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I find it interesting that every person has their own preference
when it comes to the types of books they read. Some people love romances.
Others can’t stand them. Some people live for zombies and vampires, while
others prefer historical thrillers. And they have their own, personal reasons
for why they particularly enjoy these types of books. It’s fascinating, seeing
what other people like to read and why they like these ones over others.
For me, a certain few genres stand out as favourites for me.
I’m not the biggest fan of romances or supernatural books, but I love sci-fi,
fantasy, and thrillers, with the occasional contemporary or historical thrown
in on the side. For me, I think I am drawn to the expression of the impossible.
Magical things happening in fantasy. Strange gadgets giving people unusual
abilities in sci-fi. Dead-defying skills and feats in thrillers. All these
impossible situations laid out on the page and given their own reality in a
book.
But other people have other preferences, and chances are
that you like different books to me. So I want to know, what types of books do
you like to read and why? What genres don’t you enjoy reading? Do you like a
genre that very few other people read? Let me know in the comments!
I LOVE ALL THE YA GENRES!!! *throws confetti over head* Okay, but I definitely like contemporary less...I mean, some of my favouritest books ARE contemporaries, but I often find them underwhelming and far too angsty. I like me some delicious paranormal or epic fantasy. :') I like zombies but I've only read a few good ones. AND I LOVE RETELLINGS. I'd like to read more sci-fi too!! I tend to get stuck in a paranormal rut...but how can I not?!?! I love it so much. :')
ReplyDeleteI'm with you on angsty contemporaries. Some of them are super awesome, like The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B (which you put me onto by the way, so epic thanks to you). And others are just teen angst, high school drama and cliches. Which are great if you like them, but they're not for me. Not unless they've got something special to add. Retellings are the best though! I don't think I could ever get enough retellings in my life. (I'm writing one so...). I wonder what it is about retellings that makes us love them so very much? Most of the time when people rewrite stories it's a bad thing, but retellings are something else.
DeleteI'm also not a fan of romance! And also contemporary. FANTASY ALL THE WAY. I don't mind a good sci-fi or historical fiction now and then, though. I like to be transported to a completely different time and space. Thrillers I'm on the fence about -- I've read FABULOUS ones but YA thrillers tend to fall flat for me.
ReplyDeleteYay! Another person who doesn't like romances so much. I feel in the minority most of the time. It's hard to find a romance I actually enjoy, built on a bit more than love at first sight (generalising a bit here I know). YA thrillers, to me, have to overcome the problem of realism, because it's in the real world. There are some great ones, but I kind of feel that the age difference in adult ones quiets that voice at the back of my mind niggling about realism, I don't know how you feel. The thriller I'd like to see is an adult thriller written in the style of a YA. That would be just so awesome. Jason Bourne as fast past YA style? Yes please!
DeleteI'm a big fan of Historical Fiction. That's what I always say first though I do like fantasy, contemporary, mystery, sci-fi. YA is hard for me, too many silly things, but also a lot of good books. I go back and forth. lol I also like biographies.
ReplyDeleteI've read some amazing Historicals. It's a really great genre. I agree though contemporaries do have a lot of silly things. It's very easy to get into cliche high school student mode. Admittedly, there's plenty of cliches in fantasy and sci-fi, but with contemporaries it seems to be easier to fall into that rut. There are some amazing contemporaries of course, but it's difficult for me personally to find them. But then again, maybe I'm looking in the wrong place, who knows?
DeleteI'm honestly not a huge genre person. Almost every genre, though I can name one or two books that I liked from it, the vast majority of those I've read, I was not into. Fantasy, contemporary, historical, romance, even sci-fi-- the ideas that define "genre" are cool, but they aren't what make me enjoy a book.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, though, I do love thrillers. They tend to cover all the important bases-- lots of action, usually some good plot twists, sometimes a low-key romance, and often an element or two from one of the other genres.
Thrillers are pretty much the epitome of everything people say make up a great book, fast paced action, not too much romance (but a little for the people who really like it), and interesting concepts. I totally understand what you mean about not being a genre person. There are great books in all the genres. It's probably better to keep an open mind and read whatever looks interesting rather than being biased against books because of their genre. I have to admit, there are books I haven't picked up because their genre, and I probably should give them a shot anyway.
DeleteThis is a neat topic of discussion. ^ ^ I prefer speculative fiction primarily science fiction or fantasy. Sometimes I'll read the occasional thriller. Rarely do I read contemporaries, historicals, or romances. I recently read a contemporary. It was fine, but it doesn't capture my attention like sci-fi, fantasy, or thrillers do. I'm more of a gunfight and magic and epic quests kind of girl than everyday drama and bonnets. XD
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I guess there's just so much drama in real life that reading it in contemporaries makes it difficult to really capture the attention much. But my opinion has always been, why waste time reading about what could happen, when you could dream about the impossibilities. At least, that's always been my experience. Your reading tastes and mine sound super similar!
DeleteI'm usually willing to read almost anything, but there are some exceptions: I basically refuse to read Christian Fiction, Historical Romance, and Horror. The first two are because otherwise I would rip out my eyeballs and that last one is just because I haven't had any good enough recommendations to make it worth my while. Sci-fi and fantasy are among my favorites! :)
ReplyDeleteChristian Fiction is always a difficult one I think. Most of the books I've read that would fall into that category seem to think that Christian fiction should be a heaping serve of sermon with a dash of story on the side, rather than the other way around. It's difficult to find good ones, I will admit. Sci-fi and fantasy are pretty amazing though!
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