Do you have an ultimate favourite genre?
I want to say yes but I do go back and forth between contemporary and fantasy 😩 Cannot pick for sure and it pains me. But today I really want to talk about the best of both — aka contemporary fantasy. Or urban fantasy. Magical realism. Paranormal?! ALL those. I never know the exact difference so I’m lumping them all together as just contemporary fantasy today while I do the…
This tag is created by Violet And The Never Ending TBR over on booktube, so I hope it’s alright that I’m blogifying it. I only have two braincells left and one is twirling slowly as it thinks about naps and the other is just went through the dryer on a high speed and is covered in lint. Thus I have summarised my life right now. 😌👌🏻 Am fine.
1. One of your favourite stand alone books
I’ll say The Darkest Part of the Forest because I just reread it and realised how deeply, deeply I ADORE it. It also has really influenced my writing and I didn’t even realise?! I hadn’t read it in nearly 5 years. Faeries, dark magic, complex growing up feels, queerness, messy kids and aching hearts and rotten ruinous forests!!!! It’s just everything I need.
2. One of your favourite series
Obviously I slam The Raven Cycle down on the table for this — it is my life. I feel like I haven’t talked about it as much lately, but this series means genuinely everything to me. It’s not just the magic (both lovely and darkly insidious) but also the characters who just ache and love and wonder and break together, and how they hurt each other but hold each other, and how they are creatures of wild magic without words to explain it. I am obsessed. I can’t 😭
3. What is a trope that you like in this genre
- the odd magic!! the love of the peculiar!!
- soft ghosts 😌I swear there aren’t nearly enough in YA altogether.
- magic doors to other worlds!!
- the contrast of like a dark old magic vs doing modern things (ancient faeries wearing genes and ordering a frappe ok, this will forever be my thing)
4. What is a trope you don’t like in this genre
- the tendency to have absolutely no plot to speak of 😂I live for flowery prose but omg pull yourself together, kids, and find an actual plot and goals before I draw you up a 5-year plan myself. 🤨
- genuinely despise alpha-male romances
- characters coming into powers and just *snaps fingers* they’re instantly great warriors and ready for battle. I hate training scenes but would prefer them to everyone being insta-perfect at fighting.
5. A disappointing book in the genre
I do try to keep my disappointments to myself more these days? Just in respect for being an author myself and knowing how much it sucks to stumble on someone dissing your book. But uuugh there have been a complete this year. At the end of the day, I am still a bookworm of fierce and flaily emotions and I hate being disappointed!!
6. A book that’s on your TBR that you want to get to soon
Definitely these!!
7. An intimidating book or series
Going to say…The Night Circus. It’s intimidating for two reasons: (1) I absolutely freaking ADORED The Starless Sea this year. It’s rivalling for best of 2020 already…I can’t say how deeply I loved the world and just related to Zachary Ezra Rawlins. I will cry on your coat right now. It was just exquisite. So the Night Circus has THAT to live up to. And (2) I’ve heard it’s a bit confusing? And I am sitting here realising I don’t know what it’s actually about apart from circuses and, hopefully, nighttime. Plus it’s not a small book and I’m intimidated by anything over 300pgs, let’s be real.
8. What is another book genre you want to read more of
All of them?! Maybe sci-fi, because I tend to be hit-or-miss with it and therefore avoid it. But then I’m missing so many potential faves?! I really love Illuminae, Gideon The Ninth, and The Knife of Never Letting Go!
9. What book genre intimidates you the most
Adult epic fantasy. I freaking LOVE IT, but it’s intense and my brain is often way too tired to tackle it. I also have particular tastes for it — younger characters, angsty siblings maybe, complex magic systems, super dark… Basically The Ruin of Kings is perfect and I would like another [checks notes] twelve of them. And I also wince at how long it takes me to read a 600pg book so that definitely weighs in to why I don’t read this genre much.
And because I wholly can’t help myself!! I’m leaving you with a few other magical realism/contemporaries that I adore and would love to softly pile into your arms. They all link to reviews. 😍🥰
And I also admit I have a lot of anti-favourites in magical realism. I feel like it’s either the BEST for me, or I absolutely hate it. 😂Eh who needs to have middle ground when you can be hyper all or nothing.
tell me your favourite genre? (if it’s “fantasy” be specific what type though!!) and do you have any modern fantasy ones you love or could recommend me? (and feel free to do the tag if you want to as well!)
