Dark Romance: The Allure of Forbidden Love

Forbidden love – the Romeo and Juliet trope. Star-crossed lovers kept apart from external circumstances. It’s timeless, and has transpired into the enemies-to-lovers trope. The dark romance genre started with Shakespeare and has been popular since. It’s a timeless literary device.

Modern dark romance follows the general tropes of forbidden love or the darker elements of love and humanity. Coupled with complex characters and intense emotions, dark romance explores tropes like enemies to lovers, intertwined with intensely detailed sex scenes and usually an element of danger or even supernatural. Themes of stalking, obsession and other redflag behaviours are rampant among the morally ambiguous characters of these dark stories. While we wouldn’t date any of these fictional characters were they real people, we love to read about them. But why? Is it because we love to want what we can’t have? Or is this just an expression of rebellion?

Let’s explore the allure of dark romance books and why readers are devouring them page by page.

Forbidden Love = I Want It More

It’s the same feeling we get when someone says ‘don’t push the big red button’. We want to push the fucking red button. Every time. We wanna do ittt. Dark romance explores those ‘Don’t Do it’ moments in ways that we either don’t have available to us, like dating a vampire – or wouldn’t dare expose ourselves to (a reverse harem within the mafia or an intense affair with an employer that could destroy your life). It’s pushing boundaries in a safe zone. The fact that it would be frowned upon, makes it more tempting. It makes one wonder why it would be so horrible if these two people were together, would it really be the end of the world? Sometimes. Look at Anakin Skywalker and Padme, their love and family drama almost destroyed the galaxy. But it’s those couples, that believe that they are the exception that gives us hope for the rest of us trying to make it in the modern dating world.

Dark romance books take our forbidden desires, push boundaries, challenge perceptions and ultimately create a captivating escape into a world that is not always black and white. It can be downright chaos.

Female Empowerment & Other Complex Emotions

Dark romance explores the darker side of humanity – human flaws, sin and punishment, psychological torment and self-destruction. Many of these themes are tied up and explored through elements of feminism – women surviving in a patriarchal society. Today, women have the most freedoms they’ve ever had. They can have a career, and a family, have their own bank account, vote, and run for political office. And still, women are told they must hate themselves – especially if we don’t have a man to do our bidding or to take care of us.

Who is Ken without Barbie, and who is Barbie without Ken? We all heard the speech by America Ferrera in Emmy-winning Barbie. It is hard to be a woman, but it is hard to be a man. Dark romance novels explore the power struggles between men and women, the right for a woman to be comfortable with herself sexually, to fight negative stereotypes about female sexuality and body images, and to shed light on toxic behaviors. If anything – I’ve seen better examples of healthy relationships and growth in the stories that I’ve read compared to other romance novels like The Notebook.

Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan in ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’
Photo Credit: Entertainment Weekly, Chuck Zlotnick/Universal

Literary fiction has always explored societal issues between men and women, and since the release of Fifty Shades of Grey, the genre has pushed the limits from female sexuality to what the role is of a modern wife or feminine partner in a patriarchal society. Dark romance books have left readers with a strange sense of empowerment as they allow women to explore situations in which women would be bullied for making bold or questionable choices. While dark romance might not be for everyone, there is a large readership of the genre. And it’s not going away, it’s only growing thanks to platforms like Amazon Kindle and other e-readers.

Complex Characters & Dangerous Situations

Listening to some of my friends’ dating experiences, women need dark romance to survive. Stalkers, narcissists, bad boys, and murderous psychopaths. We’ve seen it all – and fiction is an art form too. An expression. The dating world is scary, for everyone. And for women, it can be dangerous sometimes. Readers of dark romance find a certain relatability in these novels, because a lot of us have come across people like this. While we might date people like this by choice in real life – it gives us a platform to feel safe and explore fears about love as well. While a one-sit romantic comedy is nice every once and awhile, it’s hard to believe everything goes so perfect for a couple to lead to a happy ending.

Dark Romance takes these morally grey characters and puts them in situations where they may or may not learn from the experience – readers are captivated by the outcome of these intense relationships. Will they end in ‘happily ever after’ or heartbreak and betrayal? Will they overcome the external force that is keeping them apart, or will it remain a master over their life to their undoing? These are the questions that have readers up until five am only to rush back to the store for the next in the series.

Do Dark Romances Have Happy Endings?

While not every dark romance ends in ‘happily ever after’, it holds a unique place in the romance genre. Readers are divided between those who yearn for fairytale endings and those who crave raw emotions, sexual tension, and irresistible danger. The allure of this genre captivates with forbidden love, complex characters, and intense situations. By exploring taboo relationships and morally ambiguous characters, dark romance novels provide a compelling reading experience that keeps readers engaged.

Conclusion

Dark romance novels serve as a powerful vehicle for female empowerment, allowing readers to explore complex themes surrounding autonomy, desire, and resilience. By delving into narratives that challenge societal norms and examine the struggles women face within patriarchal structures, these stories provide a platform for readers to engage with their own identities and desires. Ultimately, dark romance isn’t just about the alluring thrill of forbidden love; it reflects the journey of self-discovery and empowerment that resonates deeply with many readers today.