#look at you Colleen Hoover & whatever you thought you were doing in It Ends With Us

[queer-ragnelle]

If nothing else getting treated poorly makes for writing fuel

[officialaemondtargaryen]

A Fine Line [part 3]

Summary: You've been with Aegon for a little over four years and the relationship just isn't the same. His brother isn't helping the situation, either. This is a Modern Day AU!

Pairing: Aegon x Reader / Aemond x Reader

Word Count: 4.0k

Author’s Note: Sorry it was late! I don't know if my M,W,F schedule is going to work. I just want to say thank you all! I really hope you like this one and please, I would love to hear your thoughts & predictions! I basically screech like a pterodactyl whenever you guys leave comments! Tag list is open!

Warnings for the entire series: severe angst, cheating, unprotected sex, jealousy, lying, possessiveness, stalking, manipulation, and language, alcohol use, recreational drug use.

Masterlist & Playlist

The light from the early, Saturday morning sun filtered into your bedroom through half-opened blinds, illuminating tiny specks of dust in the air. It was warm with Aegon pressed against your back; his soft breaths fanning over your shoulder. You stirred softly, turning so that you were facing him, doing your absolute best to not disturb him so that he could continue to sleep in.

It broke your heart to look at him now, knowing that your relationship was hanging by a thread. Wondering how you got here, how you arrived at the platform of whatever these feelings were that you felt for him. Caught between the memories of what you had once before, and feeling as if you were in this bed alone, despite the fact that he was laying right next to you.

You moved, swinging your feet over the side of the bed as you stood up with a sigh. Aegon groaned, his arms reaching for you before turning back over on his stomach and going right back to sleep. His wavy, golden hair splayed out on the pillows as he shifted deeper into them. The duvet pulled down, exposing his freckled shoulders. It took everything in you not to reach out and touch him.

Even your fingers balled into a fist, nails digging into your palm to keep yourself from it. Why? You'd wind up disappointed, feeling unwanted, and he'd be annoyed that you woke him.

The thought made you want to cry.

It was around noon when he finally emerged from the bedroom. You had lost track of how long you'd been sitting at the kitchen table; a bagel untouched on the plate in front of you. You jumped slightly at the feeling of his hand on the back of your neck, just briefly touching you as he made his way to the coffee maker. It was a fleeting moment, his fingertips leaving you just as quickly as they came.

He was in a white t-shirt and a pair of boxers. Despite his disheveled appearance, he looked close to angelic- even with the dark circles under his clouded, blue eyes. You could hear him inhale and exhale heavily with his first sip of coffee; shoulders rising and falling with his breath.

When did it become this way? This silence?

You used to look forward to Saturday mornings; knowing that you had two full days with him to yourself. You'd spend every weekend tangled on the couch or in the bed, not getting up unless you absolutely needed to. Weekends in the summer were always fun, too. He'd always find something for the two of you to do; getting high at the beach, spending your days at Coney eating corndogs and funnel cake until you wanted to throw up or throw yourselves right off the end of the pier. You missed his ice cream cone kisses and the way he would lay his head in your lap as you would read whatever novel you had brought with you that day.

"Colleen Hoover," you whispered to yourself as you absentmindedly stirred your lukewarm coffee; the last book you remember reading on a beach towel under the hot, July sun.

"What was that?" Aegon asked, turning to face you.

You were broken out of your trance and looked up at him. "What?"

"I think you went somewhere," a goofy smile replaced his signature pout. When you didn't say anything, his smile faltered. "Did you sleep okay?"

"Mm," you hummed and took a sip of your coffee before making a face. It was definitely lukewarm- cold, even. "So, awards ceremony tonight, huh?"

Aegon rolled his eyes, "If I could just not, I would not."

You stood up and dumped your cold coffee down the drain and sat your cup in the sink. "But babe," you sighed softly and reached for him, wrapping your arms around his shoulders. "Look at everything you've accomplished, what you've become! You've worked so hard!"

His eyes were glued to the floor. "You're right," his lips turned up into a smile as he looked up at you through fair lashes. His hands caressed the skin on the back of your arms. "I've worked really hard, and soon it will all pay off and we'll buy a house and get a dog." His forehead pressed against yours as he sighed. His eyes fluttered shut. "A golden retriever, we'll name him Sunny."

"Sunny sounds like he's a really good boy," you whispered and moved to place a kiss on his lips.

"The best," his body became less tense.

You smiled as you stood like that for a moment, just swaying back and forth as he held you so close that you could feel his heartbeat. He was so warm in your arms that you felt like you were holding onto a piece of the sun. You turned your head to place a kiss on the side of his neck, lips brushing the soft skin under his ear, wanting nothing but to tell him that you loved him, that you missed him, that you wanted things to go back to the way they were. But your eyes fluttered open as you heard his phone vibrate on the counter, the moment instantly shattering to bring you back to the reality of your mediocre life. Aegon tensed, his head falling to your shoulder as he groaned in annoyance.

"And so it begins," he mumbled. He let the phone ring, knowing that Otto would call back immediately after it went to voicemail.

Before he could leave the kitchen, you stopped him.

"Hey, would you mind if I invited Aemond to go bowling with us tonight?" You asked, gnawing on the inside of your cheek.

"Not at all," he shrugged. "It'd probably be good for him to get out. Let me see what this fucker wants and then I'll text you his number."

Aegon left shortly after, having been summoned to some "pre-ceremony conference" just to finalize the details of the evening. He had sent over Aemond's contact information before he left, promising that he would see you later tonight. Suddenly you found yourself alone, the silence sitting with you like a friend that you'd run out of things to talk about with.

You stared at your phone for what felt like hours, thumbs hovering over the keyboard; not sure why 'hey, did you really want to go bowling' was such a hard thing to say, but you typed it and deleted it about one hundred times. The final time you typed the words, you quickly pressed the tiny, blue arrow, sending the message into the void before setting your phone face down on the table and standing up.

Before you had even turned to walk out of the kitchen and towards your bedroom, you heard a ding! The butterflies in your stomach, which shouldn't have been there, fluttered mercilessly almost making you nauseous. You inhaled at the sight of the words on the screen, your eyes scanning them over and over again: "Of course, I'll see you there." What was most likely an unambiguous winking emoji at the end of that sentence- because in your experience, men didn't know what emojis even were- was staring back at you with a strange tension that caused a knot to form in your throat.

It was wrong.

It was all so, so wrong.

You placed your phone back down on the kitchen table and shook your head; fighting an internal battle with the guilt and the excitement that you felt. Neither one was winning, but both were slowly tearing you in half.

The thought of cancelling crossed your mind as you showered, but only because you found yourself fantasizing about every possible scenario that would lead to this night ending with you on your back in Aemond's bed. You pictured a navy blue duvet and cold, cotton sheets; a wooden headboard tapping against dark colored walls. Your legs clenched together at the thought of his weight pressing down on you.

As you continued to get ready, the images were becoming ingrained on the back of your eyelids. Every time you closed your eyes small details would change; positions, locations, where his mouth was on your body, the lighting of the room, the scent of his cologne, if his hair was up or down. You had tried to reason with yourself, that this was a completely normal feeling, that you just hadn't been laid in a while.

It didn't make a difference.

You half-hoped that he wouldn't follow through with his plans to meet you at the bowling alley. However, when you turned the corner on to 9th Avenue, you noticed his lithe figure leaning against the outside of the building. You stopped for a few seconds, watching him as he stood there; his warm breath swirling in the frigid, January air as he checked his phone.

Seconds later you felt a vibration in your pocket: "I'm here."

"I have to ask, what is your haircare routine because I've yet to see you have a bad hair day." You texted back.

He looked up and around until his gaze caught you, a small smile tugged at his lips as he pushed himself off of the side of the building. You joined him at his side, your neck craned to see his face.

"It is surprisingly simple, but if I told you then I'd have to kill you," he said so smoothly he could have rehearsed it. "And I like you," he added as he opened the door into the bowling alley and gestured for you to go inside. "So, I'd rather not say."

You smirked at his words, eyes rolling slightly. "If you ever change your mind, here's my business card-" of course you had one with you. "My readers would love to know."

He chuckled at that, "I absolutely will," and tucked the card in his coat pocket. "So who's birthday is it?"

"My coworker, Jace," you replied as you scoured the lanes for Baela and Jace. "He's probably a few years younger than you, writes really thoughtful obituaries." You spotted Baela and waved. "Baela is here, too. You met her last night."

You weren't sure why you felt nervous. Aemond certainly didn't seem to be. He was so calm and collected, and cool, as if it was effortless to him; as if he didn't command every eye to look at him the moment he entered a room. The look on Baela's face couldn't have been further from calm, collected, and cool. Her white curls fell over furrowed brows and her lips were pushed to the side.

Jace just looked happy to be there.

"Hey guys," you greeted as you stepped down to the table they were sitting at. "Happy birthday, Jace!" You moved to give him a quick hug. "Jace this is Aegon's brother, Aemond. Aemond, this is Jace. Aegon couldn't make it, some work thing."

"Lucky me," Aemond smirked as he shook Jace's hand. "It's nice to meet you." He then turned his attention to Baela. "Lovely to see you again, Baela."

Despite her rigid expression earlier, you did see her cheeks turn just a shade darker as he kissed her knuckles. You smiled to yourself.

"You guys should go get shoes," Jace mentioned. "Unless you're afraid to lose."

Aemond's eye squinted as he looked at Jace and laughed, "In a hurry to get shown up on your birthday?"

"Go get the shoes!" You groaned at him, pushing him towards the rental counter. "I'm a size __." Your eyes followed Aemond as he disappeared through the crowd before you turned your attention back to Baela. "What?"

Her arms were crossed over her chest. "I'm just concerned," she says softly. "You've been here all of five minutes and I haven't seen you this happy in two years? I just don't want you to do something that you'll regret."

Your shoulders slump and you rolled your eyes dramatically. "Baela, I'm just-" you stopped when you saw Aemond making his way back over to the table. "Being nice! Two people can be just friends."

She gave you a look but dropped the subject as Aemond dropped your bowling shoes in front of your feet. Someone ordered a round of shots, and then a second round, and a third. It was starting to get warm, the music was loud, and you felt good. Aemond was surprisingly extroverted, despite the enigmatic aura he typically projected. He seemed so nonchalant, like he belonged there, like he was good at it.

The game was obviously competitive, with Jace and Aemond doing their best to one-up each other with every strike. They carried most of the score, while you and Baela joked around, not really caring. You stepped up to the line, getting ready to throw the swirly purple and teal ball down the lane.

"Wait, wait, wait!" You heard behind you. A flurry of pale blonde hair bounced towards your side. "I've watched you throw three straight gutter balls, please, allow me?"

"What?" You gasped. "I know we're behind, but I'm not going to cheat and let you take my shot for me!"

Aemond held a hand to his chest, "The fact that you would even insinuate that I'd allow you to cheat!" He scoffed. "Please, just-"

He turned you back to face the pins, the contact of his hands on your shoulders made you disoriented. You tried to breathe, but it was so warm in there. There was a slight rosy hue to his otherwise pale cheeks as he towered over you. His hands lingered still on your shoulders. You tried not to pay attention to the way his fingers pressed into your skin as your blouse shifted beneath his grip.

