Just like every time I write one of these posts, I’m starting it by saying I haven’t done one in a while. The last ‘tropes I love’ post was way back in July 2025 and I even said in that one that I keep forgetting about this series. To be fair to myself, I have to be extremely motivated to write a post like this. It’s basically just one big ramble.
Friends to lovers
I have an entire ‘best of’ series dedicated to friends to lovers books, so I think it’s pretty obvious by now how much I love the trope. I’ve also been through it myself. My partner and I were friends for almost a year, and actually we tricked everyone in our class (we were 17 at the time) that we were going out way before we actually were. I’m now realising why I also love the fake dating trope so much – I haven’t thought about us pretending to be together in such a long time, but it all makes sense now.
Now most books with romance will be friends to lovers based purely on the fact that most people get to know the romance love interest as a friend before they start dating. But the type of story that I enjoy this trope in most is when they were childhood friends. It’s even better if they’ve been apart for a long time and reconnect when they’re adults.
What can also make this trope even better is involving what I think you’d call a micro-trope; ‘he falls first and harder’. Obviously this only works for romance books with a male love interest, but who doesn’t love a man that’s pathetically in love? I want to see them pine when they think their romantic interest doesn’t feel the same way. I’ve recently read The Deal by Elle Kennedy so Garett Graham is fresh in my mind for this one – he’s a character I expected to either hate or feel indifferent to, but I adored him. I also adored the friendship they built in the first half of the book, it made a solid foundation for their relationship. Which is why I love friends to lovers so much.
Mistaken/hidden identity
This isn’t a trope I come across very often, especially in books, but I do enjoy it a lot in films. Especially when someone ordinary gets mistaken for a celebrity and they strike up a deal to switch places – so good!
I haven’t read any of the Bridgerton books yet, but I have just watched season 4. While Sophie’s hidden identity feels a little ridiculous, surely Benedict would know she’s the Lady in Silver based purely on her voice, it did make for a great love story. Imagine falling in love with the same person twice without realising it. I think they handled that very well.
This trope is also great at creating tension without falling too hard into miscommunication, which is probably my least favourite trope of all time. It also works well across multiple genres. I know secret billionaire romances are quite popular (not really my thing) and I love an actor or musician trying to lay low so they either go to a remote small town or hire someone that looks like them to take their place for a while. It’s super fun and the conflict isn’t usually too ridiculous.
Let me know if you have any good recommendation for books with this trope, I’d love to check out more!
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Like this post? Why not read this one too: Book Review: Dear Mya by Danielle Keil