Thursday, June 25, 2015

11 Book Trends I Am Beyond Sick Of

Hey, everyone!




Today's post is something that's been nagging at me for a little while, especially when I try and find fresh or more unique reads. I keep slapping into plot lines that are being beat to death, so much so that I feel I've read every book I'm seeing. I don't know why they are so popular right now, but I am fed up with them! I'm sure y'all can relate, and feel free to share you trend peeves in the comments!


In no particular order:


11. "I'm such a man."
Or, the douche-y manwhore.

I'm beyond tired with the hero being a bit of an asshole who will stick it into anything that walks by him in a short skirt. Ew. What is it about these men that is attractive?






10. "It's not you, it's me."
Or, I won't have sex with you for some otherworldly reason, and I don't care what you have to say about it. 

I've had to stay away from a lot of YA paranormal for this very reason. Hero (because it's always the hero who's the paranormal, isn't it?) constantly claims to want Heroine, but won't "go all the way" with her due to some reason relating to his ethereal being. Not giving her a choice in the matter, of course. He will hold firm (haha...hold firm. Get it? I kill me!) in his choice until the end or nearly so in the series, when suddenly his issues are unwarranted. 







9. "Hey, I just met you, and this is crazy...."
Or, I am in love with you. Truly, madly, deeply. Who cares that I literally just laid my eyes upon you for the first time? We're meant to be, I just know it!

Insta-love: the ultimate form of lazy writing. Holy shit on a shit stick, this one gives me an eye twitch. Trying to pass it off as something to do with just being a paranormal being doesn't make it better, either! 
I don't believe in an insta-love romance. I just don't. You have no build up, no chemistry, no connection, nothing but stalker-like obsession, and you expect me to ship this?




8. "I'm really not that special. Seriously, guys, stoooooop."
Or, I'm so humble, I'm not humble.

This one is becoming frightfully common in the YA world, and it's another that just grates on me. We have this girl who either won't see how "special" she is, or keeps down playing it, to the extent that she counters every compliment or action with a dismissal. Perhaps I'm just prideful and good at what I do, but when someone gives me a compliment on my work, I accept it, especially when I know it's genuine. There is nothing wrong with being good at something and being proud of it. You don't need to be a boastful ass, but constantly putting yourself down and fishing for compliments that you can then deflect is just unattractive. And annoying.




7. "My issues have issues, and don't you forget it!"
Or, the person who will not shut up about how screwed up they are. No one else could ever have a problem as great as theirs. Ever. Don't you dare even suggestion such a thing.

This is usually the male love interest, but it can be the female protagonist on occasion. There is no one more messed up than them, and anyone else's problems are non-exsistant compared to theirs. This person lives to talk about just how fucked up they are. May or may not be accompanied by the standard "I'm not good for you" line.




6. "I'm fifty shades of fu- oh wait, wrong book."
Or, the billionaire Dominant.

Just because 50 Shades is absurdly successful doesn't mean you have to copy E. L. James. Please stop. 50 Shades was bad enough without adding to the melee. 





5. "What's a butt plug?"
Or, the completely naive virgin who let's her inner hussy out seconds after popping that cherry.

This is mainly a 50 Shades issue, but I've seen it popping up more and more lately, especially with Kindle books. The girl who is so pure and virginal she's never even gotten herself off is suddenly willing and capable of being a submissive in a BDSM relationship and deep throating a cock just days after having sex for the first time. Right. I can't brush past the tip of my tongue without gagging, and I know what a butt plug is. Give me a break, Ana. 





4. "I failed third grade English, but damn right I can write a book."
Or, you need to proofread!

I love self published and indie writers. I really, really do. They're often diamonds in the rough, with incredible ideas and an engrossing story. However...reread what you've written. I'm forgiving of typos and various other issues, but when you manage to miss the basics (your/you're, too/two/to, they're/there/their, ect) it irks me. Deeply, deeply irks me.




3. "My family is awful!!! No one understands me and I have so much responsibly."
Or, the parents who don't care or the child who cares for the adult.

From Bella to Katniss, this is the thing to have in a YA book as of late. Yes, shitty parents happen. However, I'd like to read about an involved family for once!






2. "You've crushed all my dreams."
Or, not matching up the pair who were perfect for each other in favor of other people I can't stand.

I can't be the only one who will be rooting so hard for a certain pairing, only to get my heart brutalized when the writer decides to match them off with other people. It's always someone who just doesn't do it for me with the other person, and annoys me almost as much as the next trend I'll talk about. 
I remember being around 9 years old or so and reading Little Women, and being furious when Teddy wound up with Amy instead of Jo. So furious I could barely finish the book. Just a few years ago it happened when I read the Hunger Games, and Katniss picked Peeta over Gale. I may or may not have tossed my book across the room after reading that.




1. "I love you...and them, too."
Or, that fucking love triangle.

Just. Stop. It. 




I feel worlds better for getting that off my chest, haha! What are some trends you're sick of reading about?


- The Bibliophile Babe 

7 comments:

  1. AWESOME post. I agree with so many of these. Love triangles, the uninvolved parents, always a virgin, and manwhore ones are definitely my biggest peeves. I feel like a lot of books are all the same and it's becoming increasingly difficult to find original stories that don't have me rolling my eyes. I think that's one of the reasons I've become tired of NA and erotica lately, and have been finding myself leaning towards woman's contemporary and suspense. I'm just sick of the same old cliches. Great post!!

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  2. LOVE TRIANGLES!!!! Noooooooooo. Years ago when they weren't quite as common I could deal with them, but now if a synopsis even hints at there being two guys interested in the heroine, I can't bring myself to pick it up. The virgin-turned-sex goddess drives me crazy as well. Let's aim for a tiny bit of realism here, if we could:)

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  3. YES! To all of that.. (....cough... cough... Bella....cough...) UGH. How do we get writers to knock that shit off?

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  4. Ha ha! Yes yes to your list. I especailly liked the whole butt plug dialogue! Thanks for entertaining me.

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  5. Crappy families are so annoying. I don't like insta-love or manwhores either. Great post here! :)

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  6. I'm totally with you on being sick of the trends of insta-love and love triangles. I can usually tell from the synopsis if the book will have either of these, and then stay away unless I see rave reviews from bloggers I trust. Even then, they have to work pretty hard to convince me to give these books a try.

    I'd also like to see more books with involved families. It's usually only in contemporaries where families are prominent and then, half of the time, the relationship dynamics are not great.

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  7. Ever since I started blogging and reading more than I ever had before, there have been a lot of annoying similarities in a lot of books. A lot of them you listed. Like one book becomes really popular (Twilight, Hunger Games, Fifty Shades) ...and in come the copy cats. PUKE!! I know publishers want to sell books, but I just want originality, not the same ideas over and over again. And Amy was a bitch... no way she should have wound up with Teddy!

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