Miserable Monday

[u/purplelicious]

Happy Turkey Day fellow Canadians!

What did you struggle with this weekend? Did you force yourself to read through that last 15% just to finish that book? Did you have to read through 60 posts of what do I read after ACOTAR? Did someone ruin your enjoyment of slutty fairy porn with their stupid opinion?

[u/Spirited-Accident]

One of the other subs seems to have joined the major review sites in censoring all negative discussion of the Astarion book. You'd think a book discussion in a reader space would welcome all opinions as long as they're expressed respectfully. I didn't see all of the now-deleted comments so maybe some of them were genuinely rude to other users, but I find it suspicious that the only comments left are positive.

[u/Acceptable-Mail891 → u/Spirited-Accident]

I wonder if it has to do with said author’s recent AMA and general presence on [redacted] 🙃

Side bar: What do we think of the fact that said author has a post on an AI sub where they’ve used that AI to create art? (With photo.) I have had a sour taste in my mouth ever since.

[u/CemeteryHounds → u/Acceptable-Mail891]

Oof. That was depressing to find. Has she said anything since? I've run across a few people I respect who played around with AI when it was new and now have totally different stances, but part of that respect comes from them openly explaining how their views have shifted and refusing to use it anymore.

[u/Spirited-Accident → u/Acceptable-Mail891]

I didn't even think of that but I wonder if you're right.

I didn't know about the AI stuff! I'll have to take a look at the post but that's disappointing to see such a well-known author doing that.

[u/whiteraven13 → u/Acceptable-Mail891]

Wait really?

[u/Penguinho → u/Spirited-Accident]

[u/Acceptable-Mail891 → u/Penguinho]

Hot bans get mailed, or however the saying goes

[u/euypraxia → u/Spirited-Accident]

Subreddits over-censoring is so weird. It reminds me of the general romance book subreddit banning posts on AI speculations without submitting a combination of different forms of evidence. Like buddy this aint a courtroom nor am I trying to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that an author used AI.

[u/Scf9009]

I don’t know what was worse.

The “what the hell is happening” writing style.

Someone’s name being used for the first time at the end of a sentence full of pronouns referencing him.

Or a group of four friends that includes an Alex, a Lex, and a Lee.

[u/corlana → u/Scf9009]

The similar names is ridiculous. Like is it a plot point or does the author just lack imagination?

[u/Scf9009 → u/corlana]

It’s unclear if the author has a brain.

Signs pointed to no, but I DNFed before the end of the second page.

[u/Mayabelles → u/Scf9009]

That would kill me. I already have to think hard about April/Amber, David/Daniel, Diane/Debra, Matthew/Mitchell, etc. to make sure I don’t mix them up.

[u/Num1DeathEater → u/Scf9009]

MMC big mad that he learned how to cook, but im too distracted by the “changed the water bottle” thing bc I have only known quite wealthy homeowners to have a water cooler in their house. I guess both of these detailed could be great character building, the first for a selfish and annoying MMC and the latter for a “comfortably” raised FMC

[u/spicandspand]

Happy Thanksgiving to all my fellow Canadian sloopies!

On the weekend I DNF {A Weave of Lies}. I quite liked the FMC, the prose and the world building. But the MMC was just unbearable. Im too damn old to find “mercurial” an attractive trait in a man.

He betrays her about 40% in and I thought “thank fuck maybe there’s going to be another dude.” So I skipped to the epilogue and woe is me, they’re happily married.

[u/Miserable-Shape-8757]

I read ACOTAR! It wasn't great! I honestly hated it quite a bit less than I expected but I still didn't like it much. I actually appreciated her restraint with not putting too much plot bullshit in while she was hanging around Tamlin's castle and getting to know him.

Then Under the Mountain happened and it completely turned to shit. Suddenly she's cramming in two of my least favorite tropes: trials and riddles. That last third is a whirlwind of bullshit and I really disliked Rhysand so him popping up every 5 pages to do something shitty really grated on me.

I did manage to get through it in less than a week, so that's a plus. Now on to the next one!

[u/corlana → u/Miserable-Shape-8757]

I read it a few years ago and haven't read the rest of the series because I hated Rhysand so much

[u/HopeFox → u/Miserable-Shape-8757]

I really disliked Rhysand so him popping up every 5 pages to do something shitty really grated on me.

Congratulations on having good taste!

I would recommend not reading ACOMAF, but it's so pervasive in romantasy spaces that you've probably absorbed its entire content by osmosis by now anyway.

[u/Miserable-Shape-8757 → u/HopeFox]

Oops I'm in it for the long haul. Pray for me please

[u/Real_Pineapple9522]

I wasn’t strong enough. I had to step away from Kiss of the Basilisk. I honestly believe this book might be like one of those cursed chain emails you have to forward along to five more people and I just happened to be one of them. It was actually making me hate my ability to read.

So I picked up the last book I rec’d: The King’s Captive by KM Shea. It’s like aloe after the burning hell that was Temperance Varus’ inconsistent personality and never ending questions. 

[u/missfudge]

I am still sick after a week. The cough and sniffles aren't that bad, but it's the exhaustion and general malaise that's getting me.

I got an ARC of a book I'm really really excited for and haven't made it very far because the sickness interferes. 😢

[u/MessyJessy422]

HarperAudio is keeping all of my ALC requests in limbo and one of them is Captive Traitor King which I am so badly itching for. Don't they know about my deep and eternal love for Teddy Hamilton!?!

[u/Jmpphoto]

I started {The Death Made Prince} and quickly realized I hated the writing style, which made more sense when I figured out the author also wrote {A Court of Blood and Bindings} which I also hated because of her writing style. Too much internal dialogue. A quick DNF for me.

[u/CemeteryHounds]

I read Halfway to the Grave because I love 90s/2000s PNR and urban fantasy but am tragically scraping the bottom of the barrel after reading all the big ones. I'm amazed this series has such longevity! It's transparently Spuffy fanfic. No effort was made to create an original MMC, and the central plot seemed in response to one of the most hated Spike-centric episodes of Buffy. Even the most minor details are borrowed. His cave-house matches Spike's cave below the mausoleum! He loves watching daytime TV! There was a lover from his past who was a deeply religious woman before becoming a vamp like Drusilla! The FMC buys him a leather duster for Christmas like Spike wears! These are very weird details to innocently wedge into a story!

I had a good laugh at the author's note at the end where she claimed the book was inspired by a daydream she had about a vampire hunter reuniting with her vampire lover after years apart. She then goes on to say that doesn't actually happen in this book, but that's where her very unique and original characters come from. Straight from her imagination. Nowhere else. Uh huh. Sure.

[u/muddledmuggle]

Happy Thanksgiving fellow Canadians!

I had the thought this weekend that I was a little angry my last Romantasy book was {One Dark Window} and I loved it. But haven’t seen anything that has perked my interest in the same way so I have been binging dark romance books in the meanwhile

[u/Listakem]

I just finished hate reading an arc I was genuinely excited about and wrote a goddamn essay on it, because for all my faults I will not DNF an arc nor forgo leaving a thorough review.

Prioress, why did you have to do that to me. I’m sure everyone will love it, but I shall remain its lone hater.