#readers of tumblr
fuck literary gatekeeping, read whatever you want.
Working on a big drawing, shelves full of made up books.
My imagination won’t stretch to fill all of these, so please comment with some titles I can add in!
It’s a surprise chapter kind of day! I snuck in a new post for The Day You Walked Into My Life on Wattpad things are taking a dramatic turn for our Olivia and Lucas. What’ll happen next?
wattpad.com/936828961-the-day-you-walked-into-my-life-what-do-you-know
I haven’t posted here in a while! I hope you are all doing well ❤️❤️
I have been posting on Wattpad again, and I now have 2 stories live now:
The Day You Walked Into My Life which is a story about love, self-growth, betrayal.
Life Support is an LGBTQ+ love story about two young men who are drawn together over grief and life’s struggles (this story contains content that might be triggering/uncomfortable for some readers).
If you would like to check either out, their links are provided below! ❤️
Chapter 8 of The Day You Walked Into My Life is now available on Wattpad!
If you are looking for a romantic story that will tug on your heart strings and take you away from the craziness of the world, this might be the story for you. Take a walk in Olivia’s shoes as she wades into the stormy waters of love, betrayal, and heartbreak.
Check it out now: wattpad.com/story/232207083-the-day-you-walked-into-my-life
If you love Korean Dramas, and love reading fanfiction, this might just be the story for you! (though this is not fanfiction per say, it is definitely inspired by all Korean Dramas I’ve watched).
If you want to read this story, follow this link: The Kingdom in the Closet
______________
Summary: You may have never heard of the Kingdom of Tangna, which is said to been created by magic. Tangna is safe haven for its people, who feared the dark threat that was growing in the West. With one last attempt to protect his people, Emperor Yong-Sun had a sorcerer place the kingdom in a place no one would ever think to look: a simple, wooden closet.
The emperor was killed, but his family and people survived, living in safety in the closet. They had all they needed to build a life for themselves, and soon they started to expand and grow. The sorcerer’s magic created a habitable world within the closet, and for centuries it lay hidden, the closet sealed away in the ruins of the old kingdom, eternally preserved.
In 2020, for Crown Prince Chin Kang-Dae, there is no life beyond the doors that borders his kingdom. Technology has developed, and the kingdom of Tangna continues to live in peaceful ignorance of the truth behind its creation. The history has become nothing more than legends. Until, one day before his coronation, Kang-Dae is visited by a weathered, sorcerer. She tells the prince that the darkness is coming, and Tangna will be destroyed unless Kang-Dae leaves the closet to find a way to stop it. When Kang-Dae refuses, she casts a spell on him, and, when he awakes, he finds he’s not in the Kingdom of Tangna anymore, but in a country known as Korea.
Park Mi-Cha is a charismatic, lazy girl who is used to coasting through life on her charms and wits. Now, failing out university, still living at home with no idea of what to do with her life, Mi-Cha is facing constant scrutiny from her parents and friends who are all starting to build families and lives of their own. Mi-Cha’s life is flipped upside down when she is rescued by the mysterious, but strange Kang-Dae, who insists she’s going to help save his kingdom. But, evil follows Kang-Dae, and Mi-Cha soon finds herself facing two wars she isn’t prepared for: the war to save a kingdom, and the war for her heart.
A book in its natural habitat… sort of
ALT
Warning: This is a rant!
I’m reading this romance book and it’s bad. Granted, I’m only 16% into the book, but I’m truly hating it. The book is bad in that hard to explain way, where the writing is bad. It’s not the grammar or editing, but just the writing. I’m not going to say the name of the book, but here’s a screenshot of 1 page of it from my iPhone kindle. But first context.
The main character is 18 and she dreams of independence and wants to go to college with dreams of a Ph.D. But when she’s sold off by her father into an arranged marriage, she just accepts it. Her father is a U.S. senator (the most believable part of the whole situation) and he’s marrying her off to a rich family so that family can back his next campaign. Her new fiancé is only 26, and he’s handsome, so that’s fine. Her father could have married her off to an old bad of dirt, but he didn’t. She met her fiancé at her 18th birthday party, he was her birthday present (no joke). The scene below happens 3 months later, at their second meeting — their wedding day.
Now, I often find romance novels to be problematic because of all the genres out there, romance seems to be one where many bad writers make their names. The main character is compelling and her story has a lot of potential, but I have to keep rolling my eyes to the back of my head because of how badly this writer keeps butchering the story and characters. It’s bad.
