Before we get into the book reviews, it's a good idea to check out the breakdown of how I rate the books, and how I categories the tropes and triggers.
Please bear in mind that everyone is different, so we may have different views on what makes a good/ less good book. And that's fine - I'd love to hear if you agree (or not) with me on each review and have a discussion, but let's keep it respectful of everyone's opinions.
Before we get into the book reviews, it's a good idea to check out the breakdown of how I rate the books, and how I categories the tropes and triggers.
Star Ratings
Put simply, this is how I measure my enjoyment of a book.The Star Ratings are entirely subjective, but I try to stick to a framework to keep my reviews fair and consistent.
The ratings are broken down into six different elements to help me reach an Overall Rating:
- Quality of Writing - Was the writing style easy to get on with? Were there many mistakes/ typos?
- Plot Development - Was the pacing good and plot engaging?
- Characters - Were they unique and dynamic, or like a cut and paste?
- Ease of Reading - Was it a book that I had to reread loads of sentences just to get my head around the story? Did it require lots of brain power?
- Enjoyment - Did I actually enjoy reading it, or did it feel like a chore?
- Ending - Was the ending satisfying and left with a neat bow? For series that aren't complete (or I've just not finished them yet), this will be left blank.
For the Overall Rating, I use the breakdown ratings to influence my decision. Generally, the rating is decided by:
* If I struggled to finish the book.
** If I didn't enjoy it very much, but didn't struggle to finish it.
*** If I enjoyed it a bit but wouldn't recommend it to others.
**** If I enjoyed it, would recommend it to others and potentially read it again.
***** If I loved everything about the book and would definitely be open to reading it again.
Spice Ratings
This one is a little bit less subjective - it's how romantically explicit a book is.Now, I know lots of people like reading spice. I'll be honest - I would prefer a book with a solid plot and no spice, than one that is all spice and no substance. But, I'll never yuck someone else's yum, and I'm not adverse to reading spicy books.
No romance at all
* No explicit content, focuses on kissing, hand holding and emotional connection, fades to black for any physical intimacy
** One or two on the page explicit scenes that are mild and not overly graphic
*** Open door romance, expect several clear and descriptive sex scenes with moderate detail and standard passion, where the romance remains the primary focus
**** Hot and explicit. Features frequent highly detailed and graphic sex scenes with explicit language, dirty talk.
***** Sex is integral to the plot. Content is continuous and highly explicitly, heavy on kinks or taboo themes and borders directly on erotica.
Tropes & Flavour Notes
These are the common story elements that you'll find mentioned in my reviews. I know that there are some tropes that you can't get enough of (for me, that's transmigration and redeemed villains), and some that you know you don't enjoy (miscommunication for me).
Fantasy Tropes
- Academy
- Ancient Evil Awakens
- Changing Era
- Chosen One
- Coming of Age
- Commoner Hero
- Corrupt Institutions
- Courtly Intrigue
- Dark Lord
- Dragons
- Fated Mates
- Found Family
- Good vs. Evil
- Grey Morality / Morally Grey Characters
- Hidden Powers
- No Happy Endings
- Overcoming Trauma
- Prophecy
- Quest
- Regression (when the main character goes back in time)
- Redemption
- Reluctant Hero
- Secret Heir
- Time Crunch
- Transmigration (when the main character dies and is reborn/ transported to another world)
- Unreliable Narrator
- Wise Mentor
Historical Tropes
- Changing Era
- Coming of Age
- Commoner Hero
- Corrupt Institutions
- Courtly Intrigue
- Found Family
- Good vs. Evil
- Grey Morality / Morally Grey Characters
- No Happy Endings
- Overcoming Trauma
- Redemption
- Reluctant Hero
- Secret Heir
- Time Crunch
- Unreliable Narrator
Romance Tropes
- Academy
- Coming of Age
- Commoner Hero
- Corrupt Institutions
- Enemies to Lovers
- Fake Relationship
- Forbidden Love
- Forced Proximity
- Found Family
- Friends to Lovers
- Good vs. Evil
- Grey Morality / Morally Grey Characters
- Grumpy and Sunshine
- Hidden Powers
- Love Triangle
- Miscommunication
- No Happy Endings
- Overcoming Trauma
- Redemption
- Reluctant Hero
- Time Crunch
- Touch Them and Die
- Unreliable Narrator
Comfort & Content Notes
Everyone has elements that they find uncomfortable or triggering to read. There's no judgement - some people just can't read certain things. I for one really struggle with books that talk about miscarriage and child death. Depending on the severity then I may still read them, but it's one that I need to be in the right frame of mind for. So, with that in mind, I will always note down the following triggers in the books I review.
- Abuse
- Drugs / Alcohol
- Emotional
- Physical
- Sexual
- Ableism
- Animal Death or Harm
- Body Transformation (e.g. turning into a monster)
- Body Shaming
- Death
- Child
- Loved one
- Mutilation
- Drugging
- Forced Marriage
- Homophobia
- Incest
- Issues of Consent
- Kidnapping
- Miscarriage
- Oppression
- Female
- Slavery
- Pedophilia
- PTSD
- Racism
- Rape (explicit or implied)
- Self-harm
- Self-loathing
- Suicide
- Torture
If you have any more triggers that you'd like me to add, please drop me a message and I'll add the to the list for future reads.
Comments
Post a Comment