"Put your feet here," he instructed and pointed to where you should stand with his toe. One hand dropped to the small of your back, you swallowed thick. "Now," his lips were dangerously close to your ear. "Line your ball up with that pin and when you step up to throw, bring this leg back."

You felt the inside of your body clenching as his hands dropped to your waist. Your cheeks flushed as the hair on the back of your neck stood straight.

Following his instruction, you took a few steps up to the pine and released your ball. Within seconds it curved to the left, falling straight into the gutter once more. You turned to look at him with a disappointed frown. His lips couldn't help but begin to turn upwards at your failure.

“I thought you said you were good at this?” You say to Aemond, giving him a playful shove. "We're going to lose!"

"And you'd blame me?" He asked with a smile.

"You instructed me right into a gutter ball!" You threw your hands up.

"My instruction was flawless, as always," you could hear the double entendre in his voice. "Not my fault you couldn't focus."

"I beg to differ," you quipped under your breath, knowing that he was close enough to hear you.

On his next turn, Jace bowled a strike to win the game. The scores weren't even close, but it didn't matter. You'd had more fun tonight than you'd had in- well, since you could remember. For a moment, you'd wished Aegon had been here, but you shut the door on that thought as you checked your phone to see that he hadn't texted you- not even to check in- since he left the apartment earlier.

Your eyes connected with Aemond as you slipped your phone back into your pocket and you smiled softly. You hardly knew him, but you could tell he knew; Aegon was his brother, after all.

"Another game?" Jace asked.

"I don't think I have another game in me," you chuckled. "My shoulder is killing me after the three games we just played."

"The three games you lost, you mean?" Jace countered.

"Hey, I know it's your birthday, but I will still kick your ass!" You laughed as you slipped out of your bowling shoes.

"We'll have a rematch, soon." Aemond interjected, holding his hand out to Jace. "Good match."

"Girls versus guys next time, maybe?" Jace laughed and shook Aemond's hand.

"That wouldn't be fair," Aemond mentioned with a cocky smirk.

"I wouldn't underestimate us," Baela added as she slung her arm over your shoulder and began walking with you towards the counter to drop off your shoes.

The midnight air was numbing as you stepped out of the comforting warmth of the bowling alley. You were almost instantly sobered, feeling tiny flecks of snow fall to your face. The sidewalks were still buzzing and the traffic on 9th Avenue was still busy as car horns sounded in the distance; a reminder that you lived in a 24 hour city.

"Anyone want to go grab a slice of pizza?" You asked. One, because you needed something to soak up the alcohol in your stomach. And two, because you knew that once Jace and Baela left, you'd be alone with Aemond.

Baela hugged you tightly before holding you at arms length, she mentioned something about going to church with her parents tomorrow morning and promised to see you bright-and-early Monday morning. Jace was already flushed from having a few, too many drinks, and Baela urged that he needed to get home.

You weren't necessarily disappointed, just anxious.

"Thanks for coming," Jace smiled warmly as he wrapped his arm around your shoulder in a side hug. He extended his fist out to Aemond, "it was good to meet you, man."

"Likewise, have a good night." His voice was soft through a tight-lipped smile.

You watched as Baela and Jace turned the corner, before turning your attention to Aemond. The headlights of passing by taxi cars shined in his crystalline eye, making him look as if he were unreal; a marble statue dressed in all back with his hands shoved into his pockets. You weren't sure what to say to him, if you should stay or go.

"Can I walk you to the train?" He asked and you exhaled with a smile.

"I'd like that," you replied.

The closest subway platform was two blocks down on 42nd. You did your best to keep up with his long strides, but it proved to be difficult. He had to stop a few times, turning to you with a smile while he waited for you to catch up. You mostly talked about work to keep the conversation going. The one thing you had noticed about Aemond was that he was a good listener, whether he actually cared about anything you were saying or not, he at least seemed to be interested.

He talked about himself, too, which you enjoyed. He talked about all of the places he had travelled to last year and how happy he was to be back home. He gushed about being able to see his family again, specifically his mother and his sister.

You'd never once heard Aegon speak about his family in such a way.

"Can I ask you something?" You said after the conversation had faded out. Your train was running late, but Aemond had been willing to wait with you so that you weren't alone.

"I can't guarantee I'll have an answer, but go for it."

"Why didn't you tell Aegon that we had met in the grocery store?"

He looked at you, his eye narrowed. "Honestly, it's just easier not to say anything sometimes." He spoke, a pensive expression across his pointed features. "Why didn't you?"

You dropped you gaze to the concrete floor. "Because it's just easier not to say anything, sometimes." You repeated his own words, knowing exactly what he meant.

"Hm," he hummed as he leaned up against a brick column. "You know," he said after a few moments of silence. You looked back up at him. "This can't happen." He motioned to the space between the two of you.

"What? Never!" You replied quickly. "I'm appalled that you're even assuming."

"I'm just making sure we're on the same page," he held his hands up defensively.

"We are," you agreed.

"We are?" He asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"Yes, we're friends," you replied sternly. "That's all it can be."

"Good," he stuck his hand out for you to shake on it.

You shook his hand with a firm grip, but he turned your hand over in his, placing a gentle kiss to your knuckles. It made your heart flutter every time. The announcement that your train was arriving played on the overhead speakers.

"Thank you, Y/N. For tonight." His blue eye was piercing through you. "That was the most fun I've had in a while."

They way he said your name and the feeling of your hand in his made you wish he'd just take you home with him; to that navy blue duvet you were picturing earlier. But that was just a fantasy that lived in your mind only, and would never- could never come to fruition. He was right, Baela was right, this couldn't happen.

"You're welcome, I'm glad that you had a good time." You said softly, doing your best to hide your disappointment that the night was ending. "Thank you for coming with me."

As the train pulled up to the platform, you wished that he would pull you into him. The crisp air was thick with tension, and even though you had just agreed to the terms of this- you weren't even sure if you could call it a relationship- friendship, a look lingered in Aemond's eye that told you he didn't mean any of it.

"Friends," you repeated, reminding yourself and him of the deal that you had just made.

He nodded, "Friends."

"I hope you have a good night, Aemond." You pulled your hand from his slowly until it dropped to your side. The doors to the train opened and you found yourself a spot next to the window, forcing yourself not to look back.

Aegon isn't home when you step into your apartment. It's almost too dark and cold, and quiet, and you feel like you shouldn't even be there. You don't even care to hang up your bag and coat, you simply toss them over the arm of the couch. You've got a slight headache and you're starving, and all that you can think about is something you shouldn't be thinking about.

Your phone vibrated as you headed into the kitchen.

Aemond.

"Thanks again, I hope you made it home safe."

You found your thumbs typing a reply before you could even think if it was a good idea or not, "Anytime! I just walked through the door. We should have definitely gotten pizza, but I guess leftover lasagna will work."

Not even bothering to heat up your leftovers, you make your way back into the living room with a Tupperware of lasagna from last night and a fork. You click on the television, catching up on the news before flipping it over to one of your favorite shows.

"You've beaten me, I've got cereal."

You laughed and typed, "That kind of suits you."

Over the next two hours you had squeezed in three new episodes of your show and discussed everything from food, to movies, to philosophy with Aemond. He'd leave you the occasional voice note when he didn't feel like typing a reply, and you'd try not to think about how good his voice sounded at this ungodly hour. You'd try not to think of him sitting back, half-lidded on the couch, in a very comfortable sweater and a pair of joggers with a smile on his face because he was texting you.

It was almost 3:00 AM when you finally got a text from Aegon.

"Don't feel like you need to wait up for me. I love you."

Tagged: @tssf-imagines @gothicwidowsworld @itsabby15 @possiblyafangirl @namelesslosers@toodlesxcuddles @hiraethrhapsody @heavenly1927 @chainsawsangel @hanula18

[animezinglife]

Sending this here because I didn't want to clutter that post.

I won't get mad at you for having an opinion different than mine 😂 don't worry.

I guess your opinion of Hazelwood is like mine with Colleen Hoover. She's just not for me.

Also my main issue with SJM is that she seems to have no idea where Acotar is going anymore. She takes too long between books and then forgets the original thought she'd had. She keeps changing her mind and retconning things.

Also if you have any romance book recs , I'd love to take a look.

I'm glad, and likewise! I've gotten a lot better over time in terms of pickiness towards books, and I fully acknowledge that there are two different types of "good" books: books that someone loves and enjoys, and books that are genuinely well-written. Ideally, those overlap, but not always.

I think my issue is more with the idea that seems to be prevalent that SJM somehow "is" fantasy, or that her books are at all an accurate representation of the genre when that simply isn't true. There's room in the genre for different types, but I personally can't look at someone who's only ever read SJM and call them a fantasy reader--they aren't. They're a Sarah J. Maas reader.

I had to switch to audiobooks to overlook her grammar and punctuation errors. Again, that's something an editor should be helping with, and I can't understand why better quality work isn't being done. All writers make errors--none are perfect. Yet there isn't an excuse for the volume of them in her books given the resources at her disposal and investment publishing companies have made in them.

The lack of consistency also frustrates me. I don't understand why she "undoes" so much without providing appropriate context or reason, and for me, that even comes down to the fundamentals of the story. This could be helped somewhat with adequate worldbuilding, yet when it comes down to it, even the Night Court could at best be described as, "Whatever Feyre and Rhys want it to be." Or, it's culturally/politically whatever the plot needs it to be at that specific moment.

ACOWAR felt like the end of the series to me, so I think you bring up a good point with her not knowing where to take the story anymore. Maybe she does, and maybe she doesn't. There's always been a lot of aimless writing throughout the series, and each book could easily be cut down about two hundred pages without losing any substance or necessary detail.

There's a lot of room for complexity and intrigue she simply never digs into.

What are the consequences for the bargains being made (besides the short-sighted death pact)?

What do the people of Night truly think about a twenty-one-year-old human girl who became High Fae yesterday being made their High Lady?

What is the depth of the impact of Feyre's and Tamlin's actions to the survivors in Spring? Their lives were uprooted because their High Lord made stupid decisions and their lives were worsened because of a messy breakup.

SJM does deliver on the romance between Feyre and Rhys. I wasn't as sold on Nesta and Cassian (even if I love Cass). I'm curious to see what she will do with either Elain and Lucien or Elain and Azriel (or Azriel and Gwyn).

Aside from the first book (which, let be real, was completely unnecessary given the direction things took), the romances aren't at all my issue with her writing. The worldbuilding has always been an issue: there's no grounding, technology makes no sense, and fashion seems completely random in Night.

The retconning is inexcusable. It's very clear to me that regardless of what she says, she had very different plans for Tamlin at the start of the series. I always thought he and Feyre had no chemistry and that the whole thing felt forced, but she gave no such indication of awareness in the book. Feyre, in my opinion, immediately had more chemistry with Rhys, and while I think it was obvious something was inevitably going to happen between them, SJM took the easiest routes possible for herself (story be damned) and made Tamlin a mindless villain.

Did I ever like Tamlin? No.

Did I think he and Feyre needed to be together at any point? Definitely not.