I’ve read really well done books about dominant men and the women who love them. Books where the idea of, “you married him and so he owns your body now,” runs rampant. I’ve accepted a lot of sketchy writing from authors in the name of a good and well told story, but this one is just so bad. My whole mantra while reading this has been, “she’s only 18, she probably doesn’t know any better.” ♀️
It seems to me that this author only knew what they wanted these characters to do, not how to actually write them doing it. So, things are just thrown at the reader and we’re expected to process it and it’s problematic implications and move on. The section that I highlighted above, that statement is incredibly sexist and demeaning to women, but it is said in the book with no modifiers and no push back. How can someone who just wants to break free from her father and go college just unquestionably accept that ridiculous advice. And even worst, this is the 1st book in a trilogy and I, for the life of me, don’t know how that is possible.
This is where I’m always unsure what to do next with these types of books. Do I keep reading in hopes that it gets better? Or do I just stop the torture, but never know what happened to these characters? This is the dilemma that these types of books place readers in. At it’s the dilemma they place me in, and it really sucks.
As a black woman, I don’t often find brilliant works of fiction with black protagonists. They are especially rare in the romance novel genre. But every once in a while, I’ll find an amazing work that takes my breath away. Queen Move is one of those books. I love Kennedy Ryan because her characters are amazing and her romances are epic. Queen Move was brilliant and I enjoyed EVERY SECOND of reading it!! Please check this one out!!
Reading Is Magical!!
Up in the Air Series
By:R.K Lilley
I read these books years ago and they are so good. I keep going back to them and I reread them every year or so. I think that they’re a really great representation of what a BDSM relationship can look like. They are lovely books and very well written.
When I finally got around to reading Fifty Shades of Grey books, I was expecting them to be like the Up In the Air series. However, they were not anywhere near as good. If you’re in the mood for some kinky romance, check this series out. These books are worth the read.
All The King’s Men Series by Kennedy Ryan
This is such a great romance duet. The characters are flawed, smart, and enthralling. I could not put the books down. I kept going back to them for weeks after I had finished reading them. These are truly worth the read. Check them out and ENJOY!!!
A shining fours stars out of five, and another winner from my wonderful local library.
Low key, honest, and beautifully formed, Julia Blackburn’s writng walked me through a strange prehistoric landscape collecting fragments of bone, flint and revelation. A walking meditation on lost lands, fossilised footprints and the things we leave behind. As I turned the pages I ceased to hear the storm outside. Find a quiet spot and read this fascinating book.
My day off will consist of books, dogs and blue skies. Hope your Friday is as equally wonderful.
More Library goodness, and three more books off my reading wish list. I’ve read a lot of Alice Hoffman, my favourites being Here On Earth, Second Nature and The Probable Future, and so I have high expectations of this novel.
I’m also a huge fan of the magnificent storytelling magic of Louise Erdrich, although I wasn’t expecting to see her sitting on the shelves of my little, local library - this, surely, is more evidence of her far-reaching powers.
And lovely Alys Fowler; I love her style, her gardening tips and her out of control hair, as well as her little dog, and, as if that were not enough, I have the feeling that she is about to make me fall in love with the canals of Birmingham. A definite plot twist. What a stack of beauties.
I Shall Do Thee Mischief in the Dark Wood….feeling so Fae right now.
Re-reading an old favourite - Snow White, Blood Red by Elen Datlow and Terri Windling.
“Metaphor, perhaps, is the tame, the civilised, version of shamanic shapeshifting, word-magic, the recognition of stories as toothed messengers from the wilds. What if we turned the old nursery rhymes and fairytales we all know into feral creatures once again, set them loose in new lands to root through the acorn fall of oak trees? What else is there to do, if we want to keep any of the wildness of the world, and of ourselves?“
bySylvia Linsteadt.
Post link
Yes, I’m reading out by the standing stone and the sky has darkened. Either it’s the end of the world or I’m going to get wet. I love reading outside but it’s a risky business. Btw, I am loving this book - The Long Weekend by Adrian Tinniswood: a fab research resource charting the slow decline of the beautiful English country house and her rather un-beautiful masters.
Post link
May 23rd, 2022
After a long Tumblr hiatus, lots of papers and math tests, a trip, and a graduation, I’m back online. I’ve been taking it easy, trying to catch up on household chores, Animal Crossing, and reading.
August 21st, 2021
I am now back to school and busier than ever, which means I am too tired to read most evenings, even when I can find a few minutes to spare. So, the later half of my weekends shall be spent reading my books! I am still making my way through the Raven Cycle, but after today’s reading session, I have made a ton of progress.
I hope everyone has a safe and happy back-to-school season, wherever you are!
August 5th, 2021
Today I am trying to finish The Four Winds and make some more progress in my other current reads. I bought the whole paperback series of the Raven Cycle at the bookstore yesterday, so I am planning on starting those again soon. Happy reading, everyone!
