I mentioned in one of my tags this week that I’ll be around a lot less than normal over the next week or two. I’m in the process of moving right now and while I’m very excited about it, it’s also very time-consuming and stressful, so I haven’t had a ton of time to read or write blog posts. This works out pretty well, though, because I have a ton of tags to catch up on, so you’ll be seeing a lot of those coming up!
Blog hopping:
Vicky’s review of Permanent Record made me want to pick it up asap! (Luckily, it’s one of the few books that I haven’t packed.)
Song of the week:
As expected, I’ve still got Lover playing on repeat…
How was your week? What’s the best thing you read or listened to? Anything interesting happening in your life? Let’s talk in the comments!
Today I am trying my hand at creating my very first book tag! I was inspired by Alex and her comment that she loves Taylor Swift but hadn’t found a Lover tag yet. Daniel also helped me come up with some of these prompts!
Here’s the thing: I remember reading Island of the Blue Dolphins. I remember owning Island of the Blue Dolphins. I remember literally nothing — like, not even one thing — about this book.
Cruel Summer: the worst book you’ve read this summer
Honestly, it’s been a summer of pretty bad books. The worst one I’ve read is probably Little Birds, which was just the cringiest “erotica” I’ve ever read.
Lover: a bookish relationship that’s perfect exactly the way it is
Did you think I was going to say Josh and Lucy from The Hating Game? I kind of thought I would, but then I remembered that Zorie and Lennon are possibly even better, so I went with Starry Eyes instead.
The Man: a book with a badass female main character
The most recent book I can think of with really good character development is The Music of What Happens. Both Max and Jordan learn a lot about themselves and the way they interact with others throughout the course of this book, and it was honestly so refreshing to read about.
The high school setting is actually really important in You Asked for Perfect, because it’s all about how the main character deals with the stress of taking advanced classes and keeping up with all of his extracurriculars.
Some Kind of Perfect serves as kind of an epilogue to a very, very long series, and it just wraps everything up so well. Everything does end on a pretty happy note, but it doesn’t feel forced or anything.
Of all the settings I could have chosen for this one, I thought I’d go with the Rampion from The Lunar Chronicles. This ship is such a big part of the series!
So, yes, Me Before You made me sob. Love and Other Words also made me cry many tears. I read this book more than a year ago and I still think about it sometimes.
I hope you enjoyed my first ever original tag! (I know I had fun making it!) I’d love to see your answers, either in the comments or in your own post. ❤
I was tagged by Leelyn to do the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Book Tag! I love Buffy, so I’m really excited to do this one. 🙂
Also, prepare to see a lot of tags on this blog in the coming days! I’ve been kind of absent recently because I’m making a big move (almost 1000 miles!) next week. I haven’t had a ton of time to read (and my books are mostly in boxes), but this is a great time to get caught up on tags.
I’ve read a ton of really great LGBTQIA romances recently, but I think I’ll go with Bloom for this one! Without a doubt, it’s one of the best books I’ve read this year.
I’m tagging Jamsu and any other Buffy fans to do this one! I’d love to see your choices! Can you recommend any great LGBTQIA romances? What about a book with a great redemption arc? Let’s talk in the comments!
I was tagged by Sailor to do the No Disclaimers Book Tag! I’m so far behind on all my tags but I’m really trying to get caught up. Thank you so much for tagging me! ❤
Questions:
1. Which trope (or tropes) in books annoy you the most?
There are a few tropes that really annoy me.
Like Sailor, miscommunication is a big one. I hate it when the main conflict of a book is something that could have been solved by a three-minute conversation.
I’m generally not a big fan of the love triangle, unless it’s well-written enough to be believable.
Possibly my least favorite trope is “not like other girls,” because first of all, it’s insulting (what’s wrong with being a girl) and second of all, it’s probably the least creative description you could come up with.
2. Which writer or writers do you feel are overrated/overhyped?
4. A terrible ending, that ruined an otherwise quality book?
While I didn’t read it myself, I did enjoy a dramatic reading of Wilder Girls by my boyfriend while driving across the country. The writing in the book was great, but that ending just destroyed it for me.
5. Which fictional character(s) do you wish were not killed off?
Um, spoilers. I feel like I can’t answer this one. Sorry!
6. What are some of your bookish pet peeves?
One of my least favorite things in a book is medical facts being wrong, like someone ripping an IV out of their arm and going about their business like nothing happened. I also really hate when things happen just to elicit an emotional response. I don’t mind crying while I’m reading, but I hate it when a book feels like it was specifically written to make you cry.