Do I think he deserved to be written better and for his character to be given more nuance after spending an entire book with him? Absolutely.

I'm worried about what she'll do with Lucien, Elain, and the Autumn Court. Lucien has been my favorite from the beginning--I joked early on about him being exhausted from carrying all of Prythian and the entire first book on his back. Elain has tremendous potential in her own right, and so does the Autumn Court.

I would actually rather see SJM slow down in her writing. I think the speed shows when the story and characterization becomes messy and careless.

Recommendations

It depends on the type of romance you'd want. Carissa Broadbent is the complete opposite and not only digs into multifaceted characters, complex political systems, and intricate psychology, but she pretty much never comes up for breath. Each book in every series she writes gets better as it goes along. My favorite is her Crowns of Nyaxia series, but The War of Lost Hearts (an earlier series of hers) certainly checks the high fantasy worldbuilding boxes on a entirely different level. Every point that I feel SJM misses, Carissa nails.

Be warned: she will gleefully make you question quite a bit about your own morality.

It's not strictly fantasy romance, but Katherine Arden is also excellent in both prose, character complexity, nuance, and worldbuilding (the same strengths Carissa shares). I recommend The Winternight Trilogy.

If you're looking for something quirkier with a wildly twisted sense of humor, T. Kingfisher's Paladin's Grace is a great option. Her characters are also in their thirties/early forties in The Saint of Steel series. There are a few typos I recall seeing and the (obviously) intentional use of run-ons during humorous action scenes. The first two books are great. I did want more out of the third one, personally.

I recently read The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst and can say I will gladly pick up more of her books in the future. She has a lovely, gentle command of language, and this book in particular is the definition of cozy. The romance is light, but it's very sweet. This is a whimsical read perfect for a cottagecore crowd. I will say while I felt the last act wasn't as strong as the rest, it was still more than worth the read.

I haven't yet read Hoover, but I've heard quite a few similar opinions. At the end of the day, something not being for us doesn't mean we're against the author's success or bashing anyone else's opinions. It often means we either value different things in books or our opinions have been formed through different experiences.

[gracereadstoomanybooks]

answering questions I’ve been asked on TikTok✨

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QUESTION: how did you get into reading?

So, when I was in middle school (many moons ago) we had this thing called AR Testing. Basically, you read a book and take a test on it—the questions were things that happened in the book, it was really simple. If you got a good grade, you got points. The more points you earned, the more eligible you were for the reading party at the end of each semester. Me, being the nerd I am, got top of my class because I went through 8th grade level books like it was nothing. The librarian at my school brought me books from the high school to read since everything was easy for me, and alas, my addiction began. And now that I have adult money, it’s a true addiction. Also, telling my father “I’m bored” and his response being, “go read a book or something” so thanks dad.

QUESTION: what’s one book you ALWAYS recommend to people?

This one is tough because I’ve read THOUSANDS of books, but if I had to choose one, it would probably be Confess by Colleen Hoover. I fell in love with her work in high school when I first read Ugly Love, but Confess is the type of book that pulls at your heart strings, y’all. It has everything people love: humor, sexual tension, drama, love. GO BUY THE DAMN BOOK. Or honestly any book by Colleen Hoover—she’s a fucking amazing author.

QUESTION: outside of making TikToks, what do you do for a living?

I currently work at a restaurant and hate every second of it. If anyone tells you to become a server, DONT. It’s not worth the hassle, I promise you. Sure, you can make decent money but the amount of rude customers and shitty tips you receive each shift is very disheartening. If you really need a job, do anything BUT work in the food industry.

QUESTION: what’s your wattpad story about?

First question: which one? I have about 30 drafts sitting there waiting to be posted. But, I’m going to assume you’re talking about the Harry Styles fan fiction I’ve been working on for the past 4 years and haven’t had the courage to post. I’ll tell you a little about it: Elaine Aldridge is forced into a betrothal to a man she’s never met & loathes. She goes to his court and realizes things aren’t what they truly seem. And the guard her future husband sticks on her??? None other than Mr. Harry Styles. Add in some magic & deaths and you’ve got my story— The First Prince. (Honestly, that’s an extremely shitty description so if you wanna check it out go to my wattpad account)

QUESTION: how old are you?

Ahem. . . twenty-one.

QUESTION: what is your dream career?

Being a published author and having people rave about my books. That’s all. Or, an editor for a publishing company. Imagine reading all day and being paid for it🤩

QUESTION: what was your least favorite read of 2020?

I already KNOW I’m gonna get shit for this but....... the wicked king. YALL I LITERALLY COULDNT GET THROUGH IT IM SO SORRY, I STILL HAVENT FINISHED IT

QUESTION: current favorite author?

Sarah. J. Maas. I don’t know what it is about her writing style, but it’s addicting. Throne of Glass is hands down the best series I’ve ever read. A Court of Thorns and Roses is the first book I’ve EVER reread. Her stories truly suck you in and hold onto you—you get lost so easily in her writing and it’s like once you’re done with a series, nothing will compare. Or, at least that’s how I felt after finishing Kingdom of Ash. Honorable mentions: Jennifer L. Armentrout, Penelope Douglas, L.J Shen, Elle Kennedy and Kennedy Fox.

QUESTION: any recommendations/tips to give to a new reader?

I’ve always given this advice to people who want to get into reading: find what you like and start with that. If you like romance, I’ve got a list for you to choose from. Mystery? Another list. Sci-fi? I GOT YOU. Fantasy? Yes! Sports fiction? It might take me a second but I’ll find you a book. Nonfiction? I’m zero help in that category, honestly. The point of the matter is that you’re never going to enjoy a book if you aren’t interested in the underlying topics.

QUESTION: do you ever find yourself comparing your life to fictional life?

Yes. All the time. I daydream about being apart of the Inner Circle and living in Terrasen with Aelin and Rowan. I think about what it would be like to have real powers and a mate. It drives my boyfriend crazy—but he loves me anyway.

QUESTION: what are your most anticipated books of 2021?

Here’s a list:

A Court of Silver Flames by Sarah J. Maas

The Crown of Gilded Bones by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Gods and Monsters by Shelby Mahurin

Crescent City 2 (Untitled) by Sarah J. Maas

A Vow So Bold and Deadly by Brigid Kemmerer (I just ordered this one & it arrives tomorrow)

Blessed Monsters by Emily A. Duncan

QUESTION: why did you start a Tumblr?

Honestly, I used to love tumblr when I was in grade school (way too young to be on here then but what else is new). I like having an extra space to get my questions and comments out without having to compress it into a 60 second video for TikTok to see. Tumblr is a good place to blog & post things like this.

QUESTION: what’s your favorite song right now?

I’ve listened to Carry You by Novo Amor every day for the past two months and I cry each time.

QUESTION: why write Harry Styles fan fiction?

Simple: I love Harry Styles. I’ve been a fan of him and One Direction since they were on X FACTOR. Read that again. X. Factor. I used to watch their performances on YouTube before WMYB even came out. Of course, I love all of the 1D boys but I was always a Harry gal. And I look up to him in a way—I’ve read things about people wishing they knew him personally and honestly? I would never want to meet him. I like the version of him I’ve cooked up in my brain over the past 10 years. I like the symbiotic relationship I have with his music. Fine Line is a ✨masterpiece✨. HS1 is a ✨work of art✨.

now, some topics I’ve been asked way too many times and want to finally get to:

QUESTION: political views?

the saying “anyone but trump” has been in my brain for the past four years. No, I’m not a republican. No, I’m not a democrat. I like to think of myself as a progressive (ahem, liberal) Did I vote for a democratic candidate? Yes, and I’d do it again and again until the US isn’t one of the worst countries—I’m sorry, businesses— to be apart of. I wanted Bernie but got Biden, and I’m alright with that. And my girl Kamala🥳

QUESTION: how did you feel about the BLM protests?

I went to multiple BLM protests and donated a lot of funds to BLM & other organizations. It’s 2021, people... stop being fucking RACIST. And don’t be afraid to call racist people out! Black Lives Matter, even if no one is posting about it anymore.

QUESTION: thoughts on abortion?

your body your choice, queen! not my uterus, not my problem.

QUESTION: there was a comment on an old video of yours talking about r*pe, why did you delete the comment?

I made a video when I first started my account on TikTok about reading in public and feeling “turned on” by it. Go watch it if you don’t know what I’m talking about. BUT, some ignorant male decided to comment and say “this is how girls get r*ped”. Whew. So. I deleted the comment because ....

I am a victim of sexual assault. Along with a lot of other women. 1 in 5 women have been victims of sexual assault. Talking about being r*ped isn’t funny.

No one else needed to see his comment. I reported it immediately and his account was shut down.

I never got justice for what happened to me, and the fact that some random male—who had never even met me or seen me before my video showed up on his FYP—had the nerve to comment that? Unacceptable.

this question isn’t as controversial but

QUESTION: what’s the best way to get out of a toxic relationship?

okay, let me just start off by saying that the people around you who love and support you are going to be your backbone. Leaving a toxic situation is hard, and every situation is different, but my best piece of advice to offer you is don’t be afraid to ask for help. Your loved ones are going to be there for you when you need them, even if you don’t believe they will. If you explain what’s happening, someone you know and love will drop whatever it is their doing to make sure you get out safely. good luck my babes.

now, back to our regularly scheduled program:

QUESTION: any tips on making tiktoks?

Literally none. I post what I think is funny and relatable and if anyone agrees, I’m satisfied. Even if it’s one view, it’s good enough for me. So I guess my one tip is to not base your life off of an app and followers.

QUESTION: favorite Harry Styles fanfic?

DONT MAKE ME CHOOSE. Duplicity is up there, along with Stall 1&2, and Kiwi. After? Absolutely not.

QUESTION: favorite WEBTOON?

y’all already KNOW. LORE OLYMPUS BY USEDBANDAID. Rachel is a genius and I have reread the series a million times. Hades is my soulmate and Apollo can rot in the fiery pits of the Underworld. also, if we’re talking about other webcomics, reading Walk on Water on mangadex...🤫

QUESTION: favorite movie?

Howls Moving Castle. I will be getting my “a heart is a heavy burden” tattoo very very soon.

QUESTION: I read your Elain theory on tumblr, can you explain a little more?

I thought I was pretty straightforward but I’ll say it again: she is always the “good” one and it’s too suspicious. SJM has already given one Archeron sister a happy ending, Nesta’s is obviously inevitable, but Elain? She has too many options for a happy ending. Lucien, who is her “mate”. Azriel, who is intrigued by her slightly. Her human guy—I don’t remember his name—who is disgusted that she’s not human anymore. Or, alone, planting flowers all day. BUT! My point is that she’s not truly happy. She was forced into the Cauldron just like Nesta. She was ripped away from the life she loved so dearly and didn’t want to give up. The man she was going to marry now hates her guts because she’s a High Fae. She has the perfect set up for a villain plot line and I’m all here for it.

well, that’s all I feel like doing tonight. hope you enjoyed my little q&a! be kind, and talk to you later! byeeee!

