Love triangles

I have been reading a lot of books featuring love triangles recently. Especially young adult books.

When love triangles are good I really enjoy them, but if done wrong they can make me drop a book faster than anything else. However, what they never fail to do to is extract strong feelings from me.

Lately, some of the biggest selling series involve love triangles, but if the book doesn't end up the way you hoped, you can get disappointed.

A small sample of examples (YA):

1. Twilight - Stephenie Meyer
2. House of night - P C Cast
3. Blue Bloods - Melissa De La Cruz
4. Vampire Academy - Richelle Mead
5. Vampire Diaries - L J Smith
6. Darkest Powers - Kelley Armstrong
7. Mortal Instruments - Cassandra Clare


Possible love triangle scenarios:

1. The 'other' guy pines (very rare)
2. The 'other' guy finds someone else, no hard feelings (common)
3. The 'other' guy realizes that he never really loved her anyway but someone else (e.g. Twilight)
4.  The 'other' guy realizes he can live with it because he didn't love her enough.
5. The 'other' guy gets villianized.


I find it hard to say what works without a context but arguably my favorite scenario is when the the main character goes out with (loves) one guy but they break apart for a good reason. Then the main realizes how great the other guy was, or realizes the other guy loves her.

I don't like when the main character chooses one guy because of 'true love' instead of how the guy treats her and those around them. I also don't like when the author makes the love triangle the entire story, or when the author patches the situation quickly at the end (it's a series, use your time wisely).

My current favorite series with a love triangle:

• Carolyn Crane - The Disillusionist Trilogy

Where do you stand on love triangles... love or hate?

• Which books did you love and which did you hate? 
• What type of scenarios do you hate vs. love? 

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Nightshade by Andrea Cremer

Book Description

Calla Tor has always known her destiny: After graduating from the Mountain School, she'll be the mate of sexy alpha wolf Ren Laroche and fight with him, side by side, ruling their pack and guarding sacred sites for the Keepers. But when she violates her masters' laws by saving a beautiful human boy out for a hike, Calla begins to question her fate, her existence, and the very essence of the world she has known. By following her heart, she might lose everything--including her own life. Is forbidden love worth the ultimate sacrifice?

Review

I loved this book! I finished Nightshade in a single sitting despite the large 528 pages. Once you read the first chapter you will be hooked.

Young Adult books in this genre are becoming increasingly common but this is a truly standout addition. The NIGHTSHADE world is unique and detailed, with a cast of characters that bounce off the page. I'm a big fan of love triangles and the love triangle between Calla, Shay and Ren is brilliantly done with the author giving us different things to love about both Shay and Ren. I had a hard time choosing which character I want Calla to end up with and this made the story that much more engrossing. NIGHTSHADE has more sexually detailed themes than most young adult series but it's interwoven into the storyline so that it makes sense. In saying this, I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone under 16 years old.

Andrea Cremer has excelled at writing a detailed history of the NIGHTSHADE world without giving it to the reader in large doses. The progressively given information is used to support the mysterious storyline as well as explaining aspects of Calla's connections to the other characters.

The story itself will have you guessing right up to the last page and desperately waiting for the next installment after reading the cliffhanger ending. You can't tell that this is Cremer's debut. It's better written than many successful authors. I can't recommend this book enough.

My rating out or 5

5/5

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