Enchantra

Love and obligation are two key ideas throughout the entirety of Enchantra, particularly in the development of the romantic relationships in the text. Romance plays an important part in the novel, especially the dynamic between Genevieve and Rowin. Genevieve and Rowin’s relationship begins from a place of obligation; they must get married or Knox will kill Genevieve. Rowin feels obligated to marry Genevieve to help her survive and to gain a potential advantage in the Hunt. Their relationship is not real when they exchange their vows at the altar. However, as the narrative progresses, the couple becomes closer. Genevieve struggles, though, to separate her real feelings from the performative aspect of their relationship. When Rowin defends her from Remi’s pity, Genevieve thinks, “The optics of him sticking up for her were very important for their audience. Except Genevieve wasn’t currently interested in crafting more of their false narrative off the very real feelings she was having. Not with the weight of so many eyes on her” (157). Genevieve feels the gazes of the spectators heavily as she must pretend to be the doting wife to a man she’s only known for 24 hours.