7. What are some books you feel should have more recognition?
I’m not going to tag anybody specifically, but if you think this looks fun, please link back to me so that I can see your answers! What are some of your bookish pet peeves? Which tropes annoy you most? Let’s talk in the comments!
Happy Top Ten Tuesday! Today’s theme is a really fun one: books I’ve read that I’d like in my personal library. This week’s theme was submitted by Annemieke @ A Dance With Books. I check a ton of books out from the library, so I think this will be a pretty easy one for me!
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! Which books do you want to own? Let’s talk in the comments!
A few weeks ago, Siobhan tagged me in the Soul-Ripping Romance Tag! (Thank you!) This is one that I hadn’t seen around before and I’m really excited to do it!
Rules:
Thank the person who tagged you and create a pingback to the original author – Nel at Reactionary Tales.
Share at least 5 (but more are welcome) romances that tugged your heartstrings. They can be from books, movies, TV shows, manga; anything you can think of! They can be examples of sad tears, angry tears, happy tears or a combination of all three.
Nominate 5 (or more) people to share their emotional traumas
(Note: Try not to spoil the story for your readers in case they would like to check out these romances on their own)
This is one of the only books in recent(ish) memory to make me cry! This book includes a huge misunderstanding, a ton of heartbreak, a lot of history, and a second chance romance that blew me away.
I’m not sure who has or hasn’t done this one, so please feel free to steal it if you’d like! Have you read any of these books? Which romances have pulled at your heartstrings? Let’s talk in the comments!
My first time getting it in the butt was kind of weird. I think it’s going to be weird for everyone’s first time, though.
Meet Jack Rothman. He’s seventeen and loves partying, makeup and boys – sometimes all at the same time. His sex life makes him the hot topic for the high school gossip machine. But who cares? Like Jack always says, ‘it could be worse’.
He doesn’t actually expect that to come true.
But after Jack starts writing an online sex advice column, the mysterious love letters he’s been getting take a turn for the creepy. Jack’s secret admirer knows everything: where he’s hanging out, who he’s sleeping with, who his mum is dating. They claim they love Jack, but not his unashamedly queer lifestyle. They need him to curb his sexuality, or they’ll force him.
As the pressure mounts, Jack must unmask his stalker before their obsession becomes genuinely dangerous…
This book has been on my radar since I first saw it on Netgalley (and was sadly declined). I was drawn to it because I love the idea of a sex positive YA book, especially one featuring a character like Jack, a gay boy who unapologetically loves makeup, shopping, and sex. When I saw it at my library, I had to check it out and see what it was like.
I ended up having some really, really conflicted feelings about this one.
Like I said, I love the concept. I love that YA books are moving in a more sex positive direction, and I think this book was a very good idea. I think that the advice Jack gave throughout the book was great (although I have to suspend a lot of disbelief to think that a teenager would know enough about sex to reasonably give such wide-ranging advice), and it reminded me a lot of a more risque version of the advice column in Ask Me Anything.
The discussion of consent, coming out, asexuality, healthy relationships… all of that was great. The fact that Jack and his friends smoke cigarettes, frequently get black out drunk, and hook up with random strangers on Grindr (despite being actual teenagers)? Not so great. Of course, I don’t want to censor life for the target demographic of this book. I’m not deluding myself into thinking that many teenagers aren’t going out and doing these exact things. But there’s never any consequence for these behaviors. Jack doesn’t get in trouble for smoking inside the school. (What?) Aside from a mini-lecture from his mother, there’s very little said about the alcohol. There’s never a discussion about the possible repercussions of lying about your age on a hook up app. Jack has a lot of sex with a lot of different people and good for him, but it felt like all of this was inserted into the book to scream, “HEY, LOOK AT JACK! HE’S ONE OF THE COOL KIDS!”
Now, aside from that, one of the other things I wanted to mention was the mystery, or, really, the lack of it. The thing is, throughout the book, Jack occasionally gets these ominous notes from a stalker. They start out fine, along the lines of “I think you’re cute” and slowly progress into some really creepy, threatening stuff. Jack gets freaked out by it, but he never really does anything aside from worry, so what’s the point? I found the principal’s reaction troubling, to say the least, and the way everything ended left a lot to be desired. If this were just a book about the sex column without this weird stalker plot, I think I would have enjoyed it more.
All in all, I think that this book had a great concept, but I’m not entirely on board with the execution. I appreciate the open and honest Q&A about sex and think it’ll help a lot of teens, but the constant partying and constant sex made me, an adult, feel weird. If the characters were even a couple years older, this would have been less of an issue, I think.
Have you read Jack of Hearts (and Other Parts)? Is it on your TBR? Let’s talk in the comments!
