Do you ever read a book with very specific tropes and you just go ”give me more of that!” but it’s super hard, of not impossible, to find those books? This happens to me ALL. THE. TIME. I figured writing a blog post listing all my favorite too-specific-to-search-tropes and maybe, just maybe you’ll think of a book that you just KNOW I’ll love! If you do, please recommend it to me in the comment section down below.
I’m talking the type of book in which food is more than just fuel. I want it to SHINE. Food is often part of a culture, a time period or even a fantasy world, and too often to I feel like authors forget how much you can tell about a setting with food.
I’m sure they’re out there, but WHERE? I read about a female pirate in the Shades of Magic trilogy by V.E. Schwab, and I want more girly pirates now. I want to read more pirate stories anyway, why do I feel like this is a setting we don’t see that often in YA fiction?
Take a drink every time I say ‘book’. But seriously, I love reading books about books, or books that have a library setting. Library settings are magical, and usually instantly make me love about about 64% more.
Give me dark and twisty main characters. Give me main characters that make the wrong decision and push everyone away. But most of all, make me root for these people even though I shouldn’t.
Okay, I’m only including this here because I’m starting law school in about two weeks and I’m super excited about it. I’m currently reading and watching anything law school related that I can get my hands on. Yes.. I’m that much of a geek. But I would like the books to be somewhat realistic, because I bet law school isn’t as glamorous as some books and films make it out to be, and I don’t want to set myself up for failure.
I feel like this is getting much more popular in YA fiction (it’s the new love triangle, people) but it’s not written the specific way I would like it to be written. I only like this trope if the two characters aren’t supposed to like each other because of political or societal expectations, or because they met under the wrong circumstances. Too often I see one of the two characters being abusive to the other, and then that abusive behaviour being excused for the sake of the story.
Don’t you hate it when a book is quite messy and bloody, but in the end everyone ends up with the person they’re supposed to end up with? Or you know, everyone survives in the first place? I feel like if you go through a horrible war, it’s impossible to have every important character survive. It’s just unrealistic! Sometimes characters need to die in order to push the story forward, and that’s a fact.
Way too often I still see female characters being more ”masculine” when they start taking their life or career seriously. They’ll cut off their hair for example, or they’ll start wearing flats instead of heels so they’re taken seriously as an intellectual. I LOVE stories that don’t do this, and let the female character be true to themselves. Why can’t you be a kickass?!
I would really love to read books with all of these! I get stuck reading the same rut reading the same type of stories it would be amazing to find some fun out of the box tropes to immerse myself into! Awesome post!
If you haven’t already you should read The Book Jumper by Mechthild Gläser it’s a book about a book and it is amazing!
Yes to law school and I’d add med school too. It isn’t all sunshine and life is good while you complete your degree.
Books about law school! I’m expecting to start law school in a year but I’m already taking introductory classes so I have an idea what to expect. Totally not Legally Blonde. Seriously, I just want more books with a focus on law. Also I love enemies-to-lovers without the iffy and gross abusive relationship aspect.
These are all things I love in books and now I need to keep an eye out for any recommendations people give. The enemies to lovers you’re looking for might be Sky in the Deep, but there’s some fighting between them since they’re from warring clans.
Ooooh thanks for your recs! Im thinking now I should have included my recs with this post..
Yeah, that’s actually a really good idea!
yES! This list is amazing!!
I LOVE enemy to lovers, but you have a good point about how it needs to be done.