[min2hoesk]

wednesday; may 18, 2022

look at me. i’m writing two days in a row. it’s probably because i’ve had the past two days off so i’ve actually had the time to write anything down. but i thought about it just now that there were some things i wanted to get down for the day so here i am. 

i decided to not write that paper. i’m failing the class by my own choice. i emailed my professor again asking about the paper but he still didn’t reach out. so i’m not going to give him the satisfaction of looking at what i worked on hard and then fail me. i’m going to fail by my own choice. i do want to email him once our time together is over. it seems unprofessional since i’ll still be working at the school and going there for my masters. i just want to tell him that while i understand his decision, it is still unprofessional to not even reach out to a student. i want to tell him that thanks to him, i know exactly what teach i do not want to be when i earn my degree. no help from him on that front. that he lacks compassion to even reach back out to a student that was begging and give them a solid answer, even if it was a no. that’s what a coward does. whatever. he had bad ratings on rate my professor and the make up class i’m taking has a good professor that cares about his students and his job. i’ll manage.

the past two days off have felt so good. i’m officially (not really) done with my undergrad and i can finally BREATHE again. with working full time on top of these past couple months, i felt like i’ve just been holding my breath. but the past two days i’ve been able to read and not feel guilty about it. i’ve FINALLY been able to enjoy a book without thinking there’s something more important i should be doing. this was exactly the break i needed before these next few months when i go back to school and start working a full 40 hours a week. 

that is all for BTS. i need to save up money for them. i need to see them. even if i can never speak to them i want to be there to support them at their concert as a thank you for basically saving me. that sounds so stupid and i probably sound like a fanatic but whatever. nobody reads these. those 7 men taught me how to have courage to do the things i want to do with my life. to wake up everyday to be better. to want better and do better for myself. they taught me what good, caring men look like and raised my standards to the heavens. they gave me passion for life i didn’t know i had. so even though i will never be able to verbally express my gratitude to them, i want to be there in support of everything they’ve built for themselves. i’ll say it now: thank you BTS for giving me a new found hope in my life and the drive to do better and be better for myself. i hope it will reach you. 

it’s not the end of the day yet, but i can’t imagine anything else happening today. so i’m going to end this one before going to bed. but i’ll still do what i know i should.

5 things i’m grateful for today:

BTS

really good books (i’m reading Reminders of Him by Colleen Hoover right now)

my bestfriends for supporting me, even when i’m making a weird decision to CHOOSE to fail 

the way the beginning of summer sounds

waking up and being alive today

i hope you find your five things today.

love you xx 

~R

[blurrypetals]

Regretting You by Colleen Hoover - blurrypetals review

originally posted dec. 12, 2019 - ★★★★☆

So, every time I finish one of Colleen's book, I look at a list of her previous books and rank the new book on a scale of how painful it was, with It Ends With Us and All Your Perfects being the most painful, November 9 and Ugly Love being quite painful but not so much that the thought of rereading it one day was unbearable up with the most painful ones, and Maybe Someday and Without Merit being so painless they didn't feel like anything Colleen would ever write. I think, for the most part, Colleen's secret ingredients that go into delivering the perfect Colleen Hoover Gut Punch™ come down to two elements. The first is that the love interest must be cagey. Colleen Hoover's writing is at its best, in my opinion, when we have a Holder, a Miles, or a Ben holding some sort of deep, dark secret back. It can't be mild. It has to be world-shattering. It doesn't even necessarily need to play off as a twist, per se, but it needs to come late in the novel and it needs to shake the foundation of what we thought we knew. Regretting You is unique in the bunch of CoHo's books in that there are two protagonists, a mother and a daughter, who each have their own love interests. Because the Colleen Hoover Gut Punch™ this time around is not something delivered by either of these fellas, Jonah and Miller, they both feel a little...well, milquetoast. It's unfortunate, because I felt like they were both very good characters, especially Miller, but neither of them gets a very interesting secret to keep from their baes. Sure, they each have a secret, but the both of them are both very kind, open, and honest men. Obviously, more realistically, this is preferable to, say, Holder in Hopeless, who is content to leave so much crime virtually unpunished, but Holder makes for a much more interesting read because he's weird, he isn't entirely forthcoming, he's cagey, and it made his book a page turner. Unfortunately Jonah and Miller both lack this mystery and, even though CoHo has written books that feature non-cagey love interests before, this shouldn't be too much to the book's detriment, but I did mention there were two ingredients to delivering a perfect Colleen Hoover Gut Punch™. The second ingredient has to do with what I mentioned at the top of the review about pain. Those who are familiar with what happens at the beginning of this book might be scratching their heads at reading this, as something very sad and painful happens very early on, but I think this doesn't really work for me. I think part of why the inciting incident of this novel doesn't land is because it is so early in the novel, but the reason it doesn't work comes down to POV. Colleen's books are usually very personal stories about two people who are falling in love, usually told from one POV, sometimes from two if she's feeling adventurous. Instead, she tried something new and told a story from the POV's of a woman and her daughter. This divvies their pain up and it also divvies up the time we could have spent better understanding and experiencing their pain between the two, making their two journeys through grief and into love feel like two completely different books. They even have two different tones, and I almost feel as though Clara's chapters could have been written by a completely different person. This is all to say, this ends up feeling devoid of a Colleen Hoover Gut Punch™. That doesn't necessarily mean it's bad; it isn't, it's just not really Colleen enough for me. I wish she had chosen one couple to focus on instead of mashing them into one novel. She could have even written two books, one for each couple, and made them companion pieces, not unlike Hopeless and Losing Hope, surrounding the same time period and events, but dedicating the proper amount of time to each character. I'm really only disappointed because I did like the characters (well, Morgan, Jonah, and Miller, at least; I found Clara to be quite grating after a certain point) and I wish they had been given enough time and space to really explore the pain they were all going through. I don't normally like to spoil books in my reviews, especially not CoHo's books, which are altogether better if you go into them knowing nothing, but if I could make one small change it would be this: The reveal that Chris and Jenny were having an affair should have been saved for much later in the novel. Let Jonah and Morgan grow close, let them grow suspicious of what was actually going on, then have them find the letters in the toolbox and that's when they finally discover things were not as they seemed. That all just unraveled far too quickly and it left Morgan's character to flounder and lose momentum so early I did enjoy this, though! I just wish it had a bit more of Colleen's classic secrecy and pain. Instead, this ended up feeling like something she did not write, especially, as I've said, when it comes to Clara's chapters. That won't stop me from reading whatever she comes up with next, though! Better luck next time!

[readatmidnight]

It’s been a while since my last update since most of April and May left me with very little time for blogging. I just wanted to do a quick catch up on what I’ve been reading and what I plan to read in the coming month.

What I’ve Read

Almost 100% of the reading I’ve done in the past two months have been done via audiobook. Bless them for enabling me to finish all these novels while I completed my chores or during my morning commute, I would have fell into a book slump without them. I know at the beginning of the year I said I would cancel my Scribd account, but since I read so much via audio now, the set up is working great for me.

These aren’t even in chronological reading order because I am a Mess.

Daisy Jones and The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid ★★★★☆ This novel is best enjoyed via audiobook, sorry I don’t make the rules. TJR has a way of making her characters feel so raw and real, if I didn’t know any better I would have been searching for the discography of Daisy Jones & The Six after completing this novel. Epistolary novels don’t always work for me (see: Illuminae), because I sometimes find it hard to connect to the story. 100% not the case here, and I loved how utterly flawed everyone was allowed to be. To tell the truth, I didn’t like most of them, but they sure captured my imagination.

The Dragon Republic by R. F. Kuang ★★★★ HELLO IS ANYONE SURPRISED I AM COMPLETE TRASH FOR THIS BOOK. NO? OK. Ahem. With complete objectivity, this book was a stunning follow-up to The Poppy War. It’s more introspective, it deals with PTSD, it brings in all of the threads that complicates and muddies the war Rin is waging on Nikara and with herself. The ending left me literally reeling and screaming in random DMs for weeks. I still have not completely stopped and I fear I will never be coherent again. Give me book three or give me death.

Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey ★★★★☆ I finished this book about two hours ago and edited the post to include it. Although it contained the familiar tropes like a magical school, a jaded private detective, a dark prophecy, a hidden world of mages, a murder mystery – Magic for Liars combined them in a way that kept the plot fresh and engaging. Imagine if Aunt Petunia never married Vernon Dursley but instead became a private investigator – who’s then called back to Hogwarts to unravel a murder, with Lily as one of the professors on tenure. Except better, because the character work in this book is freaking top notch. Just go read it OK, this is the gay and messy magical school we all deserve.

The Devouring Gray by Christine Lynn Herman ★★★★☆ Billed as The Raven Cycle meets Stranger Things, this is one of those rare instances where the book matches the comp perfectly. While I found the pacing to be slow, I thought it suited this character-driven story. It’s all about families and legacies and finding your own paths despite the weight of all that history. I adored all of the characters, especially Harper – my sworld-wielding warrior queen. I cannot wait to see the sequel and watching how entangled relationships will develop.

Wicked Saints by Emily A. Duncan ★★☆☆☆ I love the idea of hate-to-love, especially with a villain love-interest, so that’s what initially drew me to this book. When I learned that the heroine could converse with the gods, I got even more excited. Alas, it was a bit of a missed opportunity. I saw shadows of a fanfic-worthy broody bad boy in every scene with Malachiasz. I can understand insta-attraction, what I can’t understand is how poorly the character and relationship development was done. The stars are wholly reserved for Serefin, my drunken drama-queen and the only part of this novel I enjoyed.

We Hunt The Flame by Hafsah Faizal ★★★☆☆ I expected this to be a five star read, so while it was good, I am disappointed I didn’t love it more. The prose were gorgeous and I am definitely checking out whatever Hafsah Faizal writes next. However, the writing style’s penchant for beautiful metaphors sometimes felt jarring with the pacing of the book. While I liked the characters indivdually, I didn’t feel compelled by any relationships aside from the one shared between Altair and Nasir in the beginning. I’m definitely in the minority with my lukewarm response to this title, though – there are tons of fans so don’t be put off by my review.

Verity by Colleen Hoover ★☆☆☆☆ The sole star is for the fact that while the plot of this book was so improbable it veered into farcical, it was a page-turner. Toxic relationships is the bread-and-butter of crime, but there was something particularly tasteless about the way adultery and marriage was depicted in this book. Partly due to the casual nonchalance that CoHo tends to dismiss cheating, but also because even with my few remaining brain cells I could still figure out the plot was BS. The way disability was handled in this novel also left a lot to be desired, and the ‘twist’ at the end disappointed me so much I wanted to hurl this book into the sun. This was 7 hours of my good life wasted.

The Bride Test ★★★★★ I cannot remain calm or objective about Helen’s books, I love them completely – because they’re unabashedly Vietnamese, because they’re proudly diasporic, because they’re filled with characters who feel so real I’m mildly miffed we’re not invited to their weddings. Khai and Esme slowly but surely stole my heart over a course of a long haul international flight. I laughed and cried and went through all of the emotions of first love. Along with its powerful emotional resonance, The Bride Test also offered sharp societal critique on the accessibility of the American Dream. These books are so special to me and I am so glad we have more Helen content to look forward to for years to come.

