Tuesday 23 July 2013

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Words/Topics That Will Make You NOT pick up a book

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week they suggest a title for a list and we attempt to answer it! 



This week it is:

Top Ten Words/Topics That Will Make You NOT pick up a book

Everyone has certain 'buzzwords' or topics that make you shy away from a book, sometimes before you've even finished reading the blurb. Find out what our triggers are after the jump:




Feli's 5 



Special Snowflake syndrome
Whether it is a 'I'm not like other girls' or 'I'm such a misunderstood creature' etc special snowflakes make me roll my eyes so hard it cannot be healthy. 

Weddings
Unless it's mentioned in a flashback that serves an actual point (e.g.: Kill Bill) I avoid books that revolve about a wedding or have a wedding as the end goal.

Cancer
Some books will handle it pretty well like Patrick Ness in A Monster Calls but if there is one thing I absolutely hate is when Cancer is used as a plot device. Just no.

Incest
I'm looking at you Cassie Clare. Real or not even mentions of incest makes me run the other way as fast as I can.

Autobiographies
They are always biased and a bit self-centred I find. Just not my cup of tea.


Caroline's 5

A Mysterious Secret

SO MANY blurbs end with "but when he/she discovers who he/she really is, will his/her terrible/mysterious secret tear them apart?" DUN DUN DUN. Or not. More like 'meh' actually. Or the sound of eyes rolling. Which would probably be kind of squishy and gross so maybe not that.

Love Triangles

Obviously this trope has been around a long time, but I think Twilight pushed it to breaking point, and then carried on going. 

Comparisons to Catcher in the Rye

No more rich whiny teenagers. Please. 

'my daddy' etc

You know those misery memoirs with the covers that have curly fonts and a blurry, over-exposed picture of a child looking to the distance? Well, I HATE THEM. 

An all-encompassing love story

There is nothing wrong with a good love story. Love is what makes the world go round after all (or keeps a ship in the sky, depending on who you're asking), but if I'm going to believe in a relationship, the characters have to be more than just foils for each other. They have to have interests, or dilemmas, or at least be able to speak intelligently about a topic other than the man/woman/alien they are in love with. 


So do we roll our eyes at the same things you do? Or have we hit on something that you actually find irresistible? Let us know in the comments! 

19 comments:

  1. "Special Snowflake Syndrome"! Love it... or rather I don't. I wish I thought of it.

    Love triangles was on my list too. They drive me bananas.

    My Top Ten

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The thing about love triangles is that they tend to be so unrealistic as well... I think of the things I forgot to add to the list is when EVERYONE in the book falls in love with the main lead. I just.. no.

      Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  2. I agree with you about cancer and incest. If it's contemporary YA, I generally want happy! And I really dislike autobiographies. As far as romance, I'm with you. I generally want romance in the book, but I generally don't read pure romance. Although I've been reading some contemporary YA lately that are pretty much focused on the relationship (like Anna and the French Kiss) and I've really enjoyed them. And love triangles are usually just plot devices and pointless, but if it's done well, I like them. ~Pam

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I totally agree about Anna and the French Kiss. It took me forever to finally pick it up because of the title but boy was I wrong! I think the thing with Stephenie Perkins is that the romance triggers and intense personal development. So in a way, it's not JUST about the romance.
      Love triangles can be interesting but unfortunately they're a bit overused in YA books. I think at the moment the only love triangle I've enjoyed is Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas.

      Delete
  3. I hadn't thought of that! The word "misunderstood" used in synopses makes me roll my eyes. After all what teenager doesn't feel misunderstood? Great lists!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Exactly! Let's not take it too far... thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  4. Great, funny list. I was weirded out that Clare "went there"--ugh so wrong! Snowflake, LOVE TRIANGLES are such cliches.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I remember knowing it was going to go there like halfway through and I was like... NO THANKS. I don't mind a love triangle if it's well done (e.g.: Throne of Glass) but man do they get boring fast!

      Thanks for commenting!

      Delete
  5. I HATE the statement: "I'm not like other girls." Bleh. Special snowflake syndrome is an amazing way to say it. "My daddy" books is also a hilarious. And just say no to incest. Great list! Thanks for stopping by mine!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I wish I could claim the term but I'm pretty sure I've read it somewhere else and it just stuck. Incest is the worst.
      Thanks for commenting!

      Delete
  6. Ughh I forgot about incest. NOTHING will make me go away from a book faster than incest as a topic! I just can't. I also totally agree with the misunderstood character and the mysterious secret to find out... BLAH!!! So sick of it... or maybe I just read too much!

    Thanks for stopping by My TTT

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. After a while, it can get a bit repetitive. And I honestly don't understand why someone would include incest in a book... I mean, if you're trying to be original/edgy, you're clearly going the wrong way.

      Thanks for commenting!

      Delete
  7. Love it: "special snowflake syndrome". So, so true! Same with "mysterious secret". While there are novels that have dealt with these aspects with a well-developed plot and characters, many others seem to have NOT.

    Great picks! Thank you for stopping by my TTT!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That's the thing, isn't it? I would actually read a book with these topics but if they're handled the right way. Unfortunately that doesn not seem to be the case most of the time...

      Thank you!

      Delete
  8. Special snowflake syndrome - I totally agree! And YA books are full of these. I also can't stand whiny rich teenagers, this is probably the biggest turn-off for me and I forgot to add it on my list.
    Thank you for stopping by on my blog earlier!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Glad to see you agree with our choices! Thanks for commenting :)

      Delete
  9. Yeah, I'll definitely avoid books about weddings just to not read all the wedding planning stuff.
    Incest books are an automatic turnoff and autobiographies too.
    Great list! :D

    My TTT

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. thank you! I thought I was alone on the wedding front but it's nice to see someone else has the same problem... thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  10. Wow I could have written this list (except for weddings those are eh for me). I agree about incest, love triangles, the memoir one, and the mysterious secret. Love triangles tend to just create conflict unnecessarily. They also stretch WAY too long.

    Thanks for stopping by!

    ReplyDelete