#sorry I got your blorbo but I was running out of Edward Cullen trope boys from 2013

[magpiesbones]

i found your shadow and bone post you said rath roiben rye has a parade of red flags portrayed as hot and desirable wdymmm hes nowhere like the darkling :/

Yeah I totally agree. He’s nowhere like the Darkling because Roiben is the love interest and the Darkling is a villain. Because that is the point of the Darkling.

Roiben isn’t like the Darkling, but that’s all in the intention, and in HIS intentions. Both of them are older, more powerful, and more knowledgeable about the world the main character is being brought into (SPECIFICALLY claiming to be more knowledgeable about the main character’s own body), and while that’s not a Universally Bad Thing, it does set up a hell of a power dynamic. This is ameliorated in Roiben’s case by her having his name. It is NOT ameliorated in the Darkling’s case, because the Darkling is the antagonist, despite being, as my post was about, superficially similar, since the Darkling is an interrogation and exploration of the Charming Knowledgeable Magic Love Interest as a trope.

Like no shade to Tithe here. I’m not a fan, and I do find it to be a product of the Hot Trope Of The Time, but the power differential is much less in Tithe than in shadow and bone because, specifically, you are supposed to come to understand them as equals. That’s not what was happening in S&B, but after seeing so many books where that Was what was happening, it’s easy to put your pattern seeking brain onto the relationship and simply expect the power dynamic to get evened out. At some point. And it doesn’t, because that’s not the story that Bardugo is writing.

Admittedly, since this is actually one of my least favorite love interest tropes, I tend not to read it a lot, so I never finished the Tithe series. If you enjoy this trope, great, more power to you. I’m just saying that interpreting shadow and bone as ALSO following this trope is goes against the rest of the trilogy. Also, frankly: I needed more than two recognizable love interests who follow this trope. He’s a bit of a reach, sure, but he sure does show up when powers are manifesting, claim to know a lot about them, and then assume a guiding role.