Ruse ★★★★☆ This is the second and final instalment to Cindy Pon’s high-octane and prescient eco-dystopia – if you haven’t read Want, go visit your local bookshop right now and change this immediately. The bar is raised with Ruse, from the character development, the scope of the world, and the ever heightened stake. I loved seeing the gang again, even though Cindy did not pull any punches when it came to making my children suffer. It was such a satisfying and well-earned conclusion.

Wilder Girls ★★★★☆ Whew, this book was harrowing and intense. It felt dangerous and unknowable, with the plot constantly shifting right under my feet – just as the physical world in the book warps and distorts everything from plants to landscape to school-girls. I read it in a rush over two days because I could not put it down. If you’re after a novel with ride-or-die friendship and sapphic romance, this is one to keep an eye out for.

Red, White, and Royal Blue ★★★★★ I am completely bereft that Alex Claremont-Diaz and Prince Henry of Wales are not real people – for these two I would take up reading gossip magazines again. This book was rambunctious and as irrepressible as the passion that drives its main characters. The supporting cast are equally impressive, and I love the chemistry imbued into the various relationships in this novel. I can’t remember the last time I rooted so hard for fictional characters to overcome and triumph. Although we can’t have Claremont 2020, can we please please please get a Jude and Nora spin-off instead?

Looks like romance is my new favourite genre, judging by my latest two five star reads. Please give me all the recs, but no mayo toxic romance please. I feel like whenever I stray from the usual diet of speculative fiction, I become very picky in which books I read – which tends to mean that I end up loving the ones I do pick up.

What I’m Reading

I usually have numerous books on the go because I have no self-control. I have two going at the moment, but this number will undoubtedly multiply before I have the chance to publish this post.

Foundryside by Robert Jackson Bennet – I am about 5 hours into the audiobook and I am already completely charmed by this world and its characters! The rogue-archetype has always been one of my favourite fantasy trope, and to make it even better Santia comes with a snarky talking key. The world building is a marvel, especially the magic system and how it is manipulated by the characters and governing bodies within the novel. I also heard there is a budding sapphic romance in this one – I think I just met the love interest and I already love her as well. Very excited to continue on!

On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong – I am three chapters into this novel and it’s already taken my very soul apart. Written by a Vietnamese-American son for his illiterate mother, it’s part-meditation and part-confessional on PTSD, inherited trauma, and how a you learn to communicate with a mother-tongue you can barely speak. I am ready for it completely wreck me.

I forgot that I am technically still reading The Priory of the Orange Tree but I am so exhausted with this brick at this point in time, I’m not sure I will ever finish it. The world building (West and East dragon mythology), and the characters (sapphic Queens and her bodyguard) had so much potential – but I kept feeling like an emotional weight was missing.

What I’m Planning to Read

I am an expert is making up TBR and then not sticking to them. So to save myself the embarrassment here’s two I am definitely reading this month, the rest is c’est la vie.

Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson I know y’all keep saying that Enchantment of Ravens is lame because it has no plot but I loved Rook and Isobel with all my heart OK. I know nothing about this one except that it has a librarian babe (maybe?). Therefore, I am very excited.

Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim This is part of the Caffeine Book Tours that Shealea organised (thank you!!). This is one of my most anticipated read of this year because fashion and East Asian fantasy? Relevant to my interest. I think we can all agree that this is the best cover of 2019. I want this illustrator to draw my life.

What are you reading and what are you all up to? I miss you!! Hope you’re going to have an amazing month and Happy Pride everyone!!

June Reading Updates It's been a while since my last update since most of April and May left me with very little time for blogging.

[whittynovels]

November 9

TW: Abuse, rape

****SPOILER ALERT****

I would give this zero stars if I could. Since I was on the plane when I began reading this, I was unable to snapchat vlog how much I hated it. Therefore, here’s my list of complaints in word format:

• Fallon describes herself as being “obsessive-compulsive” about hygiene. You could just say you find hygiene important instead of belittling an actual mental illness for a hyperbole.

• Homeboy (Ben) eavesdrops on a conversation Fallon has with her father in a restaurant, then when she says she hasn’t had a boyfriend, he SLIPS INTO THE BOOTH NEXT TO HER AND PRETENDS TO BE HER BOYFRIEND? WTF THE FUCK? GO SIT BACK AT YOUR OWN TABLE. STOP TOUCHING HER AND CALLING HER LADYBUG AND BABY. 1-800-DID-NOT-ASK AND WAS NOT INVITED. HOLY SHIT I HATE THIS

• I’m tired of every colleen hoover being about a girl with self-confidence issues. Even worse, in this one, the MC has disfiguring scars, which just worsens the fact that Hoover would exploit trauma and burn victims to establish a character trait.

• LITERALLY THE ENTIRE FIRST CHAPTER IN BEN’S PERSPECTIVE IS TALKING ABOUT HER BOOBS AND WHAT COLOR UNDERWEAR SHE IS WEARING. WHAT THE FUCK???? HOW IS THAT SEXY OR ROMANTIC FOR A GUY TO BE FANTASIZING ABOUT UNDRESSING A GIRL IN HIS HEAD BARELY TWO MINUTES AFTER THEY MEET????? FUCK ME UP I HATE IT

• FURTHERMORE, (I’ll stop using caps now bc I feel like I’m wearing it out but please do bear in mind that I’m furious) he literally says “if we’re just going to sit here and stare at each other, it’d be nice if she were showing a little cleavage, instead of wearing this long-sleeved shirt that leaves everything to the imagination. It’s pushing eighty degrees outside. She should be in something a lot less . . .  convent-inspired” (pg. 24). LITERALLY FUCK YOU WHAT THE FUCK IT’S CHAPTER 2 AND YOU’RE ALREADY DICTATING HOW SHE SHOULD DRESS?????? OH MY FUCKING GOD I WANT TO TEAR THIS BOOK APART

• NOT EVEN THE WORST PART!!! A few paragraphs later he starts looking at her scars and he’s like “Are [her breasts] scarred, too? How much of her body is actually affected?” And I get that it might be a genuine curiosity to see her and wonder how much of her body is affected by the burns, bUT YOU CAN’T JUST ASK SOMEONE THAT OR BLATANTLY FANTASIZE ABOUT UNDRESSING THEM JUST TO SATISFY YOUR CURIOSITY ABOUT THEIR DISEASE OR SCARS!!! I literally don’t understand this. This is absolutely disgusting. “I begin to mentally undress her, and not in a sexual way. I’m just curious. Really curious.” (pg 25). WTTTFFFFF??????!!!!!!!!!! this is so wrongly voyeuristic and completely fetishizes her scars.

• I call bullshit on this book. I know romance is unrealistic because it’s mostly just girls’ wish fulfillment, but a straight, not unattractive guy swooping in to save a girl from a verbally abusive dad, buys her dinner, is a creative writing student, etc.? It doesn’t happen. This doesn’t exist.

• I’ve always gotten subtle homophobic vibes from Hoover’s books, but on page 28 MC says “No gay man I know would have left the house looking like you do right now” and just the outright stereotyping and trying to use that to be funny is just gross. Assuming every single gay man puts fashion on an alter is so stupidly stereotypical and I’m angry about it.

• Ahhh. Page 34. He begins to get all romantic and heavy and saying “want to know what I was thinking about when I saw you for the first time?” and we thought we were going to get a touching story about looking past her scars at her beauty but nope. Full paragraphs talking about her ass and him wondering if she was going commando. The objectification of women in this one is so undeniably and painfully real.

• Ben basically navigates throughout this book doing whatever he wants without asking Fallon’s consent and then basically forcing her to do things because he thinks she’s uncomfortable for no reason. It’s just disgusting that the man’s presence in this book is written so much more naturally and commandeering in this book.

• For instance, there’s this entire scene where Ben wants her to wear this really revealing dress and she doesn’t want to but he keeps pressuring her to and finally Fallon is about to have a panic attack and cry and she’s squeezing her eyes shut because Ben is running his hands along her shirt and unbuttoning it (WHICH DEFINITELY MEANS FUCK OFF SHE DOESN’T WANT YOU TOUCHING HER FUCK YOU BEN FUCK YOU) and he finally takes off her shirt and looks her over and it’s so fucking uncomfortable and nonconsensual and totally inappropriate having only met a few hours ago then he taKES OFF HER PANTS AND DOES THE SAME THEN TELLS HER TO LIFT HER ARMS AND PHYSICALLY PUTS THE DRESS ON FOR HER and I just wanted her to literally slice him in half like I’m so done with him. He is the opposite of romantic and if I were to ever encounter him in person I would literally stomp him like a roach. Literally. Fight me colleen hoover and your shitty-ass books too.

• May I just say that when he was telling her what dress to wear, he literally said “I’m paying for dinner, so I get to choose what I stare at while we eat.” Is that not a characteristic of an abusive boyfriend to be so controlling to force her to wear what he wants her to wear? And they’ve only been “friends” for 3 hours?

• Ben literally tells her, 3 hours into their friendship, I quote, “It’s your own fault people feel uncomfortable looking at you.” I can’t even make this shit up. He tells her it’s her fault that she has burn scars, that they make her feel self-conscious, and the reaction people have to them. If I didn’t already hate this character so much I would actually tear him to shreds with my bare hands.

• You wanna know what the male gaze is? It’s a male supposed-love interest saying shit like “There’s just enough showing at her neckline to keep me good and happy.” Because women, their boobs, and their lowcut shirts exist to make men “good and happy.” Barf. Gag. Vomit.

• HE LITERALLY FUCKING SAID TO HER, “ . . . you could very well be as dumb as a rock. But at least you’re pretty” (pg. 57). LITERALLY WAY TO FUCKING OBJECTIFY A WOMAN TO REDUCE HER TO HAVING NO CAPACITY FOR INTELLIGENCE AT ALL, AS LONG AS SHE’S WEARING A LOWCUT SHIRT. FUCK YOU COLLEEN HOOVER.

• There’s this scene where he’s running his hands along her scars. He asks, “is this okay?” asking for consent. Great. Awesome. But she responds “I don’t know.” And he fuCKING KEEPS GOING. NOPE. YOU RUINED IT. GOODBYE. I’M NOT EVEN SURPRISED SHE’S DESCRIBED AS HAVING TEARS IN HER EYES THE NEXT PAGE. BECAUSE YOU FUCKING KEPT GOING WHEN SHE DIDN’T CONSENT TO BEING TOUCHED MORE.

• They start outlining rules for what to do between the time that they’ll see each other again and whereas fallon’s are things like “read these books and have fun,” ben’s is literally, “go on dates. You don’t have enough experience for girls of your age.” Like, great. That makes me feel really good about myself. Great job.

• She eventually reveals that her left breast was disfigured from the fire and literally in the next line of dialogue ben is like LET ME SEE IT I NEED TO SEE IT CONSIDER IT RESEARCH I WANT TO KNOW. Like in what the fuck world is that acceptable? It’s her number one insecurity and he’s such an entitled asshole that he’s like “uhhuh cool but let me see it. Because I’m curious.” Fuck you ben. And fuck hoover for exploiting women like that.

• Every sexual advance after that wasn’t because “you’re beautiful I love you,” it was, “let me take off your clothes so I can see the scars you keep trying to hide.” So disgusting.

