Tag Archives: reading

I’m Not a Fan of the Fated Mates Trope

Could you resist the pull of someone who was fated to be in your life? Would you want to? Well, it wouldn’t really be up to you, would it?

As romance readers, we all have our most and least favourite tropes, and I’ve been exploring mine in the hopes of working out exactly what I like when it comes to romance. One of my least favourite tropes is Fated Mates. Often found in romances with shifters—beings who can change into more than one form—the fated mates tropes has both intriguing and unsatisfying qualities, and I will discuss both in this post.

8 Unhinged Books You Need to Read

In a vast sea of literature, amongst every possible genre, some books stand out for embracing the weird and wonderful, for delving into topics often left untouched. When you stumble across books like these that leave a lasting impression thanks to their bizarre content, it’s hard to avoid discussing them, and that’s what I intend to do here.

3 Reasons to Lend Books to Friends (and 3 Reason Not to)

Picture this: you’ve just finished a life-changing book, given it a 5-star rating and rush to sing its praises to your friends without spoiling it because they just have to read it. One of your friends seems really into your glowing review, so much so that you can see what’s coming before it happens. When everyone else has moved on, they’re still wondering about that book, questioning you about it… Then they ask to borrow it.

Monthly Wrap-Up – March 2023: Adventuring into my Discomfort Zone

March was another great month of reading for me. Once again, what I lacked in the volume of books I read was made up for by their quality. I read four books this month, one of which I have chosen not to include in the wrap-up, but I promise I read it and that it was amazing! It was a month of stepping outside of my comfort zone and dipping into some good recommendations, and thankfully I was not left disappointed.

I Don’t Like the Forbidden Love Trope (and here’s why)

As an avid romance reader, I’ve encountered my fair share of tropes. I’m definitely in tune with my tastes and aware of what I usually do and do not like. A trope is not inherently bad, but as with everything in life, I prefer certain tropes over others. Though a favourite for many, I look at the forbidden love trope and often feel disappointed. Can I really ship them when they might be siblings? When their age gap is huge? When the power dynamics are questionable? When they’re from different species?

Why I’m Banning Myself from Buying Books

Adding books to my TBR feels good, but it doesn’t feel as good when they’re still there two years later wondering if I’ve lost interest. What always shocks me is that it’s the books I want to read the most that I end up putting off for the longest. Why? I’m not too sure, but I think it comes down to the fact that the more I want to like something, the more afraid I am of being left disappointed.

Monthly Wrap-Up – February 2023: A Tale of Two Halves

This month has been a tale of two halves. I started off in the mood for crime and mystery and ended it in the spirit of romance (which had nothing to do with a certain holiday in the middle). It’s strange that I did not notice this until sitting down to complete my wrap-up for February, but I guess that’s the point of these posts: to reflect on my reading for the month.

Are Special Edition Books a Waste of Money?

Reading is a multi-faceted experience. It can be simple, lightweight, and free… or it can be shallow, expensive, and nothing more than an intellectual flex. In an age where the rich and famous are hiring people to stack their shelves with curated novels for a faux-cultured façade and an app dominated by the middle class is single-handedly keeping authors relevant, the socio-economic aspect of reading has never been more apparent.

Monthly Wrap-up – January 2023: New Year, Same Me

Despite having high hopes for the number of books I want to get around to reading this year, I’ve already created a lot of work for future me. Ideally, I would have read four books this month, but I’ve only managed to read three (well, two novels and a play). While the quality was incredibly high, and one of them had over 500 pages, I’m still a little bit annoyed with myself. However, it’s only the first month of the year and I have plenty of time to catch up.

Why You Need a Reading Journal

Sometimes referred to as book journals, reading journals have quickly become my favourite way to track my reading that I’ve ever tried. When I realised that even though I could look at my shelves and see the books I had read, I could hardly remember anything about them, I decided I needed to change that.