I'm actually kind of refreshed when a book doesn't have a bit of romance, but I've always been anti-romance in general... and I'm no longer a teenager, so my opinion isn't quite target. But even as a teenager, I required a) that romance be only a subplot, unless the writer was Jane Austen in which case we're all right because she can handle it; and b) that the romance MAKE SENSE. I hated (and still hate) when girls fell for jerks, or guys fell for airheads. So in answer to your question, if the romance doesn't come naturally from the characters' interactions, it's better to leave it out rather than paste in obligatory love interests just for the sake of having one. My favorite romantic couples (in fiction, though probably in real life too) are the ones that have an actual relationship --NOT in the sexual sense, but in the sense that they RELATE with each other, their personalities actually interact. And in YA, I like the course of true love NOT to run smooth, because as someone who didn't get kissed until she was 21, it makes me feel less alone to see teenaged characters feeling madly unrequited or Completely Blowing It by saying or doing the wrong thing. That's more realistic. ;) I'm kind of mean to my own characters that way.

I also find it refreshing when a book doesn't have romance. It's funny that we notice the lack of it, isn't it? I think that shows just how prevalent romance is in YA. And it does seem reasonable to reflect real-life (often awkward) romance in fiction!

Necessary? Nope. Enjoyable? Very often. ;)

I think different people have different tastes and expectations here, though. My best friend is very "shippy" and I'm not really at all. (For example, we read Scott Westerfeld's Leviathan at the same time; I finished it really psyched about the world building and adoring Deryn as a character. My friend finished it and was really excited about the potential romance in the next book.)

That said, personally, I'm not a fan of love triangles -- almost never enjoy them. (I hate that someone has to be left out in the end.) And at risk of angering the entire internet, there are times when I find the romance in books really distracting. Specifically in the Hunger Games series, I find it to be the most "meh" aspect of the books, and I get personally disappointed every time I hear people talk about Team Peeta or Team Gale. I'm on team I Hope Katniss Doesn't Die and the romance in that really doesn't work for me. (I do understand that a lot of people love it; of course I don't think anyone is wrong to do so! I just don't understand its appeal in a series that's got so much other stuff going on, when romance doesn't seem to be Collins' strong point as a writer at all.)

You know, I have to agree with you about love triangles - a good triangle can be fun, but it has to feel natural. And, yes we might get shot, but I'm with you on the romance in Hunger Games. There is so much other great stuff going on in the story that the romance might not even be necessary. But again, lots of people enjoy it!

I haven't been a teenager for a couple of years, but I've always wished that more YA (and books in general, really) would feature main-character-romances that were more subplotty, where the two people just like each other without a long period of dislike with attraction at the same time. I don't dislike that plotline, I'm just overloaded on it unless it's done very well.

I wouldn't call romance a necessary element - the Pagan Chronicles are one of my favorite series, and there's very, very little romance in it - but if there are two characters I can't help but ship passionately, I get a little peeved if nothing comes of it eventually.

Interesting point about romance as a subplot. Lisa Schroeder mentioned that in her WriteOnCon vlog - she said that romance is often better when it's a strong subplot instead of the main plot.

I really wish more YA didn't have the romance element. Obviously it can be great fun, even when it's pure silly wish-fulfilment... but it does bug me that it seems to be a requirement and a marketing tool, rather than just character development that arises naturally. And I felt a lot more vehemently anti-romance as a teenager, although that's partly because I've never liked too much real life in my fantasy fiction. The pressure to find your soulmate (or just someone who didn't think you were repulsive) was all over real life, why do you need it in books as well?

It also annoys me that they are almost always unrelentingly straight. (You can find good gay fantasy but you have to go looking.) Boy meets girl, ergo they must get together, despite the fact that the girl almost always has far better chemistry with the best friend.

"Boy meets girl, ergo they must get together, despite the fact that the girl almost always has far better chemistry with the best friend."

Excellent point! The best friend often seems like more of a "soulmate" than the actual love interest. That's why I enjoyed Malinda Lo's ASH so much. The romance was believable and it added to, instead of took over, the story.

Another vote for the occasional 'no romance' book. Other people have said it all - when mandatory, they're too often artificial or irritating, they're often terribly predictable, and they'll tend to take over at the expense of more interesting character interactions or even the main plot. I find it very refreshing when YA authors focus on family relationships, friendships, or almost any other relationship instead. And yes to the poster who commented on how excessively heteronormative it all is!