• I think the saddest thing is Fallon never stops Ben from doing anything. She continually complies, even if it causes her to have tears in her eyes, shakiness, etc. She has so much internalized misogyny that she allows men to control her and tell her what to do and she contributes it to the alpha male personality in the romance books she reads. I’m so, so upset for her that she can’t stick up for herself, and Ben disguises his exploitative, disgusting, and toxic obsession with her scars and undressing her as concern and love.

• They were talking about their favorite foods. Ben said Pad Thai. Fallon said Sushi. “they’re almost the same thing . . . [because t]hey’re both Asian food” (pg 121) lmao okay…………..

• Fuck the Tate and Miles cameo. I fucking hate Miles.

• “I step forward and shut her up with my mouth” lollolololol I hate this. I fucking hate this. Let her speak. Stay in your own fucking lane. You don’t dictate when she needs to shut up, especially kissing her forcibly to make her stop talking.

• “He kisses me with entitlement” is a real fucking line in the book. It literally just proved my point. Ben thinks he’s so entitled to her body. This is actually a perfect summary of any CoHo book you’ll read. Such arrogant, ridiculous, entitled men.

• After she loses her virginity to him, she literally describes it as she “lost a part of [her]self to the person inside [her] . . . as if the second [they] joined together, a tiny piece of [their] souls got confused and a piece of his fell into [her] and a piece of [hers] fell into him.” IS THIS NOT THE EXACT WORDING OF ABSINTANCE-ONLY SEX ED??? TELLING GIRLS THAT THEY ARE POLLUTING THEMSELVES AND GIVING AWAY PARTS OF THEMSELVES TO MEN WHEN THEY  LOSE THEIR VIRGINITY????? VIRGINITY IS A CONSTRUCT. YOU AREN’T LOSING ANYTHING. YOU ARE AN INDIVIDUAL PERSON EVEN AFTER SEX. OH MY GOD THIS BOOK IS UNBEARABLE PLEASE MAKE IT END.

• fuCKING GUESS WHAT IT GOT WORSE

• the next morning she was like “I gotta go” and he literally said, I quote, “I’ve never wanted to use physical force on a girl before, but I want to push her to the ground and hold her there until the cab drives away.” He literally threatens physical violence on her. BUT SO CUTE AND RELATABLE!!!! AM I RIGHT???!!!!!

• He actually gets pissed when she refuses to let him move in with her and exchange numbers. Like cry me a river, fuckboy.

• This book is just so outright woman hating. Ben has such frail masculininty. He was like “Fallon said she hates insta-love, but apparently she hates semi-instant love and slow love and love at a snail’s pace and love in general.” Like way to villainize a woman because she wants the best for you???? Horny motherfucker, go take a nap.

• At this point I stopped taking notes because shit was happening every paragraph but here’s the rest of what I remember

• SEVERAL times in this book, Fallon tells Ben “I need to leave” and he either grabs her, stands in front of the door, or otherwise blocks her exit. That’s extremely controlling and nasty.

• At one point she tries to drive away from him but he grabs her keys out of her hand and walks to his own car, forcing her to scream after him and follow him to get them back. He walks all over her life and calls it “alpha male” romance.

• Near the end of the book Fallon’s out on a date with another guy and he shows up and is super manipulative pretending like he’s interviewing them for an article or some shit, but he’s actually just creeping on the guy she’s with because he hates how she’s moved on from him. That’s so controlling and disgusting? Literally leave her alone, she’s with another man? What the fuck? Grow up?

• During this same scene, Fallon is drunk at the bar and Ben takes her, drags her down a hallway, corners her there, demands to know who he is, and Fallon laughs. Hoover continually normalizes and REWARDS this behavior by making the main female character perceive it as humor or protectiveness.

• At one point she tells him “I need to get back to my date” and it literally says that he “lean[s] closer and sandwich[es] her against the wall,” then he says, “Don’t be like that . . . I’ve been through hell today trying to find you.” OH, OKAY, SO YOU STALKED HER, CORNERED HER, AND NOW YOU FEEL ENTITLED TO AN EXPLANATION? ENTITLED FOR HER TO LEAVE HER CURRENT DATE FOR YOU?  I hate this man. Fuck his privilege and entitlement.

• At this point I’ve yelled so much.  I’m going to try and stay calm for this one because it’s the most serious one. While they are in a bar together—Fallon drunk, Ben sober—he pulls her into a storage closet and they begin making out. Ben initiates this. Fallon is hesitant but complies. He starts touching her, and clear as day, she tells him “Stop, . . . [her] voice louder than it’s been all night.” This is an absolute, loud, clear indication that she does not want to proceed. But what does Ben do? His hands continue to “graze the edge of [her] panties” and he whispers—he fucking whispers to her face—“I’m trying. Ask me again.” He didn’t stop. He. Didn’t. Stop. THIS IS RAPE CULTURE. I TOLD MYSELF I WOULDN’T USE CAPS BUT IN A COLLEEN HOOVER BOOK THAT HAS A 4.45 RATING ON GOODREADS, THE MAIN CHARACTER TOLD THE LOVE INTEREST TO STOP DURING A HEAVY ROMANCE SCENE AND HE CONTINUED TO SHOVE HIS HAND UP HER SKIRT WHILE SAYING, “ASK AGAIN.” (UPDATE 2/18/17: Hoover is editing this out of the book. https://www.facebook.com/AuthorColleenHoover/videos/1585344338145828/)

• At this point in the book, I was done. Then the plot twist occurred.

• The plot twist just secured this book’s place in hell for me. Ben was manipulative. Ben lied. Ben was voyeuristic, trying to see her scars because HE. CAUSED. THEM. This isn’t cute. This isn’t romance. This is a drunk driver running a red light and hitting another car, nearly killing a passenger, and then stalking, abusing, and preying on the passenger who now bears scars because of his reckless behavior. Behavior that she. Forgives. Him. For. And Hoover subsequently normalizes by publishing this book. By publishing this book, Hoover has said, “it is okay to allow men to get away with this behavior if he loves you. If it was an accident. If he had good intentions. If he’s angsty. If it was meant to be.” FUCK this book honestly.

• Fallon’s father, who at the beginning of the book told her “you’re too ugly for broadway, no one will hire you, your career is over, boys don’t love you, etc.” is posed as “misunderstood” and someone who doesn’t know how to communicate. HE RECEIVES FORGIVENESS. FOR THE DESPICABLE WORDS HE SAID TO HER AT THE BEGINNING, HE RECEIVES FORGIVENESS AND AN EXCUSE.

• I have to stop this, otherwise my head is going to explode. I’m not shaming anyone who likes this book, but I can’t believe it has escaped notice of so many people. I can’t believe I’m the only person who’s livid.

This is the end of my support for Colleen Hoover. Her books aren’t going to half price books, they’re going in the trash.

[bookish-blog]

Book Review: It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover

Genre(s): Contemporary Romance. New Adult.  Rating: 3 Stars. 

Goodreads Synopsis: Sometimes it is the one who loves you who hurts you the most.Lily hasn’t always had it easy, but that’s never stopped her from working hard for the life she wants. She’s come a long way from the small town in Maine where she grew up—she graduated from college, moved to Boston, and started her own business. So when she feels a spark with a gorgeous neurosurgeon named Ryle Kincaid, everything in Lily’s life suddenly seems almost too good to be true.

Ryle is assertive, stubborn, maybe even a little arrogant. He’s also sensitive, brilliant, and has a total soft spot for Lily. And the way he looks in scrubs certainly doesn’t hurt. Lily can’t get him out of her head. But Ryle’s complete aversion to relationships is disturbing. Even as Lily finds herself becoming the exception to his “no dating” rule, she can’t help but wonder what made him that way in the first place.

As questions about her new relationship overwhelm her, so do thoughts of Atlas Corrigan—her first love and a link to the past she left behind. He was her kindred spirit, her protector. When Atlas suddenly reappears, everything Lily has built with Ryle is threatened. 

With this bold and deeply personal novel, Colleen Hoover delivers a heart-wrenching story that breaks exciting new ground for her as a writer. Combining a captivating romance with a cast of all-too-human characters, It Ends With Us is an unforgettable tale of love that comes at the ultimate price.

Colleen Hoover’s books have their orders. There's romantic banter, a cloud of gloom and doom hanging over the couple, or just a reason they aren't supposed to work.  

They couple almost always works out whatever it is in the end even if it's a major issue. They get closure, they “talk it out”, they make promises to themselves and other people that ensure something will never happen again. 

But what about the things that are unforgivable? 

Well, since you asked, Colleen Hoover has now gotten that covered in It Ends with Us. 

This book was almost as hard to review as it was to read. I thought I was used to Hoover’s “OMG I just feel like I got punched in the gut” plot twists and emotional roller coasters. I wasn’t prepared for this. The romance builds so quickly you think, “What could go wrong?” You recognize the things you would normally as red flags but they aren’t what troubles the relationship in It Ends With Us. 

Even when the book goes it the direction you think it will, it doesn’t stay the course. It makes you wonder who the special relationship is supposed to be with but you don’t find out until the end. 

There were events in this book that made it hard to flat-out say “I like it” but I can say that I appreciate it and why Colleen Hoover found it a necessary story to tell. Just read the author’s note at the end! 

Happy Reading! Teri 

[marcusssanderson]

70 Soulmate Quotes and Sayings to put Love into Words

Our latest collection of soulmate quotes that will inspire love and affection.

Your soulmate is someone who’s on board with who you are, your purpose on this earth and what you want to accomplish in life. It is the one person who inspires you to be a better person and whom you’ll always love no matter what.

Love is a significant part of life. It makes us better human beings and improves our lives. Love gives you the energy to face life along with the many challenges it brings.

Besides, when you have love inside of you, other people will benefit just as much as you do. You’ll be able to share it with others and positively impact their lives.

When you have had a bad day at work, your soulmate offers a safe cushion to land. They will also be a mirror for you and help you grow into a better person.

Connecting with your soulmate is another way to tap into your everyday power and greatly enhance your life. However, we sometimes run out of words to express how much love we have for our soulmates.

Here are some inspirational, wise, and beautiful soulmate quotes, soulmate sayings, and soulmate proverbs to help put your feelings into words and make your relationship more satisfying.

