The #NotAll Book Tag

When I talk about books I tend to talk in absolutes; we love all the books in our favourite genre and prefer the book to the adaptation, but there’s an exception to every rule and in this tag I get to talk about those exceptions. I was tagged by The Orangutan Librarian. Thanks for the tag, I had a lot of fun answering the questions for this one so I hope you enjoy reading my answers just as much.

No rules, just link back to the creator; The Orangutan Librarian.

#NotAll Cover Changes
A cover change you liked

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers

The first cover makes me think of cheesy sci-fi, the kind of guilty-pleasure book that would be enjoyable but that I’m never going pick up from the shelves of a bookstore. The second cover, the one that made me pick this book up, is just too beautiful to be passed by.

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#NotAll Adaptations
An adaptation you love more than the book

The Princess Bride by William Goldman

Nine times out of ten I will read the book before seeing the film, but when I first picked up The Princess Bride I couldn’t get into the story. There was too much background information in the opening that I need to go away and watch the film to understand what the book was telling me.

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#NotAll Tropes
A trope you’ll never get tired of seeing

Enemies to Lovers

I’m not sure why I love this trope more than any other but if a book has an enemy to lover relationship chances are that’s enough for me to pick it up, and chances are it’ll end up in my favourites list as well. Case in point; Daughter of Smoke and Bone, Angelfall, and Carry On.

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#NotAll  Insta-love
You insta-loved this insta-couple

Maya and Amar
The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi

Insta-love is one of the tropes I can’t stand. The only exception is the idea of soulmates and/or reincarnation, but that has to be written really well to not get on my nerves and I think Roshani Chokshi did a really good job with Maya and Amar’s story.

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#NotAll Love Triangles
An example of a love triangle done well

Tessa, Will and Jem
The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare

Love triangles are another trope I can’t stand, and I think the relationship between Tessa, Will and Jem is the only one I didn’t hate. For me it was because Will and Jem were so close, that they weren’t competing because they loved each other as well as Tessa, that made this one bearable.

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#NotAll Parents
Bookish parents that, you know, parent!

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Throughout the book Starr has a lot of challenges to face and some very tough choices to make, but the whole time her parents are there for her. They support her no matter what, and try to protect her the best they can. Honestly I think they’re the best parents I’ve read in a YA book.

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#NotAll Villains
A villain you love

Holland
Shades of Magic by V.E. Schwab

It was only really in the third book that I came to love Holland. In the first and second books we didn’t get much development to his character to understand his actions but in the third, when we saw more of his past and everything he’d been through, my heart just broke for him.

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#NotAll Chosen Ones
A chosen one you can get behind

Simon Snow
Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

As Baz would say Simon Snow is the worst chosen one to ever be chosen, but I think that’s why he’s the best. Simon isn’t going to save the world without destroying part of it and he kind of subverts all the typical ‘chosen one’ tropes which honestly I’m getting a little tired of.

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#NotAll Hyped Books
A book that lived up to the acclaim

The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden

Before picking up The Bear and the Nightingale I’d read so many glowing reviews that part of me loved it without having read it. I had high expectations but it ended up being as amazing as everyone promised it would be, and now I can’t wait to get my hands on the second book.

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#NotAll *Insert Favourite Genre*
A book you’re not keen on from your favourite genre

Reign of Shadows by Sophie Jordan and Stealing Snow by Danielle Paige

I can’t pick just one because both of these books are terrible. I’m not going to go into either of them too much but Reign of Shadows had a weak plot and weaker characters, and Stealing Snow had a love square and a main character who made so many 180 degree turns I ended up getting dizzy.

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#NotAll *Insert Least Favourite Genre*
A book you liked from a genre you don’t often read

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

Historical fiction is never going to be a favourite genre of mine, no matter how much I love The Book Thief, but I’d heard a few good things about All the Light We Cannot See that I was curious enough to pick it up and try it out myself. It’s a heavy book but definitely worth reading.

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So what’s a cover change you thought was better than the original? Would you have picked up The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet if you’d seen the original cover or do you prefer the res-design as well? Who are the best bookish parents you’ve read, and what was the last book you picked up that lived up to the hype? Let me know.