By Yamini Tiwari
"I am the Napoleon of crime.”
by Moriarty from The Final Problem by Arthur Conan Doyle
Bookstagram has undeniably reshaped the way readers discover and discuss books, and for the most part, it has been a great platform for discovering diverse stories. But one trend that stands out—and not always in the best way—is how it romanticizes characters who are outright problematic, slapping the “morally grey” label on them as if it’s a badge of honor. This phenomenon has muddied the concept of morally grey characters and blurred the line between flawed humanity and outright villainy. As someone who loves the complexity of well-written morally grey characters, it’s frustrating to see this nuance lost to aesthetics and shallow interpretations.
To be clear, a morally grey character is someone who operates in a complex ethical space. They might do bad things for good reasons or make choices that straddle the line between self-interest and altruism. The key is that these characters are conflicted—they wrestle with their morality, and their actions reflect a blend of light and dark, good and bad. Readers are drawn to them not because they’re "hot" or "badass" but because they feel real. They remind us that morality isn’t black and white and that even good people can make questionable decisions under the right circumstances. These characters are fully aware of their choices and understand that they must live with the consequences. Sometimes, they make decisions they don’t fully agree with or take actions they dislike, but they do so out for protecting oneself or others.
Morally grey characters aren’t born villains—they’re made. They’re shaped by circumstances, pulled from good to bad, from hero to something closer to a villain. These are people with histories of abuse, trauma, and violence, and those experiences define how they navigate the world. Their choices come from a place of survival, of self-preservation. They act with the belief that if the world is going to break them, they need to break it first. For them, morality isn’t a luxury—it’s a battlefield.
However, on Bookstagram, the nuance of morally grey characters is often lost. Instead, characters who are outright abusive, cruel, or manipulative are romanticized and categorized as morally grey simply because they’re attractive or charismatic. This romanticization not only undermines the depth of true morally grey characters.
True morally grey characters operate in the space between good and bad—they make questionable decisions, but they’re driven by complex motives or circumstances that make their actions understandable, even if not excusable. They have moments of redemption, vulnerability, and internal conflict that allow readers to empathize with them, even when they’re wrong. Characters like Kaz Brekker, Jesper, or even someone like Severus Snape walk this line beautifully—they’re flawed, sometimes cruel, but always layered.
However, Bookstagram frequently conflates this with characters who are purely selfish, cruel, or sadistic. Villains who enjoy causing harm for the sake of power or chaos, like Darkling in Shadow and Bone, are treated as "misunderstood" rather than examined critically for their harmful actions. This romanticization strips the morally grey archetype of its meaning and reduces it to little more than "hot villain with a tragic backstory."
Part of the issue is the trend of over-romanticizing characters’ darker qualities. A true morally grey character is someone you wrestle with—someone you love and hate at the same time. They’re supposed to make you uncomfortable, to challenge your own moral boundaries. But on Bookstagram, their flaws are often excused entirely because they’re "attractive" or "tragic," which misses the point of why morally grey characters are compelling in the first place. It’s not about excusing their actions—it’s about understanding them and grappling with their complexity. The over-romanticization of dark characters isn’t harmful. But when we label blatantly toxic or abusive behaviors as “morally grey,” we dilute the concept and normalize these traits as acceptable or even desirable. It sets a troubling standard, especially for younger readers who may not yet have the tools to critically analyze these dynamics. The appeal of morally grey characters lies in their complexity, not in how easily their flaws can be excused. By reducing them to aesthetics or romantic ideals, we lose the depth that makes them compelling in the first place.
By labeling every dark or irredeemable character as morally grey, Bookstagram muddies the distinction between morally complex and outright villainous. This shift creates unrealistic standards for storytelling, where darkness becomes synonymous with depth. True morally grey characters lose their impact because they’re lumped together with caricatures of villainy who lack their introspection or nuance.
Romanticizing outright dark characters as morally grey erases the very tension and complexity that makes morality in fiction so compelling. The beauty of morally grey characters lies in their contradictions—their ability to make us empathize with their flaws while still holding them accountable for their actions. When we reduce these characters to “hot bad boys” or “misunderstood villains,” we lose the opportunity to engage with the deeper questions they pose: What makes a person good? How far can someone go before they’re irredeemable? Can love or loyalty ever justify cruelty?
Bookstagram has brought so many amazing books into the spotlight, but it’s crucial to approach characters with a more critical eye. True morally grey characters are meant to challenge us, to make us uncomfortable, and to force us to reflect on the messy, imperfect nature of humanity. They’re not there to be romanticized without thought or to justify behaviors that are outright harmful. Fiction is a space for exploration and questioning, but that doesn’t mean we should blur the lines between complexity and toxicity. Instead, let’s celebrate the morally grey characters who make us think deeply about our own values—and leave the romanticized villains where they belong: in the shadows.
"Hope. It is the only thing stronger than fear.”