Soulmate quotes and sayings to put love into words

1.) “We recognize a soulmate by the supreme level of comfort and security we feel with that person. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t issues that remain to be ironed out. Rather, it means we know intuitively that we can resolve issues with our soul mate without losing his or her love and respect.” — Linda Brady

2.) “True love is finding your soulmate in your best friend” ― Faye Hall

3.) “A soulmate is the one person whose love is powerful enough to motivate you to meet your soul, to do the emotional work of self-discovery, of awakening.”— Kenny Loggins

4.) “You know you’re in love when you can’t fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams.”— Dr. Seuss

5.) “The soulmate is what we aspire to and like to understand about ourself, is what we deem to be perfection, purity, and endless love.” – Sorin Cerin

6.) Our universe grants every soul a twin—a reflection of themselves—the kindred spirit – And no matter where they are or how far away they are from each other—even if they are in different dimensions, they will always find one another. This is destiny; this is love. – Julie Dillon

7.) A bond between souls is ancient – older than the planet. – Dianna Hardy

8.) You come to love not by finding the perfect person, but by seeing an imperfect person perfectly. – Sam Keen

9.) Have you ever felt really close to someone? So close that you can’t understand why you and the other person have two separate bodies, two separate skins? – Nancy Garden

10.) If I know what love is, it is because of you. – Herman Hesse

Soulmate quotes and sayings to help express your love

11.) “I feel like a part of my soul has loved you since the beginning of everything. Maybe we’re from the same star.” – Emery Allen

12.) “I want to be your soulmate, even if I don’t believe in them.” – Colleen Hoover

13.) “The minute I heard my first love story I started looking for you, not knowing how blind I was. Lovers don’t finally meet somewhere. They’re in each other all along.”— Rumi

14.) “The best love is the kind that awakens the soul; that makes us reach for more, that plants the fire in our hearts and brings peace to our minds. That’s what I hope to give you forever.” — The Notebook

15.) “All, everything that I understand, I only understand because I love.” — Leo Tolstoy

16.) “The best and most beautiful things in this world cannot be seen or even heard, but must be felt with the heart.” — Helen Keller

17.) “I swear I couldn’t love you more than I do right now, and yet I know I will tomorrow.” — Leo Christopher

18.) “Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.” — Lao Tzu

19.) I know I am in love with you because my reality is finally better than my dreams.

20.) If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day, so I never have to live without you. – Joan Powers

Soulmate quotes for him or her

21.) “In all the world, there is no heart for me like yours. In all the world, there is no love for you like mine.”— Maya Angelou

22.) “You’re the fire burning inside of me.” ― Kelvin O’Ralph

23.) “I look at you and see the rest of my life in front of my eyes.” — Unknown

24.) There is only happiness in life, to love and to be loved. –  George Sand

25.) Loving you never was an option. It was a necessity.  – Truth Devour

26.) When I look into your eyes, I know I have found the mirror of my soul.

27.) “I love you the way a drowning man loves air. And it would destroy me to have you just a little.” – Rae Carson

28.) “I never loved you any more than I do, right this second. And I’ll never love you any less than I do, right this second.” – Kami Garcia

29.) “I want everyone to meet you. You’re my favorite person of all time.” – Rainbow Rowell

30.) I seem to have loved you in numberless forms, numberless times… In life after life, in age after age, forever. –Tagore

Soulmate quotes and sayings to spice up your relationship

31.) “And in her smile I see something more beautiful than the stars.”

32.) “Before I met you, my life ran on sheer amusement. After I met you, my life ran on sheer compassion.” ― Heenashree Khandelwal

33.) “Love is but the discovery of ourselves in another, and the delight in the recognition.” – Alexander Smith

34.) “For it was not into my ear you whispered, but into my heart. It was not my lips you kissed, but my soul.” – Judy Garland

35.) The best things in life can never be kept; they must be given away. A Smile, a Kiss, and Love. – Robert Browning

36.) “Love is that condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.” ― Robert A. Heinlein

37.) “Some souls just understand each other upon meeting.” – N. R. Hart

38.) “Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind, And therefore is winged Cupid painted blind.” ― William Shakespeare

39.) I saw that you were perfect, and so I loved you. Then I saw that you were not perfect and I loved you even more. – Angelita Lim

40.) I love thee to the depth and breadth and height my soul can reach. – Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Beautiful soulmate quotes and sayings

41.) “Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same.”— Emily Brontë

42.) “A soul mate is not found. A soul mate is recognized.” – Vironika Tugaleva

43.) “What if you find your soul mate… at the wrong time?”― Lauren Kate

44.) “Soul mates are muses. The people in your life you despise, disrespect and desire the most.” – Coco J. Ginger

45.) “Soul mates may be linked, but fight to separate, causing wounds and confusion. They teach what no one else can.” – Donna Lynn Hope

46.) Giving someone a piece of your soul is better than giving a piece of your heart. Because souls are eternal. – Helen Boswell

47.) “Before you find your soul mate, you must first discover your soul.”― Charles F. Glassman

48.) Did you ever stop to think that even if I am a monster, I might be your soulmate anyway? – Julie Johnson

49.) Close your eyes for a while. The image that conjures is your soulmate. Don’t pause, rush and say what you feel. After all time and tide for none wait. – Neelam Saxena Chandra

50.) “And in the end, the love you take, is equal to the love you make.” — Paul McCartney

Soulmate quotes to help you put your thoughts and feelings into words

51.) “Your soulmate doesn’t just mean your husband or your boyfriend. I have friends in my life who I believe I was meant to meet and be a part of.” – Louise Nurding

52.) “A soul mate is…someone whose way of viewing life is not necessarily the same as yours but complements yours…there is not a compromise, there is a complement.” – Paul Robear

53.) “What’s the difference?” I asked him. “Between the love of your life, and your soulmate?” “One is a choice, and one is not. – Tarryn Fisher

54.) “People think a soul mate is your perfect fit, and that’s what everyone wants. But a true soulmate is a mirror, the person who shows you everything that is holding you back, the person who brings you to your own attention so you can change your life.”— Elizabeth Gilbert

55.) “A soulmate is someone who has locks that fit our keys, and keys to fit our locks.” ― Richard Bach

56.) “Carry me in your heart wherever you go I’m always here. You just have to look within.” – Jeremy Limn

57.) “As you awaken, you will come to understand that the journey to love isn’t about finding “The one” the journey is about becoming “The one”. –Creig Crippen

58.) “The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances: if there is any reaction, both are transformed.” – Carl Jung

59.) “Friends yesterday, lovers today, soulmates forever.” — Unknown

60.) “I love us for the way our eyes make love to each other’s souls.” – Christopher Poindexter

Other cute soulmate quotes and sayings

61.) “A soulmate is someone whom, when you meet, without thinking, without letting your neocortex play into the decision; you feel an instant familiarity, a sense of connection, a longing.” – Karen Salmansohn

62.) “To the world you may be one person, but to one person you may be the world.” – Heather Cortez

63.) “Yes, it was love at first sight. I feel that after all these years, I have finally found my soulmate.” – Barbara Hershey

64.) “A soulmate is someone to whom we feel profoundly connected, as though the communicating and communing that take place between us were not the product of intentional efforts, but rather a divine grace.” — Thomas Moore

65.) “When love runs soul deep, a kiss is no longer just a kiss. It is the place where heaven and earth meet.” – Daniel Nielsen

66.) “You don’t find love, it finds you. It’s got a little bit to do with destiny, fate, and what’s written in the stars.” ― Anaïs Nin

67.) “Today and always, beyond tomorrow, I need you beside me, always as my friend, lover and forever soul mate..” – Ritu Ghatourey

68.) “We meet our soulmates when we’re on our soul path.” – Karen M. Black

69.) “Our soulmate is the one who makes life come to life.” – Richard Bach

70.) “Sometimes you get lucky and find a soul that grooves with yours.” — Unknown

Which are your favorite soulmate quotes?

Love improves our lives in so many ways. When you find your soulmate, you’ll find someone who’s on board with everything about you and your purpose.

Connecting with your soulmate will shape other things that will happen in your life and the world around you. Hopefully, these soulmate quotes have helped you find the right words to share with your significant other.

Did you enjoy these soulmate quotes? Which of the quotes was your favorite? We would love to hear all about it in the comment section below.

The post 70 Soulmate Quotes and Sayings to put Love into Words appeared first on Everyday Power.

[misterrietveld]

So I’m continuing my contemporary romance novel binge. Damn, it’s addicting. I honestly went through so many, I feel like a trashcan. Spoilers below.

Black Rainbow, JJ McAvoy

Reminded me very much of HTGAWM and Suits. I appreciated the characters and dialogue and plot. Fun, easy read. 

It Ends With Us, Colleen Hoover

I’ll be honest, I started reading this book right smack in the middle. I’ve been going through a few novels, reading the first few chapters and nothing really interested me. So I just started reading in the middle. And thank god I did for this one because I don’t think I could stand the freaking heart break!! I mean I eventually read the entire thing but it’s good to prepare myself for what’s going to happen. It made me cry! That doesn’t happen often. But Lily’s complicated emotions and just the grief of it all really got to me. The anger and sadness and yearning. Lily was someone I came to respect. Her way of thinking and actions were inline with each other and her character just made sense to me (which can’t be said for the other protagonists for the books below...). 

The only thing I’d have to criticize about this novel is the title. I think it’s kind of misleading. I saw this story more as of Lily’s instead of Lily and Atlas’s. I’d really like to see a small companion piece about Lily and Atlas though, like them falling in love all over again, just because I wasn’t that invested in their love story here. 

November 9, Colleen Hoover

I liked this. Doesn’t hold a candle to It Ends With Us but I’m glad I picked this one after and not one of Hoover’s other books. The plot of this story really interested me and the story was constantly moving too. For the most part, I liked the characters too. Not much else to say about it but I think it’s a good read. Cheesy ending but eh, what’re you gonna do.

Maybe Someday ; Maybe Not ; Maybe Now, Colleen Hoover

And this is where my regard for Hoover starts falling lol. First off, I should’ve just stopped once I knew where this book was going... cheating!! I hate the story. It’s a story about emotional cheating!!! Which I think hurts more than ‘just sex’. Ugh, the worst thing is that I think I can relate to Sydney a lot too. She’s a likable character/person in that she’s pretty rational and doesn’t have ill will. But these characters were unbelievable; they’re playing with fire and they know it. It’s really not hard to NOT kiss someone.

I hate that Maggie broke up with Ridge. I mean, good for you, Maggie. But her doing that made it okay for Ridge to pick Sydney because there’s nothing holding him back for her now. He should’ve held himself back from her. I think the thing of it all is that the book tries so hard to show Sydney and Ridge are good people, and I almost believe it. BUT, if that were to happen in real life, I’d think they were the shittiest people ever. They’re hiding behind good intentions, but not really because they end up falling for each other. If I were Maggie, I would have been destroyed. Here’s someone you think you can trust and you tell each other everything. But reading through Ridge and Sydney’s conversation and finding out that’s not the case? God. If they/Ridge really had Maggie’s interests at heart, if he really fucking loved her, he should have been fucking honest from the start. 

I think Warren is fucking crazy, especially after reading Maybe Not, because talk about lack of boundaries and anger issues... But I have to give him some credit for giving Sydney and Ridge some shit about their fucked up relationship. Additionally, he points out to Sydney that she could make it easier on the lingering relationship with Maggie and Ridge in the sequel. 

Maybe Now: I’m gonna continue a point I made earlier about how the book tries so hard to make Ridge and Sydney look like good people, because this installment is so shameless. There’s a point in this sequel where it literally starts off ‘Someone on the outside might think Maggie is being selfish...’ What the fuck. I don’t think that at all. Like, I have no idea how anyone would think that. Maggie has a right to be angry, pissy, and the desire to do whatever the hell she wants. I was so pissed at Sydney and her general portrayal, like she’s the saving grace for Maggie and Ridge. It’s not the fact that she’s doing it, it’s the portrayal. Everyone eats it up. I think I just needed a character in this story that hated Sydney and Ridge and would call them out on their shit.

