Last week I talked about things that made me want to read a book. So it only seems fair to look at the other side of the coin and see what does not make me want to read a book. As always this is prompted for Top Ten Tuesday by the lovely ladies of The Broke and the Bookish.
Like we have our preferences towards what interests us, we of course also have things that do not interest us. Now I can’t say for a 100% certain I will never pick up a book with any of these things, especially not if they are combined with the list of last week which happens more often than you think. But these things do make me push them very far away.
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- Religion. I am not religious and books that have religious things as the main focus of their book will not appeal to me. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind that there are religious characters in anyway (whether this is a real religion or a fictional one) where it is apart of their life. But not where religion is the main plot point.
- When romance takes over a huge part of the synopsis. If it already takes over a large part of the synopsis I’m bound not to like it.
- Books that are being called out on racism. I try and steer clear of most of those books like Carve the Mark and The Continent. I think it is important to listen to the (poc) voices in our community who call out these books and not be stubborn and feel like I need to read it for myself. It is enough for me to know that it hurts them so I won’t touch these. I’m still kind of eh on Nevernight because I bought it before it got called out. ._.
- Vampire love stories. I have not come across vampire books that really worked for me, let alone romance wise. And I used to really love vampires in my teens! The combo with love is just not for me. And especially the combination of vampires and teens. Nope. Done with that.
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I really honestly can’t think of much more. There are other things that don’t nessecarily appeal to me like dystopia or history but with a fantasy element I do read them now and then. And I like to keep an open mind about them. How does that work for you? Are there elements you are not normally drawn to but in combination with other things you do read?
yeah..since Twilight I can’t read vampire love stories anymore, the whole way it portrayed vampires didn’t click with me. And after it, because of the hype, everyone copied it and you couldn’t find novels that feature traditional vampires anymore.
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Oh yes. We need traditional vampires back. But I’m too scared to pick up any that promise it, haha.
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I think I probably have an exception for all my likes and dislikes 🙂 For example, as I wrote “I don’t like crime” I looked at my shelf of crime novels and then at Locke Lamora and realised I needed to get a whole lot more specific 😉
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True. I probably do too for some of them. But ah well. Exceptions to the rules can be fun. 😉
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I hadn’t heard about what was going on with Nevernight. I have the ARC, but I set it aside because of his pushing it as YA and all the nasty things he said about parents. I doubt if I will finish it. I am with you on the religious stuff. Romance, ugh. I don’t like werebeasts of any kind, and you know how I feel about humanform dragons, ha ha. I don’t care for gods and goddesses or wartime Historical Fiction. I am also with you on teen vampires. Ha! XD
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I haven’t even picked it up since. Bleh.
I don’t normally go for wartime historical fiction anymore either. I used to with childrens books but lately that has gone away.
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I 100% agree with all of these! I didn’t do a TTT this week, but they would have been on my list. I don’t appreciate being preached to. I hate when I get halfway through a book, only to realize that the author has a religious agenda. Ugh.
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Agreed. It often gets preachy. It is a shame when otherwise the story would have been great.
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Vampires and teens- yeah. Not interested lol. Too much romance too…
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Yup.
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Yeah, I’m not a fan of religious stories or vampire romances either.
Books that are called out for being racist is a good answer as well.
Romances themselves don’t usually appeal to me either, but I do occasionally find one that I like quite a bit. So I keep an open mind about this.
Here is my Top Ten Tuesday!
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I do make exceptions to contemporaries here and there but they need a bit more than just romance.
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Great list! I find religion in general an interesting topic, but do not read a lot of it–nor do I like to read books that are heavy with a particular religious slant (of any religion).It can be a turn off for me too. I don’t mind strong romance themes if I’m reading a romance novel–but if it’s a mystery, for example, I’d rather the romance stay in the background, if there is one, and not overtake the actual mystery.
Thanks for sharing! I hope you have a great rest of the week.
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Agreed on romance staying in the background when it isn’t that genre. I have that a lot with fantasy.
I hope you have a great week as well. 🙂
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I totally get the religion thing. I haven’t read very many of those stories. I have read a few Christian romances, but I never would have even realized that’s what they were if I wasn’t told. They basically just don’t have sex in them. Nice list!
My TTT.
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Haha. As long as the story is still strong that is an element that I think a lot won’t nessecarily miss.
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I agree! 1000%!
” think it is important to listen to the (poc) voices in our community who call out these books and not be stubborn and feel like I need to read it for myself. It is enough for me to know that it hurts them so I won’t touch these”
Thank you for saying it!
I actually like books about religious mythology [angels, demons, etc] but agree wholeheartedly with the rest of the list 🙂
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Yeay for agreeing!
Oh yeah I’m fine with angels and demons but just without too much religion, haha.
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I miss the good old days when vampires were just villains. Totally avoiding The Continent and Carve the Mark as well. No one has time for that nonsense.
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Me too! They are the best villains.
Agreed!
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I haven’t even heard of those books you said were called out for racism. I love your thoughts on the topic though. I almost cut my list short at first too, but then as I unpacked my original chicken scratch for my post more ideas came to me!
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Good. They really aren’t worth it.
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Problematic books with bad rep of minorities annoys me, too. I find religion deeply private and personal, and so I don’t like reading about it in novels. Romance heavy stuff can be really frustrating for me, too! Loving those Top Ten Tuesday posts of yours.
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True. And like I said, I don’t mind some of it being in there as I understand it is part of a character’s life and way of thinking, but some really do throw it well overboard.
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I definitely agree with romance taking up too much of the synopsis. I’m fine with a love plotline, but not if it crowds out the main story!
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agreed!
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