In contrast to one of the other posters, the Hunger Games is one of the few books that really handled romance in a way I liked. The romance is not just for it's own sake, but a tense thread in the main survival plot and an illustration of larger themes - can she trust Peeta? Can she make the romance convincing enough to woo sponsors to keep her alive? Where's the line between reality and performance?

You know, I agree with you about the romance in THE HUNGER GAMES. I actually think Collins did a good job with it -- it's there deliberately, and it's actually complicated in that Katniss is putting on a front about Peeta for most of THG, and then in CATCHING FIRE it kind of ... catches up to her. I think the thing I dislike the most about the romance in THG is the way that *readers* have divided into Team Peeta and Team Gale. I do think the romance is integral to the book, but NOT in the way that many readers are reading it. It's NOT the central conflict; it's a subplot that affects the main plot. To centralize it, and to debate whom Katniss should choose as if that's the thing she's most interested in ... I don't relate to that.

I like it when the story isn't reliant on the romance. If there is romance, I usually prefer it as a subplot. I also think romance someimes works better if it takes longer to develop in a series and is subtly hinted at. I'm kind of grateful that during my younger teen years romance in YA wasn't trending. I prefer YA fantasy novels that are focused on some sort of main intrigue/adventure that leads the characters to grow. I find the ever prevalent romance hook annoying when I pick up a YA fantasy book and am searching for something with unusual magical talents/creatures. Even though I'm 18 now, I think my 14 year old self would feel the same.

I feel the same way about romance developing later on in a series. It's nice to have a tiny hint in the first book or two and then have it develop later on. It feels more natural and it's also more fun!

It depends on how it's written. Well-written romance elements, such as in SHIVER, are great.

Necessary? No, not at all.

But if my hunch that most YA readers are female is correct, the romance element appeals to them. So it sells books. And if this is true, then editors will consider it necessary.

"But if my hunch that most YA readers are female is correct, the romance element appeals to them. So it sells books. And if this is true, then editors will consider it necessary."

Good point! Even if readers might be feeling a bit romanced out, the books are still selling. But, just like any trend, I have a feeling at some point things will start to go in a different direction.

As a young adult (but probably outside the general YA reading range actually) I can say please please please, NO MORE ROMANCE. Or at least cut back on it, I can't remember the last YA book I read where there wasn't any romance or strong hints of a romantic sub-plot. It's probably because I have no interest in romance myself, so that alienates me a little, and the relationships are so boring. Oh, girl falls for bad boy, they snark and then they start kissing, wait, aren't we missing a few steps? And what about boy falls in love with bad girl? Girl falls in love with bad girl? Ect, romance doesn't stop me from reading a book since I'd have almost no fiction to read but I am getting more and more annoyed at the romance these days.

It sounds like more and more people are feeling like you are, that they want something other than romance in YA. If it sells books then it makes sense that it would keep being published, but a bit more variety certainly couldn't hurt!

Agree with the other comments - I am not morally opposed to it, but I'm a bit overwhelmed and it'd be nice to see some YA books where the romance wasn't pasted on as an obligatory selling point.

Of course, as a young gay man part of this frustration is that I think YA, despite its "edginess" and attempts to be provocative in general, is becoming increasingly heterocentric with the development of Romance As Darn Near-Mandatory. David Leviathan is a wonderfully talented man, but I don't want to have to pick up a copy of Boy Meets Boy to relate to characters when I'd rather be reading Garth Nix. So, your mileage may vary.

This is why my next YA story features a protagonist and his girlfriend breaking up over the course of the book (while they fight mermaids!) because she is coming to terms with being a lesbian.

Your book sounds like a refreshing take on teen romance! I'm sure romance helps to sell books, but it doesn't mean books without a traditional romance won't sell too.

I've never been a big reader of romance (the adult genre), but I've always loved a romantic subplot. The thing I react to most negatively are books that are aggressively heteronormative in their romances. I don't mind books about straight teens falling in love because I do enjoy a good love story; I just don't like it when there seems to be absolutely no possibility that someone might not be straight.

The love/hate relationship with love triangles is interesting to read about, too, because I suspect a lot of readers adore the love triangle. (Hence, the teams.) I think I sort of accidentally wrote one in ASH! I think a well-done love triangle can really be delicious. But I've encountered a few paper-thin love triangles, too, and those are not so much fun.