Slammed, Colleen Hoover

I didn’t even get to a third of the way before I gave up because I HATED the characters. They were so dumb. I skipped to the middle of the story to see if it was worth finishing and NOPE. I really am not a fan of the insta-love going on in Hoover’s stories. It was especially prominent in this book and I was super skeptical, and the relationship became serious really fast. They went on one date and they’re fucking talking about waiting for each other or sneaking around. And the part I skipped to made me so fucking angry. It was the scene when Will gives Eddie and Layken detention to talk about keeping his and Layken’s relationship a secret. 1) Eddie and Layken are being fucking infuriating because Will is trying to have a serious conversation and they’re fucking giggling. From where I left off, Layken knows about Will’s situation and should already know how serious Will is about keeping his job and should understand why he’s worried but she’s not encouraging Eddie to keep it quiet. 2) Will is a fucking idiot. He should know not to have fucking messed around with Layken if he’s going to be this scared about losing his job/Caulder. 3) They end up at her place carving pumpkins and then have a normal conversation like their relationship is a-okay... Like him exploding his story about Caulder automatically remedies their fight.

It’s really hard for me to read a story when the characters have no common sense or maturity. It’s disconcerting to see this as one of Hoover’s bestsellers. I chose this one over Hopeless because I read some reviews and their description of the problematic first meeting told me to avoid it. I thought Slammed would have a lot more depth but it just sounds like a lot of sob stories topped onto each other. And in no way am I looking down on people who have gone/are going through something similar, but in Slammed, I saw these sob stories with no interpersonal development. I didn’t understand how Layken and Will’s relationship developed so fast because there was nothing to see. Hoover summarizes Layken’s story about her father to Will. SUMMARIZES. No actual dialogue. I don’t understand why. That seems like a pretty important conversation to have if you’re gonna make them fall in love with each other.

Damn I only read a third of this story but I am so heated. I guess this makes me appreciate It Ends With Us more at least. I can’t believe it’s even the same author to be quite honest. I want to keep reading her books though, solely because of It Ends With Us. 

[marcusssanderson]

70 Soulmate Quotes and Sayings to put Love into Words

Our latest collection of soulmate quotes on Everyday Power Blog.

Your soulmate is someone who’s on board with who you are, your purpose on this earth and what you want to accomplish in life. It is the one person who inspires you to be a better person and whom you’ll always love no matter what.

Love is a significant part of life. It makes us better human beings and improves our lives. Love gives you the energy to face life along with the many challenges it brings.

Besides, when you have love inside of you, other people will benefit just as much as you do. You’ll be able to share it with others and positively impact their lives.

When you have had a bad day at work, your soulmate offers a safe cushion to land. They will also be a mirror for you and help you grow into a better person.

Connecting with your soulmate is another way to tap into your everyday power and greatly enhance your life. However, we sometimes run out of words to express how much love we have for our soulmates.

So to help you on that front, here are some beautiful soulmate quotes to put your feelings into words and make your relationship more satisfying.

Soulmate quotes and sayings to put love into words

1.) “We recognize a soulmate by the supreme level of comfort and security we feel with that person. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t issues that remain to be ironed out. Rather, it means we know intuitively that we can resolve issues with our soul mate without losing his or her love and respect.” — Linda Brady

2.) “True love is finding your soulmate in your best friend” ― Faye Hall

3.) “A soulmate is the one person whose love is powerful enough to motivate you to meet your soul, to do the emotional work of self-discovery, of awakening.”— Kenny Loggins

4.) “You know you’re in love when you can’t fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams.”— Dr. Seuss

5.) “The soulmate is what we aspire to and like to understand about ourself, is what we deem to be perfection, purity, and endless love.” – Sorin Cerin

6.) Our universe grants every soul a twin—a reflection of themselves—the kindred spirit – And no matter where they are or how far away they are from each other—even if they are in different dimensions, they will always find one another. This is destiny; this is love. – Julie Dillon

7.) A bond between souls is ancient – older than the planet. – Dianna Hardy

8.) You come to love not by finding the perfect person, but by seeing an imperfect person perfectly. – Sam Keen

9.) Have you ever felt really close to someone? So close that you can’t understand why you and the other person have two separate bodies, two separate skins? – Nancy Garden

10.) If I know what love is, it is because of you. – Herman Hesse

Soulmate quotes and sayings to help express your love

11.) “I feel like a part of my soul has loved you since the beginning of everything. Maybe we’re from the same star.” – Emery Allen

12.) “I want to be your soulmate, even if I don’t believe in them.” – Colleen Hoover

13.) “The minute I heard my first love story I started looking for you, not knowing how blind I was. Lovers don’t finally meet somewhere. They’re in each other all along.”— Rumi

14.) “The best love is the kind that awakens the soul; that makes us reach for more, that plants the fire in our hearts and brings peace to our minds. That’s what I hope to give you forever.” — The Notebook

15.) “All, everything that I understand, I only understand because I love.” — Leo Tolstoy

16.) “The best and most beautiful things in this world cannot be seen or even heard, but must be felt with the heart.” — Helen Keller

17.) “I swear I couldn’t love you more than I do right now, and yet I know I will tomorrow.” — Leo Christopher

18.) “Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.” — Lao Tzu

19.) I know I am in love with you because my reality is finally better than my dreams.

20.) If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day, so I never have to live without you. – Joan Powers

Soulmate quotes for him or her

21.) “In all the world, there is no heart for me like yours. In all the world, there is no love for you like mine.”— Maya Angelou

22.) “You’re the fire burning inside of me.” ― Kelvin O’Ralph

23.) “I look at you and see the rest of my life in front of my eyes.” — Unknown

24.) There is only happiness in life, to love and to be loved. –  George Sand

25.) Loving you never was an option. It was a necessity.  – Truth Devour

26.) When I look into your eyes, I know I have found the mirror of my soul.

27.) “I love you the way a drowning man loves air. And it would destroy me to have you just a little.” – Rae Carson

28.) “I never loved you any more than I do, right this second. And I’ll never love you any less than I do, right this second.” – Kami Garcia

29.) “I want everyone to meet you. You’re my favorite person of all time.” – Rainbow Rowell

30.) I seem to have loved you in numberless forms, numberless times… In life after life, in age after age, forever. –Tagore

Soulmate quotes and sayings to spice up your relationship

31.) “And in her smile I see something more beautiful than the stars.”

32.) “Before I met you, my life ran on sheer amusement. After I met you, my life ran on sheer compassion.” ― Heenashree Khandelwal

33.) “Love is but the discovery of ourselves in another, and the delight in the recognition.” – Alexander Smith

34.) “For it was not into my ear you whispered, but into my heart. It was not my lips you kissed, but my soul.” – Judy Garland

35.) The best things in life can never be kept; they must be given away. A Smile, a Kiss, and Love. – Robert Browning

36.) “Love is that condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.” ― Robert A. Heinlein

37.) “Some souls just understand each other upon meeting.” – N. R. Hart

38.) “Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind, And therefore is winged Cupid painted blind.” ― William Shakespeare

39.) I saw that you were perfect, and so I loved you. Then I saw that you were not perfect and I loved you even more. – Angelita Lim

40.) I love thee to the depth and breadth and height my soul can reach. – Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Beautiful soulmate quotes and sayings

41.) “Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same.”— Emily Brontë

42.) “A soul mate is not found. A soul mate is recognized.” – Vironika Tugaleva

43.) “What if you find your soul mate… at the wrong time?”― Lauren Kate

44.) “Soul mates are muses. The people in your life you despise, disrespect and desire the most.” – Coco J. Ginger

45.) “Soul mates may be linked, but fight to separate, causing wounds and confusion. They teach what no one else can.” – Donna Lynn Hope

46.) Giving someone a piece of your soul is better than giving a piece of your heart. Because souls are eternal. – Helen Boswell

47.) “Before you find your soul mate, you must first discover your soul.”― Charles F. Glassman

48.) Did you ever stop to think that even if I am a monster, I might be your soulmate anyway? – Julie Johnson

49.) Close your eyes for a while. The image that conjures is your soulmate. Don’t pause, rush and say what you feel. After all time and tide for none wait. – Neelam Saxena Chandra

50.) “And in the end, the love you take, is equal to the love you make.” — Paul McCartney

Soulmate quotes to help you put your thoughts and feelings into words

51.) “Your soulmate doesn’t just mean your husband or your boyfriend. I have friends in my life who I believe I was meant to meet and be a part of.” – Louise Nurding

52.) “A soul mate is…someone whose way of viewing life is not necessarily the same as yours but complements yours…there is not a compromise, there is a complement.” – Paul Robear

53.) “What’s the difference?” I asked him. “Between the love of your life, and your soulmate?” “One is a choice, and one is not. – Tarryn Fisher

54.) “People think a soul mate is your perfect fit, and that’s what everyone wants. But a true soulmate is a mirror, the person who shows you everything that is holding you back, the person who brings you to your own attention so you can change your life.”— Elizabeth Gilbert

55.) “A soulmate is someone who has locks that fit our keys, and keys to fit our locks.” ― Richard Bach

56.) “Carry me in your heart wherever you go I’m always here. You just have to look within.” – Jeremy Limn

57.) “As you awaken, you will come to understand that the journey to love isn’t about finding “The one” the journey is about becoming “The one”. –Creig Crippen

58.) “The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances: if there is any reaction, both are transformed.” – Carl Jung

59.) “Friends yesterday, lovers today, soulmates forever.” — Unknown

60.) “I love us for the way our eyes make love to each other’s souls.” – Christopher Poindexter

Other cute soulmate quotes and sayings

61.) “A soulmate is someone whom, when you meet, without thinking, without letting your neocortex play into the decision; you feel an instant familiarity, a sense of connection, a longing.” – Karen Salmansohn

62.) “To the world you may be one person, but to one person you may be the world.” – Heather Cortez

63.) “Yes, it was love at first sight. I feel that after all these years, I have finally found my soulmate.” – Barbara Hershey

64.) “A soulmate is someone to whom we feel profoundly connected, as though the communicating and communing that take place between us were not the product of intentional efforts, but rather a divine grace.” — Thomas Moore

65.) “When love runs soul deep, a kiss is no longer just a kiss. It is the place where heaven and earth meet.” – Daniel Nielsen

66.) “You don’t find love, it finds you. It’s got a little bit to do with destiny, fate, and what’s written in the stars.” ― Anaïs Nin

67.) “Today and always, beyond tomorrow, I need you beside me, always as my friend, lover and forever soul mate..” – Ritu Ghatourey

68.) “We meet our soulmates when we’re on our soul path.” – Karen M. Black

69.) “Our soulmate is the one who makes life come to life.” – Richard Bach

70.) “Sometimes you get lucky and find a soul that grooves with yours.” — Unknown

Which are your favorite soulmate quotes?

Love improves our lives in so many ways. When you find your soulmate, you’ll find someone who’s on board with everything about you and your purpose.

Connecting with your soulmate will shape other things that will happen in your life and the world around you. Hopefully, these quotes have helped you find the right words to share with your significant other.

Did you enjoy these soulmate quotes? Which of the quotes was your favorite? We would love to hear all about it in the comment section below.

The post 70 Soulmate Quotes and Sayings to put Love into Words appeared first on Everyday Power Blog.