10 of the most popular fictional boyfriends ranked by me, obviously
ranking fictional men is serious business.
more serious than politics? debatable. definitely more personal.
because we all have the man we would defend no matter what he has done, the one everyone loves but we do not completely understand, and the one we know is a walking red flag but would still choose without hesitation.
so i decided to rank ten of the most popular fictional boyfriends from romance, dark romance, romantasy, sports romance, and one wattpad man who forced his way onto this list.
is this ranking objective? absolutely not. 😉
will some of these men switch places depending on the day, my mood, and which book i am currently thinking about? yes.
but my number one?
never changing.
crazy? dark? masculine? completely uninterested in anyone but his girl?
i eat that shit up every single time.
some fictional men are favorites. one is the standard.
the fictional bf below ↘
now let’s get into the men who ruined my standards and the exact reasons they landed where they did.
10. alexander belov from the bronze horseman
starting this list with an old-school fictional man who has suffered more than most of the men above him combined. (ALSO NOT ONE OF THE MOST POPULAR BUT SHOULD BE)
alexander is a red army officer who falls for tatiana during world war ii, which would already be complicated enough without the fact that he is involved with her sister when they meet.
messy? yes.
but the bronze horseman gives you the kind of love that feels enormous. war, starvation, impossible choices, sacrifice, and two people trying to hold onto each other while the entire world is falling apart.
alexander is protective, masculine, intense, and willing to do what it takes to keep tatiana alive. he is not the easiest man on this list, and their relationship will emotionally exhaust you, but you believe that loving her changes the entire course of his life.
why he made the list: no one loves through suffering quite like this man.
final ruling: would cross a war zone for you. communication may still be questionable.
9. kade mitchell from insatiable
kade mitchell is living proof that emotionally damaged men are a public health concern.
he is obsessive, protective, furious, and still completely consumed by the woman he claims to hate. which, unfortunately, is one of my favorite dynamics when it is done well.
insatiable gives you second-chance romance, enemies-to-lovers energy, betrayal, and so much angst. kade is not soft in an obvious way. you have to dig through years of trauma and rage to find it, but that is exactly why the moments when he cracks hit so hard.
he is lower on this list only because the competition is genuinely unfair.
why he made the list: obsession, anger, longing, and an inability to let her go.
final ruling: needs therapy. got a trilogy instead.
meet the fictional man
8. xaden riorson from fourth wing
xaden riorson is the morally gray dragon rider who called her “violence” and ruined the internet.
he is powerful, grumpy, secretive, and always quietly making sure violet has a better chance of surviving. what i love is that protecting her never means treating her like she is weak. he pushes her, trusts her, and would still burn everything down if someone touched her.
is he frustrating? absolutely.
does that man know how to communicate before one of his seventeen secrets explodes? apparently not.
but the chemistry is there, the protectiveness is there, and onyx storm gave me my favorite version of him and violet.
why he made the list: shadow powers, enemies to lovers, dragons, and that nickname.
final ruling: would text back after returning from a classified mission covered in blood.
meet the fictional man
7. kai azer from powerless
kai azer could flirt his way out of almost anything, and i would probably let him.
he is the prince trained to become the king’s enforcer, she is the ordinary he may eventually be ordered to kill, and somehow they still find time for all that banter.
powerless is one of my favorite romantasy books, and kai is a huge reason why. he has that perfect combination of charm, danger, loyalty, and “i should not want her, but i very clearly do.”
the man has a job to do. unfortunately, paedyn exists.
why he made the list: elite banter, forbidden love, and an obsessive protector hiding behind a smile.
final ruling: would chase you through a forest and somehow make it romantic.
meet the fictional man
6. matteo leone from phantom mine
matteo leone is proof that yearning is, in fact, the hottest personality trait.
phantom mine is one of my favorite mafia romances, and it is because this man is patient, obsessive, quietly devoted, and completely gone for her.
there is something about an mmc who could be ruthless with everyone else but handles his girl with care. matteo does not need to perform his love loudly for you to feel it. it is in the waiting, the restraint, and the way he continues choosing her.
love at first sight does not always work for me. here? i ate it up.
why he made the list: mafia man on the outside, yearning personified on the inside.
final ruling: the mafia ones will ruin you every time.
meet the fictional man
5. dainn blackthorne from the annihilator
dainn blackthorne is not morally gray. that man looked at gray, decided it was too cheerful, and kept walking directly into the darkness.
he is dangerous, controlled, manipulative, and terrifying to basically everyone. but when it comes to lyla, there is something underneath all of that darkness that makes you keep reading.
this is the “no one can touch her, look at her, or breathe incorrectly near her” type of fictional man. healthy? no. excellent for a dark romance? obviously.
you do need to read the dark verse series in order before getting to the annihilator, but he is worth the wait.
why he made the list: morally black, touch her and die, and completely unmatched menace.
final ruling: i would not feel safe. i would, however, feel protected.
