The finding
Behind it came slow burn (8.3%), forced proximity (6.1%) and second chance (5.6%). Enemies to lovers was named in 3.9%.
In romantasy, the order flipped: slow burn edged out found family (9.5% vs 7.9% of 12,385 Q3 demand signals), with enemies to lovers at 4.7%.
Romance: share of 229,591 Q3 2026 demand signals
| Trope | Romance |
|---|---|
| Found family | About 1 in 10 |
| Slow burn | 8.3% |
| Forced proximity | 6.1% |
| Second chance | 5.6% |
| Enemies to lovers | 3.9% |
Romantasy: share of 12,385 Q3 2026 demand signals
| Trope | Romantasy |
|---|---|
| Slow burn | 9.5% |
| Found family | 7.9% |
| Enemies to lovers | 4.7% |
Source: Tropesmith demand data, Q3 2026 (signals from reviews, comments and posts dated 1 July – 30 September 2026).
Why it matters for planning a year
If you write romance, the tropes readers keep naming are the ones worth putting on the cover, in the blurb and in your newsletter subject lines. That’s especially true when you plan which book comes next. Perfect Year HQ shows reader demand for your genre, from our TropeSmith market data, alongside a 12-month plan built around your writing pace, your rest weeks and your genre’s buying seasons, with your real KDP royalties connected. It costs $50 a month or $550 a year.
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What is Perfect Year HQ? →Questions about this data
Which trope did romance readers name most in Q3 2026?
Found family was the trope romance readers named most in Q3 2026. It appeared in about 1 in 10 of 229,591 reader demand signals that Tropesmith read from Goodreads reviews, BookTok comments and Reddit.
What did romantasy readers ask for most in Q3 2026?
In romantasy, the order flipped: slow burn edged out found family (9.5% vs 7.9% of 12,385 Q3 demand signals), with enemies to lovers at 4.7%.
How was this counted?
A demand signal is one specific thing a reader asked for or praised in a review, comment or post. One signal can name more than one trope, so the shares don’t add up to 100%. The figures are shares within the quarter. They are not a comparison with earlier quarters, and they say nothing about week-to-week trends.