Alli the Book Giraffe

Hello readers! This is a post I’ve always though of doing and I am now putting it into Blogmas. I’ve been on Booktok now for 5 months. Mostly, I am on indie author Booktok, but I occasionally dabble in the most popular books on there. I have not caved and read and Coleen Hoover yet, but we will see what 2024 brings.

Do you read Booktok books? Some of these I read on purpose and others I just read them before I was even on there. I picked a little over ten here, and I’ll probably do another one of these in the future.

I read this one back in 2019, I think. I did not like this book one bit. I just was not convinced of the romance. I thought it was very rushed especially with the enemies to lovers thing.

However, I think if I had read this book once I was more into romance, I might have enjoyed it more. Maybe there will be a reread in my future?

I read this one back in 2017 and I thought at the time that most people hated it. However, I loved this book. I love that Booktok caused the author to write a second book, too!

I am getting book two for Christmas from my husband. Actually, this post is probably going to be up AFTER Christmas, so I’ll already have it.

I have no idea what the second one will be about, but I’m excited to try it anyhow. I loved the story in this and the twist at the end.

I tandem read books one and two in this series in the fall of 2021. I really enjoyed it, but have not even thought about reading more since.

I think if you like Hades and Persephone and retellings then check this one out for sure. I don’t remember much of anything about book two, but I do remember enjoying them both.

I read this one in March of 2022. All I knew about it is that people said it’s the saddest book they have ever read.

I thought it was a good book, but not the saddest I’ve read. Nothing can be as sad as non-fiction, in my opinion. The Librarian of Auschwitz is the saddest book I’ve ever read and it’s a non-fiction book about the holocaust.

I think if you like really, really sad books, go for it. I love a sad book, so it was for me. Check the triggers first, though! It has triggers for just about everything under the sun.

I tried SJM in 2021 and to be honest, I was SCARED. She is one of those love em or hate em authors. I felt just okay about ACOTAR and continued.

I’ve enjoyed all the books I have read by her on some level. I’ve now read 6 1/2, as I am still reading Assassin’s Blade and I have no complaints. I never care if a character is gullible like so many other readers do, so that did not bother me about Feyre.

Okay, so I agree that everyone is responsible for their own triggers. BUT, there isn’t one listed for romanticizing rape.

I have books who have experienced sexual assault and others with rape in them. That is not my issue here. This book flat out romanticizes it and honestly while reading those scenes, I wanted to cry. It was actually the most awful thing I’ve read.

Another book I’ve seen people love with romanticized rape is Outlander. But, that was nowhere near as bad as this.

People on Booktok like to excuse it by saying the MMC is a good person because he kills traffickers. But, you can do that and be a terrible person. I am not judging those who like it, but I am judging those who try to say this is dub con or CNC. I have now started to look out for books like this before reading as I don’t want to experience another book like this ever again.

Y’all I thought I was going to love this book. I gave it a three. Mostly it was the romance. Also, the code switching. I wish the first time I read code switching it was by a POC person. Autistic people mask and POC people code switch for safety, you know? I just don’t get why this person really needed to do it.

Also, I HATED the spice. I get that he was trying to get her to say what she wanted, but in the end, she was only doing it to please him yet again.

If a person is code switching or masking for trauma reasons, forcing them to stop just isn’t it. It has to be that person’s choice on their own.

Everything Emily Henry is beloved on Booktok. I think her books are just okay.

I like the literary aspects of them, and the plots, but I’m not always convinced of the romances in the book. I really hated the MMC in Happy Place specifically.

I loved the idea of Beach Read with the two of them switching genres, but I didn’t love the romance. Maybe I’m not a second chance romance person? Both of these are that. I’m not sure, to be honest.

I LOVED this series. Y’all probably know all my feeling on it as I have talked a lot about it. Mostly books one and two were my faves. That last one was second chance, so that might be apart of it.

I still gave it a five for the ending to the whole series! It was so good. I honestly cannot wait to read more from Lauren Asher.

Oh, I loved this series. Well, most of it. I enjoyed the Selection trilogy, but those last two books were not needed.

This is a dystopian version of The Bachelor and I thought it was done well. In books four and five, we follow the MCs children from the first three books. They were just okay for me.

I ended up unhauling the last two books and keeping the original three on my shelf. I hate to break up a series, but still.

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I’d like to do something a bit different and I might make this a trend on here. Below will be some other bloggers who have don similar posts! Not all the same books, but the same topic.

If you are interested in other blogger’s opinions on Booktok books, check these out!

Reading Booktok Books So You Don’t Have To – by Liesl Brunner

Are These Three Popular Booktok Books Worth the Hype? – by Books of Brilliance

Popular Booktok Books That Are Worth the Hype – by Kyla’s Library

BookTok’s Most Popular books–are they worth the hype or not? – by Tropical Girl Reads

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Where to find me: https://linktr.ee/Allithebookgiraffe

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