To explain a little about what this post will be about, I’m taking the intro I did for the last one: In every romance book you read there are tropes or archetypes. You can also see them in shows, movies, plays, etc. Romantic tropes are everywhere, and they are fabulous. I adore them. I adore some of them and I always tend to find my favorite ones in romance books so I can enjoy them more. I decided to do a sort of Trope Tuesday piece where I will be talking about many tropes and recommend you all some of my favorites that fit.
What is a trope? Urban Dictionary explains it best I think: “Despite the erroneous definitions already published here, trope on the interwebs really refers to an often overused plot device. It can also be described as another variation on the same theme. TV shows, movies, comics, games, anime’, & books are full of tropes & many rabid fan-sites now name & track said tropes with a self-explanatory title for each one.” We can name a few: accidental pregnancy, best friends to lovers, sibling’s best friend, marriage of convenience, and so many more for sure. Your favorite couples? They probably got a trope too! It’s always so nice to realize or find out your favorite romance trope and keep searching for books with the same theme.
I’m a big fan of this trope. Sometimes I do need a break from all the angst that it contains, because some books do have a LOT of angst that I just can’t withstand anymore. But estranged spouses definitely has a top spot in my list of favorite tropes.
Estranged spouses have second chance romance most of the time or really always… It follows two people who were married once (possibly they are still married when they meet again!) and now are going to find the way back. They separated but are still married so basically their union and love are still there because you will find in romance books their love hasn’t gone away.
The angst comes when the problem surfaces. Because obviously something brought them apart, it can be big or small! In my experiences everything I’ve read with this trope has been angsty AF. But that’s okay, I love the emotions that they bring to me. So who’s ready for some book recs?
The Day of the Duchess by Sarah MacLean
This book made me bleed, I swear. It’s so angsty yall. But so worth it. I absolutely adore everything Sarah MacLean writes and this one is no different. It’s probably one of my favorites, one of the reasons why is definitely the trope and the other reasons are: the couple is so amazing, they definitely have to figure out stuff and communicate better but their journey is so great. The heroine is going to find a new duchess for her husband because she’s done but so many things happen, you all need to read it immediately.
Tropical Kiss or Miss by Liwen Ho
Olivia Chan wants to escape it all: her failed marriage and a struggling practice. She decides to go on a Hawaiian getaway, but everything gets worse when her estranged husband appears there, and he’s determined to win back her love! This Christian romance novella sounds really great and anybody who loves this trope, should try this title.
Accidentally Still Married by Carmen Falcone
I recently recommended this book, but I couldn’t not mention it again. The heroine, Grace, wants to save her catering business and the only way to do it is asking for help from her hot estranged husband, the one she walked out on, but can’t forget. Carmen Falcone is that one author you all have to read, even one book! And this one is such a perfect first book to read. But you can definitely choose from a big backlist.
Cherish Me by Farrah Rochon
Cherish Me is sort of different from other estranged spouses, the couple in this book is very early on their estrangement instead of spending years away from each other or not seeing each other from a very long time. We have a married couple who are having some problems, and Harrison, the hero, decides to gift his wife a trip to Italy for a late honeymoon. Both want their marriage to be okay and will try their hardest for that to happen and hopefully in this trip, they can do it.
Trial by Desire by Courtney Milan
Courtney Milan is a shining star in this community and to be honest, I want to recommend her books every time I have the chance. And she does have an estranged spouses book, so I’m including it FOR SURE. This is the story of Kate and Ned and his return after three years since he left her. He’s decided to win her trust back by seducing her! She also can’t deny the fire that burns inside her every time he’s with her.