I thought the love triangle in Ash was on purpose actually, and I loved that it did feature two girls falling in love and that it was a slow progress of events, not quite love at first sight.
So yes, I loved Ash for the way that the romance was worked in, although I'm sad that it's the only lesbian romance in Western YA that I've read.

Not gonna lie, I love a romantic subplot! It's worth mentioning that most adult fantasy has romance, too.

I'm not disappointed when a book doesn't have romance. Sometimes it's not what the story needs. I just finished Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson and I'm glad she didn't try to shoehorn romance in there. The protagonist wasn't exactly in a place to fall in love, and Anderson, unsurprisingly, respected that.

Excellent point about Wintergirls! Romance would have turned the story into something it wasn't - and I'm afraid might have also suggested that a guy is the answer to your problems (eek!). Romance can be great, but I think you're right that it doesn't have to be in every story.

I'm out of the teen demographic by a few years (25), but while I don't mind the romance in YA, I would like to see more examples of

1) Sibling ensemble fiction (this is kind of old-fashioned, I guess? But look at Narnia--although I'm not a fan of it--or The Dark is Rising, or any of E. Nesbitt's books). I loved that kind of stuff when I was a kid and teenager, despite being functionally an only child. Now YA fantasy protags seem to be frequently only children as well as having dead or absent parents.
2) Fiction that focuses on family or friendships FIRST and romance second if at all.
3) Queer YA fantasy--there's more of it than there was when I really needed it, but not enough.
4) Books in which the teenage or young adult characters do not settle down with their first loves. Off the top of my head, the four examples of YA I can think of that I've read recently where the main characters had dated more than one person are Tamora Pierce's Alanna and Kel (and some of the kids from the Circle books), Kristin Cashore's Fire, Holly Black's White Cat, and Sara Ryan's characters in Empress of the World (which is contemporary, not fantasy). it's not hard to do this--just mention that the character had a relationship or two in the past that didn't work out.
5) Non-familial ensemble stories. Most everything seems to focus on one or at most two characters, which often lends itself to a focus on romance.

I was interested in romance as a teenager, but didn't date until I was 17 and in college. I would have liked more stories where friendship and family were driving forces, reflecting the primary emotional ties in my life.

Sometimes I feel that romance is shoehorned into a story where it distracts from the main plot, in both YA and adult fiction.

Great list! As you said, there are some examples out there of these types of stories but they're pretty rare compared to romance. I wonder if all we have to do is wait for trends to shift again and maybe some of these less popular stories will make a comeback.

I personally am disappointed if there isn't romance, though I've read some excellent books which I only realize much later didn't have any (contemporary)...but in fantasy, I think I need it.

How interesting! What do you think it is about fantasy that makes you crave romance?

Wow. I think that's a loaded question! :D I personally love the romantic element in most YA novels. But does it HAVE to be there? No. Not if the story is well done. Is it a huge part of teen lives? Yes. I'd say so.

Ah yes, it might not need to be there but romance can make things a whole lot more fun, can't it? I guess that's why we've seen it become so popular in YA, because when done well it can be so darn fun!

again, due to the twilight effect,
i think that more and more YA authors are
sort of expected to include a romantic
angle in their story. i love a good romance
myself, even a good love triangle, but it really
does have to be done well. there has to be
meaning and depth to it. i'm not a fan of
insta-love. instant chemistry yes, but why
else do you love someone, other than the superficial?

of course, i suspect most answering here arent
actually teen readers.

Cindy, I wonder what would happen if we polled some teen readers about romance in YA. A few of the comments here were from fairly young readers and they mentioned how overloaded they felt by romance, but that might not be the general consensus since YA romance is still selling like crazy!

You know, I was going to come in and say that in YA I just expect some sort of romance, and imagine it myself if it isn'e there, but then I thought about it and there are a few YA books I have LOVED that have been void of romance Ender's Game being the best example, but also Forest Born comes to mind.

Then I thought, well romance can be left out if the story is done really really well, but lately, romance can be the thing that annoys me the most about YA. Mostly I cannot stand when the plot of a book seems to be that the MC will die is she doesn't have a boyfriend before the end of the year/HS. This is generally avoided in fantasy YA in which usually some world saving is going on as well (or equivalently important things) which is why I'm inclined to say that I love me some light (sub-plot) romance in my YA Fantasy/Supernatural. Then I mostly read the most annoying book of the summer (which I only ifnished 80% of because I listened to it on CD in the car, and will probably never finish because the last CD was scratched and I hated it that much.) This book was YA Supernatural, but had the most annoying romance/plot/mess going on ever (and such a dumb MC, it was not good for my driving.)

