ASAP!

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    1. Okay, now I have to go check out Healing Hearts! :D Thanks for commenting.

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  17. I like a lot of these tropes as well, as you well know :)

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    1. :D We do like to read a lot of the same kinds of books.

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  18. What a perfect set of tropes—I especially resonate with the archeology one, and the haunted castle!

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  19. Oh good ones. I especially like the inherited haunted house! :)

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  20. I really like archaeological mysteries too. And when someone inherits a house or old estate.

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    1. :D There should be more of both kinds of books!

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