Top Ten Tuesday: Unpopular Bookish Opinions

Happy Top Ten Tuesday! Today’s theme is unpopular bookish opinions, and this is one that I really had to think about! This seems like it’ll be quite a day for Top Ten Tuesday.

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UNPOPULAR OPINION #1
Not every book about a controversial topic can be good

I’ve noticed that after pretty much every YA bestseller, a wave of similar books comes out. Take, for example, The Hate U Give. I loved that book. I thought it was a great story that was amazingly well-written. After the popularity of The Hate U Give, a number of YA books focusing on gun violence came out. While I’m sure many of those books were good, not all of them were.

Similarly, not every book about homosexuality, racism, religion, drug use, school shootings, etc. can be good. It seems like we’re almost expected to adore these books without question just because they’re about a difficult topic.

UNPOPULAR OPINION #2
I can’t support Cassandra Clare

Not only do I feel like the writing quality in The Mortal Instruments really went downhill midway through the series, but after learning about her behavior in general, I just can’t support her anymore. I’m not going to go into detail on everything she’s done, but please feel free to check out the links below:

• THE CASSIE CLARE ISSUE
• WHY I HAVE A PROBLEM WITH CASSANDRA CLARE & WHY YOU SHOULD TOO
• SHERRILYN KENYON SUES CASSANDRA CLARE FOR ‘WILFULLY COPYING’ HER NOVELS
• ALLEGED CASSANDRA CLARE (@cassieclare) A/K/A JUDITH REMELT/LEWIS CONTROVERSIES

UNPOPULAR OPINION #3
I hate it when romance novels end with a proposal or surprise pregnancy

I know, I know, I read a ton of romance. But when I read a romance novel, I expect to read something that adds to the genre, not something that recycles the most cliche plot lines of all time. I think that ending a romance novel with a proposal or pregnancy is probably the easiest way to wrap things up, and most of the time it just feels like the author couldn’t come up with anything better, so they were just like, “…and they all lived happily ever after, the end.”

UNPOPULAR OPINION #4
I was not a huge fan of Six of Crows

Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t hate it or anything. I just didn’t have any strong opinions on it. I enjoyed Bardugo’s Shadow and Bone and I’m excited to someday finish that series (and read everything else she’s written), but I think Six of Crows was just way too hyped for me and I expected more. It felt like every other YA fantasy I’d ever read, just with a more diverse cast of characters.

UNPOPULAR OPINION #5
All the Bright Places was not good

I’ve written a number of rants on what exactly is wrong with All the Bright Places, but I’ll summarize here: the main character is a smooth-talking mental illness (with no other character traits) and his love interest is overtly blamed for telling someone that he’s suicidal. The whole book glamorizes depression and idealizes suicide (he’s so dark and mysterious!) and I feel that it sends an incredibly harmful message to teens.

UNPOPULAR OPINION #6
Bragging avoiding certain genres or formats doesn’t make you cool

Every time I hear someone say something like, “I don’t read books with half-naked guys on the cover, I read real books” or “Listening to an audiobook doesn’t count as reading,” I just cringe. I don’t care what you’re reading or how you’re doing it. What’s important is that you’re enjoying yourself.

UNPOPULAR OPINION #7
I have no problem with an unlikable main character as long as they’re realistic

One of my favorite books of 2018 was Emergency Contact by Mary H.K. Choi. I loved how realistic the main character, Penny, was. A lot of reviewers have taken issue with Penny and hated the book because of her, and I get that. Penny is not perfect, not by a long shot. She says the wrong thing all the time and she’s not always likable. But what teenager is?

UNPOPULAR OPINION #8
Not every book needs a romance

Right about now, you’re probably thinking, “Whoa, whoa, what are you talking about? You mostly review romance books!” But it’s true. Not every book needs a romance. Sometimes sci-fi should just be sci-fi. Sometimes fantasy should just be fantasy. Sometimes a romance is entirely unnecessary and actually detracts from the story rather than adding to it.

UNPOPULAR OPINION #9
I have no interest in reading classic sci-fi novels

I remember very clearly a moment when a man walked up to me, completely unprompted, and said, “How can you call yourself a book blogger when you haven’t even read Dune?” I mean… first of all, sci-fi from the 1960s doesn’t interest me whatsoever, but also, I blog mostly about romance! I’m not sure what that book has to do with anything!

UNPOPULAR OPINION #10
I am not a fan of Penny Reid’s books

I’ve tried. I really have. I know that so many people adore her books, but I’ve enjoyed one of them and I’ve hated the rest. I one-clicked a lot of them when they were free on Amazon and so I’ll keep trying (eventually), but I was really disappointed by Neanderthal Seeks Human. Attraction is one of my least favorite books of 2019. And her Winston Brothers series has been hit or miss so far. Nothing against her personally, but her books are just not my favorite.

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Did you do your own Top Ten Tuesday post today? Feel free to leave your link in the comments and I’ll check it out! What are some of your unpopular opinions? Let’s talk in the comments!

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