Top Ten Book Romance Likes and Dislikes

Top Ten Tuesday is a blog meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

I will admit it: I have a major soft spot for romances in books. I come for the adventure and plot twists but stay for the tension and heart warming moments. (Fun fact: when it comes to romance, I am a crier. Like silently reading with tears streaming down my face for hours. It's really not pretty.) Here are some of my main dislikes and likes for romance in books.

Dislikes

1. Love triangles: Let's just get this out of the way. These are the worst. With three people, it's inevitable that one person gets hurt or made out to be a bad person, and that just ruins it for me, even if I like the endgame pairing. 
2. "I will give up everything I believe in for love": Not interested, dude. I hate it when characters complete change who they are just for a person. If it is part of a great deal of character growth, awesome! If it is dropping everything because of a love interest, nope nope nope.
3. Just add eye contact and Insta-Love is ready: Ugh. The whole love at first sight didn't pay off for Romeo and Juliet, yet it lives on in the popular insta-love. Clearly, the world didn't learn from that whole disaster.
4. My love interest can do no wrong: Wanna bet? I really don't like it when something awful a person does gets glossed over just because he or she is the love interest. Does love really make you that blind? I hope not.
5. "Oi, there's a war going on here": I can't stand it when there is a war/apocalypse/something huge going on, but the love interests make it all about them. I like when romances are improving the plot but not trying to out-do the cataclysmic event happening. (Even though I used this quote, Ron and Hermione are exempted because we had 7 books of build up before that kiss!)

Likes

1. "She can handle herself": When characters respect each other and see each other's strengths, it's my favorite! That amount of trust and respect bring the romance up to another level!
2. More than a friend: I love watching two characters go from friends to a couple. The foundation is there, but everything grows and changes into something more. It just makes my heart happy.
3. Hate to love: Romance gold! It makes for the best snarky banter and tension, and the characters have to really get to know each other to see each other's true colors. It makes the romance more of a thrilling journey and adds to the dynamic of the relationship. 
4. Obliviousness or misunderstandings about interest: Oh man, this is like the essential ingredient for a good romance for me. It just leads to everything that I love in romance: hijinks and awkward moments, so much angst and pining. When it is done right, it makes for the best build. Then finally when everything gets cleared up, it is just so glorious, and I am a sobbing, disgusting puddle of tears.
5. Slow burn: The best part about romance is the build up, and slow burns are the best at that. There is no wham, bam, and love! There is torturously good pages of tension and learning about each other and misunderstandings. When it finally gets to the big kiss, it feels like I've run an emotional 5k and got first place. So rewarding!

What are your likes and dislikes for romance in book?