My Bookish Hot Takes (and Controversial Opinions)
If there’s anything I’ve learned from spending time in online book communities, it’s that some of my opinions may be unusual. And that’s okay! It would be a boring world if everyone thought the same way, wouldn’t it? At least that’s what I always tell myself. So in today’s blog post, I’m going to be sharing some of my bookish hot takes.
These are thoughts I have on books, reading, and literature that may unpopular opinions.
If you enjoy today’s blog post, you can read more of my book discussions here.
My Bookish Hot Takes
A Lot of Books that Go Viral on Booktok are Not Good.
There. I finally said it.
It’s crazy to me that Booktok is such a big social media tool for marketing books because a lot of the books that I’ve read from Booktok are not good. The plots are weak, the writing is just okay, and the romance? It’s questionable. I’m not going to list any books in particular because this post is not meant to bash anyone.
It’s my opinion that the books that go viral on booktok go viral for a reason. But it’s not necessarily quality.
However, I have noticed some common themes. For instance, a lot of books that go viral are romance novels. That makes sense to me because a lot of people who read romance novels might not have anyone to talk about books with in their daily lives, so they go on tiktok to discuss books with the booktok community. This is probably especially true for dark romance readers.
But with that being said, I’ve read a couple of dark romance novels that are popular on tiktok and I just did not like them. The male protagonist always seems so cheesy and the main characters always fall in love instantly. And to me that does not make a good story.
Listening to an Audiobook is Reading
I had this discussion with my boyfriend not that long ago, and we are on different sides. I consider listening to audiobooks to be reading while he does not.
And hey, everyone is entitled to their opinions. But I’m the main character in my life and so I’m going to consider listening to an audiobook reading. I’m in my thirties now and my eyes get tired. In fact, I’m pretty tired a majority of the time. So finding time to read at the end of a long can be difficult, especially when you don’t have a lot of time.
And audiobooks help me to absorb more stories and create more content for my blog. So to me, because it helps me to finish a whole book faster, I consider it reading.
Romantasy. I Don’t Get It.
This is embarrassing to admit, but I just couldn’t get into the first book in the A Court of Thorns and Roses series. So many people have recommended it to me and I’ve heard a lot of good things about the series as a whole. But when I tried to read it I just couldn’t get into it.
Should I try again? Should I read it in physical form or listen to the audiobook? If you have any suggestions or strong feelings, please let me know in the comments section. Lol.
The Font Size in Trade Paperbacks is Too Small
Remember that time I said I was getting old and that my eyes were often tired? Yeah, me too. So when my eyes are tired after a day at the office, sometimes the last thing I want to do is stare at the tiny font in a mass market trade paperback.
That’s just the truth. So if I want to read a book that’s only going to be published in that format (like cozy mysteries, for instance) I will most likely just buy it on kindle. Then I can make the font exactly how I want it. It’s also a good way to read if it’s an ugly cover and you don’t want to look at it constantly.
Dark Romance. I Don’t Get It.
I’m no stranger to the romance novel, but dark romance is a whole different beast. I read my first dark romance novel a couple of years ago and it was pretty shocking. I’ve read between 5-10 since then and while some of them are better than others, I’m still not sure about it. I guess I’m a pretty innocent person and so some of the story lines are too shocking! lol.
Book Blogs will Always Be Better Than Booktok or Bookstagram
I’m biased because I’ve been following and reading book blogs since I was a kid, but I’m always going to prefer them over booktok and instagram.
I used to love all of the different posts people would create. My faves were Top Ten Tuesday and Waiting on Wednesday. But I also loved the In Your Mailbox posts where people would share the different books they bought or the different arcs they received from publishers. And I’m always going to love reading long reviews of the books that I’m interested in, whether I’ve already read it or whether I’m debating checking it out.
I do think Reels and Tiktoks are good for sharing book lists though. It’s a great way to give quick and easy recommendations to your followers, and if your post goes viral it can really reach a lot of people. So while book blogs are always going to be my favorite, I understand how all forms of social media have their positives.
Colleen Hoover Books Have Always Been Questionable
So Colleen Hoover has definitely become a talking point when it comes to popular books and reading, right? I just wanted to remind everyone about her first book series, in case you weren’t aware. Slammed is about a teenager who dates her English Teacher, who also does slam poetry at clubs on the side.
Of course there’s more to the story than that. And the teacher is technically a student teacher so he’s only 21 or whatever. But it’s still kind of weird and when I first read Slammed back in 2012 or 2013, I didn’t think anything of it. But now that I’m an adult I’m kind of like ok… that’s a little weird.
So people are making a big deal out of It Ends With Us because it was recently made into a movie. But Colleen’s books have always been a little dark and a little questionable. And I think people kind of forget that.
Fourth Wing is Not a Bad Book
Keep in mind that I do not read a lot of fantasy, but I liked Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros. I thought it was a good book. A lot of people on goodreads seem to not like it and I’m not sure if it’s because of the storyline or because of the writing style. But in my opinion, there’s nothing wrong with the writing. And although I don’t read a lot in this genre, I didn’t see anything wrong with plot.
I Don’t Prefer Physical Books over eBooks
Sometimes it seems like in order to be a true reader, you have to love physical books. And don’t get me wrong. I do. But there’s something so cozy about curling up in bed at night with all of my blankets and my kindle. All I have to do is stick one arm out of my covers in order to hold up my book. It’s the best!
I’m so Tired of Illustrated Book Covers
I’m a big fan of having real people on book covers, so the fact that all of today’s romance book covers seem to be illustrated really bums me out. It’s not even the illustrations that bother me. Some of them are done really well. But others aren’t done so well. I don’t want to call out any books in particular but it really makes me wondering what the marketing department of their publisher was thinking!
In Conclusion
There you have it. In today’s post about my bookish hot takes, I’ve revealed some of my guilty pleasures and some of my biggest book icks.
