Top 5 Wednesday is a weekly book discussion with a new topic every Wednesday. It’s each blogger and BookTuber’s job to pick five book-related things (though you’re welcome to pick things from other media, if necessary) that fit the topic.
This week’s topic is love interests you would’ve broken up with. Media is filled with love interests that, in my oh-so-humble opinion, don’t deserve a happy ending. Some of them, like Adam from Shatter Me or Tamlin from A Court of Thorns and Roses, don’t get to ride off into the sunset with their partner. But, unfortunately, some of them do. And I can’t for the life of me figure out why the protagonist doesn’t kick them to the curb.
All the tea and all the shade, if I was the protagonist I would’ve dumped all these losers. And my life would be better for it. Right, Kelly Clarkson?
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Kieran from The Dark Artifices by Cassandra Clare
If there’s any character on this list I still actively hate, it’s this guy. He’s emotionally abusive and manipulative. He willingly throws Mark, the guy he supposedly loves, under the bus. When that backfires, he throws Mark’s family under the bus. He never takes responsibility or understands what he did wrong, until he falls into some Magic Empathy Water (this is a real plot point). On top of all that, he’s just an idiot. If you want more details as to why I don’t think he deserves an ounce of respect, let alone the love of Mark and/or Cristina, check out this essay I wrote. He should’ve died in Queen of Air and Darkness.
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Rhysand from A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
Everyone knows Tamlin sucks, but Rhys is honestly not much better. He drugs Feyre and forces her into sexual situations. I don’t care what his reasons are, that’s wrong. He makes Feyre his High Lady, but then never treats her as his equal. He leaves her out of his plans and reduces her to little more than a housewife. What happened to Feyre wanting to be a leader and help people? Did he fuck that out of her?
And then there’s the fact that he blindsides Morrigan and forces her to work and share her safe space with her abusers. She is then scolded when she gets upset. What happened to being the Champion of the Abused, Rhysand? Later he feels bad and then it’s framed around his pain over being a hypocrite and making a “bad call.” Does Mor get so much as an apology? Nope! This is your feminist book boyfriend? I’m not impressed.
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Mal Oretsev from the Shadow and Bone trilogy by Leigh Bardugo
Talk about a guy who doesn’t know what he wants. Actually, that’s not true. He wants Alina, but he wants her as whatever the opposite of what she currently is. Is she mousy and powerless? She isn’t worth noticing until she’s powerful and hot. Is she powerful and hot? She’s too strong and would be better if she got rid of her powers. I genuinely don’t see how these two could even work long term because he’s never happy with who she is.
Well, that’s not entirely true. When she loses her powers and makes her entire world about him, then he’s happy. So I guess his problem is that he wants to be the only thing she cares about. If I were Alina, I would’ve twisted that knife a little harder and made sure he stayed dead.
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Dimitri Belikov from Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
I’ve never liked characters that are essentially godlike. Seriously, give him one flaw. Well, I suppose he does have a pretty serious flaw— his interest in his underage student. Yes, Rose spends half the series as a legal adult but he’s still her mentor. And he’s in his mid-twenties. Even if he weren’t a creepy predator, he’s just a boring character. Rose deserves someone on her level.
I won’t pretend I don’t lowkey ship them, but like… he still gets a big yikes from me, dawg.
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Magnus Damora from Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes
I haven’t ranted about Magnus in 10,000 years, but I used to hate him with a burning passion. He just sucks. He’s a stereotypical broody bad boy who does everything in his power to hurt Cleo. He’s annoying and I hate him. But he’s so irrelevant to me now that I forgot he’s a protagonist too and I wasn’t going to pick protagonists for this list. Whoops.
Who are some love interests you would’ve broken up with? Tell me about them in the comments!
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