Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Favorite Romances

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme brought to you by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week a new Top Ten list topic is posted and book bloggers fill in their own choices. I'm a list girl (as in, I don't function without them), so I thought this would be a good choice for me!  Now, it has been awhile since I've posted any memes because my time has been really stretched since I went back to work for the first time in 11 years, but I'm getting better at the time-management thing, and working back into a groove.  That said, I felt like this was a great week to pick 'Top Ten Tuesday' back up, because I just love this week's topic (which is funny because I'm really not the gushy, romantic type, and I absolutely DETEST Valentine's Day), so here goes...

YA Litwit's Top Ten Favorite Literary Romances

1.  Scarlett O'Hara and Rhett Butler from Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell~ Gone With the Wind is my all-time favorite book.  I've read it at least a half dozen times, and will undoubtedly read it many more, and the biggest reason I love it so much is the relationship between Scarlett and Rhett.  He is also my #1 book boyfriend.

2.  Mia and Adam from If I Stay and Where She Went by Gayle Forman~ I have so much love for this couple!  The ups and downs, and the way things come full-circle.  It was amazing to me how intensely the emotions could be portrayed on paper, and between two people so young. I cried big, ugly tears during both books, for different reasons, but I was always rooting for them to end up together.  Read my review of Where She Went HERE.

3.  Wanderer (Wanda) and Ian from The Host by Stephenie Meyer~ I know there are a lot of Twilight haters out there, but believe me, The Host is a different book, and if you didn't know better, you would swear it was written by a different author.  I loved The Host, and one the main reasons I did was that the relationship between these two characters was built on so much more than the mutual attraction that is the foundation of most YA romances.  They really had to get to know one another intimately in order to fall in love, and it took time and patience, and the experience of reading their growth as a couple was that much more rich because of it.

4.  Avry and Kerrick from Touch of Power and Scent of Magic by Maria V. Snyder~ This is a relatively new series, and one that hasn't gotten tons of attention, but let me tell you, it is amazing (especially if you are a Fantasy fan).  That said, the romance between these two is great.  No insta-love here, and that makes me happy.  Plus, Kerrick is sexy as hell.  Read my review of Touch of Power HERE and Scent of Magic HERE.

5.  Karou and Akiva from Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor~ It pains me that I haven't gotten a chance to read the sequel to this book, Days of Blood and Starlight, because I loved this book, and Karou and Akiva had so much to do with that.  If ever there was a pair of starcrossed lovers!  Wow! Will they come back together after the terrible truths that the first book revealed at the end?  Some of you know, but please don't tell me....  Read my review of Daughter of Smoke and Bone HERE.

6.  Katsa and Po from Graceling and Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore~ Love these books so much (and I know Fire is part of the trilogy, but Katsa and Po aren't much more than mentioned).  I adore Katsa, and Po is just...  Katsa is one lucky lady, because it is so evident in all that he does, that Po absolutely adores her with all he has.  It is also quite clear, although in Katsa's rather cool way, that she feels the same.  It's so easy to overdo the romantic element in a story, and Kristin gets it just right.

7.  Anne Shirley and Gilbert Blythe from Anne of Green Gables, Anne of Avonlea, etc. by L.M. Montgomery~  Gilbert Blythe was my very first book boyfriend at the tender age of nine.  I thought he was the perfect boy.  He accepted Anne for who she was, and was just adorable in my imagination.  Add to that the innocence that is so lacking in today's world (and even in the world on nine-year-old me), and I was completely enamored.  Anne and Gilbert's relationship is one that created an almost impossible standard for any boy in my real life to live up to.  36 year old me still swoons a little for Gilbert.

8.  Lena and Ethan from The Caster Chronicles by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl~ Another starcrossed couple who I adore.  How anyone could even dare to compare them to Edward and Bella, I don't know.  I only pray that the Beautiful Creatures movie stacks up well to the book, and that the on-screen chemistry between the leads is even close to as electrifying as it was in my imagination.  I'm sad that this series is over, but I'm sure both authors have other great romances up their sleeves...  Read my reviews of Beautiful Creatures and Beautiful Darkness HERE.

9.  Tessa and Will and/or Tessa and Jem from The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare~  I have never been so conflicted over a love triangle.  Usually I LOATHE them, and in a way this one is no exception, but the difference here is that I also love this one.  I could see Tessa with either of them, so I guess it will come down to how Clockwork Princess pans out.  Read my review of Clockwork Prince HERE.

10.  Magnus and Alec from The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare~ I think most would feature Clary and Jace on this list, and don't get me wrong, I love them, but Magnus and Alec hold my heart for this series.  Cassie Clare can write romance, because I think she gets human emotion, whether it's hetero or not, love is love...  I adore this couple and I truly hope they end up together forever. Read my review of City of Fallen Angels HERE, and my review of City of Lost Souls HERE.

Runners-Up

(because I just could NOT leave these ones out)

Izzy and Simon from The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare

Jace and Clary from The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare
Ana and Sam from Incarnate by Jodi Meadows (REVIEW)
Anna and St. Clair from Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
Lola and Cricket from Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins (REVIEW)
Ron and Hermione from Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling
Emerson and Michael from Hourglass (REVIEW) and Timepiece (REVIEW)by Myra McEntire

So... These are my Top Ten (err... 17) Favorite Literary Romances.  Are there ones that you believe should be on this list?  Do you agree with any (or all) of mine?  Do tell!

**Don't forget to enter my GIVEAWAY for a hardcover copy of NOBODY and a paperback copy of EVERY OTHER DAY, by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, by clicking HERE!! Ends Sunday, February 17th. USA/Canada**