Thus the short-ish answer to your question is, as with many things, if the book is written well and I like the characters and I like the plot and it happens to involve romance, than I'm all for it, and if like Ender's Game it has not an ounce of romance (even I can't make something up for that book) than I love it. Write your book well and I will read almost anything you have to offer.

(Which I realize is totally useless because in many ways its about my personal taste and really well can be pretty subjective. I mean I'm sure totally-awful-hateful-demon book of the summer's author, agent, editor, and publishing house thought it was stellar. I - on the other hand- regularly rant to anyone who will listen about how bad it was and how much I hated it.

"Write your book well and I will read almost anything you have to offer."

I think a lot of people would agree with this statement! Yes, it's a matter of personal taste, but it's also a matter of crafting a believable story. If the romance is integral to the plot then it will probably work. If, like in Ender's Game, there's no room for romance, that can be fine too. It seems like that variety is slightly missing these days.

I love Shade's Children! And that's a good point about romance being like any other element of a novel: if it doesn't contribute to the story then it shouldn't be there.

Btw, I don't think anyone will judge you for not liking Twilight. It has certainly had an effect on the popularity of romance in YA, though!

I think it depends lots on the individual story.

More and more I've been thinking about how I'd like to see (and I've heard other readers saying this, too) more emphasis on same-gender friendships in YA fantasy as well--because that's also such a formative part of the teen years! Though (as others have also pointed out to me) once you start looking, there's actually a lot more such emphasis than it first seems.

But when I think back to high school, the bonds with my best friends were far stronger than those with anyone I dated.

As a librarian, writer, and feminist, my first response is to think, "Of course there doesn't need to be romance - a good story is a good story!", but if I'm totally honest, if I read in a review or hear by word of mouth that a YA fantasy has a good romance in it, I'm much more likely to pick it up. Not entirely sure why - maybe because YA by its very nature deals with intense experiences, and there aren't many experiences more intense than falling in love? Or maybe it's just that at bottom, I'm a great big sap, though I would like to point out, that there doesn't have to be a happily-ever-after ending for me to love a love story (Libba Bray's Gemma Doyle trilogy, anyone?).

I do think that right now, the market is suffering from an onslaught of *the same* love story over and over again with the explosion of Twilight-esque paranormal romance. Maybe when that has subsided a little, there will be a little more variety that will appeal to a broader readership.

see, I can't speak to what i would have done when I actually was a teen, but now as a young - but no longer teen- adult I am actually more likely to pick up a YA book if I hear good buzz about it and am told there isn't romance in it. This is probably because I've never felt that romance is a necessary element of my own life (yet) and so I'm annoyed when it's treated as the only way for YA teens to be happy in their lives.

There need to be more books for those of us who remained single throughout HS and enjoyed it, even if we're like the super minority of the world.

For me, the reason why a good romantic subplot can add a lot to an already fascinating story is it adds a layer of suspense that keeps me turning the pages. Will they get together? Will they stay together? What will happen to tear them apart? Perhaps their own self-destructive tendencies (Heathcliff) and what will they do when it does fall apart? Will they fall apart too, or grow stronger? So many questions, so much suspense and intrigue!

Oops, forgot to add my name to that last comment... :)

I think an interesting distinction is whether the publisher or the reader thinks that YA needs romance. I've heard from a lot of bloggers that they expect romance in a book and are disappointed if it's not there as well as publishers asking authors to "ramp up" the romance so readers will pick up the book. With the glut of romance-centric YAs (not to say that they are bad, just many), I like finding books that don't focus on this element or focuses on it in a new way along with other types of relationships (anything from WILL GRAYSON, WILL GRAYSON to BOY TOY or, in [urban] fantasy, SHIVER, THE REPLACEMENT, TITHE, etc.) -- one of the things I liked best about DEMON'S LEXICON was the focus being on the brothers' relationship; I'm all for more sibling and best-friend relationships taking center stage. These can be just as intense as romantic relationships, even more so.

P.S. And romance-centric plots tend to turn-off not only female YA readers who are tired of the same-old/same-old, but also guys who might want to read something *other* than romance in YA or GLBTQ readers who'd like some love, too! :-)