4. dreadful sharpe from my dreadful darling
first of all, his name is dreadful.
i never stood a chance.
dread is an olympic swimmer driven by vengeance against the family he blames for his mother’s death. reverie is supposed to be the enemy. instead, tormenting her becomes obsession, and somewhere along the way the man who wants to ruin her starts falling first.
he is cruel, haunted, masculine, and deeply fixated. basically, exactly the type of man this list was built for.
my dreadful darling gave me dark academia, bullying, revenge, a serial-killer legacy, and an mmc who is somehow both her nightmare and the person you keep wanting closer to her.
why he made the list: vengeance should not be this hot, and yet.
final ruling: olympic-level swimmer. gold medal in concerning behavior.
meet the fictional man
3. ryan shay from the right move
finally, a man who would probably pass a background check.
ryan shay does not need stalking, murder, magic, or a criminal organization to make the top three. all he needs is a spare bedroom, a fake relationship, and approximately one million quiet acts of love.
the right move is one of my favorite books ever, and ryan is the standard for sports-romance men. he is private, controlled, thoughtful, protective, and paying attention to indy long before he is willing to admit what that means.
this is a man who remembers. who notices. who takes care of things without needing applause for it.
the men above him may be darker, but ryan shay is the one you could actually build a peaceful life with.
why he made the list: acts of service, roommates, fake dating, and a man falling quietly but completely.
final ruling: husband. no criminal record required.
meet the fictional man
2. adrik kozlov from getaway
i think i met my fictional husband on wattpad, and honestly, i am still processing it.
adrik and celina genuinely hate each other. not fake enemies. not two people exchanging mildly sarcastic comments before kissing in chapter four. these two are stubborn, morally compromised, and forced into a relationship neither of them wants.
the tension is ridiculous.
adrik is emotionally unavailable, completely stubborn, hates being touched, and somehow still ended up one place away from winning this entire ranking.
nico and blaine in runaway were lion and the lamb. adrik and celina are batman and robin if neither one could agree who the villain was.
who is actually good here?
none.
obviously, i liked them more for it.
why he made the list: real enemies to lovers, arranged marriage, forced proximity, and hate with actual substance behind it.
final ruling: almost dethroned aaron warner. that is all you need to know.
1. aaron warner from shatter me
was anyone surprised?
aaron warner is the villain in everyone else’s story. ruthless, cold, controlled, untouchable.
but then you peel back the layers and find one of the most loyal men in the entire series.
this is what i want from an enemies-to-lovers romance. i want to believe he is the villain. i want the truth revealed slowly. i want every new piece of him to change what i thought i knew. and most importantly, i want a man who has no interest in anyone but his girl.
he is crazy. dark. masculine. completely devoted.
i eat that shit up every single time.
the shatter me series is ya, so he does not need explicit spice or the kind of darkness some of the other men on this list have. his obsession, loyalty, and character development do all the work.
the rest of this ranking may change.
aaron warner will not.
why he is number one: he is the blueprint.
final ruling: argue with the wall. he stays.
meet the fictional man
help me settle something
i have made my ruling, but now it is your turn.
who is your number one fictional boyfriend?
aaron warner
xaden riorson
tap to vote for your favorite fictional boyfriend →
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final thoughts
so there it is. my completely subjective, emotionally compromised ranking of ten fictional men who have permanently damaged our standards.
some of these placements will probably change. i could wake up tomorrow thinking about matteo’s yearning or ryan shay doing one thoughtful thing and rearrange half the list.
but aaron?
safe forever.
the perfect fictional boyfriend does not need to be good. he needs to be loyal, obsessive, masculine, and absolutely uninterested in anyone but his girl.
and if he is a little crazy?
even better.
frequently asked questions
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